# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=354 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 355 --- ## ["In cased you missed it" on twitter.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cased-you-missed-it-on-twitter/855378)
**Author:** [@Ashtura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtura)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2020, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cased-you-missed-it-on-twitter/855378 "2020-06-10T18:02:23Z")
I have been conditioned to scroll right through this because it always seemed to contain things I’ve already read from people I follow. Now I’m seeing stuff in there I haven’t read, even from people I follow, even thoug… --- ## [Deploying Army on US soil](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/deploying-army-on-us-soil/854899)
**Author:** [@FrenchDunadan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FrenchDunadan)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2020, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/deploying-army-on-us-soil/854899 "2020-06-10T18:01:33Z")
Hello, this is a genuine question from France, so please I am really worried (and if dear moderators feels so, please move this post to a more adapted spot) My questions are, as Trump threathen to deploy US soldiers ag… --- ## [Maxwell's Demon question: What if the demon is not a "finite being"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maxwells-demon-question-what-if-the-demon-is-not-a-finite-being/855091)
**Author:** [@PlaceboTarget](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlaceboTarget)\ **Replies:** 34\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2020, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maxwells-demon-question-what-if-the-demon-is-not-a-finite-being/855091 "2020-06-10T16:15:22Z")
This question is about James Clerk Maxwell’s thought experiment, where he came up with the possibility of violating the second law of thermodynamics by imagining a sort of demon that could control a small door between tw… --- ## [At what time was the world finally fully mapped?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-time-was-the-world-finally-fully-mapped/854946)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2020, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-time-was-the-world-finally-fully-mapped/854946 "2020-06-10T16:11:22Z")
At what point in time did the world finally become fully mapped? (Not necessarily every single tiny feature or village, but basically, the point where there were no more un-accounted for regions in the whole globe?) --- ## [Crew's quarters in today's (US) Navy](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crews-quarters-in-todays-us-navy/852857)
**Author:** [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Replies:** 60\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2020, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crews-quarters-in-todays-us-navy/852857 "2020-06-10T15:50:22Z")
Here’s a pic showing some crew berths on the USS Theodore Roosevelt. Is what we see pretty much standard in the US Navy today (aside from subs) for enlisted people? I guess there’s no escaping the claustrophobia and lac… --- ## [Fruit and vegetables grown in contaminated water](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fruit-and-vegetables-grown-in-contaminated-water/855236)
**Author:** [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2020, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fruit-and-vegetables-grown-in-contaminated-water/855236 "2020-06-10T14:47:02Z")
We are advised, for obvious reasons, to wash or peel fruit and vegetables before eating them. But fruit and vegetables consist largely of water, which the plants have sucked up through their roots. I’m guessing that the … --- ## [Question about Washington DC militia](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-washington-dc-militia/855047)
**Author:** [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2020, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-washington-dc-militia/855047 "2020-06-10T13:55:19Z")
Who are these unmarked, unidentified and armed militia roaming Washington DC? Link. --- ## [How much ready-on-hand cash do people like Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates have at any moment?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ready-on-hand-cash-do-people-like-jeff-bezos-and-bill-gates-have-at-any-moment/841262)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 56\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2020, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ready-on-hand-cash-do-people-like-jeff-bezos-and-bill-gates-have-at-any-moment/841262 "2020-03-10T15:35:01Z")
Obviously, this question can’t be answered without doing an audit of their personal finances, which would be illegal or impossible. But generally, how much cash do the super-rich like Bezos or Gates have at any moment? … --- ## [Do they make toilet seat covers that fit commercial toilets?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-make-toilet-seat-covers-that-fit-commercial-toilets/475968)
**Author:** [@prisoner6655321](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/prisoner6655321)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2020, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-make-toilet-seat-covers-that-fit-commercial-toilets/475968 "2020-06-10T03:52:31Z")
I admit it. I’m a bit of a germaphobe. But cheeze! Guys are pigs!!! The next guy I see peeing on a toilet seat is going to get a cupfull of piss right in his car seat with a note that says, “you pee on my seat, I pee … --- ## [Difference between Dewalt Drills](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-dewalt-drills/710874)
