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Richard Dawkins

Evolutionary Biologist

Richard Dawkins Foundation

POSITION

Evolutionary Biologist

COMPANY

Richard Dawkins Foundation

COUNTRY

United Kingdom

AGE

83 years

Website

Richard Dawkins Foundation Official Website

SCENE

Social

SOCIAL

Twitter

What makes Richard Dawkins a Global Shaker?

Dr Richard Dawkins is an English ethologist, evolutionary biologist, and author. He is a fellow of The Royal Society, The Royal Society of LiteratureNew College, Oxford and was the University of Oxford‘s Professor for Public Understanding of Science from 1995 until 2008.

Dawkins first came to prominence with his 1976 book, The Selfish Gene, which popularised the gene-centered view of evolution and introduced the term “meme.”

Dawkins is probably most famous for his involvement in public debates concerning science and religion since the publication of his most popular book, The God Delusion, in 2006, which became an international bestseller. As of 2015, more than three million copies have been sold and the book has been translated into over 30 languages.

Its success has been seen by many as indicative of a change in the contemporary cultural zeitgeist and has also been identified with the rise of “New Atheism.”

Dawkins sees education and consciousness-raising as the primary tools in opposing what he considers to be religious dogma and indoctrination. 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.

Last updated: May 29, 2019