Darwin Day

[Highwarlord]

Anyone else celebrating this? Darwin is apparently turning 200 on Friday the 13th of this week.

[Assassin89]

I support Charles Darwin, as his fact of evolution has been an important part of understanding humanity.

[Highwarlord]

The only event that I know of locally is a little showing of some evolutionary science film and some drinking games. Anyone having something cooler going on?

[RTGoodman]

I'm probably not gonna ACTIVELY celebrate, but I am part of the Facebook group "Can We Find 200,000 People by Feb 12 to Wish Darwin a Happy 200th Birthday?" (http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=53320310123&ref=mf) I guess that counts, right?

[ghost_warlock]

Darwin's birthday is actually Thursday the 12th (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Darwin) (hence why the Facebook group, of which I am also a member, want people by the 12th). Note that he shares a birthday with Abraham Lincoln (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln). :smallsmile:

[Almn]

I have an essay because of this. Charles Darwin, I hate you.

In that whole you gave me an unnessary essay to write and I don't need tht kinda crap way.

[Nameless]

Hurray for Darwin, the one who found logic! :smallsmile:

[St.Sinner]

Heck yes, huzzah for Charles Darwin! This year is also the 150th anniversary of On the Origin of Species.

[Assassin89]

I have an essay because of this. Charles Darwin, I hate you.

In that whole you gave me an unnecessary essay to write and I don't need that kinda crap way.

Hating a person due to writing an essay is not a valid reason.

Would you rather write an essay on Lamarck's theory then?

[Nameless]

Heck yes, huzzah for Charles Darwin! This year is also the 150th anniversary of On the Origin of Species.

I have that Book. :P

[Player_Zero]

The birthday of Charles Darwin is fine as a topic, but I don't believe his works or rather people's beliefs in them are an appropriate topic for this forum where political and religious discussion is prohibited since this topic will most likely devolve into that.

[St.Sinner]

It's science. He was a scientist. Somebody's belief in evolution is about as relevant as their belief in gravity.

[Jack Squat]

It's science. He was a scientist. Somebody's belief in evolution is about as relevant as their belief in gravity.

Yes, but some religious groups do refute the theory of evolution. I'd say it's fine so long as someone doesn't try to start a debate as to whether Evolution or Creationism is right.

[St.Sinner]

Ah well. There is no debate to be had, anyway. Moving on, there's all sorts of interesting trivia about Darwin's life. His father had wanted to him to become a doctor, but he failed because he couldn't stand the sight of blood. It's quite amusing, seeing as he spent his whole life collecting and stuffing dead things.

[Fostire]

Ah well. There is no debate to be had, anyway. Moving on, there's all sorts of interesting trivia about Darwin's life. His father had wanted to him to become a doctor, but he failed because he couldn't stand the sight of blood. It's quite amusing, seeing as he spent his whole life collecting and stuffing dead things.

I can tell you, from personal experience, that touching dead things is much less creepy than touching bleeding things.

[Player_Zero]

You guys are lame. No one saw my pun.

[Jack Squat]

You guys are lame. No one saw my pun.

I saw it, and all it did was get the Jonathan Coulton song in my head.

[thubby]

I can tell you, from personal experience, that touching dead things is much less creepy than touching bleeding things.

well you can't exactly make a dead thing worse

p.s. yes, player zero, i saw the pun, i then wanted to kick myself in the head. much like i do when i hear people in my science class talk about deceleration.

[Player_Zero]

I saw it, and all it did was get the Jonathan Coulton song in my head.


yes, player zero, i saw the pun, i then wanted to kick myself in the head. much like i do when i hear people in my science class talk about deceleration.

It's a double win!

[Rutskarn]

Ah, Player_Zero. Bad puns, brainbreaking images--I chose well for my nemesis.

Of course, the whole evil twin thing helps.

[InaVegt]

Hurray for Darwin, the one who found logic! :smallsmile:

Ummmm,

Logic was invented by philosophers in the BCE era, just a couple of millenia before Darwin was born?

[Nameless]

Ummmm,

Logic was invented by philosophers in the BCE era, just a couple of millenia before Darwin was born?

Pardon me, the one who disproved Illogical thinking. :smalltongue:

[Illiterate Scribe]

Just pointing out that Darwin and evolution was very much a 'standing on the shoulders of giants' affair. Erasmus Darwin came pretty close, as did even Lamarck, and Irenaeus seemed to take for granted a very primitive idea of evolution c. 150AD. Sure, celebrate Darwin day if you want, but there's a train of people a mile long both in front of and behind Darwin that helped develop the idea.

[Ichneumon]

I'm going to enlist (do you actually use that word in this context?) to a biology university study on that day. That is how I'm going to pay respect to the man who made us realise we are just animals.

Darwin was great and his discovery of evolution is as much a religious subject as gravity itself (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_Earth_Society) is. It has nothing to do with religion per se.

[Nameless]

I'm going to enlist (do you actually use that word in this context?) to a biology university study on that day. That is how I'm going to pay respect to the man who made us realise we are just animals.

