The science of matter and the changes it can undergo.
0
votes
0answers
106 views
Can silicon-based life exist? [closed]
My friend is just trying to convince me, that silica based life was discovered on both Europa (meaning the satellite of Jupiter) and Mars.
I have strong tendency to doubt anything someone is trying ...
2
votes
0answers
57 views
Does “liquid-injection damp-proofing” work to water-proof walls?
There are technologies for sale, especially in Germany, to drill holes in the walls of a cellar, and inject into the concrete or masonry a liquid, such as Sodium Silicate
The manufacturers promise ...
1
vote
1answer
386 views
Does drinking water from plastic bottles contaminate your blood? [duplicate]
I wanted to know if there is any research on the issue Daniel Vitalis raises on bottling water here (5th minute and on). He claims that if one drinks water bottled in plastic bottles one will ...
1
vote
1answer
169 views
Was there a cocktail named 'Mickey Slim' that used DDT as an ingredient?
According to Wikipedia, a Mickey Slim is a cocktail made by combining gin with "a pinch of DDT" which provided an experience similar to (the original) absinthe. The source appears to be The Dedalus ...
5
votes
0answers
726 views
Would baking soda and vinegar clean hair, and how?
There's a popular hair cleaning regime circulating in the 'green' blogs called the "no 'poo method." Rather than using shampoo, one rinses the hair with a tablespoon of baking soda in a cup of water, ...
3
votes
1answer
127 views
Did James Lovelock deny that CFCs destroyed ozone?
In the discussion threads of one of the answers to this meta question How much can we trust peer reviewed scientific literature? EnergyNumbers alleged that James Lovelock had originally denied that ...
10
votes
2answers
2k views
Is Coca-Cola effective at removing blood-stains?
From My Perfect Automobile:
In many states the highway patrol carries two gallons of Coke in the trunk to remove blood from the highway after a car accident.
I doubt it's real. Does Coca-Cola ...
13
votes
1answer
487 views
Is testosterone responsible for typically “male” behaviour?
On the English Language and Usage stack exchange, two people asked what was meant by "testosterone-charged", as in the following quote, from the story "2 States: The Story of My Marriage" by Chetan ...
1
vote
2answers
259 views
Are there currently any tests available to diagnose fluoride or fluorine toxicity?
That's what I read here:
http://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/nutritional_disorders/mineral_deficiency_and_toxicity/fluorine.html
No tests to diagnose toxicity are available.
-8
votes
2answers
311 views
Why doesn't the high amount of fluoride found in tea or tobacco prevent dental caries? Or does it have to be hydrofluorosilicic acid? [closed]
On PubMed.gov
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=PMID%3A%2016979289
"Determination of exposure and probable ingestion of fluoride through tea, toothpaste, tobacco..."
"Levels of water soluble ...
1
vote
0answers
217 views
Are bleaching powders effective cleaning agents?
The claim from the manufacturer:
Have you seen a stain on your clothes that you can't seem to remove? Don't fear! Vanish Oxi Action Powder contains Oxi Powerlift which removes all types of stains, ...
2
votes
0answers
125 views
Is typical indoor concentration of VOC correlated to concentration of CO₂?
A vendor of VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) sensor claims the VOC concentration correlates highly to CO₂ concentration in a typical conference room:
Figure 2 illustrates the correlation of true ...
4
votes
0answers
364 views
Is bamboo charcoal safely edible?
Bamboo charcoal is made up of pieces of bamboo, which are taken from plants five years or older and burned inside an oven at temperatures over 1000°C.
Bamboo charcoal is well known about its high ...
7
votes
1answer
408 views
Do the water filters in Pure & Clear filters work?
Dr Mercola advertises Pure & Clear Filters:
Pure & Clear filters use a “selective filtration” process rather than a mechanical one for a couple of very important reasons. This advanced ...
10
votes
1answer
877 views
Is it possible to stack liquids of different density scale on top of each other?
I came across q picture on the net and now I'm skeptical that it's possible. I know liquids from different density scale wouldn't mix easily but stacking them on top of eachother with perfectly ...
2
votes
0answers
11k views
Is Paraffinum liquidum (mineral oil) in cosmetics dangerous?
Paraffinum liquidum can be found in a lot of cosmetic products.
Some articles say it is harmless but the other half said it causes harmful effects such as the premature aging of the skin.
Examples ...
