On the Problem of Teaching Evolution as a Fact(and Not Just a “Theory”)
Abstract
That living organisms, including our own species, have evolved from antecedent forms is universally regarded among scientists as established fact, and yet the rejection of evolution remains prevalent in the U.S. general population, the principles of which are often dismissed as an “unproven theory”. This paper reviews the primary variables that account for “evolution denialism”, and proposes another, previously unexamined factor, namely the confusion between the common language and scientific/probabilistic definitions of the meaning of fact.