"Parsifal" <jeanpascalvachon@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1155393767.590143.156220@m73g2000cwd.googlegroups.com...

Really sad...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20060810/sc_space/uslagsworldingraspofgeneticsandacceptanceofevolution

A comparison of peoples' views in 34 countries finds that the United
States ranks near the bottom when it comes to public acceptance of
evolution. Only Turkey ranked lower.

Among the factors contributing to America's low score are poor
understanding of biology, especially genetics, the politicization of
science and the literal interpretation of the Bible by a small but
vocal group of American Christians, the researchers say.

"American Protestantism is more fundamentalist than anybody except
perhaps the Islamic fundamentalist, which is why Turkey and we are so
close," said study co-author Jon Miller of Michigan State University.

The researchers combined data from public surveys on evolution
collected from 32 European countries, the United States and Japan
between 1985 and 2005. Adults in each country were asked whether they
thought the statement "Human beings, as we know them, developed from
earlier species of animals," was true, false, or if they were unsure.


The study found that over the past 20 years:

The percentage of U.S. adults who accept evolution declined from 45 to
40 percent.
The percentage overtly rejecting evolution declined from 48 to 39
percent, however.
And the percentage of adults who were unsure increased, from 7 to 21
percent.

Of the other countries surveyed, only Turkey ranked lower, with about
25 percent of the population accepting evolution and 75 percent
rejecting it. In Iceland, Denmark, Sweden and France, 80 percent or
more of adults accepted evolution; in Japan, 78 percent of adults did.


The findings are detailed in the Aug. 11 issue of the journal Science.


Religion belief and evolution


The researchers also compared 10 independent variables-including
religious belief, political ideology and understanding of concepts from
genetics, or "genetic literacy"-between adults in America and
nine European countries to determine whether these factors could
predict attitudes toward evolution.


The analysis found that Americans with fundamentalist religious
beliefs-defined as belief in substantial divine control and frequent
prayer-were more likely to reject evolution than Europeans with
similar beliefs. The researchers attribute the discrepancy to
differences in how American Christian fundamentalist and other forms of
Christianity interpret the Bible.


While American fundamentalists tend to interpret the Bible literally
and to view Genesis as a true and accurate account of creation,
mainstream Protestants in both the United States and Europe instead
treat Genesis as metaphorical, the researchers say.


"Whether it's the Bible or the Koran, there are some people who
think it's everything you need to know," Miller said. "Other
people say these are very interesting metaphorical stories in that they
give us guidance, but they're not science books."


This latter view is also shared by the Catholic Church.


Politics and the Flat Earth


Politics is also contributing to America's widespread confusion about
evolution, the researchers say. Major political parties in the United
States are more willing to make opposition to evolution a prominent
part of their campaigns to garner conservative votes-something that
does not happen in Europe or Japan.


Miller says that it makes about as much sense for politicians to oppose
evolution in their campaigns as it is for them to advocate that the
Earth is flat and promise to pass legislation saying so if elected to
office.


"You can pass any law you want but it won't change the shape of the
Earth," Miller told LiveScience.


Paul Meyers, a biologist at the University of Minnesota who was not
involved in the study, says that what politicians should be doing is
saying, 'We ought to defer these questions to qualified authorities and
we should have committees of scientists and engineers who we will
approach for the right answers."

The researchers also single out the poor grasp of biological concepts,
especially genetics, by American adults as an important contributor to
the country's low confidence in evolution.

"The more you understand about genetics, the more you understand
about the unity of life and the relationship humans have to other forms
of life," Miller said.

The current study also analyzed the results from a 10-country survey in
which adults were tested with 10 true or false statements about basic
concepts from genetics. One of the statements was "All plants and
animals have DNA." Americans had a median score of 4. (The correct
answer is "yes.")

Science alone is not enough

But the problem is more than one of education-it goes deeper, and is
a function of our country's culture and history, said study co-author
Eugenie Scott, director of the National Center for Science Education in
California.

"The rejection of evolution is not something that will be solved by
throwing science at it," Scott said in a telephone interview.

Myers expressed a similar sentiment. About the recent trial in Dover,
Pennsylvania which ruled against intelligent design, Myers said "it was
a great victory for our side and it's done a lot to help ensure that
we keep religion out of the classroom for a while longer, but it
doesn't address the root causes. The creationists are still
creationists-they're not going to change because of a court
decision."

Scott says one thing that will help is to have Catholics and mainstream
Protestants speak up about their theologies' acceptance of evolution.

"There needs to be more addressing of creationism from these more
moderate theological perspectives," Scott said. "The professional
clergy and theologians whom I know tend to be very reluctant to engage
in that type of 'my theology versus your theology' discussion, but
it matters because it's having a negative effect on American
scientific literacy."

The latest packaging of creationism is intelligent design, or ID, a
conjecture which claims that certain features of the natural world are
so complex that they could only be the work of a Supreme Being. ID
proponents say they do not deny that evolution is true, only that
scientists should not rule out the possibility of supernatural
intervention.

But scientists do not share doubts over evolution. They argue it is one
of the most well tested theories around, supported by countless tests
done in many different scientific fields. Scott says promoting
uncertainty about evolution is just as bad as denying it outright and
that ID and traditional creationism both spread the same message.

"Both are saying that evolution is bad science, that evolution is
weak and inadequate science, and that it can't do the job so
therefore God did it," she said.

Another view

Bruce Chapman, the president of the Discovery Institute, the primary
backer of ID, has a different view of the study.

"A better explanation for the high percentage of doubters of Darwinism
in America may be that this country's citizens are famously independent
and are not given to being rolled by an ideological elite in any
field," Chapman said. "In particular, the growing doubts about
Darwinism undoubtedly reflect growing doubts among scientists about
Darwinian theory. Over 640 have now signed a public dissent and the
number keeps growing."

Nick Matzke of the National Center for Science Education in California
points out, however, that most of the scientists Chapman refers to do
not do research in the field of evolution.

"If you look at the list, you can't find anybody who's really a
significant contributor to the field or anyone who's done recognizable
work on evolution," Matzke said.

Scott says the news is not all bad. The number of American adults
unsure about the validity of evolution has increased in recent years,
from 7 to 21 percent, but growth in this demographic comes at the
expense of the other two groups. The percentage of Americans accepting
evolution has declined, but so has the percentage of those who overtly
reject it.

"I was very surprised to see that. To me that means the glass is half
full," Scott said. "That 21 percent we can educate."

As has been pointed out in this NG in the strongest possible terms: The
neo-cons/Jesus people are systematically destroying our beloved country --
from within. They are bringing this once-greater nation to its knees.
Absolutely 'gutting' it. You're damn right its sad. The filth! Make that
'brainwashed' filth.

Greywolf