"essay on the principle of population", written by thomas malthus in 1798, influenced darwin's thoughts as he struggled to understand what mechanisms could be at work to produce evolution. malthus proposed that populations of animals and plants, including humans,

a. increased arithmetically in numbers while the nutrients available only increased geometrically
b. increased geometrically in numbers while the nutrients available only increased arithmetically
c. decreased arithmetically in numbers while the nutrients available increased geometrically
d. evolved from mainland to islands, thus explaining why the island flora and fauna resembled the mainland species so closely

Malthus proposed that populations of animals and plants, including humans, increased geometrically in numbers while the nutrients available only increased arithmetically.

Option B

Explanation:

Essay on the Principle of Population is a famous book for the evolution scientists which studies in details about the Darwin’s theory of evolution. Darwin clearly said the struggle for existence and the survival of fittest. These terms meant a lot. The struggle in a population came because of the scarcity of food in the population.

And this scarcity came because of the geometric increase in the population but an arithmetic increase in the supply of food. This lead to the scarcity of food, and the availability is strictly restricted to the individuals who are more capable than others.  

c. earths continental crust is thicker than its lithosphere.

because, the lithosphere is the outermost layer of the earth/ 100 km thick and is defined by its machanical properties.the lithosphere contains oceanic and continental crust that varies in age and thickness across locations and geologic time. the lithosphere is the coolest layer of the earth in terms of temperature. the term lithosphere should not be confused with the use of "geosphere" which is used to indicate all of earth systems, including the atmosphere, hydrosphere   and biosphere. the surface of the earth can be divided into the continental crust and the oceanic crust.   the continental crust is made mostly of granite while the oceanic crust is made of basalt. the average thickness of the continental crust is 25 miles and the average thickness of the oceanic crust is 5 miles.   three types of rock, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic, make up the surface of the earth. that's why 3 option is preferable.

the correct answer in apex is tissue development, i know because i just had this question