Improbable Research

Larry Shirley, modern champion of the science of eugenics, is a man of high standards:

Shirley offers fix for bad parenting
Sterilize irresponsible moms, dads, he says

Charleston City Councilman Larry Shirley says the robbery of a downtown video store – allegedly by a band of kids, including one too young to be charged – is a sure sign society has gone awry, and it’s time to start a “dialogue.”

And one of the things he says needs to be talked about is whether bad parents should be sterilized. “What we’ve got is a failure in society…,” Shirley said Friday. “We pick up stray animals and spay them. These mothers need to be spayed if they can’t take care of theirs.

So says a September 30, 2006 report in the Charleston, South Carolina Post and Courier.

(Thanks to investigator Ralph Deacon for bringing this to our attention.)

The 2006 Insect Fear Film Festival was a fantastic success – thanks to all involved!

So say the festival organizers.

(Thanks to investigator Sally Shelton for bringing this to our attention.)

Objective:
This lesson is for primary students. The main objective of this mini-teach is for students to learn and understand what inertia is. They will learn the difference between inertia for objects at rest and objects moving in a straight line.

Materials Needed:
Two dolls (Barbie & Ken), two carts (skates, skate board)

Strategy:
Place one doll in each cart. Secure one doll with a rubber band, tape or string. Push the carts into a wall. Ask the students what happened and why. (Doll not secured should fly out or fall forward). Talk about seat belts.

So says a suggested lesson plan by Maeola Walker of the Chicago Board of Education, or so says the Chicago Institute of Technology‘s web site.

(Thanks to 2003 Ig Nobel Interdisciplinary Research Prize co-winner Stefano Ghirlanda for bringing this to our attention. INERTIA is the theme of the 2006 Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony. Professor Ghirlanda will participate.)

UPDATE September 30, 2006:

Investigator Scott Langill writes:

I did a search for Barbie on the IIT website. It looks like they have Barbie on the brain….

Water without hydrogen would warrant warnings
Signs at park air phony hazard

The signs at the cascading pools in Waterfront Park are meant to frighten: They proclaim in bold letters, “danger” and “high levels of hydrogen.”

But the warnings are bogus.
The water in the fountain pools is, like all water, made of two-thirds hydrogen atoms and one-third oxygen atoms.

So says a July 17, 2006 report in The [Louisville, Kentucky] Courier-Journal.

(Thanks to investigator Mark Dionne for bringing this to our attention.)

Teen Who Cut Off Corpse’s Head To Make Bong Sentenced

Friends Say Buckalew Told Them He Did It Out Of Boredom

The teen reportedly told friends that he planned to leave the head outside to dry and would then bleach it, a police affidavit said. The witnesses said his plan was to turn the skull into a bong — a pipe generally used to smoke marijuana. Buckalew went to an apartment where some of his friends were and told them that he had chopped off the head because he was bored, according to The Caledonian-Record.

So says a June 29, 2006 report by WESH.

(Thanks to investigator Adiyasa Dwitama for bringing this to our attention.)

How many books written in seemingly obscure languages are misfiled and languishing unfindable in libraries? Joyce Flynn’s experience at Harvard suggests the answer is: a lot.

Flynn, a researcher in Celtic languages, discovered some common mishaps that no one discusses much….

So begins this week’s Improbable Research column in The Guardian.