Here's more info on disposing of an unwanted cell phone.

We originally asked for help on this question in the Jan. 6 edition of GYA.

* Cell phones may be donated for cancer education to the Racine Multiple Myeloma Support Group. The phones and additional parts may be dropped off at any entrance to the Wheaton Franciscan All Saints Spring St. campus including the Medical Clinic, Atrium, Cancer Center, Women's Health Pavilion and the Hospital. Phones are sent for recycling and proceeds are used for an annual statewide patient/family seminar that has been developed by the Wisconsin support groups and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

* In response to the many inquiries you receive about used cell phones, Connect Cell (a US Cellular Authorized Agent) at 3717 Douglas Ave. will gladly take all used cell phones. Depending on the age, model and condition they will either be recycled or, through our FlipSwap program, be worth money to the customer. Any monetary value determined can be used as store credit toward the purchase of a new phone or accessories.

I'm sure we missed a few. Let us know if you know of any additional outlets.

Why does the alarm clock snooze button give you 9 extra minutes, not 10?

Hop in the GYA Wayback Machine for a minute (we stole that name from some old cartoon).

"My Fair Lady" opened on Broadway. Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean is obliterated by the first airborne explosion of a hydrogen bomb. Rocky Marciano retires as the only undefeated heavyweight champion of the world with a perfect record (49-0). And President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs a bill into law that places the words "under God" in our Pledge of Allegiance.

When did this all happen? 1956.

That same year, engineers at Telechron invented the first alarm clock with a snooze function - model number 7H241, known as The Snooz-Alarm.

The interval was originally intended to be 10 minutes. Precision was unimportant, and actually impossible to attain.

Alarm clocks in 1956 had standardized gears. The snooze gear needed to mesh with the teeth of the other gears. Due to the configuration of the gears, a 10-minute snooze cycle was out of the question, so the engineers had to choose between nine minutes or 10-plus minutes.

And we live in America, chock-full of that whole Protestant work ethic, so the engineers went with 9 minutes. Don't you dare be late for work, or you'll end up a miserable failure.

The 9-minute interval carried into the digital age. Some early digital clock designer probably took a look at an old mechanical clock and decided 9 minutes was the standard.

Where does the phrase "pushing the envelope" come from?

It's an aviation term, thrown around in the testosterone-driven speech of test pilots, and dates to roughly World War II.

In the context of flight testing, it means to push and aircraft to its limits.

Envelope has secondary definitions referring to a collection of curves. This is jargon used by math and engineering-savvy types.

In the world of aeronautical engineering, the envelope is the collection of curves that describe maximum performance in an aircraft.

So to "push the envelope" is to take an aircraft to the edge of its capabilities and beyond its intended design.

The phrase gained common acceptance after it was used in "The Right Stuff," Tom Wolfe's best-selling novel about NASA and "Top Gun," in which Anthony Edwards proved to the world he could be more than a big-screen nerd.

How many high schools once open in Racine County no longer exist?

We don't know an exact number, but St. Bonaventure's in Racine and the Rochester Ag School immediately come to mind. Does anyone know of any more? Please let us know.

What is Glad You Asked?

GYA seeks answers to your questions. Have a question? Call us at (262) 631-1758 or send us an e-mail at: ask@journaltimes.com