Where did human beings come from — did we start as singular cells millions of year ago and evolve into our present form, or did God create us in his image 10,000 years ago?
In a recent survey by Angus Reid Public Opinion, it seems the answer to this scientific — or religious — question is not quite settled. According to the findings, 61 per cent of Canadians and 69 per cent of Britons think human beings evolved from simpler life forms, while just 30 per cent of Americans agree.
Fifty-one per cent of Americans, meanwhile, think God created people in the past 10,000 years, a belief commonly known as "creationism" that is shared by only 22 per cent of Canadians and 17 per cent of Britons. The remaining respondents said they were "not sure."
Recently, Bill Nye ("The Science Guy") created a video emphasizing the importance of teaching evolution to children as scientific fact.
"I say to the grownups, 'If you want to deny evolution and live in your world that's completely inconsistent with everything we've observed in the universe that's fine. But don't make your kids do it,'" said Nye. "When you have a portion of the population that doesn't believe in (evolution) it holds everybody back, really," he said.
Across all three nations, males were more likely than women to believe in evolution, while females expressed a stronger belief in creationism. The study surveyed 1,002 Americans, 2,010 Britons and 1,510 Canadians. It also found regional differences for each belief.
Where does your province stand on evolution vs. creationism? Check out these stats below:
