A presidential debate about science

A bunch of bloggers and some other fancy folks have gotten together to endorse a simple request:

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.

The hope is for a bipartisan debate. Given the tenor of the Republican primary, I don't know how many of those candidates would be prepared for or interested in a discussion about those issues, but here's hoping.

There's no question, of course, that these topics matter. Al Gore just received his Nobel Prize for increasing public understanding of climate change, and the Huckabee campaign has been discussing entomological aerodynamics. Science has already entered the fray.

Bora's interview with John Edwards serves as a nice template for some of the questions that ought to be addressed, as did the online discussions which followed.

If you would like to be able to base your vote on the candidates' positions on scientific issues, sign up, and tell the campaigns to get involved.