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Why are airplane tickets nontransferable? | They don't want to create a secondary market for airplane tickets. That opens us things like fraud and abuse. Not to mention lost profits for the airline. |
Why doesn't Ford make a hybrid 'Model-T' designed car? | No. There are two different types of cars. The first ones that came about were modeled after wagons and carriages. It wasn't until the 40s and 50s that the second type came about, the modern looking cars that are still the fashion today. The wagon and carriage model cars were very austere. Limited shocks, limited seati... |
Why do some allergies have more severe reactions than others? For instance, one can die from a peanut allergy but (as far as I know) not from cat fur. | I'm pretty sure I could die if I exposed myself to cats for a while because it triggers my asthma. It does depend on what type of reaction it causes and how severe the allergy is. |
Why in grade school I used 30+ year old textbooks, but in college textbooks last one semester? | Aside from the money part, in grade school you're getting taught the basic theories about what you are learning. In college you're getting taught the details, which can change a lot in a small amount of time, especially for developing fields like genetics. |
Why are deer extremely sensitive to even the quietest sounds (rustling leaves), but run out in front of cars like they don't hear them? | Deer have instincts to tell them rustling leaves may mean a predator, but they haven't developed instincts for cars. Kind of like how lots of people are afraid of spiders, but aren't afraid of stuff like a bottle of medicine they could overdose on. |
Why are Americans so angry about needing to show ID to vote? | Simply: It's harder for poor people/minorities to get IDs, so less poor people/minorities will be able vote. Republicans are pushing for the law because minorities/the poor are generally democrat voters. ", 'It stops some poor people from voting . |
How are huge bridges constructed across a large body of water? | They build boxes, place them in the water, and remove the water from them. This gives a nice dry area to build support pillars in. Once you've got the pillars you build a bridge on it When made out of stone or cement pillars can last for thousands of years. There are still pillars remaining from Trajan's Bridge which w... |
if only a small amount of nukes can render Earth in serious danger, how can countries continuously test them? | Nuclear winter is an idea that has floated around since the cold war, but it doesn't really have anything to do with nuclear weapons. The proposed idea is that the FIRES caused by a 100 or more burning cities would eject enough soot into the atmosphere to affect the climate. So technically, igniting 100 cities by other... |
Why is Shanghai cold and Tijuana hot? | That's not exactly right. The average temperatures for these 2 cities are both between 17 and 18C. About the currents, that much is true only during the summer. Shanghai does get a warm current, and therefore has a very warm summer, with averages during the hottest months around 28.5C. Tijuana actually has a relatively... |
What is likely to happen to people that currently make $15+ an hour if minimum wage is raised to $15? | Some people currently in $15+ positions will have their pay raised by their employers as the employer will wish to remain competitive and won't want to risk losing their trained or skilled employees and having to retrain a bunch of people. The raise isn't likely to be by the full $7.75, but just enough to stay ahead an... |
why do we touch our chin when we think about something? 🤔 | I'm not sure if it's related, but the reason people rub their neck when they are really anxious is that the Vagus nerve runs right through there. Stimulating your Vagus nerve gives a pretty large response of the Parasympathetic nervous system which calms you . |
Why is it so hard to reverse-engineer something? Shouldn't it be simple to just copy the parts exactly? | Manufacturing engineer, here. It depends a lot on the complexity of the object and if there are critical parameters or tolerances. Reverse-engineering a simple table with square legs is easy. Now think of a nice table with a pattern lathe-turned into the legs and a stain. It may be difficult to determine the wood under... |
How green screens work and why they have to be green. | It can be any color, but neon puke green happens to be very bright and easy to work with, and not many costumes/sets/props happen to be blindingly green. Basically, after you've shot your film/picture, you go into editing software and replace the green screen with whatever set/image you want. Since you have one big ass... |
How can we have pictures of our galaxy if we're in it? | We don't. That is not a picture of the milky way. It's either another galaxy that we suspect looks like our own, or it's a simulation. We don't have any pictures of the milky way taken above the ecliptic looking at it from that angle. We can try to look through the gas and dust towards the center of the galaxy but we c... |
