# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1059 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 1060 --- ## [French drain in basement](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-drain-in-basement/728220)
**Author:** [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-drain-in-basement/728220 "2015-08-19T17:20:22Z")
I was looking at a property that has a French drain in the basement. I have never owned a property with a French drain. In part of it there is crappy panelling that would need to be ripped down. My question is this, in … --- ## [Am I overpaying for cell phone service by not upgrading my phone?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-overpaying-for-cell-phone-service-by-not-upgrading-my-phone/727737)
**Author:** [@iceiso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iceiso)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-overpaying-for-cell-phone-service-by-not-upgrading-my-phone/727737 "2015-08-19T16:54:55Z")
I’m a Verizon Wireless customer and their recent change to their plans (no more annual contracts) got me thinking. I’ll elaborate… When I sign a 2 year contract, let’s pretend I pay $200 for a smart phone that retails f… --- ## [Why does booze kill male "performance"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-booze-kill-male-performance/728186)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-booze-kill-male-performance/728186 "2015-08-19T14:34:04Z")
I’ve often heard/read about men who were too drunk to “perform.” What causes this effect? Does it happen to women? --- ## [Were/are casino operations run by the mob honest?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-are-casino-operations-run-by-the-mob-honest/727725)
**Author:** [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-are-casino-operations-run-by-the-mob-honest/727725 "2015-08-19T14:08:37Z")
Gambling casinos obviously are a profitably business in the long run because the house edge works in their favor. Where gambling is legal, the government regulates and oversees casino operations. Gambling boards will see… --- ## [Smoking in yer apartment.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smoking-in-yer-apartment/728157)
**Author:** [@Clowdieyes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clowdieyes)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smoking-in-yer-apartment/728157 "2015-08-19T14:00:39Z")
Can the maintenance man tell if someone is smoking weed or cigarettes in their apartment if they keep it clean n use air freshener and candles? --- ## [Why does unhealthy food taste good and healthy food taste bad?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-unhealthy-food-taste-good-and-healthy-food-taste-bad/670019)
**Author:** [@CoastalMaineiac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoastalMaineiac)\ **Replies:** 58\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-unhealthy-food-taste-good-and-healthy-food-taste-bad/670019 "2015-08-19T12:53:51Z")
Or: What is the purpose of our taste buds? The foods that work against our better health—candy, potato chips, soda, deep fried Twinkies—seem to have the greatest appeal to the taste buds. Those that are good for us may… --- ## [Does JADE HELM have a meaning?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-jade-helm-have-a-meaning/725707)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-jade-helm-have-a-meaning/725707 "2015-08-19T12:40:05Z")
Someone who believes JADE HELM 15 is an operation to take over Texas (or something like that) posted that JADE HELM stands for JOINT ASSISTANT for DEPLOYMENT and EXECUTION / HOMELAND ERADICATION OF LOCAL MILITANTS. The … --- ## [How to test drive a car without registration, plate, etc.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-test-drive-a-car-without-registration-plate-etc/727997)
**Author:** [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-test-drive-a-car-without-registration-plate-etc/727997 "2015-08-19T12:24:29Z")
I have two cars and will be selling one. It’s complicated but I haven’t determined which to keep yet. Michigan law if it matters… The Civic is/was registered in AZ and has an unexpired AZ license plate on it. It curre… --- ## [What volume of neutronium do I need to destroy the earth ? (need answer fast)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-volume-of-neutronium-do-i-need-to-destroy-the-earth-need-answer-fast/727299)
**Author:** [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-volume-of-neutronium-do-i-need-to-destroy-the-earth-need-answer-fast/727299 "2015-08-19T10:10:47Z")
I stole one of Skald’s teleportation devices and I’m planning to scoop up a bucket of Neutronium and teleport it to the centre of the earth. What volume do I need to make sure that the earth is completely destroyed and … --- ## [Does England have a Naval or Airforce Academy](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-england-have-a-naval-or-airforce-academy/728129)
**Author:** [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-england-have-a-naval-or-airforce-academy/728129 "2015-08-19T08:51:45Z")
Or is all students streamed through Sandhurst and then to what ever service. Thanks Declan --- ## [Mac Mini questions....](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-mini-questions/727984)
