id stringlengths 5 6 | input stringlengths 3 301 | output list | meta null |
|---|---|---|---|
eax4lm | where does all the food go? | [
{
"answer": "Poop, heat, and consumed useful energy. You basically take the nutrients, break them down, make energy molecules, release a lot of heat along the way. Then, use this energy to build things like proteins from things you got from food (amino acids). If you're not gaining weight despite eating insane ... | null |
2uyt3g | if cellular radio waves are basically everywhere all the time, how do they not get blended with eachother? | [
{
"answer": "They all have slightly different frequencies, which makes it easier to tell the difference. \nImagine you're trying to pull one thing out of a box while blindfolded. There are three items in the box. Those three things are all apples, but you're trying to get a Granny Smith. The different frequenci... | null |
19tjl9 | How does Antivirus software work? | [
{
"answer": "By checking against a database of known virus signatures, which are a string of bits known to be indicative of a virus or other malicious software.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "While there are many different styles of viruses and attacks, a lot of antivirus software deployed rel... | null |
2fd9va | how did we come to understand universal symbols for play, rewind, fast forward, and so on. what is the design of these symbols called? | [
{
"answer": "They become ICONS by means of a general CONSENSUS as to what they mean.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "We all understand them because culturally we've been conditioned to know that a thumbs up means \"good/like\", a heart means \"favorite\", two right-facing arrows means \"faster\... | null |
88g8jl | what is bicarbonate? | [
{
"answer": "Bicarbonate is HCO3(-). It acts as a buffer keeping your blood within certain pH values. \n\nIt is formed when H2O and CO2 are combined in red bllod cells by carbonic anhydrase(an enzyme) to make carbonic acid, H2CO3. This carbonic acid quickly breaks down into H and HCO3. When it reaches the lung... | null |
7jju3e | When did Sunzi's "The Art of War" become popular in the West? | [
{
"answer": "It's a late 20th century phenomenon. The book was not translated into any European language until French in the late 18th century and wasn't completely translated into English until 1910 by Lionel Giles (as _Sun Tzu on the Art of War_). Machiavelli was certainly unaware of it. Also, the Chinese cha... | null |
23kq8x | During WWII, what was Stalin's plans for if the Germany army captured Moscow? | [
{
"answer": "In October 1941 the Soviets began seriously discussing the possibility of Moscow falling. Stalin decided that he was going to stay in the capital. It was feared that seeing Josef Stalin and the government flee would cause a massive panic among the cities massive population. There was also an idea o... | null |
7y5jd5 | If I were a sexually active gay man in early 19th century England that never actually broke the anti-sodomy laws how open could I be? | [
{
"answer": "This question got me curious: what does it mean to be sexual active but not violate the anti-sodomy laws on the books? The following answer is not from a deep font of knowledge, but is merely what I have gathered through my own curiosity this evening.\n\nThroughout the 19th century there were thre... | null |
1hxcls | what happens to prices/wages when a country implements euro as the currency? | [
{
"answer": "In theory (and largely in practice) prices and wages will stay the same, just in a different currency.\n\nYou're correct in your implication that this means that goods and services can vary widely in price across the eurozone.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "If a country joins the ... | null |
356zk7 | Why do war memorials in Britain commemorate World War I as 1914 to 1919 | [
{
"answer": "World War I technically ended in 1919.\n\nGermany signed an armistice with the Allies in November 1918 which marked only the end of actual fighting, but not the war itself. The war is considered still ongoing until the terms of surrender are formalized and signed. That occurred in 1919 during the P... | null |
10g9gu | how can an animal eat its own kind with no side effects but human cannibalism causes brain damage? | [
{
"answer": "Animals can't either; look up mad cow disease.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "It isn't the human flesh that causes brain damage, it is the risk of parasites/prions in the human flesh. Thoroughly cooked human flesh won't hurt you, but if it is under cooked or you eat infected brai... | null |
2ne6oo | What decides which plate subducts in ocean-ocean convergent plate boundaries? | [
{
"answer": "For the ocean-ocean case, basically the age of the plates. Age is essentially a proxy for temperature/thickness. Imagine tracking a piece of oceanic crust from its formation point at a mid-ocean ridge. As it moves away from the ridge, it cools and thickens, increasing the aggregate density of the p... | null |
f4gvat | why are people born with photographic memories? how does this impact psychological childhood development? | [
