Francis Galton

[[File:Francis Galton 1850s.jpg|thumb|165px|Galton]]{{evolution}}
'''Sir Francis Galton''' {{lived|1822|1911}} was a [[United Kingdom|British]] polymath, [[evolution]]ary theorist, explorer, inventor, [[author]], perhaps the most important person in [[statistics]] of all time … and the granddaddy of [[eugenics]]. He was the half-cousin of [[Charles Darwin]].

==Eugenics and hereditarianism==
{{main|1=Eugenics|3=Hereditarianism}}
Unlike many other [[Social Darwinism|Social Darwinist]] thinkers (such as [[Herbert Spencer]]), Galton staunchly opposed [[Lamarck]]ian evolution. Darwin's ''[[On the Origin of Species]]'', published in 1859, inspired Galton to apply [[natural selection]] to humans<ref group=note>Which would, of course, make it no longer natural</ref> and then to extend that argument to support the use of artificial selection, or "[[eugenics]]", on the human population.  However, his [[hereditarian]] views seemed to have taken shape prior to this point, especially during his voyages to south-western [[Africa]] (in present-day Namibia) in the early 1850s. Galton conducted ethnographic research there and began to develop some of his early [[psychological]] theories. This experience seems to have provided much of the basis of his works espousing [[scientific racism]], which were fairly extreme even by the standards of Victorian England.<ref>Raymond E. Fancher. [http://test.scripts.psu.edu/users/x/u/xuy10/Teaching/2006Fall602A/Galton%20in%20Africa%20(Francher,%201982).pdf Galton in Africa.] ''American Psychologist'', Jun. 1982</ref> He published his first book-length work on heredity, ''Hereditary Genius'', in 1869.<ref>[http://galton.org/books/hereditary-genius/ ''Hereditary Genius: An Inquiry into Its Laws and Consequences'' (2<sup>nd</sup> ed.) hosted at galton.org]</ref> The book included hundreds of subjects' scores on [[mathematical]] and civil-service tests as well as the lineages of the subjects. Galton argued that "genius" was primarily inherited — based on his observations on  the [[normal]] distribution of the scores and on the closeness of "great" men within their family trees. He coined the term "eugenics" in 1883 with his book ''Inquiries into Human Faculty and Its Development'', which further developed his study of individual differences in psychological traits.<ref>[http://galton.org/books/human-faculty/ ''Inquiries into Human Faculty and Its Development'' (2<sup>nd</sup> ed.) hosted at galton.org]</ref> He pioneered the use of [[twin study|twin studies]] in his research on heredity, a method which behavioral [[genetics | geneticists]] continue to use today.<ref>Burbridge, D. [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11700679 Francis Galton on Twins, Heredity, and Social Class.] Br J Hist Sci. 2001 Sep;34(122 Pt 3):323-40.</ref>

Curiously, despite his eugenicist work in Victorian England, Galton was actually a ''pro''-[[Jew|semite]], stating that the persecution that Jews have historically faced resulted in a race "suited to meet hard conditions".<ref>[http://www.whatwemaybe.org/txt/txt0001/Galton.Francis.1910.Eugenics-and-the-Jew.reprint.pdf Eugenics and the Jew], Francis Galton, 1910</ref> Surprisingly, he opposed [[colonialism]] in Africa… because it had the wrong climate for Anglo-Saxons. Apparently, sunshine and warm weather are like poison to the British.{{efn|That would explain why the British thought [[Australia]] was the perfect place to send their criminals. Of course, given their sensitivity to sunburn, it's not too far off to say sunshine is poison to the British.}} Instead, he suggested that [[Europe]] help the ''[[Chinese]]'' expand and displace the local Africans, having rather… ''positive'' views of the Chinese.<ref>[http://galton.org/letters/africa-for-chinese/AfricaForTheChinese.htm Africa For The Chinese], Francis Galton, 1873</ref>
This just goes to show that the idea behind "[[I'm not prejudiced, but...|I'm not a racist because]] I think the Chinese are smarter than whites" is not a modern invention.

