Science's Editor-in-Chief Has Some Questions for Actively Would-be US Presidents. (February 1, 2008)

Donald Kennedy, Science's Editor-in-Chief for a couple more months would like to see those individuals still vying to be their party's nomination for US president to take part in "The Real Debate".

The former head of the FDA and former president of Stanford University pleads that: "perhaps between now and the culminating summer conventions that will announce the final party candidates, we can have a debate focusing on the candidates' views about science and technology."

Then after a few paragraphs of preamble Dr Kennedy poses some of the questions he would like have injected into the debate.

The list is or ought to be of more than passing interest to Australian's and indeed the whole of the planet's exponentially expanding population: "Finally, we'd need some questions. In an appearance on National Public Radio's Science Friday (11 January), Shawn Otto* urged scientists to submit questions. Here are some of theirs and some of mine:"

• What consideration should be given to political affiliation in the appointment of members of advisory committees whose role is to evaluate research quality?

• The president has a Science Adviser who also heads the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). What attributes would you seek in your Science Adviser, and what kinds of issues would you bring to OSTP?

• What balance would you seek in federal science funding between major-program project research and investigator-initiated basic research grants?

• The budget of the National Institutes of Health was doubled but has decreased for 3 years because its appropriations have been in constant dollars. Would your Administration propose adding inflation costs to that budget in future years?

• If a threatened species exists on private land, does the Endangered Species Act require certain duties of the landowner? What are these, and would you favor changes in the law to alter them?

• In view of public concerns about global warming, are you committed to the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions? Would you choose a cap-and-trade program or a carbon tax? Why?

• Would you make a commitment to ensure public access to findings made by government scientists in the course of exercising their agency responsibilities?

• Crops derived from recombinant DNA technology are in increasing use in agriculture. Do you favor more intensive regulation to eliminate their possible interference with surrounding natural ecosystems?

*Chris Mooney and Shawn Otto have organized a group of concerned scientists, journalists, and leaders of government, nongovernment, and business institutions to push for that (www.sciencedebate2008.org).