Dog Testicles & Penguin Poop
The Ig Nobles are here! The Ig Nobles are here!
My favorite winner is in the Fluid Dynamics category. Victor Benno Meyer-Rochow of International University Bremen, Germany, and the University of Oulu, Finland; and Jozsef Gal of Lorond Eotvos University in Hungary, for "Pressures Produced When Penguins Pooh -- Calculations on Avian Defecation," a study published in 2003 in the journal Polar Biology. (Yahoo! News)
I'm sure this is a tremendous advance in the field (Shouldn't it be 'semi-fluid' dynamics? I've seen penguin guano.), one worthy of continued study. Sure, the strides gained in artificial canine testicles that were also honored this year is important, but a far cry from having the impact of penguin feces in the scheme of things.
(Photo courtesy of the Herbert Cutler Center for Avian Recreational Studies and Sanctuary Preserve (LLC). Pictured: long-term resident Peary Penguin.)