# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=275 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 276 --- ## [Whatever happened to interference on TV's from cell phones?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-interference-on-tvs-from-cell-phones/944300)
**Author:** [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2021, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-interference-on-tvs-from-cell-phones/944300 "2021-06-15T18:09:59Z")
I went to community college in the early 00’s when phones really started to take off, and I distinctly remember whenever watching anything video related on a CRT TV multiple times while watching TV there would be the dis… --- ## [What is this lapel pin?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-lapel-pin/944261)
**Author:** [@RollOutTheBarrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RollOutTheBarrel)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2021, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-lapel-pin/944261 "2021-06-15T16:50:56Z")
California State Senator Jim Nielsen is wearing a lapel pin in this photo that looks similar to the Greek letter lambda with a hook on the left side. Does anyone know what it is? --- ## [Satellites and Magnetic Fields](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satellites-and-magnetic-fields/944016)
**Author:** [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2021, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satellites-and-magnetic-fields/944016 "2021-06-15T16:32:34Z")
I remember (long ago) a high school physics test question if satellites are affected by the earth’s magnetic field. Since then, I Googled it can induce about 0.2 volt increase\*. But, is there an uncomplicated answer to h… --- ## [Legal liability for making real-life treasure hunts for the public](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legal-liability-for-making-real-life-treasure-hunts-for-the-public/944158)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2021, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legal-liability-for-making-real-life-treasure-hunts-for-the-public/944158 "2021-06-15T15:49:50Z")
I have mused before that if I were a billionaire, one fun thing I’d want to do with my money would be to hold treasure hunts for the public. Every few or months or so, I’d hide a few million dollars in cash (or some simi… --- ## [Plumbing: do I need to replace my PRV?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plumbing-do-i-need-to-replace-my-prv/944259)
**Author:** [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2021, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plumbing-do-i-need-to-replace-my-prv/944259 "2021-06-15T14:33:00Z")
I installed a Flo shutoff valve last year, so for the first time I have data on my (domestic) water pressure. The average of 55psi is perfect, but the pressure here seems to vary considerably, and there are transient p… --- ## [What is the most energy efficient method of traveling on foot](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-energy-efficient-method-of-traveling-on-foot/944211)
**Author:** [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2021, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-energy-efficient-method-of-traveling-on-foot/944211 "2021-06-15T12:19:30Z")
My understanding is that running uses more calories per mile traveled than walking since running involves jumping while walking is a form of organized falling. Is walking the most energy efficient method of traveling by… --- ## [Mayflower Question: the stowaway](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mayflower-question-the-stowaway/944301)
**Author:** [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2021, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mayflower-question-the-stowaway/944301 "2021-06-15T11:41:49Z")
I’m trying to find the name of the stowaway aboard the Mayflower. Excerpts from crew and passengers’ journals on this site indicate this person, an “ordinary-looking” twenty-something man, was discovered before the ship … --- ## [Names of all the flowers in this painting?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-all-the-flowers-in-this-painting/944099)
**Author:** [@longtry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/longtry)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [June 15, 2021, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-all-the-flowers-in-this-painting/944099 "2021-06-15T04:29:48Z")
I’m looking at this painting of Brandt & Eelkema, and am growing more & more fascinated by it. Can someone help me name all the species in the picture? Framing each one with a number into a new image, and then write down… --- ## [Do laptop security cables actually prevent theft?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-laptop-security-cables-actually-prevent-theft/944232)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 14, 2021, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-laptop-security-cables-actually-prevent-theft/944232 "2021-06-14T17:57:28Z")
They work by inserting a tiny little tab into a tiny little hole in the case and extending a tiny little arm to “lock” it into place. Laptop cases are not particularly heavy duty. I have never tried this but it seems tha… --- ## [Alcohol and breastfeeding?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcohol-and-breastfeeding/944138)
**Author:** [@Danger\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danger_Man)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 14, 2021, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcohol-and-breastfeeding/944138 "2021-06-14T17:27:55Z")
The sources I have looked at seem to be a bit dividend on this. Because the alcohol percentage is diluted one more time before it reaches the baby’s blood stream, it seems like it shouldn’t matter at all. But still, ther… --- ## [Where does this GIS data come from?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-does-this-gis-data-come-from/944066)
