Answers: Slow or Never?

Most recent answer: 10/22/2007

Q:
why does it take you so long to answer some questions?
- Anonymous
A:
Often we don’t understand the questions. Other questions just seem like attempts to get us to do homework. Some ask us in effect to Google some fact, which would be easier for the questioner to do. Others ask us to tell them what the result should be from a science fair experiment, when the best way to find out would be to actually do the experiment. Other times we just have no idea how to figure out the answer. Many are questions which we’ve answered before and which could be looked up on this site. University Lawyers would not be eager to see us answer some questions, like the most recently submitted one (I’m not making this up) which concerns how to do sex. We also would rather not tell people how to make explosives or do anything else that would be dangerous or cause injury. Some are jokes for which we haven’t managed to think of a clever response. All those categories never get answered.

Sometimes, a question is just tricky enough that we don’t get around to it for a while. There was one very profound question about self-repulsion of electrons to which we’ve been trying to write an answer for several months.

Only sincere flattery consistently gets a rapid response.

Mike W.

(published on 10/22/2007)