Split (3)

train · 273k rows

title stringlengths 0 299	text list
Why do we hear our own chewing loudly when we close our ears?	[ "Normally you're hearing the sounds from outside your head, that go into your ears. But, you also hear a lot of sounds from inside your head, that are less from the vibration of the air (like most sound) but the vibration of your actual body/head. This is actually why your voice sounds different recorded than it do...
Why don't we trigger our gag reflex when we swallow food, but we do if we put our finger down our throat?	[ "Our body doesn't like something being both down our throat and out of our mouth at the same time as it will choke you. Same goes for toothbrushes. You mouth is very aware of the size and shape of things you shove it it.", "The pharyngeal (gag) reflex, like many others, can be over-ridden for any of a number of r...
The movie "2001" A Space Odyssey"	[ "> I read the plot on wikipedia to better understand what was happening at the end, but I'm still lost.\n\nThe plot is as follows. At some point, godlike aliens placed mysterious monoliths throughout the universe. They are completely inscrutable, but their discovery always triggers an immediate and profound change...
How does the "bidding website" scam work?	[ "Those web site you see ads for that say PS3 just sold for $2.56. Well it did \"sell\" for that but the trick is that you must pay for each bid you enter like $1.And they will keep changing the end time of the auction so more people will pay that dollar to enter a bid. Technically it did sell for that, but that was...
Why when you pour water into a pot with hot oil it reacts like that?	[ "Oil floats on water, so the water gets under the oil, quickly boils, and the escaping steam blasts little droplets of oil all over the place.", "Water immediately falls to the bottom of the pot/pan, underneath the oil. Because the pan/pot is presumably at a high heat, it vaporizes very quickly into steam. Sinc...
How do meteorologists report what the temperature “feels” like	[ "How the temperature \"feels\" actually matters. The feel is actually a better measure of how much heat loss/gain your body is experiencing than the actual ambient air temperature.\n\nFor instance, say it is 1F today, and the Wind Chill makes it feel like -10F. As your body radiates heat, a buffer of warmer air for...
EL5: Honestly, what the fuck could happen if my iPad stays on when the plane lands? (I'll check this in 15 minutes when I'm on the ground)	[ "Nothing electronic-wise. Its so you 1)Will pay attention if there is an emergency and not be listening or music or distracted. 2)In case there is a hard landing they don't want those things flying around the cabin (hence stowed). Off is so you won't be tempted to grab it anyways.", "The issue with electronics on...
- Why the countries of the world don't cancel their financial debts to one another.	[ "Because the countries that lent money are made up of people who lent money and want it back, with interest. There is no one entity called \"a country\" that leads money to other countries. It is people who back financial tools such as bonds with the expectation that there will be a return on investment.", "Bec...
Why do we use anti-bacterial toilet bowl cleaner?	[ "Bacteria grow and make bad smells or nasty looking messes in the bowl. Killing them stops that." ]
If I pay off my visa with a mastercard within my 21-day grace period, assuming the mastercard had said grace period as well, could I not just shuffle a debt indefinitely?	[ "What you're describing is called a balance transfer.\n\nMost credit cards only give you the 21-day grace period for making purchases. You have to pay interest immediately on cash advances and balance transfers.\n\nTL;DR - probably not. You'd have to pay interest on your MasterCard from the day you use it to pay of...
Why do I feel like shit after a nap?	[ "You wake up in the middle of a sleep cycle. When you sleep, your body is reorganizing your brain. Waking up in the middle of a sleep cycle is like waking up when your body has pulled everything off the shelves but hasn't started putting it back yet. I started using _URL_0_ and it made a HUGE difference.", "I was...
How is it possible that I can completely forget how to do something that I've done hundreds of times, even immediately after successfully doing it once?	[ "I have discussed this with my Psych professor a few times. Our brains are still a deep mystery. I can give an example of myself struggling with this. I have put in my passcode for my dropbox hundreds of times. Then one day I forgot. I did not have the faintest idea what my code was. I didn't forget for a day or we...
