One of these is that if it is placed in a magnetic field it exhibits a phenomenon known as the relativistic quantum Hall effect.

ECONOMIST: The 2010 Nobel prizes

Anchoring effects are one of the better established phenomenon in the field of behavioral economics.

FORBES: Hospital Pricing and Irrational Thinking

"This is a common phenomenon, and it's definitely a field for anticorruption work, " says Li Chengyan, director of Peking University's Research Center for Government Integrity.

WSJ: Chinese Officials Ousted Over Alleged Sexual Exploits

Indeed, some at the meeting argued that if aliens were to use an astronomical phenomenon called gravitational lensing (in which the gravitational field of the sun bends and amplifies radio waves and light from Earth), human signals could be amplified to the point where even the light from cities would be visible.

ECONOMIST: An argument over whether to send messages to aliens

This time around, most people see the current field of Republican hopefuls as a noisy blur, an only-in-America phenomenon -- or a "matsuri, " as one woman described it, in reference to Japan's colorful, oft-chaotic outdoor festivals.

CNN: Can Tokyo learn from the American political 'matsuri'?