Nobel prize winners get prestige, a gold medal, and a little over a million dollars. Ig Nobel prize winners don’t get such sublime considerations.
They do get acclaim, but instead of all the Nobel perks, they are instead showered with paper planes and 10 trillion Zimbabwean dollars.
The snag is that the currency cratered years ago, so 10 trillion Zimbabwean dollars is worth next to nothing. Still, last year’s winners went home with a single packaged moist towelette, so swings and roundabouts... Plus, this year's winners were given a statuette representing a slab of blue cheese trampled on by a foot erupting with toadstools in honour of this year's “fungi” theme. What's not to love?
Established in 1991 as a satirical version of the Nobel prize, the Ig Nobels aim to promote public engagement with scientific (and culturally resonant) research, honouring “achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think".
This year’s Igs were awarded yesterday at a ceremony in Zurich, Switzerland – a first, as the award ceremony is usually held in the US. The reason, the organisers say, comes down to the hostile climate in the US toward science, as well as international travellers being increasingly reluctant to travel Stateside.
