Reliving the 80's... the 1680s!

NY Times covered some research by a political scientist, Dr. Miller, concerning his ongoing research into adult Americans and their understanding of basic scientific principles. For example: "One adult American in five thinks the Sun revolves around the Earth, an idea science had abandoned by the 17th century."

Coincidentally, I stood amongst three work colleagues today, none of whom could tell me what the capital of Canada was. A common question I throw out at parties, sometimes for fun, and sometimes just to be a supercilious prick. Indeed, one workmate didn't even guess a city, but a province.

The article carries some great comments about the gaps within the educational system, and the weaknesses of school funding, including his personal tale of a fruitless quest to save his local school. My favourite quote is easily the last one though:

"But not everyone is happy when he says things like that. Every time he goes on the radio to talk about his findings, he said, "I get people sending me cards saying they will pray for me a lot."

There's a correlation there that I am not brave enough to state, but is further validated by nearly everything Pat Robertson says.

And never forget: "There are three types of lies - lies, damn lies, and statistics." So what are the stats for Australian adults? Well, we may not be the smartest race on earth, but we are smart enough not to publish that research. ;)