The Straight Dope: Is it possible to control bugs by making them sterile?

[Send questions for Cecil Adams: cecil@straightdope.com](mailto:cecil@straightdope.com) FOLLOW CECIL ADAMS ON [TWITTER]( AND [FACEBOOK](! [850201.gif] THREADSPOTTING: THE BEST OF THE STRAIGHT DOPE MESSAGE BOARD — 10/25/2019 I guess this is fun. [Click here]( for more. STRAIGHT DOPE CLASSIC #1 — 02/01/1985 Dear Cecil: Is it possible, as a method of pest control, to produce a virus which doesn't kill the critter, but only sterilizes it? That way the little pests could all infect each other and we'd be rid of them in no time. How about it, Cecil? — Have to Know, Chicago Cecil replies: Sounds like the greatest idea since the Black Death, H. Starting situation: we’ve got bugs! Ending situation: we’ve got bugs with germs! I am not seeing that this is an improvement. Luckily, a less malign solution to the bug question has been developed: the first practical cockroach contraceptives. I’m serious. [Click here]( for more. STRAIGHT DOPE STAFF REPORT — 03/02/2006 Dear Straight Dope: In the movie Poltergeist, the Freeling family is haunted by spirits who don't appreciate the fact that Mr. Sleazy Developer built a subdivision on top of their resting place. Clearly, the spirits had a moral claim as far as these things go, but do they have a legal claim? I mean, a cemetery plot isn't cheap, but surely for three grand we're not entitled to that real estate into perpetuity. So what gives? How long after death does Mr. Sleazy Developer have to wait until I can be legally evicted from my lovely pond-front cemetery plot? Note that I still reserve all rights to haunt the bastard.? — Lisa Recker, Cincinnati, Ohio Dear Straight Dope: While driving by our immaculately groomed but very full local cemetery recently, I began to wonder how the landscape work was paid for. I understand that you can make money by selling the plots, but what happens when you inevitably run out of space to sell? Are most cemeteries owned by cities or counties? If not, how do private owners afford to keep the lawns mowed and the flowers planted? — Richard J., Cleveland Dear Straight Dope: I've always wondered this, and you would be the only person who would be able to answer. If we all have to die, and there are billions of people on this earth, and the majority of us get buried, where are they going to put us all? Won't we run out of room eventually and have to start burying us on top of each other? How long does it take us to completely decompose? And after we are done decomposing, what about our coffins? And then the gravestones? I'm very very worried about this, please answer. — Torie Robinson, Greenville, South Carolina SDStaff Gfactor replies: Death is for the living and not for the dead. — Floyd McClure in Gates of Heaven (1980) Lisa, we’ll start with you. In Poltergeist, the problem was that the developers had removed the headstones but left the remains intact. According to Kenneth Iserson, author of "Death to Dust: What Happens to Dead Bodies?" (1992), this is easy to do without even trying. “Today, developers often encounter old family graveyards as they build on what was once farmland,” he writes. He quotes a “professional gravedigger who specializes in moving bodies for developers” … [Click here]( for more. STRAIGHT DOPE CLASSIC #2 — 10/04/1995 Dear Cecil: For a good many years, Spain had a virtual monopoly on the importation of gold from the New World. Although some of it wound up on the ocean floor (witness recent discoveries near Florida), we know that an awful lot actually made it to the mother country, helping to make Spain one of the richest and most powerful nations in Europe at the time. Today, of course, it is neither. My question is, what happened to all that gold? I've considered some of the possibilities, but I'm not convinced: (1) The ship captains stole it. (2) The kings of Spain made lousy investments. (3) The Portuguese (or the French or the Italians or the North Africans or somebody) stole it. (4) It was buried somewhere and the folks who buried it forgot where. Since I assume the Spanish have not developed a gold-fueled nuclear device, thereby converting matter into energy, I think I've run out of possibilities. Que paso? — Joseph M., Los Angeles Cecil replies: The average person reading this question would probably figure you’ve got filings in the brain pan, Joe, but in fact you have asked a question that baffled Spaniards at the time and has fascinated historians since. A couple things to keep in mind … [Click here]( for more. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - [View this message as a webpage](. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. To advertise on The Straight Dope, contact Rich Hummel at rhummel@suntimes.com [Privacy Policy/Terms of Use]( • [Unsubscribe]( © 2019 Straight Dope, LLC. 30 N Racine Ave. Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60607