If her recent confessional letter is accurate, it looks as though Murphy and her co-conspirator (former husband) wanted to see if they fool the editor into publishing their letter just as they supposed the guitar-nipple author had. She says now that they were surprised at the time when the BMJ published their cello-scrotum letter. It's as though reading the guitar-nipple letter suggested to them that there was a presumably small number of BMJ contributors who enjoyed hoodwinking the gatekeepers and they, Murphy and husband, wanted to be in that number. Maybe they wanted to see just how outrageously silly a letter they could get published.
According to the Independent's version of events, the person whose name was on the guitar-nipple letter said he knew nothing of it until the Murphy's contacted him a year after they 'copied' him. Is that not strange? Wouldn't his colleagues have joked with him about it? Or were letters to the BMJ read by nobody in those days?
Chris
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From: psci-com: on public engagement with science [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of naima reza
Sent: 28 January 2009 12:33
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [PSCI-COM] Scrotumgate and gaiety
Yep, the motive behind scrotumgate clearly appears to be humour, so there's a difference there...
j
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Date: Wed, 28 Jan 2009 12:21:38 +0000
From: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [PSCI-COM] Scrotumgate and gaiety
To: [log in to unmask]
Good call I had totally forgotten about that one - Dawkins refers to it his book of essays A Devil's Chaplain (I think!!) This one was really trying to prove a point though wasn't it, scrotumgate was just about humour..
Sallie Robins, Co-Director, World Conference of Science Journalists 2009 and Communications Manager, The Big Bang
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From: psci-com: on public engagement with science [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of naima reza
Sent: 28 January 2009 11:57
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [PSCI-COM] Scrotumgate and gaiety
How does this compare with the Sokal Affair that played such a big role in the 'Science Wars'? (I'll give the wikipedia reference, but I'm sure there are many others:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sokal_affair)
Julie
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> Date: Wed, 28 Jan 2009 10:41:20 +0000
> From: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [PSCI-COM] Scrotumgate and gaiety
> To: [log in to unmask]
>
> The cello-scrotum-and-guitar-nipple story that's doing the rounds today (see e.g. here http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-wellbeing/health-news/exposed-the-myth-of-cello-scrotum-1517846.html.) makes me wonder how common spoofs of this kind are in STM journals. Anyone have an inkling? Are all scientists, engineers, medics, journal editors as happy to accept it it as merely adding to the gaiety of life as the BMJ spokesperson quoted on BBC News. What about the authors of the admittedly lighthearted paper published as a Christmas 2008 feature in the BMJ that shamed Murphy into her confession?
>
> I mean that's one fewer complaint to go to your GP with if you need a sickie.
>
> Chris
>
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