7
votes
1answer
613 views
Did Donald Duck accidentally use methylene in a comic before it was discovered?
From Good Comics:
In 1963, the Disney Studio learned just how wide and faithful a
readership Barks had. A letter arrived from Joseph B. Lambert of the
California Institute of Technology, ...
5
votes
1answer
620 views
Does Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO) speed the healing of wounds?
My wife is currently suffering from a small ulcer which is refusing to heal and a friend of hers suggested a topical application of DMSO to improve healing time. Please not that I am explicityl not ...
12
votes
1answer
619 views
Does lemon juice slow the oxidation of guacamole?
It is common belief that adding citrus juice (or in some claims, any acid, including ascorbic acid/vitamin C, vinegar, tomatoes, etc) to guacamole will reduce browning. Examples of the claim:
...
7
votes
0answers
112 views
Do reusable plastic water bottles leach dangerous chemicals? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is refilling water bottles bad for you?
Several articles claim that the 'chemical leaching' from reusable clear plastic water bottles leads to toxins in the water, not ...
18
votes
1answer
3k views
Is Cesium-137 detectable in all wine bottled after the 1940's?
In the White Collar TV Episode Bottlenecked it was claimed that a test of all vintage wines bottled before the ABomb would not contain any Cesium-137 but wine bottled in the years since all contain ...
5
votes
2answers
408 views
Would tying sulphur to the feet of birds allow you to burn down a house?
According to legend:
The last vengeance took place in the year 946 when Olga traveled
around the land of the Drevlyans in order to gather tributes. She
besieged the town of Iskorosten, which ...
6
votes
2answers
1k views
Does Pureit Polisher remove the chlorine from chlorinated water?
This purifier claims to produce 100% pure water. They use chlorine. Chlorine, when taken in for a long period, is bad for health.
http://www.pureitwater.com/IN/4stage-purification
Polisher
...
15
votes
1answer
5k views
Is biting a gold coin a working method to verify its authenticity?
Julia Murray & Kelsey Serwa
In movies you commonly see treasure hunters, pirates, thieves, ...
bite down on a gold coin to verify it's real gold.
(Gold Medal winners often pose with the ...
13
votes
2answers
494 views
Do harmful chemicals migrate from the container into the food if you microwave the food in a plastic container?
In a comment to the best answer to question 582, Muhd writes: "I would add that it is also unhealthy if you microwave in something that is not microwave safe as toxic chemicals could migrate into the ...
14
votes
1answer
1k views
Is the Coca-Cola recipe a secret?
Is the Coca-Cola recipe a secret?
I would like to draw attention to the distinction between a recipe and composition:
Composition: a list of all ingredients, including quantity/proportion.
...
3
votes
0answers
164 views
Are plastics making us fat and giving us diabetes?
A recent widely reported news story (example report from the Independent) suggested that one explanation for the modern rise in obesity was not too much food or two little exercise but many of ...
21
votes
2answers
2k views
Would a human's blood suddenly boil (or eyes/body explode) in a vacuum?
I was once given a question in the popular quiz-show game, You Don't Know Jack, that went something like:
You find yourself suddenly ejected into space. Which of these gruesome things happens first?
...
3
votes
1answer
219 views
Does the caramel colouring previously used in Coke and Pepsi in California cause Cancer?
California has recently made legislative changes that required Coke and Pepsi to affix cancer warning labels to their soda products. From the news story:
A representative for Coca-Cola, Diana ...
9
votes
1answer
837 views
Do airplanes release biological or chemical agents, forming trails?
Since the topic of the week is conspiracy theories, here's one that I've had re-iterated at me a few times. Supposedly these white stripes after airplanes is created by airplanes releasing biological ...
4
votes
1answer
406 views
Are added nitrates and nitrites in our diet harmful?
It is widely claimed that meat-curing agents containing nitrates or nitrites are dangerous food additives.
This site puts them in a top ten list of bad food and recommends avoiding cured meats, ...
5
votes
1answer
481 views
Are synthetically produced chemicals not found in nature more likely to be harmful than naturally occurring ones?
Since everything is made from chemicals the often made claim that we should avoid food that doesn't contain chemicals doesn't make any sense. But the underlying idea that synthetic chemicals are ...
5
votes
0answers
178 views
Are dioxins the most toxic chemicals known to science?
