Susan Blackmore
Susan Blackmore
Born	Susan Jane Blackmore (1951-07-29) 29 July 1951 (age 60)
Education	St Hilda's College, Oxford, University of Surrey
Occupation	Freelance writer, lecturer, broadcaster
Spouse	Adam Hart-Davis
Website
Official Website

Susan Jane Blackmore (born 29 July 1951) is an English freelance writer, lecturer, and broadcaster on psychology and the paranormal, perhaps best known for her book The Meme Machine.

Career[link]

In 1973, Susan Blackmore graduated from St Hilda's College, Oxford, with a BA (Hons) degree in psychology and physiology. She went on to do postgraduate study in environmental psychology at the University of Surrey, achieving an MSc degree in 1974. In 1980, she got her PhD degree in parapsychology from the same university, her thesis being entitled "Extrasensory Perception as a Cognitive Process." After some period of time spent in research on parapsychology and the paranormal,^[1] her attitude towards the field moved from belief to scepticism.^[2] In 1987, Blackmore wrote that she had believed herself to have undergone an out-of-body experience shortly after she began running the Oxford University Society for Psychical Research (OUSPR)^[3]:

Within a few weeks I had not only learned a lot about the occult and the paranormal, but I had an experience that was to have a lasting effect on me—an out-of-body experience (OBE). It happened while I was wide awake, sitting talking to friends. It lasted about three hours and included everything from a typical "astral projection," complete with silver cord and duplicate body, to free-floating flying, and finally to a mystical experience. It was clear to me that the doctrine of astral projection, with its astral bodies floating about on astral planes, was intellectually unsatisfactory. But to dismiss the experience as "just imagination" would be impossible without being dishonest about how it had felt at the time. It had felt quite real. Everything looked clear and vivid, and I was able to think and speak quite clearly.

In an article in 2000, she again wrote of this^[4]:

It was just over thirty years ago that I had the dramatic out-of-body experience that convinced me of the reality of psychic phenomena and launched me on a crusade to show those closed-minded scientists that consciousness could reach beyond the body and that death was not the end. Just a few years of careful experiments changed all that. I found no psychic phenomena - only wishful thinking, self-deception, experimental error and, occasionally, fraud. I became a sceptic.

She is a Fellow of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) and in 1991 was awarded the CSICOP Distinguished Skeptic Award.^[5]

Blackmore has done research on memes (which she wrote about in her popular book The Meme Machine) and evolutionary theory. Her book Consciousness: An Introduction (2004), is a textbook that broadly covers the field of consciousness studies. She was on the editorial board for the Journal of Memetics (an electronic journal) from 1997 to 2001, and has been a consulting editor of the Skeptical Inquirer since 1998.^[6]

She acted as one of the psychologists who was featured on the British version of the television show "Big Brother", speaking about the psychological state of the contestants. She is a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association.^[7]

Memetics[link]

Susan Blackmore has made contributions to the field of memetics. The term meme was coined by Richard Dawkins in his 1976 book The Selfish Gene. In his foreword to Blackmore's book The Meme Machine (1999), Dawkins said, "Any theory deserves to be given its best shot, and that is what Susan Blackmore has given the theory of the meme."^[8] Other treatments of memes can be found in the works of Robert Aunger: The Electric Meme, and Jon Whitty: A Memetic Paradigm of Project Management.^[9]

Blackmore's treatment of memetics insists that memes are true evolutionary replicators, a second replicator that like genetics is subject to the Darwinian algorithm and undergoes evolutionary change. Her prediction on the central role played by imitation as the cultural replicator and the neural structures that must be unique to humans in order to facilitate them have recently been given further support by research on mirror neurons and the differences in extent of these structures between humans and the presumed closest branch of simian ancestors.^[10]

At the February 2008 TED conference Blackmore introduced a special category of memes called temes. Temes are memes which live in technological artifacts instead of the human mind.^[11]

Personal life[link]

Blackmore is an active practitioner of Zen, although she identifies herself as "not a Buddhist".^[12] Blackmore is an atheist who has criticised religion sharply, having said, for instance, that "all kinds of infectious memes thrive in religions, in spite of being false, such as the idea of a creator god, virgin births, the subservience of women, transubstantiation, and many more. In the major religions, they are backed up by admonitions to have faith not doubt, and by untestable but ferocious rewards and punishments."^[13]

On 15 September 2010, Blackmore, along with 54 other public figures, signed an open letter published in The Guardian, stating their opposition to Pope Benedict XVI's state visit to the UK.^[14] On 16 September 2010, Blackmore wrote in The Guardian that she no longer believed that religion is a maladaptive by-product of consciousness ("virus of the mind") but is evolutionarily adaptive.^[15]

She is married to the writer Adam Hart-Davis.^[16]

Blackmore was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome in 1995.^[17]

Publications[link]

Books[link]

• Beyond the Body: An Investigation of Out-Of-The-Body Experiences, Academy Chicago Publishers, 1983, ISBN 0-586-08428-2 (first edition), ISBN 0-89733-344-6 (second edition)
• In Search of the Light: The Adventures of a Parapsychologist, Prometheus Books, 1987, ISBN 0-87975-360-9 (first edition), ISBN 1-57392-061-4 (second edition, 1996)
• Dying to Live: Near-Death Experiences, Prometheus Books, 1993, ISBN 0-87975-870-8
• Test Your Psychic Powers, with Adam Hart-Davis, Thorsons Publishing, 1995, ISBN 1-85538-441-8, ISBN 0-8069-9669-2 (reprint edition)
• The Meme Machine, Oxford University Press, reprint edition 2000, ISBN 0-19-286212-X
• Consciousness: An Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2003, ISBN 0-19-515342-1 (hardcover), ISBN 0-19-515343-X (paperback)
• Consciousness: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2005, ISBN 0-19-280585-1
• Conversations on Consciousness, Oxford University Press, 2005 ISBN 0-19-280622-X
• Zen and the Art of Consciousness, Oneworld, 2011, ISBN 1-85168-798-X

Articles[link]

• Susan Blackmore (6 January 1990), "Dreams that do what they're told", New Scientist 125 (1698): 28–31 
• Susan Blackmore (16 September 2010), "Why I no longer believe religion is a virus of the mind", Guardian, http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2010/sep/16/why-no-longer-believe-religion-virus-mind 

Notes[link]

Further reading[link]

• "Why I Have Given Up", in Skeptical Odysseys: Personal Accounts by the World's Leading Paranormal Inquirers, edited by Paul Kurtz, Prometheus Books, ISBN 1-57392-884-4, chapter 6, 85–94. available online
• "The Elusive Open Mind: Ten Years of Negative Research in Parapsychology", Skeptical Inquirer, 11:244-55. available online
• "A Critical Examination of the Blackmore Psi Experiments", The Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research , 83:123-144. available online

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Susan Blackmore

• Susan Blackmore's website
• Susan Blackmore's blog on The Guardian's Comment is Free
• TED Talks: Susan Blackmore on memes and "temes" at TED in 2008
• Susan Blackmore at The Internet Movie Database
• Interview with Susan Blackmore
• The Meme Machine, Interview of Susan Blackmore
• Audio interview with Dr. Susan Blackmore, exploring her journey from a disillusioned parapsychology researcher to an author on human consciousness.
• Sue Blackmore debates Alister McGrath (author of 'The Dawkins Delusion') at Bristol University on the motion that "belief in God is a dangerous delusion". 13 November. 2007.

Coordinates: 51°41′22″N 0°19′36″E / 51.6894°N 0.3266°E / 51.6894; 0.3266

Blackmore
Village sign
Blackmore  Blackmore shown within Essex
OS grid reference	TL603016
Civil parish	Blackmore, Hook End and Wyatts Green
District	Brentwood
Shire county	Essex
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	INGATESTONE
Postcode district	CM4
Dialling code	01277
Police	Essex
Fire	Essex
Ambulance	East of England
EU Parliament	East of England
UK Parliament	Brentwood & Ongar
List of places: UK • England • Essex

Blackmore is a village in Essex, England. It is located approximately 3 miles (5 km) east of Chipping Ongar and is 4 miles (7 km) north of Brentwood. The village is in the parish of Blackmore, Hook End and Wyatts Green in the borough of Brentwood and parliamentary constituency of Brentwood & Ongar.

History[link]

The village was recorded in the Domesday Book as 'Phingaria' which was a Latinised form of its original Anglo-Saxon name, Fingreth, meaning 'the stream of the people of Fin'. It is thought that the name Blackmore was introduced in the Middle Ages as a reference to 'Black Marsh' or 'Black Swamp'.^[1]

The Priory Church of St Laurence church marks the site of a former Augustinian Priory, dissolved during the reign of Henry VIII in 1525. The church is the original building (but without the chancel which was destroyed at the time of dissolution) and is now the parish church and features one of the last remaining all wooden steeples (currently inhabited by a community of bats) in England. The site still shows signs of the original moat.^[2] The village itself is believed to have migrated to a location closer to the chapel of the Priory from around Fingrith Hall during the mediaeval period.^[3]

Jericho Priory, on the site adjacent to the church and still within the moated area, was built in the 18th Century on the site of an earlier 16th Century building which was believed to be the country retreat of Henry VIII and where, in 1520, his 'natural son', Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond, was born.^[2]

Other old buildings in the village include the 15th-16th Century Bull Inn, a traditional Essex timber-framed house, and Fingreth Hall, in the north of the parish, where Sir Walter Mildmay, Chancellor of the Exchequer during the Elizabethan era lived.^[2]

Society and leisure[link]

The village is surrounded by countryside and has been named Essex best kept village of the year, for 1982, 1984, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2003 and Essex Village of the Year 1997. The village green has a small pond at its eastern end. To the east of the village itself is a cottage which was built in 1345.^{[citation needed]}

There is a village shop, the primary school, two village halls, a sports and social club, football and cricket pitches, a sport arena used for football, netball and hockey. Blackmore Tennis Club is also situated next to the arena. The village has three pubs: The Prince Albert, The Bull, and The Leather Bottle. There are many societies and clubs, such as Women's Institute, Scouts, amateur dramatics, sports and fitness clubs, and a croquet club.^[4]. The football team in Blackmore is Spartak Blackmore F.C.

