Irrational frog, obese bald crab... A list of humorous moments of scientists throughout history

Humor refers to a way of expression that makes people feel funny. As a social activity, it reflects group identity and social ties, and works within a certain social group with a common consciousness and social background. The incongruity theory explains that humor and laughter come from sudden incongruent changes. In addition, there are superiority theory and adjustment theory, etc. The research scope covers many fields such as psychology, genetics, neurobiology, sociology, etc. Humor is a fascinating cognitive function, and this topic has attracted a lot of attention for decades. We can show the vivid and interesting side of science and scientists through humorous cases in different scientific fields, and then trigger thinking about the role of humor in science communication and science education, and further explore the inspiration of science education on shaping people and promoting scientific development.

1. Rigorous scientists have a humorous side

Science is often profound and serious due to reductionism, and it is depersonalized. Scientists often appear in the public eye as a group, so their personalities and unique behaviors and ways of thinking are often overlooked. The rigor of science does not prevent scientists from being interesting. They are sometimes strange and cute. As Einstein said while sitting on the sidewalk in Princeton, "(scientists) may be sitting on concrete with abstract images in front of them." For example, it is rumored that Archimedes jumped out of the bathtub where he had just discovered the natural law of buoyancy and ran naked on the street. Scientists' innate originality will help them in difficult circumstances, so scientists are often humorous.

However, there are few documents recording scientists’ humorous anecdotes, or they are difficult to verify. The humor and personality charm of scientists in scientific historical materials are as important as their scientific contributions, and this part enriches a person’s true humanity.

Mathematicians and physicists often give people the impression of being serious and dull, but as a group, scientists actually have a highly developed sense of humor. The Martians of Budapest was used to describe a group of famous Hungarian physicists and mathematicians who immigrated to the United States after being persecuted in 1933. In the eyes of Americans, this term refers to a group of people with superhuman intelligence from an obscure country. This group of scientists showed extraordinary talent and sense of humor. Hungarian mathematician Paul Erdős (1913-1996) is known as the most prolific mathematician to date. He published nearly 1,500 papers in his lifetime and devoted his life to the field of mathematics. When people get to know the other side of scientists through their humorous anecdotes, the image of scientists will become different. At that time, Erdős, who was blind in one eye, even wanted to give up the donated cornea to give a mathematical speech. When the doctor performed surgery on him, Erdős was angry because the light was dim and he could not read. Regarding how he wanted to die, he once said jokingly, "I want to give a lecture, complete an important mathematical proof on the blackboard, and then someone in the audience shouts: 'So how do you prove the general case?' I will turn to the audience and smile, 'Leave it to the next generation,' and then fall down with satisfaction." Here is a pun, Erdős did not forget to be humorous when talking about death. Another Hungarian mathematician, George Polya (1887-1985), saw the Polya Hall built by Stanford University in his memory at 255 Panama Street when he was teaching, and joked to his students that the name made people think he was dead. Hungarian nuclear physicist Leo Szilard (1898-1964) once humorously gave a perfect answer to the Fermi paradox: "Aliens are among us, but they call themselves Hungarians." Seeing this, scientists have a vivid image that ordinary people can touch, rather than just abstract theoretical scholars with serious faces.

In modern times, scientists' extraordinary creativity and sense of humor are closely integrated with the Internet and the lives of ordinary people. For example, the Ig Nobel Prize, founded by American mathematician and writer Marc Abrahams (1956-), is a humorous imitation of the Nobel Prize to satirically expose absurd phenomena and provide useful research and knowledge. From the list of winners of the previous Ig Nobel Prizes, it can be seen that at least some scientists are using rigorous scientific methods to do weird and humorous research. For example, the 2023 Ig Nobel Prize winners include "Chemistry and Geology Prize: Explains why many scientists like to lick rocks", "Mechanical Engineering Prize: Reactivated dead spiders and used as mechanical grasping tools", "Nutrition Prize: Experiments determine how electrified chopsticks and straws change the taste of food", "Psychology Prize: Experiments on city streets to see how many passers-by stop and look up when they see strangers looking up", etc.

