Isaac Newton Discovered Fire, the Solar System, and/or America

A new survey of primary and secondary school children in the UK gives Americans reasons not to feel too bad about the state of our own science education :

Just under a half of boys (49%) correctly pinned down gravity as Newton’s ground-breaking discovery, compared with 76% of girls.

Just over a third of boys said Newton discovered fire, while the remaining 16% either said he invented the internet, or discovered the solar system or America.

Eight out of 10 boys correctly identified Alexander Graham Bell as the inventor of the telephone, compared with 69% of girls.

Dr Pam Waddell from Birmingham Science City said: “While some of these findings will raise a smile, it suggests that school children aren’t tuned into our scientific heroes in the same way that they might be to sporting or music legends.”

To be fair, I’m not sure my 10-year-old self would have been able to identify Sir Isaac’s achievements either. I am fairly sure, though, that I wouldn’t have thought that Luke Skywalker was the first man to walk on the moon—unless, of course, we’re talking about one of the many moons of Hoth (I was ten when the Empire Strikes Back came out).