Richard Dawkins in Conversation with Adam Rutherford

You don't have to be a scientist and to know lots and lots of stuff to have an appetite for wonder but it helps. Professor Richard Dawkins discusses about the influences and inspirations that have shaped his life and thinking while he is is talking about his book.

Chatting to science broadcaster Adam Rutherford in the world-famous Royal Institution Lecture Theatre, the pioneering scientist and public thinker reveals how he developed an "appetite for wonder" for the biological sciences.

From his upbringing in Nairobi and Nyasaland (now Malawi) to his early experiences with religion, Dawkins talks about his motivations for becoming a scientist and his experiences at Oxford University and Berkeley, California during a period of social and political unrest.

Find out how he arrived at the idea of the "selfish gene" -- the basis of his seminal 1976 publication, one of the best-selling popular science books ever written -- and discover more about his research and writing process.