<So, I suggest that it is the role of the well-informed layperson with a passion for science to do the dirty work of refuting the claims of the Hoaglandites and such. That way, no direct engagement by a scientist can be misused or misrepresented. It also forces the scientific layperson to sharpen his or her knowlege on the topic. Scientists can facilitate the process by engaging in information exchange as on this bbs. The end result is that the mildly interested educated person can actually get exposed to the scientific method, satisfy their curiosity and maybe stimulate further interest. The true believer fanatics are hopless cases anyway.

Agreed, in theory. In an ideal world, where there was an established respectable forum for well-informed laypersons to exercise their refutation skills, and for the genuinely curious to seek introduction to various real fields of inquiry... well, I suppose that was the intent of this BBS, wasn't it?

So what's our track record so far? Answer: Jocelyn. As far as I can tell, she's the only person who posts legitimate questions here and reads our answers in order to learn from them. The rest of us, while undeniably learning from each other, are "preaching to the choir". I realize that there are a few HabitableZoners who also still post to the Looney Bin in an effort to debunk and educate... I'm not among them, but that's irrelevant. We can all hope they're doing some good, but that's all we can do: hope.

The problem I see is: when places like the MSNBC boards are the only accessible forums, attempts to generate real signals get lost in the background noise of pseudoscience and ego. An inquiring mind, young or not, has yet to develop the fine discrimination to judge that someone without scientific credentials may be a more legitimate voice than someone who fabricates awards they've been given for their work in a field they've also fabricated. The reverse of that coin is: which informed layman? A more succinct way of putting this might be: "For every Dan Spires, there's an Ed Grondine".

Maybe, if there was a way to get word out that the Habitable Zone is the place to come for real answers in layman's terms, plus a smattering of truly academic science as provided by the likes of Alex, Nick, and Robert L, among others... Even so, nothing beats credentials for establishing credibility, which is why - as onerous a task as it may seem - it falls to the scientists to debunk the pseudos.

E'