# Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=118 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 119 --- ## [I've Actually SEEN a Skin-shade (I think)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-actually-seen-a-skin-shade-i-think/248522)
**Author:** [@thewooz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thewooz)\ **Replies:** 59\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2008, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-actually-seen-a-skin-shade-i-think/248522 "2008-08-25T00:07:27Z")
In the ‘Straight Dope’ that’s in the current (June 4, 04) Issue if the Isthmus newspaper in Madison WI, Cecil’s talking about the rumored lampshades made of human skin made by Nazis in WWII. He essential discounts their … --- ## [Here Be Dragons/Hic Sunt Dracones](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/here-be-dragons-hic-sunt-dracones/460967)
**Author:** [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [August 23, 2008, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/here-be-dragons-hic-sunt-dracones/460967 "2008-08-23T21:03:54Z")
In Cecil’s 2006 column on whether old maps really said “Here Be Dragons”, he mentioned that the only known example of the phrase was on the Lenox Globe from the early 16th century, the text of which was published in an a… --- ## [How Can This Stupid Sears Catalog Be An Enduring Controversy?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-this-stupid-sears-catalog-be-an-enduring-controversy/460839)
**Author:** [@Huerta88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Huerta88)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [August 22, 2008, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-this-stupid-sears-catalog-be-an-enduring-controversy/460839 "2008-08-22T21:24:31Z")
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5\_186.html (1) I agree with Cecil that it probably ain’t a male organ. (2) If it were, it’s barely visible. (3) If it were visible, so what? The picture for the briefs shows a… --- ## [Lewis Carroll's Perversions](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lewis-carrolls-perversions/460874)
**Author:** [@bonzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonzer)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [August 22, 2008, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lewis-carrolls-perversions/460874 "2008-08-22T17:57:18Z")
Cecil’s old column on Carroll and young girls being on the main page reminded me of his one on the loony suggestion that Carroll was Jack the Ripper. Which in turn reminded me that I’d recently stumbled across this artic… --- ## [Post-facto Editing of Cecil's Columns](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-facto-editing-of-cecils-columns/460448)
**Author:** [@HoboStew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoboStew)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [August 20, 2008, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-facto-editing-of-cecils-columns/460448 "2008-08-20T22:38:06Z")
Every once in a while I read a column that has been changed from the first time I read it, like today’s. The changes are usually cosmetic - changing a joke, removing some more of the more hostile responses, etc - but th… --- ## [Using a Japanese Keyboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-a-japanese-keyboard/459283)
**Author:** [@bobxyzp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobxyzp)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [August 15, 2008, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-a-japanese-keyboard/459283 "2008-08-15T20:31:08Z")
It’s not so hard, if you know what the characters you want to write look like. For example, say I want to write “sake” (Japanese rice wine). I just type it on the keyboard (which is a regular Roman alphabet qwerty) and i… --- ## [First fliers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-fliers/459295)
**Author:** [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [August 15, 2008, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-fliers/459295 "2008-08-15T16:34:59Z")
Cecil, I recall visiting a museum in Bridgeport, CT which claimed that a local resident built and flew an airplane in 1901. Any word as to the credibility of that claim? --- ## [Who is Alvin Tostig?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-alvin-tostig/460089)
**Author:** [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [August 15, 2008, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-alvin-tostig/460089 "2008-08-15T12:58:28Z")
The Staff Report by SDSTAFF David, “In the Elton John song “Levon,” who is Alvin Tostig?”, it is noted that there was a historical “Tostig,” who was the Earl of Wessex back in the 1040s. Tostig Godwinson (1026? – Septem… --- ## [Flat tax and the tax burden of the rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flat-tax-and-the-tax-burden-of-the-rich/455211)
**Author:** [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [August 14, 2008, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flat-tax-and-the-tax-burden-of-the-rich/455211 "2008-08-14T18:01:50Z")
Cecil column Cecil talked about individual taxpayers, or households, but no mention of corporations and their burden. What was that old saw about many corporations who pay nary a cent of income tax that you used to hea… --- ## [Evidence of 1942 usage of "Whole Nine Yards"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/evidence-of-1942-usage-of-whole-nine-yards/459161)
**Author:** [@Robert\_The\_Rebuilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert_The_Rebuilder)\ **Replies:** 41\ **Last updated:** [August 14, 2008, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/evidence-of-1942-usage-of-whole-nine-yards/459161 "2008-08-14T17:10:43Z")
Forgive me if there is another topic on these forums related to the origin of “the whole nine yards” article; unfortunately, the search function is not working for me at the moment. To find a print reference to the phra… --- ## [Shlong vs. schwanz](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shlong-vs-schwanz/457662)
