Month: September 2025

Dr. Graham Bell, James McGill Professor, Department of Biology, McGill University

“Full Fathom 5000: The Expedition of HMS Challenger and the Strange Animals It Found in the Deep Sea”

Abstract:

The Lansdowne Lecture tells the story of one of the great voyages of history. The circumnavigation made by HMS Challenger had momentous consequences: not only uncovering a whole new range of animals whose existence had never before been suspected, but also kick-starting the exploration of the oceans. It was the first to explore the deep sea it was not even known for sure whether any animals could survive in the perpetually cold, dark waters of the abyss under a crushing pressure. The voyage settled this question for good by capturing the strange and bizarre creatures that live a kilometreor more below the surface of the sea.

Join us on October 16th at 7PM in BWC B150! 
Presented by the Department of Biology

About Professor Graham Bell: 

Professor Bell is an evolutionary biologist from McGill University studying the mechanism of natural selection and explaining the maintenance of biodiversity. As well as several texts including The Masterpiece of Nature (1982) and his widely recognized university text on ‘The Evolution of Life’ by Oxford Press, he has maintained a field program, investigating the biodiversity and community structure of plants in old-growth forest mechanisms of adaptation including the evolutionary consequences of global change, especially the adaptation of plants to elevated carbon dioxide, and the evolutionary rescue of stressed populations.

Professor Bell is a recipient of many Canadian and international awards, including membership to the Royal Society. He was President of the Royal Society of Canada 2013-2015 and was Chair of the McGill Biology Department 2011-2016.

** Everyone is Welcome to Attend **

https://events.uvic.ca/biology/event/99341-lansdowne-lecture-dr-graham-bell-full-fathom-5000-the-