- Francisco Ayala, one of the world’s leading evolutionary biologists and a champion of science against the forces of religious fundamentalism, died on March 3 in Newport Beach, Calif. at the age of 88.
- Dr. Ayala brought the training of a geneticist to the study of evolution, making important findings about the emergence and extinction of species in response to natural selection, mutation and other natural processes.
- As disputes about evolution raged in American courts, school boards and classrooms, Dr. Ayala rose to its defense.
- In 1981, he testified in a case that overturned an Arkansas law that had required a “balanced treatment” in teaching creationism and evolution.
- His 2007 book, “Darwin’s Gift”, was widely praised as an accessible introduction to Darwin’s ideas and the development of evolutionary biology.
Francisco Ayala, Biologist and Defender of Evolution, Dies at 88
A leading evolutionary biologist who defended Darwin’s theory in books and in the courtroom, he was forced to retire amid charges of sexual harassment.
By Cornelia Dean
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