Friday, November 13, 2009

The University of North Carolina Wilmington will commemorate the 150th anniversary of the publication of Charles Darwin's Origin of Species with an evening of short talks titled "Darwin and the Origin of Species: A Twenty‐First Century Perspective," Tuesday, Nov. 17, at 7 p.m. in DeLoach Hall 114. The event is free and open to the public.

Faculty from the Department of Biology and Marine Biology will be the presenters for the evening. Their topics will be:
• Michael McCartney: "Species Origins, 150 Years Later"
• Brian Arbogast: "Adaptive Radiation in the Galápagos and Beyond"
• Marcel van Tuinen: "Darwin's Tree of Life in the 21st Century"

For those arriving early, faculty will share a pre-lecture slide show of the Galapagos Islands, including recent travels by Dale McCall, professor of anthropology, and by participants in a UNCW Honors Scholars Program/Continuing Studies course, led by faculty members Jennifer Horan, public and international affairs, and Patricia Kelley, anthropology. Refreshments will follow the lectures.

In conjunction with this event, UNCW's Randall Library will feature a display of an 1861 copy of Origin of Species and an exhibit of evolution-related artwork created by art/graphic design students.

The event is sponsored by the UNCW Evolution Learning Community as part of its campus-wide initiative to encourage interdisciplinary study and discussion about Charles Darwin, evolution and related issues. Both the 150th anniversary of the publication of Origin of Species and the 200th anniversary of Darwin's birth fall in 2009, which is being celebrated worldwide as "The Year of Darwin."

Media contact:
Dana Fischetti, manager of news and media relations, 910.962.7259 or fischettid@uncw.edu