# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1083 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 1084 --- ## [Bizarre iTunes phenomenon](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-itunes-phenomenon/724693)
**Author:** [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [July 10, 2015, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-itunes-phenomenon/724693 "2015-07-10T04:24:30Z")
I usually listen to my music from my desktop Mac Pro, most of the tracks having been downloaded from the original CDs. Since I loaded the new version of iTunes (v12.2.0.145), something strange has happened three times. A… --- ## [Creating secure SQL Server database](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creating-secure-sql-server-database/724572)
**Author:** [@Paxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paxx)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 10, 2015, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creating-secure-sql-server-database/724572 "2015-07-10T02:14:48Z")
I’m looking to create a database in SQL Server 2012 Express and, although I’ve read several articles by Microsoft and others, I still don’t have a good handle on how to implement a secure database on a LAN with various l… --- ## [Determining dihedral angles of a solid from a net](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/determining-dihedral-angles-of-a-solid-from-a-net/724438)
**Author:** [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Replies:** 32\ **Last updated:** [July 10, 2015, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/determining-dihedral-angles-of-a-solid-from-a-net/724438 "2015-07-10T00:47:30Z")
Suppose that I have before me the net of a geometric solid. All of the angles and edge lengths of this net are known by me to arbitrary precision. I know that the net is valid, and that it folds into a convex solid. I… --- ## [Weating a hat makes your go bald sooner?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weating-a-hat-makes-your-go-bald-sooner/724631)
**Author:** [@Oedipus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oedipus)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weating-a-hat-makes-your-go-bald-sooner/724631 "2015-07-09T23:19:38Z")
so through a combination of my job and the fact that I’m now working out in the middle of the day and that puts a damper on hair, I’ve been wearing my Red Sox hat quite a bit lately. My dad offhandedly mentioned the othe… --- ## [Is there away to search Slate comments?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-away-to-search-slate-comments/724701)
**Author:** [@janeslogin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janeslogin)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-away-to-search-slate-comments/724701 "2015-07-09T22:00:54Z")
Is there away to search Slate comments? Proudly ‘‘Powered by Livefyre’’. --- ## [Checking guns at the airport](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checking-guns-at-the-airport/723943)
**Author:** [@JacobSwan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JacobSwan)\ **Replies:** 63\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checking-guns-at-the-airport/723943 "2015-07-09T20:51:29Z")
About 20 years ago I was in Johannesburg airport and there was a counter where you could check in your guns before catching a flight. They would check your paperwork and make sure the gun wasnt loaded before packing it a… --- ## [Washington DC license plate - How is this possible?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/washington-dc-license-plate-how-is-this-possible/724021)
**Author:** [@Alzarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alzarian)\ **Replies:** 53\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/washington-dc-license-plate-how-is-this-possible/724021 "2015-07-09T20:27:19Z")
I am rather perplexed as to how the powers that be authorized a license plate for Washington, DC with the slogan: “Taxation Without Representation”. It seems to go against all logic for the very government to allow, nay… --- ## [Any ideas why Intel Turbo Boost monitor would stop working?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-ideas-why-intel-turbo-boost-monitor-would-stop-working/724666)
**Author:** [@Quintas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quintas)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-ideas-why-intel-turbo-boost-monitor-would-stop-working/724666 "2015-07-09T16:31:27Z")
I’ve already googled it and checked the Intel site. I found others with the same issue, but no solutions. I have a program called CPU-Z that lets me watch my clock speed. I have an i5 - 2.5ghz processor. Through CPU-Z … --- ## [What Were The Details of the Traety between SA and the USA (1943?)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-details-of-the-traety-between-sa-and-the-usa-1943/724575)
**Author:** [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-details-of-the-traety-between-sa-and-the-usa-1943/724575 "2015-07-09T16:02:05Z")
President roosevelt met King Ibn Saud in 1943?), aboard a USN ship. The two worked aout a deal, whereby the USA would protect SA’s sovereignty…in return, the Saudis would undertake to insure an uninterrupted supply of oi… --- ## [Alternatives to PayPal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-paypal/724431)
**Author:** [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-paypal/724431 "2015-07-09T15:50:26Z")
Paypal —AAARRRRGGGGH! cancelled my accounts, in anger & frustration, over my very first (hopeless snarled) attempt to sell on ebay. Are there good alternatives? --- ## [How were first animals domesticated?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-were-first-animals-domesticated/724301)