The village has two churches: the Anglican Priory Church of St Laurence, part of which date back to the 12th century and which has a timber tower dating back to 1400; and Blackmore Baptist Church.^[4]

Transport[link]

The village is close to the Chelmsford Road, part of the A414, to the A12 and the M11 and M25 motorways; it has good rail links to London from Brentwood, which is four miles away.^[4] The 261 bus route connects the village to Brentwood. The 32 bus route also goes through the village connecting it to Ongar and Chelmsford. A new service 339 operates from Blackmore to Ongar, Brentwood and Warley every hour on Mondays to Fridays.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Blackmore

• Blackmore Village Website
• 1st Blackmore Scout Group Website
• Blackmore Primary School Website

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (March 2012)

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Deepak Chopra
Speaking to the Microsoft PAC on January 15, 2011
Born	(1946-10-22) October 22, 1946 (age 65) New Delhi, India
Nationality	American
Occupation	Physician, public speaker, writer
Spouse	Rita Chopra
Children	Mallika Chopra and Gotham Chopra
Parents	K. L. Chopra, Pushpa Chopra
Website
www.deepakchopra.com

Deepak Chopra (Hindi: दीपक चोपड़ा; born October 22, 1946) is an Indian-born, American physician, public speaker, and writer. He is generally specialized in subjects such as spirituality, Ayurveda and mind-body medicine.^[1][2] Chopra began his career as an endocrinologist and later shifted his focus to alternative medicine.^[3] He now runs his own medical center with a focus on mind-body connections.^{[clarification needed]} He is also a lecturer at the Update in Internal Medicine event.

Chopra was an assistant to Maharishi Mahesh Yogi before starting his own career in the late 1980s by publishing self-help books on New Age spirituality and alternative medicine.^[4][5] A friend of Michael Jackson for 20 years, Chopra criticized the "cult of drug-pushing doctors, with their co-dependent relationships with addicted celebrities", saying that he hoped Jackson's death, attributed to an overdose of a prescription drug, would be a call to action.^[6]

Early life and education[link]

Chopra was born in New Delhi, India.^[1][7] His father, Krishan Chopra (1919–2001) was a prominent Indian cardiologist, and head of the department of medicine and cardiology at Mool Chand Khairati Ram Hospital, New Delhi, for over 25 years,^[8] He was also a lieutenant in the British army.^[1][7] His paternal grandfather was a sergeant in the British Army, who looked to Ayurveda for treatment for a heart condition when the condition did not improve with Western medicine.^[9]

Chopra's younger brother, Sanjiv, is a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and staff at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.^[10]

As a young man, Chopra's desire was to become an actor or journalist, but he reports that he was inspired by a character in Arrowsmith by Sinclair Lewis and became a doctor.^[11]

Chopra completed his primary education at St. Columba's School in New Delhi and graduated from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).^[12] After immigrating to the US in 1968, Chopra began his clinical internship and residency training at Muhlenberg Hospital in Plainfield, New Jersey. He had residency terms at the Lahey Clinic in Burlington, Massachusetts, and at the University of Virginia Hospital.^[7]

He earned his license to practice medicine in the state of Massachusetts in 1973^[13] and received a California medical license in 2004.^[14] Chopra is board-certified in internal medicine and specialized in endocrinology.^[13] He is also a member of the American Medical Association (AMA),^[15]

Career[link]

Chopra taught at the medical schools of Tufts University, Boston University and Harvard University. He became Chief of Staff at the New England Memorial Hospital in Stoneham, Massachusetts,^[7] later known as Boston Regional Medical Center, before establishing a private practice.^[7]

After reading about the Transcendental Meditation technique (TM), Chopra and his wife learned the practice in 1981, and two months later they went on to learn the advanced TM-Sidhi program.^[16] Sources also describe a 1981 meeting between Chopra and Ayurvedic physician Brihaspati Dev Triguna in Delhi, India, in which Triguna advised Chopra to learn the TM technique.^[12]

In 1985, Chopra met Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who invited him to study Ayurveda.^[12][17] In that same year, Chopra left his position at the New England Memorial Hospital and became the founding president of the American Association of Ayurvedic Medicine, and was later named medical director of the Maharishi Ayurveda Health Center for Stress Management and Behavioral Medicine.^[12][17][18] He was initially the sole stockholder of Maharishi Ayurveda Products International, but divested after three months.^[19] He has been called the TM movement's "poster boy" and "its leading Ayurvedic physician".^[20] In 1989, the Maharishi awarded him with the title "Dhanvantari (Lord of Immortality), the keeper of perfect health for the world".^[21]

In its May 22/29, 1991 issue, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) published an article coauthored by Chopra: "Letter from New Delhi: Maharishi Ayur-Veda: Modern Insights Into Ancient Medicine".^[22] JAMA editors claimed that Chopra and his co-authors had financial interests in "Maharishi Vedic Medicine" products and services. In the August 14, 1991 edition of JAMA, the editors published a financial disclosure correction^[23] and followed up on October 2, 1991 with a six-page Medical News and Perspectives exposé.^[24] An article discussing this chain of events was authored by Andrew A. Skolnick in the Newsletter of the National Association of Science Writers.^[25] A 1992 defamation lawsuit brought against the article's author and the editor of JAMA was dismissed in 1993.^[26][27] Media reports published four years later saying that there had been a monetary settlement of the case were later withdrawn as untrue.^[28]

By 1992, Chopra was serving on the National Institutes of Health ad hoc panel on alternative medicine.^[29] In 1993, Chopra became executive director of the Sharp Institute for Human Potential and Mind–Body Medicine with a $30,000 grant from the Office of Alternative Medicine in the National Institutes to study Ayurvedic medicine.^[12] Chopra's institute also maintained affiliation with Sharp Healthcare, in San Diego.^[17][18] That same year Chopra moved with his family to Southern California where he lives with his wife and near his two adult children, Gotham and Mallika.^[12]

Chopra left the Transcendental Meditation movement in January 1994. According to his own account, Chopra was accused by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi of attempting to compete with the Maharishi's position as guru.^[30] Author Todd Carroll said Chopra left the TM organization when it “became too stressful” and was a “hindrance to his success”.^[5]

In 1995, Chopra was the recipient of the Toastmasters "International Top Five Outstanding Speakers" award.^[31] In 1997, Chopra was given the Golden Gavel Award by Toastmasters.^{[32][dead link]}

He was presented the Medal of the Presidency of the Italian Republic awarded by the Pio Manzu International Scientific Committee. In the citation committee chairman and former Soviet premier Mikhail Gorbachev referred to Chopra as "one of the most lucid and inspired philosophers of our time".^[33] Esquire magazine designated him as one of the "top ten motivational speakers in the country".^[11][31] He is the recipient of the 2002 Einstein Award through Albert Einstein College of Medicine in collaboration with the American Journal of Psychotherapy.

In 1996, Chopra parted company with the Sharp Institute. That same year, Chopra and neurologist David Simon founded the Chopra Center for Wellbeing, which incorporated Ayurveda in its regimen, and was located in La Jolla, California. The University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine and American Medical Association have granted continuing medical education credits for some programs offered to physicians at the Chopra Center.^[7][12][17] In 2002, Chopra and Simon relocated the Chopra Center to the grounds of La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California, continuing to offer mind-body wellness programs, medical consultations, and instruction in meditation, yoga, and Ayurveda.

Chopra and Simon also revived an ancient mantra-based meditation practice, traveling to India to study the origins of this technique, known as Primordial Sound Meditation. This form of meditation is now taught at the Chopra Center and by certified instructors who receive their training through Chopra Center University.

Since 2000 Chopra has sat as an advisor for the National Ayurvedic Medical Association.^[34]

In 2005 Chopra was made a Senior Scientist at The Gallup Organization.^[35] He currently serves as an Adjunct Professor of Executive Programs at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.^[36]

He is also a weekly columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle, a regular contributor to The Washington Post's "On Faith" section and a prolific contributor to The Huffington Post.^[37][38][39]

Chopra is also a monthly contributor to The Times of India Speaking Tree.^[40][41]

In 2006, Chopra launched Virgin Comics LLC with his son Gotham Chopra and entrepreneur Richard Branson. The company's purpose is to "spread peace and awareness through comics and trading cards that display traditional Kabalistic characters and stories."^[7] Chopra was awarded the 2006 Ellis Island Medal of Honor by the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations.^[42][43]

He was the recipient in 2009 of the Oceana Award.^[44] Also in 2009, Chopra established the Chopra Foundation with a mission to advance the cause of mind/body spiritual healing, education, and research through fundraising for selected projects.^[45] In 2010 the Chopra Foundation sponsored the first Sages and Scientists Symposium, attended by a number of scientists, social scientists and artists from around the world, with a second symposium hosted in February 2011. The third symposium is scheduled for March 2012^[46] with seminars relating to Alzheimer's Disease and "Past Life Memories" amongst others.^[47]

In 2010, Chopra received the Cinequest Life of a Maverick Award for his collaborations with filmmakers Shekhar Kapur and his son, Gotham Chopra. The award goes to "inspirational individuals who touch the world of film while their greater lives exemplify the Maverick spirit."^[11]

Chopra is heavily featured in UniGlobe Entertainment's cancer docudrama titled 1 a Minute talking about mind, body, spirit and the mystery of life and death.^[48] The documentary is directed by actress Namrata Singh Gujral and also features cancer survivors Olivia Newton-John, Diahann Carroll, Melissa Etheridge, Mumtaz and Jaclyn Smith.

He received the 2010 Humanitarian Starlite Award "for his global force of human empowerment, well-being and for bringing light to the world."^[49] Chopra is the recipient of the 2010 GOI Peace Award.^[50]

In September 2010, Chopra published a criticism of Stephen Hawking's book The Grand Design.^[51]

In conjunction with Menas Kafatos and Rudolph E. Tanzi, Chopra published a paper in the Journal of Cosmology Vol. 14 April–May 2011, titled "How Consciousness Becomes the Physical Universe".^[52]

In June 2011, Chopra wrote an op-ed for the American Medical Association Journal of Ethics titled "Medicine’s Great Divide—The View from the Alternative Side".^[53]

In 2011, Chopra was ranked the Number 1 influencer of all Indians in the world, both resident and non-resident.^[54]

In October 2011, Chopra wrote a critical review of Richard Dawkins' book The Magic of Reality in the Huffington Post.^[55]

In 2011 and 2012, Chopra partnered with Alexander Tsiaras, founder of TheVisualMD on an online program called "The 9 Visual Rules of Wellness".^[56]

In May of 2012 Chopra co-authored a paper entitled "The Zinc Dyshomeostasis Hypothesis of Alzheimer’s Disease" along with Travis J. A. Craddock, Jack A. Tuszynski, Noel Case, Lee E. Goldstein, Stuart R. Hameroff, and Rudolph E. Tanzi in the PLoS ONE Journal ^[57]

Criticism[link]

According to a 2008 article in Time magazine, Chopra is “a magnet for criticism”, primarily from those involved in science and medicine. Some critics say that Chopra creates a false sense of hope in sick individuals which may keep them away from effective medical care. The Time article summarized Chopra's reception and popularity thus: "Of all the Asian gurus…, Chopra has arguably been the most successful at erasing apparent differences between East and West by packaging Eastern mystique in credible Western garb. …His quest to construct a pleasing and seamless model of the universe tends to jump to easy conclusions and to spackle over problematic gaps and inconsistencies in the ideas he presents — is obvious to all but his most starry-eyed fans. But grousing about such crimes — as many do — does little to explain his enormous popularity. Chopra is as rich as he is today not because he has been dishonest with anyone, but because his basic message — that love, health and happiness are possible, that mystery is real and that the universe is ultimately a friendly and benevolent place where orthodoxies old and new can meet and make peace with one another — is one that he wants to believe in just as sincerely as his readers do."^[58][59]

Chopra was sued for plagiarism by Robert Sapolsky for using a stress endocrine chart without proper attribution, after the publication of Chopra’s book Ageless Body, Timeless Mind. An out-of-court settlement resulted in Chopra attributing material that was researched by Sapolsky.^[59] Chopra acknowledges that his thought has been inspired by Jiddu Krishnamurti and others.^[5][60]

In 1996, The Weekly Standard published an article which accused Chopra of "plagiarism and soliciting a prostitute"; however, Chopra sued and the paper withdrew its statements and published an apology.^[61]

Chopra has been criticized for his frequent references to the relationship of quantum mechanics to healing processes, a connection that has drawn skepticism from some physicists who say it can be considered as contributing to the general confusion in the popular press regarding quantum measurement, decoherence and the Heisenberg uncertainty principle.^[62] In 1998, Chopra was awarded the satirical Ig Nobel Prize in physics for "his unique interpretation of quantum physics as it applies to life, liberty, and the pursuit of economic happiness".^[63] According to the book Skeptics Dictionary, Chopra's "mind-body claims get even murkier as he tries to connect Ayurveda with quantum physics.”^[5] Chopra also participated in the Channel 4 (UK) documentary The Enemies of Reason, where, when interviewed by scientist Richard Dawkins, he admitted that the term "quantum theory" was being used as a metaphor and that it has little to do with the actual quantum theory in physics.^[64]

In August 2005, Chopra wrote a series of articles on the creation-evolution controversy and Intelligent design which were criticized by science writer Michael Shermer, founder of The Skeptics Society.^[65][66][67]

In March 2010, Chopra and Jean Houston debated Sam Harris and Michael Shermer at Caltech on the question "Does God Have a Future?" Shermer and Harris criticized Chopra's use of scientific terminology to expound unrelated spiritual concepts.^[68] Shermer has said that Chopra is "the very definition of what we mean by pseudoscience".^[68]

In April 2010, Hindu American Foundation co-founder Aseem Shukla, on a Washington Post-sponsored blog on faith and religion, criticized Chopra for suggesting that yoga did not have origins in Hinduism but is an older Indian spiritual tradition which predated Hinduism.^[69] Later on, Chopra explained yoga as rooted in "consciousness alone" which is a universal, non-sectarian eternal wisdom of life expounded by Vedic rishis long before historic Hinduism ever arose. He further accused Aseem Shukla of having a "fundamentalist agenda". Dr. Shukla in a rejoinder titled "Dr. Chopra: Honor thy heritage" termed Deepak Chopra as an exponent of the art of "How to Deconstruct, Repackage and Sell Hindu Philosophy Without Calling it Hindu!" and to the allegation of "fundamentalist" he responded by accusing Chopra of raising the "bogey of communalism" in frustration to divert the argument.^[70][71]

Chopra addresses these scientific criticisms in his 2011 book War of the Worldviews - Science vs Spirituality, coauthored with CalTech Professor of Physics Leonard Mlodinow. In it he explains his respect and admiration for the scientific method while pointing out its limitations and the need for an expanded science that includes the reality and investigation of the observer, or consciousness.^[72][73]

Message[link]

According to Business Week, one of Chopra's main messages is that by ridding oneself of negative emotions and developing intuition by listening to signals from the body, health can be improved. According to Chopra, slowing down or reversing the aging of the mind through his methods can increase one's lifespan up to the age of 120 years. As a result of his writings and lectures in this area, he is thought by some to be "one of the pre-eminent leaders of the mind-body-spirit movement".^[11]

Publications[link]

Chopra has written more than 65 books with 19 New York Times bestsellers. His books have been translated into 35 languages and sold more than 20 million copies worldwide.^[29] His book, Peace Is the Way won the Quill Awards and The Book of Secrets: Unlocking the Hidden Dimensions of your Life received the Nautilus Award. FINS - Wall Street Journal, mentioned his book, “The Soul of Leadership”, as one of five best business books of 2011 to read for your career. Chopra is represented in the United States by the literary agency, Trident Media Group.^[74] His first book, Creating Health, is credited with helping to create initial, international recognition for Chopra.^[7]