**Author:** [@squeekster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeekster)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 8:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-mini-questions/727984 "2015-08-19T08:31:28Z")
I am considering taking the plunge into the world of Mac. I’ll be going for the Mac Mini, mainly because that’s all I can afford. How are they? Are they pretty much the same as a full sized Mac? one thing I noticed i… --- ## [What's the best way to pare watermelon?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-way-to-pare-watermelon/728072)
**Author:** [@Anny\_Middon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anny_Middon)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-way-to-pare-watermelon/728072 "2015-08-19T05:40:40Z")
I decided to make some watermelon rind pickles, a confection I haven’t had for at least 40 years. (Depending on your age and/or where you’ve resided in your life, you may not have ever heard of pickled watermelon rind. … --- ## [Have all Communist/Socialist nations turned into. . .](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-all-communist-socialist-nations-turned-into/728087)
**Author:** [@tullsterx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tullsterx)\ **Replies:** 48\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-all-communist-socialist-nations-turned-into/728087 "2015-08-19T05:15:56Z")
. . . totalitarian/fascist nations? I mean, it’s kind of hard to see how the socialism in China, The Soviet Union, Cuba resulted in better things for the “common man.” It seems instead that these nations turned into to… --- ## [Second hand.. ..vapor and electronic cigarettes](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/second-hand-vapor-and-electronic-cigarettes/666931)
**Author:** [@beo.thuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beo.thuck)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/second-hand-vapor-and-electronic-cigarettes/666931 "2015-08-19T04:55:52Z")
Hi dopers. I started a new job last month and I’m taking inbound sales calls all day from 8 to 4. There are about 200 people on the floor taking calls, and a number of them “smoke” electronic cigarettes. A guy sitting a… --- ## [Interview Tomorrow need help fast!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-tomorrow-need-help-fast/728243)
**Author:** [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-tomorrow-need-help-fast/728243 "2015-08-19T04:04:08Z")
I’m fairly desperate for full time work so I applied at this company for a job that may be a step down but whatever. Problem is I can’t totally figure out what they do. I have reviewed their web site for a while and st… --- ## [Identifying a '70's $400 designer hi-tech chrome table clock.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identifying-a-70s-400-designer-hi-tech-chrome-table-clock/251579)
**Author:** [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identifying-a-70s-400-designer-hi-tech-chrome-table-clock/251579 "2015-08-19T04:00:27Z")
I’ve occasionally searched for this on Ebay over several years, and this item’s never come up, but I’ve never been able to forget it, even though I only glimpsed it for a few seconds in the late '70’s, when I was a kid. … --- ## [Monoatomic Gold...what's it supposed to do?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monoatomic-gold-whats-it-supposed-to-do/450811)
**Author:** [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Replies:** 56\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monoatomic-gold-whats-it-supposed-to-do/450811 "2015-08-19T02:56:38Z")
A friend of mine (the same one who talks about colloidal silver) was telling me all about the almost magical benefits of monoatomic gold this weekend. I’ve looked it up on the web but most of the cites seem along the sa… --- ## [A simple way to reset a printer?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-simple-way-to-reset-a-printer/728115)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-simple-way-to-reset-a-printer/728115 "2015-08-19T01:40:12Z")
I had this problem a few weeks ago. The thing prints gibberish. Wingdings, random letters, numbers, etc. I unistalled the printer and all the associated software and then reinstalled the whole shebang. It worked! … --- ## [Why do I sweat after a shower?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-sweat-after-a-shower/728143)
**Author:** [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2015, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-i-sweat-after-a-shower/728143 "2015-08-19T00:17:04Z")
Hello Everyone, I live in Florida, so it’s hot. I just took a shower this evening and then steeped out onto our porch and I was instantly covered in sweat. Why does this happen? Is not underarm sweat, but am all ove… --- ## [Is there any crime or vice women do more often than men?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-crime-or-vice-women-do-more-often-than-men/727938)
**Author:** [@protoboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/protoboard)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-crime-or-vice-women-do-more-often-than-men/727938 "2015-08-18T23:00:28Z")
I know that women hoard animals more than men do, but I wouldn’t really count that since it’s more of a mental illness than a criminal thing and the intent is good. I’ve also heard that women lie more and are more likel… --- ## [How large was the explosion at Tianjin?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-large-was-the-explosion-at-tianjin/727772)
