[elam]

Caught this over at slashdot.
It's the 2001 National Science Foundation 's survey of Americans and their knowlege of science.

Some eye-openers:

About 50% of Americans don't know that

1. "the earliest humans did not live at the same time as dinosaurs"

2. "it takes Earth one year to go around the Sun."

3. "tomatoes contain genes."

And 50% of Americans believe that ESP exists, 41% believe that astrology is "somewhat scientific", and 1/4 to 1/2 of Americans believe in, get this, "haunted houses, ghost, faith healing and lucky numbers."

No wonder Miss Cleo got so goddamn rich.
I'm moving.

[[Shizo]]

If you feels uncertain about future, then give a hollar to Miss Cleo, mon! lol

Yeah Americans are pretty dumbass, and women are even more so :0
They know more about babies tho!

[Rat]

And that's why I've promised myself never to move to the States.

[the_monkey]

canada is in the same boat.

[Giant Hamster]

Not sure where you come from, but hey, I won't hold it against you...anyways:

1. "the earliest humans did not live at the same time as dinosaurs"

The Flinstones did, DUH. Sheesh...You Fucking retard.

2. "it takes Earth one year to go around the Sun."

Ok, that one I can't excuse...

3. "tomatoes contain genes."

Yeah and pickles have lungs...so what's your point? Does it even matter that tomatoes contain genes? Does it make your life special? No...So, eh. Usless knowledge that I wouldn't expect anyone to know.

1/2 of Americans believe in, get this, "haunted houses, ghost, faith healing and lucky numbers."

I'm not going to try and convince you into anything...but when furniture in my house - aswell as a few people I've known throughout my life aswell as people in my parent's lives - Have shifted, FLOWN, hovered, and other such strangness with flickering lights, etc...AND when many people have seperately - without talking to another about it - claimed that they've heard laughter/crying at my old school underwhich an old burial ground was found later on...I believe in something other than just us. When my friend Kat can push a glass off a table without touching it. When I and my mother have several pictures of large luminent artifacts that are human shaped that Aren't actually there because there is just no way in hell that it was there on video and still photo...I beleive in more than just us.

Eh, you think I'm nuts now...

well, fuck you and visit my site. =)

[Pat]

ESP doesn't exist? Ghosts? Aliens? Prove it. Science hasn't provided us all the answers --and I consider skepticism healthy. The article seems to imply that anyone with a basic scientific education could produce a correct answer --which is a false assumption. Many of the questions don't have scientifically valid answers. How can such a test be used to judge ignorance?

Ironically, Americans are considered some of the best educated people in the world. Sadly, they're joined in their scientific ignorance by other countries:

In a recent poll, 35% of Europeans said that ordinary tomatoes contain no genes, but that genetically altered ones do. You can read the news posting (with link to an the original article) here. In the article Dr. Dean Adell says, "Scientific illiteracy is widespread in Europe, not only in the USA as some might think. I think it's a global phenomenon..."

I think putting too much faith in an article you read on the internet might be the bigger mistake. Depending on how the facts are presented, they can be bent to suit any purpose. One of my favorite examples:

Argument used for gun control: Every year "xxx" number of officers are shot in the line of duty. Guns are dangerous and should be outlawed. In and of itself, this isn't a lie. However, the "xxx" figure which adds credence to their argument is rarely challenged. This figure almost always includes: 1) Officers who shoot themselves with their weapons while cleaning them and other self-inflicted accidents. 2) Officers who deliberately choose to commit suicide with their weapons. 3) Officers who shoot each other and 4) Officers who are shot with their own weapons by criminals (which should be considered invalid data to support a gun ban argument because police weapons are not subject to said legislation). Invariably, the "xxx" figure drops by 1/2 or 1/3 with the most cursory investigation.

Since their testing methodology is not listed, why should I even consider this data to be valid? Yes, ignorance is prevelant, but is it not more likely that the NSF, a governmental agency, is spin-doctoring it's data in the most advantageous manner to perhaps increase their yearly budget? I can't think of a better way than to cry "Wolf!"

-Pat

[wayfinder]

thank you, Charlton Fucking Heston.

Pat: you've been one of the most intelligent and sensible posters so far, but: *shrug*

[ May 01, 2002: Message edited by: wayfinder ]

[Godwin]

quote:

---

Originally posted by elam:
Caught this over at slashdot.
It's the 2001 National Science Foundation 's survey of Americans and their knowlege of science.

Some eye-openers:

About 50% of Americans don't know that

1. "the earliest humans did not live at the same time as dinosaurs"

2. "it takes Earth one year to go around the Sun."

3. "tomatoes contain genes."

And 50% of Americans believe that ESP exists, 41% believe that astrology is "somewhat scientific", and 1/4 to 1/2 of Americans believe in, get this, "haunted houses, ghost, faith healing and lucky numbers."

No wonder Miss Cleo got so goddamn rich.
I'm moving.

---

they're ignorant, americans, thats all


and early humans did not come from monkeys, they could have existerd with dinosaurs, darwin's theory of evolution and natural selection isnt completely ture, although all the damn scientists think it is

[ May 01, 2002: Message edited by: Godwin ]

[elam]

Half of all graduate students at American Universities in Science and Technology are foreign born, many of them Asian.

