# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=173 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 174 --- ## [God, I HATE Microsoft \[file creation and modified dates\]](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/god-i-hate-microsoft-file-creation-and-modified-dates/975266)
**Author:** [@Dodgy\_Dude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dodgy_Dude)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2022, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/god-i-hate-microsoft-file-creation-and-modified-dates/975266 "2022-11-21T06:17:20Z")
I’ve spent almost an hour at Microsoft Community trying to get a simple answer to a simple question and now I’m frustrated enough to kill someone. I have photos and videos in my downloads folder. I am trying to organize… --- ## [When is an inn really an inn?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-an-inn-really-an-inn/975140)
**Author:** [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2022, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-an-inn-really-an-inn/975140 "2022-11-20T20:46:50Z")
There are many establishments that call themselves Something-Inn/Inn-Something but are really either fully modern hotels (e.g. Holiday Inn, Inn on the Park; also some motels call themselves “motor inns”), or restaurants … --- ## [Heroin gangs in England?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heroin-gangs-in-england/974993)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2022, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heroin-gangs-in-england/974993 "2022-11-20T15:43:43Z")
I thought that heroin or opium was a prescription drug in England. I thought that addicts could purchase it in a pharmacy. Maybe I’m waaaaaaay off. But I was surprised to find in a novel I’m reading a reference to the… --- ## [What does a British "deal table" look like?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-british-deal-table-look-like/162858)
**Author:** [@a\_young\_Morgan\_Fairchild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a_young_Morgan_Fairchild)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2022, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-british-deal-table-look-like/162858 "2022-11-20T14:40:00Z")
I keep running into the term “plain deal table” in Bristish literature. (Also, rarely, “deal chair”) E.g 1984 “There was a deal table under the window where he and the old man could talk without fear of being overheard.… --- ## [Replacing rechargeable battery with regular one](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacing-rechargeable-battery-with-regular-one/975177)
**Author:** [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2022, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacing-rechargeable-battery-with-regular-one/975177 "2022-11-20T01:30:47Z")
We have some outside lights that are powered by an AA battery that is charged by a solar cell. When it’s dark out, the lights go on; when it’s light out, they go off and the solar cell recharges the battery. What would… --- ## [What would the 3rd century Romans have called a "bread basket" region in Latin?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-the-3rd-century-romans-have-called-a-bread-basket-region-in-latin/974885)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2022, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-the-3rd-century-romans-have-called-a-bread-basket-region-in-latin/974885 "2022-11-19T21:16:06Z")
What would the 3rd century BC Romans have called a “bread basket” region in Latin? --- ## [Opening a frost free spigot in cold weather](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-a-frost-free-spigot-in-cold-weather/975178)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2022, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-a-frost-free-spigot-in-cold-weather/975178 "2022-11-19T21:09:08Z")
We are getting down to single digit fahrenheit here and my question is should I open up my frost free outdoor spigots to a trickle to avoid freezing. Yes I know they are not supposed to freeze but isn’t there a limit to… --- ## [Rockefeller Center Christmas tree - the logistics](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rockefeller-center-christmas-tree-the-logistics/975078)
**Author:** [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2022, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rockefeller-center-christmas-tree-the-logistics/975078 "2022-11-19T14:57:54Z")
I just skimmed through a video showing the erection of the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center (New York City) a few days ago - from horizontal on a flatbed truck, to a vertical position - assisted by cranes and workers… --- ## ["Messages" (not really) in Pi](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/messages-not-really-in-pi/846073)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 75\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2022, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/messages-not-really-in-pi/846073 "2022-11-19T13:21:15Z")
Since Pi is believed to be normal in the sense that any numerical sequence in it’s decimal expansion should appear randomly, and because we currently know the decimal expansion of Pi to 31 trillion digits, then given som… --- ## [Question regarding Hannibal's trek through the Arno valley in 217 BCE](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-hannibals-trek-through-the-arno-valley-in-217-bce/974798)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2022, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-hannibals-trek-through-the-arno-valley-in-217-bce/974798 "2022-11-19T11:47:30Z")
Was Hannibal able to pass through any part of the Appenines to Lake Trasimene as he treked through the Arno valley. Had the Romans blocked every available route? I don’t quite understand the geography of that area. --- ## [What Is The Gay Equivalent For The Expression 'P\*ssy-Whipped'?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-gay-equivalent-for-the-expression-p-ssy-whipped/245116)
