Scientific Method / Science & Exploration  Ig Nobel Prizes honor
panda poop, gas mask bras  The Annals of Improbable Research
again awards its Ig Nobels to those …  Nobel Prize season is
right around the corner, which means one thing: it's time for
the Annals of Improbable Research to hold its annual bash in
Boston, at which it hands out its world famous prizes, the Ig
Nobels. These prizes honor the best of the year's research that,
according to the Annals, cannot or should not be repeated.  Each
year, the awards ceremony features a theme; this year's theme
celebrates the recent financial meltdown by celebrating "risk."
Benoit Mandelbrot (of "Mandelbrot set" fame), delivered a
keynote on risk. This was followed by a performance of "The Big
Bank Opera," a work commissioned for this event, and a Big Bank
cabaret.  As always, there were a series of 24/7 lectures, in
which researchers attempted to explain their work in technical
terms within 24 seconds, then provide an explanation for laymen
in seven words. This