Aug 31, 2005

The Earth Remains Flat

by Cliopatria

Dr. Miller's data reveal some yawning gaps in basic knowledge. American adults in general do not understand what molecules are (other than that they are really small). Fewer than a third can identify DNA as a key to heredity. Only about 10 percent know what radiation is. One adult American in five thinks the Sun revolves around the Earth, an idea science had abandoned by the 17th century.

Jon D. Miller is quoted in today's NYT piece about the lack of scientific savvy in American public. This comes on the heels of the Robert Orrill and Linn Shapir's article in the AHR about the lack of historical training in high schools. Along that is Dr. Miller's quote, "Our best university graduates are world-class by any definition," he said."But the second half of our high school population - it's an embarrassment. We have left behind a lot of people." And while such hot-topics as"evolution" are in the press, one really wonders if the debate would be different if we were paying a lot more attention to secondary education in this country.

Related, Dr. Miller has a powerpoint at this NASA website that is worth downloading. For example, he states that only 18 million Americans are interested in scientific discoveries or news.

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More Comments:

Manan Ahmed - 8/31/2005

thanks. fixed it.

Oscar Chamberlain - 8/31/2005

Interesting point. Reading between the lines a bit, and looking at both the article and the Powerpoint, I think that his "half-empty" analysis is derived from not seeing the increase in knowledge resulting in a larger pool of knowledgeable citizens actively interested.

If I am wrong in that, then you are absolutely right and things are getting better.

Alan Allport - 8/31/2005

"While scientific literacy has doubled over the past two decades ..." This factlet is dropped into the third paragraph and never, so far as I can see, referred to again. But surely it is as important as anything else Dr. Miller has to say. Scientific literacy (whatever that means exactly) has doubled in 20 years? Isn't that a cause of celebration rather than breast-beating?

Rebecca Anne Goetz - 8/31/2005

Dr Miller also said:

At one time, this kind of ignorance may not have meant much for the nation's public life. Dr. Miller, who has delved into 18th-century records of New England town meetings, said that back then, it was enough "if you knew where the bridge should be built, if you knew where the fence should be built."

"Even if you could not read and write, and most New England residents could not read or write," he went on, "you could still be a pretty effective citizen."

Actually most New Englanders could at least read, and many could also write. It might be that Americans are now more likely to be functionally illiterate than they were in the eighteenth century...

Oscar Chamberlain - 8/31/2005

I think this is the address for the Miller story: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/30/science/30profile.html