# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=219 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 220 --- ## [Why do Ukranian refugees look so well off?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-ukranian-refugees-look-so-well-off/960385)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [March 19, 2022, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-ukranian-refugees-look-so-well-off/960385 "2022-03-19T05:23:57Z")
Weird, Video of people escaping Ukraine shows a lot of people who appear to be wearing moderately expensive clothes. Certainly, they are better dressed than many other refugees from other countries that we have seen on… --- ## [McDonald's straw diameter](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mcdonalds-straw-diameter/184185)
**Author:** [@Klinstifen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Klinstifen)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [March 19, 2022, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mcdonalds-straw-diameter/184185 "2022-03-19T03:06:11Z")
How did McDonald’s decide on the diameter of their straws? I originally came up with this question a while back. I went to their site, but they didn’t have the answer in the FAQ, so I filled out one of the handy auto-r… --- ## [New MacBook Pro -- Cannot enter password](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-macbook-pro-cannot-enter-password/961323)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [March 19, 2022, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-macbook-pro-cannot-enter-password/961323 "2022-03-19T01:41:26Z")
The keyboard on my MacBook Pro failed. I took it to the shop, but won’t get it back for a week. In the meantime, I bought a new 13" MacBook Pro so that I can do my job. I have to enter my password when the computer go… --- ## [How much of a real issue will Russia's (financial) default be?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-of-a-real-issue-will-russias-financial-default-be/961099)
**Author:** [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Replies:** 32\ **Last updated:** [March 18, 2022, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-of-a-real-issue-will-russias-financial-default-be/961099 "2022-03-18T23:43:35Z")
What practical implications will we see from (assuming) Russia will default on the $117m tomorrow: I understand that there is a 30 days grace period. but once past that: what will be the impact on the country as such… --- ## [Where are all the airplanes in Google Maps](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-all-the-airplanes-in-google-maps/956748)
**Author:** [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Replies:** 48\ **Last updated:** [March 18, 2022, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-all-the-airplanes-in-google-maps/956748 "2022-03-18T23:22:03Z")
I live not too far from Montreal’s Trudeau International Airport and have spent a fair bit of incidental time walking past it on surrounding roads. Pre-covid it was possible to stand on one road, at the end of the runway… --- ## [Is there an, "Eraser," style imaging system in real life?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-eraser-style-imaging-system-in-real-life/536490)
**Author:** [@Ficer67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ficer67)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [March 18, 2022, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-eraser-style-imaging-system-in-real-life/536490 "2022-03-18T20:28:32Z")
Does anyone remember the movie, “Eraser,” starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Vanessa Williams? It came out in 1996, and you can all look it up on the internet movie database website. In that movie, Arnold fends off an … --- ## [What law am I breaking by using someone elses Dumpster?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-law-am-i-breaking-by-using-someone-elses-dumpster/258338)
**Author:** [@Emilio\_Lizardo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emilio_Lizardo)\ **Replies:** 59\ **Last updated:** [March 18, 2022, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-law-am-i-breaking-by-using-someone-elses-dumpster/258338 "2022-03-18T15:41:25Z")
A quick tour through the alleys of my neighborhood reveals a number of Dumpsters bearing a sticker warning “no dumping, $500 fine.” I assume that dumping, in this context, refers to the placement of waste in these recep… --- ## [What's Russia doing these days to block their citizens' online activity?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-russia-doing-these-days-to-block-their-citizens-online-activity/960921)
**Author:** [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [March 17, 2022, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-russia-doing-these-days-to-block-their-citizens-online-activity/960921 "2022-03-17T23:54:58Z")
Is the Russian government actively preventing their citizens from accessing non-government-approved news sources? Are they blocking them from the entire world wide web except for Russian sites? Are Russian citizens abl… --- ## [Registry difference between Win10 and Win 11?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/registry-difference-between-win10-and-win-11/961232)
**Author:** [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [March 17, 2022, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/registry-difference-between-win10-and-win-11/961232 "2022-03-17T23:35:48Z")
To fix a certain technical problem (an Open NUL error in msiexec), we had users go to the registry entry HKEY\_LOCAL\_MACHINE/SYSTEM/ControlSet001/Services/Null and change it to 2. Now in Win11 that Null key does not seem… --- ## [Could a plane be shipped by train?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-plane-be-shipped-by-train/960839)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 40\ **Last updated:** [March 17, 2022, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-plane-be-shipped-by-train/960839 "2022-03-17T22:06:55Z")
This is based on the current discussion in another thread re: sending Polish planes to Ukraine. Flying them in seems a non-starter, as does moving them on a road. Could someone in theory conceal a jet plane on a train an… --- ## [Whites In Black-Majority Countries, Do They Experience Discrimination?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whites-in-black-majority-countries-do-they-experience-discrimination/960917)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 53\ **Last updated:** [March 17, 2022, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whites-in-black-majority-countries-do-they-experience-discrimination/960917 "2022-03-17T22:05:05Z")
In places where Blacks are the majority but there is a white minority - like Jamaica or The Bahamas - are whites discriminated against the same way Blacks are in the US (or elsewhere where Blacks are the minority)? Can a… --- ## [Only Wikipedia (as far as I can tell) states that the brain has 6 lobes. Everyone else says 4. Which statement is correct?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/only-wikipedia-as-far-as-i-can-tell-states-that-the-brain-has-6-lobes-everyone-else-says-4-which-statement-is-correct/961189)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [March 17, 2022, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/only-wikipedia-as-far-as-i-can-tell-states-that-the-brain-has-6-lobes-everyone-else-says-4-which-statement-is-correct/961189 "2022-03-17T19:23:26Z")
Only Wikipedia (as far as I can tell) states that the brain has 6 lobes. Everyone else says 4. Which statement is correct? --- ## [Exercising an options contract](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exercising-an-options-contract/961194)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [March 17, 2022, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exercising-an-options-contract/961194 "2022-03-17T08:11:50Z")
Do not need questions fast and it may depend on the broker (or maybe not). This is a rare situation as people will buy/sell their option contracts before the option expires OR they do want to take delivery of the stock … --- ## [Chewing with mouth open](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chewing-with-mouth-open/961054)
**Author:** [@DoubleG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoubleG)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [March 17, 2022, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chewing-with-mouth-open/961054 "2022-03-17T03:47:11Z")
Is there a medical reason that someone would all of a sudden start chewing with their mouth open and talking with food in their mouth? --- ## [Including the kitchen sink](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/including-the-kitchen-sink/961213)
**Author:** [@dauerbach1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dauerbach1)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [March 16, 2022, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/including-the-kitchen-sink/961213 "2022-03-16T23:05:14Z")
Just looking for some clarification. We are getting a new double sink as they replace our counters. We were told by the counter guy that when they put in a new sink the existing flange always breaks. I can see that th… --- ## [Will any of these help with my posture?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-any-of-these-help-with-my-posture/960788)
**Author:** [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [March 16, 2022, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-any-of-these-help-with-my-posture/960788 "2022-03-16T22:28:56Z")
I’ve had poor posture most of my life. I slouch most of the time. A few days ago I saw a these items local Grocery Outlet. Would any of those actually help me sit and stand up straight, or would I just be wasting my m… --- ## [Life-limited engines on Soviet jets?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-limited-engines-on-soviet-jets/961137)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [March 16, 2022, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-limited-engines-on-soviet-jets/961137 "2022-03-16T20:07:39Z")
I recall reading that the Soviet Union put life-limited jet engines on at least one of their fighter/attack aircraft for export to the former Warsaw Pact. (Note: When I say ‘life-limited’, I’m not talking about a normal… --- ## [Why does Simon Winchester describe the Van Wyck expressway as "amusingly misnamed"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-simon-winchester-describe-the-van-wyck-expressway-as-amusingly-misnamed/961079)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [March 16, 2022, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-simon-winchester-describe-the-van-wyck-expressway-as-amusingly-misnamed/961079 "2022-03-16T19:28:26Z")
Why does Simon Winchester describe the Van Wyck expressway(Queens NY) as “amusingly misnamed”? "…stream of trucks and private cars and yellow taxis, mostly coming back from Kennedy Airport the lomng way, because of rep… --- ## ['No hummingbird feeders' sticker?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hummingbird-feeders-sticker/961033)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [March 16, 2022, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hummingbird-feeders-sticker/961033 "2022-03-16T17:48:38Z")
Last week I saw a sticker on the rear window of an SUV. The crude drawing looked at first like an old lantern with a thin rectangle below it, and slightly wider than the ‘lantern’ part. To the left, there looked like a… --- ## [Origin of "don't yell 'help!', yell 'fire!'"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-dont-yell-help-yell-fire/961051)
