Darwin's Work to Be Highlighted in 2011 and Beyond

The ideas of Charles Darwin and the concept of evolution by natural selection continue to have a profound influence on modern biology – they permeate almost every area of scientific exploration. The Academies have long been involved in educational activities and publications on many aspects of evolution. For example, in 2008 the National Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Medicine jointly published Science, Evolution, and Creationism, to help people who are interested in evolution better understand its underlying principles and how evolution is an integral component of scientific research and thinking. In 2009 the National Academy of Sciences joined many other organizations in the international scientific community to celebrate the 'Year of Science,' which commemorated Darwin’s 200th birthday and the 150th anniversary of the publication of his masterwork On the Origin of Species. Information about some of the events we hosted as part of this celebration can be accessed through our event archive.

Opportunities to learn about science and evolution continued throughout 2010. One of the largest events was the USA Science & Engineering Festival, which took place October 10 through 24 and culminated with a two-day expo on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The Academies were a partner organizer of the festival, which featured over 1,500 exhibits and hands-on experiments along with a wide range of stage performances. Check out some pictures of our events and exhibits.

For 2011, the National Research Council’s Board on Life Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences are organizing a convocation on October 25 and 26 called Thinking Evolutionarily: Evolution Education Across the Life Sciences. This event will bring together people from the life sciences community to explore ways to infuse concepts of evolution into all areas of biology education and address Theodesius Dobzhansky’s challenge that “Nothing in Biology Makes Sense Except in the Light of Evolution.”

We will be updating this website with new events and resources throughout the year, so please check back with us again.

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