# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1094 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 1095 --- ## [Portable corded office phone?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portable-corded-office-phone/722744)
**Author:** [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portable-corded-office-phone/722744 "2015-06-19T19:48:47Z")
Yesterday I saw a guy walking down the street talking on what looked like a corded office phone, he even hung it up while walking. Uh first of whut, and where can I order this impractical device? --- ## [Emmenint hard drive failure](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emmenint-hard-drive-failure/722951)
**Author:** [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/emmenint-hard-drive-failure/722951 "2015-06-19T18:32:29Z")
Need answer fast, my computer says hard drive failure is emminent, 2 1/2 years old HP, about 600.00. Is it worth fixing? --- ## [Have map/driving apps been shown to dynamically affect traffic?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-map-driving-apps-been-shown-to-dynamically-affect-traffic/722841)
**Author:** [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-map-driving-apps-been-shown-to-dynamically-affect-traffic/722841 "2015-06-19T18:23:27Z")
Last weekend we drove to Pittsburgh for an event. The two routes I’d normally choose between each had issues, so I looked at Waze and Google Maps to see which route would be quicker. For the usual one hour drive, both … --- ## [Soldering bronze to fill a crack](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/soldering-bronze-to-fill-a-crack/722917)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/soldering-bronze-to-fill-a-crack/722917 "2015-06-19T18:10:45Z")
I have to fill a crack on my sprinkler backflow. It is a Febco 765 and is made of bronze. I’ve seen people on youtube filling similar cracks with lead / rosin-flux core solder but I’m wary that the lead may contaminate… --- ## [IRS document cannot be scanned](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irs-document-cannot-be-scanned/722748)
**Author:** [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irs-document-cannot-be-scanned/722748 "2015-06-19T17:13:15Z")
I got some printed documents from the IRS and tried to scan one. The scan file only says “Sensitive taxpayer information” and that’s all it has. However I can make copies of the documents using the same printer/scann… --- ## [Does the U. S. Navy still have ship's cats?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-u-s-navy-still-have-ships-cats/722867)
**Author:** [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-u-s-navy-still-have-ships-cats/722867 "2015-06-19T17:04:37Z")
I was reading an article in Wikipedia about cats on ships, military ships in particular. It said that the British Navy no longer allows cats on ships; has the American military done likewise? (I hope not.) --- ## [Grammar Format? Numbers in Text](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grammar-format-numbers-in-text/722945)
**Author:** [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grammar-format-numbers-in-text/722945 "2015-06-19T15:47:26Z")
What is the origin for why many will spell out AND show numbers in the text of a document? For example, …“I have five (5) toes.”… I was hoping for a factual answer, else we can WAG all day long. Could it have started w… --- ## [Education: Sharp division between children and adults: Present in all countries?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/education-sharp-division-between-children-and-adults-present-in-all-countries/722921)
**Author:** [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/education-sharp-division-between-children-and-adults-present-in-all-countries/722921 "2015-06-19T14:56:03Z")
This is not a debate thread, or a thread to post justifications for the practice, which are largely obvious for many of us with a traditional Western education. One of the interesting features of the educational systems… --- ## [Flying: TSA & Texted Boarding Pass](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flying-tsa-texted-boarding-pass/722920)
**Author:** [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flying-tsa-texted-boarding-pass/722920 "2015-06-19T14:27:56Z")
Ok, I am behind the times, so don’t laugh, but…how do you get through TSA with an electronic-only boarding pass on my iPhone? The first TSA guard always marks up your paper boarding pass. Can s/he scan my phone to reco… --- ## [Telnet/FTP vs SSH/SFTP](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telnet-ftp-vs-ssh-sftp/722822)
**Author:** [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telnet-ftp-vs-ssh-sftp/722822 "2015-06-19T05:44:19Z")
So, poking around on my router today, it turns out that I can set up a dynamic IP service for free that allows me to telnet/ftp or ssh/sftp into my desktop should I want to. I set it up for ssh and sftp, and it all work… --- ## [Quick & Easy USB Hub question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-easy-usb-hub-question/722765)