How does mopping clean the floor, if the soapy water just stays on the ground?	[ "you will typically mop in back and forth passes. The mop will get the floor wet which will help dissolve dirt on the floor. A second pass will catch the dirt. You repeat multiple times until the floor looks clean. You then put the mop in the bucket to get fresh water and release the trapped dirt. You do not necess...
Why does the scent of petrol, cellotape, glue, correction fluid and a few other objects that aren't used for their scent appeal to people?	[ "A lot of those chemicals contain some amount of benzene. Benzene-like compounds are referred to as \"aromatic\". They have a fairly strong and often pleasant or sweet odor.", "I find the smell of gasoline and diesel appealing. Pretty much any fluid for a vehicle other than coolant I like. I assume it's because I...
How does a speedometer work?	[ "Speedometers work by linking a flexible cable to the car's transmission. As the engine powers the drive shaft, it spins the cable about it's central axis (can I use axis)?\n\nThe cable then spins a magnet near the speedometer. The speedometer has a metal needle and a spring that pushes the needle towards 0 mph. As...
Why does everyone with Down syndrome look the same?	[ "You are right that people with Down syndrome share very similar physical characteristics. With that said, they are no different than you and I, individuals in their own way. \nSome of the common physical signs of Down syndrome: \n\n-A flat face with an upward slant to the eye. \n-Tiny white spots on the iris. \n...
How hard is it to change your name?	[ "In the UK, it's similar to what RabbaJabba says about the US. Here, we call it \"changing your name by deed poll\". You obviously need to prove who you are, and there are rules about what you can change your name to. The really don't care why, although you do have to affirm that you aren't trying to get out of som...
why are certain products designed so differently in different markets?	[ "Some of it is market preferences, which may simply have been set way back when products were first introduced decades ago. Could also do with things like what surfaces get cleaned most — Americans have more carpeting on floors while I think European homes use vacuums on hard floors, drapes, etc.\n\nTrucks are a co...
Why Intel and AMD don't make smartphone CPUs?	[ "Because they were making a lot of money off of desktop and server CPUs. And smartphone CPUs need to be fundamentally different from desktop CPUs because they need to be very power efficient. Thus they would effectively have to start from scratch to create a mobile CPU or try to make their x86 CPUs more power effic...
How Stephen Hawking has managed to survive with ALS for so long?	[ "It is common knowledge that Stephen Hawking died long ago. His chair achieved sentience at some point, critics disagree on when, and is currently posing as the scientist.", "> Don't people usually die much sooner?\n\nUsually, but he got the [early and slow version](_URL_0_). Most ALS patients don't live past fi...
Why Google might possibly not go national with fiber when internet is an industry in desperate need of disruption.	[ "They don't have to offer fiber in every single market to disrupt the ISP ecosystem. All they have to do, and all they're trying to do, is embarrass the ISPs into making progress. \n\nGoogle doesn't really want to be everyone's ISP because that's not their core business.", "When Google deploys fiber in a few citi...
Where did the idea that classical music makes infants smarter come from, and has it been proven?	[ "There was a study that showed pretty well that listening to music made adults temporarily better at doing a spatial reasoning paper folding task. \n\nThis sort of melted into \"classical music only specifically makes people smart\" to \"classical music makes babies smart\". It's some pretty big leaps from the orig...
If elephants are being slaughtered for their tusks, why don't reseves remove them without injuring the elephant so the poachers have nothing to slaughter for?	[ "Quite often, poachers don't kill the elephant first-just cripple or sedate as necessary. Removing the tusk is a severe enough injury that the elephant will die from blood loss soon after, while in debilitating pain for the remainder of their life. Keep in mind, they go deep into the elephant's face, often a foot o...
the U.S. fiscal cliff approaching and why it's coming?	[ "This was asked a couple hours ago and got a pretty good response I thought. I'll link it _URL_0_" ]
What has atmospheric pressure to do with wind speeds and the wind force? More Info In Text	[ "Atmospheric pressure is basically the weight of the column of air sitting on top of you, so it's directly linked to the atmosphere's density. Wind speeds are just, well speeds, it's an important factor but in physics, we know kinetic energy (the energy that an object has due to the fact it is moving) is directly p...