When I have a full bladder during the night, I sometimes dream that I pee. What keeps me body from actually wetting the sheets? | Practice. I mean, I used to actually wet the bed when I had dreams of going pee. And it was awesome until I woke up. Nowadays, I have some subconscious part of me that, when I pee in a dream, makes sure that I don't actually do so in real life. It's something that I'm vaguely aware of, which means some part of my head ... |
why do MMA fighters continue to strike their opponents when they have obviously knocked them out? | In most other sports that have full contact striking there is no ground game, so if a guy is knocked down then the other guy will stop because the fight will either be over or the other guy will get a count. In MMA since there is a ground game there is no reason to stop when they go to the ground because the fight it s... |
working out the gravity of beer | Additional to what everyone else is saying, specific gravity is also important to know when you are actually bottling the beer. Most label claims for a liquid will be volumetric, as in this bottle contains X fluid ounces of beer. In a bottling operation, it's very hard to measure volume in real time. It's much easier t... |
What's so bad about Rick Santorum? | You're right that it's somewhat par for the course with a certain segment of republicans, but I would consider him on the extreme end of the spectrum for homophobic, bible obsessed republicans. He's very politically active about suppressing gay rights and women's reproductive rights. Here's a quote of his regarding gay... |
How humans and other animals can have instinctual behaviors from the moment they're born/hatched | Here's one thought. At the instant a child is born, his brain has been developing for nine months. It is already quite complicated and sophisticated. While that doesn't answer your question , it certainly suggests a way of thinking about it.Some behaviors are learned, like how to put on shoes. Some behaviors are hardco... |
How does industrial sugar's affect on the human body compare to natural sugar in say pure orange juice or eating watermelon? | The ratio of fructose and glucose often differs, as it does from fruit to fruit. Chemically, they are identical. Realistically, problems relate not to the chemical compounds themselves, but their availability, with cheap, accessible processed sugar being easy to consume in excess. It's harder to go crazy on a barrel of... |
Do authors get money only when a person buys their book, or when the bookstore buys it in bulk? | Their royalty comes when the store sells the copy *at retail.* Bookstores can send back books that they don't sell. This usually happens when a book just flat out tanks, or with hardcover books when the paperback version is about the be released.I wrote a book and was given a modest advance then was paid per copy of th... |
Why were taxes in the US in the early 20th century 90%? | The top earners weren't taxed exactly 90% of their total income. We are taxed on a progressive tax scale which /u/pythonpoole [explained really well a couple years ago on another ELI5] |
If i were to urinate, then pick up a syringe and inject said urine into my bloodstream, what would happen? | > Hypothetically speaking. Yeah don't do that. Your body has a great filtering system to expulse all kinds of elements that would be harmful if there were too much of it .Not much would happen it depends on how much salt is in your urine but it would be diluted out once I got into your bloodstream. Unless you have accu... |
Why do humans have to wear clothes? | Our bodies are built for the temperature and climate of Africa, and the past few tens of thousands of years that we've been moving around haven't done too much to change that. Clothing isn't necessary for any human being to live; it's only essential for a climate that our bodies aren't built to handle. Which is basical... |
Why do millionaire athletes use personal financial advisers instead of using a bank? | Generally, putting that amount of money in a bank isn't your best option because of 1) Bank savings account rates are extremely low, and generally do not outpace inflation. This eventually devalues your money, so by using savings accounts purely, you're losing money in the long run. 2) Bank accounts are only insured fo... |
Why do we still use keys to unlock our house door but basically nothing else? | you can get keyless locks for your house too. but the majority of people still use basic locks. cars are the same, basic models don't have keyless start, only keyless entry. |
Why are ISPs not considered monopolies? | It's not illegal to be a monopoly. It's only illegal to participate in actions that smother competition.Depending on your region an ISP can be classified as a monopoly. Specifically a Natural Monopoly.They are natural monopolies, and are allowed by the government. It makes more sense of you talk about water instead of ... |
if we eat chicken eggs and chicken in mass consumption. Why do we eat turkey but not turkey eggs? | Turkeys are relatively undomesticated compared to other poultry. They only began being domesticated by Europeans and their American descendents during the Columbian Exchange around five centuries ago . Chickens have been domesticated for thousands of years, thus they produce more eggs due to artificial selection. It's ... |
