William Friedman (Organismic & Evolutionary Biology)
First-Year Seminar 24P | 4 Credits (Fall 2024) | CANVAS SITE
Monday, 3:00 PM – 6:30 PM
Do you think you know who Charles Darwin was? The legend and sober-looking bearded scholar behind the most important paradigm shift in human history? In this seminar, we will read a selection of Darwin’s publications (including parts of Darwin’s seminal work, On the Origin of Species), as well as his private correspondence, paying close attention to the man behind the science as revealed by his writings. We will get to know Charles Darwin—the avid breeder of pigeons, lover of barnacles, devoted father and husband, gifted correspondent and tactician, and remarkable backyard scientist. In this latter vein, we will reproduce ten of Charles Darwin’s classic Down House experiments that were central to making his case for natural selection and evolution in On the Origin of Species, as well as his many other books on natural history. Field trips to the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, the Museum of Comparative Zoology, and a local pigeon fancier will provide the setting for recreating a selection of the myriad observations of organisms and their interactions with the environment and each other that made Darwin the master of minutia and provided the foundation for his grand synthesis of evolutionary pattern and process. Each week, we will also read, react to (through writing), and discuss Darwin’s published writings and letters.
NOTE: Required field trips to the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, the Museum of Comparative Zoology, and a local pigeon fancier will be included. Transportation will be provided. These Arboretum classes may run until 6:30pm with the travel time.