The funniest real research papers ever published, from Harry Potter to liquid cats, explained in plain English. New paper of the day, every day.https://littlemissresearch.com/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/fair-coins-land-on-the-same-side-they-started/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/fair-coins-land-on-the-same-side-they-started/A team flipped coins 350,757 times and found a coin lands the same way up it started slightly more than half the time.techphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/periodic-cooking-of-eggs/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/periodic-cooking-of-eggs/Engineers found a “perfect egg” method: swap the egg between hot and warm water every two minutes.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/phase-behavior-of-cacio-e-pepe-sauce/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/phase-behavior-of-cacio-e-pepe-sauce/A team of Italian physicists worked out how to make cacio e pepe pasta sauce without it going lumpy.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-side-effects-can-improve-treatment-efficacy/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-side-effects-can-improve-treatment-efficacy/A fake painkiller spray that tingled a bit worked better than one that didn’t feel like anything.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-fast-is-hyperdrive-millennium-falcon/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-fast-is-hyperdrive-millennium-falcon/Students worked out how fast the Millennium Falcon must go for the stars to stretch into streaks.pop-culturephysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/do-bumble-bees-play-with-balls/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/do-bumble-bees-play-with-balls/Bumblebees given tiny wooden balls rolled them around over and over, with no reward, apparently just for fun.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/exploratory-analysis-of-head-tilting-in-dogs/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/exploratory-analysis-of-head-tilting-in-dogs/Dogs that know the names of their toys tilt their heads far more when their owner asks for a toy by name.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/why-legal-documents-are-hard-to-read/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/why-legal-documents-are-hard-to-read/Contracts are hard to read not because law is complicated, but because they’re written in a tangled way.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/wild-octopuses-throw-debris/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/wild-octopuses-throw-debris/Underwater cameras caught wild octopuses in Australia flinging silt and shells, sometimes straight at each other.animalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ducklings-wave-riding-in-formation/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ducklings-wave-riding-in-formation/Ducklings swimming in a line behind their mother are surfing her waves, which saves them a lot of energy.physicsanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ice-cream-as-cryotherapy-oral-mucositis/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ice-cream-as-cryotherapy-oral-mucositis/Swapping ice chips for ice cream during tough chemotherapy helped protect patients’ mouths from painful sores.medicinefoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/if-i-fits-i-sits-cats-illusory-squares/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/if-i-fits-i-sits-cats-illusory-squares/Cat owners taped optical illusions to the floor to see if cats would sit in a square that isn’t really there.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/intestines-mold-the-corners-of-wombat-feces/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/intestines-mold-the-corners-of-wombat-feces/Wombats leave little cube-shaped droppings. Scientists finally figured out how.animalsphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/morphing-pasta-and-beyond/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/morphing-pasta-and-beyond/Designers made flat pasta with tiny grooves that curls into 3D shapes when you boil it.foodtechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rhinos-carried-upside-down-by-helicopter/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rhinos-carried-upside-down-by-helicopter/Conservation vets checked whether it is healthier for sleeping rhinos to be flown upside down by their feet or lie on their side.techanimalsmedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/superman-vs-momentum/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/superman-vs-momentum/A physics educator checked Superman’s heroics against the laws of momentum, and Superman does not always win.pop-culturephysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-the-the-the-jamais-vu-in-the-laboratory/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-the-the-the-jamais-vu-in-the-laboratory/Writing the same word over and over makes it start to look strange and unfamiliar, the opposite of déjà vu.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-to-make-a-giant-bubble/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-to-make-a-giant-bubble/Physicists tested bubble recipes from street performers to find the best mix for enormous bubbles.physicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/i-dunno-deliberately-unreadable-network-notation/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/i-dunno-deliberately-unreadable-network-notation/An April Fools’ internet standard for writing IP addresses as baffling strings of symbols that humans can’t read.techhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/impact-protection-of-mammalian-hair-beards/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/impact-protection-of-mammalian-hair-beards/Did beards evolve to cushion punches to the face? Scientists hit some sheepskin to find out.animalsphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/physics-of-tossing-fried-rice/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/physics-of-tossing-fried-rice/Engineers filmed chefs tossing fried rice in woks to work out the maths of that flick.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/systematically-improving-espresso/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/systematically-improving-espresso/Scientists used maths to show that coarser grinds and less coffee can make more consistent espresso.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cats-recognise-their-own-names/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cats-recognise-their-own-names/Cats in homes and cat cafés in Japan reacted to their own name more than to similar words. They just don’t always come.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/childhood-pokemon-experience-visual-cortex/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/childhood-pokemon-experience-visual-cortex/Adults who played loads of Pokémon as kids have a brain region that lights up specifically for Pokémon.pop-culturepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cows-painted-with-zebra-stripes-avoid-biting-flies/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cows-painted-with-zebra-stripes-avoid-biting-flies/Japanese researchers painted black-and-white stripes on cows and found far fewer biting flies landed on them.animalstechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rats-play-hide-and-seek/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rats-play-hide-and-seek/Scientists in Berlin taught rats to play hide-and-seek with humans, and the rats turned out to be rather good at it.