Richard Dawkins

I heard Richard Dawkins on the Today Programme this morning. He's a million-dollar book seller and all-round serious atheist. Nothing wrong with that. We can all be what we want to be. But does he have to be so petty, so denigrating of others, and generally so mean-spirited when he talks about believers? It sounds like he has a chip on his shoulder about this. He wants Britain to be a "God Free" zone. Well, to use a phrase "a snowball's got a better chance in Hell".He appears to want to be nasty rather than nice in discussion. There is a real venom behind his words. He trivialises peoples' belief by referring to God as "an imaginary friend". He tries to suggest that believers should not be taken seriously.Personally I think it a bit of a waste of time Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor debati

Atheism, humanism and rationalism: Added few stuff. ← Previous revision Revision as of 05:19, 3 May 2008 Line 193: Line 193: }} }} - Dawkins continues to be a prominent figure in contemporary public debate on issues relating to science and religion, especially since his 2006 book ''[[The God Delusion]]'', which has achieved greater sales figures worldwide than any of his other works to date. Its success has been seen by many as indicative of a change in the contemporary cultural [[zeitgeist]], central to a recent rise in the popularity of atheistic literature.<ref>{{cite web |url= |title=The Death of Religion And Rise of Atheism in the West |accessdate=2008-03-15 |author=Odoyo, Peter |date=[[July

Extraído de "Desvendando o Arco-Íris - Ciência, Ilusão e Encantamento", de Richard Dawkins, Cia. das Letras, 2000, págs 179-180.David Hume, grande filósofo escocês do século XVIII, me parece inatacável:[...] nenhum testemunho é suficiente para estabelecer um milagre, a menos que o testemunho seja de tal ordem que sua falsidade seria mais milagrosa do que o fato que procura estabelecer. ("Of Miracles", 1748)Vou observar o preceito de Hume com respeito a um dos milagres mais bem atestados de todos os tempos, que dizem ter sido testemunhado por 70 mil pessoas e que ainda está dentro do alcance da memória viva. É a aparição de Nossa Senhora de Fátima. Cito um relato de um website católico romano, no qual se observa que, dentre as muitas alegadas aparições de Maria, essa é

Funny animation about Dawkins and other atheists. DICKY D RAP!!! The folks from Expelled are still upset and they are poking fun at Dawkins and company. It’s really funny. But only proves once again who has the correct argument and reason.

“Somos máquinas de supervivencia, autómatas programados a ciegas con el fin de perpetuar la existencia de los egoístas genes que albergamos en nuestras células“. Quizás el más conocido y polémico de los libros publicados por el etólogo británico Richard Dawkins, es una obra de divulgación sobre evolución, genética y etología. Escrita con una prosa ágil, ejemplos [...]

I have now completed my extensive review of Richard Dawkins latest book, The God Delusion. My word counter tells me that the entire review is about 10,000 words long. The book has received massive attention, and Dawkins has visited many Universities as well as talkshows to speak about his book. You can take part of some of it by going here.Here follows links to my reviews on all the different chapters...Chapter 1 - A deeply religious non-believerChapter 2 - The God hypothesisChapter 3 - Arguments for God's existenceChapter 4 - Why there is almost certainly no GodChapter 5 - The roots of religionChapter 6 - The roots of moralityChapter 7 - The good book and the changing moral zeitgeistChapter 8 - What's wrong with religion? Why be so hostileChapter 9 - Childhood, abuse, and escape from religionChapter 10 - A much needed gap?Happy reading!

Det är alldeles fantastiskt att lyssna på vad Richard Dawkins svarar på frågan "What if you are wrong?". Med sunt förnuft går det inte att säga emot honom, eller hur? Relaterat: Andreas Lindahl, Wikipedia om Richard Dawkins   Andra bloggar om: religion, gud, humanism, kreationism, richard dawkins, evolutionen, samhälle, Intressant.se

I’m currently reading the mind-blowing neuron-bending The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins. I’m now at the Family Planning chapter on which Dawkins deliberates on how population control happens naturally within other animal species and then utters a dire warning for humanity after demonstrating, as an example, how quickly South-America would run out of standing [...]

Why did I wait so long to read this? Once this code is fully inserted into my matrix, I fear everything will have changed. It is absolutely brilliant and revelatory. Only 50 pages since yesterday and it’s, pardon my euphemism, like finding religion. Ha! I thought The God Delusion was masterful, but this, this is [...]

