# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=3 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 4 --- ## ["By the power vested in me" - Where?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/by-the-power-vested-in-me-where/1032089)
**Author:** [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Replies:** 74\ **Last updated:** [August 30, 2026, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/by-the-power-vested-in-me-where/1032089 "2026-08-30T18:48:13Z")
Traditionally, a wedding officiant, either secular or religious, says something along the lines of “By the power vested in me by the State of X, I now pronounce you…” U.S. question: if the wedding officiant is registere… --- ## [In a casino why can't I hand my winning coupon to the cashier?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-casino-why-cant-i-hand-my-winning-coupon-to-the-cashier/1032662)
**Author:** [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [August 30, 2026, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-casino-why-cant-i-hand-my-winning-coupon-to-the-cashier/1032662 "2026-08-30T13:06:01Z")
I rarely gamble but recently I did and won some money on a slot machine. I pressed the cash-out button and it printed me a coupon. I took that to the cashier and tried to hand it to her. She told me to put it on the c… --- ## [Is it risky to buy/use second hand phones?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-risky-to-buy-use-second-hand-phones/1032626)
**Author:** [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2026, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-risky-to-buy-use-second-hand-phones/1032626 "2026-08-29T07:03:06Z")
Like most people nowadays, I have sensitive software on my phone. Banking apps, 2FA authenticators, password managers that sync to a server, access software to a cloud storage space; this sort of thing. For such use case… --- ## [The A-10 Thunderbolt/Warthog: Air Force: "We don't want it" Army: We'll take it](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-a-10-thunderbolt-warthog-air-force-we-dont-want-it-army-well-take-it/684483)
**Author:** [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Replies:** 411\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2026, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-a-10-thunderbolt-warthog-air-force-we-dont-want-it-army-well-take-it/684483 "2026-08-28T09:22:50Z")
The whole retiring-the-A10 proposal seems nuts to me, but what do I know. A UAV and any F-35s that happen to be around for low, low, level hunt-and-kill? The F-35 for close-in troop support? :confused: Anyway, is it pos… --- ## [How can I buy large frame reading glasses?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-buy-large-frame-reading-glasses/1032540)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [August 27, 2026, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-buy-large-frame-reading-glasses/1032540 "2026-08-27T19:44:51Z")
My head is larger than average. The inexpensive ball caps never fit. Even with the adjustable band completely unsnapped. Reading glasses are tight. The spring hinge breaks within 4 to 6 weeks. The leg breaks off soon af… --- ## [Mass of an Electron](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mass-of-an-electron/1032569)
**Author:** [@Ynnad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ynnad)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [August 27, 2026, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mass-of-an-electron/1032569 "2026-08-27T04:09:20Z")
The rest mass of an electron has been measured with quite a bit of accuracy. Here one link among many to that quantity. CODATA Value: electron mass But being a measured value, there is still some uncertainty. Suppose… --- ## [Drinking tea after Dec 16, 1773 Harbor Tea Day](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-tea-after-dec-16-1773-harbor-tea-day/1031408)
**Author:** [@fedman1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman1)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2026, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-tea-after-dec-16-1773-harbor-tea-day/1031408 "2026-08-25T17:14:10Z")
On this Independence Day 2026, I’m wondering if there was a backlash against tea-drinkers, even more so after July 2-4. I assume there was still tea available either at home or stores, but wouldn’t they be shunned for b… --- ## [Is criticality in nuclear physics just a statistical concept?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-criticality-in-nuclear-physics-just-a-statistical-concept/1032500)
**Author:** [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [August 25, 2026, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-criticality-in-nuclear-physics-just-a-statistical-concept/1032500 "2026-08-25T16:57:46Z")
As I understand it, there is a certain probability that an atomic nucleus of a fissile isotope, left alone to mind its own business, will split in a given second from capturing a neutron that happened to come by in the w… --- ## [If I win Powerball, what type of bank account do I need for my winnings (probably don’t need answer ever)?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-win-powerball-what-type-of-bank-account-do-i-need-for-my-winnings-probably-don-t-need-answer-ever/1024770)
**Author:** [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Replies:** 197\ **Last updated:** [August 24, 2026, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-win-powerball-what-type-of-bank-account-do-i-need-for-my-winnings-probably-don-t-need-answer-ever/1024770 "2026-08-24T18:37:47Z")
Like a Boy Scout (or Batman), I want to always be prepared should I actually win Powerball. I pretty much have my plan in place; first, sign the ticket, then put it in a clear sleeve (I have one at home currently housin… --- ## [When (and why) did home HVAC change the way return air is handled?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-home-hvac-change-the-way-return-air-is-handled/1032305)
