I am Richard Dawkins, scientist, researcher, author of 12 books, mostly about evolution, plus The God Delusion. AMA

would you like to take a moment to chat about our lord and savior jesus christ?

No thank you

It's after six pm, which is traditionally when the pubs used to open in England. Those days are gone, but I've been doing this for more than two hours and I need a drink. Thanks to everyone for the questions. Sorry I could answer only a small fraction of the total, but I hope I got a good cross section. Richard

Will you be treating us to another fireside reading of your hate mail in the near future?

EDIT: Added link to "Hate e-mails with Richard Dawkins"

Yes, but not fireside. Instead, a young woman sits beside me playing sweet music on the cello. Film still being edited. I'm looking forward to seeing it.

Hi Dr. Dawkins, huge fan, thanks for all your contributions!

What are your thoughts on multi-level selection? Do you feel it is incompatible with your prior work, or can the two explain different parts of a single issue?

Multi-level selection is an obfuscatory tactic, obscuring and confusing what is well understood in terms of selection of replicators and vehicles.

Richard, who was the most frustrating person with whom you have debated evolution?

Wendy Wright

Do you ever feel like the the instant association most people make between your work and anti-religion means that your work on biology and evolution is overlooked or misinterpreted?

Occasionally I worry about that. But only one of my 12 books is about religion and all of them are still in print and selling well

As an expert on evolution, what do you feel is the strangest creature on Earth, or the one that just doesn't seem to make sense from an evolutionary standpoint yet continues to survive? (besides people)

Nautilus (because of its pinhole camera eye). But that's just off the top of my head. I'd probably think of a better answer given more time (that is so often true!)

Richard, no question here, just wanted you to know that your book God Delusion gave me the courage to stand up to my deeply religious parents and be the person I want to be. For that I’m forever thankful.

Thank you. Such comments mean an enormous amount to me

Richard, what would you say to Muslims who point out (correctly) that during Islam's Golden Age, science and education flourished in the Caliphate as Muslim scientists either started new fields, or built on past work by Greek and Indian scholars.

I'm reminded of this fact quite often as I'm an ex-Muslim living in the Middle East.

Thanks for your time!

Great job in the Middle Ages, guys. What went wrong?

Just wanted to say thanks. The Selfish Gene ended my infancy as a human.

What a nice thing to say. Thank you. Are you perhaps picking up on the opening sentence of the book: "Intelligent life on a planet comes of age when it first works out the reason for its own existence."

Prof. Dawkins,

Thank you so much for spending your time with us.

I used to be a Muslim for most of my youth. I come from a country where the penalty for apostasy is no less than death, and women are forbidden from basic rights such as driving, travelling alone, and visiting the graves of their loved ones.

Your works, as well as those of Hitchens, Dennett and Harris have had an enormous impact on my position as a strident atheist today. I feel indebted to you for making me realize how invaluable our fleeting moments of existence really are, and that it is a crime against human potential to spend any amount of time or energy on unsubstantiated, ancient beliefs.

I am now part of an ex-Muslim community that is helping those who have lost their faith find a sense of themselves without the aid of religion.

Do you have any advice you would like to impart for my community?

If an ex-Muslim were to write a book or make a documentary about leaving Islam, what would especially interest you?

Thanks again.

I congratulate you on the stand you have taken. You probably already know Ibn Warraq's 'Why I am not a Muslim' and the various books by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Strongly recommended. You don't say where you live, so I don't know how easy it is for you to find like-minded ex-Muslims.. In Britain we have the CEMB, and in USA the Richard Dawkins Foundation has recently helped to facilitate three groups of ex-Muslims. See RichardDawkins.net for details. If you are in Pakistan I see tweets from an obviously flourishing group of Pakistan atheists.

Hello Dr. Dawkins, thank you for taking the time to do this AMA.

How do you feel now that memes, first discussed in your book The Selfish Gene, have become ubiquitous in internet culture?

Do you have a favorite internet meme?

I'm pleased that the concept of meme has become widely understood, but the true meaning is a bit broader than the common understanding. Anything transmitted with high fidelity from brain to brain by imitation is a meme.

If you had to pick one debate that you enjoyed the most, which would it be and why?

Stephen Pinker, because we each had things to learn from the other.

How do you feel about South park's depiction of you and their take on the argument?

