National Science Board goes chicken-shit on evolution

The board, which oversees the National Science Foundation, omitted questions on evolution and the big bang from a biennial survey of science and engineering issues.

Why?

(B)ecause the survey questions used to measure knowledge of the two topics force respondents to choose between factual knowledge and religious beliefs.

Well, the NSF is about science, not belief. Or, at least, I thought it was. Apparently not. John Bruer, a philosopher (NOT identified as a philosopher of science) who heads the St. Louis-based James S. McDonnell Foundation (big biz dictating science – that's the "McDonnell" of McDonnell-Douglas fame) took the lead on pulling the two questions.
He calls the survey questions "very blunt instruments not designed to capture public understanding" of the two topics.
That's bullshit, and I'm not the only one to say so:
"I think that is a nonsensical response" that reflects "the religious right's point of view," says Jon Miller, a science literacy researcher at Michigan State University in East Lansing who authored the survey 3 decades ago and conducted it for NSF until 2001. "Evolution and the big bang are not a matter of opinion."
Indeed, a mix of the religious right and big biz. Oy.