[stuart]

In my never humble opinion, I don't think they should take into account the position of the general public. I just don't think that sentiment should play a role in a "scientific" definition.

And as far as petitions go, first, most people like the status quo (change is bad!!!!), so they want to keep Pluto a planet. Second, remember that most people who are going to post to something like that are going to be complaining about something rather than supporting a decision. Just like when you try to find reviews on apartments (as I did last May), most reviews are bad because people only take the time to post if they don't like something.