# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=266 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 267 --- ## [Question about billionaires in space](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-billionaires-in-space/946898)
**Author:** [@psychobunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychobunny)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [July 22, 2021, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-billionaires-in-space/946898 "2021-07-22T22:29:44Z")
Can someone explain why Branson’s flight took 90 minutes but Bezos was only up for 10. As I understand it, they both had a few minutes at zero G and both got to the border of where space supposedly begins although Bezos… --- ## [Features for luxury car vs family sedan](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/features-for-luxury-car-vs-family-sedan/946855)
**Author:** [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [July 22, 2021, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/features-for-luxury-car-vs-family-sedan/946855 "2021-07-22T14:29:17Z")
We recently bought a new Toyota Camry, and compared to our last two cars, a 2004 Audi and a 2006 Lexus, it seems to have every feature and more, despite not being the luxury model. What does a modern Lexus sedan or whate… --- ## [What powers did the president and chancellor of Germany have in the Weimar Republic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-powers-did-the-president-and-chancellor-of-germany-have-in-the-weimar-republic/947028)
**Author:** [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [July 22, 2021, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-powers-did-the-president-and-chancellor-of-germany-have-in-the-weimar-republic/947028 "2021-07-22T13:47:19Z")
someone recently said the chancellor in the Weimar Republic was like the secretary of state in the current US government. is that true? was it more of a position focused on foreign issues, if. so how did the chancellor p… --- ## [LAPD bomb truck fireworks explosion: what went wrong?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lapd-bomb-truck-fireworks-explosion-what-went-wrong/945806)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 64\ **Last updated:** [July 21, 2021, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lapd-bomb-truck-fireworks-explosion-what-went-wrong/945806 "2021-07-21T23:09:40Z")
This weekend the LAPD seized an astonishing cache of fireworks from one person. At one point they detonated some of them in a bomb truck which, I had thought, was built for the purpose of containing or redirecting such … --- ## [My WiFi adapter stopped working after I updated an app. It now says "Code 10" and won't work. Any idea how to fix this?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-wifi-adapter-stopped-working-after-i-updated-an-app-it-now-says-code-10-and-wont-work-any-idea-how-to-fix-this/946096)
**Author:** [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [July 21, 2021, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-wifi-adapter-stopped-working-after-i-updated-an-app-it-now-says-code-10-and-wont-work-any-idea-how-to-fix-this/946096 "2021-07-21T21:31:28Z")
TLDR: I updated my IPVanish VPN to its latest version and now my WiFi adapter won’t work even if I uninstall IPVanish. I use a VPN for private internet surfing. I’ve been on IPVanish for about 3 years or so and it has b… --- ## [Why no colored concrete?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-colored-concrete/945735)
**Author:** [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [July 21, 2021, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-colored-concrete/945735 "2021-07-21T21:10:18Z")
The monotonous grey color of highway overpasses, high-rise buildings, etc. Why aren’t they in color? Can massive amounts of concrete be dyed to make such structures more eye-appealing? Sure - colored glass and/or paint c… --- ## [How fast do you need to go to orbit the earth?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-fast-do-you-need-to-go-to-orbit-the-earth/946919)
**Author:** [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [July 21, 2021, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-fast-do-you-need-to-go-to-orbit-the-earth/946919 "2021-07-21T16:38:29Z")
Charity coin collectors at the shopping centre remind me that the orbital speed depends on the altitude: the coin orbits slowly at high altitude, then faster as it goes down the drain. So how fast would you need to go a… --- ## ["Dressing Rooms" for rich Englishmen in the '20s](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dressing-rooms-for-rich-englishmen-in-the-20s/946950)
**Author:** [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [July 21, 2021, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dressing-rooms-for-rich-englishmen-in-the-20s/946950 "2021-07-21T06:53:50Z")
I was just looking at a picture of Dunster Castle (offline), and the servants bells caught my eye. From the Dressing Room, from the other dressing room, and from the other dressing room. I don’t have access to the pictur… --- ## [Size Criteria For Animal Cruelty Laws?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-criteria-for-animal-cruelty-laws/946663)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [July 21, 2021, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-criteria-for-animal-cruelty-laws/946663 "2021-07-21T02:49:24Z")
This question was actually inspired by a news story from a while back. This man, who was the true definition of an @sshole incarnate, killed a little mouse on Facebook with a mini taser. As I said, I have no sympathy for… --- ## [Three-word compound](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-word-compound/944877)
**Author:** [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [July 21, 2021, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-word-compound/944877 "2021-07-21T01:57:44Z")
Are there any three-word compounds in English? I’ve thought of nonetheless and nevertheless but can’t think of any others. English makes compounds, but it seems to be generally limited to just two words. Not like German,… --- ## [Does fish farming not exist on a large scale because it isn't economic, practical or necessary, or something else](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-fish-farming-not-exist-on-a-large-scale-because-it-isnt-economic-practical-or-necessary-or-something-else/944985)
