Big Questions Answered, How and Why

Horizontal lines run across the rear glass on most cars. Here's why.

British people probably pronounced their ‘R’s back in the day.

Did 17th-century immigrants to the 13 colonies have modern British accents? First, we need to figure out what a “British accent” is.

Grasshopper on the left, swarm of locusts on the right

All locusts are grasshoppers, but not all grasshoppers are locusts.

As brothers Bob and Doug McKenzie on ‘SCTV,’ actors Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas made ‘hoser’ popular—and there are plenty of theories about the word’s origin.

Chris Evert at the 1978 Wimbledon quarterfinals.

Chris Evert’s tennis bracelets made tennis bracelets a thing. But the origin story gets mistold quite often.

The adorable bear honey bottle design helped launch Dutch Gold Honey to national success. Here’s how it came to be.

If you’re eating a healthy and balanced diet, you may not need extra vitamins.

Too much of anything, even a helpful or healthy thing, can hurt you. Medication? Definitely. Water? Absolutely. Exercise? You bet. Vitamins? Quite possibly.

Conventional cuffs are designed with two hands in mind.

Adaptability comes in handy. So does a belt.

Sadly, ‘PU’ isn’t an initialism for “Pretty unsavory!”, “Putrid, ugh!”, or even “Please use (deodorant)!”

Many Amish believe photos are forbidden. So how can they do anything requiring a photo ID?

The dog days of summer don’t actually have anything to do with this dog.

The dog days of summer don’t actually have much to do with dogs. Instead, they relate to Sirius, otherwise known as the Dog Star.

Shoes hanging from power lines have invited a lot of urban myths.

A dangling pair of kicks is sending a message. What is it?

Pills come in orange containers for a clever reason.

Those orange bottles are no accident—they were specifically designed to keep both medications and people safe.

Everyone from lexicographer Samuel Johnson to Prime Minister Winston Churchill has used the phrase—but where does it come from? Why a black dog?

Grocery stores are intentionally designed in a way that makes you want to spend more money. The long trek to the dairy section is part of it.

“Shoot, did that plant have leaves of three?”

Dogs can potentially have an allergic reaction to poison ivy, and they can also transmit the irritating oils to people. Here's what to do if you pet encounters the plant.

Centipedes and millipedes are actually quite different.

They have many more legs than any arthropod should need, but millipedes and centipedes are different in almost every other way.

The word dates back to the mid-19th century, and has taken many forms.

Having second thoughts about not wearing socks.

Brides or grooms with second thoughts are said to have chilly extremities. The origin of the phrase has a little something to do with poker.

Land Sickness can be just as unsettling as seasickness.

Seasickness happens when a person’s body struggles to grow accustomed to a boat’s motion patterns, causing them to feel unsteady and often nauseated. But land sickness happens in reverse.

Nothing says “springtime” like the maddening, irregular percussion of a bird’s beak rapping repeatedly against your window.

Just looking at this makes your skin crawl.

The telltale itch of a mosquito bite doesn’t actually come from the bite itself. It comes from something that’s a fair bit worse: literal blood-sucking.

Break out the dictionary and start counting.

It’s complicated—and there are more questions than answers.

Here's how the hamburger came by its misleading name.

BIG QUESTIONS

What Are Those Lines on a Car’s Rear Windshield?

What Did the Original American Colonists Sound Like?

Grasshoppers vs. Locusts: What’s the Difference?

Where Does the Word ‘Hoser’ Come From?

Why Is It Called a “Tennis Bracelet”?

Why Does Honey Come in Bear-Shaped Bottles?

Is It Possible to Overdose on Vitamins?

How Do You Handcuff a One-Armed Person?

Why Do We Say “PU” When Something Stinks?

How Do Photo-Averse Amish Deal With ID Cards?

What Are The Dog Days of Summer?

Why Do People Toss Shoes Over Power Lines?

Why Do Prescription Pills Come in Orange Bottles?

Why Is Depression Sometimes Called “The Black Dog”?

Why Are Dairy Products Usually at the Back of a Grocery Store?

Can Dogs Get Poison Ivy?

Millipedes vs. Centipedes: What’s the Difference?

Why Does ‘Joshing’ Mean “Kidding Around”?

Why Do We Say People Get ‘Cold Feet’ Before a Wedding?

What Is Land Sickness—and Why Does it Happen?

Why Are Birds Attacking My Windows?

Why Do Mosquito Bites Itch So Much?

How Many Words Are There in the English Language?

Why Is It Called a “Hamburger” If It Doesn’t Contain Ham?