PLEASE FORWARD/POST AS APPROPRIATE
================================================================
mini-Annals of Improbable Research ("mini-AIR")
Issue Number 2000-08
August, 2000
ISSN 1076-500X
Key words: improbable research, science humor, Ig Nobel, AIR, the
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A free newsletter of tidbits too tiny to fit in the
Annals of Improbable Research (AIR),
the journal of inflated research and personalities
================================================================

-----------------------------
2000-08-01	TABLE OF CONTENTS

2000-08-01	Table of Contents
2000-08-02	mini-Housekeeping
2000-08-03	What's New in the Magazine
2000-08-04	Jargon Density Survey
2000-08-05	Favorites: Now Comes Katti
2000-08-06	How To Fix a Broken Printer
2000-08-07	Growth Industry (Manhood)
2000-08-08	Ig Nobel Tickets
2000-08-09	LiRiPr
2000-08-10	Cheesy Citation
2000-08-11	Crabbiness is Contested
2000-08-12	Death: Hey, Good Lookin'
2000-08-13	CALL FOR PAPERS: Eccentrics
2000-08-14	Feng Shui, Everybody
2000-08-15	Multiple Multiplicity Corker
2000-08-16	Titwatch
2000-08-17	No Longer Hung Up
2000-08-18	Kansas -- Is an Ig Forever?
2000-08-19	Great, Good Scott
2000-08-20	Peebles
2000-08-21	7 Deadly Sins Project
2000-08-22	Middle East Peace Solution
2000-08-23	Report Survey Survey Report Survey Results
2000-08-24	AIR VENTS: Flying John
2000-08-25	Project AIRhead 2000: Perfume, Fish, Sex Aid
2000-08-26	MAY WE RECOMMEND: Pre-Olympics Special
2000-08-27	Panic Attacks, Double Vision & Cheese
2000-08-28	AIRhead Events
2000-08-29	How to Subscribe to AIR (*)
2000-08-30	How to Receive mini-AIR, etc. (*)
2000-08-31	Our Address (*)
2000-08-32	Please Forward/Post This Issue! (*)

	Items marked (*) are reprinted in every issue.

	mini-AIR is
	a free monthly *e-supplement* to AIR, the print magazine


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-02	mini Housekeeping

1. Ig Nobel Tickets are now on sale. See section 2000-08-08 below.

2. Have difficulty following the links to mini-AIR sub-features? 
Most are in easily clickable form at 
<http://www.improbable.com/navstrip/whatsnew.html>


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2000-08-03	What's New in the Magazine

AIR 6:4 (Jul/Aug 2000) is the special POSTAGE & HANDLING issue. It 
will be arriving on subscribers' doorsteps any day now. The issue 
includes, among other things:

<> "Structured Procrastination," by John Perry. The author sets 
forth:
	a strategy... that converts procrastinators into
	effective human beings, respected and admired for all
	that they can accomplish and the good use they make 
	of time.

<> "A Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Study of Isometric Exercise in 
Plants And Animals," by Gregory J. Crowther. The author proves 
that plants are better athletes than animals are.

<> "A Four Letter Word in the Medical Literature," by Kenneth J. 
Gorelick. The author examines the ways in which a particular word 
has been used in the medical literature. The word is generally 
considered to be a taboo word.

<> ...and much, much more.

See the cover and full table of contents, which will be posted any 
day now at 
<http://www.improbable.com/airchives/paperair/volume6/v6i4/v6i4-toc.html>

(What you are reading at this moment is mini-AIR, a teeny, tiny, 
monthly e-mail supplement to the print magazine.)


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2000-08-04	Jargon Density Survey

Announcing the AIR Jargon Density Survey. We hope to identify the 
scientific report which has the highest ratio of jargon words to 
plain words.

If you know of such a report, please send the full citation to 
<marca@chem2.harvard.edu>. Please include a representative 
passage. 


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-05	Favorites: Now Comes Katti

The "favorite Srivasta" project (see mini-AIR 2000-03 and 2000-04 
for details) has awakened a great public hungering. We received 
the following note from investigator David Toll:

	Following on from the favourite Srivastava debate I feel
	that the question of the favourite Katti should also be
	put to the test. They are perhaps best known for their book:
	
	"Influence of Gravity On Granular Soil Mechanics",
	R.K. Katti, R.K. Katti, and D.R. Katti, Balkema 
	(Publishers), Rotterdam, 2000.

