DARWIN DAY TALK: THE CHEMICAL ORIGINS OF LIFE

NSW HUMANISTS MEETUP's speaker event on Sunday 22 February 2026 at Humanist House in Chippendale 3-5PM will be the Humanist Society's annual Darwin Day celebration, at which the focus is biology, evolution, natural sciences, history of science and similar topics.

2026 Darwin Day Talk - the Chemical Origins of Life

For this year's talk, Vice President John August takes a look at how life might have developed from chemical reactions in the distant past.

Drawing from the book "The Vital Question" by Professor Nick Lane and adding some perspectives of his own, John outlines the hurdles such reactions must overcome - including the synthesis of proteins, something that takes both energy and a particular chemical environment.

John also draws from Stephen Jay Gould's notion of "adaptation" and an information theory perspective - how is it that we might store information in chemicals, and how might they themselves direct other chemical reactions? These are important steps towards sustainable primitive lifeforms from which other forms might evolve.

Darwin Day celebrates Charles Darwin's birthday each year. Charles was born 12 February 1809 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. Darwin's discoveries transformed our understanding of humankind's place in the natural world, kickstarted the search for the origin of our own species, and inspired our discoveries of the origins of human capabilities and behaviours.

NSW Humanist Meetup is sponsored by the Humanist Society of NSW.
The HSNSW encourages honest, open conversations held in a respectful manner.