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ON THE BLOCK: An Ig Nobel celebrant won a date with Nobelist Dudley Herschbach. The Annals of Improbable Research followed tradition in its "Fifth First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony," honoring the 1995 Ig Nobel laureates with its own special version of pomp. Prizes-awarded to those whose achievements "cannot or should not be reproduced"-were presented by Nobelists Sheldon Glashow (physics 1979), Dudley Herschbach (chemistry 1986), Joseph Murray (physiology or medicine 1990), and Richard Roberts (physiology or medicine 1993). A further prize-an opportunity to spend quality time with Herschbach-was awarded in a Win-a-Date-with-a-Nobel-Laureate Contest. In keeping with this year's ceremony's theme of "DNA, the stuff of life and legend," the Ig Nobel Chemistry prize was awarded to Bijan Pakzad of Beverly Hills, creator of DNA cologne and DNA perfume-both of which are packaged in a triple helix bottle. Accepting the award was Sally Yeh, president of Bijan Fragrances Inc. James D. Watson, the 1962 physiology or medicine Nobel laureate who codiscovered DNA structure, delivered a tape-recorded ode to the cologne. John Martinez, winner of the 1995 Ig Nobel Nutrition Prize, served cups of prize-winning luak coffee-made from beans that have been ingested and excreted by the luak, a bobcat-like animal native to Indonesia. Acceptance speeches were given via videotape by Ig Nobel laureates in physics (D.M.R. Georget, R. Parker, and A.C. Smith of the Institute of Food Research in Norwich, England, for their analysis of soggy breakfast cereal); literature (David B. Busch and James R. Starling of Madison, Wis., for their "deeply penetrating" report on rectal foreign bodies); and dentistry (Robert H. Beaumont of Shore View, Minn., for his study on patient preference for waxed or unwaxed dental floss). The ceremony was recorded for broadcast on National Public Radio's "Talk of the Nation/Science Friday" program on November 24. National Institute on Drug Abuse director Alan Leshner took his message to Hollywood October 19. He was invited to address the Depiction Committee of the Entertainment Industries Council, whose goal is to facilitate the industry's involvement in health and social issues. "Through research we will continue to generate information about drug abuse and addiction, and we are hopeful that you will help us in delivering it," he told the group. "As the creative experts, we need your suggestions on the best ways to convey scientifically accurate concepts and messages to the public." Leshner says he emerged from the meeting with "a pocketful of business cards that I didn't have before" and encouraged Hollywood's movers and shakers to "call on us for help and advice." His mission, he notes, was "making sure that the message we get out is a correct one." He is dismayed, he comments, that television and the movies "either glorify drug use or connote it as only a social issue. They focus on the criminality and violence. The fact is that it's a treatable, chronic, relapsing disease of the brain." He adds that he hopes TV's popular "medical-based shows" will feature "episodes or pieces of episodes based on drug addiction and talking about the health aspects." Perhaps taking the idea from the popularity of "The Simpsons" and other animated television shows, the California Institute of Technology's Chemistry Animation Project has completed the first six titles in a series of broadcast-quality educational chemistry videotapes. The videos illustrate three-dimensional, difficult-to-visualize concepts that are central to the basic chemistry curriculum. The first six tapes in the series cover three introductory topics-"Crystals," "Atomic Orbitals," and "VSEPR" (valence-shell electron-pair repulsion theory); two intermediate topics, "Stereochemistry" and "Nucleophilic Substitution"; and an advanced topic, "The Diels-Alder Reaction." Planned for release later this year are tapes on "Hybridization and Resonance," "Periodic Trends," and "Molecular Orbitals." Other titles in production include "Binary Crystals" and "Spectroscopy/Molecular Motions." For information on purchasing the tapes, contact the Caltech Bookstore at Mail Code 1-51, Pasadena, Calif. 91125; (800) 514-BOOK. Fax: (818) 795-3156. Information on each video is available on the World Wide Web at http://bond/caltech.edu. BRAINY: Carla Schatz and fellow neurobiologist H. Robert Horvitz were named Dana Award winners. Two neurobiologists have been named as the recipients of the 10th annual Charles A. Dana Award for Pioneering Achievements in the area of health. Carla J. Schatz, a professor of neurobiology at the University of California, Berkeley, and H. Robert Horvitz, a professor of biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, will share the $50,000 cash prize. Schatz and Horvitz, both Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigators, will be honored at a ceremony November 8 in New York. The prize is sponsored by the New York-based Charles A. Dana Foundation. Schatz and Horvitz are specifically cited for their "ground-breaking research on the fundamental cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in the development of the brain and nervous system," according to a statement. Schatz is known for her work in elucidating the complex processes by which nerves in the human brain are "wired up" during fetal and early childhood development. Horvitz's research on cell death using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans paved the way for his formation of a multi-lab team that identified the gene responsible for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), commonly called Lou Gehrig's disease. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), headquartered in Chevy Chase, Md., will be offering its third annual Holiday Lectures on Science series on December 18 and 19. Thomas Cech, an HHMI investigator and Distinguished Professor at the University of Colorado, Boulder, a 1989 Nobel laureate in chemistry, and winner of a National Medal of Science this year (see story on page 3), will present a series of lectures based on the theme of " double="" life="" of="" rna."="" for="" the="" first="" time,="" these="" lectures="" will="" be="" broadcast="" live="" via="" satellite="" to="" students="" in="" united="" states="" and="" canada="" as="" part="" institute's="" precollege="" public="" science="" education="" grants="" programs.="" cech="" discuss="" current="" state="" knowledge="" about="" rna,="" including="" chemical,="" structural,="" cell="" biological,="" potential="" medical="" aspects.="" schedule="" is="" follows:="" monday,="" december="" 18,="" 10:00="" a.m.="" (est),="" "catalysis,="" chemical="" biochemical";="" 11:30="" a.m.,="" "rna="" an="" enzyme:="" discovery,="" origins="" life,="" possibilities";="" tuesday,="" 19,="" "how="" accelerate="" a="" reaction="" 100,000,000="" times="" using="" only="" rna";="" "life="" at="" end="" chromosome:="" another="" rna="" machine."="" rebroadcast="" beginning="" 1:00="" p.m.="" on="" same="" day="" that="" they="" are="" delivered.="" free="" background="" materials="" well="" registration="" series="" can="" obtained="" from="" hhmi,="" office="" special="" programs,="" program,="" holiday="" science,="" 4000="" jones="" bridge="" rd.,="" chevy="" chase,="" md.="" 20815-9864.="" Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility (CPSR), based in Palo Alto Calif., awarded Tom Grundner, president of the National Public Telecomputing Network (NPTN), its 1995 Norbert Wiener Award for Social and Professional Responsibility this month. The award is given annually to a "distinguished computer professional who has, through personal example, demonstrated a deep commitment to the socially responsible use of computing technology." According to a statement released over the Internet, Grundner was an early pioneer in the development of community-based computerized information services. His "St. Silicon Project" at Case Western Reserve University in 1984 provided the first data on the effectiveness of using modem-equipped microcomputers to deliver community-health information. His Cleveland Free-Net Project, developed in 1986, is the U.S.'s first free, open-access, community computer system. Based on the success of the Free-Net, in 1989 Grundner founded NPTN, a nonprofit organization to foster the growth of community computer systems in the U.S. and overseas, and to link them in a common communications and information network. NPTN has more than 60 affiliates online, and the funding to bring an additional 30 systems online in 1995. Some 120 organizing committees are currently at work in 42 U.S. states and 10 overseas countries. NPTN has more than 380,000 users. Grundner was honored at a special reception at "The Good, the Bad, and the Internet: A Conference on Critical Issues in Information Technology," held in conjunction with CPSR's annual meeting in Chicago earlier this month. The award was established in 1987 in memory of Norbert Wiener, who was the originator of the field of cybernetics and "a pioneer in looking at the social and political consequences of computing." In his writings, Wiener pointed out the dangers of nuclear war and the role of scientists in developing more powerful weapons shortly after Hiroshima. Wiener died in 1964. Founded in 1981, CPSR is a nonprofit organization of computer scientists and other professionals concerned with the impact of computer technology on society. For more information about CPSR, call (415) 322-3778; E-mail: cpsr@cpsr.org. Hans R. Herren, a Swiss-born entomologist, has received the 1995 World Food Prize from the World Food Prize Foundation of Des Moines, Iowa. He was given the $200,000 cash prize at a ceremony at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on October 16. The award recognizes individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity, or availability of the world's food supply. Herren, a self-described "eco-freak," is the director general of the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology in Nairobi, Kenya. He led a project that rescued cassava, a root crop best known in the form of tapioca, from an introduced pest. Because cassava is one of Africa's most important food crops, his efforts averted widespread famine. In the early 1970s, the cassava mealybug was inadvertently imported into Africa with a shipment of cassava stem cuttings from South America, the plant's native environment. The mealybug thrived in Africa because it had no natural enemies. By the late 1970s, the insect had destroyed up to 80 percent of the cassava crop in some areas. In the early 1980s, Herren, while working at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in Ibadan, Nigeria, developed a biological control program to solve the problem. His team's use of the mealybug's natural predator, a wasp found in Paraguay, prevented the large-scale use of chemicals. (The Scientist, Vol:9, #21, pg.1 , October 30, 1995) (Copyright © The Scientist, Inc.)

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