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/slothbot-wire-traversing-robot/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/slothbot-wire-traversing-robot/Roboticists built a slow, energy-saving robot that creeps along cables like a sloth to keep an eye on nature.techanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chimpanzees-and-zoo-visitors-imitate-each-other/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chimpanzees-and-zoo-visitors-imitate-each-other/At a Swedish zoo, people copied the chimpanzees about as often as the chimpanzees copied the people.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/goats-prefer-happy-human-faces/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/goats-prefer-happy-human-faces/Shown photos of the same person looking happy or angry, goats trotted over to the smiling face first.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/parachute-use-randomized-controlled-trial/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/parachute-use-randomized-controlled-trial/15 years later someone actually ran the trial. Parachutes made no difference. (The plane was parked.)medicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sinking-bubbles-in-stout-beers/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sinking-bubbles-in-stout-beers/Why do bubbles in a pint of stout look like they’re sinking? Mathematicians explain the glass is to blame.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sofi-soft-robotic-fish/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sofi-soft-robotic-fish/MIT engineers built a soft robot fish that swam among real fish on a coral reef, steered by a diver with sound signals.techanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/talent-versus-luck-randomness-in-success/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/talent-versus-luck-randomness-in-success/A computer simulation of 40 working lives found the most successful people were usually the luckiest, not the most talented.psychologytechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/eating-fossils-licking-rocks/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/eating-fossils-licking-rocks/A geologist explains why scientists lick rocks. (It makes the patterns easier to see.)foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sheep-recognise-celebrity-faces/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sheep-recognise-celebrity-faces/Sheep learned to pick out photos of four celebrities on a screen, including from tilted angles.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sweetened-swimming-pools-urine-artificial-sweetener/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sweetened-swimming-pools-urine-artificial-sweetener/Chemists used a sweetener as a clever tracer to find out how often swimmers… forget their manners.foodmedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-science-behind-man-flu/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-science-behind-man-flu/A family doctor reviewed the evidence on whether men really do get hit harder by colds and flu.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/why-shoelace-knots-come-undone/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/why-shoelace-knots-come-undone/Engineers filmed shoelaces in slow motion to find out why they suddenly come undone.physicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/clicker-training-surgical-skills/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/clicker-training-surgical-skills/Trainee surgeons learned to tie knots more precisely with a dolphin-training clicker than by just watching.medicineanimalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/coffee-spilling-low-impulse-regime/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/coffee-spilling-low-impulse-regime/How to carry a full cup of coffee without spilling it: try a wine glass, or hold your mug like a claw.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/five-second-rule-food-contact-time/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/five-second-rule-food-contact-time/Scientists tested the five-second rule. Bad news: bacteria can transfer in under a second.foodmedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/network-of-thrones/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/network-of-thrones/Two mathematicians turned A Song of Ice and Fire into a network of characters to find out who is really the most central.pop-culturetechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/neural-bases-of-disgust-for-cheese/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/neural-bases-of-disgust-for-cheese/French scientists put cheese lovers and cheese haters in brain scanners and showed them cheese.medicinefoodpsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pokemon-go-and-physical-activity/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pokemon-go-and-physical-activity/Pokémon GO got young adults walking nearly a thousand extra steps a day — for about six weeks.pop-culturemedicinetechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/roller-coaster-kidney-stones/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/roller-coaster-kidney-stones/Scientists took a 3D-printed kidney on Disney’s Big Thunder Mountain to see if roller coasters shake out kidney stones.medicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-hobbit-an-unexpected-deficiency/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-hobbit-an-unexpected-deficiency/Scientists analysed The Hobbit and concluded Bilbo Baggins was probably low on vitamin D.pop-culturemedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chinese-alligator-in-heliox/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chinese-alligator-in-heliox/Scientists made an alligator breathe helium to see if its bellow would go squeaky.animalsphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/christmas-spirit-network-in-the-brain/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/christmas-spirit-network-in-the-brain/Danish scientists found brain areas that light up at Christmas pictures — but only in people who love Christmas.pop-culturepsychologymedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/classic-nintendo-games-are-computationally-hard/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/classic-nintendo-games-are-computationally-hard/Mathematicians proved that games like Super Mario Bros., Zelda and Pokémon are, in a precise sense, extremely hard.techpop-culturehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/crossmodal-role-for-audition-in-taste-airplane-noise/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/crossmodal-role-for-audition-in-taste-airplane-noise/Loud aeroplane-style noise dulls sweetness but boosts savoury umami, which may explain tomato juice on flights.foodpsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/from-junior-to-senior-pinocchio-lying-across-the-lifespan/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/from-junior-to-senior-pinocchio-lying-across-the-lifespan/Over a thousand museum visitors aged 6 to 77 told little lab fibs, revealing that fibbing skill peaks in young adulthood.