In this episode of The Poetry of Reality, Richard Dawkins joins Michael Shermer for a compelling conversation about Richard's latest book, The Genetic Book of the Dead along with a wide array of topics including evolution, genetics, science, and the broader cultural forces that shape our understanding of truth.
This episode was filmed at as part of Richard ... Show More
Sep 30
Why Ants Tear Off Their Own Wings
In this episode, Richard Dawkins revisits a 2012 conversation from the Great Minds program, produced by the Educational Broadcasting System in South Korea. Drawing on themes from his book Flights of Fancy, Dawkins explores humanity’s ancient dream of flight, the physics that gove ... Show More
14 m
Sep 20
Why Ideas Spread Like Viruses
In this episode of The Poetry of Reality, Richard joins a live audience in Edinburgh to discuss his latest book, The Genetic Book of the Dead. In this wide-ranging conversation, he reflects on how DNA preserves the story of evolution, describing organisms as “living books” that r ... Show More
1h 13m
Sep 14
Can We Still Be Optimistic About the Future? | A Conversation with Steven Pinker
In this episode of The Poetry of Reality, Richard Dawkins and Steven Pinker explore the frontiers of science, language, morality, artificial intelligence, evolution, and the future of human civilization. Steven Pinker is a Canadian-American cognitive psychologist, psycholinguist, ... Show More
1h 37m
Oct 2024
491. Symbolic Patterns: Memes, Archetypes, Dragons, Genes | Dr. Richard Dawkins & Alex O’Connor
Dr. Jordan B. Peterson sits down with Alex O’Connor and Richard Dawkins to discuss their differences of view on the Abrahamic biblical texts, truth claims in science and fiction, the extension of memes through Jungian archetypes, and the memetical reality of dragons. This episode ... Show More
1h 28m
Jul 2023
Episode 120, The Mystery of Existence (Part II - Further Analysis and Discussion)
Introduction This episode features Jack Symes in conversation with four of the biggest names in philosophy: Richard Dawkins (representing science and atheism), Jessica Frazier (on Hinduism), Silvia Jonas (speaking on Jewish philosophy), and Richard Swinburne (defending Christiani ... Show More
54m 25s
Aug 24
Nick Spencer, "The Landscapes of Science and Religion: What Are We Disagreeing About?" (Oxford UP, 2025)
The relationship between science and religion has long been a heated debate and is becoming an ever more popular topic. The scientific capacity to manipulate and change humans and their environment through genetic engineering, life extension, and AI is going to take a huge leap f ... Show More
38m 48s
Sep 2024
Richard Dawkins’ Perspective on Faith, Philosophy, and the Layers of Human Existence
Commonly known as the most famous atheist in the world, Richard Dawkins is a British evolutionary biologist, zoologist, and author of The Selfish Gene and The God Delusion. Today, Ryan asks Richard why he describes himself as a "cultural Christian", what the biggest misunderstand ... Show More
51m 28s
Sep 2
A landscape of consciousness | Robert Lawrence Kuhn and Hilary Lawson
Will we ever reach a conclusive, agreed-upon theory of consciousness?Over the millennia of recorded history, countless stories, theories, and arguments have emerged to explain the origins of consciousness. And yet, here we are in 2025 - post-Plato, post-Descartes, post-scientific ... Show More
41m 19s
Feb 2025
Is There a Scientific Case for Believing in God?
This is a conversation I've wanted to have for a long time. It's about the decline of religion in America, the value of faith, the case for belief, and the rational reasons to believe in God. My guest is the New York Times columnist Ross Douthat. He is a Catholic conservative. Fr ... Show More
1h 8m
Oct 2023
Dan Dennett Looks Back on His Career
Get tickets for our event: skeptic.com/event Daniel Dennett, preeminent philosopher and cognitive scientist, has spent his career considering the thorniest, most fundamental mysteries of the mind. Do we have free will? What is consciousness and how did it come about? What disting ... Show More
1h 28m
Jan 2025
Alex O'Connor Explores the Mysteries of God
Alex O’Connor ( @CosmicSkeptic ), known for his nuanced critiques of religion and discussions on morality, reflects on why the Bible captivates him as an atheist, the historical resonance of Jesus, and the philosophical limits of materialism. Alex recently participated in a Jubil ... Show More
1h 13m