ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 10, 1996 TAG: 9603110078
SECTION: HORIZON PAGE: F-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: From wire reports
Q: Do polls show if most people support Dr. Jack Kevorkian's assisted suicides of terminally ill patients? How can I write him?
A: While opinion polls have shown that Americans are deeply conflicted on the issue, several surveys, including a Louis Harris Poll in November 1993, have shown that a majority supports allowing doctors to help those with incurable diseases end their lives. Write: Dr. Jack Kevorkian, 223 S. Main St., Royal Oak, Mich. 48067.
Q: What are the 10 U.S. universities with the richest endowments?
A: The Chronicle of Higher Education recently listed the endowments of 460 colleges and universities. The Top 10, with endowment market value (in billions) as of mid-1995: Harvard, $7.045; University of Texas System, $5.043; Yale, $3.959; Princeton, $3.882; Stanford, $3.088; Emory, $2.232; Texas A&M University System and Foundations, $2.22; Columbia, $2.172; University of California (entire system), $2.143; and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, $2.078.
Q: Last fall, scientists were studying the remains of a body believed to be that of Jesse James. What was the outcome?
A: DNA analysis showed that the body almost certainly was that of the outlaw, who was shot in 1882 at age 34. Testing of bone fragments and strands of hair was done in response to claims that the body buried at Mount Olivet near Kearney, Mo., might have been someone else. James Starrs, the George Washington University professor who led the team that exhumed the body, presented results of the testing at a meeting of forensic scientists Feb. 23 in Nashville. ``There is the remotest of remote possibilities that it could be somebody else,'' Starrs said afterward, ``but it would be infinitesimal.''
Q: How did tennis bracelets get that name?
A: They've been popular since the turn of the century, when they were known as diamond line bracelets. They still go by that name, said Wesley Dennison, sales manager at Atlanta jewelry store Maier & Berkeley, although they have more ``styling'' now. When tennis star Chris Evert started wearing the bracelets a decade or more ago as a fashion statement, they became linked with the sport. Their popularity peaked long ago, but they're still part of many women's jewelry collections.
Q: Why does the media use the term ``commentator'' to describe Pat Buchanan? He's done a lot more than that, hasn't he?
A: His public persona is significantly rooted in his co- hosting of several multi-year stints of CNN's ``Crossfire'' in the 1980s and '90s, but his resume is much more extensive: editorial writer and assistant editorial page editor of the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, executive assistant and special assistant to President Richard Nixon and consultant to Nixon and President Gerald Ford, syndicated columnist for several major news groups, radio political commentator, White House director of communications for two years in the Ronald Reagan administration, panelist on the NBC/PBS program ``The McLaughlin Group,'' moderator of CNN's ``Capital Gang,'' editor in chief of the newsletter PJB-From the Right, and author of several books. .
Q: What are the facts about Harry Truman's middle name or initial?
A: The confusion can be traced to a family disagreement over whether young Harry's middle name should be Shippe or Solomon, after the names of his two grandfathers. It couldn't be resolved, so he used only the initial S - sometimes with a period, sometimes without.
Q: I'm considering emigrating to Ireland. Where can I get information on job availability and other requirements?
A: Because of high unemployment - currently about 15 percent - jobs are hard to come by in Ireland. So the Irish government isn't encouraging non-Irish to move there. A spokesman for the Consulate General of Ireland in New York said preferential treatment in job applications is given to native-born citizens and to citizens of the European Union. The highest priority for citizenship applications is given to those with a direct relative (parent or grandparent) who is Irish or to those married to a native-born citizen (``post-nuptial citizenship''). For a citizenship application or information, call 212-319-2555.
Q: Did Greta Garbo actually ever say, ``I want to be alone,'' or is that just a phony legend?
A: The Swedish film actress (real name: Greta Lovisa Gustafsson) uttered the now immortal line as she dismissed John Barrymore in the 1932 film ``Grand Hotel.''
Q: I recently read that the White House has 10 ZIP codes. Why so many?
A: There's some disagreement about the number, but it isn't 10. The White House says there are three; the ZIP code directory lists five; the Postal Service says six. These are the main codes: 20500, for executive offices of the president (also listed as the White House) and for the Clinton family; 20501, vice president of the United States (also listed as the Al Gore Family); 20502, for both the president's and vice president's staffs and the staffs of the executive office; and 20503, for the New Executive Office Building, which houses many members of the White House and administrative staff members.
Q: Is it true that storing batteries in a refrigerator lengthens their life?
A: Yes. John Crook, spokesman for Graybar Electric Co. in St. Louis, distributor of Eveready batteries, said the chemical process that makes batteries work starts a gradual discharge process as soon as the batteries are manufactured. If you store them in the refrigerator or freezer, you'll retard the process. Crook said you should warm the batteries to room temperature before using them so they'll have their full voltage. Eveready operates a technical information hot line about battery use, disposal and any other consumer concerns: 800-426-8263.
Q: I often hear State Department people referring to a Foggy Bottom. What does that mean?
A: The expression originally applied to an area of the District of Columbia where a gasworks once stood. Its gaseous emanations gave the place its name. In 1947, the State Department moved into a new building in the area, and although the expression originally applied to various government agencies in the neighborhood, it gradually became restricted to apply only to State. The moniker was solidified when, in 1947, James Reston, Washington correspondent for The New York Times, used Foggy Bottom to refer to the State Department. Humorists and cynics also relate the term to what they consider the agency's foggy gobbledygook.
Q: Where does the IRS Form 1040 get its designation? Does 1040 mean anything?
A: One story says that in 1040 B.C., Samuel, the last of the prophets, gave in to his people's demands that he give them a king, yet warned them that a king would require them to pay taxes. Another yarn attributed it to Lady Godiva, who rode naked through the streets of Coventry, England, in A.D. 1040. But the IRS debunks both, saying that in 1913, when the personal income tax form was devised, 1040 was the next four-digit number available in the forms numbering system.
Q: How did Tennessee become known as the Volunteer State?
A: It was a natural after more than 30,000 Tennessee men volunteered to serve in the Mexican War in the 1840s.
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