Improbable ResearchYouTube blocked the original version of the Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony 2021 over a copyright claim on John McCormacks 1914 recording of "Funiculi Funicular", which, due to the messed-up state of US copyright on audio recordings, may still be copyrighted until Jan 1st, 2022. So, as a special tribute to algorithms and lawyers everywhere, we present this remixed and refuniculared version, with special guests Maria Ferrante and Thomas Michael performing the classic tune.
The 31st First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, September 9th, 2021 at 6 PM US eastern time. It will introduce ten new Ig Nobel Prize winners, each of which has done something that makes people laugh then think. Winners travel (virtually, in this Covid-19 pandemic year) from around the world to receive their prize from a group of genuine, genuinely bemused Nobel Laureates.
The 31st First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony 2021 (Refuniculared)Improbable Research2021-09-22 | YouTube blocked the original version of the Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony 2021 over a copyright claim on John McCormacks 1914 recording of "Funiculi Funicular", which, due to the messed-up state of US copyright on audio recordings, may still be copyrighted until Jan 1st, 2022. So, as a special tribute to algorithms and lawyers everywhere, we present this remixed and refuniculared version, with special guests Maria Ferrante and Thomas Michael performing the classic tune.
The 31st First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, September 9th, 2021 at 6 PM US eastern time. It will introduce ten new Ig Nobel Prize winners, each of which has done something that makes people laugh then think. Winners travel (virtually, in this Covid-19 pandemic year) from around the world to receive their prize from a group of genuine, genuinely bemused Nobel Laureates.
More information about Improbable Research: improbable.comThe 34th First Annual Ig Nobel Ceremony (2024)Improbable Research2024-09-13 | The 2024 Ig Nobel Prizes were awarded at the 34th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize ceremony, on Thursday evening, September 12, 2024, at MIT (The Massachusetts Institute of Technology) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, beginning at 6 pm US eastern time. After four pandemic-years in which the ceremony happened only online, this resumed the tradition of doing it with everyone together in a big room with an audience. The ceremony was produced in collaboration with the MIT Press. . More information about the ceremony: improbable.com/ig/archive/2024-ceremony . More information about Improbable Research: improbable.comAirplane Solicitation 2024Improbable Research2024-07-22 | Would you like to throw paper airplanes in this year’s (2024) Ig Nobel Prize ceremony?
The 34th First Annual Ig Nobel Ceremony will be held at MIT and broadcast live on September 12th, 2024.
To be a part of the show, you can submit footage of yourself and others launching paper airplanes directly at the camera.
Footage must be submitted by August 28th. Send it to: marc ATTTTTT improbable DOTTTTT com
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
For more information about the Ig Nobels, visit www.IMPROBABLE.com.
BACKGROUND: Ten new Ig Nobel Prizes are awarded every year, for things that make people LAUGH, then THINK
THIS EVENT: In this Ig Nobel Face-to-Face event, most of the new winners gathered in one room, to ask each other questions about their work
The discussions were shepherded by: • MARC ABRAHAMS, founder of the Ig Nobel Prize ceremony, and editor of the Annals of Improbable Research • KAREN HOPKIN, biochemist, coauthor of the textbook Essential Cell Biology, and creator of the Studmuffins of Science calendar • DANY ADAMS, pioneer in the field of bioelectricity, and Chief Science Officer of Lucell Diagnostics • ERIC MASKIN, professor of economics at Harvard University, and Nobel laureate in economics
Produced by Improbable Research, in collaboration with the MIT Museum. Video by Seven Generations Video.
