query stringlengths 19 300 | pos list | neg list | task stringclasses 1 value | instruction dict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Is there any merit to the idea that exposing yourself to germs strengthens your immune system? | [
"Your immune system, every time it beats off an infection, stores information about that infection in it's \"memory B-cells.\" That way, if you get reinfected, your immune system can say \"aha it's you again! I remember your secret weakness from last time!\" instead of having to figure it out all over again. It do... | [
"My wife is like a hyena. If you're exposed to the same bacteria constantly, your body becomes quite accustomed to it. Antibacterial living makes you weak."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title about Health and Wellness:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph about Health and Wellness:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
Why does my skin itch when i've been sweating and touch grass? | [
"Grass makes very small (near microscopic) cuts on the skin, and when those cuts are contacted with liquid (in your case, sweat) it itches. It's like salt in a wound, but much smaller."
] | [
"Why do the glands in my neck burn like high hell when I'm holding back tears?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How does my fingerprint scanner on my iPhone work through a plastic bag? | [
"Because it's not a fingerprint scanner, it's just a camera. Advanced fingerprint scanners use high resolution CMOS sensors, pressure and temperature sensors, and a myriad of other tricks to detect an actual finger against a simple printout of your print. The scanner on phones and laptops, and other cheap consumer ... | [
"I can use the capacitive touch screen on my phone with a cheese stick, why????"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title about Technology:",
"pos": "Represent the document about Technology:",
"neg": "Represent the document about Technology:"
} |
The reason why NSAIDS are ineffective at reducing symptoms of diseases like Psoriasis? | [
"Not 100% sure, but I would say that's because Psoriasis is caused when your immune system ins't working properly and the chemicals involved in psoriasis are not affected by NSAIDS (they generally affect the COX enzymes that promote inflammation)"
] | [
"Humira is a drug that reduces inflammation. Because Humira treats a symptom, rather than the root cause of a disease, it's useful in treating a wide range of diseases that share that symptom. I don't think Humira is advertised as a treatment for depression, all I found online was people asking if depression was a ... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
why it always seems like people wake up before the best part or climax of their dreams. | [
"Until a better answer shows up, I believe I've read on this very forum, that it has to do with the fact that the \"best part\" just so happens to excite you so much, that your brain activity increases and you therefore begin to awaken. Another aspect may be that you don't remember dreams in which you didn't wake u... | [
"Because you are waking up in the middle of it. If you have someone wake you in the middle of normal dreams you remember them better too."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question about Psychology:",
"pos": "Represent the document about Psychology:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How can someone be immune to the laws of a country simply because they have diplomatic immunity? | [
"Because the country that they represent have been extended that courtesy for their diplomats by the host country. It's a common arrangement so that diplomats don't get blackmailed by local police or politicians. The host country can always expel a diplomat if they don't want them there. And the diplomats country ... | [
"Because a person's right to privacy is not contingent on whether or not they have something to hide."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
Why do the creatures at the deepest parts of the ocean look so different from that species we normally see? | [
"A huge pressure. For anything to be able to withstand it you need either incredible skeletal structure, or massive skin and muscle mass. The former is almost non-existent, if it exist it's mostly in small organisms such as crabs, etc..., the latter is more common. Remember [this](_URL_0_) guy this is how he looks ... | [
"Whales and dolphins are too massive to live on land, their food and water source is in the ocean, and they have evolved to move about in the ocean. Wales is a place in the United Kingdom. They don't have gills because like other Brits, they live on land."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the post:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
Why laptops still use differrent chargers, and why they dont follow the example of the mobile phones? | [
"$$$$$$$$$$$ Same reason apple uses its own cords. You have to buy them from the company that makes the laptop."
] | [
"It's not obsolete but each manufacturer has a huge incentive to take over the market. If you have a normal headphone jack you can buy any headphones. If you have to have it interface over a lightning port guess who is the only one who makes them? And if some Chinese manufacturer finds a way to make them, guess who... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
How does Google Maps know when there's little, medium or high traffic on roads? | [
"I don't know if you noticed, but Google figures out pretty quickly where you live and where you work: that's because it activates the GPS on your phone in the background and registers your location quite frequently. If you are driving, Google can interpret the GPS location of your phone as an indication of no traf... | [
"\"Would you like to share your location with Maps?\" If you click No, then it pretends it has no idea where you are (which is probably true). If you click Yes, then you're telling it where you are for TWO purposes: 1. To place you on the map 2. To relay this information back to the server so it can see where *ever... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
Why and how are power plants designed so they can't power themselves? | [
"The plant isn’t technically incapable of powering itself—it’s incapable of running without a grid connection. That might sound like a distinction without a difference, but the plant requires a connection to the grid not to *receive* power from the grid, but to *dispose* of power on the grid. The nuclear plant requ... | [
"Part of it is that it is slightly impractical to build a big enough battery and partly because batteries do not hold a charge forever. They decay over time"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
If Physics states that we don't actually touch anything, how can we taste and smell? | [
"We don't really touch things, but that doesn't mean they don't interact. Magnets, gravity, electrical charges all do not physically touch things, but they interact because of the force emanating from them."
] | [
"Much like how when you are asleep you don't hear or feel your surroundings, they don't see."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
How did people figure out precisely which direction to build a railway in before GPS and modern technology? | [
"You'd be surprised how accurate tools like sextants are. They were around for a while before we started building railroads."
] | [
"Follow-up: How would they have measured distances? Did they have units of measurement for large distances, like a mile or kilometer?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query about Transportation:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text about Transportation:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
What allows our brain to "focus"? | [
"The brain has a subconscious filtering system that decides which things are unimportant and which should be passed on to our conscious mind."
