Most of us don’t have the deep understanding of science that is needed to discriminate between good and bad science. This applies to journalists too, which are also too frequently biased by the need to “sensationalise”, which boosts sales. So, it’s a deadly combination of uneducated readers that always look for the big and exceptional, and journalists that are often incompetent or under pressure to meet their audience’s interests.

The figure below gives an easy guide to help us distinguish what should just be junked from interesting reports of gound-breaking advances.