By Becca Starkes
It’s that time again. Darwin Week 2016 is here, and it’s promising many “firsts” this year — the first visit by an historian, the first true comedy show, and the first time Darwin Week has been longer than, well, a week.
Charles Darwin.
The events run from Feb. 4 through Feb. 14, 2016, making the celebration a full three days longer than usual. But professor Robert Dillon, who has organized Charleston’s Darwin Week every year since its inception in 2001, doubts many people will mind the extension with so many exciting evolutionary events planned.
This year’s theme is Origins — “the origin of the universe, the origin of life, the origin of complex adaptations, and the origin of the controversy (concerning evolution),” says Dillon.
The “week” kicks off with a comedy show at Theatre 99 (tickets required) featuring comedian Chris Duffy and the College’s very own paleontologist, professor Phil Manning.
And for the craft beer enthusiasts in town, CofC alum and Holy City Brewing co-founder Chris Brown ‘05 cooked up a special brew just for Darwin Week. According to the brewery’s website, Holy Evolution is “the perfect libation to help you ponder our planet’s ecological balance.”
(This is not the first time a beer has been brewed in the name of science at the College of Charleston: The Canadian brewer Howe Sound named its Super Jupiter Grapefruit IPA after a planet discovered by College students Thea Kozakis ’13 and Laura Stevens ’13.)
The week also features several Piccolo Darwin Week events for the young scientific enthusiast. Piccolo Darwin Week, in association with the Charleston STEM Fest 2016, presents activities related to evolutionary science intended for kids in elementary, middle, and high school. There will be special walkthroughs at the Mace Brown Museum of Natural History, a talk about dinosaurs from professors Manning and Victoria Egerton, and even a discussion about Harry Potter’s magical creatures.
Check out the poster below for a brief description of all of this year’s Darwin Week events or visit the website for complete details and ticket information.
This article was written by Becca Starkes, a senior from Myrtle Beach, S.C., majoring in communication at the Honors College at the College of Charleston. She is also on the executive board of the Student Alumni Associates.