What happens if you move a nocturnal animal from one end of the world to the other?	[ "No, it would be active at night. In the same way that we adapt to time changes when we travel so would they.", "We moved our cat with us across time zones and he adjusted to the new day/night schedule just like we did." ]
In terms of web - what is a cache and how does it work?	[ "Imagine you run a pizza business that does delivery. The pizza business in your town is pretty cut-throat and delivery times are crucial. The pizza company with the best delivery times generally gets the most repeat customers. Deliver too slow, and you'll go out of business.\n\nYou open your new pizza business ...
Why is the Swiss National Bank saying it will buy all other currencies in unlimited quantities? ELI5	[ "The Swiss Franc is actually too strong verses other currencies right now. This sounds like it would be a good thing and too a degree it is but Switzerland relies on exports as a major part of its economy and if no one can afford your exports then you have problems so they wanted to cap the value of the Franc vers...
Why is the Middle East perpetually in conflict?	[ "* Muslims have multiple sects and some of the members want the others dead. \n* Israel and Palestine both feel they have divine claim to the same portion if land. Neither side has a point of compromise and many would rather die than lose.\n* The US and Russia have enormous monetary interests in the area and use th...
Why commercial airliners don't use ejector seats?	[ "Two reasons, mainly.\n\n1. They're ridiculously heavy. You're flying, you see. Weight is the opposite of flying.\n\n2. They're ridiculously expensive. Would you pay an extra $10,000 per ticket?\n\nMore reasons than that, but those should cover the most important.", "A number of reasons -a few have been listed...
why does turning on your wifi on your phone, even if not connected to a wifi, help pinpoint your location.	[ "In the background the phone is scanning for which wifi hotspots it can see around you. Given this information your phone can ask Google/Apple/etc over your mobile data connection where hotspots with these particular names are located, these companies will have large databases of such information and can tell you r...
Why can it be really bright inside and I can see my phone screen just fine but when I'm outside it becomes hard to see?	[ "It's because the surroundings are really bright, your pupil contracts. This helps you see the surroundings. But your phone can't match the brightness. This makes your phone appear darker.", "The brightest it ever gets inside is only a fraction of how bright it is outside even on a cloudy day.\n\nThat we don't pe...
Why do we get white marks on our fingernails?	[ "Your nails are actually layers bind together. When something hits your nail the layers separate and the trauma spot will become opaque. The only way diet could affect it is when you don't get enough nutrient and your nail becomes weak and more prone to damage." ]
Why do airlines force people to keep their seat belts on for so long when people in private planes can lay down, sleep, party, etc.?	[ "Seatbelts aren’t just for collisions or sudden stops while taxiing. They are primarily there to keep you in your seat in the event of bad turbulence. Turbulence can happen suddenly and without warning. If you’re not secured you can easily fly up and hit the ceiling. On your way back down, you can land on another p...
When birds fly, do they know where they're going every time or do they just land wherever?	[ "I live near a long string of parks. Over decades I have watcher the behavior of Canadian geese in particular. Groups will do to the golf course or another pond on a regular schedule. They fly a direct route between these locations. They definitely know where they are going. I remember one terribly windy winter day...
Where does the term 'ninja' come from if in Japanese it's 'sasuke'? And is ninjutsu something different in Japanese? Sasukejutsu?	[ "Are you talking about the show Ninja Warrior? That show was called Sasuke. Ninja is a Japanese word, as is the alternate reading, Shinobi. The word literally stems from the character \"endure.\" \n\nThere's arguments that there was never really a historical ninjutsu, as a distinct art, but that most of the ninja a...
Why is the 1-2-3 on the top row of a phone keypad but on the bottom row of a calculator?	[ "the first phones with an actual keypad used it to match the old rotary phones, which had the lowest number first.\n\ncalculators existed before that, and had already established the 7-8-9 on the top row", "Numberphile did a video on this:\n\n_URL_0_\n\nTldw;\n\nThe 3x3 grid style was settled on because it was th...
