New Releases by Richard Dawkins

Der große Dawkins ist zurück – mit dem unverzichtbaren Buch für ein aktuelles Verständnis der Evolution! Richard Dawkins eröffnet uns einen neuen Blick auf die Evolution und das Leben. Jeder lebende Organismus kann wie ein Buch seiner Vergangenheit gelesen werden: Das Verhalten, die Erscheinung und die Genetik eines Lebewesens geben nicht nur Auskunft über dessen Vorfahren, sondern auch über die Welt, in der diese lebten. Die Tiere und Pflanzen um uns herum werden zum Fenster in längst vergangene Zeiten unseres Planeten. Mit unzähligen faszinierenden Beispielen aus dem Reich der Biologie lässt Dawkins uns wieder einmal staunen – über die Wunder des Lebens und der Wissenschaft, die all das zu entschlüsseln vermag. Ein bemerkenswertes Buch vom größten Biologen unserer Zeit – mit zahlreichen Illustrationen. »Das Leben ist voller Wunder. Wie kein anderer hat der Oxford-Professor Dawkins diese beschrieben und der Öffentlichkeit nahegebracht. Auch in seinem jüngsten Werk stellt der Gelehrte seinen Lesern staunenswerte Phänomene aus dem Reich des Lebendigen vor und erklärt, wie sie entstanden sind.« Johann Grolle, SPIEGEL

Traducere de Carmen Strungaru Povestea strămoșilor noștri este un pelerinaj ce pornește de la omul modern și are ca destinație primele forme de viață de pe această planetă. Pe parcursul călătoriei, Dawkins și Wong deapănă povești în miezul cărora se află cei mai importanți strămoși care au făcut posibilă apariția noastră. Astfel, vom întâlni creaturi foarte diverse, al căror stil de viață este mai mult decât surprinzător și ale căror tehnici de supraviețuire sunt pur și simplu uimitoare. Folosind cele mai recente descoperiri din domeniul biologiei moleculare, Povestea strămoșilor noștri ne arată cât de remarcabili suntem ca specie, cât de complexă este istoria evoluției noastre și cât de strâns suntem înrudiți cu restul lumii vii. „O expunere clară și completă a evoluției vieții de pe planeta noastră... O carte scrisă splendid.“ — Washington Post Book World „O carte ambițioasă și importantă, plină de idei fascinante.“ — New York Times „Povestea strămoșilor noștri realizează aproape imposibilul: face biologia să fie din nou interesantă.“ — Lancet „Pelerinajul este o imagine potrivită a călătoriei noastre în trecut. Această carte este modelată sub forma unui pelerinaj epic din prezent spre trecut. Toate drumurile duc la originea vieții. Dar, pentru că suntem oameni, vom merge pe urmele strămoșilor noștri. Va fi un pelerinaj uman dedicat descoperirii strămoșilor umani. Pe drum, va trebui să-i salutăm pe ceilalți pelerini, care ni se vor alătura într-o ordine strictă și se vor îndrepta spre strămoșul avut în comun cu noi.“ — RICHARD DAWKINS, YAN WONG