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-a-lollipop-dissolves/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-a-lollipop-dissolves/A paper about how things dissolve in flowing water, which the authors happily admit was really about lollipops.physicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/is-that-me-or-my-twin-self-face-recognition/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/is-that-me-or-my-twin-self-face-recognition/Most people spot their own face faster than anyone else’s, but identical twins lose that superpower when their twin is in the picture.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/popcorn-critical-temperature-jump-and-sound/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/popcorn-critical-temperature-jump-and-sound/High-speed cameras revealed how popcorn jumps, and where the “pop” sound really comes from.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-greatest-magic-of-harry-potter-reducing-prejudice/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-greatest-magic-of-harry-potter-reducing-prejudice/Kids who read and discussed the Harry Potter books showed more positive attitudes towards stigmatised groups.pop-culturepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/unboiling-an-egg-vortex-fluid-device/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/unboiling-an-egg-vortex-fluid-device/Chemists partially “unboiled” an egg by spinning cooked egg white in a special whirling machine.foodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/visualizing-interstellars-wormhole/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/visualizing-interstellars-wormhole/A Nobel-winning physicist and a film effects team explain how they designed the scientifically accurate wormhole in Interstellar.pop-culturephysicstechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cartoons-kill-casualties-in-animated-films/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cartoons-kill-casualties-in-animated-films/Main characters in children’s animated films are more likely to die on screen than those in grown-up dramas.pop-culturepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/duration-of-urination-does-not-change-with-body-size/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/duration-of-urination-does-not-change-with-body-size/Almost every mammal bigger than a cat takes about 21 seconds to empty its bladder. Elephants included.physicsanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/just-think-people-prefer-shocks-to-thinking/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/just-think-people-prefer-shocks-to-thinking/Many people left alone with their thoughts for 15 minutes chose to give themselves a mild electric shock instead.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/kardashian-index/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/kardashian-index/A formula to measure whether a scientist is more famous on Twitter than their actual research deserves.techpsychologypop-culturehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/on-the-rheology-of-cats/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/on-the-rheology-of-cats/A physicist asks the big question: is a cat a liquid? Answer: under the right conditions, yes.physicsanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/seeing-jesus-in-toast-face-pareidolia/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/seeing-jesus-in-toast-face-pareidolia/Why do we see faces in toast? Brain scans show our face-spotting areas light up even when there’s nothing there.foodpsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/walking-like-dinosaurs-chickens-with-artificial-tails/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/walking-like-dinosaurs-chickens-with-artificial-tails/Scientists stuck fake tails onto chickens to see if they would walk like T. rex.animalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/aeroacoustics-of-a-steam-kettle/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/aeroacoustics-of-a-steam-kettle/Cambridge engineers finally explained how a whistling kettle whistles.physicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/beauty-is-in-the-eye-of-the-beer-holder/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/beauty-is-in-the-eye-of-the-beer-holder/People who only thought they had been drinking rated themselves as more attractive.psychologyfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/dogs-are-sensitive-to-earths-magnetic-field/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/dogs-are-sensitive-to-earths-magnetic-field/When the magnetic field is calm, dogs like to face north or south during their walkies business.animalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/dung-beetles-use-the-milky-way-for-orientation/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/dung-beetles-use-the-milky-way-for-orientation/Dung beetles navigate by the stars, and the scientists proved it by putting them in a planetarium.animalsphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/flatulence-on-airplanes-just-let-it-go/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/flatulence-on-airplanes-just-let-it-go/Doctors looked at tummy gas on long flights and concluded: holding it in is worse for you.medicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/is-huh-a-universal-word/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/is-huh-a-universal-word/Linguists recorded everyday chats in ten languages and found that nearly everyone says something very like “huh?”.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/itch-relief-by-mirror-scratching/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/itch-relief-by-mirror-scratching/If one arm itches, scratching the other arm while watching it in a mirror can make the itch feel better.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/laughter-and-mirth-narrative-synthesis/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/laughter-and-mirth-narrative-synthesis/Two pharmacologists reviewed centuries of research on whether laughter is good for you, or occasionally not.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/material-point-method-snow-frozen/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/material-point-method-snow-frozen/Disney researchers invented new maths to make snow in Frozen clump, crumble and pack like the real thing.pop-culturephysicstechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/misophonia-diagnostic-criteria/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/misophonia-diagnostic-criteria/Psychiatrists gave a proper name and checklist to the intense rage some people feel at the sound of chewing.