Robert J. O’Hara

I am an academic naturalist and evolutionary biologist with professional interests in systematics, biodiversity, and the history and theory of the historical sciences. I administer the websites listed below.

I am also an advocate for the creation of small, cross-sectional, faculty-led residential colleges and house systems within larger universities as a means to improve higher education. I established and maintain “The Collegiate Way: Residential Colleges and the Renewal of University Life” (collegiateway.org), the leading international resource on the residential college movement. I have sixteen years’ experience in residential college life and administration at Harvard University, the University of North Carolina, and Middlebury College, and am a frequent speaker and consultant to public and private institutions in the United States and abroad that are exploring the collegiate model. Your inquiry is welcome. To see what residential colleges can do for your institution please explore the Collegiate Way website, and to keep up with recent developments in the residential college movement pay a visit to the Collegiate Way news blog.

• The Collegiate Way: Residential Colleges and the Renewal of University Life — Renewing campus life by dividing large universities into small, permanent, cross-sectional, faculty-led residential colleges.

  Introduction—“House Systems”—Four Foundations for the Renewal of Campus Life—How to Build a Residential College (Membership · Buildings · Life · Pastoral · Academic · Sequence)—Objections to the Collegiate Model—The Collegiate Landscape of the Future—Recommended Reading—Residential Colleges Worldwide—Higher Education News from the Collegiate Way.

• The Darwin-L Archives on the Historical Sciences — Message logs and supporting materials from Darwin-L (1993–1997), an academic discussion group on the history and theory of the historical sciences.

  Introduction—Palaetiology—Today in the Historical Sciences (January · February · March · April · May · June · July · August · September · October · November · December)—Tree-Thinking—Narrative in the Historical Sciences—History of Systematics—Stephen Toulmin Publications—Darwin-L Message Logs.

• Teaching Information — Syllabi, study guides, and related information for past and prospective students.

• Curriculum Vitae and Publications — Professional biography and bibliography with links to the full text of my published works on evolutionary biology, the historical sciences, and education.

  “To Gather From the Air a Live Tradition”—Against Theme Halls—Hogwarts U.—How to Build a Residential College—Population Thinking and Tree Thinking in Systematics—Mapping the Space of Time—Cladistic Analysis of Old Norse Manuscripts—Trees of History in Systematics and Philology—Species and Evolutionary History—Vita: Chauncey Wright (1830–1875)—Systematic Generalization, Historical Fate, and the Species Problem—Telling the Tree: Narrative Representation and Evolutionary History—The Natural System in the Nineteenth Century—Diagrammatic Classifications of Birds, 1819–1901—Homage to Clio, or, Toward an Historical Philosophy for Evolutionary Biology—The Pleistocene Forest Refuge Hypothesis. (More…)

• Peabody Park at UNCG — The history and natural history of an educational park at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

  Introduction—Peabody Park in Spring—Summer—Fall—Winter—George Foster Peabody—Thomas Gilbert Pearson—Peabody Park in the Civil War—Peabody Park Across the Curriculum—Peabody Park Biological Survey.

• RJO’s Library — A small sampling of “special collections” items in the fields of systematics, evolution, and New England natural history, including monographs and manuscripts as well as serials.

• New England Genealogy — My ancestry through Boston Irish and Massachusetts Bay Puritan branches. Another avocational site, closely related to my professional interests in the historical sciences.

  Introduction and Ahnentafel—New England Immigrant Ancestors (working draft)—Descent from Nathaniel and “Roaring John” Rogers—The Demonic Possession of Elizabeth Knapp—Descendants of Samuel Scripture of Groton—Ancestors in King Philip’s War—Ancestors in King William’s War—Ancestors in Queen Anne’s War—Ancestors in the American Revolution—Ancestors in Shays’ Rebellion—Lexington and Concord—Notable Kin. (More…)

• Book Reviews — A selection of capsule book reviews on education, numismatics, and literature posted to Amazon.com.

  Christopher Alexander on Towns, Buildings, and Construction—Christopher Alexander on the University of Oregon—Scott Atran on the Cognitive Foundations of Natural History—Alan Kors and Harvey Silverglate on the Shadow University—Richard Light on Making the Most of College—A Mac WiFi Antenna That Works—Samuel Eliot Morison on the Founding of Harvard College—Diane Ravitch on Failed School Reforms—William Willimon and Thomas Naylor on the Abandoned Generation. (More…)

• Varia — Technical notes on RJO’s websites, along with an assortment of diversions, amusements, photo albums, and less-than-serious publications.

  Scalable Captioned Figures with HTML and CSS—Studies in Experimental Psychosystematics—Psalm of Google—Contributions to Metaphysics—Chilean Fjords—Transit of Venus—South Street Cemetery. (More…)