They come to America because the universities are superior and the economic and political climate is conducive for their fields of study.

But if places like China, Russia and India, who have a much better base of competent home-grown students, begin to develop economically, then investment in the U.S. will decline, in both terms of money and people.

A lot of this is already happening in the software industry, where you can pay a Chinese programmer $.60 an hour to program as opposed to an American at $60,000 a year.
And odds are, the Chinese are more competent.

Whose gonna pick up the slack? Certainly not Americans. Their not qualified.

[travis travis]

elam, the technological revolution helps insure survival of the unfittest. that's the problem. all americans have to do is push the buttons. other countries may develop skill and knowledge, as they already have been for years, but has it benefitted their own countries?

hamster, there's nothing nuts about facing reality. most people are too naturally defensive though to accept anything to do with the paranormal until it's in their face. Ah well, they're in for a nice startle at some time or another.

[[Shizo]]

Back to Miss Cleo.. Isn't she cool?!!!

[Coaster]

quote:

---

they're ignorant, americans, thats all

---

That was pretty redundant.. you could have said "they're ignorant, thats all" or "they're americans, thats all"

Rat and I argued the existance of ESP and other magical things before. She's going to need to prove me wrong sometime.. ..so I can die happily knowing that when I do, I won't just decompose but the contents of my brain will somehow empty out into a smokey whisp and bump into furniture until the end of the world.

[Rat]

Feh. I won't even bother...

[Pixie Nim]

Amusing... I read recently that something like 70% of all American school-leavers can't even point out America on a world map. They point out Russia, 'cos it's the biggest...

and if you're an America - stop being so uptight! Either you already knew these things, which makes you not a dumbass and one of the small percentage , or you didn't, in which case it's true, so don't complain...!
j/k... I can't resist silliness...

Pix

[delo]

statistics in general are dangerous; they can be skewed to present just about any viewpoint depending on how the data is phrased and what information is given or withheld in the synopsis (as pat mentioned, although i'd argue his example of gun control on philosophical grounds ;-)). the same survey results could easily be presented in more glowing language as 'fully half of the american public has a comprehensive scientific education' (which when you think about it, is a fairly substantial figure) . . . which turns a study like this into a glass half-empty/half-full debate. and it's next to impossible for a study like this to be logically extrapolated into a global comparison without corresponding figures. citing china, for example: china may have or be exporting what seems to be a wealth of competent graduate and post-graduate level students, but a realistic look at the raw data demonstrates that the basic level of education for the nation is substantially below that of the united states, with a much higher incidence of illiteracy, let alone maths and sciences. japan, as another example, is widely believed to have the most comprehensive education sstem, but this opinion is generally based on a limited assessment of the statistics: 1) their primary education system is based on memorization and repitition, which are methods geared towards producing quantitive testing results key to their cultural values but somewhat spurious in a discussion of actual scholastic ability, where comprehension is an equally if not more important value. 2) the corresponding statistics also demonstrate that the secondary education system in japan performs well below what the primary figures would tend to indicate, which is why serious students tend to transfer to foreign universities. . .
i think the real issue here is not the relative shortcomings of the american maths and sciences, which in actuality are (more than) competitive on the world stage, but our lack of language abilities and consequent regional or global perspective. . .
delo

[antx]

<< Amusing... I read recently that something like 70% of all American school-leavers can't even point out America on a world map. They point out Russia, 'cos it's the biggest... >>

Hehe, I also read that some month ago. I could not believe it cos I knew where to find Germany (and others as well) on a map since I was 6 or so. But I wonder how true this story really is...

[[Shizo]]

It's true, and many other things they dont know. The kids at high school were really shocking me by not knowing simple things when i first came there.

[PixHortHiT]

Ok, this isnt first hand but its from a reliable sorce: get this a American plutoon stationed in germany for two (!) years, did not have the smallest clue of where the hell in the world they were stationed when their service was over... that is they could NOT point it out on a map!

A friend of mine stationed in Kosovo met this American artillerist who�s job was to pass along different colored ammo for the guns, he dint know anything about caliber, ammo type and so on, my friend was very amused by this and the fact that that individual was trained to do this! Hehe... Send us a blue one! No! Not a red! Blue damnit!

[Giant Hamster]

The Dutch live in windmills, riding sheep, eating melk hagel sandwiches, and walk around with wooden shoes all day in a purely blue and white environment.

The Germans and russians(eeeeeh, all the same!) are 100% drunk, wear silly hats, always yell when they speak and goosestep around as they try to kill eachother.

The Americans are all fat, have mullets, can't count past the number 2, have 20 kids, are on welfare, and love watching Jerry Springer.

The Finnish are all Angsty Jussi Kuusi clones with blonde hair. Hard to tell them apart from the swedish other than the girls are fatter, have bigger boobs, and viking caps...or was that german?

The Asians all have blocky forheads, slanty eyes, buck-teeth, huge heads with bowl cuts, are really short, and like to Kareoke old Elvis songs while solving math equations all day eating rice.

