Rare Darwin Book Found In The Loo

Posted by Queuebot in Book & Lit on November 22, 2009 at 8:40 pm

A first edition of Charles Darwin’s "On The Origin of Species" was discovered on a bookshelf in the guest bathroom of a house in southern England. Only 1,250 of the books were printed when the book was first released in 1859.

Leaving aside the thought that Darwin is not what one generally thinks of in terms of bathroom reading, how many people sat there leafing through the thing before somebody finally realized what they were holding?

The book will be auctioned on Tuesday, the 150th anniversary of the publication of the famous work. Christie’s said the book is likely to sell for 60,000 pounds ($99,000).

Why don’t I ever find stuff like that? Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by Kendris.

 
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The Darwin Optical Illusion

Posted by Alex in Pictures, Science & Tech on June 26, 2009 at 1:49 am

If you like the neat color optical illusion posted by Neatoramanaut Minnesotastan from the Upcoming Queue, check this one out by Rob Jenkins of the University of Glasgow and Richard Wiseman of the University of Hertfordshire:

The picture below shows two monkeys. Set your computer monitor to maximum brightness and then stare at the centre of the picture for about 30 seconds without moving your eyes. Next, look to a white wall and blink a few times. The monkeys should suddenly transform into a perfect picture of Darwin!

Link

Previously on Neatorama: 10 Fun Facts About Charles Darwin

 
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What is Evolution?

Posted by Queuebot in Science & Tech on May 19, 2009 at 11:19 am

Knowledge on evolution fills many books, which can be intimidating to someone just beginning to learn about it. Geeks are Sexy has a post explaining in layman’s terms how evolution works and the reason why the theory is so important as a tool when examining the world. The basics boil down to four statements:

* Variation, which arises through mutation, exists within and between populations for every trait.
* More individuals are born into a population than can survive (usually because of the scarcity of resources).
* Traits are passed down from parents to their offspring.
* Individuals most fit to survive in their environment generally do (Natural Selection).

Of course, there’s a lot more which is easier to absorb once you have the basics. Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by Geeksaresexy.

 
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Darwin's Egg Found

Posted by Alex in Science & Tech on April 13, 2009 at 1:38 pm

If you’ve ever damaged your stuff because you packed it wrong, take heart: even Charles Darwin made the same error.

When a volunteer was cataloging a collection at University of Cambridge’s Zoology Museum, she ran across a curious egg with writings on it:

… Lowe and Curator of Ornithology Dr Mike Brooke, traced the specimen’s origin in the notebook of Professor Alfred Newton, a friend of Darwin’s and Professor of Zoology in the latter 19th Century.

Prof Newton had written: "One egg, received through Frank Darwin, having been sent to me by his father who said he got it at Maldonado (Uruguay) and that it belonged to the Common Tinamou of those parts.

"The great man put it into too small a box and hence its unhappy state."

Link

Previously on Neatorama: 10 Fun Facts About Charles Darwin

 
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