Best of all, the public gets a firsthand glimpse of how science works. Hard to explain, even embarrassing. But at least the experiment provided the public with a glimpse of the scientific method, the tricky bit that journalists usually ignore. To work, they must speak to a basic human need. This is the foundation of all good communication.
Scientists take note.
Roger Highfield is the science editor of the Daily Telegraph. He wrote The Physics of Christmas and coauthored The Arrow of Time, The Private Lives of Albert Einstein, and Frontiers of Complexity. He has won several prizes for science and medical journalism, and a British Press Award. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed for research and educational purposes only.