# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1102 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 1103 --- ## [Pennies](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pennies/720569)
**Author:** [@Mrdeals](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrdeals)\ **Replies:** 170\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pennies/720569 "2015-06-05T21:28:01Z")
Why doesn’t the US government just scale down production of the penny? Quick google search reveals over 2 billion are minted each year. So just over the last 1 years that’s 20-30 billion in circulation. Can’t we just c… --- ## [Was the Release of the Duggar Records Under FOIA Illegal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-release-of-the-duggar-records-under-foia-illegal/721638)
**Author:** [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-release-of-the-duggar-records-under-foia-illegal/721638 "2015-06-05T21:14:13Z")
That’s what they claim. What’s the straight dope on this? --- ## [Killer Asteroids.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-asteroids/721413)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 45\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-asteroids/721413 "2015-06-05T19:57:26Z")
I was wondering, what really are the chances earth will be mostly destroyed by a killer asteroid some day? Is it all but inevitable? And would science be able to do anything to protect us, in such an event? And, general… --- ## [35mm Film negative scanning.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/35mm-film-negative-scanning/721478)
**Author:** [@pdunderhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pdunderhill)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/35mm-film-negative-scanning/721478 "2015-06-05T16:10:16Z")
Hello good people, A friend has a collection of about 2000 Film negs which he wants to help me transfer to DVD. I’m prepared to do the work and am trying to work out the most cost efficient way. Given the number, I’m … --- ## [did any states outlaw racial restrictive covenants?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-states-outlaw-racial-restrictive-covenants/721684)
**Author:** [@Mr\_Downtown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Downtown)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-states-outlaw-racial-restrictive-covenants/721684 "2015-06-05T14:57:37Z")
As we know, the US Supreme Court in Shelley v. Kraemer, 334 U.S. 1 (1948), held that courts could not enforce racial restrictive covenants on real estate. The logic—seizing on the state action involved in court enforcem… --- ## [Do Other Mammals Get Lice?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-other-mammals-get-lice/721658)
**Author:** [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-other-mammals-get-lice/721658 "2015-06-05T14:50:10Z")
Sure, we all know to guard our cats and dogs from fleas and ticks, but we never hear of them getting lice! Do other mammals get lice, if only primates? --- ## [Do headhunters actually place non-supervisory employees?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-headhunters-actually-place-non-supervisory-employees/721680)
**Author:** [@edwardcoast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwardcoast)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-headhunters-actually-place-non-supervisory-employees/721680 "2015-06-05T13:27:27Z")
I am defining headhunters are those who are retained paid search by the prospective employer to find an employee to match their requirements. A recruiter I’m defining as someone who works in HR for the prospective employ… --- ## [Why can't FIFA officials take bribes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-fifa-officials-take-bribes/721581)
**Author:** [@doubleminus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doubleminus)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-fifa-officials-take-bribes/721581 "2015-06-05T13:15:39Z")
According to whose law should this be illegal? I imagine a US or EU domiciled official might infract on his home statutes, but a Waziristan official? Maybe bribes are prized there? Do such supranational organizations … --- ## [What's this at the Long Beach airport?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-at-the-long-beach-airport/721640)
**Author:** [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-at-the-long-beach-airport/721640 "2015-06-05T12:59:38Z")
It’s probably just artistic landscaping, but is there any purpose or backstory for this? --- ## [Facebook Profile Picture Cropping/Thumbnail Issue?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/facebook-profile-picture-cropping-thumbnail-issue/721544)
**Author:** [@Pauly01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pauly01)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/facebook-profile-picture-cropping-thumbnail-issue/721544 "2015-06-05T11:13:31Z")
Im trying to upload a new facebook picture. Apparently first thing it does is mention cropping which i didn’t know what it was but i didn’t like it because it took away the entire background. Basically picture is my fa… --- ## [Have spiders evolved to spin webs in front of lights?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-spiders-evolved-to-spin-webs-in-front-of-lights/721516)