{
"answer": "Photographic memory is a myth. Not a single case of it has even been found, so no one is born with it. Makes for great TV though. \n\n\nThere is such a thing as Eidetic memory, but only really found in children, disappears as they get older, and even this is often warped or flawed in some ways. \... | null |
1w1syl | Speed differences for loading content from Discs, Hard-Drives and Solid State Drives(SSD) | [
{
"answer": "It might load quicker from an HDD/SDD. \n\nI'm not sure about PS1 emulators but some emulators (sometimes only on some roms) need to slow down reading from HDDs to match the loading speed of the original drive as loading at a higher speed can throw off the game timing and cause glitchs or crashes.\... | null |
477hup | how were the first construction cranes built when there were no other cranes to reach or lift the heavy weights? | [
{
"answer": "Cranes can construct themselves. You dont need a crane to build a crane. Its tricky but it can be done.\n\nYou could also easily build a crane by constructing scaffolding around it and putting it together that way.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "We've had simple cranes being built... | null |
ehh4n9 | how it is determined that people who died while texting-and-driving were actually looking at their phone at the time of (or time leading to) impact? | [
{
"answer": "No way to know accurately. But some estimates based on witnesses that saw the driver texting. Seeing sent text messages with that time stamp, etc. In general cellphone in hand at the time of accident could be classified as driving and texting regardless of actual use.",
"provenance": null
... | null |
9w800e | Did the ancient Arabs, such as the Qedarites, self-identify with the Biblical genealogy of the Arabs, i.e. Ishmaelites? | [
{
"answer": " > Is there any evidence of the ancient Arabs calling themselves Ishmaelites?\n\nThe term *Ishmaelites* appears mostly in non-Arabic sources. While a genealogical link between the Arabs and Ishmael appears in numerous Arabic sources, Arabs nonetheless did not use that term (the Arabic equivalent o... | null |
1aukj8 | how does my hair get tangled so quickly? | [
{
"answer": "Entropy. There are more ways for your hair to be tangled, than untangled. ",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_id": "9730158",
"title": "Suebian knot",
"section": "Section::::Method.\n",
"start_paragraph_id": 1... | null |
rcbek | why do i look up and the right when i'm trying to remember something? | [
{
"answer": "I look to the side, personally; I think looking in another direction helps you focus on something different quicker.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "It's a microexpression. You're looking away as your brain tries to find the memory. \n\nPolice sometimes as you a random question to ... | null |
3niee0 | It was common for upper-class European women prior to the contemporary era to occupy themselves with pursuits in music and art as a matter of enriching home-life. Do we know of any outstanding talents among them? | [
{
"answer": "Are you looking exclusively for married upper class women who took a hobby of music and became famous for it, or just if there are famous female musicians prior to the modern era?",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Mary Casssatt was an outstanding female artist. However, there are som... | null |
2sspgm | how do scientists determine how much water you need to drink? | [
{
"answer": "IIRC, the \"recommended amount\" of water per day has no real health benefits. Maybe a myth, may be a misconception.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "The \"8 glasses of water per day\" thing is ridiculously high and is also a myth, apparently originally based on a misinterpretation ... | null |
1ke9yu | Why are there so many species of birds compared to other tetrapod vertebrates? | [
{
"answer": "So this is neat because birds are also the phylogenetically youngest of the tetrapods. The big reason is that birds, by virtue of flying, opened up a mostly unexploited niche (habitat) space that they could fill without competition. They could then partition this new habitat leading to speciation... | null |
kb7s9 | Have humans always had to brush their teeth to avoid rotting? | [
{
"answer": "The short answer is that no, brushing of the teeth wasn't necessary. Humans didn't live nearly as long until recently, and there was no reason to evolve more long-lasting teeth.\n\nThe long answer is that there is no selective pressure to produce teeth that last longer. Teeth don't usually start ge... | null |
1j5hdx | How did the Gauls manage to muster so many men during the Gallic War? | [
{
"answer": "So I'm assuming you mean the Gallic Wars that occured during the Roman Republic involving Caesar's conquest.\n\nThe Romans did have better organization, but did not, many times have larger armies than the medieval world. The average legion was about 6,000 men, and a large Roman army composed maybe ... | null |
30odgd | why do we have summer and winter time? wouldn't it be easier to shift the clock half an hour in one direction and leave it that way all year? | [
