Top British scientist sacked

Baroness Greenfield is one of Britain's most well-known scientists and was, until recently, the head of the Royal Institution. The RI just fired her, after a £22m modernization plan left its finances in ruins. Greenfield plans to sue it, accusing the institute of sexual discrimination. After her decade-long tenure, however, Greenfield's consistent interest in pitching curiously unscientific stories at the tabloid press leaves her wanting for credibility. And then there's the matter of using one's seat in the House of Lords to peddle $150 'brain training' video games after criticising mainstream rivals. Ben Goldacre quite politely explains why she's trouble. The Guardian puts it bluntly: she's a self-promoter who has done no significant scientific research, has never gained her peers' respect, and is the architect of her own fate.