This year's winners of the Ig Nobel prizes are a bumper crop of wild and crazy SCIENCE!, featuring sword-swallowing, knuckle-cracking, benefits of cow-naming, pregnant women NOT tipping over, a household use for giant panda poop (take that, Packham), diamonds made from tequila, a brassiere that can be used as TWO gas masks, "Ireland's Worst Driver", Icelandic banks, Zimbabwean currency, and a 'Peace Prize' earned by hitting people over the heads with beer bottles (and comparing the effects of empty vs. full bottles) (related inquiry)
posted by wendell on Oct 2, 2009 - 23 comments

Oh cow, oh cow, what are you thinking?      Should I leave the gate open?
Are you content?                                     Would you be happy?
Do you yearn?                                         Would you turn feral?

Do you want freedom?                               Oh cow
Greener pastures?                                     Moo cow
A bull?                                                    Run free cow

The Online Dairy Ode Contest was a light-hearted, web-based, sister competition to the James McIntyre Poetry Contest. It was held at irregular intervals from 2001 to 2005. The only criterion for entry was that the poems had to be Dairy Odes; ie about dairy products, cows, or dairying.
posted by carsonb on Jun 16, 2009 - 24 comments

In these hard economic times, everyone's feeling the pinch. Some farmers have started downsizing to miniature cows.
posted by grapefruitmoon on May 25, 2009 - 35 comments

Using images from Google Earth, scientists have determined that grazing cattle and deer align themselves with the Earth's magnetic field.
posted by Knappster on Aug 25, 2008 - 89 comments

The Peasant-Nobles of the Roncal Valley and the Tribute of the Three Cows.
posted by homunculus on May 29, 2008 - 10 comments

For the 2nd year in a row Tina is crowned la Reine des Reines (link & video in french). Le Combat des Reines is an annual event in the Swiss canton of Valais dating back to 1922. [more inside]
posted by jontyjago on May 13, 2008 - 21 comments

Where does recalled beef go? Last month, the largest beef recall in U.S. history (143 million pounds) occured after the Humane Society released footage of sick cows at a meat processing plant in California. Before it was recalled, most of the beef had already been sent to school lunch programs and other public nutrition programs.
posted by amyms on Mar 3, 2008 - 59 comments

Undercover video (warning: very graphic) released by the Humane Society reveals abuse of animals on the slaughterhouse floor and other code violations. [more inside]
posted by casarkos on Feb 1, 2008 - 75 comments

MOO! The latest brain-spillage from Cyriak. [Embedded QuickTime.] [more inside]
posted by homunculus on Dec 2, 2007 - 20 comments

COW! ON! AMERICA! Cows have invaded America! Until the 1850s cows had invaded our families and now they want back in! They dominate our roadways! Who can escape their mystical dancing, their skills at running, their mastery of computers, and their lovely parades. They plot our destruction, corrupt our children with fan clubs and feed on the living. They even went global! When will the maddness end???
posted by Stynxno on Oct 24, 2007 - 20 comments

Birds that rap and cows with accents. The big picture is urban adaptation, which is pretty cool. (...and the egg wins.)
posted by ewkpates on Dec 28, 2006 - 17 comments

The end of mad cow disease? Scientists announce a filter that can remove the prions that cause vCJD - blocking the spread of the disease, at least via blood transfusions.
posted by Artw on Dec 24, 2006 - 16 comments

Livestock's Long Shadow, a new UN FAO report (full report) says livestock (cows, pig, sheep, etc.) generate more CO2 than all forms of transportation (cars, planes, etc) combined, with the worlds live stock expected to double by 2050.
posted by stbalbach on Dec 11, 2006 - 34 comments

David Lynch: "Without cows there would be no cheese in the Inland Empire" (via).
posted by JPowers on Nov 10, 2006 - 54 comments

We're Schleswig-Holsteins, darling. (Ah, from the Low Countries.) Cows have accents. Some other animals with accents: birds, otters, frogs, monkeys.
posted by pracowity on Aug 25, 2006 - 13 comments

