The Straight Dope 05/12/2006

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

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THE STRAIGHT DOPE 05/12/2006

Dear Cecil:

We all know that oil came from dinosaurs, or, at least, from the
decomposition of organic (i.e., formerly living) materials--hence the
term "fossil fuels" and the Sinclair dinosaur. But is it really true?
Were there really enough dinosaurs--or even plant life--to create the
billions and billions of gallons of known oil reserves? What is the
physical process that converts dead reptiles and/or ferns into a
homogeneous carbon compound that bears little resemblance to the
molecular structure of plants and animals? ("Heat and extreme pressure"
seems a little vague--and anyway, I thought that produced diamonds, not
oil.) Has the process been duplicated in the laboratory? Isn't the
source of oil more likely to be natural geologic processes? --Larry Orr,
via e-mail

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Cecil replies:

Forgive me for hitting the energy questions pretty hard lately, but
every trip to the gas pump these days brings the subject painfully to
mind. Evidently you've forgotten my 1986 adumbration of "abiogenic" oil,
which focused on the work of the scientific maverick Thomas Gold.  (See
The Straight Dope: How many dinosaurs did it take to make a barrel of
oil?) Like you, Gold doubted the conventional wisdom that petroleum
derived from plant and animal remains. Instead he thought it welled up
from inorganic sources deep within the earth, the implication being that
there was a lot more down there waiting to be found than most experts
thought. With that in mind, Gold persuaded oil prospectors in Sweden to
bore an ultradeep hole in that country's Siljan Ring, the site of an
ancient meteorite strike that had cracked the earth's crust. Gold hoped
to find primordial petroleum seeping up through the fissures, far below
the level at which oil is normally found--proof of his theory.

We'll get to the results of that little treasure hunt in a second. 

For more, see:
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/060512.html

STRAIGHT DOPE CLASSIC #1 - 04/15/1988

Dear Cecil: 

Here's the story. My wife just got back from Berkeley where she helped a
friend give birth- -and of course it all happened at home, in some kind
of tub, underwater, with violins playing and midwives hovering about.
Here's what she says happened next. Out came the afterbirth, which was
carefully collected in a pot and put in the fridge to keep cool. Through
the day, various vegetarians who dropped by to pay their respects asked
about the placenta. My wife inquired, and was told that a certain stripe
of high-minded vegetarian eagerly prepares and devours placenta stew,
the placenta being the only form of meat that does not involve the
slaughter of some innocent animal. Can this be true? And if it is, why
isn't some shrewd entrepreneur bagging cow and ewe placenta and selling
it at the Jewel?  I want to be told this was a tall story. --Rip Sewell,
Chicago  

Cecil replies:  

Love to accommodate you, Ripster, but once again we find ourselves
outgunned by reality. Having investigated the matter with my customary
thoroughness, no small achievement under the circumstances, I can report
the following facts: (1) chowing down on placenta doesn't happen often, but
(2) it happens. May God have mercy on our heathen souls.  

For more, see: 
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_104.html

STRAIGHT DOPE CLASSIC #2 - 07/29/1988

Dear Cecil: 

This morning when I ordered hot tea from the restaurant next door, I got
a styrofoam cup of steaming hot water and a tea bag. Soaking the bag in
the water, I noticed the usual brownish white foam floating up to the
top of the cup. What is this foamy stuff-- preservative from the bag, or
is it just happy to see me? Also, after pouring the foamy stuff out, I
noticed the cup had pits and craters in it. What happened? Am I drinking
melted styrofoam? -- Steve Holmquist, Chicago  

Cecil replies:  

We will deal with this question in a moment, Steve. But first a word about
your terminology. Since this column originally appeared in the newspaper I
have received a friendly little note from the Dow Chemical Company
informing me that while you think what you've got there is a styrofoam
cup, it is really a "plastic foam" cup. "Styrofoam" is a brand name
applied only to Dow Chemical's plastic foam products, none of which is
cups. Clearly Dow wishes to distance itself pending the day when the
melted cup scandal breaks.  

Now then. Cecil always loves the thought of looming environmental disaster,
so he hustled out to study this deadly phenomenon firsthand. First I got a
jumbo pack of 51 foam cups, so as to do the job with the thoroughness it
deserves. I also bought a lemon, a common tea additive, partly to give a
splash of color to the lab (we're into nouvelle research), but also to test
the corrosive effect of the juice. I know you didn't mention lemon in
your letter,  but the Teeming Millions over the years have shown a genius
for omitting crucial details.   

Sure enough . . .

For more, see:
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_109.html

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