# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=274 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 275 --- ## [When midges or gnats relentlessy lock on to their prey (a human), is it a sign of an underlying health condition or the nature of the gnat?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-midges-or-gnats-relentlessy-lock-on-to-their-prey-a-human-is-it-a-sign-of-an-underlying-health-condition-or-the-nature-of-the-gnat/944595)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2021, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-midges-or-gnats-relentlessy-lock-on-to-their-prey-a-human-is-it-a-sign-of-an-underlying-health-condition-or-the-nature-of-the-gnat/944595 "2021-06-19T21:56:27Z")
Hi, I’ve heard people tell me that they are constantly targeted by biting gnats/midges and horseflies (and such insects that draw blood) outdoors and in their homes or apartment buildings/ in their surroundings. Does th… --- ## [Is this a rat?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-rat/944298)
**Author:** [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2021, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-rat/944298 "2021-06-19T19:48:03Z")
Cat just delivered this to me, but it looks “off” for a rat to me. Face too blunt. Tail and ears maybe not right. Body seems short. \[Al… --- ## [Story problem (math)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/story-problem-math/944334)
**Author:** [@Oly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oly)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2021, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/story-problem-math/944334 "2021-06-19T17:22:48Z")
This seems like it should have a simple solution, but it’s not coming to me. Let’s say three people work in a factory that makes dodads. Person A is assigned to work 95% on dodads and spend 5% of their time on other thi… --- ## [Please help me identify this tree take 2](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-identify-this-tree-take-2/944419)
**Author:** [@Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mundane_Super_Hero)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2021, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-identify-this-tree-take-2/944419 "2021-06-19T15:54:35Z")
I was trimming some tall bushes in my front yard and I spotted some berries that looked like Mulberries. I clipped some leaves and took a picture of them along with the berries. Are these from a Mulberry bush or tree… --- ## [YTD and MTD rainfall total for my city](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ytd-and-mtd-rainfall-total-for-my-city/944436)
**Author:** [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2021, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ytd-and-mtd-rainfall-total-for-my-city/944436 "2021-06-19T15:05:45Z")
I need help finding this information. I’ve tried all kinds of search terms and no site seems to have it. I want the year-to-date and month-to-date precip for Hillsboro OR. Or better yet, for all cities in Oregon. I’ve fo… --- ## [Long-gone department store bongs - what did they mean?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-gone-department-store-bongs-what-did-they-mean/269052)
**Author:** [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2021, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-gone-department-store-bongs-what-did-they-mean/269052 "2021-06-19T11:34:15Z")
“Dude, let’s go to Dillards, and get ourselves a mighty hookah!” No, I’m not talking about that sort of bong. When I was a child, my mother would often drag me shopping to AM&A’s, her favorite department store in Buffa… --- ## [Need answer fast - how to get my new laptop to stop linking to my old laptop?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-answer-fast-how-to-get-my-new-laptop-to-stop-linking-to-my-old-laptop/944589)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [June 19, 2021, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-answer-fast-how-to-get-my-new-laptop-to-stop-linking-to-my-old-laptop/944589 "2021-06-19T02:22:19Z")
(Need answer fast) Something weird happened - I bought a new laptop weeks ago, but as of half an hour ago, suddenly now my old laptop’s images (such as its desktop backgrounds, which are photos I had saved to my old one… --- ## [Balloon bombs](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/balloon-bombs/944497)
**Author:** [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2021, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/balloon-bombs/944497 "2021-06-18T15:22:38Z")
Various news reports say that Hamas is releasing incendiary balloons from Gaza, apparently trying to set Israeli forests on fire. Of course, that brings to mind the Japanese WWII balloon bombs where they tried to do the … --- ## [Are Windows 10 Updates Pending?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-windows-10-updates-pending/944459)
**Author:** [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2021, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-windows-10-updates-pending/944459 "2021-06-18T14:06:33Z")
In Control Panel, isn’t there some way to tell if there are updates pending for my Windows 10? Googling, I’ve found tools you can download to check, but I have no idea if they are safe and legit. Also, how do I know what… --- ## [Turning wood without a lathe](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turning-wood-without-a-lathe/944463)
**Author:** [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2021, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turning-wood-without-a-lathe/944463 "2021-06-18T13:21:42Z")
I’m trying to put a tip or foot on a walking stick. I have the stick I want and I have the tip I want. The cross-section of the stick is oval and the tip is round. I don’t have a lathe or access to one. Before I start j… --- ## [Which EU country has the lowest taxes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-eu-country-has-the-lowest-taxes/558569)
