Victor J. Stenger

Victor J. Stenger
Victor J. Stenger in 2011
Born	(1935-01-29) 29 January 1935 Bayonne, New Jersey
Died	August 13, 2014(2014-08-13) (aged 79) Hawaii
Nationality	American
Citizenship	United States of America
Alma mater	UCLA (M.S., 1959) (Ph.D, 1963)
Spouse	Phylliss Stenger (m. 1962)
Children	2
Scientific career
Fields	physics, philosophy
Website	http://www.colorado.edu/philosophy/vstenger/

Victor John Stenger was an American particle physicist, philosopher, author, and religious skeptic.

Following a career as a research scientist in the field of particle physics, Stenger was associated with New Atheism and he also authored popular science books. As of July 2013, he has published twelve books for general audiences on physics, quantum mechanics, cosmology, philosophy, religion, atheism, and pseudoscience, including the 2007 best-seller God: The Failed Hypothesis: How Science Shows that God Does Not Exist. His final book was God and the Atom: From Democritus to the Higgs Boson (2013). He was also a regular featured science columnist for the Huffington Post.

He was a strong advocate for removing the influence of religion from scientific research, commercial activity, and the political decision process, and he coined the popular phrase "Science flies you to the moon. Religion flies you into buildings".

Victor J. Stenger was born on 29 January 1935 and raised in a working-class neighborhood of Bayonne, New Jersey. His father was a Lithuanian immigrant and his mother was the daughter of Hungarian immigrants.

Career

Education and employment

Stenger attended public schools in Bayonne, New Jersey before going on to receive a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Newark College of Engineering (now the New Jersey Institute of Technology). He then moved to Los Angeles on a Hughes Aircraft Company fellowship, where he earned a Master of Science from UCLA in 1958 and a Ph.D in 1963, both in physics.

He then moved to Hawai'i, where he was a member of the Department of Physics at the University of Hawaii until his 2000 retirement. He has held visiting positions on the faculties of the University of Heidelberg in Germany, Oxford University (twice), and has been a visiting researcher at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in England, the National Nuclear Physics Laboratory in Frascati, Italy, and the University of Florence in Italy. He is currently an Emeritus Professor of physics at the University of Hawaii, and Adjunct Professor of Philosophy at the University of Colorado.

Scientist

Stenger's first peer-reviewed publication was in 1964, and his research career continued until his retirement in 2000. His research involved work that determined properties of gluons, quarks, strange particles, and neutrinos. Stenger was a pioneer in the emerging research focused on neutrino astronomy and very high-energy gamma rays. His final research project prior to retirement as an experimental physicist was participating in the Japan-based Super-Kamiokande underground experiment. This work demonstrated that the neutrino has mass, and the leader of the project, Masatoshi Koshiba, won a share of the 2002 Nobel Prize in Physics "for pioneering contributions to astrophysics, in particular for the detection of cosmic neutrinos".

Philosopher and skeptic

Stenger was an advocate of philosophical naturalism, skepticism, and atheism. He was a prominent critic of intelligent design and the aggressive use of the anthropic principle. He maintains that if consciousness and free will do exist, they will eventually be explained in a scientific manner that invokes neither the mystical nor the supernatural. He has repeatedly criticized those who invoke the perplexities of quantum mechanics in support of the paranormal, mysticism, or supernatural phenomena, and has written several books and articles aiming to debunk contemporary pseudoscience.

Stenger was also a public speaker, including taking part in the 2008 "Origins Conference" hosted by the Skeptics Society at the California Institute of Technology alongside Nancey Murphy, Hugh Ross, Leonard Susskind, Kenneth R. Miller, Sean Carroll and Michael Shermer. Stenger has debated several Christian apologists and scientists such as William Lane Craig, Hugh Ross, John Lennox and David J. Bartholomew on topics such as the existence of God and the relationship between science and religion.

In 1992, Uri Geller sued Stenger and Prometheus Books for $4 million, claiming defamation for questioning his "psychic powers." The suit was dismissed and Geller was ordered to pay court costs.

Professional and community positions

• President, 1990–94 Hawaiian Humanists
• Member of Editorial Board, Free Inquiry
• Member of Society of Humanist Philosophers
• Fellow of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry
• Fellow of the Center for Inquiry
• President, 2002–06, Colorado Citizens for Science

Publications by Stenger

Books for General Audiences

In recent years, Stenger's books and articles have been mostly written for the wider educated public. These writings explore the interfaces between physics and cosmology, and philosophy, religion, and pseudoscience. The following books were all published by Prometheus Books.