**Author:** [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2022, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-gay-equivalent-for-the-expression-p-ssy-whipped/245116 "2022-11-18T22:00:41Z")
We’ve all heard the expression ‘p\*ssy-whipped’ to describe a man who is completely controlled by his female partner who withholds from him sexually in order to get what she wants. Is there an equivalent term for a gay m… --- ## [Useful Press ID?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-press-id/975160)
**Author:** [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2022, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-press-id/975160 "2022-11-18T19:16:34Z")
I was looking at the requirements for being considered a “journalist”, which lead me to looking at the world of press passes and press IDs. Getting a particular pass from a police station, government body, etc. to get d… --- ## [If Trump won in 2024, would he be eligible to run in 2028?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-trump-won-in-2024-would-he-be-eligible-to-run-in-2028/974999)
**Author:** [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2022, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-trump-won-in-2024-would-he-be-eligible-to-run-in-2028/974999 "2022-11-18T15:00:58Z")
Obviously, that’s not happening; he’d be 82, for one thing. But my question is not about Trump himself - it’s whether the term limit clock gets set back to zero if there a one-term president runs again after there has be… --- ## [Minimal fill levels on electric kettles](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minimal-fill-levels-on-electric-kettles/965518)
**Author:** [@SpacemanSpiff\_II](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpacemanSpiff_II)\ **Replies:** 70\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2022, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minimal-fill-levels-on-electric-kettles/965518 "2022-11-18T11:40:56Z")
My wife just got an electric kettle, and it has marked off various levels, but the lowest level - .5L - says “MIN”. (The highest level - 1.7L - says “MAX”.) I can understand a max level, if the heating element isn’t pow… --- ## [Toilets in the old west](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-in-the-old-west/973824)
**Author:** [@stosh1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stosh1)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2022, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-in-the-old-west/973824 "2022-11-18T11:24:33Z")
This may be a little strange, but what kind of toilets did they have in the bar rooms of the old west? --- ## [What decisions do English speakers make subconsciously?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-decisions-do-english-speakers-make-subconsciously/973655)
**Author:** [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Replies:** 163\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2022, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-decisions-do-english-speakers-make-subconsciously/973655 "2022-11-18T09:37:03Z")
When a native English speaker learns their first foreign language, they will probably run into the familiar vs formal verb conjugations that English doesn’t have. Then when speaking the new language, they will have to ma… --- ## [What could cause dozens of cardiac arrests at a gathering](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-could-cause-dozens-of-cardiac-arrests-at-a-gathering/973969)
**Author:** [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2022, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-could-cause-dozens-of-cardiac-arrests-at-a-gathering/973969 "2022-11-18T05:43:43Z")
CNN reports that this happened in South Korea. Surely either it’s an attack or the story is missing some very important context. --- ## [How does a person deal with car registration at the state level when they have cars in multiple states?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-a-person-deal-with-car-registration-at-the-state-level-when-they-have-cars-in-multiple-states/975045)
**Author:** [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [November 17, 2022, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-a-person-deal-with-car-registration-at-the-state-level-when-they-have-cars-in-multiple-states/975045 "2022-11-17T20:18:49Z")
In the common case a person and their cars are all located at the same location. Their cars are all registered with the state of their residency. If they move to a different state, they take their cars with them and get… --- ## [How did the first responders know to call me? (wife was in an accident and unable to answer their Qs0](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-first-responders-know-to-call-me-wife-was-in-an-accident-and-unable-to-answer-their-qs0/974730)
**Author:** [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [November 17, 2022, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-first-responders-know-to-call-me-wife-was-in-an-accident-and-unable-to-answer-their-qs0/974730 "2022-11-17T08:10:19Z")
Awhile back my wife got into a minor fender bender, because she was having a low blood sugar moment. She’s a T1D, type 1 diabetic, and she’d just started on a new insulin pump and it wasn’t calibrated correctly. The pol… --- ## [Is Jesus connected to Esau?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jesus-connected-to-esau/975051)
**Author:** [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [November 17, 2022, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jesus-connected-to-esau/975051 "2022-11-17T00:33:39Z")
I just noticed that Jesus in Aramaic is something like “Yeshua” which in turn is something “Esau.” Is this just a coincidence or is there some sort of etymological connection? --- ## [Why do reading glasses get dirty so quickly?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-reading-glasses-get-dirty-so-quickly/974876)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [November 16, 2022, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-reading-glasses-get-dirty-so-quickly/974876 "2022-11-16T23:49:40Z")
