Apostasius
9 Nov 2005, 12:17 AM
Okay, I have a dead horse that needs beating.
Kansas School Board OKs Evolution Language (Again!)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051108/ap_on_re_us/evolution_debate
Why not teach alchemy for chemistry, astrology for astronomy, flat earth science for geology, or psychic phenomena for physics? Fuck it. Let's just teach pseudoscience instead of science.
This shit is really starting to piss me off.
So, what do you think?
Is the US becoming hostile to science?
http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/science/10/28/science.debate.reut/
___________________
From:
http://pewforum.org/surveys/origins/#3
Divided Over Evolution
Most Americans believe that God was responsible for the creation of life on earth but divide on the question of whether and how life has changed since the creation. Overall, 78% say God created life on earth, while 5% think a universal spirit or higher power was responsible for the creation.
Despite this broad agreement regarding the origins of life, the public is deeply divided on precisely how life developed. A plurality of Americans (48%) say that humans and other living things have evolved over time, but nearly as many (42%) say that humans and other living things have existed in their present form since the beginning of time. The latter group is often called "creationist" because this view is seen as consistent with a literal reading of the Bible's account of creation.(1)
There is further division among those who agree that life has evolved over time. Of those who say that living things have evolved over time, roughly half (26% of the public overall) accept the Darwinian account of evolution, saying that evolution has occurred through natural processes such as natural selection. But nearly four-in-ten of those who believe in evolution (18% of the public as a whole) say that evolution was guided by a supreme being for the purpose of creating humans and other life in the form it exists today, a view that is consistent with some aspects of what has been called "intelligent design."
Among religious groups, white evangelical Protestants are most distinctive in their support for the creationist position. A large majority of white evangelicals (70%) say that living things have always existed in their present form. In contrast, most white mainline Protestants (60%) and white Catholics (61%) believe that living things have evolved over time, while only 32% and 31% of mainline Protestants and Catholics, respectively, accept the creationist account.
But both mainline Protestants and Catholics are divided over the nature of the evolutionary process. Three-in-ten mainline Protestants (31%) say evolution occurred through natural selection, while 24% think evolution was guided by a supreme being. Among white Catholics, 28% subscribe to natural selection and the same number believe evolution was guided by a higher power. In contrast, most seculars (56%) accept the idea of evolution through processes such as natural selection.
These differences of opinion carry over into politics as well (see detailed tables on pp. 22-23). Nearly six-in-ten conservative Republicans believe that living things have always existed in their present form, while just 11% say that evolution occurred through natural processes. Among liberal Democrats, by contrast, only 29% hold the creationist position, while a plurality (44%) accepts the natural selection theory of evolution.
Age, gender and education are also strongly related to views about the development of living things. College graduates are twice as likely as people who did not attend college to accept the natural selection theory of evolution (40%-18%). Nearly half of women (47%) say that living things have always existed in their present form, while only 36% of men share this view. Half of Americans ages 65 and up subscribe to the creationist position, compared with only 37% of Americans under age 30.
Many Think Scientists Disagree about Evolution
There is no public consensus about how scientists view evolution. Opinions about what scientists believe are strongly associated with one's own beliefs on the subject. Most Americans (54%) think that there is general agreement among scientists that evolution has taken place, but a substantial minority (33%) says that no such scientific consensus exists. By an 82%-13% margin, those who accept natural selection theory see a scientific consensus on this issue. Among those who take a creationist position, a 46% plurality thinks the scientific community is divided over the evolution question.
While most people who accept evolution believe there is a scientific consensus on the topic, they themselves express less certainty about how life developed on earth than do people who believe the creationist account. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of those who take a creationist point of view say they are very certain about how life developed. By contrast, those who believe in evolution are less certain of their views * just 32% say they are very certain.
People who take the Bible literally are much more convinced of the accuracy of their views of the development of life on earth (69% very certain), compared with those who don't take the Bible literally.
Reflecting this, a plurality of the public overall (42%) says that their religious beliefs have had the most important influence on their opinions about the development of life. This number rises to 60% among people who accept the creationist account. By contrast, a plurality of those who accept evolution says that their education is the most important source (47%); this number is 60% among people who believe that evolution proceeds through natural selection.
Evolution in the Schools
Even though nearly half of Americans believe that humans evolved over time, this poll and many others have shown that substantial majorities of the public favor adding creationism to the public school curriculum. In the current survey, 64% support teaching creationism along with evolution in the public schools, while only 26% oppose this idea. But significantly fewer people say creationism should supplant evolution in the curriculum: 38% say creationism should be taught instead of evolution (49% disagree).
