Richard Dawkins
Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL ( born March 26, 1941 in Nairobi, Kenya ) is a British zoologist, biologist, theoretical, evolutionary biologist and author of popular science literature. From 1995 to 2008 he was professor at the University of Oxford.
It was founded in 1976 with his book The Selfish Gene ( The Selfish Gene ) known in which he analyzes the evolution at the level of genes. He introduced the term meme as hypothetical cultural analogue of the gene in biological evolution a. In the following years he wrote several bestsellers, including The Extended Phenotype (1982 ), The Blind Watchmaker (1986 ), and it sprang from a river in Eden (1995), the summit of Improbable (1996 ), The God Delusion (2006) and The creation lie (2009 ) and other critical articles on religion and creationism.
Dawkins is one of the best known representatives of the "New Atheism " and the so-called Brights movement, for which he campaigned in articles in major newspapers.
- 3.1 Awards
- 3.2 counterpositions
- 5.1 Books
- 5.2 essays
- 5.3 Scientific Publications
- 5.4 Movies
Life
Richard Dawkins was born in Nairobi, where his father Clinton John Dawkins had been added as a member of the Allied forces. He returned with his family in 1949 returned to England. He studied at the Dutch ethologist Nikolaas Tinbergen at Oxford University biology. In 1966 he received his Ph.D. degree in Zoology ( D.Phil. ). In 1967 he married the author Marian Stamp, from which it separated in 1984.
In the years 1967 to 1969, Dawkins assistant professor of zoology at the University of California, Berkeley, from 1970 to 1995 professor of zoology at New College, Oxford University. In 1984, he married Eve Barham, with whom he had a daughter in the same year; the marriage was also divorced. Since 1992, he is married to the actress Lalla Ward. Since 1997 he has been an elected member of the Royal Society of Literature and, since 2001, an elected member of the Royal Society.
From 1995, he was Charles Simonyi Professor of the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University. Charles Simonyi expressed repeatedly as a follower of scientific plant Dawkins. For the establishment of the billionaire Simonyi donated 1.5 million pounds of Oxford University. 2008 it was announced that the chair will re-tendered and Dawkins resigns from that position for reasons of age.
The mirror referred to Dawkins as " the most influential biologists of his time."
Work
Biology and biological evolution
Dawkins gained notoriety in 1976 with his slogan of the selfish gene. In his book he describes in this regard the gene as the fundamental unit of natural selection, which uses the body only as a " survival machine ".
It occurs within evolutionary biology for the theory that evolutionary processes in competitive situations (fitness differences) at the genetic level are crucial, whereas group selection plays no role or only a marginal role. In his first book, The Selfish Gene, he treated this subject and then lead them in The Extended Phenotype (1982 ) made further by extended the narrow definition of the phenotypes and increasingly, the isolated gene into the center. This attitude was widely accepted in the last quarter of the 20th century. Recently, however, this statement was qualified by theoretical models and concrete examples. Here the work of the biologist David Sloan Wilson and the philosopher of science Elliott Sober deserve particular mention.
Intermediary of sociobiology, as its leading representative Dawkins - next to Edward O. Wilson - applies the idea of the selfish gene is rezipiert partly also in the social sciences, but there is very controversial.
Mem
In his book The Selfish Gene, Dawkins introduced in 1976 as a hypothetical analogy to the gene as the unit of replication of biological evolution, the term meme as replication unit of cultural evolution one. Examples of memes are according to Dawkins: " ideas, tunes, ideas, catch phrases, clothes fashions, the art of making pots or of building arches ." Meme multiply accordingly in the meme pool " by jumping from brain to brain via a process which can be described in the broadest sense as an imitation ", and subject as well as genes mutation and selection.
Dawkins wanted to clarify with the meme concept, especially the universal character of the Darwinian theory of evolution and show that genes are not the " only members of those important class of replicators ", but stressed the speculative nature of the idea. Meanwhile, there are some scientists who in the new research area of memetics deal with this form of replicators and accept memes as actual replication units of cultural evolution. A well-known representative of the Memtheorie, for example, Daniel Dennett.