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/robobee-insect-scale-robot-flight/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/robobee-insect-scale-robot-flight/Harvard engineers built a robot the size of a bee that could hover and steer with flapping wings.techanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/survival-time-of-chocolates-on-hospital-wards/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/survival-time-of-chocolates-on-hospital-wards/Doctors left boxes of chocolates on hospital wards and secretly timed how long each one lasted.medicinefoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/teaching-physics-with-angry-birds/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/teaching-physics-with-angry-birds/Two physics teachers analysed video of Angry Birds launches to study the game’s gravity and motion.pop-culturephysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chocolate-consumption-cognitive-function-and-nobel-laureates/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chocolate-consumption-cognitive-function-and-nobel-laureates/Countries that eat more chocolate have more Nobel Prize winners. Correlation: very strong. Causation: probably not.foodpsychologymedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/colour-of-the-cup-hot-chocolate/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/colour-of-the-cup-hot-chocolate/Hot chocolate seems to taste more chocolatey when it’s served in an orange or cream-coloured cup.foodpsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/frictional-coefficient-under-banana-skin/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/frictional-coefficient-under-banana-skin/Banana peels really are about six times more slippery than the floor. Cartoons were right.physicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-to-construct-the-perfect-sandcastle/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-to-construct-the-perfect-sandcastle/Physicists worked out how much water you need for a sandcastle that stands tall, and it’s less than you think.physicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ikea-effect-when-labour-leads-to-love/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ikea-effect-when-labour-leads-to-love/People valued wonky storage boxes and origami they built themselves almost as highly as things made by experts.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/modeling-a-falling-slinky/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/modeling-a-falling-slinky/When you drop a hanging Slinky, its bottom end floats in mid-air for a moment. Physicists explain why.physicspop-culturehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/mosquitoes-survive-raindrop-collisions/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/mosquitoes-survive-raindrop-collisions/Mosquitoes flying in the rain get hit by drops much heavier than them, and are fine because they are so light.physicsanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/power-of-kawaii-cute-pictures-make-you-careful/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/power-of-kawaii-cute-pictures-make-you-careful/Looking at pictures of puppies and kittens made university students better at a fiddly, careful task.psychologyanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/shape-of-a-ponytail/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/shape-of-a-ponytail/Physicists wrote an equation for the shape of a ponytail.physicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/stayin-alive-mental-metronome-for-cpr/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/stayin-alive-mental-metronome-for-cpr/Medics doing CPR on a dummy kept the perfect rhythm by thinking of the Bee Gees.pop-culturemedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/svalbard-reindeer-humans-disguised-as-polar-bears/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/svalbard-reindeer-humans-disguised-as-polar-bears/A researcher in a polar bear costume walked up to Arctic reindeer to see if they treated him differently from a hiker.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/tasting-spoons-material-affects-taste/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/tasting-spoons-material-affects-taste/The metal your spoon is made of can change how sweet, salty or bitter your food tastes.foodpsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/walking-with-coffee-why-does-it-spill/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/walking-with-coffee-why-does-it-spill/Your walking rhythm happens to match the natural sloshing frequency of coffee in a mug.physicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/wet-mammals-shake-at-tuned-frequencies-to-dry/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/wet-mammals-shake-at-tuned-frequencies-to-dry/High-speed cameras showed that the smaller a wet animal is, the faster it has to shake to get dry.physicsanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/why-rudolphs-nose-is-red/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/why-rudolphs-nose-is-red/Reindeer noses are packed with blood vessels, which could explain a certain famous glow.medicineanimalspop-culturehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/augmented-gustation-electric-chopsticks/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/augmented-gustation-electric-chopsticks/Researchers wired up chopsticks and drinking straws with a tiny electric current to change how food tastes.foodtechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/bicycle-self-stable-without-gyroscopic-effects/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/bicycle-self-stable-without-gyroscopic-effects/Engineers built a strange-looking bike that balances itself without the two effects everyone thought were needed.techphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/comparative-acoustic-analysis-of-purring-in-four-cats/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/comparative-acoustic-analysis-of-purring-in-four-cats/Two phoneticians recorded four calm, purring cats and measured every rumble like it was a human speech sound.animalsphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-fast-does-the-grim-reaper-walk/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-fast-does-the-grim-reaper-walk/Using walking speeds of older men, researchers estimated the Grim Reaper strolls at about 3 km an hour.medicinepop-culturehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/is-anakin-skywalker-suffering-from-borderline-personality-disorder/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/is-anakin-skywalker-suffering-from-borderline-personality-disorder/Psychiatrists went through the Star Wars prequels and argued Anakin ticks a lot of clinical boxes.pop-culturepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/leaning-left-makes-the-eiffel-tower-seem-smaller/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/leaning-left-makes-the-eiffel-tower-seem-smaller/People standing on a Wii balance board guessed smaller numbers when they were secretly tilted slightly to the left.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/no-evidence-of-contagious-yawning-in-tortoise/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/no-evidence-of-contagious-yawning-in-tortoise/Scientists trained a tortoise to yawn, then checked whether other tortoises would catch the yawn. They did not.