October 13th, 2006 @ 17:13CT by kangsta
So. Let’s look at America at a brief, shall we? Let’s start off by looking at how many people believe in evolution. I mean yeah sure, I undersatnd, we don’t wanna mess with your religion and all.
Evolution Less Accepted in U.S. Than Other Western Countries, Study Finds
James Owen
for National Geographic News
August 10, 2006People in the United States are much less likely to accept Darwin’s idea that humans and apes share a common ancestor than adults in other Western nations, a number of surveys show.
A new study of those surveys suggests that the main reason for this lies in a unique confluence of religion, politics, and the public understanding of biological science in the United States.
Researchers compared the results of past surveys of attitudes toward evolution taken in the U.S. since 1985 and similar surveys in Japan and 32 European countries.
In the U.S., only 14 percent of adults thought that evolution was “definitely true,” while about a third firmly rejected the idea.
In European countries, including Denmark, Sweden, and France, more than 80 percent of adults surveyed said they accepted the concept of evolution.
The proportion of western European adults who believed the theory “absolutely false” ranged from 7 percent in Great Britain to 15 percent in the Netherlands.
The only country included in the study where adults were more likely than Americans to reject evolution was Turkey.
The investigation also showed that the percentage of U.S. adults who are uncertain about evolution has risen from 7 percent to 21 percent in the past 20 years.
Researchers from the U.S. and Japan analyzed additional information from these surveys in an attempt to identify factors that might help explain why Americans are more skeptical about evolution.
Led by Jon D. Miller, a political scientist at Michigan State University, the team reports its findings in tomorrow’s issue of the journal Science.
This chart depicts the public acceptance of evolution theory in 34 countries in 2005. Adults were asked to respond to the statement: “Human beings, as we know them, developed from earlier species of animals.” The percentage of respondents who believed this to be true is marked in blue; those who believed it to be false, in red; and those who were not sure, in yellow.A study of several such surveys taken since 1985 has found that the United States ranks next to last in acceptance of evolution theory among nations polled. Researchers point out that the number of Americans who are uncertain about the theory’s validity has increased over the past 20 years.
Chart courtesy Jon Miller, et al./Science
So, let’s look at something far more understandable: astrology. Because, the complete dictation of your life via planets (ignoring black holes and quasars/etc) is so sensable. At first, I thought the fact people neglected evolution was due to Jesus, but apperantly it’s due to Xenu and the galactic forces! (P.S. Sorry if you were born under the sign of any removed planets–I guess your life is meangingless). Isn’t there something in the bible about idolotry?
* 31% of the public believes in astrology including 36% of women and 43% of those aged 25 to 29 but only 17% of people aged 65 and over, and 25% of men.
So, about the same ammount of people who believe in evolution believe in an equally creditable theory… astrology.