{
"answer": "It started as a way to help farm families manage work and school time. It stuck because it saves many millions of dollars in energy each year. Reduces stress on the power grid and other benifits. Adjusting humans can be done, the sun just is so set in its ways.",
"provenance": null
},
{
... | null |
2b6cqd | Could planets survive the heat death of the universe? Or Would they degrade also. | [
{
"answer": "If the planets are far enough from their stars when they die, so as not to get caught in a supernova or planetary nebula, the planets would be stable for arbitrarily long times. They'd get really cold though.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
... | null |
2o7y6u | why is it conservative media in the us usually stands against minorities in alleged police brutality cases? | [
{
"answer": "I think you'd have to provide some specific evidence here. Most of the stuff I've seen is them pointing out in the Michael Brown case that the rest of the media was really quick to label him a blameless victim and pointing out all of the contrary evidence.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"ans... | null |
n2emz | why we think pirates talk the way they do | [
{
"answer": "_URL_0_\n\nNumber 6.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "What we came to know as \"Pirates\" (e.g. treasure maps marked with an \"X\", schooners, the Black Spot, tropical islands, and one-legged seamen carrying parrots on their shoulders etc.) all came from the novel Treasure Island by... | null |
1rsqkz | what is math and why does it work? | [
{
"answer": "One of the problems I see with a lot of the explanations here is that they are focused strictly on one type of mathematics. Mathematics is a large topic that encompasses many parts. As such I share the definition that I share with my students:\n\nBorrowed from \"The Language of Mathematics: Making ... | null |
odc57 | birth control statistics (nsfw) | [
{
"answer": "I believe contraceptive statistics are quoted as \"pregnancy per year given perfect usage.\" So 99.8% effective means 2 out of every 1000 women using the pill correctly will get pregnant within a year despite perfect use.\n\nOf course this makes a lot of assumptions. \"Perfect use\" is hard to ac... | null |
1uo5ub | how are secret formulas legal? | [
{
"answer": "There are certain ingredients which are banned, and that can not be used in any capacity. Since the creation, importation, transportation, and use of these ingredients are strictly regulated, there is little fear that they are going to end up in consumer products, especially major ones that many pe... | null |
971lye | how does augmented reality graffiti work?? | [
{
"answer": "Augmented reality is a catchall term for the use of computer graphics overlaid on our view of the real world. A live video stream can be edited to include artificial elements, or people might look through a clear screen that displays such things to the viewer. In practice this can be a symbol such ... | null |
2nbjaz | where did this "explain it like i'm 5" saying/concept originate? | [
{
"answer": "_URL_0_\n\nIt's from the Office.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_id": "53031968",
"title": "Chidush",
"section": "Section::::Current usage.\n",
"start_paragraph_id": 33,
"start_character": 0,
... | null |
2h08xg | Does any plant grow fast enough to be able to see the plant grow? | [
{
"answer": "As I understand it, if you were very very patient, yes you could perceive the growth of some of those bamboo. I don't know of any other plant that grows that fast. Some algae might be able to in the right conditions. ",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
... | null |
vr3iy | The Homestead Act of 1862 | [
{
"answer": "It referred to building a home, setting up the land for farming, adding additional irrigation, etc. ",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "\"There was no systematic method used to evaluate claims under the homestead acts. Land offices relied on affidavits from witnesses that the claimant... | null |
2u9cgd | why is the crown victoria so popular within the police forces in north america? | [
{
"answer": "was, the Crown Vic is no longer made. Full size sedan, V8 engine, rear wheel drive, made it popular with the police and taxi companies.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "They use chargers as well (at least where i live)\n\ncrown vics are actually pretty fast once they recieve police ... | null |
25w5ja | How does usb data transfer work/ what each wire inside a usb cable for? | [
{
"answer": "The other two connections are [Data+ and Data-](_URL_0_). It's a differential signal.\n\nNobody is going to be able to answer all of that in a blog post. You are going to need to do a lot of research or take some classes in college.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"prove... | null |
ap9y3k | how does adding spin to a bullet using rifling make the gun more accurate? | [
{
