Not the BBC's finest hour

Failure to understand scientific and statistical points was paraded across the BBC this morning.

First, James Naughtie asked John Beddington to explain the difference between Fukushima Daiichi and Chernobyl, when the chief scientific advisor had already done so in considerable detail.

Then, John Humphrys interviewed David Nutt about the trouble he found himself in after comparing the risks of ecstasy and horse-riding.  Exasperation showing clearly through the politeness, Professor Nutt sought to explain that he was doing no more nor less than presenting the statistics as established by a proper meta-analysis.

Finally, Martha Carney completely misunderstood the representative of the World Nuclear Association.  He said the diesel generators at the power station had not been designed to withstand the size of tsunami which hit it:  she concluded that he had said that the generators should not have been there at all.