q_id stringlengths 5 6 | title stringlengths 3 301 | selftext stringlengths 0 39.2k | document stringclasses 1
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14f2ys | My great grandfather supposedly worked on the Manhattan Project, but I can't find any information on him. | Does the name Dr. Nottingham ring a bell for anyone? If you need some more specific information I might be able to provide it but I don't know much. | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/14f2ys/my_great_grandfather_supposedly_worked_on_the/ | {
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"You would be better off putting the name (first and last) into the title and asking specifically if anyone knows more about the whole project. In the text of the post itself, you'd be best off putting everything you know. Since there were thousan... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
2ic23t | Considering grad school and I am seeking advice. | I am currently a senior in college and obtaining my undergraduate degree in history. I go to a relatively small school that offers a GTA position for those in the grad program, this would pay my to get my MA. To some this might be reason enough to go ahead and get it. I am looking for advice from those who have gone th... | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/2ic23t/considering_grad_school_and_i_am_seeking_advice/ | {
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"If you really want to do grad school, I would definitely be looking at schools other than the one you attended for undergrad. By looking at more schools, it's likely you'll find a history department that specializes more closely to your own resea... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
8flpx9 | what stops us patent office workers from stealing the ideas from submitted patents and copying them? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/8flpx9/eli5_what_stops_us_patent_office_workers_from/ | {
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1fa00t | Why did guerrillas form in South America, and How did individual governments respond to them? | I am curious about the development of guerrillas in South America during the 1960's and the response governments. Mainly my curiosity comes because I am related to someone who belonged to Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional (FALN), and died as part of the guerrilla movement [In Venezuela].
I hope I formatted this ... | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1fa00t/why_did_guerrillas_form_in_south_america_and_how/ | {
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"Fidel's triumph in 1959 became an inspirational moment for students around both Central and South America. I cannot specifically look at South American movements in the 1960s, however, Guatemala remained in a state of Civil War (after the 1954 co... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
o0in3 | How many particles of a disease causing virus do you need to be exposed to in order to contract the disease? | I was reading this post: _URL_0_ which said that one of the reasons mosquitoes don't spread HIV is because they don't carry enough of the virus. So how much is enough, in this case, to cause HIV/AIDS? | askscience | http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/o0in3/how_many_particles_of_a_disease_causing_virus_do/ | {
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"It depends on the particular virus. Hepititis is dozens of times more virulent than HIV (easier to get with the same amount of exposure) HIV is weakened relitivly quickly outside the human body while other viruses are more r... | [] | [
"http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/nzr0l/why_are_hiv_and_other_diseases_transferable_by_a/c3d89hn"
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[],
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7fqx47 | Is the air quality in major cities today worse than cities in the early 20th century like Birmingham which were industrial hubs? | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/7fqx47/is_the_air_quality_in_major_cities_today_worse/ | {
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"This is largely dependent on which specific city you are trying to look at. I'm not sure of any city in the United States that actually has lower air quality levels than they did in the early 20th century even with populatio... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | ||
50gljq | When I undo an action on a word document, does it run the action in reverse or revert to a saved copy of what the document was like before the action? | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/50gljq/when_i_undo_an_action_on_a_word_document_does_it/ | {
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"It runs the action in reverse. Typically, a text editor has both an undo stack, and a redo stack. Every change gets pushed onto the undo stack. When you undo, the last change gets popped off the undo stack, reversed, and added to the redo stack.... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
ounig | How is it that electric eels can deliver up to 600 volts that stuns their prey, but they themselves don't get stunned? | I'm assuming that the eels don't get stunned themselves, or at least not as stunned as their prey or predator. | askscience | http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/ounig/how_is_it_that_electric_eels_can_deliver_up_to/ | {
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" > Nobody knows exactly how the electric eel keeps from shocking itself, but the best working hypothesis is that the vital organs lik... | [] | [] | [
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at0zfj | Why do some electronic items continue working temporarily when unplugged? | Speakers, lights etc on some electronic items continue emitting sounds or light for a fair few seconds when they're unplugged, why? You'd assume that when you turn the power off, they would stop immediately? | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/at0zfj/why_do_some_electronic_items_continue_working/ | {
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"Many circuits have capacitors as one of their components. When you unplug your appliance, these capacitors still contain a charge and continue supplying a current while discharging.",
"there is a c... | [] | [] | [
[],
[],
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] | |
6yvfah | if something does a lot of noise, does it mean it's loosing power, transforming it to sound? | Like the title says. For example, when you drill the wall, the loud noise, does it influence in its drilling capability? If it made no sound, would the same power output, make the drilling more efficient?
I don't know if I am explained myself, but I tried my best. Remembre I'm just 5 yo, haha.
Thank you in advance. | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/6yvfah/eli5_if_something_does_a_lot_of_noise_does_it/ | {
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"You have the right idea. The drill is wasting some power to vibrate the drill bit and the bits of the wall that are generating the sound. If, somehow, you could redirect this vibrational energy back into the drilling process... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | |
5o1izt | why do humans crave a happy ending in movies? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5o1izt/eli5_why_do_humans_crave_a_happy_ending_in_movies/ | {
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"Because real life is complicated, bittersweet, often unfulfilling and without resolution. A big part of what people want from stories is a form of fulfillment that they rarely get in life. It's a form o... | [] | [] | [
[],
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42gmr7 | How impactful was Lenin's New Economic Policies (NEP)? | Hi reddit! Im currently looking into communism in Russia and one thing that really struck me was Lenin's NEP as its not mentioned much in the grand scheme of communism in Russia. How impactful (generally speaking) was the NEP? If you could cite any sources used it would be greatly appreciated. | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/42gmr7/how_impactful_was_lenins_new_economic_policies_nep/ | {
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"It's interesting that you picked up on this because I'd agree that the NEP period is often overlooked in the histories of the early Soviet state. Much like the contemporary Weimar Republic, there's a temptation to read the NEP as either merely th... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
cn6cs0 | Attention loyal citizens of AskHistorians, it is time to come pay homage to your New Mods! | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/cn6cs0/attention_loyal_citizens_of_askhistorians_it_is/ | {
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1n819m | why do cell phone companies not allow you to buy a new phone without a large fee when you have a contract? | Wouldn't that make the customer want to leave because they can't update their phone for two years? Also couldn't they make more money if their customer keeps buying phones? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1n819m/eli5_why_do_cell_phone_companies_not_allow_you_to/ | {
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"You can't actually buy a new iPhone 5C for $100, nor a 5S for $200. That is just your up-front cost. The remainder (which is approximately another $500) is rolled into the remaining 2 years.\n\nYou can ... | [] | [] | [
[],
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2up3jf | Any good books on the varangian guard? | I didn't see any in the master book thread, and I can't seem to find much online either. Do any of yo have recommendations? | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/2up3jf/any_good_books_on_the_varangian_guard/ | {
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"I highly recommend [The Varangians of Byzantium](_URL_0_). It's a somewhat difficult read in parts but it's just about the only good book on the Varangian Guard that's out there, to my knowledge."
