Boston Flora

Tag: Evolution

  • Monday, January 22, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Replaying Life’s Tape Through the Lens of Plants

    Each winter, Director William (Ned) Friedman and the Arnold Arboretum present the Director’s Lecture Series, featuring nationally recognized experts addressing an array of topics related to Earth’s biodiversity and evolutionary history, the environment, conservation biology, and key social issues associated with current science. The Director’s Lecture Series is open to current Arnold Arboretum members only; visit http://arboretum.harvard.edu for information on becoming a member. Lectures take place in the Hunnewell Building Lecture Hall. Parking will be available along the Arborway and in front of the Hunnewell Building on lecture nights.

    This year’s series begins Monday, January 22 at 7 pm, with the Director himself speaking on Replaying Life’s Tape Through the Lens of Plants. What can an understanding of the history of photosynthetic life tell us of the human condition? Are we, as a cognitive species, an absolutely inevitable consequence of several billion years of evolution? Or, should we wake up every morning with an exhilarating sense of the sheer improbability of just being! For decades, going back to the book Wonderful Life, by Stephen J. Gould, the debate as to the probabilities of intelligent life evolving not only here on Earth, but throughout the universe, has ebbed and flowed. None of the chief protagonists in this debate (zoologists, microbiologists, or philosophers) has ever thought about how an understanding of plant evolutionary history might bear heavily on the conclusions one reaches. Professor Friedman will discuss how just a few tweaks to the evolutionary history of plants might ultimately have precluded human life from evolving on Earth – and whether such tweaks could occur upon replaying life’s tape.

    Register online at https://www.arboretum.harvard.edu/news-events/directors-lecture-series/

  • Tuesday, January 31, 7:00 pm – Future Humans

    Come to a thought provoking talk and book signing on Tuesday, January 31 at 7 pm at Porter Square Books, 25 White Street in Cambridge. Are humans still subject to the forces of evolution? An evolutionary biologist provides surprising insights into the future of Homo sapiens.

    In his intriguing book Future Humans: Inside the Science of Our Continuing Evolution, evolutionary biologist Scott Solomon draws on the explosion of discoveries in recent years to examine the future evolution of our species. Combining knowledge of our past with current trends, Solomon offers convincing evidence that evolutionary forces still affect us today. But how will modernization, including longer lifespans, changing diets, global travel, and widespread use of medicine and contraceptives, affect our evolutionary future?

    Solomon presents an entertaining and accessible review of the latest research on human evolution in modern times, drawing on fields from genomics to medicine and the study of our microbiome. Surprising insights, on topics ranging from the rise of online dating and Cesarean sections to the spread of diseases such as HIV and Ebola, suggest that we are entering a new phase in human evolutionary history one that makes the future less predictable and more interesting than ever before.

    Scott Solomon is an evolutionary biologist and science writer. He teaches ecology, evolutionary biology, and scientific communication at Rice University, where he is a Professor in the Practice in the Department of BioSciences.

  • Thursday, September 15, 6:00 pm – Why So Many Leaf Forms? Insights from Viburnum Evolution

    Why do leaves come in such an extraordinary variety of shapes and sizes? Global patterns in the distribution of different leaf forms provide clues, and multiple hypotheses have been proposed to explain such diversity. Recent work on the evolution of Viburnum (a popular group of shrubs) complements studies of global patterns and adds a new hypothesis to the mix. Michael Donoghue, Sterling Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, will discuss the Viburnum research, its relevance to understanding climate change, and the processes by which diverse ecosystems come into existence. The free lecture will take place Thursday, September 15 beginning at 6 pm.

    The Evolution Matters Lecture Series is supported by a generous gift from Drs. Herman and Joan Suit. This Harvard Museum of Natural History program is located at the Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free parking is available at the 52 Oxford Street Garage.

  • Wednesday, June 10, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Chasing the Red Queen: The Evolutionary Race Between Pests and Poisons

    Try as we might, our every attempt to control insects and weeds is met with an evolutionary response: they adapt and become resistant to the poisons. We fight back with new, improved chemicals—they respond by adapting again, and on it goes, over and over, as it has for the past sixty years. But Andy Dyer, PhD, Associate Professor of Biology, University of South Carolina, believes that if we use the principles of evolutionary biology, we stand a good chance of taking control of our food supply and weaning our agricultural system from chemical dependence. Join us for a biological perspective on securing foods of our future. Dr. Dyer will speak at the Arnold Arboretum, Hunnewell Building, 125 Arborway, Jamaica Plain, on Wednesday, June 10 from 7 – 8:30. Fee $10 general; students are free. Register online at my.arboretum.harvard.edu.

  • Thursday, April 23, 6:00 pm – Islands: Natural Laboratories of Evolution

    Tahiti, Bermuda, Madeira, Bali. Everyone loves islands, but no one loves them more than an evolutionary biologist. From the dwarf elephants of Crete to the carnivorous caterpillars of Hawaii and the snaggly-fingered aye-aye of Madagascar, islands present a cornucopia of biodiversity. Darwin drew much of his inspiration from island stopovers on his fabled Beagle voyage, as did Alfred Russel Wallace on his own perambulations through the East Indies. Ever since Darwin and Wallace jointly proposed their theory of evolution by natural selection, biologists have returned to islands to gain fresh insights. Jonathan Losos, Monique and Philip Lehner Professor for the Study of Latin America, Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology and Curator in Herpetology, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, will discuss the relevance of islands to our understanding of evolution and its processes on Thursday, April 23 at 6 pm at the Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free and open to the public. Free parking is also available at the 52 Oxford Street Garage.

