Final answer:
Charles Darwin is often given credit with the idea of natural selection. He and Alfred Russel Wallace both independently conceived the mechanism of natural selection in the mid-nineteenth century. Natural selection is the process where beneficial traits become more common in a population over time.
Step-by-step explanation:
Charles Darwin is often given credit with the idea of natural selection. Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace both independently conceived the mechanism of natural selection in the mid-nineteenth century. They observed similar patterns in other organisms and developed the same explanation for how and why such changes could take place. Natural selection is the process where traits that are beneficial for survival become more common in a population over time.