The Annual Evolution Symposium
The American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) and NESCent co-sponsor a symposium on evolution at the annual National Association of Biology Teachers (NABT) conference. The goal of the symposium is to bring applied and current evolutionary science to teachers for use in the classroom. Each year the symposium focuses on a different aspect of evolutionary science, and leading scientists give presentations on their research. Supplemental educational resources are available from each symposium.
2007 Evolution: Applications in Human Health and Populations
2005 Evolution and the Environment
2004 Evolutionary Science and Society
2007
EVOLUTION: Applications in Human Health and Populations
December 1, 2007
Atlanta, GA
Please let us know what you think of the CD. All survey respondents are eligible to enter a drawing. Follow the link to learn more.
Understanding how we have been shaped by evolution can help us understand the modern human condition. Evolutionary biology is making important contributions in the field of human health through studies of the human genome, physiology, lifestyle and interaction with the environment. This symposium focuses on the emerging field of evolutionary medicine which brings together comparative genomics, epidemiology, anthropology and other fields to synthesize a comprehensive view of human health. Symposium speakers will describe how this new work is leading to many exciting medical applications. The symposium speakers will also discuss ethical issues and more general implications of evolutionary research in society. Learn more about this topic at the 2007 Evolution Symposium. Watch this site for video of the symposium.
Speakers
Greg Wray - Duke University, NC
Genomic Perspectives on the Evolution of Human Health and Disease
Carlos Bustamante - Cornell University, NY
Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign: Interpreting Evidence for Recent Natural Selection in the Human Genome
Marc Lipsitch - Harvard University, MA
Sex, Drugs and Natural Selection: Evolutionary Perspectives on Antibiotic Resistance
Sandra Romero-Steiner - CDC, GA
The Race Between Bacterial Adaptation and Protection of the Host
George Armelagos - Emory University, GA
The Road to the Viral Super Highway: Emerging Disease in the Time of Globalization
Sandra Soo-Jin Lee - Stanford University, CA
The Ethical Implications of Representing Evolution and Interpreting Difference
David Sloan Wilson - SUNY Binghamton, NY
Evolution for Everyone: How Darwin's Theory Can Change the Way We Think About Our Lives
Resources
2007 EVOLUTION: Applications in Human Health and Populations CD
Please let us know what you think of the CD. All survey respondents are eligible to enter a drawing. Follow the link to learn more.
2006
MACROEVOLUTION: Evolution above the Species Level
Click here for the web based version of the Macroevolution CD
How do new species and higher taxa originate? How do major innovations, such as sexual reproduction, flowers, and insect, bird, and bat wings, evolve? Basic mechanisms of microevolution (evolutionary change below the species level, among populations and within species) can produce macroevolutionary change (the evolution of novel traits, of species, and of lineages) if given enough time. Macroevolutionary studies explore the evolutionary forces and events that generate the characteristic features of new taxa, the radiations of lineages and their extinctions, and the evolutionary patterns produced by physical processes (e.g., continental drift) on living and extinct organisms.
Presentations in this symposium will provide current information about macroevolutionary processes, the distinctions between and the interactions of micro- and macroevolution, the development and evolution of "key innovations" and major lineages of organisms, and the evidence for these processes.
Speakers
Philip Gingerich - The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Fossils and the Origin of Whales
Scott Hodges- University of California, Santa Barbara, CA
The Generation of Plant Biodiversity: Linking Historical Patterns with Evolutionary Processes
David Jablonski- University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Evolutionary Role of Extinctions and Recoveries in the History of Life
Nicole King - University of California, Berkeley, CA
From Protozoa to Metazoa: the Origin of Animal Multicellularity
Jeff Levinton - State University of New York at Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY
The Cambrian Explosion and the Nature of Evidence.
Nipam Patel - University of California, Berkeley, CA
The Developmental Basis of Animal Diversity
Resources
A Pharyngula blog entry by P.Z. Meyers on a 2008 paper from Nicole King:
King N, Westbrook MJ, Young SL, Kuo A, Abedin M, Chapman J, Fairclough S, Hellsten U, Isogai Y, Letunic I, Marr M, Pincus D, Putnam N, Rokas A, Wright KJ, Zuzow R, Dirks W, Good M, Goodstein D, Lemons D, Li W, Lyons JB, Morris A, Nichols S, Richter DJ, Salamov A, Sequencing JG, Bork P, Lim WA, Manning G, Miller WT, McGinnis W, Shapiro H, Tjian R, Grigoriev IV, Rokhsar D. (2008) The genome of the choanoflagellate Monosiga brevicollis and the origin of metazoans. Nature 451(7180):783-788.
2005
Evolution and the Environment
The second evolution symposium highlighted the interface between evolution and ecology. Six prominent scientists presented their work on evolution and the environment, including flowering and crop plants, effects of climate, ecological, and environmental change. BSCS presented educational resources including the "Evolution - Why Bother" DVD. To access information, presentations, and teaching resources from this symposium, go to the AIBS web site.
Speakers
Pamela Soltis, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
The Diversification of Flowering Plants: Key Innovations and Radiations
Anthony D. Barnosky, University of California, Berkeley, CA
The Role of Climatic Change in the Evolution of Mammals
Barbara Schaal and Kenneth Olsen, Washington University, St. Louis, MO
Evolution and Diversification in the Tropical Crop, Cassava
Andrew R. Blaustein, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR
Amphibian Population Declines and Some Misconceptions about Natural Selection
Jonathan B. Losos, Washington University, St. Louis, MO
Ecological Change Drives Evolutionary Diversification: A Case Study with Carribean Lizards
Losos, J.B. 2007. Detective Work in the West Indies: Integrating Historical and Experimental Approaches to Study Island Lizard Evolution. BioScience Vol 57(7):585-597 (DOI: 10.1641/B570712)
Stephen Palumbi, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, CA
When Humans Create Rapid Evolution by Changing the Environment
Resources
Presentations from AIBS
Teaching Resources from AIBS
2004
Evolutionary Science and Society: Educating a New Generation
The first symposium, in 2004, focused on evolution education and included a variety of speakers from evolutionary science, education research, and other relevant backgrounds. The four part series consisted of an Introduction to Evolutionary Thinking, The Tree of Life, How Evolution Works, Evolutionary Science: Advancing Societal Well-being. BSCS published "Evolutionary Science and Society: Educating a New Generation" a book of essays by the speakers and information about resources for teaching evolution. A DVD with interviews with various speakers was also produced, and a companion volume of curriculum for teachers was produced.
Resources
Overview of the Program from AIBS
Evolutionary Science and Society: Educating a New Generation
Edited by Joel Cracraft and Rodger Bybee. Proceedings of the two day Evolution Symposium hosted by AIBS and BSCS at the 2004 NABT convention. Available free online as a PDF, or as a hardcopy book for purchase from BSCS.
Evolutionary Science and Society: Activities for the Classroom
Edited by Rodger Bybee. A compilation of classroom activities that spans five general areas--introduction to evolutionary thinking; teaching the tree of life; teaching how evolution works; teaching evolution's importance for public health; and teaching evolution's importance for society. Includes a CD containing PDFs of activity copymasters, this publication, and Evolutionary Science and Society: Educating a New Generation.
"Evolution - Why Bother" DVD from BSCS