  • Monday, January 12, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Mutants in Our Midst: Darwin, Horticulture, and Evolution

    Each year, Director William (Ned) Friedman and the Arnold Arboretum present the Director’s Lecture Series, featuring nationally recognized experts addressing an array of topics related to Earth’s biodiversity and evolutionary history, the environment, conservation biology, and key social issues associated with current science. Lectures take place in the Hunnewell Building Lecture Hall. Parking will be available in front of the building and along the Arborway. Free. Member-only registration through December 15; general registration after December 15.

    Ned Friedman, PhD, Director of the Arnold Arboretum and Arnold Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University will present the first talk on Monday, January 12, from 7 – 8:30. Although often overlooked as such, many of the horticultural varieties that we grow in gardens are premier examples of the ongoing process of evolution: random mutations that lead, on the rarest of occasions, to novel and desirable biological characteristics. Throughout his life, Charles Darwin (as well as other nineteenth century evolutionists) looked to the world of horticulture and plant domestication to gain critical insights into the generation of variation and the process of natural selection that underlie evolutionary change. Come see how horticulture played a central role in laying the foundations for discovering evidence of evolution as well as the process of evolution. Professor Ned Friedman will also argue that modern botanical gardens can and should become a leading force for the promotion of evolutionary thinking by highlighting the very kinds of mutations observed and described by Darwin as well as new examples of monstrosities and mutants that continue to be found in the Arboretum and other living collections around the world. Image from www.thunderboltkids.co.za.

    Register online at http://my.arboretum.harvard.edu/Info.aspx?EventID=1.

  • Thursday, November 7, 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm – 100 Years On: Alfred Russel Wallace, Evolution’s Unsung Discoverer

    Andrew Berry, PhD, Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, will speak at the Hunnewell Building at the Arnold Arboretum on Thursday, November 7, beginning at 7 pn, on Alfred Russel Wallace, Evolution’s Unsung Discoverer. Remarkably, what is arguably the simplest and most powerful theory in all of science, the theory of evolution by natural selection, was discovered not once but twice. It was developed completely independently by two Victorian scientists, Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace. Today Darwin is famous, the face of evolution, but Wallace is very little known. This talk, on, to the day, the centenary of Wallace’s death, will address three issues: 1. Why was this long sought theory discovered twice and more or less at the same time? 2. Who was Wallace, and how did he come to the idea? 3. Why has Wallace been so comprehensively eclipsed by Darwin in the popular imagination? Overall, this talk is a celebration of Wallace’s life and extraordinary contributions. He was a visionary scientist, bold adventurer, superb writer, and compassionate campaigner. Free to Arboretum members and students, $10 nonmember fee.  Register online at https://my.arboretum.harvard.edu/SelectDate.aspx.

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  • Thursday, September 26, 6:00 pm – The Story of the Human Body: Evolution, Health, and Disease

    Evolutionary biologist Daniel Lieberman discusses the evolutionary history of the human body by examining major transformations the body has made over the millennia. The lecture, book launch and reception will take place Thursday, September 26, beginning at 6 pm. From the advent of bipedalism, to the rise of hunter-gatherers and the development of a very large brain, the human body has adapted in ways that allow for exceptional athletic endurance and intelligence. Central to Lieberman’s lecture are the effects of cultural evolutionary forces on our health and longevity. Lecture followed by a reception in the Harvard Museum of Natural History galleries.

    Free and open to the public. Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free event parking is available at the 52 Oxford Street Garage after 5:00 pm.

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  • Monday, May 13, 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm – Written in the Genes: Forest Tree Evolution, Growth, and Reaction to Climate Change

    Recent advances in genomics research are providing insights into the fascinating biology of forest trees. Using information from paleobotany and genome sequencing of the model tree Populus, Andrew Groover, Geneticist and Director of the Institute of Forest Genetics of the US Forest Service, will explain the evolution of trees, including their origins and the processes underlying speciation. He will show how trees make wood at the molecular genetic level. Then he will use information from population genetics to infer migration of Populus species during past periods of climate change and what forest species’ migrations might look like in the future. The program takes place Monday, May 13 in the Hunnewell Building of the Arnold Arboretum, beginning at 7 pm. Free, but registration requested at www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

    http://www.forestgen.mi.lt/images/PusyneglutGrazute.jpg

  • Wednesday, February 27, 6:00 pm – Jurassic Mothers from China: Origins and Evolution of Mammals

    Paleontologist Zhe-Xi Luo, Professor of Organismal Biology and Anatomy at the University of Chicago, will discuss both the origins of modern mammalian biological adaptations in the deep times of the Mesozoic—dominated by the dinosaurs—and how Jurassic fossils discovered in China shed light on the earliest evolution of placental mammals. The Wednesday, February 27 program is part of the Evolution Matters Lecture Series, supported by a generous gift from Drs. Herman and Joan Suit. Free and open to the public. Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free event parking for evening lectures in the 52 Oxford Street garage.