Is there a maximum amount of pain you can feel? | When I was 12 I was stung by a Portuguese Man-o-war. If there's something in the world more painful than that I want no part in it. It wouldn't go away- I'm talking days of excruciating pain and then an allergic reaction that lasted months. That was a 10 on my pain scale.Intense pain can lead to either passing out or c... |
How Does the Chinese Economy/Government Work? | Well to give an example, 1 USD can buy a full meal of rice meat n veggie. Labour costs are lower cos cost of living is lower. Assuming the skill level needed isnt high, it works out. Otoh, I just saw some minions toys at hanleys at usd40 in asia, while I know it's about aud15 in Australia. Not sure how that makes sense... |
Humans have been on the planet for over 200,000 years, why in the last 50 years has there been a HUGE shift in technology? | To put it very simply, because 100,000 years ago, we were still hunter-gatherers. Technology was limited to simple tools. At this time, people still spent the majority of their time and energy gathering food. It was with the advent of agriculture that civilization began: People settled down permanently in one place and... |
Why do we still have to file taxes? | What you are describing can definitely be achieved using pre-filled forms. Ideally, the IRS would send you a tax return with all numbers available to the IRS filled in the correct spots. You would then review and make sure it is correct. You could even bring it to a tax professional to look it over for you. What's stop... |
If red light is least scattered by air molecules, why is green a more visible color in laser pointers? | If you mean seeing the beam, scattering is why you can see it. A laser whose light doesn't scatter at all is invisible unless you're looking at it straight on, so naturally light that scatters more is more visible when it comes to something like a laser.. |
Why do rental properties usually have carpet? Wouldn't it be easier, more up to date esthetically, and less expensive to have wood floors, tile, or linoleum? | Mainly because carpet doesn't show wear and tear as much as does linoleum or wood, and it's a lot cheaper. What carpet *does* show are stains, but those are not normally considered wear and tear and the tenant can be charged for damage. |
An airplane on a treadmill. | Imagine a small 4 seater airplane without its engine running on a treadmill. Now imagine hooking up a chain to the propeller of the plane and attaching the chain to a winch in the distance. If you turn the treadmill on is the plane going to go anywhere? It won't of course because the chain is holding it in place. Now i... |
If Governor Rick Snyder of Michigan knew the water in Flint was tainted and dangerous for human consumption, will he be charged with a crime? | > All signs indicate he was aware of this problem and didn't do what he could to prevent it. What signs? Serious question, I've followed this very closely and have seen nothing to indicate he knew of any serious problem long before the EPA whistleblower. He knew of one house with problem levels and the MDEQ issued a re... |
How does a song get "stuck" in my head? | Melody. Pure Melody. A good chunk of music is crap in this area, because they don't know how to do it. Think of it this way. I can hum fur elise, the star wars theme, or indiana jones and you'll perfectly be able to complete the rest and it will get stuck in your mind.The vsauce channel on YouTube has a very interestin... |
Why do victims need to press charges in order to prosecute criminals? | Many crimes include an element of non -consent. If the victim decides not to press charges, they in effect consent to the actions of the suspect. Without someone to say they did not consent an element of the crime is absent and can't be prosecuted. Theft for example is often described, legally, as the > taking of the p... |
What is "level 2" or "tier 3" etc tech support? | People call tech support with all sorts of problems. Some of them are really stupid, like you're not even on the right website. Some of them present complex technical questions that may need a further investigation to resolve. If you put everyone on the same level, your most qualified people are not going to be availab... |
Why do photos of the earth never show the massive amount of satellites ? | All the previous answers are correct if and only if the satellites are between the camera and earth. In all likelihood, they aren't. Most photos of earth you see are from low earth orbit. Many satellites are in geosynchronous earth orbit which is a lot higher. |
Why do so some chain stores put their checkouts right in the middle of the store instead of near the exit? | I work in a big retail store with two exits and registers spanning the length between those two exits. We used to have them open on either end, nice and close to one of the exits. But we kept running into a problem where one side would get busy and the other would be quite, but we can't always shift a cashier from one ... |
Do male animals like dogs or cats that have fathered children know that they are their children? If so, do would they treat them any better if they are put together? | Most species of male cats do not help raise their children . A male house cat will mate with as many female cats as it can, and as soon as he's done mating he moves on to the next female. In fact, some males will kill their own children to induce the female to go into heat.I would think so. When one of my dogs had pupp... |