Förordet och efterordet till 30- och 40-årsjubileumsutgåvan av Richard Dawkins Den själviska genen, skrivna av författaren själv. Richard Dawkins banbrytande omformulering av evolutionsteorin "En lysande populärvetenskaplig framställning. Betyg: 5 av 5". BTJ Richard Dawkins Den själviska genen har åstadkommit en enorm förändring i hur vi ser på oss själva och världen. Tänk om vi, i stället för att betrakta oss som organismer som använder gener för att reproducera sig själva - något vi gjort sedan Gregor Mendels arbete återupptäcktes - vände på det och i stället föreställde oss att det är »våra« gener som konstruerar och upprätthåller oss, i syfte att skapa fler gener. Denna enkla omkastning tycks lösa en mängd gåtor som länge gäckat vetenskapen, och efter den har vi inte längre tänkt på evolutionen på samma sätt. Varför finns det mängder av oanvänt DNA i våra kroppar? Varför offrar ett bi sin egen chans till reproduktion för att hjälpa sina systrar och bröder? Med profetens klarhet redogör Richard Dawkins för svaren. Hans teorier har förändrat hela det sociobiologiska fältet. Med fascinerande exempel från biologins alla områden har han banat vägen för en seriös omprövning av evolutionsbegreppet. Dawkins introducerar också det inflytelserika begreppet mem - självreproducerande idéer som uteslutande använder sig av människor för sin fortlevnad. Om vi är marionetter, säger Dawkins, så kan vi åtminstone försöka förstå vem det är som håller i trådarna. RICHARD DAWKINS [f. 1941] är evolutionsbiolog, etolog, före detta professor vid Oxfords universitet och flerfaldigt prisbelönt författare. Med debuten Den själviska genen [1976] förändrade han helt synen evolutionsteorin och han har jämförts med tidigare revolutionära biologer som Charles Darwin, James Watson och Francis Crick. »Den sortens populärvetenskapliga text som får läsaren att känna sig som ett geni.« | New York Times »Den själviska genen och Dawkins själv är en brygga, både intellektuellt och kronologiskt, mellan förra århundradets titaner inom biologin och vår era.« | The Guardian »Den själviska genen är en oerhört viktig bok som inte kunde ha varit mer spännande.« | The Economist

A bestselling author, neuroscientist, and computer engineer unveils a theory of intelligence that will revolutionize our understanding of the brain and the future of AI For all of neuroscience's advances, we've made little progress on its biggest question: How do simple cells in the brain create intelligence? Jeff Hawkins and his team discovered that the brain uses maplike structures to build a model of the world-not just one model, but hundreds of thousands of models of everything we know. This discovery allows Hawkins to answer important questions about how we perceive the world, why we have a sense of self, and the origin of high-level thought. A Thousand Brains heralds a revolution in the understanding of intelligence. It is a big-think book, in every sense of the word.

A deeply religious nonbeliever. Deserved respect ; Undeserved respect -- The God hypothesis. Polytheism ; Monotheism ; Secularism, the Founding Fathers and the religion of America ; The poverty of agnosticism ; NOMA ; The great prayer experiment ; The Neville Chamberlain school of evolutionists ; Little green men -- Arguments for God''s existence. Thomas Aquinas''s "proofs" ; The ontological argument and other a priori arguments ; The argument from beauty ; The argument from personal "experience" ; The argument from Scripture ; The argument from admired religious scientists ; Pascal''s wager ; Bayesian arguments -- Why there almost certainly is no God. The ultimate Boeing 747 ; Natural selection as a consciousness-raiser ; Irreducible complexity ; The worship of gaps ; The anthropic principle : planetary version ; The anthropic principle : cosmological version ; An interlude at Cambridge -- The roots of religion. The Darwinian imperative ; Direct advantages of religion ; Group selection ; Religion as a by-product of something else ; Psychologically primed for religion ; Tread softly, because you tread on my memes ; Cargo cults -- The roots of morality : why are we good? Does our moral sense have a Darwinian origin? ; A case study in the roots of morality ; If there is no God, why be good? -- The "good" book and the changing moral Zeitgeist. The Old Testament ; Is the New Testament any better? ; Love thy neighbour ; The moral Zeitgeist ; What about Hitler and Stalin? : weren''t they atheists? -- What''s wrong with religion? : why be so hostile? Fundamentalism and the subversion of science ; The dark side of absolutism ; Faith and homosexuality ; Faith and the sanctity of human life ; The great Beethoven fallacy ; How "moderation" in faith fosters fanaticism -- Childhood, abuse and the escape from religion. Physical and mental abuse ; In defence of children ; An educational scandal ; Consciousness-raising again ; Religious education as a part of literary culture -- A much needed gap? Binker ; Consolation ; Inspiration ; The mother of all burkas.