• 1987 Creating Health ISBN 0-395-75515-8
• 1988 Return of the Rishi ISBN 0-395-57420-X
• 1989 Quantum Healing: Exploring the Frontiers of Mind/Body Medicine ISBN 0-553-34869-8^[75]
• 1991 Unconditional Life: Mastering the Forces That Shape Personal Reality
• 1991 Perfect Health: The Complete Mind/Body Guide ISBN 0-517-58421-2
• 1993 Ageless Body, Timeless Mind : The Quantum Alternative to Growing Old ISBN 0-517-59257-6
• 1993 Creating Affluence: Wealth Consciousness in the Field of All PossibilitiesISBN 1-880032-42-2
• 1994 The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success: A Practical Guide to the Fulfilment of Your Dreams
• 1995 The Way of the Wizard: Twenty Spiritual Lessons in Creating the Life You Want ISBN 0-517-70434-X
• 1995 The Return of Merlin: A Novel ISBN 0-449-91074-1
• 1995 Journey into Healing ISBN 1-4000-8069-X
• 1995 The Path to Love: Spiritual Strategies for Healing
• 1996 Perfect Weight ISBN 0-517-88458-5
• 1996 Restful Sleep ISBN 0-517-88457-7
• 1996 Raid on the Inarticulate ISBN 1-882971-16-7
• 1997 The Path to Love: Renewing the Power of Spirit in Your Life ISBN 0-517-70622-9
• 1997 The Seven Spiritual Laws for Parents: Guiding Your Children to Success and Fulfillment
• 1997 Perfect Digestion ISBN 0-609-80076-0
• 1998 Overcoming Addictions ISBN 0-609-80195-3
• 1998 The Love Poems of RumiISBN 0-609-60243-8
• 1998 Healing the Heart ISBN 0-609-60035-4
• 1999 Everyday Immortality: A Concise Course in Spiritual Transformation ISBN 0-609-60484-8
• 1999 On the Shores of Eternity: Poems from Tagore on Immortality and Beyond ISBN 0-609-60564-X
• 1999 A Deepak Chopra Companion ISBN 0-609-80454-5
• 1999 Daughters of JoyISBN 0-451-20935-4
• 1999 Lords of Light: A Novel ISBN 0-312-96892-2
• 2000 The Angel is Near: A Novel ISBN 0-312-97024-2
• 2000 How to Know God : The Soul's Journey into the Mystery of Mysteries ISBN 0-609-60078-8
• 2001 The Deeper Wound: Recovering the Soul from Fear and Suffering, 100 Days of Healing
• 2001 Grow Younger, Live Longer: 10 Steps to Reverse Aging ISBN 0-609-60079-6
• 2001 The Soul in Love: Classic Poems of Ecstasy and Exaltation ISBN 0-609-60648-4
• 2002 Manifesting Good Luck Cards: Growth and Enlightenment
• 2003 Golf for Enlightenment: The Seven Lessons for the Game of Life
• 2003 The Spontaneous Fulfillment of Desire: Harnessing the Infinite Power of Coincidence ISBN 0-609-60042-7
• 2003 Synchrodestiny: Harnessing the Infinite Power of Coincidence to Create Miracles ISBN 1-84413-221-8
• 2003 Manifesting Good Luck: Love and Relationships, 50 Card Deck
• 2003 The Chopra Center Cookbook ISBN 0-471-45404-4
• 2004 The Book of Secrets: Unlocking the Hidden Dimensions of Your Life ISBN 0-517-70624-5
• 2004 Fire in the Heart: A Spiritual Guide for Teens ISBN 0-689-86216-4
• 2005 Peace Is the Way : Bringing War and Violence to an End ISBN 0-307-23607-2
• 2005 The Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga: A Practical Guide to Healing Body, Mind, and Spirit
• 2005 Magical Beginnings Enchanted lives: A Holistic Guide to Pregnancy ISBN 0-517-70220-7
• 2005 Teens Ask Deepak ISBN 0-689-86218-0
• 2006 Ask The Kabala: Oracle Cards/Kabala Guidebook ISBN 978-1-4019-1039-6
• 2006 Power Freedom and Grace: Living from the Source of Lasting Happiness ISBN 978-1-878424-81-5
• 2006 Life After Death: The Burden of Proof ISBN 0-307-34578-5
• 2006 Kama Sutra: Including the Seven Spiritual Laws of Love ISBN 978-1-85227-385-9
• 2007 Buddha: A Story of Enlightenment ISBN 978-0-06-087880-1
• 2007 Boundless Energy: The Complete Mind/Body Program for Overcoming Chronic Fatigue ISBN 0-609-80075-2
• 2007 Freedom From Addiction ISBN 0-7573-0578-4
• 2008 The Third Jesus: The Christ We Cannot Ignore ISBN 978-0-307-33831-0
• 2008 Why Is God Laughing? The Path to Joy and Spiritual Optimism
• 2008 Jesus: A Story of Enlightenment ISBN 978-0-06-144873-7
• 2009 Reinventing The Body, Resurrecting The Soul
• 2009 The Ultimate Happiness Prescription: 7 Keys to Joy and Enlightenment
• 2009 Chopra Center Herbal Handbook ISBN 0-307-45233-6
• 2010 The Shadow Effect with Debbie Ford and Marianne Williamson ISBN 0-06-196265-1
• 2010 Muhammad: A Story of the Last Prophet ISBN 978-0-06-178242-8
• 2010 The Soul of Leadership: Unlocking Your Potential for Greatness ISBN 978-0-307-40806-8
• 2011 The Seven Spiritual Laws of Superheroes: Harnessing Our Power to Change the World with Gotham Chopra ISBN 978-0-06-205966-6
• 2011 The War of the Worldviews with Leonard Mlodinow ISBN 978-0-307-88688-0
• 2012 Spiritual Solutions: Answers to Life's Greatest Challenges ISBN 0-307-71917-0.

Music CDs/audio books[link]

• 1986 Total Health: The Rediscovery of Ayurveda ASIN B-000-K06QY-4
• 1994 Journey Into Healing ISBN 0-679-44089-5
• 1994 Power Talk!:The Power of the Human Paradox with Anthony Robbins ISBN 1-55927-267-8
• 1996 Crescent Moon: Prose Poems of Rabindranath Tagore ISBN 1-878424-20-3
• 1998 Synchrodestiny ISBN 1-905953-04-6
• 1997 Transformation of Mind: Deepak Chopra, Christopher Franke, ASIN: B000003KW4
• 1998 A Gift of Love: Love poems inspired by Rumi ASIN B-000-GRQX8-A
• 2000 All About God: A Dialogue Between Neale Donald Walsch and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-735-X
• 2000 Wisdom of the Sufi: A Dialogue Between Hidayat Inayat-Kahn and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-734-1
• 2000 The Spiritual Journey : A Dialogue Between Richard Moss, M.D., and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-739-2
• 2000 Spiritual Insights into the Genius of Leonardo da Vinci: A Dialogue Between Michael J. Gelb, M.D., and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-738-4
• 2000 The Art of Everyday Ecstasy: A Dialogue Between Margot Anand and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-737-6
• 2000 The Conscious Universe ISBN 1-56170-744-9
• 2000 Pathways to God: A Dialogue Between Joan Borysenko, Ph.D. and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-736-8
• 2000 Unleash Your Potential with Marianne Williamson and Sarah Ban Breathnach ISBN 0-671-77180-9
• 2000 The Path to Enlightenment: Insights into Buddhism / A Dialogue Between Robert Thurman, Ph.D., and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-732-5
• 2001 Healing the Planet: A Dialogue Between Marianne Williamson and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-743-0
• 2001 Self-Coaching Secrets for Success ISBN 1-56170-827-5
• 2001 Awakening the Goddesses Within: Deepak Chopra, M.D., Presents Agapi Stassinopoulos ISBN 1-56170-837-2
• 2001 Tell Me a Story: A Dialogue Between Lisa Suhay and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-874-7
• 2001 Sacred Sexuality: A Dialogue Between Felice Dunas and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-823-2
• 2001 Relationships As a Bridge to Divine Love : A Dialogue Between Barbara De Angelis, Ph.D., and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-742-2
• 2001 Training the Mind, Healing the Body ASIN B-000-BGT8K-6
• 2001 Soul of Healing Meditations – A Simple Approach to Growing Younger ASIN B-000-05TZS-K
• 2001 The Higher Self ISBN 0-7435-0921-8
• 2001 The New Physics of Healing ISBN 1-56455-919-X
• 2001 Science And Soul: The Survival of Consciousness After Death, A Dialogue Between Gary Schwartz and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-822-4
• 2002 The Yoga of Love and Devotion with Shree Ma ISBN 1-56170-838-0
• 2002 Integrating The Masculine And Feminine In The Spiritual Traditions Of Judaism and Vedanta: A Dialogue Between Rabbi Shmuley Boteach and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-824-0
• 2002 Quantum Physics of Quantum Healing: A Dialogue with Amit Goswami, Ph.D., and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-920-4
• 2002 The Evolving Human: A Dialogue Between Jean Houston, Ph.D., and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-916-6
• 2002 Rituals As a Path to the Divine: A Dialogue Between Stephen Huyler, Ph.D., and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-841-0
• 2002 Healing Your Relationships : A Dialogue Between Kenny and Julia Loggins and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-840-2
• 2002 The Soul and Relationship: A Dialogue Between Shakti Gawain and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-917-4
• 2002 Yoga as a Form of Meditation with Yogi Amrit Desai ISBN 1-56170-839-9
• 2002 A Gift of Love II: A Musical Valentine to Tagore ASIN B-000-06IZP-E
• 2003 Magical Mind, Magical Body ISBN 0-7435-3013-6
• 2003 Journey to the Boundless ISBN 0-7435-3016-0
• 2004 Chakra Balancing: Body, Mind, and Soul ASIN B-000-667GN-W
• 2004 Sacred Verses, Healing Sounds, Volumes I and II: The Bhagavad Gita, Hymns of the Rig Veda ISBN 1-878424-78-5
• 2004 The Ultimate Deepak Chopra Collection 20 CDs ASIN B-000-BGV45-I
• 2004 Whispers with Eckhart Tolle, Jack Canfield and Don Miguel Ruiz ISBN 1-55961-722-5
• 2005 The Power of Intuition ISBN 1-4019-0622-2
• 2005 Living Beyond Miracleswith Wayne Dyer ISBN 1-878424-79-3
• 2005 The Cosmic Mind and Submanifest Order of Being ISBN 1-4019-0450-5
• 2005 Living Without Limits ISBN 1-878424-96-3
• 2005 An Ancient Magical Prayer ISBN 1-4019-0447-5
• 2006 Escaping the Prison of the Intellect ISBN 1-878424-56-4
• 2007 Creating Your World the Way You Really Want It To Be with Wayne Dyer ISBN 1-60252-748-2
• 2007 Meditations for Healing: A Dialogue Between Dharma Singh Khalsa, M.D. and Deepak Chopra ISBN 1-56170-922-0
• 2008 Whispers of Spirit & Happiness with Don Miguel Ruiz ISBN 1-55961-945-7
• 2008 The Soul of Healing Affirmations A-Z Guide to Reprogramming the Software of the Soul ASIN B-001-2SAT7-S
• 2008 Grow Younger Live Longer Dave Stewart and Deepak Chopra ASIN: B0012GMXFQ
• 2009 The Soul Of Healing Meditations ASIN B-000-05TZS-K
• 2011 Stress Free with Deepak Chopra (Meditations) ASIN: B004JU157O
• 2011 The Secret of Healing: Meditations for Transformation and Higher Consciousness ASIN: B004K35UWG

Videos[link]

• 1995 Seven Spiritual Laws of Success
• 1995 The Way of the Wizard^[76]
• 2003 God and Buddha - a dialog
• 2004 Soul of Healing - Body, Mind, and Soul Vol. 1
• 2008 The Love Guru
• 2010 1 a Minute

Other published work[link]

