Austin Fontaine 
Megan Novelli One of the things that interested me the most about the recent chapter was the life of Charles Darwin and his contribution to Psychology. I have studied Darwin’s theory since elementary school but after re-visiting it I have been able to understand how influential his theory truly was. The first thing that I noticed was that Charles Darwin did not come up with the theory completely by himself. Evolution had been a thing discussed before his time; Darwin was the first to approach evolution in the way that he did.
Something else that struck me was that Darwin believed in God which growing up I came to conclusion that if you do believe in evolution then you cannot believe in God. The last major thing that I took from his life was the power that a furnished idea can have on a multitude. Darwin realized how challenging his theories were and had no intention on publishing him during his lifetime. Even after his work was published he had another man to stand in his place defending it.
From all of this I have been reminded of the importance of historical theories and events. Every “new idea” comes from the ideas of the past. The mistakes that our ancestors have made and the ideas that they have developed have helped us discover what we have today. It is also important for us to realize that today, we are making history for future generations and that the progress as and the mistakes (no matter how insignificant or incorrect they seem) will shape the future. Lastly, simple ideas can change how people view the world and it is our duty to make sure that we handle them carefully. All of this is really simple but at the same thing very complex. It is good to be reminded that the work that we accomplish now will be a stepping stone on which generations will build upon. It gives the definition of significant a whole new meaning for me.
Michelle Nix
11:48 pm, 10.03.10
I like the point you made about us making history for the future. I think sometimes we get too caught up in the little details that we forget the big picture. The theories we uncover and develop now will affect the big picture of psychology 25 years, 50 years, and 100 years from now. While we look to the future, like you said, we also must remember the past. I always liked the concept that you can’t know where you’re going unless you know where you have been. There are so many theories that have gotten us to the point we are at today and it is important we remember that.
Brandon Schmermund
6:16 pm, 10.04.10
I also like the point that you made about making our own history. It does seem like a simple idea but we do forget it often. It is good to know that whatever we accomplish, as insignificant as it may seem, it will help those in the future development further understanding.