**Author:** [@PerkinsNursery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PerkinsNursery)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2020, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/difference-between-dewalt-drills/710874 "2020-06-10T01:08:14Z")
Can anyone give the difference between a Dewalt dc720 and a dc 720ka? also, are all the 18v batteries interchangeable --- ## [Can you legally stop a cop who has his knee on someone's neck, suffocating?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-legally-stop-a-cop-who-has-his-knee-on-someones-neck-suffocating/854742)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2020, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-legally-stop-a-cop-who-has-his-knee-on-someones-neck-suffocating/854742 "2020-06-09T22:43:59Z")
Just wondering where I would stand legally if I saw a cop doing a George Floyd in front of me today: Kneeing someone’s neck while he is down, the guy says “I can’t breathe” and the cop keeps pressing down anyway, and dea… --- ## [ACLU suit of Trump administration](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aclu-suit-of-trump-administration/855124)
**Author:** [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2020, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aclu-suit-of-trump-administration/855124 "2020-06-09T22:35:43Z")
The ACLU is suing the Trump adminstration over its alleged “violation the civil rights of protesterswho were forcefully removed from a park near the White House by police using chemical agents before U.S. President Donal… --- ## [How is this bathtub overflow drain supposed to be assembled?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-this-bathtub-overflow-drain-supposed-to-be-assembled/855198)
**Author:** [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2020, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-this-bathtub-overflow-drain-supposed-to-be-assembled/855198 "2020-06-09T21:48:51Z")
My bathtub overflow drain leaks like crazy and it rains downstairs. When I take the cover plate off here is what I see: \[Album\] Drain … --- ## [Password apps](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-apps/855100)
**Author:** [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2020, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-apps/855100 "2020-06-09T16:01:33Z")
So I’m having some internet issues today and I have to go into an account to troubleshoot. But can I remember the password? Of course not. Chrome currently remembers a lot of them for me but if I didn’t set it up it … --- ## [Question about my computer Recycle Bin](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-my-computer-recycle-bin/855135)
**Author:** [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2020, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-my-computer-recycle-bin/855135 "2020-06-09T15:42:10Z")
Yes, once again, I am having a problem figuring out something my computer is doing. Stop laughing; you’ll be old too some day. This time it’s my Recycle Bin. I have been using some of the time I have on hand to sort thr… --- ## [What are "snowy days"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-snowy-days/855233)
**Author:** [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2020, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-snowy-days/855233 "2020-06-09T11:45:49Z")
The climate data for the South Pole, as reported by Wikipedia, indicates that the average annual precipitation there is 2.3 mm, with an average of 1.6 precipitation days and 203.0 “snowy days”. How is the word “snowy da… --- ## [Moving a movie off of an iPhone](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-a-movie-off-of-an-iphone/855263)
**Author:** [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2020, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-a-movie-off-of-an-iphone/855263 "2020-06-09T04:12:39Z")
Request from my technologically challenged friend in Manhattan. I get a lot of the tech support calls but she’s an iPhone user and that’s one thing I can’t help her with. (I am a luddite with a flip phone). They do a g… --- ## [Mirror flashing at aircraft](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mirror-flashing-at-aircraft/855089)
**Author:** [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2020, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mirror-flashing-at-aircraft/855089 "2020-06-08T22:50:18Z")
Help! I’m marooned on a deserted island, the kind that is really small and has a palm tree in the middle. For reasons I will not go into right now, my only possession is a small rectangular Volkswagen Beetle side mirro… --- ## [Did Japan ever fight Russia prior to their 1941 non-aggression pact?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-japan-ever-fight-russia-prior-to-their-1941-non-aggression-pact/855095)
**Author:** [@davidmich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidmich)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2020, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-japan-ever-fight-russia-prior-to-their-1941-non-aggression-pact/855095 "2020-06-08T20:23:50Z")
Hi Did Japan ever fight Russia prior to their 1941 non-aggression pact? I haven’t read of any during WWII prior to their 1941 non-aggression pact/neutrality pact. But I may have missed something. I look forward to your … --- ## [Why is murder a civil rights violation?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-murder-a-civil-rights-violation/854680)