"answer": "It is conservation of momentum, in this case rotational momentum. One of the major problems with early ammunition was that it tended to tumble unpredictably and this would interact with the drag of the air to move them off target. A rotating bullet though tends to want to keep rotating which means ... | null |
3j7wsp | why do central banks use interest rates as the primary tool for adjusting the supply of money? | [
{
"answer": "Because interest rates also let you adjust the supply of money 'down' too.\n \nCentral banks do have other ways to add money to the economy beyond interest rates. One of the most common is to buy/sell bonds. If the central bank buys bonds then they basically inject money into the banks, and the re... | null |
2zxtxo | why isn't chicken meat marbled? | [
{
"answer": "Actually if you have a corn fed chicken that us free range is has a small degree of marbling however because the fat is translucent and thin it nearly always acts like a baste for the bird (which is why many chickens when roasted tend to leech do much fat)",
"provenance": null
},
{
"ans... | null |
7fc0hi | why can't digital clocks retain the time when unplugged/powered down if phones and computers can? | [
{
"answer": "Digital clocks tend not to have backup batteries, though some do and can keep time across power outages. If more models with this feature were sold then perhaps manufacturers would make it more common. They don't so apparently it's not worth it for people to pay the extra cost.\n\nIf you look at ... | null |
3oba50 | why are we so scared to introduce life on other planets? | [
{
"answer": "We're not SCARED to, we're trying to avoid wrecking science.\n\nBy bringing in foreign contaminants, you're essentially wrecking any sort of science experience concerning native life. You'll never be able to tell if some discovered earth-like microbe is truly native, or just somehow survived the tr... | null |
7zttct | who decided that the standards were 4:3 16:9 21:9 for aspect ratio? | [
{
"answer": "It's because 4:3 is closest to our vision and is best to relay information, 21:9 was already the standard of cinema and is best to describe scenery. 16:9 is just the compromise between those two. \nAnd for where those numbers came from, there's only 1 word: compromise. The artist, engineers, and t... | null |
3en6hs | why does air conditioner cooling use electricity? isn't there an efficient way to absorb thermal energy to produce electrical energy? | [
{
"answer": "If you search for \"air conditioner\" on here you'll get some great explanations for how they work. I'd like, however, to address your second question.\n\n > Isn't there an efficient way to absorb thermal energy to produce electrical energy?\n\nThe only way to create usable energy out of thermal e... | null |
oxj7l | Could sign language take root and persist in wild chimpanzees without continued human contact? | [
{
"answer": "I was interested in this idea, and asked a primatologist who had studied chimp behavior about it. She seemed to think it was relatively unlikely. Apparently chimps very rarely sign at each other, and the chain of behavioral mimicking is kind of one sided and dependent on social status. They also... | null |
7nruk8 | does darkness have a speed? | [
{
"answer": "Darkness is the absence of light. Since a lack of something isn't, in and of itself, a thing it has no bounds on how fast it may move.\n\nIn some setups darkness moves at the speed of light. For example, if you consider a spotlight shining out into space and briefly flash it then you shoot a cyli... | null |
26zyx3 | Does the photoelectric effect decay? | [
{
"answer": "So it has been a while since I actually did this experiment, but nonetheless maybe I can shed some... light on the matter.. (haha). Ok, so in the photoelectric experiment we have a piece of metal attached to a source, and on the other side is another plate of metal. The point here, is that the whol... | null |
3hondg | I heard someone say recently that Rome destroyed themselves because of moral decay and fiscal irresponsibility. This didn't sound right to me, and I wanted to hear what /r/AskHistorians had to say about it. | [
{
"answer": "That was Gibbon, or a fan of Gibbon?\n\nWe'll have to start by defining \"the fall of Rome.\" 410 CE, when it was sacked? 476, when the last Roman emperor abdicated? 1453, with the fall of Constantinople? I know people that argue Rome never fell. Obviously there are as many different theories ab... | null |
9cgyge | Did Heisenberg purposely handicap the development of the Atomic Bomb for Nazi Germany? | [
{
"answer": "There is no real evidence of this, and Heisenberg himself never really claimed this. [See this previous thread for a thorough discussion](_URL_0_). Please feel free to ask any follow-up questions.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_i... | null |
7dzxcs | if any distance can be halved, at what point do you stop touching something? | [
{
"answer": "Uh... if you're taking your finger off something, then the distance will increase, halving is a decrease.\n\nAlso, from a physics standpoint you never actually touch anything...\n\nAside from those, you're describing a form of one of Zeno's Paradox. Ultimately the solution is the fact that in the l... | null |