**Author:** [@rsa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsa)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-easy-usb-hub-question/722765 "2015-06-19T03:44:57Z")
I tried looking online, but didn’t find an answer yet – I know one of you can answer this in no time at all. I recently bought an HDMI splitter which automatically switches the input to the most recently powered / activ… --- ## [Why is my tree falling on my neighbor's house his responsibility?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-my-tree-falling-on-my-neighbors-house-his-responsibility/722843)
**Author:** [@nate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nate)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-my-tree-falling-on-my-neighbors-house-his-responsibility/722843 "2015-06-19T03:27:31Z")
On another message board I frequent there was a discussion about how the poster’s “bitchy” neighbor wanted him to pay for damage a falling limb from a healthy tree on his property did to her house. He said it wasn’t his … --- ## [How does IExplorer run Java if it doesn't support NPAPI?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-iexplorer-run-java-if-it-doesnt-support-npapi/722818)
**Author:** [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-iexplorer-run-java-if-it-doesnt-support-npapi/722818 "2015-06-19T03:22:40Z")
Today I learned I have to do some configuring to make Chrome allow Java apps to run, because Chrome has made a thing called NPAPI not work by default. I can turn it on, and run Java. However, I read that starting in Sept… --- ## [digital camera recording times...hard to believe](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/digital-camera-recording-times-hard-to-believe/722864)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/digital-camera-recording-times-hard-to-believe/722864 "2015-06-19T01:04:42Z")
Just got a Canon S120. Playing with the video. I’m concerned with how much time I have before the battery runs down. The manual tells me this about movie recording time: Approx. 30 minutes ("Time under default camer… --- ## [Calculating different distances between two buildings.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculating-different-distances-between-two-buildings/722903)
**Author:** [@Bones\_Daley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bones_Daley)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/calculating-different-distances-between-two-buildings/722903 "2015-06-19T00:30:14Z")
I am trying to work out what the different distances would be , measured at ground level and at the top, between two perfectly straight, plumb buildings each a kilometer high (like the trade towers were, only taller) . … --- ## [Sandbox Sand safety](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandbox-sand-safety/722855)
**Author:** [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2015, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandbox-sand-safety/722855 "2015-06-19T00:00:44Z")
So, my mother in law bought my 2 year old son a sandbox for his birthday. It’s nice, comes with a lid that seals to keep out bugs, rain and animals, and so on. So I looked up prices to get sand and saw all sorts of lov… --- ## [Submarine pipeline from \[the\] Columbia \[River\] to California](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/submarine-pipeline-from-the-columbia-river-to-california/722650)
**Author:** [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Replies:** 43\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/submarine-pipeline-from-the-columbia-river-to-california/722650 "2015-06-18T22:42:05Z")
William Shatner was in the news recently, advocating piping Columbia River water to California via a submarine pipeline. The pipeline would start somewhere near Bonneville Dam, go down the Columbia (underwater) to the oc… --- ## [Paper airplane in a Wind Tunnel](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paper-airplane-in-a-wind-tunnel/722785)
**Author:** [@BurnMeUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BurnMeUp)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paper-airplane-in-a-wind-tunnel/722785 "2015-06-18T22:21:38Z")
Would it be possible to fold a paper airplane to an exacting enough degree that a low powered wind tunnel would keep it aloft and relatively static in position? --- ## [What do wealthy countries that spend less on military or healthcare than the US spend that money on](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-wealthy-countries-that-spend-less-on-military-or-healthcare-than-the-us-spend-that-money-on/722718)
**Author:** [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-wealthy-countries-that-spend-less-on-military-or-healthcare-than-the-us-spend-that-money-on/722718 "2015-06-18T19:59:22Z")
This isn’t meant to be a debate, I’m genuinely curious how the macroeconomics of this works. The US spends about 18% of GDP on healthcare, and about 4% on the military. Most other wealthy nations spend closer to 10% on … --- ## [What is "adult swim"? (not the TV network)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-adult-swim-not-the-tv-network/722717)
**Author:** [@core](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/core)\ **Replies:** 61\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-adult-swim-not-the-tv-network/722717 "2015-06-18T19:25:20Z")
I’m in a hotel right now. All the time I walk past the pool and see a sign that says something to the effect of “Adult swim: 10pm-midnight”. What is that all about? I’ve been seeing this for all my life and it has ne… --- ## [Popped out eyeball](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popped-out-eyeball/722833)
