Department Index
Explainer 2003:
Answers to your questions about the news.
If you'd like to sort this department listing by headline, author or date, please use the Slate search.
- Do Jet Stowaways Ever Survive? The dangers of traveling beneath business class.
Dec. 31, 2003 - Which Movie Critics Really Matter? Year-end awards to heed and ignore.
Dec. 29, 2003 - How Are 9/11 Victims Paid? Why some get $500, while others get $7.9 million.
Dec. 23, 2003 - Why Is Qaddafi Still a Colonel? Why Libya's leader hasn't changed his stripes.
Dec. 23, 2003 - Outbreaks vs. Epidemics Whether it's time to freak about the flu.
Dec. 19, 2003 - Do Special Envoys Get Paid? What James Baker III earned on his trip to Europe.
Dec. 18, 2003 - How Is MIA Status Changed? What Saddam might know about the first Gulf War's only MIA.
Dec. 16, 2003 - What's a Spider Hole? And since when do spiders dig holes, anyway?
Dec. 15, 2003 - Why No More Flu Vaccine? For one thing, there's a shortage of chicken eggs.
Dec. 12, 2003 - Are Dean and Gore Related? No Relation No. 18: Gore, Dean, and Gore Dean.
Dec. 11, 2003 - How Do You Fix a Wild Bear? First, do no harm. Then, use pig membranes.
Dec. 8, 2003 - Where Do War Criminals Do Time? Plus, who will jail Yugoslavian offenders.
Dec. 5, 2003 - How Productive Are You? The ways the government keeps tabs on American workers.
Dec. 3, 2003 - What Happens to Cheating Soldiers? Draconian military punishments for adultery.
Dec. 1, 2003 - Is Miss Universe Miss World's Boss? Which beauty queen reigns supreme and where Miss America fits in.
Nov. 26, 2003 - What's With Georgia's Flags? One of them isn't in the encyclopedia.
Nov. 25, 2003 - Who Gets Jacko's Bail Money? Plus, what happens if he goes on the lam.
Nov. 21, 2003 - What's a State Visit? Is Bush's trip to the U.K. really the first?
Nov. 20, 2003 - Did Jackie O.'s Priest Betray Her? How private Catholic confessions really are.
Nov. 19, 2003 - How Radical Is the Gay-Marriage Ruling? Why the Massachusetts decision breaks new ground.
Nov. 19, 2003 - Who Gave Britney a Hollywood Star? How celebrities get their names on the Walk of Fame.
Nov. 18, 2003 - When Do Judges Sequester Juries? Plus, why the accused Beltway sniper's judge did not.
Nov. 14, 2003 - Can Miami Really Ban Giant Puppets? Plus, why police say they're a menace.
Nov. 12, 2003 - Are You a Coward? When being afraid is a crime.
Nov. 7, 2003 - What Fuel Does Voyager 1 Use? Plus, why it will run out in 2020.
Nov. 6, 2003 - How Big Is Rhode Island? Plus, why the state is the nation's yardstick.
Nov. 5, 2003 - Why Are Kenyans Fast Runners?
Nov. 3, 2003 - What Does the ELF Want From Us?
Oct. 31, 2003 - GM's Accident Report
Oct. 29, 2003 - Geomagnetic Storms
Oct. 24, 2003 - Is Mother Teresa's Miracle for Real?
Oct. 22, 2003 - Why Put Roy's Skull in His Stomach?
Oct. 21, 2003 - Which Implants Look Fake?
Oct. 16, 2003 - Can Sonar Kill Whales?
Oct. 14, 2003 - How Are Nobel Prizes Awarded?
Oct. 10, 2003 - First Amendment: Liar-Proof?
Oct. 9, 2003 - What Giant Reptile Can You Own?
Oct. 8, 2003 - How Do You Train a Tiger?
Oct. 6, 2003 - How Do You Pick a Pope?
Oct. 3, 2003 - Who Used Mustard Gas in WWII?
Oct. 1, 2003 - How Deep Is CIA Cover?
Sept. 30, 2003 - Why Not Import More Non-OPEC Oil?
Sept. 26, 2003 - When Do Soldiers Face Execution?
Sept. 24, 2003 - What Exactly Is a "Stalking Horse"?
Sept. 23, 2003 - How Are Ticker Symbols Allotted?
Sept. 18, 2003 - Why Don't Hurricanes Hit L.A.?
Sept. 18, 2003 - What's Up With "Rogue States"?