**Author:** [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [August 24, 2026, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-home-hvac-change-the-way-return-air-is-handled/1032305 "2026-08-24T01:48:28Z")
My parent’s 2-story w/basement house (furnace in the basement) (built in 1942) has a supply and a return duct in every room, which makes the ducting massively complicated. My split-level house in Arizona (built in 1970) … --- ## [How do the odds for craps (dice) compare to other gambling?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-odds-for-craps-dice-compare-to-other-gambling/1032471)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 63\ **Last updated:** [August 23, 2026, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-odds-for-craps-dice-compare-to-other-gambling/1032471 "2026-08-23T22:53:44Z")
That’s all. I know someone who claimed that craps was the way to go because you can get “on a roll”. Of course that is stupid gambling talk. --- ## [AI Data Centers--how many being built, and why?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ai-data-centers-how-many-being-built-and-why/1031452)
**Author:** [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Replies:** 57\ **Last updated:** [August 23, 2026, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ai-data-centers-how-many-being-built-and-why/1031452 "2026-08-23T17:22:31Z")
The news is full of stories about new data centers being built, and local residents complaining. And I have some simple questions: Who is building all these centers? And why? How does each new proposed one differ fro… --- ## [What are these tiny shelters along the side of the highway?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-these-tiny-shelters-along-the-side-of-the-highway/1032127)
**Author:** [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [August 22, 2026, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-these-tiny-shelters-along-the-side-of-the-highway/1032127 "2026-08-22T16:56:47Z")
While driving NE on Highway 401 between Windsor and London, Ontario a couple weeks ago, I would notice a tiny shelter along the side of the highway about every couple of miles. At least I think it’s a shelter? Sometimes … --- ## [Why do msome people want so much money?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-msome-people-want-so-much-money/1032486)
**Author:** [@dcbwhaley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dcbwhaley)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [August 22, 2026, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-msome-people-want-so-much-money/1032486 "2026-08-22T16:23:40Z")
Once you have made your first billion surely you can buy all you want. So wh do people strive for more billions --- ## [Is ape sign language completely dead?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-ape-sign-language-completely-dead/1027824)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 143\ **Last updated:** [August 21, 2026, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-ape-sign-language-completely-dead/1027824 "2026-08-21T14:32:12Z")
Is it now considered established that gorillas and chimps simply don’t have the abstract reasoning capacity for language? --- ## [You are transported back to 70 million BCE](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-transported-back-to-70-million-bce/1021335)
**Author:** [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Replies:** 148\ **Last updated:** [August 21, 2026, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-are-transported-back-to-70-million-bce/1021335 "2026-08-21T00:43:01Z")
…how much more dangerous would it be than going back 20,000 years say? \[To eliminate the effects of the Pleistocene extinctions as well as the subsequent civilization and industrialization trends.\] What would you need … --- ## [What is this grey slab (USN dinner)?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-grey-slab-usn-dinner/1029372)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 76\ **Last updated:** [August 20, 2026, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-grey-slab-usn-dinner/1029372 "2026-08-20T15:36:42Z")
I’m sure we’ve all see the image of a dinner on USS Abraham Lincoln. What is that grey slab next to the… ground beef patty(?)? --- ## [Why is passing Customs soooo much easier coming off a cruise ship than an airplane?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-passing-customs-soooo-much-easier-coming-off-a-cruise-ship-than-an-airplane/1032390)
**Author:** [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Replies:** 43\ **Last updated:** [August 20, 2026, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-passing-customs-soooo-much-easier-coming-off-a-cruise-ship-than-an-airplane/1032390 "2026-08-20T03:06:56Z")
I have only been on two cruises in my life. The second one I disembarked today. Both were international cruises. One ended in Southampton and one was a circle Miami - Miami but stopped in the Bahamas. On both going t… --- ## [What is known about the Telegony?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-known-about-the-telegony/1032255)
**Author:** [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2026, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-known-about-the-telegony/1032255 "2026-08-19T23:18:37Z")
The Odyssey movie prompted me to reread Stephen Fry’s version of the story. After the ending, Fry says: But Odysseus’s debt to Poseidon is not yet fully discharged. The price he has to pay for poking that stick in Poly… --- ## [Did The Russians COPY the B-29 Bomber?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-russians-copy-the-b-29-bomber/276251)
