On November 24, 1859, the first edition of a book that would shake the most deeply established beliefs about life was published in London. What would eventually be known as “The Origin of Species” was the opening shot in a debate that hasn’t ended, even 150 years later.

In a series of books starting in 1976 and in his 2002 TED Talk, biologist Richard Dawkins has explored the implications of Darwin’s work. In “The Selfish Gene,” Dawkins wrote, “Living organisms had existed on earth, without ever knowing why, for over 300,000 million years before the truth finally dawned on one of them. His name was Charles Darwin.”

Dawkins argues that there is no doubt that Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection is true and, unlike some other scholars of the subject, says belief in evolution is not compatible with faith in religion. In fact, he argues, science and religion undermine each other.

[…]

CNN: What’s your sense of Darwin’s influence around the world?

Dawkins: Evolution is almost universally accepted among those who understand it, almost universally rejected by those who don’t.

The e-mail between CNN and Dawkins is actually quite a bit less biased than I had expected.

The article’s a good read, but make sure to check the comments for the real lunacy, containing gems like, “if science is based upon evidence why 150 yrs later is Darwin’s theory still only a THEORY? Because noone can prove it.”

Sigh.  Baby steps.