Half of Americans Aren’t Sure Big Bang Happened
It’s just a theory, right?
Scientists be damned, slightly more than half of Americans are doubtful the Big Bang ever happened, according to a new Associated Press poll.
The poll, conducted in partnership with research firm GfK, asked respondents to rate their confidence in several scientific theories. The Big Bang fared the worst, with 51 percent of of those asked saying they were either “not too confident’’ or “not confident at all’’ that the universe began with an explosion 13.8 billion years ago.
From the AP’s analysis of the findings:
[fragment number=0]
The poll was conducted March 20-24, just days after astrophysicists announced newly discovered evidence supporting the Big Bang theory.
Political and religious beliefs appear to be factors in whether respondents were on board with the theory, according to the AP. The AP-GfK pollsters found less support for the Big Bang theory among Republicans, people who regularly attended church, and those with “faith in a supreme being.’’
There were also respondents who weren’t comfortable with a theory about something that happened when no one was around to see it, according to the AP:
[fragment number=1][fragment number=2]
[fragment number=3][fragment number=4]
Statements about evolution, climate change, and and the age of the Earth also faced strong resistance in the poll, according to the AP.
The survey wasn’t all bad news for Team Science. The statement “smoking causes cancer’’ topped the list of accepted scientific theories, with 94 percent of respondents saying they were “extremely,’’ “very,’’ or “somewhat’’ confident it was correct. Mental illness as a brain disease, genetic code theory, and concerns about the overuse of antibiotics leading to drug-resistant bacteria all found wide support in the poll.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com