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/trajectory-of-a-falling-batman/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/trajectory-of-a-falling-batman/Physics students calculated that Batman gliding on his cape would land far too fast for comfort.pop-culturephysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/traumatic-brain-injuries-in-the-asterix-comic-books/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/traumatic-brain-injuries-in-the-asterix-comic-books/Neurosurgeons counted every head injury in the Asterix comics. There were over 700.pop-culturemedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-cats-lap-water-uptake/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-cats-lap-water-uptake/Engineers filmed cats drinking in slow motion and found they barely touch the water, pulling up a little column of it instead.animalsphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/neural-correlates-dead-atlantic-salmon/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/neural-correlates-dead-atlantic-salmon/A dead salmon in a brain scanner appeared to “respond” to photos of people. It was the statistics, not a ghost fish.psychologyanimalstechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/peter-principle-revisited-random-promotions/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/peter-principle-revisited-random-promotions/Computer simulations suggested companies might work better if they promoted people completely at random.psychologytechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/whale-health-helicopter-sampling/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/whale-health-helicopter-sampling/Scientists checked on whales’ health by flying a little helicopter through their blowhole spray.animalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/white-horses-are-horsefly-proof/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/white-horses-are-horsefly-proof/Horseflies find hosts using polarised light, which is why white horses get bothered much less than dark ones.physicsanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/exploring-stock-managers-perceptions-cows-with-names/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/exploring-stock-managers-perceptions-cows-with-names/Cows that have names produce more milk than cows that don’t.animalsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/santa-claus-a-public-health-pariah/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/santa-claus-a-public-health-pariah/An Australian public health doctor argued Santa is a terrible role model: overweight, drinks, and drives without a seatbelt.medicinepop-culturehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/socks-over-shoes-prevent-winter-falls/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/socks-over-shoes-prevent-winter-falls/A New Zealand trial found that wearing socks over your shoes helps you walk on icy footpaths without slipping.techphysicsmedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/swearing-as-a-response-to-pain/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/swearing-as-a-response-to-pain/People could keep their hands in icy water for longer when they were allowed to say a naughty word.psychologymedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-nature-of-navel-fluff/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-nature-of-navel-fluff/A chemist collected his own belly-button fluff for three years to figure out where it comes from.medicinephysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/when-zombies-attack-mathematical-modelling/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/when-zombies-attack-mathematical-modelling/Mathematicians used real epidemic models on a zombie outbreak. Humanity does not do well.pop-culturemedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/commercial-features-of-placebo/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/commercial-features-of-placebo/Fake painkillers worked better when people were told they were expensive.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/diet-coke-and-mentos-physical-reaction/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/diet-coke-and-mentos-physical-reaction/A physics professor and her students worked out why dropping mints into fizzy drinks makes a fountain.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/festive-medical-myths/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/festive-medical-myths/Two paediatricians checked the evidence behind popular holiday-season health beliefs. Most fell apart.pop-culturemedicinefoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/growth-of-diamond-films-from-tequila/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/growth-of-diamond-films-from-tequila/Scientists in Mexico turned tequila into a thin film of diamond.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/head-and-neck-injury-risks-in-heavy-metal/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/head-and-neck-injury-risks-in-heavy-metal/Injury scientists calculated how hard you can headbang before your neck complains.pop-culturemedicinephysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/is-a-sigh-just-a-sigh/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/is-a-sigh-just-a-sigh/A psychologist studied why people sigh, and found sighs usually mean “I give up on this” rather than relief.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/x-ray-flashes-from-peeling-sticky-tape/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/x-ray-flashes-from-peeling-sticky-tape/Peeling sticky tape in a vacuum gives off enough X-rays to take a picture of a finger bone.physicstechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/internet-over-semaphore-flags/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/internet-over-semaphore-flags/An April Fools’ internet standard for sending internet data by people waving flags at each other.techhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rollercoaster-asthma/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rollercoaster-asthma/Women with asthma felt less breathless right after riding a rollercoaster than just before it.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sex-aggression-and-humour-responses-to-unicycling/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sex-aggression-and-humour-responses-to-unicycling/A doctor rode a unicycle around town for years and noted how people reacted. Men made jokes; women complimented him.psychologymedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sildenafil-accelerates-reentrainment-hamsters/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sildenafil-accelerates-reentrainment-hamsters/Viagra helped hamsters recover from jet lag faster.animalsmedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/spontaneous-knotting-of-an-agitated-string/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/spontaneous-knotting-of-an-agitated-string/Physicists tumbled bits of string in a spinning box thousands of times to see how often they tie themselves in knots.physicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chicken-chicken-chicken/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chicken-chicken-chicken/A real academic paper where every single word is “chicken”. Including the charts.techanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/didgeridoo-playing-sleep-apnoea/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/didgeridoo-playing-sleep-apnoea/Learning the didgeridoo strengthened people’s airways and reduced snoring. Partners rejoiced (eventually).medicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/long-words-make-you-seem-less-clever/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/long-words-make-you-seem-less-clever/Using big fancy words to sound smart actually makes readers think you’re less intelligent.