Watch CBS News

Good Questions: Dog Years, Feed Corn And Road Construction

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – It's Friday, so we're answering some of the Good Questions you've e-mailed us this summer.

Lisa from Farmington, Minn. asks: why are dog years counted seven years for every one year of human life?

That's kind of how it averages out over time, as humans typically live longer than dogs.

But dogs physically mature more quickly than humans.

So, the first year of a dog's life is actually equal to about 15 human years.

Breed matters too. Smaller breeds live longer. So a Chihuahua that's 7-years-old, that's equal to about 44 human years.

But a St. Bernard that's the same age is equal to about 50 human years.

Kristy from Princeton, Minn. wants to know: what's the difference between feed corn and the corn we eat?

The majority of the corn you see as you drive cross-country is field corn.

It's not nearly as sweet as sweet corn. It's stalks are taller and it's kernels are harder. It also takes longer before it's ready for harvest.

Field corn can be used for animal feed and in some cases it's processed into corn meal.

Some field corn is also seed corn, meaning it will be used as seed for next year's crop.

Sweet corn has yellow or white kernels and tastes 10 times better!

Betty from Bloomington, Minn. wants to know: what happens to all the asphalt and concrete that's torn up during road construction season?

Literally tons of asphalt and concrete are torn up every summer by the Minnesota Department of Transportation.

But it doesn't go to waste.

A MnDOT spokesman tells us that everything gets recycled.

The concrete is ground up and used as what's called Class 5 material. It serves as a base for new roadways.

Minnesota is a leader when it comes to asphalt recycling.

About 30 percent of asphalt is recycled into new asphalt.

The rest is also used as base for new construction.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.