Strippers, armadillos inspire Ig Nobel winners

October 3, 2008 By MARK PRATT , Associated Press Writer

(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.

---

Content from The Associated Press expires 15 days after original publication date. For more information about The Associated Press, please visit www.ap.org .

---

Similar stories from PHYSorg:

Calif. requires TVs to be more energy-efficient (Update)

Nov 18, 2009 | 5 / 5 (2) | 1

FDA questions safety of alcoholic energy drinks

Nov 13, 2009 | 3.8 / 5 (6) | 6

Review: Reports on Pfizer drug studies misleading

Nov 11, 2009 | 3.8 / 5 (4) | 5

The upside of feeling down

Nov 09, 2009 | 4.4 / 5 (18) | 4

Google snaps up mobile ad startup for $750 million (Update)

Nov 09, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

• D666 - Oct 03, 2008
  • Rank: not rated yet
  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?
  
  • report abuse
  • • Current rank
    • 1
    • 2
    • 3
    • 4
    • 5
• Decaf - Oct 03, 2008
  • Rank: 5 / 5 (1)
  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.
  • report abuse
  • • Current rank
    • 1
    • 2
    • 3
    • 4
    • 5
• KB6 - Oct 03, 2008
  • Rank: not rated yet
  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."
  ---
  This reminds me of a study that showed that red placebo pills are more effective than blue ones.
  
  • report abuse
  • • Current rank
    • 1
    • 2
    • 3
    • 4
    • 5
• KB6 - Oct 03, 2008
  • Rank: 4 / 5 (1)
  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.
  • report abuse
  • • Current rank
    • 1
    • 2
    • 3
    • 4
    • 5
• Linktothepast - Oct 03, 2008
  • Rank: 5 / 5 (1)
  "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....
  • report abuse
  • • Current rank
    • 1
    • 2
    • 3
    • 4
    • 5
• TJ_alberta - Oct 03, 2008
  • Rank: not rated yet
  D666 - my guess is you are correct about the pheromones. Now there is a proposition that can be tested.
  • report abuse
  • • Current rank
    • 1
    • 2
    • 3
    • 4
    • 5
• D666 - Oct 08, 2008
  • Rank: not rated yet

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

  
  
  I hereby volunteer to help with the testing.
  
  
  • report abuse
  • • Current rank
    • 1
    • 2
    • 3
    • 4
    • 5