Poll: Evolution rejected by most in survey, Full story at http://www.physorg.com/news7500.html

http://www.physorg.com/news7500.html

This is seriously worrying, particularly for US science and development. Religeous fundamentalists are killing innovation. If we are not carefull we are heading for another "dark ages".

I'd like to see results for this same survey if it were conducted in other countries. It would be interesting to see if this opinion is prevalent outside the United States as well. My own experience would suggest that it is not, but I've no data to support that.

phone poll conducted where? at somebody's evangelical church in alabama? the white house? this crap certainly doesn't fly in california, and even in places like kansas where this is a big issue in the press right now the people pushing creationism are definately a small minority that just happens to be getting a whole lot of attention.

wacko "christian" folks have the spotlight in america right now. those of us here who have paid any attention to science and overall life on earth in the last several hundred years hope to have this problem resolved shortly. we apologize for any inconvienece this may have caused.

folks here have a right to believe whatever crazy crap they want to believe. it's america, enjoy it. i have beliefs that im sure others would call crazy crap too. in america you're free to be as nutty as you want, and we love it. however, bring this creationism bs into my kid's school and you'll have a face full of my middle finger. mainstream science and understanding of reality, even in america, has no place for this caveman mentality.

But whats the trend over time?

100 years ago the number was probably 85% believed that god made man in his image, 200 years ago it was probably 98%.

This is very disturbing! These are the same people that accept and benefit from advances in science everyday, health, consumer tech, economic... yet, they turn their backs on that same scientific process on one of the greatest and best documented discoveries from that science.
I guess it's one of human kinds greatest failings that we are so insecure about ourselves and our place in the universe that we have this need to have an omnipotent being as our creator and (for the most part) cannot accept that we might have come into being through natural selection.

My $0.02

The results of this survey are disturbing but not surprising. The Christian Right is leading the US into a second Dark Ages, one in which hypocrisy and intolerance rule and science has no place. These are the same people who on one hand oppose abortion (because “human life is sacred”) but on the other hand advocate the death penalty, or going to war at the drop of a hat killing hundreds of thousands of children, or opposing initiatives to assist the needy in America (such as retired US veterans who have their benefits trimmed). This group is not capable of rational thought and therefore not capable of making rational choices in the best interest of society, yet they are currently the ones running the show politically. Why is that?

I really don't see any relationship between religion and politics. People on both sides of the fence try to draw one, but I know as many conservative atheists and liberal atheists, and about the same number of Church goers on either side. For every right-wing homophobic wacko there's a left-wing welfare-abusing communist. Politics and religion are sperate animals, and shouldn't be confused.

Oh! You poor misguided people. I've been a science buff (with a degree in electrical engineering), since whenever. I believe in and use the scientific methods and principles as God has allowed us to know them, and use them to advance(?) our society. The universe did not create itself. Except is very rare cases, it is very hostile to life. How many other worlds similar to ours is sheer speculation. And could be none! Every day a new discovery upsets older theories of the universe in some fashion. Answer me this - how long is eternity. Or, Divide 1 by 2 as many times as it takes to get to aboluste zero! You put your faith in man's ability to eventually become a God! I put my faith in the creator of the universe.

I love all the people who say you can't believe in God and also use science and learn about it. The truth of the matter is that if science could prove there was no God, then there would be no argument about the matter. But the facts are it can't. It doesn't even come close. Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawkins, two of the greatest names in science, have both nevr denied the existance of God.

I myself am a 3rd year student in Chemical Engineering and if anything my belief in God has increased the more I learn about the science that defines the world around us.

I'm all for believing what you will, free speech and what not. It's funny that most people who say that freak out and feel they have to say something whenever you start talking about God.... peculiar.

To those asking for comparable figures from other countries: eg. Britain, the figure is well below 25%. as are most other relevant developed nations. I've seen the survey stats, trying to hunt them up.

This Pew survey has some interesting stats.
http://pewforum.org/publications/surveys/postelection.pdf

Looks like Bush won on the Traditional Evalgelical + Latino Non-Catholic + Traditional Catholic votes, esp last two previously Democrat.

Anyone who travels in and out of the US will tell you the religion "thing" is a really striking difference. I was flabergasted going to a factory in Arkansas near Texarcana where almost the first person the plant manager introduced me to was the "plant minister", who is full-time on staff to "minister to the employees". Couldn't believe such an intrusive approach. Almost put my foot in it thinking the guy was joking at first.

This is fu*kin bullsh*t is what it is.

Earthbased man is a modified product, which had been modified by many offworld forces.

Don't you think it highly abnormal, that a yokel can come up with the most advanced physics,. in cosmology, as if this were a fluke?

This is bullsh*t, man was modified.

I still believe in evolution, however' Earthbased man was fiddled with.

Trouble is, these beleivers are the ones who voted in your President,
and he also mentioned that ID should be taught in science class!

I thought the idea was to keep weapons of mass destruction out of the hands of religeous fanatics!

Too late, anon. US already has every bloody type ever thought of, and probably a few besides.

You know its this kind of anti-religious crap that really frucks up the world. You bitch about religious extremism but you cant see your own anti-religious extremism.

At least we've got proof for our brand of extremism.

I believe this theory should be taught in classrooms alongside ID. There are holes in evolution - where did we come from? - which it answers. And I've got loads of books to support it ... even the old XCom game manual supports it! It must be true! Teach the controversy