]
} | [] | [] | [
[
"http://www.amazon.co.uk/Varangians-Byzantium-Benedict-Benedikz/dp/052103552X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1423012433&sr=1-1&keywords=the+varangians+of+byzantium"
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d6w9u4 | in a first person shooter, how is the video game able to track the trajectory of a fired bullet and its interaction with online players in real time? | Apologies if this isn’t an easy question to answer without programming knowledge, but as a casual gamer I’ve always been very curious about this. Thank you for any replies! | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/d6w9u4/eli5_in_a_first_person_shooter_how_is_the_video/ | {
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"Most shooters use \"hitscan\" mechanics for bullet-based weapons. In other words, bullets don't have a \"trajectory\". The game simply checks to see if you were aimed precisely at ... | [] | [] | [
[],
[],
[],
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"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cix07R1vlhI"
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1q0dv9 | tank rounds - armor piercing tank shell, how do they work on other tanks when fired? | Also, are there any other different tank shells apart from Armor Piercing? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1q0dv9/eli5_tank_rounds_armor_piercing_tank_shell_how_do/ | {
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"There are many different types of tank shells. Can't be bothered to mention them all.\n\nArmour Piercing are the classic antitank round. They're a solid shot that punches through armour through kinetic energy. However, they were kind of crap. ... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
6ll02q | at altitude, i will suffer the effects from a thinned atmosphere. if the oceans were removed, and i could walk down to the ocean floor, such as the marianas trench, what ill effects might i suffer? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/6ll02q/eli5at_altitude_i_will_suffer_the_effects_from_a/ | {
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"People can adjust to higher air breathing pressures as long as the change is slow and the body has time to adjust. On [this page] (_URL_0_) I found calculations of what the pressure would be below sea level: at the deepest p... | [] | [] | [
[
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7171dy | Why didn't Rome expand the African portion of their empire past the immediate region bordering the Mediterranean sea? | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/7171dy/why_didnt_rome_expand_the_african_portion_of/ | {
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"text": [
"I'll reiterate this [old answer of my own here](_URL_0_). The core points still remain solid, although I'll have to see if there are any salient recent works that cast more light on the nature of the engagement that they did have. I should also... | [] | [] | [
[
"https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/wzjrc/why_didnt_rome_conquer_the_rest_of_the_nile_or/"
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7djlg2 | what makes humans so curious, and why do we need to know everything? | Why do we lie awake at night wondering how cheese is made? Is curiosity a large part of what makes us human? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/7djlg2/eli5_what_makes_humans_so_curious_and_why_do_we/ | {
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"I'm not a expert in this so it's possible I could be wrong but I believe it's basically a survival strategy of you know how to make traps is cook food that will give you an advantage. Add a result we basically need constant... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | |
ccr5ki | Why does water short out an electric circuit? | I was just sitting wondering why this happens, since water has no metals in it, which would make me think that it should not conduct electricity. Is it something to do with impurities in the water or am I just completely stupid and miles off the actual answer? | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/ccr5ki/why_does_water_short_out_an_electric_circuit/ | {
"a_id": [
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"text": [
"Well, firstly, metals conduct electricity well, but that isn't to say that non-metals don't conduct electricity. Electrical resistivity takes all kinds of values in all kinds of systems. However, you are correct in your intuition that for water i... | [] | [] | [
[
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_resistivity_and_conductivity#Resistivity_and_conductivity_of_various_materials"
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10i0l9 | Double galaxy in the new Hubble image. | I was just panning around the new Hubble image when I came across this: _URL_1_ (top middle of the image)
It looks to me like this is two galaxies (since there look to be two centers) and that they are interacting with each other. I find it very strange that they both seem to be of the same size and are oriented in th... | askscience | http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/10i0l9/double_galaxy_in_the_new_hubble_image/ | {
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"text": [
"It's hard to tell without more information - it could be two interacting galaxies, it could be two galaxies in front of each other, or it could be an optical illusion. Which Hubble image are you referring to?"
]
} | [] | [
"http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2012/02/image/f/",
"http://imgur.com/RysJr"
] | [
[]
] | |
89or3h | difference of vapor pressure to saturated vapor pressure. | I have read the wiki article for vapor pressure, also the equilibrium vapor pressure.
Now I have stumbled upon this : _URL_0_
Upon reading, it seems that they are the same?.
Now I am confused. | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/89or3h/eli5_difference_of_vapor_pressure_to_saturated/ | {
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"Saturated vapor pressure is the vapor pressure at equilibrium. But systems arent always at equilibrium, so saturated vapor pressure is a specific kind of vapor pressure, while vapor pressure is a larger term that encompasses any state."
]
} | [] | [
"https://www.chemguide.co.uk/physical/phaseeqia/vapourpress.html"
] | [
[]
] | |
3e0oky | how are movies being uploaded when they're not even officially out yet? (ts/cam?/rip/...) | How? Are they released earlier in Japanese etc countries? If yes, still how? Do they copy the disc? What if there's no dvd / blu-ray yet? How do they do it then | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3e0oky/eli5_how_are_movies_being_uploaded_when_theyre/ | {
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"Nobody has gotten it right yet. my time to shine.\n\nI used to (briefly) work in the movie industry. People at work, and the academy award voters, are given DVDs of the movie for review so they can see their own work (movie studio) and so they ... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
2n8pil | what happens to cargo when a plane crashes? | If the cargo (something I ordered from Amazon, for instance) remains intact, is it still shipped to me? Will I know it was in a plane crash? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2n8pil/eli5_what_happens_to_cargo_when_a_plane_crashes/ | {
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"Assuming you'd ordered from a reputable company, the cargo would be insured. Therefore in the case of a total loss of the aircraft (i.e. a crash) the shipping company would send you out a replacement item and claim the cost of that back from thei... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
3kt99s | why us has such complex presidential election system? why not a simple election system? e.g. count total republic/democratic voters all over us.who ever has higher vote, simply becomes president? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3kt99s/eli5_why_us_has_such_complex_presidential/ | {
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"text": [
"The current system gives more votes to smaller states. ~~In addition, it allows gerrymandering.~~ As both parties profit, no one wants to change that.\n\nBesides, this wouldn't actually help in solving the issues."