**Author:** [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [March 16, 2022, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-dont-yell-help-yell-fire/961051 "2022-03-16T17:24:46Z")
To avoid hijacking another thread thought I’d ask this. This fact is pretty much ubiquitous, I’ve heard it both as a real life advice and heard it movies. The idea (as its usually relayed) that in a crime-ridden big ci… --- ## [A Question About Avian Gait](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-avian-gait/960849)
**Author:** [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 16, 2022, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-avian-gait/960849 "2022-03-16T07:21:18Z")
When pigeons walk, they bobble their head forwards and backwards with every step. Other birds do it too. But by no means all: sparrows and tits don’t. So first I wondered if this was because sparrows and tits jump like … --- ## [Recovering a Bitlocker key](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recovering-a-bitlocker-key/960971)
**Author:** [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [March 16, 2022, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recovering-a-bitlocker-key/960971 "2022-03-16T01:39:36Z")
This morning I bricked my laptop with a bit of tea. I dropped it off to see if the data could be recovered from the SSD and this afternoon the tech called to say the drive was encrypted with BitLocker. I remember when … --- ## [Social Security: What happens if my representative payee dies?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-what-happens-if-my-representative-payee-dies/960959)
**Author:** [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [March 15, 2022, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-what-happens-if-my-representative-payee-dies/960959 "2022-03-15T19:42:48Z")
My mother is getting up there in age, and is suffering from numerous ailments. She and I are both on Social Security Disability; her for physical reasons, me for mental health reasons. She is my SSA representative paye… --- ## [Did the Phase of the Moon Come Into Play on the Apollo Missions?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-phase-of-the-moon-come-into-play-on-the-apollo-missions/961031)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [March 15, 2022, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-phase-of-the-moon-come-into-play-on-the-apollo-missions/961031 "2022-03-15T16:56:25Z")
Apparently the Moon was in its Waxing Crescent phase as Armstrong and Aldrin stood on its surface. Was the Moon’s phase one of the things NASA considered when planning to Apollo missions? Best I can figure, sending them … --- ## [Does watering plants with carbonated water help them?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-watering-plants-with-carbonated-water-help-them/961075)
**Author:** [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [March 15, 2022, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-watering-plants-with-carbonated-water-help-them/961075 "2022-03-15T15:05:17Z")
I am not a botanist. Nor do I drink sparkling water or keep plants. But my friend does. During a drunken conversation, the idea of watering her plants with her sodastreamed waters came up. Plants like water, yes? And als… --- ## [The left in Europe](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-left-in-europe/960932)
**Author:** [@cannonkuo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cannonkuo)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [March 15, 2022, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-left-in-europe/960932 "2022-03-15T11:37:44Z")
After the Argentine invasion of the Falklands, the US Department of Defense is concerned that this Argentinian action will make it more difficult for USG to work with the Argentinians on Central American issues and to ov… --- ## [Do you know of any cases where a child sued their parents over a rule or punishment?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-of-any-cases-where-a-child-sued-their-parents-over-a-rule-or-punishment/950656)
**Author:** [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [March 15, 2022, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-of-any-cases-where-a-child-sued-their-parents-over-a-rule-or-punishment/950656 "2022-03-15T10:41:32Z")
Do you know of any cases where a minor child went to court to challenge a matter of their parents’ authority? I.E. of a child asking a court to stop their parents from enforcing a decision, rule or punishment concerning … --- ## [Pro Sports, Huge Salaries and Tax Avoidance](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pro-sports-huge-salaries-and-tax-avoidance/961045)
**Author:** [@19USMC69](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/19USMC69)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [March 15, 2022, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pro-sports-huge-salaries-and-tax-avoidance/961045 "2022-03-15T05:04:56Z")
How do pro athletes, at those with multi-million contracts, reduce their tax liabilities? --- ## [W bosons. Why are both listed in the standard chart?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/w-bosons-why-are-both-listed-in-the-standard-chart/961005)
**Author:** [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [March 15, 2022, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/w-bosons-why-are-both-listed-in-the-standard-chart/961005 "2022-03-15T02:46:57Z")
Sorry --- ## [Are "Vladimir" and "Volodymyr" variants of the same name?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-vladimir-and-volodymyr-variants-of-the-same-name/960955)
**Author:** [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [March 15, 2022, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-vladimir-and-volodymyr-variants-of-the-same-name/960955 "2022-03-15T01:42:17Z")
As in the title of the thread. Do Putin and Zelenskyy have the same given name? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=218) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=220)