Daniel C. Dennett (2) : Daniel C. (Daniel Clement) Dennett, 1910-1947

Dennett is a prominent American philosopher whose work centers on philosophy of mind, science and biology. He is co-director of the Center for Cognitive Studies and the Austin B. Fletcher Professor of Philosophy at Tufts University. Dennett is a noted atheist and advocate of the Brights movement, and ... (more)frequently debates religious advocates in a variety of settings. He is author of Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon, arguing for the evolutionary origins of religious belief.

Evolution by natural selection not only accounts for the apparent design of the biological world; it explains the emergence of intelligent designers like us, acting on reasons that we formulate and evaluate. Our capacity to be moved by reasoning is one of evolution’s most potent products to date, unique ... (more)in the biosphere, and a lens through which we can look back at the evolutionary process itself.