]
} | [] | [] | [
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53vije | [Physics] Why do Materials sound the way they do? | How does the mass and molecular crystalline structure affect the way a material or an object sounds/vibrates? | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/53vije/physics_why_do_materials_sound_the_way_they_do/ | {
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"text": [
"What you should look for is called [resonance frequency](_URL_0_), some frequencys of vibration are propagating better in a material. This depends not only on crystaline structure of the material itself... | [] | [] | [
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"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resonance"
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"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acoustic_wave"
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8i5ft8 | how does saltwater and freshwater fish body system work? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/8i5ft8/eli5_how_does_saltwater_and_freshwater_fish_body/ | {
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"Living organisms need to have some amount of salt in them, but not too much. Now water will naturally want to flow from less-salty areas into more-salty areas to maintain its own balance. The body of a fish will not have the same saltiness as th... | [] | [] | [
[]
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1ndzqg | Has there ever been a global crisis on par with global warming? | Most things happening seem to not be that significant in terms of world history, and most problems seem to come and go. Have we ever faces something as daunting as global warming before? | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1ndzqg/has_there_ever_been_a_global_crisis_on_par_with/ | {
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"If what you mean by \"daunting\" is \"existential,\" as in, \"stuff that actually threatens our future existence as a species,\" the only other major existential threat that has existed in historical times (which is to say, after _Homo sapiens_ d... | [] | [] | [
[
"http://blog.nuclearsecrecy.com/2013/01/04/doomsday-on-the-cheap/"
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nxccv | why people are against government controlled healthcare and education/ free healthcare and education? | I'm assuming it's all the years of 'big government is bad' brainwashing? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/nxccv/eli5_why_people_are_against_government_controlled/ | {
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erlahg | the difference between a patent and a trade secret. if a product is patented, why the need to protect a special ingredient as a trade secret? | Wouldn't the patent itself prevent other companies from making the same product, nevermind if its recipe is a secret or not? Besides, something like Coca-Cola tells me its preparation method is not doable to most people anyway... | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/erlahg/eli5_the_difference_between_a_patent_and_a_trade/ | {
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"A patent requires filing a public record of how the thing works, complete with recipes or detailed diagrams. That protects anyone but the inventor from producing the thing for only 7 years, after which anyone can produce it... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | |
241uh3 | In a perfectly 50/50 semi-transparent mirror, what determines whether a photon will go through it or bounce off? And is it possible to predetermine? | askscience | http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/241uh3/in_a_perfectly_5050_semitransparent_mirror_what/ | {
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"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"It's largely a quantum physics thing. 50/50 or half-silvered mirrors have a coating of reflective silver that covers about 50% of any given area on the glass. If the quantum interactions of the photon's waveform interact with the silver, it'll ... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
3ywllk | I put a 1 liter bottle of water and two 0.5 liter bottles of water in the freezer. Will the two 0.5 liter bottles freeze faster as the 1 liter bottle and why (not)? | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/3ywllk/i_put_a_1_liter_bottle_of_water_and_two_05_liter/ | {
"a_id": [
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2,
2,
3,
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1456,
160,
2,
7,
2,
5,
5,
2... | [] | [] | [
[],
[
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mpemba_effect"
],
[],
[],
[],
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"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_transfer",
"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQUQZmQPQOU"
],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[]
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1l2o20 | how do certain countries, like sweden, turn their garbage into energy? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1l2o20/eli5_how_do_certain_countries_like_sweden_turn/ | {
"a_id": [
"cbv62c2",
"cbvaawk"
],
"score": [
27,
2
],
"text": [
"burn anything combustible and anearobically digest organic waste and then use the methane produced to power generators",
"They burn their waste to use the heat to produce steam and power turbines with that steam which p... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | ||
aquoqn | Is it possible to express a musical sound's timbre quantitatively? | I know there are a thousand things that could affect tone, and you would probably be quite limited if you were to express it in a single number but, I think it would be super interesting to be able to experiment with different aspects of an instrument and be able to measure their effect on tone.
Even if you couldn't e... | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/aquoqn/is_it_possible_to_express_a_musical_sounds_timbre/ | {
"a_id": [
"egjkie6",
"egjnw5r"
],
"score": [
5,
3
],
"text": [
"The perception of timbre has a lot to do with waveforms and overtones. You can quantify these by doing a Fourier transform and generating a graph showing which base frequencies are represented, at which amplitudes. You'll en... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | |
2xsnmd | why do anime opening songs often include english words at key points in the song? | Some examples from my limited anime experience:
Sword Art Online: [Crossing Field](_URL_2_) "I wanna always be with you, I'll give you everything I have."
No Game No Life: [This Game](_URL_1_) "No No No Game No Life... We Are Maverick... Maverick Gamers"
Steins;Gate: [Hacking to the Gate](_URL_0_) "Hacking to the G... | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2xsnmd/eli5_why_do_anime_opening_songs_often_include/ | {
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"cp2znes",
"cp2zxyo",
"cp300cr",
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"score": [
3,
12,
10,
4
],
"text": [
"\"Oppa Gangnam Style\". People didn't know what it meant. They sung it anyway. \nAside from that, it means greater western sales of not only the dvds and blurays but the ost as w... | [] | [
"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83cGsuzuOqY",
"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lQF5JlZOno",
"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KId6eunoiWk"
] | [
[],
[],
[],
[]
] | |
7ypyxq | why is it that anytime something horrible happens in the usa the news outlets act like it is the first time this has happened? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/7ypyxq/eli5why_is_it_that_anytime_something_horrible/ | {
"a_id": [
"duib7mb"
],
"score": [
4
],
"text": [
"Because if they act shocked and surprised it makes things more dramatic and then more people will watch it and they will get more money."
]
} | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
607ix7 | why can you develop immunity to some diseases after having them once but not others? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/607ix7/eli5_why_can_you_develop_immunity_to_some/ | {
"a_id": [
"df43q7q",
"df45apg"
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"score": [
5,
2
],
"text": [
"It depends largely on the type of disease. Bacteria have proteins on their surfaces, and viruses have a protein shell that is left on the outside of your cells when they inject their genetic material. These proteins are mar... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | ||
ss90m | How difficult would it be to create an English computer language? | I am wondering how hard it would be to create a scripting language where you could just write like, "Dance when rolled 5" or something. I have never learnt or really used for that matter any languages like cc+ or whatever so I know nothing about these. Is this even possible? I hope I am not asking a really dumb questio... | askscience | http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/ss90m/how_difficult_would_it_be_to_create_an_english/ | {
"a_id": [
"c4gjavz",
"c4gjbiv",
"c4gjcga",
"c4gjrb1"
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"score": [
2,
7,
2,
2
],
"text": [
"It's possible, and there are people working towards it.\n\nIt'd likely be a higher-level programming language (that is to say, one \"layered\" over another one): you'd have C++, an... | [] | [] | [
[],
[],
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inform"
],
[]
] | |
3xi1gt | Before the modern level (for woodwork and such) was invented, how did people build things to be level to the ground? | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/3xi1gt/before_the_modern_level_for_woodwork_and_such_was/ | {
"a_id": [
"cy4vmkm"
],
"score": [
21
],
"text": [
"You'd use a plum bob within an isosceles triangle, like [the square level here](_URL_1_) from an Egyptian tomb. \n\nYou can start with just a taut piece of string or thread- that will give you a straight line. Then you pare and plane two boards,... | [] | [] | [
[
"http://www.surveyhistory.org/university_of_akron1.htm",
"http://gslandsurveying.com/history-of-surveying"
]
] | ||
ad1afn | During the Black Death's onset, why didn't it infect and kill the nomads believed to be the original carriers from the central Asian plains before it could reach Europe and infect everyone there? | Did they have a natural immunity, or did the illness simply not take hold until they'd already infected travellers headed to Europe? | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/ad1afn/during_the_black_deaths_onset_why_didnt_it_infect/ | {
"a_id": [
"edd0ewr"
],
"score": [
3
],
"text": [
"Both Giovanni Villani, famous merchant chronist in Florence and some Russian Chronicles agree that pestilence had already killed mass of Mongols as well as Turk nomads before its arrival in Crimean Peninsula. \n\n & nbsp;\n\n > 'But there were u... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
1norka | why is twitter worth $10 - $15 billion? | Twitter's IPO filing went live today, and since being founded they have lost $419 million, they lost nearly $70 million in the first six months of the year, and they are still not profitable. I understand they are growing their revenue very quickly, but can someone explain (more like I'm 12-15 or so) the math that gets... | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1norka/eli5_why_is_twitter_worth_10_15_billion/ | {
"a_id": [
"cckkjqv",
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"score": [
3,
2,
2
],
"text": [
"Valuing stocks can be complex, and will always end up the price the market is willing to buy it for. Having said that, usually the total value of the firm will be its present value. The present value wi... | [] | [] | [
[],
[],
[]
] | |
481a97 | Why are we so sure that Electron and Quarks and other elementary particles aren't made of anything else? | People thought for a long time that atoms were the smallest thing, their name even means that they aren't made of anything.
