The 35th award ceremony for the Ig Nobel Prize parody, the Ig Nobel Prize, hosted by the American scientific journal Improbable Research, was held at Boston University at 7am on September 19, 2025, Japan time, with 10 awards awards being presented to “Interesting Research that Makes You Laugh and Think.” The awardees include a Japanese research group, and this was the 31st Japanese recipient of Ig Nobel award for the 19th consecutive year.
The 35th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony – Improbable Research
https://improbable.com/the-35th-first-annual-ig-nobel-prize-ceremony/
・Category list
◆Literary Award
◆Psychology Award
◆Nutrition Award
◆Pediatric Award
◆Biology appreciation
◆Chemistry Prize
◆Peace Prize
◆Engineering Design Award
◆Aviation Award
◆Physics Award
The 35th Ig Nobel Awards Ceremony was held at the George Sherman Union Ballroom, the student hall of Boston University in Massachusetts, USA.
The theme for 2025 was “Digestion.” In addition to the awards, performances on this subject will also be presented at the award ceremony.
The winners will give a speech at the Ig Nobel Prize ceremony. However, the time limit is 60 seconds. In order to smoothly proceed with the award ceremony, the highlight of the award ceremony is that when an 8-year-old girl called “Miss Sweety Pooh” repeats repeatedly saying, “I stopped giving speeches and got bored” when the time limit is near.
However, this time, Miss Sweety Pooh was unable to come to the venue, so “researcher” Gary Drifuss will be in charge of the event wearing an apron on behalf of the “researcher” and will be in charge.
Winners will receive a trophy made from a model of the stomach with a human face painted on it, as well as a document indicating that they have received the award. This document will be signed by a genuine Nobel Laureate as a witness.
And the prize money was 10 trillion Zimbabwean dollars each year, but this year they receive disposable wet towels because “inflation has caused them to rise.”
◆Literary Award: For persistently recording and analyzing the growth rate of your fingernails over 35 years
The literary award was sent to William B. Bean, who has been tracking the rate at which he and his family grow their nails for 35 years. Bean not only records the length of his nails, but also includes medieval astrology and American novels.White whaleIt also mentions “, and is praised as a literary award for its witty content, including lamenting the barrenness of “hope and pain, technical skill, and the modern medical education method that swirls in depersonalization called the ‘health center’.”
A Note on Fingernail Growth – ScienceDirect
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022202X15483861
Bean was deceased at the time of writing the article. Bean’s son Bennett Bean was present at the awards ceremony.
The actual measured nail length and portrait of Mr. Bean. “As long as you’re there, and your nails are there, you can continue to measure infinitely,” Bennett commented.
◆Psychology Award: For research that investigates what happens when people tell people, including narcissists, that you are intelligent
The award for Psychology was sent to psychologists at the University of Warsaw Marcin Zajenkowski and Gilles Gignac.
Telling people they are intelligent correlates with the feeling of narcissistic uniqueness: The influence of IQ feedback on temporary state narcissism – ScienceDirect
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160289621000799?via%3Dihub
Zajenkowski and others recruited 361 participants in Poland, asking participants to rate their intelligence levels compared to others, then they had them complete the Polish version of the Narcissistic Personality Test, and then instructed them to take an IQ test to compare their perceptions of intelligence with objective measures. Participants were then randomly divided into two groups, one group was given positive feedback telling them that they had “certainly higher IQ than most people,” and the other group had negative feedback.
The results of the experiment showed that participants who received positive feedback after the IQ test had a greater sense of “I am unique,” an important aspect of pride-large narcissism. Zajenkowski and others conclude that external feedback can help shape a self-awareness of an individual’s intelligence, regardless of its accuracy.
In the speech, Zajenkowski and Gignac spurred the audience to the melody of “If you’re happy, clap your hands,” and then stoked the audience at the venue, saying, “If you’re aware that you’re special, clap your hands.”
◆Nutrition Award: For research into how much rainbow lizards in West Africa prefer to eat certain types of pizza
The Nutrition Award was presented to a joint research group in Nigeria, Italy, Togo and France.
