Arguing that science and technology have been overlooked in the presidential debates, a group of prominent scientists and academics is calling for a debate on the environment, medicine and health, and science and technology policy.

The ad-hoc group, which calls itself ScienceDebate2008, includes 11 Nobel laureates, several professors, and a college president — Shirley Tilghman of Princeton.

The Los Angeles Times ran an opinion piece by the group today. In it, Lawrence Krauss, a professor of physics at Case Western Reserve University and Chris Mooney, a correspondent for Seed magazine, argue that a science-themed debate “would reveal which candidates are best equipped to tackle contentious science-based issues, and it would help raise the level of scientific literacy across the board in this country.”