Message-ID: <Pine.NEB.4.64.0907102039220.21209@panix3.panix.com>
From: Alan Sondheim <sondheim@panix.com>
To: Cyb <cybermind@listserv.aol.com>, Wryting-L <WRYTING-L@listserv.wvu.edu>,
Cyberculture <cyberculture@zacha.org>
Subject: [stuff-it] FW: Only 33 per cent of Americans believe in evolution
(fwd)
Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:39:44 -0400 (EDT)
---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 18:53:28 -0400 From: Michael Gurstein <gurstein@gmail.com> Reply-To: stuff-it@vancouvercommunity.net To: stuff-it@vancouvercommunity.net, Ottawadissenters@yahoogroups.com Subject: [stuff-it] FW: Only 33 per cent of Americans believe in evolution -----Original Message----- From: Sid Shniad [mailto:shniad@sfu.ca] Sent: Friday, July 10, 2009 2:01 PM Subject: Only 33 per cent of Americans believe in evolution http://www.theprovince.com/technology/Science+beliefs+faltering/1776905/stor y.html The Province July 10, 2009 Science beliefs faltering Only 33 per cent of Americans believe in evolution Americans still value the nation's scientific achievements, but unlike most scientists, they often pick and choose which scientific findings they agree with, especially in the areas of climate change and evolution, according to a survey released yesterday. The survey found nine in 10 scientists accept the idea of evolution by natural selection, but just a third of the public does. And while 84 per cent of scientists say the Earth is getting warmer because of human activity, less than half of the public agrees with that. "The public and the scientists have very different views on many different issues, including the science of evolution and climate change," said Scott Keeter of the Pew Research Center. The centre conducted the wide-ranging telephone survey in collaboration with the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The research included responses from 2,533 scientists in the AAAS, and 2,001 public respondents. It found most Americans value the nation's scientific achievements, but not as much as they did a decade ago. Although 27 per cent of Americans said scientific advances are the nation's greatest achievement, that was down from 47 per cent in the group's May 1999 survey. The administration of Barack Obama has promised that science will lead health-care and climate-change policy, and has pledged to seek a cure for cancer, now the No. 2 killer of Americans. According to the survey, most scientists and the public agree it is appropriate for scientists to take part in political debate over issues such as stem-cell research. And even Americans who disagree with scientific conclusions think highly of scientists. More than two-thirds of those who say science conflicts with their religious beliefs still say scientists contribute significantly to society. !DSPAM:2676,4a5784bf25632001016420! ------=_Part_39296_44589596.1247248851811 Content-Type: text/html; charset=utf-8 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit <html><head><style type='text/css'>p { margin: 0; }</style></head><body><div style='font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; color: #000000'><div><font size="2" face="Arial"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""><a href="http://www.theprovince.com/technology/Science+beliefs+faltering/177690 5/story.html" target="_blank">http://www.theprovince.com/technology/Science+beliefs+falter ing/1776905/story.html</a></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="">The Province<span style=""> & nbsp; </span><span style=""> & nbsp;   ; &nb sp; & nbsp;</span><span style=""> & nbsp;   ; &nb sp; </sp an>July 10, 2009</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><b style=""><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Science beliefs faltering</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><b style=""><span style="font-size: 18pt;">Only 33 per cent of Americans believe in evolution</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="">Americans still value the nation's scientific achievements, but unlike most scientists, they often pick and choose which scientific findings they agree with, especially in the areas of climate change and evolution, according to a survey released yesterday.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="">The survey found nine in 10 scientists accept the idea of evolution by natural selection, but just a third of the public does. And while 84 per cent of scientists say the Earth is getting warmer because of human activity, less than half of the public agrees with that.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="">"The public and the scientists have very different views on many different issues, including the science of evolution and climate change," said Scott Keeter of the Pew Research Center. The centre conducted the wide-ranging telephone survey in collaboration with the American Association for the Advancement of Science.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="">The research included responses from 2,533 scientists in the AAAS, and 2,001 public respondents.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="">It found most Americans value the nation's scientific achievements, but not as much as they did a decade ago.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="">Although 27 per cent of Americans said scientific advances are the nation's greatest achievement, that was down from 47 per cent in the group's May 1999 survey.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="">The administration of Barack Obama has promised that science will lead health-care and climate-change policy, and has pledged to seek a cure for cancer, now the No. 2 killer of Americans.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="">According to the survey, most scientists and the public agree it is appropriate for scientists to take part in political debate over issues such as stem-cell research.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="">And even Americans who disagree with scientific conclusions think highly of scientists. More than two-thirds of those who say science conflicts with their religious beliefs still say scientists contribute significantly to society.</span></p></font></div></div> !DSPAM:2676,4a5784bf25632001016420! </body></html> ------=_Part_39296_44589596.1247248851811--