id stringlengths 5 6 | input stringlengths 3 301 | output list | meta null |
|---|---|---|---|
8imcpc | why is it that 8:30-5 or 9-5:30 seem to now be the most common working hours? growing up i was always told 9-5 (thanks dolly). is there a reason for the extra half hour? i work in the u.k. if that helps. | [
{
"answer": "Usually it's that you're entitled to a break by law, but they don't have to pay you for your break. So the shift is 8.5 hrs even though you only get paid for 8. Doing it on 8s is usually easier for HR/payroll to deal with",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "It's basically whether or no... | null |
2je5pj | why does your body want to keep changing position at night? | [
{
"answer": "I too would like to know this, because apparently I'm not the best cuddler after I fall asleep.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "'Cause the right side of your body has a fricken body lying on top of it, so it's like \"alright, this is getting a bit heavy now, left side you can take ... | null |
537ht7 | During the tenure of great composers like Mozart, Bach & Beethoven, would it be common to hear their music played outside their country or did music spread slower? | [
{
"answer": "Mozart traveled [A LOT, even for the standards of our time](_URL_0_). He also published his music, he was known in many countries.\n\nBeethoven's works were also published in different countries. His 9th symphony was commissioned by the Philharmonic Society of London in 1817. [He was known even acr... | null |
8l1e3j | Who are the Spanish descended from? | [
{
"answer": "The Iberian Peninsula was inhabited long before the Romans occupied it, and the PaleoHispanic people's had lived in northern and Western Iberia since the Stone Age (35-40,000 BCE). Modern Spanish are descended from a rich mixture of Roman, Visigoth, Vandal, Muslim, Celtic and the PaleoHispanic, but... | null |
2s4ty1 | what is a "thinktank" company? | [
{
"answer": "\"Thinktanks\" are in the business of generating solutions to problems - basically, they are like a consultancy, but admittedly the scope and type of problems they work on can be unusually difficult and very specialized. For instance, whereas consultancies e.g. Aon-Hewitt; Bain's Co, for businesses... | null |
2uv2rz | In his day was Leopold von Ranke (and his ideas about history being science) as harshly criticised as he is nowerdays by my history department? | [
{
"answer": "My knowledge of this is pure historiography, so maybe a historian of the period can elaborate, but the answer is no. Leopold von Ranke is largely credited with creating the discipline of history itself, so for much of his career he was unassailable. Late in his life there were some critics of his m... | null |
1kwyhx | how do people get stuck inside of fridges and freezers? | [
{
"answer": "The first refrigerators that were produced for home use had actual latches on the door. This was decades ago. People would throw them out and, apparently, kids would climb in and lock themselves inside. But, for the last 40-50 years, refrigerators haven't had the latched doors. It's an old wives ta... | null |
dfj0zo | why does most graffiti have the same generic style/look that we have come to expect from vandals | [
{
"answer": "Speed, if you take too much time spraying it on the walls you will be caught doing it so speed is essential.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "It's a lettering style designed to take up as much space as possible with color, leaving as little blank space as possible. And it's fairly e... | null |
3hhxyx | Is there anywhere that models predict will get nicer to live because of climate change? | [
{
"answer": "First off, \"nicer to live\" requires individual value judgements because not everyone is the same in what they like. By conventional metrics, most places are going to be losers in climate change but if the mean temperature was a bit warmer there will be some places which will generally be consider... | null |
62oki0 | why do android phone manufacturers not force carriers to use the same software like on ios? | [
{
"answer": "Because the manufacturers have very little power. If Samsung gives the carriers a hard time, they can immediately switch to HTC or another brand that's quite similar.\n\nBy contrast, if Apple gives the carriers a hard time, there is no very similar substitute they can choose, so they tolerate it.",... | null |
j4y4n | explain how 0.999 recurring = 1 (li5.) | [
{
"answer": "Do 1.00000000... minus .99999999...\n\nYou'll get 0.00000000... which is a neverending string of zeroes. You will naturally want to put a 1 at the end of all the zeroes, but there is an infinite amount of them. There *is* no end to stick a 1 onto.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "A ... | null |
axcj73 | Why is CBD's action on the 5HT-1A receptor non psychedelic, compared with e.g. LSD's action on the 5HT-2A? | [
{
"answer": "So to begin, CBD is a partial agonist which is not the same as LSD, which is a full agonist. Partial agonism is jargon in that the drug binds quite well, but only exerts say 40% of an effect compared to a full agonist, which would give 100% of effect.\n\nAs well as this, we don't really know why ce... | null |
1jhgju | why do some tennis players grunt loudly whenever they hit the ball? | [
