Anonymous inquires:

I have never read anything by Dawkins saying that religion is a maladaptation which is on its way out due to natural selection. Do you have a reference for this?

I'm not citing Dawkins' writing on this, although someone with a copy of The God Delusion might have a quotation to offer on the topic.

My statement was my interpretation of a recent radio interview in conjunction with Dawkins' U.S. tour to promote the paperback. He was asked about whether a belief in God is an evolved trait. Since he calls belief in God a delusion, he clearly doesn't consider it a beneficial one.

Anyway, my statement was vague and not well supported. I usually am better about comments like that.

Fred Bortz -- Science and technology books for young readers (www.fredbortz.com) and Science book reviews (www.scienceshelf.com)