Anyone who has had to sit through a Biology lesson knows the name Charles Darwin. The father of evolution, the creator of the theory of Natural Selection. One of the great British minds of history, a significant contributor to the Natural Sciences, and one of the many renowned scientists who thrived during the Victorian era. Darwin, as a pioneer of evolutionary theory, did of course, receive several awards throughout his lifetime: The Royal Medal (1853), the Copley Medal (1864), and the Wollaston Medal (1859). What many may not know is that there is, in fact, a specific award named after Darwin himself. The Darwin Awards, tag line ‘Chlorinating the gene pool', is an unofficial award given to those who die in what can only be deemed extremely stupid ways. The title is provided in reference to Darwin’s theory of Natural Selection, explaining that these deaths are simply a survival of the fittest. Whilst insensitive, the official website (darwinawards.com), contains a list detailing the winners of each years ‘Darwin Award’, from 1994 to 2014.
The first ever Darwin Award, given in 1994, went to an individual known as Michael Anderson Godwin. In March 1989, South Carolina, the man had been convicted of murder some years previously, but recently got his sentence changed from being sentenced to death, to life in prison. Unfortunately for Godwin, as he was sitting on the metal toilet in his cell, probably extremely satisfied with the outcome and attempting to fix his TV set, he had a little accident. Biting down on a live wire, the man electrocuted himself. It seems he couldn’t escape his fate after all.
In 2004, Wolfsburg Austria, a landlord returning to the apartment complex was surprised to see a pair of legs sticking out of the window of one of his tenants. The police were called, and entered the flat to find a dead man, his waist down dangling from the window, and his head soaking in a sink of hot water. Apparently, the victim had returned home after a night of drinking; to attempt to slip through the window, rather than, for some reason, enter by the front door. Managing to squeeze his head and torso through, the man became caught and started to fail around, before accidentally turning on the hot water tap. At this point, it appears that his head was still stuck in the sink, and there was little he could do.
On the 2nd of March 2014, two intoxicated men, following a popular football match, decided to test one another’s courage. Stepping down from the platform, and onto the tracks, one chose to lie between them, in an attempt to prove to the other that the train would pass over him. The other, instead, decided to keep his head as close to where he thought the edge of the train would be. Unfortunately for both, the arriving train was a little wider, and a little lower than they thought, and both were struck instantly. Just goes to show that you shouldn’t drink and… travel by train.
These descriptions should provide an idea of what the awards are like, all following a similar pattern. Whilst death is a tragedy, these individuals will be remembered for the interesting, and sometimes ridiculous circumstances of their passing.
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