What is inflation and how is it caused?	[ "I'm assuming you're talking about economics. Imagine there's this thing called money that works far better than bartering. Now the amount of money in an economy is not totally fixed. If there is not enough of it, the price of everything goes down. If there is too much of it, the price goes up. Now remember that mo...
Why is the search for "intelligent life" so widely talked about and seems to be a prominent goal for NASA?	[ "First of all, you're correct. Finding any life would be a big fucking deal.\n\nHowever, that's actually not very likely to happen. What's much more likely is that we will find evidence of alien technology, such as radio signals or something else that travels at light speed.\n\nRemember, any evidence that we find...
Why do we use White and Black to describe race when the skin tone is actually Beige and Brown?	[ "(1) Color vocabulary has evolved and expanded throughout time. I highly doubt the word 'beige' was around when this usage was solidified. \n\n(2) We do this all time time when it comes to naming binary pairs, in order to easily distinguish them, even when the designations don't match up perfectly. Think about wh...
Why do TV shows do the fake lines on the screens to make it look like a home recorder, when today they look the same quality?	[ "To convey to the audience that the scene is taken with a recorder, in universe.\n\nThey do a lot of shorthand like that. The \"shink\" sound of a knife being picked up. Dial tones on cell phones. People typing on computers and the individual letters appear on their face. It's not realistic but serves the story...
Why is it wrong to drive using 2 feet?	[ "Because it's bad for your car to have the gas and break pedals pressed at the same time, and it's too easy to do that when you have one foot on each. If you only use one foot for both pedals, you can't press them both at the same time.", "How is it wrong? I always use my two feet. Left foot for the clutch, righ...
Financial Derivatives	[ "Derivative server two purposes. One is to provide insurance (protection) against something happening.\n\nFor example, say you needed lemons for your lemonade stand. Say they cost 50 cents today, but you're worried about them going up. You could agree to buy 100 lemons each month for the next year for 75 cents each...
We are one consciousness experiencing itself subjectively	[ "Here's a short story that I think gets the idea across very effectively: _URL_0_\n\nThere might be more 'philosophical' ideas about it out there, but this introduces one idea about it in a very understandable way; with this context, it might be easier to understand the more complex ideas." ]
Why the smoke curling off the tip of the cigarette is blue, but when you smoke the color of smoke is white?	[ "It has to do with the lungs adding water vapor / stuff to the smoke which affects its Rayleigh scattering.\n\nWalter Lewin has a nice demonstration/explanation of this in one of his MIT lectures.\n\n[_URL_0_](_URL_0_).\n\n(the smoking starts at about 3:30)." ]
Pokemon	[ "The games are an interesting take on an RPG. You play a fledgling Pokemon trainer, choose a starter Pokemon and venture out into a fantasy world populated by an enormous range of magical beasts. You have to fight them and catch them, and train them to learn new magical powers. They evolve into bigger, cooler be...
What's the behind the meaning of a "neckbeard"?	[ "A decent beard should be, to at least some degree sculpted or manicured. Just basic hygiene really. \n\nA \"Neckbeard\" refers to someone who has a beard not because they want one, but most likely simply as a result of inattention to grooming. Usually paired with wrinkled, smelly clothes, a surly attitude, and poo...
how is it technically possible for Lance Armstrong to have Doped when he passed over 500 tests throughout his career?	[ "[Here is a resource on doping in sports that could answer your questions](_URL_0_). \n\nI refer to this book mainly because doping in sports is a very big onion, with a lot of layers.\n\nThe best distillation is that sports has an evolving sytem of tests, regulations, drugs, and ways to dope without being caught. ...
How anxiety and stress cause physical symptoms (Specifically tinnitus, dizziness, headaches, numbness)	[ "Stress causes your blood pressure to rise and this causes the headache and numbness. Higher blood pressure also makes it easier for your blood to transfer oxygen therefore increasing your stamina. This helps if you are being chased by a lion but is bad for your health if you are always stressed out. Check with you...
how the Nazi identify the Jews in the holocaust	[ "The Nazi party in Germany identified Jews through military records, census records, tax returns, synagogue membership lists, parish records (for converted Jews), routine but mandatory police registration forms; the questioning of friends, relatives, neighbors, businesses was also used, as well as Jewish community ...
when my phone is fully charged it tells me to unplug it to save electricity. Is it actually more efficient to run it off the battery?	[ "power is being converted by the transformer even when it is plugged in and being converted to heat, so yes sort of.", "A phone uses an infinitesimal amount of electricity when charging. Let's do the math.\n\n1 amp X 5 volts = 5 watts (a nightlight)\n\n5 hours a night = 5 watt hours.\n\n365 days per year = ~2 ki...