Please vote on this question. Which is YOUR favorite Katti?
	(1) R.K. Katti
	(2) R.K. Katti
	(3) D.R. Katti

Please send your vote to <marca@chem2.harvard.edu>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-06	How To Fix a Broken Printer

Our popular AIRHEAD TECH NOTES series has produced a new classic 
of the genre: "How To Fix a Broken Printer."

It can be found at
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/july2000/fix-printer-2000-07.html>


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2000-08-07	Growth Industry (Manhood)

Comes word that Dr. Joel Kaplan, the Dean and full Professor of 
the Department of Psychology at the Florida Religious University 
in Miami, Florida, has found a way to increase a man's membership. 
Details, including a most memorable video report, are at
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/july2000/growth-industry-2000-07.html>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-08	Ig Nobel Tickets

Tickets for the 10th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony have 
just gone on sale. 

TICKETS
Get them from the Harvard Box Office (phone 617-496-2222). See 
<http://www.improbable.com/ig/attend.html>

DELEGATIONS
If you plan to bring an audience delegation to the ceremony, 
please see the delegations guidelines at
<http://www.improbable.com/ig/delegations.html>

RELATED EVENTS
In addition to the ceremony, there will be two related events. 
Here is the schedule.
 <> Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony -- Oct 5, Sanders Theatre, Harvard
 <> Ig Medical Lectures -- Oct 6, Harvard Medical School
 <> Ig Informal Lectures -- Oct 7, MIT

The ceremony will be televised live on the Internet, thanks to 
generous help from HMS-Beagle and The Alchemist.

This year's theme is INTELLIGENCE. The ceremony will include, in 
addition to the awarding of this year's Ig Nobel Prizes, THE GREAT 
INTELLIGENCE DEBATE. 

==>	For all details Ig, see the Ig home page at   <==
	<http://www.improbable.com/ig/ig-top.html>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-09	LiRiPr

We proudly announce a new AIR project -- The Literal Risks Project 
(or "LiRiPr," for short). LiRiPr (the Literal Risks Project) seeks 
to collect the instruction (for doing something or other) that 
could be interpreted wrongly with the most bizarre or unfortunate 
consequences.

Details are at
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/july2000/literal-risks-2000-07.html>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-10	Cheesy Citation

Want to know how ultrasonic velocity in cheddar cheese is affected 
by temperature? Probably not. Nevertheless, details are at:
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/july2000/fast-cheddar-2000-07.html>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-11	Crabbiness is Contested

We inadvertently touched off a controversy involving the 
Smithsonian Institution, horseshoe crabs, mammals, and  Horseshoes 
in Mammals. Staff at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural 
History have issued a statement that begins:

	"We at the National Museum of Natural History
	may be tedious and boring, but we are at least
	nit-picking and obsessive..."

The full, sad story is at
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/july2000/horseshoe-mammal-2000-07.html>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-12	Death: Hey, Good Lookin'

Should plastic surgeons commit murder? AIR has taken a stand on 
this controversial question. Our forthright editorial appears at
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/july2000/surgeon-nokill-07-2000.html>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-13	CALL FOR PAPERS: Eccentrics

We are preparing a special issue of AIR devoted to the topic: 
ECCENTRICS. 

IF you have conducted, or believe you may have conducted, notable 
research on the subject (and/or the related topics of strange 
attractors and odd repulsives), we invite you to submit your 
research report SOON for possible publication in AIR. 

Submit reports to 

	Eccentrics Issue
	AIR
	PO Box 380853
	Cambridge MA 02238 USA
	<marca@chem2.harvard.edu>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-14	Feng Shui, Everybody

Occasionally we run across a book so good that our reviewers feel 
confident in reviewing it without reading it. Mansell P. Reckless 
reviews two such books, both on the hot scientific topic, "Feng 
Shui." The reviews are at
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/july2000/feng-books-07-2000.html>

----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-15	Multiple Multiplicity Corker

Our Multiple Multiplicity Project is growing apace. Investigators 
Angela Close and Jim Law have spotted a research report that tops 
all others we have seen. Investigator Close summarizes the 
behemoth thusly:

	I make it two Camargos, two Costas and a Costa-Neto
	(and a Dias-Neto), two Ferreiras, two Goldmans,
	two Lemos, two Lopes, two Machados, two Madeiras,
	two Martins, an Oliveira and two de Oliveiras,
	two Pereiras, a Rosa and a de Rosa, three da Silvas
	and a Silva, and two de Souzas....

