The Thirteenth Laureate

ScienceDebate2008 added the following names yesterday:

Sheldon Glashow. The Metcalf Professor of Mathematics and Physics at Boston University, Nobel Prize in Physics, 1979

Geoffrey West, President, Santa Fe Institute, Time 100 list of the 100 most influential people of 2006

Meanwhile, our blogger coalition, I'm pleased to say, added some top hurricane folk:

Eric Berger, SciGuy

Jeff Masters, Dr. Jeff Masters' WunderBlog

In short, they just keep on coming in...

Which brings me to the current outlook on this project and where it stands (I know a lot of you want to know). Right now, the ScienceDebate2008 organizers are busy talking to various individuals and groups about alliances and possible venues. Unfortunately but understandably, we can provide no specifics on this front as yet. I can say, though, that since we went public, we have been inundated with contacts from folks who want to be involved. As Sheril and I are doing this entirely as volunteers, it is this outpouring of support, more than anything else, that keeps us going.

Last week we contemplated formally opening conversations with the candidates and party committees--but then we reasoned that the holidays are pretty much upon us now, adding family duties to already hectic campaign schedules. In short, all the people who know anything about politics tell us that the candidates are too busy to seriously address this debate idea right now, and we don't want to bother them at this critical time.

So, we're going to start approaching them formally in the New Year. And here's where you come in: The more scientists, science bloggers, and science-interested people we have signed up by then, the more persuasive our argument will be that our debate idea is something that a significant, educated, passionate and influential segment of America wants. So it's absolutely critical that whoever you are--whether a fellow blogger or simply an interested citizen and blog reader who can email around a link--you keep sending people to our website to sign up.

This is our collective cause and collective battle. Already, we have done far better than we ever dreamed we could--so let's not stop now! To that end, I paste below once again the ScienceDebate2008 icon, which is live linked to our signup page. Copy the image and code, post it, repost it, and keep sending it around!