**Author:** [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Replies:** 46\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-large-was-the-explosion-at-tianjin/727772 "2015-08-18T21:46:59Z")
I’ve heard many guestimates of the size of the recent explosion in the Chinese city of Tianjin. One commentator measured the size of the fireball and claimed it was 21 kilotons - which would make it bigger than the 16kt … --- ## [Gardner types: Another thread about planting jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gardner-types-another-thread-about-planting-jasmine/728178)
**Author:** [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gardner-types-another-thread-about-planting-jasmine/728178 "2015-08-18T18:19:44Z")
It’s been close to a year since I posted this thread, in which I asked what to do with the jasmine seed pods I discovered in my garden. You gave me some great advice, though unfortunately due most likely to operator err… --- ## [How much conventional explosive in a nuclear bomb?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-conventional-explosive-in-a-nuclear-bomb/728168)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-conventional-explosive-in-a-nuclear-bomb/728168 "2015-08-18T17:32:44Z")
Subject line is it. A nuke uses conventional high explosive to compress the nuclear material and render it supercritical. How much conventional explosive is needed to get the job done? 10 pounds? 1000 pounds? --- ## [MS Office PP 2013 Question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-office-pp-2013-question/728169)
**Author:** [@RememberMe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RememberMe)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-office-pp-2013-question/728169 "2015-08-18T16:33:48Z")
Morning everyone! I have a question about PP 2013 and my google-fu is not turning up a solution: I need to change the orientation of every slide in a presentations. Not just from portrait to landscape, but I need the … --- ## [Are high school kids not having sex in cars any more? If not, why not?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-high-school-kids-not-having-sex-in-cars-any-more-if-not-why-not/727947)
**Author:** [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Replies:** 41\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-high-school-kids-not-having-sex-in-cars-any-more-if-not-why-not/727947 "2015-08-18T15:38:10Z")
This came up as a tangential question in a threadabout Meat Loaf’s “Bat Out of Hell” album. Since a lot of younger Dopers in particular won’t see that thread, and it’s such an off topic subject there anyway, I wanted to… --- ## [How long to die from puncture?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-to-die-from-puncture/620576)
**Author:** [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-to-die-from-puncture/620576 "2015-08-18T12:00:03Z")
We’ve all seen the movie where someone is stabbed in the stomach, or shot with an arrow, and they fall over dead, usually in seconds. Particularly for the knife-belly wound - this doesn’t seem right. As an older, overwe… --- ## [Could the Caribbean originate from a Meteor Strike??](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-the-caribbean-originate-from-a-meteor-strike/728041)
**Author:** [@DtypeJag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DtypeJag)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-the-caribbean-originate-from-a-meteor-strike/728041 "2015-08-18T11:09:45Z")
Idle speculatiion – Looking at the shape of the Caribbean I wondered whether or not there was any evidence for or against its extraterrestrial origin. Possibly it was formed during the same epoch as the mare on the Moo… --- ## [Help me understand the measurement of diastolic blood pressure](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-understand-the-measurement-of-diastolic-blood-pressure/728153)
**Author:** [@Aeschines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aeschines)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-understand-the-measurement-of-diastolic-blood-pressure/728153 "2015-08-18T10:10:22Z")
OK, I get systolic blood pressure: The cuff increases in pressure, and if you blood pressure is high and banging hard on the blood vessels, it will be more resistant to having the sound cut off. When the pulse can’t be h… --- ## [Link between concrete and psoriasis](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/link-between-concrete-and-psoriasis/658149)
**Author:** [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [May 12, 2013, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/link-between-concrete-and-psoriasis/658149 "2013-05-12T23:38:34Z")
I am wondering if their might be a chemical in wet concrete that can set off psoriasis. I have know several brick layers and concrete workers with this problem including my older brother. I have a large family and none o… --- ## [Why don't newborn kittens retract their claws?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-newborn-kittens-retract-their-claws/728144)
**Author:** [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2015, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-newborn-kittens-retract-their-claws/728144 "2015-08-18T06:52:44Z")
Kittens do not retract their claws until they’re about a month old. Until then it’s best to keep your fingers away from them because they’re pretty sharp even if they’re tiny. Do they not retract their claws before this… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1058) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1060)