Synthetic diamonds can be made from many carbon sources ... even Michael Jackson's hair ! But did you know earlier this year some Mexican scientists published their method of creating diamonds from a liquid? Not just any liquid, they used tequila. The aim is to manufacture industrial diamond films. Really.


Their efforts recently won them the 2009 Ig Nobel Prize for Chemistry. The Ig Nobel awards parody the Nobel Prizes and are awarded to genuine research projects which "first make people laugh, and then make them think." Several of the winners attended the award ceremony along with some real Nobel Prize winners at Harvard's Sanders Theater last Thursday. You can see the list of winners here.

The veterinary prize went to the researcher who discovered cows with names like Bessie gave more milk than nameless ones. Swiss researchers also worked on the tricky problem of whether empty or full beer bottles inflicted more damage in a bar fight. When you've stopped chuckling over this, consider the results as useful evidence for law suits.

However, my absolute favorite was the Public Health prize awarded to three researchers from Chicago who filed a patent for a special convertible bra with detachable cups. These can be quickly converted into face masks - one for the wearer and one for someone else!





It seems rather silly but Dr Elena Bodnar (shown demonstrating her invention at the award ceremony) once studied the Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster. She pointed out if people had had gas masks in the immediate aftermath of events like that, they could have avoided radiation poisoning or breathing in too much dust. Via and Via.

For tutorials check out my Jewelry Making Tips

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