Why Study Atheism among Scientists?

New Atheism—a provocative and derisive anti-religious form of secularity—has established a central place in public thought through public intellectuals and scientists such as Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Daniel Dennett, and Christopher Hitchens. Science figures prominently in New Atheism, due in large part to such New Atheist thought leaders. And while the New Atheists have played an important role in giving voice to marginalized groups and promoting science, the rhetoric of New Atheism in the public sphere departs from the reality of atheism among day-to-day scientists. By studying what everyday atheist scientists in the U.S. and U.K. actually think about religion, we gain a more nuanced understanding of the varieties of atheism in science and the science-faith interface more broadly.