# Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=313 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 314 --- ## [PLEASE READ](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-read/242)
**Author:** [@JillGat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JillGat)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [October 11, 1999, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-read/242 "1999-10-11T03:45:00Z")
If you start a thread to discuss a new or classic column of Cecil’s, please add a link to the column, so others may read it. Here is the link to the UBB page, which will show you how to copy a link, how to quote, use ita… --- ## [perfect pitch](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perfect-pitch/241)
**Author:** [@metroshane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/metroshane)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [October 10, 1999, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/perfect-pitch/241 "1999-10-10T15:38:00Z")
I graduated from the University of North Texas, famous for it’s jazz program, and i remember reading an article in the school newspaper about a girl who had perfect pitch. As far as being cosmically connected to the univ… --- ## [Saluting when boarding naval vessels](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saluting-when-boarding-naval-vessels/1231)
**Author:** [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [October 9, 1999, 9:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saluting-when-boarding-naval-vessels/1231 "1999-10-09T09:23:00Z")
I do have to tell you of an error in the article about saluting the ensign. When comming aboard, you salute the national ensign then the Petty Officer of the Watch (POOW) NOT the OOD (officer of the deck) or JOOD (junior… --- ## [menstruation & the moon](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/menstruation-the-moon/239)
**Author:** [@k.monahan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k.monahan)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [October 9, 1999, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/menstruation-the-moon/239 "1999-10-09T05:54:00Z")
it may seem way out in left field, but i remember hearing that an experiment was conducted wherein women were isolated from artificial light (i.e., for the purposes of the experiment they used sunlight, skylights inside,… --- ## [Car sales being inelastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-sales-being-inelastic/1226)
**Author:** [@ganley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ganley)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [October 9, 1999, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-sales-being-inelastic/1226 "1999-10-09T05:42:00Z")
I hate to be a pedant (actually, that’s a lie; I love to be a pedant), but “inelastic,” as it was used to refer to car sales, does not mean sales aren’t seasonal. Rather, it would mean that sales don’t change much in res… --- ## [Cajun Lady](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cajun-lady/1230)
**Author:** [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [October 9, 1999, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cajun-lady/1230 "1999-10-09T05:20:00Z")
One addendum to the comments on the Allman Brothers Band question http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mallman.html : I doubt PC has anything to do it. They still play “Mississippi Queen” by Mountain, which has the phras… --- ## [Boolean logic in computers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boolean-logic-in-computers/1228)
**Author:** [@Akatsukami](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akatsukami)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [October 9, 1999, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boolean-logic-in-computers/1228 "1999-10-09T00:34:00Z")
In “How do computers work?”, SDSTAFF Karl makes a minor error when says, Actually, NOT gates are superfluous. NAND is (~(A&B)). If both inputs of the gate are connected to the same source, however, the gate will compu… --- ## [Parthenogensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parthenogensis/240)
**Author:** [@Kyberneticist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyberneticist)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [October 9, 1999, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parthenogensis/240 "1999-10-09T00:12:00Z")
Concerning Straight Dope article: http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1\_059.html New Scientist recently had an interesting article on the difficulties with parthenogenic birth, which bears some relation to the questi… --- ## [Mississippi river delta](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mississippi-river-delta/1227)
**Author:** [@torq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/torq)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [October 8, 1999, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mississippi-river-delta/1227 "1999-10-08T22:10:00Z")
I thought maybe I was misremembering this, so I checked on MapQuest. While the Mississippi river forms most of the western border of the state of Mississippi, it doesn’t really flow THROUGH the state (oxbows and other q… --- ## [Lottery Numbers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lottery-numbers/238)
**Author:** [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [October 8, 1999, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lottery-numbers/238 "1999-10-08T03:57:00Z")
Last year when I was living in Arizona, somebody figured out that the computer program that selected the numbers for the daily pick three game had a glitch that prevented the number 9 from being generated. So, for about… --- ## [UHF and other frequencies](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uhf-and-other-frequencies/1225)
