Research — on any and all subjects — that makes people LAUGH, then THINK.
How much time will a dripped drop of coffee be a drop, before it loses its full-bodied nature? This study sniffs into the question: “On the Lifetime of a Coffee Drop,” Paul Bienvenu, Haruka Hitomi, and David Quéré, Soft Matter, epub 2026. The authors, at PSL Research University, ESPCI-Paris, France, report: As we know, a […]
Upasana Sarraju’s new book called Unruly: The Ig Nobel Prizes and The Science That Refuses to Behave dives into, swims and surfs through a universe (our universe, in fact) full of unexpected science. Published by India Penguin [ISBN 9780143470403], the book’s official debut date is February 28, 2026. Here’s how Sarraju describes the book: After […]
The bursting of bubble wrap, if judiciously done, can help detect whether there is crap (or to put it more nicely: unexpected stuff) inside a pipeline. This new study tells about the problem and the possible, bubble-wrap-bursting way to deal with the problem: “Electric-power free impulse point sound source generation system with bubble wrap bursting […]
Improbable stuff awaits you, if you will be in Phoenix, Arizona this Friday night: AAAS Annual Meeting, Phoenix, Arizona, USA, Hyatt Regency Phoenix Hotel, in the Regency Ballroom — Improbable Research Show, with Marc Abrahams (founder of the Ig Nobel Prizes) and: Julie Mennella (2025 Ig Nobel Pediatrics Prize winner, for studying what a nursing […]