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National Academy of Science is godless to the core — Nature survey

Jonathan Sarfati 

The National Academy of Science (USA) has recently produced a guidebook for public school teachers, Teaching about Evolution and the Nature of Science (for which we produced a detailed rebuttal, Refuting Evolution). This book tries to assure readers that neither the NAS nor evolution are anti-Christian.

But a recent survey published in the leading science journal Nature conclusively showed that the National Academy of Science is anti-God to the core. A survey of all 517 NAS members in biological and physical sciences resulted in just over half responding. 72.2% were overtly atheistic, 20.8 % agnostic, and only 7.0% believed in a personal God. Belief in God and immortality was lowest among biologists. It is likely that those who didn’t respond were unbelievers as well, so the study probably underestimates the level of anti-God belief in the NAS. The unbelief is far higher than the percentage among scientists in general, or in the whole population.

Commenting on the professed religious neutrality of Teaching about Evolution and the Nature of Science, the surveyors comment:

‘NAS President Bruce Alberts said: “There are very many outstanding members of this academy who are very religious people, people who believe in evolution, many of them biologists.” Our research suggests otherwise.’

Source

E.J. Larson and L. Witham, ‘Leading scientists still reject God’, Nature 394(6691):313, 23 July 1998. The sole criterion for being classified as a ‘leading’ or ‘greater’ scientist was membership of the NAS.

Published: 26 February 2006