Should we believe in God? In this brisk introduction to modern atheism, one of the world’s greatest science writers tells us why we shouldn’t. Richard Dawkins was fifteen when he stopped believing in God. Deeply impressed by the beauty and complexity of living things, he’d felt certain they must have had a designer. Learning about evolution changed his mind. Now one of the world’s best and bestselling science communicators, Dawkins has given readers, young and old, the same opportunity to rethink the big questions. In twelve fiercely funny, mind-expanding chapters, Dawkins explains how the natural world arose without a designer—the improbability and beauty of the “bottom-up programming” that engineers an embryo or a flock of starlings—and challenges head-on some of the most basic assumptions made by the world’s religions: Do you believe in God? Which one? Is the Bible a “Good Book”? Is adhering to a religion necessary, or even likely, to make people good to one another? Dissecting everything from Abraham’s abuse of Isaac to the construction of a snowflake, Outgrowing God is a concise, provocative guide to thinking for yourself. Praise for Outgrowing God “My son came home from his first day in the sixth grade with arms outstretched plaintively demanding to know: ‘Have you ever heard of Jesus?’ We burst out laughing. Maybe not our finest parenting moment, given that he was genuinely distraught. He felt that he had woken up one day to a world in which his peers were expressing beliefs he found frighteningly unreasonable. He began devouring books like The God Delusion, books that helped him formulate his own arguments and helped him stand his ground. Dawkins’s new book is special in the terrain of atheists’ pleas for humanism and rationalism precisely since it speaks to those most vulnerable to the coercive tactics of religion. As Dawkins himself says in the dedication, this book is for ‘all young people when they’re old enough to decide for themselves.’ It is also, I must add, for their parents.”—Janna Levin, author of Black Hole Blues “When someone is considering atheism I tell them to read the Bible first and then Dawkins. Outgrowing God—second only to the Bible!”—Penn Jillette, author of God, No!

Diep onder de indruk van de schoonheid en complexiteit van de levende natuur dacht de jonge Richard Dawkins dat er achter al die wonderbaarlijke perfectie wel een Schepper móést schuilgaan. Op vijftienjarige leeftijd, toen hij meer over de evolutie te weten was gekomen, was het gedaan met zijn geloof in God. Dawkins zet op losse schroeven wat in de Bijbel, Koran of andere religieuze geschriften staat en wat eeuwenlang voor waar is aangenomen. Hij pleit ervoor dat iedereen, van jong tot oud, gefundeerd nadenkt over vragen als: Moeten we in God geloven? Hebben we God nodig om het bestaan van het universum te verklaren? Hebben we God nodig om fatsoenlijke mensen te zijn? Met dit prikkelende boek over atheïsme wil Richard Dawkins de vanzelfsprekendheid doorbreken waarmee het geloof veelal aan volgende generaties wordt doorgegeven. Wat hij bovenal wil laten zien is de wonderlijke wereld van het leven en de natuur, zonder de sluier van het geloof. Laat maar los, die hand van God.

