Volume 1 - Welcome to the EvoS Consortium!

THE EVOS ILLUMINATE NOVEMBER 2009
The EvoS Illuminate
The Newsletter of the EvoS Consortium
The title of this newsletter is derived from the Jesuit Priest and scholar Pierre Teilhard de Chardin who stated that “Evolution is a
light which illuminates all facts, a trajectory which all lines of though must follow this is what evolution is” (as cited by Dobzhansky,
1973).
What’s New in EvoS
The EvoS Consortium is happy to launch our first issue
of the EvoS Illuminate. In this twice yearly publication (May
and November), we intend to keep EvoS Consortium
members up to date on what is new with the consortium,
journal, and specific EvoS Programs. Some
recurring features include two spotlights: one
on an EvoS faculty member, and one on an
EvoS undergraduate involved in research.
The EvoS Consortium is proud to boast
more than 40 institutions involved at this
time, a number that is sure to grow. These
members continue to help the affiliate
website grow. It now has teaching modules,
with sample lectures, activities, and
assignments from EvoS instructors.
Members are free to use these resources in
part or full, though we do ask that you credit your source.
You may find the resources at (http://evostudies.org/
modules.html).
We are pleased to direct you to the first issue of EvoS
Journal: The Journal of the Evolutionary Studies Consortium. Our
first issue has four pieces - an introduction to the journal, an
introduction to the inaugural EvoS programs, a first-hand
article about finding employment as an Evolutionary
Psychologist, and a piece about incorporating evolutionary
theory into the science and teaching of molecular biology.
Please view the first issue at (http://evostudies.org/
vol1.html).
Incorporating the Arts & Humanities
The EvoS Consortium is also pleased to
provide an outlet for evolutionary theorists in
the arts and humanities. One small way we
are dong so is through our rotating logo
feature. If you have an idea for an EvoS
Consortium logo, we’d love to feature it on
the website. More details are online at
(http://evostudies.org/logo.html).
We would like to formally invite scholars
from the arts and humanities to share
evolutionary themed work with EvoS Journal.
If you have visual art, poems, short stories, or music that
incorporates an evolutionary perspective, EvoS Journal is one
of the few academic outlets designed in part for your unique
approach!
EvoS Blogs
You’ve probably already noticed our amazing blogs
written by EvoS Consortium scholars (http://evostudies.org/
blog). Please leave a comment when you read through the
posts.
Gordon Gallup, Jr.;
Glenn Geher; Glenn’s
Research Students and
their Friends after
Gordon’s EvoS
Seminar talk in Spring
2009
(SUNY New Paltz)
EvoS Bloggers
Rosemarie Sokol Chang
Maryanne Fisher
Glenn Geher
Joseph Graves
Daniel Kruger
Tom Nolen
Sarah Strout
William Tooke
David Sloan Wilson
VOLUME 1 PAGE 1

THE EVOS ILLUMINATE NOVEMBER 2009
RECONTEXTUALIZING EVOLUTION: BABA BRINKMAN
PERFORMS AT SUNY NEW PALTZ, 11.16.09
BY: IAN MICHNA
I wasn’t initially planning on staying at Baba’s
performance longer than ten minutes. In my mind, a guide
to evolution through rap music seemed like another lame
ploy from companies trying to deliver information in
"trendy" ways to reach the youth. It turns out that this was
not the case at all. Baba works for no company and is not a
mindless rap drone spitting out choruses of prewritten
material. Actually he is quite the opposite, a self-motivated,
intelligent evolutionist with a talent for entertaining. His
extensive rap knowledge combined with a rock-solid
understanding of evolutionary concepts was a potent blend
of information and entertainment. Between his raps he gave
slam poetry-like performances explaining basic evolutionary
concepts. From sexual selection, to warfare, it seemed like
there was nothing he couldn’t evolutionarily explain through
the vehicle of rap music and culture.
Some of the statistics I found most interesting that
he presented that night were the ones about homicide, from
Daly and Wilson’s book Homicide. Baba went on to explain
cultural problems such as teen pregnancy and high levels of
SPOTLIGHT ON AN EVOS STUDENT
RACHAEL CARMEN IS A GRADUATE AT SUNY NEW
PALTZ, AND AS AN UNDERGRADUATE WAS THE FIRST
STUDENT TO SIGN UP FOR THE NEW PALTZ EVOS
PROGRAM IN 2007. SHE DOES RESEARCH ON HUMOR
UNDER THE ADVISEMENT OF CORWIN SENKO AND
GLENN GEHER.
[EN=EVOS NEWSLETTER; RC=RACHAEL CARMEN].
EN: What has been your favorite course
in school so far?
RC: The best courses were definitely
Evolutionary Studies courses, but I signed
up for the EvoS program because I loved
everything about it so pretty much every
class was my “favorite”. My top three:
Evolutionary Psychology with Glenn
Geher (Psychology), Seminar in Psychology (Love and Sex)
with Alice Andrews (Psychology), and Human Evolution
with Ken Nystrom (Anthropology). Intro to Animal Life
with Michael Boms (Biology) was a very close 4 th .
EN: What is your favorite part of the EvoS Program?
gang violence by evolutionary survival adaptations to the
environment. In a nutshell, the riskier the environment, the
riskier sexual and survival strategies would be employed. As
he explained the core concept, he cued up the music video
“Survival of the Fittest” by Mobb Deep, a tune that
epitomizes East Coast gangsta rap from the 90’s. Between
the dark morbid piano loop and clips of the rap duo snarling
at the camera, the music video was one of the strangest
backdrops for a white guy rapping about evolution. Even
stranger--it worked! Throughout the entire night, Baba
continued to take some of the most lyrically potent rap
songs and completely recontextualize them, discussing the
themes in an evolutionary light. I used to think these types
of societal problems were just due to lack of education and
opportunity, but never related them to the deeper
evolutionary side of the problem. At the end of the
performance I could see how evolution wasn’t a detractor
from other academic disciplines, but rather, something that
could work harmoniously with them--with or without rap
music.
RC: There are so many parts of the EvoS program that are
amazing, but I would have to say my favorite is the
Evolutionary Studies Seminar series. The seminar lets
students from various academic backgrounds get a common
understanding of evolutionary theory in addition to
introducing them to new ideas and current research
studies…I learned not only about Psychology (my major)
but Biology, Anthropology, and Geology.
EN: Please give us a summary of the
research you are doing at New Paltz,
including how it is infor med by
evolutionary theory.
RC: I am in the process of conducting
research on how humor styles affect mate
selection… [I am interested in] two
specific types: Self-Deprecating (making
fun of oneself) and Other-Deprecating (making fun of
others)… Humor itself is considered a “fitness indicator”,
meaning that when people effectively use humor, it is
thought to be indicative of their genetic fitness…I also
wanted to see if women’s ovulatory cycles had any effect on
humor and mate preference.
VOLUME 1 PAGE 2

