Hey! Emily Graslie from the Brain Scoop at the Field Museum in Chicago here to tell you to register and vote in this year's 2016 presidential elections. 

There were dozens of government-funded and -supported science-based organizations and institutions that could not do what they do if you don't go vote. These groups provide services that massive benefits to your education, health and safety without you having to think twice about them. I'm talking about groups like the National Science Foundation, the Environmental Protection Agency, the US Geological Survey, US Fish and Wildlife, the National Park Service, NASA,NOAA, our friends at the Smithsonian Institutions, and the Field Museum. Lots of research that you see on our show wouldn't be possible without collaboration and support from the groups I just listed. Your vote can help ensure their priority and funding through representation and advocacy of our elected officials and, yes, some of your tax dollars. When it comes to things like environmental issues, expanding scientific research capabilities and education around the United States, the root of change and growth for these programs comes from voter support. Politics isn't just about people arguing in Washington, DC; it's about knowing that policies made in Washington are carried out and enforced throughout the country. These policies cover things like the EPA enforcing compliance from businesses in the private sector and making sure sewage isn't polluting your drinking water. And you can thank the USGS for giving you a heads-up about national disasters. I'm voting this year because I'm thinking to the future. I'm thinking about the world we're going to leave behind for your children, our grandchildren, and all future generations of people, not only in our country but across the globe. I think we can make a change in the world and I think our voices deserve to be heard. Go out and vote.