"If we start with the sheep then next it's the cows and horses."
posted by scblackman on Apr 24, 2006 - 11 comments

MooTube: Along with activities like chomping grass, flicking flies, mooing and hanging out at the watering hole, the cow-cams capture such fun-loving antics as stealing snacks from the human production crew to roaming the fields in search of the best siesta spot. With spring in the air, alert viewers may catch a glimpse of cattle locking horns in the heat of pixilated romance. Press Release Here
posted by thisisdrew on Apr 20, 2006 - 11 comments

The Last Days of the Ark: "We found that in 90 to 95 percent of turkeys produced worldwide, the genetic stock comes from one of three breeding stocks" but there are heritage breeds being preserved throughout the world. American Livestock Breeds Conservancy. Heritage Breeds Conservancy. Rare Breeds Survival Trust. Rare Breeds Canada. Rare Breeds Australia, with by far the best Breed Profile pages. New Zealand Rare Breeds. Desert Heritage Breeds. Rare Steeds. "Eating these breeds may be the best way to save them", so, for shopping. [more inside]
posted by OmieWise on Mar 8, 2006 - 14 comments

Alien cow abduction is a serious problem. Countless bovines have disappeared from dairy farms everywhere. And the numbers of missng cows are on the rise. (Maybe show your support for the cause with this stylish clock?)
posted by Robot Johnny on Mar 2, 2006 - 16 comments

Cow racing is serious business. Think you've got the world's fastest heifer? Can your Bessy beat Taffy's Guiness world record? Ever wonder what a cow race looks like? Sounds like? Do you feel inspired?
posted by analogue on Aug 29, 2005 - 9 comments

Why do Australians hang corks around their hats? - Jim Heath tells you All About the Australian Bush Fly
posted by TimothyMason on Jul 1, 2005 - 20 comments

The USDA On Line Photography Center mingles what you might expect with what you might not.
posted by breezeway on Feb 25, 2005 - 7 comments

It's not the other white meat, but it seems cows have yet another use.

"That's some good shit, man (in my very best Tommy Chong!)."
posted by LouReedsSon on Jan 24, 2005 - 14 comments

Friday Flash Frustration Fun: IQ Marathon (with cows) - The instructions are in German, but figuring it out is half the fun, right?
posted by neckro23 on Oct 8, 2004 - 13 comments

In lieu of today's posts on GM foods and meat, Trans Ova Genetics is pharming cows in hopes of creating one capable of adminstering human antibodies.
posted by hobbes on Aug 25, 2003 - 5 comments

Visitors to the current Illinois State Fair have the opportunity to see an American classic, the Butter Cow. This year's cow was sculpted over two days by Nancy Wise. You can watch the construction or live shots of its admiring public at the Butter Cow Cam. [more inside]
posted by Songdog on Aug 8, 2003 - 22 comments

Mad Cows With Guns And Cows With Bad Puns: Whoever's thinkin' of a steak dinner... runs! [ Flash required; soundtrack crucial.]
posted by MiguelCardoso on May 20, 2003 - 12 comments

Have a fling...or have a cow. Or fling a cow. Fried-day Flash Fun. (Gratuities are welcome, but please, no "tipping.")
posted by Dunvegan on Mar 27, 2003 - 7 comments

Betting on Mini-Cows "ROCKWELL, Iowa -- Dustin Pillard is betting his farm on compact cows...Pillard has 50 tiny cows on his northern Iowa farm" MEANWHILE..."In a May dispatch from Cuba, the Wall Street Journal reported that Fidel Castro proposed in 1987 to alleviate a chronic milk shortage by trying to get his scientists to clone the most productive cows, shrunk to the size of dogs so that each family could keep one inside it's apartment. The cows would feed on grass grown inside under fluorescent lights." Now I'd like a mini-polar bear, please, and a mini-elephant, while you're at it...
posted by troutfishing on Dec 28, 2002 - 18 comments

