query stringlengths 19 300 | pos list | neg list | task stringclasses 1 value | instruction dict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Why are bitter citrus fruit harder to peel? | [
"The bitter ones we humans haven't cultivated into tasty fruits that are easy to eat. The closer to natural you go, the less sweet and harder to peel citrus get."
] | [
"As certain fruits get ripe, the malic acid in them decreases, causing unripe (green) fruits such as apples and grapes to be high on malic acid, making them more sour."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
How do lottery ticket companies make sure their workers don't track down the winning tickets that they print? | [
"A computer prints the numbers on the scratchoff tickets as they roll through the printing presses at a thousand tickets a minute and the machine also coats the tickets with the scratch off coating in the same process. So when they come out of the press all the employee sees is the completed tickets in a giant sta... | [
"Having the lotto winner make a public appearance is the only way the lotto can appear legitimate. Millions of people lose day in, day out. If the lotto winner was anonymous people would think they reset the jackpot and didn't pay out because it got unaffordable. The lotto doesn't want to be seen as the lousy scam... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the comment:",
"neg": "Represent the comment:"
} |
Why do astronomers look for planets that could possibly support life when it is technically impossible to transfer the population into it? And even traveling would take many, many years. | [
"Many years ago going to the moon seemed Imposible, Negativity ain't gonna bring ya nowhere bruh"
] | [
"We don't know 100% that they are clean, but we do know 99.99%. The organisms here on earth simply would not survive on either surface. The environments are extremely hostile to organisms which require oxygen and water to survive. Furthermore, in the time frame of millions of years, it's much more likely we'll dir... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query about science:",
"pos": "Represent the paragraph about science:",
"neg": "Represent the paragraph:"
} |
Are facial expressions natural or a construct of our society? | [
"[Studies show](_URL_0_) certain facial expressions are universal. A study of blind people has shown that \"anger, contempt, disgust, sadness, surprise and multiple types of smiles\" were consistent across the seeing and non-seeing."
] | [
"Humans rely on culture and other things we are taught rather than inborn instinct for a lot of things, so I would lean more to the side of \"learned behaviour.\" Cultural perceptions of animals vary a lot. This implies that caring about animals is not a human instinct."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
What it takes for a Third World city to achieve good governance and a high quality of life for its residents ? | [
"There is an entire academic discipline devoted to this question. If anyone had a definitive, ELI5-able answer for it, they'd probably have a Nobel prize coming."
] | [
"These things can make a country rich: - Good government - Natural resources - Advanced technology research and development - Educated workforce A country that lacks these will generally be poor. Bad government is so harmful, by itself it can make a country poor."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the passage:",
"neg": "Represent the passage:"
} |
Why does it make a difference in taste, if the water I brew tea with has boiled or not? | [
"It's about temperature and solubility. Coffee is the same way, you're toeing a fine line with certain flavor compounds that come out at certain temps. For instance, if you boil the water, once it's all mixed in with the tea leaves it'll sit at say 204F (95C), this is hot enough to get all of the good flavors out o... | [
"Because most coffee you drink is hotter than room temperature, so in comparison to what you expect the coffee to feel like, a coffee at room temperature would feel cold. But we usually drink milk from the refrigerator so when it's a room temperature it's hotter than what you expect. And the reason why coffee is us... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer about Language and culture:"
} |
How is betting different to buying shares? | [
"They are somewhat similar in the fact that there is a chance that you will either lose or gain money in both situations but that's as far as the similarities go. In a bet you either win or lose and, in turn gain or lose a predetermined amount of money. When you buy a share, or \"stock\" in a company you are actu... | [
"There is a big difference between a random person gambling on a game, and a person who could affect the outcome gambling on a game."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
How were cartoon sound effects produced such as those from Hannah-Barbera and 80's-90's anime? | [
"They had people called \"foley artists\" who would record unique sounds. Some of these sounds would be kept in a library of sounds that could be reused, other sounds would be recorded specifically for individual purposes. They'd use anything and everything imaginable. People still do it today, and it's not just ca... | [
"Remember the old days when we only watched high-quality animations of great redeeming social value, like - Rocko - Cow and Chicken - Ren and Stimpy etc.. yeah."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question about Animation:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document about Animation:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why do i sometimes hear voices in my head when trying to sleep? | [
"Very few schizophrenics hear voices the way you describe them despite common misconceptions. So please ignore those fears. Instead you are engaging in a very common phenomena know as a pre-sleep dream or Hypnagogia. During the onset of sleep the brain fires impulses despite relaxation occurring and produces small ... | [
"Actually the counting sheep's doesn't work. I read something about it but I'm too lazy to do the research right now. Anyway what you have to do is take your head off things. Read a book, try to think about a movie. Don't watch TV or use your tablet because the blue light they emit is bad for your sleep."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit sentence:"
} |
Why are white rats mainly used for studies instead of other rodent species? | [
"Lab rats are often of a particular strain, or a family that mice are taken from that are as genetically identical as possible. This is to be able to conduct effective studies on the effect of individual genes, and partly to limit the effect of genetic diversity in influencing the results of trials. Several of thes... | [
"If you are referring to lab rats used in cancer studies, then they are specifically genetically created to get cancer. If they don't we give them cancer. Its not a pretty process, but we need to test cures on living creatures, and its a lot of paperwork killing people with failed cures. As far as I know normal rat... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why is the Magna Carter so famous ? | [
"It is the \"Magna Carta\" and it was a document signed by the Nobles of England and was the first document to start to limit the powers of Monarchy in \"modern\" European history. It is the touchstone base for what became the British Parliamentary system and was at least in part one of the influential documents fo... | [
"What's to explain? Why we have it? How it works?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit post:"
} |
Why is time considered an Illusion? | [
"Time isn't an illusion, it's a fundamental parameter of the universe. It's not a construct of human imagination it's an inherent property of the universe."