foemj | Theoretical Question about subatomic particles. The thought came to me when pondering solar system formation... | [
{
"answer": "This might be a lost cause, but here goes...\n\n\n > We know matter is made up of atoms which are revolving around one another's subatomic forces. \n\n\nSubatomic particles like electrons \"orbit\" protons and neutrons in some sense...\n\n\n > Just like gravity is draws together dust in the vacuu... | null |
14e0bn | Based on probability and how the universe is ever expanding... | [
{
"answer": "The universe is expanding but not infinite. There isn't more universe it just gets larger, space expands. The quantity of mass and energy is finite.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_id": "23704170",
"title": "The Whole Sheb... | null |
5c7m3m | how do contactless cards work? | [
{
"answer": "They use radio waves. The cashier's terminal powers the card and the card emits a signal containing info connecting it to your account and the necessary security details to make sure it's genuine. It's basically a wireless version of chip cards. The time it takes to complete the purchase depends on... | null |
1ockdm | why is it considered healthy to put oil on your salad, but not fry your food in it? | [
{
"answer": "Putting fats on salads is good because it helps absorb the fat soluble vitamins in salad. Frying on the other hand isn't good because first off heating up fats to the point of frying isn't good for the fats and second off cooking food too much destroys food and produces carcinogens. ",
"provena... | null |
5a0kxn | what is going on in south korea right now? | [
{
"answer": "[South Korean explained it well.](_URL_0_) Warning though it's from a chan board so it's highly offensive. It's a great explanation, but still offensive.\n\nEDIT: Made an imgur album for you with more information.\n\n_URL_1_",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "**Pasting this, and modif... | null |
q7ydc | Do women with big breasts have bigger risk of breast cancer than women with small ones? | [
{
"answer": "It's an intuitively appealing thought, but at present no studies have shown a definitive link between breast size and breast cancer rates.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "There is no conclusive evidence for this. There are several risk factors for breast cancer: one is genetic, and... | null |
28bzvx | Did the crocodile attacks during the 1945 battle of Ramree Island actually happen? | [
{
"answer": "This is what I wrote the last time it was brought up: \n\nThe story never happened. It's complete fiction.\n\nBut Bernardito, wasn't it included in the Guinness Book of World Records? Doesn't Wikipedia confirm as true?\n\nHere we get to the interesting part. \n\nFirst, the truth: February 1945. It'... | null |
4u0d4o | If Hexagons are the Most Efficient Way to Store Something in Two Dimensions, What is the Best For Three? | [
{
"answer": "[This is the current best solution](_URL_0_)",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "If by \"efficient\" you mean packing spheres into a volume (as opposed to the efficient hexagonal tiling of circles on a plane), there are actually two solutions: the face centered cubic (fcc) lattice and ... | null |
3biq6m | how can it be cheaper for a company to hire a contractor rather than new employees? | [
{
"answer": "In my case, I had a small project that was supposed to run for a few months. I did not want to hire a full time employee, because I had nothing for them to do after this project. Hired a contractor, got the project done. Worked out well since the cost of using a contractor for a few months was with... | null |
3m41i8 | why has there been a new 3d printer getting fully funded on kickstarter every month for the past 3 years? | [
{
"answer": "There has yet to be a truly consumer friendly 3D printer on the market, they just need to much maintenance and calibration to remain useful. People keep coming along thinking they can solve this problem, but no one has so far.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "I said the exact same ... | null |
21jr3h | why aren't pico projectors a huge thing now, and why aren't they the number one feature in all smartphones? | [
{
"answer": "because they suck and everyone still has a laptop or a tablet. So...if you ask me, until they work better AND the phone can replace a laptop/tablet then it's just wasted money. If you're sitting there with your laptop/table and your pico projector phone and you wanna watch something it's not a ha... | null |
5ox5s7 | why, when slowly opening a plastic soda bottle, does a little air come out when you crack it a little open, but then more comes out when you open more? | [
{
"answer": "Most sodas are carbonated, this means that they have carbon dioxide gas (CO2) dissolved in them. There are a variety of things that can cause a solution (the soda) to release a dissolved gas (the CO2), heat and agitation being the two your soda is most likely to encounter.\n\nAdditionally, most sod... | null |
g62di | If humans had evolved with easy access to food, how would body functions change? | [
{
