Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Evolutionary beliefs in America...

A new Gallup poll shows that fewer people believe in evolution in America now than a decade ago, and it is strongly linked to your political beliefs and how often you go to church. What an abysmal failure of logical thinking and education. Logic needs to be taught - look at this result of the study:

About a quarter of Americans say they believe both in evolution's explanation that humans evolved over millions of years and in the creationist explanation that humans were created as is about 10,000 years ago.
25% believe that you can have it both ways? How is that working, logically?

I generally dislike the use of 'believe' when it comes to evolution. We don't say we believe in gravity, electricity, sound waves, and atoms, but that is the same thing.
I am in awe at every little and big creature and plant here on Earth, I find the diversity amazing! Like these jellyfishes by Ernst Haeckel.

2 comments:

EH said...

I must admit again, as I have done before. There is no contradiction in believing in a creator and have a strong scientific belief (övertygelse) about the evolutionary process! That´s what caused all the fantastic diversity.

I still think and will continue to think that if a divinity had a hand in life on earth, then of course no God would make a rigid creation. Change is good, as well as evolution and diversity! So if you want to believe, believe or explore your spirituality. Science doesn´t explane everything.

It´s strange though, the very same people who doesn´t believe that nature cause change (in species), try to change other species for different purposes, like Belgian blue cows, pigs with human organs?!, potatos with BT-genes and so forth.

Unlike many other forks of science, like particel physics for example, evolutionary biology has many proof of earlier existing species and evolution in certain groups of animals for example. But who can say they have proof for an elektron or a atom, that every man can go see? They are momentarily evidences only and we still believe in them.

And the very fragile point is, are we actually monkeys with homes and cars and bath tubs?

Of course we are, just see what happens when you get poison ivy scratches....

uh..uh...uh... just like a monkey!

;-)

E.H

LS said...

The problem is that here in the US is that many in the very right-wing Christian churches have convinced their followers that you have to choose between evolution and creationism. I know many scientists that believe in God, in many various ways, so there shouldn't be this dichotomy.

But when you start argue that Earth is only 10 000 years old, then you get in trouble with scientific facts, and that is what many of these people are doing.

Evolution can't explain how life started, that is still a mystery. Evolution can't explain what was before Big Bang, if time has been forever, or where DNA come from. Evolution just explains the process of creating diversity, not the origin. I thnk it is strange that not more research is done to find out how life could have originated.

There is a new movement here in the US to make Christians that care about the species to be more enganged in biodiversity conservation and environmental action. E O Wilson's new book is about this, it is called The Creation.

Also, I don't think the right-wing Christian are making the gene-modified organisms, but they probably like to use them after they are made.

Of course we are monkeys. If we are vertebrates, mammals, then we must be monkeys and apes - same principle. The poison ivy is a lot better, I am not acting like a monkey anymore!