Obama understands the importance of science as an important part of grappling with the huge problems Americans are facing.   Hence, this important vote of confidence by numerous nobel laureates.

During the administration of George W. Bush, vital parts of our country’s scientific enterprise have been damaged by stagnant or declining federal support. The government’s scientific advisory process has been distorted by political considerations. As a result, our once dominant position in the scientific world has been shaken and our prosperity has been placed at risk. We have lost time critical for the development of new ways to provide energy, treat disease, reverse climate change, strengthen our security, and improve our economy.

We have watched Senator Obama’s approach to these issues with admiration. We especially applaud his emphasis during the campaign on the power of science and technology to enhance our nation’s competitiveness. In particular, we support the measures he plans to take – through new initiatives in education and training, expanded research funding, an unbiased process for obtaining scientific advice, and an appropriate balance of basic and applied research – to meet the nation’s and the world’s most urgent needs.

Let’s see if any reputable scientists support Sarah Palin, who has argued that “men and dinosaurs coexisted on an Earth created 6,000 years ago.”  And let’s not forget the hypocritical John McCain, who talks a big game about global warming but has done nothing about it.  In fact, he’s damaged his own cause when he put Sarah (Drill-our-way-out-of-the-problem-and-global-warming-is-not-caused-by-humans) Palin on the ticket.

One more thing about Palin, written by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.:

Now John McCain has chosen as his running mate Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a diligent student of Big Oil’s crib sheets. She’s something of a flat-earther who shares the current administration’s contempt for science. Palin has expressed skepticism about evolution, putting it on par with “creationism,” which posits that the Earth was created 6,000 years ago. She used to insist that human activities have nothing to do with climate change. “I’m not one … who would attribute it to being man-made,” she said in August. After she joined the GOP ticket, she magically reversed herself, to a point. “Man’s activities certainly can be contributing to the issue of global warming,” she told Charles Gibson two weeks ago.

Meanwhile, Alaska is melting before our eyes; entire villages erode as sea ice vanishes, glaciers are disappearing at a frightening clip, and “dancing forests” caused by disappearing permafrost astonish residents and tourists. Palin had to keep her head buried particularly deep in an oil well to ever have denied that humans are causing climate change.