"answer": "If our ancestors had lived in a world where food was plentiful and easy to get (say, in a forest of cheesecake trees), then they simply would have reproduced and reproduced until they were so numerous that food stopped being plentiful and easy to get. \n\nIn this new world, the main obstacle to you... | null |
f9dg2y | what is the culture around modifying cars and motorcycles to be louder? | [
{
"answer": "Most of the times making a motorcycle louder can save a life. Loud pipes save lives when comes to two wheels.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Depends on the individual\n\n1. Some (often younger) think louder = cool. These are often the ones that drill holes in their exhaust to achi... | null |
18xk42 | Is it possible to transmit data over something other than the electromagnetic spectrum? | [
{
"answer": "Here's two alternatives (with terrible latency):\n\n[FedEx](_URL_0_)\n\n[IP over avian carrier](_URL_1_)",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Gravitational Waves!! \n\n_URL_0_\n\nWhile legit (it comes from DARPA), Any body who know anything about gravitational waves knows this proposal ... | null |
2am3py | how do i upload a website? | [
{
"answer": "You haven't mentioned your hosting solution, so I'm assuming you don't have one.\n\nA domain name is just a pretty name that you use so that people don't have to remember an IP address. That's it. It does nothing else for you. (Well not for a simple website, anyway.)\n\nWhatever Dreamweaver crapped... | null |
3f7fbe | why does netflix produce original content? isn't it a risky endeavor? what are they gaining by trying to be a streaming service and a production studio? | [
{
"answer": "If they produce original content they can guarantee *exclusive* access to potentially highly sought after tv shows.\n\n\nTake HBO. People subscribe to channels like HBO because of the high quality content they produce. Netflix wants people to choose them over rivals such as lovefilm/amazon-prime et... | null |
1nsfyn | How many photons are hitting my eye? | [
{
"answer": "The first question is pretty hard to answer. 'Brightness' is not the only thing that matters. In fact, what humans usually describe as 'brightness' is just contrast (ie, we perceive something as bright because things around it are dark, not because it emits a lot of light.) So I will stick to somet... | null |
1nqai2 | How was news broken to the public that WWI was over? | [
{
"answer": "Nobody really knew that the war was going to end on 11/11 except for the participants of the meeting. In fact, even the soldiers did not really know that the war had ended until the middle of the day or even later, depending on when the telegram reached them. Fighting was still continuing right up ... | null |
3r2byw | why does trying to read a scratched cd/dvd pretty much freeze up your computer? | [
{
"answer": "Some things on a computer are never expected to take much time, so it sends the command to do it then just sits and waits for the result.\n\nWith a scratched CD/DVD the drive itself decides to try again over and over before giving up. The computer just sits there and waits. And waits. After a short... | null |
503h1e | why do professional field sports use cleats? | [
{
"answer": "They do not actually increase injuries much because it is against the rules to kick or step on your opponent, thus meaning it rarely happens. But they do prevent a lot of injuries by reducing your chances of your feet slipping on the grass. \n\nYour assumption of your foot being able to \"just slid... | null |
2wverz | Are there any instances of Viking cowardice or surrender? | [
{
"answer": "At Ridgeway near [Weymouth](_URL_0_) on the English Channel, archaeologists recently uncovered the bodies of about 50 vikings. That is, they found a pile of [47 skulls](_URL_2_) next to [52 skeletons](_URL_1_).\n\nSome initial analysis has been done of trace elements in their bones, which show that... | null |
7np47c | What caused the sudden change to shaved pussy in porn starting in the 1990s? | [
{
"answer": "Hi,\n\nCould you please resubmit this without the coarse language in the title? (Why did porn stars start shaving, or some such)\n\nThanks!",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_id": "155117",
"title": "Pubic hair",
"sec... | null |
3lzu5p | why does water seem to stick to glass? | [
{
"answer": "[Adhesion.](_URL_0_) Water \"seems\" to stick to glass because it does.\n\n > I don't seem to notice this when washing dishes at home though.\n\nIt certainly still does, but (a) possible you're looking at non-transparent dishes so you're not really noticing it, and (b) soap in the water will massiv... | null |
6r92m9 | if the speed of sound is about 340m/s how can normal things make sound? | [
{
"answer": "No you are confusing the speed of propagation of the sound wave with the speed of the thing moving back and forth to generate the sound.\n\nWhile the thing moving back and forth doesn't have to move nearly as fast as the speed of sound, it does have to move much faster than you could say move your ... | null |
2f5p5b | why do we not have international space program? | [
{