] | [
"Not really an explanation, but here's an interesting way to put it: Pre-modern: This is the truth. Modern: We can find the truth. Post-modern: There is no such thing as truth."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment:"
} |
The differences between rocks, minerals, gemstones, and crystals? | [
"**Rock** is a more generic term for any kind of hard, brittle mineral composite. Usually they're mostly silicate with some impurities and their structure varies significantly between types. Rocks have classifications and types, but usually not a specific chemical formula. A **mineral** is more specific, they are n... | [
"The science of determinig the properties of a material such as: Melting Point, Boiling Point, viscocity, solubility, reactivity, hardness, elasticity, and I'm sure a bunch of other qualities that I don't even know to ask about. It includes inventing new materials that have qualities usefull to varrious application... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why do investors buy collapsing companies debts? | [
"There are quite a few reasons they do this, and a lot depends on what the bankrupt company does and why it is bankrupt. Possible scenarios include but are not limited to: * A company is bankrupt but still has assets that can be of value to the purchaser such as a built-in customer base, a valuable brand name, phy... | [
"Two main ways: - They charge you fees and interest to do your banking and loan you money - They invest their own money, as well as their clients' money, in everything from stocks and bonds to foreign currencies and venture capital."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
Why is there controversy over the seasonal starbucks cup? | [
"Because there are no snowflakes on it and it is plain and christians think they are denouncing christmas..... Im not joking"
] | [
"Why do some parts of the world call gasoline petrol?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why do movies from the 60s and 70s (Dollars Trilogy, Spartacus, Lawrence of Arabia, Bond films) appear to be both visually sharper/textured, more saturated, yet less deep/dimensional than films from the 80s up to the present? | [
"I don't think I agree with your premise, but there are several things that could be going on. For one thing, movie prints can fade and need restoration. The older movies you speak of are all classics and you've probably seen carefully restored versions of them. Whereas most movies from the 80s may be too new to ge... | [
"I'd be curious about what kind of time frame you're thinking of. It seems like generally movies have been shorter since about the arrival of the 1980s, before that there were a lot of huge movies in all sorts of genre from the Godfather and Once Upon a Time In America to 2001 and The Seven Samurai. The very early ... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the comment:",
"neg": "Represent the comment:"
} |
If the Unverse is constantly expanding, what is it expanding into? | [
"Dr Karl had a nobel laureate in physics (Brian Schmidt) on his show a few months ago, and he pointed out that what you need to bear in mind is that you aren't talking about space expanding, but rather spacetime. In a sense, you could look at it as \"expanding into\" the future, he said."
] | [
"When the big bang first occurred, space expanded faster than the speed of light. No object can move faster than the speed of light, but the space between can. Also we are still expanding, in fact it is speeding up, due to dark energy."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post about Physics:",
"pos": "Represent the document about Physics:",
"neg": "Represent the document about astronomy:"
} |
How are spies from foreign countries tried in courts in the United States? | [
"Most likely they get charged with espionage in accordance with the Espionage Act of 1917. The crime is against the US as a whole so the defendants will be tried in Federal Court. Any lawyer they can afford can defend them and if they can not afford an attorney, an attorney will be provided. Why would the US liste... | [
"The FBI works inside the U.S. to prosecute domestic crimes. The CIA works outside the U.S. to maintain an intelligence presence in the rest of the world."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
will they ever go after the actual person(s) who wrote and built the code for Volkswagen to cheat the emissions testing? | [
"When a company does something wrong, you sue the company, not the CEO, or the manager, or the engineer. This is what's called corporate personhood. So no, they won't go after the person who wrote the code."
] | [
"Because the GM issue was because of stupidity. They never made the engineering connection of \"hey if the car shuts off randomly the airbag doesn't work, what if someone hits some thing?\". Where as VW knowingly and intentionally cheated the system to look like they were meeting emissions compliance."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Does night mode have a practical function, or is it purely cosmetic? | [
"It is easier on your eyes. Bright light is especially bad at night since it can trick your body into disrupting your circadian (day-night) rhythm, leading to insomnia or other sleep issues."
] | [
"Generally, because a better camera will take up more space in interest for space, manufacturers will only put one high-quality camera, which will usually be in the back, due to most people valuing the back facing camera over the front facing camera. This is not always true because if I remember correctly there was... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why does the Thompson SMG have a higher muzzle velocity than M1911? | [
"barrel length. once a round exits the barrel it's no longer being pushed by the pressure of the explosion of powder. If you increase the time (read: length) that the bullet is pushed the more velocity is imparted onto it by that force."
] | [
"Because they're not always the exact same device. The M16 has a selector switch for safe, semi-automatic, and full auto or 3 round burst. The AR-15 can only support semi-automatic. Militaries have different standards for equipment that might not be available to the public such as materials or proprietary designs ... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the post:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
Why do diabetes 2 patients sometimes need amputations?? | [
"They are generally also at high risk to develop peripheral artery disease, where plaque deposition in the arteries of the limbs starts restricting blood flow. Eventually flow is too restricted to properly support the tissue, and it can die or become severely infected."
] | [
"It's not glucose that the body needs, it's insulin. Which the pancreas no longer produces and why people w/ type 1 diabetes need to take insulin."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the text:",
"neg": "Represent the text:"
} |
If you were to only drink 3,500 calories, and not eat any calories, will you still experience gain in weight? What's the different between calories you consume eating versus drinking (like soda, a starbuck caramel frapuchino, etc) | [
"calories are calories. but some calories come with vitamins and minerals and fiber whatnot etc that your body needs. if you eat 3500 calories vs drink 3500 calories and get the same vitamins and minerals and fiber whatnot etc it's exactly the same."
