Science and scientists are pretty well respected by the American public, even as they disagree on specific issues like evolution, global warming, and use of animals in research.

So finds a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, together with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

84% of the 2,001 members of the public who were surveyed thought science had a mostly positive effect on society, while scientists came third behind members of the military and teachers in a chart of professions contributing “a lot” to society’s well-being.

Despite this general approval for science, just 32% of the public thought that humans had evolved due to natural processes (as opposed to 87% of the 2,500 AAAS members surveyed); just under half thought that earth was getting warmer because of human activity (84% of scientists) and 52% favoured the use of animals in scientific research (93% of scientists).

“I don’t think this is hugely surprising. We’ve seen these kind of differences before,” Chris Mooney (a journalist who’s written a book called “Unscientific America”) told USA Today. “But I think this is hugely important in telling people in science that maybe they need to reach out to the public better.”

Indeed, 85% of AAAS members thought public ignorance of science was a major problem. Many of them also said the news media had done a poor job educating the public – though the survey did not give scientists the chance to comment on the quality of school science education (surely more important than the news media for influencing the basic science understanding of US citizens).

The survey didn’t attempt to say whether such views have been held through the ages, nor how the US compares to other countries in its attitudes to science.