Good Questions: West St. Paul, Hiccups, Bumper Crops
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - Every Friday, we tackle a bunch of viewers' burning questions. This week, Heather Brown explores the origin of West St. Paul's name, bumper crops and hiccups.
A viewer asked: Why is West St. Paul called West St. Paul when it's south of St. Paul?
It does have to do with Mississippi River, which runs north-south, except for a little part near St. Paul and West St. Paul.
But West St. Paul is still on the west bank of the river, so the city's name doesn't come from its relation to downtown St. Paul, but from its relation to the river.
Jacob from Minnetonka asks: Why do we hiccup?
It's because our diaphragm, which is a muscle right below our lungs, gets irritated. It starts contracting and those spasms are hiccups.
A lot of time that will happen because we breathe too much air in, or eat something without chewing and our stomach pushes up on the diaphragm.
Persistent hiccups can come from irritation to the nerve that controls the diaphragm.
Conditions are ripe for a sweet corn bumper crop. That had Rich from Oakdale wanting to know: Why is a good yield called a bumper crop?
The Old Farmer's Almanac says it's because, back in the 1700s, a cup of wine, filled to the brim, was called a bumper.