The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution by Richard Dawkins

Jul 09, 2011 Maria rated it 5 of 5 stars

With the help of drawings, photos, cartoons, tables, diagrams & notes, an emphasis on extremely lucid step-by-step explanations, examples, iteration & reiteration & plenty of humor, R Dawkins shows that we are indeed so lucky to be witness to the Greatest Show on Earth -- this wonderful book is addressed not only to those interested in our natural world (and who'll maybe wish they'd majored in biology) but more particularly to the creationists and proponents of "intelligent design" -...more

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May 20, 2010 A.J. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: science-skepticism

There's a general feeling out there about Richard Dawkins that he's a little too shrill, a little too hard on people, and perhaps a tad too full of himself. I've had a couple of these thoughts from time to time, though not the last one, and would almost catch myself nodding in agreement until I put myself in the man's shoes. Professor Dawkins is brilliant with a capital B. He is fanatically devoted to science and his particular subject, evolutionary biology. He has spent his life researching and...more There's a general feeling out there about Richard Dawkins that he's a little too shrill, a little too hard on people, and perhaps a tad too full of himself. I've had a couple of these thoughts from time to time, though not the last one, and would almost catch myself nodding in agreement until I put myself in the man's shoes. Professor Dawkins is brilliant with a capital B. He is fanatically devoted to science and his particular subject, evolutionary biology. He has spent his life researching and exploring the elegant mysteries and pathways of life on our lonely blue world. And what does he get in return? 44% of Americans––granted he's British––think that the earth and everything in it was specially created about ten thousand years ago, that man roamed the earth with dinosaurs, and that the whole of biology and evolutionary history are to be supplanted by a fairy tale about a couple of teenagers who were convinced by a talking snake to eat an enchanted apple. This state of affairs would be repugnant enough if it was a privately held fantasy; instead what Dawkins gets is constant bombardment from imbeciles who want creation 'science' 'theory' taught alongside evolution in schools, as if there was some competition between the two. By air, land, sea, or Trojan Horse (Intelligent Design, so called), biologists are incessantly having to deal with misrepresentation and ignorance on a profound and disturbing scale.

I personally, however, can't be too harsh. Not only was I once a creationist; I was the worst kind of creationist, a young earth creationist. Not only was I a young earth creationist; I was the worst sort of young earth creationist, a Kent Hovindiite. I was to science was the Philistines were to the Hebrews, what the Empire was to the Rebellion, what that kid with down syndrome is to Einstein. What I can do, though, is say with complete certainty is that education, not argument, is the antidote to creationism. Ignorance isn't a crime, and usually people aren't ignorant on purpose. For your average layman, it's not his fault that science education standards are so poor, or that lying snake oil salesmen like Ken Ham successfully peddle bullshit for a living.

Having considered all that, I'm fairly convinced that your typical creationist response to this book will be a glassy stare and a trickle of drool. Part of this will be the enormous amount of nonsense, misrepresentations, misunderstandings, outdated arguments, falsehoods, and outright lies that have until now occupied the six inches of space between their ears. Trying to explain the complexities of biology to someone who thinks that Big Bang Cosmology is 'darwinism' is a higher mountain than Dawkins book is likely able to climb. A lot of bad wiring had to be completely redone even for me to follow the major themes of this book, and I've put a lot of effort into it.

The second drawback is a personal weakness of Dawkins' writing. It's unfocussed, not particularly well organized, and it lacks the ferocious punch of amateur youtubers like Thunderf00t and Aronra (whose video series 'The Foundational Falsehoods of Creationism' is balls-out awesome). Granted, the history of life on our planet and all the myriad means that we have of understanding it is not a topic suited to one book. I still maintain that the chapters could have been better ordered and more centered around a particular point, as opposed to the more conversational sprawl that is Dawkins' style. I find him a better speaker-communicator than writer-communicator, but a better writer than orator, if that makes any sense.

Despite that, I appreciate the effort, passion, and the expertise that Professor Dawkins brings to this book. It is in its way a powerful examination of this subject, and riddled with amazing discoveries and evidences that while they only manage to show a fragment of the deluge that is the evidence for evolution, still enriches the mind and helps non-scientists to explore the wonders of the natural world.

"Evolution is a fact. Beyond reasonable doubt, beyond serious doubt, beyond sane, informed, intelligent doubt, beyond doubt evolution is a fact...That didn't have to be true. It is not self-evidently, tautologically, obviously true, and there was a time when most people, even educated people, thought it wasn't. It didn't have to be true, but it is....Evolution is the only game in town, the greatest show on earth."

