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[reprinted from here]

Frustrated by their government's position on the environment, climate change and stem cell research, a group of US scientists have decided to take matters into their own hands and actively promote the election of a president in 2008 who is more receptive to science.

Scientists and Engineers for America plunged into politics last week with the aim of campaigning for particular candidates, starting with the 2006 mid-term elections. SEA says that "scientists and engineers have a right, indeed an obligation, to enter the political debate when the nation's leaders systematically ignore scientific evidence and analysis."

SEA's main targets will be the Bush administration and the Republican leadership, says executive director Mike Brown. "[They] are the source of a lot of the problems we've identified."

So far, the pitch has struck a responsive chord. Within days of the group being announced on27 September, nearly 2500 people had signed up as members. SEA's advisory board includes two of Bill Clinton's former science advisers - John Gibbons and Neal Lane - and eight Nobel laureates.