# Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=299 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 300 --- ## [The earth's weight.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-earths-weight/1014)
**Author:** [@chrisooya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisooya)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [March 27, 2000, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-earths-weight/1014 "2000-03-27T19:04:00Z")
OK, in cecil’s thing about whether the earth was getting heavier or lighter, he gave some estimates of the earth’s weight, but how can the earth have a weight. We know that “weight” is really just the gravitational force… --- ## [Legal Tender](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legal-tender/1013)
**Author:** [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [March 27, 2000, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legal-tender/1013 "2000-03-27T03:08:00Z")
The following is from the the Bureau of Engraving and Printing website (http://www.bep.treas.gov/fact13.htm): Section 102 of the Coinage Act of 1965 (Title 31 United States Code, Section 392) provides in part: " All … --- ## [Why our eyes close shut when we sneeze](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-our-eyes-close-shut-when-we-sneeze/1012)
**Author:** [@\_PromQueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_PromQueen)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [March 26, 2000, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-our-eyes-close-shut-when-we-sneeze/1012 "2000-03-26T23:03:00Z")
In a column about wether your eyeballs will pop out if you leave them open while you sneeze, Uncle Cecil said that your eyes automatically close shut if you sneeze because it’s a reflex, yet it supports no purpose. I rem… --- ## [WHO INVENTED THEM????](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-invented-them/1010)
**Author:** [@Banana\_tree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banana_tree)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 26, 2000, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-invented-them/1010 "2000-03-26T21:02:00Z")
you know what I find weird? who invented the simplest things, the best things that ever happened, like TV? who invented TV? sure, everybody know whos invented The Continental Drift Theory and all that junk, but Who Inve… --- ## [How to become the Prince of Wales](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-become-the-prince-of-wales/1005)
**Author:** [@The\_Baroness\_of\_Winnipeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Baroness_of_Winnipeg)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [March 26, 2000, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-become-the-prince-of-wales/1005 "2000-03-26T17:13:00Z")
There’s this website called Internet Royalty & Nobility. It’s http://www.internetroyalty.com/ The Prince of Wales hasn’y been bought yet, check it out! --- ## [Why do some dogs walk by moving both legs on one side of the body at the same time?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-dogs-walk-by-moving-both-legs-on-one-side-of-the-body-at-the-same-time/999)
**Author:** [@Banana\_tree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banana_tree)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [March 25, 2000, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-dogs-walk-by-moving-both-legs-on-one-side-of-the-body-at-the-same-time/999 "2000-03-25T19:57:00Z")
I was reading that Why do some dogs walk by moving both legs on one side of the body at the same time, while others use diagonal pairs? I know something about that, sort of… but anyways, Horses trot and pace too, some b… --- ## [high colonics](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-colonics/1640)
**Author:** [@eraymond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eraymond)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [March 25, 2000, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-colonics/1640 "2000-03-25T16:22:00Z")
I have frequently wonder what, exactly, a high colonic is. Is there, for example, a low colonic. I know it has something to do with new age health and such, but exactly what it is remains a mystery to me. If anyone could… --- ## [KSC vs. Cape Canaveral](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ksc-vs-cape-canaveral/997)
**Author:** [@hflathead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hflathead)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 25, 2000, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ksc-vs-cape-canaveral/997 "2000-03-25T06:15:00Z")
Not to second guess Cecil, but I wasn’t sure the question was answered completly. As you stated there are 2 sides to this facility. The space and range side on the Atlantic Ocean, housing the original rocket facilities i… --- ## [Neil Armstrong didn't screw up...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neil-armstrong-didnt-screw-up/996)
**Author:** [@magnus205](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magnus205)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [March 25, 2000, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neil-armstrong-didnt-screw-up/996 "2000-03-25T02:48:00Z")
Walter Cronkite did! That’s right. I recently unearthed cassette tapes my father made of the moon landing. About 8 hours or so from pre-landing to well into the first EVA. Cronkite and some commentator are discussing w… --- ## [dinos=birds](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dinos-birds/993)
**Author:** [@Danielinthewolvesden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danielinthewolvesden)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [March 25, 2000, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dinos-birds/993 "2000-03-25T02:04:00Z")
Related to another thread, I believe Cece made a small boo-boo. Of course it was not in the main thread, but… In “Triumph…” pg 215, “-in short, birds are dinosaurs.” OK, let us accept as a given that birds did descend fr… --- ## [Battlefield horse statues](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlefield-horse-statues/992)