• 2008 Introduction to Kim Feinberg's A Mother's Legacy^[77]
• Chopra co-authored Ask the Kabala with Mike 'Zappy' Zapolin and Alys Yablon, which is a set of 22 cards, each one representing a story or character from the Old Testament and a life lesson based on that story from a Kabalistic perspective.^[78]
• Chopra co-authored a blog in 2009 with Richard Barrett titled Can Values Save the Economy?^[79]
• Journal of Cosmology Vol. 14 April–May 2011, "How Consciousness Becomes the Physical Universe." with Menas Kafatos, Ph.D, Professor Chapman University and Rudolph E. Tanzi, Ph.D., Professor of Neurology Harvard University^[80]
• Chopra is a co-author of 2011 Consciousness and the Universe: Quantum Physics, Evolution, Brain & Mind along with Roger Penrose, Stuart Hameroff, Henry Stapp
• In 2011 Chopra co-authored a chapter of the book Exploring Frontiers of the Mind-Brain Relationship with Stuart Hameroff entitled The "Quantum Soul": A Scientific Hypothesis^[81]

Income[link]

Chopra's net income for 2008 was $22 million, according to a Forbes online article written by Melanie Lindner. It included $1.3 million for book sales and speaking arrangements. According to Lindner's 2009 article, Chopra's work time is now spent with non profit endeavours.^[75]

See also[link]

• Alternative medicine
• Quantum mysticism
• Monistic idealism
• Spiritual Naturalism

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Nacson, Leon (1998). Deepak Chopra: World of Infinite Possibilities. Random House. ISBN 0-09-183673-5. 
• Butler-Bowdon, Tom (2003). 50 Self-Help Classics: 50 Inspirational Books to Transform Your Life [The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success]. London & Boston: Nicholas Brealey. ISBN 978-1-85788-323-7. http://butler-bowdon.com/sevenlaws.html. 

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Deepak Chopra

• Official website
• VYou
• The Chopra Center for Wellbeing
• Deepak Chopra collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Works by or about Deepak Chopra in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Deepak Chopra at the Notable Names Database

This biographical article is written like a résumé. Please help improve it by revising it to be neutral and encyclopedic. (December 2007)

Professor Menas Kafatos (Greek: Μηνάς Καφάτος) is a physicist and writer on science. His publications include "The Nonlocal Universe" and "The Conscious Universe".

Education[link]

B.A., Physics, Cornell University, NY, U.S.A., 1967

Ph.D., Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MA, U.S.A., 1972

Professional Employment/Honors[link]

• Currently at Chapman University
• Honorary Member, Romanian Academy of Sciences.
• Distinguished Faculty, 1986. University Professor.
• Dean, SCS, George Mason University (GMU), July 2002-2006.
• Associate Dean, SCS, George Mason University, 2000- June 2002.
• Director, Center for Earth Observing and Space Research (CEOSR), 1995-present.
• Director for Academic Programs and Science, CSI, GMU, 1991-1994.
• Founding Director, CSI I Acting Chair, Dept. of Physics, GMU, 1989-1991.
• Professor, Dept. of Physics, George Mason University, 1984-??.
• Assistant/Associate Prof. 1975-1984.
• Postdoctoral Research Assoc., NASA/GSFC, Greenbelt, MD, 1973-1975.
• Postdoc. Research Assoc., U. of Colorado, Boulder, 1972-1973.
• Research Assistant, Dept. of Physics, M.I.T., 1967-1972.

Author or editor of 12 books

• 134 articles in astronomy and astrophysics (1973-2000)
• 12 Articles in cosmology and quantum theory
• 11 Articles in Brain science/consciousness and quantum theory (since 1999)
• 58 Articles in Earth System Science, remote sensing and data systems (since 1996)

CITATIONS:

• More than 1,940 citations in professional journals, proceedings and books

(from Science Citation Index).

INTERVIEWS - ABC national news on Hurricane Katrina, local Fox news on earthquakes (Sept., Oct 2005);local CBS and Fox news on hurricanes and Mason's antenna (May 2006).

Research Interests:

• Earth System Science/Earth Observing/Remote Sensing:
• Virtual Domain Application Data Centers; federated, distributed data information system architecture;
• Visualization of Earth and space science data;
• Distributed data systems and associated technologies.
• Space Sciences:
  • Black holes, active galaxies and quasars, accretion hydrodynamics in curved spacetime, gamma-rays from active galaxies;
  • Ultraviolet astronomy, symbiotic stars; atomic physics.
• Foundations of Quantum Theory, Cosmology and Consciousness:
• Cosmological observations and their limitations;
• Universal Diagrams;
• Foundations of quantum theory;
• Quantum theory and brain dynamics.

References[link]

• Robert Nadeau and Manos Kafatos, (2001). The Non-Local Universe: The New Physics and Matters of the Mind, Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-514408-2

This article about an American physicist is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Richard Dawkins
Dawkins in 2010 at Cooper Union in New York City
Born	Clinton Richard Dawkins (1941-03-26) 26 March 1941 (age 71) Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Nationality	British
Education	MA, DPhil (Oxon)
Alma mater	Balliol College, Oxford
Occupation	Ethologist
Years active	1967–present
Employer	University of California, Berkeley University of Oxford
Organization	Fellow of the Royal Society Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
Known for	Gene-centered view of evolution, concept of the meme, as well as advocacy of atheism and science.
Notable work(s)	The Selfish Gene (1976) The Extended Phenotype (1982) The Blind Watchmaker (1986) The God Delusion (2006)
Influenced by	Charles Darwin, Ronald Fisher, George C. Williams, W. D. Hamilton, Daniel Dennett, Bertrand Russell, Nikolaas Tinbergen, John Maynard Smith, Robert Trivers
Spouse	Marian Stamp Dawkins (m. 1967–1984) Eve Barham (m. 1984–?) Lalla Ward (m. 1992–present)
Children	Juliet Emma Dawkins (born 1984)
Parents	Clinton John Dawkins Jean Mary Vyvyan (née Ladner)
Awards	ZSL Silver Medal (1989) Faraday Award (1990) Kistler Prize (2001)
Website
The Richard Dawkins Foundation

Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL (born 26 March 1941), known as Richard Dawkins, is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author. He is an emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford,^[1] and was the University of Oxford's Professor for Public Understanding of Science from 1995 until 2008.^[2]

Dawkins came to prominence with his 1976 book The Selfish Gene, which popularised the gene-centered view of evolution and introduced the term meme. In 1982 he introduced an influential concept into evolutionary biology, presented in his book The Extended Phenotype, that the phenotypic effects of a gene are not necessarily limited to an organism's body, but can stretch far into the environment, including the bodies of other organisms.^[3]

Dawkins is an atheist, a vice president of the British Humanist Association, and a supporter of the Brights movement.^[4] He is well known for his criticism of creationism and intelligent design. In his 1986 book The Blind Watchmaker, he argued against the watchmaker analogy, an argument for the existence of a supernatural creator based upon the complexity of living organisms. Instead, he described evolutionary processes as analogous to a blind watchmaker. He has since written several popular science books, and makes regular television and radio appearances, predominantly discussing these topics. In his 2006 book The God Delusion, Dawkins contends that a supernatural creator almost certainly does not exist and that religious faith is a delusion—"a fixed false belief."^[5] As of January 2010 the English-language version has sold more than two million copies and had been translated into 31 languages.^[6]

Biography[link]

Dawkins was born in Nairobi, Kenya.^[7] His father, Clinton John Dawkins (1915–2010),^[8] was an agricultural civil servant in the British colonial service, in Nyasaland (now Malawi). Dawkins has a younger sister.^[9] His father was called up into the King's African Rifles during World War II,^[10][11] returning to England in 1949, when Dawkins was eight. His father had inherited a country estate, Over Norton Park, which he turned into a commercial farm.^[8] Both his parents were interested in natural sciences; they answered Dawkins' questions in scientific terms.^[12]

Dawkins describes his childhood as "a normal Anglican upbringing".^[13] He was confirmed, and embraced Christianity until his mid-teens, at which point he concluded that the theory of evolution was a better explanation for life's complexity, and ceased believing in a god.^[9] Dawkins states: "the main residual reason why I was religious was from being so impressed with the complexity of life and feeling that it had to have a designer, and I think it was when I realised that Darwinism was a far superior explanation that pulled the rug out from under the argument of design. And that left me with nothing."^[9]

He attended Oundle, a Church of England school,^[9] from 1954 to 1959. He studied zoology at Balliol College, Oxford, where he was tutored by Nobel Prize–winning ethologist Nikolaas Tinbergen, graduating in 1962. He continued as a research student under Tinbergen's supervision, receiving his M.A. and D.Phil. degrees by 1966, and remained a research assistant for another year.^[7] Tinbergen was a pioneer in the study of animal behaviour, particularly in the areas of instinct, learning and choice.^[14] Dawkins' research in this period concerned models of animal decision-making.^[15]

From 1967 to 1969, he was an assistant professor of zoology at the University of California, Berkeley. During this period, the students and faculty at UC Berkeley were largely opposed to the ongoing Vietnam War, and Dawkins became heavily involved in the anti-war demonstrations and activities.^[16] He returned to the University of Oxford in 1970 taking a position as a lecturer, and in 1990, as a reader in zoology. In 1995 he was appointed Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford, a position that had been endowed by Charles Simonyi with the express intention that the holder "be expected to make important contributions to the public understanding of some scientific field",^[17] and that its first holder should be Richard Dawkins.^[18]