African Journal of Ecology | Ecology Journal | Wiley Online Library
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/aje.13100
Dendy and his team conducted an experiment to determine whether the behavior is common and whether the lizard has a favorite topping after witnessing rainbow lizards stealing and eating tourists’ pizza on West African coasts. In the experiment, the lizards prepared four types of cheese pizza and a la carte pizza, and when they had the lizard choose, they found that they only ate four types of cheese pizza. From these results, the researchers speculate that lizards are drawn to chemical cues in cheese or because they are easier to digest.
Luca Louiselli, who led the research, was unable to come to the venue, and was a 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics.Ester DuflotHe said, “The French people will take the place of Italian researchers,” and read the speech manuscript on behalf of the author.
◆Pediatric Award: For studying how breast milk smell changes when breastfeeding mothers consume garlic and how this affects baby’s behavior
The 2025 Ig Nobel Prize in Pediatrics was presented to a team of American researchers who investigated how breastfeeding mothers change their breast milk smell when they eat garlic and how it affects baby behavior.
Maternal diet alters the sensory qualities of human milk and the nursling’s behavior – PubMed
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1896276/
The experiment confirmed that after the mother consumed garlic capsules, breast milk clearly emitted a strong garlic smell. Furthermore, babies who drank the garlic-flavored breast milk were seen sucking on their breasts for longer than usual and inhaling more. This study suggests that sensory experiences during breastfeeding may affect new food acceptance after weaning and future food preferences.
The award speech is presented by University of Chicago biologist Gary Beaushan, who displays the illustrations of garlic.
However, the speech exceeded the time limit and the overly strong Miss Sweety Pooh came to complain, which forced the termination.
◆Biology Award: An experiment that tested whether drawing a zebra-like stripe pattern on a cow can avoid being stabbed by a flea
The biology award was sent to a research team at the Aichi Prefectural Agricultural Examination Center in Japan, which tested whether drawing zebra-like stripes on cows can prevent them from being stung by fleas.
Fried beef is a serious pest for livestock, and actions taken by cows to avoid fried beef will result in reduced feeding times and increased stress, resulting in negative effects on milk and beef production, leading to economic losses. The researchers drew a zebra pattern on Japanese black beef, comparing it with cows that have no stripes or only black stripes. As a result, it was confirmed that cows with zebra patterns significantly reduced the number of flies attached to them compared to other cows, and also significantly reduced behaviour to drive away flies.
This research is also covered in the article below.
Researcher Tomotaka Kojima gave a speech at the award ceremony.
The surrounding Kuroko begins to attack Mr. Kojima, carrying pictures of the beef and stuffed animals.
Unable to bear with this, Kojima took off his jacket during his speech, and underneath he was wearing a shirt with a zebra pattern.
Showing the zebra pattern stopped the attack from the Fritz.
◆Chemistry Award: An experiment to verify whether mixing Teflon powder into foods can help you feel full without increasing calories
The Chemistry Award was presented to researchers from America and Israel, including Rotem Naktalovich, an anesthesiologist at St. Barnabas Medical Center.
Polytetrafluoroethylene Ingestion as a Way to Increase Food Volume and Hence Satiety Without Increasing Calorie Content – Rotem Naftalovich, Daniel Naftalovich, Frank L. Greenway, 2016
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1932296815626726
This study examined whether mixing Teflon (PTFE) powder, which is used for non-stick coatings in frying pans, into foods can increase the overall amount and weight of the food, and increase the feeling of fullness without increasing calories. Researchers suggest that Teflon is not digested in the body and has no taste, making it possible to use it as an additive that will enable zero-calorie foods, like artificial sweeteners.
Furthermore, the winners were unable to come to the venue, and were the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.Mundi BowendiHe read the speech on behalf of the person.
