Innovation. It’s what got us through the Dark Ages.
But over the years, instead of moving forward, some scientists and inventors
have taken a few steps back. This article is dedicated to all the men and women
who knew they’d never find a cure for the common cold, so they aimed much, much
lower. Here are some of the winners. PEACE PRIZE—researchers
from the University of Bern, Switzerland, for determining which hurts mor—being
smashed over the head with a full bottle of beer or with an empty
bottle. An inherent problem in an experiment of this nature is
finding volunteers who will agree to be brained with a beer bottle in the name
of science. The scientists overcame this obstacle by dropping steel balls onto
full and empty beer bottles. They found that the empties were stronger than
their full brethren because the gas pressure from the liquid produces additional
strain on the glass. Needless to say, full or not, beer bottles
can cause a whole lot of hurt, which is why the scientists advocate prohibiting
them "in situations that involve risk of human conflicts."
VETERINARY MEDICINE PRIZE—researchers from Newcastle University, the United
Kingdom: for showing that cows that have names give more milk than cows that are
nameless. It turns out our attitudes make a difference. Being
friendly and remembering a cow’s name can increase milk yield by 258 liters a
year. This came as no surprise to farmers, one of whom told the researchers that
cows "hurt and love like anyone else." BIOLOGY
PRiZE—researchers from Kitasato University Graduate School of Medical Sciences
in Japan, for demonstrating that kitchen refuse can be reduced by more than 90
percent by using an enzyme (酶)-producing bacteria extracted from the waste of
giant pandas. While this has potential applications—reducing
garbage and waste—it still raises the question. How did it dawn on someone to
try this experiment And, of course, if one of your aims in ridding yourself of
garbage is to get rid of the bad smell, adding panda waste to it is not likely
to help. What question does the author raise concerning the panda waste
experiment
A. How will the public take the experiment
B. Does it have great potential for application
C. Where can we find enough panda waste
D. Why would anyone come up with such an idea