Weekly Perspective

October 5, 2026

Achievements so surprising they make people laugh, then think.

The Ig Nobel Prizes were organized by the magazine, The Annals of Improbable Research, and recognize funny and thought-provoking scientific research. The 36th First Annual Ig Nobel Prize ceremony took place in Zurich, Switzerland, where the honorees received their awards from actual Nobel Prize recipients. (Only one scientist has ever won both an Ig Nobel and a Nobel prize.) This year’s Igs included the:

Physics Prize rewarded an investigation into fluid dynamics that led to the development of a splash free urinal. “Splash-free Urinals for Global Sustainability and Accessibility: Design Through Physics and Differential Equations” was published in PNAS Nexus.

Technology Prize was awarded to a study that broke new ground exploring whether mosquito proboscises could effectively be used as high-resolution printing nozzles. “3D Necroprinting: Leveraging Biotic Material as the Nozzle for 3D Printing” was published in Science Advances.

Peace Prize recognized researchers who discovered that people value friends who behave viciously toward people they don’t like. “Sometimes We Want Vicious Friends: People Have Nuanced Preferences for How They Want Their Friends to Behave Toward Them Versus Others” was published in Evolution and Human Behavior.

Chemistry Prize rewarded research that determined a single crystal of cockroach milk protein contains more than three times the energy of an equivalent mass of cow milk protein. “Structure of a Heterogeneous, Glycosylated, Lipid-Bound, in Vivo-Grown Protein Crystal at Atomic Resolution from the Viviparous Cockroach Diploptera Punctata” was published in the International Union of Crystallography Journal.

Biology Prize went to innovators who “gently stepping on various parts of various venomous snakes — repeatedly, at various temperatures at various times of day — to try to learn what does and what does not induce a venomous snake to bite a human.” “Study of Defensive Behavior of a Venomous Snake as a New Approach to Understand Snakebite” was published in Scientific Reports and later retracted on concerns about the treatment of the snakes. The researchers confirmed they had been gentle with the snakes.

“All winners received a statuette (this year, a slab of blue cheese topped by a foot erupting with toadstools in honor of this year's broader theme of "fungi") and 10 trillion Zimbabwean dollars. But that currency cratered years ago, so it isn't actually worth anything,” reported Ari Daniel of All Things Considered.

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Sources:

https://www.morningstar.com/markets/7-charts-q3-market-highlights-stocks-tread-water-while-bond-market-shudders

https://www.barrons.com/articles/ai-stock-rally-narrow-market-breadth-warning-5766c3cb or go to https://resources.carsongroup.com/hubfs/WMC-Source/2026/10-05-26-Barrons-AI-Stocks-Cant-Carry%20-%202.pdf

https://www.barrons.com/articles/ai-bond-yield-treasuries-stock-market-7e0e6d45 or go to https://resources.carsongroup.com/hubfs/WMC-Source/2026/10-05-26-Barrons-AI-is-Helping-And-Hurting%20-%203.pdf

https://www.federalreserve.gov/mediacenter/files/FOMCpresconf20260916.pdf

https://www.cmegroup.com/markets/interest-rates/cme-fedwatch-tool.html [historical and current] or go to https://resources.carsongroup.com/hubfs/WMC-Source/2026/10-05-26-FedWatchTool%20-5.pdf

https://finance.yahoo.com/economy/policy/article/pce-inflation-eases-to-34--cooling-the-case-for-another-fed-rate-hike-125513195.html

https://www.barrons.com/livecoverage/jobs-report-september-data-today?mod=hp_LEDE_C_3 or go to https://resources.carsongroup.com/hubfs/WMC-Source/2026/10-05-26-Barrons-The-Numbers%20-%207.pdf

https://www.barrons.com/livecoverage/stock-market-news-today-100226?mod=hp_LEDE_C_2 or go to https://resources.carsongroup.com/hubfs/WMC-Source/2026/10-05-26-Barrons-Bond-Yields-Are-Back%20-%208.pdf

https://www.barrons.com/market-data?mod=BOL_TOPNAV or go to https://resources.carsongroup.com/hubfs/WMC-Source/2026/10-05-26-Barrons-DJIA-S&P-Nasdaq%20-%209.pdf

https://home.treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/TextView?type=daily_treasury_yield_curve&field_tdr_date_value=2026