'The Simpsons'? Scientific?

From USATODAY.com Tech - Top Stories:

Good news: All the hours kids spend watching The Simpsons, they also may be learning something about science. Paul Halpern, a physics and mathematics professor at the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia and a fan of the show, uses episodes in his classes. Science themes that pop up in the show include a broad range in biology, chemistry, astronomy and physics. Halpern says that while not everything in the show is scientifically correct, it can spark an interest in science. "The Simpsons offers a great starting point for learning about many scientific issues," he says. "However, some of the conclusions reached by characters on the show should be taken with a grain of salt because, after all, it is a comedy series." In his new book, What's Science Ever Done for Us? What The Simpsons Can Teach Us About Physics, Robots, Life, and the Universe, Halpern discusses science themes in episodes and notes whether the science is real in each case. In one episode, Homer makes a tomato-tobacco hybrid plant by putting plutonium in the soil. Plutonium in the soil would not produce a hybrid "tomacco" plant, Halpern says. But there have been documented cases of grafting together tobacco and tomato plants to produce a tomato plant with traces of nicotine

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