Jon Miller replies to my question about the difference in fundamentalist cultures in US vs. Europe that fundamentalism is so rare in Europe that it doesn't matter, and can't overwhelm long-standing traditions of hierarchal knowledge flows. Spain has a very conservative subculture within its Catholicism, which may influence the negative effect of religiosity on science literacy there. Netherlands have a small but vocal fundamentalist group which may explain the small negative effect there.
A panel attendee notes that when he visits his grandmother's church in Germany at Christmas, the priest begins with a history of creation tracing back to the Big Bang. He argues, quite plausibly, that this integration and consistency of the message received in church with the knowledge conveyed in science classes and newspapers and TV and the internet provides an effective barricade against anti-science messages.
- Log in to post comments