10 Meetups On Evolution Korea You Should Attend
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Evolution Korea
The financial crisis that hit Asia prompted a major reappraisal the traditional system of government, business alliances, and public management of risk. In Korea, this meant a change in the model of development.
In a controversial decision, the South Korean government has requested textbooks publishers to ignore calls to remove examples of evolution from high school science texts. This includes the evidence for evolution of horses and of the bird ancestor Archaeopteryx.
1. Evolution and Religion
A group of creationists in South Korea has successfully convinced textbook publishers to exclude evidence of evolution from high school science texts. This was the result of a campaign led by the Society for Textbook Revise (STR) which is an offshoot of the Korea Association for Creation Research that aims to clear biology textbooks of "atheist materialism." The STR claims that such materialism creates a negative image for students, leading them to lose faith.
When the STR's campaign made the news, scientists across the world expressed worry. In a letter to the editor of Nature, evolutionary biologist Jae Choe at Ewha Womans University in Seoul complained that South Korea had given in to religious prejudice. He was supported by colleagues from around the country, who formed a group named Evolution Korea to organize an anti-textbook petition.
Researchers are also worried that the STR campaign could spread to other parts of the globe, where the prevalence of creationism is rising. The letter to Nature warned of the anti-evolution campaign increasing pressure on textbook revisions, especially in countries with large Christian and Muslim populations.
South Korea's cultural background is especially strong in the debate on evolution. 26 percent of the country's citizens are members of an organized religion and the majority practice Christianity or Buddhism. Many Koreans also adhere to Ch'ondogyo - an ideology based on Confucian principles that emphasizes harmony in the social, personal self-cultivation and self-respect. Ch'ondogyo teaches the human being is one with Hanulnim the God of Sun, and that divine blessings can be achieved through good works.
All of this has created an ideal environment for the spread of creationism. Numerous studies have revealed that students who have a religious background to be more hesitant to learn about evolution than those who do not. The causes behind this are not clear. Students who have a religious background might be less familiar with scientific theories, which makes them more susceptible to creationists' influence. Another reason could be that students with religious backgrounds are more likely to view evolution as an atheistic idea, which may make them less comfortable with the idea.
2. Evolution and Science
In recent years, campaigns against evolution in schools have caused concern among the scientific community. A survey in 2009 revealed that 40 percent of Americans believed that biological evolution was a myth and that it could conflict with their religious beliefs. Despite the popularity of creationism in some states, a lot of scientists believe that the best strategy to counter this movement is not to be actively involved in with it, but rather inform people about the evidence that supports evolution.
Scientists are required to educate their students about science and the theory of evolution. They also need to educate the public on the process of scientific research and the way in which knowledge is confirmed. They should also explain that theories of science are often challenged and reformulated. However, misunderstandings regarding the nature of scientific research frequently cause people to believe that evolution is not real.
For instance, some people are able to confuse the term "theory" with the common meaning of the word, which is a hunch or a guess. However, in science theories are thoroughly tested and verified using empirical data. A theory that is tested and observed repeatedly is then a scientific principle.
The debate on the theory of evolution is a wonderful occasion to discuss both the importance of scientific method and its limitations. It is essential to realize that science cannot answer questions about the meaning or meaning of life it only serves as a mechanism that allows living things to evolve and change.
A well-rounded education must include exposure to all major scientific fields including evolutionary biology. This is essential because a variety of jobs and choices require people understand how science works.
The majority of scientists across the world believe that humans have changed over time. In a study that predicted the views of adults on the consensus on this subject, those with higher levels education and science knowledge were found to be more likely to believe there is a wide agreement among scientists about human evolution. Those who have more religious beliefs and less knowledge of science are more likely to disapprove. It is critical that educators emphasize the importance of knowing the general consensus on this issue, so that people are able to making informed choices about their health care, energy use, and other policy issues.
3. Evolution and Culture
A close relative to mainstream evolutionary theory, the concept of cultural evolution studies the numerous ways humans--and other organisms--learn from and interact with each other. Researchers in this field use explanation models and tools that are adapted from those employed by evolutionary theorists. they reach back into human prehistory to determine the genesis of our capacity for cultural understanding.
This method also acknowledges that there are some differences between cultural and biological traits. Cultural traits are acquired slowly, whereas biological traits are mostly inherited at the same time (in sexual species at fertilization). In the end, the acquisition of one cultural trait may affect the development of another.
In Korea For instance, the adoption of Western fashion elements in the latter part of the 19th century and the early 20th centuries was the result of a complicated sequence of events. One of the most significant was the arrival of Japanese occupation forces, who introduced Western hairstyles and clothing styles to Korean society.
When Japan left Korea in the 1930s, some of these trends began to reverse. By the end of World War II, Korea was once again united, this time under the rule of the Choson dynasty.
Today, Korea is an economic and political power. Despite the recent global financial crisis, the country's economy has grown consistently over the past decade and is set to continue its healthy growth in the future.
The current government is confronted by a myriad of problems. One of the most significant is the inability to come up with a coherent policy to deal with the economic crisis. The crisis has exposed weaknesses of the country's policies particularly its dependence on foreign investment and exports which could not last.
The crisis has shaken the confidence of investors. In the aftermath, the government has to reconsider its approach and find other ways to increase domestic demand. It will also have to overhaul the incentive monitoring, monitoring, and discipline systems that are in place to guarantee an environment that is stable for the financial sector. This chapter provides a variety of scenarios of how the Korean economy could develop in the post-crisis era.
4. Evolution and Education
The biggest challenge for evolution educators is how to teach evolutionary concepts in ways that are appropriate for students of different age groups and developmental stages. For instance, teachers need to be aware of the religious diversity in website their classrooms and create a setting where students with religious and secular views feel comfortable in learning about evolution. Teachers must also be able recognize common misconceptions regarding evolution and be able to correct them in the classroom. Teachers must also have quick access to the various resources to teach evolution.
In this regard, the Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation was an important step towards bringing evolutionary scientists and educators from a variety of sectors to discuss the best methods for teaching about evolution. Participants included representatives from scientific societies and educational research organizations, as well as officials of government funding agencies as well as curriculum developers. The convergence of these diverse stakeholders helped to identify a shared set of recommendations that will be the foundation for future actions.
A key recommendation is that the teaching of evolution should be incorporated in all science curricula at any level. To accomplish this the National Science Education Standards (NRC) require that evolution be taught in an integrated manner across all life sciences with a progression of ideas that are developmentally appropriate. Furthermore, a new publication from the NRC offers guidance to schools on how they can integrate evolution into their life science curriculum.
Multiple studies have shown that a more complete presentation of evolution is linked to greater student understanding and belief in the existence of evolution. However, estimating the causal impact of teaching in the classroom is difficult due to the fact that school curriculums are not randomly assigned and evolve over time as a result of the predetermined timing of gubernatorial elections and state board of education appointments. To overcome this issue I employ a longitudinal data set that allows me to control for fixed state and year effects and individual-level variation in teacher beliefs about changes in the curriculum.
Another significant finding is that teachers who are more comfortable teaching about evolution report having fewer personal barriers to doing so. This is in line with the hypothesis that faculty who are more confident are less likely to be hesitant about questions about evolution in the classroom, and could be more inclined to use strategies such as a reconciliatory approach known to increase the acceptance of undergraduate students of evolution.