{
"answer": "Tensing the torso allows maximum rigidity and power transfer to the strike. This tends to push air out of the lungs and produce a grunt, and grunting can be a way to focus on maintaining that form.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_... | null |
2eecq9 | Could chemoautotrophic bacteria live in the hostile environments of another planet? | [
{
"answer": "The discovery of extremophile organisms like bacteria has certainly broadened our understanding of life, and the sheer strangeness and lengths it can go and survive.\n\nSo, the answer is yes. There definitely *could* be organisms on other planets, even those that we might have traditionally thought... | null |
supox | Shimmering on roads. | [
{
"answer": "It is caused by the refraction of light when traveling through a density gradient in the air. The air near the surface is being heated by the hot pavement, and therefore expands reducing the pressure, resulting in less density. Light coming in from the sky is bends upwards when traversing from the ... | null |
1e01r2 | As Historians, how can we utilize novels and literature as research? | [
{
"answer": "Well, certainly you can use period literature to provide evidence for a lot of things -- social norms, changing attitudes, the values and morals of the time, as well as a great source of linguistic data for language evolution. \n\nBut if you try to use say, a Mary Renault novel as evidence of Alexa... | null |
2um650 | Why not make smaller turbojet engines instead of a larger turbofan with high bypass ratio? | [
{
"answer": "Turbojets are designed to create thrust by turning thermal energy into thrust directly, in the form of a high velocity exhaust stream. As long as the exhaust is moving faster than the speed of the vehicle, it will generate thrust. As long as the total thrust of these engines is greater than the a... | null |
3q49zn | Was Aristotle ever right? | [
{
"answer": " > I'm just talking about hard science facts\n\nThis only works if you believe science is an accumulation of facts. Instead, it might be useful to think of science as a project to model nature ([see Thomas Kuhn](_URL_0_)). For instance, Newtonian physics is a model that has retained much of its pre... | null |
19ma6e | what is the point of rooting android products and jailbreaking apple products. | [
{
"answer": "Rooting on Android gives you administer access to the device, letting you install custom software, overclock the hardware, delete built in apps, and allow apps to have functionality they otherwise would be denied.\n\nJailbreaking on iOS installs a second app store known as Cydia that lets you downl... | null |
1se26q | Did Shakespeare and His Plays Cause Any Naming Trends? | [
{
"answer": "Probably the most influential names invented by Shakespeare were (and are) Jessica and Olivia. The following is from *The Merchant of Venice* (Arden Shakespeare, 3rd Series) Act 2, Scene 4, Lines 19-20:\n\n > LORENZO:\n\n > Hold here--take this, tell gentle Jessica\n\n > I will not fail her; speak... | null |
14dge2 | What does the spin on a bullet do for the pressure wave it creates? Does it change its nature much compared to as if it was not spinning and simply translating? | [
{
"answer": "I'm not sure if this is what you're looking for, but [here is an image](_URL_0_) of a gun being fired underwater. You can see the cavitation caused by the bullet is twisted because of the bullet's spin. A similar thing should happen in air.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
... | null |
5nhwtc | how are we able to sense where our body parts are in space without actually looking at or feeling them? | [
{
"answer": "That's called proprioception, or kinesthetic awareness. It's also somewhat tied into reflexes, like catching or dodging a ball. You can increase the sensitivity with practice, too. Sadly, though, the “spider sense” is just for comics and movies for now.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer... | null |
68sv33 | is there any situation in which the mathematical median can be higher than the mean? | [
{
"answer": "The relationship between the mean and median are based on how skewed the data is, and in what direction the skew is. Generally speaking, things that we are familiar with tend to be skewed right, so we get that the mean is greater than the median. But if the data is skewed left, then the median will... | null |
28s3il | can someone explain whether obesity is only present in humans or other mammals too have this disorder within their species? | [
{
"answer": "I've seen some fat ass cats and dogs. ",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Other animals can get fat, too. Pets often become obese; lab animals can gain too much weight if their diets aren't carefully adjusted. Among wild animals, morbid obesity isn't particularly common, because anima... | null |
2dt6u1 | do/can animals in nature outside of human contact get fat or even mordidly obese? | [
{
"answer": "Pandas are the only one I can think of. All animals can become obese but they dont.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "They don't become obese due to limited food resources. Even if they could eat all they wanted, being fat would slow them down and increase their chance of becoming pr... | null |
