Ask Marilyn

Say you have one cubic mile of water, and you release it at the rate of 1,000 gallons a minute. About how long would it take to drain the entire tank: (a) 2 weeks, (b) 20 weeks,

(c) 2 years, (d) 20 years,

(e) 200 years, (f) 2,000 years?

—Mike Carlson, Dardenne Prairie, Mo. Try exercising your intuition on this one, readers! The answer is below Numbrix.

Fruit is often shipped from distant states and then gassed to ripen it. Does this process change its nutritional value?

—Christi Waltrip, St. Louis, Mo. No, the ethylene gas used for this purpose is a naturally occurring plant hormone that the fruit would have produced itself otherwise.

Send questions to marilyn@ parade.com