Comments on: Creating Young Darwins

By: David Winter

David Winter — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 22:04:36 +0000

Ha – I’ll take ending a piece on Darwin Day in almost exactly the way as Carl ZImmer chose to as a win (http://sciblogs.co.nz/the-atavism/2013/02/12/darwin-and-new-zealand/)

I actually didn’t know about the Ned Friedman’s course – looks like a create resource so thanks.

By: Laura Grace Weldon

Laura Grace Weldon — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 19:15:27 +0000

The major scientific advancements of humankind have come about because people have been free to question, explore, wonder, and find out for themselves. They may seek advice, even if they don’t take it. They often resist accepted dogma of their times.

That’s why I was so thrilled to see this piece. Until I got to the second half. Tracking Darwin’s exact approach certainly has historic value, but it doesn’t free students to pursue their own DIY scientific passions. They’d be better off taking Darwin’s approach (or that of any curious person) by doing some DIY science. This means pursuing one’s own passions, getting involved hands-on, and really immersing oneself in the search for answers.

Laura Weldon
author Free Range learning

By: Liz Heinecke

Liz Heinecke — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 03:37:21 +0000

I’m currently reading “The Invention of Air” about Joseph Priestly, who was credited with being the first person to isolate oxygen. Had he not played with spiders in jars as a child and done science experiments in his kitchen sink when he got older, he might not have stumbled upon his discovery. To create young Darwins, we must encourage kids to do more science at home, and in their own back yards where they can explore and experiment free of direction and judgement.

By: Michael Barton

Michael Barton — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 18:37:08 +0000

Hi Carl. Thanks for sharing about this! I had not seen notice anywhere else. Three things:

1. In your second paragraph, it says “took kit.”

2. Do you know about the recently launched websites for Alfred Russel Wallace (2013 is the centenary of his death). Wallace Online: http://wallace-online.org/; Wallace Correspondence Project: http://wallaceletters.info/

3. John van Wyhe, the historian behind Darwin Online, is working on a paper where he counters the claim that Darwin was an “unofficial” naturalist aboard the Beagle (‘”my appointment received the sanction of the Admiralty”: Why Charles Darwin really was the naturalist of HMS Beagle’)

Also, I wrote a history paper about Darwin’s seed experiments, and that was what got me to be able to attend a Darwin conference in Cambridge, UK in 2009. Love the idea (though not new) of recreating those experiments.