1vt1bg | why do i keep getting acne when i have showered every day for 4 years and have a healthy diet/work out? im a 18 year old male | [
{
"answer": "Not a doctor here, but maybe you should see a dermatologist if you haven't already (not that this is strange, but they can really help).\n\nA lot of acne in adolescence is caused by androgens being released in the body, such as testosterone (this is released in *everybody* during puberty, regardles... | null |
2o5t9x | what exactly the 10nm, 14nm, 22nm, etc nodes mean in semiconductor processing | [
{
"answer": "Well, it's a bit confusing even to people in the industry. The devil's in the details. \n \nIn the distant past, the geometry of the \"node\" meant the size of the smallest transistors. But a while back it started to refer more to the pitch of the tightest metal layer (usually metal 1), where \"p... | null |
90enba | Nixon courted southern Democrats with the Southern Strategy. Prior to that, what common cause did these people have with northeastern elites like FDR and Kennedy? | [
{
"answer": "Roosevelt's biggest contribution to American politics was the establishment of the New Deal Coalition. Roosevelt united the traditional Democratic base (conservative Southerners, northern immigrants and Catholics, liberal northerners) along with expanding into traditionally Republican groups (such ... | null |
9d3dzo | When a sufficiently sized star dies and collapses into a black hole, does the gravitational attraction that it yields change? | [
{
"answer": "Either \"no\" or \"it might go down\" depending on what you mean.\n\nAt large distances, old fashioned classical gravity is accurate for both. The force of gravity is proportional to the mass. So if all the mass is retained, then gravity doesn't change. But in a supernova, a lot of mass is thrown o... | null |
15o2rq | Was Gandhi actually a positive influence on the development of India as a country? | [
{
"answer": "This is one of the most hotly debated issues that I've ever encountered. A lot of people blame Ghandi for effectively bringing back the caste system. Honestly I'm not well read enough on the subject to go into much on the subject though. Hopefully a specialist will chime in on this one, as I'd l... | null |
mizm8 | what generates the messages in computer errors? | [
{
"answer": "I'm not sure what you mean by this. Each individual program has the ability to throw an error message. The operating system can throw them, as well. Can you be more specific with your question?",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Error messages are usually for the programmer, not th... | null |
48yb5a | how did scientists first hypothesise that an meteor killed the dinosaurs? | [
{
"answer": "It was proposed by [Luis Walter Alvarez](_URL_0_) after he noticed a thin layer of clay in the geologic record between the Cretaceous and Tertiary (now called the Paleogene) periods. After further investigation of the composition of the clay (in particular, the high-levels of iridium), Alvarez and ... | null |
2yowba | what is going on in your brain when you stare? why are you so focused on one thing you can't look away? | [
{
"answer": "I am not a psychologist, but generally it is because you are seeing something your brain considers valuable or possibly dangerous. If a man stares at a woman with large breasts, then it is because his brain considers it something valuable and wants it. You will focus more easily on something or s... | null |
3dgjiy | Who made the bombs for the IRA? | [
{
"answer": "Early on the bombs were mostly homemade using Ammonium Nitrate fertiliser. While the process is simple it does take skill to get it right and there were several people who specialised in it. The explosives were often made in ordinary houses or sheds.\n\nThe provision of Semtex from Libya in the 198... | null |
s8w2p | What can you tell me about pirates? | [
{
"answer": "Apparently they helped [prevent global warming](_URL_0_). That's a cool fact.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Pierre Le Grand (_URL_0_ Legendary Pirate who captured a Spanish treasure galleon with 28 men and a leaky boat.\n\nL'Olonnais(_URL_6_) - Allegedly ate a man's beating heart... | null |
5lb3ld | why do humans need to be taught about sex while other animals just know what to do? | [
{
"answer": "This is a very vague and not conclusive answer, but: Humans instinctively know more about sex than you think, and animals instinctively know less about sex than you think.\n\nHave you seen those videos where dogs or cows or turtles or whatever are just humping away at random inanimate objects and a... | null |
3b4qln | Why don't salamanders bleed to death when they lose limbs? | [
{
"answer": "If you chop off a person's limb they don't just fountain blood out of the open wound. At least not initially. The blood vessels constrict during trauma which buys valuable time for treatment. For salamanders I think the process is similar only the surface area of the wound is much smaller and it ha... | null |
12nizu | When energy is converted into heat and then dissipates, how is energy conserved? | [
{
"answer": "When heat dissipates, it doesn't disappear; it just spreads out.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_id": "67088",
"title": "Conservation of energy",
