"Pluto is dead" - Mike Brown, It's official Options

[SigurRosFan]

- BREAKING NEWS: Pluto Demoted, No Longer a Planet

- Pluto loses status as a planet

[ElkGroveDan]

I predict that popular culture will continue to speak of "the nine planets" and the "planet Pluto". As someone said on a previous topic, the whole concept of the nature of a planet has been largely cultural and linguistic one anyway.

My experience is that "official" attempts to dictate changes in time-honored concepts and traditions often fall flat (outside of totalitarian dictatorships, that is). I recall that in the 1970s "everyone" was of the view that the US should switch to the metric system. President Carter even went so far as to issue executive orders dictating the use of metric measurements in all things related to the US government. The transition began, but it never stuck. I used to have a 1980 Oldsmobile that required two sets of socket wrenches, metric for the body and English for the engine.

The point is that the movement never stuck in US culture and eventually everything reverted back to our English standard (with no commentary from this former engineer as to which system is "better.") I believe the same will happen with this decision on "the Planets." Lacking any kind of "enforcement" school teachers will keep their expensive models and collections of elementary textbooks. This news will fade in about three days, and a month from now the average disinterested members of the public will forget that it ever happened.

[David]

This news will fade in about three days, and a month from now the average disinterested members of the public will forget that it ever happened.

Yes, but there are always going to be officious up-to-date people who will undertake to "correct" them if they happen to speak of "nine planets". The worst are going to be the smart-alec kids who will raise their hands in 4th grade and say, "Excuse me, Miss Barringer, but astronomers now say there are only eight planets." You know, kids like you and me when we were that age.

[JRehling]

Yes, but there are always going to be officious up-to-date people who will undertake to "correct" them if they happen to speak of "nine planets". The worst are going to be the smart-alec kids who will raise their hands in 4th grade and say, "Excuse me, Miss Barringer, but astronomers now say there are only eight planets." You know, kids like you and me when we were that age.

This is why I thought the "biggest" thing the community could have done here is to have the "official" word be: "Don't be officious about this. It's inherently vague. Some things are."

By making headlines one day and contradictory headlines a few days later, the community perpetuates the unfortunate perception that officiousness is a big part of science.