Scientists are the primary way for learners to come into contact with science. A vivid and interesting image of scientists is particularly important for the dissemination of scientific knowledge, especially complex scientific concepts, as well as for guiding learners into the field of science and stimulating their interest in learning.

2. Humor is a valuable source of information in the history of science

The word humor in English comes from the ancient Greek medical word for "body fluid" or "juice" "χυμός" (chymos), so some people understand humor as a liquid that can dilute the cruel facts of life. Humor, as an interesting behavior in serious scientific work, is not only used to open speeches, narrate rhetoric or show personal talents, but also provides a safe way to express dissatisfaction and eliminate anxiety and conflict to help build cooperation. Therefore, humor is inseparable from the group of scientists.

In the 1920s, scientists at the Sir William Dunn Institute of Biochemistry at the University of Cambridge produced a humorous journal called Brightening Biochemistry, which provides a useful case to help us find traces of scientists' efforts to establish scientific life and understand the process of biochemists forming communities and new social images under tension. Brightening Biochemistry shows that smart biochemists can also be shrouded by seemingly elegant but poor threats. For example, a biochemistry travel researcher wrote a joking article to thank the executor of their scholarship for providing "completely insufficient funding." The humor of this magazine reflects the development of a scientific enterprise and the resilience of scientists in the context of the times. Research by Riesch et al. in the context of science, technology and society (STS) shows that humorous expressions in pro-science marches may help bridge the gap between scientists and the public and help build a louder voice for scientists and experts in public discourse.

In the history of science, humor plays an important role in helping scientists face social problems, dispel anger, and build alliances. Therefore, science and humor are mutually integrated. Humor in science has its own unique characteristics, which is also the result of long-term joint shaping by scientific practitioners from individuals to groups. Understanding the humorous expression of a discipline can help learners better understand and integrate into this discipline.

3. Humor is everywhere in the scientific world

Classification and naming in biology reflect the desire and creativity of human beings to order the world since they discovered nature. Carl von Linné (1707-1778) formally introduced the "binomial nomenclature" species naming system in his book Species Plantarum (1753). The scientific name of each species consists of two parts: the genus name and the specific epithet. Ancient Greeks and Romans named species based on their morphology or typical behavioral characteristics. It was also popular to name them after imaginary allusions or classical myths. Renaissance naturalists transformed species names into Latin binary names through discussions of ancient texts, and followed the practice of naming after myths and classical literature. At the same time, naming after scientists out of appreciation was also a common method. In modern biology, organisms are often named after fables, literary works, researchers, and celebrities. For example, the name of former US President Trump was used to name a moth with yellow and white scales on its head to call on people to pay attention to the environment. In addition, actors Schwarzenegger and Marilyn Monroe were also named because they had similar characteristics to organisms. It can be seen that scientists often name organisms in a humorous way to reflect their creativity. Sometimes this humor often carries hilarious irony. For example, Daniel Rolander, a student of Linnaeus, refused to hand over thousands of specimens he had collected, and his name was used by Linnaeus to name a bug: Aphanus rolandri, and Aphanus means dishonor in Greek. Linnaeus similarly responded to his critics by treating them in the same way. Dinohyus hollandi was named after W. J. Holland, the director of the Carnegie Museum, who insisted that his staff list him as the senior author on every paper. The name means "terrible pig of Holland," and one Pittsburgh paper announced the discovery with a front-page headline: "Dinohyus hollandi, the world's largest pig!"

Many examples in the field of biology can be used to illustrate scientists' casual and nonsensical sense of humor. "NSFW" is used on the Internet to mark content that users do not want the audience to see in public, formal or controlled environments, meaning "not safe for work". In biology, NSW refers to three key experimental methods for detection: Northern blotting for RNA, Southern blotting for DNA, and Western blotting for protein. In 1975, Sir Edward Mellor Southern discovered a method for detecting DNA fragments containing specific sequences in samples separated by gel electrophoresis. Sir Edwin Southern named his method Southern blotting after him. Then, in 1977, James Alwine of Stanford University applied the principles of Southern blotting to detect specific RNA sequences. In homage to Southern blotting, Alwine called his method Northern blotting. Finally, when Neal Burnette and his colleagues devised a blotting method for detecting specific proteins, he named it Western blotting, so called because the other two directions had been taken and because the laboratory where he worked was located on the west coast of North America.

