Valentine Pontifex

This is not correct. I suspect that you are misremembering it since that article was from a few years back.

The 95% (or thereabouts) figure was not for atheists in the NAS members that responded to the survey was for belief in a personal God. No everyone who does not believe in a personal God is an atheist.

Admittedly the question was poorly worded if one is interested in belief in deity or dieties in general. But this was of necessity and was not the fault of the reasearchers who published in Nature (where the survey was orginally published). The reason was that it was a followup to survey of scientists in the early 20th Century. Since one can't compare results unless one uses the same wording in the survey the researchers used it.

wdog

Vaelntine,

yes, I think the original was in '99 sci american by micheal shermer

thanks for the info, do you have a link with more background?

So then the correct statement is 95% do not believe in a personal god as I understand you.