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The mini-Annals of Improbable Research ("mini-AIR")
Febuary 2009, Issue number 2009-02. ISSN 1076-500X.
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A free newsletter of tidbits too tiny to fit in
Annals of Improbable Research (AIR)
This issue at
<http://www.improbable.com/airchives/miniair/2009/mini2009-02.htm>
Archive at <http://improbable.com/airchives/miniair/>
Key words: improbable research, science humor, Ig Nobel, AIR, the
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2009-02-01 TABLE OF CONTENTS
2009-02-02 Imminent Events
2009-02-03 What's New in the Magazine: Bagels & Zombies
2009-02-04 Triple Oberdrster
2009-02-05 The Tossed Frozen Caramel Candy Mystery
2009-02-06 Improbable Research Show in Chicago Feb 13
2009-02-07 UK TOUR / Denmark tour
2009-02-07 Termite Species Feces Poets
2009-02-08 Whither Withering Bad Breath Competition
2009-02-09 RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT: Thought-Laced Chocolate
2009-02-10 OTHER RECENT IMPROBABILITIES: Lizards, toad toes, etc
2009-02-11 MAY WE RECOMMEND: Valentine Research
2009-02-12 Improbable Research Events
2009-02-13 -- How to Subscribe to AIR (*)
2009-02-14 -- Our Address (*)
2009-02-15 -- Please Forward/Post This Issue! (*)
2009-02-16 -- How to Receive mini-AIR, etc. (*)
Items marked (*) are reprinted in every issue.
mini-AIR is
a free monthly *e-supplement* to the print magazine
Annals of Improbable Research
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2009-02-02 Imminent Events
Feb 13 — CHICAGO
AAAS meeting annual Improbable Research show
Fri night, Feb 13. Free. Details section 2009-02-06 below.
Mar 6-15 — UK - NEWCASTLE, PORTSMOUTH, BRISTOL, LONDON
The 2009 Ig Nobel Tour of the UK
Details: <http://tinyurl.com/k87xs>
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2009-02-03 What's New in the Magazine: Bagels & Zombies
The special Ig Nobel issue (vol. 15, no. 1) of the Annals of
Improbable Research is the special Mummies, Zombies and Bagels
issue. It's now at the printers.
Download a free low-res PDF, or subscribe to traditional comfy
paper edition, or buy a bargain hi-res PDF.
Many back issues are online at
<http://www.improbable.com/magazine/>
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2009-02-04 Triple Oberdrster
A triple-Oberdrster study caught the eye of investigator Elena
Maestri, who sent it to us. The happy addition to our
Multiplicity of Monikers collection has the highest Oberdrster
author count of any study known to us. The citation is:
"Nanotoxicology: An Emerging Discipline Evolving from Studies of
Ultrafine Particles," Gu_nter Oberdrster, Eva Oberdrster, and
Jan Oberdrster, Environmental Health Perspectives, vol. 113, no.
7, July 2005, pp. 823-39. <http://tinyurl.com/cctuan>
The study cites twelve (12) single-Oberdrster studies, and also
a number of non-Oberdrster studies.
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2009-02-05 The Tossed Frozen Caramel Candy Mystery
The Tossed Frozen Caramel Candy Mystery can be stated as follows:
In the entire recorded history of medicine, there is only one
case report about posttraumatic hyphema induced by tossed frozen
caramel candy. Why?
The report is:
"Posttraumatic Hyphema Induced by Tossed Frozen Caramel Candy"
[Article in Danish], J.A. Hansen, and L.M. Knudsen, Ugeskrift for
Laeger, vol. 163, no. 32, August 6, 2001, pp. 4206-7.
The authors relate that:
"The tossing of caramels is a traditional part of the
celebrations on the last day of school. A case in which a 14-
year-old boy suffered a secondary posttraumatic hyphaemia induced
by a caramel tossed at the patient's left eye is described. The
condition remitted spontaneously without loss of eyesight."
The non-medical literature is little different. Here
<http://tinyurl.com/b8hzcz> is one typical firsthand report —
this by a 17-year-old Roskilde Tekniske Gymnasium student named
Anders — of caramel throwing. There is an injury, yes, but no
mention of hyphema (blood in the eye):
"The last day of school. We had a big show at school for the
younger kids. We als [sic] had to throw caramels in the 0-3
graders classes. They were quite scared of us. Really funny. Then
someone threw a caramel at one of the younger boys (3rd grader I
think). He started crying! Apparently he'd got the caramel at his
back. Still he was quite weepish."