**Author:** [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [August 11, 2008, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shlong-vs-schwanz/457662 "2008-08-11T20:32:44Z")
Anent the addenda to Does “in like Flynn” refer to Errol Flynn’s success with women?, my wife’s 1898 Yiddish dictionary (would you believe she’s been translating an operetta?) says expressly that schwanz can mean either.… --- ## [The eternal aluminium foil question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-eternal-aluminium-foil-question/459280)
**Author:** [@jimipresley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimipresley)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 11, 2008, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-eternal-aluminium-foil-question/459280 "2008-08-11T18:58:30Z")
Dear Cecil I read with great interest your synopsis of the shiny side in, shiny side out debate as this has always been a subject of contention between myself and my peers. Another related question: As a heroin user for… --- ## [Silver gender](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-gender/457796)
**Author:** [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [August 11, 2008, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-gender/457796 "2008-08-11T03:58:05Z")
Anent QUESTIONS WE’RE STILL THINKING ABOUT, my wife has a report. When I was a child, I read (probably in Jack and Jill magazine) a poem whose purpose was to teach children how to properly set a table. It did this by … --- ## [Yellow pee](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yellow-pee/457105)
**Author:** [@mattrandom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mattrandom)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [August 10, 2008, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yellow-pee/457105 "2008-08-10T19:04:54Z")
Matt Craver’s essay on why pee is yellow doesn’t address the vitamin effect - when you take certain vitamins, your pee becomes almost fluorescent. What causes that? I assume it’s not that vitamins cause massive instant… --- ## [Re: How do DJs Mix Songs](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-how-do-djs-mix-songs/458499)
**Author:** [@djjackd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/djjackd)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [August 10, 2008, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-how-do-djs-mix-songs/458499 "2008-08-10T18:51:51Z")
SDStaff Rico writes a fine summery of song mixing , but there’s one omission that I would consider an error. Rico states, “… the turntables you’re using have two crucial features. One is a speed control, … The other is … --- ## [Prostitution: which party committing the crime?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-which-party-committing-the-crime/459341)
**Author:** [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [August 10, 2008, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostitution-which-party-committing-the-crime/459341 "2008-08-10T15:51:04Z")
Re Prostitution: Is the woman committing the crime by selling herself or is the man committing the crime by paying for the service? I just wanted to note that there is a letter in the Reader with some objections to the … --- ## [Why were dinosaurs so big?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-were-dinosaurs-so-big/457713)
**Author:** [@emeryemery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/emeryemery)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [August 9, 2008, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-were-dinosaurs-so-big/457713 "2008-08-09T05:44:35Z")
Cecil, Back in 1994 someone asked if gravity might have been a contributing factor in the mammoth size of some dinosaurs and you responded; Cecil replies: We have two questions here, Andrew–the one you asked, and the … --- ## [What did people in the 1900s call the decade in which they lived?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-people-in-the-1900s-call-the-decade-in-which-they-lived/458554)
**Author:** [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2008, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-people-in-the-1900s-call-the-decade-in-which-they-lived/458554 "2008-08-08T06:27:10Z")
What did people in the 1900s call the decade in which they lived? At the end of the column, after concluding that the people at the turn of the 20th century were forced into circumlocutions to describe their decade and … --- ## [16th Amendment](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/16th-amendment/459234)
**Author:** [@ktwolff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ktwolff)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2008, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/16th-amendment/459234 "2008-08-08T05:07:23Z")
Cecil, I want to thank you for the information on the 16th amendment authorizing taxes. I have an aquaintance that tried to argue the same points some other people in your column have made and he ended up serving 10 y… --- ## [Lighting Rod Conclusion - Confirmation Bias?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lighting-rod-conclusion-confirmation-bias/458481)
**Author:** [@nd\_n8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nd_n8)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [August 7, 2008, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lighting-rod-conclusion-confirmation-bias/458481 "2008-08-07T19:37:25Z")
Link to today’s column about Lightning Rods Ok, my take on today’s article is that the efficency of lightning rods falls into the SDMB/GD’s legendary Confirmation Bias. There are: \[QUOTE=Cecil\] …no control group, no … --- ## [Salvador Dali and Walt Disney collaboration](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvador-dali-and-walt-disney-collaboration/458811)
