So the shortlist for the Aventis Prize in accessible science books has been announced. And it seems to be in with a chance there has to be a dash in the book title (ie: Flippancy – How Making The Odd Joke And Being Inaccurate Allows People To Be More Accessible To Science). And the books split nicely into science histories (hey, scientists are even pettier than the average Joe) and more DNA, genome, how your body works stuff. I might even try and read some of them.
But what is this. Vivienne Parry? A woman whose main scientific credentials I believe was presenting Tomorrows World for a couple of weeks. At least Phillipa Forrester has a degree in ecology. Particularly notable for her weekly vaguely sciency column in The News Of The World. However for some reason she also devoted a section every week in her column to an oval picture of Princess Di – saying that until a proper memorial had been built to the People’s Princess the oval would keep running. Unfortunately Parry’s stock at the News Of The World plummetted until she had the ignominity of having to share a page with Captain Cash – the NOTW’s fake begging bowl superhero. Said page was called (DYS) Cash & Parry. SO one wonders how good said book is, especially when I remember her politics. Perhaps it should have been called: The Truth About Hormones – What’s Going on when We’re Tetchy, Spotty, Fearful, Tearful or Just Plain Awful and or being Tory All The Time