SEGMENTS IN THIS VIDEO:
00:00 - The traditional Ig Nobel "Welcome, Welcome" speech — delivered by KATHRYN GUNSCH, assistant director of the MIT Museum
03:52 -First of the four discussion groups: 06:15 • CHRISTINE PHAM, 1 MIN INTRO, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Medicine Prize — for using cadavers to explore whether there is an equal number of hairs in each of a person's two nostrils 07:13 • CHRIS MOULIN, 1 MIN INTRO, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Literature Prize— for studying the sensations people feel when they repeat a single word many, many, many, many, many, many, many times 08:23 • BIEITO FERNÁNDEZ CASTRO, 1 MIN INTRO, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Physics Prize — for measuring the extent to which ocean-water mixing is affected by the sexual activity of anchovies 09:38 - First group discussion
24:10 - Second of the four discussion groups: 26:39 • KATY TAM, 1 MIN INTRO, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Education Prize — for methodically studying the boredom of teachers and students • MIGUEL GILCOTO, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Physics Prize — for measuring the extent to which ocean-water mixing is affected by the sexual activity of anchovies 27:41 • ADOLFO GARCÍA, 1 MIN INTRO, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Communication Prize — for studying the mental activities of people who are expert at speaking backward 28:57 - Second group discussion
44:03 - Third of the four discussion groups: 46:37 • TE FAYE YAP, 1 MIN INTRO, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Mechanical Engineering Prize — for re-animating dead spiders to use as mechanical gripping tools • AKIRA O'CONNOR, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Literature Prize — for studying the sensations people feel when they repeat a single word many, many, many, many, many, many, many times 47:33 • HOMEI MIYASHITA, 1 MIN INTRO, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Nutrition Prize winner — for experiments to determine how electrified chopsticks and drinking straws can change the taste of food 48:45 - Third group discussion
1:04:01 Fourth of the four discussion groups: • NATASHA MESINKOVSKA, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Medicine Prize — for using cadavers to explore whether there is an equal number of hairs in each of a person's two nostrils. • DANIEL PRESTON, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Mechanical Engineering Prize — for re-animating dead spiders to use as mechanical gripping tools • CHRISTIAN CHAN, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Education Prize — for methodically studying the boredom of teachers and students 1:06:05 • SEUNG-MIN PARK, 1 MIN INTRO, co-winner of the Ig Nobel Public Health Prize — for inventing the Stanford Toilet, a device that uses a variety of technologies — including a urinalysis dipstick test strip, a computer vision system for defecation analysis, an anal-print sensor paired with an identification camera, and a telecommunications link — to monitor and quickly analyze the substances that humans excrete 1:08:47 - Fourth group discussion
1:23:59 - Thank you 1:26:06 - Pointless photo op 1:27:10 - Group recitation of "The"
Copyright 2024 Improbable Research www.improbable.comThe 33rd First Annual Ig Nobel Prize CeremonyImprobable Research2023-09-14 | The 33rd First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony, September 14th, 2023. Introducing ten new Ig Nobel Prize winners. Each has done something that makes people laugh, then think. Winners travel from around the world to receive their prize from a group of genuine, genuinely bemused Nobel Laureates. CHAPTER INDEX (click "SHOW MORE" to view below)
More information about Improbable Research: improbable.com
00:00, CEREMONY INTRO 01:06, PAPER AIRPLANE DELUGE #1 02:13, WELCOME, WELCOME SPEECH 02:46, INTRODUCTION 05:05, THIS YEAR'S THEME (WATER) 05:32 INTRODUCTION OF NOBEL LAUREATES 08:25 A LOOK AT THE PRIZE 10:17 CHEMISTRY & GEOLOGY PRIZE 13:50 ACCEPTANCE SPEECH CHEMISTRY & GEOLOGY 15:04 LITERATURE PRIZE 17:58, ACCEPTANCE SPEECH LITERATURE 18:55, MECHANICAL ENGINEERING PRIZE 21:40, ACCEPTANCE SPEECH MECHANICAL ENGINEERING 22:41, 24/7 LECTURE INTRODUCTION 23:14, 24/7 LECTURE (ERIKA JOHNSON) 24:42, 24/7 LECTURE (DAVID HU) 26:18, NON-OPERA, SONG 1 ["Body Water"] 31:17, PRIZE #4 (PUBLIC HEALTH) 34:59, ACCEPTANCE SPEECH PUBLIC HEALTH 36:07, PRIZE #5 (COMMUNICATION) 40:38, ACCEPTANCE SPEECH COMMUNICATION 41:43, PRIZE #6 (MEDICINE) 45:35, ACCEPTANCE SPEECH MEDICINE 46:54, 24/7 LECTURE #3 (JASMINE NIRODY) 48:04, 24/7 LECTURE #4 (NADIA DOMINICI & ALBERTO MINETTI & YURY IVANENKO) 49:34, NON-OPERA, SONG 2 ["Run on Water"] 54:35, BRIEF INTERMISSION 54:49, PAPER AIRPLANE DELUGE #2023 55:36, REQUEST FOR DONATIONS 56:11, PRIZE #7 (NUTRITION) 1:00:33, ACCEPTANCE SPEECH NUTRITION 1:01:39, PRIZE #8 (EDUCATION) 1:05:07, ACCEPTANCE SPEECH EDUCATION 1:06:20, PAPER AIRPLANE DELUGE #3 1:07:13, PRIZE #9 (PSYCHOLOGY) 1:08:52, ACCEPTANCE SPEECH PSYCHOLOGY 1:10:00, PRIZE #10 (PHYSICS) 1:14:43, ACCEPTANCE SPEECH PHYSICS 1:15:49, 24/7 LECTURE #5 (ANDREA SELLA) 1:17:15, NON-OPERA SONG 3 ["Crazy Ice"] 1:19:57, NON-OPERA CURTAIN CALLS 1:20:36, GOODBYE GOODBYE SPEECH 1:21:07, A LOOK BACK 1:23:14, CREDITSThrow Paper Airplanes! (in the Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony 2023)Improbable Research2023-07-18 | Would you like to throw paper airplanes in this year’s (2023) Ig Nobel Prize ceremony?
