Headlines

For John, BLUF:  Headline writers are the bane of newspaper readers.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

Yesterday someone sent an EMail in frustration over a misleading headline.  I wrote back and told him that headlines are written by aliens from space.  Take this example:

One giant leap for mankind: £13bn Iter project makes breakthrough in the quest for nuclear fusion, a solution to climate change and an age of clean, cheap energy

What does that mean?

The FIFTH paragraph down we finally get to the meat of the matter:

This week the project gained final approval for the design of the most technically challenging component – the fusion reactor’s “blanket” that will handle the super-heated nuclear fuel.

They got design approval.  That is the big breakthrough.  We are years, perhaps decades, away from when these boffins will be able to ignite a fusion reaction and destroy planet earth.

Regards  —  Cliff