**Author:** [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [June 14, 2021, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-does-this-gis-data-come-from/944066 "2021-06-14T14:24:54Z")
If you zoom in to this Panera map, you get an odd database with neighborhood names. I can’t believe that this is an official place name database, it’s more of something that home builders created. Where does this data c… --- ## [Withdrawal age of joint Roth IRA](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/withdrawal-age-of-joint-roth-ira/944180)
**Author:** [@Astrocreep2K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Astrocreep2K)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [June 14, 2021, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/withdrawal-age-of-joint-roth-ira/944180 "2021-06-14T13:49:53Z")
Been having a hard time using search engines to get the exact answer I need. If you and your spouse have a joint acct, when can you start drawing? When one or both of you reach 59.5? --- ## [Good/easy ways to letterbox/pillarbox digital images?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-easy-ways-to-letterbox-pillarbox-digital-images/944157)
**Author:** [@Kimble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimble)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [June 14, 2021, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-easy-ways-to-letterbox-pillarbox-digital-images/944157 "2021-06-14T04:45:27Z")
Let’s say I have some picture I want to use as my desktop wallpaper that has a 4:3 aspect ratio. My monitor, as one might expect these days, is 16:9. Cropping and/or zooming into the picture is the obvious solution, but … --- ## [Which operating systems tend to be most vulnerable to ransomware attacks?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-operating-systems-tend-to-be-most-vulnerable-to-ransomware-attacks/943670)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 14, 2021, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-operating-systems-tend-to-be-most-vulnerable-to-ransomware-attacks/943670 "2021-06-14T01:49:58Z")
In the context of recent cyberattacks/ransomware attacks on key US industries coming out of Russia and elsewhere, which operating systems used by these industries tend to be most vulnerable to ransomware attacks? Mac OS,… --- ## [Help me identify this weed/grass](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-this-weed-grass/944063)
**Author:** [@jebert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jebert)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 13, 2021, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-this-weed-grass/944063 "2021-06-13T22:50:19Z")
This weed/grass has a single stem 8 to 12 inches long and about 1/16" in diameter. At the top is a tiny pine-cone-shaped bud about 3/4" to 1" long and 1/4" in diameter surrounded with a corona of very tiny white flowers … --- ## [Why Can't Technetium Keep It Together?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-technetium-keep-it-together/943708)
**Author:** [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [June 13, 2021, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-technetium-keep-it-together/943708 "2021-06-13T20:57:51Z")
Technetium is a radioactive element. VERY radioactive. Tc-99, the most common isotope, has a half life of just six hours; it is vanishingly hard to find in nature. The artificial Tc-97 lasts million of years but it’s … --- ## [Elana the Chernobyl motorcycle girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elana-the-chernobyl-motorcycle-girl/944151)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [June 12, 2021, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elana-the-chernobyl-motorcycle-girl/944151 "2021-06-12T23:51:33Z")
I remember when her “documentary” appeared on angelfire.com - the kiddofspeed. What a fascinating read it was. Hair in the breeze as the fearless Russian beauty and her Ninja wailed through the empty streets. Alas, as i… --- ## [What was "brain fever" in the 19th century?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-brain-fever-in-the-19th-century/381139)
**Author:** [@Jet\_Jaguar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jet_Jaguar)\ **Replies:** 37\ **Last updated:** [June 12, 2021, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-brain-fever-in-the-19th-century/381139 "2021-06-12T17:15:16Z")
I’ve been reading a Sherlock Holmes anthology, and a couple of times someone has come down with “brain-fever”. I found the modern definition (generic term for encephalitis or meningitis), but that doesn’t seem to match … --- ## [What are the typical procedural delays in a murder trial?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-typical-procedural-delays-in-a-murder-trial/943957)
**Author:** [@mordecaiB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mordecaiB)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [June 12, 2021, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-typical-procedural-delays-in-a-murder-trial/943957 "2021-06-12T15:09:44Z")
I was reading an article about the killing of Rayshard Brooks, an Atlanta man who was killed by a police officer in the parking lot of a Wendy’s Restaurant. The officer was fired but has now been reinstated, with backpa… --- ## [Can taxonomy "prove" that two separate populations belong to the same species?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-taxonomy-prove-that-two-separate-populations-belong-to-the-same-species/943870)
**Author:** [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [June 12, 2021, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-taxonomy-prove-that-two-separate-populations-belong-to-the-same-species/943870 "2021-06-12T01:42:11Z")
This is a question for those who are familiar with taxonomy (the study of classifying life forms), and one to which I have gotten a decent answer on another forum but would like some further opinions or a broader consens… --- ## [Do I have to install an operating system onto a virtual machine?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-install-an-operating-system-onto-a-virtual-machine/942197)
