Why do Clocks run clockwise? (32 page)

Trucks, origins of term “semi” and

Twenty-one gun salute, origins of

Twitches during sleep

“Two bits,” origins of term

Two by Fours, measurement of

Underarm hair, human

Uniforms, surgeons’

Unscented hair spray, smell of

Vaccination marks, hair growth and

Voices, causes of high and low

Volkswagen Beetles, elimination of

Wagon wheels in film, movement of

Warning labels, mattress tag

Washington D. C., “J” Street in

WHY DO CLOCKS RUN CLOCKWISE? / 255

Water, color of

Whips, cracking sound of

White paint on homes

White pepper, source of

White-wall tires, thickness of

Window envelopes

Wisdom teeth, purpose of

Wrinkles on extremities

X-rated movies, XXX-rated movies versus

“Xmas,” origins of the word

Yawning, contagiousness of

256 / DAVID FELDMAN

Master Index of

Imponderability

257

Following is a complete index of all ten Imponderables® books and
Who Put the Butter in Butterfly?
The bold number before the colon indicates the book title (see the Title Key below); the numbers that follow the colon are the page numbers. Simple as that.

Title Key

1 = Why Don’t Cats Like to Swim? (
formerly published as
Imponderables)

2 = Why Do Clocks Run Clockwise?

3 = When Do Fish Sleep?

4 = Why Do Dogs Have Wet Noses?

5 = Do Penguins Have Knees?

6 = Are Lobsters Ambidextrous? (
formerly published
as When Did Wild Poodles Roam the Earth?)

7 = How Does Aspirin Find a Headache?

8 = What Are Hyenas Laughing at, Anyway?

9 = How Do Astronauts Scratch an Itch?

10 = Do Elephants Jump?

11 = Who Put the Butter in Butterfly?

258 / DAVID FELDMAN

“1/2,” meaning of, in street addresses

1040 form, numbering scheme of

20-20 vision, origins of

24-second clock in NBA basketball

3-D glasses and movies

501, Levi jeans, origin of name

7-11 Stores, lack of locks on

7UP, origins of name

“86,” origins of term

9 as number to get outside line on telephones 911 as emergency telephone number

98.6 degrees Fahrenheit as comfortable ambient temperature Absorbine Jr., origins of

Absorbine Sr., identity of

AC, and DC

Accents, American, of foreign singers

Aches

Acre, origins of

Acrylic, virgin

Actors, speed of speech of

Address labels on magazines

Addresses and ZIP codes, on envelopes

Addresses, street, half-numbers on

Advertising sales in TV programming, overrun live programming and

Aerosol cans, shaking of

After-shave lotion, stinging and

Age of majority, 21 as

Aging and effect on voices

Agitators in washing machines, movement of Air mail and “Par Avion”

Air temperature, versus water temperature, perception of Airlines

chime signals on

cold rolls at meal service

dearth of female pilots on

honey roasted peanuts

inflation of oxygen masks

WHY DO CLOCKS RUN CLOCKWISE? / 259

tickets, red carbons on

Airplanes

coffee bags in lavatories

dimming of interior lights

ear popping and

feet swelling and

numbering of Boeing jets

“Qantas,” spelling of

red and green lights on

seat belts

shoulder harnesses

U.S. flags on exterior

Alarm clocks, life before

Alcohol

in cough medicine

proof of

Algebra, X in

“All wool and a yard wide,” origins of term

“Allemande”

“Alligator” shirts

Alphabet, order of

Alphabet soup

distribution of letters

outside of U.S.,

Aluminum cans, crushability of

Aluminum foil

and heat to touch

two sides of

Aluminum foil, on neck of champagne bottles Ambidexterity in lobsters

Ambulances, snake emblems on

American accents of foreign singers

American singles, Kraft, milk in

“Ampersand”