] | [
"Brain. Our brain takes a long time to fully develop."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document about Biology:"
} |
why does resting my hand between my thighs warm me up? | [
"You have a lot of nerve endings that control your hands. Perhaps warming them *tricks* your brain into thinking you are more warm than before. Check out this [homunculus](_URL_0_) to see the brain proportion that is dedicated to controlling certain body parts. As you can see, lips and hands require a lot of nerves... | [
"Don't know why but if you stretch out your leg and pull your toes back towards your shin it will make the cramp instantly go away. This has saved me so many times."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
what is the difference between vague, ambiguous (semantic), ambiguous (syntactic), ambiguous (grouping), overgeneral, or both vague and overgeneral. | [
"Kind of confused about what you're asking for. Is it assignment-specific jargon? The difference between 'vague' and 'ambiguous': Vague - Lacking detail but has specific meaning. e.g. Joe is tall. How tall? Joe is tall compared to what? Ambiguous - Several meanings or open to interpretation. e.g. The concert was co... | [
"It's called a [syntactic expletive](_URL_1_) or more specifically a [dummy pronoun](_URL_0_). It's a part of the sentence that has no meaning other than make the sentence syntactically correct."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
why isn't single serve coffee sold in tea bags? | [
"Didn’t Folgers used to make “coffee singles” in the past? I’m not sure if it was instant or supposed to act like a brew, but I’m almost positive I’ve seen something like it."
] | [
"Because coffee cups are traditional that size. So when it says cups it is referring to the number of traditionally sized cups not cup as in the unto of measure. In recent times coffee cups have gotten a lot larger though."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit argument:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit argument:"
} |
Why can we build 1TB SSD's but not 1TB of RAM and cut out the storage? | [
"We can make a terabyte of RAM but it would be really expensive and couldn't store data when the computer was off. Also we really don't need the incredibly fast access for the vast majority of that data."
] | [
"Mostly due to your computer has a much faster CPU/data bus and a computer SSD is much faster than flash memory in a phone."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage about Technology:"
} |
Does a gas giant actually have a solid surface? | [
"The \"surface\" of Jupiter is gaseous hydrogen. _URL_0_ What would happen if you went \"on\" the top of Earth's gaseous atmosphere? You'd fall, right? Jupiter is much more massive than Earth though, so you'd fall even faster, and probably burn up from friction with the atmosphere before anything more interesting h... | [
"Broadly, yes, though it depends what the planet is made of, too. Earth's iron core makes it dense, so we have a comparatively high gravity. Something more rocky would have less, if the same diameter."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post about Science:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence about Science:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence:"
} |
How does evolution explain an animal developing the ability of venom attacks? Like a Platypus? | [
"As [this](_URL_0_) link will tell you, many venom systems started out as something entirely different whether they be digestive enzymes, proteins to help fight bacteria, etc. A mutation occurs and suddenly that enzyme/protein/etc is present in the mouth/claws/etc, and it gives them an edge to catch prey and just g... | [
"Because some of them are really poisonous and can bite you and poison the shit out of you. One theory is that we evolved that fear as a defensive measure from something dangerous found in our environment. This would have happened early on in our evolution and persisted ever since. Same goes for snakes, the dark, ... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence:"
} |
Why is gold valuable? For how long will it continue to be valuable? | [
"Gold is valuable primarily because people believe that it is valuable. (It does have some practical uses in jewelry and electronics, but these things aren't nearly enough to support its current price). It will probably continue to be valuable, because gold being valuable is a significant part of our cultural ident... | [
"Transport is an important part of a country's economy. If all the oil were to suddenly disappear in your country, it would be a major problem. * Food, goods, materials - they wouldn't show up in the stores * Most people will be unable to get to work * The army would be reduced to foot soldiers, they are suddenly w... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question about Economics:",
"pos": "Represent the document about Economics:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
What gives massless particles a 'speed limit'? What stops them from traveling faster than 299,792,458 m / s? | [
"Simply put, we don't know. It's a very well documented and solid physical constant, but why that happens to be the universal speed limit isn't clear. There's some speculation and models that attempt to describe it, but nothing verifiable as of yet."
] | [
"It doesn't matter The Radio waves are moving at 3x10^8 m/s, thats 300,000,000 m/s. If you travel towards a cell tower at Mach 10 you'll be moving 3,430 m/s and change the wavelength by 3,430/300,000,000 or 0.0011%. You're not traveling anywhere close to Mach 10 so the impact is truly insignificant"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query about Physics:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document about Physics:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why can I remember the conventions of a new programming language or the methods of a new library with ease but spend hours memorizing facts in biology class to no avail? | [
"As a fellow student learning programming with ease and dying in biology, I feel your pain. I can't possibly explain for you without speculating, but for me it's because of the style. Biology is a very fact-oriented thing. You either know what allopatric means, or you don't. And you never get to actually use it, be... | [
"Programming, for anyone who's never tried it, is a very focus-intensive activity, and can be not strenuous at all. These things make marathon learning very useful, as new information can easily be picked up and utilized. (That is to say, you could learn how to use a function and then be able to use that function p... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title about Cognitive psychology:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit argument about Cognitive psychology:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit argument:"
} |
Why is the DEA so concerned about narcotics, barbiturates etc? | [
"they are concerned that the drugs are being misused, resold to dealers and addicts. who become burdens on society. Thats the general reason for any drug to be illegal. These are not illegal, they are just often misappropriated to the black market to be used illegally. So it sounds like they have some red tape. tho... | [
"Heroin usage is increasing because it is cheaper than prescription opioids. Some pill addicts are switching because of changes in prescribing rules that make their Oxycontin or Vicodin harder to get. Just another \"war on drugs\" failure."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
Allergies; and why the body develops them. | [
"Your body's immune system often causes your body to do less-than-desirable things. For example, when it's fighting a cold, it's your immune system, not the cold virus, which causes you to have a runny nose and sneeze lots. When something gets into your body which doesn't belong there, your body's immune system rec... | [
"You might want to ask your doctor about this, it's not normal."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title about Health:",
"pos": "Represent the comment about Health:",
"neg": "Represent the comment:"
} |
how did they have an apartheid in south africa since most the people living there are black? (sorry if dumb question) | [
"The white minority introduced apartheid to keep themselves in power. They had more military and economic resources than the black majority and also relied on collaborators and compliance among them."
