Happy Birthday Darwin

I intended to post this morning, but I have been working in the lab. Anyway, today is Darwin's Birthday- 200 years old. Too bad your dead. On second thought... Personally, I rank Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection (props to Alfred Russel Wallace) up there with Copernicus's observation of heliocentricity. These two really provided perspective to humanity i.e. put humans in their place. Copernicus took earth out of the center of the universe and Darwin broke down the great chain of being. If you haven't read The Origin of Species, it is quite a slog. At times it is stunning, Darwin's ability as a naturalist is amazing. However, at time he has to resort to hand waving, due to the lack of information, i.e. genetics, the concept of the gene etc. which were just being discovered by Mendel and would not really be incorporated until The Modern Synthesis. Nonetheless a truly brillant man worthy of celebration.