Libel is a serious issue in the UK: the laws are seemingly right out of the Dark Ages, making it easy for antiscience cranks to sue journalists when unflattering pieces are written about their crankery. That's why the Libel Reform campaign was started, and that's why they're trying to raise money. And what better way to popularize this serious issue than to make a decidedly unserious geek calendar?
I love that picture; it's of my friends Gia Milinovich and her husband Brian Cox. If you're from the UK he needs no introduction, but if you're American, he's a scientist and TV presenter and becoming quite the media darling -- not the least reason for which is that he speaks his mind when it comes to nonsense. Brian and Gia are just one page of the Geek Calendar, which you get purchase online. Lots of other photogenic geeks are pictures as well, including The Hive Overmind's Discover Magazine's own Ed Yong.
And while I do like that picture of Brian and Gia, I think I may still like the one I took of them better when I was visiting them in London. I can't prove it, and they wouldn't admit it at the time, but I'm pretty sure when I snapped this shot they were texting each other. Oh-- I also totally believe he would jam a screwdriver into a toaster to try to fix it. And I know it would be up to Gia to actually get it working again.
Related posts: - SPEECH Act now a law: Big win for libel reform! - Singh a Sherine song - BREAKING: BCA drops libel case against Simon SIngh - TAM London Video 3: Brian Cox