] | [
"I can only assume that im 6'4 with blue eyes and dark hair because my ancestors wanted me to impregnate hella hoes I apologize if that wasn't scientific enough"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
why does Adobe Flash Player need to update so much? | [
"Adobe (Originally, Macromedia) Flash is, by Internet standards, a very old format. It comes from the days where every byte and every CPU cycle was very important. This meant that it used various tricks to save space and computer effort. The programming to work with these tricks is complex, and complex programs hav... | [
"Side question: Why does my computer lie to me and tell me I have full connection yet I can't load any web sites?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment:"
} |
Is it better to brace your body or stay loose in an accident/fall? | [
"Obviously every crash is different and some things will work better in one situation than they would in another, but the brace position in an aircraft crash, or bracing against a car seat have a very specific purpose. In any collision there are multiple impacts. In an aircraft crash there is the impact of the plan... | [
"To put you in the safest position possible in an accident. In a car the safest place is in the middle of the back seat, with a lap and shoulder belt. There is no safe place on a motorcycle, your best bet is to be thrown clear with a helmet. You don't want to be attached to a motorcycle in a wreck, it's worse in an... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query about Physics:",
"pos": "Represent the post about Physics:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
Why can e-cigarette companies advertise on TV while traditional cigarette companies can't? | [
"E-cigarettes don't have tobacco in them, they're a smoking accessory. It's like advertising a cigarette lighter"
] | [
"Because the alcohol and tobacco companies have more money than God and use some of that to pay lobbyists. Remember the fallout for cigarettes in the 90s? Did you notice they are still around, except Joe Camel can't peddle directly to kids? Yeah."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why I can't look in different directions with my eyes. | [
"You can. Back in 2006 while doing \"How to [cross](_URL_1_) just One Eye\" and \"Speak with an Echo,\" I got ambitious and tried inducing [MartyFeldman-o-vision](_URL_0_). I had some fresnel prisms left from a failed toy design[1] which only deflect a couple degrees. Mount on eyeglass frames to bend light inward. ... | [
"Because you're supposed to be looking at the monitor."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query about Biology:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document about Biology:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
what actually is that feeling when you're falling in a dream and you wake up? | [
"The falling feeling is from a hypnic jerk. Your muscles may twitch or spasm and your mind is trying to make sense of it. You think that you're falling. I believe the heart beating and the shortness of breath is an emotional response. It's kinda not really clear why this happens. Even though you are sleeping, ther... | [
"I thought i was the only one who got those feelings. I love watching TV when that feeling sets it. You close your eyes sometimes and wake up in the future."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post about Psychology:",
"pos": "Represent the text about Psychology:",
"neg": "Represent the text:"
} |
Why is it more quiet when it's snowing? | [
"Many things at once make this happen: 1) Snow on the ground absorbs the noise around us, where as the hard surface of the roads bounce it off. Just like a room with carpet and curtains does not echo, but an empty room with floorboards does echo. Absorbing the noise makes it quieter. 2) Snow is soft and makes sound... | [
"It's not. It just looks that way from down here."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why does water feel much colder in your mouth when chewing mint gum? | [
"The ingredient in mint gum that gives that cooling sensation is called Menthol. The tongue can not tell the difference between Menthol and actual cold temperatures so that's why they feel the same. As a side note, capsaicin (the active ingredient in spicy food) is why our mouths feel hot. Again, because this chemi... | [
"It is texture! The gooey part absorbs heat from your tongue faster than the solid chocolate, similar to holding ice vs submersing your hand in ice-water."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post about Dentistry:",
"pos": "Represent the document about Dentistry:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
NFL followers, why are there so many people on the sideline while the game is being played? What is their role? Novice at NFL here. | [
"Media people, cameramen, sound people, the other 80odd players not on the field, the coaching staff, the athletic trainer staff, the medical team, NFL officiating crew, security... Add it all up and you usually have several hundred people on the sideline of a typical NFL game. It takes a lot of people to make that... | [
"Some NFL Players piss their pants. Mark Schlereth is very open about it. Other NFL Players have pissed on the sidelines. You can watch videos of it on YouTube."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit post:"
} |
Why Won’t Obama Rein in the N.S.A.? | [
"Because Obama doesn't really care about libertarian neckbeards over the internet getting butthurt."
] | [
"> Drug Enforcement Administration agents allegedly had “sex parties” with prostitutes hired by local drug cartels overseas over a period of several years, according to a report released Thursday by the Justice Department’s watchdog. . > The former head of the New York Drug Enforcement Administration organized cri... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
What's the significance and possible implications of all these nations joining this new China-led bank? (akin to the World Bank) | [
"I guess we will wait and see. The obvious one is that there is an alternative bank for governments to turn to. Some countries can't get IMF and world bank loans. Other can only get them with a lot of strings attached, such as: reduce a country's debt to GDP ratio; reduce government spending; lower tariffs; allow i... | [
"How would the president conduct a hostile takeover without the military? Also a takeover of what?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
Is it possible to become ambidextrous? | [
"I highly suggest posting this over at /r/askscience to avoid hundreds a meaningless anecdotes being your answer."
] | [
"How do you define your hints of schizophrenia?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
how does people you may know function on facebook work? Do people who have visited my profile pop up there? | [
"Do you have their phone numbers or email addresses and have ever used the feature that allows Facebook to search your contacts for potential friends? If you've done that they will show up in your recommended friends. Sometimes it seems to be so sensitive as to suggest someone who I have only contacted once."
] | [
"If you go like a certain page, like a bands page, or a harry potter page, and then you stop using your account for however long... But you're still listed as 'liking' said band then when something about them comes up, like maybe there in town so they put up Facebook ads or whatever, it will show your friends that ... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How did some animals (lizards etc.) get an ability to regenerate limbs evolutionary? | [
"All species have the capacity for regeneration, some to a higher extent than others. What you are referring to is called autonomy (self amputation) and in most cases it was developed as a defence mechanism that allowed an animal to escape by sacrificing a limb and then regrow a substitute one (albeit imperfect on... | [
"Because their physiology (body make-up) is completely different. Worms are invertebrates, meaning they don't possess a single bone in their body. Snakes are reptiles (belonging to the vertebrates). That means there are numerous evolutionary steps between them. IIRC, snakes do stretch their bodies a little but beca... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
The difference between Whiskey, Scotch and Bourbon. | [
"They are all whiskey. Traditionally bourbon comes from bourbon county, KY. Also must be distilled from the majority of corn. Scotch is whiskey from Scotland. There is also Irish whiskey and sourmash whisky."