Support for teaching creationism along with evolution is quite broad-based, with majority support even among seculars, liberal Democrats and those who accept natural selection theory. At the same time, not all creationists believe that creationism should replace evolution in the schools: 32% of those who subscribe to the creationist view do not think it should be taught instead of evolution. These findings strongly suggest that much of the public believes it is desirable to offer more viewpoints where controversial subjects in the schools are concerned.
White evangelicals and black Protestants are the only religious groups expressing majority support for teaching creationism instead of evolution in public schools. Majorities of mainline Protestants, Catholics and seculars oppose this idea. Politically, a majority of conservative Republicans favor replacing evolution with creationism in the classroom, but support for this proposal falls below 40% for all other political groups, including moderate and liberal Republicans. Regionally, only among Southerners does a plurality (45%) support replacing evolution with creationism in the schools.
But there are also inconsistencies in peoples' responses that point to confusion regarding the meaning of terms such as "creationism" and even "evolution." For example, among people who oppose teaching creationism either along with or instead of evolution, 27% personally take the creationist position on human origins. Similarly, 19% of people who think creationism should be taught instead of evolution nevertheless personally believe in evolution through natural selection.
Who Should Decide What Is Taught?
Large majorities of Americans believe that parents, scientists and science teachers and school boards should all have a say in how evolution is taught in public schools, and these majorities are found among all religious groups and people on both sides of the question of how life developed on earth. But there are deep divisions in the public about who should have the primary say on how evolution is handled. Overall, a plurality of the public (41%) says parents should have the primary say, compared with 28% for scientists and science teachers and 21% for school boards.
A majority (54%) of those who accept creationist accounts support giving parents the primary say on how evolution is taught. Among those who accept the theory of natural selection, however, nearly half (47%) support giving scientists and science teachers the primary role in how evolution is handled in public schools. Evangelical Protestants are most in favor of parents having the primary say on this issue (59%), while seculars are most supportive of trusting scientists and science teachers with these decisions, with 41% expressing this view.
_________________
These statistics are mind-stabbingly depressing.
_________________
http://www.theonion.com/content/files/images/onionmagazine_1020.article.jpg
I don't really have a point. This is just a damn rant.
Kansas School Board OKs Evolution Language (Again!)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051108/ap_on_re_us/evolution_debate
Why not teach alchemy for chemistry, astrology for astronomy, flat earth science for geology, or psychic phenomena for physics? Fuck it. Let's just teach pseudoscience instead of science.
This shit is really starting to piss me off.
So, what do you think?
Is the US becoming hostile to science?
http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/science/10/28/science.debate.reut/
___________________
From:
http://pewforum.org/surveys/origins/#3
Divided Over Evolution
Most Americans believe that God was responsible for the creation of life on earth but divide on the question of whether and how life has changed since the creation. Overall, 78% say God created life on earth, while 5% think a universal spirit or higher power was responsible for the creation.
Despite this broad agreement regarding the origins of life, the public is deeply divided on precisely how life developed. A plurality of Americans (48%) say that humans and other living things have evolved over time, but nearly as many (42%) say that humans and other living things have existed in their present form since the beginning of time. The latter group is often called "creationist" because this view is seen as consistent with a literal reading of the Bible's account of creation.(1)
There is further division among those who agree that life has evolved over time. Of those who say that living things have evolved over time, roughly half (26% of the public overall) accept the Darwinian account of evolution, saying that evolution has occurred through natural processes such as natural selection. But nearly four-in-ten of those who believe in evolution (18% of the public as a whole) say that evolution was guided by a supreme being for the purpose of creating humans and other life in the form it exists today, a view that is consistent with some aspects of what has been called "intelligent design."
Among religious groups, white evangelical Protestants are most distinctive in their support for the creationist position. A large majority of white evangelicals (70%) say that living things have always existed in their present form. In contrast, most white mainline Protestants (60%) and white Catholics (61%) believe that living things have evolved over time, while only 32% and 31% of mainline Protestants and Catholics, respectively, accept the creationist account.
But both mainline Protestants and Catholics are divided over the nature of the evolutionary process. Three-in-ten mainline Protestants (31%) say evolution occurred through natural selection, while 24% think evolution was guided by a supreme being. Among white Catholics, 28% subscribe to natural selection and the same number believe evolution was guided by a higher power. In contrast, most seculars (56%) accept the idea of evolution through processes such as natural selection.
