Susan Mango

Technological Research Council (Tubitak). The magazine’s editor, Cigdem Atakuman, was also sacked for ‘exceeding her authority’ by commissioning the article, which the council said was “not planned or scientifically evaluated beforehand”. The government has denied playing any role in the article’s withdrawal and has joined in the condemnation, despite its wellknown opposition to evolutionary theory. Mehmet Aydin, the minister responsible for Tubitak, said that it had been guilty of censorship. Tubitak “is supposed to reflect the views of all those who have served science,” he said. “No matter how mistaken they can be.” But the publicity arising out of these events in Turkey may have worked against the government. The sacked editor, Atakuman, told Der Spiegel that “the whole affair has created awareness of Darwin. Many people now want to get informed. There will be many events in Turkey commemorating Darwin’s 200th birthday”. It now appears, following these events, that Atakuman has been reinstated as editor of the journal but believes the incident has hurt the reputation of Turkish science and scientists in the international arena. Back in Lisbon, the exhibition is accompanied by a series of eight public lectures on biology and evolution by internationally renowned scientists, including Rosemary and Peter Grant talking about the evolution of Darwin’s finches. “This museum is a house of culture where all its facets can be merged in the same space,” says Caraça. And the Darwin exhibition is in the company of one of Europe’s finest art collections. Calouste Gulbenkian was a wealthy oil magnate and most of his artistic acquisitions are now held here. “We must ensure that scientific culture is not separated from the rest of culture, but rather that it becomes mainstream.” So far the exhibition has been a great success. More than 10,000 people visited in the first week with a total of 50,000 for the first month. “This makes it one of the most visited Darwin exhibitions ever,” says Feijó, “even compared with cities that have more inhabitants than our whole country.” Susan Mango