Scientists honoured for bizarre research at satirical "Nobel Awards" From magic behind baby smell to stuffy noses

Ten research teams were honoured this week at the annual Ig Nobel Awards, a satirical science ceremony that was held outside the United States for the first time amid concerns over international travel and visa access.

Organised by the digital magazine Annals of Improbable Research, the awards moved to Europe after 35 years in the United States because organisers were concerned that some researchers and attendees might have difficulty obtaining visas to enter the country, as highlighted by science-focused news outlets.

At a convention centre in Zurich, Switzerland, winning researchers received custom trophies resembling a cross between a mushroom and a human foot. Among the recipients were Matilda Brindle and Stuart West of the University of Oxford and Catherine F. Talbot of the Florida Institute of Technology, who reconstructed the evolutionary history of kissing. The late Dr. Tokuji Unno was also recognised for research into the science of blowing one's nose.

The name “Ig Nobel” combines “Nobel” with the English word “ignoble,” making the awards a playful counterpart to the Nobel Prizes. Each year, the Annals of Improbable Research presents 10 prizes for unusual scientific studies that “first make people laugh, then make them think.”

Organisers plan to alternate future ceremonies between Zurich and other European locations. The 2027 ceremony will take place in the Belgian city of Antwerp. Previous ceremonies were held at Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Boston University, but organisers currently have no plans to return to the United States.

Science behind intoxicating baby smell

One of this year's prizes went to an international research team for investigating the chemical reasons why newborns and young children smell more pleasant to their parents than older children and teenagers.

For the study, published in 2017, researchers asked 255 mothers and fathers to rate their children's body odour. They were also asked to rate the body odour of their partners for comparison.

The results showed that the overwhelming majority of parents found the body odour of babies and young children particularly pleasant — even more pleasant than that of their partners. As the children grew older, however, this preference declined significantly. The effect was independent of how positively parents viewed their relationship with their children.

The findings extend the concept of the “Kindchenschema,” a term first used around 80 years ago to describe the visual characteristics that make young children appear particularly appealing. The research suggests that babies and young children may not only look cute but also smell appealing to their parents.

Infant body odour activates key areas of the brain associated with pleasure and reward, potentially encouraging caregiving behaviour. Parents also appear to have greater difficulty identifying their teenagers by smell, while mothers may develop an aversion to the body odour of their sons and fathers to that of their daughters.

After puberty, however, parents may once again become accustomed to their children's changing body odour and regain a preference for it.

“Our research shows that human body odours convey social and biological information that shapes the way we interact with one another,” Croy explains.

“And perhaps it also tells us something about love: We are biologically predisposed to care for our offspring. At the same time, we can learn to love the familiar smell of those close to us again, even as it changes over the course of their lives. In short: Babies smell wonderful. Teenagers, not quite so much. But we love them anyway.”

By Nazrin Sadigova