**Author:** [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popped-out-eyeball/722833 "2015-06-18T19:09:17Z")
Hello Everyone, I’m currently reading a book on the battle for Iwo Jima and one story from a Marine relays how he jumped into a shell crater and came face to face with another Marine who had one of his eyeballs hanging … --- ## [One of those probably unanswerable questions about the law](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-of-those-probably-unanswerable-questions-about-the-law/722761)
**Author:** [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-of-those-probably-unanswerable-questions-about-the-law/722761 "2015-06-18T17:48:28Z")
In the US (or in any particular jurisdiction within the US you’d like to mention), if a defendant is found guilty and given a maximum sentence, where the maximization of the sentence was done explicitly just because the … --- ## [Online Poker - Legal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-poker-legal/719587)
**Author:** [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-poker-legal/719587 "2015-06-18T17:46:14Z")
What’s the status of online poker? Is it legal or not? I live in Illinois. --- ## [Expired doxycycline - what exactly breaks down?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expired-doxycycline-what-exactly-breaks-down/542882)
**Author:** [@mikews99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mikews99)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expired-doxycycline-what-exactly-breaks-down/542882 "2015-06-18T14:59:08Z")
A question for pharmacologists: How exactly do doxycycline hyclate tablets break down after the expiration date? I have nearly an entire bottle (was for my cats) that expires this month. All the online drug references s… --- ## [USPS Kansas city shuffle issue](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/usps-kansas-city-shuffle-issue/722799)
**Author:** [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/usps-kansas-city-shuffle-issue/722799 "2015-06-18T14:02:41Z")
In mailing packages to an address in Kansas City Missouri with an address that checks out fine on google maps, every single time the tracking shows it doing a week to two week shuffle between Kansas City Missouri and Kan… --- ## [Just Dance Offline](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-dance-offline/722849)
**Author:** [@dauerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dauerbach)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-dance-offline/722849 "2015-06-18T14:02:27Z")
I want my kids to be able to use Just Dance for WII, but want it offline. I know you can, but I cannot figure out how. Where is the menu that will allow me to go offline? --- ## [A couple of questions about Egypt.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-couple-of-questions-about-egypt/722754)
**Author:** [@somepumpkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/somepumpkin)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-couple-of-questions-about-egypt/722754 "2015-06-18T12:35:33Z")
I just got back from a business trip + holiday in Egypt and I \*gots \*some questions. For the record; I spent 7 days in Cairo and then flew to Hurghada for a few days. One day, I took a day-trip/tour from Hurghada to Luxo… --- ## [Nicotine Patches for Weight Loss?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-patches-for-weight-loss/97745)
**Author:** [@merrily](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/merrily)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicotine-patches-for-weight-loss/97745 "2015-06-18T07:56:38Z")
It has been suggested to me that since: Smokers often smoke to keep weight off Nicotine has an effect on the appetite Nicotine has an effect on digestion (unlike Opal) Nicotine tends to make people feel calmer …that a… --- ## [Do I need to keep all this financial stuff? Why?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-keep-all-this-financial-stuff-why/722824)
**Author:** [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-keep-all-this-financial-stuff-why/722824 "2015-06-18T06:21:16Z")
My wife’s employer invests her retirement contribution in mutual funds. American Funds is the largest of these. Of course, the fund invests in various companies, products, etc. I know a lot about a lot of stuff, but I… --- ## [Why is the Missouri considered a tributary to the Mississippi?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-missouri-considered-a-tributary-to-the-mississippi/448120)
**Author:** [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2015, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-missouri-considered-a-tributary-to-the-mississippi/448120 "2015-06-18T04:09:30Z")
Looking at a map of North American rivers, I assume the source of the Mississippi is located somewhere in Minnesota, and the river is named Mississippi at that point already. Near St Louis, it is joined by the Missouri, … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1093) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1095)