Alcohol improves foreign-language pronunciation, study finds; Ig Nobel Prize awarded

An experiment at the University of Bath found that a small amount of alcohol could improve Dutch pronunciation among German speakers who had recently begun learning the language. In the study, 50 native German volunteers participated in a conversational task after consuming either a low dose of alcohol or a non-alcoholic beverage. Those who drank alcohol were rated as having better Dutch pronunciation, suggesting that alcohol may reduce language anxiety and help early learners sound more fluent.

Researchers noted that the effect was modest, but the finding drew attention for its playful nature. The work won the Ig Nobel Prize in the Peace category this year, an honor given to studies that first make people laugh and then think. 'We're delighted that this playful piece of research has received such recognition,' said first author Dr. Inge Kersbergen. 'The Ig Nobel Prize reminds us that science can be both serious and fun, and that sometimes light-hearted questions open up surprising insights into human behavior.'

Details of the experiment: The 50 participants were native German speakers who had recently started Dutch. Each completed a short Dutch conversation after receiving either a low dose of alcohol or a non-alcoholic beverage in a controlled setting. Independent evaluators rated pronunciation and fluency during the dialogue. The researchers stressed that the effect was specific to pronunciation in this context and should not be taken as a general endorsement of drinking to improve language study; the small sample and the artificial setting limit broad conclusions.

Beyond this study, the Ig Nobel Prizes this year included a range of quirky investigations. Winners examined fingernail growth over decades, the relationship between intelligence and narcissism, lizards' pizza preferences, and whether garlic consumption by nursing mothers alters breast milk odor and infant feeding. Other awards looked at whether painting cows with zebra-like stripes reduces fly bites, the so-called Teflon diet to increase satiety, the impact of smelly shoes on user experience, and the physics of pasta sauce, as well as the flying and echolocation abilities of drunken bats.

The Ig Nobel Prizes are a spoof awards program run by the science humor magazine Annals of Improbable Research. Since 1991, the prizes have honored unusual or humorous research that first makes people laugh, then think. The ceremony is typically held at Harvard University’s Sanders Theatre in Boston, and in recent years has been hosted by Nobel laureates; during the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was held online.

Despite the lighthearted framing, many winners say their work raises legitimate questions about research design, interpretation, and the social curiosity that motivates science.