**Author:** [@Ficer67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ficer67)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [June 11, 2021, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-install-an-operating-system-onto-a-virtual-machine/942197 "2021-06-11T22:18:07Z")
Do I have to install an operating system onto a virtual machine? --- ## [What happens to oil that remains in the ground](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-oil-that-remains-in-the-ground/944048)
**Author:** [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 11, 2021, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-oil-that-remains-in-the-ground/944048 "2021-06-11T20:05:02Z")
I tried to look this us but found nothing. My question is this. If oil was never harvested and it simply remained in the ground would it eventually break down into something else? If so what would that be? --- ## [Seedless watermelon, seedless grapes, seedless bananas; why not seedless apples?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seedless-watermelon-seedless-grapes-seedless-bananas-why-not-seedless-apples/944046)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [June 11, 2021, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seedless-watermelon-seedless-grapes-seedless-bananas-why-not-seedless-apples/944046 "2021-06-11T16:20:50Z")
Why don’t we have seedless apples? Seems like there would be a market for an apple where there is no core to throw away, and no cyanide-laced seeds. --- ## [Is there a reason that different forms of sign-language were developed?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-reason-that-different-forms-of-sign-language-were-developed/943931)
**Author:** [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [June 11, 2021, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-reason-that-different-forms-of-sign-language-were-developed/943931 "2021-06-11T00:59:15Z")
I know different forms of sign-language exist. My question is why? Why make it more complicated to communicate? I’m not saying it had to be ASL but whatever was chosen why doesn’t everyone get on board with one versio… --- ## [Mark Twain/Expression "Sold Down the River"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mark-twain-expression-sold-down-the-river/651736)
**Author:** [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2021, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mark-twain-expression-sold-down-the-river/651736 "2021-06-10T21:02:35Z")
Most of us are familiar with the expression “sold down the river” as a metaphor for betrayal. An utterly treacherous man with no conscience “would sell his own mother down the river.” I’d never thought about the etymolo… --- ## [Why don't modern airlines have battery backup power for their instruments?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-modern-airlines-have-battery-backup-power-for-their-instruments/942579)
**Author:** [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2021, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-modern-airlines-have-battery-backup-power-for-their-instruments/942579 "2021-06-10T19:28:26Z")
Hello Everyone, Watching a ton of Crash Investigation shows and one thing that has always seems so odd to me is that modern airliners don’t have backup batteries for power. When a jet loses its engines it loses the abi… --- ## [What's the current thinking on arch support in shoes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-current-thinking-on-arch-support-in-shoes/943983)
**Author:** [@Esprise\_Me](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprise_Me)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2021, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-current-thinking-on-arch-support-in-shoes/943983 "2021-06-10T18:11:58Z")
I’ve never really understood the logic behind arch support in shoes. Based on my understanding of how arches in general work, it seemed counterintuitive. Some years ago, the whole barefoot running thing seemed to validat… --- ## [Why is the spiciness from foods felt in different places?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-spiciness-from-foods-felt-in-different-places/943930)
**Author:** [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2021, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-spiciness-from-foods-felt-in-different-places/943930 "2021-06-10T17:23:12Z")
I just ate a bag of jalapeño Cheetos (highly recommended btw) and I noticed that while they’re a little spicy hot, I feel the heat more in my throat than my tongue or throat. Why isn’t all heat felt on the tongue? --- ## [The economics of Walmart's delivery policy](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-economics-of-walmarts-delivery-policy/942014)
**Author:** [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2021, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-economics-of-walmarts-delivery-policy/942014 "2021-06-10T09:55:27Z")
We order a lot of stuff delivered from Walmart; they have free delivery with a $35 minimum order. Walmart seems to have private freelancers doing the deliveries in their own vehicles (or sometimes in rented U-Haul or Ryd… --- ## [Circular Saw Blade Dimensions](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/circular-saw-blade-dimensions/943917)
**Author:** [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2021, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/circular-saw-blade-dimensions/943917 "2021-06-10T05:52:19Z")
Dewalt expresses a circular saw blade as “16” x 5/32" x 20mm".Stihl expresses what I believe is an equivalent blade as “16” x 20mm". Is Dewalt over dimensioning the item? Or, is Stihl not saying enough? Can someone in … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=274) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=276)