"I
think": Descent with Modification
The first phylogenetic tree, from Darwin's 1836
notebook. The notebook, ordinarily stored in a
high-security archival vault, was removed for
photography in November 2000. A routine audit of the
vault in January 2001 indicated that the notebook was
missing and assumed misplaced. A forensic audit in 2020,
the most extensive in the library's history, failed to
locate it. However, in March 2022, the
notebook was found outside a door within the library, "swathed
in plastic wrap and left in a box inside a bright-pink
gift bag, along with a printed note that read "Librarian
Happy Easter X."
All text material ©
2026 by Steven M. Carr