As the world celebrates two Charles Darwin anniversaries – 200 years since his birth and 150 years since the publication of The Origin of Species – it is sad to reflect how far we still are from the scientific enlightenment he promised. By the early 20th century almost every biologist accepted that life evolved over time through natural selection.

Yet at the beginning of the 21st century, evolution is under sustained attack from creationist theories inspired by fundamentalist religion – sometimes dressed in scientific clothing as “intelligent design”. Opinion polls show that more Americans believe in Biblical creation than evolution, and even in Europe’s relatively secular societies a growing minority rejects Darwin.