**Author:** [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2021, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-fish-farming-not-exist-on-a-large-scale-because-it-isnt-economic-practical-or-necessary-or-something-else/944985 "2021-07-20T22:28:08Z")
My understanding is that most fish are wild caught. Well and good. However with overfishing the world will run out of seafood in the coming decades. Which brings up the question, why aren’t farmed fish more common? Is t… --- ## [Determining how many people of a certain name exist/have existed](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/determining-how-many-people-of-a-certain-name-exist-have-existed/946820)
**Author:** [@Stana\_Claus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stana_Claus)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2021, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/determining-how-many-people-of-a-certain-name-exist-have-existed/946820 "2021-07-20T22:21:29Z")
In the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, there is a small stream named Sam’s Creek. Way up close to Sam’s Creek’s headwaters, Starkey Creek merges with Sam’s Creek and continues down the mountain. One of my fishing … --- ## [Double entry bookkeeping](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/double-entry-bookkeeping/946906)
**Author:** [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2021, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/double-entry-bookkeeping/946906 "2021-07-20T21:57:54Z")
The historian of accounting Rob Bryer argues that the real advantage of double entry bookkeeping is that it makes it easy to calculate the rate of return on capital. That became crucial when enterprises became joint inve… --- ## [The hard part of money laundering](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hard-part-of-money-laundering/944654)
**Author:** [@Danger\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danger_Man)\ **Replies:** 381\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2021, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hard-part-of-money-laundering/944654 "2021-07-20T19:24:09Z")
Say you have a business where customers pay in cash and so you inflate your sales in order to launder money. How much money can you really launder that way? Won’t it be immediately obvious that this business is making wa… --- ## [Thermocouple and cooling](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thermocouple-and-cooling/946834)
**Author:** [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Replies:** 43\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2021, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thermocouple-and-cooling/946834 "2021-07-20T14:15:57Z")
This article is about a coffee cup with a built-in thermocouple that you can use to add a little charge to your phone. My questions: Will that coffee cup cool down quicker than a coffee cup made from the same materials… --- ## [Time taken for ships to sail from Rome/Greece to India in circa 25 BCE](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-taken-for-ships-to-sail-from-rome-greece-to-india-in-circa-25-bce/946888)
**Author:** [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2021, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-taken-for-ships-to-sail-from-rome-greece-to-india-in-circa-25-bce/946888 "2021-07-20T14:08:08Z")
Prompted by the Columbus thread : Columbus in 1492 - #13 by GreenWyvern where it is mentioned that Columbus took 2 months to reach the Caribbean !! How long did Indians take to reach Greece / Rome or vice versa circa 2… --- ## [Does this actually sound like how YouTube "Monitors Channels For Hate Speech"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-actually-sound-like-how-youtube-monitors-channels-for-hate-speech/946860)
**Author:** [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2021, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-actually-sound-like-how-youtube-monitors-channels-for-hate-speech/946860 "2021-07-20T12:28:17Z")
I was listening to a left-leaning podcast that had on a technology expert who didn’t actually work for YouTube but claimed this was how YouTube monitored for hate speech. Basically the idea is, all videos are automatica… --- ## [What benefits could the super rich enjoy with inflation](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-benefits-could-the-super-rich-enjoy-with-inflation/946771)
**Author:** [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2021, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-benefits-could-the-super-rich-enjoy-with-inflation/946771 "2021-07-20T00:38:07Z")
Looking for factual answers in how inflation could positively effect the supper rich. --- ## [Stoke's Theorem Question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stokes-theorem-question/946850)
**Author:** [@Someonewastaken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Someonewastaken)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2021, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stokes-theorem-question/946850 "2021-07-20T00:03:36Z")
Why do we take the dot product of n and f. f is the vector field and n is the unit vector normal to the plane being analyzed. --- ## [Any MS Access experts who could assist with deployment options?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-ms-access-experts-who-could-assist-with-deployment-options/946743)
**Author:** [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2021, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-ms-access-experts-who-could-assist-with-deployment-options/946743 "2021-07-19T22:30:37Z")
I am involved in a small project with a local sporting club to digitise it’s playing records. The club has scorebooks going back to the 1930s in it’s storeroom where they are OK but still vulnerable to fire, vermin, and… --- ## [What's up with "Powers of Attorney for Healthcare" (and Property)?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-powers-of-attorney-for-healthcare-and-property/946759)
