photo by: Ashley Hocking

The Lied Center of Kansas is pictured in this 2018 file photo.

A scientist and best-selling author on the topic of how genetics have been misused by racists will give a public presentation at the University of Kansas in March.

Adam Rutherford will discuss the past and present of eugenics at a 5 p.m. lecture on March 7 at the pavilion of the Lied Center on KU’s West Campus.

Eugenics is the study of how humans can try to pass along certain genetic characteristics as part of the reproduction process. Eugenics over the years has been adopted by many despots, including the Nazi party in World War II, which used the doctrine to justify the Holocaust and other atrocities.

Rutherford, who is a lecturer in biology and society at University College London, has written books on the subject, including “How to Argue with a Racist,” and has hosted a radio program on the topic for the BBC called “Bad Blood.”

Rutherford said the eugenics movement has changed over the years, but still presents dangers.

“We now have a much more sophisticated understanding of human genetics,” he said in a KU press release. “But this eugenic specter limps on in our culture, reinforcing a view of biology that is simplistic, deterministic and wrong.”