CDRH- Clarington Durham Region Humanists

Meeting date:

Friday February 8th 2008

7 pm to 10pm

Golden Griddle

Liverpool Rd. & Hwy2 Pickering, Ontario

Map

Darwin Day Event Downloads

Thank to everyone for attending another successful event

click on links to the left to listen or read presentations.

Presentations by

John Manuel  - Opening Statements                                                         Audio

Mark Robinson - Darwin’s The Voyage of the Beagle                             Audio    -   Text

Dr. Sohail - Darwin's Conflict with his wife and God                  Intro   - Audio    -   Text

Rafi Aamer USA - The clash of Science and Religion                Intro  -  Audio    -   Text

Darren Kelly – Primate Evolution and Taxonomy                       Intro  -  Audio     

John Manuel & John Thompson - Closing statements                            Audio

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Charles Robert Darwin was born on February 12, 1809 in Shrewsbury, England. He was the fifth child and second son of Robert Waring Darwin and Susannah Wedgwood. Darwin was the British naturalist who became famous for his theories of evolution and natural selection. Like several scientists before him, Darwin believed all the life on earth evolved (developed gradually) over millions of years from a few common ancestors.

From 1831 to 1836 Darwin served as naturalist aboard the H.M.S. Beagle on a British science expedition around the world. In South America Darwin found fossils of extinct animals that were similar to modern species. On the Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean he noticed many variations among plants and animals of the same general type as those in South America. The expedition visited places around the world, and Darwin studied plants and animals everywhere he went, collecting specimens for further study.

Upon his return to London Darwin conducted thorough research of his notes and specimens. Out of this study grew several related theories: one, evolution did occur; two, evolutionary change was gradual, requiring thousands to millions of years; three, the primary mechanism for evolution was a process called natural selection; and four, the millions of species alive today arose from a single original life form through a branching process called "speciation."

Darwin's theory of evolutionary selection holds that variation within species occurs randomly and that the survival or extinction of each organism is determined by that organism's ability to adapt to its environment. He set these theories forth in his book called, On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life (1859) or "The Origin of Species" for short. After publication of Origin of Species, Darwin continued to write on botany, geology, and zoology until his death in 1882. He is buried in Westminster Abbey.

Darwin's work had a tremendous impact on religious thought. Many people strongly opposed the idea of evolution because it conflicted with their religious convictions. Darwin avoided talking about the theological and sociological aspects of his work, but other writers used his theories to support their own theories about society. Darwin was a reserved, thorough, hard working scholar who concerned himself with the feelings and emotions not only of his family, but friends and peers as well.

It has been supposed that Darwin renounced evolution on his deathbed. Shortly after his death, temperance campaigner and evangelist Lady Elizabeth Hope claimed she visited Darwin at his deathbed, and witnessed the renunciation. Her story was printed in a Boston newspaper and subsequently spread. Lady Hope's story was refuted by Darwin's daughter Henrietta who stated, "I was present at his deathbed ... He never recanted any of his scientific views, either then or earlier."

Monthly meeting info.

Our new monthly meeting format is now in the works and we are looking forward to your participation. We are currently in search of a meeting place that is central within our community. A restaurant with a buffet style menu at a reasonable price and as well a small banquet room would work well. We have currently set the last Friday of each month as a tentative day for the meeting to take place.

Monthly meetings consist of discussions from a wide variety of topics. One or two people choosing a topic or book and presenting an article or review for discussion amongst the group. Ideas could range from many creative avenues such as literature, music, art and photography.

For the length of the meeting we figure on one hour for dinner and two hours for discussion. The meetings are open to our members and invited guests. This brings up the question of what considers one a member of our group and the simple answer is this, by meeting at a coffee night and showing an interest in our group and adding your email to our mailing list then you are considered a member. Our coffee nights are a great opportunity for new members to get introduced to the group and once we have met we can invite them to join our monthly meetings.

Contact Mark Robinson

Phone : 905 243 2303
Email: cdrh@humanists.ca

12 feb 1809 - 19 April 1882

Come out and celebrate the life of Charles Darwin.

Listen to Charles Darwins work online or download here

Read Darwin's books online here