The integration of natural science and social science, as well as the use of humor and metaphors, helps to connect scientific knowledge with concepts that learners already know, helps to establish accurate understanding, and helps scientists express themselves in a more understandable and entertaining way. This benefit is particularly significant in the field of biology, and the sense of humor of Chinese scientists is also vividly reflected in the naming of species. The following introduces six interesting Chinese names of species that can leave a deep impression even for learners who are not familiar with the field of biology.

The irrational frog is Pseudis paradoxa, which is characterized by its large tadpole morphology, which shrinks as it grows, and a huge "size difference" between it and the adult frog after metamorphosis. Carl Linnaeus created a method of classifying organisms based on four taxonomic levels: class, order, genus, and species, known as the Linnaean taxonomy, which is recorded in his major work Systema Naturæ. In the first five editions of Systema Naturæ, a section called Animalia Paradoxa recorded the species Rana-Piscis, and incorrectly explained that the species grew from "frog to fish". In the tenth edition of Systema Naturæ (1758), Linnaeus renamed the species Rana paradoxa, where the Latin word rana refers to the frog genus and paradoxa means paradox. In 1830, Wagler, J proposed the genus Pseudis in his book "Natürliches System der Amphibien", so the strange polydactyl frog was named Pseudis paradoxa according to the Linnaean binomial nomenclature described in the previous section. The Latin name of the strange polydactyl frog, Pseudis paradoxa (perverse polydactyl frog), matches its "rejuvenation" growth process, which seems to violate the laws of nature. In China, it is simply called "irrational frog".

The Latin name of the new species is Hyastenus ducator. It was named by two Singaporean scholars, Bee Yan Lee and Peter KL Ng, in 2020. It belongs to the same genus as the mother crab Hyastenus pleione (Herbst, 1803). CJ Shen dug a female specimen of the crab from the muddy seabed of Shandong Peninsula, China in 1932, and recorded this species for the first time. The name of the new species, ducator, means leader in Latin. This name is used to commemorate Professor Liu Ruiyu, a leader in the Chinese crustacean world. The Chinese name "tutor" and "mutual respect" form a complementary match, unexpectedly expressing the picture of mutual respect between graduate students and their supervisors.

Melothria indica Lour (Fl. Cochinch, 1790), a vine of the Cucurbitaceae family and the genus Melothria . The genus name Melothria comes from the Greek word melothron, a vine plant, which is the same as Zehneria (Endl., 1833) meaning the genus Melothria. The name of the mouse-pulling winter melon comes from the appearance of the plant. Its tubers look like mice, and its fruits look like small winter melons. When the tubers connected to the vines and fruits are dug out, they look like mice pulling a bunch of winter melons, hence the name. There is also a saying that in Cantonese and Hakka, "mouse pull" is a dialect meaning something is very small. The fruit of the mouse-pulling winter melon is shaped like a winter melon, but it is smaller in size. Therefore, Guangdong, Fujian and other places call this wild fruit "mouse-pulling winter melon". This statement has not been scientifically verified. Both statements reflect the rich imagination and humorous expressions of the Chinese.

Chinese Delicious Mushroom , Latin name Agaricus sinodeliciosus, is a very rare and delicious large saprophytic edible fungus, with a single mushroom weighing up to 1 kg, and is only found in northwest China. It was named by Wang Zhuoren and others from Huazhong Agricultural University in 2015. In the Latin name, Agaricus refers to the mushroom genus, the first half of the species name, sino, means "originating from China", and deliciosus means that this species is edible and delicious. The name of this species comes from its origin and the characteristic of good taste. The respect of the Chinese for food can be written into textbooks.