Richard Dawkins banbrytande omformulering av evolutionsteorin Richard Dawkins Den själviska genen har åstadkommit en enorm förändring i hur vi ser på oss själva och världen. Tänk om vi, i stället för att betrakta oss som organismer som använder gener för att reproducera sig själva - något vi gjort sedan Gregor Mendels arbete återupptäcktes - vände på det och i stället föreställde oss att det är »våra« gener som konstruerar och upprätthåller oss, i syfte att skapa fler gener. Denna enkla omkastning tycks lösa en mängd gåtor som länge gäckat vetenskapen, och efter den har vi inte längre tänkt på evolutionen på samma sätt. Varför finns det mängder av oanvänt DNA i våra kroppar? Varför offrar ett bi sin egen chans till reproduktion för att hjälpa sina systrar och bröder? Med profetens klarhet redogör Richard Dawkins för svaren. Hans teorier har förändrat hela det sociobiologiska fältet. Med fascinerande exempel från biologins alla områden har han banat vägen för en seriös omprövning av evolutionsbegreppet. Dawkins introducerar också det inflytelserika begreppet mem - självreproducerande idéer som uteslutande använder sig av människor för sin fortlevnad. Om vi är marionetter, säger Dawkins, så kan vi åtminstone försöka förstå vem det är som håller i trådarna. RICHARD DAWKINS [f. 1941] är evolutionsbiolog, etolog, före detta professor vid Oxfords universitet och flerfaldigt prisbelönt författare. Med debuten Den själviska genen [1976] förändrade han helt synen på den vederlagda evolutionsteorin och han har jämförts med tidigare revolutionära biologer som Charles Darwin, James Watson och Francis Crick. »Den sortens populärvetenskapliga text som får läsaren att känna sig som ett geni.« New York Times »Den själviska genen och Dawkins själv är en brygga, både intellektuellt och kronologiskt, mellan förra århundradets titaner inom biologin och vår era.« The Guardian »Den själviska genen är en oerhört viktig bok som inte kunde ha varit mer spännande.« The Economist

O gene egoísta foi publicado em 1976. Propunha-se a condensar o enorme corpo teórico já produzido para compreender como espécies surgem e se diversificam, como indivíduos se relacionam e colaboram entre si - e a ir além. Richard Dawkins inovou de muitas maneiras. Introduziu uma linguagem informal e metafórica numa área dominada por reflexões densas e fórmulas matemáticas. Subverteu a percepção intuitiva da importância dos organismos e dos grupos: o gene é quem comanda, quem busca perpetuar-se. Os organismos são máquinas de sobrevivência construídas pelos genes, num processo competitivo de construir a máquina mais eficaz. E a influência dos genes não pára aí. Organismos interagem entre si e com o mundo inanimado, e assim alteram seu ambiente e promovem a propagação de genes presentes em outros corpos. Um dos livros mais aclamados da história da divulgação científica, ele não só apresenta a biologia evolutiva de forma acessível, mas acrescenta uma interpretação metafórica que inspirou gerações de biólogos e simpatizantes: somos máquinas de sobrevivência a serviço dos genes. Desde a sua publicação, foi traduzido para mais de 25 idiomas e sucesso de vendas pelo mundo todo. Um livro atual, que continuará a ser referência obrigatória para quem se interessa pela evolução da vida. Esta edição comemorativa dos trinta anos de publicação traz uma nova introdução do autor.

In this hugely entertaining sequel to the New York Times bestselling memoir An Appetite for Wonder, Richard Dawkins delves deeply into his intellectual life spent kick-starting new conversations about science, culture, and religion and writing yet another of the most audacious and widely read books of the twentieth century— The God Delusion. Called "one of the best nonfiction writers alive today" (Stephen Pinker) and a "prize-fighter" ( Nature), Richard Dawkins cheerfully, mischievously, looks back on a lifetime of tireless intellectual adventure and engagement. Exploring the halls of intellectual inquiry and stardom he encountered after the publication of his seminal work, The Selfish Gene; affectionately lampooning the world of academia, publishing, and television; and studding the pages with funny stories about the great men and women he''s known, Dawkins offers a candid look at the events and ideas that encouraged him to shift his attention to the intersection of culture, religion, and science. He also invites the reader to look more closely at the brilliant succession of ten influential books that grew naturally out of his busy life, highlighting the ideas that connect them and excavating their origins. On the publication of his tenth book, the smash hit, The God Delusion, a "resounding trumpet blast for truth" (Matt Ridley), Richard Dawkins was catapulted from mere intellectual stardom into a circle of celebrity thinkers dubbed, "The New Atheists"—including Christopher Hitchens, Sam Harris, and Daniel Dennett. Throughout A Brief Candle in the Dark, Dawkins shares with us his infectious sense of wonder at the natural world, his enjoyment of the absurdities of human interaction, and his bracing awareness of life''s brevity: all of which have made a deep imprint on our culture.

