The Biology and Evolution of Mollusks

Exhibition opening lecture by Gonzalo Giribet

THursday, February 16, 6:00 pm

From tiny snails to the giant clam (Tridacna gigas), mollusks are the most diverse and widely distributed family of marine invertebrates. Professor Gonzalo Giribet, Curator of Invertebrate Zoology at Harvard’s MCZ, will discuss how scientists are decoding the Mollusca genetic family tree to learn how they’ve adapted, survived, and thrived since the pre-Cambrian era, and to explore the potential benefits of mollusks from medicine to human health, and other fields. Free and open to the public, Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free parking available in the 52 Oxford Street garage. 

Followed by an exhibition preview and reception for members. Space is limited. Pre-registration required. RSVP to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 617.496.6972.

From Democratic Consensus to Cannibalistic Hordes: The Principles of Collective Behavior

Lecture by Iain Couzin

Tuesday, February 28, 6:00 pm

Why do billions of locusts suddenly break into motion? How do ants carry heavy loads and march with orderly precision along densely packed trails?  How do flocks of birds and schools of fish select their navigators? And how do we—humans—make decisions as citizens, drivers, and numerous other social situations? Iain Couzin, Assistant Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Princeton, has made major contributions to understanding the dynamics and evolution of collective animal behavior. Free and open to the public, Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free parking available in the 52 Oxford Street garage. Part of the Evolution Matters lecture series. Supported by a gift from Drs. Herman and Joan Suit.

New Directions in EcoPlanning Annual Lecture
A Great Green Cloud: The Rise and Fall of the City Elms

Lecture by Thomas J. Campanella

Thursday, March 8, 6:00 pm

Decades before Olmsted park, Yankee villagers planted elm trees on their streets and commons to forge a union of rus and urbe, i.e. the rustic and the urban. The trees brought about “a kind of compromise between town and country,” observed Charles Dickens, as if each had met the other halfway and shaken hands upon it. The result was that lost masterpiece of American urbanism, “Elm Street.” Thomas J. Campanella, Associate Professor of Urban Planning and Design at the University of North Carolina, will explore elm culture in the U.S., and how our love affair with this giant nearly brought it to the edge of disappearance. Reception to follow, free and open to the public. 

Free and open to the public, Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free parking available in the 52 Oxford Street garage. Supported by a gift from Michael Dyett (AB ’68, MRP ’72) and Heidi Richardson.

The Sounding of the Whale: Science and Cetaceans in the Twentieth Century

Author talk by D. Graham Burnett

Sunday, March 11, 2:00 pm

From the Bible to Melville, whales were historically depicted as terrifying, mysterious monsters–deserving only of slaughter. Burnett will discuss how 20^th century scientific research and environmental awareness has led to an appreciation of whales as highly evolved, complex mammals critical to marine ecosystems and deserving of regulatory protection. Regular admission rates apply.

Evolutionary Medicine at 20: Not yet Mature, but on the Way

Lecture by Randolph Nesse

Thursday, March 29, 6:00 pm

Randolph Nesse, Director of the Evolution & Human Adaptation Program at University of Michigan, is one of the nation’s foremost researchers in the emergent field of Darwinian medicine—the application of modern evolutionary theory to the understanding health and disease. Co-author of the influential book Why We Get Sick, Dr. Nesse is a leading proponent of the idea that evolutionary biology should be taught as one of the basic sciences in medical school education. Free and open to the public, Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free parking available in the 52 Oxford Street garage. Part of the Evolution Matters lecture series. Supported by a gift from Drs. Herman and Joan Suit.

Learning From Insects: How Our World is Shaped by Bees, Ants and Other Social Insects

A Dialogue and Booksigning with Thomas Seeley and Bernd Heinrich

Tuesday, April 3, 6:00 pm

Many of the world’s top scientists have devoted their careers to the study of social insects. Their passion has led to an understanding of how insects both positively and negatively impact the environment and human life – as plant pollinators, tree defoliators, and potential indicators of climate change. To celebrate the publication of Harvard University Press’ collection of its best essays in Entomology, A World of Insects, Thomas Seeley, biology professor at Cornell University, and Bernd Heinrich, biology professor emeriti at the University of Vermont, will discuss their research and why it’s critical that we study and learn from insects. Moderated by Professor Naomi Pierce, Curator of Lepidoptera at the Museum of Comparative Zoology.

Following the presentation, there will be reception and booksigning in the museum’s galleries. Cosponsored with Harvard University Press. Free and open the public.

Image from A WORLD OF INSECTS: THE HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS READER edited by RING T. CARDÉ and VINCENT H. RESH appears courtesy of Harvard University Press, Copyright © 2012 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College.

The Social Conquest Of Earth

Lecture and booksigning by Edward O. Wilson

Thursday, APRIL 12, 6:00 pm

Edward O. Wison, Professor Emeritus at Harvard, has dedicated much of his 60 years in biology to the study of social insects. In his latest book, The Social Conquest of Earth, he turns his focus to another successful organism—humans—and addresses three fundamental questions of religion and philosophy: who are we, where we are going, and from where did we come? Wilson addresses many fields—mathematics, human genetics, neuroscience, cognitive psychology, and evolutionary biology—to explain the origin of humans and our domination of the Earth’s biosphere. Booksigning and reception to follow. Free and open to the public, Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free parking available in the 52 Oxford Street garage.

Reception sponsored by a generous gift from the Harvard Chapter of Sigma Xi.

Why Evolution is True and Why Many People Still
Don’t Believe It

Lecture by Jerry Coyne

Wednesday, May 2, 6:00 pm

Jerry Coyne, a professor of Ecology and Evolution at the University of Chicago and author of the seminal book, Why Evolution is True, is one of the world’s most eloquent defenders of evolutionary science in the face of legal, religious, and cultural opposition. In this talk, Coyne will explore the multifarious evidence for evolution, why Americans are so resistant to accepting the theory, and what can be done to make the country more evolution-friendly. Free and open to the public, Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free parking available in the 52 Oxford Street garage. Part of the Evolution Matters lecture series. Supported by a gift from Drs. Herman and Joan Suit.

Photo by Paul Merideth.