Amputees, phantom limb sensations in

Anchors, submarines and

Angel food cake and position while cooling Animal tamers and kitchen chairs

Ants

separation from colony

260 / DAVID FELDMAN

sidewalks and

“Apache dance”

Apes, hair picking of

Appendix, function of

Apples, as gifts for teachers

Apples and pears, discoloration of

Apples in roasted pigs’ mouths

April 15, as due date for taxes

Aquariums, fear of fish in

Arabic numbers, origins of

Architectural pencils, grades of

Area codes, middle digits of

Armies, marching patterns of

Armpits, shaving of

Army and Navy, Captain rank in

Art pencils, grades of

Aspirin

headaches and

safety cap on 100-count bottles of

Astrology, different dates for signs in

Astronauts and itching

“At loggerheads”

Athletics, Oakland, and elephant insignia

“Atlas”

ATMs

swiping of credit cards in

swiping versus dipping of credit cards in transaction costs of

“Attorney-at-law”

Auctioneers, chanting of

Audiocassette tape on side of road

Audiocassette tapes on roadsides

Audiotape, versus videotape technology

Audiotape recorders

counter numbers on

play and record switches on

Automobiles

batteries and concrete floors

bright/dimmer switch position

bunching of, on highways

WHY DO CLOCKS RUN CLOCKWISE? / 261

cardboard on grills

clicking sound of turn signals

cockroaches in

Corvette, 1983

cruise controls

day/night switch on rear-view mirrors

dimples on headlamps

elimination of side vents

gas gauges in

headlamp shutoff

headlights and deer

holes in ceiling of

key release button on

keys, ignition and door

“new car smell”

oil loss after oil change

oil, grades of

rear windows of

rentals, cost in Florida of

side-view mirrors

speed limits

speedometers

tire tread

weight of batteries

white wall tires

windshield wipers, versus buses

Autopsies of executed criminals

“Ax to grind”

Babies

blinking

burping

hair color

high temperatures, tolerance of

sleep

Baby corn, in supermarkets

Baby pigeons, elusiveness of

Baby Ruth, origins of name

Baby shrimp, peeling and cleaning of

“Back and fill”

262 / DAVID FELDMAN

Back tapping during physical exams

Backlogs in repair shops

Bad breath, upon awakening, in the morning Badges, marshals’ and sheriffs’

Bagels, holes in

Bags under eyes

Bags, paper, jagged edges and

Baked goods

Pennsylvania and

seven-layer cakes

unctuous taste until cooled

Baked potatoes in steak houses

Ball throwing, sex differences and

Ballet, “on pointe” in

Balls, orange, on power lines

Balls, tennis, fuzz and

Balsa wood, classification as hardwood

Banana peels as slipping agents

Bananas, growth of

Band-Aid packages, red tear strings on

Bands, tardiness of, in nightclubs

Bands, marching, formation of

Bands, paper, around Christmas card envelopes Banking

ATM charges

hours

Barbecue grills, shape of

“Barbecue”

Barbie, hair of, versus Ken’s

Barefoot kickers in football

Bark, tree, color of

Barns, red color of

Bars

mirrors in

sawdust on floor of

television sound and

Baseball

black stripes on bats

Candlestick Park, origins of

cap buttons

WHY DO CLOCKS RUN CLOCKWISE? / 263

caps, green undersides of

circle next to batter’s box in

dugout heights

first basemen, ball custody of

home plate sweeping, by umpires

home plate, shape of

Japanese uniforms

“K,” as symbol for strikeout

pitcher’s mounds, location of

Baseball cards

wax on wrappers

white stuff on gum

Basements, lack of, in southern houses

Basketball

24-second clock in NBA

duration of periods in

Basketballs, fake seams on

Baskin-Robbins, cost of cones versus cups at

“Batfowling”

Bathrooms

group visits by females to

ice in urinals of

in supermarkets

Bathtub drains, location of

Bathubs, overflow mechanisms on

Bats, baseball, stripes on

Batteries

automobile, weight of

concrete floors and

drainage of, in cassette players

nine-volt, shape of

sizes of

volume and power loss in

“Battle royal”

