Final answer:
Evolution is a slow, incremental process that can't be observed over short time spans, but has extensive evidence supporting it, such as fossils and genetics. It operates on populations, not individuals, and though it's widely accepted in the scientific community, misconceptions persist.
Step-by-step explanation:
Evolution operates too slowly to be scientifically observed in the short term. Evolution works incrementally through random mutations, with advantageous traits being naturally selected for future generations, while disadvantageous ones are weeded out. Despite this gradual process, the evidence for evolution is extensive, including the fossil record and shared DNA sequences. It is essential to understand that evolution is not a process that occurs in individuals but rather in populations over many generations, and it does not seek to explain the origin of life, but how life has diversified since its onset.
Although natural selection may act on an individual within a single generation, it can take thousands to millions of years for the genotype of an entire species to evolve. This lengthy process has led to the immense diversity of life forms on Earth, as documented by Darwin and subsequent scientists. This extensive scientific consensus supports evolution, while misconceptions arise from misinterpretation of 'theory' in science, leading to unfounded challenges to its teaching and acceptance.