A hands-on experiment, or rather, an experiment on hands,tried to determine the safety of pumpkin carving tools. Details are in the study: “The Safety of Pumpkin Carving Tools,” Alexander M. Marcus, Jason K. Green, and Frederick W. Werner, Preventive Medicine, vol. 38, 2004, pp. 799–803. (Thanks to investigator Kurt Verkest for bringing this to our […]
Tag: safety
Bear safety: What the governor can learn from Troy
Today’s news brings yet another example of someone who has not learned the bear-safety lesson taught by Ig Nobel Prize-winner Troy Hurtubise. The Associated Press reports, from the capital city of the American state of Vermont: Vermont governor chased by 4 bears in backyard MONTPELIER — Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin says he was chased and […]
Survey for cardiopulmonary bypass perfusionists
If you are a perfusionist helping to perform a cardiopulmonary bypass, we ask you to take a moment to post a comment here about the following study: “2010 Survey on cell phone use while performing cardiopulmonary bypass,” T Smith, E Darling, B Searles, Perfusion, September 2011 vol. 26 no. 5 375-380. The authors, at SUNY Upstate […]
Invention of the day: Collision-protection for motorcyclists
This Vietnamese news report shows a new invention: a system of armor intended to protect a motorcycle rider in the event of a collision. The video appears to demonstrate that the invention works well for collision speeds of less than one mile-per-hour.
Safety seat warning: No backwards child drivers.
Investigator Jonathan Ryder sent us this image which, he reports, “came with an Evenflo Tribute 5 Child Restraint System.” The diagram warns owners “DO NOT place rear-facing child seat on front seat with air bag“. The drawing makes a further injunction against placing the device in the driver’s seat. Ryder commends the manufacturers for this— he […]
Facial hair and accused anthrax scientists
A new PBS Frontline documentary looks at the morass of accusations — about anthrax terrorism — aimed at two US government scientists, Bruce Ivins and Steven Hatfill, who worked at Fort Dietrick, Maryland. The case against either man has turned out to be less than clear. In all the media discussion of this case, almost […]
Interview with Distracted-Driving Pioneer Senders
John Senders, whose daringly careful experiments during the 1960s earned him an Ig Nobel Prize in safety engineering, in 2011, has had lots of time to think about is work and its implications. Carolyn Johnson interviews him in today’s Boston Globe ideas section. Here’s part of that: Distracted driving, 1962 edition Long before cell phones, […]
1st report about Bodnar’s invention for men
The Boston Herald became the first press organization to report on Dr. Elena Bodnar’s new invention — the counterpart device for men of Ig Nobel Prize-winning earlier invention, the brassiere-that-in-an-emergency-converts-into-a-pair-of-protective-face-masks. The new invention is a men’s dress shirt that, in an emergency, can be quickly converted into a single protective facemask. Dr. Bodnar publicly unveiled […]
Dual-use: Anti-Bird, Pro-Avalanche
If you have a problem with surfeit of birds or a lack of avalanches, this invention offers a possible dual solution: NOISE GENERATING DEVICE TO SCARE BIRDS OR TRIGGER AVALANCHES, Michael Eggers, US patent application number: 12/303,141, Filing date: Jun 5, 2007.
Argument for a stinky bicycle helmet
Research News reports on a technical innovation (thanks to investigator Jan Stradowski for bringing this to our attention): Crash helmet with a useful smell The polymer materials or plastics produced by the process start to smell if they develop small cracks. Large cracks really cause a stink. The smell comes from odoriferous oils enclosed in […]