] | [
"You can take multivitamins to get your vitamins & minerals because the recommended daily intake is often only a few milligrams. One or two pills can supply everything you need. It doesn't work that way with the things you need to get *energy* from. To hit a 2000 calorie diet with just eating fat (the most energy d... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the text:",
"neg": "Represent the text:"
} |
Why are my visual memories sometimes in third person? | [
"It's pretty common. After some time, episodic memories become semantic memories. That is, memories you can visualize become facts you can recall. So sometimes when we try to recall those memories visually, it's in third person because you are wanting to see yourself. You may be able to find that with a little effo... | [
"We don't know, there isn't an answer yet. There are a few theories, and some are fairly ridiculous, The brain interprets the input from one eye then the other causing the image to seem familiar. A small mistake during the brain's construction of the situation results in a false sense of familiarity. A mix up betwe... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph about Cognitive Science:"
} |
What is it exactly that makes noise when you hear sizzles while standing under a high voltage electric line? | [
"These are [corona discharges](_URL_1_). The electric field becomes sharp enough immediately surrounding the wires that any randomly-generated free electrons in the air will crash into other molecules and produce more free electrons and ions. An AC corona alternates between positive (electrons inward) and negative ... | [
"The pipes are grounded, but you are a really good conductor and closer to the ground."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the text:",
"neg": "Represent the text:"
} |
What data does Windows 10 actually send to Microsoft? Is it really anything bad? | [
"It actually sends every keystroke you type. Now Microsoft says this is to help improve it's spelling corrections, but with a warrant the FBI could use it for other things. It's not stored for a long time, by default, but that doesn't mean they couldn't be ordered to keep records for longer. Cortana sends every sou... | [
"1. They collect data on you by default for targeted advertising. 2. They have a lot of services that default or redirect to Bing, which they get ad revenue from. 3. Much of their business comes from corporations using their products, not individual users. Indeed, Enterprise builds are not covered by the same upgra... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment:"
} |
If games can render near photo-realistic graphics in real-time, why does 3D animation software (e.g Blender) take hours or even days to render simple animations? | [
"Games use a lot of tricks to fake the photorealism at less cost than doing it for real (compressing textures, popins, etc.). The most important one is the lighting. You may notice that shadows don't always look right in games. You know how when you hold something colored under a light, it starts to glow that color... | [
"CGI is used in video games. Everything in video games is done in CGI. The difference between video games and movies is that the CGI in video games has to finish in real time (so if your game is running at 60fps, it needs to finish in 1/60th of a second), while movies can spend hours building the CGI for each secon... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query about videogame development:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence about videogame development:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence:"
} |
Why do multi-vitamins contain more than 100% of certain nutrients? | [
"Something people haven't patronized yet on here is bioavailability & bioaccessibility; even if it says 100%, you don't really get a 1:1 ratio of access/usage from it, same as when you eat food. Also, the daily recommended requirements are often really low, more like a \"this is good enough so you don't outright ha... | [
"working out? Yes, as you don't gain any vitamins or minerals from just exercise. But they can be beneficial if you are unable to consume foods that have certain vits/mins in them. For example lactose intolerant individuals often take calcium supplements. But as long as you eat a balanced diet from all the differen... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why car manufacturers sometimes have different names for the same car model in different markets? | [
"Sometimes it's a marketing reason, and sometimes it's copyright or trademark law. For example, back in the 1960s, Ford wanted to export the Mustang to Germany. However, a German company, Krupp, was already using the name \"Mustang\" on a line of delivery trucks. Because Krupp already had the rights to use the name... | [
"* A product is something you buy. A car is a product. * A corporation is an organization that creates a product. Toyota is a corporation. * A brand is a name associated with the product, to differentiate it from other products. Prius is a brand. * The company's name is also often a brand. Toyota is a brand. * A pr... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
Why do some people not remember anything when they get drunk? | [
"To expand on tstorm1986's comment, I believe ethanol specifically inhibits the short-term-to-long-term memory transfer process, thus making those people unable to remember even the smallest action more than 5 minutes afterwards, or as soon as they start thinking of something else. ELI5 version: A tiny amount of th... | [
"The basis for saying alcohol destroys brain cells was from a man applying alcohol directly to brain cells in a Pitre dish. Drinking doesn't actually kill brain cells when people drink, because it's not coming into direct contact in such a high concentration. If it actually acted like that, people would be severely... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title about Science:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document about Science:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why is it considered grammatically incorrect to use 'ain't'? | [
"I ain't saying that you're wrong, but I ain't saying you're right either. It's not grammatically incorrect to use ain't, it's just informal. In any formal writing, \"am not\" is much preferred. Funnily enough the word \"amn't\" which actually makes my spell check say it isn't a word is also defined, and is also th... | [
"Although technically 'I'm' is a contraction of 'I am', there are differences in usage. 'I'm' is less formal, and is is universally followed with more words which describe what you are, usually an adjective (eg, 'I'm tall'). For instance, if I you asked me if I was a reddit poster, I could say 'I am', but I couldn'... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the comment:",
"neg": "Represent the comment:"
} |
how could depression affect us physically? | [
"It often makes your sleep and appetite wonky, which makes you feel physically bad in other ways-- if you've been asleep all day and haven't really eaten, you'll probably feel like shit."
] | [
"why do we yawn when we read about yawning?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query about Health and Wellness:",
"pos": "Represent the document about Health and Wellness:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
If Colds are passed on by an infected creature, how did the first creature get it? | [
"We're not really sure how viruses started. A virus is basically a chunk of DNA (or RNA) on it's own that can break into living cells and take over those cells to make it produce more viruses. Nobody's sure if viruses evolved as an offshoot of cellular life or if they're just a random corruption of broken-down cell... | [
"If the virus is not present, no you can't. The virus would have to be in there first, or you would have to bring it in with you. Getting a cold has absolutely nothing to do with the temperature you are in, that's a myth. Also a cold is caused by a virus, not bacteria."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the passage:",
"neg": "Represent the passage:"
} |
Why don't televisions and other screen resolutions use "rounded" aspect ratios, e.g. 2000 by 1000 instead of 1920 by 1080? | [
"Read up about [aspect ratios](_URL_1_). Turns out that the first widespread standard ratio was 4:3, based upon the size of the physical film commonly in use. That particular ratio means that if you want both dimensions to be integers rather than including fractions thereof, there are only a few plausible ratios th... | [
"720p is 1280x720, which is 921,600 pixels. 1080p is 1920x1080, which is 2,073,600 pixels, or almost exactly 2 megapixels."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why are we using a loud, obnoxious *BEEP* to censor curse words? | [
"I was thinking the beeps are used for a humorous effect. If we can't have curse words out in the open in case there's children watching, we can at least have a laugh at the obnoxious beeping."