Since 1970 he has been a fellow of New College.^[19] He has delivered a number of inaugural and other lectures, including the Henry Sidgwick Memorial Lecture (1989), first Erasmus Darwin Memorial Lecture (1990), Michael Faraday Lecture (1991), T. H. Huxley Memorial Lecture (1992), Irvine Memorial Lecture (1997), Sheldon Doyle Lecture (1999), Tinbergen Lecture (2004) and Tanner Lectures (2003).^[7] In 1991 he gave the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures for Children. He has also served as editor of a number of journals, and has acted as editorial advisor to the Encarta Encyclopedia and the Encyclopedia of Evolution. He is a senior editor of the Council for Secular Humanism's Free Inquiry magazine, for which he also writes a column. He has been a member of the editorial board of Skeptic magazine since its foundation.^[20]

He has sat on judging panels for awards as diverse as the Royal Society's Faraday Award and the British Academy Television Awards,^[7] and has been president of the Biological Sciences section of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. In 2004 Balliol College, Oxford instituted the Dawkins Prize, awarded for "outstanding research into the ecology and behaviour of animals whose welfare and survival may be endangered by human activities".^[21] In September 2008, he retired from his professorship, announcing plans to "write a book aimed at youngsters in which he will warn them against believing in 'anti-scientific' fairytales."^[22]

Personal life[link]

On 19 August 1967, Dawkins married fellow ethologist Marian Stamp in Annestown, County Waterford, Ireland;^[23] they divorced in 1984. Later that same year, on 1 June, he married Eve Barham (19 August 1951^[24]–28 February 1999) in Oxford. They had a daughter, Juliet Emma Dawkins (born 1984, Oxford).^[24] Dawkins and Barham also divorced^[25] and she later died of cancer.^[26][27] In 1992 he married actress Lalla Ward^[25] in Kensington and Chelsea, London.^[24] Dawkins met her through their mutual friend Douglas Adams,^[28] who had worked with her on the BBC's Doctor Who.

Work[link]

Evolutionary biology[link]

Dawkins at the University of Texas at Austin, March 2008

In his scientific works, Dawkins is best known for his popularisation of the gene-centred view of evolution. This view is most clearly set out in his books The Selfish Gene (1976), where he notes that "all life evolves by the differential survival of replicating entities", and The Extended Phenotype (1982), in which he describes natural selection as "the process whereby replicators out-propagate each other".^[29] In his role as an ethologist, interested in animal behaviour and its relation to natural selection, he advocates the idea that the gene is the principal unit of selection in evolution.

Dawkins has consistently been sceptical about non-adaptive processes in evolution (such as spandrels, described by Gould and Lewontin)^[30] and about selection at levels "above" that of the gene.^[31] He is particularly sceptical about the practical possibility or importance of group selection as a basis for understanding altruism.^[32] This behaviour appears at first to be an evolutionary paradox, since helping others costs precious resources and decreases one's own fitness. Previously, many had interpreted this as an aspect of group selection: individuals were doing what was best for the survival of the population or species as a whole, and not specifically for themselves. British evolutionary biologist W. D. Hamilton had used the gene-centred view to explain altruism in terms of inclusive fitness and kin selection − that individuals behave altruistically toward their close relatives, who share many of their own genes.^[33][a] Similarly, Robert Trivers, thinking in terms of the gene-centred model, developed the theory of reciprocal altruism, whereby one organism provides a benefit to another in the expectation of future reciprocation.^[34] Dawkins popularised these ideas in The Selfish Gene, and developed them in his own work.^[35]

He has also been strongly critical of the Gaia philosophy theory of the independent scientist James Lovelock.^[36][37][38]

Critics of Dawkins' approach suggest that taking the gene as the unit of selection − of a single event in which an individual either succeeds or fails to reproduce − is misleading, but that the gene could be better described as a unit of evolution − of the long-term changes in allele frequencies in a population.^[39] In The Selfish Gene, Dawkins explains that he is using George C. Williams' definition of the gene as "that which segregates and recombines with appreciable frequency."^[40] Another common objection is that genes cannot survive alone, but must cooperate to build an individual, and therefore cannot be an independent "unit".^[41] In The Extended Phenotype, Dawkins suggests that because of genetic recombination and sexual reproduction, from an individual gene's viewpoint all other genes are part of the environment to which it is adapted.

Advocates for higher levels of selection such as Richard Lewontin, David Sloan Wilson, and Elliot Sober suggest that there are many phenomena (including altruism) that gene-based selection cannot satisfactorily explain. The philosopher Mary Midgley, with whom Dawkins clashed in print concerning The Selfish Gene,^[42][43] has criticised gene selection, memetics and sociobiology as being excessively reductionist^[44] and suggests that the popularity of Dawkins' work is due to factors in the Zeitgeist such as the increased individualism of the Thatcher/Reagan decades.^[45]

In a set of controversies over the mechanisms and interpretation of evolution (the so-called 'Darwin Wars'),^[46][47] one faction was often named after Dawkins and its rival after the American palaeontologist Stephen Jay Gould, reflecting the pre-eminence of each as a populariser of pertinent ideas.^[48][49] In particular, Dawkins and Gould have been prominent commentators in the controversy over sociobiology and evolutionary psychology, with Dawkins generally approving and Gould generally being critical.^[50] A typical example of Dawkins' position was his scathing review of Not in Our Genes by Steven Rose, Leon J. Kamin and Richard C. Lewontin.^[51] Two other thinkers on the subject often considered to be allied to Dawkins are Steven Pinker and Daniel Dennett; Dennett has promoted a gene-centred view of evolution and defended reductionism in biology.^[52] Despite their academic disagreements, Dawkins and Gould did not have a hostile personal relationship, and Dawkins dedicated a large portion of his 2003 book A Devil's Chaplain posthumously to Gould, who had died the previous year.

Dawkins' book The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution expounds the evidence for biological evolution.^[53] All of his previous works dealing with evolution had assumed its truth, and not explicitly provided the evidence to this effect. Dawkins felt that this represented a gap in his oeuvre, and decided to write the book to coincide with Darwin's bicentennial year.^[54]

Meme[link]

Dawkins coined the word meme (the behavioural equivalent of a gene) as a way to encourage readers to think about how Darwinian principles might be extended beyond the realm of genes.^[55] Indeed, it was intended as an extension of his "replicators" argument, but it took on a life of its own in the hands of other authors such as Daniel Dennett and Susan Blackmore. These popularisations then led to the emergence of the field of memetics, from which he has distanced himself.^[56]

Dawkins' memes refer to any cultural entity that an observer might consider a replicator of a certain idea or a complex of ideas. He hypothesised that people could view many cultural entities as capable of such replication, generally through exposure to humans, who have evolved as efficient (although not perfect) copiers of information and behaviour. Memes are not always copied perfectly, and might indeed become refined, combined or otherwise modified with other ideas, resulting in new memes, which may themselves prove more, or less, efficient replicators than their predecessors, thus providing a framework for a hypothesis of cultural evolution, analogous to the theory of biological evolution based on genes.^[57]

Although Dawkins invented the specific term meme independently, he has not claimed that the idea itself was entirely novel,^[58] and there have been other expressions for similar ideas in the past. For instance, John Laurent has suggested that the term may have derived from the work of the little-known German biologist Richard Semon.^[59] In 1904 Semon published Die Mneme (which appeared in English in 1924 as The Mneme). This book discussed the cultural transmission of experiences, with insights parallel to those of Dawkins. Laurent also found the term mneme used in Maurice Maeterlinck's The Life of the White Ant (1926), and has highlighted the similarities to Dawkins' concept.^[59] Author James Gleick describes Dawkins’ concept of the meme as "his most famous memorable invention, far more influential than his selfish genes or his later proselytizing against religiosity".^[60]

Criticism of creationism[link]

Dawkins is a prominent critic of creationism (the religious belief that humanity, life and the universe were created by a deity,^[61] without recourse to evolution^[62]). He has described the Young Earth creationist view that the Earth is only a few thousand years old as "a preposterous, mind-shrinking falsehood",^[63] and his 1986 book, The Blind Watchmaker, contains a sustained critique of the argument from design, an important creationist argument. In the book, Dawkins argued against the watchmaker analogy made famous by the 18th-century English theologian William Paley in his book Natural Theology. Paley argued that, just as a watch is too complicated and too functional to have sprung into existence merely by accident, so too must all living things, with their far greater complexity, be purposefully designed. Dawkins shares the view generally held by scientists that natural selection is sufficient to explain the apparent functionality and non-random complexity of the biological world, and can be said to play the role of watchmaker in nature, albeit as an automatic, nonintelligent, blind watchmaker.^[64]

Dawkins at the 34th annual conference of American Atheists, 2008

In 1986 Dawkins participated in an Oxford Union debate, in which he and English biologist John Maynard Smith debated Young Earth creationist A. E. Wilder-Smith and Edgar Andrews, president of the Biblical Creation Society.^[b] In general, however, Dawkins has followed the advice of his late colleague Stephen Jay Gould and refused to participate in formal debates with creationists because "what they seek is the oxygen of respectability", and doing so would "give them this oxygen by the mere act of engaging with them at all". He suggests that creationists "don't mind being beaten in an argument. What matters is that we give them recognition by bothering to argue with them in public."^[65]

In a December 2004 interview with American journalist Bill Moyers, Dawkins said that "among the things that science does know, evolution is about as certain as anything we know." When Moyers questioned him on the use of the word theory, Dawkins stated that "evolution has been observed. It's just that it hasn't been observed while it's happening." He added that "it is rather like a detective coming on a murder after the scene... the detective hasn't actually seen the murder take place, of course. But what you do see is a massive clue... Huge quantities of circumstantial evidence. It might as well be spelled out in words of English."^[66]

Dawkins has ardently opposed the inclusion of intelligent design in science education, describing it as "not a scientific argument at all, but a religious one".^[67] He has been referred to in the media as "Darwin's Rottweiler",^[68] a reference to English biologist T. H. Huxley, who was known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his advocacy of Charles Darwin's evolutionary ideas. He has been a strong critic of the British organisation Truth in Science, which promotes the teaching of creationism in state schools, and he plans—through the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science—to subsidise the delivery of books, DVDs and pamphlets to schools, in order to counteract what he has described as an "educational scandal".^[69]

Advocacy of atheism[link]

Dawkins lecturing on his book The God Delusion, 24 June 2006.

