Straight Dope Archive

What's the origin of "man of the cloth"?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex
May 14, 2002
Is Paul Bunyan a fraud?
By Cecil Adams
May 10, 2002
What did the census at the time of the birth of Christ accomplish?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex
May 7, 2002
Do crocodiles shed tears? (revisited)
By Cecil Adams
May 3, 2002
Did Leif Erikson once live in Cambridge, Massachusetts?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by bibliophage
April 30, 2002
Will smoking banana peels get you high?
By Cecil Adams
April 26, 2002
Does a mosquito's hum alternate between D and F?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Doug
April 25, 2002
Does a dripping faucet keep the pipes from freezing?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Ken
April 23, 2002
Do plants excrete?
By Cecil Adams
April 19, 2002
Has 1 in 8 people had sex with an animal?
A Straight Dope Classic by Cecil Adams
April 12, 2002
What's up with those Indian widows who commit suttee?
By Cecil Adams
April 5, 2002
Is a pregnant goldfish called a twit?
By Cecil Adams
March 29, 2002
Were 40% of Native American women forcibly sterilized in the 1970s?
By Cecil Adams
March 22, 2002
Who was the worst Catholic saint?
A Straight Dope Classic by Cecil Adams
March 15, 2002
Could a member of an extraterrestrial species be U.S. president?
By Cecil Adams
March 8, 2002
Update: What are your chances of getting HIV?
By Cecil Adams
March 1, 2002
Do Egyptians burn mummies as fuel?
By Cecil Adams
February 22, 2002
Does my cell phone company keep track of me wherever I go?
By Cecil Adams
February 15, 2002
Yiddish, shmiddish--why do we repeat a word but start it with "shm-"?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex
February 12, 2002
Can water be too pure? Is too much water bad for you?
By Cecil Adams
February 8, 2002
Are cobwebs made by spiders?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by George, Doug, and Ken
February 7, 2002
Did Bugs Bunny appear in a racist cartoon during World War II?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Eutychus
February 5, 2002
Who invented paradise?
By Cecil Adams
February 1, 2002
Why are there no top-quality American cigars?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by bibliophage
January 31, 2002
Why is it easier to balance on a moving bike than a non-moving one?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Karen Lingel
January 29, 2002
Did New York once have a transvestite governor?
By Cecil Adams
January 25, 2002
How does a particle accelerator work?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Karen
January 24, 2002
Did humans descend from "aquatic apes"?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by bibliophage
January 22, 2002
What gives with Fifth Third Bank?
By Cecil Adams
January 18, 2002
Is it possible to create a science fiction-type force field?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Karen
January 17, 2002
Who wrote the Bible? (Part 5)
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex and Eutychus
January 14, 2002
What's up with the Indian rope trick and the bed of nails?
By Cecil Adams
January 11, 2002
Who wrote the Bible? (Part 4)
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex and Eutychus
January 10, 2002
Who wrote the Bible? (Part 3)
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex and Eutychus
January 9, 2002
Who wrote the Bible? (Part 2)
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex and Euty
January 8, 2002
Who wrote the Bible? (Part 1)
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex and Eutychus
January 7, 2002
What mountain is depicted in the Paramount logo? Why do women laugh hysterically?
By Cecil Adams
January 4, 2002
Why does water make the Wicked Witch of the West melt?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex
January 1, 2002
Why are Milk Duds called Milk Duds? Plus: What do morays have to do with culture?
By Cecil Adams
December 28, 2001
Was the "Confederate flag" only the flag of the Confederate navy?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Ken and John Corrado
December 27, 2001
What's the origin of "sophomore"?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by bibliophage
December 26, 2001
Does your dandruff contain your DNA?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Hawk
December 25, 2001
What's the story with vaginal foreign bodies?
By Cecil Adams
December 21, 2001
What causes chocolate to whiten?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Karen
December 20, 2001
Is eating gold and silver food garnishes bad for you?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Ken
December 19, 2001
What's the origin of "pumpernickel"?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Ken
December 18, 2001
Does the Koran really promise Islamic martyrs 72 virgins?
By Cecil Adams
December 14, 2001
What's the origin of "spitting image"?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Ken
December 13, 2001
How high can birds and bees fly?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Doug and George
December 11, 2001
Is Mexican vanilla toxic? Plus: What happens if you microwave the popcorn upside down?
By Cecil Adams
December 7, 2001
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