The Shadow of Great Britain

But no one is perfect, and Hewell not only openly refuted Lair’s theory, but also voiced strong criticism: ”Uniformitarianism is not a scientific conclusion, but a metaphysical premise.”

This almost fundamentally negated Lair’s research findings.

More strangely, although neither Oxford nor Cambridge formally evaluated Lair’s theory, students from these two universities often found that whenever they discussed Lair’s works, most professors would choose to leave the room.

And such changes were quietly taking place in academic circles and government departments.

As a free country, Britain certainly allows different voices to exist. But unfortunately, the price of freely expressing your opinion is: no key academic positions, no chance to lead interpretation frameworks, and your theories will not be cited in any public occasions.

If you can withstand these, then naturally you can say whatever you want.

Had it not been for Hewell and others’ unfavorable view of Lair, the position of secretary of the Royal Geographical Society would never have fallen to Darwin’s head.

After all, no matter how hard 28-year-old Darwin tries, at least for now, neither his qualifications nor academic achievements can temporarily compare with the thriving Lair.

Just publishing a single ”Principles of Geology” had already worn out such a renowned geologist like Lair.

What if Darwin suddenly produced an ”Origin of Species” at this time...

Arthur couldn’t even begin to imagine the turmoil it would cause then.

Darwin being removed from Cambridge University would definitely be a certainty, the Royal Society and Linnaean Society would probably reconsider his membership application, and the secretary position at the Royal Geographical Society would absolutely be doomed. Although the University of London would most likely not withdraw its teaching offer to Darwin, since they have always been about challenging the majority, Darwin’s little storm wouldn’t make a difference, but...

Arthur held his forehead, his head ached at the thought of this.

He certainly knew that Darwin’s theory would inevitably be accepted in the future, but being correct in the future does not mean being correct now; science pursues truth, but the general public does not—they listen to whichever side speaks louder.

And right now, their side’s voice is obviously not as loud as the religious community.

Not to mention, Darwin’s theory covers such a broad range that it would not only anger the National Church but also cause Catholicism, Eastern Orthodox, Islam, Judaism, and many others to spit at him.

Moreover, even within the scientific community, there are bound to be opposing forces.

Setting aside other matters, speaking of Arthur’s mentor in electromagnetism, Mr. Michael Faraday, it is very likely that he wouldn’t accept Darwin’s theory.

Because Faraday was not only a devout believer but also belonged to the Sandman Sect of the Scottish Presbyterian Church.

This sect extremely emphasized the authority of the original text of the Bible, refused to swear allegiance to secular governments, prohibited followers from engaging in commercial speculation or accumulating personal wealth, and required followers to completely separate their faith from secular achievements.

Faraday’s past refusal of government honors was largely due to his religious beliefs, and he spent his life prioritizing experiments because he believed that science’s mission is to discover natural laws, not to infer ultimate causes or historical narratives, as human reason is not authorized by God to deduce the entire process of creation.

If quoted in Faraday’s original words, it would be: ”All speculations separated from experiments are maladies of reason.”

If following the grading approach of a mathematics exam, it would be like trying to score you when you just write ”can be obtained through observation” without providing any derivation process.

Based on Arthur’s understanding of Faraday, this kind and generous scientist certainly would not criticize Darwin, but expecting him to support Darwin? That would be impossible. Furthermore, since this was a divergence in their research ideologies, there wasn’t any room for discussion.

Unless Darwin could produce irrefutable, reproducible experimental evidence.

But unfortunately, Arthur does actually know of an experiment that can be reproduced.

Except, he hasn’t yet made up his mind to gamble his position on the Police Commissioner Committee over a few peas.

In other words, even though this is a new college entrance exam, he has already gotten into a 985-ranked university, unless the major is not satisfactory, why would he retake the exam?

He quirishly eyed Darwin’s increasingly sparse head and suddenly asked, ”Charles, your idea isn’t bad, but you know, even from a purely scientific standpoint, your evidence is still insufficient.”

Eld also kindly advised him: ”Moreover, you’re about to get married. Your cousin, or rather your fiancée, Miss Emma Wedgwood is still waiting for you in Stafford, don’t let her worry too much. You should know, she is a noble lady of the Wedgwood family. Focus on making money for now, aim to buy a befitting marital home in London first.”

Upon hearing this, Darwin fell into silence, just as his friends thought he had finally come to terms, Darwin suddenly said, ”In fact, I... I already disclosed my views on species evolution to Emma last year.”

Hearing this, the friends were dumbfounded, and Eld almost spat his drink onto Darwin’s face.