# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=159 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 160 --- ## [How much energy to read/write a hard drive?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-energy-to-read-write-a-hard-drive/979646)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [February 12, 2023, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-energy-to-read-write-a-hard-drive/979646 "2023-02-12T06:19:34Z")
To write a bit to a hard drive, the read-write head has to be supplied with one or more bursts of electrical current in order to change the state of magnetization on the surface of the hard drive’s platter. It takes som… --- ## [Electronics Dopers: Jumper wires](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electronics-dopers-jumper-wires/979541)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 34\ **Last updated:** [February 11, 2023, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electronics-dopers-jumper-wires/979541 "2023-02-11T17:52:26Z")
I bought a nixie tube clock kit a couple/three years ago. One look at it, and it’s more advanced than I can handle. (My experience with electronics is with a Radio Shack 100-in-1 electronics kit, where you attach compo… --- ## [Google Earth -- Is this an ancient impact crater?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-earth-is-this-an-ancient-impact-crater/360153)
**Author:** [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [February 11, 2023, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-earth-is-this-an-ancient-impact-crater/360153 "2023-02-11T16:24:30Z")
I was exploring southern New Hampshire with Google Earth and came across this structure \[Google Earth required\] in Pawtuckaway State Park that looks strikingly like the ancient remains of a terrestrial impact crater abou… --- ## [According to Classical Athenian law in 399 BC did Socrates have to obey the court summons or could have chosen to ignore it?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/according-to-classical-athenian-law-in-399-bc-did-socrates-have-to-obey-the-court-summons-or-could-have-chosen-to-ignore-it/979497)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [February 11, 2023, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/according-to-classical-athenian-law-in-399-bc-did-socrates-have-to-obey-the-court-summons-or-could-have-chosen-to-ignore-it/979497 "2023-02-11T16:06:35Z")
I have read that Socrates chose to go to court. Most websites simply say that he complied with a summons. Did he have a choice ? If he had ignored it would it have meant going into exile? --- ## [Lottery Ticket distribution in a rotating horizontal cylinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lottery-ticket-distribution-in-a-rotating-horizontal-cylinder/979610)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [February 11, 2023, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lottery-ticket-distribution-in-a-rotating-horizontal-cylinder/979610 "2023-02-11T05:55:21Z")
A local lottery near me uses a large drum to hold the tickets. I wonder how effective the mixing of the tickets is by just rotating the drum a few times? The tickets are dropped in through a single centered slot. I have… --- ## [How would this have played out legally? (thought I was on free data plan, could have been charged $7,000)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-would-this-have-played-out-legally-thought-i-was-on-free-data-plan-could-have-been-charged-7-000/979588)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [February 10, 2023, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-would-this-have-played-out-legally-thought-i-was-on-free-data-plan-could-have-been-charged-7-000/979588 "2023-02-10T21:01:50Z")
Wanted to ask about a potential disaster that came very close to unfolding in real life. Since I was going to go to Taiwan for 3-4 months, I had gone to my phone service provider (trying to keep things anonymous) and as… --- ## [Algorithms that have more (putatively) independent outputs than there are indpendent inputs](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/algorithms-that-have-more-putatively-independent-outputs-than-there-are-indpendent-inputs/979535)
**Author:** [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [February 10, 2023, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/algorithms-that-have-more-putatively-independent-outputs-than-there-are-indpendent-inputs/979535 "2023-02-10T20:21:16Z")
The question was inspired by a body fat scale, but could apply to other systems too. I’ve tried reading about degrees of freedom in statistics, but I don’t really understand and don’t know how it applies to this question… --- ## [Do electronics work differently in subzero temperatures?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-electronics-work-differently-in-subzero-temperatures/979542)
**Author:** [@WellHelloThere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WellHelloThere)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [February 10, 2023, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-electronics-work-differently-in-subzero-temperatures/979542 "2023-02-10T20:17:07Z")
I own a vehicle bought by my late father. The radio was Sirius Satellite, but it recieves terrestrial radio. It is not a touch screen, but the screen will show which station you are on, and AM or FM. The screen is not op… --- ## [Is "Muldoon" texas slang, and what does it mean?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-muldoon-texas-slang-and-what-does-it-mean/457216)
**Author:** [@scrambledeggs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scrambledeggs)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [February 10, 2023, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-muldoon-texas-slang-and-what-does-it-mean/457216 "2023-02-10T17:36:48Z")
This military officer (now a major) back at the academy would call us ‘muldoons’ if he was being pejorative – but i couldn’t find its exact meaning or etymology on urban dictionary. He was from texas Can anyone from Te… --- ## [How fast does one die when shot or stabbed?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-fast-does-one-die-when-shot-or-stabbed/979358)
