Celebrities named and shamed for crazy comments in name of science

[Stoneage Dinosaur]

From special diets and miracle cures to chemicals, vaccines and evolution — there seems to be no limit to the subjects on which some celebrities will speak. But while some may be talented actors, athletes, TV presenters and pop stars, science is not their forte.

http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/l...cle6974654.ece

[Jay Tea]

Celebrities are about as full of sh*t proportionally as their 'regular folk' counterparts, we just get to hear about it a lot more, and must be careful when it comes to putting them straight...

[RCIAG]

Foie gras causes Alzheimers?!? Who eats that stuff in such great quantities that it would cause anything but a trip to the bathroom?!?

Seriously, I haven't had foie gras in yeeeeaaars (over 25 I'd say) & most old folks I know that have/had dementia or Alzheimers aren't regular foie gras eaters either. Most old folks can't afford to eat massive amounts of it either, not at...googles foie gras prices...starting at $15 an ounce & going higher!!

I can see it now, the argument in the old lady's head "Hmmm....this foie gras is $75 for 2 oz., my heart medicine is $50....which to choose?!"

As for Heather Mills claims that meat stays in your stomach...I don't even know where to start or end with that one.

I've never been much for celeb endorsement of anything, political, medical or otherwise. I'm generally skeptical when any celeb spouts off like that because if they could've gotten that physics degree from MIT or enrolled in the seminary, or whatever, they wouldn't be jumping on Oprah's couch or spewing nonsense like foie gras causes Alzheimers.

Not that there aren't smart celebs, I just think they're the ones that know it's smarter sometimes to say nothing.

[Avril]

Originally Posted by RCIAG

Not that there aren't smart celebs, I just think they're the ones that know it's smarter sometimes to say nothing.

Knowing where your expertise really lies is one area of smartness.

You'll note you don't hear things like this about Lisa Kudrow, for example, even though she actually was a scientist for a while (or at least played one in the lab--she went to grad school, I think), and has at least one scientific journal publication to her credit.

[RCIAG]

Originally Posted by Avril

You'll note you don't hear things like this about Lisa Kudrow, for example, even though she actually was a scientist for a while (or at least played one in the lab--she went to grad school, I think), and has at least one scientific journal publication to her credit.

Dolph Lundgren has a master's degree in chemical engineering from the University of Sydney & wen to MIT for a short time....googles...two weeks actually, before he quit to act.

But still, whodathunk that Dolph "Ivan Drago" Lundgren would be a chemical engineer kinda dude?

[hoitoider]

Sometimes it works the other way around. I saw an interview where Leonard Nimoy said scientists would come up to him and want to discuss some complicated theory. He'd have to say "Look, I'm an actor. I have no idea what you're talking about."

[fitz1980]

Originally Posted by Jay Tea

Celebrities are about as full of sh*t proportionally as their 'regular folk' counterparts, we just get to hear about it a lot more, and must be careful when it comes to putting them straight...

I would agree on that point. Celebs know about as much about fields outside of their life's work as anybody else. Go ahead and chat up a few plumbers, bartenders or computer programmers on evolution, vaccinations or cancer. Some will know quite a lot, most wont and those rare few will have some crazy ideas about it like creationism, vaccines causing autism and crazy "cures" for cancer that "they" have been keeping under wraps.

Funny that I didn't see Jenny McCarthy mentioned in the article. I really hope that she made the Celebrities and Science Review 2009. I understand that her son has autism and can only imagine how difficult that is for a parent, epically because we don't know what causes it. But making demonstrably false claims about vaccinations and encouraging people not to get their kids vaccinated is irresponsible in the extreme. Hundreds of unvaccinated kids have died from preventable diseases in the past few years and she's the most visible spokesperson for this movement.

http://www.jennymccarthybodycount.co...ount/Home.html

Also hasn't Suzanne Somers been on Oprah, Ellen and The Home Shopping Network hawking BS "holistic cures for cancer" that she claims cured her of breast cancer when she really had the lump surgically removed from her breast?

[Gayle]

And Gwyneth Paltrow and some sort of kidney-flushing fast?

[jimmy101_again]

"Celebrities named and shamed for crazy comments in name of science"
The sad thing is that they are not being "shamed". They have to recognize that they are wrong in order to be shamed. They think they are being persecuted.