Full details, with Camargos and Costases, are at
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/july2000/multiple-multiples-07-2000.html>


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2000-08-16	Titwatch

How much memory do tits need? The question is addressed at
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/july2000/titwatch-2000-07.html>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-17	No Longer Hung Up

At last we know the true solution to the real-life forensic 
mystery known as "Accidental Hanging With Delayed Death in a 
Lift." The curtain of darkness is parted at
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/july2000/eros-explanations-2000-07.html>

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2000-08-18	Kansas -- Is an Ig Forever?

Will the Kansas State Board of Education have to give back its Ig 
Nobel Prize? See
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/aug2000/kansas-ig-2000-08.html>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-19	Great, Good Scott

Raymond Scott was a composer/musician/inventor whose work, if not 
his name, is familiar to everyone. Now an entire new side of that 
work is brought to glorious public view. Ig Nobel Majordomo Gary 
Dryfoos reviews the nearly indescribable new Scott CD/book combo 
"Manhattan Research, Inc." See
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/aug2000/rscott-review-2000-08.html>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-20	Peebles

N.N. Peebles of the Paris Bureaucracy Club has been reviewing 
books again. For the latest, see
<http://www.improbable.com/projects/bureaucracy/bureaucracy-review-top.html#peebles>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-21	7 Deadly Sins Project

We are compiling scientific data to elucidate each of the 
classical seven deadly sins. We are especially interested in 
studies that indicate either (a) inverse relationships or (b) non-
inverse relationships between pertinent variables.

To participate, either (a) commit a sin or (b) see
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/aug2000/deadly-sins-2000-08.html>


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-22	Middle East Peace Solution

AIR commissioned a Special Panel of scientific diplomats to devise 
a workable Middle East peace solution. They have done so. Their 
report appears at
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/aug2000/mideast-peace-2000-08.html>

The report is yet another triumphant addition to our AIRHEAD TECH 
NOTES series.


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-23	Report Survey Survey Report Survey Results

The results are in for our Report Survey Survey Report Survey, 
which was announced in mini-AIR 2000-07. The survey, which was 
itself inspired by the earlier project entitled "Report Survey 
Survey," asked the following question:

	In your experience, what percentage of all written reports
	SHOULD BE read by no one other than the author(s)?
		a) Less than 25% 
		b) 25% - 50%
		c) 50% - 75%
		d) 75% - 100%
		e) More than 100%

The results are 8%, 37%, 13%, 5%, 7%, though not in that order. 
For details, see
<http://www.improbable.com/news/2000/aug2000/survey-survey-2000-08.html>


-----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-24	AIR VENTS: Flying John

Last month's item about US Vice-Presidential Candidate John 
Hagelin, who may now have converted himself once again into a US 
Presidential Candidate, and who won the 1994 Ig Nobel Peace Prize, 
drew this comment from a devoted AIR and mini-AIR reader:

	"If you had put the piece about Hagelin closer to 
	the center of the issue, he could have been found 
	in mid-AIR."
		--Skip Mendler


-----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-25	Project AIRhead 2000: Perfume, Fish, Sex Aid

Here are further selections from our vast collection of items that 
inexplicably have 2000 as part of their name.

ITEM 207-44 (submitted by investigator Patricia R. Rawlston)
PERFUME 2000, a Web site, <www.perfume2000.com>, devoted to 
perfume industry news.

ITEM 777-321 (submitted by investigator Ellen Mayo)
PEPPERIDGE FARMS GOLDFISH 2000, fish shaped snack food, with some 
of the fish  wearing party hats.

ITEM 10101 (submitted by investigator Frank X. Christ)
CB-2000, a sexual aid which is described at 
<http://www.cb-2000.com/>


----------------------------------------------------------- 
2000-08-26	MAY WE RECOMMEND: Pre-Olympics Special

Research reports that merit a trip to the library. (For a much 
larger collection, see any issue of AIR.)

BRONZE IS BEST
"When Less is More: Counterfactual Thinking and Satisfaction Among 
Olympic Medalists," V.H. Medvec, S.F. Madey, T. Gilovich, Journal 
of Personality and Social Psychology, vol. 69, no. 4, October 
1995, pp. 603-10. (Thanks to Miriam E. Tucker for bringing this to 
our attention.) The authors, who are at Cornell University, report 
that:
"an analysis of the emotional reactions of bronze and silver 
medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics--both at the conclusion of 
their events and on the medal stand--indicates that bronze 
medalists tend to be happier than silver medalists. The authors 
attribute these results to the fact that the most compelling 
counterfactual alternative for the silver medalist is winning the 
gold, whereas for the bronze medalist it is finishing without a 
medal."

TIME IN A DINGHY
"Temporal Patterns of Physical Activity in Olympic Dinghy Racing," 
S. Legg, H. Mackie, and P. Smith, Journal of Sports Medicine and 
Physical Fitness, vol. 39, no. 4, December 1999 pp. 315-20. 
(Thanks for Arl Doherty for bringing this to our attention.) The 
authors are at Massey University, New Zealand.


----------------------------------------------------------
2000-08-27	Panic Attacks, Double Vision & Cheese

You may have heard that every issue of the print magazine (AIR) 
contains far more citations than does this newsletter (mini-AIR). 
You have heard correctly. Every issue of AIR contains several 
full-page columns, each of them full of citations. To see one such 
column, the "AIRhead Medical Review" column that appears in AIR 
6:4, see 
<http://www.improbable.com/airchives/paperair/volume6/v6i4/airhead-medical-6-4.html>

The first citation in that particular column is of a remarkable 
medical report entitled "A Woman With Panic Attacks and Double 
Vision Who Liked Cheese."


------------------------------------------------------------ 
2000-08-28	AIRhead Events

==> For details and updates see <http://www.improbable.com>
==> Want to host an event? <marca@chem2.harvard.edu> 617-491-4437.


NEW ENGLAND SKEPTICAL SOCIETY -- CHESHIRE, CT	SAT, SEPT 23
12 noon, Cheshire Public Library.
AIR editor MARC ABRAHAMS et al. will discuss and illustrate 
the Ig Nobel Prizes and improbable Research in general.
INFO: Jon Blumenfeld <jon@jblumenfeld.com>
<http://www.theness.com/member.html>

MCGILL UNIV., MONTREAL					TBA
Date, time, etc. TBA

TENTH FIRST ANNUAL IG NOBEL PRIZE CEREMONY	THURS, OCT 5
Sanders Theatre, Harvard University. 
Tickets available from the Harvard Box office 617-496-2222
INFO: <http://www.improbable.com/ig/ig-top.html>

IG MEDICAL LECTURES, HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL	FRI, OCT 6
Details TBA

IG LECTURES							SAT, OCT 7
MIT (room TBA)
The 2000 Ig Nobel Prizewinners will attempt to explain themselves.

SOCIETY OF AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERS, DEARBORN, MI	THURS, OCT 12
AIR editor MARC ABRAHAMS will be the dinner speaker at the SAE 
TOPTEC symposium.
INFO: Kurt Godden <KurtGodden@excite.com>

POST THEATER, NEW YORK CITY				OCT 19-21
214 E. 10th St. #4
American premiere of "The Real Forensic," a play about AIR 
editorial board member Dr. Mark Benecke, a forensic entomologist. 
Check with theater for exact dates/times.
The play will also be performed in:
 <> CROATIA;
 <> HONG KONG; and 
 <> BERLIN.
INFO: <http://www.posttheater.com/schedule.html> 212-982-7399

BOSTON MENSA						FRI OCT 27
Location and time TBA.
AIR editor Marc Abrahams will speak on a variety of fascinatingly 
baffling topics.
INFO: Tom Birchmire <cogito@world.std.com>

HARVARD UNIVERSITY					SAT, OCT 28
Special science/theatrical event. Details TBA.

ALBERT EINSTEIN PLANETARIUM, WASHINGTON, D.C.	SAT, NOV 26
National Air and Space Museum, 6-8 pm.
AIR editorial board member DR. ERIC SCHULMAN will take you on an 
educational and humorous tour of the history of the Universe, 
followed by a free-ranging discussion of anything and everything 
and a brief look around the night skies of December.
INFO: <http://www.nasm.edu/nasm/planetarium/Einstein.html>

INTERNATIONAL ELECTRON DEVICES MEETING, SAN FRANCISCO	TUES, DEC 12
AIR editor MARC ABRAHAMS will ruin lunch by discussing the Ig 
Nobel Prizes and the current state of improbable research.
Details TBA.
INFO: Mark Law <law@tec.ufl.edu> (352) 392-6459

STANFORD UNIVERSITY					WED, FEB 14, 2001
Valentine's Day improbable research gala with:
 <> AIR editor MARC ABRAHAMS
 <> "How to Quantity Failure" author MARTIN J. MURPHY
 <> "UFOs & Internal Combustion Engines" author SCOTT SANDFORD
 <> "Postal Experiments" author JEFF VAN BUEREN
 <> "Structured Procrastination" author JOHN PERRY
 <> and other surpris(ing) personages
Further details TBA.
INFO: Michele Armstrong <michelea@leland.Stanford.EDU>

NASW WORKSHOP, AAAS ANNUAL MEETING, SAN FRANCISCO	FEB, 2001
(For National Assn of Science Writers members only) Panel 
discussion on humor, unintentional and otherwise, in science 
reporting. Panel will include AIR editor MARC ABRAHAMS.
Details TBA.