] | [
"The sound descriptions are even more interesting. \"Cat meowing quietly in distance.\" \"Car door closing.\" ... I didn't notice/recognize at least 50% of those without the subtitles."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
Why is my voice so much deeper in the morning? | [
"When you sleep, your vocal cords get looser, (vocal cords are muscles) so the vibrations are more bass-like. It takes a couple of seconds to tighten them up though"
] | [
"Is your hand bigger than your face? You might have cancer"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title about Health and Wellness:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document about Health and Wellness:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document about Health:"
} |
Why do electric cars have such a low top speed for their horsepower? | [
"Perhaps they are more concerned with efficient power consumption than going faster than a Lambo?"
] | [
"Cars need a fair amount of power for quick acceleration, and they need long gearing to get good gas mileage. The byproduct of long gearing and ample power is a top speed well in excess of the national speed limit. So manufacturers would have to go out of their way to limit the top speed artificially, for which th... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the post:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
If just a couple "specks" of fentanyl is enough to kill a person, and one can overdose merely by touching it, how is it that people are able to ingest it without dying? | [
"Prescription drugs are obviously produced in a form factor such that people won't immediately die from being around them. The fentanyl lollipops that are prescribed do, indeed, have only tiny amounts of the drug in them. But they're repeatable and reliable because they're manufactured by real drug companies who ca... | [
"When they say it's caused no deaths, they mean no one has ever died from marijuana intoxication. So it's impossible to smoke so much weed that you'll overdose and die. This is unlike other drugs like alcohol and heroin. Even if you're sitting at home, not doing anything dangerous, if you drink enough alcohol in on... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
Why do dogs grab their toys when really excited? | [
"They associate smells with objects too, which can draw them to things like owner's shoes. Showing off toys is less of a natural dog instinct, and more something we condition into them by praising them when they do cute stuff like pick up toys to play with"
] | [
"Why do you stare at your dog when it's taking a shit?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit post about Animal behavior:"
} |
Why do most animals have tails but humans do not? | [
"We did have a tail at some point in our evolution. But now we only have tails during part of the time we are embryos but it reduces to the tailbone or 'coccyx' before we are born. The functions that tails serve can all be accomplished by us through other means such as hands for manipulating objects, language for c... | [
"Why are noses different in size, why are people different heights, why do we have different hair colors?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the text:",
"neg": "Represent the text about Biology:"
} |
The location methods used by explorers like Columbus to record their findings and navigate home | [
"[Columbus was the first sailor who kept a detailed log of his voyages. We therefore know how Columbus navigated, and that he was a dead reckoning navigator. On the first voyage westbound, Columbus sticks to his (magnetic) westward course for weeks at a time. Only three times does Columbus depart from this course: ... | [
"Some interior regions were only correctly charted after flight, though that is different from whether all landmasses were correctly charted. Locations of rivers and mountains in interior regions of the Amazon rainforest, for example, were still being updated through the 1960s."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit argument:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit argument:"
} |
what do doctors/forensic specialists mean when they say a bullet "bounces around"? | [
"Because the body isn't a piece of homogenous mass. You've got bones inside you, and bones are pretty damn solid, especially compared to soft lead bullets. And as the bullet travels through you, all that mass begins to slow it down, making it more susceptible to ricochetting off something."
] | [
"They cant really. As you say, those injuries would be seconds or minutes apart. I'm studying medicine right now, and I've had to observe a few autopsies last year. They cant tell which came first or what. I mean sure they can differentiate between fresh wounds, earlier wounds, wounds from struggle, previous unrela... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
Why are operating systems written in C? | [
"Your OS needs to care about all the low-level details like interfacing with your hardware or managing memory. Languages running in VMs (Java, C#) or interpreters (Python) do not offer such functionality and adding them does not make any sense from a language point of view (because you actually do not _want_ them).... | [
"Programming languages require a compiler to convert the source code into machine code. This compiler is written in another language such as C. Once you have a working compiler, it's possible to use the language to create a compiler for another language. How did the first one come around to start all this? I'm not ... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why is running on a treadmill so much easier and less tiring than running outside? | [
"As far as I understand, the belt turnover of the treadmill contributes greatly to helping you run. The belt is guiding you towards running and as a result, most \"serious\" runners don't equate their time on a treadmill to be the same as what they would do when running outside. Aside from the ground not being a mo... | [
"It's a stress event. It's like asking why are you tired after a road trip, but not after sitting around the house all day. Driving may not be the worst thing ever, but it's certainly more taxing than watching Netflix on your couch."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the text:",
"neg": "Represent the text:"
} |
Why would a company like Mars modify one flavor of a candy like Skittles and then refuse to go back to the old flavor in the face of monumental backlash? | [
"\"Monumental backlash\" often is nothing more than a vocal minority complaining loudly and often about something they don't like. Those people are also likely to continue buying the product in spite of their vocal distaste. Mars knows that these people will fade away soon, and they probably haven't seen any apprec... | [
"Thanks to their advertisements everyone knows that Coca-Cola exists and make the best drink there ever is. According to their commercials everyone needs to drinks Coca-Cola every day and not water or any of that off brand Pepsi stuff. And when there ever is some ads about one of the other types of drinks then ther... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Does Earth appear as a bright planet? | [
"A few million light years away? That is an insane distance. Our entire galaxy is only ~100,000 light years in diameter. Even one lightyear away would be too far, not only is our planet not that bright, it is minuscule in comparison to the sun so anyone trying to look for us would just see our big, bright sun. This... | [
"They reflect the light of the sun. They are close by relatively speaking, so some of them appear bright in the sky."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
Why betting the same amount on two boxers to win will not always give a payout due to differing odds. | [
"Any real-world bookie is going to adjust the odds and payouts so that they get a cut for themselves (the vig). They're not working for charity."
] | [
"Initially they will make a very educated guess in setting the odds and then as bets come in on one side or the other they will adjust them to make sure the money is even on either side. Even money on both sides ensure they make money regardless"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why does PBS get the rights to BBC content where other networks do not? | [
"Downton Abbey is not a BBC production; it is created by ITV, a commercial television company. So whatever is the reason that PBS gets British shows, it's unlikely to be a specific agreement between them and the BBC."
