Date: 17 February 2011
Evolutionary
Biologist, Author Richard Dawkins to Speak on Campus about “The
Fact of Evolution.”
The Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences
Division of Math, Science, and Technology welcomes evolutionary
biologist and popular science author Richard Dawkins, M.A., D.Phil,
to Nova Southeastern University as part of the college's 2010–2011
Distinguished Speakers Series. Dawkins will present a lecture
titled “The Fact of Evolution.”
Dawkins is a former professor for public understanding of science
at Oxford University and an emeritus fellow of New
College—University of Oxford. He has established The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and
Science, whose mission is “to support scientific education,
critical thinking, and evidence-based understanding of the natural
world in the quest to overcome religious fundamentalism,
superstition, intolerance, and human suffering.”
Dawkins came to prominence with his 1976 book The Selfish Gene,
which popularized the gene-centered view of evolution—a theory that
claims genes “care” only about themselves and the creation of more
genes. In his 1982 book The Extended
Phenotype, Dawkins introduced into the field of evolutionary
biology the influential concept that the phenotypic effects of a
gene are not limited to the organism to which they belong and can
stretch far into the environment. Since then, Dawkins has published
nine books on the value of rigorous scientific analysis, the
ancestry of human life, and the blind force of physics, among other
related subjects. His most recent book,The Greatest Show on
Earth (2009), brings Charles Darwin’s arguments into the
21st Century—and has appeared on bestseller lists around the
world.
On television, the radio, and in public speaking engagements,
Dawkins is regularly questioned about his vocal critique of
creationism (the religious belief that the universe was created by
a deity) and intelligent design (the theory that certain features
of the universe are best explained by an intelligent cause, not by
natural selection). In defense, Dawkins publically encourages the
teaching of evolution around the world as a means to prevent the
propagation of terrorism and violence in the name of religion. His
work also advocates for social and political equality for atheists.
He is an avid supporter of the separation of religion from
education and politics.
Dawkins is a recipient of the Michael Faraday Prize (1990), which
is awarded by the Royal Society of London for “excellence in
communicating science to UK audiences”; the Kistler Prize (2001),
which recognizes original contributions “to the understanding of
the connection between human heredity and human society”; and a
silver medal (1989) by the Zoological Society of London.
As part of the college mission to prepare students for rich
professional careers and active citizenship, the college frames
co-curricular programs and experiences around a broad annual theme
that unites our community in multidisciplinary exploration. The
academic theme for the 2010–2011 school year is “Identity.” Dawkins
is the third distinguished speaker to address this theme.