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Joseph Sverker I've almost just finished this book and do think the first half is quite excellent and then he brings in his favorite bug bear in the second half abou...more
Mar 30, 2012 12:13am

A.J. Joseph wrote: "I've almost just finished this book and do think the first half is quite excellent and then he brings in his favorite bug bear in the s...more
Mar 30, 2012 02:23pm

Jan 06, 2010 Kris Madaus rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Wow! This is definitely one of those books that makes you look at the world a little differently after reading. Richard Dawkins writes so well on the subject. He is extremely thorough in his description of the fact of evolution, but he doesn't dumb down his explanations either. If you are interested in a particular subject, he often references places you can go to continue the story. He paints a beautiful picture of how evolution really works and why that helps you appreciate this amazing world

...more

Wow! This is definitely one of those books that makes you look at the world a little differently after reading. Richard Dawkins writes so well on the subject. He is extremely thorough in his description of the fact of evolution, but he doesn't dumb down his explanations either. If you are interested in a particular subject, he often references places you can go to continue the story. He paints a beautiful picture of how evolution really works and why that helps you appreciate this amazing world we live in just a little more.

I won't get into some of the details he shares, but based on the facts that Dawkins reveals in his appendix about the exceedingly high percentage of people that believe in a creationist view, I thing every high school student should have to read this book. But it doesn't matter what you believe. The evidence shared in this book is fascinating. Long term lab experiments that shows us evolution before our very eyes, sea turtles that evolved from the sea to land to sea to land to sea again, our distant ancestor named the lungfish, how DNA and mitochondria are used to trace ancestors, the evidence for evolution across all branches of science - it is all simply intriguing.

I appreciate people like Dawkins that can share such amazing things. I especially appreciate how he is more than willing to face creationists head on. If you don't believe in evolution, look at the evidence and then see if you feel the same way afterward - that is, if you are truly interested in answers to the big questions of life. You can say that Dawkins seems a bit aggressive in his books at times, but think about it this way. If you had a group of people constantly questioning questioning that the earth revolves around the sun, and you collected layers and layers of evidence to answer the question beyond reasonable doubt, but they still believe the sun revolved around the earth after all of the years of research, wouldn't you be a bit frustrated too? Dawkins is not only confronting creationists. He is confronting irrationality. Irrationality affects our quality of life. I commend Dawkins for saying enough is enough. He doesn't sugar coat the issue. He says is like it is.

Excellent book!

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Dec 09, 2012 Des rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: british, science

Most of what Dawkins explains in this book was not yet known when I went to school.
My jaw was dropping several times during this most pleasurable trip through the physical evidence of evolution.
In 4 billion years we went from a single cell to a fully developed human, and now each of us has repreated it in the 9 months we are in the womb of our mother. The wonder of epigenisis without a blueprint!

But the funniest part in it was his quote of Monty Pythons 'All things dull and ugly':
All things dul...more

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Mar 09, 2010 Megan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ajpl, 2010, history, nonfiction, science, threw-me-for-a-loop, adult, favorites

I wish I'd had engaging and interesting texts like this to read when I had to take science classes in high school. I always wanted to like science so much, but I always got bogged down in minutae, in questions the text or teachers didn't address, and in the boredom of rote memorization. This book really made me like biology. Not only does it explain concepts in an intelligent and cohesive way, it has pictures! Color pictures, even. Much like the ones I stared at in biology or earth science inste...more

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May 04, 2011 David S. T. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: science, own, read-in-2011

This isn't the best introductory book I've read on evolution, Dawkins loves to insult the people who don't hold his views, goes way to far sometimes to get his point across and has a tendency to ramble on and mention interesting but irrelevant stuff. Once you get past the flaws this actually is a pretty good book, oddly by the end some of those qualities I hated about the book in the beginning, I started to appreciate more in the end (I kind of enjoy the almost pointless side stories and facts)....more This isn't the best introductory book I've read on evolution, Dawkins loves to insult the people who don't hold his views, goes way to far sometimes to get his point across and has a tendency to ramble on and mention interesting but irrelevant stuff. Once you get past the flaws this actually is a pretty good book, oddly by the end some of those qualities I hated about the book in the beginning, I started to appreciate more in the end (I kind of enjoy the almost pointless side stories and facts).

When I started reading this book, I put it down for a while because I got tired of the creationist rants, which apparently the high number of people who deny evolution is why this book is written. Dawkins even goes as far as comparing an evolution denier as the equivalent of someone denying the existence of the roman civilization or even worse a holocaust denier. I'm sorry but lacking the understanding or denying evolution is nothing like denying the holocaust. For one thing we've never really witnessed one animal evolving into another completely different species, meaning one "kind" into another "kind", in our lifetime (which is far too short of a time scale) or even more a bacteria evolving into a mammal, this doesn't mean evolution is false (its not), but it is far different than denying the holocaust. Anyways eventually I picked the book back up and it was far better as I got further into it. Also expect to hear the word “history-deniers” every few pages, I guess he wants us to remember just how terrible the evolution deniers are. Since this book is written to convince the 40% of American who deny evolution, Dawkins should realize by now that insulting your target audience isn't the best way to get them to listen to you. If anything his books do more help to the young earth creationist movement and intelligent design.