To be a part of the show, you can submit footage of yourself and others launching paper airplanes directly at the camera. We will include the best videos in the traditional Paper Airplane Deluges which are a high-flying-light of every ceremony.
Footage must be submitted by August 18th. Send it to: marc ATTTTTT improbable DOTTTTT com
The 33rd First Annual Ig Nobel Ceremony will be broadcast September 14th, 2023.
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
For more information about the Ig Nobels, visit www.IMPROBABLE.com.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2022 Ig Nobel Prize for Economics was awarded to Peter de Smet and Nicholas Hellmuth, for their study “A Multidisciplinary Approach to Ritual Enema Scenes on Ancient Maya Pottery.”
REFERENCE: “A Multidisciplinary Approach to Ritual Enema Scenes on Ancient Maya Pottery,” Peter A.G.M. de Smet and Nicholas M. Hellmuth, Journal of Ethnopharmacology, vol. 16, no. 2-3, 1986, pp. 213-262.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2022 Ig Nobel Prize for Economics was awarded to Alessandro Pluchino, Alessio Emanuele Biondo, and Andrea Rapisarda, for explaining, mathematically, why success most often goes not to the most talented people, but instead to the luckiest.
REFERENCE: “Talent vs. Luck: The Role of Randomness in Success and Failure,” Alessandro Pluchino, Alessio Emanuele Biondo, and Andrea Rapisarda, Advances in Complex Systems, vol. 21, nos. 3 and 4, 2018.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2022 Ig Nobel Prize for Physics was awarded to Frank Fish, Zhi-Ming Yuan, Minglu Chen, Laibing Jia, Chunyan Ji, and Atilla Incecik, for trying to understand how ducklings manage to swim in formation.
The 2022 Ig Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded jointly to two separate research groups for their research about how ducklings swim in formation. Each group has prepared an Ig Informal Lecture. This is one of those lecture videos.
REFERENCE: “Energy Conservation by Formation Swimming: Metabolic Evidence from Ducklings,” Frank E. Fish, in the book Mechanics and Physiology of Animal Swimming, 1994, pp. 193-204.
REFERENCE: “Wave-Riding and Wave-Passing by Ducklings in Formation Swimming,” Zhi-Ming Yuan, Minglu Chen, Laibing Jia, Chunyan Ji, and Atilla Incecik, Journal of Fluid Mechanics, vol. 928, no. R2, 2021.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2022 Ig Nobel Prize for Physics was awarded to Frank Fish, Zhi-Ming Yuan, Minglu Chen, Laibing Jia, Chunyan Ji, and Atilla Incecik, for trying to understand how ducklings manage to swim in formation.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2022 Ig Nobel Prize for Engineering was awarded to Gen Matsuzaki, Kazuo Ohuchi, Masaru Uehara, Yoshiyuki Ueno, and Goro Imura, for trying to discover the most efficient way for people to use their fingers when turning a knob.
REFERENCE: “How to Use Fingers during Rotary Control of Columnar Knobs,” Gen Matsuzaki, Kazuo Ohuchi, Masaru Uehara, Yoshiyuki Ueno, and Goro Imura, Bulletin of Japanese Society for the Science of Design, vol. 45, no. 5, 1999, pp. 69-76. [LINK: doi.org/10.11247/jssdj.45.69]
REFERENCE: “Experimental Studies on the Rotary Control of Columnar Knobs — The Number of Fingers used at the Time of starting Rotary Control,” Gen Matsuzaki, Goro Imura, and Maseru Uehara, Proceedings of the Third Asia Design Conference, 1998, pp. 37-40.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2022 Ig Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Gen Matsuzaki, Kazuo Ohuchi, Masaru Uehara, Yoshiyuki Ueno, and Goro Imura, for trying to discover the most efficient way for people to use their fingers when turning a knob.
