Cockroach Milk, How to Blow Your Nose, and Mosquito Printers: The Ig Nobels of 2026

蟑螂奶、如何擤鼻涕与蚊子打印机：2026年搞笑诺贝尔奖

Achievements that first make people laugh and then make them think. That’s the motto of the Ig Nobel Prizes, an annual competition that—parodying the Nobel Prizes—recognizes some of the world’s most unusual scientific studies. The organization Improbable Research has been hosting the event since 1991 with the aim of showing that science also has a humorous side in its quest to meaningfully answer questions about the world.

“先让人发笑，再让人思考。”这是搞笑诺贝尔奖（Ig Nobel Prizes）的座右铭。这项年度竞赛通过模仿诺贝尔奖，表彰世界上一些最不同寻常的科学研究。自1991年以来，“不可思议研究”（Improbable Research）组织一直主办该活动，旨在展示科学在探索世界奥秘的过程中，也有其幽默的一面。

This year the ceremony was held in Zurich, Switzerland, and recognized 10 research projects ranging from an attempt to scientifically define what a kiss is to an experiment that used buried underwear to assess soil health.

今年的颁奖典礼在瑞士苏黎世举行，共表彰了10项研究项目，范围从试图科学地定义什么是“吻”，到利用埋在地下的内裤来评估土壤健康状况的实验。

Prize in Biomechanics: A Scientific Definition For Kissing

生物力学奖：接吻的科学定义

What exactly is a kiss? A group of researchers decided to establish a scientific definition that would apply to all animals, not just humans. They came up with the categorization that a kiss is “a non-agonistic interaction involving directed intraspecific oral-oral contact, with some movement of the lips or oral structures and without the transfer of food.” By this definition, other great ape species are also kissers, so are domestic dogs and cats as well as pigeons, penguins, squirrels, black bears, and tortoises—though not all of these kisses have the same meaning.

究竟什么是接吻？一组研究人员决定建立一个适用于所有动物（而不仅仅是人类）的科学定义。他们将其归类为：“一种非攻击性的互动，涉及定向的同种间口对口接触，伴随嘴唇或口腔结构的运动，且不涉及食物转移。”根据这个定义，其他类人猿物种也会接吻，家犬、家猫、鸽子、企鹅、松鼠、黑熊和陆龟也是如此——尽管这些吻的含义并不尽相同。

Prize in Economics: Having More Money Might Make You a Bad Person

经济学奖：钱越多可能让你变得越坏

In the study “Higher Social Class Predicts Increased Unethical Behavior,” published in PNAS, researchers conducted seven experiments to investigate whether socioeconomic status was linked to unethical behaviors, such as breaking traffic rules, failing to yield the right of way, cheating, and even taking candy from children. Spoiler: Yes, it seems that more money does mean more problems—creating more problems at least. The results suggest that people from higher social classes have, on average, a greater tendency to prioritize self-interest. Who knew.

在发表于《美国国家科学院院刊》（PNAS）的研究《更高的社会阶层预示着更多的不道德行为》中，研究人员进行了七项实验，以调查社会经济地位是否与不道德行为有关，例如违反交通规则、不礼让行人、作弊，甚至抢走孩子们的糖果。剧透一下：是的，钱越多似乎确实意味着问题越多——至少是制造的问题更多。结果表明，来自较高社会阶层的人平均而言更有可能优先考虑自身利益。谁能想到呢。

Prize in Chemistry: Cockroach Milk Is Actually Nutritious

化学奖：蟑螂奶其实很有营养

Yet another study suggesting that the future of nutrition may lie in insects. The “milk” in question is a high-protein substance produced by mother cockroaches of the species Diploptera punctata, which concentrate proteins, fats, and sugars into an extremely energy-dense form. A team of scientists analyzed the crystals that form inside the embryos to understand how these crystals store so many nutrients in such a tiny space.

又一项研究表明，营养的未来可能在于昆虫。这里所说的“奶”是由一种名为太平洋折翅蠊（Diploptera punctata）的母蟑螂产生的高蛋白物质，它们将蛋白质、脂肪和糖分浓缩成一种能量极高的形式。一组科学家分析了胚胎内形成的晶体，以了解这些晶体是如何在如此微小的空间内储存如此多营养物质的。

Prize in Medicine: How to Blow Your Nose the Right Way, According to Science

医学奖：根据科学，如何正确地擤鼻涕

This is probably the most popular study in the competition because of the story behind it. It’s a posthumous award to scientist Unno Tokuji, who spent his final years studying the correct way to blow one’s nose. He analyzed everything from the aerodynamics and volume of nasal breathing to the pressure exerted on the ears. The recommendation was to blow one nostril at a time when one is more congested than the other and to do so with a long, relatively forceful exhalation, rather than a short, weak blow.