The subtitle of this book is “The Evidence for Evolution”, which is kind of an unfitting title, I found that Coyne's Why Evolution is True contains far more evidence in far fewer pages and is overall a better introduction to evolution. You see Dawkins often goes off on rants which do not to move the evidence along. For example in a chapter he discusses the age of the earth, he spends several pages discussing getting the age from tree rings. You see you can match the width of tree rings with others and go back to earlier dates, but then he says that the chain of tree rings goes back 11,000 years only, well the pages he spent on this argument do nothing to convince a young earth creationist of the age of the earth, in fact the argument works in their favor. The book is full of these little side notes and stories which causes the page numbers to go up, but the relevant information doesn't follow. Also expect tons of foot notes with mostly rants about TV shows he wants to be on, his childhood, or why we should call the Beijing Man, the Peking fossil, ect.

I know I've complained some but don't get me wrong, this book, once you look past the flaws, is still very interesting and worth reading (assuming that you're not a creationist). Many of the side stories which I complained about are actually interesting if you don’t mind frequent diversions and he goes into DNA a little more than the other non DNA specific evolution books I've read. So in the end I do think its pretty good, just not as a first book on evolution. (less)

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Jan 21, 2010 Catie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Dawkins arguments for evolution are elegant and, in some cases, simply breath-taking. As a psychology professor myself, and as one who has had to contend with "history deniers" for years, I especially liked his description of Lenski's research on the evolution of bacteria. Although facts have always been denied by those who claim Intelligent Design as a valid explanation for all nature, Dawkins painstakingly and elegantly lays out unassailable facts in support of the theory of evolution. He stak...more

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Feb 24, 2013 Jack Ferreira rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As usual Richard Dawkins managed to put toguether yet another irrefutable and amazingly well writen book. You really don't need to have any cientific background whatsoever to enjoy his work, and it reads as rivetingly as any good fiction can. His explanatory skills are superb and so, so easy to follow.

The objective of this book is to prove why evolution is true, and it absolutely does. It really puts into perspective the grand scope of evidence that exists in favour of it. And I thought I kne...more As usual Richard Dawkins managed to put toguether yet another irrefutable and amazingly well writen book. You really don't need to have any cientific background whatsoever to enjoy his work, and it reads as rivetingly as any good fiction can. His explanatory skills are superb and so, so easy to follow.

The objective of this book is to prove why evolution is true, and it absolutely does. It really puts into perspective the grand scope of evidence that exists in favour of it. And I thought I knew quite a bit about evolution (well, more than an average person would) but this book STILL comes as a flood of new information to my brain. I still learned so many new things and the things you learn are mind-blowingly beautiful.
He brings up some really fascinating experiments some notable scientists have had the privelige to conduct and my jaw really did drop a couple of times. The fact that it's very interesting combined with Dawkins' enthusiasm about the subject really get's you envolved and makes you want to know more. It answered some of my questions I had when I was in school and never really considered following up on. Like you are taught that "X" happens and how it happens, but sometimes you ask yourself 'but WHY exactly does it happen?' or 'what makes it happen like that, specificaly?'. Dawkins explains it all in a simple and deeply engaging manner.

The only thing that might put you off is the constant digressions. Most of the time I didn't mind them and was actualy glad he talked about some cool extra stuff, but there were a couple of times where it did come of as a little redundant, especialy nearing the end it kind of seems like he was repeating some points he had already adressed (and adressed at lengh). Maybe he did it on purpose to really hammer in the information to a certain stuborn demographic.
The thing that suprises me is the size of that demographic. I am now speaking of, as Dawkins refers to them, the history deniers. History deniers are the people who absolutely do not believe in evolution. Don't get me started on them (because it get's me so worked up) but it's kind of saddening to think about. This book is mainly for two types of people. The people who are on the fence, or haven't really took the time to think about it properly, and the people who already accept it as true and wouldn't mind having some extra ammunition (wich is both useful and fun to have).

You can't go wrong with Dawkins, this is another solid book. And I thank Richard for never failing to remind me how beautiful life is.
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Aug 28, 2012 Tyler Franklin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed

Clearly, this is a love story. Dawkin's passion for his subject is contagious. It is the locus of his expertise, the focus of his joy. He can't help himself at times, asking the reader's forgiveness and veering off-task to mention some obscure fact that blossoms into its own microchapter or multi-page footnote. And it is all really quite fascinating.

Many despise Dawkins. He's one of those guys people love to hate. In my experience, religious persons of any stripe collectively agree that his is a...more Clearly, this is a love story. Dawkin's passion for his subject is contagious. It is the locus of his expertise, the focus of his joy. He can't help himself at times, asking the reader's forgiveness and veering off-task to mention some obscure fact that blossoms into its own microchapter or multi-page footnote. And it is all really quite fascinating.

Many despise Dawkins. He's one of those guys people love to hate. In my experience, religious persons of any stripe collectively agree that his is a strident ideologue of aggressive contention and abusive rhetoric aimed at the systematic marginalization of a subset of society. I held this opinion once, and the holding of it certainly did not require any actual reading. All I needed to know was "atheist" and the titles of his books. This man was scum, naturally.

To be fair, this popular assessment might be expected given the otherwise clever marketing of his publishers. But as most people who actually read Dawkins will tell you, it's shocking how dissimilar his tone of writing is to his public brand. Throughout his writing, he comes across as a relatively mild-mannered and thoughtful scholar and a scientist who is frustrated by widespread ignorance of, and those in confederacy against, his discipline.

The stoning of Dawkins makes little sense. If we permit "God exists and here's why," should not we also permit "God does not exist and here's why?" Dawkins never attacks religious persons with implausible indictments like "all Muslims are stupid" but he might say "I think they're sadly mistaken" or "it seems they're encumbered at a young age with the baggage of narrow socialization and lack of scientific education," etc. Regardless, in scholarly circles this is probably called dialogue, in all fairness, not an act of war.

Anyway, this book is the best introduction to evolutionary theory I have read to date. I would recommend it to any inquisitive, thoughtful person, regardless of their spiritual inclination. After all, religious persons can appreciate nature too.(less)

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Jun 02, 2012 5pac3m0nkey rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: science geeks, philosophers, rationalists

Ah the venerable Richard Dawkins -- self-proclaimed atheist of an almost evangelical bent. My problem with Richard is that he spends too much time philosophizing publicly. His atheist stance becomes almost more important than his work as a evolutionary biologist. But we are dealing with dumb times so I think he believes it is his duty to inform the general public of the misconceptions about evolution.
If you are into the implications of natural philosophy on the question of God, as well as the h...more Ah the venerable Richard Dawkins -- self-proclaimed atheist of an almost evangelical bent. My problem with Richard is that he spends too much time philosophizing publicly. His atheist stance becomes almost more important than his work as a evolutionary biologist. But we are dealing with dumb times so I think he believes it is his duty to inform the general public of the misconceptions about evolution.
If you are into the implications of natural philosophy on the question of God, as well as the history of the species, this book might be for you.
There is no doubt about Richard's credentials and his enormous breadth of knowledge on the subject though. Be warned, unless you really are interested in evolution described in relatively high detail, there are sections of this book which might cause your eyes to glaze over. But Richard has a sense of humor, and consistently ties in the history of life on earth with his anti-creationist diatribes, keeping the interest level up throughout.
He also covers some general considerations of a logical nature to help the public understand how science thinks, how it works. For instance, people often misunderstand the meaning of the word 'theory' as it is used in science. Usually we think of a theory as tentative, and neither here nor there, but in science, particularly in the case of evolutionary biology, the so-called theory of evolution has much more evidence than any other theory for explaining life on earth so it is essentially a scientific fact as is Germ Theory, or Electromagnetism, for example.
Saying 'God did it' is irrelevant according to Richard. The details of what we can know are more important than just asserting some ultimate explanation for not just life on earth but for the entire universe, which is outside the scope of evolutionary biology on earth anyway; another common misconception -- that Evolution says anything at all about the origin of life in the universe.
In many ways I think this book is also meant to address some of the valid questions that the general public wonders about in regards to evolution. Why don't we see evolution in action now for example? How can we trust the history presented by science of life on earth? How do we know it is accurate? Is there really a so-called missing link? What is wrong with just presenting creationism and evolution as equally valid arguments in order to allow students to choose for themselves?
Then we have the dense parts of the book such as the highly detailed tree of life. Granted you are not going to remember the copious amounts of latin names for the huge number of species on earth. This is where the book becomes highly specialized and detailed. It takes some discipline to get through it, and it is worth rereading if you really want to learn something about it. It reminded me a bit of programming. The language gets technical and specialized, so you have to make a concerted effort to follow it, otherwise, you're just wasting your time.
If you can get over how Dawkins is an apologist for the underlying implications of natural philosophy for religion (a materialist point of view which many scientists adhere to most likely), and his somewhat angry tone at the supposed dimness of anti-science religious apologists, there is alot of wonderful information about the most current findings in biology. Particularly fascinating was his description of an experiment with E Coli which is probably one of the strongest proofs for the 'fact' of evolution. If you leave the book with anything, the E Coli experiment is it. It is also known as the E Coli Long Term Experiment in Evolution. If the book bores or annoys you, that section is well worth rereading as a consolation prize.
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Aug 18, 2012 MG Mason rated it 5 of 5 stars

Dawkins latest book finally tackles creationism in a not-so-head-on collision. Always vowing to never answer a challenge directly, Dawkins does it in the best way he possibly could, by demonstrating why evolution is true.