You think your neighbors are bad? Try living with a lady who kept cows in her upstairs apartment.
posted by kingmissile on Aug 31, 2002 - 48 comments

Thanks for the cattle! As a follow up to This Thread, This site was inspired by the New York Times article about the Masai village in southern Kenya who donated 14 head of cattle to the US in sorrow over the 9/11 attacks. This is a place where you can say "thanks" to the villagers who made the donation. "There are three cherished things that a Masai can offer as a gift -- a child, a plot of land and a cow, which is far more than a source of meat and milk to a Masai." Source.
posted by Blake on Jun 4, 2002 - 17 comments

Robots help cows milk themselves. I'm waiting for the PETA protest -- they're making the cows participate in their own exploitation! The horror!
posted by meep on Sep 11, 2001 - 1 comment

When Bovines Attack - cool game care of Seethru
posted by kramer_101 on Sep 4, 2001 - 2 comments

Finally, some genetic modification I can sink my teeth into! Wired reports this morning that an Australian researcher has identified the genetic characteristics for "tenderness" and "toughness" in cow muscle tissue. Aussie cattle ranchers are already gearing up to produce animals that result in more tender, juicier beef. I'm drooling already.
posted by briank on Aug 22, 2001 - 14 comments

Bush Eager to Go on Vacation, Commune with Cows
I'm sorry, I just couldn't resist this headline.
"I love to go walking out there, seeing the cows. Occasionally they talk to me, being the good listener that I am," Bush said.
posted by mapalm on Jul 27, 2001 - 25 comments

Three people may have contracted foot-and-mouth, though all the tests aren't in. This is the first time this has occured during the current outbreak. I think the most, er, interesting thing is exactly how one of the guys got it.
posted by sj on Apr 24, 2001 - 20 comments

More nasty facts about what goes into our food. Do a search on the page for 'dead cats'. (My apologies for posting something old. I'm so shocked I couldn't help it).
posted by u.n. owen on Mar 15, 2001 - 11 comments

Check out the Milko Music Machine. It was chosen as the Macromedia Site of the Day and is hysterical! You can select video clips, vocals and music for a bovine music video. Moo, moo, moo.
posted by ljc on Dec 15, 2000 - 3 comments

Columbian baldness cure involves getting your head licked by a cow. "I tried many different cows. The baby cows had no concentration."
posted by thc on Dec 3, 2000 - 0 comments

Forget the Rhode Island spud, it's all about a Waco Cow Apparently they're even up for sale now.
posted by nomisxid on Nov 29, 2000 - 4 comments

Surrogate clone mother Bessie, an Iowa farm cow, is pregnant. But she's not having a cow. Inside her uterus is an endangered species called an Asian gaur, a heavily muscled, humpbacked, ox-like animal native to the bamboo jungles of India and Burma. The embryonic gaur, Noah, due to be born next month, was cloned from a single skin cell taken from a dead gaur, researchers report in a paper in the latest issue of the journal Cloning, to be released this week. It is the first endangered species ever to be cloned, and the first cloned animal to gestate in the womb of another species. Is this a new era in wildlife conservation? (Already, the Massachusetts scientists who created Noah are laying plans to clone endangered giant pandas.) Or are we bringing on Jurassic Park?
posted by jhiggy on Oct 9, 2000 - 0 comments

The Cow Parade cows are being auctioned off starting today. Tomorrow you can bid on them on Amazon.
posted by tamim on Sep 28, 2000 - 1 comment

I'm so glad I live in New York City--especially now that the cows are here. My favorite ones are the huge dancing cows across the street from F.A.O. Schwartz.
posted by grumblebee on Jun 26, 2000 - 10 comments

I've always wanted to make my own cow. Haven't you? (Thanks memepool!)
posted by plinth on Mar 23, 2000 - 2 comments

Apparently, Chicago sponsors an annual event where artists make fiberglass cows, and they're displayed throughout the city. See the official Cows on Parade if you don't believe me.
posted by mathowie on Aug 2, 1999 - 0 comments