Question

charles darwin hypothesized that some individuals would be better equipped for survival than others, and that those that were less equipped would not survive. darwin formulated this hypothesis based on the work of which scholar?
john gould, who compared mainland and island finches
thomas malthus, who studied population growth
sir isaac newton, who formulated the laws of motion
gregor mendel, who determined genetic inheritance of traits

Explanation:

Thomas Malthus's work on population growth, which stated that population growth would outpace resource availability leading to survival competition, directly influenced Darwin's development of his survival of the fittest hypothesis. John Gould's finch work helped Darwin refine his ideas later, Newton's work was in physics, and Mendel's genetic studies were unknown to Darwin during his hypothesis formulation.

Answer:

Thomas Malthus, who studied population growth