Why Words With Friends is not being sued by Scrabble?	[ "Because (in America, at least), [you cannot copyright the rules of a game](_URL_1_).\n\n > Copyright does not protect the idea for a game, its name or title, or the method or methods for playing it. Nor does copyright protect any idea, system, method, device, or trademark material involved in developing, merchandi...
Do twins get concieved from the same singular sperm that reaches the egg first?	[ "There are two types of twins, identical and non-identical (fraternal).\n\nIdentical twins form when a single sperm fertilises a single egg, but somewhere, early in foetal development it splits in two and both continue developing into children, resulting in two children with identical DNA.\n\nFraternal twins form w...
Why do newly released blockbuster films only circulate on the internet when they have been released on DVD?	[ "First of all, cinemas don't get their movies on DVDs (or Bluray for that matter). They used to get movies on movie reels back in the days of analog film. These days cinemas receive a Digital Cinema Package, or [DCP](_URL_0_), which is basically a computer hard drive in a special enclosure which contains the movie....
Why do guys insist on sending unsolicited dick pictures. Does that ever REALLY work?	[ "Men are very visual creatures, and quick to arouse. A man can go from no arousal to immediately turned on just with a quick flash of a girl's boobs. As a result of this nature, many men don't grasp that women don't work the same way, and aren't interested much in seeing a dick unless already aroused.\n\nCombine th...
Why are some people "naturally smart" and seem to get through academics/life in general with ease?	[ "As someone who went through school pretty easily without ever really trying all that much, the key to my success, or what makes me \"naturally smart\" is my ability to memorize things quickly and relatively easily. It made cram sessions for tests much easier, and resulted in me doing well a lot of the time. The wa...
Why don't phones just capture video in horizontal mode no matter which way you hold it?	[ "The actual sensor in the phone that captures the image is itself also rectangular - in the same direction as the phone screen. To make the phone record video in horizontal mode when it is held vertically would result in using a lower resolution, as it would require ignoring a large portion of the sensor (keeping i...
Why after drinking energy drinks do you get a phlegmy throat?	[ "My throat doesn't get phlegmy at all after drinking energy drinks... Do other people experience this?" ]
How can a ziplock bag seal tight enough to hold water, but you can smell marijuana through it easily?	[ "Water is a special substance with a high surface tension. That means that water molecules have a firm grip on each other, and it takes significant pressure to push then through a tiny hole because they have to loosen their grips to fit through one at a time. Odors are gasses, and gasses love to drift around bump...
why storing 256mb of data in the 70s require a massive machine, compared to a tiny USB stick now?	[ "There's two reasons, really: the second is as a result of the first, to some extent. \n1. Our ability to manipulate minute things has improved, as has our capability to mass produce fiddly little things. \n2. We've developed different things to store the data in/on. \n\nBack in the day electronic data storage was ...
The difference in the types of guns (revolver, pistol, rifle, shotgun, etc) and what the numbers (.32, .22, .45) in their names mean	[ "Guns are classified according to their action and their caliber. The types of action for long guns (carbines, rifles and shotguns) are Pump, Lever, Semi-automatic, break barrel, Bolt action, Revolver, and automatic. Pump guns require the operator to pull the fore end grip back then push it forward to chamber the...
What happens if I bring a plant with a seasonal lifecycle indoors? Will it skip its dormancy or die out of confusion?	[ "That depends. Plants are numerous and very diverse. The easiest example I can think of is the Venus Fly Trap. The biggest mistake short of not giving them full sun is that people bring them indoors to keep them warm over the winter. These plants require a cold, relatively dark winter dormancy or they will die of s...
