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Welcome to the home page of The Evolution of Darwin, a course
first offered through Old Dominion University's Study
Abroad Program in late May of 2002. It will be offered again
in the Spring of 2004, with the trip during Spring Break, 3-13 March.
The course focuses on Charles Darwin and the people, places, and institutions
that were important in the development of his theory of evolution.
The course includes a trip to London, with "side trips" to Edinburgh, Cambridge,
and Downe. "Behind the scenes" lectures and tours of major museums,
herbaria, and other collections comprise the bulk of our adventures; we'll
see some amazing sites! We also have time for the theatre and some
general sightseeing as well.
The information below should be useful to prospective students and anyone
interested in Darwin. Feel free to contact
me if you have any questions!
 Darwin
links
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People
important to Darwin
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History
of science links
These are good places to get a general overview of what was happening
in various fields of science, beginning a few thousand years bpe.
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Places
we'll visit
I'm still working on the exact itinerary, so consider the dates on
this one subject to change. To the extent possible, our site visits
will include special tours, lectures, and presentations by scientists,
curators, archivists, etc.; we will also have access to some very special
materials (specimens, manuscripts, and other artificats)!
We'll have some free half-days in London and a full day each in London
and Edinburgh, so be prepared for some fun!
| 5/19/02: |
Arrive in London; tour the city |
| 5/20/02: |
National Portrait
Gallery to see the characters in our story |
| 5/21/02: |
"Scavenger hunt" of Darwin locales in London; theatre night |
| 5/22/02: |
The Linnean
Society of London , where the theory of natural selection was introduced
by Charles Lyell and Joseph Hooker. Check out The
Linnean Society - History: Darwin & Wallace 1858 |
| 5/23/02: |
University of Cambridge,
including Christ's College,
the University Museum
of Zoology , and the Cambridge
University Library (I hope!). Check out Cambridge
University Library: Darwin Papers |
| 5/24/02: |
Charles
Darwin's country home: Down House (Darwin's home for most of
his adult life) |
| 5/25/02: |
Travel to Edinburgh, Scotland |
| 5/26/02: |
Free day in Edinburgh! Get some ideas of what to do at Edinburgh
Tourist Information, guide and advice |
| 5/27/02: |
Tour The University of Edinburgh
,
where Darwin studied medicine for two years, among other things . . . |
| 5/28/02: |
Travel to London |
| 5/29/02: |
The Natural History Museum, London,
England (aka the British Museum of Natural History; our visit will
include special tours of research collections and libraries) |
| 5/30/02: |
Free day in London! Get some ideas of what to do at London
Tourist Information, guide and advice |
| 5/31/02: |
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |
| 6/1/02: |
Westminster Abbey
,
where Darwin is buried |
| 6/2/02: |
Return to Norfolk |
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Course
requirements
-
See the syllabus for detailed information
about requirements and tentative schedule.
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The text for the course will be "Darwin:
The Life of a Melancholy Evolutionist" by Adrian Desmond and James
Moore (or another biography if I find one I like better!)
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Additional readings will include the following excerpts of Darwin's writings:
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Each student will help develop and present at least one "pre-trip" briefing,
discussing the sites we will visit and their importance to Darwin.
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Each student will keep a journal with entries (required after each site
visit; more are encouraged) recording impressions, thoughts, ideas, etc.
Journals will be graded based on the thought put into each entry.
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Each student will write a reflective paper after we return. The topics
are open, but will focus on one of two broad areas: the relevance
of understanding history to understanding science or the significance of
historical collections (museums, libraries, archives) for understanding
both history and science. Papers will be graded on both presentation
and content (depth of thought, use of information gathered from the trip,
etc.).
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