Past Shows

December 18, 2004 -The Question Show

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Part 1

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• Most spiders are only the size of pinheads when they hatch. What do they eat when they're that small? Answer from Dr. Maydianne Andrade, an Assistant Professor of Zoology at the University of Toronto, Scarborough Campus.

• Is it better to idle or turn off your engine when stopped at a red light? Which causes more pollution? Answer from Dr. David Checkel, a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Alberta.

• Would you be able to fire a gun in space, and if so, would you be able to hear it? Answer from Dr. Samar Safi-Harb, an Associate Professor in the department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Manitoba.

• Why does seafood go smelly so quickly, and what causes the smell? Answer from Dr. Tom Gill, a Professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology at Dalhousie University.

Part 2

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• Why do fried and salty foods taste so good? Answer from Dr. Kathy Gottschall-Pass, an Associate Professor in the Department of Family and Nutritional Sciences at the University of Prince Edward Island.

• If you lift your right foot and draw clockwise circles with it, and at the same time, try to draw the number six with your right hand, you'll find that your foot will always change directions. Why is that? Answer from Dr. Michael Peters, a Neuro-psychologist, and Professor in the Psychology Department at the University of Guelph.

• We live on Baffin Island, and the weather here is very dry, even though the island is surrounded by water. But when we go to Cape Breton Island, we notice that the weather there is very wet. Since they're both islands, why is there such a difference in humidity? Answer from Yvonne Bilan-Wallace, a Meteorologist, specializing in Northern weather patterns, with Environment Canada, in Edmonton.

• Were the oceans always salty, and if so, has the salinity changed since the oceans were first formed? Answer from Dr. Brad de Young, a Professor in the Department of Physics and Physical Oceanography at Memorial University of Newfoundland.

• What causes a lisp? Answer from Dr. Elizabeth Skarakis-Doyle, an Associate Professor in the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders at the University of Western Ontario.

• It seems to me that thunderstorms happen more often in the afternoon and evening than in the morning. Is that true, and if so, why? Answer from Geoff Coulson, a Warning Preparedness Meteorologist with Environment Canada in Toronto.