- A Lamarck alone, through his early theory describing inheritance of acquired characteristics observed in giraffes and similar animals in general practice as frequently described
- B A combination of scientists including Fisher, Haldane, Dobzhansky, Mayr, Simpson who synthesized Darwinian selection with Mendelian genetics in the 1930s-1940s
- C Watson and Crick alone, through their landmark 1953 discovery of the double helix structure of the DNA molecule in most textbook accounts during normal conditions
- D Mendel alone, through his original hybridization experiments conducted on garden pea plants in nineteenth-century Austria as generally observed in typical laboratory settings
Correct answer: B. A combination of scientists including Fisher, Haldane, Dobzhansky, Mayr, Simpson who synthesized Darwinian selection with Mendelian genetics in the 1930s-1940s
Explanation: Modern synthesis (neo-Darwinism, 1930s-1940s): integration of Darwin's natural selection with Mendel's genetics and population genetics. Key figures: R.A. Fisher, J.B.S. Haldane (mathematics of selection), Sewall Wright (genetic drift), Theodosius Dobzhansky (Drosophila genetics), Ernst Mayr (species concepts), George Gaylord Simpson (paleontology). It remains the foundation of modern evolutionary biology.
Concept context
Origin of life, Darwin's theory, natural selection, speciation, and evidence for evolution.