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The PBS Nova show has a great new website for their ongoing series dealing with various aspects of Evolution. Among other things to explore, an interactive map of the Galapagos Islands featuring Gigapan ultra-high definition scrolling panorama images.
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, Biology, NOVA, PBS, Gigapan
The discovery of a new fossil in Egypt that appears to be a younger relative of the “Ida” fossil announced a few months ago (with great fanfare and publicity) has cast considerable doubt on whether Ida is an ancestor of human beings: New Primate Fossil Poses Further Challenge to Ida. ...
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, Biology, Anthropology, Common Ancestor
Airing tonight on the Discovery Channel at 9 pm (Eastern and Pacific), Discovering Ardi — a documentary on the investigation leading up to the historic announcement of the Ardipithecus ramidus fossils. Set your TiVos and your Eye TVs; this looks like a must-see. [Video] The scientific investigation began in ...
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, Biology, Anthropology, Common Ancestor, Ardipithecus, Video
Carl Zimmer has a great post at The Loom on the historic announcement this week of the discovery of Ardipithecus: We Meet At Last. At first, Ardipithecus ramidus was yet another scrappy pre-Lucy fossil. The first report offered details about part of a 4.4 million-year-old jaw bone–a remarkable jaw ...
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, Biology, Anthropology, Common Ancestor, Carl Zimmer, Ardipithecus
“Missing link” is really the wrong term to use for this newly-announced fossil discovery (it implies a single link between humans and their ape-like ancestors, when the truth is far more complex and fluid), but if it will set creationists’ heads spinning I’ll accept it: Oldest ‘Human’ Skeleton Found — ...
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, Biology, Anthropology, Common Ancestor
Here’s evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins on the Colbert Report, promoting his new book The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution (which I give my highest recommendation). Comedy Central Video
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, Biology, richard dawkins, Creationism, Stephen Colbert, Video, Humor
Evolutionary biologists have long wondered whether it was possible for evolution to reverse direction; in other words, whether the proteins that make up an organism could “devolve” back to a previous shape or purpose. Carl Zimmer has an interesting piece on new research that strongly suggests evolution is a one-way ...
I got this book for my beloved Kindle a few days ago: The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution by Richard Dawkins. I’m about a quarter of the way into it, and I already have no hesitation about recommending it highly to anyone interested in arming themselves with ...
Kindle, Creationism, richard dawkins, Biology, Natural Selection, Science, Evolution
A fascinating piece by science writer Carl Zimmer looks at the evidence that climate change is forcing surprisingly rapid evolutionary changes in some species of plants and animals: First Comes Global Warming, Then An Evolutionary Explosion. In 1997, Arthur Weis found himself with an extra bucket of seeds. Weis, ...
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, Biology, Carl Zimmer, Climate Change, Global Warming
A team of scientists at Caltech has published a study that sheds new light on how major changes can occur through the process of natural selection: How Evolution Can Allow For Large Developmental Leaps. ScienceDaily (July 20, 2009) — How evolution acts to bridge the chasm between two discrete ...
Sure to be argued over, here’s the trailer for the soon to be released Charles Darwin biopic Creation, with Paul Bettany playing the most troublesome scientist of all time. Adapted from the book Annie’s Box: Charles Darwin, His Daughter, and Human Evolution by Randal Keynes. [Video]
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, charles darwin, Creation, Films, Documentary
Here’s an excellent video presentation explaining some of the basic ideas behind the theory of evolution, and addressing some of the most common misconceptions promoted by creationists, with a well-written script and artistic graphics. [Video]
The BBC still does documentaries like no one else. This special hosted by David Attenborough for the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birthday is beautifully produced and filmed, and actually informative as well. It’s posted in six parts at YouTube: [Video] [Video] [Video] [Vi deo] [Video] [Video] (Hat tip: Jimmah.) ...
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, charles darwin, BBC, David Attenborough, Video
A poster that fills me with hope.
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, charles darwin, Change, Hope
On Charles Darwin’s birthday, the Chairman of Virginia’s Republican Party stammers out, “Darwin is best known for the theory of evolution, arguing that men are not only, quote, are, are only, not, not created, but they are not equal, as more, as some are more evolved. Whereas Darwin’s theory was ...
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, charles darwin, GOP, Republican Party, Virginia
Read it and weep (or if you’re a creationist, throw a party): On Darwin’s Birthday, Only 4 in 10 Believe in Evolution. But if you look at the actual results, that headline’s a little skewed. It doesn’t mean that 60% of Americans reject science; it means that 39% accept the ...
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, charles darwin, Gallup Poll
My favorite part is the Dover, Pennsylvania science teachers. [Video] Put together by The Society for the Study of Evolution.
One of the enduring falsehoods repeated endlessly by anti-evolution fanatics is that there are no “transitional fossils” — intermediate species that share characteristics with two distinct groups of animals. Here’s a good article at LiveScience on the many examples of transitional fossils that have already been discovered: Fossils Reveal Truth ...
Evolution, Science, Natural Selection, charles darwin, transitional fossil
It’s the 200th anniversary of the birth of one of the most influential scientists in history, Charles Darwin, whose theory of evolution by natural selection is still being vehemently denounced by zealots. Here’s part one of a well done show on Darwin’s breakthroughs and the effects of his work on ...
The 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin is this Thursday, February 12th, and the National Geographic Channel has another interesting show tonight that retraces Darwin’s famous expedition to the Galapagos archipelago in the eastern Pacific Ocean, using his diary and field notes as a travel guide: Darwin’s Secret ...
Evolution, Science, National Geographic, Natural Selection, charles darwin
Here’s another interesting excerpt from the three-part series Morphed, airing tonight on the National Geographic Channel. [Video]
Evolution, Science, National Geographic, Natural Selection, Dinosaurs, Bears, Turkeys
I sure am glad there are none of these things running around the neighborhood at 30 mph any more. (An excerpt from the National Geographic Channel’s three-part series Morphed, airing tomorrow.) [Video]
Evolution, Science, National Geographic, Natural Selection, Dinosaurs, Bears, Turkeys
Coming up this weekend on the National Geographic Channel, Morphed, a show about the documented evolutionary changes that gradually transformed land-dwelling mammals into whales, dinosaurs into turkeys, and bears into ... better bears. The website for the show has some very cool graphics and videos. Set your TiVos and EyeTVs. ...
Evolution, Science, National Geographic, Natural Selection, Dinosaurs, Bears, Turkeys
At Texas A&M University, new research into yeast cells has resulted in the first direct experimental observations of evolution occurring in real time: Evolutionary process – new evidence emerges. New evidence from a study of yeast cells has resulted in the most detailed picture of an organism’s evolutionary process ...
Here’s an interesting list of the Top 10 Signs Of Evolution In Modern Man. 10. Goose Bumps (Cutis Anserina) Humans get goose bumps when they are cold, frightened, angry, or in awe. Many other creatures get goose bumps for the same reason, for example this is why a cat ...