"answer": "Yes, it it is typically more beneficial. That's why 20 nations have cooperated in the [European Space Agency](_URL_0_) for over 30 years now. ",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "**International Space** Station\n\nIt's even in the name.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": n... | null |
1z7sc1 | Why did the Great War produce so many soldier-poets? Was it simply the number of public school educated young men faced with enforced trench-based stasis? Or are there other factors? | [
{
"answer": "**Poetry and the War**\n\nIt should be noted, first, that the war produced an absurd number of poets at every level -- not just in the trenches. Catherine Reilly's groundbreaking *English Poetry of the First World War: A Bibliography* (1978), for example, lists some 2,225 English poets publishing ... | null |
jj0w3 | How does science define and/or account for the perception of 'luck'? | [
{
"answer": "Human beings excel in identifying patterns to the extent that we often see patterns that are not actually there.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Scientists love probability. We'll repeat experiments to determine if there are multiple outcomes, and (with enough measurements), the pr... | null |
1o12v5 | What are some weird fads of the 1900's that most people don't know about? | [
{
"answer": "For a short period after the turn of the 20th Century, it became quite fashionable for wealthy New York City socialites to carry around \"companion monkeys,\" which they would dress in outfits and keep in their [muff hand warmers](_URL_0_). Thousands of monkeys were brought into the city in the fir... | null |
1zzx27 | how does the large hadron collider remain stable? | [
{
"answer": "You need to elaborate more on your question. What fo you mean by remaining stable?",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "I *think* the collision experiments themselves release only tiny amounts of energy. No chain reactions like fusion or fission are possible. If the particles miss each... | null |
24rq2l | What is the origin of the modern conception of a 'franchise' business model? | [
{
"answer": "_URL_0_\n\nIt was none other than Colonel Harland Sanders who started the idea. In 1955 he was able to convince a friend of his in Utah to start selling fried chicken and fixings using his recipe and cooking the chickens in a pressure cooker. The link above is his autobiography and from the KFC web... | null |
7zq7bf | What are some good databases for US newspapers? | [
{
"answer": "I use _URL_0_ - the search feature is solid and it includes the Times.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Proquest historical newspapers has a few interesting ones including the Times. My city library has access to a few of the titles, university libraries will often have most of them... | null |
dvp0zk | Can someone explain to me if there will be new habitable areas as global warming and climate change progress? | [
{
"answer": "It may make those areas more habitable in terms of temperature, but most of the land up there is permafrost, so you’d get massive amounts of erosion as the ice in the ground turns to water.\n\nPlus, if all the permafrost up there thaws, were pretty much boned. Currently the CO2 and Methane released... | null |
5ipvta | many in the u.s. are concerned for the future. can a modern, world super power actually fall similar to rome? | [
{
"answer": "I question your premise. \n\nAnyway, the fall of rome was varied and slow. Yes there were actual conquests but a lot of it was gradual. \n\nWe probably don't have to worry about northern european hordes threatening us at the gate. \n\nWe probably do have to worry about a relative decline in power. ... | null |
1pluyc | why are they cutting food stamps in the us? | [
{
"answer": "Edit 2: Since some people need further explanation, I do not claim that the views below are my own, nor do I claim that they are the correct way of thinking. What follows is just my understanding of the arguments presented by those who wish to cut back on expansion of food stamps in the US.\n\n\nT... | null |
t539h | Is it possible that some human emotions and actions are influenced by viral, bacterial, or fungal infections? | [
{
"answer": "Sure, google [toxoplasmosis.](_URL_0_)",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "[People become more social when infected with the flu, making them more likely to infect others](_URL_1_). One of my favorite studies.\n\nWell, the study actually tested the flu *vaccine*, but the effects shoul... | null |
2ux8xh | we see stories of people who lose half their brain and somehow survive. if you divide a human brain 50/50 are both halves equally viable to survive as a person given the right circumstances? | [
{
"answer": "Uuhh... no. The brain is collosally complex organ that we understand less about then we do about any other part of ... almost anything. It can do a shitton of funky stuff and compensate for TONS of problems. but you might just as wel die as another might survive drom the same injuries. What or wher... | null |
31kp4d | how does the movie 'birdman' look like one continuous take? how did they do it? | [
{
