--- title: "18 Design Quotes By Richard Dawkins" description: "18 Design quotes by Richard Dawkins. Plus more from Richard Dawkins and more Design sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/331/richard-dawkins-115_alternative_people-believe-the-only-alternative-to-r_1633941.jpg" --- > [People believe the only alternative to randomness is intelligent design.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/people-believe-the-only-alternative-to-randomness-is-intelligent/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/331/richard-dawkins-115_alternative_people-believe-the-only-alternative-to-r_1633941.jpg) > [Design cannot precede evolution and therefore cannot underlie the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/design-cannot-precede-evolution-and-therefore-cannot-underlie-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b89/richard-dawkins-115_design_design-cannot-precede-evolution-and-ther_3110719.jpg) > [Let us try to teach generosity and altruism, because we are born selfish. Let us understand what our own selfish genes are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/let-us-try-to-teach-generosity-and-altruism-because-we-are-born-2/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6db/richard-dawkins-115_altruism_let-us-try-to-teach-generosity-and-altru_2221696.jpg) > [Design can never be an ultimate explanation for anything. It can only be a proximate explanation. A plane or a car is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/design-can-never-be-an-ultimate-explanation-for-anything-it-can-only/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d7/richard-dawkins-115_anything_design-can-never-be-an-ultimate-explanat_726103.jpg) > [I have no explanation for complex biological design. All I know is that God isn't a good explanation, so we must wait…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-no-explanation-for-complex-biological-design-all-i-know-is/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/richard-dawkins-115_come-up_i-have-no-explanation-for-complex-biolog_1507440.jpg) > [A designer God cannot be used to explain organized complexity because any God capable of designing anything would have to be complex…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/a-designer-god-cannot-be-used-to-explain-organized-complexity-because/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3fd/richard-dawkins-115_atheism_a-designer-god-cannot-be-used-to-explain_2117311.jpg) > [Any entity capable of intelligently designing something as improbable as Dutchman's Pipe (or a universe) would have to be even more improbable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/any-entity-capable-of-intelligently-designing-something-as-improbable/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e7/richard-dawkins-115_capable_any-entity-capable-of-intelligently-desi_1152497.jpg) > [The illusion of design is so successful that to this day most Americans (including, significantly, many influential and rich Americans) stubbornly refuse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-illusion-of-design-is-so-successful-that-to-this-day-most/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b70/richard-dawkins-115_believe_the-illusion-of-design-is-so-successful_1231424.jpg) > [The feature of living matter that most demands explanation is that it is almost unimaginably complicated in directions that convey a powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-feature-of-living-matter-that-most-demands-explanation-is-that-it/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/richard-dawkins-115_complicated_the-feature-of-living-matter-that-most-d_2855118.jpg) > [The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-universe-we-observe-has-precisely-the-properties-we-should-expect/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/richard-dawkins-115_blind_the-universe-we-observe-has-precisely-th_2019529.jpg) > [An atheist before Darwin could have said, following Hume: I have no explanation for complex biological design. All I know is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/an-atheist-before-darwin-could-have-said-following-hume-i-have-no/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdc/richard-dawkins-115_atheism_an-atheist-before-darwin-could-have-said_2764437.jpg) > [For centuries the most powerful argument for God's existence from the physical world was the so-called argument from design: Living things are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/for-centuries-the-most-powerful-argument-for-god-s-existence-from-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aee/richard-dawkins-115_adaptive_for-centuries-the-most-powerful-argument_2563841.jpg) > [If the universe were just electrons and selfish genes, meaningless tragedies ... are exactly what we should expect, along with equally meaningless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/if-the-universe-were-just-electrons-and-selfish-genes-meaningless/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77f/richard-dawkins-115_blind_if-the-universe-were-just-electrons-and_2002828.jpg) > [I think nobody would claim that random genetic drift is capable of producing adaptation, that is to say the illusion of design.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-think-nobody-would-claim-that-random-genetic-drift-is-capable-of/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d6/richard-dawkins-115_adaptation_i-think-nobody-would-claim-that-random-g_2231206.jpg) > [Natural selection is the blind watchmaker, blind because it does not see ahead, does not plan consequences, has no purpose in view.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/natural-selection-is-the-blind-watchmaker-blind-because-it-does-not/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/660/richard-dawkins-115_appearance_natural-selection-is-the-blind-watchmake_2617442.jpg) > [The total amount of suffering per year in the natural world is beyond all decent contemplation. During the minute that it takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-total-amount-of-suffering-per-year-in-the-natural-world-is-beyond-2/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/richard-dawkins-115_alive_the-total-amount-of-suffering-per-year-i_1727855.jpg) > [“The total amount of suffering per year in the natural world is beyond all decent contemplation. During the minute that it takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-total-amount-of-suffering-per-year-in-the-natural-world-is-beyond/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fb/richard-dawkins-115_biology_the-total-amount-of-suffering-per-year-i_411187.jpg) > [It's a truly disgusting idea that the creator of the universe - capable of inventing the laws of physics and designing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-creator-of-the-universe-capable/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/richard-dawkins-115_better-way_it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-cr_37928.jpg) ## Other authors on Design - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b014/author-jonathan-ive-52913.jpg) Jonathan Ive 53 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/jonathan-ive/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b016/author-marcel-wanders-63215.jpg) Marcel Wanders 33 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/marcel-wanders/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b008/author-donald-a-norman-29941.jpg) Donald