Ideology
In an interview published in 1994, Dawkins described himself as " pretty militant atheists ". In 1996 he responded to the question whether he would rather be known as a scientist or a militant atheist, " Bertrand Russell called himself an ardent skeptics. That's a big goal, but I aspire to it. " Since Dawkins does not preclude the existence of a God 100 percent, he describes himself as an agnostic. He estimates the probability that God exists, as very low. Agnostic forms, according to which the existence and non - existence of God are equally likely, or about these probabilities no statement can be made, he refuses.
Dawkins is a member of the UK Skeptics Society, an organization of the skeptics movement, as well as other British organizations promoting humanistic and atheistic worldviews and greater secularization of the British state. He is among the opinion leaders of the brights. In earlier works, he defended the theory of evolution vehemently opposed to teleological concepts that wanted to recognize a goal-directedness in the origin of species. In particular, he opposes any form of creationism and " intelligent design".
In his books, such as The Blind Watchmaker ( Eng.: The Blind Watchmaker ) or Climbing Mount Improbable (. . Summit of the improbable miracle of evolution ), he explains how the diversity and complexity of life according to the theory of evolution resulted from processes of natural selection and only convey an illusion of "design".
In recent years he has expanded his Arguing on religion in general. Thus, he notes in his essay Viruses of the Mind Religion recourse to his meme theory as " gedankliches virus" dar. By this he means that religion is a cultural construct that very quickly spreads to the ground of certain properties and in the minds people sets.
Together with other scientists and authors such as Sam Harris and Christopher Hitchens, he turns not only against the belief in one God, but also against the " faith in faith ". By this he means the tendency to be non-religious people, religion attributed a positive effect on the morale and ethics. In 2006 his book The God Delusion (English: The God Delusion ), in which Dawkins theistic religions, and in particular the three monotheistic world religions describe as irrational and harmful.
The Atheist Alliance International (International Atheist Association ) awards since 2003 the Richard Dawkins award for an outstanding atheist who presented the non-theistic belief publicity, has increased specific scientific knowledge or exemplary non-theistic philosophy teaches and its public appearance the " uncompromising " non-theistic worldview of Dawkins reflects. 2005 Dawkins gave the award in person at the illusionist Penn & Teller.
In 2006 he founded the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science ( RDFRS or RDF), a nonprofit foundation that wants to be involved in the fields of humanistic research and education.
Richard Dawkins supported in 2008/ 09, together with the British Humanist Association, the Atheist Bus Campaign activist Ariane Sherine, on London's buses, the line " There's probably no god. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life " ( German: ". .! There 's probably no God now to hear worrying and enjoy your life " ) to publish. His support reasoned with Dawkins: " This campaign will bring people to think - and thinking is anathema to any religion. ".
Reception
Awards
Dawkins received honorary doctorates from the University of Westminster, University of Durham, the University of Kingston upon Hull, the Open University and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel.
His popular science books have been awarded many literary prizes. He received in 1987 the Royal Society of Literature Award, the same year the Literature Prize of the Los Angeles Times. In 1990 he received the Michael Faraday Award of the Royal Society and the 1994 Nakayama Prize and the 1997 International Cosmos Prize for Achievement in Human Science and the 2001 Kistler Prize.
He is vice president of the British Humanist Association. From the American Humanist Association 1996, he was named the Humanist of the Year. He was awarded the Emperor Has No Clothes Award from the Freedom From Religion Foundation, 2001. In honor of Dawkins' is called the awarded since 2003 the price of the Atheist Alliance International Richard Dawkins Award.
He was elected in Prospect magazine by Noam Chomsky and Umberto Eco 's third most important intellectual alive world 2005, 2007 by Time magazine one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
From the German Alfred Toepfer Foundation in 2005 he was awarded the Shakespeare Prize. In October 2007, Dawkins was the first winner of the € 10,000 and named after Karlheinz Deschner Deschner Award of the Giordano Bruno Foundation.
In July 2012, Sri Lankan scientist named a genus of South Asian carp fish ( Dawkinsia ) after Dawkins to honor his achievements, to spread the theory of evolution in public.
