Author Archive

Recently, I became the proud parent to two small kittens. Although these aren’t my first cats, they are the first kittens I’ll be raising, and while I couldn’t be happier with my feline companions, there is a lot to learn when taking on the responsibility of owning pets.

Kitten season – the spring and summer months when thousands of new kittens are born – is in full swing, and it’s especially important for us new cat owners to educate ourselves on proper cat care.

If the number of cat images on Answers is indicative of how many cat lovers are using the site, it’s a sure bet I’ll find lots of help from this community. I’ve already found useful answers to keeping my kittens cool during the current heat wave. Answerers in the Cats category can help with any problem, from cat food to litter box training to long-distance travel. I’m confident that as my kitties grow, I’ll be able to count on our cat experts for more help.

For now, I’m busy learning their personalities. It’ll be interesting to see if they have the attitude that’ll gain them the nationwide fame that many tabbies have recently experienced.

Lydia

If you’ve downloaded the new Yahoo! Messenger 8.0 Beta, you may have noticed the new Yahoo! Answers plug-in at the bottom of your Messenger window. Since you’re an Answerer this little gizmo not only lets you view interesting questions selected by our editorial team, it also offers some cool features just for you!

To start, the Answers plug-in lets you browse through your questions or answers and set any of them as a status message. This is an easy way to share your questions and answers with all of your contacts. 

One of the coolest features the Answers plug-in has to offer is the ability to distribute your questions and answers to specific people in your contacts list. This lets you share a “best answer” with a contact you know will be interested in reading it. Or if you know that one of your contacts has specific knowledge that could help answer that burning question of yours, send it to them directly.

We’re always looking for ways to make Answers work well with other Yahoo! Products, and this new Messenger plug-in is only the beginning.  There’s a lot more to come, so stay tuned!

Nick Nguyen

Product Manager, Yahoo! Answers

As you have probably noticed, the Answers site is taking a breather.  We're working on it now and hope to bring the site back shortly.   Thanks for your patience.

Nick

I'm happy to report that Answers is back to serve your knowledge needs.  We're still doing some tweaking and fiddling to make sure this doesn't happen again, so we may take another breather later today, but we'll work to make sure that the breather periods are as short as possible.  Thanks again for your patience and sorry about the inconvenience.

Nick

This week’s featured user is Metzger52365, a dog lover and third on the Pets leader board. He has answered 1,470 questions with 53% of them being selected as best answers. Sticking to Pets, his favorite category, he offers most of his answers on Dogs, but on occasion answers in the Music category. He has helped people select kid friendly pets, and explained what causes bad breath in dogs. He has even given help to people living with a French Bulldog and revealed the truth behind chocolate and dogs.

Here is what he had to say:

“Well, there isn't really a lot to say. I'm about as close to your so called average Joe as they get. I spend most all of my time in the pets section (mostly dogs) and enjoy trying to help others with their four-legged family member. I have been around dogs since I am old enough to remember. I do a lot of research, not only on the net but through books on the subject. A lot of things have changed in the last 20 years when it comes to better understanding what dogs need. Be it training, medicine, or food, a lot has been learned since the day grandma and grandpa had dogs. I'm a big fan of labs, and have been for the last 20 years. I will probably never own another breed. Besides that I spend time tending to our water garden/koi fish pond, reading, and being a total fantasy sports freak. I have worked with the developmentally disabled for about the past 6 years now, and am happier job-wise than I have ever been in my 42 years. I haven’t had much time lately to answer questions due to work, but things seem to be calming down. May you all enjoy your time on Answers, and may you all have happy times in real life too.”

Thanks for all your contributions!

Katie T.

Stephen Hawking resolved his question about how the human race can survive the next hundred years today, but as an added bonus he offered some insight into his reasoning.

Did I mention that he’s doing this in the form of an audio clip?

Dr. Hawking admittedly doesn’t have an answer to this question. In fact, getting people involved in discussing this subject was his sole purpose for asking all along. Using his keen wit, he urges Answerers to think about more pressing matters than extinction level events like asteroid collisions. I love his comment about Bruce Willis.

He points out that the dangers of nuclear armament and escalation, climate change, and genetically engineered viruses are more immediate threats. Dr. Hawking also realizes that humankind has far better chance of survival if discussions of possible solutions spur a desire to take action.

Oh, why am I rehashing the clip for you guys? Take a listen for yourselves and discuss it here. How can we help stop global warming? Is nuclear disarmament attainable? What are some ways that we can make global change happen? Is the colonization of space really the answer?

Let us know what you think.

Mario

Last week’s featured questions taught us a few things, so I thought it would be cool to share some of the more interesting tidbits here on the blog.

Tracing your ancestry is fascinating but can also be overwhelming at the same time. Where do you even begin? I’ve never felt strongly enough to pay for someone else to do this for me, so Sprouts Mom’s tips on tracing genealogy for free sounds promising.

The best answer to this question opened my eyes to a whole new world of necktie storage. I don’t know what to say other than, “Wow!” I own a few neckties and store them on a wire hanger in the back of my closet. I had no idea storage of ties could be this complex.

Smell and taste are my “go to” senses when testing wine freshness, but in the back of my mind I believed that there had to be a more precise and sophisticated method to use. This best answer surprised me because according to Pontac, a wine educator, writer, and international judge, it looks like sometimes the most obvious solution is best.

These are just a few of the excellent answers we found in last week's featured questions. I’m curious to see what this past week’s responses will bring our way.

Mario

This week’s featured user is Blue, a top answerer in the Health category as well as a member of Yahoo! Answerholics. She has answered 1793 questions with 888 being selected as best answer. She answers questions about Yahoo! Groups and Weddings, but her main area of expertise is Health. She has offered help in Diet & Fitness, giving tips on how to start training for a 5k to customized diet and fitness plans. She has even revealed the science behind sports drinks.

When asked to be featured user this is what she had to say:

“Cool! Let's see, I live in New Jersey where I work as a computer programmer. I've been married for a little over a year. We had a destination wedding in Key West, FL, so I love to answer questions about wedding planning and Key West. I am into fitness, especially running. I also like to travel. My husband and I recently took a great trip to Hawaii. And, of course, I like Yahoo. I've been using Y! Clubs, now Groups for many years.”

Thanks for all your contributions!

Katie T.

This last week, there's been a rumble of back-to-school activity here on Answers.  What with new fashions, assorted supplies, and anxious teenagers looking for love... it's hard to believe it's only August!  Some fantastic advice has been given to people thinking of going back to school, to mothers wanting to outfit their kids, and to employees trying to keep up the good score with their bosses.

Yesterday, my little brother turned five, so I'm especially excited about the fall.  I already found the most adorable backpack for him. Despite how thrilled I am, like this little girl, he is afraid to start school because he's used to being around his mother most of the time. Does anyone know how long it takes kids to get used to going to school?

What about you?  Are you looking forward to the start of school? Or does the beginning of the school year not affect you? (Some people who aren’t students and aren’t around any kids might not be affected by the school year, like me )

Kelsey