Satire is supposed to satirise. Depicting somebody as having a predilection for buggering a bald transvestite is not satire and not witty. The futuristic projection of wars between atheist factions is genuine satire and quite witty. I think it's important understand the difference. I preferred the experience of going on The Simpsons.

Who, in your many years of research and debates, is the most respected person you have debated with, that has differing views than yourself?

Either Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury, or Richard Harries, former Bishop of Oxford, or Father George Coyne, former Director of the Vatican Observatory.

In discussions I hear lots of biologists talk about, “All life that we know of is life based on DNA, except for minor exceptions ….” What are those exceptions, and are they interesting?

Some viruses are based on RNA instead of DNA

Why do you think it is so hard for people to let go of their beliefs in the supernatural or paranormal?

Childhood indoctrination. And fear.

I do not, by nature, thrive on confrontation. I don't think the adversarial format is well designed to get at the truth, and I regularly refuse invitations to take part in formal debates. [...] Despite my dislike of gladiatorial contests, I seem somehow to have acquired a reputation for pugnacity towards religion. Colleagues who agree that there is no God, who agree that we do not need religion to be moral, and agree that we can explain the roots of religion and of morality in non-religious terms, nevertheless come back at me in gentle puzzlement. Why are you so hostile? What is actually wrong with religion?

-"What's Wrong with Religion? Why Be So Hostile?" The God Delusion. 317-318.

People can’t bear clarity. They want you to weasel around and obscure. But if you’re clear, if you stand up and say clearly what you think and what you’re saying, then they will think you’re being threatening, aggressive, strident, shrill.

-Richard Dawkins on the Bill Maher Show.

I truly admire this attitude, and respect that you continue to promote scientific understanding and critical thinking even though it is not the popular opinion. What you are doing is, in my opinion, a vital part of eliminating division and discrimination in our world. I just wanted to sincerely thank you, and say that you have helped countless people worldwide.

P.S.: Since this is an AMA, I better include a question. Is it disheartening to read through your "fan mail"? While this video is quite funny, it's depressing to think that this is representative of a greater number of people. What percentage of the feedback that you get is generally positive?

I think the best way to deal with hate mail is, indeed, comedy. Ridicule it with laughter.

What question do you get asked the most?

Are humans still evolving? And the funny thing is, everybody who asks it thinks they are the first to do so.

Richard, what is your favorite type of soup?

Leek and potato

This has always fascinated me: Upright walking preceded the development of a higher functioning brain in the evolution of man, contrary to what most would think. What is the best reasoning to convey to and convince someone that walking in fact came first?

Fossils. Australopithecus, from which genus we are almost certainly descended, walked upright and had a brain about the same size as a chimpanzee

Mr. Dawkins, I've watched many of your debates and I am consistently impressed by your ability to retain your composure and politeness when the people you debate either resort to insults or, worse, when your carefully constructed arguments fall on deaf ears. How do you do it?

It's sometimes hard. Thank you for your kind words

I am very excited to read your book The Magic of Reality to my young son. Do you have any plans on a second children’s book aimed for younger kids?

Yes, the idea appeals to me, but I have no immediate plans. Might be my next book but one.

Hi Richard. I study molecular biology at the University of Gothenburg, and from day one it has been clear that you are the most influential scientist and author there is today. For three years now, practically not a day goes by without your name being mentioned by someone when discussing the by far most popular subjects: science, religion, ethics, and more. Students talk about your ideas, our professors quote you and recommend your books. Are you aware just how highly regarded you are among a whole generation of young scientist and your impact on what gets talked about in the classroom?

I was not aware of that. I hope it is true but I shall not be surprised if others deny it!

Do you ever see yourself getting back to writing about evolutionary biology?

I've read "The Ancestor's Tale" cover to cover twice, and it seriously changed the way I think about evolution. Not that I didn't accept the theory before, you just have a way of expounding on it. I'd love to read something like that from you again.

I'm so glad you like The Ancestor's Tale. I don't think I could every manage another book on the same large scale, but I expect I shall write about evolution again (as I did in The Magic of Reality).

Thank you for your visit to Charleston, S.C.

You were gracious with your time and letting me take your portrait.

I hope you will enjoy it for the fact it shows your human side and less of your academic side.

Again thank you ever so much for giving your time to our little southern city.

Thank you

Hello, If you were honoured with the offer of having your ashes interred in Westminster Abbey alongside Newton, Darwin, et al., would you accept?

Of course I would. But it isn't going to happen!

