Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference between the Nobel and the Ig Nobel prizes, what with Mohamed ElBaradei winning the nobel peace prize with his winning slogan, peace through ignorance. But don't miss out on the real thing - the Ig Nobel awards were held a week ago and the winners announced to much rejoicing (amongst the losers, that is).
Of the winners, my favorite is the story of a local (Missouri) boy making good - Gregg A. Miller who won in Medicine for inventing neuticals, which are replacement testicles for animals who have been neutered. I don't know which is more surprising - that Mr. Miller wrote a book entitled Going Going NUTS! about them, or the fact that over 100,000 (thats over 200,000 neuticles for those keeping score at home) animals have been neuticled since 1995. And they say the age of miracles and wonders is over.
And while I have enjoyed the odd Pinter play made into a movie, I think again the Ig Nobels picked the better Literati by with their selection for Literature:
"The Internet entrepreneurs of Nigeria, for creating and then using e-mail to distribute a bold series of short stories, thus introducing millions of readers to a cast of rich characters -- General Sani Abacha, Mrs. Mariam Sanni Abacha, Barrister Jon A Mbeki Esq., and others -- each of whom requires just a small amount of expense money so as to obtain access to the great wealth to which they are entitled and which they would like to share with the kind person who assists them."
As someone who has received many such one act plays via email, I can only say "Bravo" to their selection.
And finally, I have no idea what it was about, but James Watson (umm, no not THE James Watson, but some JW in New Zealand), the winner in Agricultural History should have won (and probably did) for the title of his paper alone: "The Significance of Mr. Richard Buckley’s Exploding Trousers." Now that's a scientific paper that I want to read.