Orthogonal projection of a vector onto the subspace spanned by two other non-parallel vectors	[ "Say you have three arrows whose ends are all glued together (but you can't individually move the arrows around, they move together). Put the three on a piece of paper on a flat table, so that two of them will actually be touching the table (but the third might be in the air). Call the one in the air arrow A, and t...
Why don't submarines have cameras mounted on the outside to aid in the use of sonar?	[ "It gets dark underwater really quickly. Without a visible light source, you probably wouldn't see more than a few feet, which is vastly less than what sonar can give you. And that's assuming you got clear water, which usually isn't the case.", "It wouldn't help. Unless you are dangerously close to the surface, ...
Why does my room not stink to me, but when my mom walks in she thinks it's horrible.	[ "Animals rely on scent as a sense to understand their surroundings. Take a poodle, give it a perfumed bath, and it'll still sniff that fire hydrant given a chance. Take a retriever, have it roll in a carcass that it uncovered somewhere, and it'll still be able to whiff out a concealed hot dog.\n\nOur mammalian brai...
Why does your jaw drop when you are amazed or horrified?	[ "Does it actually do that for most people? I've always just thought that was a cartoonish way to show those reactions so it would be clear." ]
why should the ex-partner of a marriage get half of their ex-partner's business when they divorce	[ "You have to look at these things from the perspective of the \"whole family\". \n\nOne spouse might be working day and night to build a business and generate a lot of money for the family. But in doing that, they're NOT looking after the house or the kids or the dog, they're not cooking or cleaning or setting up t...
Why are alleged sexual assault victims subject to publications bans during trial but not the accused? Should not all parties have anonymity until a verdict is determined? What’s the legal reasoning behind it?	[ "I have always wondered this myself. Several lives have been ruined by false accusations long before a verdict is reached. Sad really.", "The stigma attached to being a rape victim was thought to be preventing legitimate victims from coming forward, thereby allowing dangerous rapists to remain in the community. T...
Why do our noses run when we're outside in the winter?	[ "In the winter, it's important that air becomes warm and humid before entering your windpipe and lungs. Cold, dry air would harm the delicate tissues there. \nOne of your nose's jobs is to help make air more suitable for breathing. The snot your nose is producing helps moisten the air you're inhaling. It actually h...
Why is it obvious when someone deliberately avoids looking at you?	[ "There are very few people who can exude a natural demeanor when they are actually forcing it. Basically, they are trying to physically fake what they think they look like when they aren't paying attention to a specific stimuli. It's easy to spot because people aren't good at this and it's apparent in their face, b...
Knot, as a unit of speed	[ "If you represent the earth as a circle containing 360 degrees, a nautical mile would be one minute (1/60) of a degree.\n\nA knot is one nautical mile per hour, or one minute of a degree per hour.\n\nVery useful.", "A knot is a nautical mile per hour. A nautical mile is 6000 feet, so a knot is slightly faster th...
Why does intense hunger sometimes cause nausea? That seems like the opposite of what should happen.	[ "Because your body is trying to encourage you to eat! Here are the two possibilities I've read about:\n\nAccording to when you eat, your body will release a hormone called Ghrelin which makes you feel like you're starving, possibly to the point of feeling nauseated. So if you normally eat every four hours and you m...
Why do most SUV's, Hatchbacks, Station wagons, Vans all have rear window wipers, but almost ALL sedans, never do.	[ "I think I know the answer to this one! The near-vertical boxy non-aerodynamic shape on the rear of SUVs vans etc tends to cause dirt from the road to end up on the glass, sedans don't suffer from this effect as much.", "I live in Canada, and I have always wondered this as well. \n\nThe snow does not collect as m...
