On Thursday, February 12th, scientists, educators and students will observe a worldwide celebration of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Robert Darwin. Darwin's insight that all biological species have evolved from common ancestors through natural selection, first discussed in his monumental book On the Origin of Species in 1859 and then expanded upon 12 years later in The Descent of Man, has become a cornerstone of modern biology. The diversity of species and the continuing mutations that are observable today, especially on the scale of microscopic organisms, find a clear, simple and powerful unified explanation. Simply put, modern biology would be totally incomprehensible without Darwin's enormous contributions.

The concept of progress was very much in the air at the close of the 19th century, which paved the way for ready acceptance of theories of evolution by biologists. However, in contrast to his peers, one striking characteristic of Darwin's view of evolution was that evolution is not purposeful or directed towards any particular end. This clash with the dominant prejudices of Judeo-Christian tradition hindered full acceptance of Darwin's theory of evolution for many years—his main ideas only began to dominate biology in the 1930s.

Celebration of Darwin's birthday and discoveries will take place throughout the Bay Area. At Revolution Books, a discussion will be held on February 10th. The Essig Museum of Entomology at UC Berkeley will open its doors to the public for tours on February 12. At Fresno State University, a faculty panel on Feb. 13 will invite questions from the audience regarding Darwin’s ideas and the societal impact of evolutionary biology. Lectures at UC Davis on Feb. 23 will discuss the evolution-intelligent design controversy. Read more

The Darwin Day Celebration website | Evolution, Racist? No Way! The Creationist Big Lie | Celebrate Darwin Day 2009: What Darwin Did—and Why It Matters | Why Change Happens: Ten Theories