Gallup poll on Creationism v. Evolution

davros

Only about a third of Americans believe that Charles Darwin's theory of evolution is a scientific theory that has been well supported by the evidence, while just as many say that it is just one of many theories and has not been supported by the evidence. The rest say they don't know enough to say. Forty-five percent of Americans also believe that God created human beings pretty much in their present form about 10,000 years ago. A third of Americans are biblical literalists who believe that the Bible is the actual word of God and is to be taken literally, word for word.

Reference

And this would be a good point to mention that next week's lecture (Wed, Dec 1) is The Scientific Response to Creationism. Details here.

Steven

Keeping to the spirit of skepticism, I'd find it hard to believe that this poll is accurate. I have more faith in the american public than that (although not the voting public ). I'd need more access to the details of the poll to even begin to take it seriously. What areas of the country were surveyed? Are the questions in the poll slanted toward these sensational results? Was there a huge amphetamine spill in the water supply?

sliabh

Steven wrote:

Keeping to the spirit of skepticism, I'd find it hard to believe that this poll is accurate. I have more faith in the american public than that (although not the voting public ). I'd need more access to the details of the poll to even begin to take it seriously. What areas of the country were surveyed? Are the questions in the poll slanted toward these sensational results? Was there a huge amphetamine spill in the water supply?

Regretably I would conceed that the poll is reliable. While the guy that owns Gallup is an evangelical Christian they are regarded as one of the more reputable polling companies using all the best practice statistical methods.

OfflerCrocGod

Those are very scary figures, I wonder what makes them more susceptible to lies? Is it just the fault of the education system or is there soemthing more?! I mean the schools must be very bad for that many people to believe in such rubbish. It's like saying that 45% of Americans still believe in Santa Claus, total madness.

Myksyk

The whole area is very interesting. The Intelligent Design/Creationist movement in the States is very well organised. The (mis)information is presented in a very 'plausible' and 'authoritative' way by people who are well able to write and communicate with the public. Also, they have no qualms about telling 'the good lie' about evolution (i.e. misrepresenting the available evidence) if it means one up for fundamentalist Christianity. The Irish Skeptics next talk is on the scientific response to creationism in the Mont Clare this Wednesday evening at 8pm. Worth toddling along to to talk with others about this movement which has hit European shores in the form of specific schools set up in England (there's a lot of money behind some aspects of the movement apparently).

robindch

Here's another article yesterday from the San Francisco Chronicle:

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/11/30/MNGVNA3PE11.DTL

<sigh>

- robin.

Myksyk

Interesting and depressing article.

robindch

Hi -

At the risk of offending our religious confreres, the incendiary and effervescent HL Mencken's brilliant reporting of the Scopes trial in 1924 hasn't lost a jot of relevancy in the eighty years since it first appeared. If you don't have the time to read the lot (and there is a lot there), then the seven-hundred-odd words in sections two and three are as good a taster as any other.

Likewise, I can also recommend 'Inherit the Wind', a loose Hollywood adaption of the Scopes trial, as much for its sharp visual and verbal humour as for its almost-unique portrayal of non-religious men as heros. The film is available on DVD from the Laser video shop in Ranelagh, and possibly elsewhere.

- robin.