I would like everyone to understand the principle of biological evolution by natural selection. As Charles Darwin himself appreciated and worried, once this principle is comprehended, it radically changes our perception of ourselves and of our place in the universe. We are a natural, if accidental, product of the world - warts and all - and we have not been sculpted to perfection, by some engineering deity in the sky. It takes some courage to grasp this, and then to accept the responsibilities that this places upon us, as the only sapient species to behave decently and serve as custodians of the planet.

Mel Greaves is author of Cancer: The Evolutionary Legacy (buy this book from Amazon (UK) or Amazon (USA)).