Courtesy of Church of the FSM
Surveys by a Michigan State University researcher find that about one-third of the American population does not believe in evolution, a figure which is much higher than those found in similar surveys in European nations and Japan.
The research of Jon D. Miller, MSU Hannah Professor of Integrative Studies, is published in the Aug. 11 issue of the journal Science.
For example, in Iceland, Denmark, Sweden and France, 80 percent or more of adults accepted the concept of evolution, as did 78 percent of Japanese adults.
Only adults in Turkey, a predominantly Muslim nation, were less likely to accept the concept of evolution than American adults.
There were several reasons for these inflated U.S. numbers. Miller said the most significant factor was the influence of fundamentalist religions.
Any good reason why some religions dedicate so much energy to holding back knowledge and education — and others don’t?
If you spend any time studying quantum physics you can realize that it’s possible to both be an athiest and understand the nature of God… not the god of your religions something much more interesting!
#27 See comments below:
“So, you all are saying that when you die, you just…die?”
Yes.
“Why do so many people believe in a higher meaning, a higher power?”
The human brain gives you reason, knowledge and sentimentality. The latter gives you a need to be “special”.
“Could such a huge percentage of the world be wrong?”
Yes, since the average person is below average.
“Even a lot of atheists believe in a purpose to life. Why would we believe that? Why would almost every human tend to feel that way?”
Agreed. I think it has to do with the chemical composition of our bodies. The pursuit of happiness is nothing more than trying to achieve a chemical imbalance in our brain. Same thing with exercising.
“The vast majority of us are weak? ”
Yep.
#27 You are having a difficult time seperating fact from how you would like things to be.
oh, come on, The Atheist, everyone believes in a higher power… people just debate whether its sentient, whether its singular, and whether its malicious.
most of the people believing in a non-sentient higher power just don’t know it.
Regarding the comment, “Design requires a designer”: What “design” are we talking about? Species of animals? Trees, lakes, all of creation? Well, WE’RE the ones who look at everything and categorize it and give each thing a name. That makes US the designers. The world doesn’t really come with any inherent design; we looked at it, identified separate “things”, and labeled them. (And now, here we are debating the origin of this “design”!)
As for saying, “It is the basic flaw of man to think he knows better.” People who say such a thing clearly believe they know better about the subject of man thinking he knows better. Where does that leave them?
Okay, just maybe, I can understand all of those ignorant to scientific fact. Perhaps they went to school in the bible belt. But to actually believe a literal interpretation of the stories in Genesis? That one’s beyond me. If you’d even read the book, you’d know there are two, contradictory creation accounts.
So much for putting your faith in a bunch of nonsense stories from an ancient book that promotes slavery.
Ok, to all of you people talking about this “evidence” out there that points to intelligent design…what evidence? That’s all I hear is “there is evidence that scientists ignore blah blah blah”. Where? What evidence?
Or is this another one of those things where someone starts spouting off things and pretty soon it picks up steam but when you actually look at the “evidence” there’s none at all?
Also, we really need to start treating religious people for what they are, mentally unstable, and just ignoring them. I’m sorry, I used to be tolerant of these people, but when they start interfering with MY life, I have to draw the line. It’s fine if you want to go to whatever hole you live in and pray to your invisible man that lives in the sky…but when you start forcing it on me and my family that’s too far. You can’t talk to them without some quote from the fricken Bible. I’m sick of it. It’s a waste of time and money and lives. Stop trying to force your delusions on others! We don’t need this crap in the schools, so just go away. But they can’t go away can they….being ignored infuriates them.
Also, the argument of “a huge percentage of the world believes in blah blah blah” is just idiotic. 1000 years ago almost ALL the people in the world thought the Earth was the center of the universe. So why don’t we all just still believe that now? Why even investigate it, it just “is”. Just believe in what everyone else does. “hey, if George over there believes in flying toasters creating the world, maybe I should too…I mean, facts are determined by a democratic vote, right?” Unbelievable.
David
It doesn’t end there. Look at all the other religions and their accounts of where we come from.
Maybe all the creationists should pick up a book by Joseph Campbell
then maybe we can have a real discussion about religion and how it fits within or society.
Gibson
Although I feel the way you do about this. I can’t give up hope. Hope that one day a neuron in their brain will flash and they will come to the realization that their religion is nothing more than a creation of man. Despite how ignorant I believe them to be it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to show them the error in their thinking.
What if all of our parents the first time we tried to walk said “Well they obviously doesn’t have what it takes to walk so lets just forget it.” ? Most of us would still be crawling around and crapping ourselves.
We are no more important than them we are just better informed.
What saddens me is that so many people live their lives based on what it says in a single book of fiction, the ultimate collection of mythology ever created: the Bible.
#34 “oh, come on, The Atheist, everyone believes in a higher power… ”
Thou shall not generalize. : -P
#41 I actually laughed, which is more than I got out of the rest of this senseless debate.
#34….
I believe in a higher power. I understand that in England, they have 240 volts!
DAve
I don’t see any information about the sample size. How can a poll be discussed without knowing the sample size? For sake of discussion, assume the sample size to be 1000 (a very typical sample size for polling). Comparing the US and Japan, we see that the US has 67% evolution believers and Japan has 78% evolution believers. I suspect the confidence intervals overlap at alpha=0.01.
Why are people being polled whether they believe in evolution anyway? Given that most people don’t understand the theory of evolution, what does it mean for people to believe in something they don’t understand. It is strange that the word “believe” is used given that it is a scientific question. Scientists need to learn that when they turn scientific questions into political questions there will be someone else on the other side.
I’m nothing short of stunned at the level to which religious and admittedly American ignorance has stooped. Evolution is as much as fact as gravity.