Counter-positions
Scientific criticism of his biological theories was put forward, inter alia, of the, also atheistic scientists David Sloan Wilson, Stephen Jay Gould and Scott Atran. The latter is particularly critical of the concept of the meme in the context of modern cognitive theories. In empirical cognitive psychological studies Atran tries to show that in communication processes is a replication of ideas by imitating the exception and not the rule; Therefore, the dissemination and development of ideas with the spread and evolution of genes can not be compared.
In addition to him by some theologians and philosophers will (especially of the Oxford theologian Keith Ward, the London theologians and scientists Alister McGrath and the philosopher John N. Gray) accused of ignoring serious theology and abusing his authority as a renowned scientist for his criticism of religion, or that he instructed the worldview of religious fundamentalists on all believers and thus ignore the wide range of world views of religious people. Also, the geneticist Francis Collins, head of the Human Genome Project and representatives of a theistic evolution, throws Dawkins to argue not against religion, but against a caricature of religion.
In addition to the theologian Alister McGrath about the philosopher Charles Taylor or the physicist Peter Higgs Dawkins raises explicitly "fundamentalism" before. His reasoning was embarrassing, science and faith, of course compatible.
The philosopher and theologian Richard Schröder accuses Dawkins of the abuse of science, because he was breaking with his evolutionary theories on religion with the scientific method, ask the empirical support for these hypotheses. This empirical evidence would remain Dawkins but guilty. Another allegation is Dawkins' critique of religion devoid of any religious-scientific knowledge. Furthermore Schröder draws parallels between aggressive language and impetus of the new atheists and atheism of the old GDR, religion basically as "outdated " and " scientifically refuted " means have.
Criticism of Dawkins is also practiced by some atheistic or agnostic philosophers, by highlighting the repetition of materialism dispute whose arguments were known since the 19th century.
Early December 2007 it was announced that the prosecutor's office in Istanbul has launched investigations against the Turkish publisher of Dawkins on suspicion of " insulting religious values " in The God Delusion. In September 2008, the access to the site Dawkins has been banned by a decision of an Istanbul court for Turkish Internet users. The Islamic creationist Adnan Oktar had filed suit because he and his book Atlas of Creation saw defamed by a meeting of the Website.
Dawkins calls for an international organization of atheists in order to strengthen their political influence. He expects them more humane overall results of the policy. He referred in the context of an alleged " Jewish lobby ", the " monopolizing " the U.S. foreign policy. This remark was criticized by the commentators Shalom Lappin and Daniel Finkelstein. (see also The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy).
Trivia
- Richard Dawkins was a special model for the author Douglas Adams. Adams described himself several times as " Dawkinsist ". From Dawkins supporters the term " Dawkinist " is used sometimes. Both play on the term " Darwinist " to. Based on Thomas Huxley's role as " Darwin's bulldog ", Dawkins is also known as " Darwin's Rottweiler ".
- Dawkins plays in the Season 4 finale of the science fiction series Doctor Who itself in the final of the 5th season it is mentioned in an alternate timeline.
- In the animated series South Park ( Season 10 Go God Go, Go God Go XII) Dawkins had an appearance as representatives of the theory of evolution.
Works (selection)
Essays
Scientific Publications
Movies
The Root of All Evil? Atheism is a verfechtende miniseries. In it, Dawkins is shown when visiting religious sites and events in different countries. The entire series is narrated by Dawkins' voice-over. This results in meetings and discussions with representatives of world religions. As a sequel was released in 2007, the series The Enemies of Reason, so-called esoteric, alternative medicine and "postmodern relativism " criticized in the Dawkins.
In a very become known debate in October 2007 at the Christian University of Birmingham, Alabama, Richard Dawkins and John Lennox met, a professor of mathematics and philosophy at the University of Oxford, on the question of God's existence.
Also on Channel 4 was published in 2008 the three-part series The Genius of Charles Darwin. Richard Dawkins also appears in the documentary The Atheism Tapes ( 2004) by Jonathan Miller and Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed on (2008) by Ben Stein. The Atheism Tapes includes interviews with six eminent personalities from the field of philosophy and science. Dawkins expresses itself in a somewhat half-hour interview on the subject of religion and atheism. His interview in Expelled is much shorter. Dawkins is interviewed in a short interview on the subject of religion, and later called him another interlocutor as " reptile ". The film Expelled received scathing reviews and was called propaganda.