So why are we so sure that elementary particles are elementary and not made of anything else? | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/481a97/why_are_we_so_sure_that_electron_and_quarks_and/ | {
"a_id": [
"d0guq7a"
],
"score": [
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],
"text": [
"We are not so sure of that, we're just sure that there's no experimental evidence of it and have no theoretical need to posit anything smaller. If new evidence arises, that situation could change, as it did for protons and neutrons 50 years ago ... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
2voedz | how do scientist discover new things about the universe? | so i just read that scientist discovered a new "earth" (kepler). now how do they come about these discoveries? do they have someone sitting at a computer screen watching the feed of a camera in space? or maybe cameras taking many pictures and they go through them at a later date? also, how do these scientist know that ... | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2voedz/eli5_how_do_scientist_discover_new_things_about/ | {
"a_id": [
"cojgzsp"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"They do it with the scientific method: \n\n\n1) Conjecture that something \"could\" be possible (or true). \n\n2) Create an experiment that will test your hypothesis in such a way as to be sure you are actually measuring what you think you are me... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
1vznrc | why was the church so offended by the notion of Heliocentrism? It was pagan natural philosophers who came up with the generally accepted (generally accepted in the late middle ages I mean) notion of the geocentric model, not catholic theologians | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1vznrc/why_was_the_church_so_offended_by_the_notion_of/ | {
"a_id": [
"cexbajy",
"ceypghh"
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"score": [
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2
],
"text": [
"Among other things, it was a violation of the idea of a naturally existing hierarchy, an idea which Christianity had fully adopted from Platonism or neo-Platonism through the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite (lat... | [] | [] | [
[],
[
"http://es.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1w08m3/was_galileos_arrest_more_about_heliocetrism_or/"
]
] | ||
jw4lw | how do climbing plants know where to climb/grow? | My only guesses are 1. magic and 2. the plants have brains. | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/jw4lw/eli5_how_do_climbing_plants_know_where_to/ | {
"a_id": [
"c2flk4e",
"c2flk4e"
],
"score": [
4,
4
],
"text": [
"Well first, vines grow out of their 'limbs'. So when they grow what's actually happening is their limbs are just getting longer. Their limbs are always facing up towards the sun, so they always grow up. Also, climbing pla... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | |
7ews7i | What kind of people became pirates? (1400-1900 Atlantic/Caribbean) | I'm interested in knowing more about what kind of people found themselves as pirates. | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/7ews7i/what_kind_of_people_became_pirates_14001900/ | {
"a_id": [
"dq84cct"
],
"score": [
10
],
"text": [
"I recently answered another question here about [*how* people became pirates in the early 18th century](_URL_1_) which answers a lot of this question. Like the answer to that question, what kinds of people became pirates could vary hugely. The m... | [] | [] | [
[
"https://depaul.digication.com/Devinleigh/Primary_source_analysis_of_a_historical_figure_nam",
"https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/7b0el0/how_did_people_become_pirates/dpegvzu/"
]
] | |
1wvmjz | Does anyone actually know what happened to Gaius Julius Caesar's ashes? | I've read conflicting accounts that his pyre went out of control, his ashes were held in a font, they were held in his temple, they were in the gilt ball in the obelisk in St Peters square, the Visigoths scattered them when they sacked Rome etc. | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1wvmjz/does_anyone_actually_know_what_happened_to_gaius/ | {
"a_id": [
"cf62gsm"
],
"score": [
5
],
"text": [
"Even before Caesar became a cultural icon for Renaissance Italy and unification, people liked to tell stories linking him to various things. Most of them are ridiculous. There are some stories that claim that Caesar's body was moved from the Camp... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
1w8oy0 | Smallest possible air bubble in a liquid | It seems intuitive that there is a diameter below which a group of "air" (or CO2, or just O2, etc) molecules cannot form a bubble in a liquid. The reason could be that the curvature becomes too great for the surface tension (which is sort of a macroscopic view), or maybe there is too much mixing at a molecular level, o... | askscience | http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/1w8oy0/smallest_possible_air_bubble_in_a_liquid/ | {
"a_id": [
"cezsh1e"
],
"score": [
6
],
"text": [
"The limit basically occurs when the pressure in the bubble required to maintain surface tension overcomes the chemical potential of the gas at that pressure. The limit for air bubbles in water is thought to be at around 50 nanometers. There's a l... | [] | [] | [
[
"http://personal.chem.usyd.edu.au/Phil.Attard/a72/nano.pdf",
"http://www1.lsbu.ac.uk/water/ref21.html#r2013"
]
] | |
3s80s5 | how is a nation's economy affected when its biggest export is an illegal good, a la cocaine via pablo escobar? | In the t.v. show Narcos, it was described that at one time he had so much cash, that he began to give it away to the poor. But wouldn't this actually ruin the economy of his own country, therefore actually making things worse for the poor? Or maybe it would require a much larger scale for it to affect the economy? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3s80s5/eli5_how_is_a_nations_economy_affected_when_its/ | {
"a_id": [
"cwv1vyr"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"My understanding is that the value of the dollar is dependant on the number of dollars in circulation that represent the effective total 'worth' of a country. By printing money, more dollars represent the same amount of 'worth', meaning that each... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
1jn660 | to what degree did the apple-publisher collusion affect e-book prices? what sort of price consequences can be expected from now on? | I've been following the news about the e-book price fixing case against Apple and the publishers it was involved with. I keep wondering: what was the impact of the e-book price fixing agreement on consumers? And are we likely to see e-book prices drop now that the DoJ is planning to place significant restrictions on th... | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1jn660/eli5_to_what_degree_did_the_applepublisher/ | {
"a_id": [
"cbgbq6u"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"The prosecutors were able to conclusively show that the price of e-books had been raised $3-4 because of Apple's meddling.\n\n[Here is a chart!](_URL_0_)\n\nAnd yes, we are expected to see a drop in prices. Amazon has already begun lowering price... | [] | [] | [
[
"http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/51dd7388eab8ea4334000005-1047-548/screen%20shot%202013-07-10%20at%2010.32.13%20am.png"
]
] | |
17gqja | How much interest did Jews charge in the 14th century? | I read in the book "The Holy Roman Empire" that the Jewish people charged 43.33% to 86.66% interest rates on loans. This caused a lot of hostility between Christians and Jewish people at the time.
