Our Fall 2014 lecture series begins on October 10 in Chicago with "Humans Evolving," a visual exploration of the past and future of our species in the dome at the Adler Planetarium, followed by Frans de Waal on the biological roots of morality in Houston on October 21, and much more.

How hard can it be to extract DNA from the teeth of chimpanzees that died only 30 or 40 years ago? These were my initial thoughts when presented with the opportunity to examine the DNA of the most famous chimpanzees in the world. These individuals, studied by Dr. Jane Goodall at Gombe, included Flo, Madam Bee, Satan, Hugo, and Getty.