Sept. 17, 2003 - Is French Toast Really French?
Sept. 16, 2003 - What Is Intelligence Chatter, Anyway?
Sept. 12, 2003 - Is It Easier To Bust MDs or Terrorists?
Sept. 11, 2003 - Can Wham-O Sue Over Dickie Roberts?
Sept. 10, 2003 - Which Depressions Become Hurricanes?
Sept. 5, 2003 - Did the Supremes OK Truth Serum?
Sept. 3, 2003 - Can Kobe Bryant Pay Off His Accuser?
Sept. 2, 2003 - Can You Help Dole Out the Grammys? Or the Tonys, or the ESPYs, or the Golden Globes?
Aug. 29, 2003 - Why North Koreans Were Kidnappers
Aug. 27, 2003 - How Protective Is Protective Custody?
Aug. 25, 2003 - How Did Sharia Get to Nigeria?
Aug. 22, 2003 - How Will Libya Pay Pan Am Families? A primer on the Bank for International Settlements.
Aug. 21, 2003 - Does Your Car Have a Black Box? Event data recorders know when you've been speeding, and when you've hit the brake.
Aug. 20, 2003 - Why Texas Has Its Own Power Grid
Aug. 18, 2003 - Missile Defense for Commercial Jets?
Aug. 14, 2003 - FAQ: How Will the Recall Work? Your nagging questions answered.
Aug. 7, 2003 - What are Israel's Loan Guarantees?
Aug. 6, 2003 - Explainer Mailbag: Count the Allies A few more countries with troops in Iraq.
July 31, 2003 - Can You Recall Your Governor? Which states allow voter recalls.
July 30, 2003 - What Weird Futures Can You Buy? A guide to online prediction markets.
July 29, 2003 - Why All the Stilted New Campaign Ads? How McCain-Feingold will shape candidates' spots.
July 28, 2003 - Which Allies Have Troops in Iraq? A postwar roster of men on the ground.
July 25, 2003 - Were Odai and Qusai Assassinated? The legalities of killing Saddam Hussein's sons.
July 24, 2003 - What Is Yellowcake, Anyway? Milled uranium oxide, yours for $10.90 a pound.
July 18, 2003 - Do Troops In Iraq Get Hazard Pay? How battlefield compensation works.
July 17, 2003 - How Do You Pronounce "Niger"?
July 16, 2003 - Who Can Recall a Rollover-Prone Car?
July 15, 2003 - What's the Skinny on Fats? How trans and saturated fats differ.
July 15, 2003 - Where "Ratline" Comes From
July 11, 2003 - Who Must Register as a Foreign Agent?
July 10, 2003 - What Do Brits Mean by "Horlicks"?
July 8, 2003 - What Health Benefits Do Congressmen Receive?
July 3, 2003 - Was Liberia Founded By Freed U.S. Slaves?
July 3, 2003 - Why Can't the IAEA Scour Iran for Nukes?
July 1, 2003 - How Are State Balanced Budget Laws Enforced?
June 27, 2003 - Does Iran's Parliament Have Any Clout?
June 26, 2003 - Is a Paint Bomb Dangerous?
June 24, 2003 - What is the Council of Europe?
June 20, 2003 - When Can a Defendant Be Tried in Absentia?
June 19, 2003 - Is a Canadian Same-Sex Marriage Valid Here?
June 17, 2003 - What Exactly Does Freddie Mac Do?
June 12, 2003 - What Is Narcissistic Personality Disorder?
June 10, 2003 - Why Geld a Racehorse Like Funny Cide?
June 6, 2003 - How Does Corking a Bat Help a Hitter?
June 4, 2003 - Did Eric Rudolph Really Live on Lizards?
June 3, 2003 - What Is Kabbalah, Anyway?
June 2, 2003 - How Do Basque and Spanish Differ? Basque separatists speak one of the planet's most unusual languages.
May 30, 2003 - Where Do "Blue Chip" Stocks Come From?
May 28, 2003 - Who Uses Fact Checkers, Anyway?
May 23, 2003 - How Much of Our Food Is Bioengineered?
May 22, 2003 - What's Worse, a Virus or a Worm?
May 20, 2003 - Tuna's Getting Scarce. Why's It So Cheap?
May 15, 2003 - How Do Cell Phones Reveal Your Location?
May 12, 2003 - Why Do Americans Living Abroad Get Tax Breaks?