**Author:** [@Rune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rune)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2021, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-eu-country-has-the-lowest-taxes/558569 "2021-06-18T11:24:30Z")
I get tired of paying abusive Danish tax rates (literally the highest in the world), so I am looking to moving my small one-person consulting company to another EU nation. Which EU nation has the most reasonable tax rate… --- ## [Tri-lingual cities](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tri-lingual-cities/943612)
**Author:** [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Replies:** 53\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2021, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tri-lingual-cities/943612 "2021-06-18T08:21:14Z")
According to Canada’s 2016 census (the most recent data available), 21% of people living in Montreal consider themselves (at least) tri-lingual. (I believe the interpretation is the ability to carry on a conversation in … --- ## [Origin of the sports saying "They don't rebuild; they just reload."](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-sports-saying-they-dont-rebuild-they-just-reload/664480)
**Author:** [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [June 18, 2021, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-sports-saying-they-dont-rebuild-they-just-reload/664480 "2021-06-18T08:07:03Z")
Sports teams who lose a lot of good players are often said to be “rebuilding.” But some teams have so many good players in the pipeline that it can truly be said, “They don’t rebuild, they just reload.” I am curious abo… --- ## [YouTube video issue](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youtube-video-issue/944422)
**Author:** [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 17, 2021, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youtube-video-issue/944422 "2021-06-17T22:21:10Z")
Hello Everyone, I work at a public school and we have wifi access. The signal is strong and while a lot of sites are blocked, including this one, YouTube is full access. I have noticed that while any video plays jus… --- ## [Can a torpedo be destroyed by machine-gun fire?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-torpedo-be-destroyed-by-machine-gun-fire/367536)
**Author:** [@Ficer67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ficer67)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [June 17, 2021, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-torpedo-be-destroyed-by-machine-gun-fire/367536 "2021-06-17T21:44:17Z")
So, I am watching a movie on TV, the Britannic, IMDB has a blurb on it here. A good question might be, “Is anything in this movie real?” but I already know that film-makers take liberties when making a film, even about … --- ## [Please help me identify this tree](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-identify-this-tree/944418)
**Author:** [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [June 17, 2021, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-identify-this-tree/944418 "2021-06-17T18:08:22Z")
When I planted this tree 20 years ago I thought it was a cherry. It obviously is not. Does anybody have a clue what kind of tree it is? Tree - Imgur You can see the tree in the first image, if you scroll down you see t… --- ## [Question about access to a friend's post-surgical medical instructions](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-access-to-a-friends-post-surgical-medical-instructions/944353)
**Author:** [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [June 17, 2021, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-access-to-a-friends-post-surgical-medical-instructions/944353 "2021-06-17T14:53:01Z")
I am close, lifelong friends with a family of Asian immigrants (a father, mother and daughter). Early on, I would help explain details of medical and civil procedures to them. But this hasn’t been necessary for years, b… --- ## [Guide to icons?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guide-to-icons/944464)
**Author:** [@Roger\_That](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roger_That)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 17, 2021, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guide-to-icons/944464 "2021-06-17T14:18:23Z")
I don’t speak icon. When I’m told “go to the XXXXX icon” I’m often confused. What does the XXXX icon look like? “Well, it’s a kinda squiggly thingie, sort of a circle with a fish swimming in it, smoking a cigar, sort o… --- ## [You know if all these pipeline people want to be useful why cant we get water pipelines?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-if-all-these-pipeline-people-want-to-be-useful-why-cant-we-get-water-pipelines/944078)
**Author:** [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Replies:** 67\ **Last updated:** [June 17, 2021, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-if-all-these-pipeline-people-want-to-be-useful-why-cant-we-get-water-pipelines/944078 "2021-06-17T13:27:10Z")
Since 90 percent of the west is pretty much is either going to die or burn down because of the drought why can’t the people who make things like the Keystone pipeline figure out how to take a pipeline from places that f… --- ## [Las Vegas and Conserving Water](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-and-conserving-water/930201)
**Author:** [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Replies:** 99\ **Last updated:** [June 17, 2021, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-and-conserving-water/930201 "2021-06-17T13:16:06Z")
Sinclair, in his book Lifespan, is making the point on the importance of conserving water with growing populations - that global population is less relevant than consumption. “We also need to solve the shortage of fresh… --- ## [Why do humans and other mammals yawn?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-humans-and-other-mammals-yawn/944086)
