If history does indeed repeat itself, then today we should be on the lookout for groundbreaking news in the study of evolution. Why? Well, it was on this day in 1859 that Charles Darwin published the revolutionary On the Origin of Species, and 115 years later, Donald Johanson and Tom Gray discovered the Lucy skeleton at Hadar, Ethiopia.
On the Origin of Species detailed the processes of natural selection and adaptive radiation. Though the work never explicitly claimed humans were descended from apes, Darwin was nonetheless attacked for that proposition. Even today, he's still a polarizing figure, as creationists try to refute what biologists and the scientific community defend -- that man evolved over time from ancient hominid ancestors. The debate continues with no likely end in sight.
So, did Lucy's discovery lend a hand to Darwin and his proponents? Most certainly. The discovery of this 40%-complete skeleton of Australopithecus afarensis offered fossil evidence of a potential human ancestor that walked upright 3,000,000 years ago. Furthermore, this evidence was supported by Mary Leakey's amazing find of footprints from Lucy's time at Laetoli.
While it may seem that debate over scientific theory is one best left to the experts, average Americans haven't been deterred from taking it to the streets. Nothing short of a silent evolutionary war is being waged on the backsides of automobiles. From the Jesus fish to the Darwin fish to the truth-eats-Darwin fish and beyond, this once-binary argument has given birth to unforeseen allegiances and a unique forum for debate.
With such a contentious topic at hand, it seems as though it may be risky to make a call for one side or the other. However, based on the historical significance of this day in history, the 24th of November is going to have to be called in favor of the evolutionists. So go have a banana and go for a walk, you bipedal hominids of today!
Suggested Sites...
- Literature.org: The Origin of Species - read Darwin's legendary work firsthand.
- The Complete Works of Charles Darwin Online - when "On the Origin of Species" just isn't enough.
- BBC: The Evolution of Man - browse articles discussing the story of human evolution.
- The Darwin Awards - for those less interested in science and more interested in the idiocies of others.
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