Scientific Illiteracy on Parade

Scientific illiteracy all the rage among the glitterati

[T]op prize went to the lifestyle guru Carole Caplin for denouncing a study showing that vitamin supplements offer little or no health benefits as “rubbish” – it is the third year on the run that she has been mentioned in the review. Science author and GP Ben Goldacre pointed out that the study Ms Caplin referred to was the most authoritative yet published. “Carole should understand that research can often produce results which challenge our preconceptions: that is why science is more interesting than just following your nose,” Dr Goldacre said.

Remaking the Classics

Get it?

I think someone could remake Spartacus as a present-day story of a huge conglomerate, corrupted by its greed, and how it crushes an attempt by some employees to split off and form their own company. The Roman Senate becomes the board of directors/senior management, who like to make the junior employees (or interns) try and complete projects while competing with each other for resources. The loser gets a really bad evaluation and it kills his chance for advancement. A worker nicknamed Spartacus comes along with this wonderful idea and wants to break off and form a new company. He starts winning employees over to him in an attempt to break away, but HyperMegaCorp deems his idea to be their intellectual property and sends their army of lawyers after him.

The end is where the CEO wants to fire Spartacus personally, but all the rebellious employees claim to be him, so he fires everyone. But Spartacus’s idea survives, uncontrolled by the company.