Fall Convocation
Thursday
August 28, 2008
Severance Hall
4:30 p.m.
Keynote Speaker
David Quammen
Charles Darwin against Himself: Caution versus Honesty in the Life of a Reluctant Revolutionary.
2008 Convocation
This year, in addition to the traditional program, convocation also serves as the kick-off event for the 2008-2009 Year of Darwin and Evolution. Common Reading author David Quammen will launch a year-long series of events celebrating Charles Darwin's life, his work and the diverse ways in which evolutionary theory continues to influence research and thought in biology and other fields.
Charles Darwin was born in 1809 (February 12, same day as Abraham Lincoln), making 2009 the 200th anniversary of his birth. In addition, 2009 is the 150th anniversary of the publication (November 24, 1859) of his enormously infuential book, "On the Origin of Species."