A. Norman 27 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/donald-a-norman/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b019/author-paula-scher-74292.jpg) Paula Scher 26 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/paula-scher/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b017/author-michael-bierut-66945.jpg) Michael Bierut 25 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/michael-bierut/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b022/author-steve-jobs-87290.jpg) Steve Jobs 24 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/steve-jobs/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b004/author-artie-shaw-15086.jpg) Dieter Rams 22 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/dieter-rams/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b006/author-christian-louboutin-23713.jpg) Christian Louboutin 21 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/christian-louboutin/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b017/author-massimo-vignelli-65319.jpg) Massimo Vignelli 20 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/massimo-vignelli/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b013/author-john-maeda-51870.jpg) John Maeda 20 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/john-maeda/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b010/author-gauri-khan-37099.jpg) Gauri Khan 20 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/gauri-khan/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b008/author-edward-tufte-31954.jpg) Edward Tufte 20 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/edward-tufte/) ## More by Richard Dawkins > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The word 'mundane' has come to mean 'boring' and 'dull', and it really shouldn't - it should mean the opposite. Because it comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-word-mundane-has-come-to-mean-boring-and-dull-and-it-really/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“The fundamentalist Kurt Wise proclaims that all the evidence in the universe would not change his mind. The true scientist, however passionately he may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-fundamentalist-kurt-wise-proclaims-that-all-the-evidence-in-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Religions do make claims about the universe--the same kinds of claims that scientists make, except they're usually false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/religions-do-make-claims-about-the-universe-the-same-kinds-of-claims/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“much of the Bible is not systematically evil but just plain weird, as you would expect of a chaotically cobbled-together anthology of disjointed documents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/much-of-the-bible-is-not-systematically-evil-but-just-plain-weird-as/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The recurrent laryngeal nerve - which runs from the head to the voice box - goes all the way down into the chest, loops…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-recurrent-laryngeal-nerve-which-runs-from-the-head-to-the-voice/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The Roman Catholic Church is an institution for whose gains the phrase "ill-gotten" might have been specially invented. And of all its money-making rip-offs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-roman-catholic-church-is-an-institution-for-whose-gains-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/let-us-understand-what-our-own-selfish-genes-are-up-to-because-we-may/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [What's going to happen when I die? I may be buried, or I may be cremated, I may give my body to science. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/what-s-going-to-happen-when-i-die-i-may-be-buried-or-i-may-be/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Or why it is acceptable to train fast runners and high jumpers but not to breed them. I can think of some answers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/or-why-it-is-acceptable-to-train-fast-runners-and-high-jumpers-but/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We have seen that living things are too improbable and too beautifully 'designed' to have come into existence by chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-have-seen-that-living-things-are-too-improbable-and-too/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“We will not go quietly away. If in the future that requires violence”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-will-not-go-quietly-away-if-in-the-future-that-requires-violence/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [It's a truly disgusting idea that the creator of the universe - capable of inventing the laws of physics and designing the evolutionary process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-creator-of-the-universe-capable/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/richard-dawkins/#itemlist", "name": "18 Design Quotes By Richard Dawkins", "numberOfItems": 18, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "People believe the only alternative to randomness is intelligent design.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/people-believe-the-only-alternative-to-randomness-is-intelligent/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/331/richard-dawkins-115_alternative_people-believe-the-only-alternative-to-r_1633941.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/331/richard-dawkins-115_alternative_people-believe-the-only-alternative-to-r_1633941.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/331/richard-dawkins-115_alternative_people-believe-the-only-alternative-to-r_1633941.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“People believe the only alternative to randomness is intelligent design.” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Design cannot precede evolution and therefore cannot underlie the universe.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/design-cannot-precede-evolution-and-therefore-cannot-underlie-the/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b89/richard-dawkins-115_design_design-cannot-precede-evolution-and-ther_3110719.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b89/richard-dawkins-115_design_design-cannot-precede-evolution-and-ther_3110719.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b89/richard-dawkins-115_design_design-cannot-precede-evolution-and-ther_3110719.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Design cannot precede evolution and therefore cannot underlie the universe.” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Let us try to teach generosity and altruism, because we are born selfish. Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to, because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs, something that no other species has ever aspired to do.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/let-us-try-to-teach-generosity-and-altruism-because-we-are-born-2/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6db/richard-dawkins-115_altruism_let-us-try-to-teach-generosity-and-altru_2221696.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6db/richard-dawkins-115_altruism_let-us-try-to-teach-generosity-and-altru_2221696.