With shocking images such as a man chisling a cat out of an ice block in recent advertisements for Popular Science Magazine, they have shifted their focus more from "Science" to "Popular."
As we have seen on television with the Discovery Channel and the advent of The Learning Channel, science can sell. But not any kind of science. The science that interests our modern culture is only the most shocking, ridiculous, seemingly impossible science.
In our modern society dominated by technology, it is no longer "uncool" to be science-savvy. In fact, you pretty much have to be a computer geek these days. The reason that these advertisements are interesting and will be successful is that they are playing a different angle from that. We know about all the big issues. We know about how small cell phones will get; we know about global warming; and we know about cancer. For better or worse, many are getting (for lack of a more sensitive word) tired of hearing about these things.
When you show us scientific oddities and completely unheard-of accomplishments, then you have our attention. If it's weird and unique, it will sell. I have read countless articles and seen countless shows about global warming. It no longer shocks me. But show me a cat being frozen and brought back to life after a state of suspended animation? Now I'm listening.
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