BIG QUESTIONS

What's the Real Origin of "OK"?

It's amazing that we ever got along without "OK." But we did. Until 1839.

Why Do People Get Emotional When They Drink?

At one time or another, though, we’ve all been the emotional drunk, a condition typically marked by ill-timed espousals of affection (or reprisal), acute introspection, and an incontrollable urge to cry in the middle of a crowded bar.

Why is English Spelling So Messed Up?

If you're a kid learning how to write, English spelling can seem like a cruel prank.

Where Did the Phrase “Dressed to the Nines” Come From?

Whatever significance the number nine had to the phrase, it doesn’t seem to have always been specific to clothing.

Will We Ever Be Able to Clone Dinosaurs?

When I was a little dinosaur fan, all I wanted was a pet dinosaur. An Apatosaurus would have been choice—big enough to be impressive, but not especially likely to eat me. But that’s never going to happen. As much as I hate to say that science will never s

How Much Does a Cloud Weigh?

It's time to pull out those calculators and do the math with the density and volume to determine the total water content of the cloud.

Could Cockroaches Really Survive a Nuclear War?

Some say the world will end in fire, some say in ice; still others say in a nuclear apocalypse that will annihilate humanity while leaving cockroaches intact. It’s an unhappy picture, homo sapiens being completely wiped out by its own technology as the li

How Did Pabst Win Its Blue Ribbon?

Before it was called PBR or even Pabst, the official beer of hipsters, old blue collar Wisconsinites and Frank Booth was brewed under the name Best Select, starting in 1875.

Why Are Whole Foods Typically More Expensive Than Processed?

Close perusal of a Wonder loaf’s list of ingredients reveals some 29 tongue-tying components, while the whole grain loaf has five or six, none over two syllables. So why are more heavily processed foods and those with more ingredients typically less expen

Why is Chicago Called the "Windy City"?

Travelers to Chicago may experience the wind gusts that come off Lake Michigan, get tossed around a bit and think, “So this is why it’s called the Windy City.” The nickname, which dates back to the late 1870s, is deceiving because, literally, Chicago is a

What's the Difference Between Table Salt and Kosher Salt?

In truth, not much. The primary ingredient to both, not surprisingly, is sodium chloride. In fact, the U.S. government requires that any food-grade salt be a minimum of 97.5 percent pure, so any type of salt you consume in the U.S. (and most developed cou

Why Do Cicadas Spend So Much Time Underground?

In 1996, the cicadas of Brood II (the “East Coast Brood”) swarmed the northeastern United States and then disappeared almost as quickly as they came, leaving only their eggs and molted exoskeletons behind. Once the eggs hatched, the new generation of cica

Can You Fire the Pope?

Reader Gabrielle wrote in to ask: “Can a pope be ousted? And has it happened before?”

Is There Such a Thing as Photographic Memory?

The best early ‘90s children’s bookshelves were full of books about child detectives, including Cam Jansen, the fifth grade super-sleuth with a photographic memory. She was called “Cam,” short for “camera,” because she would close her eyes and say, “cli

Why Don’t Big Dogs Live as Long as Small Dogs?

Large animals tend to live longer than smaller ones. But this isn't the case for most breeds of dog. What gives?

Why Do Women Tend to Talk More Than Men?

Why Don’t Bats Get Disoriented By Each Other's Sonar?

Why is Charles Schulz in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

He wasn’t a Star or a Blackhawk or a Bruin, but the cartoonist did make some important contributions to the American sport of ice hockey.

Why Does Poop Stink?

What's the Difference between Churches, Chapels, and Cathedrals?

For every world religion, there is a place to worship. For Christianity, there are a confusing variety of names for these places, which are frequently—but incorrectly—used interchangeably. Church, chapel, and cathedral are the trio of terms most commonly

Where Exactly Did the Russian Meteor Come From?

A scientific team from Colombia was able to trace back the explosive space rock's origins using "simple trigonometry."

Why Did Eating Horsemeat Become Taboo?

Despite the notion of horses as pets and companions, horsemeat is widely and willingly consumed in countries ranging from Mexico to China to Italy. So how, exactly, did eating horsemeat become taboo for the rest of us?

How Many Languages is it Possible to Know?

There are millions of people, even in the mostly monolingual US, who speak more than one language at home. Competence in three languages is not unusual. But what about 10, 20, 30, 100 languages? What's the upper limit on the number of languages a person c

Why Aren't You Supposed to Wake a Sleepwalker?

Despite urban legends claiming that waking a sleepwalker will send them into shock or give them a heart attack, it’s pretty much harmless. While you can wake them up, you probably shouldn’t, and that’s for both your benefit.

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