◆Peace Prize: Research showing that drinking can improve your ability to speak a foreign language
The Peace Prize winners were teams including Fritz Renner of Maastricht University, Inju Kersbergen, Matt Field and Jessica Belsman of the University of Liverpool. The awards tested urban legends that intake of small amounts of alcohol can improve your ability to speak a foreign language.
Dutch courage? Effects of acute alcohol consumption on self-ratings and observer ratings of foreign language skills – Fritz Renner, Inge Kersbergen, Matt Field, Jessica Werthmann, 2018
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0269881117735687
The experiment showed that subjects who drank small amounts of vodka had improved their evaluation of foreign language fluency from native speakers. This may be because alcohol reduces language anxiety, researchers suggest.
The speech was given by the 1997 Nobel Prize in Economics.Robert Martonand the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physiology of MedicineSvante PeboHe reads on behalf of the person. Renner and his colleagues said the study began when they noticed at a bar on the night of an international conference that “drunk Germans are better at pronounced Dutch than sober Germans.”
◆Engineering Design Award: For research that analyzes “the effect of foul-smelling shoes on the experience of using shoe cabinets” from the perspective of engineering design.
Indian researchers Vikash Kumar and Sarthak Mittal have won the Engineering Design Award. This study analyzed why shoes with strong stench were left unattended in student dorm rooms and were unable to be placed in shoeboxes.
Smelly Shoes—An Opportunity for Shoe Rack Re-Design | SpringerLink
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-16-2229-8_33
Kumar and others analyzed “how foul smelling shoes affect the comfortable experience of using shoe cabinets” from an engineering design perspective. Focusing on the problem of malodorizing shoes in India’s hot and humid environment, we designed and developed a shoe box with a built-in UV-C tube light to sterilize the bacteria (Kytococcus sedentarius) that causes this.
◆Air Award: A study investigating whether alcohol intake impairs the flight and echo localization capabilities of Egyptian fruit bats
The air prize was sent to a research team from Colombia, Germany and Israel. This is an investigation into how Egyptian fruit bats consume alcohol and their flight and echolocation abilities.
Ethanol ingestion affects flight performance and echolocation in Egyptian fruit bats – ScienceDirect
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0376635710000446?via%3Dihub
In nature, natural alcohol is produced from ripe fruits, and various animals can consume it. In rare cases, animals that eat alcohol-rich fruits have become drunk and become more likely to be preyed or suffer from accidents due to poor athletic ability. The researchers focused on the habit of Egyptian fruit bats avoiding fruits with high alcohol concentrations, and thought this was to avoid getting drunk, so they conducted the experiment.
The experiment was carried out using adult male bats raised in long outdoor flight cages. The researchers fed bats a liquid food mixed with various concentrations of ethanol and measured the time it takes to fly from one end to the other of the cage. In the same procedure, an experiment was conducted using an ultrasonic microphone to record the echoing of bats.
The results revealed that bats that consumed the highest concentration of ethanol had longer flight times and impaired flight capabilities. Furthermore, these bats were also negatively affected by their echolocation quality, indicating an increased risk of collision with obstacles during flight.
The winners prepare a stuffed bat toy and speak to them during their speech.
However, the speech was too long, and Miss Sweety Pooh replied, “I’m bored.” He looked troubled and left the area.
◆Physics Prize: For discoveries regarding the physical causes of pasta sauces, especially “cacho e pepe” that become untreated and how to prevent it.
A joint research team from the Max Planck Institute for Complex Physics, the University of Barcelona and the Austrian Institute of Science and Technology won the Ig Nobel Prize in Physics in 2025. Research that scientifically pursued the temperature and starch concentration of pasta was evaluated to make sauce for Cacho e Pepe, a traditional Italian and Roman pasta.
You can find out more about the award-winning research by reading the article below.
Physicist presents “Scientifically Perfect Recipe” for Pasta Cooking – GIGAZINE
The winners dressed like chefs.
“Chao Mama!” he greeted me in an Italian style, and sang during his speech and started eating pasta.
The presenter, Nobel Prize winners, also served pasta.
The awards ceremony can be viewed in the following movie:
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