Lewis Dartnell will review the great biological advances of the human being in CosmoCaixa
On 21 January, the CosmoCaixa Science Museum will be hosting another lecture in the ‘Greats of Science’ cycle. Under the title: ‘How biology has defined our history’, Lewis Dartnell, astrobiologist and professor at the University of Westminster, will talk about human evolution, focusing on the biological characteristics of human beings and how changes on planet Earth influence us.
The acclaimed ‘Greats of Science’ series kicks off the year with a guest lecture by researcher Lewis Dartnell, who will explore the profound consequences of our evolution, such as becoming bipedal or intelligent, and how these biological factors have been profoundly influential throughout history.
But it is not just features of human biology that have had an invisible hand in the course of history, Darnell will explain how features of the planet Earth, from continental drift to atmospheric upheaval and underlying geology, have also had a profound influence.
This lecture will review human history through the prism of this uniquely vulnerable nature. From cognitive biases to endemic diseases, we will see how human biology has shaped the planet we know today, and how it continues to challenge and define our progress.
Researcher, teacher, writer and presenter
Lewis Dartnell is a lecturer at the University of Westminster, London. He has a BSc in Biology, an MSc in Astronomy from the University of Leicester and a PhD in Astrobiology. In addition to his research, he writes regular science articles for newspapers and magazines, and has appeared in television programmes such as BBC Horizon, Wonders of the Universe, and documentaries on the National Geographic, Discovery and History channels. He has written five books, including ‘Being Human’ and ‘Origins’, which was Sunday Times Book of the Year.
Series on the great names in science
This lecture forms part of the ‘Great names in science’ cycle, with which the ‘la Caixa’ Foundation brings the work of eminent figures from the scientific world whose contributions and findings have marked a before and after in human knowledge to the public. During these conferences, visitors to the museum will have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the most transcendental and exciting discoveries of modern science by some of the most illustrious personalities in the scientific field.
This is an exceptional opportunity to delve into the most notable innovations and contributions of recent years, advances that have broadened our understanding of the universe and our planet, of the elements and of life, of evolutionary processes or of any other scientific research that sheds light on the most transcendental enigmas of science, all explained in first person by their protagonists.