**Author:** [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [February 10, 2023, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-fast-does-one-die-when-shot-or-stabbed/979358 "2023-02-10T13:27:54Z")
My only exposure to watching someone “die” comes from TV and movies where the bad guys will immediately fall dead from a single gunshot or a knife flung into the chest. Of course, if the good guy is hit, he’ll struggle o… --- ## [In the multiverse model, how is matter created for all the countless universes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-the-multiverse-model-how-is-matter-created-for-all-the-countless-universes/979275)
**Author:** [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [February 9, 2023, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-the-multiverse-model-how-is-matter-created-for-all-the-countless-universes/979275 "2023-02-09T19:23:54Z")
I think this is the proper forum. And I am fascinated by physics, though I am a dunce (comparatively speaking). So, any physics mavens who deign to respond, please do so as if you’re explaining calculus to a kindergart… --- ## [What was the Egyptian Pschent (crown) made from?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-egyptian-pschent-crown-made-from/979483)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [February 9, 2023, 10:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-egyptian-pschent-crown-made-from/979483 "2023-02-09T10:29:44Z")
According to this old thread, it isn’t aluminum. So gold? Perhaps ivory? --- ## [What is ultra processed food?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-ultra-processed-food/979156)
**Author:** [@Danger\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danger_Man)\ **Replies:** 51\ **Last updated:** [February 9, 2023, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-ultra-processed-food/979156 "2023-02-09T09:31:31Z")
What does this processesing entail. And why is it so dangerous? Can’t it just be processed a bit less? Or is it something that keeps down the costs somehow? --- ## [Why general anesthesia instead of regional?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-general-anesthesia-instead-of-regional/979438)
**Author:** [@Knighted\_Vorpal\_Sword](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knighted_Vorpal_Sword)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [February 9, 2023, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-general-anesthesia-instead-of-regional/979438 "2023-02-09T04:25:08Z")
My daughter fell while exiting a bus a little more than two weeks ago, and broke her ankle in three places. She had surgery last week, and the surgeons put in a metal plate and some screws. She was given general anesthes… --- ## [Nutritional value of dust?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nutritional-value-of-dust/410962)
**Author:** [@Litoris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Litoris)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [February 8, 2023, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nutritional-value-of-dust/410962 "2023-02-08T23:41:20Z")
To preface my odd question – there used to be a show on BBCA that we would watch called Little Britain. It is a sketch comedy show. One of the recurrent sketches is about a Weight Watcher’s style support group. In one… --- ## [Headlight goes out when blinker is used](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/headlight-goes-out-when-blinker-is-used/978127)
**Author:** [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [February 8, 2023, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/headlight-goes-out-when-blinker-is-used/978127 "2023-02-08T19:36:12Z")
I’d noticed this on a few vehicles a while ago, but I’ve recently seen it a lot. When a vehicle has their headlights on and use their turn signal, the corresponding headlight turns off. Mostly I’ve noticed this in newer … --- ## [A question about Secure Compartmented Information Facilities (SCIFs)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-secure-compartmented-information-facilities-scifs/978417)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [February 8, 2023, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-secure-compartmented-information-facilities-scifs/978417 "2023-02-08T04:26:50Z")
Assume that I’m a former President or VP. Can I set up a SCIF at wherever I’m living, and would it have a sort of “desk clerk” to monitor who goes in and comes out to ensure nothing important walks away or is it on the h… --- ## [Are there any rules for owing a house while on social security retiremeny benefits?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-rules-for-owing-a-house-while-on-social-security-retiremeny-benefits/979404)
**Author:** [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [February 8, 2023, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-rules-for-owing-a-house-while-on-social-security-retiremeny-benefits/979404 "2023-02-08T03:27:06Z")
I’m asking becuase my aunt wants to buy a house soon and she’s planning on filing for her retirement benefits also so is there anything we should know about before we buy? --- ## [I can see my heart beat. Is that normal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-can-see-my-heart-beat-is-that-normal/191155)
**Author:** [@mrbuddylee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrbuddylee)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [February 7, 2023, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-can-see-my-heart-beat-is-that-normal/191155 "2023-02-07T22:39:22Z")
Hiya. Just laying here on the couch, and every time my heart beats, my tummy moves. It’s kinda weird. Is that a normal thing? It’s kinda freaking me out. Don’t think I’ve ever really noticed it before. Plus, I’m th… --- ## [What are the purposes of various security screenings?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-purposes-of-various-security-screenings/973841)
**Author:** [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Replies:** 86\ **Last updated:** [February 7, 2023, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-purposes-of-various-security-screenings/973841 "2023-02-07T22:11:37Z")
We just got back from a trip from Chicago to NYC. On the way out, I commented to my wife that it was curious that there had been so little change in airport security screening over the past 10 years or so. We are still… --- ## [Excel Formatting](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-formatting/979444)
