# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1055 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 1056 --- ## [Home Solar Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/home-solar-questions/728995)
**Author:** [@SanDiegoTim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanDiegoTim)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [August 27, 2015, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/home-solar-questions/728995 "2015-08-27T00:34:04Z")
When a solar system is installed it seems to me the assumption is that it is operating at peak efficiency. But how does the buyer really know it is generating the power/efficiency promised by the installer/manufacturer? … --- ## [Wavelength of radiation given off by stuff heated by the sun?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wavelength-of-radiation-given-off-by-stuff-heated-by-the-sun/728992)
**Author:** [@sweeteviljesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweeteviljesus)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wavelength-of-radiation-given-off-by-stuff-heated-by-the-sun/728992 "2015-08-26T22:45:05Z")
Say I leave a black plastic bucket or something out in the sun on a clear day. What is the range of wavelengths of the photons radiated by it as it heats up? Thanks, Rob --- ## [Is this a common method of suicide?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-common-method-of-suicide/551411)
**Author:** [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Replies:** 44\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-common-method-of-suicide/551411 "2015-08-26T20:03:10Z")
Last May, Erica Blasberg died in her home in the Las Vegas area. Erica was a young struggling pro-golfer trying to make it on the Ladies pro golf tour. This week, the coroner finally came out with his official report. … --- ## [as seen on tv](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-seen-on-tv/728843)
**Author:** [@freethink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freethink)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-seen-on-tv/728843 "2015-08-26T19:43:14Z")
Has anyone (other than Ron Popiel) ever gotten rich selling one of those “as seen on tv” gadgets? --- ## [Regarding the miracle this is Play-Doh.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-the-miracle-this-is-play-doh/728684)
**Author:** [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-the-miracle-this-is-play-doh/728684 "2015-08-26T19:34:31Z")
This afternoon, my three-year-old grandson and I were playing with Play-Doh. A couple of questions occurred to me. \[ol\] \[li\]Is Play-Doh a solid or a liquid?\[/li\]\[li\]What property allows Play-Doh to be separated into t… --- ## [China and North Korea](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-and-north-korea/728407)
**Author:** [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Replies:** 59\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-and-north-korea/728407 "2015-08-26T19:20:03Z")
Does China have a mutual defense agreement with North Korea just like the US has with South Korea? If North Korea unilaterally attacked South Korea, and the US came to the defense of South Korea, is it likely China woul… --- ## [Yellow jackets](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yellow-jackets/728534)
**Author:** [@lk122232](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lk122232)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yellow-jackets/728534 "2015-08-26T18:57:42Z")
How do you keep yellow jackets away from your hummingbird feeder? I’ve tried everything known to man except a 12 gauge and I think that may be my next course of action. --- ## [Can't see the forest for the trees](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cant-see-the-forest-for-the-trees/728893)
**Author:** [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cant-see-the-forest-for-the-trees/728893 "2015-08-26T18:02:49Z")
does it mean: Can’t recognize that a forest is really a bunch of trees, or Can’t see the forest because there are too many trees in the way Origin of the phrase (Huey Lewis?) --- ## [Question regarding American versus Continental Spanish](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-american-versus-continental-spanish/728931)
**Author:** [@davidmich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidmich)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-american-versus-continental-spanish/728931 "2015-08-26T12:58:01Z")
Hi I do not speak Spanish but glancing at American Spanish I can follow it much more easily that Continental Spanish (if that is the correct word). If I were to look at a parallel text of Spanish (American and Continen… --- ## [Was I Space Sick?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-i-space-sick/728857)
**Author:** [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-i-space-sick/728857 "2015-08-26T09:53:31Z")
I was at the U.S. Space and Rocket Museum in Huntsville, AL. One of the exhibits was a mock up of the Mir space station. It was a long hollow cylinder with a separate entrance and exit for visitors. Now, the cylinder was… --- ## [Do ghost reports fluctuate with season or in certain areas?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-ghost-reports-fluctuate-with-season-or-in-certain-areas/728640)
