Warren, you're on a roll. The most I think I've ever seen you post. Well done. And I'll be keeping my eye on you for when you start tacking the other way.
The author cleverly wrote a piece that fit well in the context of a non-pipe-smoking audience and including detail and narrative that made it appealing to non-pipe-smoking readers. As with writing science, it is almost a process of translation, cultural rather than linguistic translation.