**Author:** [@OldOlds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldOlds)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [February 7, 2023, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-formatting/979444 "2023-02-07T21:37:39Z")
I hope this question isn’t beneath the Teeming Millions… I have a financial spreadsheet I’ve created in Excel. In one column of calculations, I’d like it to automatically make any positive number green, any negative num… --- ## [A (hoax) documentary on twin telepathy I've gone and seen](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hoax-documentary-on-twin-telepathy-ive-gone-and-seen/979405)
**Author:** [@concernedviewer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/concernedviewer)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [February 7, 2023, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hoax-documentary-on-twin-telepathy-ive-gone-and-seen/979405 "2023-02-07T18:38:34Z")
This is the weirdest but I guess this must be the place to ask… I have a very vivid recollection about viewing a documentary on twin telepathy some four-five years ago. It concentrated on an experiment where identical t… --- ## [Can pathogens survive the waste water treatment?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-pathogens-survive-the-waste-water-treatment/979116)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [February 7, 2023, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-pathogens-survive-the-waste-water-treatment/979116 "2023-02-07T15:15:22Z")
The treatment seems to consist of settlement, filtering, aeration, and some absorption. But there doesn’t seem to be heating or bleaching or UV light or whatever that would kill most pathogens. --- ## [Have human societies always had celebrities?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-human-societies-always-had-celebrities/978957)
**Author:** [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [February 7, 2023, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-human-societies-always-had-celebrities/978957 "2023-02-07T09:08:11Z")
By celebrity, I’m referring to a real, living person in that society who lots of people would recognize and know about, and probably form opinions of, despite never having met them. Our modern society takes great intere… --- ## [What Is This Beautiful Building In India?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-beautiful-building-in-india/979400)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [February 6, 2023, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-beautiful-building-in-india/979400 "2023-02-06T22:35:41Z")
Here. Naacho Naacho (Full Video) RRR - NTR, Ram Charan | M M Kreem | SS Rajamouli | Vishal Mishra & Rahul - YouTube And bonus question: was it ever the site of dance-offs between revolutionaries and uptight British colo… --- ## [Something I just realized I never understood about building the Pyramids: How did they prevent their ending up lopsided?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-i-just-realized-i-never-understood-about-building-the-pyramids-how-did-they-prevent-their-ending-up-lopsided/979246)
**Author:** [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [February 6, 2023, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-i-just-realized-i-never-understood-about-building-the-pyramids-how-did-they-prevent-their-ending-up-lopsided/979246 "2023-02-06T13:50:02Z")
We’ve all seen documentaries and possibly read books in which the basic methods by which the Egyptians built pyramids was described. As I recall it usually goes something like this: Measure out a very large square ar… --- ## [Space Shuttle: Tiles absorbed the heat but...where did that heat go? (How did the Space Shuttle cool down after landing?)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/space-shuttle-tiles-absorbed-the-heat-but-where-did-that-heat-go-how-did-the-space-shuttle-cool-down-after-landing/979357)
**Author:** [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [February 6, 2023, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/space-shuttle-tiles-absorbed-the-heat-but-where-did-that-heat-go-how-did-the-space-shuttle-cool-down-after-landing/979357 "2023-02-06T04:04:55Z")
I assume most of us have seen the demonstration of a Space Shuttle tile coming out of a kiln glowing hot and a person picks one up with their bare hands moments later with no problem (if you haven’t see 1.5 minute video … --- ## [Spam calls and google search results for these numbers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spam-calls-and-google-search-results-for-these-numbers/978465)
**Author:** [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Replies:** 37\ **Last updated:** [February 6, 2023, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spam-calls-and-google-search-results-for-these-numbers/978465 "2023-02-06T03:36:46Z")
I get a ton of calls labelled “spam risk” on my landline (yes, I have one still, long story). Very rarely they’re legit but mostly not. As a result, I will do a google search on that number, and half the time it pulls … --- ## [I want to know which artery was severed by surgeon that killed my Dad](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-know-which-artery-was-severed-by-surgeon-that-killed-my-dad/979348)
**Author:** [@MichelleLeFurgey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichelleLeFurgey)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [February 5, 2023, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-know-which-artery-was-severed-by-surgeon-that-killed-my-dad/979348 "2023-02-05T21:51:37Z")
I googled arteries in body, trying to determine which artery was severed by surgeon that killed my Dad. It was discovered by surgeon, doing latest surgery, so who knows which surgery “something” was severed. I’m asking o… --- ## [Have any AFAB people been held in the male wing of UK prisons?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-afab-people-been-held-in-the-male-wing-of-uk-prisons/979325)
**Author:** [@colinfred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colinfred)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [February 5, 2023, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-any-afab-people-been-held-in-the-male-wing-of-uk-prisons/979325 "2023-02-05T14:40:31Z")
This is FQ. Not looking for a debate, just would like to know the answer to the question in the title: has any female-bodied person ever been held in the male wing of a UK prison? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=158) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=160)