# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=312 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 313 --- ## [Why invert bottle before opening?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-invert-bottle-before-opening/928094)
**Author:** [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [December 17, 2020, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-invert-bottle-before-opening/928094 "2020-12-17T07:03:53Z")
This past Saturday, my (semi)local Carrefour started selling Bundaberg ginger beer, the non-alcohol type. on the label just above the brand name is smaller print: “Invert bottle before opening”. What purpose does that se… --- ## [Banks prefer empty storefronts to lower rents?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/banks-prefer-empty-storefronts-to-lower-rents/927959)
**Author:** [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [December 17, 2020, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/banks-prefer-empty-storefronts-to-lower-rents/927959 "2020-12-17T04:42:59Z")
I read an article the other day that mentioned one reason why so many storefronts/commercial spaces are empty is that banks prefer vacancies to lowered rent - but the article didn’t go on to explain a reason for this pre… --- ## [Where can I find a simple SpO2 monitor bracelet?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-find-a-simple-spo2-monitor-bracelet/927758)
**Author:** [@CraftE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CraftE)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [December 17, 2020, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-find-a-simple-spo2-monitor-bracelet/927758 "2020-12-17T03:20:27Z")
Hello, this is my first time posting on Straight Dope so I do apologize if I have posted this question in the wrong category. So long story short, my grandmother uses an oxygen tank 24/7 and she is in search for a simpl… --- ## [What kind of hoodie/sweater/sweatshirt(?) is Trevor Noah wearing in this interview?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-hoodie-sweater-sweatshirt-is-trevor-noah-wearing-in-this-interview/928218)
**Author:** [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [December 17, 2020, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-hoodie-sweater-sweatshirt-is-trevor-noah-wearing-in-this-interview/928218 "2020-12-17T02:29:46Z")
Trevor Noah interviewed President Obama the other day and, perhaps I am alone here, but I kind of liked the sweater-sweatshirt-hoodie he was wearing. Here is the interview to see the sweater. What is that kind of cloth… --- ## [Plumbing question, initial water pressure is very high and then back to normal](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plumbing-question-initial-water-pressure-is-very-high-and-then-back-to-normal/928133)
**Author:** [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [December 17, 2020, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plumbing-question-initial-water-pressure-is-very-high-and-then-back-to-normal/928133 "2020-12-17T01:44:05Z")
This has been happening for a few months. When the water is first turned on it comes out at very high pressure, and then after a few seconds returns to normal pressure. I’ve never had a problem with low water pressure in… --- ## [Educate Me on LED Replacements for Fluorescent Bulbs](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-on-led-replacements-for-fluorescent-bulbs/926205)
**Author:** [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [December 16, 2020, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-on-led-replacements-for-fluorescent-bulbs/926205 "2020-12-16T22:32:01Z")
I know they exist. But when you buy them and take them home, is it just a fluorescent-tube shaped LED-based device that goes in to the same receptable that a real fluorescent tube would go into, or does it require adapt… --- ## ["Laundry Stripping" - hooey or real?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laundry-stripping-hooey-or-real/927486)
**Author:** [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Replies:** 44\ **Last updated:** [December 16, 2020, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laundry-stripping-hooey-or-real/927486 "2020-12-16T22:05:40Z")
(inspired by this thread) I stumbled across this technique a couple months back and have not been inspired to give it a try. One description Supposedly, soaking your clothing etc. in a tub full of hot water, and borax… --- ## [Identify this wooden contraption](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-this-wooden-contraption/928101)
**Author:** [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [December 16, 2020, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-this-wooden-contraption/928101 "2020-12-16T15:15:22Z")
Unknown use. Possibly a mold for bricks/blocks? Found in central South Carolina. pics --- ## [Standard statistical procedure for this data cleaning need?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/standard-statistical-procedure-for-this-data-cleaning-need/928028)
**Author:** [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [December 16, 2020, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/standard-statistical-procedure-for-this-data-cleaning-need/928028 "2020-12-16T12:20:49Z")
I have a huge time series of response variables from a physical experiment. In this experiment we are trying to evaluate dozens of different conditions, and we will change things to each new condition and then wait a whi… --- ## [What's up with George Harrison's hand?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-george-harrisons-hand/928124)
**Author:** [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [December 16, 2020, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-george-harrisons-hand/928124 "2020-12-16T05:57:15Z")
Wikimedia Commons hosts the following photograph of George Harrison, purportedly taken while chanting Hare Krishna in Vrindavan, India in 1996: What’s up with his right hand? It loo… --- ## [I drank my lava lamp... huh?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-drank-my-lava-lamp-huh/66261)
