Richard Dawkins

Biology English 1941 312 quotes

Gene-centered evolution, coined 'meme'

Quotes by Richard Dawkins

Science is not just a body of knowledge, it is a way of thinking.

Attributed

The human species is a tiny twig on the tree of life, but we are also the only species capable of understanding that tree.

The Blind Watchmaker 1986

The universe is a beautiful and complex place, and we are lucky to be a part of it.

Unweaving the Rainbow 1998

The only thing that matters is the truth, no matter how uncomfortable it may be.

Attributed

We are all connected, not by some mystical force, but by the shared ancestry of life.

The Blind Watchmaker 1986

The universe is a grand experiment, and we are all participants.

Attributed

The human mind is capable of both great good and great evil.

Attributed

The world is a better place without religion.

The God Delusion 2006

The beauty of the world is a gift, and we should cherish it.

Unweaving the Rainbow 1998

The only way to truly live is to embrace the uncertainty of life.

Attributed

A universe with a God would be a universe in which at least one law of nature was habitually violated.

Various interviews and writings

The meme for blind faith lives on because it is advantageous to itself, not because it is advantageous to us.

The Selfish Gene 1976

The 'God hypothesis' is a scientific hypothesis about the universe, and it has been tested and found wanting.

The God Delusion 2006

Child abuse is child abuse, and it's worse when it's done in the name of God.

Various interviews and writings

Natural selection is a blind watchmaker, blind because it does not see ahead, does not plan consequences, has no purpose in view.

The Blind Watchmaker 1986

The fact that life exists is a statistical anomaly. The fact that we are here to observe it is a further statistical anomaly.

Various interviews and writings

If you want to understand life, don't think about God, think about DNA.

Various interviews and writings

A meme is a unit of cultural information, such as a belief or idea, that is transmitted from one mind to another.

The Selfish Gene 1976

There is no such thing as a 'moderate' religion. All religion is extreme.

Various interviews and writings

The universe is a much stranger place than we can imagine.

Various interviews and writings