A team of Japanese researchers has won one of the top honors, looking at the lighter side of science. The Ig Nobel Prize is a spoof of the Nobel Prize. The awards were handed out at a ceremony at Harvard University.
Since 1991, the group, the Annals of Improbable Research, has awarded Ig Nobel Prizes annually for humorous, original and ingenious scientific discoveries. There are 10 categories.
(Presenter)
"The Ig Nobel Prize for physics is awarded to Kiyoshi Mabuchi."
This year's physics prize went to a team from Japan's Kitasato University. The researchers investigated why banana peels are slippery when you step on them. The project was titled "Frictional Coefficient under Banana Skin."
The scientists measured their slipperiness. They concluded that the peels are six times as slippery as a normal floor, but less slippery than someone on skis on snow. Japanese researchers have won the prize for eight straight years.
◆spoof もじり
◆hand out 手渡す、分配する
◆annals 年報
◆ingenious 創意工夫に富む
◆physics 物理学
◆Frictional Coefficient 摩擦係数
