Straight Dope Archive

Did Victorian era doctors use vibrators to treat hysteric female patients with orgasm therapy?
By Cecil Adams
December 7, 2007
Where does that "1492/ocean blue" thing about Columbus come from? And what was Columbus's deal, anyway?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
December 4, 2007
A prescription for death: Does doctors' illegible handwriting kill more than 7,000 patients annually? Is drinking alcohol a good cold cure?
By Cecil Adams
November 30, 2007
Is ethanol derived from cellulose a truly viable energy source?
By Cecil Adams
November 23, 2007
Does NLP work? Is it the basis of Derren Brown's "mind control" act?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by ianzin
November 20, 2007
If dogs can get a dose of bug repellent that lasts a whole month, why can't humans?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Doug
November 20, 2007
Is there a correlation between vasectomy and dementia? Can men with vasectomies have wet dreams?
By Cecil Adams
November 16, 2007
Why is "six feet under" the standard depth for burial?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Rico
November 13, 2007
Why does my husband stop snoring when I nudge him? Is there a real way to make snoring stop?
By Cecil Adams
November 9, 2007
Why are they called "trailers" if they're shown before the movie?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
November 6, 2007
Are UV rays really more powerful on cloudy days?
By Cecil Adams
November 2, 2007
How did the Hatfield-McCoy feud end, anyway?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Bricker
October 30, 2007
And they lived happily never after: Were the original versions of classic fairy tales more dark and bloodthirsty than what we know today?
By Cecil Adams
October 26, 2007
Does sawing off a shotgun necessarily produce a "sawed-off shotgun"?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Bricker
October 23, 2007
Who's your Daddy? Is it true 10-15% of children in modern society were not sired by their putative fathers?
By Cecil Adams
October 19, 2007
What's the story on the curse of Macbeth?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Dex
October 16, 2007
Why are pirates depicted with a parrot on their shoulder? What's the origin of the skull and crossbones pirate flag?
By Cecil Adams
October 12, 2007
Did anyone really ever get tied to railroad tracks?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
October 9, 2007
Did pirates bury their treasure? Did pirates really make maps where "X marks the spot?
By Cecil Adams
October 5, 2007
How did some crime fiction come to be described as "hard-boiled"?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
October 2, 2007
Does smoking organically grown tobacco lower the chance of lung cancer?
By Cecil Adams
September 28, 2007
Can I legally prevent people from putting flyers under my door or on my windshield?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
September 25, 2007
Are there submerged towns under lakes created by dam building?
By Cecil Adams
September 21, 2007
Do condoms protect against STDs other than HIV? STD-wise, how risky is oral sex?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
September 18, 2007
Prehistoric, it's what's for dinner: Have explorers had feasts of woolly mammoth?
By Cecil Adams
September 14, 2007
Is lightning really that dangerous to swimmers? Will my choice of bicycle get me struck by lightning?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
September 11, 2007
Does the average American student have less vocabulary today than in days gone by?
By Cecil Adams
September 7, 2007
Do the wrongfully imprisoned get compensation?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
September 4, 2007
People take medications. They excrete them. What happens next? Could it affect the water supply?
By Cecil Adams
August 31, 2007
Where have all the fireflies gone?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Doug
August 28, 2007
Are weathermen checked for forecast accuracy? Have advances in technology improved the accuracy of weather forecasting?
By Cecil Adams
August 24, 2007
What became of Moses's sons?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by CM Keller
August 21, 2007
What's better for the environment, electric hand dryers or paper towels?
By Cecil Adams
August 17, 2007
Is head-butting for real?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Gfactor
August 14, 2007
Is strength of will in fighting illness a factor in whether you live or die?
By Cecil Adams
August 10, 2007
Are there deposits of methane under the sea? Will global warming release the methane to the atmosphere?
By Cecil Adams
August 3, 2007
Is sea salt better for you than regular salt? Why does salt enhance the flavor of almost all food? Why add salt to water for boiling pasta?
By Cecil Adams
July 27, 2007
Was there a real Trojan war as depicted in the Iliad? Is "Agamemnon's death mask" real?
By Cecil Adams
July 20, 2007
Have federal automobile fuel safety standards increased the number of automobile deaths?
By Cecil Adams
July 13, 2007
Why do statues of Buddha have long earlobes? What's the difference between fat Buddha and regular Buddha?
By Cecil Adams
July 6, 2007
Why do banks use that awful robotic looking type font for routing and account numbers? Why do people hang catfish heads from fences?
By Cecil Adams
June 29, 2007
Take me out to the ball game: Is there a real "home field advantage?"
By Cecil Adams
June 22, 2007
Whatever happened to the accusers from the Salem witch trials?
By Cecil Adams
June 15, 2007
Did mercury in vaccines cause autism? Do vaccines cause autism?
By Cecil Adams
June 8, 2007
Could the floating islands of "Life of Pi" really exist?
By Cecil Adams
June 1, 2007
Why are the bees disappearing?
A Straight Dope Staff Report by Doug
May 29, 2007
Hair today, more tomorrow? How effective are treatments for baldness?
By Cecil Adams
May 25, 2007
What's the fastest-acting, most lethal poison?
By Cecil Adams
May 18, 2007
Is higher faster? Does time pass more quickly when gravity is reduced?
By Cecil Adams
May 11, 2007
When one spouse dies does the surviving spouse tend to follow soon afterwards?
By Cecil Adams
May 4, 2007
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