A Darwin Celebration
2009 marks the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth on February 12, 1809 — the same day as Abraham Lincoln — and the 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species on November 24, 1859. Come join us for a special celebration of the life and science of one of the greatest scientists in history.
Historian of science Dr. Michael Shermer will review the remarkable life of Darwin and explain how he arrived at his theory of evolution. Paleontologist and geologist Dr. Donald Prothero will give a brief overview of how evolutionary theory has changed since Darwin’s time. Dr. Joel Smith, a Caltech biologist specializing in biological information processing, stem cell research, and the evolution of development (evo-devo) will discuss Darwin in the Age of System Biology, or how complex organisms like ourselves could have evolved out of significantly simpler organisms. And other scientists will consider the many aspects of Darwin’s remarkable theory.
