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The Linnean Society of London is a society for the study of, and the dissemination of information concerning, natural history and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature collections and publishes academic journals and books on plant and animal biology. The society also awards a number of prestigious medals and prizes for achievement. A product of the 18th century enlightenment, the society is historically important as the venue for the first public presentation of the Theory of Evolution. ==History== The Linnean Society was founded in 1788 by botanist Sir James Edward Smith. The society derives its name from the Swedish naturalist Carolus Linnaeus, who was known as Carl von Linné after his ennoblement (hence the spelling ''Linnean'', not "Linnaean"). It is the oldest surviving natural history society in the world.〔Gage A.T. and Stearn W.T. (1988) ''A Bicentenary History of the Linnean Society of London'', Linnean Society of London, p. 2〕 Throughout its history the society has been a non-political and non-sectarian institution, existing solely for the furtherance of natural history.〔Gage A.T. and Stearn W.T. (1988) ''A Bicentenary History of the Linnean Society of London'', Linnean Society of London, p. 148〕 The society has numbered many prominent scientists amongst its fellows. One such was the botanist Robert Brown, who was president (1849-1853); he named the cell nucleus and discovered Brownian motion. In 1854 Charles Darwin was elected a fellow; he is undoubtedly the most illustrious scientist ever to appear on the membership rolls of the society.〔Gage A.T. and Stearn W.T. (1988) ''A Bicentenary History of the Linnean Society of London'', Linnean Society of London, p. 53〕 Since 1857 the Society has been based at Burlington House, Piccadilly, London; an address it shares with a number of other learned societies: the Geological Society of London, the Royal Astronomical Society, the Society of Antiquaries of London and the Royal Society of Chemistry.〔Gage A.T. and Stearn W.T. (1988) ''A Bicentenary History of the Linnean Society of London'', Linnean Society of London, p. 51〕 The first public exposition of the 'Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection', arguably the greatest single leap of progress made in biology, was presented to a meeting of the Linnean Society on 1 July 1858. At this meeting a joint presentation of papers by Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace was made, sponsored by Joseph Hooker and Charles Lyell as neither author could be present. 〔Cohen, I.B. (1985) ''Revolution in Science'', Harvard University Press, 1985, pp. 288-289〕 In 1904 the society experienced the novelty of electing women fellows; this followed a number of years of campaigning by the botanist Marian Farquharson. Whilst the society's council was reluctant to admit women, the fellows were much less so, with only 17% voting against the proposal. One of the first to benefit from this was Annie Lorrain Smith, a lichenologist and mycologist, formally admitted on 19 January 1905.〔Gage A.T. and Stearn W.T. (1988) ''A Bicentenary History of the Linnean Society of London'', Linnean Society of London, pp. 88-93〕 The society's connection with evolution remained strong into the 20th century. Sir Edward Poulton, who was president 1912-1916, was a great defender of natural selection and was the first biologist to recognise the importance of frequency-dependent selection.〔Gage A.T. and Stearn W.T. (1988) ''A Bicentenary History of the Linnean Society of London'', Linnean Society of London, p. 95〕〔Poulton, E. B. 1884. Notes upon, or suggested by, the colours, markings and protective attitudes of certain lepidopterous larvae and pupae, and of a phytophagous hymenopterous larva. Transactions of the Entomological Society of London 1884: 27–60.〕 The first female president of the society was Irene Manton (1973 to 1976), who pioneered the biological use of electron microscopy. Her work revealed the structure of the flagellum and cilia, which are central to many systems of celluar motility.〔(Biography of Irene Manton sponsored by the Linnean Society )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Linnean Society of London」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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