Portal:Evolutionary biology/Selected article/10
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Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS (born March 26, 1941) is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and popular science writer. He holds the Charles Simonyi Chair for the Public Understanding of Science at the University of Oxford. Born in Nairobi, Kenya, Dawkins moved to England with his parents at the age of eight, and completed his education at the University of Oxford. He first came to prominence with his 1976 book The Selfish Gene, which popularised the gene-centered view of evolution and introduced the term meme, playing a significant role in the foundation of memetics as a scientific field of study. In 1982, he made a widely cited contribution to evolutionary biology with the theory, presented in his book The Extended Phenotype, that phenotypic effects are not limited to an organism's body but can stretch far into the environment, which includes the bodies of other organisms. He has since written several best-selling popular books, and made regular appearances on television and radio programmes discussing evolution, creationism, intelligent design, and religion. In addition to his biological work, Dawkins is well-known for his views on religion. He is an outspoken antitheist and atheist; a secular humanist, sceptic, scientific rationalist, and a supporter of the Brights movement.