May 9, 2003 - Could Bill Bennett Really Break Even Playing Slots?
May 6, 2003 - What Is the Paris Club?
May 5, 2003 - What Kind of Terrorism Does North Korea Sponsor?
May 1, 2003 - How Can I Get Involved in Redesigning Our Nation's Nickels?
April 29, 2003 - How Does Reprocessing Fuel Rods Help Build Nuclear Bombs?
April 25, 2003 - What Happens to Your Social Security Number When You Die?
April 22, 2003 - Where Was Abraham Born?
April 21, 2003 - When Did Andy Card Become a Secretary?
April 17, 2003 - Does Pfc. Jessica Lynch Own the Movie Rights to Her Life?
April 14, 2003 - Who Buries Dead Iraqi Soldiers?
April 9, 2003 - How Could We Identify Saddam's Body?
April 8, 2003 - Why Isn't the "Fertile Crescent" More Fertile?
April 7, 2003 - Do Surgical Masks Stop SARS?
April 7, 2003 - Why Are Baghdad Landmarks Named "Rashid"?
April 4, 2003 - Where Do "Cakewalks" Come From?
April 3, 2003 - Do Judges Read Amicus Curiae Briefs?
April 1, 2003 - Why Is Iraqi Anti-Aircraft Fire Visible on TV?
March 28, 2003 - How Are Army Divisions Numbered?
March 28, 2003 - What Does a "Thumbs Up" Mean in Iraq?
March 28, 2003 - Why Are U.S. Troops Wearing Dark-Green Camouflage?
March 26, 2003 - What Is the Geneva Convention?
March 24, 2003 - Why Do Surrendering Soldiers Wave White Flags?
March 21, 2003 - Are Kurdish Soldiers "Facing Death" or "Seeking Death"?
March 21, 2003 - How Do You Extinguish an Oil-Well Fire?
March 20, 2003 - How Can We Tell If That Was Saddam on TV?
March 20, 2003 - Who Will Try Iraqi War Criminals?
March 19, 2003 - Soldiers and Their Backward Flags
March 18, 2003 - Do Terrorist Informants Have To Pay Taxes?
March 13, 2003 - Can You Bypass a U.N. Security Council Veto?
March 12, 2003 - Why Can Shopping Malls Limit Free Speech?
March 10, 2003 - Does Saddam Impose a Mustache Mandate in Iraq?
March 5, 2003 - Where Do Mardi Gras Beads Come From?
March 4, 2003 - How Will Saddam Destroy His Missiles?
Feb. 28, 2003 - What Is De-Nazification?
Feb. 27, 2003 - What Is the United Nations Seizing, Anyway?
Feb. 27, 2003 - How Can a College Professor Lose Tenure?
Feb. 24, 2003 - Is Carol Moseley-Braun a Crook?
Feb. 19, 2003 - How Do You Measure Snowfall?
Feb. 17, 2003 - What Are the Rules for Naming a Prize Pooch?
Feb. 14, 2003 - Why Is Gangs of New YorkNominated for the Best Original Screenplay Oscar?
Feb. 13, 2003 - Why Is the Muslim Hajj So Dangerous?
Feb. 12, 2003 - Why Isn't Talk to Her Nominated for the Foreign-Language Oscar?
Feb. 11, 2003 - What's So Important About the Washington, D.C., Circuit Court of Appeals?
Feb. 7, 2003 - Why Do We Need Saddam's Permission To Fly Spy Planes Over Iraq?
Feb. 7, 2003 - Could Ejection Seats Have Saved the ColumbiaAstronauts?
Feb. 3, 2003 - Did Witnesses Really Hear the ColumbiaSplit Apart?
Feb. 3, 2003 - Can You Patent Common Features of the Internet?
Jan. 30, 2003 - Did Shania Twain Lip-Sync Her Super Bowl Halftime Songs?
Jan. 28, 2003 - Why Are We Still Using Spy Planes?
Jan. 27, 2003 - What Happens When a Foreigner's Visa Expires?
Jan. 21, 2003 - Why Does It Cost So Much To Live in Gabon?
Jan. 16, 2003 - Where Does the Phrase "Pie in the Sky" Come From?
Jan. 15, 2003 - What's a Nuclear-Capable Missile?
Jan. 9, 2003 - What Kind of Sanctions Could We Impose on North Korea?
Jan. 9, 2003 - Is Ritalin "Chemically Similar" to Cocaine?
Jan. 6, 2003
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