Half of Brit Adults Do Not Believe in Evolution: Survey

A new survey has found that half of British adults do not believe in evolution, with at least 22 percent preferring the theories of creationism or intelligent design to explain how the world came about, and many confused about Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution.

According to a report in the Guardian, the poll, known as "The Rescuing Darwin survey", was carried out to coincide with the 200th anniversary of Darwin’s birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of his book, "On the Origin of Species".

The poll found that 25 percent of Britons believe Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution is "definitely true", with another quarter saying it is "probably true".

Half of the 2,060 people questioned were either strongly opposed to the theory or confused about it.

About 12 percent people preferred intelligent design, the idea that evolution alone is not enough to explain the structures of living organisms.

The remainder were unsure, often mixing evolution, intelligent design and creationism together.

"Creationists ask if people believe in evolution. Evolution is a theory and a fact. You accept it because of the evidence. What the creationists have done is put a cloak of pseudo-science to wrap up their religious belief," said James Williams, a lecturer at Sussex University.

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"Evolution is very badly taught in schools; so the results of the survey don’t surprise me. On the other hand, creationism has traditionally been an issue in North America and there is a big problem in Australia and Turkey. It matters if people don’t understand how science works," he added.

Source-ANI
SPH