] | [
"Scotch whiskey is a type of whiskey that is made in Scotland (there's also Irish whiskey, bourbon like Jack Daniel's, Japanese whiskey like Suntory, and others). \"Scotch\" is just a shortened term for \"Scotch whiskey.\""
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit sentence:"
} |
Why do marathon runners tape their nipples? | [
"They chafe against your shirt, they can even bleed. I didnt really take that seriously until I ran my first half marathon. It is a thing."
] | [
"Is this why old guys wear there pants up to their arm pits?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence:"
} |
Why do our voices sound robotic when we speak into the fan? | [
"Because the fan blades reflect the sound back at you, like any hard surface will. The difference is the fan has gaps in it that are are whizzing past. So you're getting hard surface, gap, hard surface, gap and so on many times a second, and your voice gets reflected back with a similar on/off/on/off pattern. Your ... | [
"Take 2 objects shaped like notebooks and place them on the side of your head, like you're making big elephant ears. Make sure they are pressed firmly against your head and in front of the ear. Now speak. This is what your voice sounds like to the rest of the world. It's a trick used by actual professional VAs test... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
Minneapolis and St. Paul are two major cities of small land areas in the same state that border each other. Is there any good reason they can't combine like the New York Boroughs did in 1898? | [
"No. There is no practical reason why they cannot combine. If you watch \"Gangs of New York,\" you can see practical reasons why combining police forces and having uniform laws are a plus. Then again many urban areas have separate governments separated by bodies of water. State government has a lot to do with the d... | [
"NYC is massive, in terms of population especially. These places used to be separate counties, but as they filled up, they all became a homogenous entity that is modern New York City. Queens was Queens County, Brooklyn was Kings, etc. So think of them as districts. If NYC was a country, these would be 5 states or p... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
What actually prevents something from continuing to grow once matured and does any species max growth increase over the generations? | [
"Genes usually stop growth when a pre-determined structure has completely formed. That is called determinate growth. Indeterminate growth means that the animal will grow all throughout its life, this is common with fish, mollusks (squids) and reptiles."
] | [
"Cancer. Cells continuing to divide with no limit is called cancer. If you mean instead \"what would happen to us if our bodies focused on sustaining cells /efficiency as long as possible before natural cell death what would happen?\" Is a much more interesting question."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why did Walgreens end its partnership with Express Scripts? | [
"Because they wanted to raise prices, while Express Scripts said no."
] | [
"Why is election on weekdays instead of weekends?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why is Broadway and musical theater in general associated with homosexuals? | [
"I think that a lot of the aspects of theater in general (the elaborate costumes, the makeup, the dancing) are socially viewed as feminine, adding a sort of femininity to male actors/ theater professionals. Also, it may have been influenced by Castratos (eunuchs _URL_0_) in classical opera/other classical performan... | [
"If you're talking about America, that's simply not true. Go to any big Reddit thread and you'll see hundreds of comments talking about what a glorious socialist utopia Europe is. Many Americans also have varying degrees of obsession with British culture. Half the women in my family got up at 3 in the morning to wa... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
In America, why are most street signs green while others are blue? | [
"It depends on the type of sign, and, in some cases, the specific sign. [Here](_URL_0_) is an overview of the different colors, while [here](_URL_1_) has specific signs that make for good examples. Specifically, green is \"used as background color for guide and information signs, and for legend on permissive regula... | [
"It's not that there are less, but that they do not have the same shape. In the U.K., for example, they typically look like little boxes (typically yellow or grey), marked with a big \"H.\" In Germany, our fire hydrants can have a lot of different appearances. It's probably not that we have less, but that you don... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
Why are ambulances at least in the US part of an outside company rather than owned by the hospital? | [
"It is often more efficient that way. It costs money for hospitals to maintain a fleet of ambulances, and since their priority is running the hospital, the might not be very good at it. Let a single company specialize in ambulance service, and letting it serve all the surrounding hospitals eliminates redundancy and... | [
"Law enforcement and firefighters are employed by the city, county, or state government. EMT personnel are employed by the hospital/company they work for."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
What constitutes a "side effect" in contrast to the effect in drugs? | [
"A side effect is simply something outside the intended purpose of the drug. Even if it happened 100% of the time, it can be considered a side effect. For example, a common allergy drug (diphenhydramine) also has a side effect of making one drowsy. You're buying it to be relieved of allergy symptoms, so the drowsin... | [
"Schizophrenia is absolutely not similar to seizures. Most medications are approved for multiple conditions for example there is a drug used for urinary retention that is also used to treat hair loss. Usually drug manufacturers develop a drug to treat one condition but unintentionally discovers another use for them... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit sentence:"
} |
Why are video game prices dropping quickly this year | [
"games industry has seasons. During summer there arent many releases and as the xmass is closing you have many \"holidays\" eg. days of free time but not friendly weather so people tend to stay at home and play games. And that means that sales (price reduction) is a good motivation for customers to buy that game an... | [
"Hype has a life span. If they announce it 2 years before it comes out everyone will forget about it by the time it comes out"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
Why does sand stick to everything even though it doesn't feel sticky? | [
"Sand sticks to things in many ways just like flour does. Flour particles aren't sticky at all (while dry), but small enough to be caught in tangles of fabric fibers, attracted by even the slightest charges, or \"grabbed\" by microscopic droplets of water or oil (and the human body is literally covered with oil-dro... | [
"Water does stick to our body. If it didn't, we wouldn't need to use a towel after a shower. What makes you think water doesn't stick to our body?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the post:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
Why do so many celebrities become enamored by/join Scientiology? | [
"Well, for those people it IS like a celebrity club; it's a relatively exclusive organization, it has vast contacts in the entertainment biz and associated businesses (because they have cultured members and allies and contacts for this purpose) so they also provide **networking** between different kinds of high pro... | [
"On the aggregate, there really isn't that many, Scientology is just so preposterous, we hear of these examples more. There is definitely more, Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Atheist, and even Hindu celebrities than Scientologist ones. It just doesn't make for a good news story ;)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document about Religion and Crime:"
} |
The Obamacare birth control mandate. | [
"Put in place by the US government to force health insurance providers/employers to include different methods of birth control on their employees plans at no cost to the employee. It stated that the mandate required all health plans to cover all contraceptives approved by the FDA. It covers pretty well anything you... | [
"Single payer = government based health care Obamacare = mandate to buy private insurance"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence:"
} |
When cars are towed, how does the owner know that it was towed rather than stolen? | [
"Cop here: A lot of times there will be a sign that tells you what tow company tows from that area. We do still get a lot of calls about stolen cars that end up being towed, though. In my state, tow companies are required to submit every car they tow into a database that's searchable by police. 9 times out of 10 wh... | [
"It means your car broke down and wasn't abandoned. Your hazards will only work until the battery dies. It let's the police know your intent to come back to retrieve the car. As long as it's off road, or not on private property you may buy yourself a few days without getting towed."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit argument:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit argument:"
} |
How come steak can be rare but ground beef must be fully cooked | [
"Steak is relatively dense, so bacteria tend to be on the surface, which you will be subjecting to a lot of direct heat. If you grind the meat up, then you potentially allow any present bacteria to spread throughout the material."
