Colorado State University is Hosting Evolution 2004, International Conference Focused on Evolutionary Biology

Note to Editors: Credentialed media professionals are welcome to attend the conference. To attend conference sessions or arrange interviews, contact Brad Bohlander at (970) 491-1545 or Brad.Bohlander@colostate.edu.

Colorado State University is hosting Evolution 2004, an international conference focused on the field of evolutionary biology, June 26-30 in Fort Collins. More than 1,100 leading scientists and students from institutions throughout the world are expected to attend the annual symposium, which is jointly sponsored by the Society for the Study of Evolution, Society of Systematic Biologists and The American Society of Naturalists.

"Many of the world’s leading researchers and top students will be attending the conference to discuss, advance and disseminate knowledge about evolutionary biology," said Colorado State Biology Professor Mike Antolin, lead organizer of the meetings. "We are honored to host Evolution 2004 and pleased to welcome the field’s leaders to Fort Collins and Colorado State University."

The annual conference, hosted at a different location each year, includes a variety of presentations, symposia, poster sessions, exhibits, field trips and other special events. Featured presentations at this year’s symposia include discussions about:

– the media’s influence on teaching evolution;

– why we should believe what the fossil record is telling us;

– evolution and adaptation in invasive species;

– claims being made for intelligent design in biology, physics and cosmology; and

– evolutionary biology in a changing world from emerging diseases to genetically modified crops.

A full conference itinerary, including presenters, times and locations, is available on the Web at http://evolution04.biology.colostate.edu. Conference attendees must be registered.

As a special outreach portion of Evolution 2004, conference organizers welcome the community to the public outreach lecture, " ‘There is a Striking Resemblance Between You and a Monkey’: The Epperson vs. Arkansas Evolution Ruling, Supreme Court, 1968," at 6 p.m. June 27 in the Lory Student Center Theatre. The talk, free and open to the public, will be given by Susan Epperson, a former high-school biology teacher whose determination to teach evolution in her classroom led to the Supreme Court overturning the ban on teaching evolution in public schools.

For more information about Evolution 2004, go on the Web to http://evolution04.biology.colostate.edu.

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