**Author:** [@Destino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Destino)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [August 5, 2008, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvador-dali-and-walt-disney-collaboration/458811 "2008-08-05T03:17:50Z")
I am not sure if this has been mentioned yet in the discussion boards, but just in case it hasn’t I’d like to bring this to your attention. In this Staff Report from 2001, http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mdali.html … --- ## [Exploding golf balls...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exploding-golf-balls/458764)
**Author:** [@mwbrooks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mwbrooks)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [August 4, 2008, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exploding-golf-balls/458764 "2008-08-04T16:54:22Z")
In his classic Does the center of a golf ball contain a deadly poison?, Cecil mentions the myth that golf balls contain compressed air, and will explode if you cut into them. When I was a kid, I got one of my dad’s liqu… --- ## [Lightning Up](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lightning-up/458645)
**Author:** [@Little\_Brother\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Brother_1)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [August 3, 2008, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lightning-up/458645 "2008-08-03T22:41:30Z")
\[I apologize if I’m incorrect to post this as a new thread here, since it’s basically an “Ask Cecil” comment prompted by this topic; I trust this will be moved to the proper location, if so.\] The purpose of a lightning… --- ## [Hypothetical Cash Tracking, Other Spying Paranoia](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hypothetical-cash-tracking-other-spying-paranoia/444063)
**Author:** [@pingnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pingnak)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [August 3, 2008, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hypothetical-cash-tracking-other-spying-paranoia/444063 "2008-08-03T17:19:29Z")
Here’s a way that cash could be used to track you, based on some basic assumptions. Money is scanned (OCR, etc.) at the bank, and the serial numbers are reported to a central database. Identity of depositor is maintain… --- ## [Gasoline will work in a diesel engine](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gasoline-will-work-in-a-diesel-engine/458661)
**Author:** [@bgirton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bgirton)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [August 3, 2008, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gasoline-will-work-in-a-diesel-engine/458661 "2008-08-03T03:24:50Z")
Re:http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mdieselvsgas.html I believe that gasoline will work in a diesel engine. Gasoline should autoignite just fine when a diesel injector sprays it into a combustion chamber at temperat… --- ## [The eye of the needle](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-eye-of-the-needle/456905)
**Author:** [@Blessedforeverandever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blessedforeverandever)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [August 3, 2008, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-eye-of-the-needle/456905 "2008-08-03T00:16:14Z")
“Jesus was referring to a certain gate in Jerusalem called Needle’s Eye…Although there in no historical evidence that such a gate ever existed.” The Hard Sayings of Jesus, F.F. Bruce; pg. 181 “Zonderzon’s Pictorial Bib… --- ## [Don't feed a cold or starve a fever?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-feed-a-cold-or-starve-a-fever/458159)
**Author:** [@lara1966](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lara1966)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 1, 2008, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-feed-a-cold-or-starve-a-fever/458159 "2008-08-01T12:14:59Z")
I am interested in the immune system for my own health reasons, and read about the immune system and eating, from various books by known authors and medical web sites. Essentially, when one has a lot of food, particular… --- ## [Aliens](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aliens/456374)
**Author:** [@Darky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darky)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [August 1, 2008, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aliens/456374 "2008-08-01T00:25:12Z")
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a4\_040.html Since I saw the movie Independence Day (years ago) this have made me curious. Maybe the government keeps something secret, wich is both exciting and scary at the same tim… --- ## [Equal rights for condiments and cutlery](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/equal-rights-for-condiments-and-cutlery/457998)
**Author:** [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [July 29, 2008, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/equal-rights-for-condiments-and-cutlery/457998 "2008-07-29T02:35:32Z")
I am very glad to read that Cecil supports equal marriage rights for condiments and cutlery. I can only hope that among his silverware there are no pairs of wiseacre straight fish forks who decide to waltz into city hal… --- ## [Regarding cats and mice](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-cats-and-mice/457865)
**Author:** [@RackyRat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RackyRat)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [July 27, 2008, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-cats-and-mice/457865 "2008-07-27T00:57:38Z")
I just read a column from the 1st feb 2008 about cats and mice and their natural enmity, and the conclusion is that cats hunt a lot of mice because of instinct and availability (more or less).This wasn’t mentioned but I … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=117) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=119)