I was near sighted and wore glasses since age 12. Smudges on my glasses never bothered me. I cleaned them each morning after getting dressed. I never touch the lenses with my fingers. Had cataract surgery and I’m now fa… --- ## [How did the word discursive end up with two contradictory meanings?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-word-discursive-end-up-with-two-contradictory-meanings/975012)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [November 16, 2022, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-word-discursive-end-up-with-two-contradictory-meanings/975012 "2022-11-16T18:17:25Z")
How did the word ‘discursive’ end up having two contradictory meanings ‘rambling’ in common usage and ‘coherent ‘ in a philosophical sense ? --- ## [Pomegranate diseases anyone?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pomegranate-diseases-anyone/974988)
**Author:** [@nofloyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nofloyd)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [November 16, 2022, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pomegranate-diseases-anyone/974988 "2022-11-16T08:32:33Z")
I bought what looked like a perfect pomegranate, but found many black spikey … things … inside. Is this what early black rot looks like? Are the good looking arils safe? I ended up tossing them. What looked like good o… --- ## [Why does overindulging in pizza make your testicles ache? (Potential for TMI)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-overindulging-in-pizza-make-your-testicles-ache-potential-for-tmi/197821)
**Author:** [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Replies:** 82\ **Last updated:** [November 16, 2022, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-overindulging-in-pizza-make-your-testicles-ache-potential-for-tmi/197821 "2022-11-16T03:01:40Z")
Okay, in my years of bachelorhood, I have often rhetorically asked “Why? Dear God, why?” when afflicted with the condition that I have come to think of as “Pizza balls” – the dull ache in your soft parts that lasts long… --- ## [The infamous chainsaw story - UL or not?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-infamous-chainsaw-story-ul-or-not/42975)
**Author:** [@adamsc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adamsc)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [November 16, 2022, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-infamous-chainsaw-story-ul-or-not/42975 "2022-11-16T01:43:50Z")
I’m sure most people reading this have seen the story below or some variant. Has anyone ever found out whether it really happened? I’ve done a bit of searching and have found many, many nearly identical joke pages but no… --- ## [How to sound like a native](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-sound-like-a-native/974340)
**Author:** [@Danger\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danger_Man)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [November 15, 2022, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-sound-like-a-native/974340 "2022-11-15T20:00:53Z")
How hard is it for an adult non-native English speaker with a very heavy accent to learn how to sound like a native. Let’s say you are working with a language coach over several years, could you achieve it, or is it bas… --- ## [Snapple "Real Fact", about brain waves and electric trains](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snapple-real-fact-about-brain-waves-and-electric-trains/301402)
**Author:** [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [November 15, 2022, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snapple-real-fact-about-brain-waves-and-electric-trains/301402 "2022-11-15T19:20:38Z")
According to Snapple (the beverage), “Brain waves can be used to run an electric train”. It is fact #59 in their bottle cap series of “Real Facts”.Go to Snapple.com , click on the Real Facts icon on the top of the page … --- ## [Cacatum non est pictum - a Question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cacatum-non-est-pictum-a-question/30494)
**Author:** [@iampunha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iampunha)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [November 15, 2022, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cacatum-non-est-pictum-a-question/30494 "2022-11-15T18:26:26Z")
This from an email from a guy on the quizbowl circuit: “While working on a piece of Unheard Beethoven just scavenged from the British Library, we ran across a canon by Beethoven on the phrase “Cacatum non est pictum.” I… --- ## [Freeze-thaw-cook-freeze?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freeze-thaw-cook-freeze/974943)
**Author:** [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [November 15, 2022, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freeze-thaw-cook-freeze/974943 "2022-11-15T17:14:16Z")
Does thorough cooking give you a second life on refreezing previously frozen food? I have some turkeys that I bought in a frozen state (49 cents per pound!!) and I’m roasting both of them, but I know I’ll be sick of tur… --- ## [Fireplace Propane Insert](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fireplace-propane-insert/974960)
**Author:** [@dauerbach1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dauerbach1)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [November 15, 2022, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fireplace-propane-insert/974960 "2022-11-15T17:02:22Z")
We want to add a propane insert to our current masonry fireplace. It currently uses propane but when we use it it just makes the room colder so we want an insert with fan. We like the heat n glo escape model. Unfortun… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=172) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=174)