November 20, 2009
This year marks the 150th anniversary of the publication of On The Origin of Species. Charles Darwin's great-great-granddaughter, Ruth Padel, tells her famous ancestor's life story all in verse. One poem describes Darwin's awe at the sealife that washed up on the deck of the Beagle. Another tackles how Charles' scientific ideas did not square with his wife Emma's deep religious faith.
Padel reads from her poetry collection, Darwin: A Life In Poems.
"Set the sails; I feel the winds a'stirring." So begins the song, "Charlie Darwin," by the rock band The Low Anthem. Frontman Ben Knox Miller describes how the band came up with the tune and its darker message, "Who could heed the words of Charlie Darwin? Fighting for a system built to fail."
Where did we come from? Evolutionary biologist Spencer Wells is pretty close to the answer. He's the National Geographic "Explorer-in-Residence" and heads an initiative called the Genographic Project. By collecting DNA samples from people around the world, he's tracing the paths of human migration, and he's uncovered some startling facts about homo sapiens' early history: we almost didn't make it.
Amateur paleontologist Jon Halsey isn't afraid to turn over a few rocks. By digging in areas near his home outside of Dallas, he's been able to amass an extensive collection of fossils which he stores in his garage. He calls the collection "The American Museum of God," revering the power he believes is behind his discoveries. Lindsay Patterson went digging with Halsey in the bed of the Sulfur River.
Denis Dutton is a professor of the philosophy of art interested in evolutionary biology. In his controversial book The Art Instinct, he argues that certain tastes in art are genetic. Dutton believes that if we examine art from around the world, we can see the marks of evolution.
According to Dutton, Igor Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring” shows how our art instinct is still evolving.
A new play, "Hominid," reenacts a violent incident that took place in a chimpanzee colony. Primate expert Frans de Waal and the play's actors describe what it took to stage a chimpanzee drama with a very human story. Produced by Philip Graitcer, with Rob Weisberg.
Acclaimed novelist Lydia Millet imagines a future where a genetic engineering accident has wiped out much of the earth's plant life. When a few blades of grass appear on a remote island, a scientist goes to investigate. Martha Plimpton reads the story. With production by John Delore.
Listen to Martha Plimpton read another Lydia Millet story here.
Studio 360 is a co-production of
Public
Radio International and
WNYC New York Public Radio, and is funded in part by
Ken and Lucy Lehman, the
National Endowment for the Arts, and the Lily Auchincloss Foundation. Studio 360's American Icons series is supported in part by the
National Endowment for the Humanities. Our series on creativity and science is supported in part by the
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Our series on Underground Heroes is supported in part by the New York State Music Fund, established by the New York State Attorney General at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. 
