The Method by Which the Causes of the Present and Past Conditions of Organic Nature Are to Be Discovered; the Origination of Living Beings Lecture III. (of VI.), "Lectures to Working Men", at the Museum of Practical Geology, 1863, on Darwin's Work: "Origin of Species"

"The Method by Which the Causes of the Present and Past Conditions of Organic Nature Are to Be Discovered; the Origination of Living Beings" by Thomas Henry Huxley is a lecture that examines how science can explain the origin and state of living things. Delivered in the Victorian era, this lecture tackles common misunderstandings about scientifically studying life. Rejecting the idea that life is too complex for science, Huxley insists that biology should be as strict and thorough as physics or chemistry. He examines questions surrounding how life begins, referencing experiments that challenge beliefs like spontaneous generation and highlights the need for logical thinking plus careful investigation, urging people to avoid letting beliefs block the path to scientific progress.