**Author:** [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-ghost-reports-fluctuate-with-season-or-in-certain-areas/728640 "2015-08-26T02:14:35Z")
This would be powerful evidence of the carbon monoxide poisoning theory, if reports of ghosts or hauntings peak in winter or are much higher in areas with cold winters versus say the Florida Keys. --- ## [Tell Me About Bell's Palsy](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-bells-palsy/261499)
**Author:** [@TeaElle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TeaElle)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-bells-palsy/261499 "2015-08-26T00:44:36Z")
After a frightening few hours in which a stroke was feared, my cousin was diagnosed with Bell’s Palsy. It presented as a blinding headache and weakness in the right side of her face and neck. Can someone tell me more a… --- ## [Is Moore's law starting to come to end now?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-moores-law-starting-to-come-to-end-now/728126)
**Author:** [@sweat209](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweat209)\ **Replies:** 115\ **Last updated:** [August 26, 2015, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-moores-law-starting-to-come-to-end-now/728126 "2015-08-26T00:18:16Z")
2010 to mid 2015 computers CPU some progress but not two or three times faster. GPU/ video cards not that much faster…not two or three times faster. Hard-drive 2010 1TB standard, now in 2015 1TB or 2TB standard!! More… --- ## [geographic survey plug in for website.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographic-survey-plug-in-for-website/728839)
**Author:** [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographic-survey-plug-in-for-website/728839 "2015-08-25T20:18:15Z")
Is there a premade tool/plug in for doing something like overlaying member location data onto google maps or some similar service. Example: if I had a list of every member of the sdmb and their zip code, being able to g… --- ## [Can I disobey a cop who orders me to break the law?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-disobey-a-cop-who-orders-me-to-break-the-law/728736)
**Author:** [@legionprofessor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legionprofessor)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-disobey-a-cop-who-orders-me-to-break-the-law/728736 "2015-08-25T19:53:19Z")
I have a legal question, born from a personal experience, I’d like the Teeming Millions to shine their legal wisdom upon. I recently began riding my bicycle to work (after having not ridden for many a moon) to save on g… --- ## [Mexico bank selling dollars](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mexico-bank-selling-dollars/728845)
**Author:** [@harmonicamoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmonicamoon)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mexico-bank-selling-dollars/728845 "2015-08-25T18:25:02Z")
Selling dollars to strengthen the peso. How is this effective? They are selling dollars. Who is the buyer? Does the Mexican bank have a huge suitcase of dollar bills to sell? Or is it a credit line? Is it i… --- ## [Has anybody ever had a surge protector start smoking?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-had-a-surge-protector-start-smoking/660073)
**Author:** [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2013, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-had-a-surge-protector-start-smoking/660073 "2013-06-08T06:26:33Z")
I was home today, which I never am on a weekday, and his afternoon I smelled smoke. I came into the computer room where black smoke was coming out of a melting surge protector. First time that’s happened; I unplugged e… --- ## [EMails From The Dead?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emails-from-the-dead/728715)
**Author:** [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Replies:** 43\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emails-from-the-dead/728715 "2015-08-25T14:57:25Z")
Given all the attempts made through history, to contact the dead, has anyone tried the email route? Rather than EVP, it seems that emails would take very little energy to deliver. So, have any planet wide attempts (lik… --- ## [Help with rsync](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-rsync/728628)
**Author:** [@aaelghat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aaelghat)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-rsync/728628 "2015-08-25T14:44:12Z")
Hi there… Let’s say I have a set of directories in server A like this: /var/spool/tv/files/default/00001/INBOX /var/spool/tv/files/default/00002/INBOX /var/spool/tv/files/default/00003/INBOX /var/spool/tv/files/defa… --- ## [Are bodies clothed just prior to cremation?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-bodies-clothed-just-prior-to-cremation/728795)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-bodies-clothed-just-prior-to-cremation/728795 "2015-08-25T14:35:13Z")
I know bodies are prepared for viewing and the funeral. Hair, makeup, and clothing. What about just prior to cremation? Are they still clothed? I’d guess it’s really just adapting to people’s sensitives. If uncle Frank… --- ## [Loudspeakers heard 10 miles away in North Korea...Huh?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/loudspeakers-heard-10-miles-away-in-north-korea-huh/728746)