What does the "Night Shift" feature on an iPhone actually do? What are it's benefits?	[ "it basically reduces the amount of blue light that's displayed by the display when the ambient lighting is low. blue light can interrupt sleep patterns and is generally bad for your eyes in low light.", "It reduces the amount of blue light generated by the screen. Blue light mainly affects sleep in humans, when...
why is the reverse side of a coin called "tails" ?	[ "Typically the other side has someone's head on it, so the opposite of \"heads\" being \"tails\" is rather fitting.", "Because \"Head or Ass?\" is a question for a different situation." ]
Why do we find organs and other insides of the body so revolting?	[ "I would have to say that it's just a natural response. Those things are supposed to stay inside and when they come out your brain just automatically knows something isn't right.", "Because it's all one giant blob you see, and then realize that that stuff is inside you too!\n\nIf you are over your initial shock a...
How do you train a dog to do complicated tasks like grab something from the fridge?	[ "Operant conditioning. Basically, dog does something vaguely relating to the task and gets rewarded. Teaching a dog to open the fridge would start with the dog being rewarded for approaching the fridge upon command. Them rewards would subside and they would be encouraged to interact with whatever handle is given to...
Why does attraction cloud judgement?	[ "You have a reproductive instinct that drives you to breed. It is outranked only by basic survival - the hierarchy of needs (air, water, food, shelter.) Genetically, reproduction is your one and only purpose beyond survival, and even the quality of your attempt (i.e. fitness of mate, personal success) is secondary ...
What is the difference between a budget car tyre and a premium brand. What happens during the manufacture of them to make such a noticable difference in grip?	[ "First you have the rubber; what ingredients are used? The natural rubber can have several qualities, everything from pure condom rubber to rubber with sticks and insects in it. Then you have the additives, what proportions are used? Sulfur and stuff. Porpotions between natural and synthetic rubber. The best premiu...
What causes the rhythmic beating of helicopter blades in motion?	[ "Vortexes!\n\nA wing moving through the air creates high pressure below it and low pressure above it. At the tip of the wing, the high-pressure air from below spills sideways and swirls around to the top of the wing, creating a [wingtip vortex](_URL_0_).\n\nThe rotors of a helicopter are just like the wings of a p...
Why is being fat less attractive?	[ "I read somewhere once that attraction has a lot to do with a primal/subconscious desire to pick a mate based on chance of success for offspring. Like a woman would want a muscular man because her children could be strong. So maybe more obese people would be unlikely to out run danger and therefore not a good choic...
How does wrinkle-free clothing work?	[ "Fabric wrinkles because the chemical bonds that hold it in place are broken by heat and water. When they dry and cool the bonds reform and they get stuck in the new shape.\n\nDifferent materials are more or less susceptible to this. Polyester for example is not so bad. But it not so nice to wear.\n\nFor example: W...
why are computer viruses being created and spread? Do they have a function other than wrecking computer software?	[ "Some are just douchebaggery, some are in good fun (the hello world virus), some are for profit (ransomware), some are for spying and then you have the viruses that have a very explicit goal (like stuxnet). There probably are other types, but the basic premise is running a program on an infected machine with a spec...
Rule Against Perpetuities	[ "Well, Gus, the \"rule against perpetuities\" sounds funny. Who talks like that? A better way to think of what you're talking about is \"the rule against things that last forever.\"\n\nYou see, one of the things we lawyers talk about all the time is what's called \"property.\" Property is the stuff we own. You o...
Why dont other countries have military bases in the US, While the US has bases in many other countries?	[ "The US has a huge military force with the primary mission of projecting force worldwide. Most other countries have comparatively small forces with a mission of only local self defense or regional force projection. Local self defense obviously does not require bases half the world away.\n\nMany countries also depen...
How do pictures get from the hubble telescope back to earth?	[ "Pictures are taken by instruments, digitized, and sent to Earth by radio. It's sent to a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, from there to White Sands New Mexico, via ground optical fiber to Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt Maryland, and finally to the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore. About...
How did the word sanction come to have two completely different meanings: 1. to approve something and then 2. A threatened penalty?	[ "It comes from the root (Latin) sānctiō, meaning \"a law or decree that is sacred or inviolable.\"\n\nThe verb sanction still essentially means the same thing for the positive or negative - to 'sanction' something is to give it official approval.\n\nSo technically the noun also means the same thing - a rul...
