Meet Dr. Will Provine

Will Provine has been a professor at Cornell since 1969. His Graduate Fields include the homefield of EEB, History, Science and Technology Studies, Zoology, and Education, spanning three colleges. He earned a Ph.D. in the History of Science at the University of Chicago in 1970. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is the author of The Origins of Theoretical Population Genetics (1970) and Sewall Wright and Evolutionary Biology (1986), both published by The University of Chicago Press. He is currently writing a book on the implications of evolution and another book on random genetic drift in evolution. His huge library on evolution and genetics is being moved gradually to the Cornell Library.

In 1986, he began an evolution course for non-majors in biology and has taught that every year, along with a seminar course on the implications of evolution. Both courses have changed much over the years. He has lectured in many countries, including China, Japan, Russia, Sweden, Norway, France, England, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Canada, Ecuador, and widely over the USA. His greatest interests outside of academia include the rehabilitation of persons harmed by the myth of free will, rebuilding farm tractors and bulldozers, growing gardens (especially garlic), cooking, and country living.