Why does my laptop still have a huge box on the power cord? Every other part has gotten smaller but I still have to carry around a big chunky box of a power cable. | So why can't you buy a brick that you plug into your wall and it has a dial on it so you can just look at a sticker on your device to see where to put the dial? And the power port on every laptop is the same, so you just need one kind of cord that goes between the power brick and the power port on the laptop? Why not t... |
The argument for why farm subsidies are good | 1. Food is cheaper. 2. The agriculture industry is more stable . 3. *Panem et circenses.* From a political perspective, the masses are happier with their lot when they are fed and entertained. See: food subsidies, cities pay for sports stadiums. |
Why did light skin pigment humans evolve and live in the colder climates, while the humans with darker pigments were in the warmer? | The chemical which gives skin its colouration in humans is melanin. Melanin absorbs UV light. This means that darker skinned peoples' skin absorbs more UV light, rather than letting it pass into their bodies. UV light is responsible for the genetic damage which triggers skin cancer. Thus, more melanin in the skin means... |
Why is Ronald Reagan seemingly regarded as the messiah for American conservatism | Ronald Reagan was a very popular President who presided over very successful period of history, both in terms of economics and foreign policy. Since he was a Republican, he's a positive part of their 'brand'. |
Why is drinking alcohol during pregnancy so taboo? | Because this: > It takes about 4 drinks a day to cause [Fetal Alcohol Syndrome]. isn't a confirmed fact. > If consuming alcohol in the slightest was so detrimental during pregnancy, why wasn't everyone alive back in the middle ages, when water was dangerous to drink, a fetal alcohol baby? For all we know, there *were* ... |
Why do say that dog years are 7 to our 1? | It's a simple way to explain to children why their dog dies before them. The ratio works out pretty well. Most dogs live until around 10-12 and most people live 70-86. Do dogs actually age seven times as fast? No they do not. |
What is interest and why do we need it? | Interest is the cost to borrow money. Not all interest is bad though. When you borrow money you will have to pay interest on that borrowed money. This is the bad interest that your parents were talking about. When you become the lender though then you get paid the interest. Stocks aren't exactly the same, because they ... |
Is it possible to have a writing system that has no vocal language? | Some lower level programming languages, perhaps. Or predicate logic I've also read that it's pretty common that people don't subvocalize languages like English. |
Why arent houses in America that have a high probability of getting struck by a tornado arent built from bricks and mortar like in the UK. | What you're missing here is the mechanism of destruction. Brick and mortar is strong enough to withstand debris impact from a minor tornado, but the wind will break the windows, blow into the house, and the combination of wind blowing in and updraft tears the roof off. This greatly reduces the integrity of the structur... |
In all the Zombie movies/television shows that I can think of, the number of zombies multiply. If they eat flesh shouldn't they devour people completly rather then just bite them slightly. | Once the meat dies it becomes inedible and can then reanimate. That always seems to be one of the main symptoms of any zombie plague. If they just kept eating I guess they'd be more like ghouls than zombies. |
How can the CEO get paid so much if the company loses money | Your intuition is correct for very small firms, like Mom & Pop's Dry Cleaners. For public companies, executive compensation is set by the board of directors, which usually receives a recommendation from human resources. HR can try to come up with a package themselves, but there are also consulting firms which specializ... |
Why and how is there so much money in boxing? | There isn't to be honest, theres like 2-5 people in boxing who make serious money, everyone else barely scrapes by, many of whom probably work a normal job on the side. Most boxers are moving away from boxing to become MMA Fighters since that's where all the money is, at-least for the average fighter anyway. But as for... |
the territorial boundaries in Antarctica | A bunch of countries have made competing and overlapping claims on Antarctic territory. In Antarctic Treaty of 1961, countries didn't drop their claims, but they all agreed not to pursue them, and also agreed to limit the Antarctic to scientific research. |
Why is the US more friendlier with the Saudis over the Russians? (well until Crimea anyways... Both are major oil producers but the Russians are closer in culture and heritage) | The U.S. was engaged in a 40+ year struggle for domination against the USSR. The Russian Federation largely inherited and continued to maintain this distrust of the West after the collapse of the USSR. The Saudi's have an agreement that as long as they keep the oil flowing freely they will be placed under American prot... |
