# Off-the-Wall Science Experiments (or Bees with Eyepatches!) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 21, 2009, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908 "2009-04-21T22:46:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Peanut\_Gallery](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/838e76/32.png) [@Peanut\_Gallery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanut_Gallery)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/1 "2009-04-21T22:46:15Z")
What are the weirdest science experiments you have heard of? (hopefully excluding the really horrific stuff…) A recent Discover article about brain development mentioned one where the researchers trained bees to react when presented with a yellow square. They then fitted the bees with eyepatches(!) and tested them again. When performing with only the left eye, they did just fine; right eye, not so hot. That says some cool stuff about brain symmetry, but nowhere as cool as pirate bees. I couldn’t find a photo ☹ Honorable mention to last years’ (?) [ants-on-stilts](http://www.livescience.com/php/multimedia/imagedisplay/img_display.php?pic=060629_ant_stilts_02.jpg&cap=An+ant+with+red+dyed+stilts+overshoots+its+goal+because+its+increased+stride+length+interferes+with+its+internal+pedometer.+Credit%3A+%C2%A9+Science%0D) experiment, and the infamous human ear on a mouse (photo not linked for your benefit). ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/2 "2009-04-22T01:44:20Z")
I spent an hour and a half today discussing a paper that measured flies’ sleep patterns to figure some stuff out. How do you tell if a fly is asleep, you ask? You shine an infrared beam through the fly-containing tube and measure how often the fly breaks the beam. Sleeping flies don’t wander back and forth. ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/3 "2009-04-22T06:46:45Z")
[“Failure to Detect Changes to People in Real-World Interaction”](http://www.scribd.com/doc/11047318/Failure-to-detect-changes-to-people-during-a-realworld-interaction-by-Simon-Levin) is one of my favorites. Pretty simple, but much more effective than you’d believe. Here’s Derren Brown’s recreation of that experiment: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1aEqBaK3aM](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1aEqBaK3aM) ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/4 "2009-04-22T14:51:38Z")
If you’re interested in weird experiments, I recommend reading [Elephants on Acid](http://www.amazon.com/Elephants-Acid-Bizarre-Experiments-Original/dp/0156031353). The dumbest experiment I remember hearing about was a study on how cats reacted to having their testicles squeezed. No points for guessing what happened there. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/5 "2009-04-22T14:57:03Z")
In one conference on optical engineering, there was a presentation about using LIDAR to locate and track bees. Not just any bees, but ones trained to find land mines. IIRC they feed the bees nectar laced with explosive chemicals, which trains them to respond to the smell of explosives. ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/6 "2009-04-22T18:09:49Z")
[Shrimp on a treadmill.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkiM1S_dMm4) ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/7 "2009-04-22T18:17:15Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > I spent an hour and a half today discussing a paper that measured flies’ sleep patterns to figure some stuff out. How do you tell if a fly is asleep, you ask? You shine an infrared beam through the fly-containing tube and measure how often the fly breaks the beam. Sleeping flies don’t wander back and forth. This reminds me of a paper I read back when I was doing some research in college. It was on REM sleep deprivation, and the way they managed to selectively deprive mice of REM sleep was to put them on a tiny island in the middle of a pool of water. When they went into REM, their muscles relaxed and they fell off. Cruel but economical. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/8 "2009-04-22T18:36:08Z")
> [@Terminus\_Est](#): > > [Shrimp on a treadmill.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkiM1S_dMm4) Somebody has to ask it… Did they take off? ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/9 "2009-04-22T19:00:22Z")
> [@cher3](#): > > This reminds me of a paper I read back when I was doing some research in college. It was on REM sleep deprivation, and the way they managed to selectively deprive mice of REM sleep was to put them on a tiny island in the middle of a pool of water. When they went into REM, their muscles relaxed and they fell off. > > Cruel but economical. If they want to deprive the flies of sleep, they take the same tubes and put them on a shaker. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2009, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/10 "2009-04-22T19:22:42Z")
The [Pitch Drop Experiment](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pitch_drop_experiment) My question, when I learned about it, was “Did they get a grant for that one’s duration ? And is so, can I apply for one at the local uni in order to replicate it and independantly verify their results ?” ---
**Author:** ![Peanut\_Gallery](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/838e76/32.png) [@Peanut\_Gallery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanut_Gallery)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2009, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/11 "2009-04-23T01:19:21Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > If you’re interested in weird experiments, I recommend reading [Elephants on Acid](http://www.amazon.com/Elephants-Acid-Bizarre-Experiments-Original/dp/0156031353). > > The dumbest experiment I remember hearing about was a study on how cats reacted to having their testicles squeezed. No points for guessing what happened there. I’ll have to give it a try. Thanks! Um… the book, that is. Reminds me of another oldie but goodie: [Doped Spiders](http://www.trinity.edu/jdunn/spiderdrugs.htm). It was done by NASA, but I don’t think the spiders were in space… leaving it in the realm of the Groovy, but not quite Far Out. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2009, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/12 "2009-04-23T12:33:41Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > they feed the bees nectar laced with explosive chemicals, which trains them to respond to the smell of explosives. Is there _any possibility_ this experiment will result in exploding bees? Preferably with eyepatches? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2009, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/off-the-wall-science-experiments-or-bees-with-eyepatches/493908/13 "2009-04-23T14:50:50Z")
How about explosive honey, or explosive beehives?