Evolution Matters Lecture Series. Free public lecture with Javier Ortega-Hernández, Assistant Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology; Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University.

Earth is home to a vast diversity of organisms that collectively define the modern biosphere. How did this diversity come to be? Javier Ortega-Hernández discusses his approach to answering this question by studying organisms that lived more than half a billion years ago in the Cambrian Period (541–485 million years ago). By focusing on the earliest-known animals—some of the most versatile to ever exist—Ortega-Hernández aims to reconstruct the early evolutionary history of major animal groups and contribute to our understanding of Earth’s biodiversity.

Presented by the Harvard Museum of Natural History.

Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street, Cambridge.  Free event parking at the 52 Oxford Street Garage.

Series supported by a generous gift from Drs. Herman and Joan Suit.