Darwin was great and his discovery of evolution is as much a religious subject as gravity itself (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_Earth_Society) is. It has nothing to do with religion per se.

Pfft, Gravitiy is just a CIA cover-up to keep us all on Earth. O_e

[charl]

I don't celebrate any other scientist's birthday, so I don't really see any reason to celebrate Darwin's either. When it comes to biologists I suppose I could consider celebrating Linneus's birthday though (I live in his hometown after all).

[Zarrexaij]

I'm in a group that may or may not be doing something special for Darwin Day.

I'm also part of that Facebook group mentioned in this thread.

Not a biology or zoology major though. I'm just a computer science major. :smalltongue:

[mangosta71]

I doubt I'll do anything, as most people's idea of celebrating involves getting so drunk they can't stand up, and I have to work both days (aside from my aversion to alcohol). But his publications on evolution are pretty much the basis of studies on many areas of interest to population geneticists, particularly genetic drift and heterozygosity.

Maybe I'll keep myself amused by looking up the Darwin awards...

[Izmir Stinger]

Darwin's birthday is actually Thursday the 12th (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Darwin) (hence why the Facebook group, of which I am also a member, want people by the 12th). Note that he shares a birthday with Abraham Lincoln (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln). :smallsmile:

You didn't hear? When they moved George Washington and Abraham Lincon's birthdays so that we could have a 3 day weekend, everyone with a birthday on the 12th or 22nd of February now have to celebrate it in conjunction with the third weekend in February.

[Archonic Energy]

*gets ready for the darwin day feast*

Pig, Cow, Chicken, Duck, Deer, Bison... erm?

does Aberdeen Angus count as a seperate species?

[ghost_warlock]

Just pointing out that Darwin and evolution was very much a 'standing on the shoulders of giants' affair. Erasmus Darwin came pretty close, as did even Lamarck, and Irenaeus seemed to take for granted a very primitive idea of evolution c. 150AD. Sure, celebrate Darwin day if you want, but there's a train of people a mile long both in front of and behind Darwin that helped develop the idea.

And this is different from any other breakthrough how? We certainly wouldn't progress very far if every scientist, every person in any field, had to start completely from scratch. We're all standing on the shoulders of giants, whether we're pushing the limits of astrophysics or doing our laundry.


You didn't hear? When they moved George Washington and Abraham Lincon's birthdays so that we could have a 3 day weekend, everyone with a birthday on the 12th or 22nd of February now have to celebrate it in conjunction with the third weekend in February.

They didn't so much move the birthdays as simply declare THIS day was a holiday and THESE days weren't. Really, we got shafted; we could've had two days off work! Not that I ever get a day off work for any holiday...

[St.Sinner]

Happy Darwin's Birthday, everyone! I'm proud to be an ape!

[Archonic Energy]

happy B day Darwin.
Time: 23:59

Species eaten: 6

List of species eaten: Sus domestica, Bos taurus, G. gallus domesticus, erm... duck, venison, and lamb...

... next year i'm aiming for 10.

Will be edited throughout the day.

[Serpentine]

Happy Darwin's Birthday, everyone! I'm proud to be an ape!You make a great ape :smallwink:
Darwin was a great man, but howabout a shout-out to his co-publisher, Wallace.

[puppyavenger]

you know, I find it hysterical that every school in the city was canceled today due to "icy road conditions"

[KnightDisciple]

...
They didn't so much move the birthdays as simply declare THIS day was a holiday and THESE days weren't. Really, we got shafted; we could've had two days off work! Not that I ever get a day off work for any holiday...

Hm. I'd always taken the decision to celebrate a single "President's Day" as more of a move to prevent holiday bloat, you know? I mean, sure, Washington and Lincoln are big, but there's plenty of other Presidents who did good too. Rather than fighting about which ones deserve holidays, we just give them all the same day to share. Makes sense to me, anyways.

[The Minx]

Happy B-day Darwin! ^^


You make a great ape :smallwink:

Oh, dear anther pun. :smallsmile:

[Copacetic]

The cheers for Evolution! Happy B-day, Darwin.

[DMBlackhart]

I know I am probably going to be yelled at for this, and honestly I doubt it has much relevence to the topic, but it is seeming like a good thing to say at the moment. Least for humors sake...

WWGFSMD

[Flame of Anor]

Happy Darwin-Day! Now to drink some celebratory Welch's Ape Soda!

[KingGolem]

I can't believe myself. Darwin is one of my favorite scientists, and today I forgot to wish ANYBODY a Happy Darwin Day! :smallmad: Oh, well. It's a bit late, but Happy Darwin Day, nonetheless. :smallcool:

[VampireRot]

I made a bad picture to wish everyone a happy Darwin Day! Happy Darwin Day!

http://i591.photobucket.com/albums/ss354/VampireRot/HappyB-dayDarwin.png
You can't see it, but the book says "On the Origin of Species" :smallsmile: