On Books

Dawkins makes a convincing case for religion as a by-product of childhood trust. What interests me more is what belief gives the believer. True and good are different judgments.

The Selfish Gene changed me. I realised I didn't have to indulge the 'wishes' of my genes. I could have wishes of my own, and that felt enormously freeing.

In just two quotes: one from Bertrand Russell about Bishop Colenso and the Zulus, and one from Saint Augustine about the vice of curiosity.

Native Australians kept captive dingos as companions, watchdogs, and even as living blankets, giving rise to the expression "five-dog night" to mean a very cold night.

If William of Malmesbury can be trusted, once, when John was dining with the king, the king asked: "What separates a Scot from a sot?" John answered: "Only the width of the dinner table!"

What kind of physicist picks locks for fun, and wins the Nobel by working out the wobble of a cafeteria plate?