# Ann Landers, disseminating urban legends from beyond the grave **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 12, 2002, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690 "2002-07-12T21:22:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/1 "2002-07-12T21:22:58Z")
You may be aware that Ann Landers’ syndicate has a backlog of columns that will last for I think another couple of weeks. Today, the 12th of July, they published a [this letter and a reply.](http://www.creators.com/lifestyle_show.cfm?columnsName=ala) > [@](#): > > Dear Ann Landers: Several friends have e-mailed me a warning about microwave ovens, and I’m not sure if the information is true. The story is about a young man who boiled a cup of water in the microwave. When he removed it, the cup looked fine, but when he looked more closely, the water exploded in his face and burned him. Please tell me if this can really happen. – Scared in California > > Dear California: Theoretically, this can happen, although it would be a rare occurrence. According to my research, water can become “superheated” in a microwave without forming bubbles. However, when the cup is moved, the bubbles form, and the liquid can “explode.” To prevent this, put a wooden spoon or stick in the cup when boiling it, or let the cup sit in the microwave for at least 30 seconds before removing it. NEVER put your face or hand directly above the cup. God almighty! It just figures, now that it’s too late for her to be taken to task over it, we’d find out she had one more UL up her sleeve. “When he looked more closely”. Who the hell **looks** at a cup of water? And they say “young man”, which implies that the letter writer is not young. Snopes! Replace AL’s column with Snopes! Don’t take your scary e-mails to an advice column, take them to Snopes! ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/2 "2002-07-12T21:31:28Z")
Cecil addressed this, too: [http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmicroboil.html](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmicroboil.html) ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/3 "2002-07-12T21:33:03Z")
Did you bother to check Snopes? This _can_ happen, although rarely. So Landers was right. [http://www.snopes.com/science/microwav.htm](http://www.snopes.com/science/microwav.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/4 "2002-07-12T21:52:13Z")
Cripes, as if fighting ignorance wasn’t hard enough already, now we’ve got undead ignorance, too? That’s it, I’m giving up and joining the Flat Earth Society. ---
**Author:** ![Kamandi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5daacb/32.png) [@Kamandi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamandi)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/5 "2002-07-12T21:52:30Z")
What’s wrong with Ann’s advice, **Rilchiam**? It looks to be perfectly in line with what Snopes and HowStuffWorks say. Incidentally, this has happened to me twice. Once with a regular old coffee cup (bloop! no big deal), and once with a sake bottle with a narrow neck, so the boiling sake burst out quite forcefully, burning my face. Not badly (good thing I wear glasses), but it taught me to keep my face away from the opening. And to not heat sake in such a vessel. ---
**Author:** ![BoBettie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@BoBettie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BoBettie)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/6 "2002-07-12T21:56:47Z")
I had it happen when I boiled water for hot chocolate. I took it out of the microwave, took a heaping spoonful of cocoa and put it in, and BAM- hot water and chocolate everywhere. It didn’t “explode”, per se, but it did boil right over- when all was said and done there was only about 1/4 of the water left. It most definately can happen, thus the “Theoretically, this can happen, although it would be a rare occurrence” Makes sense to me. Zette ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/7 "2002-07-12T22:02:14Z")
Oh, phooey. All right, it can happen. ---
**Author:** ![Mockingbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c68b51/32.png) [@Mockingbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mockingbird)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/8 "2002-07-12T22:06:12Z")
A thousand lashes with a wet noodle from a dead woman for you. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/9 "2002-07-12T22:51:20Z")
I saw a local news report where they actually made this happen. Probably took a buttload of tries, if they didn’t fake it to begin with, but it was quite impressive. ---
**Author:** ![Wikkit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c0e974/32.png) [@Wikkit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wikkit)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/10 "2002-07-12T23:59:50Z")
It’s pretty easy to do. Just microwave the water in a mug until it boils, let it cool a bit, then microwave it again. Then either smack it on the countertop wearing gloves of some sort, or just dump some nice nucleation points into it, like sugar or cocoa mix. ---
**Author:** ![Michael\_Ellis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/977dab/32.png) [@Michael\_Ellis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael_Ellis)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/11 "2002-07-13T02:36:27Z")
Or use a container made out of highly unstable explosives. ---
