Six-in-ten Americans say that “humans and other living things have evolved over time,” while a third reject the idea of evolution, saying that “humans and other living things have existed in their present form since the beginning of time.”
The prospect of dying has always fascinated, haunted and, ultimately, defined human beings. From the beginnings of civilization, people have contemplated their own mortality – and considered the possibility of immortality.
The relationship between faith and science in the United States seems, at least on the surface, to be paradoxical. Surveys repeatedly show that most Americans respect science and the benefits it brings to society, such as new technologies and medical treatments. Nevertheless, strong religious convictions can affect some Americans’ willingness to accept certain scientific theories […]
Some of the nation’s leading journalists gathered in Key West, Fla., in May 2009 for the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life’s Faith Angle Conference on religion, politics and public life. Francis S. Collins, the former director of the Human Genome Project, discussed why he believes religion and science are compatible and why the […]
Updated February 3, 2014 1809 Charles Darwin is born to a wealthy family in Shropshire, England. 1831 Darwin begins a five-year voyage as a ship’s naturalist on the HMS Beagle. His observations of scientific phenomena, particularly the wildlife on the Galapagos Islands, lead Darwin to form his theory on the origin and development of life. […]
In advance of the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birthday on Feb. 12, 2009, the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life recently released a research package exploring the evolution controversy in the U.S. The Pew Forum’s U.S. Religious Landscape Survey found that views on evolution differ widely across religious groups. Source: Pew […]
Updated February 3, 2014 Almost 150 years after Charles Darwin published his groundbreaking work On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, Americans are still fighting over evolution. If anything, the controversy has grown in both size and intensity. In the last decade, debates over how evolution should be taught in schools have […]
A Pew Forum research package gives an overview of the debate, examines its social and legal dimensions and reviews the life and ideas of Charles Darwin. ANALYSIS Updated February 3, 2014 Overview: The Conflict Between Religion and Evolution Almost 150 years after Charles Darwin published his groundbreaking work On the Origin of Species by Means […]
Updated February 3, 2014 Buddhism Many Buddhists see no inherent conflict between their religious teachings and evolutionary theory. Indeed, according to some Buddhist thinkers, certain aspects of Darwin’s theory are consistent with some of the religion’s core teachings, such as the notion that all life is impermanent. Religion East and West, “Buddhism and Science: Probing […]
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