REFERENCE: “Honesty and Dishonesty in Gossip Strategies: A Fitness Interdependence Analysis,” Junhui Wu, Szabolcs Számadó, Pat Barclay, Bianca Beersma, Terence D. Dores Cruz, Sergio Lo Iacono, Annika S. Nieper, Kim Peters, Wojtek Przepiorka, Leo Tiokhin and Paul A.M. Van Lange, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, vol. 376, no. 1838, 2021, 20200300. [LINK: doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2020.0300]
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2022 Ig Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded to Marcin Jasiński, Martyna Maciejewska, Anna Brodziak, Michał Górka, Kamila Skwierawska, Wiesław Jędrzejczak, Agnieszka Tomaszewska, Grzegorz Basak, and Emilian Snarski, for showing that when patients undergo some forms of toxic chemotherapy, they suffer fewer harmful side effects when ice cream replaces one traditional component of the procedure.
REFERENCE: “Ice-Cream Used as Cryotherapy During High-Dose Melphalan Conditioning Reduces Oral Mucositis After Autologous Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation,” Marcin Jasiński, Martyna Maciejewska, Anna Brodziak, Michał Górka, Kamila Skwierawska, Wiesław W. Jędrzejczak, Agnieszka Tomaszewska, Grzegorz W. Basak, and Emilian Snarski, Scientific Reports, vol. 11, no. 22507, 2021. [LINK: nature.com/articles/s41598-021-02002-x]
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2022 Ig Nobel Prize for Biology was awarded to Solimary García-Hernández and Glauco Machado, for studying whether and how constipation affects the mating prospects of scorpions.
REFERENCE: “Short- and Long-Term Effects of an Extreme Case of Autotomy: Does ‘Tail’ Loss and Subsequent Constipation Decrease the Locomotor Performance of Male and Female Scorpions?” Solimary García-Hernández and Glauco Machado, Integrative Zoology, epub 2021. [LINK: doi.org/10.1111/1749-4877.12604]
REFERENCE: “Fitness Implications of Nonlethal Injuries in Scorpions: Females, but Not Males, Pay Reproductive Costs,” Solimary García-Hernández and Glauco Machado, American Naturalist, vol. 197, no. 3, March 2021, pp. 379-389. [LINK: doi.org/10.1086/712759]
REFERENCE: ”‘Tail’ Autotomy and Consequent Stinger Loss Decrease Predation Success in Scorpions,” Solimary García-Hernández and Glauco Machado, Animal Behaviour, vol. 169, 2020, pp. 157-167. [LINK: doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2020.08.019]
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2022 Ig Nobel Prize for Applied Cardiology was awarded to Eliska Prochazkova, Elio Sjak-Shie, Friederike Behrens, Daniel Lindh, and Mariska Kret, for seeking and finding evidence that when new romantic partners meet for the first time, and feel attracted to each other, their heart rates synchronize.
REFERENCE: “Physiological Synchrony is Associated with Attraction in a Blind Date Setting,” Eliska Prochazkova, Elio Sjak-Shie, Friederike Behrens, Daniel Lindh, and Mariska E. Kret, Nature Human Behaviour, vol. 6, no. 2, 2022, pp. 269-278. [LINK: doi.org/10.1038/s41562-021-01197-3]
Full details at: improbable.com improbable.com/ig/winners/#ig2022 improbable.com/ig/2022-ceremonyThe 32nd First Annual Ig Nobel Prize CeremonyImprobable Research2022-09-15 | The 32nd First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, September 15th, 2022 at 6 PM US eastern time. It will introduce ten new Ig Nobel Prize winners. Each has done something that makes people laugh, then think. Winners travel (virtually, in this Covid-19 pandemic year) from around the world to receive their prize from a group of genuine, genuinely bemused Nobel Laureates.
