first proposed by [[Charles Darwin]] and Alfred Russel Wallace, by which organisms with favorable traits are more likely to survive and reproduce than those lacking those traits or possessing unfavorable traits. Over time this mechanism might allow those favorable traits which are inheritable to become more common. This selection process is in response to forces in the natural world, as opposed to [[artificial selection]], whereby selection is made by a human being, such as a farmer selecting his breeding stock or variety of [[plant]]. | first proposed by [[Charles Darwin]] and Alfred Russel Wallace, by which organisms with favorable traits are more likely to survive and reproduce than those lacking those traits or possessing unfavorable traits. Over time this mechanism might allow those favorable traits which are inheritable to become more common. This selection process is in response to forces in the natural world, as opposed to [[artificial selection]], whereby selection is made by a human being, such as a farmer selecting his breeding stock or variety of [[plant]]. |