] | [
"Because TV shows are licensed for use on a country by country basis. If some network in your country has paid for the right to air SNL there, they'd get pretty upset if someone could watch it for free somewhere else."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the paragraph:"
} |
How do coaxial cables transmit so much data with only one pin? | [
"Coax can carry more bandwidth (as in frequency spectrum). RG-6 coax can carry somewhere 1-3Ghz while Cat 6 Ethernet (8 wires) can only carry about 500 Mhz. The reason is the shielding is so good and the impedance of the RG-6 coax cable is guaranteed over a long distance. HD TV channels only need 6Mhz so a single ... | [
"Optical fibers are made of a glass-like material that has a property called total internal reflection. This means that light cannot escape; it simply bounces around inside the fiber. Rather than sending electricity through a conductor, fiber optic cables basically \"tunnel\" pulses of light. It's far more efficien... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why TV's/Monitors are rectangle and not square. | [
"We have two eyes, next to each other. So our area of vision is wider than it is tall. Screens reflect that fact."
] | [
"If you are referring to Watching a Movie on your TV is all about aspect ratio. \"Aspect ratio\" is the ratio of the width of a rectangle to its height. The ratio of your TV depends on its Size. The Black Boxes are often added so that instead of stretching or cropping the picture and distorting it, they add the bar... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
The difference between Gray and Grey | [
"Same difference between color and colour. Continent-based spelling differences."
] | [
"No, that's why it's called American Sign Language."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why do accents seem to disappear when singing? i.e. why do Aussies, Brits and Kiwis all seem to have american accents when they're singing? | [
"This old ELI5 had some real answers in it: _URL_0_ What I understand is that accents are largely derived from how long you hold certain sounds when speaking, but when singing regional differences go away because we all try to hold the same sounds the same length to sing \"correctly.\""
] | [
"The British accent? There are British accents that sound harsh and vulgar, but I guess it's due to a certain image. There's the southern belle that sounds refined and regal and that's an American accent. That's for the secondary question. To the first, I dunno. I'm an American so I don't know how hard it is for a ... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the comment:",
"neg": "Represent the comment:"
} |
Why is it wrong to discriminate against people for their political beliefs but there is public outcry when someone is anti-gay marriage etc. | [
"This post is not asking for a layman-friendly explanation to something complicated or technical, so it doesn't belong here and it's been removed. Entirely subjective questions generally belong in /r/askreddit. Asking \"why is this wrong\" or \"why is this ok\" is inherently subjective and so it doesn't belong here... | [
"Because it allows business owners to refuse service to those that conflict with their religious beliefs. While that might sound preferential in some ways, it effectively allows business owners to discriminate against certain groups of people, namely gays. It is being touted as a safeguard for Christian belief, rat... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why are tobacco companies allowed to continue selling products guaranteed to kill or do serious harm? | [
"Because it is worth a lot of money to the government!"
] | [
"Uh, because people would stop buying those products pretty damn quickly and their producers would be hugely demonized for putting harmful, addictive additives in their product to the detriment of their customers for their own benefit. Also, for many products (like food) it would just straight up be illegal."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence about Health:"
} |
Tipped employees/tipped wages/etc/ | [
"Even with a tip credit, it is illegal for you to earn less than minimum wage. Your tips + wage must add up to minimum wage. It's a way to pass part of the cost on to the consumer for employee wages. Not sure what the original reason for it was though."
] | [
"Companies get sued all the time for jobs at salaries/wages that (with the cost of driving the vehicle) drop the average pay below the minimum wage threshold... Source: Recipient of Lawsuit settlement from Pizza Hut for delivery drivers' pay being below minimum wage (when gas/vehicle maintenance is factored in)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence:"
} |
How do CEOs use their money if its all in stocks? | [
"It varies. 1. A CEO only takes the \"$1 salary\" with lots of stock if they can afford to do so. So...in many cases, the money is indeed locked up, they just live off the rest of their money. 2. You can sell some shares, assuming your stock is in a company that is reasonably liquid. This could be company buy-back... | [
"The richest people hold very little of their wealth in actual currency; most of it is tied up in various investments. The answer depends on how those investments are doing."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit argument:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit argument:"
} |
The definition of Liberalism | [
"Lots of people use the term to mean lots of different things. There is no one true definition anymore."
] | [
"in few words - the idea that there is no \"right\" answer."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
If feminist truly believe in equality then do feminist believe that men should have paternity leave as well in the work place? | [
"Depends which feminist you ask. \"Femnism\" is not a unified, codeified set of beliefs, there are so many movements and groups and waves within feminism that there's no single answer to your question, and different feminist groups could argue for days over it.."
] | [
"Equalism is the belief that all people are born equal, should be treated equal, and deserve no special treatment do to race, religion, sexuality, or gender, etc. Feminism only focuses on the gender aspect. Feminism is supposedly defined as the belief that men and women deserve equal rights, pay, treatment, etc. Fi... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the post:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
What are the beliefs of the Church of Scientology, and why are they hated? | [
"Their beliefs and practices are not fully known, the system is a hierarchy built on secret knowledge. It is one of the reasons they are hated and seen as a cult instead of a legitimate religion. Most religions will come to you door and tell you everything they know about what they believe for free. Also there hav... | [
"They are considered to be a cult. There is no law against cults in the U.S. so it doesn't really matter here. Germany is not so friendly to scientologists."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why do most of us forget our dreams? And some remember every minute of it? | [
"You remember your dreams vividly as soon as you wake up, but you begin forgetting immediately. Keep a journal next to your bed and the second you wake up, start writing down what you just dreamt about. Eventually you will remember your dreams in full detail and even begin to dream lucidly...which is pretty damn aw... | [
"So you wouldn't confuse reality with dreams. Since I've been on antidepressants, I've been remembering a lot of my dreams. Sometimes, I recall what happened in dreams as believing it had actually happened. For example, I dream that I had a conversation with a colleague. When I reference that conversation to my co... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title about Psychology:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document about Psychology:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why are there only 12 notes in music? | [
"It is all about the chords. Two notes played together sound pleasing when their waveforms line up nicely. Frequency ratios of 2:1 and 3:2 sound better than 13:9 or 23:17. 12, being divisible by 2, 3, 4, and 6, gives a lot of ways to hit these good ratios, in a way that 10 or 13 would not. Also, there are some mus... | [
"There are only 26 letters in English. Are writers limited by this?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the post:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
What is the difference between a "culture" and a "subculture" | [
"A subculture resides within a dominant culture. The simplest example is probably the African-American subculture existing within the larger North American culture. So you can see both are characterized by larger patterns: both eat at McDonald's, shop at Walmart, and watch the NFL on Sundays. But then there are th... | [
"How would you define \"winning\" a presidential debate?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why are sports contracts so outrageously high compared to avg worker wages? | [
"Professional sports make a lot of money. LOTS of money. The players feel that they should get a reasonable part of the money being made because they are the major reasons why people pay money for season tickets, buy jerseys and hats, or watch on TV. If your boss made millions of dollars off of your work, you'd wan... | [
"First, some get pretty decent salary. In California, a high school teacher starts at $42K, and can make up to $88K. The other issue is many only work 9 months a year. 3/4 the time = 3/4 the salary. Finally, most people in the public sector have much better benefits and retirement than in the private sector, so the... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
is drug resistant bacteria evolution? | [
"Yes, it is. It's a perfect example of it. There's a bacterial population infecting someone, they take the antibiotics till they feel better, but not until they clear the infection. There's a few of the bacteria that aren't immune but slightly better at surviving. Once the person stops the antibiotics because they ... | [
"Sanitizer does effectively kill all germs, claiming 100% would open the door to lawsuits. If you dont complete a prescription of antibiotics some bacteria will survive, weakened but not dead. Now that they've been exposed to it once, they can better resist future treatments. \"what doesnt kill me makes me stronge... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document about Science:"
} |
Why are there no heated snow shovels? I feel like this product is a no brainer. | [
"My experience with shoveling has taught me that wet snow sticks to the shovel, making it harder to move or throw the snow. A heated shovel would take normally cold, \"dry\" snow and turn it into heavy wet slush that sticks to the shovel."
