RESEARCH
Getting
Punchy SBS researchers awarded an Ig Nobel Prize By Paul Gabrielsen
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n a webcast announcement, University of Utah researchers David Carrier and Steven Naleway, along with recent SBS graduate Ethan Beseris, BS’18, were awarded the 2021 Ig Nobel Peace Prize for a study exploring whether beards may serve an evolutionary purpose to protect the jaw during a fistfight.
Ig Nobel laureates David Carrier (left), Steven Naleway (center) and Ethan Beseris
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The lighthearted awards, presented by Marc Abrahams of the science humor magazine Annals of Improbable Research, are a counterpoint to the mainstream Nobel Prizes, awarded in October. Ig Nobel Prizes, awarded since 1991, are intended to celebrate scientific discoveries that “first make people laugh, and then make them think.” The U study is among this year’s ten awardees.