"section": "",
"start_paragraph_id": 1,
"start_chara... | null |
4ccfgg | what is ethereum, and how does it have a monetary value? | [
{
"answer": "I can't speak about Ethereum specifically, but I can give you a generalized explanation of bitcoin and hope the information is useful to you. The processing power used to generate a new coin is not *useful* or *practical* to someone in the same way as Folding@Home. The processing requirement to cre... | null |
92mh31 | How far is it between solar systems in a galaxy? What is there in this space between solar systems and planets? | [
{
"answer": "In the disc of the Milky Way (ie where we are) the average seperation between two stars is about a parsec, although this will vary drastically depending on the region (ie the stellar density near the galactic centre will be much higher than this).\n\nBetween stars/planets you have the Interstellar ... | null |
5gwy15 | Would Genghis Khan be considered a "bad guy" of history? | [
{
"answer": "Potentially better follow up: Do historians actually view anyone as villains? I had got the impression that the more general sociocultural factors were being considered instead of individuals in good historical work. ",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{... | null |
cczzqn | Why does a small amount of antenna extension in devices such as portable radios and satellite cellphones make such a big impact on quality of reception? | [
{
"answer": "Old ‘brick’ cell phones used a frequency around 800mhz. The wavelength, ~14 inches, would make a full wave antenna cumbersome. However, a half wave length antenna (that is normally stowed inside the phone) does work pretty well while being compact. \n\nNewer phones use higher frequencies, which com... | null |
2brt23 | What can you tell me about this Roman stone my neighbours dug up? | [
{
"answer": "\"AVG SACR\" is short for \"AUGusto SACRum\"; \"SILVANO\" was a woodland deity. Basically it's dedicated/sacred to Silvanus and Augustus.\n\nSource: Silvanus in Salona p161 _URL_0_",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_id": "4129287",
... | null |
32dj02 | If visible light and radio waves are all forms of electromagnetic waves, can we emit visible light by emitting radio at a different wave length? | [
{
"answer": "No. The definitions of visible light and radio waves depend on their wavelengths. Visible light have a wavelength typically in the 100s of nanometer range, radio waves typically defined as larger than about a millimeter or so.\n\nLight can be [Doppler shifted](_URL_0_), which will change the wavele... | null |
18r17t | Why do you get shocked when you lick a 9 volt but not when you lay your finger across both leads? | [
{
"answer": "Different resistance values between your tongue and your fingers. Electrons can travel easily through your wet tongue from negative to positive but your fingers have a higher resistance hindering the passage of electrons.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
... | null |
6ptsku | How is the Dead Sea the lowest point on Earth ( 400m) if the Grand Canyon has a depth of 1800m? | [
{
"answer": "You are comparing depth with altitude - they are not the same thing.\n\nThe Dead sea is the lowest point on Earth at an altitude of -400 m **relative to sea-level**.\n\nThe maximum depth of the Grand Canyon is measured from the surface, in the middle of the continent. The actual altitude relative t... | null |
8z4fs1 | Does split brain lead to split consciousness? | [
{
"answer": "A “split brain” is not really 100% split: we use the term to describe patients who, for one reason or another (usually surgery), have lost the functionality of the Corpus Callosum. The Corpus Callisum is a dense bundle of neurons in the middle of the brain that is the primary structure responsible ... | null |
20fgk6 | What was the scientific and cultural legacy of Achaemenid Persia? | [
{
"answer": " > First, I am going to assume that \"our culture\" refers to western culture. But this is a dangerous assumption to make, so please be sure to avoid such generalizations in the future. This is an important distinction to make because the reception of the Persians in the West is much, much differen... | null |
15rmxd | Different Base Numbers? | [
{
"answer": "It's really not that hard to go about using other base systems, it just means that you go to the next place value at whatever your base is. For example, in hexadecimal, or base-16, you count up to 15 then roll over to the next place; obviously, that doesn't work perfectly with our normal notation ... | null |
729yma | - what makes peanut butter stick to the roof of your mouth, and throat? | [
{
"answer": "Peanutbutter is viscous. The viscosity of peanutbutter means that it will take longer to flow than other fluids. Aside from that, peanutbutter is not only viscous, but is able to squish between nooks and crannies in a surface, allowing it to act like a glue. It's a good adhesive.\nOn top of that, p... | null |
h8etm | Is there any evidence that "sugar rushes" actually occur? | [
{
"answer": "There is some evidence that food dyes can cause hyperactivity in children which you can read about [here](_URL_0_).",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Why are sugar rushes so popular, then, if there's no scientific evidence backing it up?\n\nIt seems pretty simple to me. Caffeine is a... | null |
