Summary of Findings Americans say they tracked the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti more closely than any other major news story last week, but they also kept a close watch on news about the U.S. economy and the powerful snow storms that hit the nation’s East Coast and South. Three-in-ten (30%) say they followed […]
The structure of the Internet Respondents were asked to explain their choice and “note organizations you expect to be most likely to influence the future of the Internet and share your view of the effects of this between now and 2020.” A number of respondents pointed out that some of the key issues related to […]
Majorities of the public and Council on Foreign Relations members say Islamic extremist groups, Iran’s nuclear program and international financial instability represent major threats to the well-being of the United States. However, the public is much more likely than CFR members to view the Taliban’s growing strength in Afghanistan, North Korea’s nuclear program, and China’s […]
Overview The public has consistently expressed strong interest in the health care debate, but relatively few Americans can correctly answer two key questions related to the Senate’s consideration of health care legislation. In the latest installment of the Pew Research Center’s News IQ Quiz, just 32% know that the Senate passed its version of the […]
Restrictions on religion can result not only from the actions of governments but also from acts of violence and intimidation by private individuals, organizations or social groups. The Pew Forum’s Social Hostilities Index is a measure of concrete, hostile actions that effectively hinder the religious activities of the targeted individuals or groups. An absence of […]
The Government Restrictions Index is based on 20 questions used by the Pew Forum to assess whether governments – including at the local or provincial level – restrict religious practices or beliefs. The questions are intended to gauge the extent to which governments try to control religious groups or individuals, prohibit conversions from one faith […]
An analysis of the two main ways in which religion is restricted – by government actions and by hostilities in society – reveals a number of patterns. Some are evident in a chart that compares these two measures for the 50 most populous countries as well as for the six countries with smaller populations that […]
Is Google making us stupid? Most experts surveyed in a new Pew Internet/Elon University study say the Internet enhances and augments human intelligence.