ScienceDaily
Your source for the latest research news
Follow Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Subscribe RSS Feeds Newsletters
New:
  • Old-Growth Trees More Drought Tolerant
  • Early Life Experiences: Long-Lasting Impact ...
  • Nanomaterial Cuts Fat in Specific Parts of Body
  • 3D Printing Metal-Plastic Composite Structures
  • 2,000-Year-Old Shipwreck: Complex Trade
  • Mammoth Problem With Extinction Timeline
  • Landslide Risk Remains Long After a Quake
  • Physicists Observe Wormhole Dynamics
  • New Method of Spinal Cord Tissue Repair
  • How Giant-Faced Owls Snag Voles Hidden in Snow
advertisement
Follow all of ScienceDaily's latest research news and top science headlines!
Science News
from research organizations

1

2

American Adults Flunk Basic Science

Date:
March 13, 2009
Source:
California Academy of Sciences
Summary:
Are Americans flunking science? A new national survey commissioned by the California Academy of Sciences and conducted by Harris Interactive reveals that the US public is unable to pass even a basic scientific literacy test.
Share:
FULL STORY

Are Americans flunking science? A new national survey commissioned by the California Academy of Sciences and conducted by Harris Interactive® reveals that the U.S. public is unable to pass even a basic scientific literacy test.

advertisement

Over the past few months, the American government has allocated hundreds of billions of dollars for economic bailout plans. While this spending may provide a short-term solution to the country's economic woes, most analysts agree that the long-term solution must include a transition to a more knowledge-based economy, including a focus on science, which is now widely recognized as a major driver of innovation and industry.

Despite its importance to economic growth, environmental protection, and global health and energy issues, scientific literacy is currently low among American adults. According to the national survey commissioned by the California Academy of Sciences:

  • Only 53% of adults know how long it takes for the Earth to revolve around the Sun.
  • Only 59% of adults know that the earliest humans and dinosaurs did not live at the same time.
  • Only 47% of adults can roughly approximate the percent of the Earth's surface that is covered with water.*
  • Only 21% of adults answered all three questions correctly.

Knowledge about some key scientific issues is also low. Despite the fact that access to fresh water is likely to be one of the most pressing environmental issues over the coming years, less than 1% of U.S. adults know what percent of the planet's water is fresh (the correct answer is 3%). Nearly half didn't even hazard a guess. Additionally, 40% of U.S. adults say they are "not at all knowledgeable" about sustainability.

Despite this lack of knowledge, U.S. adults do believe that scientific research and education are important. About 4 in 5 adults think science education is "absolutely essential" or "very important" to the U.S. healthcare system (86%), the U.S. global reputation (79%), and the U.S. economy (77%).

"There has never been a greater need for investment in scientific research and education," said Academy Executive Director Dr. Gregory Farrington. "Many of the most pressing issues of our time—from global climate change to resource management and disease—can only be addressed with the help of science."

To test your own scientific knowledge, please visit the California Academy of Sciences' website at http://www.calacademy.org.

Methodology

This survey was conducted by telephone within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of the California Academy of Science between December 17 and December 21, 2008 among 1,002 adults ages 18+.

* The approximately correct answer range for this question was defined as anything between 65% and 75%. Only 15% of respondents answered this question with the exactly correct answer of 70%.

make a difference: sponsored opportunity

Story Source:

Materials provided by California Academy of Sciences. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Cite This Page:

  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago
California Academy of Sciences. "American Adults Flunk Basic Science." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 13 March 2009. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090312115133.htm>.
California Academy of Sciences. (2009, March 13). American Adults Flunk Basic Science. ScienceDaily. Retrieved December 1, 2022 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090312115133.htm
California Academy of Sciences. "American Adults Flunk Basic Science." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090312115133.htm (accessed December 1, 2022).

  • RELATED TOPICS
    • Mind & Brain
      • Mental Health
      • K-12 Education
      • Intelligence
      • Consumer Behavior
    • Science & Society
      • STEM Education
      • Environmental Policies
      • Resource Shortage
      • Economics
advertisement

  • RELATED TERMS
    • Funding policies for science
    • Political science
    • Yoga (alternative medicine)
    • Experiment
    • Double blind
    • Public services
    • Scientific misconduct
    • Cognitive science
advertisement

  Print   Email   Share

advertisement

1

2

3

4

5
Most Popular
this week

HEALTH & MEDICINE
Put the Kettle On! How Black Tea (and Other Favorites) May Help Your Health Later in Life
Differences Between Brains of Primates Are Small but Significant, Study Shows
Human Evolution Wasn't Just the Sheet Music, but How It Was Played
MIND & BRAIN
525-Million-Year-Old Fossil Defies Textbook Explanation for Brain Evolution
How Women Can Reduce the Risk of Hip Fracture
Artificial Neural Networks Learn Better When They Spend Time Not Learning at All
LIVING & WELL
Why Some People Are Mosquito Magnets
Wireless Earphones as Inexpensive Hearing Aids
Cancer Scientist Finds Dramatic Rise in Anal Cancer in Midwest and Southeast US
advertisement

Strange & Offbeat
 

HEALTH & MEDICINE
Green Means GO! Ultra-Violet Means STOP!
AI-Generated X-Ray Images Fooled Medical Experts and Improved Osteoarthritis Classification
Synthetic Biology Meets Medicine: 'Programmable Molecular Scissors' Could Help Fight COVID-19 Infection
MIND & BRAIN
525-Million-Year-Old Fossil Defies Textbook Explanation for Brain Evolution
Witchcraft Beliefs Are Widespread, Highly Variable Around the World, Study Finds
Artificial Neural Networks Learn Better When They Spend Time Not Learning at All
LIVING & WELL
AI Helps Researchers Design Microneedle Patches That Restore Hair in Balding Mice
Cats Distinguish Between Speech Directed at Them and Humans, Study Finds
Unlocking the Power of Our Emotional Memory
Explore More
from ScienceDaily

