1. Tufte quotes George Orwell at least three times saying: "The English Language...becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts." Granted, I don't actually know any other languages, but English seems pretty tidy and a substantial tool for communicating complex thoughts, if necessary. If Tufte is so critical of English and its shortcomings, why is this entire report in English (not to mention the report's overall comprehensive nature, its richness of content, and its density of words per square inch)? Isn't then his frustration with the Power Point format slightly discredited; couldn't an intelligent mind make an excellent and enlightening set of slides if they really tried?

2. Although it is obviously absurd to imagine NASA making cute slides for eachother, is it really fair to blame the entire Columbia disaster on Power Point?