Improbable Research

Dr. Elena Bodnar writes, in The Guardian, about the soon-to-begin 2010 Ig Nobel Tour of the UK:

For the Ig Nobel award ceremony, I designed a hot pink Emergency Bra that has now been dubbed the Harvard model. I demonstrated it on Nobel laureates Wolfgang Ketterle (Nobel prize for physics, 2001), Orhan Pamuk (literature, 2006) and Paul Krugman (economics, 2008). Although they were not expecting it, they seemed to enjoy the demonstration.

During the forthcoming UK Ig Nobel tour this month, I will also demonstrate that the Emergency Bra is not only an effective, economical and readily available personal protective device but that, first and foremost, it is a beautiful piece of lingerie. Its additional function of personal protection does not interfere with its aesthetics or its main purpose.

I have no doubt my demonstrations will generate some laughs. However, I also look forward to addressing some serious questions from the British public….

…although peripherally perceived facial expressions affect the appreciation of faces, Mona Lisa’s smile seems to constitute only part of her enigma. She keeps her mystery, even when one catches her smile.

Concludes the latest research into the elusiveness of the Mona Lisa smile, which has recently been published in the online version of the journal Psychological Science.
Researchers at the Department of Experimental and Neurocognitive Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, the Department of Psychology, University of Bamberg and the Department of Psychology and Center for Neurocognitive Research, Paris-Lodron-Universität Salzburg, showed photos of one hundred morphed female faces (each in a smiling and a neutral version) to 16 test subjects who were monitored via an eye-tracker system.

Would you welcome financial advice, twisted or untwisted, from a man named Mark Mobius?

An October 5, 2009 Moneysense article implies that you should. It says:

APAFS Chairman, Gerard Cruz added, “Having Dr. Mobius speak about emerging markets is like having Bill Gates speak about the future of computer systems.  Powerful people pay to listen to his advice, we are fortunate to have him address our group”.

NOTE: Do not confuse Dr. Mark Mobius with August Ferdinand Möbius, the man credited with discovering the Möbius strip.

If you don’t know how to build a machine that accomplishes as much as a Dr. Thomas Galen Hieronymus Machine — the all-in-one machine described here yesterday ‚ just get some ready-made plans. The self-noted inventor William D. Jenson has generously formulated a set of plans, which he placed on his web site along with additional plans for additional machines that may work fully as well as the Dr. Thomas Galen Hieronymus Machine. Mr. Jenson’s instruction manual begins with this caution:

“Only 1 person should use your machine as a rule of thumb.”

If you have any doubt that nuclear power plants are good for the environment, see this quick, multimedia presentation by the Nuclear Energy Institute. It’s called “Nuclear Power Plants Are Good for the Environment”. Click on the image.

(Thanks to investigator Martin Gardiner for bringing this to our attention.)

The March issue of mini-AIR just went out. Topics include: People Who Oscillate; Ig Nobel UK Tour; UK Pre-Tour Tweetup in London; A Double-Head of His Time; Test-Takers Who Fly Too High; Elephant Origin Poet; Dental-Use-of-Coconut Competition;  Dangerous Eyebrows, and Cursors; Train Seating; Demented Rats; etc.

Mel [pictured here] says, “It’s swell.”

(mini-AIR is the simplest way to keep informed about Improbable and Ig Nobel news and events. Just fill in the wee form, and mini-AIR will be emailed to you every month)