Clinton Richard Dawkins FRS FRSL, seorang ilmuwan (ahli biologi evolusi) dan profesor emeritus di New College, Oxford. Meroket kemahsyurannya berkat buku The Selfish Gene yang terbit pada 1976. Dawkins juga dikenal sebagai orang yang giat mengampanyekan kepada publik pentingnya sains, sekaligus kritikus tajam tentang konsep agama dan ketuhanan. The Magic of Reality adalah buku pertama yang ditujukan pada pembaca muda dan umum, orang awam yang kurang begitu mengerti tentang sains. Menurut Dawkins, ada tiga bentuk sihir. Pertama, supernatural magic, terdapat dalam cerita-cerita fiksi seperti kepercayaan orang Mesir Kuno bahwa malam terjadi karena Dewi Nut menelan matahari, atau Bangsa Viking yang menganggap pelangi sebagai jembatan para dewa menuju Bumi. Kedua, stage magic, yang biasa ditampilkan para pesulap ketika mengeluarkan dari dalam topi kosong, atau mengubah sapu tangan menjadi merpati. Dan yang terakhir adalah The Magic of Reality alias sains, berupa kesenangan dan kekaguman ketika berhasil mengetahui di balik berbagai fenomena alam. Siapa orang pertama? Mengapa ada begitu banyak jenis hewan? Terbuat dari apakah setiap benda? Mengapa ada siang dan malam? Apa itu matahari, apa itu pelangi? Apa itu gempa bumi? Pertanyaan-pertanyaan yang terdengar sepele, bahkan kekanak-kanakan, tapi yakin kebanyakan orang (dewasa) ga tahu jawabannya. Detail Profuk Judul: The Magic Of Reality Bahasa: Indonesia Negara: Indonesia Penerbit : Kepustakaan Populer Gramedia Penulis : Richard Dawkins Jumlah halaman : 276 Terbitan Pertama: 15 September 2011 ISBN : ISBN 1-4391-9281-2

New York Times bestselling author and renowned atheist and evolutionary biologist, Richard Dawkins delivers an intimate look into his own childhood and intellectual development, illuminating his path to becoming one of the foremost thinkers in modern science today "A memoir that is funny and modest, absorbing and playful. Dawkins has written a marvelous love letter to science . . . and for this, the book will touch scientists and science-loving persons . . . Enchanting." —NPR Richard Dawkins''s first book, The Selfish Gene, was an immediate sensation and dramatically shifted the study of biology by offering a gene-centered view of evolution. Published in 1976, the book transformed the way we think about genes and evolution and has sold more than a million copies. In 2006, Dawkins transformed the world''s cultural and intellectual landscape again with The God Delusion, a scientific dismantling of religion. It was a New York Times bestseller and has sold more than two million copies worldwide. An Appetite for Wonder is Dawkins''s insightful memoir examining his own evolution as a man and as a thinker. From his beginnings in colonial Kenya to his intellectual awakening at Oxford, Dawkins shares his path to the creation of The Selfish Gene, and offers readers an in-depth look at the man and the mind that has changed the way we view science and evolution.

An elegant, text-only edition of the New York Times bestseller that’s been hailed as the definitive authority on…everything. Richard Dawkins, bestselling author and the world’s most celebrated evolutionary biologist, has spent his career elucidating the many wonders of science. Here, he takes a broader approach and uses his unrivaled explanatory powers to illuminate the ways in which the world really works. Filled with clever thought experiments and jaw-dropping facts, The Magic of Reality explains a stunningly wide range of natural phenomena: How old is the universe? Why do the continents look like disconnected pieces of a jigsaw puzzle? What causes tsunamis? Why are there so many kinds of plants and animals? Who was the first man, or woman? Starting with the magical, mythical explanations for the wonders of nature, Dawkins reveals the exhilarating scientific truths behind these occurrences. This is a page-turning detective story that not only mines all the sciences for its clues but primes the reader to think like a scientist as well.