Why is it that mirrors flip images horizontally (i.e. Left to right) but not vertically (up and down)?	[ "They flip front to back, up remains on your up, and your left remains on your left. You just see a face in the mirror and assume that you must have rotated, since you have an arm on your left and an arm on your right, you assume that they were swapped since that's the only way people can do that in real life. You ...
Why does inhaling helium from a balloon make your voice sound high pitched like a cartoon character?	[ "Helium is 6x less dense than oxygen, so the sound waves travel through them faster and you sound like a cartoon character speaking quickly.\n\nFun Fact: Sulfur Hexafluoride is 6x more dense so it'll make your voice sound slower." ]
Why do I suddenly shake when I have to pee really bad?	[ "When your bladder starts to fill the pressure sensing nerves present on its outer walls send a signal to your brain alerting you that you need to pee. The pressure sensing nerves send this signal before your bladder is completely full to prevent damage. When you ignore that signal, your bladder continues to fill....
Why does most graffiti look similar?	[ "It looks similar to you because you haven't learned how to distinguish styles or quality. If you had, you'd be able to pick out good from bad.", "Although graffiti varies signifigantly if you pay attention, at first glance i know what you mean. Similar curved 's' and sharp yet bubbley, overlaping letters, etc? I...
When scientific papers refer to the mass/size of the Mt. Everest (to compare), what numbers are they actually taking?	[ "This is why real scientific papers use actual numbers and actual units, not \"as heavy as a fully loaded 747\" or your example.\n\nThere is no official answer. They're winging it.", "When you get to huge numbers like that, size comparisons are usually a pretty rough estimate. So it doesn't especially matter w...
If a handheld GoPro can record at 4k resolution, why do movie and television productions use such large cameras?	[ "The bodies of cinema cameras are getting pretty small. But they still need to be big enough for a large sensor and a mount for high-end cine lenses, as well as inputs for sync and reference audio, and outputs for a external monitors and external recorders.\n\nAttached to them will be a follow-focus, possibly an ex...
The guy that spent $700 at a vet who couldn't find what was wrong with his cat, only to have a different vet immediately know what's wrong, are there any consequences for the original vet?	[ "Basically no.\n\nIf a professional carries out their duties to the best of their ability with no intent of fraud then you should have picked a better vet. They can be sued but as long as the vet wasn't negligent the suit wouldn't be successful." ]
what would the Catholic Church do if Jesus came back?	[ "Probably flip a shit, when he turns out to be brown.", "They'd probably ask him to perform a miracle or two to prove it", "That depends on whether he returns as a mature male, or is reborn from a modern-day Maria. If the latter, I don't thinks the parents will allow the church access basic on recent events. If...
Where does award money on game shows come from?	[ "The TV company producing the show. A game show usually has significantly lower costs than a normal show, the only have to pay the salary of the host, there is only one set and very little special effects. That allows them to spend that saved money on prizes." ]
Why don't I always have the same level of cell phone service in the same spot?	[ "The service depends on how many people are also using the same tower - the bandwidth is like a pipe. If there are lots of people around you with lots of pipes branching off the main one, there's only a little bit of water for each person.", "To take a guess I would say that there may be some kind of interference...
I'm 27/m. How can girls on "The Bachelor" be ok with dating a guy who's making out with 20 other girls and in fantasy suite when there's 3 girls?	[ "Most of them aren't. That's pretty much the entire plot line of the show. Jealously, cat fights, and falling in love for the \"right reasons.\" The show has it all--except reality, basically.", "You'll come to realize that the term \"reality show\" is only half correct. They are shows that have almost no basis ...
Who authorises drone strikes and ground missions on foreign ground?	[ "The person that authorizes it is different for each military. It is the person that is in charge of the military. For the US it is the POTUS. \n\nThere is no higher authority that a country has to seek permission from, there is no global government.\n\nEdit: The link you are talking about is about Yemen giving aid...
Thunder and lightning	[ "Light travels at 299,792,458 meters per second. Sound travels at 343.2 meters per second.\n\nSince light is so much faster than sound, you see the lightning much sooner than you hear the thunder. It simply takes the sound longer to cover the same distance.\n\nThe farther away a lightning strike hits, the longer it...

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