# Is it dangerous to microwave your underpants? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 31, 2011, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701 "2011-01-31T22:14:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/21 "2011-02-01T04:03:11Z")
Or why on earth wouldn’t you just take your underwear into the bathroom when you take a shower and then it gets all warm? I mean, I don’t live in the polar north, but I can’t imagine what kind of underwear chiller you’d be keeping your drawers in where this would be a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/22 "2011-02-01T10:30:12Z")
> [@xoferew](#): > > Maybe spritz it first with water or febreze or something? Unless febreze is flammable… According to wikipedia, alcohol is the #2 ingredient in Febreze. That should burn. The article itself is kind of interesting. The #1 ingredient is a huge donut molecule that is supposed to trap smelly molecules. I guess they just lie around on the floor afterwards, or are so big we don’t detect them as odoriferous. ---
**Author:** ![BleizDu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@BleizDu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BleizDu)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/23 "2011-02-01T10:51:58Z")
Do some people really microwave their underwears or is it an hypothetical? ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/24 "2011-02-01T12:05:41Z")
I just love imagining how this came up: Roommate 1 (r1) gets up, stumbles into the kitchen, fills a bowl with oatmeal and water, and opens the microwave, only to find a steaming pair of briefs. “What the hell?” he blearily asks as Roommate 2 wanders into the kitchen, wearing only a towel. R2: “Oh, dude, sorry, those are mine.” He drops his towel and starts to pull them on. R1 “What the hell are you doing?” R2: “It’s awesome. Keeps my junk warm. You don’t do this?” R1: “No! That’s dangerous!” R2: “Dude! Keep your pants on. They’re clean.” R1: “That’s not what I mean. I mean the radiation in the microwave is now seeping into your meat and potatoes there. You’re gonna get ball cancer, or fry all your little dudes”. R2: “Man, I didn’t think of that. Do you really think so? Damn. But it feels so good.” This is my favorite general question ever. ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/25 "2011-02-01T13:21:12Z")
> [@MandaJo](#): > > I just love imagining how this came up: > > Roommate 1 (r1) gets up, stumbles into the kitchen, fills a bowl with oatmeal and water, and opens the microwave, only to find a steaming pair of briefs. “What the hell?” he blearily asks as Roommate 2 wanders into the kitchen, wearing only a towel. > > R2: “Oh, dude, sorry, those are mine.” He drops his towel and starts to pull them on. > R1 “What the hell are you doing?” > R2: “It’s awesome. Keeps my junk warm. You don’t do this?” > R1: “No! That’s dangerous!” > R2: “Dude! Keep your pants on. They’re clean.” > R1: “That’s not what I mean. I mean the radiation in the microwave is now seeping into your meat and potatoes there. You’re gonna get ball cancer, or fry all your little dudes”. > R2: “Man, I didn’t think of that. Do you really think so? Damn. But it feels so good.” > > This is my favorite general question ever. Good plot, interesting characters, but the studio thinks it needs a love interest. Can we get a rewrite, maybe with a female guest of Roomate One involved? ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/26 "2011-02-01T14:24:18Z")
How do people even think of this? I once read of someone who microwaved their sneakers. I don’t even think of putting non-food items in the microwave. ---
**Author:** ![iamnotbatman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/858c86/32.png) [@iamnotbatman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamnotbatman)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/27 "2011-02-01T14:33:21Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > Since it’s all kinda arbitrary, I picked the way I learned it in school some 30 years ago. If you don’t like it, use your own version. There’s plenty to choose from. But for the sake of correctness, [Cosmic rays](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmic_ray) are _energetic charged subatomic particles originating from outer space_. They are not part of the [electromagnetic spectrum](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_spectrum). The graphs you linked to mistakenly conflate gamma rays with cosmic rays, probably because cosmic rays are a source of gamma rays (the cosmic rays hit particles in our atmosphere and create showers of particles that can include gamma rays). ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/28 "2011-02-01T14:45:53Z")
Shouldn’t be a problem to nuke your drawers. Just make sure you remove any silverware or kitchen utensils first. Then set it to “Popcorn.” ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/29 "2011-02-01T15:10:16Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > Shouldn’t be a problem to nuke your drawers. Just make sure you remove any silverware or kitchen utensils first. Then set it to “Popcorn.” That’s only if your nuts are still in them. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/30 "2011-02-01T15:18:52Z")
Step 1: Microwave Underwear Step 2: Step 3: Profit ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/31 "2011-02-01T15:28:41Z")
Couldn’t there be a danger of your underwear not getting heated evenly in a microwave? I know even with the turntable I still get “cold spots” in my food. And where there are cold spots, such as potentially on the elastic band, there are hot spots, such as potentially on the crotch of the underwear. So I’m not totally sold on microwaved underwear as a safe way of warming one’s nether regions. I mean I’m sure it’s Foul Bachelor Frog approved (Dryer is broken…MICROWAVE UNDERWEAR), but still. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/32 "2011-02-01T15:28:52Z")
Note to self: Do not eat the popcorn when \*\*Shabbyskunk \*\*is hosting movie night. ---
**Author:** ![Vita\_Beata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a9a28c/32.png) [@Vita\_Beata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vita_Beata)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/33 "2011-02-01T16:00:34Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Note to self: Do not eat the popcorn when \*\*Shabbyskunk \*\*is hosting movie night. Avoid the Pop Tarts as well. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/34 "2011-02-01T16:05:59Z")
> [@iamnotbatman](#): > > But for the sake of correctness, [Cosmic rays](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmic_ray) are _energetic charged subatomic particles originating from outer space_. They are not part of the [electromagnetic spectrum](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_spectrum). The graphs you linked to mistakenly conflate gamma rays with cosmic rays, probably because cosmic rays are a source of gamma rays (the cosmic rays hit particles in our atmosphere and create showers of particles that can include gamma rays). Correctness by whose definition? There are many references that define cosmic rays as particles, but there are many other references that define the highest part of the electromagnetic spectrum as “cosmic rays”. Back when I went to school, I learned the latter. Admittedly, that was 30-40 years ago, and more references than not seem to call the upper end of the electromagnetic just “gamma rays” these days. I went poking around to see if it is just older texts that call the upper end of the electromagnetic spectrum cosmic rays, and one of my first hits on google books was “The encyclopaedia of medical imaging” by Holger Pettersson, Gustav Konrad von Schulthess, David J Allisonm which is from 1998 and contains the following: > [@](#): > > Electromagnetic waves are classified according to their FREQUENCY v or ENERGY (see below) into the electromagnetic spectrum (Fig. 1), and extend from the high-energy cosmic rays to the very low-energy radio waves. The book then has a chart which breaks down the spectrum like this: cosmic rays X-rays, gamma rays ultraviolet visible light infrared microwaves radio waves - ultrashort - short - middle - long I don’t usually see X-rays and gamma rays lumped together, but there you go. The very next book on the list, “The electronics handbook” by Jerry C. Whitaker uses your definition and explicitly says that cosmic rays are particles from space. Here are some other books: “Modern dictionary of electronics” by By Rudolf F. Graf (1999) puts cosmic rays at the top end of the electromagnetic spectrum. It also calls the microwave region “radar” and has an additional area in between "radar’ and “infrared” that it calls “developmental” (I haven’t seen that one before). “Introduction to General, Organic and Biochemistry” by Frederick A. Bettelheim, William H. Brown, Mary K. Campbell states “The only radiation known to have an even higher frequency (and energy) than gamma rays are cosmic rays.” “Space and life: an introduction to space biology and medicine” by Hubert Planel calls them “galactic cosmic rays” and says they are particles. “Fundamental astronomy” By Hannu Karttunen, H. Oja says they are particles. “The universe in gamma rays” By V. Schönfelder says they are particles that behave in many aspects like gamma rays. I think you could argue that this book sits on the fence as to whether they are particles or waves since it refers to them as both “radiation” and “particles” simultaneously (sometimes even in the same sentence). So anyway, the point of all of these cites is that many people, even today, call the top end of the electromagnetic spectrum “cosmic rays” even though many other people think the term “cosmic rays” should only be used for particles. Since both versions are still in relatively common use, I don’t see how you can say one is any more “correct” than the other. Like I said before, exactly where you put the dividing lines and what you call each category is somewhat arbitrary, and isn’t consistent from one reference to the next. In some circles (such as if you are with a group of folks who study particle physics, for example) one set of definitions may be much more preferred than others, but for a general purpose message board it’s kinda silly to argue over it. You’re just arguing over whose arbitrary definition is better than the other arbitrary definition. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/35 "2011-02-01T18:42:55Z")
“Cosmic ray” is a technical term, with a specific technical meaning. If I said that something had 12 volts flowing through it, I would be wrong, no matter how many other sources I could find that were also wrong. Likewise, if I said that cosmic rays were part of the electromagnetic spectrum, I would also be wrong. Everyone who actually works with cosmic rays in any capacity means the same thing by the term. Note that, of the cites you found that says they’re electromagnetic radiation, none is an astronomical source. ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/36 "2011-02-01T18:44:00Z")
> [@MandaJo](#): > > I just love imagining how this came up: > > Roommate 1 (r1) gets up, stumbles into the kitchen, fills a bowl with oatmeal and water, and opens the microwave, only to find a steaming pair of briefs. “What the hell?” he blearily asks as Roommate 2 wanders into the kitchen, wearing only a towel. > > R2: “Oh, dude, sorry, those are mine.” He drops his towel and starts to pull them on. > R1 “What the hell are you doing?” > R2: “It’s awesome. Keeps my junk warm. You don’t do this?” > R1: “No! That’s dangerous!” > R2: “Dude! Keep your pants on. They’re clean.” > R1: “That’s not what I mean. I mean the radiation in the microwave is now seeping into your meat and potatoes there. You’re gonna get ball cancer, or fry all your little dudes”. > R2: “Man, I didn’t think of that. Do you really think so? Damn. But it feels so good.” > > This is my favorite general question ever. Now that I’ve read the dramatization of the OP, I’m more concerned about him eating the underwear than with him irradiating his boys. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/37 "2011-02-01T19:23:29Z")
If this is your favorite GQ, you obviously missed “am I farting holes in my underwear?” and “can you fry semen?” And I love how we just assume it’s a guy, because we all hope women are smarter than this and don’t put their drawers in the microwave. ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/38 "2011-02-01T20:04:34Z")
In order for something to be considered part of the EM spectrum, it needs to be composed of photon quanta, right? How are alpha/beta particles EM radiation, then? ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/39 "2011-02-01T20:13:18Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > Step 1: Microwave Underwear > Step 2: > Step 3: Profit Can the gnomes open the microwave? ---
**Author:** ![iamnotbatman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/858c86/32.png) [@iamnotbatman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamnotbatman)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701/40 "2011-02-01T20:32:10Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > Correctness by whose definition? In high energy particle physics (my field of expertise) it would be flatly incorrect to say that cosmic rays are part of the electromagnetic spectrum. The misuse of the term by non-physicists is hardly surprising; the reason is largely historical: when cosmic rays were first discovered, they were believed to be photons (ie part of the electromagnetic spectrum). That’s why they were first called cosmic _rays_ (as in _rays_ of light). They were of very high energy, so at the time these mysterious rays were largely synonymous with the high-energy part of the electromagnetic spectrum (gamma rays). But by the 1930’s pretty much everyone was in agreement that cosmic ways were definitively _NOT_ photons. Unfortunately, the name stuck. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-dangerous-to-microwave-your-underpants/569701.md?page=3)