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Prof. Dr. H. James Birx critically examines interpretations of evolution from Darwin's materialism to Teilhard's mysticism. A range of models and perspectives are discussed, along with their implications concerning the place our own species occupies within this dynamic universe. The ideas of Nietzsche, Haeckel, Bergson and Marvin Farber are evaluated in the light of ongoing advances in science and technology, as well as the relevance of their concepts and frameworks regarding both cosmology and ethics. Consideration is also given to the probability of exobiology and exxoevolution, and the possible existence of other evolving universes.

Dr. H. James Birx, Professor of Anthropology. is Distinguished Research Scholar at the State University of New York at Geneseo. He is the editor of the five-volume Encyclopedia of Anthropology (SAGE 2006) and the three-volume Encyclopedia of Time (SAGE 2009). His books include Theories of Evolution (1984), Human Evolution (1988), and Interpreting Evolution (1991). Birx has been a Visiting Scholar at Harvard University and the University of Cambridge. He frequently gives lectures at Oxford University, Friedrich Schiller University of Jena, and Maximillian University of Munich.

The lecture will be held in English. Questions may be asked in German but will be answered in English, too.