Dr. Dawkins,

You visited The University of Oklahoma in 2009. As president of the Darwin Student Society at the time, I helped organize the event. I want to thank you for your visit and your lecture. Do you have any plans to visit that part of the US anytime soon?

It was a memorable visit, the only one I can remember where I was heckled and also where a state senator tried to get me banned. He accused the University of paying me $30,000 and ended up with egg on my face because I had refused to take a cent in payment.

Dr. Dawkins, I grew up Christian and was deconverted a little over a year ago when I got on Reddit and found videos of you, Hitchens, and Harris. I just wanted to say that you have played a huge part in my life and I thank you for that. I know you’ve heard this a million times but I just wanted to let you know. I do have one question though. Because I grew up going to private school I never received any more education about evolution than “Evolutionists say we came from monkeys, but that’s preposterous because there are still monkeys”. What is the best way to learn about evolution? I’ve watched a good amount of videos and have “The Greatest Show on Earth” waiting to be read after I finish Hitch-22. So in your opinion, (besides your own books) what is the best book or video that I could read/watch to learn about evolution in general. Again, thank you so much for everything you do.

Thank you v much for your kind remarks. Setting aside my own books (obviously I'd love you to read them) John Maynard Smith The Theory of Evolution. And Jerry Coyne's Why Evolution is True.

Afternoon Professor Dawkins, thank you for doing this IAmA.

I was wondering what your thoughts are on the growing number of faith schools here in the UK are. Also, what are your thoughts on the recent "Muslim only" school scandal?

Edit: Got your title wrong, sorry.

Faith schools are harmless so long as they don't teach faith. Teaching ABOUT religion is fine; indeed it is important because you can't understand history without it. And literature (certainly in English and probably most other great literatures of the world) demands familiarity with scriptures if you want to take your allusions. But teaching tiny children that they are, say, Catholic or Muslim, is evil. You should no more speak of a Catholic child or a Muslim child than you would speak of a "Postmodernist child" or an "Existentialist child". See how absurd that sounds? Yet almost nobody bats an eyelid at "Catholic child" or "Muslim child". PLEASE stop using such language, and please protest when you hear anybody else using it.

Did you ever go drinking with Christopher Hitchens?

Dining. And of course there was drink

Dr. Dawkins, I know that you’ve said before that you won’t debate William Lane Craig because you don’t want to give your time to just anyone, but you do interviews with someone as awful as Wendy Wright. I know I’d love to see you debate Craig, but of course that would mean I would have to listen to Craig talk in circles for hours but it’d be worth it. Is there any chance you would ever debate him?

I published in the Guardian sufficient reasons why no decent person should agree to give the oxygen of respectability to an apologist for mass genocide.

What's your average response to religious people who try to convince you that your're wrong/convert you?

Depends obviously on what they say. If they are creationists I tell them to read a book.

I have nothing to add, I just wanted to take the chance to thank you for being a huge positive force for skeptics and thinkers everywhere.

Thank you

Not really a question, but I went to Emmanuel College, Gateshead. I believe you had a bit of a public falling out with our head of science. I remember our school categorically denying teaching creationism in science classes, while I was being made to bring bibles to the lessons and being shown very biased creationism vs evolution powerpoints.

(Edit: grammar correction)

Thank you for this useful information.

Richard, are there any examples of non-human species acting religiously?

Hard to know what that would mean. Elephants have been said to mourn their dead. Some people have semi-seriously suggested that domestic pets might feel religious towards the people who feed and care for them. Not very convincing, I'd abandon that train of thought!

I'm currently half-way through The God Delusion, having been in Catholic education my whole life (until last year when I entered university) it is giving me a completely new perspective on life. Thank you for all you've done and I have the utmost respect for you and your colleagues.

That is so nice to hear

Do you have any thoughts on Scottish Independence?

I don't know whether it would be good for Scotland (I doubt it, although Edinburgh is a great capital city) but I think it would be terrible for the remainder of the UK. Wouldn't we be condemned to perpetual Toryism without the Scots?

The God Delusion was the first book of yours that I read, and I'd like to say thank you for kickstarting my reevaluation of what I've been taught throughout my life and for the motivation to ask questions that I'd been taught not to ask.

Thank you, that means a lot to me

Mr. Dawkins, 'The God Delusion' is arguably your most famous work. Which of your other 12 books would you most like to gain a similar attention and why?

Climbing Mount Improbable is my most under-rated book, and I think it is one of my best.

