http://www.cityweekly.net/utah/articles.sec-8400-1-the-straight-dope.html By Cecil Adams

I first heard the claim that Jesus was a copycat of the Egyptian god Horus when I watched the so-called documentary Religulous.]]> By Cecil Adams

I’d like your opinion on which is most likely in our lifetime: 1. The sun explodes. 2. Earth shatters, like that planet in the asteroid belt. 3. We get the Big Rip, where everything dissolves as Shakespeare predicted]]> By Cecil Adams

I was reading on Cracked.com about the tarantula hawk, a giant wasp that hunts tarantulas and has one of the most painful stings on Earth. ]]> By Cecil Adams

Many studies indicate spending time on a farm during childhood reduces the likelihood of allergies, especially hanging around farm animals and stables.]]> By Cecil Adams

Recently someone asked about the amount of energy Americans are storing in body fat. A more pertinent question is how much energy is wasted hauling that fat around. ]]> By Cecil Adams

Is pot stronger these days? Some folks state as fact that parents should realize, “Pot these days is stronger than when they smoked.” Are you aware of any evidence for this? ]]> By Cecil Adams

On my drive into work today, the first workday back since the Daylight Saving Time spring forward, I noticed a stark increase in road kill, specifically raccoons. Has anyone else noticed this? ]]> By Cecil Adams

I’ve heard of the occasional car in a baseball-stadium parking lot being damaged by an out-of-the-park home run. I wonder: Have there ever been any skulls or other body parts crushed?]]> By Cecil Adams

In winter, I’ve gotten big shocks from static electricity when getting out of my car, and once saw a video where a crewman touching a race car during a pit stop was thrown back several feet, I presume from static charge built up as the car circled the track. This has gotten me wondering: Have there been instances of injury or death from static discharge? —Mike]]> By Cecil Adams

Is there any evidence to support the mantra that cutting taxes stimulates job growth?]]> By Cecil Adams

This is an old one, and I’m surprised it didn’t turn up when I did a search on your site. It has to do with boiling frogs. Goes something like this: If you tossed a frog into already-boiling water, it would leap out. ]]> By Cecil Adams

As we've seen, however, neither the drug industry nor consumers have much incentive to demand change.]]> By Cecil Adams

Why is prostitution called “the oldest profession”? Under both of the definitions of profession I know, there’s no chance prostitution could be the oldest, ]]> By Cecil Adams

Can colorblind persons pick out camouflage from background foliage more easily?]]> By Cecil Adams

A friend insists a team of scientists is dedicated to cloning a woolly mammoth. I’d love to believe this is true, and if it is, what are the plans for these critters? Zoos? Releasing them into the wild? Farming? ]]> By Cecil Adams

I don't claim video games have been 100 percent beneficial. The Columbine massacre shooters were reportedly addicted to video games.]]> By Cecil Adams

Is there a difference between red (Republican heartland conservative) states and blue (Democratic coastal liberal) states in terms of IQ?]]> By Cecil Adams

In The Empire Strikes Back, there’s a scene where Han Solo must cut open his tauntaun and climb inside the steaming corpse with Luke. ]]> By Cecil Adams

I’ve been reading about the coelacanth, the fish thought to have gone extinct 65 million years ago that turned up in an Indonesian fish market. ]]> By Cecil Adams

As I was decorating my Christmas tree this year, I began to wonder if I was putting myself at risk from insects. I don’t like spiders much, and it would be even worse to have a Lyme-diseased tick bite me. Are Christmas trees fumigated, or are we bringing termites, etc., into our homes every holiday season? —Doug in L.A. ]]>