**Author:** [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2021, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-powers-of-attorney-for-healthcare-and-property/946759 "2021-07-19T21:26:47Z")
A few years ago, at my mother’s instigation, my parents drafted their wills (which were more or less identical, IIRC leaving each other as the first-in-line sole beneficiary and me as the second-in-line). On top of this,… --- ## [Ebay: How to receive email notification when new message in ebay inbox?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ebay-how-to-receive-email-notification-when-new-message-in-ebay-inbox/946852)
**Author:** [@toadspittle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toadspittle)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2021, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ebay-how-to-receive-email-notification-when-new-message-in-ebay-inbox/946852 "2021-07-19T21:23:34Z")
I’m an extremely occasional ebay user (like, a few times every few years). I recently listed and sold several similar items. I got email notifications that the items sold, went in and bought/printed shipping labels, mail… --- ## [What replaced saloons and bars during Prohibition?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-replaced-saloons-and-bars-during-prohibition/946251)
**Author:** [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2021, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-replaced-saloons-and-bars-during-prohibition/946251 "2021-07-19T20:00:59Z")
Obviously I know about speakeasies, but I mean more in the sense of “Where did people go legally for social beverage consumption, perhaps with some live entertainment, instead of going to a bar or the saloon they used to… --- ## [Scaling up Ingenuity](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scaling-up-ingenuity/946612)
**Author:** [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2021, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scaling-up-ingenuity/946612 "2021-07-19T19:56:08Z")
The Ingenuity helicopter only weighs 4 lbs, but it has two rotor blades that are 4 feet long and rotate at 2400 rpm. That’s a lot more lifting surface and rotation speed than a similar sized copter on Earth would need. S… --- ## [How do I enlarge a game window? (Caster of Magic)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-game-window-caster-of-magic/946841)
**Author:** [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2021, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-game-window-caster-of-magic/946841 "2021-07-19T18:57:01Z")
I enjoyed the 1994 game ‘Master of Magic’, so was delighted when a new version came out recently ‘Caster of Magic for Windows’. I’ve bought the game and it started as expected (with the old fun intro.) However the game… --- ## [ID a horticultural(?) technique? Trees completely grafted horizontally?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-horticultural-technique-trees-completely-grafted-horizontally/946800)
**Author:** [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2021, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-horticultural-technique-trees-completely-grafted-horizontally/946800 "2021-07-19T18:40:42Z")
I briefly saw a photograph, but was unable to capture it so I can’t do an image search on it. And many attempts at googling have utterly failed me. The picture showed a long driveway (I think it wasn’t paved with aspha… --- ## [How do coal rollers control when their vehicle spews black smoke and when it does not?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-coal-rollers-control-when-their-vehicle-spews-black-smoke-and-when-it-does-not/946512)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2021, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-coal-rollers-control-when-their-vehicle-spews-black-smoke-and-when-it-does-not/946512 "2021-07-19T17:39:28Z")
There are people who - intentionally or not - have vehicles that spew out thick clouds of black smoke. Sometimes they purposefully release the black smoke to harass protesters or someone they don’t like. But - how do th… --- ## [How can a captcha both test for bots AND train the bot on the other side?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-captcha-both-test-for-bots-and-train-the-bot-on-the-other-side/946730)
**Author:** [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2021, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-captcha-both-test-for-bots-and-train-the-bot-on-the-other-side/946730 "2021-07-19T01:09:23Z")
We all know the “click on all photos with a fire hydrant in them” kind of captcha. The idea behind them, presumably, is to weed out bots trying to access the web page protected with the captcha - a human user is able to … --- ## [The "Seed Scam" - What is the end goal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-seed-scam-what-is-the-end-goal/916729)
**Author:** [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Replies:** 103\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2021, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-seed-scam-what-is-the-end-goal/916729 "2021-07-19T01:01:12Z")
Apparently people in Tennessee and North Texas are receiving unordered packages from China with seeds in them. The FDA is warning people not to plant them. (Why someone would open anything they didn’t order is a totall… --- ## [Question on fixing an oil leak](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-fixing-an-oil-leak/946019)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2021, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-fixing-an-oil-leak/946019 "2021-07-18T21:07:17Z")
2006 GMC Envoy Denail. 185,000 miles I’ve been fighting an oil leak for a while. Today while changing the oil I think I finally located it. It’s on the front of the block and a ton of oil on the pully right below the … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=265) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=267)