RELATED STORIES

Context in Science Reporting Affects Beliefs About, and Support For, Science
July 6, 2021 — How the media frame stories about science affects the public's perception about scientific accuracy and reliability, and one particular type of narrative can help ameliorate the harm to science's ...
Survey Finds American Support for Human-Animal Chimera Research
Oct. 1, 2020 — In September 2015, the US National Institutes of Health placed a funding moratorium on research that involves introducing human pluripotent stem cells into animal embryos. To assess attitudes on ...
Helping Anxious Students Excel on Science Exams
Jan. 15, 2019 — A new study released today reveals that helping lower-income high school freshman to regulate their test-taking anxiety can cut their biology course failure rates in half. The study, published in ...
Affordable Care Act: Study Finds Surprising Gaps in HIV Care Providers' Knowledge
Sep. 20, 2018 — More than a quarter of providers were unable to say whether their state had expanded Medicaid, the national survey found. The survey also sought to assess the healthcare providers' views on the ...
advertisement


SD
  • SD
    • Home Page
    • Top Science News
    • Latest News
  • Home
    • Home Page
    • Top Science News
    • Latest News
  • Health
    • View all the latest top news in the health sciences,
      or browse the topics below:
      Health & Medicine
      • Allergy
      • Alternative Medicine
      • Birth Control
      • Cancer
      • Diabetes
      • Diseases
      • Heart Disease
      • HIV and AIDS
      • Obesity
      • Stem Cells
      • ... more topics
      Mind & Brain
      • ADD and ADHD
      • Addiction
      • Alzheimer's
      • Autism
      • Depression
      • Headaches
      • Intelligence
      • Psychology
      • Relationships
      • Schizophrenia
      • ... more topics
      Living Well
      • Parenting
      • Pregnancy
      • Sexual Health
      • Skin Care
      • Men's Health
      • Women's Health
      • Nutrition
      • Diet and Weight Loss
      • Fitness
      • Healthy Aging
      • ... more topics
  • Tech
    • View all the latest top news in the physical sciences & technology,
      or browse the topics below:
      Matter & Energy
      • Aviation
      • Chemistry
      • Electronics
      • Fossil Fuels
      • Nanotechnology
      • Physics
      • Quantum Physics
      • Solar Energy
      • Technology
      • Wind Energy
      • ... more topics
      Space & Time
      • Astronomy
      • Black Holes
      • Dark Matter
      • Extrasolar Planets
      • Mars
      • Moon
      • Solar System
      • Space Telescopes
      • Stars
      • Sun
      • ... more topics
      Computers & Math
      • Artificial Intelligence
      • Communications
      • Computer Science
      • Hacking
      • Mathematics
      • Quantum Computers
      • Robotics
      • Software
      • Video Games
      • Virtual Reality
      • ... more topics
  • Enviro
    • View all the latest top news in the environmental sciences,
      or browse the topics below:
      Plants & Animals
      • Agriculture and Food
      • Animals
      • Biology
      • Biotechnology
      • Endangered Animals
      • Extinction
      • Genetically Modified
      • Microbes and More
      • New Species
      • Zoology
      • ... more topics
      Earth & Climate
      • Climate
      • Earthquakes
      • Environment
      • Geography
      • Geology
      • Global Warming
      • Hurricanes
      • Ozone Holes
      • Pollution
      • Weather
      • ... more topics
      Fossils & Ruins
      • Ancient Civilizations
      • Anthropology
      • Archaeology
      • Dinosaurs
      • Early Humans
      • Early Mammals
      • Evolution
      • Lost Treasures
      • Origin of Life
      • Paleontology
      • ... more topics
  • Society
    • View all the latest top news in the social sciences & education,
      or browse the topics below:
      Science & Society
      • Arts & Culture
      • Consumerism
      • Economics
      • Political Science
      • Privacy Issues
      • Public Health
      • Racial Disparity
      • Religion
      • Sports
      • World Development
      • ... more topics
      Business & Industry
      • Biotechnology & Bioengineering
      • Computers & Internet
      • Energy & Resources
      • Engineering
      • Medical Technology
      • Pharmaceuticals
      • Transportation
      • ... more topics
      Education & Learning
      • Animal Learning & Intelligence
      • Creativity
      • Educational Psychology
      • Educational Technology
      • Infant & Preschool Learning
      • Learning Disorders
      • STEM Education
      • ... more topics
  • Quirky
    • Top News
    • Human Quirks
    • Odd Creatures
    • Bizarre Things
    • Weird World
Free Subscriptions

Get the latest science news with ScienceDaily's free email newsletters, updated daily and weekly. Or view hourly updated newsfeeds in your RSS reader:

  • Email Newsletters
  • RSS Feeds
Follow Us

Keep up to date with the latest news from ScienceDaily via social networks:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
Have Feedback?

Tell us what you think of ScienceDaily -- we welcome both positive and negative comments. Have any problems using the site? Questions?

  • Leave Feedback
  • Contact Us
About This Site  |  Staff  |  Reviews  |  Contribute  |  Advertise  |  Privacy Policy  |  Editorial Policy  |  Terms of Use
Copyright 1995-2022 ScienceDaily or by other parties, where indicated. All rights controlled by their respective owners.
Content on this website is for information only. It is not intended to provide medical or other professional advice.
Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily, its staff, its contributors, or its partners.
Financial support for ScienceDaily comes from advertisements and referral programs, where indicated.
— CCPA: Do Not Sell My Information — GDPR: Privacy Settings —