BROOKS, William Keith.

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The Law of Heredity. First edition of this defence of Darwinism, addressing problems arising from the pangenesis hypothesis and demonstrating the issues with Lamarck's and Galton's counter-theories. It was a notable chapter in the development of the modern synthesis and the biological species concept."Over the course of his career, Brooks (1848-1908) staunchly defended Darwinism, arguing for the centrality of natural selection in evolutionary theory at a time when alternative theories, such as neo-Lamarckism, grew prominent in American biology... In modifying and developing Darwin's pangenesis, Brooks proposed a new theory of heredity that sought to avoid the pitfalls of Darwin's hypothesis. In so doing he strengthened Darwin's theory of natural selection by undermining arguments for the inheritance of acquired characteristics" (Nash, p. 158).

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