• Stenger, Victor (1988), Not by Design: The Origin of the Universe, Prometheus Books, p. 202, ISBN 978-0-87975-451-8
• Stenger, Victor (1990), Physics and Psychics: The Search for a World Beyond the Senses, Prometheus Books, p. 323, ISBN 978-0-87975-575-1
• Stenger, Victor (1995), The Unconscious Quantum: Metaphysics in Modern Physics and Cosmology, Prometheus Books, p. 322, ISBN 978-1-57392-022-3
• Stenger, Victor (2000), Timeless Reality: Symmetry, Simplicity, and Multiple Universes, Prometheus Books, p. 396, ISBN 978-1-57392-859-5
• Stenger, Victor (2003), Has Science Found God? The Latest Results in the Search for Purpose in the Universe, Prometheus Books, p. 373, ISBN 978-1-59102-018-9
• Stenger, Victor (2006), The Comprehensible Cosmos: Where Do the Laws of Physics Come From?, Prometheus Books, p. 340, ISBN 978-1-59102-424-8
• Stenger, Victor (2007), God: The Failed Hypothesis: How Science Shows That God Does Not Exist, Prometheus Books, p. 287, ISBN 978-1-59102-481-1
• Stenger, Victor (2009), Quantum Gods: Creation, Chaos, and the Search for Cosmic Consciousness, Prometheus Books, p. 292, ISBN 978-1-59102-713-3
• Stenger, Victor (2009), The New Atheism: Taking a Stand for Science and Reason, Prometheus Books, p. 282, ISBN 978-1-59102-751-5
• Stenger, Victor (2011), The Fallacy of Fine-Tuning: Why the Universe Is Not Designed for Us, Prometheus Books, p. 345, ISBN 978-1-61614-443-2
• Stenger, Victor (2012), God and the Folly of Faith: The Incompatibility of Science and Religion, Prometheus Books, p. 408, ISBN 978-1-61614-599-6
• Stenger, Victor (2013), God and the Atom, Prometheus Books, p. 300, ISBN 978-1-61614-753-2

Peer-Reviewed Articles

• Stenger, Victor; Slater, W. E.; Stork, D. H.; Ticho, H. K. (June 1964), "K−N Interaction in the I=0 State at Low Energies", Physical Review, 134 (B1111), doi:10.1103/PhysRev.134.B1111
• Stenger, Victor (15 September 1984), "The Production of Very High Energy Photons and Neutrinos from Cosmic Proton Sources", The Astrophysical Journal, 284: 810–816, doi:10.1086/162463
• Stenger, Victor (3 October 1985), "Photinos from Cosmic Sources", Nature, 317: 411–413, doi:10.1038/317411a0
• Stenger, Victor (March–April 1986), "The Extraterrestrial Flux Sensitivity of Underground and Undersea Muon Detectors", Il Nuovo Cimento C, 9 (2): 479–487, doi:10.1007/BF02514866
• Stenger, Victor (July 1990), "The Universe: the ultimate free lunch", European Journal of Physics, 11 (4): 236–243, doi:10.1088/0143-0807/11/4/008
• Stenger, Victor (1999), "Bioenergetic Fields", The Scientific Review of Alternative Medicine, 3 (1)
• Stenger, Victor (2000), "Natural Explanations for the Anthropic Coincidences" (PDF), Philo, 3 (2): 50–67

