Q. I was persuaded by my son to attend a lecture on astronomy. I was out of my depth within five minutes. Should I have interrupted the speaker, Mary, and asked for elucidation? I did not want to embarrass my son but through not so doing, the whole rest of the lecture went over my head and, I would imagine, the heads of a large proportion of the audience. Secondly, a question-and-answer session followed in which those in the audience who had understood the talk posed questions. Can you explain why so many apparently able-bodied scientists seem to speak in staccato tones as though they were imitating Stephen Hawking?
J.M., Salisbury
A. In answer to your first question I am afraid a lecture hall is not a schoolroom. Speakers should not have their momentum halted by solipsists who have lost the thread.
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