Why do half of Britons not believe in evolution?

The Examiner ^ | 07/31/2014 | Ken Ammi

[SeekAndFind]

The info which follows dates to 2009 AD and may be the most recent stats.

Indeed, as reported by the UK’s Guardian; Half of Britons do not believe in evolution, survey finds (Riazat Butt, February 1, 2009 AD) and Teach both evolution and creationism say 54% of Britons (Jessica Shepherd, October 25, 2009 AD). Thus half do not believe in it and more than half believe that both views should be taught.

Keep in mind that while the UK does have RE (religious education) in public schools; it is a very, very, very secular society which is saturated with Darwinism. Logically, they would be the most Darwinian society and yet, “More than one-fifth prefer creationism or intelligent design, while many others are confused about Darwin's theory.” Ah, the good ol' we have been explaining Darwinism for over a century and a half and the hoi polloi still do not get it!!! Well, there may be other reasons for rejecting it such as understanding it and realizing that biology is a science but Darwinism is a philosophy and since it makes unsubstantiated claims it is therefore being rejected.

The stats are a result of the study titled Rescuing Darwin - God and evolution in Britain today by Nick Spencer and Denis Alexander and was conducted on the 150th anniversary of the publication of On The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or The Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life.

The Guardian reports note:

Half of British adults do not believe in evolution, with at least 22% preferring the theories of creationism or intelligent design to explain how the world came about, according to a survey.

[JimSEA]

If you will, we’re not supposed to “believe” in the theory of evolution. It’s not a matter of faith, it’s a scientific theory backed up by objective evidence. Tons of evidence. It works.

[Boogieman]

Believing matter and energy can arise from nothing without outside intervention is even worse than believing storks bring babies.

At least storks bringing babies could be theoretically possible, according to the laws of physics.

[Boogieman]

“It’s not a matter of faith, it’s a scientific theory backed up by objective evidence.”

Evidence can’t be objective, since that is a property that only sentient beings can possess.

[RobbyS]

Push come to shove, Darwin’s theory does not fit the facts. It properly describes variation, and adaptation, because thatwhich he he directly observed . It does not explain how the complex creatures whose forms appear in the Cambrian rocks came into being,with no antecedents in the older rocks.

[RinaseaofDs]

Because they can see a disproven scientific theory for what it is.

[RobbyS]

More to the point, it does not explain how life came into existence. Furthermore, our chemistry/physics/geology does no more than provide implausible hypotheses about conditions on the earth at the time before the seas teemed with the rich life forms of the Cambrian.

[Peter ODonnell]

I suppose an opinion poll is too crude an instrument to find out what kind of evolution various numbers of people believe in. It would seem to me that there’s probably three rather than two groups of opinion, one being an atheist “process of evolution” school, one being a form of intelligent design that incorporates some evolution, and a third school that believes all things we see were created more or less simultaneously, then that divides into a six thousand year camp and a less literalist camp. So actually four schools of thought. Mark me down as “don’t know” because that’s the only really defensible position to take in all of that.

[98ZJ USMC]

Irrelevant. Most religious schools teach the same science curriculum as public schools.

Much more, actually, but it is completely irrelevant, because......

Ask any Catholic school what they teach in science class.

I was taught both, concurrently, in Catholic grade school which is far more involved than the publics. Creation and evolution are not mutually exclusive concepts.

[octex]

At least a third of Americans will not know what ‘evolution’ is.
***********************
Most likely because they and their ancestors haven’t been participants.

Intelligent Design and Darwin’s theories fit like hand in glove. The hyper-religious folks tend to think everyone and everything was created in a “flash” and have difficulty understanding the concept of many millions of years.

Who’s to say that the Intelligent Design concept is complete? Evolution indicates all flora and fauna (including humans) is continuing to change. ....No telling what might live on Earth a million years from now.

[octex]

Ooops. ...Too early in the a.m.

is continuing to change.

Should be “are” continuing to change.

[aardwolf46]

The Bible contains forty or fifty stories about miracles. Evolution requires countless billions of outright zero-probability events, each a sort of a mathematical miracle. It turns everything we know about modern math and probability theory on its head upside down.

[BroJoeK]

matthew fuller: "At least a third of Americans will not know what ‘evolution’ is."

FYI, here are statistics from Gallup on US beliefs regarding evolution.

The numbers of those who believe God had no hand in evolution has increased from 10% thirty years ago to nearly 20% today.

The numbers of those who believe God created humans in our present form has remained constant at around 40%.

The numbers of those who believe God guides evolution ("theistic evolutionism") fell from nearly 40% thirty years ago to now about 30%.
In other words: one fourth of these believers have switched to non-belief.

Around 10% had & have no opinion.

Doubtless, these correspond roughly to our political beliefs:

1. 20% hard-core atheistic "progressive/liberals".

2. 40% solid believing social-conservatives.

3. 30% "moderate" can't-we-all-get-along more-or-less conservatives.

The sad part is that while groups two & three squabble amongst ourselves, the first group, a minority of just 20%, rules over us.

[TexasGator]

“40% solid believing social-conservatives.”

I know a lot of these that voted for Obama ...

[BroJoeK]

aardwolf46: "Evolution requires countless billions of outright zero-probability events, each a sort of a mathematical miracle.
It turns everything we know about modern math and probability theory on its head upside down."

You clearly misunderstand both evolution and probability.
Basic evolution theory combines two observed-confirmed facts:

1. Descent with modifications -- meaning off-spring are not identical to their parents.
   This is caused by both genetic diversity within our DNA, and by more-or-less random mutations in every new generation.
   The probability of generational modifications is nearly 100%.

2. Natural selection -- meaning survival of the best adapted.
   The probability that some off-spring are better adapted for survival than others is nearly 100%.

Of course, "zero probability events" you refer to may relate to various hypotheses on abiogenic origins of life.
Indeed, such concerns are one major reason all such scientific speculations are still "hypotheses", not confirmed "theories".
So long as they depend on low probability events, they cannot be repeated in a laboratory, and will remain, perhaps forever unconfirmed hypotheses.

But do not be surprised if, even in our lifetimes, a long series of high-probability natural chemical reactions can be demonstrated as leading to precursors of life capable of undergoing Darwinian evolution.

[BroJoeK]

"I know a lot of these that voted for Obama ..."

Yes, and I'd wager a lunch that nearly all of them now regret their votes.

[TexasGator]

“Yes, and I’d wager a lunch that nearly all of them now regret their votes. “

The ones I know are happy that they kept the republicans from cutting off their benefits.

[BroJoeK]

TexasGator: "The ones I know are happy that they kept the republicans from cutting off their benefits."

I doubt if very many of those fall into the category of "traditional believing Christians".
At best they would be moderates, at worst... well, perhaps they conflate & confuse the Bible's Deity with the current occupant of our White House?

[MrB]

The stats show that you’re more likely to find evolutionary belief in the seminary/philosophy college of a university than you are in the science department.

[MrB]

Dissent is not allowed.

“We don’t let them have guns, why would we let them have ideas?”

[Boogieman]

Yes, they rule us because group 3 votes for group 1, because group 3 are idiots.