[Closed] Thursday Science Quiz: Can you do science better than 93% of Americans?

I got "unknown host" clicking on the link - have I unwittingly failed at the first? 🙁

100%. Cos I R teh orsums.

Yep, I got them all right. Not very difficult to be honest.

100%
Some if the questions were a bit easy, like "what sex are you?".

Nitrogen. Who knew.

Doh, 1 wrong 👿

bloody electrons.

12/13, bugger

100% here too (which surprised me!)
I'll get my 11 year old to do it later, see how he fares.

How do you [s]fair[/s] fare?

Grrrrrrrrrr.....fracking scientists....

Will anyone be prepared to admit falling far short of 13 on this one?

10/13. I'll show myself out.

Not tough at all. But I'd question what percentage of British people would get 100%. I'd be interested to see one of these studies rate people from countries around the world on the same thing. I still don't think that as a whole, the average American is any more stupid than the average Brit.

[i]How do you [s]fair[/s] fare?[/i]

I didn't notice that! But I did think "Have I spelt that right" when I used the same word 🙂

lucky 13 for me

I am the new Brian Cox

Perhaps this will add to the [url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/simple-things-that-passed-you-by-for-years ]Simple things that passed you by for years[/url] thread. 😀

Have they tested other nationalities too or is it just another "let's laugh at the silly yanks" thing?

Huv nit used ani siensse sins fivr year at school. Gud innit. 100% fir me.

Got them all right, but I'd be a bit worried if I didn't, what with being a scientist and all that.
More interesting/worrying I thought was that only 30 something percent of college graduates know what makes up the air we breathe.

deadlydarcy - Member

Have they tested other nationalities too or is it just another "let's laugh at the silly yanks" thing?

It's not really a fair sport now is it?

Ok. I am too thick to find the door. Can someone help me?

Have they tested other nationalities too or is it just another "let's laugh at the silly yanks" thing?

Seeing as the Pew Research Center is an American organisation, I don't think it's unreasonable they are publishing results on Americans.

It would have been more satisfying to know I was more intelligent than say 93% of South Koreans for example but hey, every little morale boost counts.

Can they do one on world geography also please!

Cheers

Danny B

Americans have proper science quizzes.

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According to the results so far one percent have scored 0 ! Surely you would need to know all the answers and make a point of giving the wrong answer to achieve a score of 0. You have a 50% chance of guessing the correct answer. How could anyone possibly guess incorrectly 13 times ? 🙂

EDIT : Sorry just remembered that not all questions were true or false. Still some achievement to score 0 though.

Me 13
wife 12 ( she was pairing socks ) It was the Nitrogen again

Kids get the test tonight

13/13...

How do you [s]fair[/s] fare?

Doh!

I'm only Hominidae after all. 😀

For Jamie

[img] [/img]

11/13

13! what a shocker.... Id have to hang my head with shame as some of the questions are related to my job..... 🙂

12/13

Nitrogen question again.

Thankfully got all 13. Tempted to send that quiz to some of my colleagues at my old job. Would be interesting to see how a bunch of scientists get on.
I was surprised at how few got the nitrogen answer right.

Seeing as the Pew Research Center is an American organisation, I don't think it's unreasonable they are publishing results on Americans.

Yes, I know that. Just wondering if other nationalities have been tested. There was no box to tick in the demographic questions at the end.

7/13 here. And I think I got the age question near the end wrong too. 😐

13/13

You have a 50% chance of guessing the correct answer. How could anyone possibly guess incorrectly 13 times ?

Question 14: What is the probability of someone guessing incorrectly 13 times?

13. Clearly I've missed my true calling, and am a science genius.....

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Have they tested other nationalities too or is it just another "let's laugh at the silly yanks" thing?

Not intended as that at all. American group, linked to the Smithsonian, publishing results on the Americans they tested.

Though they did ask some other questions with some revealing results. Apparently 44% of those surveyed [i]think[/i] America ranks at the bottom when compared to other "developed" nations, and 46% think science is "too hard".

[img] [/img]

Just wondering if other nationalities have been tested. There was no box to tick in the demographic questions at the end.

The results from the online test are not counted (because it is too easy to cheat) - they only published the results from a [i]proper[/i] survey.

13/13

[i]Nitrogen. Who knew. [/i]

me too. 12/13.

Looking at the stats at the end, it's really the nitrogen question that drags the averages down, not too surprising

13/13

12/13

The chemical reaction one, I was going to put a nail rusting, but can someone tell me why sugar dissolving isn't a chemical reaction?

Because its a solid suspended in water. No actual chemical reaction takes place. Rusting is oxidisation

Because although the sugar experiences a physical change, there is no change in its chemical makeup, whereas the oxidation of the metal in the nail produces a new chemical.

that dissolving/mixing/probably a proper scientific word for it. Remove the water (by heating) and the sugar will still be there

'cos it's still sugar and water

[i]why sugar dissolving isn't a chemical reaction? [/i]

just because 😉

it's because none of the elements bind to one another, the sugar is just in suspension in the water. (I am not a chemist)

Its a slightly odd quiz - some of those questions are more a current affairs question than science in the sense 'Fracking' isn't going to be something covered by anyone's eduction, just something they'll have read about in the paper recently.

And on questions like continental drift- you can know the answer but disagree with it on principle.

Science is a political football in the states. Republicanism and 'Facts' are uneasy bedfellows so scientists are seen as liberals (which typically they are) and 'science' therefore as liberal propaganda. So republicanism galvanises itself by resisting and refuting science. Biblical literalism is more of counter-liberal science refuting taunt to liberals than real religious zeal.

