Series: Science Weekly

Science Weekly: Does Barack Obama do science?

Alok Jha and guests from both sides of the Atlantic discuss what Barack Obama's election as US president means for science and the environment

Alok Jha, science correspondent,
guardian.co.uk,
Monday 10 November 2008

An extended US election special edition of the Science Weekly podcast.

We analyse what Barack Obama's election means for the scientific community across the world.

Lesley Stone, executive director of Scientists and Engineers for America, gives her reaction to George W Bush's successor.

Lord professor Martin Rees, president of the Royal Society, has some advice for the most powerful man in the world ... president to president. He hopes Obama's victory won't result in a brain drain from Britain to America.

We also look more closely at three key areas: climate change, stem cells and space.

Professor Diana Liverman, director of the Environmental Change Institute at Oxford, gives her view on the green issues Senator Obama needs to focus on.

Chris Mason is an international expert on regenerative medicine, tissue engineering and stem cell technologies.

As for Nasa and space, we speak to Lawrence Krauss, renowned science author and physicist at Arizona State University; and Martin Barstow, the head of physics and astronomy at Leicester University in the UK.

So as science breathes a collective sigh of relief, we acknowledge how bad things could have been if the Republicans had won. Sarah Palin (with plenty of help from John McCain) has been nominated for the New Humanist's bad faith award.

PZ Myers takes a look back at some of McCain and Palin's more worrying comments about science. Yes, those French fruit flies get a mention!

The Guardian's own team of experts also debate what the future holds. Science correspondents James Randerson and Ian Sample, environment correspondent David Adam, and Nell Boase from our arts desk offer their opinions.

Feel free to post your comments about the show below.

You can also join our Facebook group, where you can scrawl your thoughts on our wall.

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