Darwin's theory of evolution, published in 1859, came out two centuries after Newton's Principia (1687), despite being conceptually simpler, because evolutionary evidence is cumulative and retrospective while gravitational predictions can be immediately verified, and because natural selection lacked an experimental test comparable to measuring the moon's orbital period.
factualpending
Evidence Quote
“The evidence for natural selection is overwhelming in a certain sense, but it's cumulative and retrospective, whereas Newton can just say, 'Here are my equations.'”
Created: 8/12/2026, 6:05:48 PM
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