==Other contributions==
*In his early days, he was known mostly as an inventor of what were considered trivial diversions such as the Galton whistle, a dog-whistle type device he used to test the range of human audition.<ref>[http://www.scienceandsociety.co.uk/results.asp?image=10317352&screenwidth=1366 Galton's Whistle, c. 1900], Science and Society Picture Library</ref> Also invented a plinko-like device to demonstrate the 
Gaussian
 [[Normal distribution|Normal Distribution]].
*In his studies of [[biology]] and psychology, Galton first conceived of or created many of the basic elements of [[statistics]] such as the correlation coefficient,<ref>Stephen M. Stigler. [http://www.jstor.org/pss/2245329 Francis Galton's Account of the Invention of Correlation.] ''Statistical Sciences'', Vol. 4, No. 2, May, 1989</ref> standard deviation, and 
reversion toward mediocrity
 [[regression to the mean]].<ref>[http://www.duke.edu/~rnau/regintro.htm Introduction to Linear Regression], Duke University</ref>
*He also 
created
 discovered the lognormal probability distribution (originally called the Galton distribution), which is basically a normal distribution for exponential functions.
*Created the first meteorological maps and proposed the theory of anticyclones; his notation is still mostly in use to this day.<ref>[http://northeastquadrant.blogspot.com/2010/06/neq-spotlight-dr-francis-galton.html NEQ Spotlight: Dr. Francis Galton], Northeast Quadrant</ref>
*Invented the [[dog]] whistle.  [[Dog whistle|No, not that one]].
*Developed fingerprinting techniques.<ref>[http://galton.org/fingerprinter.html Francis Galton and Fingerprints], galton.org</ref>
*Debunked Darwin's theory of pangenesis, in which inheritance was based on tiny blood particles called "gemmules."<ref>[http://galton.org/letters/darwin/correspondence.htm Correspondence Between Charles Darwin and Francis Galton], galton.org</ref>
*[[Empirical testing of prayer|Published research refuting the efficacy of]] [[prayer]].<ref>C.P. Blacker. [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2986350/pdf/eugenrev00248-0009.pdf Galton's Outlook on Religion.] ''Eugenics Review'', vol. 38, no. 2</ref>
* Technically forerunner in studies of human abilities, while attempting to measure mental faculties and individual differences. Although ''he did not'' formalize the concept of [[general intelligence]], his work still laid important groundwork for later developments, including {{wpl|Charles Spearman||'s}} formulation of the '''''g'' factor'''.<ref> Wasserman, John D., and Alan S. Kaufman, 'A History of Mental Ability Tests and Theories', in William B. Barr, and Linas A. Bieliauskas (eds), The Oxford Handbook of the History of Clinical Neuropsychology, Oxford Library of Psychology (2024; online edn, Oxford Academic, 2 June 2016), https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199765683.013.32, accessed 29 Jan. 2026.</ref><ref>ARTHUR R. JENSEN (2002). GALTON’S LEGACY TO RESEARCH ON INTELLIGENCE. Journal of Biosocial Science, 34, pp 145-172 doi:10.1017/S0021932002001451</ref><ref> Beaujean, A. A. (2015). John Carroll’s Views on Intelligence: Bi-Factor vs. Higher-Order Models. Journal of Intelligence, 3(4), 121-136. https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence3040121</ref>

==External links==
*[http://galton.org/ galton.org](archive of Galton's work)
*[http://www.galtoninstitute.org.uk/ Galton Institute] (founded as the Eugenics Education Society in 1908)
*[http://www.indiana.edu/~intell/galton.shtml Francis Galton profile at the Indiana University Human Intelligence Project]
*[http://www.muskingum.edu/~psych/psycweb/history/galton.htm Sir Francis Galton], History of Psychology Archives, Muskingum College
*{{wpa|Smethwick_Galton_Bridge_railway_station|Smethwick Galton Bridge}}

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==Sources==
*[http://www.archive.org/details/palifeletterslab03pearuoft ''The Life, Letters, and Labors of Francis Galton''], ed. Karl Pearson (hosted at archive.org)
==References==
{{reflist|2|90%}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Galton, Francis}}

[[Category:Agnostics]]
[[Category:Authors]]
[[Category:British people]]
[[Category:Eugenics supporters]]
[[Category:Mathematicians]]
[[Category:Pseudoscience promoters]]
[[Category:Racists]]
[[Category:Scientists]]

Categories: Agnostics, Authors, British people, Eugenics supporters, Mathematicians, Pseudoscience promoters, Racists, Scientists