Understand how evolutionary biology is much more than an explanatory concept, and that it is indispensable to the world we live in. When we domesticate wild species for agriculture or companionship; when we manage our exposure to pathogens and prevent or control epidemics; when we foster the diversity of species and safeguard the functioning of ecosystems; and even when we link biological crime scene evidence to suspects: in each of these cases, evolutionary biology is applied.

Biologists often speak of genes as “determining” organisms and of the evolution of organisms as “adaptation” of organisms to a fixed external environment. The talk will show how these oversimplifications mask the true relationship among genes, organisms and environments.

You can view Dr. Lewontin's biography or a list of selected scientific articles on the Explore Evolution website.

Families are a ubiquitous and distinctively annoying venue where conflicts of interest arise between males and females, parents and offspring, and siblings. Why do females provide post-zygotic parental care in most species, males in others, and both parents in a few? Why do siblings of some species cooperate extensively, whereas others try to kill and consume each other? Are there predictable associations between patterns of parental care and the nature of interactions among siblings? How are the complex, multiway conflicts of interest among family members resolved? The mating system, because it controls patterns of relationship among family members, is one of the keys to answering such questions. Solenosteira macrospira is a buccinid whelk whose reproductive biology embodies multiple forms of family conflict, and, consequently, offers an incisive opportunity to explore the constraints and opportunities for resolving such conflicts of interest. S. macrospira females mate multiply, and package offspring in capsules, each containing 200-300 siblings. Quite remarkably, female S. macrospira (and perhaps other closely related cantharids) oviposit almost exclusively on males (>99%), and virtually never on conspecific females or other objects. Brood carrying is risky to males, because it increases their vulnerability to predators; but, it is also essential for brood survival. As in other “neogastropods”, there is often extensive predation on sibling eggs, zygotes, and embryos within egg capsules. In this talk, I will analyze the effects of the mating system on the ecology and evolution of male parental care, and the resolution of parent-offspring and sibling conflict in this, and other, polyandrous species.

Observe an illustrated overview of life's diversity together with discussion of the history of evolutionary thought, and the computational challenges involved in discovering the patterns of life's diversification over the past 3.8 billion years.

Fourteen species of Darwin's finches evolved on the Galápagos islands and Cocos island in the last two-three million years. We use the results of long-term field studies of Galápagos populations to help us understand this classical example of adaptive radiation.

You can view the Grants' biography or a list of selected scientific articles on the Explore Evolution website.

Take a look at how an industrial robot works, and how it has evolved with improvements in processing power and control technology. See how robotic technologies are being used in telepresence and autonomous vehicles. Look to the future as haptics, prosthetics, and exoskeletons begin to blur the line between human and robot.