The evolution of the universe and life, canvas by canvas. Lecture by Carlos Briones

To coincide with Science and Innovation Week, which this year runs from 4 to 17 November, the researcher, public educator and writer Carlos Briones proposes taking a trip back in time from the Big Bang to the appearance of our species and the biodiversity of which it is a part with a lecture in the museum’s Auditorium (free entry until all seats filled). Via a fascinating journey spanning 13.7 billion years we travel through the principal stages in the evolution of the universe and life as explained by science, but in this case only using paintings by artists of different eras and styles as visual metaphors. The result is to show how science, art and the humanities are branches of culture that can and should engage in dialogue with the aim of finding answers to the fascinating questions that surround us.

Carlos Briones is a doctor of Chemical Sciences and a staff researcher at the CSIC. He directs a group at the Astrobiology Center (CSIC-INTA, associated with the NASA Astrobiology Program) which investigates the origin and early evolution of living beings and the development of biosensors to describe terrestrial life or look for it outside our planet. He has extensive experience in scientific dissemination as a lecturer, organiser of lecture series and contributor to the press. Dr Briones has published several books, of which the latest is On board your curiosity. A journey through the questions and challenges of current science (Crítica, 2024). He has received the prestigious COSCE Prize for the Dissemination of Science in 2024. He is also the author of collections of poetry, including From where you are absent (winner of the Hiperión Poetry Prize, 1993). A firm defender of the Third Culture, he regularly undertakes activities that bring together science, the arts and humanities.