The Canadians all smell like poo(just like the french...related?), Say things like "Aboot", "Aye Okay", "Hoose", and other phrases from Fargo, aswell as eat Canadian Bacon, ride Moose all day, and have floppy heads and beady eyes like Tom Green.

Generalization...Does wonders, 'aye'?

[Highfive]

What about Australians, huh? Carn, throw us yer best!

[Gimbal8]

If the National Science Foundation wants to do a survey to drum up support for funding science education, I'm all for it.

The college my wife goes to has been putting all their money into this $%#@ing stupid football team they started and are building a stadium, parking lot, and other such renovations. Meanwhile most of the science faculty is leaving because their departments are neglected and under budgeted. My wife has to drive 2 hours now to get to a campus that has any decent science courses to finish off the classes she needs before going to grad school.

And that #$@-hole coach came into the cafeteria on campus one time while everyone was eating, got on the microphone and demanded everyones attention before he started speaking about the football team. He even told some people to be quiet when they started talking amongst themselves. I mean, this was right before finals so you know people have more important things on their mind then some stupid jock dribbling on about some retarded sports crap. He's lucky he didn't get a left-over sandwich jammed in his eye socket.

*sigh*

Sorry. I guess that still bugs me.

Anyway, I applaud any effort to further science education. But if the purpose of this post is otherwise...how completely useless.

[antx]

<< Hehe... Send us a blue one! No! Not a red! Blue damnit! >>

Now I realize something... ABC weapons = RGB weapons ?

Giant Hamster: funny, make some more...

Jabberwocky: Take it easy. This thread is not about bashing or slamming anyway...

[[Shizo]]

Americans building school in Afghanistan? Soviet troops were doing the same thing for only reason to show in news papers how kind they are to people of Afghanistan. Same thing Americans are doing now! Didnt they bomb everyone in sight just weeks ago?
Anyways you'll see that the school will be destroyed soon, as were Soviet schools and factories. It's just how their people are, they always fight.

[Guy]

don't take statistics too seriously. it depends on who they asked the questions too and how many people they did in total. does it say that anywhere?

also. i'd like to see the actual questions they asked. they could have been misleading. what if the question was worded like this.

"is it possible that ESP exists?"

well i say yes it's possible, but obviously not proven, but they of course would just mark it down as a yes. do you guy understand what im getting at?

[Gimbal8]

Ever see those Trident or Dentine commecials(I forget which) that would say 9 out of 10 dentist recommend chewing gum after eating meals?

While that may be true, they never mentioned a specific brand. Because it is just a matter of chewing something that keeps the pH up from all the syliva to keep bacteria from building up, not anything to do with a certain brand of gum. But I used to ask people when I was in high school "What brand gum hepls prevent plaque from forming if you chew it after meals?" and people would always name the brand on the commercial.

Just another wonderful use of statistics.

[SWANYDSPIN]

I wasnt going to reply but, I just flicked the idiot box over to Jerry Springer, and well, god america comes up with some stupid shit, but whats worse is that over 70% of the television viewing in Australia is from the good old USA, so we cant help but be influenced by them.

Judge Judy
Jerry Springer
Opra
Ricky Lake

then you get all those reality programes, god they suck, but we're the stupid ones by folowing their leads, Australia is so fucking weak, so is New Zealand!

We're all stupid exept for Canada

[Impaler]

As long as statisticians are PAID to gather results, they are untrustable.

Not only that, but people occasionally get psyched out by the testing environment, and out of preservation of their own ego, become precipitously wary of any slowballs.

Example: a) How long does it take the earth to rotate around the sun?

Your first thought would automatically be a year, right? Right. However, remember now that you're nervous and constantly second guessing yourself, so the first answer is probably wrong. Combine that with all sorts of astronomical data from 6th grade science with Mrs. Spleet, and you've got one confused honky.

Everyone on this forum has taken some sort of test, where upon later review, has discovered that they made some stupid mistake that could have easily been avoided under normal circumstances.

Granted, Americans only speak one language, and most never make it past basic geometry, but we're by no means dumb. If we were, then why in the hell would this forum be in English?

[Rat]

I think the only smart countries are the ones who DON'T mirror every move the States makes. That means Canada's out...

Reality TV sucks. So do talkshows.

[FatPenguin]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Highfive:
What about Australians, huh? Carn, throw us yer best!

---

Most Australians have never seen a car, they all ride kangaroos around instead.

"Sorry I'm late for work mate, my kangaroo broke down"

[Giant Hamster]

"A'it'z a-right, mate. WOOOOWWWW!! would ya take'a look at this beauty right hea?! WOW! I've neva seen teeth this lahrg on a croc of this size! Lemme stick mah finga rrrrriiiight up its ass!" *poke* "Whoa! Didja see that?! It instintively tried to bite my arm! *wiggles arm-stub in air* It must be protectin' it's babies! Speakin' of babies, Ma'am. Your's is gone!"

"What!?! Oh no! Dingo* ate mah baby!!"

"Fosters - American for Australians." ::rides off on a kangaroo::

*Not the Finnish hair-band.