3ojels | does location determine skin color? | [
{
"answer": "Dark skin protects against ultraviolet radiation from the sun. But solar radiation is also necessary to stimulate production of vitamin D. In the higher latitudes, where there is less solar radiation, there is both less need for protection and more need for the radiation. Accordingly, there is a na... | null |
16hlln | What drives the molecular change in catalytic enzymes? | [
{
"answer": " > tight conformation the ADP & Pi \n\nThat's pretty much the idea. The ADP and Pi are pushed so close together (in just the right conformation) that they can't help but react. ",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_id": "3043886",
... | null |
t709s | Watching Cosmos...questions about light...brain hurts! | [
{
"answer": "1) All light moves at the same speed in space. Period. The redshift is the change of *wavelength* of light. In the electromagnetic spectrum, light has different frequencies/wavelengths, but not speeds. Maybe someone can elaborate.\n\n2) [Inverse square law](_URL_0_). A certain amount of light is e... | null |
289lv3 | If you flash freeze water, will it still expand in the same way as 'normal', gradual freezing? | [
{
"answer": "Water will expand regardless of how it is frozen; however, what changes is the size of the average ice crystal. When you slow freeze water it tends to build one giant crystal over time since water can slowly collect and arrange itself to form a unified solid. When you flash freeze each water m... | null |
2selxp | why is it better to eat actual sources of protein (eggs, fish, meat etc.) than consume protein powder? | [
{
"answer": "It isn't the protein itself that is bad. It is the other stuff that comes with it. You aren't consuming pure protein when using that powder, and a lot of that is things like instant milk which contains oxidized cholesterol, which is very very very bad. And there are many more issues, such as you... | null |
36m2kz | how long does it take to be a professor? | [
{
"answer": "Depends largely on the school, faculty, and discipline.\n\nThe typical route is:\n\n- Undergraduate (bachelor's).\n\n- Postgrad (Master's).\n\n- PhD.\n\n- Lecturing and getting published.\n\n- Getting tenure.\n\n- Associate Professor.\n\n- Professor.\n\nTimescales vary - a bachelors and a masters ... | null |
297rkb | when a mosquito is sucking blood from my arm, where does its proboscis go after i kill it? | [
{
"answer": "you probably pull it out when you brush the body away. otherwise it's still in there. not a big deal, though. the things are as thin as hair and your body has ways of dealing with stuff like that. ",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_... | null |
1fk7rh | Why do nuclear armed countries need such massive investment in conventional military? | [
{
"answer": "I dabbled in nuclear strategy, tactics, and the general science of nuclear warfare a few years back, so let me try to answer.\n\nI'm going to assume based on your comments and questions that you're exclusively asking about the United States, but this probably applies to most nuclear weapons states ... | null |
21smmf | Chicago Footnote Help | [
{
"answer": "Yikes, those are the tricky ones.\n\nOkay gov't documents, you sort of cite it like any other books, but you usually include the volumes. Let's look at the gov't docs I used for my own research from the Pennsylvania Archives\n\nPennsylvanian, Commonwealth of. *Minutes of the Provincial Council of P... | null |
p1u97 | the drug enforcement administration (dea) | [
{
"answer": "The DEA is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice tasked with enforcing federal laws (primarily the Controlled Substances Act) on the use, manufacture, and smuggling of drugs in the United States. In some ways like the FBI, the DEA has \"special agents\" who they employ an... | null |
b9dx6q | How did Taffy 3 actually pull off the defense of the Lette landing force in WWII? | [
{
"answer": "Expanded from [an earlier answer of mine](_URL_3_)\n\nThe actions of Kurita at Samar are still somewhat controversial among naval historians. Kurita in theory should have acted with daring given that the *Sho* plan called for a fight to the death, but he vacillated throughout the engagement. On a ... | null |
3pif4o | What lies behind the military success of the Ottoman Empire in the period from the 1400s to the 1600s, and would they have fared equally well against western European powers? | [
{
"answer": "A search brought up [this](_URL_0_) post, which mentions the importance of gunpowder and speaks of \"superiority of Ottoman weaponry\". Could someone elaborate on that? How advanced were the Ottomans in the field of weaponry, how big of a role did that play and why did it not matter at later lost b... | null |
31luty | How did tyrannosaurus drink water? | [
{
"answer": "T. rex probably drank like most birds, by bending down and taking a mouthful of water, then tilting its head back to allow the water to run down its throat. Tyrannosaurus also has a ling and heavy tail that can be used as counter weight when it leans forward.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"... | null |
gzkn9 | Does negative mass repel objects?
| [
{
"answer": "Negative mass is *completely* hypothetical. Your question is like asking \"do unicorns like to eat carrots?\". If unicorns existed there's a chance that they would like carrots, but, unicorns don't exist, so it's not a useful thing to think about. If negative mass existed, then yes it might have th... | null |
1hwxvo | What makes salt flat so flat? | [
{
"answer": "Lakes are very low energy environments. So while the hole in the topography they filled will have been irregular, over the long periods (thousands, perhaps even up to millions of years) that the lake is present, fine sediment gets settled out relatively evenly across the basin. The builds up a flat... | null |
2hio8g | How is Gavrilo Princip viewed in Serbia today? | [
{
"answer": "Although this question is likely violating the 20 year, the WWI centennial has caused some focus on the expressions of commemorations and historical memory. NPR had a good report, [*The Shifting Legacy Of The Man Who Shot Franz Ferdinand*](_URL_1_) and *Smithsonian* magazine had an article in 2000 ... | null |
1v6y6h | how would brass instruments be different if they were made from different metals such as steel? | [
{
"answer": "The timbre would be slightly different, and they would be much harder and more expensive to manufacture.\n\nWe already have some instruments that are made in different metals - one example that comes to my mind is the flute. Leaving aside wooden types and thinking only of modern flutes with keys an... | null |
3nrw9i | what is the point of unmarked police cars if they are still very easily spotted? | [
{
"answer": "This is a form of confirmation bias sometimes known as the toupée fallacy. Take the following sentence:\n\n > All toupées look fake; I've never seen one that I couldn't tell was fake.\n\nSuch a phrase can only be said about bad toupées — ones that look fake — and not actually all toupées. Put simpl... | null |
3exkem | how come man made light (leds, etc) can't really replicate the way the sun or fire lights up stuff? | [
{
"answer": "Sunlight contains all colours of the spectrum, and artificial lights don't. There are actually light bulbs that radiate the full spectrum that are available on the market, but the main reason why you don't see this type of bulb everywhere is because they're expensive to make. It takes different mat... | null |
1ml7ns | Why 1^∞ is undetermined? Why is it not 1? | [
{
"answer": "It needs to be reminded that infinity isn't directly a number but rather a concept of numbers going on forever, depending on the infinity, 1 can be affected in a different way compared to real numbers. It's like trying to do 2^Pineapple. It's just not going to work because we don't know directly wh... | null |
weu2b | the us system of government | [
{
"answer": "The US Government is best viewed as 3 branches.\n\nThe executive branch is in charge of carrying out laws and running the government's operations. The President is the head of the executive branch. He is elected by the people.\n\nThe legislative branch is in charge of making laws. Congress (the ... | null |
330c7a | Does honey contain protease? | [
{
"answer": "\"Protease\" isn't just one substance - there are many enzymes that can cleave proteins. (They're proteins, too, but generally don't contain sequences that they're vulnerable to themselves!) Honey has very little protein in it, only about 0.5%. I haven't been able to find out if any of that protein... | null |
30ru5r | when someone asks if i've seen a particular movie or not, most of the time i can answer yes or no with extreme accuracy, so why can i not accurately remember every movie i've ever seen when not prompted with a title? | [
{
"answer": "Psychological term called priming. When you hear something your brain activates or \"primes\" related topics. Hearing the title of a movie usually activates the memories associated with that movie.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_... | null |
2bq5zj | if women make up near equal percent of gamers, why are more games not being directed at female or neutral gender audience | [
{
"answer": "I'd like to see those statistics. I'm fairly confident that among FPS-style games, males outweight females fairly heavily. But, if you take into account a similar gender skew in favor of females and puzzle-style, browser, and mobile games, perhaps, then you can end up with a statistic that says it'... | null |
bqr01c | if exercising makes your heart stronger why are amphetamines and anxiety bad for your hear? | [
{
"answer": "Increasing you heart rate is like a car going faster: through exercise is like using the gas pedal normally to control the acceleration of the car; amphetamines, anxiety, drugs like cocaine is like your car going off a cliff to go faster. You’re going faster, but you’re probably going to die in the... | null |
bhbpkn | Why don’t former Italian colonies, such as Libya and Somalia, speak Italian? | [
{
