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DARWIN & HIS LEGACY
Charles Darwin is renowned for his theory of evolution by means of natural selection. But what did that ultimately mean for Darwin, and what does it mean for us now a century and a half later? The course explores three pivotal concepts: diversity, design and morality. How did Darwin develop his revolutionary perspectives on these topics? Have we come to terms with his insights today? Does evolution progress? How does "survival of the fittest" as a metaphor shape our thinking? How should we understand human ethics, if nature is guided by a process that seems fundamentally "selfish"? We alternate between historical accounts and modern biology, endeavoring to appreciate Darwin and his legacy. |
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DIVERSITY
Read:
Origin of Species, Chapter 11 on Geographical Distribution.
fragments of Darwin's thoughts in 1838 from his B Notebook.
View:
Charles Darwin, introduction || The "species problem" || Darwin's voyage || News 1856-1859 || Origin of Species
human evolution || inter-species status?
[ Index of images ]
Update:
on branching in human lineages: new finds on Homo habilis, Science August 10 and September 21 2007 .
Reflect:
James Rachels, Created from Animals (Oxford Univ. Pr., 1991).
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DESIGN
Read:
Origin of Species, Chapter 6, "Organs of Extreme Perfection" (pp.186-192)
Descent of Man, Chapter 1, esp. on rudimentary structures.
View:
From Divergence to Natural Selection: Explaining Design
Explaining Lack of Design: Darwin's orchids and vestigial organs
Human "design": embodying our evolutionary history
Organic & technological evolution: skeuomorphs
Update:
recent findings on "Darwin's hummingbirds" -- evidence of flower/pollinator coevolution [Science (April 25, 2003) 300:588-589]
"Chance Variation: Darwin on Orchids" (2006) [PDF].
Reflect:
"A More Fitting Analogy" [PDF]
Stephen Jay Gould, Wonderful Life.
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MORALITY
Read:
Descent of Man, Chapter 3 on the moral sense.
fragments of Darwin's thinking in 1838 from his M Notebook [PDF].
View:
The Biology of Morality
Darwin on the expression of emotions
Wallace, reprise
Update:
Frans de Waal, Good Natured: The Origins of Right and Wrong in Humans and Other Animals (Harvard Univ. Pr., 1996).
2006 article from Science on empathy in mice [PDF].
"Costly Punishment Across Human Societies." Science 312(23 June 2006): 1767-1770. [as news summary]
"Embodying Emotion." Science 316(18 May 2007): 1002-1005.
recent research on neurology of recognizing other minds -- kin to Darwin's study of The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals (1872) [ Science (May 16, 2003) 300:1079-1080 ]
Reflect:
"Was Darwin a Social Darwinist?" [PDF]
"Social Un-Darwinism" [PDF]
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