I took this fun science literacy quiz, and got 47 out of 50 questions correct.
The ones I missed were all in biology and life sciences, my weakest subject. Since so many of the angroids label climate skeptics as “scientifically illiterate”, and because climate change is specifically mentioned, I thought it would be fun to share and to have readers post their scores. Many of the questions are simple, like the first one:
Then there’s some tougher ones, like about Planck’s constant and some that require some simple physics math, F=ma and stuff like that. There’s a bit of irony in whose website the poll is on.
The Christian Science Monitor.
http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2011/1209/Are-you-scientifically-literate-Take-our-quiz/
Surprisingly, there wasn’t a single question about climate change, even though they mention it. If you feel like taking it, don’t succumb to the temptation to look up everything on the Internet…there’s no sport in perfect scores.
To Steamboat Jack, I thought the additional Greek information tended to obscure the actual question, somewhat like “If a train leaves San Francisco going 30 mph, how many green chinese pots in a dozen”. XD
Zygote – isn’t that the last goat in the line? ;-p
I got 41. OK, but is was more a memory test than a scientific test. Got zygote and nimbus, flunked the astronomical ones badly.
Also, for the record, I have no empirical data that the Earth, galaxy, or universe predates my birth.
46/50
I missed 4, but the only one I was embarrassed by was dividing instead on the Newton question.
44. Saved by elimination and that I read Latin, and through that some Greek.
47 out of 50.
The cloud, gamma, Bernoulli’ principle
Cloud, gamma and Bernoulli’s principle
47. Tripped up by zygote, Erin (never ‘eard of it!) and nimbus.
Poster Imoira deserves a special mention for his/her “Scientific literacy is knowing that you don’t know how much you don’t know but you do know that you need evidence to show what you think you already know.”
I have to express my admiration for your 47 Anthony.
I can claim little credit for my 46 because this was my second attempt at it. Dammit, I still got 4 wrong! The first time I did it was several weeks ago. I can’t say exactly when, for I am chronologically challenged.
Questions on scientific history and nomenclature are interesting, but I personally wouldn’t include them when testing somebody’s knowledge of science.
Two quick asides- according to the Jewish calendar this is the year 5772, and their tradition has it that they’ve been counting since the creation of Adam. Also, the book title is ‘Finnegans Wake’, no apostophe. We’re on the internet people, it’s not hard to fact check before posting.
46
Correct
4
Wrong
Am sure the pilots in the group got the NIMBUS question. cumulus + nimbus 🙂
47/50, but 100% on their climate quiz 🙂
40/50. Those planets sux.
44 out of 50 could do better as my teachers were always fond of saying.
Had a couple of Homer moments. Doh
44 / 50 I’m a bit miffed with myself 🙁
Logicophilosophicus,
Fred Hoyle was furious with Gamov and LeMaitre for suggesting that the universe was not static and never accepted the expanding universe theory and he died in 2001!! Too bad since got the atomic synthesis theory correct for atoms larger than iron. Hoyle was a simple case of a recalcitrant, intelligent, atheist, consumed with his own arrogance. His snotty disposition won him many enemies. I’m sure he thought himself flawless.
Nowadays, there is a lot of rewriting of history about Fred Holye since he was a popular atheist figure in the 1940s and 1950s, and he was so completely and spectacularly wrong about the static universe model.
As for Friedman…. I think you are alone in asserting that he thought up the big bang.
I’d like to see that in writing… Lemaitre wrote his ideas down, had them reviewed and published, as did Gamov. My Grandfather told me he thought it up all by himself in 1899 but he never wrote it down either.
50. Science nerd I guess. Biophysics helps.
I was impressed that the Christian Science Monitor got the age of the Earth and the Universe right, i.e. not 6015 years.
I’m far more proud of doing so much worse on the “climate change” quiz.
http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/2011/0422/Earth-Day-How-much-do-you-know-about-climate-change-Take-our-quiz/greenhouse-gas
I also took their climate change quiz, it’s only ten questions. I nearly gave up after one very dubious ”correct” answer which I didn’t agree with. Ended up with 8 out of 10, so I nearly know what I’m talking about.
43 out of 50 for me. Most embarassing for me, as an engineer, I got the F =ma question wrong by multiplying instead of dividing. Proves that overconfidence leads to errors. I think I missed most of the bio questions, but I did get Zygote.
48/50. (Lowest gravity planet, symbol for coefficient of friction.)
Each of C, A, and GW is a fraud. Lysenko rulz ok.
39/50. I didn’t realize I know nothing about biology. And Austral what’s his name is from Africa and not Australia? WUWT? They’re misnaming old people.
35/50 🙁 I have got to stop second guessing myself and just stick with what my brain initially tells me… should have had a 40 (there I go making excuses again instead of just admitting that I failed it miserably). Impressive range of questions though, I have not had to use 70% of the knowledge tested in this quiz in the last 12 years. Are most of these high scores for real or is some of it the “google” effect? If not, boy do I feel like I am a few brain cells short around here.
I found a copy of the full quiz at http://www.objectivistliving.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=11472&st=40&p=149440&#entry149440
Answers not included.
There was some discussion that #38 (the one I missed) has two right answers (including the one I chose). Looks like I’ll have to look it up.
PaddikJ says:
April 8, 2012 at 12:27 am
There is no way I could have forgotten him, because what I don’t know I can’t forget. Thanks for pointing him out.
I love your site, Anthony and all who contribute. It makes my golden years an adventure, a journey of discovery.