"answer": "I'm just going to respond regarding Somalia, since I'm not as well read regarding Libya and other Italian colonial territories.\n\nThe short answer to your question is that Italy's footprint in Somalia was light for most of its colonial history, and just as the Italians were ramping up assimilation... | null |
16b7l9 | what does alzheimers do to the brain? if a "cure" was invented would it help current sufferers remember? | [
{
"answer": "As I understand it, Alzheimer's causes proteins to take the wrong shape in the brain. To put this in context the majority of proteins need to be the right shape in order to work. \nFor instance, enzyme's are used to break down your food much more quickly. Biologists describe the process using eith... | null |
5c771z | how does a ship force a submarine to leave an area? | [
{
"answer": "The only thing a submarine has is stealth. It uses the depths, different thermal layers and silent operations to hide in the background ocean noise.\n\nGetting detected means the submarine is pretty much a sitting duck. It reflects either a mistake made by the submarine crew, or the skills of the s... | null |
1harxt | If East Asians invented movable type well before Gutenberg, why didn't it take off as well as it did in Europe? Was it because of the number of characters? Economics? What? | [
{
"answer": "I know there are some excellent 'asia-specialists' on here who can probably answer your question more completely, but I figured I'd just get things started. \n\nI believe the social structure in China prevented the widespread use of the printed word. In China there was a far bigger devision between... | null |
2ct2zo | how can a pc game be developed for years? don't the constantly emerging new hardware capabilities far outrun what the game (engine) started out with? | [
{
"answer": "Developers don't design for the cutting edge. The aim for the middle of the market. So they aren't worried if hardware changes (assuming its still compatible with their game/code) because the cutting edge doesn't matter.\n\nAll that matters is what the average or majority are using. ",
"prov... | null |
ca0qxb | what is it that causes cysts/spots to rupture with such force? | [
{
"answer": "The spot is visible because of pressure build up so when you pop the skin the small amount of pressure that there is, forces the gunk out. With toothpaste the only pressure comes from your fingers so it will come out as hard as you squeeze",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"... | null |
34gj3t | Good sources for an essay on Pompey? | [
{
"answer": "So this period is the most documented in Roman history. The primary sources are vast. Plutarch's Life of Pompey's already been mentioned, but Pompey comes up in several Lives. Cicero discusses Pompey in numerous letters, and gave several speeches specifically addressing Pompey (De Imperio, for i... | null |
24app5 | why are people scared by and fascinated with seemingly supernatural occurences? | [
{
"answer": "Basically? Evolution. Back in the day (the era of evolutionary adaptation) our ancestors that heard noises in the dark and assumed the worst (that must be a predator!) outlived the ones that just went back to bed. Long story short, we confuse correlation for causation, and draw connections where th... | null |
2w9aqa | why does cheating in a sport, i.e. the biogenesis scandal, deserve a 4 year prison sentence? | [
{
"answer": "It doesn't necessarily. However, falsely posing as a doctor and distributing a controlled substance, in this case testosterone, is a crime. Similarly, winning a game by murdering the entire other team would also likely give you a lengthy prison sentence, but not on account of cheating to win.",
... | null |
6w8490 | how do aircraft stabilizers actually "stabilize" the aircraft? | [
{
"answer": "Aircraft wings create a force perpendicular to the chord of the wing, called Lift. They also create a nose down torque. Both of these change with airspeed. \n \nTo keep the wings from rotating forward you can either:\n \n1) apply an upward force ahead of the wings by using a small set of wings ca... | null |
15lw49 | Historians, what do you think the North Korean people were told about WWII? | [
{
"answer": "We actually don't have to speculate too much about it. While we don't have access to everything that's been written or published within North Korea, South Korea has a ministry that collects North Korean publications and media, and both Korean and Western scholars have been able to establish what th... | null |
252v3t | When the astronauts looked at the earth from the moon, could they see the stars as well? | [
{
"answer": "Considering that the Moon's atmosphere is so tenuous that it might as well not exist (as far as this question is concerned), they actually would have been able to see the stars a lot better than we can here on Earth. Most photos from the Moon (well, from anywhere, really) tend to lack stars becaus... | null |
ofs7w | Does a photon have to be absorbed in order for it to have been created in the first place? | [
{
