InFinally - December 2011
We all know that good formulation can result in unique, innovative products but we recently came across an example that should inspire all those formulators out there.
The Ig® Nobel Awards honour achievements that make people laugh first and then think and have been presented since 1991. Among the awards given this year were :
- Biology Prize for research that uncovered a certain kind of beetle mates with a certain kind of beer bottle (our Australian cousins came up with that one!),
- Peace Prize for the mayor of Vilnius who demonstrated that the problem of illegally parked cars can be solved by running over them with an armoured tank (Boris Johnson is putting a tank into next year’s budget)
- Physics Prize which determined why discus throwers became dizzy and hammer throwers didn’t.
Our favourite award was the Chemistry Prize, however, which went to a group of Japanese researchers who really seem to have hit on a unique application for formulation. They have determined the ideal density of airborne wasabi (pungent horseradish) to awaken sleeping people in the case of fire or other emergency, and have applied this knowledge to invent the wasabi alarm! This is even now the subject of a patent and details of this can be found here together with full details of other awards.
The patent claims a specific odorant and perhaps there are some of you out there who can think of a more suitable formulation which would be even more effective in this obviously growing market. Submissions to info@intelligentformulation.org
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Adhesion Science for Practical Formulators: One day training course - 12th July - http://t.co/GifpjrQW
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RT @nanoktn FP7 Funding call - Multiscale modelling for nanomaterial design http://t.co/dfcpOcCd
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Microbes Good and Bad in Personal Care, 19th June 2012 - http://t.co/5oWqPJuu
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Good to see @GrahamClayton (formerly of @IF_Tweets ) at refurbed Kings X station 2day. Pleased to see he still has his taste for #Latte
