# Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=26 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 27 --- ## [Why haven’t we ever built domed cities?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-haven-t-we-ever-built-domed-cities/729166)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [September 1, 2015, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-haven-t-we-ever-built-domed-cities/729166 "2015-09-01T23:44:04Z")
Why haven’t we ever built domed cities? Short answer: it’s a difficult engineering challenge, it would be very expensive, and would have a lot of drawbacks- but that would have made a pretty uninteresting column. … --- ## [Cell phone GPS capabilities](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-gps-capabilities/728364)
**Author:** [@tonyfop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tonyfop)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2015, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-gps-capabilities/728364 "2015-08-29T15:09:49Z")
Referring to today’s Classic Column: http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2340/does-my-cell-phone-company-keep-track-of-me-wherever-i-go It has all come to fruition. My wife has an app from Michael’s and from K-ma… --- ## [meaning of La Bamba](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaning-of-la-bamba/726861)
**Author:** [@missviscous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missviscous)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2015, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaning-of-la-bamba/726861 "2015-08-29T21:11:32Z")
It’s ultimately a slave song — or a later evolution of one. It is thought to have originated in Veracruz, and Veracruz was a (the?) main Mexican slave port, & later a center of mestizo culture. La Bamba is politics dis… --- ## [Gradual Decrease of Jobs.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gradual-decrease-of-jobs/728453)
**Author:** [@mawil1013](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mawil1013)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2015, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gradual-decrease-of-jobs/728453 "2015-08-29T04:34:30Z")
I will hazard a hypothesis that as America has lost jobs during that period. More and more were forced into a lower economic level which might contribute to more feelings of being dispossessed by this country and an incr… --- ## [Pardes / Paradise](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pardes-paradise/728520)
**Author:** [@Grigalem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grigalem)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2015, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pardes-paradise/728520 "2015-08-29T01:39:27Z")
In Jewish writings, the word pardes, borrowed from the Old Persian, occurs in the Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, and Nehemiah, in each case meaning “park” or “garden”- the original Persian meaning of the word, where it des… --- ## [Coughing on air](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coughing-on-air/728959)
**Author:** [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2015, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coughing-on-air/728959 "2015-08-28T15:17:51Z")
Fun question and I really liked the answer. But I have to add this: Mostly because I was watching that the day it happened and I ended up laughing until I cried. --- ## [Clinking glasses after toast](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clinking-glasses-after-toast/728631)
**Author:** [@hjets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hjets)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clinking-glasses-after-toast/728631 "2015-08-25T12:13:31Z")
I’ve heard or read that clinking glasses was “something for the ear”. When drinking, you taste, smell, see, feel,…clinking gives something to the ear. --- ## [Did Paleolithic Humans Hunt Mammoths to Extinction?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-paleolithic-humans-hunt-mammoths-to-extinction/728424)
**Author:** [@TygerRRT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TygerRRT)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-paleolithic-humans-hunt-mammoths-to-extinction/728424 "2015-08-25T11:15:07Z")
If we place ourselves in the moccasins of those early humans, we can’t fault them. They had no satellite surveillance and so had no idea just how many mammoths wandered the earth. They could only see as far as their hori… --- ## [Is Any One Crime To Blame...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-any-one-crime-to-blame/727230)
**Author:** [@gallant205](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallant205)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [August 23, 2015, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-any-one-crime-to-blame/727230 "2015-08-23T19:23:21Z")
Hello, Cecil and crew. In your story on Crime that published today, in the paragraph just above the Conclusion, your numbers of Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics in America add to 110 percent. :smiley: --- ## [Cecil's column on Preparation H](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cecils-column-on-preparation-h/19)
**Author:** [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [August 23, 2015, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cecils-column-on-preparation-h/19 "2015-08-23T01:16:34Z")
I just have to disseminate my mother’s response to the report that women use Preparation H around their eyes. She said something along the lines of “It makes me wonder where they apply their eyeshadow.” Best regards fro… --- ## [Cause of car sickness](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cause-of-car-sickness/727942)