Simon Owens at Bloggasm has written a thorough and insightful post, "The Dawkins Effect: How The God Delusion Mainstreamed Atheism." I was happy to be interviewed for this article and to see myself mentioned along with PZ Myers (Pharyngula), John W. Loftus (Debunking Christianity), and Kelly (Rational Response Squad). Talk about some impressive company in which to find oneself!Owens does a fantastic job of exploring the current state of the atheist movement - covering without disparaging - something corporate media cannot seem to do. It is a must read.Tags: atheism, Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion, Pharyngula, Rational Response Squad, Debunking Christianity

Having time on my hands has given me the opportunity to do something that in the past I have had little time to do, and that's read.The most recent book that I have finished is the much debated The God Delusion by well-known evolutionary biologist and Chair for the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University, Richard Dawkins. The reason that I am writing about it on a science-based blog is that Dawkins sets up his book as one side of the Science vs. Religion battle.This intrigued me from the outset, being someone who did not, and still does not, believe there necessarily has to be a divide between the two areas. It could be argued that Dawkins is the world's most celebrated atheist, and I was keen to see what all the fuss was about. Perhaps having sabbatical time has also allowed me to ponder the big questions of life. My scientific background that has placed me either in scientific organisations or studying scientific courses over the last 11 years has led to me to marvel a

Christianity, just as much as Islam, teaches children that unquestioned faith is a virtue. You don't have to make the case for what you believe. If somebody announces that it is part of his faith, the rest of society, whether of the same faith, or another, or of none, is obliged, by ingrained custom, to "respect" it without question; respect it until the day it manifests itself in a horrible massacre like the destruction of the World Trade Center, or the London or Madrid bombings. Then there is a great chorus of disownings, as clerics and "community leaders" (who elected them, by the way?) line up to explain that this extremism is a perversion of the "true" faith. But how can there be a perversion of faith, if faith, lacking objective justification, doesn't have any demonstrable standard to pervert?Richard Dawkins, The God DelusionTags: Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion, faith, Christianity, Islam

Fortunately, it is not the least bit religious, despite the suggestive title. There are some truly wonderful examples that usually involve the reader directly, and I relished reading it. No pictures, but none are needed as the words themselves convey the ideas successfully. I found the sections on gastrulation, ancestry, bees, eyes, particularly fascinating. The [...]

If you call 1-877-278-8457 tonight in the next 4 minutes or early tomorrow morning you can get one of the 20 seats that have opened up to this debate (Richard Dawkins v. John Lennox). Sadly the only tickets left are $50 good seats. So I won’t be going. If you get a free one I’ll take it though. If you are cheap, here is a podcast that you can listen to for free

Michael Persinger is a neuropsychologist at Canada's Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ontario. His theory is that the sensation described as having a religious experience is merely a side effect of our bicameral brain's feverish activities. He has attempted to create experiments to show that when the right hemisphere of the brain is stimulated in the cerebral region presumed to control notions of self, and then the left hemisphere is called upon to make sense of this nonexistent entity, the mind generates what is felt as a 'sensed presence.' Many of Persinger's studies detail the reactions that people have when their temporal lobes are stimulated with complex magnetic fields. Some of the subjects experience a 'sensed presence' in the form of the deity from the culture that they were raised in. They see the God (or spirits associated with their God - the Virgin Mary, Mohammed, etc) that they believe in. Others have had experiences that mimic t

I am posting again a review of Richard Dawkins' book The God Delusion that I made available earlier on my old blog as well as on the Richard Dawkins forum. This is to facilitate referring to it in a comment I am leaving on the Uncommon Descent blog, where (as I remarked before) the moderators have in the past shown an unwillingness to post comments reflecting dissenting viewpoints. Today's comment appeared - it's a promising sign!Dawkins' book is at times highly entertaining and thought provoking, but it is also at times highly problematic. I wish to be fair to the many wonderful features of Dawkins' book. Yet I must begin with the problematic, because it is there almost from the outset. Dawkins needs to provide focus to his book and its arguments, so he needs a definition of God, and he begins to provide one starting on p.13. He makes clear that the sort of God he is talking about is not the one Einstein believed in, and Dawkins even calls himself 'religi

Richard Dawkins speaks to Richard and Judy about his new documentary, “The Enemies of Reason”. (LINK) Part one of the show was aired last night and part two is due next week. I’ll post more on it shortly and get some links up as soon as they become available. paranormal, Richard Dawkins, skepticism

This week we take a look at Richard Dawkins' book The God Delusion.Does it really convince believers to become non-believers? Does it even have any good science in it? Or is it simply a sledge hammer argument?Its also a good excuse to play a bit of music with God in the title.Personally, I'm still agnostic! And now I'm reading Harry Potter - at least I know I'm allowed to suspend my disbelief in that book.

