Category Archives: Answer of the Week

Highlighting one of our millions of answers every week.

Can you explain the fiscal cliff in 30 seconds?

For this week’s featured answer, we turn to the sexy topic of US fiscal policy. In between leftover Thanksgiving turkey sandwiches and drafting up your holiday wishlist, you may have heard of our nation’s pending doom on New Year’s Eve, also known as the fiscal cliff.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke coined the term last winter and reporters have latched on. After all, what better way to spice up a snorefest like fiscal policy than to turn it into a doomsday prophecy like careening off a cliff?

You can read hundreds of articles and essays about the topic, but if you want a quick 30-second answer, we’re here:

And now back to that turkey sandwich…

Thanksgiving 101 on Answers.com

Planning a feast for family and friends this Thanksgiving? Or are you opting for a dinner out but are curious about the history of the holiday? Either way, we’ve got answers to your Thanksgiving questions.

Let’s start with the basics: When, where and how did Thanksgiving originate? Plymouth isn’t the unanimous answer to this question. Some believe the first thanksgiving feast was held in sunny Florida of all places. And who do we have to thank for this day off school and work? Which US president made Thanksgiving a national holiday? 

Now onto the meat of the matter: turkey. One of our most popular questions every year is how do you cook a turkey? Hint: it’s pretty easy, but timing is everything so you may want to check out our detailed answer to how long do you cook a turkey? The most frequent question on Butterball’s Turkey talkline is how long a turkey takes to defrost. Here’s our answer.

Thanksgiving traditions don’t end with turkey and potatoes. Many families turn their TVs to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade or NFL football on Thanksgiving Day. So, when was the first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade? Two NFL teams always play on Thanksgiving. Which ones?

And in case you have a lull in dinner table conversation, here’s a few bits of turkey-related trivia to have up your sleeve:

Answer of the week: Why is it called the World Series if it’s played in the US?

Baseball’s biggest event, the World Series, starts this week. The Detroit Tigers take on the San Francisco Giants to win the title of best team in the world. But wait, all but one team in the MLB is in the US. So why do we call it the World Series?

Some have speculated the name derived from the New York newspaper, The World, which sponsored the game. But this myth was debunked by the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999. Barney Dreyfuss, owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates, deserves credit for coining the term. In 1903, he challenged the Red Sox (then known as the Boston Americans) to a “World’s Championship Series.” It has been held every year since except twice (in 1904 and 1994).

Although the league is US-based, players are scouted from around the world. Countries such as Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Japan, Taiwan, and Cuba are all represented in the MLB. In fact, in the 2006 season, players born outside the US represented 27.4 percent of the MLB.

So considering that the MLB is the world’s premier league for baseball and many players are recruited from outside the US, calling the championship series the World Series is not too far-fetched. What do you think? Does the winner of the World Series deserved the title “World Champions”?

Check out more Q&A in our baseball and World Series topic pages.

Answer of the week: Why are NFL players wearing pink?

Real men wear pink. In October at least. If you’ve watched an NFL game the past couple of weekends, you probably noticed players donning hot pink cleats, gloves, towels, wristbands and hats. No, your favorite team hasn’t changed colors. The league is sporting the feminine color in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month, this October.

Pink is the de facto color for breast cancer awareness, ever since pink ribbons were handed out at the 1991 Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in New York City. The color has become so ubiquitous every fall, some companies are accused of “pinkwashing” — selling pink products to boost profits without donating money to a breast cancer charity or having limited transparency of where the funds are directed.

All apparel worn by NFL players in October will be auctioned off and proceeds benefitting American Cancer Society’s screening outreach program.

Read more Q&A about the NFL and breast cancer on Answers.com.

Five questions about Vice Presidents

via ABC News

In honor of this week’s vice presidential debate between Joe Biden and Paul Ryan, we bring you five questions about our nation’s co-pilot.

  1. Vice Presidents are much more than second fiddle. But exactly what is the job of the US Vice President?
  2. What are the chances we could have a President Biden or President Ryan? It’s happened in the past quite a bit. What Vice Presidents later became Presidents?
  3. The President earns a $400,000 salary every year. So, how much does a US Vice President make? 
  4. Here’s a hypothetical: Who would become Vice President of the US if the Vice President dies? 
  5. The White House is home for the commander in chief. But where does the US Vice President live?

Bonus question, because we’re curious: What is the origin of the word vice? If you have more questions about vice presidents, ask us in the comments or in the US Vice Presidents category on Answers.com. The vice presidential debate will be held at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky on Thursday, October 11 starting at 9 p.m. eastern.

 

Five most popular questions on Steve Jobs

Legendary businessman Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, passed away this week. Although a very private person, Jobs was a public icon and very revered in the tech scene. The ubiquitous white earbuds you see every day are a testament to how revolutionary his “i”nventions have been.

Since the news of his death first hit the internet, Answers.com contributors have flooded the site with questions about Apple’s mastermind. Here are five of the most popular questions on Steve Jobs this week, based on traffic:

Who are Steve Jobs’ children?

How did Steve Jobs die?

Was Steve Jobs a Christian?

What did Steve Jobs invent?

Did Steve Jobs and Bill Gates work together?

For more Steve Jobs Q&A visit his category page here.

All your Royal Wedding questions answered.

Are you as excited as we are for the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton? Judging on the number of questions we’re getting about the big event, we think you are. In case the coverage of thousands (yes, thousands!) of journalists who have descended on London for the nuptials doesn’t satisfy your appetite, you can always turn to Answers.com for more. We’ve set up a new category for all your burning questions about royal weddings, past and present. Check out the new Royal Weddings category here.

