What Is Meant by Natural Selection

What is meant by Natural Selection?
The term 'natural selection' means a natural process resulting in the evolution of organism’s best and produces more offspring
What is survival of the fittest?
"Survival of the fittest". That is the bit that everyone remembers about natural selection. But what does it mean?
The world inhabited by living things is very harsh. They have to compete for everything such as light, food, shelter and mates. All this and they have to avoid getting eaten!
Only the best suited will survive long enough to reproduce, and so pass on their genes to the next generation.
Organisms try to ensure that their offspring have advantages in survival. Many strategies are used to ensure this; some produce huge numbers of them so that at least a few will survive, others try to protect and shelter them for a long time - and care for them through school!

What is meant by Evolution?
Evolution is the change in the genetic material of a population of organisms from one generation to the next. Though the changes produced in any one generation are small, differences accumulate (gather together) with each generation and can, over time, cause substantial changes in the organisms. This process can culminate in the emergence of new species. Indeed, the similarities between organisms suggest that all known species are descended from a common ancestor (or ancestral gene pool) through this process of gradual divergence
Why did it take so long Darwin’s ideas to be accepted?
When young he was a regular churchgoer and he knew that his theory would cause outrage. His wife was far more religious than he was; he didn't want to upset her either. His hand was forced when he realised that Alfred Wallace was about to publish a broadly similar theory.

All across the English speaking world his ideas shocked the Establishment especially in the universities where most of the senior posts were occupied by Christian believers. His book "On the Origin of Species" quickly...