How did they manage to successfully lay a telegraph wire across the Atlantic in 1866? | How did they know for sure that the cable wouldn't get destroyed by sea life, like curious sharks chomping on the cable, or random fish slowly gnawing away at the cable over a period of a few years? Also, how did they protect it against hooligans who would try to cut the cable for sh*ts and giggles where the floor is m... |
How can a 737 land on a snow covered runway perfectly and I it's hard for me to drive on snow? | The hard thing about driving on snow—or especially ice—is getting enough traction to accelerate, brake, or turn. An airplane can do all of those by pushing on air while not relying on friction from the ground. When landing the plane just has to slow down, which can be accomplished by using thrust reversers on the engin... |
How did ancient people come up with the idea to smoke plants? | I'm guessing ancient people probably burned various types of plants on a daily basis in order to keep a fire lit. Over time, they probably just happened to place certain plants in the fire that burned, giving off smoke that could have potentially intoxicated those sitting around the fire. After this happened a few time... |
What does it mean that we've never "directly observed" a black hole? | Everything we observe is something that emits light , or something that is reflecting light . Black holes have gravity so immense that light can't escape. That means that it reflects no light, and so it can't be observed.Red Dwarf have a fairly nice description of why _URL_0_can i add a question that is bothering me fo... |
the 'bee problem'. [about how they seem to be on the verge of extinction] | They think that some of the chemicals farmers use on their crops is messing with the internal GPS that bees have. So the bees go out to find pollen, get sick, get lost, die because they can't make it back to their hive. It is not a total everywhere problem but in certain locations many beekeepers are reporting that the... |
How is possible for small businesses to survive when larger companies provide the same product at a cheaper price? | Service. Provide excellent, personalized customer service. Learn their names if possible. Make them feel great that they're there and maybe they'll be willing to spend a few extra bucks to feel special. |
If I own a piece of land, why can't I just declare it a new nation and live by my own laws? | Because that land is likely already part of another country, and that country's rules forbid it. Odds are good that that country has various enforcement capabilities that significantly outmatch your ability to defend yourself. If a country just let any landowner declare independence, they wouldn't remain a country for ... |
Why is it okay to so freely break speeding laws? To the point that people will attack others for not doing so. | The speed limit is the law but the law is enforced by police officers. Some police officers won't pull people over for going a little over others don't pull people over unless it's a lot over. It's a game and people try and get away with as much as they can. Basically, it's only illegal if you get caught. There was a c... |
why does bottled beer taste better than canned beer ? | It doesn't. Your taste emotions are deceiving you. Canned beer is superior because it does not permit light inside. What do you think kegs are? Nobody complains about being poured a beer from a keg. Also, you may be reacting to the fact that canned beer usually is cheaper beer. Bud Light comes in a can. Anchor Steam co... |
Why do people still inhabit areas which are susceptible to high-impact tropical storms, and other weather disasters? | Some of it is because they're infrequent. Some of it is because we're an adaptable species, and capable of building to withstand most things if we put our mind to it. Some of it is just because we're stubborn and bloody-minded, and convinced that all the bad things will happen to other people.Why do people live in eart... |
Why do internal hard drives cost more than external hard drives, despite same size and model inside the external hard drive? | They don't. I don't know what fucked up place you get process from, but internals are usually 10 bucks cheaper on average due to the lack of a housing unit |
Why are we told that it's a bad idea to run away from a tornado/hurricane? | Because you can't outrun it. You should find a space that's relatively safe from the tornado and ride it out because if you're running you're very likely to be caught out in the open. |
Are there certain foods you can't be allergic to? | Iodine, well more specifically, Iodized Salt, which is most salt sold unless you buy non-iodized salt. For years as a Paramedic, I was always hearing things like: Pt. I am allergic to Iodine Me: No you're not. Maybe the dye in Iodine but not Iodine. Pt. The doctor said so Me: Well he is wrong Pt. Uh-Uh, you're wrong. M... |
Why is it expected of employees to give a two week's notice, while employers can fire/lay people off that day and it isn't an issue? | In Australia it's all clearly laid out in our employment laws. Employers and employees have to give the same amount of notice and it depends on how long you have worked there. Less than a year = 1 week notice, more than a year = 2 weeks notice, more than 5 years = 3 weeks notice etc etc. Employers who are terminating a... |
