RE: Article from space.com -- "Deadly Radiation Spurs Life"

[Rick_Strickert@radian.com]

Jim Hardeman wrote:

*	I would think that we in the profession would
*	understand what was being said, but what
*	is John Q. Public going to think about that story?

I wrote to Robert Britt about the use of "lethal" and "deadly" in describing
radiation that may (according to some) sustain life (if it exists) on
Europa.  He replied that his purpose in using the terms was to present "an
interesting twist of fate", showing a paradoxical aspect of radiation.  In
that sense he defended the terms as acceptable using a writer's 'literary
license.'  And Britt also claimed "our intelligent readers" would not
associate the use of these terms with any negative connotations toward the
nuclear industry.   

Does someone want to ask John Q. Public if he is an intelligent reader?
 
Rick Strickert, Ph.D.
Radian International
Austin, TX

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