Magic takes many forms. Supernatural magic is what our ancestors invoked in order to explain the world before they developed the scientific method. The ancient Egyptians explained the night by suggesting that a goddess swallowed the sun. The Vikings believed a rainbow was the gods'' bridge to earth. Aside from these extraordinary tales, there is another kind of magic that lies in the exhilaration of discovering the real answers to these questions. It is the magic of reality--science. Packed with dazzling illustrations and jaw-dropping facts, The Magic of Reality explains a wide range of natural phenomena.

Parasites that manipulate the behaviour of their hosts represent striking examples of adaptation by natural selection. This field of study is now moving beyond its descriptive phase and into more exciting areas where the processes and patterns of such dramatic adaptations can be better understood. This innovative text provides an up-to-date, authoritative, and challenging review of host manipulation by parasites that assesses the current state of developments in the field and lays out a framework for future research. It also promotes a greater integration of behavioral ecology with studies of host manipulation (behavioral ecology has tended to concentrate mainly on behaviour expressed by free living organisms and is far less focused on the role of parasites in shaping behaviour). To help achieve this, the editors adopt a novel approach of having a prominent expert on behavioral ecology (but who does not work directly on parasites) to provide an afterword to each chapter.

Korean edition of THE MAGIC OF REALITY: How We Know What''s Really True by Richard Dawkins and Dave McKean. In Korean. Annotation copyright Tsai Fong Books, Inc. Distributed by Tsai Fong Books, Inc.

A preeminent scientist—and the world''s most prominent atheist—asserts the irrationality of belief in God and the grievous harm religion has inflicted on society, from the Crusades to 9/11. With rigor and wit, Dawkins examines God in all his forms, from the sex-obsessed tyrant of the Old Testament to the more benign (but still illogical) Celestial Watchmaker favored by some Enlightenment thinkers. He eviscerates the major arguments for religion and demonstrates the supreme improbability of a supreme being. He shows how religion fuels war, foments bigotry, and abuses children, buttressing his points with historical and contemporary evidence. The God Delusion makes a compelling case that belief in God is not just wrong but potentially deadly. It also offers exhilarating insight into the advantages of atheism to the individual and society, not the least of which is a clearer, truer appreciation of the universe''s wonders than any faith could ever muster.

Tänk om någon sa: ”Det romerska imperiet har aldrig funnits. Julius Ceasar är en påhittad figur. Franska, spanska och italienska härstammar inte från latinet utan uppstod fixa och färdiga, helt utan samband med varandra.” Åt en sådan person skulle vi alla skratta. Men mer än 40% av alla amerikaner tror att jorden skapades av Gud för 6.000 år sedan och att människor och dinosaurier vandrade sida vid sida. Till dem och alla oss andra lägger nu den världsberömde biologen Richard Dawkins fram bevisen för att Darwins tankar stämmer: ”Evolutionen är ett faktum. Bortom allt rimligt tvivel, bortom allt förnuftigt, intelligent och upplyst tvivel är evolutionen ett faktum. Det är rena rama sanningen att vi är chimpansernas kusiner och lite mer avlägsna kusiner till maneterna.” Elegant, lärt och underhållande ger Richard Dawkins sin hyllning till vetenskapen, till hur underbar naturen är och till sin store hjälte och föregångare Charles Darwin. Richard Dawkins är professor vid universitetet i Oxford. Hans böcker som Den själviska genen och Illusionen om Gud har slukats av miljoner och åter miljoner läsare. Så gick det till är kronan på hans populärvetenskapliga författarskap.

Pleidooi voor een atheïstische c.q. humanistische levensbeschouwing.