THE EVOS ILLUMINATE NOVEMBER 2009
I personally think evolutionary theory is one of the most important
things a person can learn—it can truly change your life.
-Rachel Carmen, EvoS Student, SUNY New Paltz
[We are] planning on collecting data from women (which
includes three levels – ovulating, not ovulating, and women
on oral contraceptives) and men, regardless of each
participant’s sexual preference. Participants will take the
study online…and will hear two different audio clips – one
self-deprecating, and one other-deprecating clip – and then
will be asked to rate the person in the clip on numerous
dimensions… My hypothesis is that, in general, women
will prefer self-deprecating humor, but when they are in
their peak fertility days, they will tend to prefer more
masculine displays, or rather, other-deprecating humor.
SPOTLIGHT ON AN EVOS FACULTY MEMBER
JENNIFER WALDO IS AN ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF
BIOLOGY AT SUNY NEW PALTZ. SHE IS PART OF THE
EVOLUTIONARY STUDIES MINOR, CREATED IN 2007,
AND A CO-PI ON THE NSF GRANT, “EXPANDING
EVOLUTIONARY STUDIES IN AMERICAN HIGHER
EDUCATION” (#0817337).
[EN=EVOS NEWLETTER; JW=JENNIFER WALDO].
EN: What do you think are the primary benefits
for students from being part of an EvoS
program?
JW: Exposure to exciting, modern research in
disciplines other than their own major. I think a
lot of colleges are structured to have a bunch of
“intro” level classes that you have to get through
in order to understand enough of the vocab/
concepts necessary to fully appreciate work that
is occurring in the field today. This means that if you are
interested in exploring other fields, there is a big impediment
to doing so…..and the intro level courses are often more
historical than modern in their approach. With the EvoS
seminar series, in particular, students can see the type of
research going on by real people, now. Because of the
evolutionary framework in all of the work, they have a way
to grasp on without necessarily becoming experts in the
jargon of the field. I think this realization has to be
empowering to students.
EN: What would you say are the primary benefits to faculty
from being part of an EvoS program?
EN: Has evolutionary theory changed how you think
about the world?
RC: Yes, it has changed how I think about the world in
every way. It gives me a persistently inquisitive mind in all
aspects of my life. I am constantly looking at the world
through an evolutionary lens and questioning the
reasoning behind specific types of behavior. Despite what
some think, evolution has a lot to do with how we behave
the way we do. I personally think evolutionary theory is
one of the most important things a person can learn—it
can truly change your life.
JW: Pretty much the same as for the students. I’ve learned a
lot from the seminars and even more from just chatting with
faculty and students from other departments. Even at a
small school like ours, it is easy to hunker down in this job
and focus just on teaching/advising/research/just keeping
your head above water. Being a part of EvoS has “forced”
me to encounter new material, or just think about things
differently. We all know that this is important,
but EvoS is a way for me to actually do it.
EN: Please give an example of a recent research
project you’ve done, and explain how
evolutionary theory informs your research.
JW: I am a biologist that tries to understand
things that go on inside of cells. I could be called
(accurately, even) a cell biologist, molecular
biologist, geneticist, biochemist, or structural
biologist. Since all cells have a common ancestor, a lot of the
machines that do the work inside of the cell are pretty much
the same, regardless of the organism. So, by studying
fundamental biological processes in one organism, you can
generate knowledge that can be applied to others. Also,
uncovering differences between organisms can point to
adaptations that arose and provided a selective advantage.
So, I study mitosis—that’s the process by which a cell divides
up its genetic material prior to cell division. It’s critically
important that the cell does this correctly, or else the two
cells that arise will be genetically different than the original
cell.
VOLUME 1 PAGE 3