**Author:** [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-spiders-evolved-to-spin-webs-in-front-of-lights/721516 "2015-06-05T09:54:12Z")
Man made lighting is a very new thing. Electric lights are only about 150 years old, even gas mantle lights are not too much older. Before that it was torches. And I would expect that the heat they generate would deter a… --- ## [Animal vs. animal--fighting styles](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animal-vs-animal-fighting-styles/721670)
**Author:** [@TSBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TSBG)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animal-vs-animal-fighting-styles/721670 "2015-06-05T08:21:11Z")
This is inspired by the “what could defeat a grizzly?” thread as well as a visit to the zoo today. In the petting zoo, one of the goats was mixing it up with another and I noticed that both of them would rise up on thei… --- ## [Words that are almost the same but not quite](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-almost-the-same-but-not-quite/721620)
**Author:** [@pianodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pianodave)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-almost-the-same-but-not-quite/721620 "2015-06-05T07:54:51Z")
Hi SD, Is there a name for words like these? They have evolved to have entirely different meanings from what would appear at first glance to be the same Latin root. Contingent vs. Contingency (group or detachment vs. … --- ## [Short term contract pay premium](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/short-term-contract-pay-premium/721654)
**Author:** [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/short-term-contract-pay-premium/721654 "2015-06-05T05:34:38Z")
I was recently contacted by a headhunter about a position. It’s a short term contract of 45-60 days. I have a well-paying full time job. Taking the job for the same pay would be foolish. Is there some sort of standard pr… --- ## [Advice on electrical problem?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/advice-on-electrical-problem/721652)
**Author:** [@Dingbang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dingbang)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/advice-on-electrical-problem/721652 "2015-06-05T05:03:56Z")
I’m stuck on an electrical problem at home. It started when I got the bright idea to change a regular light switch in the hallway to a motion sensor. I’ve done this kind of minor work before with no problem, but this wen… --- ## [Are there 'Gendered diseases'?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-gendered-diseases/721663)
**Author:** [@Atomic\_Alex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atomic_Alex)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-gendered-diseases/721663 "2015-06-05T04:07:24Z")
Apart from STD’s anyway. Inspired by post number 2 in this thread: Are there any cases of diseases such as a flu pandemic which killed a significently different percentage of men than women? Gender-targetted biologica… --- ## [Who decides if we print currency as opposed to minting coins](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-decides-if-we-print-currency-as-opposed-to-minting-coins/721593)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-decides-if-we-print-currency-as-opposed-to-minting-coins/721593 "2015-06-05T03:11:12Z")
After traveling to England & Canada, I love that they have have coins for the 1/2 pounds/dollars. One reason dollar coins in the US never took off was that we still pring the $1 greenback. So would it be Congress? the … --- ## [If I know sunset at one location, can I calculate it for another place?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-know-sunset-at-one-location-can-i-calculate-it-for-another-place/721550)
**Author:** [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-know-sunset-at-one-location-can-i-calculate-it-for-another-place/721550 "2015-06-05T02:59:55Z")
I need to determine Sunset (and Sunrise) for arbitrary locations. I don’t want to use floating-point math, due to the code size penalty. I don’t need to know the times to better than +/- 5 minutes or so. If I create a l… --- ## [Meaning and origin of name "Zahna"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaning-and-origin-of-name-zahna/721668)
**Author:** [@Cardboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardboard)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaning-and-origin-of-name-zahna/721668 "2015-06-05T01:58:34Z")
Zahna is a town in Wittenberg in Germany. What is the meaning and origin of the name of that town? --- ## [New mobo setup won't boot from DVD](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-mobo-setup-wont-boot-from-dvd/673543)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-mobo-setup-wont-boot-from-dvd/673543 "2015-06-05T01:39:23Z")
I upgraded my machine with a new mobo/processor/memory and Windows complains when it tries to boot. It says startup failed probably because of a change in hardware, and offers the options to boot to safe mode, last known… --- ## [Why do we grin while intensely concentrating or feeling pain?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-grin-while-intensely-concentrating-or-feeling-pain/721547)
