Category Archives: Books

Consigning “Blasphemy” to History

Posted on March 18, 2017 by

This week, the Pakistani Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, signalled that he intended to crackdown on allegedly blasphemous content on the internet, calling it an “unpardonable offence.” We have been here several times before, of course, most notably during the Satanic Verses affair … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Extremism, Islam | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Interview with David Deutsch

Posted on December 10, 2016 by

I have blogged previously about the Oxford physicist, David Deutsch, and his wonderful book The Beginning of Infinity. There is a recent 30 minute interview with David Deutsch now posted on YouTube which explores several of the ideas he discusses … Continue reading →

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The Qur’an: Science vs Ancient Myths

Posted on July 20, 2016 by

This blog was created in large part to share my love of books and my wish to learn more about humanity, the universe around us and our place in it. Over the years I have built up a nice little … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Islam, Science & Evolution | Tagged , , | 60 Comments

Book Review: The Beginning of Infinity by David Deutsch

Posted on May 11, 2016 by

Back in April 2015 I wrote a short blog listing my top ten favourite books of all time. The list included the Oxford physicist David Deutsch’s The Beginning of Infinity. I think I might have been on to something because in his list … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Science & Evolution | Tagged , | 22 Comments

Book Review: Brief Candle In The Dark by Richard Dawkins

Posted on November 16, 2015 by

Here’s a proud confession. I have all of Richard Dawkins’s 11 science books (or 10 if we are strict and discount the massive best seller The God Delusion) on my bookshelves and have read them all. He certainly arouses strong feelings … Continue reading →

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The Qur’an Strikes Back

Posted on July 25, 2015 by

The BBC this week reported that what are believed to be amongst the earliest ever fragments of the Qur’an have been found at Birmingham University. The fragments have been carbon dated with a 95% probability to the period 568 to 645 … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Islam | Tagged , , , | 77 Comments

Carl Sagan and the Pale Blue Dot

Posted on May 9, 2015 by

The above image is taken from a presentation that the American astronomer Carl Sagan gave during the Gifford Lectures in October 1985 at Edinburgh University. That collection of lectures is available in book format as The Varieties of Scientific Experience. Let … Continue reading →

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