Strange But True


STRANGE BUT TRUE- You betcha: Why casinos stay open 'round the clock Published on Sep 25th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Why do casinos stay open all night? Are there sound neuroscientific reasons for this?– R. Van Winkle A. You can bet on it. Evidence shows that sleep...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Lucky, indeed: How Lindy stayed awake-- er, alive Published on Sep 11th, 2008 1 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. How did Charles "Lucky Lindy" Lindbergh, piloting the "Spirit of St. Louis," manage to stay awake at the controls for his 1927 historic 33 1/2-hour, 3,600-mile...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Strike three! Homers take more brain than muscle Published on Sep 4th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. In the classic 1888 poem "Casey at the Bat," he clenches his teeth in hate as he violently pounds his bat upon the plate, then takes his final swing....
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Go away! Banish dream demons with a note Published on Aug 28th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Many of us are plagued in our dreams by villainous pursuers, scolders, tormenters. Often, the same shadowy figures "revisit" us again and again. Is it possible...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Use your head: Take groceries home a new way Published on Aug 21st, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. You don't see women or men carrying home supermarket groceries balanced on their heads, but if they did, who would pull off this feat with the least effort?...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Displacement: Elephants are great swimmers Published on Aug 14th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. When elephants need to cross a river and can't find a bridge, what's their recourse? –T.R. Zan A. Excellent swimmers, they can go for hours, says Guy...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Blowback: Docs' sneezes not a problem Published on Jul 31st, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. It's a problem faced by baseball catchers, welders, surgeons: How do you sneeze with a mask covering your face? –T. Gampper A. Catchers and...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Caterwauling: Music soothes savage beasts Published on Jul 24th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. What does your dog or cat think of the music you play? –L. Stuart A. It's not clear if animals actually "listen," but they do seem...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Once bitten: Insect evidence ID's scofflaws Published on Jul 17th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Would-be crime busters, got a bug for biology? Then forensic entomology might be for you. What sorts of cases might come winging your way? –S. Holmes A....
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Mirages: Nessie, mermaids creations of light Published on Jul 10th, 2008 7 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. How did sightings of the Loch Ness monster (Nessie) go the way of old sightings of mermaids and mermen? –C. Shepherd A. Likely, all were...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- X-rated oldies: Seniors let profanity fly Published on Jul 3rd, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. As folks move into their golden years, do they finally clean up their language? –G. Burns A. A retiree swearing surge is more like it, as if...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Savage breasts: Music's great therapeutic power Published on Jun 26th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Just what could be music's strongest ways of moving all of us, even when we may not wish to be moved? –B. Dylan A. A musical species we humans are, with...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Savage breasts: Music's great therapeutic power Published on Jun 26th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Just what could be music's strongest ways of moving all of us, even when we may not wish to be moved? –B. Dylan A. A musical species we humans are...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Enlightened: Did lamps spark a revolution? Published on Jun 19th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. As you read this, you can appreciate the inventions of the printing press (15th century) and eyeglasses (13th or 14th century) as bulwarks of scholarship. How...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Baby talk: 'Mama' and 'da-da' not always first Published on Jun 12th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Parents eagerly looking forward to baby's first word are often surprised by what they hear. Why? –J. L. Spears A. Though they confidently expect it...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Say cheese: Smile, critters, you're on candid cam Published on Jun 5th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. What's that clipped to a shark's fin, collared to a bear, or attached to a crow's tail? The device has come of age, taking biologists deeper into the secret...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- 404: The look that mimics a message Published on May 29th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Make no mistake about it, we're not sitting around with a "404 look" on our faces, though the world might be full of "404 headcases" and we've all made our...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Buzz: Robusta to arabica, coffee does the trick Published on May 22nd, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. It's the second most heavily traded commodity in the world after petroleum products, with a retail value of $70+ billion and 100+ million people depending on it...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Rubbed raw: Chronic itching no laughing matter Published on May 15th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. How bad can the "chronic itching syndrome" get? H. O. Psoriasis A. This is actually surprisingly widespread, affecting hundreds of millions worldwide, a result...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Revelations: Phone conversations tell all Published on May 8th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. How well can people tell your age from hearing your voice over the phone? What else are you broadcasting? –A. G. Bell A. Listeners can guess age...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Not bored: Likely mates yawn in synch Published on May 1st, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Yawns are well known to be contagious but won't spread to just anyone. So how might you use one of your own (real or counterfeit) to work as matchmaker for you...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Orangemen: Theater-goers of yore had healthy snacks Published on Apr 24th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. If you took a concession break at the cinema or theater and found not popcorn and candy but oranges to buy, where would you be? –H. Lattimore A. It's not...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Drop dead: Hanging not a happy way to go Published on Apr 17th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Over the centuries, prisoners condemned to be hanged by the neck have had plenty to worry about. Have the hangmen/executioners had anything to worry about?...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Bladder rain: Urine makes for more cabbages Published on Apr 10th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Where might bladder-bloated farmers be going to relieve themselves one day soon? –L. Ward A. Out back to the cabbage patch. And that "one day" may not be...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Eat me! Fish nibble skin troubles away Published on Apr 3rd, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. "Ichthyotherapy" is the word for it, but to certain psoriasis sufferers lucky enough to gain relief, it's "a slimy bottom-dwelling miracle." What/where are...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Cut it out: Cover your ear to hear better Published on Mar 27th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. What's the trick to cutting out background noise while on your cell phone in a loud and crowded place? No, sticking a finger in your other ear won't do it....
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Iced down: Be careful opening that cold bottle! Published on Mar 20th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. If I put a bottle of beer in the freezer (for a little too long), when I take it out, the beer is still liquid until I pop the cap, whereupon the stuff begins...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Drat! Odious rodents survive everything Published on Mar 13th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. What fascinating facts do Liza Lentini and David Mouzon write in Discover magazine about one of mankind's greatest plagues? –P. Piper A: There are 56...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Broken-hearted: Diastolic flaccidity explains the pain Published on Mar 12th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Why do we talk of a "broken-hearted" lover? Is the distress really felt mid-chest?– L.Taylor A. Metaphorically, the Japanese emphasize the stomach rather...
STRANGE BUT TRUE- Yakkety yak: Men talk just as much as women! Published on Mar 6th, 2008 0 comments DRAWING BY DEBORAH DERR McCLINTOCK Q. Why are women such big talkers? Or are they? –J. Rivers A. You'd certainly think so based on media reports putting them at 20,000 words per day vs. only 7...