Date:
Tuesday, March 3, 2020, 6:00pm
Location:
Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford St., Cambridge
Charles Darwin is commonly cited as the person who “discovered” evolution. But, the historical record shows that roughly seventy different individuals published work on the topic of evolution between 1748 and 1859, the year that Darwin published On the Origin of Species. These early thinkers, now almost entirely forgotten, included biologists, geologists, horticulturists, physicians, clergymen, atheists, philosophers, teachers, and poets.
William Friedman will discuss the ideas of these pre-Darwinian evolutionists, place Darwin in a broader historical context, and examine the nature of scientific discovery and attribution.