The Straight Dope 09/13/2002

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

You are subscribed as: [[email protected]]

To unsubscribe CLICK on the URL below this line:
mailto:[email protected]
If you can't "click" above, then send a blank email to:
[email protected]
____________________________________________
THE STRAIGHT DOPE 09/13/2002

Dear Cecil:

I'm sure I remember hearing from a reliable source, i.e., a
science program, that certain species of trees (or shrubs)
will spontaneously combust in order to ensure the survival
of the species. I'm being mercilessly teased about this, so
I'd appreciate any information you can dig up. --Donna Rose,
Washington, D.C.

~~~~~~
Looking for the perfect gift for that wedding, birthday, or
bar mitzvah? Straight Dope books are the very thing! See
http://www.straightdope.com/store.html
~~~~~~

Cecil replies:

No offense, Donna, but this is a pretty dull way of putting
it. A more interesting way is: Could the biblical burning
bush that spoke to Moses have been a spontaneously
combusting desert shrub? Answer: Maybe. Some claim there's a
plant in desert regions that every so often bursts into
flame for no apparent reason. And here your idea of
plant-based excitement was watching the leaves turn colors.
Then again, I suppose if you were a desert home owner
observing the spectacle of random ignition on the lawn some
night, you might also think: Cheezit, couldn't I just have
crabgrass?

For more, see:
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/020913.html


STAFF REPORT

Dear Straight Dope:

Hey for my Algerbra class, our teacher told us that we could
get extra credit if we told him Who Invented Pi
(mathmatically speaking) so I thought this would be the
perfect place to turn to. Soo... WHO INVENTED Pi??? Thanxs
for your help --Soccer Princess

PS: Could you e-mail the answer to me @ both these e-mail
adresses: [deleted]. Thanks so Much !!!!!! S~

SDSTAFF bibliophage replies:

Lest anyone think we're in the homework business, this
question arrived March 15, 2000. We figure Soccer Princess
has surely flunked out by now.

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


STRAIGHT DOPE CLASSIC - 10/24/1980

Dear Cecil: 

I know that body hair only grows to a certain length and
then stops. But how does hair know it's been cut? For
instance, if I cut some arm or leg hair off, how does it
know this, and grow back? Do you understand? --Mary B.,
Dallas  Dear Mary:  I am giving it my all, madam. Hair
doesn't know it's been cut, and being dead tissue, doesn't
much care. The fact is that body hair will grow if you cut
it, and it will grow if you don't cut it--it is, in short,
always growing (or at least, at any given time, a
substantial portion of it is.) You just don't realize it,
since in aggregate it never seems to get any longer. That's
because the longest hairs fall out, having been pushed out
of their sockets by newer hairs working up from below. 

For more, see:
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_097b.html

____________________________________________
Here's how you can get your OWN FREE Subscription:
Send a blank mailto:[email protected]
____________________________________________
Copyright 1995 - 2002 Chicago Reader, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
You may forward this document by email ONLY if you
include the entire document INCLUDING the information
at the bottom of this publication
____________________________________________
Visit our good friends at Joke A Day http://www.jokeaday.com
They're kind enough to mail THE STRAIGHT DOPE for us.
Join the World's Largest Daily Humor List and receive daily
laughs in your email by sending mailto:[email protected]