The origin of On The Origin of Species: Darwin's research notes scribbled in 730 books from his own library go online
Avid reader: Charles Darwin scrawled margin notes in many of the books in his personal libraryThey are the clues that paved the way for our best theory to explain the origins and diversity of life on Earth.
The notes scribbled by Charles Darwin on the pages and in the margins of his own personal library have been made available online for the first time.
Darwin had 1,480 books in his library, of which 730 contain a wealth of scrawled notes, providing clues to his thoughts as he wrote On The Origin Of Species.
For example, his friend Charles Lyell wrote in his famous Principles Of Geology that there were definite limits to the variation of species.Darwin wrote alongside this: 'If this were true adios theory.'
Academics hope the digitisation project will allow everyone to retrace how Darwin used reading to advance science.
Anne Jarvis, librarian at Cambridge University, where most of the collection is held, said: 'The Darwin collections are among the most important and popular held within Cambridge University library.
'While there has been much focus on his manuscripts and correspondence, his library hasn't always received the attention it deserves - for it is as he engaged with the ideas and theories of others that his own thinking evolved.'
Because Darwin's evolutionary theory covered so many aspects of nature, reading served him as a primary source of evidence and ideas.
He once complained that he had become a 'machine for grinding general laws out of large collections of facts'.
Leather bound: Books from Charles Darwin's library, held at the Cambridge University library
Feverish scrawl: Notes made by Darwin on the final page of Volume 2 of Lyell's Principles of Geology (5th edition, 1837)Although the majority of the books are scientific, some are humanities texts on subjects that Darwin's insights transformed into scientific topics.
The series of transcriptions accompanying each page allows everyone to see which passages Darwin found relevant to his work, stimulated his thinking, or just annoyed him.
More...
- Did Mars have an ancient ocean? Remarkable images show teardrop-shaped islands which could have once been deep underwater
- Alas poor William, I knew him: Scientists in bid to dig up the grave of Shakespeare to work out how he died
- Humans really DO have a sixth sense... that lets us detect magnetic fields (and we're not aware we have it)
The information is indexed so people can search for topics and ideas relevant to their own interests and work.
Digital age: A screenshot of Darwin's Library, which can be found on the Biodiversity Heritage Library website
Scientific artefacts: Books from Charles Darwin's library
Ruminations: Notes by Charles Darwin on a page from Hooker's Introductory essay to the flora of New ZealandThe digitisation project was a joint effort involving Cambridge, the Darwin Manuscripts Project at the American Museum of Natural History, the Natural History Museum and the Biodiversity Heritage Library.
It was jointly sponsored by the Joint Information Systems Committee and National Endowment of the Humanities through a Transatlantic Digitis! ation Co llaboration Grant.
The first phase of this project has just been completed, with 330 of the most heavily annotated books launched online at the Biodiversity Heritage Library at www.biodiversitylibrary.org/collection/darwinlibrary
Comments