Michael Brown and Dillon Taylor were both unarmed and shot by police within 2 days of each other. Excluding race, why is the Brown case generating more attention? | 1) video is awesome. More and more departments are adopting cameras and I wouldn't be surprised if a mandate came out by the end of this decade. Also brown was already claiming the headlines 2) There is no evidence supporting that claim. |
How was Tim Tebow so successful in college but not in the NFL? | College football teams favor running more than passing more often than not and a lot of quarterbacks can be starters based on their ability to run even if they struggle throwing the ball. Tebow was passable as a quarterback throwing the ball in college but he wasn't even close to many of the other NFL quarterback prosp... |
What kills during a plane crash? is it the heat/explosions, force of impact, or something else? | It depends on the crash and the person. Sometimes it's force injuries, from the plane hitting the ground or something else. Sometimes, it's falling injuries, from the plane breaking apart. Sometimes, it's fire or smoke inhalation after touching down. All are possible.What sort of device would a plane need to allow it t... |
Why do airplanes use green camo instead of blue? Wouldn't it make more sense, since they would be less visible on sky? | I would think camo that helps when its landed would be more valuable than when its in the air Planes can't really sneak around, quite loud, and its radar and tracking planes need to worry about in combat, not so much the naked eye. All speculation of course!", 'Combat aircraft are most vulnerable to attacks from above.... |
Why in 2014 is the ocean still such a mystery. We overcame obstacles to space travel 50+ years ago but can't figure out water. | What about rocks? They can manage to survive the pressure at the bottom of the ocean. Can't we use rock technology? |
Why arent people in charge of keeping us alive and safe (doctors and police) required to get sufficent sleep? | You can't regulate if a person gets enough sleep, but you can certainly regulate rest, or the amount of time needed free from work. I can't speak for doctors and police officers, but other sectors where it is deemed a public safety risk, like pilots and truck drivers, it is regulated. That certainly does not mean the t... |
Why does vertical video annoy people so much? | Because 100% of media we're used to viewing is either horizontally aligned or square. Notice you've never been to a movie that was vertical? Never purchased a vertical TV? Also to be perfectly honest the main reason I hate vertical video online is that the players are formatted to be horizontally aligned, which means t... |
If water is clear why does the ocean look blue from outer space? | water isn't clear. water is blue, it just looks clear up close because the color is really weak. same basic idea behind glass actually being green. |
Where does one keep $60 billion in cash? Comcast... I'm looking at you. | It's not kept in a checking account it'll be in various short term investments that can be easily liquidated, like money market funds, bonds, etc. FDIC is only for checking/savings accounts, and there are different insurance covering investment type accounts. |
Why are vintage guitars considered to sound better than modern ones? | If an old guitar is still around and being played it is probably because it is a good instrument. The junk ones wear out and are tossed when no one bothers to repair them. If someone is playing a guitar that was made fifty years ago, there is a reason people kept putting money into it. But, don't buy an old guitar just... |
Why do we assume life must follow the same rules as on earth when looking for extraterrestrial life? | Because we don't have any other criteria to search for. Part of the problem with the search for life is that, yes, it will likely be very different to life on Earth. But without knowing what those differences are we can't search for them. So instead we apply the rules we know, mainly that all life requires water in som... |
Why when someone buys a pack of cigarettes do they slap the top of the pack repeatedly? | I find it's also easier to light if you pack them hard enough.To pack the tobacco in the cigarettes dui they burn slower. |
If I mail a letter with no postage, and put the recipient's address in the return address spot, will it get delivered to them for free? | I run a CMRA for the Post Office, essentially a licensed third party allowed to sell Postal services. The answer is that it used to work sometimes, though not with any consistency. Nowadays they've gotten smarter in a couple ways and it generally doesn't work unless it's someone who lives very close to you, and it's st... |
Why, when I've done nothing wrong, do I feel guilty when passing by a cop? What's the psychology behind it? | So far these answers are all mental gymnastics. Here is the correct answer: Classical Conditioning. This is the psychological process where an animal learns to associate a neutral stimulus with another stimulus and then the previously neutral stimulus elicits a conditioned response. The most famous examples would be Pa... |
Why doesn't Kim Jong-un attempt to better North Korea? | In many ways, he does . However it's not that simple. The military is incredibly powerful and for NK to survive it needs to maintain it's unique national identity, at least in the eyes of the leadership. To suddenly liberalize would lead to their undoing, as is what happened in the Soviet Union in the 1980's. The proce... |