AAAS ANNUAL MEETING, SAN FRANCISCO			FEB, 2001
Details TBA. AIR's annual session as part of the annual meeting of 
the American Association for the Advancement of Science. 
Participants will include: 
 <> AIR editor MARC ABRAHAMS
 <> "How to Quantity Failure" author MARTIN J. MURPHY
 <> "UFOs & Internal Combustion Engines" author SCOTT SANDFORD
 <> "Postal Experiments" author JEFF VAN BUEREN
 <> "Structured Procrastination" author JOHN PERRY
 <> and other surpris(ing) personages
Further details TBA.

SAS/ACS SPECIAL JOINT MEETING, PRINCETON, NJ	MAY 17, 2001
AIR Editor MARC ABRAHAMS will describe the latest findings in 
improbable research. Sponsored by the Society of Applied 
Spectroscopy (New York Section) and by the American Chemical 
Society
INFO: Gary Richie (914)-709-2634


-------------------------------------------------------------- 
2000-08-29	How to Subscribe to AIR (*)

Here's how to subscribe to the magnificent bi-monthly print 
journal The Annals of Improbable Research (the real thing, not 
just the little bits of overflow material you have been reading 
here in mini-AIR).
................................................................ 
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Zip or postal code: 
Country 
Phone:		FAX:			E-mail: 
................................................................ 
SUBSCRIPTIONS (6 issues per year): 	
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................................................................ 
BACK ISSUES are available, too:  
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purchased at same time: $6 each 
................................................................ 
Send payment (US bank check, or international money order, or 
Visa, Mastercard or Discover info) to:
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----------------------------------------------------- 
2000-08-30	How to Receive mini-AIR, etc. (*)

What you are reading right now is mini-AIR. Mini-AIR is a (free!) 
tiny monthly *supplement* to the bi-monthly print magazine. 
To subscribe, send a brief E-mail message to: 
	LISTPROC@AIR.HARVARD.EDU 
The body of your message should contain ONLY the words 
	SUBSCRIBE MINI-AIR MARIE CURIE 
(You may substitute your own name for that of Madame Curie.) 	
		---------------------------- 
To stop subscribing, send the following message: SIGNOFF MINI-AIR


----------------------------------------------------- 
2000-08-31	Our Address (*)

Annals of Improbable Research (AIR)	 
PO Box 380853, Cambridge, MA 02238 USA 
617-491-4437 FAX:617-661-0927

EDITORIAL: marca@chem2.harvard.edu 
SUBSCRIPTIONS: air@improbable.com 
WEB SITE: <http://www.improbable.com>


--------------------------- 
2000-08-32	Please Forward/Post This Issue! (*)

Please distribute copies of mini-AIR (or excerpts!) wherever 
appropriate. The only limitations are: A) Please indicate that the 
material comes from mini-AIR. B) You may NOT distribute mini-AIR 
for commercial purposes.

------------------------------------------------------------ 
(c) copyright 2000, Annals of Improbable Research 
------------------------------------------------------------

------------- mini-AIRheads ------------- 
EDITOR: Marc Abrahams (marca@chem2.harvard.edu)
MINI-PROOFREADER AND PICKER OF NITS (before we introduce the last
few at the last moment): Wendy Mattson <wendy@posh.com>
WWW EDITOR/GLOBAL VILLAGE IDIOT: Amy Gorin 
(airmaster@improbable.com)
COMMUTATIVE EDITOR: Stanley Eigen (eigen@neu.edu)
ASSOCIATIVE EDITOR: Mark Dionne
CO-CONSPIRATORS: Gary Dryfoos, Ernest Ersatz, Craig Haggart, Nicki
Rohloff
MAITRE DE COMPUTATION: Jerry Lotto
AUTHORITY FIGURES: Nobel Laureates Dudley Herschbach, Sheldon 
Glashow, William Lipscomb, Richard Roberts
============================================================