**Author:** [@dqa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dqa)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [October 7, 1999, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uhf-and-other-frequencies/1225 "1999-10-07T21:28:00Z")
You state, “Below the assigned frequencies, you have Extremely Low Frequency from 30-300 hertz, used mainly for submarine communication, and the frequency from 300-3000 Hz, which was thankfully declared unsuitable for … --- ## [Cherries and milk](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cherries-and-milk/236)
**Author:** [@mle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mle)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [October 7, 1999, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cherries-and-milk/236 "1999-10-07T03:29:00Z")
One of my favorite dishes is sour cherry soup with sour cream. If eating cherries with milk were fatal, there really wouldn’t be many Hungarians running around these days… :wink: --- ## [Consecutive MVPs](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consecutive-mvps/235)
**Author:** [@JillGat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JillGat)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [October 6, 1999, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consecutive-mvps/235 "1999-10-06T22:59:00Z")
In fact, all nine positions are not covered by everyone who has won consecutive MVP awards in Major League Baseball. Dale Murphy played center field, as did Mickey Mantle, and I’m quite sure Roger Maris played right fiel… --- ## [Munchkin commiting suicide in "The Wizard of Oz"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/munchkin-commiting-suicide-in-the-wizard-of-oz/234)
**Author:** [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [October 6, 1999, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/munchkin-commiting-suicide-in-the-wizard-of-oz/234 "1999-10-06T20:42:00Z")
Column: Can a munchkin be seen committing suicide in “The Wizard of Oz”? Is there any pictures to prove that it was a large bird in the background and not a hanging munchkin? --- ## [What's this about the Millemium?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-about-the-millemium/233)
**Author:** [@ghalen\_SutaI\_muchwI](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ghalen_SutaI_muchwI)\ **Replies:** 41\ **Last updated:** [October 6, 1999, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-about-the-millemium/233 "1999-10-06T16:18:00Z")
OK, I guess I just don’t see where and how people can say that the millennium starts at the end of 2001. Where do the come up with this. I don’t know how to best put this, so it is understood. But here goes. The vert… --- ## [The Celestine Propehcy](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celestine-propehcy/1222)
**Author:** [@Hungry\_Boy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hungry_Boy)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [October 6, 1999, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celestine-propehcy/1222 "1999-10-06T14:02:00Z")
Okay, I don’t know much about the Celestine Prophecy but I do have a question about the J.R.R. Tolkien analogy. I have heard that he spent his latter years actually believing in Hobbits, Middle Earth, etc. and spent a lo… --- ## [Renumbering years for A.D.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renumbering-years-for-a-d/232)
**Author:** [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [October 5, 1999, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renumbering-years-for-a-d/232 "1999-10-05T00:09:00Z")
Re: http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3\_376.html There wasn’t any real renumbering to be done when the BC/AD system was introduced. For some mysterious reason, the idea of simply numbering years in order seems to ha… --- ## [left-handed animals](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-handed-animals/231)
**Author:** [@staypuft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/staypuft)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [October 4, 1999, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-handed-animals/231 "1999-10-04T23:39:00Z")
There is some sort of crab with one claw that dwarfs the other one by about five times. I think the small claw is the preferred one (for dexterity, obviously not for crushing things), but I can’t remember. I saw this on … --- ## [Menses and Moon - No Coincidence?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/menses-and-moon-no-coincidence/230)
**Author:** [@Smiller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smiller)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [October 4, 1999, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/menses-and-moon-no-coincidence/230 "1999-10-04T13:36:00Z")
I would like to see more reasearch done on the answer given to the Menses/Moon question. I remember reading an article in a magazine a year or so ago about continuing to take birth control pills and only menstruating eve… --- ## [Tontines and M\*A\*S\*H](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tontines-and-m-a-s-h/228)
**Author:** [@Marvel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvel)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [October 2, 1999, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tontines-and-m-a-s-h/228 "1999-10-02T05:57:00Z")
RE: the article on tontines found at http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3\_172.html This made me think of the tontine Yanks would be most familiar with, and that is the one mentioned on an episode of MAS\*H many years … --- ## [Hard Rock Cafe](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hard-rock-cafe/1221)
