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Americans are, as a whole, pretty religious. The United States is the largest economy with the world, without California, and California alone is the 5th or 6th largest economy. If we are using GDP as success then it is a coincidence.
However, religion stateside is pretty diverse with the least religious areas mostly being the coast (and the interior West like where I live, Denver, etc.) with the "flyover" areas being more religious. The coasts usually provide most of the GDP. So maybe it isn't.
A critical thinker will examine various religious or philosophical texts, and then apply whatever principles will best guide them in life.
Someone with poor critical thinking skills will commit themselves to a single religion. If your entire understanding of morality comes from one source (e.g. the Bible), then you've limited your potential.
Practicing positive principles from a range of sources should be favoured over having a religious identity.
Last edited by Fish & Chips; 12-04-2016 at 06:40 PM..
A critical thinker will examine various religious or philosophical texts, and then apply whatever principles will best guide them in life.
Someone with poor critical thinking skills will commit themselves to a single religion. If your entire understanding of morality comes from one source (e.g. the Bible), then you've limited your potential.
Practicing positive principles from a range of sources should be encouraged more than having a fixed religious identity.
Why are you assuming that all American and Israeli scientists are religious
I'm not assuming that all American and Israeli scientists are religious. However, I've already shown you that ~50% of American scientists are. Considering that Israel is only slightly less religious than the US, it's safe to say that not all successful Israeli scientists are atheists.
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I say its good education that makes people less religious.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Davy-040
Why are almost all successful scientists atheists then?
You've shown charts that show that there are, on average, more atheists and agnostics among scientists than the general population.
The reason for this is that, for most of the 20th century, higher education has been a secularizing influence. Moreover, that pattern has recently reversed for college graduates born after 1970. What this means is that the correlation you see is more to do with the way that people are educated in college rather than some intrinsic relationship between atheism and scientific ability.
Reference: Schwadel, Philip (2014). Birth Cohort Changes in the Association Between College Education and Religious Non-Affiliation. Social Forces, 248: 1–28.
"Atheist" is not the correct way to describe Australia. It's certainly secular, in that the government is constitutionally prohibited from interfering in religious activity, or establishing a church, so unlike many European countries there has never been a state sponsored church. Also, religion is generally viewed as being a "private" matter, so doesn't generally play an overt role in the daily lives of most.
But a clear majority of people do report a religious affiliation.
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