"answer": "A little bit about quantum mechanics that's important to understand:\n\nThe real physical object is the wave function. A particle is only the manifestation of the wave function when it gets collapsed (when you observe it).\n\nTherefore, the wave function of the photon exists regardless of wheter it... | null |
4rrcvw | Did ladies really faint all the time in the past? | [
{
"answer": "Well, first of all, we must wave away fiction (as we sadly often have to do...) when it comes to history. The idea of women fainting at the sight of terrible things or even their mention is not as old as history. We have no suggestions (to my knowledge) of medieval French women, ancient Egypt women... | null |
gx76z | The higgs boson doesn't actually constitute most of the mass to our bodies, right? | [
{
"answer": "You are partially correct. The electron does owe all of it's mass to the Higg's mechanism. However, protons and neutrons are a little bit different as they are composite objects (they are made of quarks). Quarks also have mass, given to them by the higgs mechanism.\n\nBut there is a caveat. The... | null |
6a95xy | why does the usa seem so obsessed with race more then other countries? | [
{
"answer": "Because of (1) yes slavery and (2) the USA has a more mixed population, with more immigrants from more countries and backgrounds, than nearly any other country.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Many countries don't have multiracial populations nor did they have the kind of legalized... | null |
6xgjzi | why is it that every lighting bolt is shaped differently? | [
{
"answer": "A lightning strike is basically an electrical charge in the air trying to reach the ground. Electricity always tries to find what's called the *path of least resistance*, or the easiest way down. That's going to vary based on lots of different factors - air pressure, humidity, finding a nice tree... | null |
bv23rd | how does decriminalization of drugs reduce drug abuse and crime in the countries that have done it? | [
{
"answer": "Decriminalization or legalisation allows drug sales to be more controlled, meaning you know what is going into the drugs and people are more informed about safe drug use. It also means that drug supply can be more easily controlled, and you can more easily limit how much people get. It makes people... | null |
9mnuma | why do you continue to try and vomit/dry retch when you have drank to much, even after your stomach contents have completely vacated your body? | [
{
"answer": "The vomiting is your body’s response to an excessive amount of alcohol in your system, not just your digestive tract ",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "It's not just when you've drunk too much but when you're sick as well you also dry heave after vomiting that's because the nerves th... | null |
9va4v4 | do rgb led's have the ability to display a wide range of colors. what causes the color to change, is it the voltage? | [
{
"answer": "An RGB LED is actually 3 LEDs in one package. One each of Red Green and Blue. But changing the intensity of each of the 3 LEDs you get a unique color from the single bulb. The human eye doesn’t see the individual colors but a mix into a single color.\n\nLots more details: _URL_0_",
"provenance"... | null |
3kfd05 | apple airport express shows xbox one speed 270mb, xbox network stats says 30mb. | [
{
"answer": "I'm not sure, but maybe the units are different.\nApple airport express must be showing in Mb(Mega-bits) and Xbox network stats must be using MB(megabytes).\n8bits=1byte!\nSo that explains 30MB=240 Mb.\nLeft 30Mbs in apple express is just a difference of 3MBs.",
"provenance": null
},
{
... | null |
45m62t | How often were peasants used in Middle Age battles? How were they trained? How were they equipped? Who paid for their equipment? | [
{
"answer": "Could you clarify what you mean, do you mean in the sense of any peasant class individual participating in a war or do you mean armed mobs with no training at all?",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "In Mughal North India, peasants were used as infantry, they were the cannon fodder in ... | null |
22w7h0 | When roman emperors were divinized posthumously, what did that mean to the surviving population? And were the divinized emperors endowed with "powers", like Neptune/Poseidon's power over the sea? | [
{
"answer": "Hi, that's a very interesting question, I have never questioned the 'why' in that way before. The answer goes back to Julius Caesar, the persona and the events around his death. \n\n > \"He died in the fifty-sixth year of his age, and was ranked amongst the Gods, not only by a formal decree, but i... | null |
7ocreb | In terms of evolution, do beneficial traits often get passed down with irrelevant/negative traits? | [
{
"answer": "It’s possible that a single gene can have multiple phenotypic effects (I can’t think of any but it’s possible), but it is much more likely, and common, that a particular phenotype is the result of multiple genes. Any two given genes, and even different mutations within a single gene, can sort inde... | null |
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