The man who drove, blinding himself, on Route 128 — for your safety

[Ig Nobel Prize winner] John Senders led a series of safety experiments in which he drove an automobile on Route 128 — the major highway that circles Boston to the west — while a visor repeatedly flapped down over his face, blinding him…. —so begins another Improbable Innovation nugget, which appears in its entirety on BetaBoston.

A most emotionally colorful study (plus eye blinks & nude bodies)

This study appears to combine the brightest aspects of phrenology, Jungian psychology,  painting-by-numbers, and numerous other disciplines: “Bodily maps of emotions,” Lauri Nummenmaa [pictured here], Enrico Glerean, Riitta Hari and Jari K. Hietanen, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 111 no. 2, January 14, 2014, pp. 646–651. The authors, at Aalto University, the […]

Do Women Pretend Orgasm to Retain a Mate?, and another question

Today is Two Questions Day. Question #1: Do some researchers choose topics to attract attention? Question #2: Do women pretend orgasm to retain a mate? The following study sheds light on at least one of today’s questions: “Do Women Pretend Orgasm to Retain a Mate?” Farnaz Kaighobadi, Todd K. Shackelford [pictured here] and Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford, Archives […]

Improbable Research