On 2/17/2014 10:30 AM, F*O*A*D wrote:
On 2/17/14, 10:21 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 2/17/2014 10:13 AM, F*O*A*D wrote:
1 in 4 Americans think the sun revolves around Earth


This one might be one of the most disturbing stories you'll hear all
day. Does the sun revolve around the Earth, or does the Earth revolve
around the sun?

The National Science Foundation posed this question to 2,200 Americans
back in 2012. The results were published Friday and 26 percent of people
surveyed believe the sun moves around the Earth. (Via Discovery)

"The foundation says that's frightening, claiming that is why this
nation needs more money invested in teaching science in school." (Via
KUSI)

The survey is conducted every few years to monitor America's educational
progress. But maybe you don't think 26 percent is too much to be worried
about. (Via National Science Foundation)

Well, lets bring you back down to Earth, aka what some believe is the
center of the universe. CNET writes, about "52 percent of Americans had
no idea that humans evolved from animal species. This may be the 52
percent of people who believe that mayonnaise comes from the mayo
plant."

Back to the whole Earth-sun thing, those who answered the question wrong
are more than late to the game — the first notion of Heliocentrism was
around the third century B.C.

http://tinyurl.com/ma9sl8a

- - -
The idea that the sun revolves around the earth is a deeply religious
concept...


or maybe too many liberal arts courses and not enough science and
technology. :-)





Once again, the liberal arts include all sorts of science and math
classes and, among them, astronomy.


The younger of my daughter's two boys (Ben) is 14 years old. He's a
smart kid, very interested in science and technology related subjects.
During a recent parent/teacher conference his science teacher told my
daughter that he's "weird", but didn't mean it in a derogatory sense.
The teacher explained that Ben is very quiet, doesn't ask many questions
or participate much in classroom discussions but he aces or near aces
every test and exam.

We were just talking last night about this so I challenged Ben with the
same question about riding a bicycle or motorcycle in a straight line at
a speed of about 20 mph and applying slight forward pressure on one of
the handlebars. That prompted quite a discussion (as it did here) but
he got the principle fairly quickly. So, to get him into some
classroom discussion in school, I suggested that he ask his science
teacher the same question when they go back to school after February
vacation. He can't wait. This should be interesting.