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ALBANY – As part of the continuing Museum Series, the New York State Museum geologists will present evening lectures through May focusing on the “The Ever-Changing Earth—A History: Earth and Life Through Deep Time.”

The Thursday lectures will be held weekly beginning Thursday, May 4th and continue through May 25th. All lectures are free and take place in the Museum Theater at 7 p.m. Free parking is available next to the Museum.

Lecture topics and dates are:

Thursday, May 4th -- Dr. Chuck Ver Straeten discusses how rocks, and fossils found in them, record the deep history of Earth and the evolutionary history of life. Dr. Martin Lupulescu addresses the origins of the sun, earth, and moon. Dr. William Kelly intertwines the origin of life and the development of oxygen in the atmosphere into Earth’s early history. Thursday, May 11th -- Dr. William Kelly discusses assembly and the destruction of the continents. Dr. Taury Smith talks about climate change through time. Dr. Chuck Ver Straeten presents how to read the grand history of life by examining how fossils in rocks change. Thursday, May 18th -- Dr. Taury Smith discusses the ever-changing North American continent. Dr. Chuck Ver Straeten talks about catastrophes in the history of life that resulted in mass extinctions. Dr. John P. Hart shares new evidence for the complexity of human evolution Thursday, May 25th -- This night’s lectures explore New York’s deep geological and life history. Dr. William Kelly brings to life Precambrian New York, from 1.3 billion to 500 million years ago. Dr. Chuck Ver Straeten discusses the Paleozoic and Mesozoic Eras in New York, from 500-200 million years ago. Dr. Taury Smith talks about the Pleistocene Ice Age, when 22,000 years ago Albany was under a mile of ice and 11,000 years ago it was under 400 feet of water.

The New York State Museum is a cultural program of the New York State Department of

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Education. Founded in 1836, the Museum has the longest continuously operating state natural history research and collection survey in the U.S. Located on Madison Avenue in Albany, the Museum is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. except on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. Admission is free. Further information can be obtained by calling (518) 474-5877 or visiting the museum website at www.nysm.nysed.gov.

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