The Smithsonian Institution has built its reputation as America’s premier science museum.
But that reputation took a major hit this week.
And scientists just exposed one terrible mistake by the Smithsonian that has visitors learning fiction instead of facts.
Smithsonian caught teaching outdated science to millions of visitors
For decades, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. has been telling visitors that humans and chimpanzees share 98.8% of their DNA.
It’s a claim that sounds impressive and has been repeated countless times in textbooks, documentaries, and classrooms across America.
There’s just one problem with it.
It’s completely wrong.
The Discovery Institute fired off a scathing letter this week to Smithsonian leadership demanding they fix their human origins exhibit immediately.
The reason why has scientists across the country talking.
New research published in the prestigious journal Nature reveals that humans and chimpanzees are actually only 84-86% genetically similar.
That means the Smithsonian has been overstating human-ape genetic similarity by a staggering margin.
Dr. Casey Luskin, the scientist who authored the letter to the Smithsonian, didn’t mince words about the magnitude of this error.
“The Smithsonian is promoting inaccurate information to the public by seriously understating the genetic differences between humans and apes,” Luskin stated. “The actual difference in DNA between humans and chimps is over ten times greater than what the Smithsonian says.”
The scope of the problem goes beyond just chimpanzees
The Smithsonian’s problems don’t stop with their claims about chimpanzees.
The museum makes similar overstatements about genetic similarities between humans and other apes including gorillas and orangutans.
This means millions of visitors have been walking through the nation’s most trusted science museum and learning information that modern research has proven to be false.
The genetic differences between humans and apes are found throughout the entire genome.
Scientists have discovered millions of single nucleotide differences as well as much larger DNA differences.
These include significant variations in the lengths of functionally important repetitive DNA sequences.
The data from the Nature research indicates that human and chimpanzee genomes are roughly 15% different – a massive gap that the Smithsonian has been downplaying to visitors.
Taxpayer money being used to spread misinformation
What makes this situation even more outrageous is that the Smithsonian operates using taxpayer funding.
American families are essentially paying for their children to be taught outdated and incorrect scientific information when they visit what should be the most reliable source of scientific education in the country.
Luskin didn’t hold back in his criticism of this misuse of public funds.
“The NMNH is the nation’s premiere science museum, and it would be inexcusable for the museum to present scientifically inaccurate data about human genetic similarity to apes to the public,” Luskin wrote in his letter. “To fail to correct this data is to use taxpayer money to miseducate the public about a question of profound scientific, sociological, and philosophical interest.”
Dr. Luskin serves as Associate Director of the Center for Science and Culture at Discovery Institute and co-authored the book Science and Human Origins.
He holds a PhD in Geology from the University of Johannesburg and knows exactly what he’s talking about when it comes to scientific accuracy.
The Smithsonian has no excuse for this mistake
The research that debunks the Smithsonian’s claims isn’t some fringe study published in an obscure journal.
It appeared in Nature, which is widely considered the gold standard for scientific publications.
Any reputable science museum should be updating their exhibits when major new research emerges that contradicts their displays.
The fact that the Smithsonian hasn’t updated this exhibit raises serious questions about their commitment to scientific accuracy.
Are they more interested in promoting a particular narrative than in presenting the most current scientific understanding to the public?
The Discovery Institute is demanding that the Smithsonian correct their exhibit to reflect accurate scientific data.
Given the museum’s role as the nation’s premier science institution, anything less than a full correction would be a betrayal of public trust.
This controversy highlights a bigger problem in science education
The Smithsonian’s refusal to correct outdated information reflects a broader issue in how scientific institutions handle new research that challenges established narratives.
When new data emerges that contradicts long-held beliefs, the scientific method demands that we update our understanding accordingly.
That’s how science is supposed to work.
But too often, institutions become invested in particular explanations and resist changing course even when the evidence clearly points in a different direction.
The Smithsonian has built exhibits around the idea that humans and apes are nearly identical genetically.
Admitting that this premise is fundamentally flawed would require them to rethink their entire approach to explaining human origins.
That’s apparently a step they’re reluctant to take, even when confronted with clear evidence that their current information is wrong.
But the American people deserve better than that.
When they visit the Smithsonian with their families, they expect to learn accurate, up-to-date scientific information.
They shouldn’t have to worry about whether the exhibits they’re seeing reflect the most current research or outdated theories that scientists have moved beyond.
The Smithsonian needs to do the right thing and fix this exhibit immediately.
The credibility of American science education depends on institutions like the Smithsonian maintaining the highest standards of accuracy.
Right now, they’re failing to meet that standard.
