Supposedly if the tattoo has changed, either by laser removal, adding more ink or even surgery, the infrared cameras can pick up on the change, and actually illustrate what the original design once looked like. It'd prove invaluable for detectives seeking criminals who may've tried disguising themselves, though reports of cameras detecting wigs and fake mustaches are still sadly unfounded. [TechRadar]

The brassiere is one of the award-winning bits of science and invention from this year's quirky, eccentric and downright entertaining Ig Nobel Awards. These awards are, in the words of organizer Improbable Research, a celebration of achievements that "make people laugh and think." A laundry list of past "winners" from The National reads like this:

In 2001, the physics award was given to Dr. David Schmidt for his research into why shower curtains often to blow inwards. In 2005, a team from Keio University won for "training pigeons to discriminate between the paintings of Picasso and Monet."

Dr. Deborah Anderson, also a former winner, was on hand this year to remind everyone about the effectiveness of Coca-Cola as a spermicide. To conclude, she was allowed seven words to describe her area of expertise—contraception—in detail: "Male contraception. Sheath it or beat it."

Cranking It to 11—With Science!

This year at Harvard's Sanders Theater the awards show didn't let up, with the aforementioned brassiere winning in the Public Health category. Why public health? Well, aside from providing support, the bra doubles as a life-saving gas mask; one that could be handy should a biological attack strike somewhere soon, like the unmentionables department at Macy's.

I kid, but this brassiere seriously works. Those D cups are the brainchild of the voluptuous Dr. Elena Bodnar of Illinois (by way of the Ukraine, backside pictured, above); and Raphael Lee and Sandra Marijan, both of Chicago. Bodnar passed on giving a big speech, and instead gave the audience a live demo. Her "volunteers" were a handful of Nobel laureates assembled on the stage, including Krugman. By the end of the demo, she had removed multiple bra gas masks from under her shirt and no fewer than four Nobel laureates were protected from chemical attack thanks to a hot pink layer of satin.

Brilliant Insanity Ensues

The rest of the night was, sadly, light on gadgets, but it did manage to get this cynical blogger to laugh pretty consistently.

There was a four act banker's opera (left); there were impromptu science experiments; and there were two Mexicans who managed to create diamond film from tequila. There was a researcher from Kitasato University who reduced Japanese household waste by 90% thanks to bacteria found in panda shit.

Acceptance speeches were brief, and if they weren't, an eight-year-old girl was on hand to interrupt the winners and move things along. Benoit Mandelbrot, the man who invented fractals, gave a 60-second keynote, was interrupted by the girl, and then sat down to play poker. Onstage.

All told, the event was a trip, and I encourage any of my Boston brethren to see it at Harvard next year for their 20th anniversary. If you do, then you too will know exactly what 1,000 paper airplanes descending from the rafters to pelt the stage below looks like first hand.

Editors Note: The official Ig Nobel awards video goes live soon at Improbable TV. Check it out.

The quasi-three-dimensional electron crystals were discovered in a device scientists cooled at ultra-low temperatures – roughly 100 times colder than intergalactic space. They then exposed it to the most powerful magnetic fields possible on Earth, which made it “pop” from a 2D electron system to a semi-3D one. It could also help improve transistors, allowing for greater density on a single microchip. Looks like Gordon Moore can rest assure that his law won't be broken for another long while. [Science Blog]

(Note: That's not a picture of the new state of matter, by the way.)

DOT MATRIX REVOLUTION* from superbrothers on Vimeo.[io9]

A brainwave measuring technology like electroencephalography records your thoughts, and a speech recognition system would decode the signals into words. The words would then be sent to the receiver using a different system "pointed in their direction." Presumably this is some form of radio, but since it's basically an EEG reading, one could imagine it being sent over the internet or via cellphone. Might even help you cut down on your minutes, but don't let your thoughts wander while you're talking to your girlfriend.

The scientists say that such a system will require a ton of training and will only send very specific messages at first, but over time the system will improve. This sounds like a pretty revolutionary step in communication, and one that will likely lead to many embarrassing results if it is every widely implemented. Would it be worth it to you to read everyone's thoughts if everyone could read yours? [Physorg via KurzweilAI]

Scientists suggest that the brace could be used by campers and soldiers to power GPS locators and satellite phones in areas with limited access to electricity. It could also charge prosthetic knees, eliminating the need for periodic surgery to replace the batteries in the joint.

The current version of the knee brace is just a proof-of-concept; the team plans to make the device less bulky while still retaining its energy harvesting capabilities. We think this is a great idea with lots of potential (even if it was created in part by a University of Michigan professor). Hopefully we can get a working model before CES next year so we'll never need to worry about our laptop running out of juice. [Science via Science Daily, Reuters, BBC]

By soldering two additional light sensors inside the CD player, and then using software, the researchers were able to control how the device "played" a disk. The substance to be analyzed (in this case, the team was trying to detect traces of three different pesticides in various samples) was then placed on a normal compact disc, and inserted into the machine.

While the first light sensor identified where the sample was on the disc, using black marks on the edge of the disc, the second analyzed the sample itself, measuring the amount of laser light that was able to pass through the disk. Normally, discs reflect around 30 percent of the laser beam onto the reading head, while the rest passes through.

The sample, half a millimeter in size, was treated to produce dye or silver that was inversely proportional to the amount of pesticide in the sample. Using the modded CD player, they could detect pesticide levels as low as 0.02 micrograms per liter just by seeing how much laser light passed through the disc to the second sensor.

While it may not be as accurate as genuine lab sensors, which can cost between $42,000 and $85,000, the hacked CD player is accurate enough for many laboratory tasks &mdash some experts think the cheap and cheerful device would work wonders in developing countries, helping the fight against malaria, for instance. And the shorter wavelength lasers of Blu-ray and HD DVD technology will make the process even easier. [New Scientist]

So, not only will this improve battery life in your laptops, it'll bulk up a bunch of consumer electronics and hybrid vehicles as well. Score one for scientists. And score another for that horrible Photoshop. – Jason Chen

Scientists double the capacity of rechargeable lithium batteries [TGDaily via Slashgear]

If they overcome some of the hurdles still presented by the laws of physics, at least one colleague at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory believes material scientists Wladek Walukiewicz and Kin Man Yu's research represents a "breakthrough" in solar energy generation technology.

New Semiconductor Material Produces More Efficient Solar Cells [treehugger]