**Author:** [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Replies:** 58\ **Last updated:** [August 19, 2026, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-russians-copy-the-b-29-bomber/276251 "2026-08-19T23:11:57Z")
I caught a bit of the story on the History Channel, about the Russians copying the Boeing B-29bomber, in the 1950’s.Three B-29s landed in Vladivostok, in 1945 (they made emergency landings after a raid on japan). Apparen… --- ## [Longest regular non-stop airplane flight.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 247\ **Last updated:** [August 18, 2026, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881 "2026-08-18T23:17:43Z")
In Inception, Sato mentions that Sydney, AUS to Los Angeles, USA is one of the longest flights. What is the longest? Must be a flight serviced by a commercial airliner on a regular (let’s say at least once a week) basi… --- ## ["Out-of-service" powerline tower caused a fire?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/out-of-service-powerline-tower-caused-a-fire/1032188)
**Author:** [@Timz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Timz)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [August 17, 2026, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/out-of-service-powerline-tower-caused-a-fire/1032188 "2026-08-17T18:44:22Z")
The Associated Press story says that in their report on the huge Eaton fire, “Los Angeles County fire officials” say it “was caused by electrical arcing on \[Southern California Edison’s\] out-of-service tower …” Looks li… --- ## ["Design bureaus" in the Soviet Union/Russia](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-bureaus-in-the-soviet-union-russia/1032114)
**Author:** [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [August 16, 2026, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-bureaus-in-the-soviet-union-russia/1032114 "2026-08-16T00:21:23Z")
I’ve repeatedly seen the word “design bureau” used in texts to refer to a company or organisation in the Soviet Union or its successor states that developed a particular technology. Example industries include aircraft (M… --- ## [Has there been a change in metallic content in new U.S. coins?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-been-a-change-in-metallic-content-in-new-u-s-coins/1031940)
**Author:** [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [August 15, 2026, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-been-a-change-in-metallic-content-in-new-u-s-coins/1031940 "2026-08-15T23:47:08Z")
I’ve been around for 65+ years and am well aware that years and decades of use may change a coins texture and even weight. But the 2026 coins feel weird to me. Especially dimes. Like there is less metal being used. Or s… --- ## [New type of automobile paint now?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-type-of-automobile-paint-now/1031769)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [August 13, 2026, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-type-of-automobile-paint-now/1031769 "2026-08-13T16:30:43Z")
In the past 6-8 months or so, I’ve noticed car colors that I’d never seen before. New cars. Not new colors exactly, but a different shade or sheen. There’s a slight flatness and sameness to it. Anyone know what I’m t… --- ## ["Wmic bios get serialnumber" is Officially Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wmic-bios-get-serialnumber-is-officially-dead/1032325)
**Author:** [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [August 13, 2026, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wmic-bios-get-serialnumber-is-officially-dead/1032325 "2026-08-13T15:12:25Z")
Well, Windows, in its not so infinite wisdom, has removed “wmic” from the command that allows you to get the serial number of your computer in case the label on the back is illegible or completely worn off. I did a quic… --- ## [Air Force One question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/air-force-one-question/401066)
**Author:** [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Replies:** 85\ **Last updated:** [August 13, 2026, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/air-force-one-question/401066 "2026-08-13T14:08:38Z")
As I understand it, Air Force One is the designation given to any aircraft carrying the President. If he’s on a two-man helicopter for some reason, that would be “Air Force One”. But there’s also a plane that generally … --- ## [Windows: Vinyl or Fiberglass in an earthquake?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-vinyl-or-fiberglass-in-an-earthquake/1032319)
**Author:** [@Newtosite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Newtosite)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [August 13, 2026, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-vinyl-or-fiberglass-in-an-earthquake/1032319 "2026-08-13T06:44:06Z")
I’m shopping for replacement windows. Does anyone know which holds up better in a mild to moderate seismic shift? Not total destruction. I’m in Los Angeles. Thanks. --- ## ["Thorium metal scrap" can explode? (1956 pic)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thorium-metal-scrap-can-explode-1956-pic/1032217)
**Author:** [@Timz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Timz)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [August 12, 2026, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thorium-metal-scrap-can-explode-1956-pic/1032217 "2026-08-12T08:11:30Z")
How did this happen? What did Sylvania do with thorium? --- ## [What are drip-dry clothes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-drip-dry-clothes/1032251)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 11, 2026, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-drip-dry-clothes/1032251 "2026-08-11T16:33:44Z")
I’m reading Three-Eight Charlie by Jerrie Mock, about her 1964 solo flight around the world. She mentions ‘drip-dry clothes’. What are those? Aren’t all clothes drip-dry? I mean, you hang them up, the water drips off… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=4)