These differences of opinion carry over into politics as well (see detailed tables on pp. 22-23). Nearly six-in-ten conservative Republicans believe that living things have always existed in their present form, while just 11% say that evolution occurred through natural processes. Among liberal Democrats, by contrast, only 29% hold the creationist position, while a plurality (44%) accepts the natural selection theory of evolution.
Age, gender and education are also strongly related to views about the development of living things. College graduates are twice as likely as people who did not attend college to accept the natural selection theory of evolution (40%-18%). Nearly half of women (47%) say that living things have always existed in their present form, while only 36% of men share this view. Half of Americans ages 65 and up subscribe to the creationist position, compared with only 37% of Americans under age 30.
Many Think Scientists Disagree about Evolution
There is no public consensus about how scientists view evolution. Opinions about what scientists believe are strongly associated with one's own beliefs on the subject. Most Americans (54%) think that there is general agreement among scientists that evolution has taken place, but a substantial minority (33%) says that no such scientific consensus exists. By an 82%-13% margin, those who accept natural selection theory see a scientific consensus on this issue. Among those who take a creationist position, a 46% plurality thinks the scientific community is divided over the evolution question.
While most people who accept evolution believe there is a scientific consensus on the topic, they themselves express less certainty about how life developed on earth than do people who believe the creationist account. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of those who take a creationist point of view say they are very certain about how life developed. By contrast, those who believe in evolution are less certain of their views * just 32% say they are very certain.
People who take the Bible literally are much more convinced of the accuracy of their views of the development of life on earth (69% very certain), compared with those who don't take the Bible literally.
Reflecting this, a plurality of the public overall (42%) says that their religious beliefs have had the most important influence on their opinions about the development of life. This number rises to 60% among people who accept the creationist account. By contrast, a plurality of those who accept evolution says that their education is the most important source (47%); this number is 60% among people who believe that evolution proceeds through natural selection.
Evolution in the Schools
Even though nearly half of Americans believe that humans evolved over time, this poll and many others have shown that substantial majorities of the public favor adding creationism to the public school curriculum. In the current survey, 64% support teaching creationism along with evolution in the public schools, while only 26% oppose this idea. But significantly fewer people say creationism should supplant evolution in the curriculum: 38% say creationism should be taught instead of evolution (49% disagree).
Support for teaching creationism along with evolution is quite broad-based, with majority support even among seculars, liberal Democrats and those who accept natural selection theory. At the same time, not all creationists believe that creationism should replace evolution in the schools: 32% of those who subscribe to the creationist view do not think it should be taught instead of evolution. These findings strongly suggest that much of the public believes it is desirable to offer more viewpoints where controversial subjects in the schools are concerned.
White evangelicals and black Protestants are the only religious groups expressing majority support for teaching creationism instead of evolution in public schools. Majorities of mainline Protestants, Catholics and seculars oppose this idea. Politically, a majority of conservative Republicans favor replacing evolution with creationism in the classroom, but support for this proposal falls below 40% for all other political groups, including moderate and liberal Republicans. Regionally, only among Southerners does a plurality (45%) support replacing evolution with creationism in the schools.
But there are also inconsistencies in peoples' responses that point to confusion regarding the meaning of terms such as "creationism" and even "evolution." For example, among people who oppose teaching creationism either along with or instead of evolution, 27% personally take the creationist position on human origins. Similarly, 19% of people who think creationism should be taught instead of evolution nevertheless personally believe in evolution through natural selection.
Who Should Decide What Is Taught?
Large majorities of Americans believe that parents, scientists and science teachers and school boards should all have a say in how evolution is taught in public schools, and these majorities are found among all religious groups and people on both sides of the question of how life developed on earth. But there are deep divisions in the public about who should have the primary say on how evolution is handled. Overall, a plurality of the public (41%) says parents should have the primary say, compared with 28% for scientists and science teachers and 21% for school boards.
A majority (54%) of those who accept creationist accounts support giving parents the primary say on how evolution is taught. Among those who accept the theory of natural selection, however, nearly half (47%) support giving scientists and science teachers the primary role in how evolution is handled in public schools. Evangelical Protestants are most in favor of parents having the primary say on this issue (59%), while seculars are most supportive of trusting scientists and science teachers with these decisions, with 41% expressing this view.
_________________
These statistics are mind-stabbingly depressing.
_________________
http://www.theonion.com/content/files/images/onionmagazine_1020.article.jpg
I don't really have a point. This is just a damn rant.