jet packs would be awesome - or they were awesome at one point in the future that is past

The Telegraph’s “science correspondent”, Richard Gray, wrote a story over the weekend about the wonders that await in the the bathrooms of our future. The details are unimportant – click if you are curious about your toileting future. What matters more is the methodology. Because it turns out to have been based on a “report”:

The report, compiled for bathroom provider Ideal Standard International, shows how the way people use and behave in their bathrooms is changing.

Drawing on predictions by designers and futurologists, it also puts forward a vision for how our water closets of the future could look.

Here’s an insider tip from a “journalism professional”. If your “science correspondent” is quoting “futurologists”, run away. Unless the “futurologist” is talking about “jet packs”. Because that would be awesome.