Ig Nobel Prize: Germans speak better Dutch when they drink alcohol

For the 35th time, the Ig Nobel Prizes for science were awarded on Thursday night in Boston. These are satirical ‘Nobel Prizes’ for research that first makes you laugh and then makes you think.

In their article Dutch Courage?, the Maastricht winners (Fritz Renner, Inge Kersbergen, Matt Field, and Jessica Werthmann) describe how they conducted research among fifty German students who had not been speaking Dutch for very long. Twenty-five were given a little alcohol, the rest were not. They then had to conduct a conversation in Dutch.

Observers who did not know that some of the participants had been drinking noticed that their pronunciation in particular had improved. The slightly tipsy Germans themselves did not feel that they were doing any better, however.

The idea originated at the bar during a scientific conference. The researchers warn that alcohol in higher doses impairs memory, so don’t drink if you want to learn a language.

Silly

The presentation of the Ig Nobel Prizes is always festive and silly. The audience throws paper airplanes, opera singers sing about something scientific, and the presenters wear crazy hats. The researchers of Maastricht University themselves were not present. Their acceptance speech was read by Nobel Prize winners Robert Merton and Svante Pääbo.

Also interesting: if you paint cows black and white, like zebras, they are less bothered by biting flies

Alcohol also plays a role in the Ig Nobel Prize for aviation: scientists have investigated whether bats can still fly and navigate properly after consuming a small amount of alcohol. The conclusion: no.

Another winner of this edition kept track of the growth of his own nails for 35 years and reported on it. For this, he received the Ig Nobel Prize for Literature. The prize for nutritional science went to researchers who discovered that a certain colorful lizard has a strong preference for quattro formaggi (four cheeses) pizza.

Also interesting: if you paint cows black and white, like zebras, they are less bothered by biting flies.

The Ig Nobel ceremony always takes place in September, one month before the serious Nobel Prizes are awarded.

HOP, Bas Belleman