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The Questions…

1. The domestic guinea pig is a type of “cavy,” a family of small, forest-dwelling South American rodents. In Switzerland, it is illegal to own just one guinea pig. Why?

2. Who introduced French fries to America?

3. The geographic cone snail, a tiny carnivore found in Indo-Pacific reefs, is one of the deadliest critters in the sea. Its venom paralyzes a fish instantly (a crucial adaptation, because otherwise, the fish would swim off and die far away from the slow-moving snail). Why is this snail nicknamed the “cigarette snail”?

4. How many gallons of water does it take, on average, to grow one tomato?

5. In 1936, Maine’s G.W. Bass Company introduced “Weejuns,” a casual, moccasin-like slip-on shoe. In the 1950s, they became known as “penny loafers” when students started a fad of inserting pennies into the slits in the leather vamps.  Why are they called “Weejuns”?

The Answers…

1. Switzerland’s animal welfare laws decree that the guinea pig is a highly social animal that would be lonely without a companion. The law doesn’t cover all cavies, just cute ones.

2. President Thomas Jefferson. He served “potatoes fried in the French manner” at a White House dinner in 1802. The man Jefferson ousted from office, John Adams, accused Jefferson of “putting on airs by serving such novelties.”

3. Because a person stung by its barb will live roughly long enough to smoke a cigarette.

4. 13 gallons. Scientists are working to develop a less thirsty tomato, but aren’t there yet.

5. The shoes were inspired by the hand-sewn leather moccasins worn by Norwegian farmers in Maine. “Weejuns” is an abbreviated form of “Norwegians.”