] | [
"Software patents try to patent \"ways of doing things\". Imagine someone patenting the way you tie your shoelaces or button your shirt. This would mean that every time you tied your shoelaces or buttoned your shirt, you'd have to pay for it. That is the controversial part. Hell, imagine some big corporation patent... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why can we make synthetic oil but not synthetic gasoline? | [
"we can. it's just not cost effective energy wise or money wise."
] | [
"Why do some parts of the world call gasoline petrol?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why don't we have the $3, 60-year LED lightbulb yet? Why aren't LED bulbs getting cheaper as promised? | [
"I think mostly with the longevity and power savings combined, they only need to beat the incandescent by so much before the accountant/actuary tells them they can get more money for the product. So, until we get a good old fashion price war."
] | [
"All new technology is extremely expensive compared to technology that's slightly older. A concept car says \"These are our best ideas.\" It also implies \"but we have no idea how to make them affordable.\" People won't pay $20,000 for an airbag that's 10% safer. But they'll wait 5 years until until it only costs $... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
How come some pictures look better at than others, even though they have lower resolution? | [
"Lighting and visual 'noise' (or grain) are two major factors that affect the visual quality of an image in addition to the pixel resolution. Compression artifacts (when you save images in a lossy format like JPG) also affect the visual quality. Although lighting and noise do not affect the pixel resolution of the ... | [
"A megapixel is a million pixels. An image consists of a big grid of pixels. The more pixels you have the more details you are able to include in the picture. There is also a lot of other factors to determine the quality of an image and it is quite possible to have more pixels then you need. But if you have too few... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why more games aren't made for OS X? | [
"Historically, Windows PCs and Macs had different audiences: business and techie types for Windows, novice users and creatives for Mac (I'm oversimplifying here, but you're five, so don't complain). Incidentally, this disparity is the basis for the [Mac vs PC series of ads](_URL_0_) from a few years ago. But back ... | [
"Because they weren't written for it. Though they appear similar, computers can be as different as consoles as time moves on. What you're asking is akin to \"Why can't I play Playstation 1 games on my PS4?\""
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the post:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
what is the point in giving high ranking Nazi's like Eichmann or Himmler trials, when they are going to be found guilty no matter what? | [
"It's more about showing the world all their crimes, as well as giving formal closure to their victims and victims families. Also, no matter how severe your crimes, the right to trial still applies"
] | [
"The point of a lawyer is to make sure his defendant receives a fair trial. Not to make him walks free, for example if the accuse is of intentional murder etc."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
For disc copies of games, why must we pay full price for a new disc if the original becomes scratched or broken? Why can't we buy a replacement version that's cheaper? | [
"Most game companies do let you do that. Let you send in damaged disks for replacements in some warranty agreement."
] | [
"The original PS3s had a part that allowed them to play PS2 and PS1 games. This part was ruled to be overly expensive, and Sony decided that people didn't care much about backwards-compatibility (one of their biggest mistakes, in my opinion). I believe there are only two models with that part in them. This is the r... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
What is the point of inflation? | [
"Fundamentally, inflation gives everyone an incentive to spend and invest, because if they don't, their money will be worth less in the future. This spending and investment can benefit the economy. Inflation reduces the real burden of debt, both public and private. If you have a fixed-rate mortgage on your house, ... | [
"It's a big system. It also carries a bit from state to state. Are you interested in the application process? Policy? Logistics?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Auction Hunters, are those guys really lucky? or are Americans just that forgetful? | [
"it's a scripted tv show. the producer of the show puts stuff into storage units and the actors get to bid on them"
] | [
"You've seen them haven't you? There's your answer. Dopes will pay to advertise for other people all in the name of looking cool."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the comment:",
"neg": "Represent the comment:"
} |
Would I die if I drank the water found on Mars? | [
"Probably. Much of the dust on Mars' surface is composed of chemicals called [perchlorates](_URL_0_) which are highly toxic. If you were to drink water from Mars it would almost certainly have a lot of the stuff in there."
] | [
"If sideways water pressure was a thing, you would be in trouble if you took a swim in the ocean."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
What will happen when Windows XP becomes unsupported? Why will it suddenly become vulnerable? | [
"It won't spontaneously become vulnerable. It was already vulnerable, but every time a vulnerability is discovered, a patch is released to fix the vulnerability. Now the vulnerability will not be fixed."