Is this historically accurate? | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/17gqja/how_much_interest_did_jews_charge_in_the_14th/ | {
"a_id": [
"c85ee1j"
],
"score": [
3
],
"text": [
"Those numbers are oddly specific, and 86% is extremely high. But other sources I've found are still quite high, but somewhat lower. See [here](_URL_1_), [here](_URL_0_), [here](_URL_4_), and [here](_URL_2_).\n\nAs you can see from those, the re... | [] | [] | [
[
"http://www.myjewishlearning.com/history/Ancient_and_Medieval_History/632-1650/Christendom/Commerce/Moneylending.shtml",
"http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/14/books/review/Rampell-t.html?_r=0",
"http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vjw/England.html",
"http://www.consumersunion.org/finance/payd... | |
1ledey | eli: why we call her royal majesty the queen of england instead of the queen of the united kingdom. | I don't actually call her "her royal majesty" | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1ledey/eli_why_we_call_her_royal_majesty_the_queen_of/ | {
"a_id": [
"cbyeqmi"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"There hasn't been a Queen (or King) of England since 1707, when the separate monarchies of Scotland and England were legally joined together by an Act of Parliament, creating a single King (or Queen) of Great Britain.\n\nFor one hundred years bef... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
apk82i | how does a rubber band work on a molecular level? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/apk82i/eli5_how_does_a_rubber_band_work_on_a_molecular/ | {
"a_id": [
"eg9178f"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"Rubbers (aka elastic polymers) are made of atoms that are strongly attracted to one another, in a process called hydrogen bonding.\n\nThe molecules form flexible chains that interconnect, like a crowd of people locking arms with each other rando... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
1y6wgo | How did the ukrainian culture develop after the Kiever Rus? Why did people claim ( and still do ) that the ukrainian culture and ethnicity are made-up/fictional? | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1y6wgo/how_did_the_ukrainian_culture_develop_after_the/ | {
"a_id": [
"cfi0y1w",
"cfi79rw"
],
"score": [
8,
27
],
"text": [
"Sorry no answer but can I ask a follow up question?\n\nWhat makes an ethnicity made-up and what makes one real? I am under the impression that all ethnicity is a social construct, therefore isn't one just as 'made up' as ... | [] | [] | [
[],
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_Pylyp_Orlyk"
]
] | ||
35rduq | How much of this is true about Victorian London, anno 1868? | *In advance, I would like to take the opportunity to apologise if this question I have is not specific enough and violates any rules.*
Earlier today, the French videogame developer and publisher Ubisoft presented footage and information for their new instalment in the Assassin's Creed franchise *AC: Syndicate*.
If ... | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/35rduq/how_much_of_this_is_true_about_victorian_london/ | {
"a_id": [
"cr77x2w"
],
"score": [
3
],
"text": [
" > The industrial revolution, in essence, is society going from almost a medieval society to the modern society which we live in today.\n\nThis is untrue. While the Industrial Revolution certainly transformed Britain, it bore almost no resemblanc... | [] | [
"https://youtu.be/wS9dtHCyceE?t=3m5s"
] | [
[]
] | |
3nkoan | why aren't electrical sockets standardized globally in the same shape? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3nkoan/eli5_why_arent_electrical_sockets_standardized/ | {
"a_id": [
"cvovvr9",
"cvow61m"
],
"score": [
2,
2
],
"text": [
"Because if you have 4 inputs try to make a universal standard then you end up with 5 inputs.",
"This has been asked several times before. Here's a simple search with some reasonable results: _URL_0_"
]
} | [] | [] | [
[],
[
"https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/search?q=different+electric+outlets&restrict_sr=on&sort=relevance&t=all"
]
] | ||
5om1od | What sort of contact did the Okinawan's have with the Japanese throughout the 1500's (Sengoku Period)? | I always found the Sengoku period in Japan extremely interesting to me, and I just recently found out my grandmothers family is from the tiny Island known as Okinawa. So, uniting both my interest in the Sengoku period and my heritage I come to you with this exact question.
I researched online about this topic extensiv... | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/5om1od/what_sort_of_contact_did_the_okinawans_have_with/ | {
"a_id": [
"dcl00ba"
],
"score": [
4
],
"text": [
"During the Sengoku period both China and Malaysia had a greater influence on Okinawa and the other Ryūkyū islands than Japan did. \nOnly in the Edo Period (1603-1868) did the Japanese gain more influence, as they invaded the islands and made it a... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
x90w2 | how a transformer "steps up" and "steps down" voltage. | When exiting a power plant the electricity generated goes through a transformer(s) to increase voltage. I assume that's to make it more "potent" so it can travel long distances. Then it gets to a sub-station where it goes through another transformer where it is lowered in volts and lowered further before reaching your... | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/x90w2/eli5_how_a_transformer_steps_up_and_steps_down/ | {
"a_id": [
"c5k9p3n"
],
"score": [
9
],
"text": [
"This is really hard to ELI5, but basically we found out that if you make loops of wire and pass electricity through them it turns into a magnet. If you have ever wrapped wire around a nail and then connected it to a battery you can see this for y... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
2b2h9z | how come new military planes don't come out as frequently as they used to? | There was a point in time where the US replaced its fighter jets every decade at minimum, bombers too occasionally.
Same with a lot of countries. What happened?
| explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2b2h9z/eli5_how_come_new_military_planes_dont_come_out/ | {
"a_id": [
"cj14z0u"
],
"score": [
5
],
"text": [
"The time around WWII was a time of extremely rapid technological growth, as well as rapidly changing political environments. This made it conducive to rapidly churning out new aircraft every half-decade. There were wars that needed to be won, and... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
nd3m1 | Can you build muscle by just flexing for periods of time? | askscience | http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/nd3m1/can_you_build_muscle_by_just_flexing_for_periods/ | {
"a_id": [
"c385vyc",
"c3877gb",
"c385vyc",
"c3877gb"
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"score": [
3,
2,
3,
2
],
"text": [
"You can build muscle by flexing, yes. Muscle is made up of fibers (long muscle cells) that within them have units known as sarcomeres. These sarcomeres are laid on longitudinally... | [] | [] | [
[],
[
"http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Rise-and-Fall-of-Isometric-Training-in-the-60s---What-Happened?&id=2455164",
"http://bodyweight-exercises.animal-kingdom-workouts.com/?tag=isometric-training"
],
[],
[
"http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Rise-and-Fall-of-Isometric-Training-in-the-60s---What-Ha... | ||
3z2afh | if i'm in the exact same spot in my house on new years when the ball drops from one year to the next, am i in the exact same spot in the solar system, relative to the sun? (excluding expansion of the universe.) | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3z2afh/eli5_if_im_in_the_exact_same_spot_in_my_house_on/ | {
"a_id": [
"cyinnlj",
"cyinpz8"
],
"score": [
5,
5
],
"text": [
"Not quite. For a start there are leap-years. You're about a quarter of a day out each year until we throw in an extra day to tidy up. Without this the seasons would slowly drift out of synch with the year.\n\nAlso there's th... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | ||
72u5vr | When did it become at least relatively common for servants to not live in - particularly in the north eastern United States | I'm interested in the broader aspects of the decline in the number of servants (and in what type of servants) each household would prefer to keep (and I'm referring to richer house holds, rather than middle class), but in particular, I'd like to know when it became more common for maids to go home at night, when they g... | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/72u5vr/when_did_it_become_at_least_relatively_common_for/ | {
"a_id": [
"dnldbu4"
],
"score": [
10
],
"text": [
"Hey! I can partly answer this one. But first, a few important points:\n\nI would argue that the most important thing to recognize is that live-in servants were never all that common in the US, although they were more common in the urban northeas... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
2pjwpf | "The United States are..." vs. "The United States is..." | Is /r/onetruegod correct in "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" when he says that before the Civil War, the United States was referred to in the plural rather than the singular as it is now? Any significant primary sources that show the truth one way or the other? | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/2pjwpf/the_united_states_are_vs_the_united_states_is/ | {
"a_id": [
"cmxfloh",
"cmxjhvp"
],
"score": [
2,
8
],
"text": [
"Have not seen that one, but he is only partially correct. The US was used with \"are\" but the change was not as sudden as the claim above makes it seem.\n\nA study can be found [here](_URL_0_) that uses the US Supreme Court... | [] | [] | [
[
"http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1484731"
],
[
"https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=The+United+States+are%2F(The+United+States+are%2BThe+United+States+is\\)%2CThe+United+States+is%2F(The+United+States+are%2BThe+United+States+is\\)&year_start=1800&year_end=2000&... | |
77aviv | How come the Angles and Saxons (and Jutes) did not adopt the local Romance language when they invaded Britain, just like the Franks, Visigoths, Vandals etc. did when they settled their respective locations? | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/77aviv/how_come_the_angles_and_saxons_and_jutes_did_not/ | {
"a_id": [
"doknsk4"
],
"score": [
12
],
"text": [
"In technical terms, it's because there was no local Romance language in Britain at the time these peoples invaded Britain. The two languages in most use at the time were Brythonic (the Celtic language that eventually became Welsh and Cornish) an... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
a71s7n | Does earth's changing tilt angle require satellites to continually adjust themselves to stay geo-stationary? | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/a71s7n/does_earths_changing_tilt_angle_require/ | {
"a_id": [
"ec2hsiq"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"The tilt is extremely slow changing and is drowned out by other effects.\n\nDisturbances from your trajectory are known as perturbations, and they can get quite complicated. The most dominant orbital perturbation for GEO satellites is solar radi... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
27tngp | When I'm looking at a star where are my eyes focusing? | askscience | http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/27tngp/when_im_looking_at_a_star_where_are_my_eyes/ | {
"a_id": [
"ci4z8e6"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"At infinity, which is to say they're not focusing, they're staring straight ahead. Their orientations are parallel."
