The Straight Dope 06/16/2006

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

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THE STRAIGHT DOPE 06/16/2006

Dear Cecil:

When I told my wife that one reason our refrigerator was having trouble
maintaining a low temperature was that it was overfilled, she instantly
produced three household-tips books that said a refrigerator is more
efficient stuffed to the gills than it is empty. This seems to
contradict the first law of physics: You don't get something for
nothing. If we take Heloise and her fellow hinters at their word, it
costs less to maintain a warehouse full of fish sticks than a tray of
miniature ice cubes in a motel-room fridge. Given two refrigerators, one
jammed tight with Jell-O molds and the other empty of everything but
air, which box works harder, uses more energy, and costs more to run?
--Bruce Kula, via e-mail

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Cecil replies:

You get married yesterday, Bruce? You should know that once your wife
starts whipping out the helpful-hint books, magazine articles, etc, you
and your half-remembered physics don't stand a chance. While the First
Law of Thermodynamics holds true even in kitchens, you forgot about the
laws of heat and mass transfer--no trifling matter. If we consider only
appliances that most people are likely to use on a regular basis (no
pool pumps or spa heaters, please), the refrigerator arguably sucks up
more electricity than anything else in the house.

Here's the crucial factor you're overlooking: Every time you open the
door to the refrigerator, you let out cold air and let in warm air--and
when you shut the door, all that warm air you let in has to be cooled
down. The more air space in the fridge, the more cold air that can be
swapped with warm air from the kitchen. More warm air = more cooling
required = higher fridge juice consumption = lighter wallet.

For more, see:
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/060616.html

STAFF REPORT

Dear Straight Dope:

What's up with the 27th Amendment to the Constitution, about
compensating Congress? Why did it take more than 200 years to ratify?
What did the states that didn't ratify it way back when have against it?
And what does it mean to me now? While we're on the subject, when an
amendment is added to the Constitution, does someone literally amend the
Constitution? I assume they don't really write it at the bottom of the
original document, but does anyone trace it out in that fancy
calligraphy on another sheet and stick it under the original
Constitution (no stapling, though) over at the National Archives? --Juan
Gonzale

SDSTAFF Gfactor replies:

Let's start with the easy part. Section 106b of Title 1 of the United
States Code says: 

Whenever official notice is received at the National Archives and
Records Administration that any amendment proposed to the Constitution
of the United States has been adopted, according to the provisions of
the Constitution, the Archivist of the United States shall  forthwith
cause the amendment to be published, with his certificate, specifying
the States by which the same may have been adopted, and that the same
has become valid, to all intents and purposes, as a part of the
Constitution of the United States. 

So the National Archivist must publish the amendment with a certificate
that gives the particulars of adoption. The National Archivist did
exactly that with the 27th Amendment. The National Archivist is also
required to publish constitutional amendments in a book called Statutes
at Large, according to 1 U.S.C. 112. 

If you want to see the 27th in its original form, though, take a look at
the Bill of Rights in high resolution on the National Archives site. As
you know, it was the second article in that document. It says: 

No law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and
Representatives,  shall take effect, until an election of
Representatives shall have intervened. 

It prevents Congress from raising its current pay.

For more, see: 
http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/m27amend.html

STRAIGHT DOPE CLASSIC - 10/28/1988

Dear Cecil: 

For a long time I've heard stories about a man who tied a bunch of
balloons to a lawn chair and went soaring into the heavens. I even spent
an afternoon searching at the library to see if it was true, but no
luck. I gave up, thinking it must be someone's wild imagination. Then
the other day a story in the paper made mention of a mad balloonist
named Larry Walters. Can you tell me more? -- Roger K., Dallas, Texas
 
Dear Roger:  

How fleeting is fame. It's been a mere 16 years since Larry
Walters made his legendary flight, and already people are starting to
think he's a mythical being. Au contraire. Larry, an authentic
working-class hero (at the time he was driving a truck), went aloft July
2, 1982, from his girlfriend's backyard in suburban Los Angeles. His
craft: an aluminum lawn chair borne by 42 helium-filled weather
balloons.  

Larry's original idea was that he would fly east to the Mojave
desert, but it didn't quite work out that way. As his girlfriend
and buddy were feeding out the tether, the line broke and he shot
skyward. Eventually he reached 16,000 feet, where the pilots of at least
two airliners saw him. Not wanting to cause a fuss, he began putting out
calls on his portable CB radio. After a while his feet got cold, so he
pulled out a pellet pistol and began shooting out balloons. 

For more, see:
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_131.html

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