There you’ll find queries such as:

What TV channels will broadcast the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton?

Where can you watch the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton online?

What will Kate Middleton’s royal title be after she marries Prince William?

Who has been announced as Prince William’s ‘Best Man’ for the Royal Wedding?

Who is the flower girl at the Royal Wedding?

Q&A not enough? Check out the royal wedding coverage on Video Answers.

Here’s a look back at the 10-year romance of Prince William and Kate Middleton:

All your Passover questions answered.

Passover begins tonight at sundown and lasts seven days. Passover commemorates the emancipation of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.  Jews celebrate this important holiday with a traditional two-night feast, called a Seder, meaning “order.” At a Seder, friends and family gather, a variety of dishes are prepared, songs are sung and the story of passover is told.

Other interesting facts about Passover:

  • To produce Passover matza, flour must remain in contact with water for no longer than 18 minutes before it is baked.
  • Coca-cola makes a kosher Coke for Passover version, substituting pure sugar for corn syrup in its recipe (Ashkenazi Jews customarily refrain from eating corn on Passover).
  • Moses, the leader who was central to the biblical account of the Exodus, is notably absent from the Haggada, the rabbinic retelling of the story. This is to emphasize the divine, miraculous nature of the event.
  • Some believe that Jesus’ Last Supper was a seder.

To learn more about this important Jewish holiday, read some Passover questions and answers here and check out this clip from Video Answers.

How do you fry your pants so you can eat them?

You’re hungry. You have a frying pan. You have pants. So what’s the question?

How do you fry your pants so you can eat them?

Ingredients

  • 1 pair of pants
  • 10 cups vegetable oil
  • Flour for dusting
  • 3 cups milk
  • 5 tablespoons vinegar
  • 2 Tablespoon oil
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

  1. Chill or freeze pants for several hours or overnight.
  2. Heat 10 cups vegetable oil in deep fryer to about 375 degrees.
  3. Mix together milk, vinegar and oil.
  4. In another bowl, blend flour, baking powder and salt.
  5. Whisk wet ingredients into dry and continue mixing until smooth. Refrigerate while oil heats.
  6. Dust pants with flour and dip into the batter. Rotate pants until batter covers them.
  7. Place carefully in hot oil. The Pants will float, so hold them under with a utensil to ensure even browning. They should turn golden in 3 to 4 minutes. Depending on the size of your deep fryer, you might be able to fry only one pair at a time, two at the most.
  8. Remove pants to paper towel and let drain. Allow Pants to sit for about 5 minutes before serving.

Makes 1 pair. Serves 6.

Actually, we love all Colins…

Today, on this partly sunny WikiAnswers Wednesday, we spotlight a wonderful fellow who plays a more important role in project management than he does in grammar:

What is the difference between a colin and a semi colin?

In case you can’t make out the text:

Colin (Answers.com project manager) is an awesome and amazing guy!
Semi is the prefix for half, so a semi Colin would mean you only have half of Colin, and that’s pretty sad.
A whole Colin is always preferable over a semi Colin.

Keep doing your thing, whole Colin!

Oh, and by the way: What is the difference between a colon and a semi colon?

Turkey is more than meets the eye.

Oh, turkey - a glorious word.

Sometimes you’re a country, others – a bird.

A short story as well. Two cities to like.

A Native American…  and a bowling strike.

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody! Keep in mind where to go if you need a video on how to roast a turkey, historical trivia to share at your dinner table, or if you want the final answer as to why eating turkey makes you sleepy.

The ninjas versus pirates debate.

It’s an age-old question. Seriously, this question has been around for as long as the subjects themselves.

Who is more powerful – ninjas or pirates?

Now, wait a second, you think you know the answer. You’re probably even pretty sure of yourself. But hold on. There are some very compelling arguments for both sides in the WikiAnswer.

I will say this – no matter which is the more powerful, they would each be even more powerful in large groups of their own. Which is why you might want to consider this:

That’s all I’m saying.

Oh, and today is the last day to apply for a chance to win an all-expenses paid trip to the Answers Summit. Better move fast, ninja. Or pirate.

Win a t-shirt, Wednesday-style.

It’s WikiAnswers Wednesday, so I would love to feature your homemade video answer here on no.stupid.answers. In fact, I would love to give you a free t-shirt even more.

So create a video answer to any question on WikiAnswers*, upload it to YouTube, leave it in the comments, watch it be posted here on a Wednesday, and win a free t-shirt. Extra points for extra creativity.

Go!

*No harming animals in the making of your film. And keep it family-friendly.

A lesson in gossip, girl.

Admittedly, I don’t watch Gossip Girl, but just as admittedly, I do enjoy the occasional celebrity gossip. One place I go to check out the latest is the Celebrities Q&A category of WikiAnswers.

But in case you’re not just interested in hearing the gossip – but, gasp, speaking it – today’s Video Answer, submitted by Pbramwell and yrotmaharg, will help you out:

How do you gossip?

How to put your hair in a messy bun.

[Here's a good example of the kind of video you can submit for the Video Contest portion of the WikiAnswers 9³ Experience.]

Maybe you’re just running off to the gym. Maybe you have a date tonight. Maybe you just feel like experimenting with a new hair style.

Whatever it is you are looking to accomplish with your hair today, Neila222 is here to introduce us all to the art of stylin’ hair in a messy bun.

How do you put your hair up in a messy bun?

Learn more hair care tips and tricks in the Hair Q&A category.

Big thanks to Neila222 for participating in this video edition of WikiAnswers Wednesday!

If you’d like to submit a video for next week, leave a comment below.