**Author:** [@RifleChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RifleChick)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [March 24, 2000, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlefield-horse-statues/992 "2000-03-24T21:54:00Z")
I just wanted to comment that although at one point there may have been a system to figuring out whether or not someone was killed or injured by the position of the horse’s hooves, I seem to recall quite recently an arti… --- ## [the whole nine yards](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-whole-nine-yards/982)
**Author:** [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [March 24, 2000, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-whole-nine-yards/982 "2000-03-24T20:17:00Z")
I cannot verify this, but a veteran I trust informed me that “the whole nine yards” refers to 27 foot cartridge belts used in WWII aircraft. Any truth? --- ## [Counterfeit protection on money](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/counterfeit-protection-on-money/977)
**Author:** [@Zorblak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zorblak)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 23, 2000, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/counterfeit-protection-on-money/977 "2000-03-23T04:52:00Z")
Two comments on the column about counterfeiting money: The microprint which reads “The United States of America” on series 1990 and later bills is most definitely readable by the naked eye. I have a 1995 $5 bill in fr… --- ## [Weather prediction](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weather-prediction/968)
**Author:** [@mommyjo2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mommyjo2)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [March 23, 2000, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weather-prediction/968 "2000-03-23T00:51:00Z")
I just read Cecil’s column on how weathermen calculate the percent chance of rain. We have a different way of doing it down here in Texas. A 40% chance of rain means, there were 5 people in the weather center, and 2 of t… --- ## [Could President Clinton run for a third term?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-president-clinton-run-for-a-third-term/1639)
**Author:** [@michaelshopkins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/michaelshopkins)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [March 22, 2000, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-president-clinton-run-for-a-third-term/1639 "2000-03-22T14:21:00Z")
On December 6 mailbag you correctly note that Clinton cannot run for a third term. But then you say: \>Now, there are always ways to find \>loopholes. For instance, the amendment \>doesn’t say anything about “serving” … --- ## [Are humans still evolving?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-humans-still-evolving/894)
**Author:** [@Healym](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Healym)\ **Replies:** 93\ **Last updated:** [March 22, 2000, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-humans-still-evolving/894 "2000-03-22T06:00:00Z")
Cecil didn’t do justice to this one, unfortunately. He discussed it mostly on the topic of natural selection, but that isn’t the only force of evolution. There is also “artificial selection” ie: hybridization, domesticat… --- ## [time travel via wormhole question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-travel-via-wormhole-question/888)
**Author:** [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [March 22, 2000, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-travel-via-wormhole-question/888 "2000-03-22T01:53:00Z")
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a4\_181.html Now let me go over the theroy. pluck a wormhole out of the subatomic foam enlarge the openings to usable size. take one end and accelerate it to a speed near light. if … --- ## [Dinosaurs and Treetops](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dinosaurs-and-treetops/867)
**Author:** [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Replies:** 63\ **Last updated:** [March 22, 2000, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dinosaurs-and-treetops/867 "2000-03-22T01:01:00Z")
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a4\_088.html I recall seeing something recently to the effect that the sauropods couldn’t have lifted their necks up to allow treetop feeding. The scientist who postulated this had de… --- ## [Is the earth getting heavier or lighter?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-earth-getting-heavier-or-lighter/864)
**Author:** [@lswote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lswote)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [March 21, 2000, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-earth-getting-heavier-or-lighter/864 "2000-03-21T22:08:00Z")
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3\_355.html Part of Cecil’s response to this question is to explain how the weight of more people in the world hasn’t increased the weight of earth at all but people eat vegetation… --- ## [Passing a small-pox laden blanket](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/passing-a-small-pox-laden-blanket/863)
**Author:** [@bizerta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizerta)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 21, 2000, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/passing-a-small-pox-laden-blanket/863 "2000-03-21T17:07:00Z")
In a recent column, Cecil talked about Europeans occasionally giving a small-pox infected blanket to Native Americans. I thought that the small-pox virus was transmitted only by direct human contact. How long can it surv… --- ## [the whole spaghetti sucking thing](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-whole-spaghetti-sucking-thing/854)
