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The Harvard Museum of Natural History presents engaging lectures and programs to excite the public about natural history. Our lectures and programs are open to the public and are held at 26
Oxford Street, Cambridge. Please see Plan Your Visit for directions and parking information.
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LETTERS TO A YOUNG SCIENTIST
Author Talk by Edward O. Wilson
FRIDAY, MAY 24, 6:00 PM
Harvard Book Store and the Harvard Museum of Natural History are thrilled to welcome Pulitzer Prize–winning biologist Edward O. Wilson for a discussion of his new book, Letters to a Young Scientist.
Inspired by Rainer Maria Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet, Edward O. Wilson has distilled sixty years of teaching into a book for students, young and old. Reflecting on his coming-of-age in the South as a Boy Scout and a lover of ants and butterflies, Wilson threads these twenty-one letters, each richly illustrated, with autobiographical anecdotes that illuminate his career—both his successes and his failures—and his motivations for becoming a biologist.
Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street.
Free event parking in the 52 Oxford Street Garage.
Tickets: $6.00 each. Please visit the Harvard Book Store website for information on how to purchase tickets.
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STUNG!
On Jellyfish Blooms and the Future of the Ocean
Author talk by Lisa-ann Gershwin
SATURDAY, MAY 25, 3:30 PM
Biologist and jellyfish expert Lisa-ann Gershwin will discuss how these beautiful but dangerous creatures are taking over the oceans as a result of changes in our marine ecosystem.
Regular Museum admission rates apply.
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CHIMPANZEE FUTURES IN A CROWDED WORLD
Lessons from Western Uganda
Presentation by Richard Wrangham and Elizabeth Ross
THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 7:00 PM
Recognizing the inseparable link between environmental and human prosperity, Harvard’s Richard Wrangham and Elizabeth Ross have devoted 25 years to ensuring the future of Uganda’s Kibale National Park, its rainforest and wildlife, as well as the health and education of schoolchildren in the surrounding communities.
Co-sponsored by the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology.
Admission: Free for HMNH and Peabody Museum members. Admission for non-members: $12. Space is limited. Pre-registration required. RSVP to
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or 617-496-6972
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LAW OF THE LOCUSTS
What Insect Swarms Teach Us about Cannibalism, Aging, and Human Obesity
Lecture by Steve Simpson
TUESDAY, JUNE 18, 7:00 PM
Locust swarms can be one of the most destructive plagues to mankind, but they also offer important new insights into the causes of human obesity, the aging process, and the complexities of crowd behavior. Australian biologist Steve Simpson (University of Sydney) will take us on a strange journey from insect swarms to human health.
Free and open to the public. Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street.
Free event parking in the 52 Oxford Street Garage.
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SUMMER SOLSTICE
Night at the Harvard Museums of Science and Culture
FRIDAY, JUNE 21, 5:00–9:00 PM
Celebrate the longest day of the year with live music, food, hands-on activities, and free admission to the Harvard Museums of Science and Culture (Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments, Harvard Museum of Natural History, Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, and the Semitic Museum).
Free event parking in the 52 Oxford Street Garage.
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THE HUMAN SHORE
Seacoasts in History
Author talk by John Gillis
SUNDAY, JUNE 23, 3:30 PM
More than half of Americans now live within 50 miles of ocean, but should they? John Gillis (Rutgers University) argues that an inadequate understanding of the natural and human history of our shores has left communities unprepared for coastal dwelling.
Regular Museum admission rates apply.
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THE SHADOW OF THE QUAGGA
What a Long-lost Zebra Reveals about Horses, Evolution, and Extinction
Lecture by Eric Scott
THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 6:00 PM
The quagga, a South African zebra, became extinct in the 1880s, but it still shapes our views on life and death in the animal kingdom. Paleontologist Eric Scott (San Bernardino County Museum) provides a brief history of the quagga—its discovery, exploitation, extinction, and potential rebirth—and reveals how these animals continue to inform us about paleontology, biology, and equine evolution.
Free and open to the public.
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