--- title: Quiz: Can You Answer 5th-Grade Science Questions? description: Most Americans lack a basic understanding of science canonical: https://time.com/3394642/quiz-5th-grade-science/ author: Alexandra Sifferlin article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-09-18T12:00:19.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T08:00:39.244Z article:section: Health og:title: Quiz: Can You Answer 5th Grade Science Questions? og:description: Most Americans lack a basic understanding of science og:url: https://time.com/3394642/quiz-5th-grade-science/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Quiz: Can You Answer 5th Grade Science Questions? twitter:description: Most Americans lack a basic understanding of science twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # Quiz: Can You Answer 5th-Grade Science Questions? > Sponsored content. 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Know Right Now: Scientists Discover Why Chameleons Change Color_ by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Sep 18, 2014 12:00 PM UTC by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Sep 18, 2014 12:00 PM UTC A new survey on scientific literacy from the Center for Accountability in Science found that most respondents failed to correctly answer questions designed for a fifth-grade science class. “Most Americans are not armed with the basic facts about science,” said Dr. Joseph Perrone, chief science officer at the Center for Accountability in Science, in a statement. “This alarming lack of scientific literacy makes it easier for the public to be duped by the scary headlines and junk science.” You can get the results of the survey [here](https://www.accountablescience.com/). 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