Lawrence Krauss
Director, Center for Education and Research in Cosmology and Astrophysics and Ambrose Swasey Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Case Western Reserve University
Watch more video statements here
- Log in to post comments
More like this
A long list of science community luminaries, including Chris Mooney and Sheril Kirshenbaum of our own Intersection, are trying to organize the first ever presidential candidate debate on matters scientific and technological. This would be a good thing. Science Debate 2008 is at this point just a…
NCSE Executive Director Eugenie Scott has joined the Board of Advisors for Scientific American.
Dr. Eugenie C. Scott has joined Scientific American's revamped and expanded Board of Advisers. In her new role, Dr. Scott will have a hand in shaping the course of the magazine, offering advice and…
Steven Chu
Director, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Professor of Physics and Molecular and Cellular Biology at U.C. Berkeley, Nobel Prize in Physics, 1997
Watch more video statements here
The following is a repost of a Facebook Post by Michael Mann. I don’t think this needs any comment from me. The original is here.
Begin Repost
Several colleagues have notified me of the following email that has been sent to a presumably broad group of researchers and academics by John Droz of…
It is really unfortunate that the Science Debate 2008 organizers have decided to arbitrarily exclude candidates. The have only invited 4 candidates, excluding Democrat Mike Gravel and Republican Ron Paul. These are precisely the type of candidates that would turn this into a debate: Gravel represented Alaska in Congress and during that time chaired environmental and energy committees; Paul is a doctor and so he stands out as the only person with a science degree.
Why are my colleagues censoring these candidates?
Kathryn,
Because it is not to be a debate, but a rah-rah session for those already endorsed. No important issues are to be raised, only ideas that are already agreed upon.
I would guess that UsedToCare is one of those who proscribe to the idea that the difference between an optimist and a pessimist is experience.
If you look at the manner in which the candidates shape their messages and then stay on message, you have to believe that they will only participate in this event if absolutely forced to do so by public ridicule in the widest media available. When Paul Krugman and Tom Friedman write a joint OpEd for the NYT demanding participation, then we might get it.
My view is jaundiced, I know. I looked at the lack of participation in Houston Energy Summit last week. All of the candidates were invited. Only Clinton showed. Even Ron Paul backed out and he is a Texan.
I don't think that any of the candidates see a down-side from not participating but there is a lot of negative that could flow from showing up and doing poorly.