] | [
"Yes. Please do. On the most immediate level, the upgrade jumps to $120 if you don't. So, if you will _ever_ upgrade, doing it now saves money. Second, whatever version you're running right now will stop getting security patches before all too long. Windows Vista ends support next April. Windows 7 will get its last... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
Is there really any reason we still use the qwerty keyboard? | [
"The hassle to change to a new keyboard layout would be too great for them to justify any new keyboard layout. It works, well for that matter, so there just isn't enough incentive to switch."
] | [
"We shouldn't have it, it's just a worthless throwback. We should split the difference and use the same time year round."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why do we feel so groggy when we first wake up, but after doing some exercise so much better and alert? | [
"Waking up in the morning is a dormant stage. After doing something such as push-ups, this sends more blood flow to the brain, as well as taking in more oxygen to spread throughout the body"
] | [
"Only your body can tell you whether that is sufficient or not. If you wake up sleepy in the morning, then the answer is no. If you wake up refreshed, then the answer is yes."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title about Sleep and its effects on the body:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence about Sleep and its effects on the body:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence:"
} |
Why do zodiac signs and horoscopes exist? | [
"Historically, the stars were very important. Before we had GPS, or maps or clocks or calendars, or even *numbers*, they helped you navigate and told you what time of the year it was. But at the same time, humans had no idea what stars were and why they behaved they way they did. All the knew is when a certain con... | [
"Astronomy is the scientific study of the solar system, stars, galaxies, space basically. Astrology is the psuedo science, the fake science, of using constellations and zodiac signs to predict stuff about your life."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why does ice in a plastic bag end up making the skin wet? | [
"There's water in the air, it's called water vapor. Water vapor can't stay vapor after it cools down. It turns into water through a process called condensation."
] | [
"It has to do with what's around them while they freeze. Try this experiment. Place two trays next to each other on a shelf. The ice will pop out of both trays just fine. For the next batch place the trays on top of each other. The top tray's ice will come out just fine while the bottom tray's ice will stick and cr... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title about Science:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document about Science:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
If evolution is driven by natural selection, will the future of human race be affected by modern medicine since more people that should have been phased out can now live and reproduce? | [
"Absolutly. The fact, that a lot of women today are not capable of giving natural birth is an outcome of this. In earlier times, if a womens pelvis was too small to give birth, she and her child would (probably) have died. Today, she can get a C-section and she and her kid will live happily ever after. Some smart ... | [
"We have not \"evolved\" poor eyesight. However, poor eyesight has not, in recent times, been evolutionarily selected against, so it is perhaps more common than it once was. Unless a trait causes those with it to be less likely to mate or survive to mate, it will *generally* not be selected against."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
With water shortages increasing, why don't we use sewage water to water and fertilize our crops? Wouldn't the plants benefit? | [
"Our sewage treatment plant is state of the art and produces fertilizer/sludge that local farmers use on their land. One of the big issues with sewage treatment is the increased amount of drugs, mostly prescription, that come through the system. Some, I think are treatable, but not all of them."
] | [
"In many places the water is being used faster than it is being naturally replenished. People aren't the only animals that need that water. It also takes energy to pump water around and to heat it up."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why does the 1st pancake you cook on a pan always turn out bad? | [
"Because I'm terrible at making pancakes. For the record, the rest are no better."
] | [
"When I make crackers at home, I poke holes in them so they don't puff too much and crack while baking. I'm guessing that's why?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why is it easy to spin something around your index finger one way and harder to spin it around the opposite way? | [
"It's just muscle memory. I can spin things both directions pretty easily. I just do it a lot."
] | [
"All those grooves and ridges help our fingers achieve a better grip. It's as simple as that, really. As an example, take a cellphone and place it screen-side down on the back of your hand and then slowly rotate your wrist. You should find that fairly quickly the phone slides off. Now take the same phone and place ... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the paragraph:"
} |
the sensation of spicy. Do people who like spicy food have fewer or more taste buds that react to spice? | [
"A fraction of the population are [supertasters](_URL_0_) which means they are more sensitive to certain tastes. Supertasters sometimes [avoid spicy foods](_URL_1_) but taste is pretty malleable (acquired taste). I've also noticed that the people who enjoy very spicy foods somehow manage to break down the capsaicin... | [
"Because they do not have capsaicin - the compound that we taste as \"spicy\". Our bodies don't hold on to this substance."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the paragraph:"
} |
How hard is it to create a software that zooms in on pictures without loosing to much information? | [
"Imagine you made a painting out of little colored plastic squares (a mosaic). To zoom in on the picture would be just getting closer to it. Would you see more detail? No, the individual squares would just be bigger and easier to distinguish from each other. There is no more information to gain by looking closer."
... | [
"Because large hit targets are much more pleasant to use on a mobile device than zooming in and panning to find the right button. What do you think is not intuitive about the mobile site?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment:"
} |
Why does ice that has melted taste different than regular tap water? | [
"First, when water freezes, some of the gases are released, so the unfrozen water is not as aerated. Second, when water is frozen in many refrigerates, the oders in the fridge are taken into the water. Some folks put an open box of sodium bicarbonate (often Arm & Hammer baking soda) to absorb odors, but this may no... | [
"> Is it because the North Pole is seemingly much more contained and the effects are only see at its accompanying shorelines? The North Pole ice is floating in the water. Ice in water melting does not change sea levels, because it displaces as much water as ice as it will as more water. You can see this by making a... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title about Science:",
"pos": "Represent the document about Science:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why do some sporting events start at odd times like 7:05 or like the Final Four games at 5:09, 7:54, etc rather than simply 7:00 or 5:00? | [
"It works better for TV. Practically all TV is run on schedules of starting at the top of the hour or the bottom. For a sporting event, they want to have an introduction before the event starts. Sometimes they broadcast the singing of the anthems etc. they surely want to get some advertising in. They wouldn’t ha... | [
"The best way to do this is by breaking the time you're asking about into chunks that are easy to think about. 8:15am to 3:00pm? How much time between 8:15 and 9:00? Forty-five minutes. How much time between 9:00 and noon? Three hours. How much time between noon and 3:00? Three more hours. Put them all together: si... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
why don't we have a picture of our face on credit card? | [
"I used to have a debit card back in the late 90s that had my picture on it. I don't know why they stopped doing it but they did do it at one time. It could be people didn't want their picture on the card or maybe the banks didn't want the extra expense."
