Select the most appropriate option to substitute the underlined segment in the given sentence.
Charles Darwin is renowned for his book on evolution, ‘On the Origin of Species’, which laid down a treasure of substantiation that evolution occurs, and projected a mechanism, that is, natural selection, for how it does so.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D
Explanation
The correct answer is option 4 i.e. laid out a treasure of substantiation.
Laid out a treasure of substantiation is the correct choice because "laid out" means to present or display something clearly and systematically, which fits the context of Darwin presenting evidence in his book. The phrase suggests that Darwin organized and provided substantial evidence for the theory of evolution. The other options—laid into, laid about, and laid away—do not correctly convey the idea of presenting or arranging information, making them inappropriate in this context.