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/looking-at-the-world-from-between-your-legs/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/looking-at-the-world-from-between-your-legs/Scientists asked people to bend over and look at things upside down between their legs, and the world looked smaller.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sword-swallowing-and-its-side-effects/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/sword-swallowing-and-its-side-effects/A survey of professional sword swallowers found the main side effect is a sore throat. Mostly.medicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/bottomless-bowls-portion-size-intake/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/bottomless-bowls-portion-size-intake/People eating from secretly self-refilling soup bowls ate 73% more soup and didn’t notice.foodpsychologymedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cheerios-effect/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cheerios-effect/Why the last few Cheerios in your bowl clump together and cling to the edge.physicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/clown-doctors-preoperative-anxiety-in-children/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/clown-doctors-preoperative-anxiety-in-children/Children who had clowns with them before surgery were much less anxious than those who didn’t.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/harry-potter-casts-a-spell-on-accident-prone-children/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/harry-potter-casts-a-spell-on-accident-prone-children/Emergency doctors noticed fewer injured kids turned up on the weekends new Harry Potter books came out.pop-culturemedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rats-backwards-speech-language-discrimination/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rats-backwards-speech-language-discrimination/Rats can tell Japanese from Dutch, but not when the sentences are played backwards.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/red-enhances-human-performance-in-contests/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/red-enhances-human-performance-in-contests/At the 2004 Olympics, fighters randomly given red kit won more often than those in blue.pop-culturepsychologyanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rooter-scigen-fake-paper/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rooter-scigen-fake-paper/MIT students wrote a program that generates random computer-science papers. One got accepted to a conference.techhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-case-of-the-disappearing-teaspoons/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-case-of-the-disappearing-teaspoons/Epidemiologists secretly numbered 70 office teaspoons and watched most of them vanish within five months.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/why-spaghetti-does-not-break-in-half/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/why-spaghetti-does-not-break-in-half/Bend dry spaghetti and it shatters into three or more pieces, never two. Physicists finally worked out why.physicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/crisp-sounds-make-crisps-taste-crisper/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/crisp-sounds-make-crisps-taste-crisper/Turning up the crunch sound in people’s headphones made the same crisps taste fresher and crunchier.psychologyfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/elastocapillary-coalescence-in-wet-hair/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/elastocapillary-coalescence-in-wet-hair/Physicists explained why wet hair and paintbrushes clump into neat little bundles.physicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/herring-produce-burst-pulse-sounds/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/herring-produce-burst-pulse-sounds/Herring seem to chat with each other using tiny streams of bubbles.animalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/secrets-of-successful-stone-skipping/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/secrets-of-successful-stone-skipping/French physicists built a stone-skipping machine and found the magic angle: about 20 degrees.physicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/does-pizza-protect-against-cancer/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/does-pizza-protect-against-cancer/In Italy, people who ate pizza regularly had lower rates of several cancers than people who didn’t.medicinefoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/evil-bit-security-flag-in-the-ipv4-header/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/evil-bit-security-flag-in-the-ipv4-header/An April Fools’ internet standard proposing that hackers politely mark their malicious traffic with an “evil bit”.techhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/geometry-and-physics-of-wrinkling/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/geometry-and-physics-of-wrinkling/Two physicists found simple rules for why stretched sheets, like cling film, wrinkle the way they do.physicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/parachute-use-systematic-review-of-randomised-controlled-trials/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/parachute-use-systematic-review-of-randomised-controlled-trials/There are no randomised trials proving parachutes work, so technically the evidence is “weak”.medicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pressures-produced-when-penguins-pooh/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pressures-produced-when-penguins-pooh/Penguins keep their nests tidy by aiming their droppings up to 40 cm away. Scientists calculated the pressure.animalsphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/tetris-is-hard-even-to-approximate/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/tetris-is-hard-even-to-approximate/Computer scientists proved that playing Tetris perfectly is one of the hardest kinds of problems there is.techpop-culturehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/trick-treat-or-toy-halloween/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/trick-treat-or-toy-halloween/Offered sweets or small toys at the door on Halloween, trick-or-treaters picked toys just as often.pop-culturefoodpsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chickens-prefer-beautiful-humans/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chickens-prefer-beautiful-humans/Chickens trained to recognise faces preferred the same faces that humans rated as attractive.