] | [
"So pork has an issue of tape worm inside the meat. Unless it's cooked to 140-145F then the worms can hatch. As for chicken the bacteria can penetrate the flesh, so it has to be cooked high enough all the way through. The bacteria in beef don't penetrate, so it doesn't have to be cooked as hot. Beef can be eaten ra... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
- In the first Matrix, Neo asks for guns, how would he get to the other rows of guns? | [
"> Are they just for show? It's a movie, it's all just for show. It looks cooler to have many rows, so that's what they did."
] | [
"It's kinda like the Matrix. The entire series is the people of Paradigm coming to grips with the fact that they have memories of a life outside the city. Eventually, its revealed Paradigm is simply the AI mental construct of an advanced virtual race. In the end, the virtual race wins and reboots the program, sendi... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit post:"
} |
I have heard that the Xbox One and PS4 are like high end gaming PCs. Why do they cost so much less? | [
"They are not like high end gaming PCs. They will likely be as powerful as a current mid range PC."
] | [
"> why do they cost the same as an XB or a PS? They don't at all. You're comparing the brand new Switch to the 4 year old Xbox One or PS4. The Switch launched at $300, while the PS4 launched at $400 and the Xbox One launched at $500. Nintendo consistently released consoles with less power that cannot run many of t... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document about Video games:"
} |
how come so many shows on Fox make fun of Fox so much? Why does Fox keep them on the channel? Shows like Simpsons and Family Guy. | [
"Because they're popular. If the Simpsons bring in a lot of viewers, it would be a really bad business decision to cut them because they make fun of Fox."
] | [
"It's a much better show than the name would imply. There's no reason to ask why people like a TV show when you can watch it and find out yourself."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How do PC games have "bad ports" when the games themselves were made on them? | [
"Games made for consoles: * Are using different technologies, so a lot of code has to be rewritten for PC. * Have fixed hardware that developers can optimize for. On the other side, PCs have a variety of different hardware with different performance, and software can vary too (operating systems, drivers, etc.) * Ha... | [
"Two reasons: 1) It takes a lot of effort to design a game in such a way that it works for console and PC. Normally a fair bit of tweaking is involved in making sure it's cross-platform. 2) Often the game development pipeline will be funded by a producers/companies who want the game to be strictly tied to one conso... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document about videogame development:"
} |
with glasses, can e.g. watching tv worsen your eyes? | [
"No. The reason your vision goes bad is because they grow into an incorrect shape. Looking at a television isn't going to cause that to happen, and incorrect glasses are just going to cause eye strain."
] | [
"The lens work the same way in both direction. So you you look into the eye and the retina is not sharp the image the eye see it not sharp. It is quite normal today that the first thing you do when you check you eye is to look into a machine where if you just focus on the image is project it can with good accurate ... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why is it so easy to work yourself into an anxious tizzy, but it isn't as easy to calm down again. | [
"My guess is that it's evolutionarily advantageous to be more scared and anxious than calm and happy. Fear can motivate you to do something now to save your life. Calming down quickly doesn't appear to benefit humans enough to have been favorably pressured by evolution."
] | [
"Part of it probably has to do with how easy it is to get amped about doing something that you don't want to do, later. You know you're going to sleep, and you don't have to change you're life just quite yet or at least till the morning. So it's easier to get motivated to \"do something tomorrow\" than it is to mot... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document about Sleep and its effects on the body:"
} |
Why are drinks like coffee and tea gross when they are between luke warm and cold, but delicious when they are hot or iced? | [
"I actually like the flavor of both at any temperature. It's probably just because I need the caffeine. According to [this](_URL_0_) we have certain \"channels\" in our taste buds that affect the way we perceive flavor at different temperatures. These channels are called TRPM5. There was a scientific study done o... | [
"Well, it's a matter of expectations. And it's not a matter of liquid vs solid. If you drink a room temperature Pepsi, it will seem warm, because you're used to it being served cold. If you have a coffee at room temperature it will seem cold because you're used to it being served hot. I am sure you've eaten potato ... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query about Language and culture:",
"pos": "Represent the answer about Language and culture:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
Why do many herbivore's horns point backwards instead of forwards? | [
"Many herbivores with horns such as those use them to show who the better mate between the males is. Or would be better to lead the pack. It is a show of dominance, but the intent is usually not to kill. You are right, horns facing forward would be better for killing, but that isn't what they are intended for to be... | [
"They eyes front for predators rule only seems to apply to land creatures. On land, the things that you need to see are usually near the ground. You don't need to be able to see what is directly above or below you. Fish do. Having eyes on the side of your head lets you see above and below much better than having yo... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why did people lose their retirement funds during the recession? Wasn't it protected or guaranteed? | [
"Sensible investors didn't lose anything. The proper way to save for retirement is to automatically rebalance your portfolio as you get closer to retirement age. Basically there are some investments that grow faster, but can also lose faster in a recession - like stocks. Then other investments grow more slowly, but... | [
"They didn't. The Federal Government implemented the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to make people trust the banks again. All banks are forced to pay the FDIC for its protection, and the benefit is that all accounts of up to $100,000 are 100% ensured against bank failure. If the bank goes out of business, yo... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
Do musicians get paid everytime one of their songs is played on any radio station at any given time? | [
"They do get paid royalties, but it's not a one-to-one pay out (i.e. you typically do not get paid in relation to each time your song is played). Basically radio stations report which songs they've played during what programs to performing rights organizations which then decide how to divide up the royalties approp... | [
"Spotify also has a paid subscription service. It takes that money and divides it up between it's own running costs and paying artists every time one of their songs is played."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
Why is the word ignorant used as an insult, when everyone is ignorant. | [
"Ignorant is used as an insult regarding things you are supposed to know."
