Final answer:
Darwin relied on several disciplines, including biology, geology, and economics, to form his ideas about evolution. He was influenced by Lamarck, Lyell, and Malthus, as well as his observations of artificial selection.
Step-by-step explanation:
Darwin relied on several disciplines to form his own ideas about evolution. These disciplines include biology, geology, paleontology, and economics.
In biology, Darwin was influenced by other scientists such as Lamarck, who proposed the concept of inheritance of acquired characteristics.
In geology and paleontology, Darwin was influenced by the work of Charles Lyell, who showed that the Earth was much older than previously believed, and that the Earth's surface has changed over time. This influenced Darwin's idea that species can change over long periods of time.
In economics, Darwin was influenced by the work of Thomas Malthus, who proposed that populations have a tendency to grow faster than the resources available to support them. Darwin applied this idea to the natural world, proposing that individuals with advantageous traits were more likely to survive and reproduce, while those with less advantageous traits were less likely to survive.
In addition to these disciplines, Darwin was also influenced by his observations of artificial selection in plants and animals, where humans selectively breed individuals with desired traits. This led Darwin to propose that similar processes could occur in the natural world, leading to the evolution of new species.