**Author:** ![Dragonblink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Dragonblink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dragonblink)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/12 "2002-07-13T08:28:34Z")
I dunno, I’ve always thought “don’t stick your face over steaming hot liquids you just microwaved” was a good rule to live by … 🙂 – Dragonblink, who is forced to admit that she gave herself a third-degree burn on the roof of her mouth from the cheese on a microwaved enchilada ---
**Author:** ![whitetho](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whitetho/32/1059_2.png) [@whitetho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whitetho)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 10:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/13 "2002-07-13T10:00:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by JuanitaTech \* > \*\*Cecil addressed this, too: [http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmicroboil.html](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmicroboil.html) \*\* Actually, “SDSTAFF Dave” wrote the linked review. As noted at the bottom, “Staff Reports are researched and written by members of the Straight Dope Science Advisory Board, Cecil’s online auxiliary. Although the SDSAB does its best, these articles are edited by Ed Zotti, not Cecil, so accuracywise you’d better keep your fingers crossed.” Most of these reviews are quite good, but I know of one in particular that contained many errors, and when I pointed them out the author couldn’t be bothered to correct them. So it is a case of “reader be wary” and “trust but verify”. ---
**Author:** ![Beagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Beagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beagle)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/14 "2002-07-13T19:21:26Z")
Yeah, my water explodes occasionally too. (usually reheating the morning coffee) Of course, I am a Floridian. The normal laws of physics and nature simply do not apply down here. Note to God: Thanks for the 28 straight days of rain - um, can you make it stop now? ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2002, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/15 "2002-07-14T01:02:02Z")
**Kamandi** , just a tip on enjoying alcohol: sake should only be warmed to body temperature. [sub] **Disclaimer:** I use the “should” to mean “according to people who claim to know a lot about sake, this produces the best taste.” If boiling produces a flavor or experience you particularly enjoy, then please ignore my rude intrusion. Cheers![/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2002, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/16 "2002-07-14T01:56:42Z")
It happened to me for the first time in my life last month, when I was heating water in a very smooth-walled measuring cup in the microwave. I took it out and put some sauce mix into it, and instantly it boiled over and roiled over the edge of the cup, almost scalding me. It can, and does, happen. I would have bet $100 that it couldn’t happen in my microwave, and I would have been a poorer woman as a result. ---
**Author:** ![bdgr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a87d85/32.png) [@bdgr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bdgr)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2002, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/17 "2002-07-14T06:26:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Beagle \* > \*\*Note to God: Thanks for the 28 straight days of rain - um, can you make it stop now? \*\* Have you built that gopherwood boat he asked for? ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2002, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/18 "2002-07-14T14:04:40Z")
It’s never happend to me personally, but I suspect that’s because my cookingware generally isn’t clean enough. Dirt and filth offers too many points of nucleation, I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![Kamandi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5daacb/32.png) [@Kamandi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamandi)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2002, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/19 "2002-07-15T17:08:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Sublight \* > **Kamandi, just a tip on enjoying alcohol: sake should only be warmed to body temperature.** Yeah, I knew that. I went a little overboard with the nuking on that occasion. It was my first time heating sake at home. ---
**Author:** ![JohnBckWLD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d6d6ee/32.png) [@JohnBckWLD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnBckWLD)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2002, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690/20 "2002-07-15T17:44:05Z")
I guess her syndicator doesn’t archieve her advice columns. Not realizing today wasn’t the 12th, I started reading the OP, clicked the link and right there in the center of my screen: > [@](#): > > Let John know that masturbating privately shows more respect for his developing body. I start thinkin’ to myself, wait a second, somethings wrong. Who told Ann Landers about my occasional webcam diversions and how the hell did my antics become urban legend fodder? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ann-landers-disseminating-urban-legends-from-beyond-the-grave/118690.md?page=2)