A Bastion of Sanity in the Land of Oz
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While a debate between presidential candidates concerning the scientific issues facing our country seems unlikely, at least until a Democratic nominee is chosen, a poll by the Science Debate 2008 team shows that 85% of Americans want to hear the candidates’ positions on science and technology.
Additional poll results are available here.
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Image credit: Science Debate 2008 Poll (May 2008)
If you’re interested in the real story behind the new ID movie, Expelled, the NCSE has set up the Expelled Exposed website, with links to reviews and other analysis.
Scientific American also has a series – Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed – Scientific American’s Take, with commentary from Michael Shermer.
Update: One of my fellow grad students has a review of the film in our student newspaper. Kudos, Mark!
I watched this with my 13 year-old daughter this afternoon. For her, it was a way to connect all of these events and people she had heard about – Vietnam and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., for example. For me, it put Lennon’s music in historical context, providing a deeper understanding of the message.
If you haven’t seen The U.S. vs. John Lennon, it serves as a stark reminder of the lengths to which a government will go to try to protect the status quo. Particularly galling was the clip of J. Edgar Hoover extoling “God-fearing Americans” and “people of faith” to support the war in Vietnam.
Wondering where the candidates stand on important scientific issues, like global warming, stem cell research, or science education? The AAAS has created a site to track the position of the candidates regarding science and technology. Basically, they’ve picked up snippets from the candidates’ public appearances and statements and collected them in a central location. The site is intended to serve as:
a resource on candidates’ [Science & Technology] positions, and to provide the research community with a vehicle for informing the candidates on emerging [Science & Technology] issues.
Want a more focused dialogue from the candidates on relevant scientific topics? You can sign the Science Debate 2008 petition.
A Call for a Presidential Debate on Science and Technology
Given the many urgent scientific and technological challenges facing America and the rest of the world, the increasing need for accurate scientific information in political decision making, and the vital role scientific innovation plays in spurring economic growth and competitiveness, we, the undersigned, call for a public debate in which the U.S. presidential candidates share their views on the issues of The Environment, Medicine and Health, and Science and Technology Policy.
Many leading scientific organizations, Nobel laureates, academic and industry leaders have already signed.
Given that three of the original Republican candidates stated that they did not believe in evolution, it is imperative to have the candidates clearly state their position on these critical issues.
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Sources: AAAS Science & Technology in the 2008 Election, Science Debate 2008
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