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6db/richard-dawkins-115_altruism_let-us-try-to-teach-generosity-and-altru_2221696.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Let us try to teach generosity and altruism, because we are born selfish. 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A plane or a car is explained by a designer but that's because the designer himself, the engineer, is explained by natural selection.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/design-can-never-be-an-ultimate-explanation-for-anything-it-can-only/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d7/richard-dawkins-115_anything_design-can-never-be-an-ultimate-explanat_726103.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d7/richard-dawkins-115_anything_design-can-never-be-an-ultimate-explanat_726103.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d7/richard-dawkins-115_anything_design-can-never-be-an-ultimate-explanat_726103.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Design can never be an ultimate explanation for anything. It can only be a proximate explanation. 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All I know is that God isn't a good explanation, so we must wait and hope that somebody comes up with a better one.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-no-explanation-for-complex-biological-design-all-i-know-is/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/richard-dawkins-115_come-up_i-have-no-explanation-for-complex-biolog_1507440.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/richard-dawkins-115_come-up_i-have-no-explanation-for-complex-biolog_1507440.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/richard-dawkins-115_come-up_i-have-no-explanation-for-complex-biolog_1507440.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I have no explanation for complex biological design. 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Far from terminating the vicious regress, God aggravates it with a vengeance.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/any-entity-capable-of-intelligently-designing-something-as-improbable/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e7/richard-dawkins-115_capable_any-entity-capable-of-intelligently-desi_1152497.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e7/richard-dawkins-115_capable_any-entity-capable-of-intelligently-desi_1152497.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e7/richard-dawkins-115_capable_any-entity-capable-of-intelligently-desi_1152497.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Any entity capable of intelligently designing something as improbable as Dutchman's Pipe (or a universe)…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The illusion of design is so successful that to this day most Americans (including, significantly, many influential and rich Americans) stubbornly refuse to believe it is an illusion.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-illusion-of-design-is-so-successful-that-to-this-day-most/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b70/richard-dawkins-115_believe_the-illusion-of-design-is-so-successful_1231424.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b70/richard-dawkins-115_believe_the-illusion-of-design-is-so-successful_1231424.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b70/richard-dawkins-115_believe_the-illusion-of-design-is-so-successful_1231424.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The illusion of design is so successful that to this day most Americans (including, significantly, many…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 9, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The feature of living matter that most demands explanation is that it is almost unimaginably complicated in directions that convey a powerful illusion of deliberate design.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-feature-of-living-matter-that-most-demands-explanation-is-that-it/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/richard-dawkins-115_complicated_the-feature-of-living-matter-that-most-d_2855118.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/richard-dawkins-115_complicated_the-feature-of-living-matter-that-most-d_2855118.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/richard-dawkins-115_complicated_the-feature-of-living-matter-that-most-d_2855118.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The feature of living matter that most demands explanation is that it is almost unimaginably complicated in…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 10, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-universe-we-observe-has-precisely-the-properties-we-should-expect/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/richard-dawkins-115_blind_the-universe-we-observe-has-precisely-th_2019529.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/richard-dawkins-115_blind_the-universe-we-observe-has-precisely-th_2019529.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/richard-dawkins-115_blind_the-universe-we-observe-has-precisely-th_2019529.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 11, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "An atheist before Darwin could have said, following Hume: I have no explanation for complex biological design. All I know is that God isn't a good explanation, so we must wait and hope that somebody comes up with a better one. I can't help feeling that such a position, though logically sound, would have left one feeling pretty unsatisfied, and that although atheism might have been logically tenable before Darwin, Darwin made it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled atheist.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/an-atheist-before-darwin-could-have-said-following-hume-i-have-no/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdc/richard-dawkins-115_atheism_an-atheist-before-darwin-could-have-said_2764437.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdc/richard-dawkins-115_atheism_an-atheist-before-darwin-could-have-said_2764437.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdc/richard-dawkins-115_atheism_an-atheist-before-darwin-could-have-said_2764437.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“An atheist before Darwin could have said, following Hume: I have no explanation for complex biological…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 12, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "For centuries the most powerful argument for God's existence from the physical world was the so-called argument from design: Living things are so beautiful and elegant and so apparently purposeful, they could only have been made by an intelligent designer. But [Charles] Darwin provided a simpler explanation. His way is a gradual, incremental improvement starting from very simple beginnings and working up step by tiny incremental step to more complexity, more elegance, more adaptive perfection.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/for-centuries-the-most-powerful-argument-for-god-s-existence-from-the/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aee/richard-dawkins-115_adaptive_for-centuries-the-most-powerful-argument_2563841.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aee/richard-dawkins-115_adaptive_for-centuries-the-most-powerful-argument_2563841.