] | [
"We do, yet it is rare and are not always considered as true swear words. For example the word \"faggot\", never used to mean anything yet has reached the point of being a swear word. A swear word is, in essence just a word that has been given the power to offend people. I phrased it really badly, yet I think the p... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
If nature is so jagged, colorful, and seemingly random (yes, I know all about the golden ratio), why do us humans find straight lines, clean edges, and muted colors so aesthetically pleasing? | [
"2 things most likely. 1) We like these things because they are different from nature. We can get all the other stuff from nature easy enough, but we have to work at making a straight line. 2) Nature is dangerous. Disease, predators, poisons, and natural disasters are all natural, so why should we necessarily desir... | [
"Great question. To my knowledge there is no science on oddly satisfying videos and why we find them so enjoyable. However, it probably stems from human's liking symmetry so much. There have been studies where humans find the face that is symmetrical more attractive than the one that is not. A lot of oddly satisfyi... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the argument:",
"neg": "Represent the argument about Psychology:"
} |
How does the 3DS work? | [
"I assume you mean the 3D aspect? when the 3d is activated, the screen disaplays two slightly different images visible at different angles. one image is seen by your left eye, the other by your right. the images are such that they create the illusion of depth."
] | [
"Costlier to put a 360 or PS3 emulator on the system."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title about technology:",
"pos": "Represent the document about technology:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
how could the Romans build 220 ships in 45 days? | [
"You really have to take into perspective of how massive the roman populations expanded to at that time. And it's not exactly to say they built cruise ships, but smaller more manageable ships and boats; *as well as* the high level of slave driving and forced prisoner labor that took place."
] | [
"Modern Soldiers. But, Evolution wouldn't have had time to make a noticeable impact in 3000 years."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why do people tends to shift to the right (ie - adopt more conservative views) as they age? | [
"The way it was put to me was somewhere along the lines of \"You don't become conservative until you have something to conserve\"."
] | [
"No, there is no gene that makes someone Liberal or Conservative. It's about the environment they grow up in that determines how they think about such things."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
What exactly gets lost when mass gets converted into energy? | [
"Nothing gets 'lost' per se, that mass represents the energy (and some other stuff) that was originally bound up in the Hydrogen atoms. Helium atoms use less energy to keep everything together than two Hydrogen atoms, so some of that energy gets ejected from the newly minted helium atom. And that's how our sun shin... | [
"Repelling each other requires energy. Some of that is released as heat."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph about Physics:"
} |
Why is it a bad idea to put dental glue for braces all over your teeth to prevent damage or for less maintenance? | [
"It's easier and less expensive to just brush and floss, but even if you could encase your teeth in a protective shell, you would still need to brush and floss to protect your gums from disease. People with crowns, which cover the exposed tooth and cannot get cavities, can still develop cavities around the edge of ... | [
"SecureThruObscure explained the shield, but not what the light itself is for. The light is used to harden a special type of glue which is used on your teeth. It is designed to turn to cement only when exposed to the super bright light, which is why the dentist needs such a bright light which would hurt his eyes if... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why is that when we flick an ant with our finger, it continues to walk around unharmed, where as if a human were reduced to the size of an ant and flicked the same way, it would end up being killed by the physical damage alone? | [
"Square-cube law. Ants have a sturdy structure which would immediately collapse if they were human-sized."
] | [
"Because they hit the ground with significantly less force because they weigh less (and also because they probably have a very slow terminal velocity). If the ground were to hit the bug with the same force that it hits you, the bug would die. If you were to drop just chuck one of your legs off the roof, it also mig... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How do they get the ketchup into those little drive-thru packages? | [
"[Like this](_URL_0_). ^This ^useless ^sentence ^brought ^to ^you ^by ^AutoModerator's ^Nazi ^length ^requirements."
] | [
"There's a bag full of Easy Cheese. They stick the bag in a can. If you look on the bottom of all the cans, there's always a rubber cork. The cork is what they seal the hole with after they pump gas into the bottom of the can under the bag to pressurize it. So cheese goes in bag, bag goes in can, gas goes in can, g... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Hollywood Pedophilia | [
"Not an expert. But my understanding is that they have easy access to actors - actors need to please to get good parts: this includes handsome guys, cute girls, teens and kids. They have parties with a lot of drugs. They are often creative, sometimes deviant. Omerta: no one says anything even if everyone knows."
] | [
"Sleep - Shake Unconscious - Splash Coma - Wait and Hope Vegetative State - Wait and Bury"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why does the human eye see more shades of green than any other colour? | [
"this is due to the Spectral sensitivity of the eye it perceve a larger intencity of green and red light than it does for blue, the eye has 3 type of colour receptors called cones and rods that are associated to the 3 primary colours, the amount of cones and rods for the 3 colours are not equal so you might perceve... | [
"Brown isn't a color in its own right. It's a phenomenon of our brain interpreting a certain mix of colors. Edit: brown can be made from mixing any two colors on opposite ends of the color wheel: yellow and purple, blue and orange, red and green."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
How can a telescope detect oxygen? | [
"Spectroscopy. Different atoms and molecules absorb/emit light at different wavelengths. Spectroscopy is basically an analysis of the light we see coming from an object (an emission spectrum). We can compare that light to the emission patterns of elements and tell what a planet or star is made of."
