In honor of Charles Darwin's 200th birthday, the earth sciences and biology
departments in Syracuse University's College of Arts and Sciences will present
"Evolution: What the Fossils Say and Why it Matters," a lecture by evolutionary
scholar and author Donald R. Prothero, Thursday, Feb. 12, at 4 p.m. in the Life
Sciences Complex Auditorium (Room 001).
The lecture is free and open to the public. Paid parking is available in the Booth
Garage.
In addition to marking Darwin's 200th birthday, 2009 is the 150th anniversary of the
publication of his seminal book "On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural
Selection." Prothero, professor of paleontology at Occidental College in Los Angeles
and a lecturer in geobiology at the California Institute of Technology, is the author or
editor of more than 20 books and more than 200 journal articles that explore the
evolution of life on our planet, the fossil record, geology and paleontology. A
continuing thread in both his scholarly and popular work is the goal of
communicating the wealth of evidence found in the fossil record that supports
evolution.
In his latest book, "Evolution: What the Fossils Say and Why it Matters" (Columbia
University Press, 2007), Prothero explains how rich the fossil record has become.
Beginning with a brief discussion of the nature of science and the "monkey business
of creationism," Prothero tackles subjects ranging from flood geology and rock
dating to neo-Darwinism and macroevolution.
Prothero's other books include "Evolution of the Earth" (McGraw-Hill, 8th edition, in
press), "After Dinosaurs: The Age of Mammals" (Indiana University Press, 2006),
"Bringing Fossils to Life: An Introduction to Paleobiology" (McGraw-Hill, 2003) and
"Earth: Portrait of a Planet" (W.W. Norton, 2001).
Prothero is a fellow of the Geological Society of America, the Paleontological Society
and the Linnean Society of London, and has received fellowships from the National
Science Foundation and the Guggenheim Foundation. He is also a recipient of the
prestigious Charles Schuchert Award for Outstanding Paleontologist under the age of
40, presented by the Paleontological Society.