这可能是比赛中最受欢迎的研究，因为其背后的故事。这是一个追授给科学家海野德治（Unno Tokuji）的奖项，他晚年致力于研究擤鼻涕的正确方法。他分析了从鼻呼吸的空气动力学和容量，到对耳朵施加的压力等一切因素。他的建议是：当一侧鼻孔比另一侧更堵时，一次只擤一个鼻孔，并且要进行长而相对有力的呼气，而不是短而无力的喷气。

Prize in Biology: When Do Snakes Decide to Bite? You Have to Step on Them to Find Out

生物学奖：蛇什么时候决定咬人？你得踩它们一脚才知道

To determine what triggers a defensive bite, researchers applied pressure to different parts of the bodies of Bothrops jararaca snakes—a highly venomous species of South American pit viper—and observed how they reacted. Wearing a boot and in a controlled manner, they stepped on different parts of the snake. Stepping on the head resulted in a 44 percent probability of a bite. Applying pressure to the body yielded a 20 percent probability of an attack. If for some reason you need to step on a snake, aim for the tail, where the risk is only 11 percent.

为了确定是什么触发了防御性咬伤，研究人员对巴西矛头蝮（Bothrops jararaca，一种剧毒的南美洲蝮蛇）身体的不同部位施加压力，并观察它们的反应。他们穿着靴子，以受控的方式踩在蛇的不同部位。踩在头部导致咬伤的概率为44%。对身体施加压力则有20%的攻击概率。如果出于某种原因你非得踩蛇，瞄准尾巴，那里的风险只有11%。

Prize in Physics: How to Make a Urinal Splash-Free

物理学奖：如何让小便池不溅水

According to mathematical models, there’s an optimal angle for a stream of liquid to hit a urinal if you don’t want droplets to bounce back. The researchers found that lower angles of impact significantly decreases splashing, and they designed prototypes based on that principle. Such scientifically backed urinals can help with keeping public restrooms sanitary.

根据数学模型，如果你不想让液滴反弹，液体流冲击小便池时存在一个最佳角度。研究人员发现，较小的冲击角度可以显著减少飞溅，并根据这一原理设计了原型。这种有科学依据的小便池有助于保持公共厕所的卫生。

Prize in Technology: Dead Mosquitos Can Become 3-D Printers

技术奖：死蚊子可以变成3D打印机

The price of 3-D printers has gone down significantly in the past decade, and now you can make one with something as low-cost as a dead mosquito. The proboscises that mosquitos use to suck our blood function as extremely fine needles. One of the most delicate parts of a 3-D printer is the nozzle, which is essentially an ultrathin tube. In looking to develop new components for precision instruments, the researchers realized there was no need to invent everything from scratch. Evolution had already come up with a great solution by optimizing the mosquito’s mouthparts.

过去十年中，3D打印机的价格大幅下降，现在你甚至可以用死蚊子这样低成本的东西来制造一台。蚊子用来吸血的口器就像极细的针。3D打印机最精密的部件之一是喷嘴，它本质上是一根超细管。在为精密仪器开发新组件时，研究人员意识到没有必要从零开始发明一切。进化论已经通过优化蚊子的口器，提供了一个绝佳的解决方案。

Prize in Olfaction: Your Baby Smells Wonderful; Your Teenager, Not so Much

嗅觉奖：你的宝宝闻起来很棒；你的青少年孩子，则没那么好闻

Once again, science confirms something you probably could have guessed. Researchers analyzed how parents perceive their children’s body odor at different ages. Participants rated the smell of young children more favorably and that of teenagers much less so. Surprise, surprise. The team believes that smell plays an underappreciated role in communication within a family and may be related to the recognition and strengthening of the bond between parents and children.

科学再次证实了你可能已经猜到的事情。研究人员分析了父母如何感知不同年龄段孩子的体味。参与者对幼儿气味的评价更为正面，而对青少年的评价则差得多。不出所料。研究小组认为，气味在家庭内部交流中扮演着被低估的角色，可能与识别和加强亲子关系有关。

Peace Prize: We Want Mean Friends, Sometimes

和平奖：有时，我们需要刻薄的朋友

What kind of person do people typically want as a best friend? To answer this question, researchers administered questionnaires asking participants about how their friend should behave toward them, toward a stranger, and toward an enemy. In general, people preferred a friend who is kind to them but cruel to their enemies, suggesting that the ideal…

人们通常希望什么样的人成为最好的朋友？为了回答这个问题，研究人员发放了问卷，询问参与者他们的朋友应该如何对待他们自己、对待陌生人以及对待敌人。总的来说，人们更喜欢对自己友善但对敌人残酷的朋友，这表明理想的……