The PM’s science prizes are out, atlhough the government had the announcement amplifier turned right down. Compared to the trumpeting of the Eureka Awards what should be the nations big science honours had all the community-impact of Schrodinger’s cat – the prizes were announced, unless they weren’t. Perhaps this was because officials understand knowledge is power and see no reason why people not on the awards guest list should know what went on.

Unless of course science is seen as so Malcom Turnbull and the government’s Malcolm Tuckers decided that honouring scientific achievement is too much like praising innovation – which some coalition supporters consider a synonym for job losses.  Whatever happened, outside the science community the researchers and teachers who won the PMs prizes did not get coverage their achievements merit.