Marc Abrahams's Blog, page 512

Heterosexual Necrophilia in the Frog

What with homosexual necrophilia in the mallard duck monopolizing attention, heterosexual necrophilia in frogs — especially functional necrophilia — has gotten scant mention. That imbalance is changing, largely due to this study:

“Functional necrophilia: a profitable anuran reproductive strategy?” J.T. Izzo, D.J. Rodrigues, M. Menin, A.P. Lima and W.E. Magnusson, Journal of Natural History, vol. 46, nos. 47-48, 2012, pp. 2961-2967.  The authors, at Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia and other institutions in Brazil, report:

“In the first aggregation (Figure 1B) we witnessed a male in axillary amplexus with one dead female (Figure 1C), and he extracted her oocytes by squeezing the sides of her belly with rhythmic movements of his front and hind limbs (Figure 1C). We did not check the fertilization of eggs because of lack of materials suitable for observations in the field. During the second reproductive event, four R. proboscidea males were seen extracting oocytes from dead females. Three of them were not interrupted by other males but, on one occasion, a male was observed pushing the amplectant dead female around the pond, apparently to avoid other males. This male continued to compress the dead female’s abdomen during such displacements and the oocytes kept being expelled.”

Thanks to Ed Yong for bringing this to our attention. He discusses the matter in an essay that is, in its way, beautiful.

BONUS: “What the Frog’s Eye Tells the Frog’s Brain”

BONUS: Frog upon frog upon frog upon frog, as well as frog on frog on frog:

Pregnancy in Women and Men with Vasculitis

Pregnancy in men has a place in the medical literature. Witness this new study:

Dr. Clouse, lead author of the study.

“Pregnancy in Women and Men with Vasculitis,” Megan E. B. Clowse, Rachel L. Richeson, Carl Pieper, Peter A Merkel, for the Vasculitis Clinical Research Consortium, Arthritis Care and Research, epub February 11, 2013. The authors, at Duke University and the University of Pennsylvania, have some explaining to do — and eventually they do answer them. Here are highlights from the report:

Objective: Pregnancy outcomes of patients with vasculitis are unknown but are of great concern to patients and physicians….

Methods: Participants in the Vasculitis Clinical Research Consortium Patient Contact Registry were invited to respond to an anonymous, Internet-based survey that included questions about pregnancy outcomes, the timing of pregnancy relative to a diagnosis of vasculitis, and medication use….

Results: … 74 pregnancies after a diagnosis of vasculitis were reported by women and 18 by men…. Among the pregnancies conceived by men with vasculitis, the timing of diagnosis had no significant effect on the rate of pregnancy loss….

Many questions remain unanswered for women and men who develop vasculitis prior to conception…

Participants were asked to report the total number of pregnancies they had carried (women) or fathered (men)…

(Thanks to investigator Ivan Oransky for bringing this to our attention.)

mini-AIR (Feb issue): Feathers and Gebrauchsmusterschrift

The February issue of mini-AIR (our wee little monthly newsletter) just went out. You can read it online, too. Topics include:

Feathers
Gebrauchsmusterschrift
Details about upcoming shows in Scandinavia & the UK
More feathers
and more

It also has info about upcoming events.

Mel [pictured here] says, “It’s swell.”

mini-AIR is the simplest way to keep informed about Improbable and Ig Nobel news and events. Just add yourself to the mini-AIR list, and mini-AIR will be emailed to you every month.

Mishmash Mishmash: Mott

Mishmash: the word is defined as “A collection or mixture of unrelated things; a hodgepodge“. Mishmash is also a name.  This is the first in a series of  little reports — a mishmash — of items about Mishmashes.

Ryan Mishmash is a physics graduate student at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He coauthored this study:

“Exotic Gapless Mott Insulators of Bosons on Multileg Ladders,” Matthew S. Block, Ryan V. Mishmash, Ribhu K. Kaul, D.N. Sheng, Olexei I. Motrunich, and Matthew P. A. Fisher, Physical Review Letters, vol. 106, January 28, 2011. Here’s a detail from the paper:

BONUS: A letter entitled “Mishmash and Carr reply”

 

Magazine: the special Sloths & Vampires issue

The special Sloths & Vampires issue (vol. 19, no. 1) of the magazine (the Annals of Improbable Research) is now out!

