BBC: Jupiter: How to see the planet in the sky on Thursday - Agggghhhh....

[Roy Challen]

To be fair to the writer of the article, it was probably well researched and written. Then the editor got their hands on it.

[Macavity]

56 minutes ago, Roy Challen said:

To be fair to the writer of the article, it was probably well researched and written. Then the editor got their hands on it.

Too true, Roy! It is commonly held that "sub-editors" are responsible for a lot
of incorrect/sensational additions to articles on things, I/we know stuff about. 😉

Edited August 19, 2021 by Macavity

[Tiny Clanger]

I don't believe any editor , sub editor, or anyone at the bbc bothered to do more than copy/paste sections of the press release the RGO put out. Some publications did apply some editing for sense, like the Coventry Telegraph and several others I looked at , but there are other sites who use the exact same wording.  Hard to think it is anything but a direct lift from the press release put out by the RGO , sold on by that 'content provider' and disseminated by the sites without a thought.

The Metro  "Ms Lanigan added that planets are usually in opposition for a very short length of time but, during that time, they are visible to the naked eye."

The Independent "Ms Lanigan added that planets are usually in opposition for a very short length of time but, during that time, they are visible to the naked eye."

Glasgow Times "Ms Lanigan added that planets are usually in opposition for a very short length of time but, during that time, they are visible to the naked eye."

Wales online "Ms Lanigan added that planets are usually in opposition for a very short length of time but, during that time, they are visible to the naked eye."

 

[Louis D]

5 hours ago, Zermelo said:

I think that's the more damning aspect.  While it may be depressingly predictable that some intern journo with a degree in who-knows-what could produce some nonsense by "taking the complexities out" of something they didn't understand in the first place, there is no real quality control to pick up things like this, because very few people higher up the food chain have any more STEM knowledge than the perpetrator.

I sometimes read the online Daily Mail science feed, because (surprisingly) they seem to tap in to a lot of sources and produce a wide range of content. But the howlers they sometimes make are hilarious, and if I'm interested in a story I have to track down a reliable account.

 

As a computer engineer who has been designing computer chips for everything from mainframes and super computers to GPUs and smartphones over the last 35 years, I've come to realize that the vast, vast majority of the world relies on the expertise of a very tiny number of engineers and scientists to create and maintain modern technology.  To the unwashed masses, today's technology is basically indistinguishable from magic.  What's really scary is that vanishingly few engineers and scientists venture into the political realm, meaning that those in governmental positions are of limited technological understanding and set technology policies by which everyone else must live based on this limited understanding.

[Macavity]

11 hours ago, Louis D said:

What's really scary is that vanishingly few engineers and scientists venture into the political realm...

Heheh. What's QUITE (sic) scary is that no Professional Scientist has ever indentified
themselves as an [SGL] Amateur Astronomer? For the life of me, I cannot think why...  🤡

Without much effort I did spot one subtly different version - albeit in the Daily Mail. 😛

"Planets are usually in opposition for a very short length of time but, during that time,
they are visible to the naked eye, Lanigan said".

I'd say there is reasonable doubt (what she said!), as they say in court room dramas... 😉
Were she "famous", she could claim she "miss-spoke" or rail against Twitter wordcount.
In the histrionic style of Chris Crocker (qv) "LEAVE BRITTNEY (Oops Briony!) ALONE! 🤣

I see "Young Briony" (An appeal to the emotions!) is a low-paid(?) "Publicity Assistant"
at RGO? She has a Degree in "Quantum Computing" (Thesis Title I didn't understand!)
She gives (substitute) talks at local Astro Socs. on a subject she loves? A Good Egg! 😎

For reasons I won't detail, I lost my LOVE of "Helping People" in Professional Science.
I found a genuine kindred spirit in "grass roots" local Astronomy meetings...
As to SOME Amateur Astronomers... a little humility maybe? 🙃

Edited August 20, 2021 by Macavity

[skyhog]

Yes, certainly identify with these replies.

A few weeks ago my wife and I were sat watching TV when she got a text from a work colleague of hers asking if I was going to be looking for the rare ringed planet tonight? She had read a headline and didn't even know it referred to saturn which was at opposition. I asked my wife to reply asking if she was talking about saturn. She said she didn't know what it was called but it was only visible tonight. She's a GP too...