November 8, 2024

McClung museum hosts ‘Darwin Day’ celebration

The McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture began hosting “Darwin Day” by celebrating Charles Darwin’s birthday as a way to begin the week-long event celebrating Darwin on Monday, Feb. 9.

Photo by Thomas Delgato.
The statue outside of McClung Museum joined in the celebration for “Darwin Day.” Photo by Thomas Delgado.

The McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture began hosting “Darwin Day” by celebrating Charles Darwin’s birthday as a way to begin the week-long event celebrating Darwin on Monday, Feb. 9.

The week-long celebration will consist of several Darwin-themed events as a way to celebrate his revolutionary theory of evolution and natural selection, also known as the centerpiece for modern biology and to teach people about evolution.  

The event was organized by co-presidents Sarah Sheffield, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, and Joy Buongiorno, a Ph.D. candidate for Microbiology.

Sheffield said that Darwin Day is important because it is an opportunity to promote relationships between the university and the community and because people could possibly get some questions answered about evolution.

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The giant puppet of Darwin is a returning sight for the “Darwin Day” events on campus. Photo by Thomas Delgado.

 

“They can learn something new,” she said. “It’s mainly so people can appreciate and enjoy science.”

Some events throughout the week include a biogeography cake contest, an evolution panel, and several guest speakers, including a lecture and book signing from the keynote lecturer, Dr. Alan de Queiroz.

For more details about “Darwin Day” and a schedule of events, go to http://www.darwindaytn.org.

Edited by Maggie Jones and Hannah Hunnicutt

Although he is dual majoring in neuroscience and psychology, sophomore Thomas Delgado has found a passion for photojournalism after only a semester behind the lens. He has gone from an amateur photographer to the assistant photography editor at TNJN in a short amount of time. Now, Delgado changed his minor to journalism and wants to see where it takes him.