darwin, d.n.a. and destiny...

next thursday, feb. 12, marks the 200th birthday of charles darwin, probably the most influential scientist in intellectual history. darwin's theory of evolution has been making trouble for a century and a half, and shows no sign of stopping any time soon. darwin's dangerous idea dethroned mankind as the pinnacle of all creation, and knocked god the creator right out of the sky. apart from the folks who cling to intelligent design, most of us now accept the fact that the human race evolved through eons of natural selection. most of us also figure that human evolution has pretty much stopped. we assume that we are essentially identical to the people who emerged in africa 50,000 years ago, and any differences that may have evolved between different groups of humans are trivial. it's culture that drives human development now. or maybe not. the new explosion of genetic evidence strongly suggests not only that we have continued to evolve, but that some of our evolutionary adaptations have been remarkably significant and swift. and some have played a major role in shaping human history... // margaret wente, 02.06.09, globe and mail