A tribute to the power of observation

"Darwin's Compass: Why the evolution of humans is inevitable" will be the title of a lecture by Simon Conway Morris, Professor of Evolutionary Paleobiology in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Cambridge.  He will speak at 3 p.m. January 29, 2010, in McCord Auditorium. More.

When Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species in 1859, the way we view the world and our place in it changed with the turn of a page.

Throughout 2009, Southern Methodist University is celebrating the 150th anniversary of this seminal book and the 200th birthday of the extraordinary man who wrote it through a series of lectures, exhibits and presentations.

Departments and schools across the SMU campus are participating in a coordinated program of events that will address evolution’s contributions under the title “Darwin’s Evolving Legacy: Celebrating Ideas That Shape Our World.”

“It’s hard to imagine any branch of science that has not been advanced by Charles Darwin's work,” says Paul Ludden , SMU provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. “As the evolution of SMU continues into its second century, it is fitting to recognize the intellectual achievement found in Darwin’s writings.”

Darwin’s theory of evolution is the foundation for all the sciences dealing with organic life and relevant to studying nearly every aspect of the human condition – from contemporary human behavior to genetic diversity in food crops to the treatment of diseases.

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