The video of a cat adjusting to zero gravity recalls the article “Does a Cat Always Land on Its Feet?” which was published in the July/August issue of the Annals of Improbable Research (and which was featured on the cover). (Thanks to Mark Dionne and Boing-Boing — which also spotlighted the Ig Nobel Prize-winning frog […]
Month: October 2004
Sumo Studies
The juicy phrase “corruption in sumo wrestling” seems doubly delicious when you see it in the title of an economics research report…. So begins this week’s Improbable Research column in The Guardian. Read it here.
Pimple on Frankenstein
It is time, once again, to celebrate one of academia’s most memorable courses: “Frankenstein in America: Science, Technology, and Values in the United States,” American Studies Program, Indiana University (1997). A202, Section 0343, Spring 1997 Kenneth D. Pimple, Ph.D. Tuesday-Thursday 8:00-9:15 am, Ballantine Hall 333 Description The name “Frankenstein” evokes the very clear image of […]
Modest Discovery About Piercing
Having in recent days saluted Doctor Nurse, Doctor Student, and Doctor Modest, we now salute a Modest discovery about piercing and lactation. And a special salute to the modest doctor who made the discovery.
World Toilet Summit
A reminder: next month the World Toilet Summit will convene in Beijing. It’s a three-day affari, on November 17-19, held under the auspices of the World Toilet Organization. Last year’s event proved to be photogenic. (You may want to start a toilet association in your area. If so, the WTO is willing and eager to […]
Welcome Back, Maggots!
This year the U.S. Food and Drug Administration welcomed back not just leeches, but also maggots. In January the FDA, in case number K033391, approved maggots for use as a medical device. (Thanks to John Bradley for bringing this to our attention.) AIR editorial board member Mark Benecke is a devotee of maggots. He has […]
Safe as Milk
Some science books are deadly dull. But there is no dullness in Robert Cohen’s “Deadly” adventure series. It’s got plenty of good, old-fashioned deadliness… So begins this week’s Improbable Research column in The Guardian. Read it here.
The Flower Speaker
Let’s Corporation has a device that is said to make flowers talk and sing.
Double-Harris
The Marcellus Mystery, described in the October mini-AIR, concerns a research paper that seems to have been co-written by three (3) people each named Lenora Marcellus. It prompted this letter from Alan W. Harris: I don’t know about Marcellus, et al., but here’s another for you: Alan W. Harris and Alan W. Harris, “On the […]
Five-second vote
Investigator Earle Spamer send this news about recent Ig Nobel winners: The CNN.com “over”view of the Ig Nobel ceremony leads with the Prize for the combover. But they have an even higher notice of distinction. They provide a Quick Vote box for the unscientific measurement of whether voters adhere (or not) to the five-second rule.