Hamsters on Viagra take center stage at spoof Nobel awards

0 Comments | AFP, October, 2007

CAMBRIDGE, United States (AFP) — CAMBRIDGE, United States (AFP) - Scientists who discovered that Viagra helps hamsters overcome jet lag and a Japanese researcher who extracted vanilla flavoring from cow dung have won top honors at the 17th annual spoof Nobel Awards.

The so-called Ig Nobel awards, a tongue-in-cheek homage to their Scandinavian counterparts, were announced during a raucous ceremony late Thursday at Harvard University in Massachusetts that shone a bright light on obscure and often bizarre research and inventions.

The Igs, as they are known, are chosen by the Annals of Improbable Research magazine to highlight scientific achievements that, in the words of editor Marc Abrahams, "first make people laugh and then make them think."

Among the winners...