**Author:** [@gracefulfatsheba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gracefulfatsheba)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-grin-while-intensely-concentrating-or-feeling-pain/721547 "2015-06-05T01:36:34Z")
When I’m doing an intense activity, I often scrunch up my face into a scrunched, toothy grin. I also do this during pain, as in the phrase “grin and bear it.” I do this unconsciously. I can’t think of a good evolutionar… --- ## [So what was a 'good' ship, and are there any others?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-was-a-good-ship-and-are-there-any-others/721536)
**Author:** [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-was-a-good-ship-and-are-there-any-others/721536 "2015-06-05T01:24:13Z")
Lollipop (Shirley Temple) and Guppy (Cap’n Crunch) for starters, but were any real ships called the Good Ship \[whatever\]? And if so, what was a ‘good ship?’ --- ## [Have women in the UK historically supported the Conservative Party more than the Labour party?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-women-in-the-uk-historically-supported-the-conservative-party-more-than-the-labour-party/721636)
**Author:** [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 5, 2015, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-women-in-the-uk-historically-supported-the-conservative-party-more-than-the-labour-party/721636 "2015-06-05T00:31:13Z")
A friend of mine claimed he’d heard that was true, or at least true until very recently it was true. Is that true, and if so why? I ask because in the US just the opposite has been true and I was wondering why there’d b… --- ## [Figuring average death rates](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/figuring-average-death-rates/721554)
**Author:** [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [June 4, 2015, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/figuring-average-death-rates/721554 "2015-06-04T22:31:29Z")
It’s the end of the school year, and my mind started pondering how many of the students would make it to their 50th reunion. The question is one insurance companies have pretty figured out, but my Google-fu is puny. So I… --- ## [What is the top export of the USA?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-top-export-of-the-usa/721477)
**Author:** [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [June 4, 2015, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-top-export-of-the-usa/721477 "2015-06-04T21:48:10Z")
I seem to remember reading that it was aircraft, but I have a friend who insists that is movies and TV shows. Are either of these true or is it something else? A search only seems to list the number 1 as “capital goods… --- ## [Soldier falling on grenade to save companions](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/soldier-falling-on-grenade-to-save-companions/721539)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 4, 2015, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/soldier-falling-on-grenade-to-save-companions/721539 "2015-06-04T21:44:10Z")
This is a standard trope in warfare lore. Would this actually muffle the explosion enough to prevent anyone nearby from being killed, or would serious injury or death still occur to bystanders within, say, a 10-foot radi… --- ## [Why are they called pussy cats?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-they-called-pussy-cats/721602)
**Author:** [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 4, 2015, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-they-called-pussy-cats/721602 "2015-06-04T20:41:35Z")
Hello Everyone, Where does the word pussy come from when referring to kitty cats? --- ## [Could a human being eat dog and cat food and be healthy?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-human-being-eat-dog-and-cat-food-and-be-healthy/586355)
**Author:** [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [June 4, 2015, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-human-being-eat-dog-and-cat-food-and-be-healthy/586355 "2015-06-04T20:26:31Z")
For the purposes of this thread, let’s restrict it to dog and cat food only. No birdfeed or rabbit food or anything like that I’ve heard of really poor people buying pet food for the canned meat. I have tried it mysel… --- ## [Difference between the US and USA?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-the-us-and-usa/721592)
**Author:** [@Ze\_Pr0fes0re](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ze_Pr0fes0re)\ **Replies:** 76\ **Last updated:** [June 4, 2015, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-the-us-and-usa/721592 "2015-06-04T19:14:38Z")
From time to time you will see someone mention on comments on the net that there is an actual difference between “United States of America” and “United States” in terms of law. Is there? Here is a very interesting blog… --- ## ["Accidentally" raising your blood pressure](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/accidentally-raising-your-blood-pressure/721016)
**Author:** [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [June 4, 2015, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/accidentally-raising-your-blood-pressure/721016 "2015-06-04T18:53:49Z")
I had my BP taken a few days ago at the nearby hospital and it was 160 over something. That’s well over my normal BP so I’m wondering if something I did just before going there might have inadvertently caused it to be h… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1101) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=1103)