**Author:** [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [June 17, 2021, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-humans-and-other-mammals-yawn/944086 "2021-06-17T11:06:28Z")
We yawn, dogs and cats yawn. How come? Do birds yawn? Crocodiles? --- ## [Where can I park a gaseous-fueled vehicle?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-park-a-gaseous-fueled-vehicle/944125)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 17, 2021, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-park-a-gaseous-fueled-vehicle/944125 "2021-06-17T05:04:19Z")
If you keep a spare tank of propane for your grill, most sources advise not storing it in your garage. Amerigas is slightly less conservative, endorsing enclosed storage only in structures not attached to your home’s li… --- ## [Was the Titanic launched to great fanfare?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-titanic-launched-to-great-fanfare/944364)
**Author:** [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 16, 2021, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-titanic-launched-to-great-fanfare/944364 "2021-06-16T19:12:00Z")
The Titanic disaster was, it goes without saying, perhaps one of the most well-known sea disasters in modern history. When the ship was first launched, was there a lot of fanfare surrounding it? When the ship sank, did… --- ## [Opening a file \[json file\]](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-a-file-json-file/944405)
**Author:** [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 16, 2021, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-a-file-json-file/944405 "2021-06-16T18:56:34Z")
I have a ‘json’ file downloaded on my tablet. For the life of me I don’t remember what it is. Can someone tell me how to open it? --- ## [Super Rapid Blooming Overhead Chaff](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-rapid-blooming-overhead-chaff/944169)
**Author:** [@cannonkuo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cannonkuo)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [June 16, 2021, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-rapid-blooming-overhead-chaff/944169 "2021-06-16T18:44:33Z")
I read a memo from the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (Iklé) to Secretary of Defense Weinberger dated 24 June 1982. It says: On June 10, 1982, the Navy released 6 Super Rapid Blooming Overhead Chaff (SRBOC) launc… --- ## [Super-rich: how does this tax avoidance strategy work?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-rich-how-does-this-tax-avoidance-strategy-work/944029)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 92\ **Last updated:** [June 16, 2021, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-rich-how-does-this-tax-avoidance-strategy-work/944029 "2021-06-16T14:49:31Z")
The news feeds this week are abuzz with the fact that the super-rich don’t pay much in the way of income taxes, even as their net worths grow at astronomical rates. In discussing the issue, This CNN article describes a … --- ## [What's this awful insect(!) in my dying hibiscus plant? how do I get rid of it?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-awful-insect-in-my-dying-hibiscus-plant-how-do-i-get-rid-of-it/944375)
**Author:** [@teddybound](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teddybound)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 16, 2021, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-awful-insect-in-my-dying-hibiscus-plant-how-do-i-get-rid-of-it/944375 "2021-06-16T14:26:16Z")
So a few weeks ago I posted about my hibiscus plant dying… today I finally looked very close at the dying leaves and found the culprit… … --- ## [What is the purpose (and name) of this little outsole extension on the heel of trail running shoes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-purpose-and-name-of-this-little-outsole-extension-on-the-heel-of-trail-running-shoes/943883)
**Author:** [@Dr.Colossus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Colossus)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [June 16, 2021, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-purpose-and-name-of-this-little-outsole-extension-on-the-heel-of-trail-running-shoes/943883 "2021-06-16T03:28:20Z")
I just ordered this black pair of New Balance trail running shoes, and the gum outsole has a LONG “tab” where the sole extends out past the heel. This is a common design in trail running and hiking shoes. New Balance te… --- ## [Did I miss seeing the Concorde fly \[Southwestern US @ 1990\]](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-seeing-the-concorde-fly-southwestern-us-1990/942973)
**Author:** [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2021, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-seeing-the-concorde-fly-southwestern-us-1990/942973 "2021-06-15T22:07:28Z")
I was flying from the west coast of the US to the east coast @ 1990, and I’m sure at one point I heard the pilot say something to the effect, “If you look out your window, you’ll see the supersonic aircraft Concorde.” I… --- ## [How Can a Jet Engine Fly in the Rain?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-jet-engine-fly-in-the-rain/943942)
**Author:** [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Replies:** 42\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2021, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-jet-engine-fly-in-the-rain/943942 "2021-06-15T21:15:01Z")
We take it for granted. Rain is no big deal. Birds and cicadas are another story. But, I know wet steam in a steam turbine can spell death to the turbine. The droplets of moisture can pass like bullets through the turbin… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=273) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=275)