The rubes will believe anything if you say it while wearing a lab coat and a clerical collar. It’s a law.
(I’ve never worn either while teaching, which explains my relative poverty.)
Pharyngula
Evolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal
There’s also their obsession with titles (e.g. Dr., Prof.). Even if their credentials are legitimate, the more they insist on being addressed with a title, the less impressed I am.
Add in “science-y” sounding words — but not math and certainly no forumlae — plus a hint of the audience’s own biases, and, hey presto, you too can convince the world squirrels are safe & sane, penguin’s cannot fly & don’t eat cheese, T. rex was eating coconuts only a few thousand years ago, and the Earth is not a flat disc supported by turtles. But it requires actual effort to convince anyone a snarling tasteless textureless pea is edible. We know all this do too teh Thousand Monkeys Learn-at-Home Riting Class¡
The rubes will believe anything if you say it while wearing a lab coat and a clerical collar.
And if you see anyone wearing a chef’s coat outside of a kitchen, you are dealing with a real asshole.
“Nine MDs out of ten smokes Camel cigarettes”
I am old enough to remember that shit.
Also, the “Marlboro Man” died of lung cancer. I you don’t know the name, Google is your friend.