More information about Improbable Research: improbable.comThe 32nd First Annual Ig Nobel Awards TrailerImprobable Research2022-09-15 | Get a taste of what is to come with the 32nd First Annual Ig Nobel Awards, coming to you at 6pm on the 15th of SeptemberDramatic Improbable Readings for Arisia 2022Improbable Research2022-01-11 | Improbable Research organizes a Dramatic Improbable Readings session at Arisia every year — dramatic readings from published research studies that make people laugh, then think. In 2022, The Covid-19 pandemic led Arisia to cancel the 2022 convention. Undaunted, Improbable Research did and video recorded a new session. Marc Abrahams, editor of the Annals of Improbable Research, comperes. The dramatic readers are: Mason Porter, Sonya Taafe, Dean Grodzins, and Gary Dryfoos. Michele Liguori is the timekeeper. David Kessler is the deobfuscator.
INFO: Improbable Research, organizer of the annual Ig Nobel Prize ceremony, and publisher of the magazine Annals of Improbable Research: www.improbable.com Arisia: arisia.orgCan You Navigate in a Crowd, While Distracted by Your Mobile Phone?: 2021 Ig Informal LectureImprobable Research2021-11-11 | The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2021 Ig Nobel for Kinetics was awarded to Hisashi Murakami, Claudio Feliciani, Yuta Nishiyama, and Katsuhiro Nishinari, for conducting experiments to learn why pedestrians do sometimes collide with other pedestrians.
REFERENCE: “Mutual Anticipation Can Contribute to Self-Organization in Human Crowds,” Hisashi Murakami, Claudio Feliciani, Yuta Nishiyama, and Katsuhiro Nishinari, Science Advances, vol. 7, no. 12, 2021, p. eabe7758.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2021 Ig Nobel for Physics was awarded to Alessandro Corbetta, Jasper Meeusen, Chung-min Lee, Roberto Benzi, and Federico Toschi, for conducting experiments to learn why pedestrians do not constantly collide with other pedestrians.
REFERENCE: “Physics-based modeling and data representation of pairwise interactions among pedestrians,” Alessandro Corbetta, Jasper A. Meeusen, Chung-min Lee, Roberto Benzi, and Federico Toschi, Physical Review E, vol. 98, no. 062310, 2018.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2021 Ig Nobel for Ecology was awarded to Leila Satari, Alba Guillén, Àngela Vidal-Verdú, and Manuel Porcar, for using genetic analysis to identify the different species of bacteria that reside in wads of discarded chewing gum stuck on pavements in various countries.
REFERENCE: “The Wasted Chewing Gum Bacteriome,” Leila Satari, Alba Guillén, Àngela Vidal-Verdú, and Manuel Porcar, Scientific Reports, vol. 10, no. 16846, 2020.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2021 Ig Nobel for Economics was awarded to Pavlo Blavatskyy, for discovering that the obesity of a country’s politicians may be a good indicator of that country’s corruption.
REFERENCE: “Obesity of Politicians and Corruption in Post‐Soviet Countries,” Pavlo Blavatskyy, Economic of Transition and Institutional Change, vol. 29, no. 2, 2021, pp. 343-356.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2021 Ig Nobel for Transportation was awarded to Robin Radcliffe, Mark Jago, Peter Morkel, Estelle Morkel, Pierre du Preez, Piet Beytell, Birgit Kotting, Bakker Manuel, Jan Hendrik du Preez, Michele Miller, Julia Felippe, Stephen Parry, and Robin Gleed, for determining by experiment whether it is safer to transport an airborne rhinoceros upside-down.
REFERENCE: "The Pulmonary and Metabolic Effects of Suspension by the Feet Compared with Lateral Recumbency in Immobilized Black Rhinoceroses (Diceros bicornis) Captured by Aerial Darting," Robin W. Radcliffe, Mark Jago, Peter vdB Morkel, Estelle Morkel, Pierre du Preez, Piet Beytell, Birgit Kotting, Bakker Manuel, Jan Hendrik du Preez, Michele A. Miller, Julia Felippe, Stephen A Parry; R.D. Gleed, Journal of Wildlife Diseases, vol. 57, no. 2, 2021, 357–367.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2021 Ig Nobel for Biology was awarded to Susanne Schötz, Robert Eklund, and Joost van de Weijer, for analyzing variations in purring, chirping, chattering, trilling, tweedling, murmuring, meowing, moaning, squeaking, hissing, yowling, howling, growling, and other modes of cat–human communication.
REFERENCE: "A Comparative Acoustic Analysis of Purring in Four Cats," Susanne Schötz and Robert Eklund, Proceedings of Fonetik 2011, Speech, Music and Hearing, KTH, Stockholm, TMH-QPSR, 51.
