Wednesday Wisdom

Alfred Russel Wallace was born on January 8, 1823, in the town of Usk, Monmouthshire Wales which is located on the English border. He was born of Welch and Scottish decent, a claimed to be a relative of Scottish freedom fighter William Wallace. He came from a modest family and therefore he received limited formal education, he was a autodidact meaning he was largely self-teaching himself in various scientific disciplines. Wallace was fascinated by the natural world from an early age and worked in a variety of jobs, including as a land surveyor and a schoolteacher. These experiences allowed him to travel and study the natural environment, laying the groundwork for his later explorations and scientific insights.

Inspired by Charles Darwin’s book The Voyage of the Beagle, in 1848, Wallace embarked on his first major expedition to the Amazon River basin with fellow naturalist Henry Walter Bates. While the journey provided valuable observations, Wallace lost most of his specimens when his ship caught fire on his return voyage in 1852. Undeterred, Wallace set out on another journey to Southeast Asia in 1854, where he spent eight years exploring the Malay Archipelago which was then known as the East Indies and is now Malaysia and Indonesia. This region became the focal point of his research as he noted the various animal species and fauna and how they would differentiate from island to island.

What he produced

Wallace’s keen observations of geographical species distribution and variation led him to hypothesize that species evolve over time due to environmental pressures. In 1858, while in the Malay Archipelago, he wrote an essay outlining his theory of natural selection and sent it to Charles Darwin. Darwin had been working on a similar theory of evolution since his voyage through the Galapagos islands for past two decades. After receiving the letter with the same conclusion from a man 14-years younger who, was not connected to the English intellectual and scientific community, Darwin was spurred to accelerate his writing and publish the On the Origin of Species in 1859. The scientific community recognized both Wallace and Darwin as co-developers of the theory of natural selection. However, Darwin's On the Origin of Species became more widely known, he has been mostly credited as the originator of modern evolution and natural selection theory over the course of history. Wallace, who continued to contribute to the field of natural biology even used the term “Darwinism” in his paper The Malay Archipelago, the land of Orang-Utan and the Bird of Paradise. His book was widely published and accepted as a significant achievement in 19th century science even though by 1869, evolution and “Darwinism” were well known.

In his trips and research, Wallace had discovered a distinct boundary in the distribution of species between the islands of Bali and Lombok. This boundary, later called the “Wallace Line”, marks a division between the Asia and Australasia, demonstrating how geographical barriers influence the distribution of species. “The Wallace Line” illustrates how geographic isolation drives the evolution of species by limiting gene flow between populations. This unmarked line between islands is quite extraordinary in that it’s not far in distance, but the water is quite deep compared to other island channels and acts as a wall dividing the evolution of species. To the west of the line, the islands like Borneo, Bali, and Sumatra share species with mainland Asia such as elephants, tigers, and rhinoceroses. To the east on islands like New Guinea and Australia) marsupials, such as kangaroos and wombats, dominate, along with species of birds and lizards like Komodo dragon which do not exist in Asia.

The presence of this distinct boundary suggests that for millions of years, the animals and fauna of Asia and Australia evolved separately, shaped by different environmental pressures and ecosystems. The animals on either side of the Wallace Line adapted to their unique habitats, which led to the development of very different species even though the regions are geographically close. What Wallace identified is a line that identifies the role of continental drift, sea-level changes, and geographic isolation in shaping the biodiversity of Earth.

While Wallace may have been forgotten for his role in evolution, he is remembered as the father of biogeography and in explaining how evolution worked in diverse or isolated areas of the world. He was also finally recognized by the scientistic and intellectual community when he Royal Society’s Copley Medal which is the oldest and most prestigious scientific award in the world, first awarded by the Royal Society of London. Although Charles Darwin and Wallace were scientific rivals, Darwin recognized Wallace’s contributions and was instrumental in getting his friend Albert the due recognition and aa pension for his work to the scientific community and for England.

2024-Why you should care

“The Wallace Line” provides a stark example of how geographic barriers shape animal evolution, leading to distinct species on either side of the line. For humans, it represents a challenge that was eventually overcome with technology and migration, allowing early humans to colonize new territories. While animals were constrained by the physical environment, human evolution was increasingly shaped by cultural and technological factors that allowed our species to transcend the natural barriers that shaped the evolution of other organisms. Modern humans (Homo sapiens) were more advanced in terms of technology and navigational skills. Around 50,000 years ago, early modern humans were able to cross “the Wallace Line” using primitive boats and rafts. This migration led to the settlement of Australia and the development of distinct human populations such as the Indigenous Australians.

Unlike the world of animals and plants, humans were able to cross the “Wallace Line”. This explains the metaphysical and logical question of who we are as a human species. From southeast Asia to Australia to the rest of the world, we are one common species of humanity.

As demonstrated in Charles Darwin's treatment of his "frenemy" with the utmost ethical consideration, perhaps kindness, grace, and empathy are far greater treasures than fame or fortune.

And now you know...

Thank you, Dad, for the gift of curiosity.

Philosophy is the art of thinking, the building block of progress that shapes critical thinking across economics, ethics, religion, and science.

METAPHYSICS: Literally, the term metaphysics means ‘beyond the physical.’ Typically, this is the branch that most people think of when they picture philosophy. In metaphysics, the goal is to answer the what and how questions in life. Who are we, and what are time and space?

LOGIC: The study of reasoning. Much like metaphysics, understanding logic helps to understand and appreciate how we perceive the rest of our world. More than that, it provides a foundation for which to build and interpret arguments and analyses.

ETHICS: The study of morality, right and wrong, good and evil. Ethics tackles difficult conversations by adding weight to actions and decisions. Politics takes ethics to a larger scale, applying it to a group (or groups) of people. Political philosophers study political governments, laws, justice, authority, rights, liberty, ethics, and much more.

AESTHETICS: What is beautiful? Philosophers try to understand, qualify, and quantify what makes art what it is. Aesthetics also takes a deeper look at the artwork itself, trying to understand the meaning behind it, both art as a whole and art on an individual level. A question an aesthetics philosopher would seek to address is whether or not beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder.

EPISTEMOLOGY: This is the study and understanding of knowledge. The main question is how do we know? We can question the limitations of logic, how comprehension works, and the ability (or perception) to be certain.