The *Queens County Bird Club Inc.* will be meeting at the Alley Pond
Environmental Center, 228-06 Northern Blvd Douglaston, NY 11362
<http://goo.gl/8cnmjT> >Map of location<
at 8:00 pm on Wednesday, April 15, 2015. Free admission. Refreshments
served.
Public transportation users: Meeting location is one mile from Bayside LIRR
station; you can either walk, take Q12 bus, or use car service located at
station.
Our speaker will be Prof. Eugene Harris, presenting "Ancestors in Our
Genome: The New Science of Human Evolution"
Two of the biggest scientific breakthroughs in paleoanthropology
occurred in 2010. Not only had we determined a draft genome of an extinct
Neandertal from bones that lay in the Earth for tens of thousands of years,
but the genome from another heretofore unknown ancient human relative,
dubbed the Denisovans, was also announced. An over one-hundred year old
conundrum was finally answered: did we mate with Neandertals? It was now
undeniable that modern humans, with all our modern features had met and
mated with both of these extinct human-like beings. The questions are now:
what are the consequences of archaic DNA in our genomes?
These breakthroughs open a window of fresh air onto the
field of anthropology after many decades of speculation. We are also making
base-by-base comparisons of our genome with our primate cousins and finding
some of the genomic bases of our unique features - our large and complex
brains, our complex cognition and spoken language. Simultaneously, we are
learning more about the continuum existing between us and other primates.
Darwin presciently wrote "the difference in mind between man and the higher
animals, great as it is, certainly is one of degree and not of kind."
Today, we are realizing Darwin's dream.
Genomes allow us to probe how human populations adapted to
hot and cold climates, high altitudes, different diets, and to myriad
pathogens we encountered in our world-colonization. Already well-underway,
is a large project collecting thousands of genomes of peoples from around
the world. By comparing them, we are discovering ancient footprints left by
natural selection. Surprisingly, pathogens appear to have left some of the
largest footprints in our genome.
The genomic highway has an unchecked speed limit. We are
unlocking fascinating secrets about our ancestry at an exhilarating pace.
This talk will give an overview of how full genomes from living humans, our
primate relatives and our extinct archaic cousins are reinventing the
science of human evolution.
Dr. Eugene E. Harris is a professor of Biological Sciences
and Geology at the City University of New York and an affiliated Researcher
with the Center for the Study of Human Origins at New York University.
Signed copies of his book will be available for sale at this meeting.
Nancy Tognan
Vice President: *Queens County Bird Club Inc*.
See http://www.qcbirdclub.org/ for more information on trips, speakers, and
other events!
See our 'Birding Maps & Locations' page for directions to and info about
many local birding hotspots
* QCBC is a tax exempt, charitable organization {501c3}. *
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