Other Essays

• Stenger, Victor (May–June 1993), "The Myth of Quantum Consciousness" (PDF), The Humanist, vol. 53, pp. 13–15
• Stenger, Victor (1996), "New Age Physics: Has Science Found the Path to the Ultimate?", Free Inquiry, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 7–11
• Stenger, Victor (1996), "Cosmythology: Was the Universe Designed to Produce Us?", Skeptic, vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 36–40
• Stenger, Victor (1996), "Quantum Metaphysics", in Brown, Laurence; Farr, Bernard; Hoffmann, Joseph (eds.), Modern Spiritualities: An Inquiry, Prometheus Books, pp. 243–253
• Stenger, Victor (1998), "Has Science Found God?", Free Inquiry, vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 56–58
• Stenger, Victor (1999), "The Anthropic Coincidences: A Natural Explanation", Skeptical Intelligencer, vol. 3, no. 3, pp. 2–17
• Stenger, Victor (July–August 1999), "Anthropic Design: Does the Cosmos Show Evidence of Purpose?", Skeptical Inquirer, vol. 23, no. 4, pp. 40–63
• Ramey, David; Stenger, Victor (1999), "Energy Medicine", Consumer's Guide to Alternative Therapies in the Horse, Howell Book House, pp. 55–66, ISBN 978-1582450629
• Stenger, Victor (2000), "The Pseudophysics of Therapeutic Touch", in Scheiber, Béla; Selby, Carla (eds.), Therapeutic Touch, Prometheus Books, pp. 302–311, ISBN 978-1-57392-804-5
• Stenger, Victor (2001), "Humanity in Time and Space", Free Inquiry, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 42–69
• Stenger, Victor (2001), "Time's Arrows Point Both Ways: The View From Nowhen" (PDF), Skeptic, vol. 8, no. 4, pp. 90–95
• Stenger, Victor (September–October 2001), "The God of Falling Bodies", Skeptical Inquirer, vol. 25, no. 5, pp. 46–49
• Stenger, Victor (2001), "The Breath of God: Identifying Spiritual Force", in Kurtz, Paul (ed.), Skeptical Odysseys, Prometheus Books, pp. 363–374, ISBN 978-1-57392-884-7
• Stenger, Victor (2003), "Anthropic Design: Does the Cosmos Show Evidence of Purpose?", in Kurtz, Paul (ed.), Science and Religion: Are They Compatible?, Prometheus Books, pp. 47–49, ISBN 978-1-59102-064-6
• Stenger, Victor (2003), "The Premise Keepers", Free Inquiry, vol. 23, no. 3
• Stenger, Victor (2004), "Is the Universe Fine-Tuned for Us?", in Young, Matt; Edis, Taner (eds.), Why Intelligent Design Fails: A Scientific Critique of the New Creationism, Rutgers University Press, pp. 172–184, ISBN 978-0813538723
• Stenger, Victor (2005), "Flew's Flawed Science", Free Inquiry, vol. 25, no. 2, pp. 17–18
• Stenger, Victor (2006), "The Scientific Case Against a God Who Created the Universe", in Martin, Michael; Monnier, Ricki (eds.), The Improbability of God, Prometheus Books, ISBN 978-1-59102-381-4
• Stenger, Victor (2006), "Do Our Values Come from God? The Evidence Says No" (PDF), Free Inquiry, vol. 26, no. 5, pp. 42–45
• Stenger, Victor (2007), "Clock Time", in Darity, William (ed.), International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences, 2nd Edition, Macmillan Reference USA, ISBN 978-0028661179
• Stenger, Victor (2007), "Reality", in Darity, William (ed.), International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences, 2nd Edition, Macmillan Reference USA, ISBN 978-0028661179
• Stenger, Victor (2008), "Physics, Cosmology, and the New Creationism", in Petto, Andrew; Godfrey, Laurie (eds.), Scientists Confront Creationism: Intelligent Design and Beyond, W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., ISBN 978-0-393-33073-1
• Stenger, Victor (March 2008), "Is the Brain a Quantum Device?" (PDF), Skeptical Briefs, vol. 18, no. 1, pp. 9, 13
• Stenger, Victor (2008), "Where Can God Act? The New Quantum Theology", Free Inquiry, vol. 28, no. 5, pp. 1–36
• Stenger, Victor (2009), "Time, Arrow of", in Birx, H. James (ed.), Encyclopedia of Time: Science, Philosophy, Theology, & Culture, SAGE Publications, Inc, ISBN 978-1412941648
• Stenger, Victor (2009), "Time, Asymmetry of", in Birx, H. James (ed.), Encyclopedia of Time: Science, Philosophy, Theology, & Culture, SAGE Publications, Inc, ISBN 978-1412941648
• Stenger, Victor (2009), "Time, Operational Definition of", in Birx, H. James (ed.), Encyclopedia of Time: Science, Philosophy, Theology, & Culture, SAGE Publications, Inc, ISBN 978-1412941648
• Stenger, Victor (2009), "Universe, Origin of", in Birx, H. James (ed.), Encyclopedia of Time: Science, Philosophy, Theology, & Culture, SAGE Publications, Inc, ISBN 978-1412941648
• Stenger, Victor (2009), "Planck time", in Birx, H. James (ed.), Encyclopedia of Time: Science, Philosophy, Theology, & Culture, SAGE Publications, Inc, ISBN 978-1412941648
• Stenger, Victor (2009), "Time, Symmetry of", in Birx, H. James (ed.), Encyclopedia of Time: Science, Philosophy, Theology, & Culture, SAGE Publications, Inc, ISBN 978-1412941648
• Stenger, Victor (2009), "Time, Units of", in Birx, H. James (ed.), Encyclopedia of Time: Science, Philosophy, Theology, & Culture, SAGE Publications, Inc, ISBN 978-1412941648
• Stenger, Victor (2012), "Free Will and Autonomous Will", Skeptic, vol. 17, no. 4, pp. 15–19

Columnist

From 1998 to 2011 Stenger wrote for the column "Reality Check," in Skeptical Briefs, the quarterly newsletter of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI).

See also

The following persons cite Stenger's work,

• Robin Collins
• Richard Dawkins
• Sam Harris
• Christopher Hitchens
• Ray Kurzweil
• Andrei Linde
• David Mills
• Michael Shermer

External links

• Stenger's complete CV.
• Reviews of Stenger's books.
• Audio of interview with Stenger on the podcast/radio show "Freethought" by the Freedom From Religion Foundation.