Bazooka Joe, eye patch of

Beacons, police car, colors on

“Bead,” “Draw a,” origins of term

Beaks versus bills, birds and

Beanbag packs in electronics boxes

Beans, green, “French” style

264 / DAVID FELDMAN

Beards on turkeys

“Bears [stock market]”

“Beating around the bush”

Beavers, dam building and

“Bedlam”

Beds, mattresses, floral graphics on

Beef, red color of

Beeps before network news on radio

Beer

and plastic bottles

steins, lids of

temperature in Old West

twistoff bottle caps, merits of

Beetle, Volkswagen, elimination of

Bell bottoms, sailors and

Bells in movie theaters

Belly dancers, amplitude of

Belts, color of, in martial arts

Ben-Gay, creator of

“Berserk”

Best Foods Mayonnaise, versus Hellmann’s

Beverly Hills, “Beverly” in

“Beyond the pale”

Bias on audiotape

Bibles, courtrooms and

Bicycles

clicking noises

crossbars on

tires

Bill posting at construction sites

Billboards, spinning blades on

Bill-counting machines

Bills versus beaks, birds and

“Bimonthly”

“Bingo,” origin of term

Binoculars, adjustments for

Bird droppings, color of

“Birdie”

Birds [see also specific types]

bills versus beaks in

WHY DO CLOCKS RUN CLOCKWISE? / 265

coloring of

death of

direction of takeoff

droppings, color of

honking during migration

jet lag and

migration patterns of

sleeping habits of

telephone wires and

walking versus hopping

worms and

Birthday candles, trick

“Birthday suit”

Biting of fingernails, reasons for

Bitings in keys

“Bitter end”

“Biweekly”

Black

clothing and bohemians

gondola color

judges’ robes

specks in ice cream

stripes on baseball bats

“Blackmail”

Blacktop roads, lightening of

Blades, razor, hotel slots for

Bleach, flour and

Blind

money counting

wearing dark glasses

Blinking and babies

“Blockhead”

Blood, color of

Blouses, women’s, lack of sleeve length sizes in Blue

as color for baby boys

as color of blueprints

as color of racquetballs

in hair rinses

“Blue blood,” origin of term

266 / DAVID FELDMAN

Blue Demons and De Paul University

Blue jeans and orange thread

“Blue jeans”

“Blue moon”

Blue plate special, origins of

Blue ribbons (as first prize)

“Blue streak”

Blueprints, color of

“Blurb”

Blushing and feelings of warmth

Boats, red and green lights on

“Bobbies [London officers]”

“Bobby pins”

Body hair

loss of, in humans

pubic hair, purpose of

underarm hair, purpose of

Body odor, human immunity to own

Boeing, numbering of jets

“Bogey”

Boiling water during home births

Bombs and mushroom clouds

Book staining, of paperback book pages

Books

checkered cloth on

pagination in

Boots on ranchers’ fence posts

“Booze”

Bottle caps, beer, twistoff, merits of

Bottles, cola, one-and two-liter

Bottles, soda, holes on bottom of

Boulder, Colorado, magazine subscriptions and Bowling, “turkey” in

Bowling pins, stripes on

Bowling shoes, rented, ugliness of

Boxer shorts, versus briefs

Boxers, sniffing and

Boxes, Japanese, yellow color of

Bracelets, migration of clasps on

Brain, Ten percent use of, alleged

WHY DO CLOCKS RUN CLOCKWISE? / 267

“Brass tacks”

“Bravo Zulu,” origins of

Brazil nuts in assortments

Bread

“French” versus “Italian”

kneading of

staling of

yeast in

“Break a leg”

Breath, bad, upon awakening, in the morning Brick shape of gold bullion

Bricks

holes in

in skyscrapers

Bridges versus roads, freezing characteristics of Bridges, covered, purpose of