The Straight Dope 01/21/2005

The Straight Dope -- By Cecil Adams
http://www.straightdope.com

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THE STRAIGHT DOPE 01/21/2005

Dear Cecil:

I'm a runner, and I'm always having to take grief from people
(especially my wife) who happily point out that you'll get the same
benefit walking three miles as you will running the same distance, and
you won't risk crippling arthritis of all your major body parts. So the
other day I had a flash! Going back to high school auto mechanics and
some hot-rod magazines, I explained to my wife that since I'm exerting
the same force to move the same mass the same distance, I'm doing the
same amount of work--but since I'm doing it twice as fast, I'm exerting
two times the power and probably using twice the calories. My wife is
pretty bright, though: she pointed out that if I run and exert twice the
power in half the time, and then sit on my butt desperately trying to
catch my breath for the other half of the time, then average power
exerted is a wash. Is she right? Does running have any calorie advantage
over walking, or am I really being that dumb (not like it would be the
first time)? --Peter Prout, Winchester, Virginia

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Cecil replies:

A complicated question, often answered wrong even by those who ought to
know. We'll take it by steps:

1. The unschooled view, which springs from the ancient instinct that
pain = gain, is that running is better than walking because afterward
you're sweating like a horse and gasping for breath.

2. Those with a semester or two of physics under their belts, on the
other hand, reason that since the amount of work involved is the same,
running a mile has the same impact as walking an equal distance.

3. However, this assumes that running and walking are equally efficient
means of locomotion. Generally speaking they're not--running requires
substantially more energy per unit of distance. Several factors
contribute to this. Shall we start with entropy and the second law of
thermodynamics? Eh, maybe not. 

For more, see:
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/050121.html

STAFF REPORT

Dear Straight Dope:

Genesis 9:20-25 seems to be one of the strangest stories in the Bible.
Noah lands the ark, plants a vineyard, gets drunk off its wine, lays
around naked in his tent and is seen by his son Ham who reports it to
his two brothers. Noah sobers up knowing what Ham did and curses his
grandson Canaan who apparently was not even there. What is even stranger
is when I started researching this mystery I discovered the story was
once used to support slavery. Further there are theories floating around
concerning castration and incest. What is the real story? Is there a
deeper meaning to this than Noah having a case of misdirected anger
while hung over? Or are we only hearing the watered-down version in our
modern day Bible?--Steve, Oak Park, Illinois

SDSTAFF Dex replies:

Yes, there are some strange stories in the Bible, no question about it.
And there are those who happily twist the biblical stories to suit their
own political ends. I'm going to split this into two different questions
to be answered in two separate articles: First, the textual
interpretation of the story itself, and second the history of how that
the story has been used to "justify" slavery and the subjugation of
black people in America.

The story itself:

For more, see: 
http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mdrunknoah.html

STRAIGHT DOPE CLASSIC - 07/27/1984

Dear Cecil: 

I have always played Monopoly with an unstated rule that when a player
pays out cash as a result of a Chance or Community Chest card, the money
is put into the center of the board. Then, when somebody lands on Free
Parking, they get to take all the cash that's accumulated up to that
point. No one I know plays by any other rule. Yet the official rules of
the game state, "A player landing [on Free Parking] does not receive any
money, property or any reward of any kind. This is just a free resting
space." When did this variation begin? Why? --Dan J., Evanston, Illinois 

Dear Dan:  

You'd think Parker Brothers would keep track of vital facts like this, 
but guess again. Here's the sum total of their wisdom on the
subject: "It is not known when the practice of collecting money on 'Free
Parking' began." However, they do graciously allow that "while the
official Parkers Brothers rules followed in tournament play do not allow
such variations, you may follow 'house rules' if all players consent
before play begins." Thanks a heap, guys.  

For more, see:
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_179.html

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