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24 November

How did I miss this story? US geneticist Dr Dean Hamer (does that sound like a fake name to you? Why do American scientists all have names that make them sound like they've been guest-starring in the Muppet Show?) reckons he's discovered the genetic sequence that determines whether or not people believe in God.

I've no idea whether the science behind this is spurious or not (he has a book out about it, so it's not looking good), but boy, I'd love it to be true. The possibility of being able to remove it from people before birth would be so promising that it might make me think about reversing my opposition to cloning and genetic engineering. I mean, come on now: if you could have engineered the fanaticism out of both Bush and Bin Laden in the womb, don't you think it would have been a price worth paying?

Naturally God-botherers are none too pleased about this. Here's what they have to say on the matter. Expect the fatwas and papal doctrines to start rolling in if and when Hamer reaches the New York Times bestseller list.

Posted by paul at November 24, 2004 10:17 PM

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