**Author:** [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/loudspeakers-heard-10-miles-away-in-north-korea-huh/728746 "2015-08-25T14:32:48Z")
In a current MPSIMS threadsombody quotes a news story: What kind of speakers are they using? And how do they work? I can’t imagine anything that would produce a sound loud enough to be heard 10 frickin’ miles away, a… --- ## [Will you become lactose intolerant if you stop drinking milk?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-you-become-lactose-intolerant-if-you-stop-drinking-milk/235280)
**Author:** [@Truth\_Seeker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Truth_Seeker)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-you-become-lactose-intolerant-if-you-stop-drinking-milk/235280 "2015-08-25T14:27:24Z")
I recently heard a radio report on lactose intolerance. Now I know that a certain percentage of the population become lactose intolerant as they age. But according to this show, you can also become lactose intolerant i… --- ## [Are there situations where it IS OK to let the US flag touch the ground?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-situations-where-it-is-ok-to-let-the-us-flag-touch-the-ground/728698)
**Author:** [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-situations-where-it-is-ok-to-let-the-us-flag-touch-the-ground/728698 "2015-08-25T14:09:28Z")
I was at an Indy Car race this weekend, and as a pre-race ceremony a parachute team jumped into the racetrack with a huge American flag----which predictably fell onto the racetrack. I thought under no circumstances shoul… --- ## [Sit-up exercises - Newton's Third Law](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sit-up-exercises-newtons-third-law/728659)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sit-up-exercises-newtons-third-law/728659 "2015-08-25T13:56:18Z")
When you do a sit-up exercise, your feet tend to rise as you are lifting your head up. This is why people doing sit-ups will often have someone holding their feet down, so that they can do the sit-ups more effectively. … --- ## [Do egrets taste bad?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-egrets-taste-bad/728666)
**Author:** [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-egrets-taste-bad/728666 "2015-08-25T13:01:40Z")
I was recently musing on the fact that little blue herons are pure white as juveniles and only later develop the rather good camouflage of the adult. This is contrary to what you see in many birds, where the juvenile … --- ## [checking luggage in NYC?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checking-luggage-in-nyc/728594)
**Author:** [@Shinna\_Minna\_Ma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shinna_Minna_Ma)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checking-luggage-in-nyc/728594 "2015-08-25T12:30:20Z")
I’m flying into the states for a week at the end of October. I won’t be flying out of JFK to return home until 11:50 p.m., because I want to spend the day in the city. I was wondering - is there any place in the vicinity… --- ## [Kindle immersed in water - salvageable?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kindle-immersed-in-water-salvageable/728721)
**Author:** [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kindle-immersed-in-water-salvageable/728721 "2015-08-25T11:23:15Z")
Well f\*ck. I guess I knew this was bound to happen eventually. I decided to soak in a hot bath around 3AM, fell asleep, and woke up a bit before 6AM … and for some portion of that time, my Kindle was underwater. I don’t… --- ## [On Average, How Many Toilet Visits Involve A Number Two?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-average-how-many-toilet-visits-involve-a-number-two/728729)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2015, 9:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-average-how-many-toilet-visits-involve-a-number-two/728729 "2015-08-25T09:27:37Z")
Imagine a toilet in a home with two healthy adults (a male and a female), and two healthy children (say, nine and six years old). Out of x number of visits to that toilet over a period of time, how many will be just a #1 … --- ## [Phone call answered by: "You'll mark the word..."](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phone-call-answered-by-youll-mark-the-word/725200)
**Author:** [@SanibelMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanibelMan)\ **Replies:** 38\ **Last updated:** [August 24, 2015, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phone-call-answered-by-youll-mark-the-word/725200 "2015-08-24T21:59:04Z")
The strangest thing just happened. I called my sister’s cell phone (area code 313, prefix 715) and the first time I called it, something picked up immediately and said: “You’ll mark the word SOON now.” It did this thre… --- ## [When did Disneyland get so Damn Expensive?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-disneyland-get-so-damn-expensive/728313)
**Author:** [@bb49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bb49)\ **Replies:** 91\ **Last updated:** [August 24, 2015, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-disneyland-get-so-damn-expensive/728313 "2015-08-24T20:59:37Z")
We’re looking into heading down to Disneyland in a couple of months, and the first thing I looked into was the cost to get into Disney. OMG, for 2 adults and a child under 10, it was almost $700US. We’re Canadians and … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1054) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1056)