Great Minds: Richard Dawkins - 'We Are Going To Die!'

In March 2008, Richard Dawkins gave this lecture on "The God Delusion" during his US Tour. The event took place on the UC Berkeley campus in Wheeler Auditorium.

Playlist "Great Minds, Great Words":

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Richard Dawkins is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and popular science author. He was formerly Professor for Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University. He was voted Britain's leading public intellectual by readers of Prospect magazine and was named one of Time Magazine's "100 Most Influential People" for 2007.

Dawkins came to prominence with his 1976 book "The Selfish Gene", which popularised the gene-centred view of evolution and introduced the term "meme". He is a prominent critic of creationism and intelligent design. In his 1986 book "The Blind Watchmaker", he argued against the watchmaker analogy, an argument for the existence of a supernatural creator based upon the complexity of living organisms. Instead, he described evolutionary processes as analogous to a blind watchmaker. He has since written several popular science books, and makes regular television and radio appearances, predominantly discussing these topics.

Richard Dawkins is an atheist, secular humanist, sceptic, scientific rationalist, and supporter of the Brights movement. In his 2006 book "The God Delusion", he contends that a supernatural creator almost certainly does not exist and that faith qualifies as a delusion − as a fixed false belief.

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[garethtudor]

My life turned to crap a month ago, when I lost my job and had no income of any sort. I was rushing toward the yawning pit of depression. I decided to fill in my empty days by re-reading "The God Delusion". When I reached this passage, it was as though the great man himself had grabbed me by the collar and shaken me. I realised that I am alive, when infinite numbers never will be. I have no business feeling sorry for myself. So I got off my butt and started to remedy my situation.

[ThrilboShaggins]

I for one, am very pleased to be alive, despite the sad parts of life. 

[Skavar]

What an absolutely amazing way of looking at life.

It is like the Carl Sagan quote (approximately):

"We are made from the stuff of stars... We are a way for the Cosmos to know itself."

[GideonLekoto]

Professor Dawkins kills me in this. Makes me grateful and think about all the good things I have.

[TurnerTBone]

Love this speech! I want this played when I have my funeral - though I hope that's a long way off! Thanks for the upload!

[metrx]

I have to admit I cried when I heard this. So profound. It reminds us all to take a deap breath when we wake up in the morning and embrace the day. Make it matter, be compassionate & use your sense of reason.

[physicskid]

i don't know why, but every time that i listen to this man, i get chills sent down my spine. what a great man

[astudyofeverything]

This quote has had a truly profound influence on my life. I know it by heart and repeat it daily in my mind. It is truly the most humbling of quotes I've ever read. We need to cherish our own existence and stop bickering about our petty indifference's, be more compassionate to those more less fortunate than us and build a better world.

[Polite_Cat]

wow. when i clicked on this video i didnt expect to be blown away, but i was proven wrong. before the video hit the 1 minute mark, i had a tear in my eye. such a short speech, yet so powerful. awesome.

[jdw]

I don't think I can hit the "Like" button enough to say how cool this minute long speech is.

[GeneralMontague]

The sheer length and volume of applause gained at the end of the speech may go some way to restoring my faith in humanity in general, not just it's great like the one receiving the well earned praise

[freesk]

I'm a HUGE Dawkins fan and an atheist, but I have a minor quibble with this video.

He's right about the vastness of the possible human genomes. But a particular human genome that is never realized can never be called either lucky or unlucky. It doesn't yet EXIST.

You have to exist in order to be lucky.

Why feel sorry (or envious, for that matter) of someone who does not exist? They can not perceive their fates.

We can call ourselves lucky, but we can not call "them" anything.

[shadownor]

This alone makes him more than Shakespeare. One speech. One Thought.

Damn Brits, speak often like angels.  

[InYourFaceNewYorker]

This passage never ceases to deeply move me.

[chunkyscotty]

What an inspirational quote. Send a shiver down my spine every time.

[Bauks]

This excerpt Has been On My Work Locker For A Year now :) My Personal Favorite Thanks for posting this <3

[salvatoremazzotta]

Richard Dawkins - The Discoverer of Death.  Give that man a nobel prize!

[wollin]

Even if billions of us humans are currently living and many more lived before us, we can still say of ourselves: We few, we happy few! Thank you, Mr Dawkins, for your beautiful words reminding us the of deep union that should permanently exists between science and humanism! You are a true poet of the English language.

[AFMMD-q]

Professor Dawkins is a beacon of light in a world obscure by men's fallacy neurosis and delusions. I've been learning only enough to know that we are bits of stellar matter that got cold by accident, bits of a star gone wrong. Many thanks also to
another one of my personal heroes the great astrophysicist Dr. Carl Sagan another beacon of light.

[Muipha]

Why cant people listen to this speech and try to understand the underlying beauty of it and take in the fact that we should enjoy everything around us for our minute moment of time here. It really is a very good speech if people just listened.