**Author:** [@Phaath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phaath)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [March 21, 2000, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-whole-spaghetti-sucking-thing/854 "2000-03-21T06:58:00Z")
alright i dont know if this has been resolved yet i cant seem to find it but maybe it has, the question about how one can suck spaghetti. it has to be air pressure, the most glaring argument against this was spaghetti is… --- ## [In "Star Trek", what exactly are "star dates"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-star-trek-what-exactly-are-star-dates/860)
**Author:** [@huge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/huge)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [March 21, 2000, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-star-trek-what-exactly-are-star-dates/860 "2000-03-21T06:55:00Z")
(See also http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3\_367.html ) Cecil claims in this article that “During the original series star dates ranged from 1312.4 to 5943.7–a span of 4,600 days, or about twelve and a half ye… --- ## [Pining for the fjords](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pining-for-the-fjords/1637)
**Author:** [@SY](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SY)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [March 21, 2000, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pining-for-the-fjords/1637 "2000-03-21T06:04:00Z")
Regarding your parrot column, you state that if female parrots were shown to be as talented as male parrots at mimicry, that would disprove the hypothesis that mimicry was evolved as a sex attractant. I don’t believe tha… --- ## [That's MY Question Cecil Answered This Week!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-my-question-cecil-answered-this-week/856)
**Author:** [@jab1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jab1)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [March 20, 2000, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-my-question-cecil-answered-this-week/856 "2000-03-20T21:10:00Z")
www.straightdope.com/columns/000310.htm :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: And now you know why I changed my sig line! I knew more than two weeks ago that Cecil would answer my question because JillG… --- ## [Horse statue comment](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horse-statue-comment/852)
**Author:** [@hussman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hussman)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [March 20, 2000, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horse-statue-comment/852 "2000-03-20T17:34:00Z")
From http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5\_074.html Just a comment about General John Sedgwick, I read in ‘Reader’s Digest Book of Facts’ his reported last words were, “They couldn’t hit an elephant at this dist-” T… --- ## ["Negro Lake"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negro-lake/850)
**Author:** [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [March 20, 2000, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/negro-lake/850 "2000-03-20T17:30:00Z")
Cecil’s newspaper column this week http://www.straightdope.com/columns/000317.html Is “squaw” an obscene insult? (17-Mar-2000) , he responds a question about a proposal in the Maine legislature seeking to ban the term … --- ## [Can helicopters do loops and rolls?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-helicopters-do-loops-and-rolls/1633)
**Author:** [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [March 20, 2000, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-helicopters-do-loops-and-rolls/1633 "2000-03-20T17:05:00Z")
Well, rigid or semi-rigid aside, can any helicopters take off, flip upside-down and fly upside-down for any lengths of time? My WAG says it can’t be done because the propellers are designed to create lift, and I assume … --- ## [The other word introduced by E.C. Segar](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-other-word-introduced-by-e-c-segar/848)
**Author:** [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [March 20, 2000, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-other-word-introduced-by-e-c-segar/848 "2000-03-20T01:38:00Z")
In this week’s column, Cecil (correctly, of course) attributes the origin of the word “Jeep” partly to E.C. Segar, author of the Thimble Theater comic strip (home of Popeye, Olive Oyl, Wimpy, et al.) Segar also intr… --- ## [Calling kitchen chemists](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calling-kitchen-chemists/1632)
**Author:** [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [March 19, 2000, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calling-kitchen-chemists/1632 "2000-03-19T23:05:00Z")
http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mbakingsoda.html I’m not sure what cookbooks our intrepid mailbag person is looking in, but practically every muffin or pancake recipe I’ve ever seen calls for both baking soda and ba… --- ## [AIDS in the bubble](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aids-in-the-bubble/847)
**Author:** [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [March 19, 2000, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aids-in-the-bubble/847 "2000-03-19T20:51:00Z")
I am in complete acceptance of your response to this question, until I reached the final line. “as far as I know, everyone who contracts AIDS dies from it.” I am not a virologist, but I am quite certain that there are … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=298) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=300)