Throughout 2009, science centers will join people around the world in celebrating the Year of Darwin, marking the 150th anniversary of the publication of Origin of the Species. On February 12, Darwin’s 200th birthday, Denver Museum of Nature and Science is hosting an open house tour of its zoology collections and an evening lecture by Darwin scholar Duncan Porter. That same night at the Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida biology and history professors will present a musical production about Darwin’s life and work. On February 7–8, New York Hall of Science screened a new children’s movie that will be the centerpiece of their upcoming exhibition Charlie and Kiwi’s Evolutionary Adventure. Over the next few months, ASTC members will also participate in city-wide Darwin festivals in Pittsburgh, Houston, and San Francisco.
About the image: A young visitor measures a bird to examine differences within species in a prototype for New York Hall of Science’s Charlie and Kiwi’s Evolutionary Adventure exhibition, scheduled to open in 2010. Photo by Wendy Hancock