**Author:** [@MagicalSilverKey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MagicalSilverKey)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [December 16, 2020, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-drank-my-lava-lamp-huh/66261 "2020-12-16T05:27:39Z")
Ok, I assume this some sort of internet joke, (like AYBABTU) or an UL, but I often have read a lot of people online saying, “I drank my lava lamp.” I have even seen it in the SDMB. \[li\]If anyone actually did this act, w… --- ## [Utility (sewer) repair question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/utility-sewer-repair-question/928030)
**Author:** [@MikeF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeF)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [December 15, 2020, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/utility-sewer-repair-question/928030 "2020-12-15T19:28:42Z")
Public Works is replacing what I believe to be sewer lines in my neighborhood. There is a pump constantly running and pumping water from underground into the bottom/side of a large (15’ x 15’x 4’) bladder which has water… --- ## [So where's this extra-galactic light coming from?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-wheres-this-extra-galactic-light-coming-from/927920)
**Author:** [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [December 15, 2020, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-wheres-this-extra-galactic-light-coming-from/927920 "2020-12-15T13:52:24Z")
Interesting study coming out. Data from New Horizon probe discovers more extra-galactic light than there should be. Space aliens with great big light generating bug eyes? Dark matter? God forgot to turn off his … --- ## [Does anyone know what this is, Part 2?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-know-what-this-is-part-2/927604)
**Author:** [@dummygladhands71](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dummygladhands71)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [December 15, 2020, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-know-what-this-is-part-2/927604 "2020-12-15T03:09:27Z")
People have guessed camera, 5G repeater, Shot Spotter, photovoltaic cell, but I cannot get a Google Image match to any of those things. I am most interested in what the thing is hanging down. https://imgur.com/j397nUW N… --- ## [Subcutaneous itching on palm side of hand](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subcutaneous-itching-on-palm-side-of-hand/927968)
**Author:** [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [December 15, 2020, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subcutaneous-itching-on-palm-side-of-hand/927968 "2020-12-15T00:21:58Z")
I sometimes get an itching sensation on my palms and finger pads. It’s nearly intolerable; I have near broken the skin scratching with my teeth because fingernails aren’t up to the task. There are zero external indicatio… --- ## [Did the Universe have a temperature at t=0?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-universe-have-a-temperature-at-t-0/927979)
**Author:** [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [December 14, 2020, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-universe-have-a-temperature-at-t-0/927979 "2020-12-14T19:17:41Z")
I understand that it is debated if the Universe started from zero entropy or not. Does that mean: A. The Universe had a temperature at t=0, but we are not sure if it was 0 or B. We do not know that a metric like temp… --- ## [What countries have 1st amendment rights?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-1st-amendment-rights/926960)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 41\ **Last updated:** [December 14, 2020, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-countries-have-1st-amendment-rights/926960 "2020-12-14T17:10:20Z")
I’ve heard people from other countries refer to their own rights to free speech or freedom of the press as if their constitution mirrors ours in that regard. How common is the inclusion of these rights in other countrie… --- ## [How much practice time do military pilots get?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-practice-time-do-military-pilots-get/927646)
**Author:** [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [December 14, 2020, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-practice-time-do-military-pilots-get/927646 "2020-12-14T16:12:18Z")
Do they fly daily, 3x a week or something else? I expect it varies by type of plane and budget. A few months ago we had a cargo C-17 fly over hospitals as a tribute to health care workers. They said they would h… --- ## [Low supply high demand products - why are prices not being raised?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-supply-high-demand-products-why-are-prices-not-being-raised/926761)
**Author:** [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [December 14, 2020, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-supply-high-demand-products-why-are-prices-not-being-raised/926761 "2020-12-14T00:09:57Z")
Because of COVID production issues and because of some technical issues with the super tiny processes that new semiconductors are using that reduce yields, products like video cards, CPUs, and gaming consoles have much m… --- ## [Squirrels and Tribbles](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/squirrels-and-tribbles/927945)
**Author:** [@Dodgy\_Dude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dodgy_Dude)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [December 13, 2020, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/squirrels-and-tribbles/927945 "2020-12-13T21:22:37Z")
When Cyrano Jones took some tribbles out of their predator-filled environment, they ended up overrunning an entire space station (not to mention the Enterprise). New York City has squirrels in every park – and no natura… --- ## [Washing machine Heavy Duty cycle -- why not always use?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/washing-machine-heavy-duty-cycle-why-not-always-use/927169)