Dawkins is an outspoken atheist and a prominent critic of religion. In an interview with Thomas Bass for a book published in 1994 he described himself as a "fairly militant atheist".^[70] In 1996, when asked if he would prefer to be known as a scientist or a militant atheist, he replied "Bertrand Russell called himself the Passionate Sceptic. It's aiming high, but I'll shoot for that."^[71] Dawkins is an Honorary Associate of the National Secular Society,^[72] a vice-president of the British Humanist Association (since 1996),^[7] a Distinguished Supporter of the Humanist Society of Scotland,^[73] a member of the Secular Coalition for America advisory board,^[74] a Humanist Laureate of the International Academy of Humanism,^[75] and a fellow of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry.^[76] In 2003 he became a signatory of the humanist manifesto Humanism and Its Aspirations, published by the American Humanist Association.^[77] As a result of his advocacy of atheism, Dawkins has sometimes been described as a vocal, militant rationalist,^[78][79] and as "the UK's Chief Atheist".^[80]

Dawkins believes that his own atheism is the logical extension of his understanding of evolution^[81] and that religion is largely incompatible with science.^[82] In his 1986 book The Blind Watchmaker, Dawkins wrote:

An atheist before Darwin could have said, following Hume: "I have no explanation for complex biological design. All I know is that God isn't a good explanation, so we must wait and hope that somebody comes up with a better one." I can't help feeling that such a position, though logically sound, would have left one feeling pretty unsatisfied, and that although atheism might have been logically tenable before Darwin, Darwin made it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled atheist.^[83]

In his 1991 essay "Viruses of the Mind" (from which the term faith-sufferer originated), he suggested that memetic theory might analyse and explain the phenomenon of religious belief and some of the common characteristics of religions, such as the belief that punishment awaits non-believers. According to Dawkins, faith − belief that is not based on evidence − is one of the world's great evils. He claims it to be analogous to the smallpox virus, though more difficult to eradicate.^[84] Dawkins is well known for his contempt for religious extremism, from Islamist terrorism^[85] to Christian fundamentalism; but he has also argued with liberal believers and religious scientists, from biologists Kenneth Miller^[86] and Francis Collins^[87] to theologians Alister McGrath and Richard Harries.^[88] Dawkins has stated that his opposition to religion is twofold, claiming it to be both a source of conflict and a justification for belief without evidence.^[89] However, he describes himself as a "cultural Christian",^[90] and proposed the slogan "Atheists for Jesus".^[91]

Following the 11 September 2001 attacks, when asked how the world might have changed, Dawkins responded:

Many of us saw religion as harmless nonsense. Beliefs might lack all supporting evidence but, we thought, if people needed a crutch for consolation, where's the harm? September 11th changed all that. Revealed faith is not harmless nonsense, it can be lethally dangerous nonsense. Dangerous because it gives people unshakeable confidence in their own righteousness. Dangerous because it gives them false courage to kill themselves, which automatically removes normal barriers to killing others. Dangerous because it teaches enmity to others labelled only by a difference of inherited tradition. And dangerous because we have all bought into a weird respect, which uniquely protects religion from normal criticism. Let's now stop being so damned respectful!^[92]

Dawkins has especially risen to prominence in contemporary public debates relating science and religion since the publication of 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.^[93][94] The God Delusion was praised by among others the Nobel laureates Sir Harold Kroto and James D. Watson and by psychologist Steven Pinker.^[95] In the book, Dawkins suggested that atheists should be proud, not apologetic, because atheism is evidence of a healthy, independent mind.^[96] He sees education and consciousness-raising as the primary tools in opposing what he considers to be religious dogma and indoctrination.^[16][97][98] These tools include the fight against certain stereotypes, and he has adopted the term Bright as a way of associating positive public connotations with those who possess a naturalistic worldview.^[98] Dawkins notes that feminists have succeeded in arousing widespread embarrassment at the routine use of "he" instead of "she". Similarly, he suggests, a phrase such as "Catholic child" or "Muslim child" should be considered just as socially absurd as, for instance, "Marxist child": children should not be classified based on their parents' ideological beliefs.^[98] According to Dawkins, there is no such thing as a Christian child or a Muslim child, as children have about as much capacity to make the decision to become Christians or Muslims as they do to become Marxists.^[96]

In January 2006 Dawkins presented a two-part television documentary The Root of All Evil?, addressing what he sees as the malignant influence of religion on society. The title itself is one that Dawkins disliked, noting that religion shouldn't be regarded as the root of all evil.^[99] Critics have said that the programme gave too much time to marginal figures and extremists, and that Dawkins' confrontational style did not help his cause and exhibited similarities with the approaches of religious fundamentalists more than with the approaches of the dispassionate, analytic approach of 'hard' science;^[100][101] Dawkins rejected these claims, citing the number of moderate religious broadcasts in everyday media as providing a suitable balance to the extremists in the programmes. He further remarked that someone who is deemed an "extremist" in a religiously moderate country may well be considered "mainstream" in a religiously conservative one.^[102] The unedited recordings of Dawkins' conversations with Alister McGrath and Richard Harries, including material unused in the broadcast version, have been made available online by the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science.^[103]

Dawkins' work has been controversial, and a number of Christian thinkers have responded to it. For example, Oxford theologian Alister McGrath (author of The Dawkins Delusion and Dawkins' God) maintains that Dawkins is ignorant of Christian theology and therefore unable to engage religion and faith intelligently.^[104] In reply, Dawkins asks "do you have to read up on leprechology before disbelieving in leprechauns?",^[105] and − in the paperback edition of The God Delusion − he refers to the American biologist PZ Myers, who has satirised this line of argument as "The Courtier's Reply".^[106] Dawkins had an extended debate with McGrath at the 2007 Sunday Times Literary Festival.^[107]

Dawkins argues that "the existence of God is a scientific hypothesis like any other".^[108] He disagrees with Stephen Jay Gould's principle of nonoverlapping magisteria. In an interview with Time magazine, Dawkins said:

I think that Gould's separate compartments was a purely political ploy to win middle-of-the-road religious people to the science camp. But it's a very empty idea. There are plenty of places where religion does not keep off the scientific turf. Any belief in miracles is flat contradictory not just to the facts of science but to the spirit of science.^[109]

Astrophysicist Martin Rees, who has described himself as an unbeliever who identifies with Christianity from a cultural perspective, has suggested that Dawkins' attack on mainstream religion is unhelpful.^[110] Regarding Rees' claim in his book Our Cosmic Habitat that "such questions lie beyond science", Dawkins asks "what expertise can theologians bring to deep cosmological questions that scientists cannot?"^[111][112] Elsewhere, Dawkins has written that "there's all the difference in the world between a belief that one is prepared to defend by quoting evidence and logic, and a belief that is supported by nothing more than tradition, authority or revelation."^[84] As examples of "good scientists who are sincerely religious", Dawkins names Arthur Peacocke, Russell Stannard, John Polkinghorne and Francis Collins, but says "I remain baffled ... by their belief in the details of the Christian religion."^{[113][114][115][116][117]} He has said that the publication of The God Delusion is "probably the culmination" of his campaign against religion.^[118]

In 2007 Dawkins founded the Out Campaign to encourage atheists worldwide to declare their stance publicly and proudly.^[119] Inspired by the gay rights movement, Dawkins hopes that atheists' identifying of themselves as such, and thereby increasing public awareness of how many people hold these views, will reduce the negative opinion of atheism among the religious majority.^[120][121]

In September 2008, following a complaint by Islamic creationist Adnan Oktar, a court in Turkey blocked access to Dawkins' website richarddawkins.net. The court decision was made due to "insult to personality".^{[122][123][124][125][126][127]} As of 8 July 2011, richarddawkins.net is no longer blocked in Turkey.^[128]

Dawkins with Ariane Sherine at the Atheist Bus Campaign launch in London

In October 2008, Dawkins officially supported the UK's first atheist advertising initiative, the Atheist Bus Campaign. Created by Guardian journalist Ariane Sherine and administered by the British Humanist Association the campaign aimed to raise funds to place atheist adverts on buses in the London area, and Dawkins pledged to match the amount raised by atheists, up to a maximum of £5,500. However, the campaign was an unprecedented success, raising over £100,000 in its first four days, and generating global press coverage.^[129][130] The campaign, started in January 2009, features adverts across the UK with the slogan: "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life." Dawkins said that "this campaign to put alternative slogans on London buses will make people think—and thinking is anathema to religion."^[131]

In 2010 Dawkins supported legal efforts to charge Pope Benedict XVI with crimes against humanity. Dawkins and fellow anti-religion campaigner Christopher Hitchens were believed to have explored the option of attempting to have the Pope arrested under the same legal principle that saw Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet arrested during a visit to Britain in 1998.^[132]

Dawkins has given support to the idea of a "free thinking" school which he calls "Think for Yourself Academy".^[133] The school would not "indoctrinate children in atheism, any more than in religion" but it would teach children to "ask for evidence, to be sceptical, critical, open-minded".^[134][135]

On 15 September 2010, Dawkins, along with 54 other public figures, signed an open letter published in The Guardian, stating their opposition to Pope Benedict XVI's state visit to the United Kingdom, while acknowledging his right to tour the UK as head of the Roman Catholic Church.^[136]

Richard Dawkins Foundation[link]

In 2006 Dawkins founded the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science (RDFRS), a non-profit organisation. The foundation is in developmental phase. It has been granted charitable status in the United Kingdom and the United States. RDFRS plans to finance research on the psychology of belief and religion, finance scientific education programs and materials, and publicise and support secular charitable organisations. The foundation also offers humanist, rationalist and scientific materials and information through its website.^[137]

Dawkins has said the "trend toward theocratic thinking in the United States is a danger not only for America but for the entire world."^[138] Connected to this concern, Dawkins invited Sean Faircloth to serve as opening speaker on Dawkins' 2011 US book tour. Faircloth is author of the book Attack of the Theocrats, How the Religious Right Harms Us All and What We Can Do About It. The Richard Dawkins Foundation (United States branch) later hired Faircloth, who has ten years experience as a state legislator, as Director of Strategy and Policy.^[138]

Other fields[link]

Dawkins talking at Kepler's Books, Menlo Park, California, 29 October 2006.