Mr. Dawkins,

In your opinion,what's your greatest achievement?

Are you planning to visit Croatia anytime soon?

The Extended Phenotype.

No immediate plans, but I hear it's a beautiful country

What do you think should be changed about the american education system, more specifically the science classroom? Also, what age do you think schools should start teaching evolution in the classroom? Thanks for the AMA!

I think evolution can, and should, be taught early. Certainly it makes little sense to teach any biology BEFORE teaching evolution because nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution (Dobzhansky)

Dr. Dawkins, How exhausting is the process of being a public figure, specifically one which has a large proportion of attention from people who dislike/hate you? I imagine that fame in this area must be a large burden.

I derive comfort from the belief, which I think is well substantiated, that those who most strongly dislike me have never actually read my books, but instead have listened to second or third accounts of what is (or more likely is not) in them.

During a debate, or any exchange really, with a religious person, have you ever thought "This is going nowhere with this person. Why am I even trying?"? What keeps you going in the face of insurmountable ignorance?

Frequently. I try to be polite but I fear I don't always succeed in the end.

If there was a button to destroy religion from the entire world, would you press it?

Yes, so long as no individual people were hurt

Hello Dr. Dawkins,

Your work is really inspirational and made me excited evolution. I was curious about opinions on how it applies to human behavior; specifically your thoughts on the field of evolutionary psychology. What in your opinion is a good example of ev psych research and why is it good? What do you think ev psych as a field can do better to validate itself to its naysayers in biology?

Thanks!

I have a high regard for much (not all) of Evolutionary Psychology. And am baffled by the extraordinary levels of hostility that it seems to arouse, especially in people who know rather little about it.

Dr. Dawkins, first of all having you here for an AMA is undoubtedly the best thing I have ever encountered on Reddit. Having read both The God Delusion and The Selfish Gene and watched numerous debates of yours, I truly admire your courage and tact as both a scientist and an atheist.

Question: How do you feel about the Malthus' Theory of Carrying Capacity in relation to human prosperity? Do you believe we (humans) have surpassed it? And if so, is this based on our species' resource utilization practices, and if we resort back to 'simpler' lifestyle practices, do you think our beautiful planet could sustain the 7 billion of us?

Thank you professor:)

Thank you for your kind words. Malthus may be temporarily wrong, as advances in agricultural science succeed in feeding more and more people. But in some ultimate sense he must be eventually right.

I have to admit my favorite atheists of all time is Christopher Hitchens. I've watched every video you and Christopher have ever done, along with Matt Dillahunty's show...All you guys changed an Orthodox, brainwashed product into the confident, free 35 yr old I am today. Have you ever had a different opinion from a fellow atheist? Thank you, keep fighting for all of us!

Yes, I disagreed with Christopher on the invasion of Iraq (he was in favour) and on abortion (he was against)

Dr. Dawkins, do you plan on publishing more books on the subject of religion? Follow up, have you ever thought about penning a children's book?

I have published a children's book: The Magic of Reality, illustrated by Dave McKean.

The number of non-theists has been increasing steadily in recent years. Do you think this trend is going to continue indefinitely, until religion is mostly a thing of the past, or do you think it is just a fad?

Obviously I hope so, but I also genuinely think so. Non-theism is correlated with education and also with welfare. So all the good things point in the right direction.

As I haven't read any of your books, (I have The God Delusion but haven't gotten around to reading it yet - heavy courseload and no free time) which of your books do you like most/think came out best, and which ones would you recommend I read first?

River Out of Eden is the shortest, so if you are VERY busy . . .

Hello Mr Dawkins, no question, I just wanted to thank you for the many interviews and debates you have participated in, that are now available en masse via YouTube. I particularly enjoyed the “Four Horsemen” debate, though it was a sad day when I realised that there would never be a new Christopher Hitchens video to watch. I hope you will continue to produce new and interesting content for many years to come.

Thank you very much

Have you ever been to Italy? Did you like it? Greetings from Italy :D

Yes and yes

What's your opinion on Panspermy theory?

Panspermia is improbable but not totally impossible

What's your current and biggest challenge?

Writing the second volume of my autobiography. I'm still wrestling with the question of whether to write it chronologically like the first volume, An Appetite for Wonder, or whether to arrange the chapters thematically, and semi-independent of chronology. Maybe some combination of both.