**Author:** [@Billy-o](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billy-o)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [December 13, 2020, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/washing-machine-heavy-duty-cycle-why-not-always-use/927169 "2020-12-13T18:23:15Z")
Like most washers, mine has several different cycle options, one of which is the “Heavy Duty” cycle, for clothes that are badly soiled. I actually always use this option instead of the “Normal” cycle, my logic being: “I… --- ## [Security of self-serve commercial copy machines](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/security-of-self-serve-commercial-copy-machines/927893)
**Author:** [@LynnM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LynnM)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [December 13, 2020, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/security-of-self-serve-commercial-copy-machines/927893 "2020-12-13T17:55:13Z")
If you want to copy confidential documents using a self-serve copy machine at a business or library, how can you tell if that copier is connected to the internet? Whether internet-connected or not: what happens to the c… --- ## [Eating while asleep](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-while-asleep/927548)
**Author:** [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [December 13, 2020, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-while-asleep/927548 "2020-12-13T15:38:19Z")
Purely a hypothetical. Let’s say that a person develops a system to cause a full meal-sized amount of food to enter their stomach while asleep (e.g. a food pack suspended in the esophagus on a timer), halfway through th… --- ## [Mayor as an honorific](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mayor-as-an-honorific/927445)
**Author:** [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Replies:** 50\ **Last updated:** [December 13, 2020, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mayor-as-an-honorific/927445 "2020-12-13T05:28:26Z")
Rudy Giuliani has been in the news (a lot) lately. Presumably to add gravitas to his role in the post-election Trump machine he has been referred to frequently as ‘Mayor Giuliani’. Is this a common honorific to retain … --- ## [What would modern digital TV/commercial radio/cell signals look like to someone in the 1960s?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-modern-digital-tv-commercial-radio-cell-signals-look-like-to-someone-in-the-1960s/927914)
**Author:** [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [December 13, 2020, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-modern-digital-tv-commercial-radio-cell-signals-look-like-to-someone-in-the-1960s/927914 "2020-12-13T02:43:37Z")
Please forgive in advance my expulsion of repulsive technical ignorance on the subject, but I’ve got an oddball question related to a creative project I’m working on… Cutting to the chase, as it says in the title, what … --- ## [Android app that will allow texting to regular SMS numbers without cellular service(using WiFi)?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/android-app-that-will-allow-texting-to-regular-sms-numbers-without-cellular-service-using-wifi/927934)
**Author:** [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [December 13, 2020, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/android-app-that-will-allow-texting-to-regular-sms-numbers-without-cellular-service-using-wifi/927934 "2020-12-13T00:46:54Z")
My understanding is that Whatsapp can not do this unless the person joins Whatsapp. My daughter is getting my wife’s hand-me-down phone and we would like her to be able to send texts on it even though it will no longer … --- ## [Is there any way to directly copy a URL with Chrome or other browsers?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-directly-copy-a-url-with-chrome-or-other-browsers/927897)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [December 13, 2020, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-directly-copy-a-url-with-chrome-or-other-browsers/927897 "2020-12-13T00:21:40Z")
Chrome no longer gives Copy option when pressing a URL. Screenshot Gmail, NewsFeed, Chats, Messages Completely useless options for me. Pressing the other button, that looks like two sheets of paper copies with Amp L… --- ## [How does phone call get to me wherever I am on cell phone?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-phone-call-get-to-me-wherever-i-am-on-cell-phone/927661)
**Author:** [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [December 12, 2020, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-phone-call-get-to-me-wherever-i-am-on-cell-phone/927661 "2020-12-12T23:59:15Z")
If someone calls me from across the US is my phone pinging the local tower every so often? And then there is a central database that says my phone is now in the area and then it rings? --- ## [Does a star shaped gas burner produce noticeably more uniform heating than conventional round burners?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-star-shaped-gas-burner-produce-noticeably-more-uniform-heating-than-conventional-round-burners/927848)
**Author:** [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [December 12, 2020, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-a-star-shaped-gas-burner-produce-noticeably-more-uniform-heating-than-conventional-round-burners/927848 "2020-12-12T23:53:13Z")
“ The Star® Burner’s unique shape isn’t just for show. It creates a perimeter 56% longer than a round range burner of the same size, which allows the inclusion of more flame ports. The result is a stove burner that deliv… --- ## [Are Ocean Salt Levels Constantly Increasing?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-ocean-salt-levels-constantly-increasing/927837)
**Author:** [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [December 12, 2020, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-ocean-salt-levels-constantly-increasing/927837 "2020-12-12T21:45:50Z")
According to the NOAA, " Ocean salt primarily comes from rocks on land". Rocks on land are the major source of salts dissolved in seawater. Rainwater that falls on land is slightly acidic, so it erodes rocks. This rele… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=311) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=313)