Announcing...
Darwin
Week in Charleston
The public is invited to the sixth
annual celebration of Darwin
Week in Charleston. This year's events are bigger, better, and
more diverse than ever! All events are free. But arrive early
- seats fill up fast!
Four
Venues This Year. The College of Charleston Science
Center,
recently
named in honor of Rita Liddy Hollings, is located on the NE corner of
Coming and George Streets. The Stern Student Center is
located on the SE corner of the same intersection. (The Ballroom
is on the fourth floor of the recently-renovated Center.) Parking
for
events at both of these buildings
is available in
the city garage on the corner of St. Philip and Wentworth, two blocks
south. (Note - the George Street garage will be closed in
February for renovation.) Second
Presbyterian Church is located at 342 Meeting Street, about four
blocks east of campus. There is plenty of parking
available on the street, as well as in the lot behind the church, on
Elizabeth Street. The
Citadel's Grimsley
Hall is located at the north end of the drillfield, with parking
available at the rear of the building.
- Download B&W Flier (PDF)
- Download Color Flier (PDF)
Sunday, February 12 - Panel
Discussion
Evolution and Intelligent
Design: An
Interfaith/Interdiscipinary Conversation.
A distinguished panel will examine the theological, educational, and
legal implications surrounding the theories of evolution and
intelligent design, in order to equip people of faith to engage these
issues.
6:00 PM, Second
Presbyterian
Church sanctuary. Reception in the fellowship hall, featuring Birthday Cake!
The Panel will be moderated by Dr. Albert H. Keller, MUSC Bioethicist and Pastor of Circular Congregational Church. Panelists include Rev. George F. Coleman (St. Andrews Presbyterian Church), Dr. Todd Grantham (CofC Philosophy), Ms. Tamara Kirshtein (Science Coordinator, Charleston County School District), Judge Alex M. Sanders (Charleston School of Law), Dr. Dan W. Waddill (Environmental Engineering, U.S. Navy), and Dr. Jerry Waldvogel (Biology, Clemson University).
Happy 197th
Birthday,
Charlie!!
Monday, February 13 - Dr. Michael Ruse
Molecules to Men: Progress in Biology from Diderot to Dawkins.
What is the nature of progress and what is its relationship to
evolution? Dr. Ruse considers this question from the 18th century
perspective of Diderot to the 21st century perspective of
Dawkins. Why did Darwin and Mendel not destroy the idea of
progress and why
does it flourish now?
4:00 PM, Stern Center
Ballroom. Sponsored by the
Biology Club.
The Evolution-Creation Struggle
There is a major dispute today in America over the truth about origins
-- did organisms including humans come as the end process of a long
evolution, as described by Charles Darwin, or are we somehow
miraculously produced as described in Genesis (or by Intelligent
Design)? Dr. Ruse will trace the dispute back to the
Enlightenment, show why it is an American dispute, and offer reasons
for its long persistence.
7:00 PM, Second
Presbyterian
Church sanctuary. Reception and book
signing to follow in the fellowship hall.
Dr.
Michael Ruse
is Lucyle T. Werkmeister Professor of Philosophy at Florida State
University. He is the author of over twenty books, including Darwin and Design (Harvard), The Evolution Wars (Rutgers), and Can a Darwinian be a Christian
(Cambridge). His visit is sponsored by the congregations of First
(Scots) Presbyterian Church, Second
Presbyterian Church, the Charleston-Atlantic
Presbytery, Circular
Congregational Church, and the College
of Charleston School of
Science and Math.
Tuesday, February 14 - Dr.
Jeffrey Camper, Dr. Wade Worthen, and Dr. Michael Svec Dr.
Jeffrey D. Camper is associate professor of biology at Francis
Marion
University, Dr.
Wade B. Worthen is Professor of Biology at Furman
University, and Dr.
Michael Svec is Professor of Education at Furman
University. Their visit is sponsored by the Lowcountry Hall of
Science and Math.
Teaching Evolution in
Turbulent
Times.
Critics of evolutionary theory are mounting assaults on public school
curricula across the USA. South Carolina's 2005 high school
evolution standards have not been spared from the controversy. In
this three-part
presentation, Drs Camper, Worthen and Svec will describe the philosophy
of science, the scientific merits of evolutionary theory, and the
pedagogical issues surrounding the latest debates. This
presentation will be particularly useful for school teachers.
4:00 PM, CofC Science Center
Room 121.
Dr.
Jerry Hilbish
is Professor of Biological Sciences at the University of South
Carolina. He specializes in the evolutionary biology, ecology,
and physiological ecology of marine invertebrates. His
talk is sponsored by the CofC
Biology Department.
Wednesday, February 15 - Dr.
Thomas J. Hilbish
Evolutionary history of marine
mussels
and the world’s oceans: a mussel’s view of the past 6 million years.
What role has long-term climate variation played in the distribution of
organisms common in the marine environments of today? Dr. Hilbish
shows how the genetic relationships among populations of common marine
mussels can be used to make inferences regarding geographic and
physiological barriers to larval dispersal, both today and in the
evolutionary past.
4:00 PM, CofC Science Center
Room 121.
Thursday, February 16 - Dr.
K. Christopher Beard
The Hunt for the Dawn Monkey: Unearthing the origins of
monkeys,
apes, and humans.
Fossils recently unearthed in China and Myanmar (Burma)
document a previously unknown phase in the evolution and
diversification of the Primates. Dr. Beard will show us how his
discoveries demonstrate that the common ancestors of monkeys, apes, and
humans
originated in Asia millions of years earlier than paleoanthropologists
had previously believed. Sponsored
by the Sociology/Anthropology Club.
5:00 PM, Stern Center
Ballroom. Sale and Signing of
Dr. Beard's award-winning book to
follow!
Dr. Chris
Beard,
a winner of the prestigious MacArthur Foundation "genius" award, is
Curator and
Head of the Section of Vertebrate Paleontology at the Carnegie Museum
of Natural History in Pittsburgh, Pa. His visit is sponsored bythe
Charleston Chapter of
Sigma Xi.
Repeat Presentation
of Dr. Beard's talk at The
Citadel - 8:00 pm, Duckett Hall (not
Grimsley Hall as previously announced!)
This page brought to you by:
Dr. Rob Dillon
Secretary, Charleston Chapter of Sigma Xi