He seemingly leaves no stone uncovered in the challenge, often tackling direct claims made by creationists and demonstrating why they are false. He also covers how speciation has been observed and the whole "show me your transitional fossils" non-argument is handled masterfully....more

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May 20, 2011 Tag Riggs rated it 2 of 5 stars

After reading this book, I quickly realized that it was targeted for a particular audience--the choir complete with holy robes and clapping hands shouting, "...Preach it brother Dawkins, preach it my brother, Evolution AMEN!, Hallelujah!" I honestly think that it is required that you be a Dawkinite and part of the Dawkins Tabernacle Choir in order for you to take this book seriously.

I was fully expecting some kind of scientific treatise yet it ended up being like a bunch of guys on the dock lau...more

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Nov 09, 2009 diana rated it 2 of 5 stars

Two disclaimers before I begin my review:

1. I am an atheist.
2. I am a molecular biologist.

So, I am clearly not the target audience. That being said, I really wanted to like this book. I am so happy that there are people out there who are speaking out in defense of evolution and (although not in this book) atheism, and as such I want to support Richard Dawkins. However, the best way I can sum up my feelings about the book is to say that it resembles a very long version of an undergraduate's final...more

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Nov 28, 2009 Marvin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, kindle

Richard Dawkins has taken his seat along with Stephen Hawking and Carl Sagan as a great populist of science. In all of his science books and especially in The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence For Evolution, He has taken a complex subject and presented it with clarity to a population that usually gets lost in the seemingly foreign language of most scientists. Yet he does not "dumb down" neither. He has a gift for beautifully explaining difficult topics in a way a layman can understand. He sav...more

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Jan 11, 2011 Cassandra Silva rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: science

It hardly needs to be stated that I am a generous rater in the first place. I love Dawkins but sometimes his literary skills need to be checked a bit. I feel on occasion that he rushes to publish before fully forming some of his ideas. On the other hand great experiments in this book! The E-coli 20 year extraveganza blew my mind. I would not have likely stubled across this information without having read this book. So for at least that information I have to say I was pleased with the book. I als...more

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Aug 06, 2011 Graham Tapper added it · review of another edition

This book, perhaps more than any others of his, demonstrates his stature as a communicator without equal. In it he sets out to concentrate his explaination of the evidence for the evolution of life in a step by step demolition of the arguments of Creationists.

Dawkins has covered many of these points in his previous books but here he brings them all together to address just this one subject.

He covers each of the various objections raised by Creationists, none more so that the supposed "Missing L...more

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Mar 22, 2011 Alberto Schiariti rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Dawkins si conferma una delle mie "persone preferite". Il suo modo di affrontare grandi temi come in questo caso l'evoluzione (e tanti altri annessi) e la passione che ci mette nello scriverli, rendono i suoi saggi delle piccole perle. Scorrevoli, entusiasmanti e soprattutto "insegnanti". Vi assicuro che solo in pochissimi tratti del libro si raggiunge la difficoltà di scorrimento che a prima vista può instillare un saggio biologico sulla teoria dell'evoluzione di 400 pagine. Per la maggior part...more

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Mar 14, 2013 Dave rated it 4 of 5 stars

I'll repeat some of the same things I said about another Dawkins book:

It could have been shorter with the same content.
It could have been more clearly organized for memorability and knowing where you are.
He's simply not the best writer, although you can tell he's a brilliant thinker.

And despite all that, there are enough gems spread through the book to make it highly rated. His passion comes across in several-page descriptions of brilliantly designed experiments and the conclusions that they all...more

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Feb 13, 2013 Ioannis Savvas rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: Βιολογία

Πέτυχα το τελευταίο βιβλίο του Richard Dawkins στη Γλασκόβη, μόλις είχε κυκλοφορήσει. Δεν μπορούσα να περιμένω τη μετάφραση στην Ελλάδα, το αγόρασα χωρίς δεύτερη σκέψη!

Το The Greatest Show on Earth έχει υπότιτλο The Evidence for Evolution και αποτελούν με λίγα λόγια το αντικείμενο του βιβλίου. Ο συγγραφέας παραθέτει με απλό και αναλυτικό τρόπο όλα τα επιστημονικά δεδομένα που αποδεικνύουν ότι η εξέλιξη των ειδών δεν είναι απλά άλλη μία θεωρία, αλλά πραγματικότητα.