In his role as professor for public understanding of science, Dawkins has been a critic of pseudoscience and alternative medicine. His 1998 book Unweaving the Rainbow takes John Keats' accusation that, by explaining the rainbow, Isaac Newton had diminished its beauty, and argues for the opposite conclusion. He suggests that deep space, the billions of years of life's evolution, and the microscopic workings of biology and heredity contain more beauty and wonder than do "myths" and "pseudoscience".^[139] Dawkins wrote a foreword to John Diamond's posthumously published Snake Oil, a book devoted to debunking alternative medicine, in which he asserted that alternative medicine was harmful, if only because it distracted patients from more successful conventional treatments and gave people false hopes.^[140] Dawkins states that "there is no alternative medicine. There is only medicine that works and medicine that doesn't work."^[141]

Dawkins has expressed concern about the growth of the planet's human population and about the matter of overpopulation.^[142] In The Selfish Gene, he briefly mentions population growth, giving the example of Latin America, whose population, at the time the book was written, was doubling every 40 years. He is critical of Roman Catholic attitudes to family planning and population control, stating that leaders who forbid contraception and "express a preference for 'natural' methods of population limitation" will get just such a method in the form of starvation.^[143]

As a supporter of the Great Ape Project – a movement to extend certain moral and legal rights to all great apes – Dawkins contributed the article "Gaps in the Mind" to the Great Ape Project book edited by Paola Cavalieri and Peter Singer. In this essay, he criticises contemporary society's moral attitudes as being based on a "discontinuous, speciesist imperative".^[144]

Dawkins also regularly comments in newspapers and weblogs on contemporary political questions; his opinions include opposition to the 2003 invasion of Iraq,^[145] the British nuclear deterrent and the actions of US President George W. Bush.^[146] Several such articles were included in A Devil's Chaplain, an anthology of writings about science, religion and politics. He is also a supporter of the Republic campaign to replace the British monarchy with a democratically elected president.^[147] Dawkins has described himself as a Labour voter in the 1970s^[148] and voter for the Liberal Democrats since the party's creation.^[149] In 2009 he spoke at the party's conference in opposition to blasphemy laws, alternative medicine and faith schools. In the UK general election of 2010, Dawkins officially endorsed the Liberal Democrats, in support of their campaign for electoral reform and for their "refusal to pander to 'faith'."^[150]

In the 2007 TV documentary The Enemies of Reason,^[151] Dawkins discusses what he sees as the dangers of abandoning critical thought and rationale based upon scientific evidence. He specifically cites astrology, spiritualism, dowsing, alternative faiths, alternative medicine and homoeopathy. He also discusses how the Internet can be used to spread religious hatred and conspiracy theories with scant attention to evidence-based reasoning.

Continuing a long-standing partnership with Channel 4, Dawkins participated in a five-part television series Genius of Britain, along with fellow scientists Stephen Hawking, James Dyson, Paul Nurse, and Jim Al-Khalili. The five-episode series was broadcast in June 2010.^[152] The series focussed on major British scientific achievements throughout history.

Dawkins presented a More4 documentary entitled Faith School Menace? in which he argued for "us to reconsider the consequences of faith education, which... bamboozles parents and indoctrinates and divides children."^[153][154]

In 1998 Dawkins expressed his appreciation for two books, famous for their criticism of postmodernism in US universities, in departments like literary studies, anthropology and other cultural studies; the two books are Higher Superstition: The Academic Left and Its Quarrels with Science (by Gross and Levitt) and Intellectual Impostures (by Sokal and Bricmont), both related to the Sokal affair hoax.^[155] In the same occasion Dawkins also criticised Cambridge University for awarding philosopher Jacques Derrida an honorary doctorate.^[155]

In 2011 Dawkins joined the professoriate of the New College of the Humanities, a new private university in London established by A. C. Grayling, which is scheduled to open in September 2012.^[156]

Awards and recognition[link]

Dawkins receiving the Deschner Prize in Frankfurt, 12 October 2007, from Karlheinz Deschner.

Dawkins was awarded a Doctor of Science by the University of Oxford in 1989. He holds honorary doctorates in science from the University of Huddersfield, University of Westminster, Durham University,^[157] the University of Hull, the University of Antwerp, and the University of Oslo,^[158] and honorary doctorates from the University of Aberdeen,^[159] Open University, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel,^[7] and the University of Valencia.^[160] He also holds honorary doctorates of letters from the University of St Andrews and the Australian National University (HonLittD, 1996), and was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1997 and the Royal Society in 2001.^[7] He is one of the patrons of the Oxford University Scientific Society.

In 1987 Dawkins received a Royal Society of Literature award and a Los Angeles Times Literary Prize for his book, The Blind Watchmaker. In the same year, he received a Sci. Tech Prize for Best Television Documentary Science Programme of the Year, for the BBC Horizon episode The Blind Watchmaker.^[7]

His other awards have included the Zoological Society of London Silver Medal (1989), Finlay innovation award (1990), the Michael Faraday Award (1990), the Nakayama Prize (1994), the American Humanist Association's Humanist of the Year Award (1996), the fifth International Cosmos Prize (1997), the Kistler Prize (2001), the Medal of the Presidency of the Italian Republic (2001), the Bicentennial Kelvin Medal of The Royal Philosophical Society of Glasgow (2002)^[7] and the Nierenberg Prize for Science in the Public Interest (2009).^[161]

Dawkins topped Prospect magazine's 2004 list of the top 100 public British intellectuals, as decided by the readers, receiving twice as many votes as the runner-up.^[162][163] He has been short-listed as a candidate in their 2008 follow-up poll.^[164] In 2005 the Hamburg-based Alfred Toepfer Foundation awarded him its Shakespeare Prize in recognition of his "concise and accessible presentation of scientific knowledge". He won the Lewis Thomas Prize for Writing about Science for 2006 and the Galaxy British Book Awards Author of the Year Award for 2007.^[165] In the same year, he was listed by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2007,^[166] and he was ranked 20th in The Daily Telegraph's 2007 list of 100 greatest living geniuses.^[167] He was awarded the Deschner Award, named after German anti-clerical author Karlheinz Deschner.^[168]

Since 2003, the Atheist Alliance International has awarded a prize during its annual conference, honouring an outstanding atheist whose work has done most to raise public awareness of atheism during that year. It is known as the Richard Dawkins Award, in honour of Dawkins' own work.^[169]

In February 2010 he was named to the Freedom From Religion Foundation's Honorary Board of distinguished achievers.^[170]

Media[link]

Selected publications[link]

• The Selfish Gene. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1976. ISBN 0-19-286092-5. 
• The Extended Phenotype. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1982. ISBN 0-19-288051-9. 
• The Blind Watchmaker. New York: W. W. Norton & Company. 1986. ISBN 0-393-31570-3. 
• River Out of Eden. New York: Basic Books. 1995. ISBN 0-465-06990-8. 
• Climbing Mount Improbable. New York: W. W. Norton & Company. 1996. ISBN 0-393-31682-3. 
• Unweaving the Rainbow. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 1998. ISBN 0-618-05673-4. 
• A Devil's Chaplain. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 2003. ISBN 0-618-33540-4. 
• The Ancestor's Tale. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 2004. ISBN 0-618-00583-8. 
• The God Delusion. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 2006. ISBN 0-618-68000-4. 
• The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution. Free Press (United States), Transworld (United Kingdom and Commonwealth). 2009. ISBN 0-593-06173-X. 
• The Magic of Reality: How We Know What's Really True. Free Press (United States), Bantam Press (United Kingdom). 2011. ISBN 978-1-4391-9281-8. OCLC 709673132. ^[171]

Documentary films[link]

• Nice Guys Finish First (1986)
• The Blind Watchmaker (1987)^[172]
• Growing Up in the Universe (1991)
• Break the Science Barrier (1996)
• The Root of All Evil? (2006)
• The Enemies of Reason (2007)
• The Genius of Charles Darwin (2008)
• Faith School Menace? (2010)

Other appearances[link]

• Doctor Who: "The Stolen Earth" (2008) – as himself
• Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed (2008) – as himself
• The Purpose of Purpose (2009) – Lecture tour among American universities
• Beautiful Minds (April 2012) – BBC4 documentary