REFERENCE: "A Phonetic Pilot Study of Vocalisations in Three Cats," Susanne Schötz, Proceedings of Fonetik 2012, Department of Philosophy, Linguistics and Theory of Science, University of Gothenburg, Sweden.
REFERENCE: "A Phonetic Pilot Study of Chirp, Chatter, Tweet and Tweedle in Three Domestic Cats," Susanne Schötz, Proceedings of Fonetik 2013, Linköping University, Sweden, 2013, pp. 65-68.
REFERENCE: "A Study of Human Perception of Intonation in Domestic Cat Meows," Susanne Schötz and Joost van de Weijer, Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Speech Prosody, Dubin, Ireland, May 20-23, 2014.
REFERENCE: "Melody in Human–Cat Communication (Meowsic): Origins, Past, Present and Future," Susanne Schötz, Robert Eklund, and Joost van de Weijer, 2016.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2021 Ig Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Ethan Beseris, Steven Naleway, and David Carrier, for testing the hypothesis that humans evolved beards to protect themselves from punches to the face.
REFERENCE: "Impact Protection Potential of Mammalian Hair: Testing the Pugilism Hypothesis for the Evolution of Human Facial Hair," Ethan A. Beseris, Steven E. Naleway, David R. Carrier, Integrative Organismal Biology, vol. 2, no. 1, 2020, obaa005.
The 31st First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, September 9th, 2021 at 6 PM US eastern time. It will introduce ten new Ig Nobel Prize winners, each of which has done something that makes people laugh then think. Winners travel (virtually, in this Covid-19 pandemic year) from around the world to receive their prize from a group of genuine, genuinely bemused Nobel Laureates.
More information about Improbable Research: improbable.comKnives Made of Frozen Feces Dont Make the Cut: 2020 Ig Informal LectureImprobable Research2021-02-18 | The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2020 Ig Nobel Prize for Materials Science was awarded to Metin Eren, Michelle Bebber, James Norris, Alyssa Perrone, Ashley Rutkoski, Michael Wilson, and Mary Ann Raghanti, for showing that knives manufactured from frozen human feces do not work well.
He documented that research, in the study “Experimental Replication Shows Knives Manufactured from Frozen Human Feces Do Not Work,” Metin I. Eren, Michelle R. Bebber, James D. Norris, Alyssa Perrone, Ashley Rutkoski, Michael Wilson, and Mary Ann Raghanti, Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, vol. 27, no. 102002, October 2019. [LINK TO THAT STUDY: doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2019.102002]
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it. (Traditionally, the lectures happen at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), but in the pandemic year 2020 they happened in video form only.]
The 2020 Ig Nobel Prize for Acoustics was awarded to Stephan Reber, Takeshi Nishimura, Judith Janisch, Mark Robertson, and Tecumseh Fitch, for inducing a female Chinese alligator to bellow in an airtight chamber filled with helium-enriched air.
They documented that research, in the study “A Chinese Alligator in Heliox: Formant Frequencies in a Crocodilian,” Stephan A. Reber, Takeshi Nishimura, Judith Janisch, Mark Robertson, and W. Tecumseh Fitch, Journal of Experimental Biology, vol. 218, 2015, pp. 2442-2447. [LINK TO THAT STUDY: jeb.biologists.org/content/218/15/2442.short]
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2020 Ig Nobel Prize for Entomology was awarded to Richard Vetter, for collecting evidence that many entomologists (scientists who study insects) are afraid of spiders, which are not insects.
He documented that research, in the study “Arachnophobic Entomologists: When Two More Legs Makes a Big Difference,” Richard S. Vetter, American Entomologist, vol. 59, no. 3, 2013, pp. 168-175. [LINK TO THAT STUDY: doi.org/10.1093/ae/59.3.168]
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2020 Ig Nobel Prize for Physics was awarded to Ivan Maksymov and Andriy Pototsky, for determining, experimentally, what happens to the shape of a living earthworm when one vibrates the earthworm at high frequency.
They documented that research, in the study “Excitation of Faraday-like body waves in vibrated living earthworms,” Ivan S. Maksymov and Andriy Pototsky, bioRxiv 10.1101/868521, December 8, 2019. [LINK TO THAT STUDY: nature.com/articles/s41598-020-65295-4]
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2020 Ig Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded to Nienke Vulink, Damiaan Denys, and Arnoud van Loon, for diagnosing a long-unrecognized medical condition: Misophonia, the distress at hearing other people make chewing sounds.
