The Nobel Prizes are known as the gold standard for intelligence and human achievement. Some of the best and brightest individuals in the world have been awarded the symbolic medal of the prize's founder. These however, not so much.
The Ig Nobel Prize was created as a parody by scientific humor magazine, the Annals of Improbable Research to "honor achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think."
Here's a list of some of the more wacky and almost pointless winners of this less-than-distinguished prize.
The Magnetically Levitating Frog
The first ever Ig Nobel Prize was given to researchers Andre Geim and Sir Michael Berry for their uplifting study of - yes - magnetically levitating a living frog. While technically it was more focused on repulsing the water in a field, but the amphibian was a nice touch.
Ugly Art Hurts
There once was a time when we didn't know that people suffered more when looking at ugly art compared to less ugly art. Well actually, we had a good idea of it, but not while shooting some poor art critic with a laser! Thanks to Marina de Tommaso, Michele Sardaro and Paolo Livrea, we now know that the better art looks, the less pain we feel while looking at it (unless it's
Now, these discovery's are actually somewhat useful, but then there are winners that have us straight-up questioning who let these scientists into the lab in the first place.
It takes years to go through school with many long nights, hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees, and all for the prestige and advantages that come from working with the best and brightest. So what we'd like to know is, how did this lot make it through?
How Bananas Give Us The Slip
When Japan's Kiyoshi Mabuchi and colleagues won the Ig Nobel Prize for physics, they were more than just happy to see their work come to fruition. The researchers decided to set their sights on the age-old gimmick of slipping on a banana peel and actually found out that there is a specific equation for it to take place.
The next time you embarrass yourself, just remember you're doing math.
Keeping Dogs In Line
If you've ever had to walk a distracted dog before, you'll know it's no easy task. They can pick up on even the faintest smells but it always seems that our canine companions have a direction of their own, especially when 'taking care of business'.
As it turns out, dogs can actually detect small variations in magnetic sensitivity and prefer to orient themselves North-South when leaving their mark!
Why Having A Cat Is Purrfectly Awful
It's the argument that no one could ever win, until now. Sure, all your friends with dogs believe it is better than owning a cat, but now they have the proof to back it up.
Yep, it has been scientifically confirmed that our supposed feline friends are in fact a cause in the decline of mental health. As if you needed another reason...