"answer": "Whenever there's a scene where there is no characters in the shot and the camera is still.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "It's easier to see the cuts once you know what you're looking for. Birdman wasn't filmed in one location: the stage and backstage portions, as well as the roof... | null |
1ddc1w | What led up to the Tulsa Race Riots and how did it affect Tulsa in the next couple of decades after? | [
{
"answer": "Howdy fellow Tulsan. Spent a day at Reconciliation Park the other day. I'm sorry that has taken me so long to chime in on, and I will say more later, but I just stumbled across this and I did not want to forget to tell you about it. Are you familiar with This Land Press? If not, I hope you do. [Any... | null |
wf0jn | Regarding acne | [
{
"answer": "A big part of acne is related to skin cell turnover- as skin cells die, they break free from their neighbors and fall off. If the bonds that hold them to their neighbors are too strong, they can't break free, they clump up and block pores, trapping bacteria inside. Anti-acne medications like sali... | null |
xhrpy | How does a water molecule interact with the glass it touches? | [
{
"answer": "There are a number of different types of glass and the interaction is abit different for each of them.\n\nHowever, for general silica glass, basically the surface is not perfectly smooth. It large imperfections on the scale of perhaps 1 nm for a high quality piece of glass (this can be reduced subs... | null |
1jxjlq | How prevalent were monopolies and cartels in shaping the American economy, ~1940-1990? | [
{
"answer": "This is very difficult question to answer in that the definition of 'cartel' or 'monopoly' is at best flexible. For example, was the telephone company a monopoly? Did the various local telcos of the (rough) time make up a cartel in that they exercised exclusive control over a geographic area and ch... | null |
3m092i | How did 'US' forces expect to succeed in the Bay of Pigs invasion | [
{
"answer": "Much in the way that Castro had succeeded against similar odds years earlier. The Bay of Pigs was not the original target of the attack, but rather, Trinidad, Cuba, which is on the southern shore roughly in the middle of Cuba. The crucial geographical difference between the two is that the Trinid... | null |
2bizcu | the main differences between baptist and pentecostal beliefs | [
{
"answer": "There are several. Here's three of the big ones, by doctrine: \n\n1. Baptists believe you're saved, then get baptised. Pentacostals believe baptism is a prerequisite for salvation.\n\n2. Pentacostals believe glossolalia (speaking in tongues) is evidence of baptism, while Baptists do not. \n\n3. Bap... | null |
27i45u | During WWII, did the army have units that collected damaged and lost equipment for refurbishment and reuse? | [
{
"answer": "I've also wondered this, also if there was any stigma attached to using captured weapons. ",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": null,
"provenance": [
{
"wikipedia_id": "30268180",
"title": "Lichtenfels station",
"section": "Section::::History.\n",
... | null |
s62ac | How likely is a message in a bottle actually being read by someone? | [
{
"answer": "In most cases in some traditional small island in a large ocean, currents would wash the bottles away very easily; unless you fling the bottle directly into the incoming tide, it'll just be swept past the island and disappear. Chances are winds or other currents will sweep it far enough away it doe... | null |
g5l2c | In vehicles, would it be more efficient to have more or less gears? | [
{
"answer": "The point of gears is to allow the engine to work within a specific range where the engine has optimum efficiency in terms of fuel used vs power generated. Most engines will have a specific \"power range\" which is where the engine will work best. Gears basically allow the engine to stay within thi... | null |
4hw41b | why weed and hops smell almost the same | [
{
"answer": "They are extremely closely related, both belonging to the family \"cannabacae\". They share a vast amount of their genetics with cannabis so the smell is similar.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "They're related plants. It stands to reason they would smell alike. (They also have in... | null |
20ysyt | why doesn't my parents' dog recognize my face or voice when i call them on skype? | [
{
"answer": "He probably does. He just knows you can't scratch his ears via Skype and there's no treats either.",
"provenance": null
},
{
"answer": "Not sure about the lack of voice recognition, but dogs and cats see screens differently than we do. In order for us to detect fluid motion/activity on ... | null |
fxo28u | How can Animals contract COVID19 but not spread it to us? | [
{
"answer": "We don’t know if they can spread it to us yet, but it certainly doesn’t seem to be a major factor.\n\nIt’s not unusual for viruses to be able to infect off-target hosts but not transmit, or transmit very weakly, because the virus doesn’t shed in large quantities. That might be because the virus do... | null |
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