What the hell were people putting other than nitrogen?

'Fracking' isn't going to be something covered by anyone's eduction, just something they'll have read about in the paper recently.

Or not... as appears to be the case with most Americans 😉

To be fair we don't know the conditions that the survey was carried out. Was it a questionnaire asked to random people in a busy street with all the distractions that might be occurring ?

Some questions such as what's smaller an electron or an atom are obvious if you stop and think, but I can see people getting it wrong in the same way as they might if they were quickly asked what's smaller a finger or a hand. People give daft answers when they're not concentrating or are distracted.

Learn something every day

Thanks *kisses*

As evidenced by Graham's graphic, Americans can't even spell Maths.
Math? So it's mathematic is it? No, it's mathematics. (They probably don't even know what it's bloody short for).

I can understand why lay people get the nitrogen one wrong. You hear a lot in the media about rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, and know that we need oxygen in air to survive, but nitrogen doesn't get mentioned, even though it is by far the most abundant gas.

13/13 here, most of them you would know from doing some of the sciences at high school I'd of thought.

What the hell were people putting other than nitrogen?

I'd guess oxygen?

I'm surprised the nitrogen question is seen as being so hard. I thought it was one of those 'strange but true' facts everyone was taught at school.

13/13 ...phew, I felt under a wee bit of pressure there as I work in a genetics lab and came very close to using the "Duh!" word on the atmospheric composition! 😳

13/13.
Will send the link to everyone else in the lab and see how they get on 🙂

Some questions such as what's smaller an electron or an atom are obvious if you stop and think

[i]What the hell were people putting other than nitrogen?[/i]

One of the other 3 answers.

To be fair we don't know the conditions that the survey was carried out. Was it a questionnaire asked to random people in a busy street with all the distractions that might be occurring ?

They give details of the test conditions on [url= http://www.people-press.org/2013/04/22/publics-knowledge-of-science-and-technology/2/ ]page two of the full report[/url].

[i]"The analysis in this report is based on telephone interviews conducted March 7-10, 2013 among a national sample of 1,006 adults 18 years of age or older living in the continental United States (501 respondents were interviewed on a landline telephone, and 505 were interviewed on a cell phone, including 242 who had no landline telephone)."[/i]

Anyhow, since it didn't ask where I live, we don't know that the general ignorance displayed in the survey results is confined to the US.

EDIT: Yes we do, according to someone who's actually read the report! 😳

To be fair we don't know the conditions that the survey was carried out. Was it a questionnaire asked to random people in a busy street with all the distractions that might be occurring ?

No, apparently it was a [italics for emphasis]proper[/italics for emphasis] survey.

It's a pretty shit questionnaire to be honest. But only because I got so many wrong.

As evidenced by Graham's graphic, Americans can't even spell Maths.
Math? So it's mathematic is it? No, it's mathematics. (They probably don't even know what it's bloody short for).

Makes you wonder how they ever managed to land a man on the moon.

Or did they ?

I'm surprised the nitrogen question is seen as being so hard. I thought it was one of those 'strange but true' facts everyone was taught at school.

Science is for geeks innit
🙂

[i]I'd guess oxygen? [/i]

hydrogen for me - I knew that oxygen and carbon dioxide were fairly low but wasn't sure about the other two and guessed...

Makes you wonder how they ever managed to land a man on the moon.

Or did they ?

No American who took part in this survey has ever landed or helped another to land on the moon. HTH.

Question 14: What is the probability of someone guessing incorrectly 13 times?

I *think* about 0.21%, but probability was never my strong point...

"They give details of the test conditions on page two of the full report".

Fair enough. Asking question over the phone isn't ideal though, there can be a lot of distractions and misunderstand of what was asked, specially as half of those questioned were talking on their mobiles.

Oh it was done over the phone was it?

What the hell were people putting other than nitrogen?

I'd imagine most people are familiar with the carbon cycle from biology/geography at school or from media coverage of climate change.

[img] [/img]

So I [i]suspect[/i] that a good number of those answering incorrectly thought that air was basically carbon dioxide and oxygen in equal measures with a small amount of other guff.

No American who took part in this survey has ever landed or helped another to land on the moon. HTH.

No it doesn't help I'm afraid as the criticism was aimed at [i]"Americans"[/i], not those who took part in this survey.

So I suspect that a good number of those answering incorrectly thought that air was basically carbon dioxide and oxygen in equal measures with a small amount of other guff.

You'll need to survey them again.

hydrogen for me

on the plus side we might be sorted on the energy front, on the minus side the air might be a bit "burny"

13/13. I'll start sending out my CV to major chemical companies immediately.

11/13 😳

Blummin Atoms. They used to be the smallest. I blame rising levels of obesity...

Anyhow, since it didn't ask where I live, we don't know that the general ignorance displayed in the survey results is confined to the US.

EDIT: Yes we do, according to someone who's actually read the report!

Report says that Americans rank about the middle of OECD nations in standardised science test results.

Oxygen would be a lot more "burny".

Fair enough. Asking question over the phone isn't ideal though, there can be a lot of distractions and misunderstand of what was asked, specially as half of those questioned were talking on their mobiles.

Agreed. Not ideal conditions.

Though looking at those results, some of them are worse than you'd expect from randomly guessing (e.g. only 48% get the True/False one about lasers correct, and only 47% get a True/False on atoms correct)

13, although the atom question nearly had me. Then a little bell rang in my head relating electrons and sub-atomic particles (this could be entirely wrong) and I hit the jackpot!

I'm so glad I watched all those BBC science programmes with floppy haired big lipped presenters 😀