They documented that research, in the studies “Misophonia: Diagnostic Criteria for a New Psychiatric Disorder,” Arjan Schroder, Nienke Vulink, and Damiaan Denys, PLoS ONE, vol. 8, no. 1, 2013, e54706. REFERENCE: “Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is Effective in Misophonia: An Open Trial,” Arjan E., Schröder, Nienke C. Vulink, Arnoud J. van Loon, and Damiaan A. Denys, Journal of Affective Disorders, vol. 217, 2017, pp. 289-294. [LINKS TO THOSE STUDIES: doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0054706 and doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2017.04.017]
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2020 Ig Nobel Prize for Psychology was awarded to Miranda Giacomin and Nicholas Rule, for devising a method to identify narcissists by examining their eyebrows.
They documented that research, in the study “Eyebrows Cue Grandiose Narcissism,” Miranda Giacomin and Nicholas O. Rule, Journal of Personality, vol. 87, no. 2, 2019, pp. 373-385. [LINK TO THAT STUDY: doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12396]
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
In the Ig Informal Lectures, some days after the ceremony, the new Ig Nobel Prize winners attempt to explain what they did, and why they did it.
The 2020 Ig Nobel Prize for Economics was awarded to Christopher Watkins, Juan David Leongómez, Jeanne Bovet, Agnieszka Żelaźniewicz, Max Korbmacher, Marco Antônio Corrêa Varella, Ana Maria Fernandez, Danielle Wagstaff, and Samuela Bolgan, for trying to quantify the relationship between different countries’ national income inequality and the average amount of mouth-to-mouth kissing.
They documented that research, in the study “National Income Inequality Predicts Cultural Variation in Mouth to Mouth Kissing,” Christopher D. Watkins, Juan David Leongómez, Jeanne Bovet, Agnieszka Żelaźniewicz, Max Korbmacher, Marco Antônio Corrêa Varella, Ana Maria Fernandez, Danielle Wagstaff, and Samuela Bolgan, Scientific Reports, vol. 9, article no. 6698, 2019. [LINK TO THAT STUDY: nature.com/articles/s41598-019-43267-7]
The opera premiered as part of the 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony on 17th September 2020.
Story and words by Marc Abrahams. Music by Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Ruggero Leoncavallo and Johann Strauss II.
Here’s the cast and crew of this premiere performance:
Musical Director: Maria Ferrante Video director and editor: Bruce Petschek Additional videography and audio editing: Alexey Eliseev
NARRATORS: Karen Hopkin and Christopher Hopkin
INSTRUMENTALISTS Piano: Yulia Yun Accordion: Dr. Thomas Michel Cello: Dr. Julie Reimann Bass: Dr. Bruce Koplan
SINGERS Maria Ferrante Dr. Fred Tsai Bobbie Hill Jan Hadland Ted Sharpe Lizhou Sha
NON-SINGING ACTOR The man who might be a cockroach: Alexey Eliseev
SINGING SCIENTISTS AT END OF ACT 3 Rich Roberts, Frances Arnold, Marty Chalfie, Eric Maskin, Andre Geim, Jerome Friedman, Alessandro Pluchino & spouse, Andrea Rapisarda, Michael Smith & spouse, May Berenbaum, Sabine Begall, Richard Vetter, Kiyoshi Furusawa, Melissa Franklin, Jean Berko Gleason.
Portaborse: Michele LiguoriThe 2020 Ig Nobel OperaImprobable Research2020-10-14 | "Dream Little Cockroach" [A backward tribute to Franz Kafka]
The opera premiered as part of the 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony on 17th September 2020.
Story and words by Marc Abrahams. Music by Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Ruggero Leoncavallo and Johann Strauss II.The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize CeremonyImprobable Research2020-09-17 | The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, September 17th, 2020 at 6PM US eastern time. It will introduce ten new Ig Nobel Prize winners, each of which has done something that makes people laugh then think. Winners travel virtually to the ceremony from around the world to receive their prize from a group of genuine, genuinely bemused Nobel Laureates.
More information about Improbable Research: improbable.comBy Shoving Some Pork Up My Nose– an Ig Nobel Prize favorite momentImprobable Research2020-09-16 | This historic Ig Nobel Favorite Moment video stars Gary Dryfoos, who was the majordomo at many Ig Nobel Prize Ceremonies.
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.com.
