>>9011966Possibly relevant similar story ... Patrick Matthew laid out the principles of natural selection as a mechanism driving evolution before Darwin or Wallace.
But, he did not do anything to develop or support it, did not seek out evidence to support it. But he did mention it in print well before Darwin and Wallace, in a footnote to a book about forestry in Scotland.
When it is Steam Engine Time, people start thinking about Steam Engines, ideas allowing the building of a steam engine start to circulate - and suddenly, people start making steam engines. One of them will be the first to cross the threshold of "inventing" the steam engine. Getting edgy about who it was, or calling the process "plagiarism," seems foolish.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Matthew 