#34
> The Atheist, everyone believes in a higher power… people
> just debate whether its sentient, whether its singular, and
> whether its malicious.
No! Atheists reject the claim that a higher power(s) exists until there is evidence to the contrary.
AH…going to the well once again. Another uplifting debate.
Well, what do you expect John? Politics, religion and conspiracies are what generate page views. It isn’t pretty though, is it?
Just looked in for the 1st time since posting — and I’m impressed how close to topic the discussion has stayed.
I notice no one has presented any evidence for creation here. The Bible doesn’t count!
A really big space alien, drunk, lost and horny, had sex with the sun, the planets happened, inbreeding occurred and humanity resulted. Makes about as much sense as anything else.
First and foremost, I don’t believe in evolution. It is something to be understood and accepted, or not. As with other scientific theories, there is nothing to be believed in. It is a matter of understanding and accepting or rejecting the logic by finding flaws.
You can say, bla, bla, bla, but please, please, find me a logical flaw in the evolutionist theory. I am not asking for something like “the bible says otherwise” or about how flawed we are for thinking we know better. Give me some really logical flaw like “the theory of evolution wouldn’t work because if it were like Darwin described, then the following would happen, blah, blah, blah, and what is observed is quite the opposite, blah, blah, blah…” Please, something, you know, more based in logic and understanding than in simple blind faith.
Or in other words, please give me some logical piece of evidence that bases itself on the theory’s own shortcomings other than the fact that it colides with the bible.
Then I will understand the flaw and reject the theory. Of course, if you prefer to believe in stuff without trying to make sense of them and placing logic aside, it is your choice, one you are entitled to. But please be willing to accept that there are people who don’t like to simply have faith in things and that maybe, just maybe, they can be closer to the truth.
Miguel Correia
Amen Brother! 🙂
Your title to this entry is misleading. The article doesn’t mention anything about misunderstanding evolution but, rather, disbelief of it.
To parrot your logic, an atheist only disbelieves in the existence of God because they misunderstand God.
Of course, you know this is specious reasoning, so stop being such a troll.
(Incidently, I do think evolution is the best theory for the speciation of life we observe on earth, but you’re still being a troll. Knock it off.)
This article and comment follows what usually happens
1. Someone talks about how science is ignored.
2. The people who ignore science gives the people who do care about science shit.
3. The people who do give a damn about science yell back.
We should really get another nation called Jesusland for these fundamentalists.
Please, base your claims on things that have hard evidence.
At least make your experiments repeatable by everyone, not just claiming or stating that whatever event is special. It ain’t convincing.
1 and the rest of you dogmatists: Who are you people that you feel you can tell God how to create?
“Design requires a designer.” sounds reasonable at first, but all available hard evidence (sorry, holy books don’t count–they’re opinions of ill-educated people) points to evolution being the means that life came into existence.
If you wish to believe that [deity] said “make it so,” that’s fine, but all evidence points toward evolution being the way things were made. That’s why many religions have no problem with evolution, seeing it as the way [deity] did things.
jim #33 I’m not sure I see your point. What did I say that’s in dispute?
David #36 I got a biochemistry degree, including many biology courses with all the teachings on evolution, graduated summa cum laude, 3.97GPA. No, I’m not bragging. I’m just saying I was presented with all the evidence and obviously studied it. And I still don’t believe that we evolved starting from compounds bouncing into each other.
gibson #37 So, you’re tired of hearing someone quote a bible verse and want it put away from you? Sounds like segregation. Scary word. That leads to very bad things.
The theory of evolution being the beginning of all life is still a theory because it cannot be proven. There is no way to go back and see how life formed.
That’s why people who believe in evolution creating life also follow a religion. You must have faith to believe that it happened. You’re believing in something unseen. I’m not talking about any kind of adaptation here that we can physically see and monitor.
So, if you think we’re lunatics for believing in something “unseen,” you’re bringing that judgment to yourself, as well. There’s a difference between adaptation and going back all those years ago to see life forming and progressing through all those supposed changes. That is something you’ll never, ever be able to see, sans a time machine that will allow you to go back as far as you want. 🙂
Sorry to post a third time in a row.
To the comment about people previously believing the earth as the center of the universe, what makes you so certain that your evidence for evolution won’t be challenged later on? Science “facts” have been changing since the beginning of time, if you’ll allow the expression.
You believe in randomness and entropy. I’ll believe in God and order and purpose. I’ll not make you believe in God–just leave me the freedom to do so. But I will pray for you all either way.
#57, evolutionary theory does not explain the beginning of life, it only describes how lifeforms change and adapt over time.
#58, “what makes you so certain that your evidence for evolution won’t be challenged later on?
But that’s the point of science, its theories are challenged ALL THE TIME. And scientists say, “Bring it on.” They’re always looking for theories that better explain the world. Religion is not a better theory, however, because it can not be scientifically tested.
“Science “facts” have been changing since the beginning of time, if you’ll allow the expression.”
This is the beauty of science. Facts can be challenged, and they are corrected over time. But if you believe the facts about evolution are going to be better explained by a higher power, you have a real lack of understanding of history and the scientific method.
Proteome
“I got a biochemistry degree, including many biology courses with all the teachings on evolution, graduated summa cum laude, 3.97GPA. ”
Did you go to Oral Roberts university?
You are obviously confused about theory and fact in the realm of science.
I will say it again and then I must stop because I will be reduced to name calling.
Evolution is a evidentiary FACT!
fossils, comparative anatomy, vestigial organs, molecular phylogeny
There are many theories that explain evolution.
Theories are structures of ideas that explain and interpret facts Fact’s don’t just go away because we debate competing theories.