]
} | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
dx1fyv | What part of a volcanic eruption actually creates a powerful shockwave that can be heard loudly from far away? | [deleted] | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/dx1fyv/what_part_of_a_volcanic_eruption_actually_creates/ | {
"a_id": [
"f7p8tpf",
"f7sgbi0"
],
"score": [
4,
4
],
"text": [
"This actually depends on the temperature of the magma *and* whether the surface of the magma is solid.\n\nTemperature plays a huge role in whether a volcano is explosive or not. Viscosity of a liquid is strongly linked to it... | [] | [] | [
[],
[
"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-05293-3.pdf"
]
] | |
3vyk2e | why do younger people seem to prefer instructional videos over text, even when there are few visuals required? | There are better examples, but here is one: _URL_0_ The ability to scan over written text and refer back to it would seem far more valuable, but particularly in areas like gaming, I find that the most reliable information is now delivered via youtube. My suggestion that this is bigger with the younger crowd can certain... | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3vyk2e/eli5_why_do_younger_people_seem_to_prefer/ | {
"a_id": [
"cxrucqs"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"Even if we accept your assertion that the most reliable information is via youtube, that only tells us about the content creators, not the content consumers. And I believe that in many cases, the content creators choose video over audio because ... | [] | [
"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1HinGZj3Ac"
] | [
[]
] | |
93gs6f | I remember somewhere in one of my high school US history classes that I read that, during the Civil War, it was a common practice for wealthier citizens to picnic on a hill and watch a battle. Was this true? Was this common in other eras as well? | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/93gs6f/i_remember_somewhere_in_one_of_my_high_school_us/ | {
"a_id": [
"e3d4xc5"
],
"score": [
23
],
"text": [
"This question has been mostly answered before:\n_URL_2_\n\nThis was something that mostly just occurred in the First Battle is Bull Run (Manassas). Washington, DC residents believed the battle would just be a rout for Union forces, so they gath... | [] | [] | [
[
"https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Witness_Bull_Run.htm",
"https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/was-first-battle-bull-run-really-picnic-battle-180964084/",
"https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/2h0jaf/did_americans_during_the_civil_war_really_try_to/?st=JKA19VNV&s... | ||
55axyt | why do newborn babies smile in their sleep? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/55axyt/eli5_why_do_newborn_babies_smile_in_their_sleep/ | {
"a_id": [
"d8910lh"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"TL;DR Gas\nLonger answer - babies often have involuntary movements all over their bodies (witness wet/dirty diapers), not just their faces. But it's also known that they dream, and that dreaming is essential for their health and development. Perh... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
5d4gx8 | why can't we average out our sleep? like, if we sleep for 10 hours one day and 6 the next, why do we still feel we didn't get enough sleep even though on an average we slept for 8 hours? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5d4gx8/eli5_why_cant_we_average_out_our_sleep_like_if_we/ | {
"a_id": [
"da1nvd5",
"da1usw2"
],
"score": [
20,
6
],
"text": [
"It's not so much that we can't average it, it's that we can't store it. Sleeping 10 hours, when you only need 8 hours, doesn't make you more well-rested than the 8 hours (and in fact may make you feel worse). Think of it li... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | ||
4c64fb | why do live tv shows make such a big deal out of not saying the name of a product, when everyone clearly knows what it is? | I was just watching a quiz where they had a clip of someone mimicking Mario Kart. However, the host decided to not say "Mario Kart", and instead said "popular video game".
Why on earth does it matter, especially when you can see the bloke in the clip is dressed like Mario? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/4c64fb/eli5_why_do_live_tv_shows_make_such_a_big_deal/ | {
"a_id": [
"d1fc97s",
"d1fcbhn",
"d1fccca"
],
"score": [
5,
3,
2
],
"text": [
"Why specify live shows? If you every watched Dan Schneider's shows on Nickelodeon, they go one step further and even create fake parody products, like a Pear phone. \n \nWhen you mention a company, th... | [] | [] | [
[],
[],
[]
] | |
2cknxy | Do most flying insects share a common ancestor? Or did multiple different species evolve to fly independently? | askscience | http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/2cknxy/do_most_flying_insects_share_a_common_ancestor_or/ | {
"a_id": [
"cjgj9q6"
],
"score": [
28
],
"text": [
"True flight is an extremely rare and difficult feat in terms of evolution. All known instances of flight in animals can trace its origin back to one of 4 sources (insects, birds, bats, and pterosaurs), and of those only birds are particularly **... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
1j6er7 | why is it so hard to make a gum that doesn't lose it's flavor? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1j6er7/eli5_why_is_it_so_hard_to_make_a_gum_that_doesnt/ | {
"a_id": [
"cbbk7c6",
"cbbk9bj",
"cbbka3p"
],
"score": [
2,
2,
3
],
"text": [
"Sugar dissolves quickly in saliva.",
"How does one experience flavor? \n\nThe flavor molecules from the gum have to go from the gum and activate the receptors on your tongue and olfactory centers, r... | [] | [] | [
[],
[],
[]
] | ||
5352f3 | what happens to the plastic pouch that's filled with laundry detergent? does it disintegrate into my clothes? is it even really plastic? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5352f3/eli5_what_happens_to_the_plastic_pouch_thats/ | {
"a_id": [
"d7q1481"
],
"score": [
22
],
"text": [
"It's [polyvinyl alcohol](_URL_0_) and it simply dissolves in the wash water and then goes down the drain."
