For those "fans" of public television,  Geerat Vermeij appears in one part
of the series "Shape of Life", which has been playing on our local station.
The "Survival" episode is all about Geerat's "Arms Race" theory of
evolution and deals with mollusks (molluscs for Avril & our European
friends).  Check out your local PBS station to see when it's playing at
your local "theater/theatre".
Dan


>>Hello Conchlers,
>>
>>Not everyone on this list might be aware of Geerat Vermeij, Ph.D.,
>>Yale (1971), Professor. Recipient of the Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal
>>by the National Academy of Sciences; MacArthur Award Recipient.
>>
>>This gentleman is blind and views his shells and all of his work
>>through his finger tips.  Truly an amazing feat and man.
>
>Yes, he's amazing, blind from early childhood (and even then, if I
>remember correctly what he told me, he could only make out colors,
>not images) and also physically partially disabled, but he can all
>but tell a shell's colors by touch.
>
>He visited here some years ago, when he was working on labral
>projections used by predatory gastropods for wedging prey open.
>--
>Andrew Grebneff
>165 Evans St, Dunedin 9001, New Zealand
><[log in to unmask]>
>Seashell, Macintosh, VW/Toyota van nut

Dan & Hiromi Yoshimoto
1164 Vista Dr.
Eureka, California
95503-6018
U.S.A.
e-mail: [log in to unmask]

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