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After the US elections, the fate of the world will be in the hands of the President: one man can save our planet or destroy it with the touch of a button. To become the most powerful man on Earth, no qualification is necessary.

The question is, is the president aware of the importance of science? Horizon asks some of the biggest names in science to have a quiet word with the new president, be it Obama or McCain, in the Presidents’ Guide to Science. The United States president is quite simply the most powerful man on earth, but they often know little about science.

That’s a problem when the decisions they make will affect every one of us, from nuclear proliferation to climate change. To help the new president get to grips with this intimidating responsibility some of the world’s leading scientists, from Dawkins to Watson, share some crucial words of advice.