Crushed Under a Mountain of Facts 📚🔬
Join James T. Costa (director of the Highlands Biological Station and professor of biology at Western Carolina University) and Elizabeth E. Yale (associate professor in the Department of History and the Center for the Book at the University of Iowa) for an exploration of the origin and evolution of Charles Darwin’s second most famous work, The Descent of Man. Inspired by insights from their new annotated edition of Descent (Princeton, 2026), they shed light on the cultural context in which Darwin developed his ideas on human evolution and sexual selection, how conversations with fellow naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace shaped Descent in crucial ways, and how his ideas were received in the scientific and popular press.
What to expect:
- 📖 An in-depth exploration of the origin and evolution of Darwin’s The Descent of Man
- 🔍 Insights from the new annotated edition on cultural context, Wallace’s influence, and contemporary reception
- 🛒 Opportunity to purchase the newly annotated publication of Darwin’s The Descent of Man