]
} | [] | [] | [
[
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyvinyl_alcohol"
]
] | ||
10idz3 | Do injuries take significant amounts of calories? | Does the body use up significant amount of calories when healing wounds? | askscience | http://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/10idz3/do_injuries_take_significant_amounts_of_calories/ | {
"a_id": [
"c6dqsk9",
"c6ds0zj",
"c6dtyom",
"c6e18wg"
],
"score": [
16,
4,
4,
2
],
"text": [
"Yes but it is situational. The injury severity will determine the amount of calories needed for repair. One example is that a second or third degree burn will require substantiall... | [] | [] | [
[],
[],
[],
[]
] | |
aasqmo | How was jewelry made in 4th century BC in Greece? | I saw an amazing set of bracelets on r/artefactporn that looked intricately designed and it made me wonder how artists were capable of making such small detailed work back then. Does anyone have any information on how they were made?
Link to bracelets:
_URL_0_ | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/aasqmo/how_was_jewelry_made_in_4th_century_bc_in_greece/ | {
"a_id": [
"ecv006s"
],
"score": [
3
],
"text": [
"I assume that you are mostly interested in the antelope heads, which were probably produced by lost wax casting. Objects made from lost-wax casting have been found that are about 6000 years old, and lost-wax objects associated with the Aegean are... | [] | [
"https://www.reddit.com/r/ArtefactPorn/comments/aalnj6/pair_of_bracelets_with_antelope_heads_greece_4th/?utm_source=reddit-android"
] | [
[]
] | |
9k6d8l | why do you have to pop your ears when you dive down 8/10 feet under water but you can go 70/80 feet up an elevator without having to? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/9k6d8l/eli5_why_do_you_have_to_pop_your_ears_when_you/ | {
"a_id": [
"e6wo36p",
"e6wo6ub"
],
"score": [
3,
2
],
"text": [
"The change in pressure is greater when you go underwater then if you would up a lift in air. Because water is dense it creates more preassure. The same as when you gobup in a plane the preassure difference is very different ... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | ||
auqi5s | why does the catholic church deal with sexual assault allegations against priests as opposed to the law? | Recently Pope Francis made a statement regarding these priests with no indication of actual action to be taken, upsetting a lot of people. Does the church have jurisdiction over these priests? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/auqi5s/eli5_why_does_the_catholic_church_deal_with/ | {
"a_id": [
"eh9uxkt",
"eh9vd9a",
"ehabspc"
],
"score": [
9,
4,
2
],
"text": [
"You’re mistaken. The priests answer to the same laws as you and I as applicable in their jurisdiction. However, with all situations such as this, the prosecution needs credible witnesses and bonafide pr... | [] | [] | [
[],
[],
[]
] | |
3na0fm | What caused Irish nationalism to take a distinctly left-wing position? | When one thinks of the major nationalist movements, one generally thinks of a movement spawning from conservative circles. However, in Ireland, Sinn Fein has always been left-wing, as was men such as James Connolly. Why is this? | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/3na0fm/what_caused_irish_nationalism_to_take_a/ | {
"a_id": [
"cvm9tan",
"cvmtwrg"
],
"score": [
3,
3
],
"text": [
"I would just like to note that European Nationalism is quite often left-wing. The SNP in Scotland, Plaid Cymru in Wales, ETA in Basque, Catalan Nationalism and Kurdish Nationalism are all considered left-of-centre, though of... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | |
3qkitq | the athletic part of being a car racer | Why do we call it motor sports, when A the motors don't do sports and B anyone unathletic can drive? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3qkitq/eli5_the_athletic_part_of_being_a_car_racer/ | {
"a_id": [
"cwfy263",
"cwfy6bt",
"cwfy6gh"
],
"score": [
3,
7,
2
],
"text": [
" > anyone unathletic can drive\n\nAnyone can also throw or catch a football, but that doesn't mean the professional's who play football are not athletes.\n\nSame goes for motor sports, you can't take a... | [] | [] | [
[],
[
"http://formula1.sporting99.com/trivia/driving-facts.html"
],
[]
] | |
3dmsmo | why does macau drive on the left when portugal drive on the right? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3dmsmo/eli5_why_does_macau_drive_on_the_left_when/ | {
"a_id": [
"ct6mt0z"
],
"score": [
4
],
"text": [
"China used to have left and right hand driving in different parts of the country. They standardised it to the right in the '40s, but Macau is semi-autonomous and decided to stay left (like nearby Hong Kong)."
]
} | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
p16ic | This may be a silly question, but what did the Supreme Court do during the American Civil War? | This came from a discussion I overheard a while back, that came out of a debate about States' Rights.
Basically, someone was saying that if each state was fully autonomous (or as autonomous as some extreme libertarians want them to be) with little to no federal oversight then states like Utah could make homosexuality ... | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/p16ic/this_may_be_a_silly_question_but_what_did_the/ | {
"a_id": [
"c3lpsfm"
],
"score": [
6
],
"text": [
"Notable pre Dred Scott Cases.\n\nAmistad-(_URL_1_\n\n > On March 9, Associate Justice Joseph Story delivered the Court's decision. Article IX of Pinckney's Treaty was ruled off topic since the Africans in question were never legal property. They ... | [] | [] | [
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strader_v._Graham",
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amistad_(case)",
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prigg_v._Pennsylvania",
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Antelope",
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dred_Scott_v._Sandford",
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slaughter... | |
t3gmi | how is instagram worth money if it doesn't make money? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/t3gmi/eli5_how_is_instagram_worth_money_if_it_doesnt/ | {
"a_id": [
"c4j7p84",
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"c4jiebf"
],
"score": [
45,
22,
10,
2,
5,
4,
2,
6
],
"text": [
"Let's say you own facebook. Your friend own's google plus. Even though right now Instag... | [] | [] | [
[],
[],
[],
[
"http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/441/when-patents-attack"
],
[
"http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-06-30/tech/30012755_1_twitter-advertisers-revenue"
],
[],
[],
[]
] | ||
34xis9 | why can isis/isil be considered as an independent state? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/34xis9/eli5_why_can_isisisil_be_considered_as_an/ | {
"a_id": [
"cqyz6gn"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"It isn't AFAIK. They might call themselves one, but I don't know any state that recognizes that claim. \n\nIn terms of how could it be? They do meet a few of the criteria for being a state. "
]
} | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
644pje | Given supernovae release neutrons, allowing heavier elements to be created, as well as the expanding universe, is it theoretically possible for there to be more heavy elements we have yet to find? | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/644pje/given_supernovae_release_neutrons_allowing/ | {
"a_id": [
"dfzfqlq"
],
"score": [
46
],
"text": [
"The question about superheavy elements has nothing to do with an expanding universe or neutrinos.\n\nWe can produce elements up to 118, and beyond uranium (92) their lifetime decreases with increasing element number - while uranium has a lifetim... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
1drqid | I'm looking for counterarguments to Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States | My roommate is currently reading it and would like some criticisms or counter arguments that have been published. Thanks. | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1drqid/im_looking_for_counterarguments_to_howard_zinns_a/ | {
"a_id": [
"c9t7yo4",
"c9tauzx"
],
"score": [
11,
8
],
"text": [
"While I confess that I'm generally politically sympathetic with the late Howard Zinn, I think that the main problem with his *A People's History of the United States* is that it is polemic, rather than history. It was admir... | [] | [] | [
[
"http://www.amazon.com/Howard-Zinn-Life-Martin-Duberman/dp/1595586784/",
"http://www.newrepublic.com/article/112574/howard-zinns-influential-mutilations-american-history"
],
[]
] | |
3y3b21 | how does the same comet pass earth more than once, and how do we figure out their "schedule"? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3y3b21/eli5_how_does_the_same_comet_pass_earth_more_than/ | {
"a_id": [
"cya3qr6"
],
"score": [
4
],
"text": [
"The vast majority of comets that we see are orbiting around the sun. Solar orbits tend to be fairly stable (although interactions with other bodies can alter them). The orbits of comets tend to be much longer than the Earth's 365 day long orbit, ... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
mvedr | the difference between different cpu types | Why can some programs that run on an intel chip not run on a powerpc chip? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/mvedr/eli5_the_difference_between_different_cpu_types/ | {
"a_id": [
"c345czj",
"c345czj"
],
"score": [
3,
3
],
"text": [
"The intel chip and the powerpc chips are different architures. That means that the CPU understands a completely different language. It's as if Intel speaks English, and PowerPC speaks Chinese. ",
"The intel chip and t... | [] | [] | [
[],
[]
] | |
5kz4jh | why does grunting, groaning or generally making little noises when you are in pain help the pain level go down? | I have had pain ranging from migraines to broken bones and the only consistent thing I've noted is that a groan, moan, grunt or some other form of low vocalization seems to help the pain level go down a bit, even if it's only temporary. Why is that? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5kz4jh/eli5_why_does_grunting_groaning_or_generally/ | {
"a_id": [
"dbrq74q"
],
"score": [
12
],
"text": [
"your brain can only take a certain amount of input, and can only focus on so much at a time. By vocalizing, you're focusing your brainpower on an output and a feeling other than the massive pain input that your brain wants to focus on.\n\nAnoth... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
f5wjhy | when the federal reserves buys bonds from the market, where exactly is the money coming from? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/f5wjhy/eli5_when_the_federal_reserves_buys_bonds_from/ | {
"a_id": [
"fi17qxr"
],
"score": [
3
],
"text": [
"By printing money - or more accurately, by crediting the reserve balances of their member banks."
