Yahoo! Answers

Hey Guys,

Over the past several weeks, well over half a billion eggs have been recalled due to salmonella worries. The “bad eggs” (pun not intended) were either “destroyed,” according to various news reports, or returned to the two big farms from which they came. But what happens to the eggs that these farm hens keep laying? Do those get tossed, too?

The answer might surprise you: According to the Washington Post, many of these eggs are sold to food businesses that can pasteurize them. Pasteurizing, in which the product is heated to a specific temperature, kills the salmonella. The recalled eggs will then be “used in liquid egg products or processed foods.”

The Wall Street Journal points out that there is something very important to keep in mind here. The eggs being sold for pasteurization are not (repeat: NOT) the same eggs that have been recalled. Those were apparently destroyed, though how, exactly, remains a bit of a mystery. The eggs being sold are fresh eggs, which may or may not contain salmonella. Regardless, pasteurization kills the bacteria.

So where do the eggs end up, specifically? HealthDay explains that they’ll go in “food products ranging from salad dressings to cookie dough to cake mixes.” Consumers shouldn’t fear — “those products will be perfectly safe for consumers to eat.”

That should ease some worries. Web searches on “egg recall” remain in Yahoo!’s top 100 overall terms, and over the past week, interest in “list of recalled egg brands” has soared over 9,000%, and “salmonella symptoms” are also big in Search.

For a complete list of the recalled brands and labels, check here.

Thanks for reading,

Mike

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Hey Guys,

Consider the license plate. Some plates are customized, some are just a random string of letters and numbers, and some (in California, anyway) have handprints and hearts. And, according to legend, every last one of them was made by a convict in America’s lovely prison system. Is that really true?

I can’t say definitively if every plate is made by a guest of the government, but a number of states do have prisoners manufacture license plates. In the state of Michigan, for example, prisoners do create each and every plate at the Parr Highway Correctional Facility. Overall, about 130 inmates produce over 8,000 plates every day. You can take a photo tour and see the process here.

Other states that employ inmates for the production of license plates include Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Nevada, and Colorado.

Indiana uses prisoners to make plates, too. But the Hoosier State ran into a bit of trouble when the prisoners were put on “lock down.” No plates could be made, and there was a bit of shortage. Hey, that’s life in the big house. Oh, and it’s not like this gig pays a lot. New York prisoners earn 42 cents per hour.

Do you guys have any favorite customized license plates that you’ve seen on the road? I don’t really have a favorite, but I do remember one that was so boring I never forgot it. On a red car, the license plate read: “RED CAR.” So creative.

Thanks for reading,

Mike

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Hey Guys,

While reading your comments from a recent column I did on why we say “God bless you” after somebody sneezes, I came across another interesting question. Does the heart really stop during a sneeze?

Good news — your heart does not stop, not even for a moment, when you sneeze. Baby just keeps on ticking. An article from the Library of Congress explains that a sneeze does cause the pressure in a person’s chest to change. This “also changes your blood flow, which may change the rhythm of your heartbeat.” This can give the person the sensation that his or her heart is “skipping a beat.” Indeed there may be a delay from beat to beat, but that’s not the same as having your heart stop. So, sneeze all you want. Nothing to fear.

The LOC mentions a few other interesting sneeze-related facts at the end of their article. For example, did you know that “sneezes can travel at a speed of 100 miles per hour”? All the more reason to cover your mouth. And, ever wonder why people don’t sneeze when they’re sleeping? The reason has to do with nerve endings. The ones “involved in nerve reflex are also resting.”

It’s impossible to write about this topic without mentioning explaining whether it’s really impossible to keep your eyes open during a sneeze. Near as I can tell this is actually true. Try all you want, you can’t keep your eyelids up when you sneeze. I wrote a column on this in 2005, and found that, “the sneeze impulse affects a variety of body parts, including the abdomen, chest, neck, and face. During a sneeze, the impulses that travel through your face cause your eyelids to blink. This response is entirely automatic. There’s nothing you can do about it.” (First time I’ve quoted myself — feels a little weird.)

Oh, and by the way, even if you held your eyelids in place and then sneezed, your eyes still wouldn’t fly out of your head. You know, just in case you were worried.

Thanks for reading,

Mike

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Hey Guys,

Some say that the President has the world’s toughest job. I think the honor should go to anyone who works in customer service. Imagine how many times these brave men and women hear the following from a ticked-off client: “But I’m the customer! And the customer is always right!”

Never mind that the well-worn phrase is usually false. What I’d like to know is who coined it? I did some searching and found that the expression has an interesting back story. According to phrases.org.uk, the customer mantra likely originated from one of two men: Marshall Field or Harry Gordon Selfidge.

Most sources I found seemed to think Mr. Field was more likely the creator (Selfridge was an employee of his). Legend has it that Field came up with it as a way to distinguish his store from the competition. Over the years the phrase has been misused and misunderstood. Phrases.org.uk points out that Field never intended it be taken literally. I’m talking to you, lady who is trying to return her sweat-stained dress.

And if the Field name sounds familiar, it should. For a long time, Marshall Field’s department stores were among the biggest, grandest retail spaces in the United States. The brand was acquired by Macy’s several years ago, though some are still protesting the sale.

What do you guys think about the customer being right? Is it always true or is there a limit? Have you seen people try to “abuse the system”?

Thanks for reading,

Mike

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Hey Guys,

A friend of mine woke up the other morning to a most unpleasant surprise. Her apartment had been invaded by bed bugs.

Despite its cutesy sounding name, the bed bug is one of the vilest creatures around. It is also one of the most resilient. My friend wanted to know: How does one get rid of the pests without losing her sanity?

The good folks at Harvard suggest that before you start throwing away all your furniture, you’ll want to make sure that the “bed bugs” are indeed bed bugs. In order to do that, you’ll have to capture one, and have it examined by an expert. If the expert says, “Yep, that there’s a bed bug, buddy boy” then here’s what’s next.

Conventional wisdom says you’ll have to ditch your carpet, couch, bed, etc. Or, in extreme cases, move. However, there are many exterminators who will treat an infested home. Some services attempt to freeze the bugs. Others bombard them with chemicals. If you don’t believe exterminators will be successful, you can always purge yourself of anything that you think might be infected.

Obviously, this can be an expensive proposition. One doesn’t want to throw away items that aren’t infected. A popular way to tell if a piece of furniture has been taken over by bed bugs is to “sic the dogs on ‘em.” That’s right, there are specially trained canines that can sniff out bed bugs and (sorry for this) their feces. Near as I can tell, it’s a legit industry. Man’s best friend, indeed.

Bed bugs are particularly prevalent in hotels and other highly visited areas. When traveling away from home, some folks recommended that you not put your suitcase directly on the bed. Why? If there are bugs in the comforter, they’ll easily make the jump to your baggage and come home with you.

That’s not to say that you have to act like Howard Hughes when you travel. But, as is often the case, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Got any tips on dealing with bed bugs? Please leave a comment below.

Thanks for reading,

Mike

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