**Author:** [@MaverocK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaverocK)\ **Replies:** 50\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-were-first-animals-domesticated/724301 "2015-07-09T15:31:18Z")
I always wondered how first animals domesticated were domesticated. Maybe, their newborns are taken away from the mother and brought up by humans? Second question, how easy would it be for someone to grab a mature wolf … --- ## [Fireworks: how loud is a "salute?"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fireworks-how-loud-is-a-salute/724661)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fireworks-how-loud-is-a-salute/724661 "2015-07-09T15:05:54Z")
A “salute” is the device you see at professional fireworks displays that gives a single spot of bright yellow-white light and a very loud blast sound that shakes your body. How loud are these for the audience? Assume t… --- ## [How did they get the landing craft from England to Normandy?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-they-get-the-landing-craft-from-england-to-normandy/724547)
**Author:** [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-they-get-the-landing-craft-from-england-to-normandy/724547 "2015-07-09T14:36:13Z")
I’m talking about how they got the Tom Hanks,Higgins Boats over across the Chanel. I thought maybe an LST, but clearly, that one needs to be grounded as well. How’d they do that? --- ## [What is the straight dope on turbans?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-straight-dope-on-turbans/724040)
**Author:** [@dstarfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dstarfire)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-straight-dope-on-turbans/724040 "2015-07-09T13:32:00Z")
Are turbans just a fashion accessory, religious headgear, a cultural thing (like the dot some indian women wear on their foreheads), or some combination of the above? I’ve seen many people wearing them here in the US (w… --- ## [Surfing 100 foot megawaves - Where does the danger come from. Impact or depth?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-100-foot-megawaves-where-does-the-danger-come-from-impact-or-depth/724647)
**Author:** [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-100-foot-megawaves-where-does-the-danger-come-from-impact-or-depth/724647 "2015-07-09T12:44:24Z")
In this video this guy is surfing a huge wave. If a wave like this falls on top of you is the danger that you will pushed so far under water you will hit the bottom hard and cannot surface, or the physical impact of all … --- ## [Nazis assuming other identities in Germany after WW2?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nazis-assuming-other-identities-in-germany-after-ww2/724461)
**Author:** [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nazis-assuming-other-identities-in-germany-after-ww2/724461 "2015-07-09T11:16:23Z")
My maternal grandfather was I believe a Nazi in Germany during WW2(I am unclear on the division between nazi and German military at the time) I had a picture of him in full uniform with family but cannot locate it, I mea… --- ## [How to become an expert at Nukes.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-become-an-expert-at-nukes/724531)
**Author:** [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-become-an-expert-at-nukes/724531 "2015-07-09T07:46:03Z")
I want to either build my own nuclear reactor or else be the chief designer of an atomic or hydrogen bomb. If the bomb doesn’t go off, or, if the reactor doesn’t do whatever reactors are supposed to do, I want to be able… --- ## [So what is there to this Indian Brahmin birdsong pre-oral tradition thing I just heard?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-there-to-this-indian-brahmin-birdsong-pre-oral-tradition-thing-i-just-heard/588956)
**Author:** [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-is-there-to-this-indian-brahmin-birdsong-pre-oral-tradition-thing-i-just-heard/588956 "2015-07-09T03:46:30Z")
I happened on this “Story of India” documentary on Netflix, and I thought, hey, let’s watch something pretty and vaguely educational that won’t require too much thought, right? Well, the very first thing in the document… --- ## [Question about public wifi + banking](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-public-wifi-banking/724464)
**Author:** [@bardos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bardos)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-public-wifi-banking/724464 "2015-07-09T03:33:33Z")
No way I would log on to a bank account on a public wifi, say at an airport. However, my question is this: Came to mind that with a public connection I type a text file with many numbers and words, including my 4 digit p… --- ## [Nuclear Dopers - How is Prompt Criticality prevented?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-dopers-how-is-prompt-criticality-prevented/521658)
**Author:** [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-dopers-how-is-prompt-criticality-prevented/521658 "2015-07-09T03:30:48Z")
In a reactor, prompt criticality is the condition where the Neutrons from the fissioning fuel drive the reactor from critical to supercritical, making the reactor very hard to control. A slight mis-adjustment of a contro… --- ## [Will faraday effect work THROUGH aluminum? For power generation](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-faraday-effect-work-through-aluminum-for-power-generation/724502)