Coordinator, Narrator, & Typist: Seth GliksmanTomorrow...Improbable Research2020-09-16 | The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
This is the nearly mythological moment from the 2003 13th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony that Kees Moeliker elaborated upon what has become canon to those in and outside of the Ig Nobel community, the first scientifically recorded instance of homosexual necrophilia in the mallard duck.
This is a glimpse from a past ceremony, tune in tomorrow to see what this year will bring.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.comAlso, I Got a Stuffed Shrew– an Ig Nobel Prize favorite momentImprobable Research2020-09-15 | This historic Ig Nobel Favorite Moment video stars Sharada Sundaram-Senders, who twice—when she was 7 and 8—was Miss Sweetie Poo, enforcing time limits in the Ig Nobel Ceremony.
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK. The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.com.
Coordinator, Narrator, & Typist: Seth Gliksman2 Days Until...Improbable Research2020-09-15 | The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
This is but a small excerpt of the world premiere of the Ig Nobel mini-opera “The Count of Infinity” from the 2005 15th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony.
This is a glimpse from a past ceremony, tune in to see what this year will bring.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.com3 Days Until...Improbable Research2020-09-14 | The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
In 1999, Dr. Len Fisher was awarded the Ig Nobel in Physics for calculating the optimal way to dunk a biscuit. The same year, Steve Penfold was awarded the Ig Nobel in Sociology for his PhD thesis on the sociology of Canadian donut shops. In this moment, the two awardees’ work meets a surreal crossroads.
This is a glimpse from a past ceremony, tune in to see what this year will bring.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.comSome Words Straight from the Harts: Support the IgImprobable Research2020-09-14 | The Ig Nobel honors achievements that first make you LAUGH, then THINK. In this Ig Nobel 24/7 Lecture, Chris and Briget Hart explain to you the Ig Nobel 24/7 lecture.
They also invite you to support the Ig Nobel Ceremony by visiting: www.improbable.com/donateI Linked Arms with Ig Nobel and Nobel Prize Winners– an Ig Nobel Prize favorite momentImprobable Research2020-09-14 | This historic Ig Nobel Favorite Moment video stars Vijaya Sundaram, who gave birth to a Miss Sweetie Poo and, years later, sang in an Ig Nobel opera.
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.com.
Coordinator, Narrator, & Typist: Seth Gliksman4 Days Until...Improbable Research2020-09-13 | The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
In 1995 some lucky audience member at the 5th First Annual Ig Nobel Ceremony won the date of their dreams. For in their program, they found an image of Albert Einstein combing his hair which signified that they had won the “Win A Date With A Nobel Laureate Contest” whose lucky bachelor that night was Chemistry Nobel Prize Winner Dudley R. Herschbach.
This is a glimpse from a past ceremony, tune in to see what this year will bring.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.com♀は♂をクギ付けにする– an Ig Nobel Prize favorite momentImprobable Research2020-09-13 | This historic Ig Nobel Favorite Moment video stars Tomonori Yamamoto, who has helped organize Ig Nobel events at Miraikan in Tokyo.
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.com.
Coordinator, Narrator, & Typist: Seth GliksmanA Female Anchors a Male– an Ig Nobel Prize favorite momentImprobable Research2020-09-13 | This historic Ig Nobel Favorite Moment video stars Tomonori Yamamoto, who has helped organize Ig Nobel events at Miraikan in Tokyo.
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.com.
Coordinator, Narrator, & Typist: Seth Gliksman5 Days Until...Improbable Research2020-09-12 | The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
The 2006 winners of the Ig Nobel Prize in Acoustics went to D. Lynn Halpern, Randolph Blake and James Hillenbrand for conducting experiments to learn why people dislike the sound of fingernails scraping on a blackboard. This would be a demonstration of that dislike by a dais of Nobel laureates.
This is a glimpse from a past ceremony, tune in to see what this year will bring.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.comSure, We Said, But Outside– an Ig Nobel Prize favorite momentImprobable Research2020-09-12 | This historic Ig Nobel Favorite Moment video stars Jackie Baum and Stanley Eigen, who hosted many Ig Nobel afterparties.
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.com.
Coordinator, Narrator, & Typist: Seth GliksmanThen Mandelbrot Congratulated Me– an Ig Nobel Prize favorite momentImprobable Research2020-09-11 | This historic Ig Nobel Favorite Moment video stars Javier Morales Castillo, who was awarded an Ig Nobel Prize for making diamonds from tequila.
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK.
The 30th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be webcast September 17, 2020 at www.improbable.com.