POSTED // Apr 9,2008 - In the United States most electricity used in electric cars would probably come from fossil fuels, right? Given all the steps involved, does the loss of energy during electrical generation, transmission, battery charging, and electric motor operation...

POSTED // Apr 2,2008 - My wine-snob friends think that the Dixie cups I serve wine in destroy its flavor. Do fancy glasses actually improve the flavor of wine? What if I serve a cabernet in a chardonnay glass—is it just wrong? And do I really need to let wine breathe...

POSTED // Mar 19,2008 - I recently listened to an audiotape called Dead Doctors Don’t Lie that espouses the glories of colloidal minerals as a source of longevity. On the tape, one Dr. Joel Wallach (a veterinarian turned naturopath) claims that these minerals cure all...

POSTED // Mar 12,2008 - Has anyone ever proved that low-flush toilets actually save water? It seems like the multiple flushes needed to clear my bowl mean they increase water use, at least at my house, not decrease it. —American Standard This morning in the bathroom I...

POSTED // Mar 5,2008 - On a recent trip to the doctor, I was shown a body mass index chart, with height in feet and inches along the Y axis and weight in pounds along the X axis. The nurse practitioner showed me that it indicated I needed to lose over a third of my body weight...

POSTED // Feb 27,2008 - Should I get rid of all of my Teflon-coated pans? I’ve been told by veterinarians that Teflon emits a gas that’s deadly poison to pet birds (and wild ones too, presumably, but they don’t eat in the kitchen). Am I slowly killing my beloved...

POSTED // Feb 20,2008 - Dear Cecil: Is there really such a condition as a sugar high? Years ago, I read somewhere that medical research never could prove that such a thing happens. Yet, parents and teachers continue to believe that kids are hyperactive following birthday parties,...

POSTED // Feb 13,2008 - A while back some friends and I were discussing ways in which a suicidal person might still get his or her life-insurance payout. One option that came up was to be executed by the state. Would a life insurance company pay out a policy if one were executed...

POSTED // Jan 30,2008 - I recently read a Popular Science article by some geek who set out to manufacture silver bullets. He noted in the course of the piece that, prior to the Industrial Revolution, silver didn’t tarnish because of the lack of sulfur in the air. I’m...

POSTED // Jan 16,2008 - In a Discovery Channel program I saw about the history of sex, there was a brief discussion of “Roman brothel tokens,” coins showing images of various sexual acts. Lustful Roman soldiers in far-flung corners of the empire apparently used them...