# Has Cecil ever given a wrong answer? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [December 28, 2002, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361 "2002-12-28T14:01:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![hammerbach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@hammerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hammerbach)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2002, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/21 "2002-12-29T21:17:49Z")
[Here’s](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid) the link for the “coffee pitch shift” thread. ---
**Author:** ![maralinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@maralinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maralinn)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2002, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/22 "2002-12-29T21:44:56Z")
This isn’t Cecil’s mistake, but I’ve always been mightily peeved by his not correcting a questioner’s claim that the tunes of “Make 'Em Laugh” and “Be a Clown” are identical : [http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1\_365b.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_365b.html) Do-re-mi (the first three notes of “Be a Clown”) and la-sol-la (the first three notes of “Make 'Em Laugh”) are not identical (nor are many of the rest of the note sequences). ---
**Author:** ![bbeaty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c0e974/32.png) [@bbeaty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bbeaty)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2002, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/23 "2002-12-29T23:34:53Z")
> [@](#): > > Yeah, but I got the same effect with just water (as described in the other thread). I performed an admittedly not-too-rigid experiment. Perhaps you’d be better equipped to make it a bit more rigid. The rising-pitch thing certainly works with hot tap water, but only if the hot water is full of tiny bubbles. Mine sure is (if I fill a bottle with hot water from the faucet, it’s misty white because of the microbubbles.) It’s hard to tell that small amounts of hot water are full of bubbles, since they all pop as soon as they get to the surface. So, add a little dish-detergent to some freshly-poured hot tap water. Then, if any microbubbles are present, they’ll form a thin layer of white froth as they all rise to the surface. No froth means that few bubbles were present. I found out about this because I noticed that cold tap water would “superheat” in a microwave oven and could explode, while hot tap water would boil violently without superheating. The tiny bubbles in the hot tap water were acting as nucleation sites and triggering normal boiling at 100C. I couldn’t see any bubbles in the hot tap water, so I added a bit of detergent to both the hot and the cold. Sure enough, a froth of tiny bubbles slowly collected on the sample of hot tap water, but not on the cold. PS Another Cecil error was “Aluminum-attacking Lasagna”, which turns out NOT to be from acid in the lasagna which eats aluminum, but instead is electrolysis corrosion. The steel pan, salty lasagna, and aluminum foil form a simple battery. Break the circuit somehow and the lasagna cannot burn holes in the aluminum foil anymore. ---
**Author:** ![CzechHistory411](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/94ad74/32.png) [@CzechHistory411](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CzechHistory411)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2002, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/24 "2002-12-30T01:41:27Z")
Suppose Cecil had never gotten a question wrong. Now suppose he answered the question, “Cecil, have you ever gotten a question wrong?” thusly: “Yes.” Would he shave himself? – CH ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2002, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/25 "2002-12-30T01:44:31Z")
Having much studied the subject, I think that Cecil was wrong in regards to Anne Boleyn’s sixth finger. (There’s a thread open on this subject right now called "Anne Boleyn’s Body.) ---
**Author:** ![Blown\_Injected](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a87d85/32.png) [@Blown\_Injected](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blown_Injected)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2002, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/26 "2002-12-30T01:55:31Z")
Not long ago Cecil said something about not being able to see the flame from the alcohol fuel flame in a NASCAR wreck. NASCAR uses, of course, gasoline powered engines. ---
**Author:** ![hammerbach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@hammerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hammerbach)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2002, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/27 "2002-12-30T01:58:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bbeaty \* > \*\*The rising-pitch thing certainly works with hot tap water, but only if the hot water is full of tiny bubbles. Mine sure is (if I fill a bottle with hot water from the faucet, it’s misty white because of the microbubbles.) > > It’s hard to tell that small amounts of hot water are full of bubbles, since they all pop as soon as they get to the surface. So, add a little dish-detergent to some freshly-poured hot tap water. Then, if any microbubbles are present, they’ll form a thin layer of white froth as they all rise to the surface. No froth means that few bubbles were present… \*\* Did you read the thread? ---
**Author:** ![manhattan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manhattan/32/7_2.png) [@manhattan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manhattan)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2002, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/28 "2002-12-30T04:22:07Z")
Off to Comments on Cecil’s Columns. ---
**Author:** ![RM\_Mentock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@RM\_Mentock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RM_Mentock)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2002, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/29 "2002-12-30T08:11:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by aldiboronti \* > \*\*I mean, come on, to err is human, so has the great man ever had to eat his words? \*\* [The question has been asked before](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=74734), and d\*ng it, I still have [some](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=328) [issues](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=100551) with it. Cecil was once criticized for making an arithmetic mistake, and he admitted fault. But he wasn’t wrong in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![slipster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@slipster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slipster)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2002, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/30 "2002-12-30T21:48:38Z")
Does “half right” count as wrong? Years ago a reader wrote in to say that friends of his who grew up in a different locality than he had strinkingly different memories of how the series “The Fugitive” had ended. Cecil gave a brief accounting of the “true” ending and dismissed what the writer’s friends had recalled. He overlooked the point that the last episode had been shown in two parts as a continued story. Cecil’s summary covered the last week’s episode. The story he dismissed was a recounting of events in the next-to-last week’s show. ---
**Author:** ![RM\_Mentock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@RM\_Mentock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RM_Mentock)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2002, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/31 "2002-12-30T22:02:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by slipster \* > \*\*The story he dismissed was a recounting of events in the next-to-last week’s show. \*\* Well, that wouldn’t be how it ended then, would it? ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2002, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/32 "2002-12-31T00:57:23Z")
Slipster: \<\< The story he dismissed was a recounting of events in the next-to-last week’s show. \>\> RM Mentock: \<\< Well, that wouldn’t be how it ended then, would it? \>\> That would be how it pen-ultimated. ---
**Author:** ![Maven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Maven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maven)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2003, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/33 "2003-01-01T05:57:20Z")
It’s pretty clear that Cecil is wrong on occasion- note his extremely labored (and hideously biased) “explaination” of the Second Amendment. Any part of it that he doesn’t agree with is “unclear” while any part that supports his personal prejudices are “self evident”. It’s sad that he can’t seperate his own goofy political views from facts, but there you have it. Personally, I hate it when people inject their own personal views into matters that really ought to be based on merit and fact. ---
**Author:** ![I\_am\_Sparticus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c68b51/32.png) [@I\_am\_Sparticus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_am_Sparticus)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2003, 9:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/34 "2003-01-01T09:01:14Z")
Gee Maven, was the bite yourself in the ass humor there intentional? Welcome to the Straight Dope message board! ---
**Author:** ![RM\_Mentock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@RM\_Mentock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RM_Mentock)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2003, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/35 "2003-01-01T16:13:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Maven \* > \*\*Personally, I hate it when people inject their own personal views into matters that really ought to be based on merit and fact. \*\* Sucks doughnut? You got some links with that? Anyone else hungry? ---
**Author:** ![Fenril](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9de0a6/32.png) [@Fenril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenril)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/36 "2003-01-05T22:14:32Z")
That’s my Unca Cecil you’re talking about! Be nice! For the record, Cecil’s NEVER wrong - sometimes his facts just need to be taken in a different light. Observe what Obi Wan said to Luke - “What I told you was true… from a certain point of view.” For example, who’s to say that, in an alternate universe, the rules of assigning radio call letters aren’t different? And that circumcision has totally different consequences? Can we, mere humans, pretend to know from whence The Master draws his knowledge? (Ok, Ok, I’m pushing it here…) ---
**Author:** ![RM\_Mentock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@RM\_Mentock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RM_Mentock)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/37 "2003-01-05T22:24:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fenril \* > **For the record, Cecil’s NEVER wrong** Except, Cecil has admitted being wrong. To err is human, and he is. We all are, right?? Right? ---
**Author:** ![tisiphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@tisiphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tisiphone)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2003, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/38 "2003-01-06T19:56:47Z")
Only once have I seen the Perfect Master caught flat-footed…[The Great Flea Circus article](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_006a.html). Wisely, he declines to enumerate the other occasions. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/39 "2003-01-08T12:16:31Z")
Wow, I hadn’t seen that flea circus update. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Beruang](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@Beruang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beruang)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361/40 "2003-01-09T23:06:31Z")
Let us not forget the classic “exception proves the rule” flub: [http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3\_201.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_201.html) Come to think of it, didn’t one of his more recent books actually have a section on mistakes? I’m goofing off at the office, away from my home library, but I do seem to recall that. – Beruang [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-cecil-ever-given-a-wrong-answer/145361.md?page=1)