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cure-for-woodpecker-headache/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cure-for-woodpecker-headache/How do woodpeckers headbang into trees all day without a headache? Their skulls are built for it.animalsmedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/exponential-decay-law-using-beer-froth/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/exponential-decay-law-using-beer-froth/A physicist showed that the foam on a beer shrinks exactly the way radioactive atoms decay.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ice-cream-evoked-headaches-ice-h-study/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ice-cream-evoked-headaches-ice-h-study/A 13-year-old and her dad ran a proper trial showing that gobbling ice cream doubles your chance of brain freeze.medicinefoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/onion-enzyme-that-makes-the-eyes-water/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/onion-enzyme-that-makes-the-eyes-water/Scientists found the specific enzyme in onions that makes us cry while chopping them.foodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-color-of-odors-white-wine-dyed-red/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-color-of-odors-white-wine-dyed-red/Wine students described a white wine with red-wine words once it had been secretly coloured red.foodpsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chicken-soup-inhibits-neutrophil-chemotaxis/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/chicken-soup-inhibits-neutrophil-chemotaxis/Lung scientists tested a traditional homemade chicken soup in the lab to see if it really helps colds.medicinefoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/do-animals-bite-more-during-a-full-moon/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/do-animals-bite-more-during-a-full-moon/An English hospital found more people came in with animal bites around the full moon.medicineanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/dog-fleas-jump-higher-than-cat-fleas/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/dog-fleas-jump-higher-than-cat-fleas/Vets held a flea long-jump and high-jump contest. The dog fleas won.animalsphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/hippocampi-of-london-taxi-drivers/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/hippocampi-of-london-taxi-drivers/London cabbies who memorised the city’s maze of streets had bigger memory-for-places bits in their brains.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/infinite-monkey-protocol-suite/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/infinite-monkey-protocol-suite/An April Fools’ internet standard for coordinating infinite monkeys on infinite typewriters to produce Shakespeare.techanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pathology-in-the-hundred-acre-wood/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pathology-in-the-hundred-acre-wood/A team of child-development doctors playfully “assessed” Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends.pop-culturepsychologymedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rats-laugh-when-tickled/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/rats-laugh-when-tickled/Neuroscientists tickled rats and recorded happy ultrasonic chirps that might be rat laughter.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/spotlight-effect-barry-manilow-t-shirt/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/spotlight-effect-barry-manilow-t-shirt/Students wearing a Barry Manilow T-shirt thought loads of people noticed it. In reality, far fewer did.psychologypop-culturehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/why-cant-you-tickle-yourself/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/why-cant-you-tickle-yourself/Your brain predicts your own touches and turns them down, which is why self-tickling doesn’t work, unless a robot adds a delay.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/gorillas-in-our-midst-inattentional-blindness/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/gorillas-in-our-midst-inattentional-blindness/People counting basketball passes in a video often completely missed a person in a gorilla suit walking through the middle.psychologyanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-to-use-fingers-rotary-control-columnar-knobs/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/how-to-use-fingers-rotary-control-columnar-knobs/Designers watched people turn knobs of different sizes to learn how many fingers we use for each.physicspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/physics-takes-the-biscuit-dunking/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/physics-takes-the-biscuit-dunking/A physicist worked out how tea soaks into a biscuit, and how to dunk it without losing half of it in the mug.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ultrasonic-velocity-in-cheddar-cheese/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ultrasonic-velocity-in-cheddar-cheese/Food scientists measured how fast sound travels through Cheddar, and how that changes as the cheese warms up.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/unskilled-and-unaware-of-it/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/unskilled-and-unaware-of-it/The famous Dunning–Kruger effect: people who are bad at something often overestimate how good they are.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/does-knuckle-cracking-lead-to-arthritis/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/does-knuckle-cracking-lead-to-arthritis/A doctor cracked the knuckles of only his left hand for over 60 years to see if his mum’s warning was right.medicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/hyper-text-coffee-pot-control-protocol/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/hyper-text-coffee-pot-control-protocol/An internet standard for controlling coffee pots. It gave us the error “418 I’m a teapot”.techfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/coffee-ring-stains-capillary-flow/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/coffee-ring-stains-capillary-flow/Why does a dried coffee drip leave a dark ring instead of an even splodge? Physicists found out.physicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/of-flying-frogs-and-levitrons/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/of-flying-frogs-and-levitrons/They levitated a live frog using a giant magnet. The frog was fine.physicsanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cardiopulmonary-resuscitation-on-television/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/cardiopulmonary-resuscitation-on-television/Doctors binge-watched ER and other TV dramas and found CPR works far more often on TV than in real life.pop-culturemedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-twelve-networking-truths/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-twelve-networking-truths/An April Fools’ internet document listing twelve hard-won truths about networks, including that pigs can fly with enough