A few days ago I blogged about David Sloan Wilson’s criticism of Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion. Today eskeptic has posted a short reply from Dawkins. He focuses on this point made by Wilson: When Dawkins’ The God Delusion was published I naturally assumed that he was basing his critique of religion on the scientific study of religion from an evolutionary perspective. I regret to report otherwise. Dawkins responds: Why would Wilson ‘naturally assume’ any such thing? Reasonable, perhaps, to assume that I would pay some attention to the evolution of religion, but why base a critique on an evolutionary perspective, any more than on Assyrian woodwind instruments or the burrowing behaviour of aardvarks? The God Delusion does, as it happens, have a chapter on the evolutionary origins of religion. But to say that this chapter is peripheral to my main critique would be an understatement. When I was asked to prepare an abridgment for the British audio recording, I had to d

From The God Delusion,As long as we accept the principle that religious faith must be respected simply because it is religious faith, it is hard to withhold respect from the faith of Osama bin Laden and the suicide bombers. The alternative, one so transparent that is should need no urging, is to abandon the principle of automatic respect for religious faith.There are many quotable passages in this book, but this has to be one of my favorites for its sheer simplicity.Tags: Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion, religion, faith

'The Only One in Step' by Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion: Amazon Astore UK | US): I can't find the original volume so I may have got the exact words wrong, but I recall one of those marvellous old Punch cartoons in which every last detail is painstakingly explained. A devoted mother is looking proudly on at a military parade as her son's platoon marches past: 'There's my boy, he's the only one in step!' On The Guardian letters page of December 19th 2006, I initiated an exchange about Professor Andrew McIntosh* (info) of Leeds university, who has publicly stated that he believes the world is only 6,000 years old, and publicly stated that the theory of evolution violates the second law of thermodynamics**. Both these beliefs place McIntosh out of step with his scientific colleagues, not just his platoon but the entire regiment - to paraphrase Evelyn Waugh, the whole ruddy division. Amazingly, McIntosh is Professor of Thermodynamics at Leeds, and, equally amazingly, a letter su

Richard Dawkins on Comedy Central's 'The Colbert Report' (October 17th, 2006) discussing God, The God Delusion (Amazon Astore UK | US), Creationism, and Intelligent Design:[Video is working as of 2nd November - please email if it stops!]From the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science Newsletter:What an interview it was!Richard held his own and then some tonight on Comedy Central's 'The Colbert Report.' Stephen began the segment by saying "My guest tonight is a scientist who believes there is no God. You know what, he'll have an eternity in hell to prove it."Stephen Colbert contributed to "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction" (Amazon UK | US)Books on Creationism from the Science and Evolution Bookshop: UK | USBooks on Intelligent Design from the Science and Evolution Bookshop: UK | USBooks on 'Science and Religion' from the Science and Evolution Bookshop: UK | USAlso see other blog entries such as "Be

UPDATE Jan 22 2007: The video is available again!"Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion: UK | US) describes his astonishment that, at the start of the 21st century, religious faith is gaining ground in the face of rational, scientific truth. Science, based on scepticism, investigation and evidence, must continuously test its own concepts and claims. Faith, by definition, defies evidence: it is untested and unshakeable, and is therefore in direct contradiction with science."* *From "The Root of All Evil?"A recent post: "Review of 'The God Delusion' by Daniel Dennett ('Free Inquiry')"Also see: "Current Books on Intelligent Design Part 3 (January 2007)" (Contains links to Parts 1 and 2)Books on Creationism from the Science and Evolution Bookshop: UK | USBooks on Intelligent Design from the Science and Evolution Bookshop: UK | USBooks on 'Science and Religion' from the Science and Evolution Bookshop: UK | US

UPDATE Jan 24 2007: The video is available again!Episode 2 The Virus of Faith[Link to Episode 1 - 'The God Delusion' further down the page]From Channel 4:"How is it, asks Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion: Amazon Astore UK | US), that despite science having exposed old religious myths, militant faith is back on the march? The mechanism for perpetuating beliefs that Dawkins describes as leading to murderous intolerance, is by imposing religion on children who are too inexperienced to judge it for themselves... (Continued below) ...We wouldn't categorise children according to their parents' political stance, says Dawkins, since they are too young to make up their minds about such matters. But we segregate them in sectarian religious schools, where they are taught superstitions drawn from ancient scriptures of dubious origin, which promote a 'contradictory and poisonous system of morals'.Dawkins compares this to a virus, which infects the young and is passed down the generations. V