A French
physicist has won an Ig Nobel Prize for using mathematical formulas to
determine whether cats are liquid or solid.
The Ig Nobel
prizes are awarded every year by Improbable Research, an organization devoted
to science and humor. The goal is to highlight scientific studies that first make
people laugh, then think.
A ceremony
is held every year at Harvard University.
Marc-Antoine
Fardin was awarded the Ig Nobel Prize in physics for his research paper on the
rheology of cats.
"At the
center of the definition of a liquid is an action: A material must be able to
modify its form to fit within a container," Fardin said.
"If we
take cats as our example, the fact is that they can adapt their shape to their
container if we give them enough time. Cats are thus liquid if we give them the
time to become liquid."
In his
official research paper, Fardin discusses many factors including relaxation
time, experimental time, the type of container, and the cat's degree of stress.
The conclusion?
Cats can be either liquid or solid, depending on the circumstances, Fardin
reported in the Rheology Bulletin in 2014.
Watch the
video below.
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