**Author:** [@BigPoppa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigPoppa)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [October 1, 1999, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hard-rock-cafe/1221 "1999-10-01T04:37:00Z")
Fahgedaboutit - the original Hard Rock Cafe is in Empire, Colorado (west of Denver). It has been open, under the same name, for about 100 years. It was named “Hard Rock” for the local mining style, rather than a musical … --- ## [Lilith](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lilith/1220)
**Author:** [@JillGat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JillGat)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [September 29, 1999, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lilith/1220 "1999-09-29T05:57:00Z")
I can’t remember where I heard this, but besides the three explanations listed, I’ve also heard that when Lilith was created from the dust, God allowed Adam to watch the process and he was so disgusted by it that he refu… --- ## [Epicanthic folds](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epicanthic-folds/227)
**Author:** [@jawa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jawa)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [September 28, 1999, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/epicanthic-folds/227 "1999-09-28T14:59:00Z")
I’ve been searching for evolutionary advantages of the epicanthic fold. As a regular reader I was surprised to find a link to one of the columns that I apparently missed (straightdope.com/classics/a2\_305a.html) What puzz… --- ## [Racing Counter-Clockwise](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/racing-counter-clockwise/226)
**Author:** [@JillGat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JillGat)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [September 28, 1999, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/racing-counter-clockwise/226 "1999-09-28T14:22:00Z")
Here is my theory as to why races tend to be run counter-clockwise: Those of us with left to right written language like to see things move left to right. When a race is run counter-clockwise, the near side of the track… --- ## [Pufnstuf a dragon?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pufnstuf-a-dragon/225)
**Author:** [@Alphagene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alphagene)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [September 27, 1999, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pufnstuf-a-dragon/225 "1999-09-27T18:26:00Z")
I had no idea that giant melon-headed guy was supposed to be a dragon until Cecil mentioned it. http://www.straightdope.com/columns/990827.html I mean look at him! ( http://www.jackwild.com/puf.htm – note the groovy bo… --- ## [Odds - Siblings](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odds-siblings/224)
**Author:** [@GentDave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GentDave)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [September 26, 1999, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odds-siblings/224 "1999-09-26T21:48:00Z")
In the problem with the siblings, there are many levels to it. The problem was: Given 2 children in a family, and you know one of them is female, what are the odds that the other is male. The answer was 2/3, not the init… --- ## [BOARD POSTERS, PLEASE READ](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/board-posters-please-read/223)
**Author:** [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [September 25, 1999, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/board-posters-please-read/223 "1999-09-25T12:02:00Z")
If you are responding to a Straight Dope column, which you should be if you are posting on this board, please add a link to the column on which you are commenting. The way you do that is to copy the url onto the page and… --- ## [Cecil cheats.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cecil-cheats/222)
**Author:** [@Kyberneticist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyberneticist)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [September 23, 1999, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cecil-cheats/222 "1999-09-23T21:18:00Z")
In the article entitled “Can a piece of paper be folded in half no more than seven times?”: http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a910705.html Cecil, with the help of Ms. Adams, tests that old challenge. Unfortunately,… --- ## [Minor question on "Where does the candle wax go?"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-question-on-where-does-the-candle-wax-go/221)
**Author:** [@Kyberneticist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyberneticist)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [September 23, 1999, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-question-on-where-does-the-candle-wax-go/221 "1999-09-23T07:22:00Z")
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3\_351a.html In here, besides explaining the some of our grade 12/13 chemistry and biology, Cecil claims Faraday used to demonstrate burning produced water by holding a flask of ice … --- ## [Microsoft Hearts](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-hearts/220)
**Author:** [@LemonGrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LemonGrl)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [September 23, 1999, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-hearts/220 "1999-09-23T04:19:00Z")
i know that there’s a cheat code in the game hearts where you can see the other players cards, but i don’t know what it is. if anyone could tell me i’d be happy. also, has anyone else noticed that the computer cheats? i a… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=312) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/comments-on-cecils-columns-staff-reports/7.md?page=314)