thrust.techhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/truth-about-doctors-handwriting/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/truth-about-doctors-handwriting/Researchers tested whether doctors really do have worse handwriting than everyone else. They don’t.medicinepsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pigeons-discrimination-of-paintings-by-monet-and-picasso/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pigeons-discrimination-of-paintings-by-monet-and-picasso/Pigeons learned to tell Monet paintings from Picasso paintings. Better than some humans.animalspsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/tumbling-toast-murphys-law-and-the-fundamental-constants/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/tumbling-toast-murphys-law-and-the-fundamental-constants/Toast really does tend to land butter-side down, and the reason is the size of tables (and of humans).physicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/appetite-of-leeches-ale-garlic-soured-cream/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/appetite-of-leeches-ale-garlic-soured-cream/Leeches were more drawn to a hand smeared with garlic than a clean one. They also seemed to get drunk on beer.animalsfoodmedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/compaction-of-breakfast-cereal-flakes/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/compaction-of-breakfast-cereal-flakes/Food physicists squashed cereal flakes at different dampness levels to understand when crunchy turns soggy.foodphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-warp-drive-hyper-fast-travel/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/the-warp-drive-hyper-fast-travel/A physicist showed Einstein’s equations allow a Star Trek-style warp bubble, in theory at least.pop-culturephysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/seven-shuffles-dovetail-shuffle-to-its-lair/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/seven-shuffles-dovetail-shuffle-to-its-lair/Mathematicians worked out that you need about seven riffle shuffles to properly mix a deck of cards.techhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/what-was-wrong-with-tiny-tim/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/what-was-wrong-with-tiny-tim/A paediatrician used clues from A Christmas Carol to diagnose Tiny Tim — and found he was curable.pop-culturemedicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ip-over-avian-carriers/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ip-over-avian-carriers/An official-looking internet standard for sending data by carrier pigeon.techanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pen-in-mouth-smile-facial-feedback/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pen-in-mouth-smile-facial-feedback/Holding a pen in your teeth forces a sneaky smile, and people doing it rated cartoons as funnier.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/dont-think-of-a-white-bear-thought-suppression/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/dont-think-of-a-white-bear-thought-suppression/People told not to think about a white bear kept thinking about it, and rang a bell every time they did.psychologyanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/fingernails-on-a-blackboard/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/fingernails-on-a-blackboard/Scientists tried to work out what makes fingernails on a blackboard so awful.psychologyphysicshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pouring-flows-teapot-spouts/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pouring-flows-teapot-spouts/Two mathematicians calculated why teapots dribble down their spouts, and how to design one that doesn’t.physicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/injuries-due-to-falling-coconuts/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/injuries-due-to-falling-coconuts/A doctor in Papua New Guinea worked out how many hospital visits were caused by coconuts dropping on people.medicinephysicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/beetles-on-the-bottle/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/beetles-on-the-bottle/Male Australian jewel beetles fell in love with discarded beer bottles.animalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/hot-chocolate-effect/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/hot-chocolate-effect/Why tapping a mug of hot chocolate makes a pitch that rises as you stir. It’s the bubbles.physicsfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/acquisition-of-a-preference-for-chili-pepper/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/acquisition-of-a-preference-for-chili-pepper/Why do people learn to love the burn of chilli? A psychologist asked chilli fans in Mexico and the USA.foodpsychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/bill-gates-pancake-sorting-paper/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/bill-gates-pancake-sorting-paper/Bill Gates’s only research paper is about how many flips it takes to sort a messy stack of pancakes.techfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/two-three-four-atom-exchange-cat-coauthor/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/two-three-four-atom-exchange-cat-coauthor/A serious physics paper co-authored by a cat.physicsanimalstechhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/nail-growth-30-years-of-observation/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/nail-growth-30-years-of-observation/A doctor measured how fast his own fingernail grew, faithfully, for three decades (and kept going).medicinehttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/unsuccessful-self-treatment-of-writers-block/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/unsuccessful-self-treatment-of-writers-block/A paper about writer’s block. The paper is blank. That’s the whole joke, and it’s perfect.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/drawing-power-of-crowds-looking-up/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/drawing-power-of-crowds-looking-up/Researchers had small crowds stand on a New York street staring up at a window, then counted how many passers-by looked up too.psychologyhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/dynamical-explanation-of-the-falling-cat/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/dynamical-explanation-of-the-falling-cat/Engineers modelled a cat as two linked cylinders to explain how it flips upright in mid-air without pushing off anything.physicsanimalshttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pratfall-effect-spilling-coffee-makes-you-likeable/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/pratfall-effect-spilling-coffee-makes-you-likeable/A brilliant quiz contestant became more likeable after clumsily spilling coffee all over himself.psychologyfoodhttps://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ham-sandwich-theorem-generalized-sandwich-theorems/https://littlemissresearch.com/papers/ham-sandwich-theorem-generalized-sandwich-theorems/A maths proof that you can always slice a ham sandwich with one straight cut so the bread, ham and cheese are each split exactly in half.techfood