Re:Funny Part (Score 1)

That's a tricky one though. The best source I found (5 min google search) regarding the education on celebrities indicates a lack of higher education among many celebrities (http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/s/starsandpo ls.htm). A doctoral degree is earned by those who not only demonstrate a solid understanding of their field, but also made a contribution to the field deemed worthy by their peers. Such an academic career generally involves being educated in other fields as well, forming a broad yet specialized education. That's not to say that a doctor in computer science should be considered an expert on medicine, psychology, nutrition, etc. But I would consider his ability to research and separate fact from rumor to be more credible than that of a college drop out who happens to be popular. I think the main problem is that of context. When dealing with scientific findings, all of the related information is important to understanding the science. It is impossible to get all of the information from a news article, and televised news is always so time-compressed and over emphasized that they seldom include any real scientific information. Whenever someone tells you something that "everyone knows," ask how often everyone is an expert in anything.