Στην ιατρική και γενικότερα στη...more Πέτυχα το τελευταίο βιβλίο του Richard Dawkins στη Γλασκόβη, μόλις είχε κυκλοφορήσει. Δεν μπορούσα να περιμένω τη μετάφραση στην Ελλάδα, το αγόρασα χωρίς δεύτερη σκέψη!

Το The Greatest Show on Earth έχει υπότιτλο The Evidence for Evolution και αποτελούν με λίγα λόγια το αντικείμενο του βιβλίου. Ο συγγραφέας παραθέτει με απλό και αναλυτικό τρόπο όλα τα επιστημονικά δεδομένα που αποδεικνύουν ότι η εξέλιξη των ειδών δεν είναι απλά άλλη μία θεωρία, αλλά πραγματικότητα.

Στην ιατρική και γενικότερα στη βιολογία, η αγγλική λέξη evidence αποδίδεται στα ελληνικά ως απόδειξη. Βέβαια, στη βιολογία (σχεδόν) ποτέ δεν μπορούμε ισχυριστούμε οτιδήποτε με απόλυτη βεβαιότητα. Η λέξη απόδειξη δηλώνει από μόνη της απόλυτη βεβαιότητα, κάτι το τετελεσμένο και αδιαμφισβήτητο. Αν πάλι αποδώσουμε το απόδειξη στα αγγλικά, θα είμαστε πιο κοντά στο fact. Αντίθετα, αν αποδώσουμε το evidence με τη λέξη ένδειξη, έχουμε σαφώς μικρότερο βαθμό βεβαιότητας, αλλά μικρότερο από αυτόν που υπονοεί η αντίστοιχη αγγλική. Επομένως, ο πραγματικός βαθμός βεβαιότητας διαφέρει μεταξύ ελληνικής και αγγλικής.

Πέρα όμως από τα τερτίπια της γλώσσας, ο Richard Dawkins καταφέρνει να δείξει ότι η εξέλιξη δεν είναι πλέον θεωρία. Ο τεράστιος αριθμός ενδείξεων (evidence) τείνει στην απόλυτη βεβαιότητα (fact).

Η ανάγκη συγγραφής αυτού του βιβλίου σύμφωνα με το συγγραφέα είναι οι αρνητές της Ιστορίας (History Deniers), ένα μεγάλο ποσοστό (περίπου 40% στις Η.Π.Α., με ενδείξεις/strong evidence ότι είναι στο ίδιο επίπεδο παγκοσμίως) ανθρώπων που αρνούνται τα δεδομένα της επιστήμης και πιστεύουν σε έναν ευφυή σχεδιασμό του σύμπαντος (δημιουργηστές/creationists). Οι ίδιοι άνθρωποι πιστεύουν ότι η ηλικία του κόσμου είναι μόλις 10.000 ετών και κάποτε άνθρωποι και δεινόσαυροι ζούσαν μαζί! (Το Ευροβαρόμετρο έδειξε ότι το ίδιο πιστεύει το 29% των Ελλήνων/δείγμα 1.000 ατόμων/έτος 2005!)(less)

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Jan 26, 2013 Kyle Thompson rated it 4 of 5 stars

I had already read Darwin's "On The Origin of Species" four to five years prior to picking this book up to read, and I was hopeful that it was going to be a more laymen-ized type of book/read. Alas, that was not the case with this book. While Dawkins is a good writer who presents his ideas very, very thoroughly - perhaps too thoroughly -, it seems that he only went over more minute/specific type's of things in this book instead of going over more generalized and easily accessible information reg...more

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Jan 08, 2013 Dave marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: calibre

EDITORIAL REVIEW:

**In 2008, a Gallup poll showed that 44 percent of Americans believed God had created man in his present form within the last 10,000 years. In a Pew Forum poll in the same year, 42 percent believed that all life on earth has existed in its present form since the beginning of time.**

In 1859 Charles Darwin's masterpiece, *On the Origin of Species*, shook society to its core. Darwin was only too aware of the storm his theory of evolution would provoke. But he surely would have ra...more EDITORIAL REVIEW:

**In 2008, a Gallup poll showed that 44 percent of Americans believed God had created man in his present form within the last 10,000 years. In a Pew Forum poll in the same year, 42 percent believed that all life on earth has existed in its present form since the beginning of time.**

In 1859 Charles Darwin's masterpiece, *On the Origin of Species*, shook society to its core. Darwin was only too aware of the storm his theory of evolution would provoke. But he surely would have raised an incredulous eyebrow at the controversy still raging a century and a half later. Evolution is accepted as scientific fact by all reputable scientists and indeed theologians, yet millions of people continue to question its veracity. Now the author of the iconic work *The God Delusion* takes them to task.