THE EVOS ILLUMINATE NOVEMBER 2009
There is a ten-protein machine that works to separate
chromosomes in dividing cells. There have only been
experiments done to address how this complex works in two
different types of yeast. However, there is a technical
problem in studying how this protein complex works—
scientists cannot produce the ten individual proteins separate
from each other. So, one of my recent projects has been to
study this complex in a third species of yeast, and it turns
out that at least some of the ten proteins in this species are
capable of being produced and studied individually. So, the
inability to study the individual proteins is a technical
problem, and I am using the variation present as a result of
evolution, as a way of overcoming this technical problem.
Now that I have the individual proteins, I can start to ask
questions about how they work alone and together that are
not possible in the other two more widely studied yeasts.
EN: What is your favorite course to teach, and why?
JW: I really only teach two courses—genetics and cell
biology. Both are mid-level biology courses. I don’t really
prefer one over the other…..they are both equally
challenging for me to teach. I’m not to the point where I
have either course “in the bag”. I’m constantly changing how
and what I teach to try to make it better for the students. As
our friend Baba says, performance—feedback—revision.
So, my courses are always evolving (hee hee).
I have a non-science-majors cancer biology course that I
taught once and really would love to teach more regularly.
I’m pretty sure that we need to do a much much much better
job educating non-scientists about science. Unfortunately,
this doesn’t seem to be enough of a priority at the present.
EN: James Lipton always ends Inside the Actor’s Studio
with the question “If Heaven exists, what would you like to
hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?” If
Heaven exists, what would you like to ask Darwin when you
arrive at the Pearly Gates?
JW: I’m going full-bore geek here. I’d want to talk to
Darwin about what/how much he knew about Mendel’s
work. From what I’ve read, there are differing accounts
about how aware they were of each other, and I’d just be
curious to know what the real story is.
Because of the evolutionary framework in all of the work, they have a
way to grasp on without necessarily becoming experts in the jargon of
the field. I think this realization has to be empowering to students.
-Jennifer Waldo, EvoS Faculty, SUNY New Paltz
EvoS Journal Special Issue: Call for Papers
EvoS Journal is planning a special issue on Evolutionary Theory in the Humanities.
If you have a manuscript in mind about an educational experience, the importance
of evolutionary theory for teaching in your field, or a pedagogical technique, please
submit your manuscript using the guidelines at (http://evostudies.org/
submissions.html). If you have an idea for a book review related to Evolution in
the Humanities, please email Rose at (evostudies@gmail.com).
And for students and faculty – if you have a project that incorporates evolutionary
theory with one of the Humanities, please consider submitting it to EvoS Journal at
(http://evostudies.org/submissions.html). Fiction, poetry, and other relevant
works are welcome too.
VOLUME 1 PAGE 4

THE EVOS ILLUMINATE NOVEMBER 2009
The Word from EvoS Members
NorthEastern Evolutionary
Psychology Society: Call for Papers
Announcing the fourth Annual Meeting of
the NorthEastern Evolutionary Psychology
Society, Friday, March 26th, through
Sunday, March 28 th , 2010. The 2010
Meeting will be hosted by Dr. Glenn Geher
and his students at the State University of
New York at New Paltz.
We are pleased to announce that the
keynote speakers will be Dr. Marlene Zuk
of the Department of Biology at the
University of California (Riverside), and Dr.
Richard Wrangham of the Museum of
Comparative Zoology at Harvard
University. The deadline for abstract
submission is January 5th, 2010. Please
encourage your friends, students, and
colleagues to participate.
For more information, please visit http://
www.neepsociety.org
EvoS Programs:
Schedule of Events
Winter 2009/2010
12.4.09
Location: Binghamton
University
Evolutionary Theory: Toward an
Extended Synthesis?
Massimo Piglucci
[For a full list of BUs Seminar
Series, visit http://
evolution.binghamton.edu/
evos/seminars/fall-2009/]
2.8.10
Location: SUNY New Paltz
Darwin Day, featuring Darwin:
Discovering the Tree of Life
Niles Eldridge
2.22.10
Location: SUNY New Paltz
Mutualists, Pathogens, and the
Evolution of Sex in Wild Garlic
Margaret Bonsheim
Have your own EvoS Events
to share? Please send word to
evostudies@gmail.com
This newsletter was written by Rosemarie Sokol Chang with the exception of the special musical
piece by Ian Michna. Special thanks to Jennifer Waldo and Rachael Carmen for being the first EvoS
members to be spotlighted in this newsletter. Please send any comments to evostudies@gmail.com
VOLUME 1 PAGE 5