Is Steve Buscemi cool?

Did researchers crack the cool code to let us know just exactly what makes us cool?

Actor Steve Buscemi sparked a debate among two researchers, Ilan Dar-Nimrod and Ian Hansen, as they argued if the actor who has used his unique look to deliver some strong performances on screen was cool.

Buscemi has certainly has some very cool roles including Enoch 'Nucky' Thompson in HBO's 'Boardwalk Empire' and Mr. Pink in “Reservoir Dogs.”

Buscemi was Donny in “The Big Lebowski,” and gangster Tony Blundetto in "The Sopranos.”

But is he cool?

According to MSNBC, Dar-Nimrod, a post doctoral social psychology researcher at the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York, doesn’t believe Buscemi is cool.

Hansen does.

Instead of coming to blows over the debate, the researchers decided to try to find out exactly who is cool by using three separate studies which first asked 353 college students at the University of British Columbia to first submit words they thought described cool.

Next, the students deemed these qualities as how desirable they were and then judged their friends.

In the third and final study, subjects were asked to rank their friends based on these qualities.

“We wanted to tease apart coolness and social desirability,” says Dar-Nimrod.

“There is a lot of overlap between social desirability and coolness.”

See the full findings here from MSNBC.

Are you cool?

The scientists say their study can't make you cool, but has found that these simple steps will make you what Dar-Nimrod dubs "cachet cool."

Be hot - Good looking people are cool.

Be friendly - Friendly people are cool, too.

Be pro-social. - People who volunteer and make their community a better place to live are very cool, the participants said.

Other cool qualities, according to the MSNBC report were "trendiness, desirableness, individualism, confidence and, yes, a sense of humor."

So - is Steve Buscemi cool?

Dar-Nimrod still says no.

(Image: FameFlynet)