Noyes developed the stirpiculture experiment through his reading and interpretations of Plato, Charles Darwin, Francis Galton and agricultural breeders. Noyes had begun to read Darwin's Principles of Breeding and Sir Francis Galton's papers and books on subjects ranging from anthropology, meteorology, horticulture, and eugenics (Circular, Vol II, No. 3, March 27, 1865). Intrigued by these readings, Noyes expanded upon these ideas and considered the potential benefits in the use of scientific propagation to create humans through intentional reproduction rather than haphazard sex.
