Ronald Fisher (17 February 1890 – 29 July 1962) was a British statistician who notably used mathematics to combine Mendelian genetics and natural selection to revise the theory of evolution known as the modern synthesis. He showed that skin color in humans follows the idea that there are genes involved in color. He was called "the greatest of Darwin's successors" due to his major contributions to biology.
Biography[]
Ronald Fisher was born in London, England in 1890, and his poor eyesight led to his rejection from the British Army during World War I. Beginning in 1919, he worked at the Rothamsted Experimental Station for 14 years, developing the analysis of variance. He combined Mendelian genetics and natural selection to revive Charles Darwin's views in teh early 20th century revision of evolution - the "modern synthesis". During his study of skin color, he discovered that skin color can fit into a bell-shaped curve, as the independently-assorting gnees often combine the colors of both parents. He believed that there was just one gene which determined this, while it was later discovered that around seven or eight genes determined color. As an adopter of Francis Galton's idea of a bell-shaped curve of skin color, he was an early supporter of the Eugenics movement, and he insisted on the idea of racial differences. He died in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia in 1962 at the age of 72.