]
} | [] | [] | [
[]
] | ||
30lgvy | why i can buy a new tv for $300, new tablet for $500 but a new phone costs $700? | explainlikeimfive | http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/30lgvy/eli5_why_i_can_buy_a_new_tv_for_300_new_tablet/ | {
"a_id": [
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"cptpuma",
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"cptq2ly",
"cptqaxl",
"cptqbog",
"cptqfc2",
"cptqkmy",
"cptqwug"
],
"score": [
484,
5,
65,
2,
11,
17,
3,
2,
3,
3,
... | [] | [] | [
[],
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[],
[],
[],
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9ot0ci | Why did a decimal clock and calendar not catch on? | The wiki does not answer this.
With the metric system, a lot of units of measurement were decimalized around the world. I know revolutionary France had a decimal clock and calendar, but why did these (or anything similar) not endure like the rest of the decimal units? Was there a difference between these and other uni... | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/9ot0ci/why_did_a_decimal_clock_and_calendar_not_catch_on/ | {
"a_id": [
"e7x4xko"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"Rest of the decimal units measured things that did not have any natural ratio. So there was nothing inherent about length that required 1ft=12in, so we might as well have all conversion ratios be a power of 10.\n\nBut with the calendar there is a... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
8piwer | why when people get older they get this blue circle around their pupils? | [deleted] | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/8piwer/eli5_why_when_people_get_older_they_get_this_blue/ | {
"a_id": [
"e0bjsgd"
],
"score": [
3
],
"text": [
"It's not around their pupils. It's in the cornea, which is the first thing your finger touches if you decide to poke yourself right in the middle of your eye. It's called arcus senilus. It's above the iris, which surrounds the pupils.\n\nOver the... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
5nl6g0 | What is the smallest body in space that can have or support an atmosphere? | I'm curious to know just how small a planet or other celestial body can be in order to sustain an atmosphere. Mars for example is smaller than Earth and has an atmosphere. New Horizons has shown us that even Pluto, a dwarf planet, has a small atmosphere; and even Ceres is showing signs of a very faint water vapor atm... | askscience | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/5nl6g0/what_is_the_smallest_body_in_space_that_can_have/ | {
"a_id": [
"dccg23s",
"dccnfy9"
],
"score": [
2,
6
],
"text": [
"Too many factors at play other than size, density and subsequent mass is going to be the primary driver of atmosphere here. then you would want to know if the planet has a magnetic field or orbits a larger planet that has o... | [] | [] | [
[],
[
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Root-mean-square_speed",
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmospheric_escape"
]
] | |
747vpu | why are there so many more shootings, attacks, and bombings in europe than the us when the us is more actively involved in destabilized regions than countries, for instance, like france? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/747vpu/eli5_why_are_there_so_many_more_shootings_attacks/ | {
"a_id": [
"dnw4f4h",
"dnw8ce9",
"dnw8slk"
],
"score": [
3,
6,
15
],
"text": [
"Because the terrorists don't just hate the US, they hate any westernized country and its beliefs. Those countries are way easier targets because they don't have to take a plane to the US to get there a... | [] | [] | [
[],
[],
[]
] | ||
7bnt7x | What are some good history books about 1970s-1990s America (both domestically and in the wider world)? | I'm a 20-year-old college student majoring in history, and I've realized that I have only superficial knowledge about late 20th century America. The history courses I took growing up never got beyond WWII or the Civil Rights movement. What are some good books to learn more about the last few decades of American history... | AskHistorians | https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/7bnt7x/what_are_some_good_history_books_about_1970s1990s/ | {
"a_id": [
"dpjsidv"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"A couple of good places to start are James Patterson's *Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush v. Gore* or Sean Wilentz' *The Age of Reagan: A History, 1974-2008*. Wilentz focuses primarily on politics while Patterson is a bit m... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
3e9ls1 | How much of "The Rape of Belgium" actually happened and how much of it was inflamed propaganda? | I've read a couple of books on World War I and I keep getting contradictory stances on this. Some say there were mass atrocities as the Germans marched through, and others say that it was isolated incidents that were then used as propaganda to make Germany look bad. So having trouble knowing which one it is. | AskHistorians | http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/3e9ls1/how_much_of_the_rape_of_belgium_actually_happened/ | {
"a_id": [
"ctctg96"
],
"score": [
22
],
"text": [
"I recommend John Horne and Alan Kramer's *German Atrocities 1914: A History of Denial*. It takes an extremely detailed look at the atrocities, the propaganda that followed (from BOTH sides), and the ways it was portrayed in the years following t... | [] | [] | [
[]
] | |
8z3g7g | could the force of a hurricane affect the rate of earths rotation? | … and if so, how strong with that hurricane need to be for it to make a measurable change? | explainlikeimfive | https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/8z3g7g/eli5_could_the_force_of_a_hurricane_affect_the/ | {
"a_id": [
"e2g58xu"
],
"score": [
5
],
"text": [
"Alright, math time. So an average hurricane's radius is about 500 km and is about 15 mm high. Approximating it as a cylinder, that means that it is moving a total volume of about 11 million cubic km of air. With a density of 1.225 kg/m^3, that is... | [] | [] | [
[]
] |
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