Roller skating rinks, music in
Ruins, layers of
Sailors, bell bottom trousers and
Salt, treatment of icy roads by
San Francisco, sourdough bread in
Sand, treatment of icy roads by
Scars, hair growth and
Screwdrivers, reasons for Phillips
“Semi,” origins of term
Seventy-two degrees, human comfort at
Shaving armpits, women and
Shoes found on highways
Silverstone
Sinks, overflow mechanisms on
Skating music, roller rinks and
Sleep, twitches during
Snakes, tongues of
Sneezing, looking up and
Soap, Ivory, purity of
Soft drinks
containers for
pinholes on bottle caps of
Sourdough bread, San Francisco
Speed limit, 55 mph
Speedometers
Staining, paperback books and
Stamps, postage, taste of
Stocking runs
direction of
effect of freezing upon
Sugar, spoilage of
254 / DAVID FELDMAN
Surgeon, color of uniforms of
Teachers, apples for
Teflon
Telephones, touch tone keypad for
Temperature, human comfort and
Tennis, scoring in
Three-way light bulbs
burnout of
functioning of
Tinnitus, causes of
Tires
automobile tread, disposition of
bicycle
white wall
Toilets
flush handles on
seat covers for
Touch tone telephones, keypad configurations for Traffic control
55 mph speed limit and
traffic lights and
Traffic signs, placement of dangerous curve Tread, disposition of worn
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 s
igns 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 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
“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
Briefs, versus boxer shorts
Brights/dimmer switch, position of, in automobiles Broccoli and cans
Brominated vegetable oil in orange soda
Brushes, hair, length of handles on
Bubble gum
baseball card gum
Bazooka Joe’s eyepatch
bubble-making ingredients
flavors of
pink color of
“Buck”
Buckles, pilgrim hats and
Buffets, new plates at
Bulbs, light
and noise when shaking
halogen
high cost of 25-watt variety
Bull rings, purpose of
“Bulls [stock market]”
“Bunkum”
Bunnies, chocolate Easter