**Author:** [@EdwinAmi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EdwinAmi)\ **Replies:** 38\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-faraday-effect-work-through-aluminum-for-power-generation/724502 "2015-07-09T03:28:36Z")
Imagine a piston in an engine, a normal IC engine or even one of the weird ones like opposed-piston now imagine that in the middle of the piston a magnet is mounted, so as to be part of the piston now imagine you wrap … --- ## [Ex-Speaker Hastert's case - why no extortion charges?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ex-speaker-hasterts-case-why-no-extortion-charges/724591)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ex-speaker-hasterts-case-why-no-extortion-charges/724591 "2015-07-09T00:51:38Z")
Hastert is being investigated for paying some $1.7 million to “Individual A” for the purpose of concealing and compensating him for some acts that occurred 30 years ago or so. He was planning to pay another $1.8 million… --- ## [Hummingbirds and ashes](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hummingbirds-and-ashes/724616)
**Author:** [@harmonicamoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmonicamoon)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 9, 2015, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hummingbirds-and-ashes/724616 "2015-07-09T00:34:03Z")
Went camping in the Uintah mountains of Utah for 8 nights. Many times we were visited by hummingbirds. They would stick their beak in the cold ashes outside the fire pit. The ashes were very fine, maybe from charcoal … --- ## [Can I ingest over 1000 mgs. of niacin w/o bad effects?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-ingest-over-1000-mgs-of-niacin-w-o-bad-effects/724433)
**Author:** [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [July 8, 2015, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-ingest-over-1000-mgs-of-niacin-w-o-bad-effects/724433 "2015-07-08T21:22:00Z")
I just started taking niacin. I, years ago, took some and it gave me a cool skin flush. OK, so, recently, I read some nutritional report and it seemed that niacin would be a good thing to add to my diet. I bought a bo… --- ## [How do they get that crackle sound in breakfast cereal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-they-get-that-crackle-sound-in-breakfast-cereal/529741)
**Author:** [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 8, 2015, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-they-get-that-crackle-sound-in-breakfast-cereal/529741 "2015-07-08T21:11:31Z")
Also, of course, the snap and p. A related question: is there a metric or a method of cereal manufacture that can be used to rate when the cereal gets mushy? This is a real question; I would be willing to bet that the f… --- ## [How much warning of nuclear attack?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-warning-of-nuclear-attack/724360)
**Author:** [@Tzigone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tzigone)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [July 8, 2015, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-warning-of-nuclear-attack/724360 "2015-07-08T20:43:25Z")
Been reading an alternate timeline on if missiles had been launched during the Cuban missile crisis, and that made be wonder - how much warning time would the US or France or the UK have if Russia or China launched nucle… --- ## [IRS interest calculator needed](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irs-interest-calculator-needed/724399)
**Author:** [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [July 8, 2015, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irs-interest-calculator-needed/724399 "2015-07-08T19:36:33Z")
hello, I am looking for an on-line calculator that would be able to figure out the interest accrued on an overpayment of taxes. What I have found on-line only applies to underpayments, which is when a taxpayer has not … --- ## [Can't cable companies tell what I'm watching? How is Nielsen still relevant?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cant-cable-companies-tell-what-im-watching-how-is-nielsen-still-relevant/684409)
**Author:** [@randomplanck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randomplanck)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [July 8, 2015, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cant-cable-companies-tell-what-im-watching-how-is-nielsen-still-relevant/684409 "2015-07-08T17:30:10Z")
I’ve never met a Nielsen family in my life. According to Cecil’s answer about Nielsen ratings, there are only about 25,000 Nielsen families in the entire country. The channel I’m tuned to on my cable box channel MUST be… --- ## [Carbon fiber materials & strength](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carbon-fiber-materials-strength/724503)
**Author:** [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [July 8, 2015, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carbon-fiber-materials-strength/724503 "2015-07-08T16:36:54Z")
Carbon fiber products billed as lightweight and super duper strong. Build cars & fly rods out of the stuff. But during manufacturing process it looks like fiberglass. Lay the fabric on a mold, paint it with a resin, wai… --- ## [Why Do Squirrels Put Their Paw On Their Chest?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-squirrels-put-their-paw-on-their-chest/724299)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [July 8, 2015, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-squirrels-put-their-paw-on-their-chest/724299 "2015-07-08T15:45:04Z")
When I was a little kid, we used to feed the neighborhood squirrels all the time. (Short story: My mother used to get raw peanuts, since roasted, salted ones might make the squirrels sick, she reasoned.) Anyways, the squ… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1082) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1084)