Strippers, armadillos inspire Ig Nobel winners

By MARK PRATT , Associated Press Writer, General Science / Other

(AP) -- Deborah Anderson had heard the urban legends about the contraceptive effectiveness of Coca-Cola products for years. So she and her colleagues decided to put the soft drink to the test. In the lab, that is.

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Posted by D666 10/03/08 10:16

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I'd like to know *why* the dancers make more money. Do they smell different? Dance more agressively? Have more curves? Threaten their customers with knives?

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Posted by Decaf 10/03/08 13:19

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I'd guess at peak fertility they would tend to be mentally more interested in what they're doing. The less fake the act appears, the more money they're likely to earn.

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Posted by KB6 10/03/08 15:20

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If the strippers know about the phenomenon that alone could change there behavior and affect their earnings too.

"Duke University behavioral economist Dan Ariely won an Ig Nobel for his study that found more expensive fake medicines work better than cheaper fake medicines."
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This reminds me of a study that showed that red placebo pills are more effective than blue ones.

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Posted by KB6 10/03/08 15:24

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Oops, that's "their", not "there".

The armadillo study has real merit. The level at which artifacts are found can have a profound effect on the interpretation. Apparently, burrowing animals could really screw that up.

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Posted by Linktothepast 10/03/08 18:57

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"I'd like to know *why* the dancers make more money. Do they smell different? Dance more agressively? Have more curves? Threaten their customers with knives?"

I guess it has something to do with the smell...

No that i know anything about it..., cough, no....

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Posted by TJ_alberta 10/03/08 21:07

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D666 - my guess is you are correct about the pheromones. Now there is a proposition that can be tested.

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Posted by D666 10/08/08 10:16

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