"Science Journalism in an Irrational World" presentation at Yale by Sharon Begly, senior editor and science editor of Newsweek magazine, described studies that demonstrate the science ignorance of Americans:
33% think evolution is definitely false, next to last above Turkey, whereas 80% think evolution is definitely true in most other countries, yet 78% say evolution can be applied to every specie except humans.
78% understand that the center of the Earth is very hot.
64% understand that the father's DNA determines the sex of the baby.
72% believe all radiation is man-mage.
44% understand electrons are smaller than atoms.
40% believe antibiotics kill viruses as well as bacteria.
35% understand the universe began with a huge explosion.
48% believe humans lived at the same time as dinosaurs.
79% understand continental drift.
73% understand that the Earth goes around the Sun.
43% understand that it takes a year for the Earth to go around the Sun.
21% understand that DNA is the molecule of hereditary.