*The Greatest Show on Earth* is a stunning counterattack on advocates of "Intelligent Design," explaining the evidence for evolution while exposing the absurdities of the creationist "argument." Dawkins sifts through rich layers of scientific evidence: from living examples of natural selection to clues in the fossil record; from natural clocks that mark the vast epochs wherein evolution ran its course to the intricacies of developing embryos; from plate tectonics to molecular genetics. Combining these elements and many more, he makes the airtight case that "we find ourselves perched on one tiny twig in the midst of a blossoming and flourishing tree of life and it is no accident, but the direct consequence of evolution by non-random selection."

*The Greatest Show on Earth* comes at a critical time: systematic opposition to the fact of evolution is menacing as never before. In American schools, and in schools around the world, insidious attempts are made to undermine the status of science in the classroom. Dawkins wields a devastating argument against this ignorance, but his unjaded passion for the natural world turns what might have been a negative argument into a positive offering to the reader: nothing less than a master's vision of life, in all its splendor.(less)

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Jan 07, 2013 Cleo rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: owned-books

Of course, Dawkins goes on to compare this to the creationists refusing to believe in evolution. Yes, he does attack them, but I totally agree with him: evolution is an established fact (or nearly one) from all the evidence we have collected, and the evidence right in front of our eyes. And I really think that anyone who only believes that the world is 6,000 years old is blind, refusing to admit the discoveries the human race has made. You can believe that evolution was created by God for some u...more Of course, Dawkins goes on to compare this to the creationists refusing to believe in evolution. Yes, he does attack them, but I totally agree with him: evolution is an established fact (or nearly one) from all the evidence we have collected, and the evidence right in front of our eyes. And I really think that anyone who only believes that the world is 6,000 years old is blind, refusing to admit the discoveries the human race has made. You can believe that evolution was created by God for some unfathomable purpose, and that's perfectly reasonable if you're religious, but it's difficult to rationally not believe that evolution does exist. I would agree that there's plenty to be said about this topic, but it is tiresome when there are so many people who refuse to acknowledge even its possibility. Fossil evidence shows that the world is much, much more than 6000 years old.

In The Greatest Show on Earth, Dawkins has written another excellent book defending evolution. He has written against religion before; this book is not about that. Using amazing analogies and examples, Dawkins piece by piece takes apart the creationism arguments, to strip it to the bare truth: evolution is real. All scientific evidence points to it. I know that really religious people can say that mysteriously, God altered the world to look like evolution had happened, but that argument has no basis in fact, or even reasonable conjecture.

Back to the book. Again, I really love the analogies and examples Dawkins uses. They're easy for the layman to understand, but also highly scientific, and rooted in fact. It's not like he's dumbing anything down; he's just showing clearly the evidence. Dawkins provides examples of natural selection over millions of years, and of natural selection that we've seen happen literally in front of our eyes. He also goes over artificial selection to set up explaining natural selection, and time clocks that can be used to date igneous rocks, and thus, fossils. Basically, Dawkins covers many, many ways of looking at how to explain and/or "prove" evolution. He outlines some of the greatest natural/artificial selection experiments: for example, the foxes in Russia (I love that one) and the famous guppies.

I also love the 4 sections of color plates; they really add a lot to the book, and they're also very beautiful to look at. There are some lovely photos there.

I'd actually read the first half or so of the book while in Miami Beach 2 or 3 years ago, but when I left, I had to abandon it. At the time, I didn't really understand the chapter on clocks for dating the age of something. I still don't understand it completely, as it's a mind-blowing and extremely complicated concept but now, having learned a bit of chemistry last year, it does make a lot more sense. And I definitely learned a lot of new things from that particular chapter (and other chapters too, of course).

The last thing I want to touch on is Dawkins's style. He adds humor to the book; it's not just a dry science textbook-like concoction. Instead, it is a highly engaging work that keeps your interest the whole time (I might even do it for my book talk eventually). I would highly recommend this amazing science book, and I think perhaps I'll read Dawkins's The God Delusion soon.

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Nov 18, 2012 Michael Moseley rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

Richard Continues to crusade to convince the un-believers. What missing link. Evolution is not from A to B but from A back to C and on to B. We share common ancestors not developed from one thing to another. Lots of detailed evidence to support evolution. Richard is on a mission to prove the theory as all good science we cannot 100% prove but just as the earth goes around the sun we are as convinced as we can be. Frighteningly 40% of people in the USA believe the bible as a literal account of ma...more

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Oct 08, 2012 Nathan rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book as a good comprehensive primer on the current state of the theory of evolution, and how the evidence continues to mount in favor of the undeniable fact that the earth is ancient on the scale of billions of years, and the diversification of life on earth through natural selection. I can't imagine how difficult it must be for someone like Dawkins to walk a delicate balance between making these subjects easy enough for those of us who don't hold PhDs in zoology or microbi...more I really enjoyed this book as a good comprehensive primer on the current state of the theory of evolution, and how the evidence continues to mount in favor of the undeniable fact that the earth is ancient on the scale of billions of years, and the diversification of life on earth through natural selection. I can't imagine how difficult it must be for someone like Dawkins to walk a delicate balance between making these subjects easy enough for those of us who don't hold PhDs in zoology or microbiology to follow the evidence, without watering it down to the point that it loses all poignancy. I think He does a brilliant job.

