98% of Texas Science Professors Reject 'Intelligent Design'
Science | Tue, Nov 18, 2008 at 9:53:45 am PST
As we noted recently, the Texas State Board of Education has appointed three “intelligent design” creationists to a six-member committee that will review the state’s science curricula for public schools, two of them affiliated with the Discovery Institute—and these two just happen to be authors of an anti-evolution book that the Institute is trying to sneak into science classes, Explore Evolution.
But a new survey shows that about 98% of Texas biology professors reject the “intelligent design” scam.
Moments ago, the Texas Freedom Network posted to its Web site a study conducted by Dr. Raymond Eve, a professor of sociology and anthropology at the University of Texas at Arlington, titled Evolution, Creationism & Public Schools: Surveying What Texas Scientists Think about Educating Our Kids in the 21st Century. It reveals the results of a survey sent to biology and ”biological anthropology“ faculty members from ”all 35 public universities plus the 15 largest private institutions in Texas,“ in which they were asked to take the following taste test: evolution or intelligent design? As Eve writes in the introduction, the reason for the survey was simple:
”In the spring of 2009, the Texas State Board of Education will vote to adopt new curriculum standards for the teaching of science in grades K – 12 in Texas public schools. (These guidelines are formally known as the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills, or TEKS.) Many observers, both within Texas and around the country, anticipate a vigorous push by certain interest groups to make the debate over the Texas science curriculum the latest front in the running battle over evolution.“
So Eve, and the TFN, wanted to see where educators stood on the issue. Oof the 1,019 faculty members to whom the surveys were sent, 464 responded — and fewer than 1 percent checked off the box marked, “Modern evolutionary biology is mostly wrong. Life arose through multiple creation events by an intelligent designer, although evolution by natural selection played a limited role.” In other words: Do the evolution. Now might be a good time to re-read Jesse Hyde’s March 2008 cover story on the subject.
(Hat tip: Killgore.)
UPDATE at 11/18/08 10:01:41 am:
Here are the complete results from the PDF file linked above:
89.7%
“Modern evolutionary biology is largely correct in its essentials, but still has open questions for active scientific research.”8%
“Modern evolutionary biology is correct in some respects. While further scientific research will require some major alterations to current theory, these advances will not invoke intervention by any supernatural agent.”1.4%
“Modern evolutionary biology is right about the common ancestry of all extant organisms, but it is necessary to supplement it by invoking periodic intervention by an intelligent designer.”0.9%
“Modern evolutionary biology is mostly wrong. Life arose through multiple creation events by an intelligent designer, although evolution by natural selection played a limited role.”0.0%
“Modern evolutionary biology is completely wrong. Life was created essentially as we see it today.”