Articles include “The Eager Pursuit of Sloths”, “Co-Existence of Vampires and Humans Is Possible: Proofs Based on Models Derived from Fiction Literature, Comic Books and Films”, “As the Worm Turns, Or Doesn’t”, and more, more, more, including new helping of “Medical Research Review”, “Boys Will Be Boys”, “Soft Is Hard”, and other reviews of outstandingly improbable research from many fields and countries.

Mel (right) says it’s swell.

Click on the Mel’s face to see the table of contents, buy the e-book version (first download a free preview of it, if you like!), or subscribe to the paper version.

Lindsay Porter joins hair club for scientists (LFHCfS)

Lindsay Porter has joined the Luxuriant Flowing Hair Club for Scientists (LFHCfS). She says:

I am a scientist at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland but spend most of my time with mammalian species who are defined by their lack of hair. Well nearly.  As a cetacean ecologist with a particular interest in skin condition and how its condition can be used as a remote indicator of health, I am more concerned with the water that flows across the dermis rather than the locks which flow from it.  Nonetheless, a specialist club which combines both hair and science has a tremendous appeal.

Dr Lindsay Porter, LFHCfS

Senior Research Scientist

SMRUL Asia Pacific

The University of St. Andrews

Lippo Centre, Queensway

Admiralty

HONG KONG SAR

Katriona (Tiger) Bradley joins hair club for scientists (LFHCfS)

Katriona (Tiger) Bradley has joined the Luxuriant Flowing Hair Club for Scientists (LFHCfS). She says:

I am a veterinary scientist who has a passion for long haired mammals.  My luxuriantly coiffed clients include Angoras, both French and English, American Fuzzy Tops, Jersey Woolys and, of course, the Lionheads;  all are long-haired rabbit breeds which are one of my specialist fields.  Rabbits are popular pets here in Hong Kong and over the years I have seen many species, both long and short haired.  I am a wearer of long hair and a carer of other long hairs.

Dr Katriona (Tiger) Bradley, LFHCfS

Veterinary Surgeon

Tai Wai Small Animal and Exotic Hospital

69-75 Chik Shun Street

HONG KONG SAR

 

Do It Yourself Cartoon Kit

Bob Godfrey’s “Do It Yourself Cartoon Kit”, which pointed the way forwards and sideways for animators:

Godfrey died recently.

This (below) is a small piece of his cartoon documentary about the engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel:

Leadership via Gardening

Dr. Vicki R. Whiting Ph.D., MBA – who is a professor at the Gore School of Business, Westminster College, Salt Lake City, Utah – focuses on organizational management – “most specifically on organizational behavior, mentorship, negotiation, leadership and the global environment of the firm.” As part of this focus she has developed “3 Keys to Cultivating Leadership” (presented in an essay for The Leadership Collaboratory, Linked 2 Leadership, Nov. 2012.)

The gardening-themed leadership keys are :

1) Fertilize for Nourishment

“Growth of any type requires nourishment. Plants are fed with fertilizer and water. Leaders are nourished through positive interactions and learning.”

2) Transplant to Favorable Environments

“Plants require different amounts of sunlight and types of soil. Leaders thrive different types of organizational cultures and structures, although it is a challenge to change jobs, teams, or organizations.”

3) Prune Spent Blooms

“Leaders and gardeners alike must cut back the deadwood in order to make way for new growth.”

QUESTION. What other gardening-themed metaphors could be usefully applied to Leadership Studies? For inspiration, have a look at this clip from the 1979 (fictional) film ‘Being There’ – in which Chance the Gardener (Peter Sellers) presents his ideas to the US President (Jack Warden).

Homosexual necrophilia at the TED Talks

Kees Moeliker will give one of the 2013 TED Talks, this week in California. Kees, an ornithologist and curator of the Natural History Museum Rotterdam, was awarded the 2003 Ig Nobel Prize in biology for his published study “The First Case of Homosexual Necrophilia in the Mallard Anas platyrhynchos (Aves: Anatidae)” [published in the journal Deinsea, vol. 8, 2001, pp. 243-7]. Kees eventually became (and remains) the European Bureau chief of the Annals of Improbable Research.

Presumably, Kees will speak about his research. Here is a photo of Kees’ TED badge:

And Amanda Palmer, singer, composer, human statue, will give a TED talk this week. Amanda has at various points in her life been a performer at Ig Nobel ceremonies and also an organizer. She also, long ago, worked at the best ice cream shop on planet earth. Presumably, Amanda will talk about everything in the universe.

None of the other 2013 TED speakers has yet been awarded an Ig Nobel Prize or participated directly in an Ig Nobel ceremony.