One of my primary reasons for reading the book was to find something I could give to christians who are young-earth creationists that might give them a singular place to go to unpack just how misleading and manipulative the young-earth intelligent design movement is. I think most people in this position mostly read information from dishonest sources that are deliberately misleading and full of pseudo-science and rhetoric. I'd love to find a primer on the actual science behind evolution that could explain the massive problems with young-earth creationism in a way that doesn't insult their core beliefs. I had my doubts that a writing by the world's most famous atheist could do this, and I think I was right. Despite what I think is an honest effort, Dawkins still has trouble hiding his contempt for "history-deniers" as he calls them, and his atheist world view bubbles to the top pretty often. I don't personally have an issue with this, and in fact I can empathize with why Dawkins is so demonstrably irritated with proponents of young-earth creationism. And he's right. It's deplorable that scientists in 2012 have to stop their legitimate research and put dealings in the academic arena on hold in order to defend the basic facts of the universe from what basically amounts to medieval religious persecution. And I think his anger over the matter is directed entirely at the leaders of the movement who are so deliberately ignorant and/or misleading, and not at the average believer on 'the street." But, that's a subtlety that readers who don't believe in evolution on spiritual grounds will likely miss. In a perfect world, people would be able to read this dispassionately. Unfortunately we live in the polarized time of rhetoric and sound bites, and I think the people that most need the information in this book will be turned off and offended by Dawkins' tone. It's a shame, and it shouldn't be true, but it is. What evolution needs is someone who can deliver the science on this 'street-veiw' level without being critical of people's spiritual views. I don't think this book quite hits the right tone.

Still, I really enjoyed it. I learned many things I didn't know. I read it twice straight through, because there was so much here to chew on.
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Sep 09, 2012 Suhas Rao rated it 5 of 5 stars

The evidence for evolution gives us all the current evidence for evolution. The debates against evolution seems almost silly now. This time around the metaphor of a detective arriving at the scene after the crime has been committed works very well indeed. After looking at the evidence , I mean you do not even realise the incredibly large amount of evidence , one gets the feeling that evolution as a fact is as certainly true as Newtons gravitation laws or maxwells equations.

I realised for the fi...more

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Sep 03, 2012 Marius Masalar rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a challenging book to assess. My first question, upon finishing it, is "who is this for?"

The science is too involved for a scientifically illiterate fundamentalist creationist audience, the sardonic tone likewise off-putting to them, and the atheists like me who share his broad perspective hardly need a hand-held walk through the garden of nature's wonders and weirdnesses.

Then again, maybe we do: it should be emphasised that this book makes for a fantastic full spectrum look at the subje...more

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Jun 18, 2012 Rita rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

Dawkins Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution 2009

He is defending the theory of evolution against creationists. I’d like the book more if the defensive parts were left out. He may be perfectly right that his previous books neglected to strongly demonstrate evolution [because he assumed it needed no more proof], but are any creationists going to read his book? I don’t think so.

Leaving out the tedious defensive passages, there’s a lot of really interesting stuff here! Case after fasci...more

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Jun 07, 2012 Holmes rated it 4 of 5 stars

In this book, Richard Dawkins has, once and for all, set out to show that evolution is a fact, period. In my opinion he has done it very convincingly and conclusively, given the more than overwhelming evidence. Anyone who still doubts the validity of evolution is, as he repeatedly suggests, a "history-denier". One can add "reality-deniers" to that because we can actually see evolution happening before our very eyes, if we only paid attention. So this is a successful book because it has achieved...more

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Jun 02, 2012 Kent rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: evolution

Interestingly, this book was kind of recommended in a review on an "ID the Future" podcast (ID = Intelligent Design, an anti-evolution position). Granted, they did not recommend it because it was a good book to learn about evolution. In part, this book came off the heels of _The God Delusion_ so they emphasized that it was NOT an attack on Christianity or religion. But they also pointed out (favorably) that, in the book, you could feel the child-like delight that Dawkins felt for the natural wor...more

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Feb 18, 2012 Nick Johnson rated it 4 of 5 stars

To al those who have put down this book or are considering reading it I offer this. The first few chapters are crap. They are poorly edited screeds by Dawkins attempting to mock his now well entrenched opposition. Now, while writing it, he probably didn't give a hoot, but I feel his editors should have taken him out for lunch and had quiet word in his ear. Something like, "Richard, old boy, how about turning the attack down from 11 to about 6? Hmmm? Yes, I know that all those d**kheads writing l...more

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