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2009-02-06 Improbable Research Show in Chicago Feb 13
The medical effects of swordswallowing (with a demonstration
thereof). The periodic table table. The world's fastest barbeque
ignition. The 5-second rule for eating dropped food. The 1000th
Steve. These will highlight the Improbable Research show at the
AAAS annual meeting on Friday the 13th, in the evening.
In addition to genuine living Ig Nobel Prize winners, there will
be a performance of the mini-opera "Atom & Eve" (about the
romance between a beautiful chemist and an oxygen atom),
performed by Genevieve Thiers and Opera Moda. The performance is
made possible by a generous grant from the Illinois Science
Council.
The AAAS meeting moves from metropolis to metropolis. This year
it's in Chicago, the city of big, snow-covered shoulders.
The Improbable Research show is free to everyone (whether you
register for the AAAS meeting or not). Bring family and friends.
WHERE: Chicago Fairmont Hotel (200 N. Columbus Dr), in the Moulin
Rouge Room.
WHEN: The show starts at 8:00 pm. Seating is limited, and the
show always draws more than a capacity crowd, so we advise
arriving early.
[NOTE: A few hours earlier, there will be a press briefing in the
AAAS press briefing room at the Hyatt.]
Further details are at: <http://tinyurl.com/k87xs>
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2009-02-07 Termite Species Feces Poets
The judges have chosen a winner in the Termite Species Feces
Competition, which asked for a limerick to honor the study
"Identification of Termite Species by the Hydrocarbons in their
Feces" <http://tinyurl.com/9y4b6h>.
The winner is the team of INVESTIGATORS RICHARD AND NIKKI
GOODMAN, who receive a free hi-res PDF issue of the Annals of
Improbable Research. They crafted both an unclean and a clean
version of their somewhat poetical vision:
Here's how to identify species
Of termite by using their faeces,
You take some fresh s--t,
And poke round a bit,
And cut it into tiny pieces.
Here's how to identify species
Of termite by using their faeces,
You take some fresh plop,
Scrape some off the top,
And cut it into tiny pieces.
A commendation goes to INVESTIGATOR GARY DRYFOOS for this:
When Isoptera mass in a troop
The experts must jump through a hoop:
Much termite collection,
Inspection, detection...
No need now! Just study their poop.
Here's the offering from LIMERICK LAUREATE MARTIN EIGER:
When a termite is running about,
But what species it is is in doubt,
The erudite geek'll
Examine its fecal
Deposits to figure it out.
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2009-02-08 Whither Withering Bad Breath Competition
Putrescine, cadaverine, indole, skatole and saliva is/are the
subject(s) of this month's limerick competition. To enter,
compose an original limerick that illuminates the nature of this
report:
"Time Profile of Putrescine, Cadaverine, Indole
and Skatole in Human Saliva," M. Cooke, N. Leeves,
and C. White, Archives of Oral Biology, vol. 48, no. 4,
April 2003, pp. 323-27. <http://tinyurl.com/d2aqfz>
RULES: Please make sure that: (1) your rhymes actually do; and
(2) your poem is in classic, trills-off-the-tongue limerick form.
PRIZE: The winning poet will receive (if we manage to send it to
the correct address) a free, cadaverine-free high-res PDF issue
of the Annals of Improbable Research. Send entries (one entry per
entrant) to:
WHITHER WITHERING BAD BREATH LIMERICK COMPETITION
c/o <marca AT chem2.harvard.edu>
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2009-02-09 RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT: Thought-Laced Chocolate
This month's specially selected study describes an attempt to
blend intention into chocolate, and to then measure the effect
upon individuals who consume the hybrid. The paper is:
"Effects of Intentionally Enhanced Chocolate on Mood," Dean
Radin, Gail Hayssen and James Walsh, Explore, vol. 3, no. 5,
September 2007, pp. 485-492. (Thanks to investigator Mary Beckman
for bringing this to our attention.)
<http://www.deanradin.com/papers/chocolate.pdf>
The authors, at the Institute of Noetic Sciences in Petaluma,
California and at Hawaiian Vintage Chocolate in Honolulu, Hawaii,
explain:
"A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled experiment
investigated whether chocolate exposed to "good intentions" would
enhance mood more than unexposed chocolate.... Each person
consumed a half ounce of dark chocolate twice a day at prescribed
times. Three groups blindly received chocolate that had been
intentionally treated by three different techniques. The
intention in each case was that people who ate the chocolate
would experience an enhanced sense of energy, vigor, and well-
being. The fourth group blindly received untreated chocolate as a
placebo control....
"Conclusion: The mood-elevating properties of chocolate can be
enhanced with intention."