] | [
"Dumb follow up question. Do people see the mirror you or the picture you?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
Why does the US Government keep on raising the debt ceiling incrementally and passing stop gap funding bills? Why don't they just make the ceiling higher by a huge number so government shutdowns happen less often? | [
"Because politicians are douche bags. The idea is that if they regularly bring the debt ceiling up, they have a wedge issue to use to fund raise, to bicker over and the use as a bargaining chip for other legislation. They friggin' passed the budget that is causing the debt to increase and then fight over raising th... | [
"There is unlikely to be an immediate catastrophic effect, but expect bond yields to start climbing Tuesday or Wednesday if progress isn't seen. While the ceiling might be legally hit if all payments are made beginning Thursday-Monday, the true cash crunch likely wouldn't be hit for a couple of weeks after, at whic... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title about Economics:",
"pos": "Represent the document about Economics:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Is picking and eating the contents of your nostril genetic? Also, is there a reason "we" do this? | [
"I suspect this behavior is quite common, and that it's similar to when animals lick to groom themselves. Eating boogers could provide information as to whether one is sick, or perhaps help avoid leaving that information for predators."
] | [
"Cat saliva has antiseptic properties. Even their asses are no match. This does not mean that anything they find in their asses won't harm them. They're prepared for most things they would find in there."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How can Penn Jillette and Kevin Smith lose more than 1 pound a day if most advice is that only 1-2 lbs a week can be safely lost? | [
"Not a physician here but I think one variable to consider into the equation is the amount of weight to lose until you reach your \"healthy\" weight. If you're 300 pounds and do even just a small change to your lifestyle you can easily crush that 2 pounds per week (been there done that). Also, this amount of fat lo... | [
"A pound of body fat equates to approximately 3500 calories. Since a \"recommended diet\" is 2000 calories. It's not incredibly difficult to eat 5500 calories although people rarely gain a pound a day. On the other hand, eating -1500 calories might prove more difficult."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why does the last half of a tank of gas never last as long as the first half? | [
"Most car's I've had don't accurately measure the \"true\" last half. The level sender measures depth only, but the shape of the tank changes. Also I've noticed that if you check the manual for the tank capacity and the amount required for a fill, you can't fit that much. Even when the dash computer in my last two ... | [
"When you look at a speedometer and you see the car is going 55 mph, you can extrapolate where the car will be in one hour, even if you've only been in the car for 5 minutes. Or perhaps a better analogy, you can also look at the fuel gauge and calculate how many more hours the car will run before it runs out of ga... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit sentence about Astronomy:"
} |
how do photos of scenery from r/earthporn and photos from r/spaceporn get these amazing photos that look different from what we see with the naked eye. | [
"Very long exposures allow you to have a very small aperture. The smaller the aperture, the more the depth of field. Long depth of field allows objects near and far from the camera to be in focus at the same time. A deep focus field is one of the things that makes some of these landscape photos fantastic."
] | [
"We can't. If you see a picture of the milky way from the outside, it's either another galaxy or a graphic rendition. [This is how the milky way look from Earth](_URL_0_), and is the only direction we can see it from. You can see it easily with your naked eye on a clear night."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title about science:",
"pos": "Represent the argument about science:",
"neg": "Represent the argument about astronomy:"
} |
How do we know we 'discovered a new species' when it might just be a deformed reject? | [
"Deformed rejects are rare. Fossils are rare. The chances of getting both at once are practically zero. Also, dinosaurs didn't have humans to take care of them if they were deformed, so the deformed ones didn't tend to last long."
] | [
"\"why has it only been around for a decade?\" 1901 was over a hundred years ago, not ten :/ Also, it wasn't \"the first case\". It was the first time it was scientifically defined and entered into the medical literature in the same way science \"discovers\" a new species of plant, or animal."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why do our face or ear turns red when we are embarrassed? | [
"I'm not sure anybody knows for certain, but I've heard that it's essentially an involuntary reflex to show submission. When your face turns red, it's essentially showing \"I'm vulnerable, so please don't hurt me\". But I'm not totally sure."
] | [
"it comes from feeling flushed, when blood rises to the surface. your face and maybe neck will turn red, you will feel warm, maybe a little lightheaded."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How do submarines go underwater and come back up? | [
"They are designed to be buoyant (lighter than the weight of the water they displace, up to a certain depth), and they pump in seawater to internal ballast tanks to increase their weight until they start to sink. To rise, they pump the ballast water back out again."
] | [
"Do you know how a fan works? If so just turn it around"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
Is sound physical or chemical? | [
"Sound is energy converted into vibration through air. Technically the physical stimulation of air hitting your eardrum. Therefore, it's a physical thing. All chemicals are physical, but not all physical things are chemical. But here's my question(s): 1. Why would *sound* of all things be chemical? 2. In what world... | [
"It is a measurement regarding the ability to do work. Not a magical cloud."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment:"
} |
Combustible vs. Flammable liquids | [
"Combustible will burn, but you must ignite it with an open flame. Flammable (inflammable is actually more correct) can be ignited by a tiny spark."
] | [
"Bacteria and Fungi in Air. Sealed Package = > Bacteria and Fungi not in food. Opened Package = > Bacteria and Fungi now in food. Refrigerator makes Bacteria and Fungi grow much slower."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer about Food storage:"
} |
How does an entire country block individual websites? | [
"Simple. The internet is connected by wires. A country can control all the incoming and outgoing wires from their country. With the networking equipment connected to those wires, they can say \"don't allow any data to be sent to or from _URL_0_\"."
] | [
"If you're in a free country, you can read nearly every public site in the whole Internet. Including Chinese ones."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment:"
} |
why are we bombing the islamic state with aircrafts and not sending any troops on the ground? | [
"Dead soldiers make for bad PR. Also, locals often will often blame the western devils them for their shitty situation, increasing the risk of a civil insurgency in any regained territory."
] | [
"You don't really. A battle would imply going toe-to-toe with an enemy which I don't think the american army has truly done since ww2. Most of what has happened since ww2 has been assymetrical warfare. All the tanks and money in the world cant protect you from guerrilla tactics, terrorism, roadside bombs, etc. Rest... | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit argument:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit argument:"
} |
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