The Ig Nobel Prize is a parody of the Nobel Prize, which is awarded every autumn to celebrate ten unusual or trivial achievements in scientific research. Since 1991, the Ig Nobel Prizes have been awarded to “honor achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think.” The name of the award, the “Ig Nobel Prize” ( ) is a pun on the word "ignoble", an achievement “characterized by baseness, lowness, or meanness”, and is satirical social criticism that identifies absurd-sounding, yet useful research and knowledge.
Organized by the scientific humor magazine, the "Annals of Improbable Research" (AIR), the Ig Nobel Prizes are presented by Nobel laureates in a ceremony at the Sanders Theater, Harvard University, and are followed by the winners’ public lectures at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Cybercrime
Cybercrime is crime that uses a computer and computer network. There are many types of cybercrimes. These include doxxing, hacking, copyright issues, cyberterrorism and fraud. Many countries have laws against many types of porn such as twincest, fauxcest, child porn, bestiality and others. Some other actions can also be illegal such as cyberbullying, spying, child grooming or hebephilic behavior. Some governments have agencies that deal with computer crimes.
Magnetic levitation
Magnetic levitation, maglev, or magnetic suspension is a method by which an object is suspended with no support other than magnetic fields. Magnetic force is used to counteract the effects of the gravitational acceleration and any other accelerations.
The two primary issues involved in magnetic levitation are "lifting forces": providing an upward force sufficient to counteract gravity, and "stability": ensuring that the system does not spontaneously slide or flip into a configuration where the lift is neutralized.
Magnetic levitation is used for maglev trains, contactless melting, magnetic bearings and for product display purposes.
Horseland (TV series)
Horseland is a Canadian–American animated television series produced by DIC Entertainment and Cookie Jar Group. A comic mischief program following events in the lives of a group of children riding at Horseland, an equestrian school and stables. Their adventures include riding their horses and entering them in competitions to test their skill and friendships. The show had two different stories in each episode. The show was cancelled after only three season of thirty-nine episodes. The series premiered airs at 8AM ET/PT time on September 16, 2006 on Discovery Channel's Discovery Kids block in the United States.
Heather Menzies
Heather Menzies-Urich (December 3, 1949 – December 24, 2017) was a Canadian-American model, activist and actress. She was best known for her roles as Louisa von Trapp in the 1965 movie "The Sound of Music" and Jessica 6 in the TV series "Logan's Run". She was born in Toronto, Ontario.
From 1975 until his death in 2002, she was married to actor Robert Urich.
Urich died on December 24, 2017 from brain cancer in Quinte West, Ontario at age 68.
Rod Sykes
James Rodney Winter "Rod" Sykes (born May 19, 1929) is a Canadian politician. He served as the 30th Mayor of Calgary from 1969 to 1977. He served as leader of the Alberta Social Credit Party from 1980 to 1982. Sykes quit as party leader in 1982, frustrated by Social Credit's internal and financial problems. He was born in Montreal, Quebec.
In 1984, he was nominated by Alan Clarke, Calgary East Federal Liberal Riding Association Vice President, to run for the Liberal Party for a seat in the House of Commons.
Heather North
Heather Lindsay May North (December 13, 1945 – November 29, 2017) was an American television and voice actress. She was best known for voicing Daphne Blake in the Scooby-Doo franchise. She was born in Pasadena, California. She began voicing Daphne in season 2 of "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!". She also appeared as Dr. Sandy Horton on "Days of Our Lives" from 1967 until 1972.
North died on November 30, 2017, at her home in Studio City, California at the age of 71. The cause of death was cardiopulmonary arrest complicated by bronchitis.
LaToya Cantrell
LaToya Cantrell (born April 3, 1972) is an American politician. She is the mayor-elect of New Orleans, Louisiana upon being elected in November 18, 2017. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Cantrell has represented District B on the New Orleans City Council.
Dimitri (clown)
Dimitri Jakob Muller (September 18, 1935 – July 19, 2016) was a Swiss clown. He was born in Ascona, Switzerland. After graduating from school, Dimitri became an apprentice potter while studying music and theater. He went to Paris to study under Etienne Decroux, then Marcel Marceau. In 1971, Dimitri and his wife Gunda, started their own theatre. In 1975, he founded the "Scuola Teatro Dimitri" in Verscio. In 1973, he was awarded the Grock prize, and appeared with New York's Big Apple Circus. He was inducted into the International Clown Hall of Fame in 1995.
Dimitri died on July 19, 2016 in Borgnone, Ticino at the age of 80.
Cervelat
Cervelat, also cervelas, servelat or zervelat, is a sausage produced in Switzerland, France and parts of Germany. They contain a mixture of beef, bacon and pork rind. The cervelat is often referred to as the national sausage of Switzerland. Swiss cervelats are prepared and eaten cooked or raw. They are boiled, grilled or fried. They can also be served uncooked, either in a salad or with bread and mustard. The sausages are called "cervelas" in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, "Cervelat" in the German-speaking part, and "servelat" in the Italian-speaking part.
Stelio De Carolis
Stelio De Carolis (14 November 1937 – 22 December 2017) was an Italian politician. He was born in Fumone, Italy. He was a member of the Chamber of Deputies from 1987 to 1994. He served on the Senate between 1996 and 2001.
De Carolis was struck by a car on 22 December 2017 while crossing the Viale Primo Maggio in Meldola and died at the age of 80.
Mortzwiller
Mortzwiller used to be a commune in the Haut-Rhin department of east France. On 1 January 2016, it became part of the new commune Le Haut-Soultzbach.
Muespach
Muespach is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Alsace in northeast France.
The Blue Party (Germany)
The Blue Party (German: "Die blaue Partei") was a right-wing conservative political party in Germany. It was formed on 17 September 2017 and dissolved in 2019. It split from the AfD after the 2017 election. The party tried to attract moderate former AfD voters.
The Blue Party was eurosceptic (meaning they were critical of the European Union). The party also wanted more restrictions on immigration. Many of the party's policies were similar to those of the AfD.
Julio Medina
Julio Medina Salazar (born 16 January 1933) is a Colombian actor.
Medina was born in Chiquinquirá, Colombia. He studied at Pontifical Xavierian University and later at the Pasadena Playhouse after moving to the United States in 1954. He was enlisted in the United States Navy where he served for two years.
In 1965, he moved to Peru to make small movies, but moved to the United States afterwards. He made his acting debut in the television series "Gunsmoke". In his Hollywood career he has worked alongside Michael Douglas, Hal Holbrook, David Carradine and Sally Field.
In 1984, Median returned to Colombia where he continued to make movies and telenovelas.
Piyaa Albela
Piyaa Albela () is an Indian soap opera. It is made by Rajshri Productions. It is broadcast on Zee TV every Mon-Fri at 08:30 pm IST. The show is a love story, a modern telling of the love between Menaka and Vishwamitra.
The main actors, Akshay Mhatre and Sheen Das, started their careers in Indian television with this show. Producer Sooraj Barjatya worked for about eight years on "Piyaa Albela". The show began on March 6, 2017, replacing a popular Zee TV show, "Jamai Raja".