A copy is online at http://www.deanradin.com/papers/chocolate.pdf
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2009-02-10 OTHER RECENT IMPROBABILITIES: Lizards, toad toes, etc
Improbable TV Collections
<http://improbable.com/tv/>
Collection #115 presents the first careful investigation of the
circumstances under which cane toads tap their toes.
Blog Items:
<http://improbable.com/>
<> Bennett, Leeds, and the lizard poo bag tragedy
<> Masturbation, Christ and shampoo
<> The value of reading
<> Woodpecker brains and the Super Bowl
And many more...
Newspaper Columns:
<http://tinyurl.com/6o348d>
<> A golden mean in your mouth
<> The bagel danger hunters
<> Speaking of, and with, a hot potato
<> More Scientists Join Gangs
New Luxuriant Flowing Hair Club for Scientists Members:
<http://tinyurl.com/25lmfb>
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2009-02-11 MAY WE RECOMMEND: Valentine Research
VALENTINE LOVE
"Semiotics, What Now, My Love?" Virginia Valentine, MRS
Conference 2007.
<http://www.semioticsolutions.com/pdf/What%20now%20my%20love.pdf>
VALENTINE ICE STORM
"Synoptic and Mesoscale Structure of a Severe Freezing Rain
Event: The St. Valentine's Day Ice Storm," Robert M. Rauber,
Mohan K. Ramamurthy, and Ali Tokay, Weather and Forecasting, vol.
9, no. 2, June 1994, pp. 183-208. <http://tinyurl.com/alcd93>
VALENTINE GRAVITY WAVE
"Origin, Maintenance, and Fine-Scale Structure of the St.
Valentine's Day Mesoscale Gravity Wave Observed During STORM-
FEST. Part I: Origin and Maintenance," Robert M. Rauber, M. Yang,
and Mohan K. Ramamurthy, Monthly Weather Review, vol. 129, 2000,
pp. 198-217.
VALENTINE BURST
"GRB 000214 'Valentine's Day Burst': BeppoSAX NFI Observation,"
L.A. Antonelli, et al., GRB Coordinates Network, vol. 561, no. 1,
2000. <http://tinyurl.com/cqhm9e>
VALENTINE COOKIES
"St. Valentine's Day Cookies," L.D. Lutter, Foot & Ankle
International, vol. 17, no. 2, February 1996, pp. 59-60.
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2009-02-12 Improbable Research Events
For details and additional events, see
<http://improbable.com/improbable-research-shows/complete-schedule>
AAAS Meeting, Chicago — Feb 13, 2009
Ig Nobel Tour of the UK — Mar 6-15, 2009
SciFest Africa, Grahamstown, South Africa — Mar 25-26, 2009
Ig Nobel Tour of Denmark — Apr 23-25, 2009
Cambridge (MA) Science Festival — May 2, 2009
CSE, Pittsburgh, PA — May 4, 2009
Carnegie Mellon U, Pittsburgh — May 6, 2009
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2009-02-13 -- How to Subscribe to AIR (*)
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2009-02-14 -- Our Address (*)
Annals of Improbable Research (AIR)
PO Box 380853, Cambridge, MA 02238 USA
617-491-4437 FAX:617-661-0927
EDITORIAL: marca AT chem2.harvard.edu
SUBSCRIPTIONS: subscriptions AT improbable.com
WEB SITE: <http://www.improbable.com>
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2009-02-15 -- Please Forward/Post This Issue! (*)
Please distribute copies of mini-AIR (or excerpts!) wherever
appropriate. The only limitations are: A) Please indicate that
the material comes from mini-AIR. B) You may NOT distribute mini-
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------------- mini-AIRheads -------------
EDITOR: Marc Abrahams
MINI-PROOFREADER AND PICKER OF NITS (before we introduce the last
few at the last moment): Wendy Mattson
COMMUTATIVE EDITOR: Stanley Eigen
ASSOCIATIVE EDITOR: Mark Dionne
PSYCHOLOGY EDITOR: Robin Abrahams
CO-CONSPIRATORS: Alice Shirrell Kaswell, Gary Dryfoos, Ernest
Ersatz, S. Drew
MAITRE DE COMPUTATION: Jerry Lotto
AUTHORITY FIGURES: Nobel Laureates Dudley Herschbach, Sheldon
Glashow, William Lipscomb, Richard Roberts
(c) copyright 2009, Annals of Improbable Research
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2009-02-16 -- How to Receive mini-AIR, etc. (*)
What you are reading right now is mini-AIR. Mini-AIR is a (free!)
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