Straight Dope Archive

Welcome to the Straight Dope Archive, featuring the collected works of Cecil Adams and his online auxiliary, the Straight Dope Science Advisory Board. You can view all columns or a subset, listed in reverse chronological order (most recent columns on top):

How can racing yachts sail faster than the wind?
By Cecil Adams
November 20, 2009
So what did happen to the settlers at Roanoke?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by SDSTAFF Bricker
November 17, 2009
How did the states establish long straight borders before GPS?
By Cecil Adams
November 13, 2009
Does the camera really add ten pounds? Plus: Is there any nutritional value in eating corn?
By Cecil Adams
November 6, 2009
Is 'roid rage real?
By Cecil Adams
October 30, 2009
Is there any difference in quality between name-brand drugs and generics?
By Cecil Adams
October 23, 2009
What happened to Lazarus after his resurrection?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Bricker
October 20, 2009
Why do songs get stuck in your head?
By Cecil Adams
October 16, 2009
Who controls the content on an Internet message board?
By Cecil Adams
October 9, 2009
What's the story on jury nullification?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Bricker
October 6, 2009
How do medical alert dogs know something is wrong? Plus: How does an asphalt roller score on the Richter scale?
By Cecil Adams
October 2, 2009
Who owns my garbage?
By Cecil Adams
September 25, 2009
What's to stop me from making counterfeit casino chips?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Ianzin
September 22, 2009
Does a sauna or steam room do you any good?
By Cecil Adams
September 18, 2009
Did Clarence Darrow distract a jury by using wire to keep his cigar ash from falling?
By Cecil Adams
September 11, 2009
Why don't we ever see pictures of the floating island of garbage?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by paperbackwriter
September 8, 2009
Are earlobe creases a sign of heart disease?
By Cecil Adams
September 2, 2009
Has widespread CPR training resulted in more lives saved?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by paperbackwriter
September 1, 2009
Do mosquitoes prefer certain blood types? Plus: Do tall men get more skin cancer?
By Cecil Adams
August 28, 2009
Is the arsenic in treated wood dangerous?
By Cecil Adams
August 21, 2009
Can I be charged with indecent exposure if I stay on my own private property?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
August 18, 2009
If Europe gets its power from bus-size nuclear reactors, why can't we?
By Cecil Adams
August 14, 2009
Are no-iron shirts made by soaking them in formaldehyde? Plus: Did the South Atlantic anomaly cause that Air France crash?
By Cecil Adams
August 7, 2009
Why is it that green olives come in glass jars but black olives come in cans?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Eutychus
August 4, 2009
Why were the continents once all piled in a big clump?
By Cecil Adams
July 31, 2009
If I had super strength, could I squeeze coal into diamonds?
By Cecil Adams
July 24, 2009
What's the National Guard doing fighting overseas, anyway?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Paperbackwriter
July 21, 2009
Was all that money spent on Y2K wasted?
By Cecil Adams
July 17, 2009
How do you make loaded dice?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Ian Rowland, Guest Contributor (Ianzin)
July 14, 2009
Do drivers have a better chance of surviving car wrecks if they're drunk?
By Cecil Adams
July 9, 2009
Did soldiers really frag officers in Vietnam?
By Cecil Adams
July 3, 2009
Did astronauts train in ecological wastelands on earth to get used to the barren moon?
By Cecil Adams
June 26, 2009
Who was the real Casey Jones?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Elendil's Heir, Guest Contributor
June 23, 2009
Has martial arts training ever helped anybody defeat a mugger?
By Cecil Adams
June 19, 2009
Why aren't there any fireflies in California?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Doug
June 16, 2009
Who made money during the 1929 stock market crash?
By Cecil Adams
June 12, 2009
Is NASA the only federal agency that makes a profit?
By Cecil Adams
June 5, 2009
Why is it called a restroom, anyway?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex
June 2, 2009
Could we move Mars or Venus into Earth's orbit and live there?
By Cecil Adams
May 29, 2009
Do bras prevent saggy breasts?
By Cecil Adams
May 22, 2009
Can testicles be transplanted? Whose sperm would a transplanted testicle produce, the donor's or the recipient's?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by paperbackwriter
May 19, 2009
Can air injected into the bloodstream really kill you?
By Cecil Adams
May 15, 2009
How dangerous are Tasers?
By Cecil Adams
May 8, 2009
Does it matter if you sign a contract with a name that's not your own?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
May 5, 2009
Are pit bulls really all that dangerous?
By Cecil Adams
May 1, 2009
What's up with those "Act Now!" gadget commercials on TV?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by MsRobyn
April 28, 2009
Does beet sugar contain a WWII poison?
By Cecil Adams
April 24, 2009
What's more likely to cause cancer, smoking or tanning?
By Cecil Adams
April 17, 2009
How did World War I fighter planes keep from shooting off their own propellers?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by John Corrado (with an assist from dropzone)
April 14, 2009
What are the risks of heterosexual anal sex?
By Cecil Adams
April 10, 2009
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