The scientific celebration, hosted by the Annals of Improbable Research journal and several Harvard student groups, honors real research "that first makes people laugh, and then makes them think."

Harvard University's Sanders Theater hosted the 20th annual event, which this year carried the theme "bacteria."

(Read about gas-mask bras, tequila diamonds, and other winners of the 2009 Ig Nobel prizes.)

As always a number of genuine Nobel laureates were on hand to distribute the coveted prizes. They included Roy Glauber (physics, 2005), Frank Wilczek (physics, 2004), Sheldon Glashow (physics, 1979), James Muller (peace, 1985), and William Lipscomb (chemistry, 1976).

Diane Gendron of Mexico's Instituto Politécnico Nacional and colleagues claimed the engineering prize for proving that remote-controlled helicopters can be used to