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Meeting Dr. Richard Dawkins at Oakland University

I love my job.

I get to interview great people.  One-on-one.  I get to ask them whatever I want.

This week, I went to Oakland University, and attended a lecture by world-famous biologist, and confrontational atheist Dr. Richard Dawkins.

The guy is a genius.  (Ok, he's a condescending genius.) But he IS a genius.  And quite a character too.

He believes what he believes with great gusto.

He says people who don't believe in evolution are "ignorant, stupid, insane or wicked."

He calls "creationists"  idiotic.

He was here to promote his new book "The Magic of Reality."  It's a book about history, evolution, and aliens (among other things.)

Even though I don't agree with him on the existence of God, I loved hearing his lecture and I enjoyed interviewing him.

I asked him what he thinks is the meaning of life.

Dawkins said "We all make our own meanings of life.  As a biologist, the meaning of life is the passing on of genes.  But it's also love, it's happiness, it's helping other people.  It's beautiful things.  It's making the best of life.  It's trying to leave the world a better place than you found it."

Does he believe Earth has ever been visited by aliens?

No.

Dawkins added though,"I think it's highly likely there are life forms on other planets.  If we ever do discover alien life, it will be in the form of radio transmissions. Because radio transmissions travel at the speed of light and they travel in all directions.  It's highly , highly unlikely that we ever have, or ever will be visited."

Dawkins says he does believe that time-travel into the future is possible.  He says some physicists even think that time-travel into the past is possible.

I asked him if he's ever been WRONG about anything important.

He laughed and said "Of course! Yes.  Yes."  But he added he's not worried about being wrong about God.

I wanted to know what he wonders about.  What would he like to discover in his lifetime.  Which mystery would he like to unlock?

"Consciousness, I think.  The mystery of human subjective consciousness. What it means to actually perceive the color red.  To experience the color red. Or experience the smell of cabbages."

Cabbages?  Really? I love that.

Thank you, for the interview Dr. Dawkins.  I like you.  I don't agree with you, but by God, I like you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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