The Straight Dope 01/23/2004

The Straight Dope -- By Cecil Adams
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THE STRAIGHT DOPE 01/23/2004

Dear Cecil:

During a breakfast stop prior to a recent day of skiing,
my husband chided our teenage son for requesting coffee,
saying that "caffeine stunts your growth." When
challenged both my husband and I were obliged to concede
that we did not know if there was any scientific backing
for this common parental admonition. So we put it to you,
Cecil. Does caffeine stunt your growth?
--Jane Ebisch, Golden, Colorado

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Cecil replies:

The good news, at least from your son's standpoint, is
that I haven't been able to find a single study saying
caffeine stunts your growth. The bad news is that I
can't find a single study saying it doesn't stunt your
growth, either. Although most dispensers of health
advice think the danger is a myth, you do find a few
zealots intimating that caffeine is an insidious evil.
It's tempting to dismiss such views as alarmist, but the
truth is we don't have enough hard evidence to rule out
much of anything.

For more, see:
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/040123.html

STAFF REPORT

Dear Straight Dope:

I live in New Orleans, Louisiana and I shower daily.
From what I hear, we're recipients of "hard water."
On trips out of state and such I've been privy to
"soft water." I do notice a difference in the "thin
layer of residue" that Zest commercials refer to, but
what really is the ifference between these two types
of water?--Pico Salazar, New Orleans, LA

Dear Straight Dope:

We have a water softener in our house and I hate the way
my skin feels after showering using soft water. I never
feel quite clean. What specifically does a water softener
do to the water and what properties for soaps should I be
looking for, for use with soft water?--Marten Dykstra

SDSTAFF Una replies:

Hard water contains higher-than- ordinary levels of
dissolved minerals (strictly speaking, dissolved
positive metallic ions) such as magnesium and calcium.
Water from underground aquifers--well water, for you
civilians--has extended contact with soft calcium and
magnesium-bearing rock and mineral deposits such as
limestone, chalk, dolomite, and marble, and small
amounts of minerals are dissolved into an ionic solution
in the water. Often the dissolution process is
facilitated by carbon dioxide in the water, which forms
a weak carbonic acid. Surface water generally doesn't
contain enough calcium and magnesium to be considered
hard, although there can be exceptions.

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

STRAIGHT DOPE CLASSIC - 03/07/1980

Dear Cecil: 

Why are some musical instruments made in different keys?
If the tenor saxophone, a B-flat instrument, and the
piano, a C instrument, both play the note C, they would
in fact be producing different tones. The tenor 
saxophonist would have to transpose to D for the
instruments to be sounding the same tone. Why don't they
just build instruments so that a C (or any other note)is
the same tone for all instruments?
--Robert B., Glen Burnie, Maryland

Cecil Adams replies:  

Before we get into this, Bob, let me explain to the
befuddled masses what we're talking about here. First
of all, the true C is the same tone on whatever
instrument it is played, namely 263 cycles per second.
However, a true C is not necessarily called C on all
instruments. On a tenor saxophone, which is known as
a "transposing" instrument, everything is shifted down
a tone (well, actually a tone plus an octave, but let's
not quibble). That is, if you play a "C," you actually
get a B-flat; if you play a "G," you get an F, and so
on.  The reasons for this have to do with the difficult
nature of the sax. 

For more, see:
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_319b.html

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