Did you and Lala enjoy the Dr. Who anniversary special?... She was always my favorite Romana. Love and have read all your books, especially the audio ones where you two trade off sections. Lovely stuff!

I'll tell her. She went to the London meeting, but wisely (as all her colleagues agreed) refrained from taking part in the BBC special show

Professor Dawkins, you're a large part of the reason I'm an atheist, and I wanted to thank you enormously for showing me that there is no shame in questioning undeserved authority.

My Question: Christopher Hitchens said that one of his greatest worries was the combination of (increasingly available) nuclear weapons technology and fundamentalist religious beliefs. Do you see us surviving the next few hundred years without eradicating ourselves, as a species?

I think he was right to be worried. Not just nuclear weapons but biological weapons too. If they fall into the hands of people who actively want to die, for daft religious reasons, the usual arguments of deterrence cease to apply. Martin Rees give us a 50/50 chance of surviving to the end of the 21st century without a major catastrophe

Hello Mr. Dawkins! Thanks for the AMA! Do you have any advice for the young atheist going through high school?

Be steadfast in your search for truth. Be polite but firm.

Professor Dawkins, back in 2010, the richarddawkins.net forums closed down amid particular furore from its existing user base (and the online atheist community in general). In hindsight, do you think some things could have been done a little differently? Do you have any regrets?

It was not well handled, but that is water under the bridge, along with many other things.

Mr Dawkins How can I tell my parents that I'm an atheist.

I can't advise you without knowing a lot more about your parents and your family circumstances. Might you be surprised by how tolerant they will turn out to be? I hope so. How about giving them a book to read?

Hello Mr. Dawkins. 1. What created the singularity that caused the big bang? 2. Hypothetically, if there was something before the big bang, what would be your best guess?

Sorry, I'm a biologist not a physicist. Try Lawrence Krauss: A Universe from Nothing. Or Peter Atkins: Creation Revisited.

Thank you for doing this AMA, Professor Dawkins!

Do you think that Pope Francis, being so progressive, is actually bad news, since he is bringing people back into the Catholic Church? I somehow feel that we needed another terrible Pope after Benedict for people to realize how bad the Catholic Church -or any church, for that matter- is.

Yes, there's a lot in what you say. One can make that argument both ways.

Richard, my son is a 12 years old and recently asked for "The God Delusion" for Christmas. I've already read it and loved it and I hope he will too. Thanks.

That's wonderful to hear. I hope he likes it. I had thought of it as mainly for a slightly older audience. If he feels he is not quite ready for it, maybe try The Magic of Reality first, which was written for 12-year-olds

Thank you very much for the work you do.

How long do you think both Christianity and Islam have left, and which, in your opinion will fade to obscurity first?

I fear that Christianity will die first, and that is not the priority I would wish, for the sake of humanity

You are the reason i started questioning about religion.

Thank you very much for turning me in an atheist

Very nice to hear, thank you

Mr. Dawkins, I actually have two and a half questions today, if that's okay.

1a) During one of my electives at university a while ago, I took a course on religion and science which covered the inconsistencies between the two as well as going on to explain that that don't need to be fully separate, among other things. Naturally you were a major talking point in such a class, so I'm curious- what is your opinion of such courses being available for students, and what's it like knowing that you're commonly seen as the "perfect athiest" in such courses?

1b) You may know what course I'm referring to above, my professor claimed to have spoken (and vehemently disagreed) with you in person. I respect both of you, but how do you respond to people like him who claim that science and religion aren't mutually exclusive?

2) What gives your existence meaning, if not a god?

Feel free to skip any or all of the above, but you're definitely one of my most influential role models in the scientific community and I'd be honored to hear a few words from you myself. Thanks for the AMA, and I wish you the best.

1a. I have no objection 1b. No I don't know of whom you speak. 2. Music, literature, poetry, science, human love and companionship.

Do you think evolution is fundamentally incompatible with "intelligent design" ?

Artifacts like cars and computers are intelligently designed -- by brains which evolved.

Professor Dawkins,

What resources are there available for medical professionals? We don't have the same "purity" in our profession as there is among PhDs, and we have to deal with nonsense as it exists in the general population far, far more frequently. What books/speakers would you recommend for us?

Not sure if this really answers your question, but I recommend Randolph Nesse and George Williams's book on Darwinian medicine. That's the key phrase of the subtitle. I can't bring myself to write the actual title, either of the US or UK edition. But it is an excellent book.