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Article: A theory's evolution: The Franklin Institute's exhibition on Charles Darwin shows the person behind one of the most revolutionary ideas in science.
- Article from:
- The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA)
- Article date:
- October 16, 2006
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 The Philadelphia Inquirer. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Tom Avril
Oct. 16--Niles Eldredge says the goal was merely to continue a series of New York exhibits on the world's great scientists. First came Leonardo da Vinci, then Albert Einstein. Why not Charles Darwin? Somewhere along the way, a certain Pennsylvania school board decided that Darwin's theory of evolution had "gaps" and "problems," and the ensuing media spotlight was brighter than any museum official could have hoped.
"In a sense, it was dumb luck," says Eldredge. "Darwin" drew a half-million visitors at New York's American Museum of Natural History, where Eldredge, the exhibit curator, is a celebrated paleontologist. Now the show, billed ...