Dioxins are implicated in The Seveso disaster in Italy and the lingering disputes about deformities and birth defects caused by the use of the Agent Orange defoliant in the Vietnam war (Wikipedia ...
9
votes
3answers
1k views
Man using “water as fuel” for a welding machine? (H₂O → HHO)?
I saw a while back a YouTube video that appears to show a news report of a man who patented technology to turn water into HHO.
The video makes some big claims — 161 km (100 mi.) on 0.1 L (4 ...
7
votes
1answer
2k views
Can you die by absorbing cyanide through the skin?
A friend of mine was talking about The Iceman, a killer that supposedly used cyanide absorbed through the skin as his murder weapon:
Kuklinski favored the use of cyanide as it was quick kill ...
2
votes
1answer
830 views
Should I leave my dry cleaned clothes in the plastic? [closed]
My first job (in high school) was in a dry cleaners. The owner impressed upon us the fact that the packaging was a part of the "system" for taking the absolute best care of your clothes. He would tell ...
72
votes
3answers
10k views
Do atoms exist?
There are plenty of examples of people doubting ([1],
[2],
[3],
[4],
[5]) or denying ([6],
[7],
[8]) the existence of atoms.
Is there any compelling evidence for the existence of atoms? Has anyone ...
5
votes
2answers
2k views
Does skimmed milk have more added chemicals than whole milk?
I've heard that skimmed milk has more added chemicals than whole milk. Is this true?
40
votes
2answers
3k views
Are old glass panes thicker on the bottom due to “flow”?
I ran into this common belief today, and was surprised that it has not been addressed here before.
I think this belief is common enough that most anyone has heard it. Especially if they are touring ...
8
votes
1answer
616 views
Can a dead mouse sealed in a can of soda dissolve into a jelly-like substance in one year?
A soft-drink company argued in a "dead mouse in a can of soda" case that an intact body of a dead mouse is unlikely to be found inside a can of soda because the dead mouse would have been dissolved by ...
4
votes
1answer
353 views
What is the explanation for the Mentos-Diet Cola fountain? [closed]
Adding Mentos confectionery to fizzy drinks such as Diet Cola produce a surprisingingly vigorous reaction, which have lead to many videos.
Explanations such as the ones in American Journal of ...
3
votes
1answer
271 views
Can processed coconut extract, corn, tree sap, potatoes and grass be combined to be used as a calcium and lime remover?
This product claims to be an effective calcium and lime remover. Is this going to be any more effective than a spray bottle with water and some elbow grease?
They claim it uses a thing called ...
7
votes
2answers
1k views
Is Oxycontin pharmaceutical-grade heroin?
I was watching a documentary about the Oxy pipeline from Florida to Kentucky this weekend where a sheriff made the claim that Oxycontin was pharmaceutical-grade heroin. This is not the first time I ...
8
votes
1answer
366 views
Are silver dental fillings safe?
Are silver tooth fillings safe for a person's health?
My dentist says they are safe for my health. My general practitioner has no opinion on the matter.
Some countries have banned or restricted ...
14
votes
1answer
4k views
Can table salt damage a dishwasher?
The manual for my dishwasher as well as the warning sign on a box of dishwasher salt says that you should never load food salt into the water softener because it will damage the ion exchanger.
Given ...
7
votes
2answers
2k views
Is chlorine in water absorbed quickly through the skin?
I recently saw a demonstration of a water filtration and purification system. In one of the demos two glasses were filled with tap water and then someone put three fingers into one of the glasses and ...
12
votes
1answer
851 views
Is an ice-cream tub made of a single molecule?
Background
In my answer to another question, I repeated a claim made to my class by my high school chemistry teacher. I didn't reference it, because the relevant FAQ suggests high school science can ...
18
votes
1answer
7k views
Is margarine “one molecule away from plastic”?
I've heard the claim that "Margarine is only one molecule away from being plastic" several times. Usually from friends who think they've heard it from some reliable source. I've also read a couple ...
7
votes
4answers
2k views
Does elemental mercury give off toxic vapor?
This video claims to show mercury giving off a steady stream of toxic vapor when viewed with a UV light.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JABbofwD3MI
There is also a Reddit discussion about this ...
22
votes
1answer
30k views
What is monoatomic gold?
Over the weekend I heard an acquaintance mention something called "monoatomic gold", followed by a bevy of fantastic and surprising claims about the substance, what it does, and how it was discovered. ...
