{"596223":{"#nid":"596223","#data":{"type":"event","title":"The Ig Nobel Prizes and Improbable Research","body":[{"value":"\u003Ch3\u003EA Frontiers in Science lecture co-sponsored by the School of Physics and the School of Public Policy\u003C\/h3\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAbstract\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK. Ten new prizes have been awarded every year since 1991, in gala ceremonies at Harvard and MIT, with winners traveling from around the world, and Nobel laureates physically handing out the Ig Nobel Prizes. The whole history of science, technology and medicine is a parade of things that at first made people LAUGH, then THINK. The Igs focuses public curiosity on the early, thought-provoking, \u0026quot;Is it good, bad, or too-early-to-tell?\u0026quot; stage of things. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAbout the Speaker\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.improbable.com\/about\/people\/MarcAbrahams.html\u0022\u003EMarc Abrahams\u003C\/a\u003E is the editor and\u0026nbsp;co-founder of\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Annals_of_Improbable_Research\u0022 title=\u0022Annals of Improbable Research\u0022\u003EAnnals of Improbable Research\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;(AIR)\u0026nbsp;and the originator and emcee of the annual\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ig_Nobel_Prize\u0022 title=\u0022Ig Nobel Prize\u0022\u003EIg Nobel Prize\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;celebration. He was editor of the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Journal_of_Irreproducible_Results\u0022 title=\u0022Journal of Irreproducible Results\u0022\u003EJournal of Irreproducible Results\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;(JIR)\u0026nbsp;from 1990 to 1994.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EAfter JIR\u0026#39;s publisher decided to abandon the magazine in 1994, the founders and entire editorial staff (1955-1994) of JIR abandoned the publisher and immediately created AIR. AIR\u0026#39;s editorial board of more than 50 distinguished scientists includes many Nobel laureates, several Ig Nobel Prize winners, IQ record holder Marilyn Vos Savant, and a convicted felon.\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.guardian.co.uk\/education\/2004\/jun\/01\/highereducation.research\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EMarc described how it all began,\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;in an essay for\u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003EThe Guardian\u003C\/em\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EAbrahams has a degree in applied mathematics from Harvard College, spent several years developing optical character recognition computer systems (including a reading machine for the blind) at Kurzweil Computer Products, and later founded Wisdom Simulators, which used computers to give people experience in making excruciating decisions.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EHe is the subject of a\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/hbr.org\/search\/409013\u0026amp;legacy=true?id=409013\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EHarvard Business School case study\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;called\u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003E\u0026quot;Marc Abrahams: Annals of an Improbable Entrepreneur.\u0026quot;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003EHe is married to psychologist Robin Abrahams, who writes the \u0026quot;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.boston.com\/bostonglobe\/magazine\/missconduct\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EMiss Conduct\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026quot; advice column for the Boston Globe Magazine.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAbout Frontiers in Science Lectures\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ELectures in this series are intended to inform, engage, and inspire students, faculty, staff, and the public on developments, breakthroughs, and topics of general interest in the sciences and mathematics. Lecturers tailor their talks for nonexpert audiences.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":"","field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The whole history of science, technology, and medicine is a parade of things that at first made people LAUGH, then THINK."}],"uid":"34553","created_gmt":"2017-09-20 12:44:15","changed_gmt":"2017-10-02 21:13:20","author":"sniebuhr3","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","field_event_time":{"event_time_start":"2017-10-11T20:30:00-04:00","event_time_end":"2017-10-11T21:30:00-04:00","event_time_end_last":"2017-10-11T21:30:00-04:00","gmt_time_start":"2017-10-12 00:30:00","gmt_time_end":"2017-10-12 01:30:00","gmt_time_end_last":"2017-10-12 01:30:00","rrule":null,"timezone":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"596748":{"id":"596748","type":"image","title":"Marc Abrahams, Frontiers in Science Lecture","body":null,"created":"1506955023","gmt_created":"2017-10-02 14:37:03","changed":"1506978091","gmt_changed":"2017-10-02 21:01:31","alt":"","file":{"fid":"227461","name":"Abrahams 10-11-17.FIS_.flyer_.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/Abrahams%2010-11-17.FIS_.flyer__0.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/Abrahams%2010-11-17.FIS_.flyer__0.png","mime":"image\/png","size":746598,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/Abrahams%2010-11-17.FIS_.flyer__0.png?itok=PCZ6cZHm"}}},"media_ids":["596748"],"groups":[{"id":"126011","name":"School of Physics"},{"id":"361651","name":"Center for Education Integrating Science, Mathematics and Computing (CEISMC)"},{"id":"585025","name":"Center for the Science and Technology of Advanced Materials and Interfaces (STAMI)"},{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"364801","name":"EAS"},{"id":"1275","name":"School of Biological Sciences"},{"id":"85951","name":"School of Chemistry and Biochemistry"},{"id":"1279","name":"School of Mathematics"},{"id":"443951","name":"School of Psychology"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"175630","name":"ignobel"},{"id":"960","name":"physics"},{"id":"4896","name":"College of Sciences"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[{"id":"1795","name":"Seminar\/Lecture\/Colloquium"}],"invited_audience":[{"id":"78761","name":"Faculty\/Staff"},{"id":"78771","name":"Public"},{"id":"174045","name":"Graduate students"},{"id":"78751","name":"Undergraduate students"}],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003Estephanie.niebuhr@physics.gatech.edu\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}