Libel is a serious issue in the UK: the laws are seemingly right out of the Dark Ages, making it easy for antiscience cranks to sue journalists when unflattering pieces are written about their crankery. That’s why the Libel Reform campaign was started, and that’s why they’re trying to raise money. And what better way to popularize this serious issue than to make a decidedly unserious geek calendar?
I love that picture; it’s of my friends Gia Milinovich and her husband Brian Cox. If you’re from the UK he needs no introduction, but if you’re American, he’s a scientist and TV presenter and becoming quite the media darling — not the least reason for which is that he speaks his mind when it comes to nonsense.
Brian and Gia are just one page of the Geek Calendar, which you get purchase online. Lots of other photogenic geeks are pictures as well, including The Hive Overmind’s Discover Magazine’s own Ed Yong.
And while I do like that picture of Brian and Gia, I think I may still like the one I took of them better when I was visiting them in London. I can’t prove it, and they wouldn’t admit it at the time, but I’m pretty sure when I snapped this shot they were texting each other.
Oh– I also totally believe he would jam a screwdriver into a toaster to try to fix it. And I know it would be up to Gia to actually get it working again.
Related posts:
- SPEECH Act now a law: Big win for libel reform!
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- BREAKING: BCA drops libel case against Simon SIngh
- TAM London Video 3: Brian Cox
October 26th, 2010 at 11:25 am
Oh, we know Brian over here in the US as well. He’s had a few interesting shows on Discovery also. There sure does seem to be a lot of people stepping up to try to fill in for Carl Sagan recently… Michio Kaku, Brian Cox, Phil Plait, etc. etc. Keep on bringing the fun of science to the masses!
October 26th, 2010 at 11:38 am
When I grow up, I want to be as cool as Dr. Cox.
What did Dr. Singh do to his hair? I don’t recall it being quite so spikey.
And Dr. Cox’s cat is cool (even if it was just water!).
October 26th, 2010 at 11:42 am
Personally I think the best part of the picture is the cat… I’m not a big pet lover but I think the way the cat’s back is to them and it seems to be contemplating totally different issues is wonderful.
October 26th, 2010 at 11:48 am
I did not recognize Dr. Cox until you mentioned it, and I looked again more closely.
Oh, yeah…is the calendar in metric or imperial; English or American? I need to know before I buy one.
October 26th, 2010 at 11:54 am
If your question is metric vs imperial that has nothing to do with English vs American.
The US still seems to care how big the king’s foot is for some bizarre reason.
October 26th, 2010 at 11:58 am
Two separate questions as I tried to indicate by a semicolon. IT’S A JOKE!
October 26th, 2010 at 12:02 pm
is it a cat? or is it memorex?
October 26th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
He jammed the screwdriver in the wrong way… it’s supposed to go in the slots!
October 26th, 2010 at 12:21 pm
What’s the cat looking at?
October 26th, 2010 at 1:58 pm
Obviously the cat sees an image of cat-jesus in a shadow on the wall just out of frame.
October 26th, 2010 at 3:15 pm
@24601 – For safety, never EVER stick a screwdriver into the slots of a toaster. EVER!!!
The preferred tool for the slots is a fork.
October 26th, 2010 at 3:15 pm
@24601 – For safety, never EVER stick a screwdriver into the slots of a toaster. EVER!!!
The preferred tool for the slots is a fork.
October 26th, 2010 at 3:37 pm
I think the cat is looking at the person handling the lights.
October 26th, 2010 at 5:28 pm
The Brits have to assemble their toasters themselves?
Every toaster I’ve ever bought in the US was ready to go out of the box…and came with its own fork.
October 26th, 2010 at 6:59 pm
@Floyd
Well, that’s IKEA selling toasters now…
October 26th, 2010 at 11:42 pm
Frakkin toasters…
October 27th, 2010 at 2:39 am
If I may have a moment of pedantry here, the dreadful libel law is the one in England and Wales, not the UK as a whole. The law in Scotland is very different, due to the different legal system. There have been no cases of defamation in ages because it’s really difficult to prove. No idea what the law in Northern Ireland is.
October 27th, 2010 at 5:19 am
Cowboy Dan: Did you mean F*#%in’ Toasters, how do they work?
October 27th, 2010 at 5:57 am
All hail Brian Cox! Wonders of the Solar System was a brilliant series, I’m very much looking forward to the next one. One Geek Calendar pur-chased, thank you kindly.
October 27th, 2010 at 6:59 am
I also like the cat!
Markle: Cowboy Dan’s comment was clearly linked to Battlestar Galactica, at least, the modern (and rather good, I thought) incarnation. Indeed, frakkin’ toasters! Frak ‘em.
October 27th, 2010 at 7:42 am
I agree, inclusion of the typically disinterested cat was genius. So, lay odds: what time of day is this supposed to be depicting? Morning breakfast time, which is the obvious time when one would want to be preparing toast, or afternoon/evening, a more traditional time for martinis? Too bad they cut the head off the wall clock…
October 27th, 2010 at 3:56 pm
@Markle:
Probably not… I do believe Cowboy Dan was making a BSG reference.
October 28th, 2010 at 1:52 am
Three things:
1. Awesome picture. I’m a fan of Brian Cox and I follow them both on Twitter.
2. He needs to be careful, when Homer Simpson tried to fix the toaster he turned it into a time machine…
3. What is the cat looking at?
October 28th, 2010 at 9:08 am
Gorcee: I’m sure you are correct.
October 28th, 2010 at 9:10 am
“I love that picture; it’s of my friends Gia Milinovich and…”
Whew! For a second there I thought you wrote “Gaia Milankovitch.”
I know you’ve got some influential friends, but this would be… unprecedented!
(ducking…)