Am I physically unable to roll my tongue, or do I just not know how to use the muscles in that way? | You physically can't do it, and it's not something you can learn. It's a genetic trait, like height or hair color. |
Why do old sculptures have such tiny penises? | Thinking back to an art history class many moons ago I believe it had something to do with proportions. Greek artists, such as Polykleitos, were obsessed with creating a visual aesthetic in their art. They wanted to show the human body in a state of physical perfection. Hence, they developed complex mechanisms of size ... |
Why does waiting until you're older to have a baby increase the chances of it having autism? | That isn't exactly correct. [The link with age is far more complex than that] * Dads over the age of 50 were 66 percent more likely than dads in their 20s to have children with autism, while dads in their 40s were 28 percent more likely. * Teen mothers were 18 percent more likely to have children with autism than mothe... |
Why do people get more upset over animal deaths in movies? | Mostly it's about domestic animals. They're not able to defend themselves as well as wild animals so we humans do that for them - seeing something you're supposed to protect die, like children, pets, or the elderly, hurts those feelings more than seeing someone who ought to handle himself die. |
Why is the Tea Party not a separate party from Republicans? | Two reasons: * The Tea Party and the rest of the GOP need each other, they aren't big enough to be effective against the Democrats alone.* The mathematics of the American political system favor two roughly equal parties. When a party splits in two, one of those parts will go extinct. |
Why are cell phone conversations so much more distracting to a driver compared to a regular conversation with another passenger in the car? | It's not about the conversation, it's about your hands being occupied. Anyone with a Bluetooth system in their car can attest that having a truly hands-free conversation with someone over the Bluetooth is identical to talking to someone who is in the car in terms of distractions. |
Why do planes take what seems like huge detours instead of straight lines to the destination? | I am an aircraft dispatcher and no we are not air traffic controllers lol. What we do is create flight plans from point A to point B using jet routes that have already been mapped out all across the globe. When we make a flight plan, we try to take the most direct routes to the destinations but we also have to take int... |
What happens to all the excess skin of someone who was formerly obese/overweight? Surely it doesn't just shrink back to it's original form? | It doesn't all shrink away, no. In cases of extreme weight loss it usually has to be removed surgically otherwise it leads to bacteria growth in the folds, and stinky sweat rashes. |
Why are many African countries politically unstable? | It is like the downvoted /u/cos said, equilibrium needs to be found in all situations. With human beings, it takes a while. African countries are no special, coups happen in South America and Asia all the time, also the world wars were periods of instability for Europe. So don't seek special reasons for Africans doing ... |
Do Glasses 'worsen' eye-sight? | If you prescription is wrong you can end up damaging your eyes. It has happened to me and now I can't see anything more than 3 inches away without my glasses. |
Why does it seem like there is so much variation in humans compared to most species? | A lot of the differences are the result of how familiar you are with the species in question; in the case of humans, one notices individual differences within one's own ethnic group more than in others; for example, Asians will seem much less individually different to a European than his or her own group. With other sp... |
Why I can't just stop eating to lose weight. | Well technically the fastest way to lose weight is to simply just stop eating, however as others have said your body also needs vitamins and minerals etc to function properly many of which can only be found in food. However I heard of this study where an obese man was given all the appropriate vitamins and minerals he ... |
Why Write a Computer Virus? | A gain that hasn't been mentioned yet is extortion. It can take many forms: - I have encrypted your files, send money to get the password- You are infected, pay to make the infection go away- Neat website you have. Seems your business rely on it. It would be a shame if someone sent a horde of infected computers access ... |
how the switch on the rear view mirror works | Nice thanks guys so many wins here. Posted a thread and didn't get called a fag or get made fun of for the post, plus I got awesome answers ASAP. My buddy and I just thought it was magic |
why inbreeding causes genetic defects. | Picture this: You and your sister have 4 lego blocks each, their colors are red-green-blue-yellow. Mary, a friend you like, has 4 lego blocks too, their colors are purple-orange-pink-teal. Suzy, another friend, has 4 blocks, but they are **red**-brown-purple-teal. So Suzy has a block that is the same color as one of yo... |
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