] | [
"Those first object are either gigantic, or they emit light or both. Pluto doesn't emit light and its quite small. Also think of what 'High Res' means for a galaxy. 1 Pixel = 1 Star?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the text:",
"neg": "Represent the text about astronomy:"
} |
What are the origins of the Baptist church? | [
"The original baptist church was started by a minister who had split from the Anglican church (the Church of England). From there it grew and spread, came to the new world, and became very diverse. Today it is not a guarantee that two baptists from different congregations (this means a church community) will believ... | [
"The main reason is because of the religious background of the United States."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How does Albert Einstein's equation E=MC^2 relate to the creation of the atomic bomb? | [
"Atomic bombs, you see, work on a very complicated principle. To put it simply, a more-or-less \"normal\" explosion, but a VERY precise one, is used to start a chain reaction in a metal like uranium or plutonium(a radioactive, and thus unstable, metal.) The actual chain reaction...well, even I don't know much about... | [
"All mass is energy, but not all energy is mass. This is a result of Einstein's special theory of relativity."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why can I never remember falling asleep? | [
"Here's the scary thing: This must be what it's like to die, except you never wake up and have the memory of attempting to go to sleep."
] | [
"And why don't I need it when I fall asleep on the couch?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document about Science:"
} |
why we get goosebumps when we hear a particularly beautiful voice or a certain scene in a movie? | [
"The human brain is pretty amazing; it doesn't have to actually experience something to respond to it. Some external stimuli (e.g. a scene in a movie) can lead your brain to start acting like you are experiencing that scene in real life. This leads to the release of chemicals in the brain (neurotransmitters, hormon... | [
"I think it’s because we respond to music the same way we respond to sex and great food. It hits the same pleasure centres in the brain. It floods your brain with dopamine. Which is why you might feel those shivers through your skull, spine, body when you’re listening to a song that really gets to you. Also we’re d... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query about Science:",
"pos": "Represent the passage about Science:",
"neg": "Represent the passage about Science:"
} |
How do we know that a machine isn't deceiving us during a Turing test by simulating detectable machine answers so the AI remains undetected? | [
"Theoretically it's possible that someday there could be an intelligent machine that tried to hide its own intelligence. Today we know that's not the case because we understand how all of the machines that have ever competed in Turing tests actually work. They're all designed to fool an unsuspecting human for a few... | [
"> Why are AI's so difficult to create? Because we currently don't fully understand the nature of consciousness or self-awareness. It's hard to replicate what we don't understand. > Also - has an AI ever asked us a question in order to gain information it needs to solve a problem? No, because we've never created a... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
why do your pupils dilate when you take Psychedelic drugs? | [
"depends on the drugs or your definition of psychedelic. if you mean sensory hallucinations (drugs known as hallucinogens) then its because they generally act as stimulants (another word for drugs that overclock your brain) and since your eyes are now processing more light back at the cerebral end and your heart ra... | [
"Adding to the question. Why do people do this while on ecstasy, cocaine, adderall, etc.?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the argument:",
"neg": "Represent the argument:"
} |
How much effect does Central Park have on New York City's air quality? | [
"Ever spit into the ocean? It's about that much effect."
] | [
"Why are we concerned about losing forests when there are plenty of trees by my house? Why are we concerned about global warming when it's cold outside right now? My house isn't representative of world's forests, my city isn't representative of the world's climate, and Spain isn't representative of the world's popu... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the passage:",
"neg": "Represent the passage:"
} |
Why are some former presidents referred to as former President and some referred to as President? | [
"\"President\" is an official title, but it is also a job. If you were ever the President of the United States, you are entitled to use the title President for the rest of your life. Thus, everyone who was ever President is titled \"President\", but every one except Barack Obama is also a \"former President\"."
] | [
"Mr. President takes precedent. He may still be called Dr. Carson like people may say Mr. Obama or Mr. Bush, but formally he is still Mr. President and President Carson."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How do divers that don't have an oxygen tank not get brain damage from lack of air? | [
"Mammals have bodily reflexes to being underwater known as [mammalian diving reflex](_URL_0_). Heart rates are reduced and our bodies let the outer layers cool(by not delivering blood) so that it can conserve oxygen. As babies fresh out of the womb this reflex is generally very strong but we lose it overtime, free ... | [
"No because decompression issues only arise if you breathe air that has compressed nitrogen or other gases in it under pressure which expand upon resurfacing. Whales hold their breath so they do not have that issue. In a vacuum they would just die from not having oxygen."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
Why must an FCC approved device accept interference that may cause "undesired operation"? | [
"It means that the device has a low priority on the hierarchy of communications, so if something is interfering with it, tough titty. As an example posted on a thread I found about this, someone pointed out that amateur radio and wireless LANs share a frequency band. Because amateur radio is on a higher priority th... | [
"They don't. Airplane systems are shielded against unexpected interference. The concern is the fact that cell phones advance quicker than they can test the effects of their signals. Cell phones don't affect airplanes, but they're banned because a future cell phone might."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
what does it mean to wear your heart on your sleeve? | [
"It is a metaphor. It means that you allow your emotions to show- people can tell easily if you are happy, sad, angry, etc- ether by what you say, or how you act/compose yourself."
