Q. “Eep. I’m turning into my parents”. This is less than welcome news in the land of sitcoms and streams. In real life, how similar do people think they are to their parents? How similar do you think you are to your parents? How does this perceived difference or similarity

Q. Public libraries offer such a unique glimpse at a wide range of people absorbed in all manner of topics. There is also so much to be learned from poking about home libraries, big and nook. Who are some artists who have captured library life on canvas? . A. It’s

Q. Now that we’re into May, summer vacation days are peeking over the horizon. Where are the places that we’re dreaming that we can visit as we take a break from work, from school? . A. In digging into Google’s ample data – which includes flight and accommodation searches –

Q. Which homemade cookies do we Canadians crave the most? . A. In February, Food Network Canada analysed their considerable data to unearth the cooking channel’s most popular cookie recipes of all time. The winner? Good old-fashioned shortbread. Fittingly, in the 1944 ‘Canadian Favourites Cookbook’, Mrs. Jane Montgomery from Victoria, B.C.

Q. Day to day, we throw out abbreviations: acronyms – the first letter combinations we read as words, like NASA, and initialisms – the letters we read out singly, like FYI or DIY. Then there is the ‘depends who’s talking’ category. How do you say ASAP? For some it’s sounding

Q. What are some expressions or idioms that we commonly garble? . A. Let’s see how we do. Which of these is correct? Each phrase is listed in alphabetical order. . Bald-faced lie . Barefaced lie . Bold-faced lie ♕ . Baited breath . Bated breath ♕ . Chalk it

Q. Why do some people insist on crushing egg shells to dusty bits after peeling them off their hard-boiled interiors?   A. They are likely deferring to an old superstition. Diners crushed their egg shells to make it more difficult for witches who, rumour had it, would otherwise collect shell

Q. When it comes to pairing singular and plural forms, the English language – with its muddle of word origins – is less than cooperative. To make things more confusing: some once ‘improper’ plurals have persisted their way into grudging acceptance. That said, dictionaries don’t agree. Dare one say ‘rhinoceri’?

Q. Sound tastes vary, of course. As does the type of space in which different types of music are best showcased. Overall, however, which concert halls do experts feel have the best acoustics? . A. First of all: what exactly are ‘acoustics’? Merriam Webster offers: ‘a science that deals with

Q. Happy St. Patrick’s Day! We’ll see joyous green everywhere today – on clothes, on plates, in glasses. Sure there is green on the tri-striped Irish flag, but why the green and why today? After all, St. Patrick’s official colour is blue. . A. The green on the Irish National