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aee/richard-dawkins-115_adaptive_for-centuries-the-most-powerful-argument_2563841.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For centuries the most powerful argument for God's existence from the physical world was the so-called…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 13, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If the universe were just electrons and selfish genes, meaningless tragedies ... are exactly what we should expect, along with equally meaningless good fortune. Such a universe would be neither evil nor good in intention ... The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil and no good, nothing but blind pitiless indifference.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/if-the-universe-were-just-electrons-and-selfish-genes-meaningless/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77f/richard-dawkins-115_blind_if-the-universe-were-just-electrons-and_2002828.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77f/richard-dawkins-115_blind_if-the-universe-were-just-electrons-and_2002828.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77f/richard-dawkins-115_blind_if-the-universe-were-just-electrons-and_2002828.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If the universe were just electrons and selfish genes, meaningless tragedies ... are exactly what we should…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 14, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think nobody would claim that random genetic drift is capable of producing adaptation, that is to say the illusion of design. Random genetic drift can't produce wings that are good at flying, or eyes that are good at seeing, or legs that are good at running. But random genetic drift probably is very important in driving evolution at the molecular genetic level.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-think-nobody-would-claim-that-random-genetic-drift-is-capable-of/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d6/richard-dawkins-115_adaptation_i-think-nobody-would-claim-that-random-g_2231206.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d6/richard-dawkins-115_adaptation_i-think-nobody-would-claim-that-random-g_2231206.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d6/richard-dawkins-115_adaptation_i-think-nobody-would-claim-that-random-g_2231206.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think nobody would claim that random genetic drift is capable of producing adaptation, that is to say the…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 15, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Natural selection is the blind watchmaker, blind because it does not see ahead, does not plan consequences, has no purpose in view. Yet the living results of natural selection overwhelmingly impress us with the appearance of design as if by a master watchmaker, impress us with the illusion of design and planning.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/natural-selection-is-the-blind-watchmaker-blind-because-it-does-not/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/660/richard-dawkins-115_appearance_natural-selection-is-the-blind-watchmake_2617442.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/660/richard-dawkins-115_appearance_natural-selection-is-the-blind-watchmake_2617442.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/660/richard-dawkins-115_appearance_natural-selection-is-the-blind-watchmake_2617442.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Natural selection is the blind watchmaker, blind because it does not see ahead, does not plan consequences…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 16, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The total amount of suffering per year in the natural world is beyond all decent contemplation. During the minute that it takes me to compose this sentence, thousands of animals are being eaten alive, many others are running for their lives, whimpering with fear, others are slowly being devoured from within by rasping parasites, thousands of all species are dying of starvation, thirst, and disease. The universe that we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but pitiless indifference.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-total-amount-of-suffering-per-year-in-the-natural-world-is-beyond-2/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/richard-dawkins-115_alive_the-total-amount-of-suffering-per-year-i_1727855.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/richard-dawkins-115_alive_the-total-amount-of-suffering-per-year-i_1727855.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/richard-dawkins-115_alive_the-total-amount-of-suffering-per-year-i_1727855.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The total amount of suffering per year in the natural world is beyond all decent contemplation. During the…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 17, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The total amount of suffering per year in the natural world is beyond all decent contemplation. During the minute that it takes me to compose this sentence, thousands of animals are being eaten alive, many others are running for their lives, whimpering with fear, others are slowly being devoured from within by rasping parasites, thousands of all kinds are dying of starvation, thirst, and disease. It must be so. If there ever is a time of plenty, this very fact will automatically lead to an increase in the population until the natural state of starvation and misery is restored. In a universe of electrons and selfish genes, blind physical forces and genetic replication, some people are going to get hurt, other people are going to get lucky, and you won't find any rhyme or reason in it, nor any justice. 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During the…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 18, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's a truly disgusting idea that the creator of the universe - capable of inventing the laws of physics and designing the evolutionary process - that this protégé of supernatural intellect couldn't think of a better way to forgive our sins than to have himself tortured to death.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-creator-of-the-universe-capable/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/richard-dawkins-115_better-way_it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-cr_37928.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/richard-dawkins-115_better-way_it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-cr_37928.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/richard-dawkins-115_better-way_it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-cr_37928.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's a truly disgusting idea that the creator of the universe - capable of inventing the laws of physics and…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/richard-dawkins/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/richard-dawkins/", "name": "Design Quotes by Richard Dawkins", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/richard-dawkins/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/331/richard-dawkins-115_alternative_people-believe-the-only-alternative-to-r_1633941.jpg" }, "description": "18 Design quotes by Richard Dawkins. 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