Richard Dawkins transformed our view of God in his blockbuster, The God Delusion, which sold more than 2 million copies in English alone. He revolutionized the way we see natural selection in the seminal bestseller The Selfish Gene. Now, he launches a fierce counterattack against proponents of "Intelligent Design" in his latest New York Times bestseller, The Greatest Show on Earth. "Intelligent Design" is being taught in our schools; educators are being asked to "teach the controversy" behind evolutionary theory. There is no controversy. Dawkins sifts through rich layers of scientific evidence—from living examples of natural selection to clues in the fossil record; from natural clocks that mark the vast epochs wherein evolution ran its course to the intricacies of developing embryos; from plate tectonics to molecular genetics—to make the airtight case that "we find ourselves perched on one tiny twig in the midst of a blossoming and flourishing tree of life and it is no accident, but the direct consequence of evolution by non-random selection." His unjaded passion for the natural world turns what might have been a negative argument, exposing the absurdities of the creationist position, into a positive offering to the reader: nothing less than a master’s vision of life, in all its splendor.

Richard Dawkins beweist mit dem Buch «Der entzauberte Regenbogen», dass Wissenschaft alles andere als kalt, trocken und langweilig ist. Er macht deutlich, wie wunderbar die Dinge sind, gerade wenn wir um sie wissen. Das Gefühl des Staunens über die Natur verliert sich keineswegs, wenn man versucht, den Erscheinungen auf den Grund zu gehen, und das Wunderbare wird nicht weniger wunderbar, wenn wir es erklären können. Ohne die Entzauberung des Regenbogens wüssten wir heute sehr viel weniger über den Kosmos. Gleichzeitig tritt einer der besten Sachbuchautoren unserer Zeit an, Aberglauben und mystischen Kult als falschverstandene Romantik und bewusste Irreführung zu entlarven, und geht hart mit denen ins Gericht, die den Trend zum Mystischen ausnutzen, um damit Geschäfte zu machen. «Richard Dawkins kann etwas, was Charles Darwin nicht konnte: phantastisch erzählen!» (New York Times)

Cuando se habla de la «Teoría de la Evolución» ¿a qué nos estamos refiriendo exactamente? ¿Se trata de una hipótesis acerca de la presencia del ser humano sobre la tierra? ¿Se trata de una explicación del origen de la vida? ¿Se trata de una explicación acerca del por qué de la variabilidad de las especies? La Teoría de la Evolución es una teoría probada que explica tanto el origen de la vida, como la variabilidad de las especies animales y la presencia del ser humano sobre el planeta, a partir de un factor central: la selección natural no aleatoria. La hipótesis de la selección natural fue presentada como una hipótesis por primera vez por Charles Darwin, principalmente en su libro El origen de las especies, de cuya publicación se cumplen 150o años en 2009. La hipótesis planteada por Darwin hacía referencia a la selección natural de los ejemplares más aptos para la supervivencia de una especie determinada, de manera que esas características de los más aptos fueran transmitidas a su descendencia, siendo este el motivo último de los cambios morfológicos de las especies animales a favor de unas mayores posibilidades de supervivencia. Richard Dawkins nos ofrece en este libro una brillante y exhaustiva exposición acerca de la investigación desarrollada desde los tiempos del propio Charles Darwin hasta nuestros días. El avance de la investigación biológica, así como la genómica y las nuevas tecnologías han permitido verificar y confirmar las ideas expuestas por Charles Darwin desde los niveles que llamaríamos «macro», y que podrían englobar los ecosistemas y las criaturas vivas que en ellas se encuentran, hasta el nivel «micro», el ADN, verdadero «libro de la vida», individual y colectiva, en el están registrados todos los estadios de la evolución biológica desde los orígenes hasta los individuos actuales.

Richard Dawkins, professeur à Oxford et spécialiste mondialement connu de l'évolution, analyse dans ce livre l'" hypothèse Dieu " avec les mêmes outils rationnels et le même scepticisme que n'importe quelle autre. II s'attache donc à faire la démonstration de la " probabilité extrêmement faible de son existence ". Comprendre le monde du vivant, apprécier son extrême richesse expliquée avec une " élégance irrésistible " par la sélection naturelle de Darwin, voilà qui, montre Dawkins, devrait permettre d'abandonner toutes les formes de superstition, à commencer par le créationnisme.