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2009 Ig Nobels Awarded, For Gas-Mask Bras and More

Posted by kdawson on from the classical-gas dept.

alphadogg notes that the 2009 Ig Nobel Prizes were awarded yesterday evening in Cambridge, MA. (You may find that site has been pre-Slashdotted; and improbable.com's video feeds of the ceremony don't work at the moment either.) News.com.au has coverage of the bra that converts quickly to two gas masks, a study of why pregnant women don't tip over, the award for literature, and other gems. "Ireland's police won the literature prize from writing more than 50 traffic tickets to a frequent visitor and speeder named Prawo Jazdy. In Polish, this means 'driver's license.' Pathologist Stephan Bolliger and colleagues at the University of Bern in Switzerland won for a study they did to determine whether an empty beer bottle does more or less damage to the human skull than a full one in a bar fight."

6 of 123 comments (clear)

  1. Prize for Medicine by Alicat1194 · · Score: 4, Informative
    MEDICINE PRIZE: Donald L. Unger, of Thousand Oaks, California, USA, for investigating a possible cause of arthritis of the fingers, by diligently cracking the knuckles of his left hand -- but never cracking the knuckles of his right hand -- every day for more than sixty (60) years.

    Apart from *ouch*, this actually sets a great example - a simple yet elegant experiment that anyone (who happened to have a spare 60 years) could do, yet it still contributes something to science.

    --
    You can learn a lot about a person if you just take the time to inject them with sodium pentathol
  2. Re:bra that converts gas masks could be useful by bmgoau · · Score: 3, Informative

    Actually BBC News has the most in depth coverage: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8285380.stm

    The mathematics prize was interesting:
    Mathematics: Gideon Gono, governor of Zimbabwe's Reserve Bank, for giving people a simple, everyday way to cope with a wide range of numbers by having his bank print notes with denominations ranging from one cent to one hundred trillion dollars.

  3. I was there by SuperBanana · · Score: 4, Informative

    bra that converts quickly to two gas masks,

    They neglected to mention the more impressive part: they did a live demonstration for six people, all using bras she was wearing, and she removed them without taking off any other clothing.

    She was also decently endowed, and I'm not referring to the size of her...grants.

    --
    Please help metamoderate.
  4. Re:Ouch by beerbear · · Score: 2, Informative

    According to Bas Rutten, who was a bouncer before he got into MMA, the same thing happens to an empty bottle.

    --
    Hold my beer and watch this!
  5. Public Service Announcment by clone53421 · · Score: 3, Informative

    TFA has no pictures. You can all go home now.

    --
    Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
  6. BobB by alphadogg · · Score: 2, Informative

    How the Ig Nobels compare with the Nobels: http://www.networkworld.com/slideshows/2009/092809-ignobel.html