**Author:** [@Jeanne1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeanne1)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [August 22, 2015, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cause-of-car-sickness/727942 "2015-08-22T23:10:56Z")
In 1921, scientist Robert Barany published an article, explaining how people get motion sickness in automobiles and on trains. It is called “railway nystagmus” or “optokinetic nystagmus.” It results when passengers look… --- ## [Was the QWERTY keyboard purposely designed to slow typists?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-qwerty-keyboard-purposely-designed-to-slow-typists/728332)
**Author:** [@knightjp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/knightjp)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [August 22, 2015, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-qwerty-keyboard-purposely-designed-to-slow-typists/728332 "2015-08-22T19:05:00Z")
Just read Cecil’s article. While there is evidence to say that Dvorak proposes no real significant advantage over QWERTY, users of the alternative layouts will be able to testify otherwise. Only just as long as they are … --- ## [Origin of HIV](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-hiv/594483)
**Author:** [@Craig234](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Craig234)\ **Replies:** 37\ **Last updated:** [August 22, 2015, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-hiv/594483 "2015-08-22T07:47:54Z")
There’s a column on ‘was AIDS man-made’ that addresses a couple topics. There are more. I ran across a book, ‘Dr. Mary’s Monkey’, that purports a large theory about the polio vaccine being found to cause cancer, and a … --- ## [Routine Autopsies](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/routine-autopsies/727854)
**Author:** [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [August 20, 2015, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/routine-autopsies/727854 "2015-08-20T18:51:13Z")
I’ve a couple three observations about the article “Is medical error the third leading cause of death in America?” and a comment extending The Master’s line-of-reasoning. That would mean that 86.4% of patients who died… --- ## [Did the Reagan era USDA really classify ketchup as a vegetable](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-reagan-era-usda-really-classify-ketchup-as-a-vegetable/728321)
**Author:** [@demarke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/demarke)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [August 20, 2015, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-reagan-era-usda-really-classify-ketchup-as-a-vegetable/728321 "2015-08-20T04:46:32Z")
This post is based from Did the Reagan-era USDA really classify ketchup as a vegetable? - The Straight Dope Perhaps of interest is that ketchup and salsa are not the federal government’s first attempts to classify (or r… --- ## [With God as my witness, I thought chickens could fly.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-god-as-my-witness-i-thought-chickens-could-fly/725687)
**Author:** [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Replies:** 54\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-god-as-my-witness-i-thought-chickens-could-fly/725687 "2015-08-18T21:20:22Z")
The currently-posted Staff Report gives a brief explanation for why chickens can’t fly. There’s just one problem: They can. I, personally, have witnessed an angry chicken flying across my mother’s living room. Now, t… --- ## [OK — WHY exactly does a caterpillar morph into a butterfly?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-why-exactly-does-a-caterpillar-morph-into-a-butterfly/725849)
**Author:** [@Nami](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nami)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-why-exactly-does-a-caterpillar-morph-into-a-butterfly/725849 "2015-08-18T13:05:51Z")
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2829/ok-why-exactly-does-a-caterpillar-morph-into-a-butterfly Ok, for this explanation, it’s not possible. Evolution isn’t a designer, it can’t make plans about what it will be a… --- ## [We're No. 6! We're No. 6!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-no-6-were-no-6/727946)
**Author:** [@maxxy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maxxy)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [August 15, 2015, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-no-6-were-no-6/727946 "2015-08-15T21:32:10Z")
In a column about Fifth Third Bank (What gives with Fifth Third Bank? - The Straight Dope), Cecil ruminates on the reason banks would use their names to admit they were late to the game: “We concluded that in the 19th c… --- ## [Stenotype - Court Reporter Machine](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stenotype-court-reporter-machine/727529)
**Author:** [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [August 13, 2015, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stenotype-court-reporter-machine/727529 "2015-08-13T20:18:16Z")
Is this answer due for an update due to technology? How much has reliance on the stenotype been replaced by video and audio recording, and/or speech-to-text technology? (My guess is, not completely but it’s getting ther… --- ## [the whole nine yards](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-whole-nine-yards/527852)
**Author:** [@shuffledigfoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shuffledigfoot)\ **Replies:** 97\ **Last updated:** [August 12, 2015, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-whole-nine-yards/527852 "2015-08-12T21:31:22Z")
I was speaking to a friend’s father who was in the US Army Air Force during WWII. As a gunner of 50cal. machine guns, the ammo was in belts of twenty seven feet (about 350 rounds) or nine yards. When firing the whole be… --- ## [Notes on Stenotype](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/notes-on-stenotype/727521)