The obese bald crab , whose Latin name is Calvactaea tumida, is the only species in the genus Calvactaea (Ward, 1933). Its characteristic is that its back is very bulging and hemispherical. The species was first discovered and named by Australian naturalist Charles Melbourne Ward in 1933. It is said that this crab is close to the genus Actaea, but there are not so many grooves on the carapace. Therefore, Ward added the Latin word calvus (bald) before actaea (genus Actaea) and named the genus Calvactaea. He also used the Latin word tumidus (swollen) as its species name to reflect the characteristic of its carapace bulge. Chinese scientists directly used the words obese and bald to describe this crab, which is both appropriate and hilarious.

Mahonia In addition, there is the famous folk medicinal plant Mahonia (Latin name: Mahonia), because its roots, stems, leaves and other organs can be used as medicine, and the medicinal effect is outstanding, so the Chinese name is "Ten Great Merits", and its Latin name is used to commemorate the publicly respected Irish-American horticulturist Bernard McMahon (1775-1816). This Chinese name can't help but make people curious about what the ten great merits are, so it is unforgettable.

However, it is worth reflecting that this type of Chinese naming of species does not seem to reflect its academic nature and consistency in naming standards compared to Latin naming. Although interesting species names inspire imagination and exploration interest and are easy to remember, the rigorous naming rules are replaced by general and vague names, which weakens the inheritance of scientific research and the inspiration of public cognition, and increases the difficulty of tracing and extending knowledge.

There are more interesting examples, such as dogene, honest and clean crab, strong and tight-holding crab, living together in the same grave together, casual grass, breaking bowl flower, red camera crab, long live big-eyed crab, wonderful currency crab, exquisite pentagonal crab, pimple fist crab, free and easy steamed bun crab, Aristotle's lantern, cute diamond crab, ohmygod particle, etc. Interested readers are welcome to explore freely!

4. Summary and inspiration

Human exploration of the world gave rise to science, and then to education and scientific education. With the birth of universities, a mechanism and venue for scholars to exchange wisdom was provided, which greatly promoted the development of education. At the same time, world science also ushered in prosperity. Therefore, the promotion of science and education is two-way. The above examples of science are not boring, which inspires inspiration on how scientific education can promote scientific development.

Science is the product of human exploration and thinking about the natural world. Humans are also the subject of applying and discovering science from ancient times to the present and in the future. At the same time, humans are also the subject of inheriting and disseminating knowledge. As a group that has many similarities in life, personality, emotions, etc. with ordinary people, how scientific practitioners enter a science, how to conduct research in this field, and how to obtain breakthrough results is a topic worth studying in the combination of history of science and science education.

As one of the basic characteristics of human beings, whether humor is valuable in describing the comprehensiveness of a scientist is worth discussing. Humor is a corner of human nature and a part of the behavior and thoughts of scientists. Although science is rigorous and serious, it is inseparable from humor. Humor is a true supplement to a perfect personality, making scientific practitioners seem not to be wrapped in the shell of serious science, and allowing learners to consciously try to explore instead of being rejected by the profundity of science. One of the meanings of learning the history of science is to let learners understand the process and motivation of the generation of a subject, such as mathematical theories and concepts. Learners can have a more comprehensive and developmental understanding by tracing the historical origins of this subject. Therefore, humor in science, as part of the history of science, has the value of promoting learning in education.

Science education should focus on the cultivation of scientific literacy and scientific interest, not limited to practical practice, but more importantly, the knowledge and thinking methods that constitute a discipline. A better understanding of science and technology is useful for anyone living in a scientific and technological environment. Knowledgeable people are better able to interact with the social world. In addition to its psychological, social and cognitive benefits, humor is undoubtedly important for the dissemination of scientific information, the cultivation of scientific interest, making scientific communication activities more enjoyable, and improving positive attitudes towards science and scientists.

Humor is everywhere in the scientific world. It not only enriches the vivid image of scientists, but also is valuable material for the history of science. Throughout history, humor has helped scientists interact with society and form a scientific community. At the same time, scientists have also shaped the humorous tone of a science, which opens the door for learners to enter a science. For example, the naming of species in biology reflects the biologists' excellent sense of humor. Interesting naming can help learners begin to explore and understand the history of the discipline development and Latin naming conventions behind it, and at the same time reflects the academic and cultural atmosphere of this discipline.