LONDON: According to new survey by the Pew Research Center of American adults that most people think science has made life easier for most people, their views of scientific achievements has dropped four points since the last poll done in 2009.
Cary Funk, the American public has “a slightly more negative take” regarding scientific achievements, although a majority still are “saying positive things about the contribution of science to society.”
The data also show big differences between the public and scientists on a variety of key issues.
On the question of climate change, a very large gap exists between scientists’ views and the American public. A large majority—87 percent—of scientists believe climate change is due to human activity while only 50 percent of the American public think so.
When it comes to concerns about the growing world population, 59 percent of Americans think it is a major problem as opposed to 82 percent of scientists.
The Pew survey also found a considerable gap of 20 points between the public and scientists on whether they favor building more nuclear power plants. Forty-five percent of Americans think more nuclear plants are a good idea compared to 65 percent of the scientific community.
Another enormous difference exists between the way scientists and the public view genetically modified foods, according to the poll, with almost 90 percent of scientists believing they are safe for consumption. Only 37 percent of ordinary citizens agree it is safe to eat food that has been genetically altered.
The survey found another large gap between scientists and the general public on the question of whether humans evolved over time. The vast majority of scientists—98 percent—say yes, while just 65 percent of ordinary American adults believe in the evolution of the human species.
However, Funk and co-author Lee Rainie say that despite many stark divides between scientists and the public on a range of science, engineering, and technology issues, scientific achievements still hold an esteemed place in the public’s mind—though slightly less so than in 2009.
For example, almost 80 percent of Americans say science has made life easier for people and most are positive about science’s impact on health care and the environment, the authors say. And 72 percent of those surveyed believe that government investments in science, engineering, and technology are generally worth it, with 61 percent saying that federal dollars are necessary for scientific progress and only 34 percent saying that private investment is sufficient for progress to be made.
