Why I’m not spoofing Jenks

In a way, I’m a fan of Simon Jenkins’ work- it always provides easy blog fodder whenever he ventures into science commentary. His latest piece on the BBC’s Reith lectures painted a patently ludicrous comparison with a Soviet Academy, while the safety fears over flying through the Icelandic ash cloud were reminiscent of a McCarthyism [...]

Nanotech for eternal life?

I’ve  just watched the Richard Dimbleby lecture featuring author Sir Terry Pratchett, entitled shaking hands with death. Pratchett, who announced he had Alzheimer’s in 2007, argued persuasively in this lecture for the right to assisted death at a time of his choice. This is obviously a contentious issue, and one which this post can’t hope to resolve. [...]

Why science writing is like sex

After last week’s depressing story, I wanted to write about something a bit more positive this time round. It’s about communication of science, and how attitude is everything. Science is thought of as dull, but only because it’s often communicated in a dull way. As scientists, we’re trained to write in a particular way for [...]