**Author:** [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [August 12, 2015, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/notes-on-stenotype/727521 "2015-08-12T19:08:30Z")
Two small points on How does a court reporter machine work?: The Stenotype machine was designed as an improvement on shorthand in all contexts, such as business dictation. Modified Stenotype machines are used for capti… --- ## [Why do cockroaches die on their backs? Hydraulics and gravity!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-cockroaches-die-on-their-backs-hydraulics-and-gravity/727187)
**Author:** [@cahutchins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cahutchins)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [August 6, 2015, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-cockroaches-die-on-their-backs-hydraulics-and-gravity/727187 "2015-08-06T21:10:20Z")
Regarding “Why do cockroaches die on their backs?” I have a simple theory, and I’m prepared to demonstrate it with the most convincing research tool available — a poorly drawn diagram. So we know that insect legs operat… --- ## [Ladyboys in Thailand](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ladyboys-in-thailand/726701)
**Author:** [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [August 6, 2015, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ladyboys-in-thailand/726701 "2015-08-06T01:44:59Z")
Link to this week’s column Haha! I was a little busy this weekend and hadn’t taken the time to check out this week’s new column until someone PMed me to ask if I’d seen it. A pretty good column, but I feel compelled t… --- ## [Boiling water for child birth](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boiling-water-for-child-birth/726591)
**Author:** [@Kitsapian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kitsapian)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [August 1, 2015, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boiling-water-for-child-birth/726591 "2015-08-01T01:59:54Z")
Given your usual thoroughness, I am surprised that you did not mention Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis, a doctor who went mad trying to convince his stubborn colleagues to wash their hands in transit from autopsy tables to birt… --- ## [On the threat of gamma ray bursts](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-the-threat-of-gamma-ray-bursts/724955)
**Author:** [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Replies:** 42\ **Last updated:** [July 31, 2015, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-the-threat-of-gamma-ray-bursts/724955 "2015-07-31T02:47:33Z")
Cecil, in his current article on cosmic threats to Life on Earth, mentions gamma ray bursts as one possible threat, but there’s one very important detail he left out. A nearby gamma ray burst will indeed fry everything … --- ## [Re: How do we know how to pronounce ancient Egyptian?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-how-do-we-know-how-to-pronounce-ancient-egyptian/726018)
**Author:** [@Tron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tron)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [July 29, 2015, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-how-do-we-know-how-to-pronounce-ancient-egyptian/726018 "2015-07-29T10:13:51Z")
How do we know how to pronounce ancient Egyptian? “The ancient Egyptians weren’t the only ones with a glyphic language — the ancient Mayans had one too.” This reminds me of a story I heard regarding Spanish explorers’… --- ## [EXCLUSIVE: First Cecil Adams Revealed](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exclusive-first-cecil-adams-revealed/725641)
**Author:** [@gagegallery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gagegallery)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [July 28, 2015, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exclusive-first-cecil-adams-revealed/725641 "2015-07-28T16:03:23Z")
We didn’t mean to uncover the first Cecil Adams and how The Straight Dope started when we set out to film a documentary about the early days of photography at the Chicago Reader. Watch thisfeaturette to see who was the f… --- ## [The next Ice age has been postponed, or not?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-ice-age-has-been-postponed-or-not/725007)
**Author:** [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Replies:** 86\ **Last updated:** [July 28, 2015, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-ice-age-has-been-postponed-or-not/725007 "2015-07-28T04:13:29Z")
In thisrecent report from Cecil, he says that due to global warming the next ice age has been postponed indefinitely. However, apparently there is a mini ice age going to hit us in 2030 due to solar activity. Thisis o… --- ## [Riggs vs. King](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riggs-vs-king/564542)
**Author:** [@drdean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drdean)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [July 23, 2015, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riggs-vs-king/564542 "2015-07-23T02:04:26Z")
I have to disagree with Una. As a tennis enthusiast who had some personal experience with Bobby Riggs, and recently watching the match in question, I think he took a dive. He may have run out of gas at 55 years old, bu… --- ## [Social Engineering in the Arabi World](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-engineering-in-the-arabi-world/725435)
**Author:** [@Kitsapian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kitsapian)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2015, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-engineering-in-the-arabi-world/725435 "2015-07-19T05:09:58Z")
An interesting side note to what hand you eat with-what hand you wipe with when in the Middle East has to do with the communal eating customs there. In many parts, you sit in a circle around a wide pot of whatever is go… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=25) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=27)