] | [
"Because we get tired of the lack of empathy when we're honest about our feelings. We put on a mask that is a caricature of the world we hate Source: I'm the life of the party weekly, and contemplate suicide several times a year."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
If water makes up 70% of our earth and we have things such as water purifiers, why are we running out of drinking water on our planet? | [
"We're *not* running out. The problem isn't the amount of drinking water, it's the *distribution* of the water. Most developed countries could probably hydrate their population 50 times over, if they wanted (assuming there's no drought). Whereas, for example, in hot African countries where water is scarce, contains... | [
"Water we use to bathe, shower, drink, cook with, etc. is all water that has been filtered, processed, and otherwise tinkered with. Yes, it all goes back to the water cycle, but there are costs involved with getting the water to your home in a sanitary state. The less you use, the less water needs to be processed i... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence:"
} |
What would happen if the Yellowstone super volcano erupted? | [
"Since this is a science question, I figured I'd use the search function of r/askscience to find you some relevant submissions there. Look what I found! - [This thread](_URL_0_). - [This thread](_URL_2_). - [This thread](_URL_1_). And you know what? None of them are complicated. Enjoy your reading. :-)"
] | [
"No. It's not happening any time soon. No reason to worry about something that won't happen for a long time. Yellowstone displays no signs of a future eruption and it will be thousands of years between starting to display signs and actually doing it. The most recent supereruption was six hundred and thirty thousand... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
why is it that we are able to subconsciously control our bladders when we sleep? How is it that we manage not to piss ourselves? | [
"Your body releases a hormone while you sleep called vasopressin which inhibits the production of urine. You produce less urine while you sleep, and it's a thicker, more dense liquid (partly because of the hormone, partly because you're not drinking while you're asleep). People who have lower naturally occurring l... | [
"If people could control their heartbeat they would forget and die. If they could control the movement of food through their system, they would stop it too often because it is inconvenient to 'go' at that moment, you'd get blocked up and die. If you had no instinct to breathe, everytime you fell asleep, you'd suffo... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title about NSFW:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit post about NSFW:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit post about Biology:"
} |
Why are dinosaurs marketed so much toward kids instead of other animals? | [
"Dinosaurs only exist in the toy aisle of the store. For contrast, ponies are a real thing. You can actually buy your kid a pony, and teach it all about how much a pony eats and the work involved in picking up after a pony. There is a mix of upside and downside with a pony. Where I grew up, many kids had a \"pet\"... | [
"I think it has more to do with psychology than physiology: adventure is more important to children than comfort. Our priorities shift as we get older."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
Why do Americas call "Back Bacon", "Canadian Bacon" and when did that start? | [
"It is called both Canadian Bacon and to a far lesser degree Irish Bacon or Back Bacon in the US. This is because they are the cuts that the Canadians and Irish (as well as the UK) call bacon. They are from the pork loin which is the back muscles toward the rear of the pig. But what we Americans call bacon is from... | [
"I'm American (from New York) and I've never heard of anything called \"Turkish Delight\" other than Lokum. Could you link a picture or something?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
Why do we use the word "late" when talking about deceased people? | [
"One lesser-known meaning of \"late\" is \"recently, but not any more\". If, for example, you say, \"A man late of London,\" you mean he used to live in London until just a short time ago, but now he lives somewhere else. From that came the expression \"The late Mrs Smith,\" which was used as a euphemism to avoid u... | [
"A follow-up question: Why do some people love that feeling while others detest it?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the paragraph:"
} |
Why isn't a Bluetooth connection instant? | [
"Whenever two electronic devices talk to each other they go through what's called a \"handshake\" - basically it's the two devices trying to negotiate a common ground and make sure they can continue speaking in a stable fashion. > Device A: \"Hey! Hey is anyone there?\" > Device B: \"Yeah, I'm here. Hi, I'm B. Wa... | [
"I have a similar question and couldn't find an answer. ELI5: Does this affect me in any way? Is it dangerous to click an imgur link now?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why is shampoo almost always colored but conditioner is almost always white? | [
"Hm, I guess that hasn't been my experience. Besides white I've had pink, blue, and yellow conditioner. Maybe it's just the brand you're buying?"
] | [
"Try using soap or body wash on your hair, it will make it dry, rough, and damaged. So, actually, don't do that. Using shampoo on your skin can cause it to become slimy because of the extra ingredients. In addition, they have a different pH level. Shampoo is more acidic. When you use body wash as shampoo, it will s... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the post:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
Who notifies Google about newly made roads for their maps? | [
"There are companies specialized in this sort of thing. They monitor local government announcements, planning permissions, etc., and when they see a new road is being constructed, they will go and collect the data. Google's maps business is big enough for them to own some companies like that as a subsidiary, but so... | [
"Your GPS does not. The maps app does. How? Because countless other people are using the app and apple is using data from their travel to determine traffic conditions in real time."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence:"
} |
What is the difference between being a line cook and a chef? | [
"Cool, that makes sense. I recently became the kitchen manager of my restaurant six months ago, the only reason why is because everyone else who worked there quit. But I make new recipes constantly and everyone calls me chef, but it feels weird."
] | [
"How much demand is there for a poet or painter, compared to a lawyer or doctor?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit sentence:"
} |
What's the difference between the words 'Muslim' and 'Islamic'? | [
"\"Muslim\" refers to people. \"Islamic\" refers to everything *but* people: \"Islamic art\" \"Islamic architecture\" \"the Islamic world.\" Like that."
] | [
"ISIS stands for: Islamic State Iraq Syria So all together it's The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment:"
} |
Why does the U.S. always side with Israel over Palestine? | [
"There's no diplomatic way to say this — Israel is considered to be culturally similar to the US, it has a representative government with stable political institutions, and American Jews (who tend to support Israel) are an important domestic political constituency."
] | [
"Because the U.S. is allied with Turkey and doesn't want to piss Turkey off."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why do those cheesy pictures that get shared on Facebook always looks so grainy and pixelated? | [
"They tend to pick up artifacts because the original image has gone through a chain of hundreds of computing devices which used different file formats and resolutions and so on. People do stupid shit with their files like opening them in Paint to edit them (adding/removing watermarks, resizing, adding/removing text... | [
"I would imagine it’s the same reason why cellphones cause airplanes to crash and gas tanks to blow up. They don’t. They just want people to pay attention to what they are doing instead of taking photos. Also flashes are super annoying. Could you imagine trying to enjoy a painting in a dimly lit room and suddenly 3... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
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