**Author:** [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Replies:** 44\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2020, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-murder-a-civil-rights-violation/854680 "2020-06-08T20:19:06Z")
I think this idea got started when the feds wanted to prosecute crimes such as murder instead of states. Is that right? --- ## [Can the governor of New York fire the mayor of NewYork?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-governor-of-new-york-fire-the-mayor-of-newyork/854936)
**Author:** [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2020, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-governor-of-new-york-fire-the-mayor-of-newyork/854936 "2020-06-08T18:13:14Z")
I just heard that Governor Cuomo is threatening to remove Mayor DeBlasio; does he really have that power under New York law? Has any governor ever done it before? Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk --- ## [How do news and police helicopters keep from crashing into each other?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-news-and-police-helicopters-keep-from-crashing-into-each-other/854776)
**Author:** [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2020, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-news-and-police-helicopters-keep-from-crashing-into-each-other/854776 "2020-06-08T16:13:44Z")
I’m watching coverage of the civil unrest in Los Angeles and I’m just amazed that there aren’t daily disasters with helicopters. There was a building on fire and news helicopters were orbiting the scene. In addition, I… --- ## [Contemporary mutinies (at sea)...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contemporary-mutinies-at-sea/854982)
**Author:** [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2020, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contemporary-mutinies-at-sea/854982 "2020-06-08T15:55:39Z")
You are probably familiar with naval mutinies of the 1800s and earlier. Successful mutineers would either (a) kill and/or throw overboard the captain and a mate or two. (b) put the captain and a mate or two in a lifeboat… --- ## [What creature is this?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-creature-is-this/854789)
**Author:** [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2020, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-creature-is-this/854789 "2020-06-08T15:39:01Z")
What is this green crawling creature? --- ## [Cleaning a dirty daguerrotype](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleaning-a-dirty-daguerrotype/855217)
**Author:** [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2020, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cleaning-a-dirty-daguerrotype/855217 "2020-06-08T04:57:12Z")
My brother has a big birthday coming up, and I want to give him a daguerrotype I have of our ancestor who had the same first and last name. It dates back to the 1850’s, according to a note on the back. The problem is tha… --- ## [Wireless Print Server Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wireless-print-server-questions/855165)
**Author:** [@BobArrgh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobArrgh)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 8, 2020, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wireless-print-server-questions/855165 "2020-06-08T00:19:55Z")
I debated whether to ask the questions here or in the IMHO forum. I’ll start it in GQ, but Mods, feel free to route it to IMHO. I need wireless printing capability on my home network. Here are the major components: \[… --- ## [Military-style firearms in California.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-style-firearms-in-california/855040)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 7, 2020, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-style-firearms-in-california/855040 "2020-06-07T20:06:11Z")
PLEASE let’s not make this a gun control thread. I am looking for a factual answer. A man was charged with assault for brandishing a weapon at protesters in Upland, CA (link). His rifle is an AR-15 variant, and has a … --- ## [Any way to roll back this Firefox change?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-roll-back-this-firefox-change/851386)
**Author:** [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 7, 2020, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-roll-back-this-firefox-change/851386 "2020-06-07T18:25:58Z")
It used to be that the URL bar in Firefox had a little down arrow at the far right. Click on that, and it would give you a dropdown of 10-12 addresses you access frequently, and you could click on one of those, and it w… --- ## [Best betting strategy for simple high/low bet of variable amount, but if you lose it all you're out?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-betting-strategy-for-simple-high-low-bet-of-variable-amount-but-if-you-lose-it-all-youre-out/855121)
**Author:** [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [June 7, 2020, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-betting-strategy-for-simple-high-low-bet-of-variable-amount-but-if-you-lose-it-all-youre-out/855121 "2020-06-07T18:06:33Z")
Say there was a game like where you rolled 2 6-sided dice and made a custom dollar bet based on if you thought the next roll would be higher or lower. The game had the following conditions: You start with $1000 in your… --- ## [Do African/Asian Lions and Elephants share similar evolution history ?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-african-asian-lions-and-elephants-share-similar-evolution-history/855158)
**Author:** [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 7, 2020, 8:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-african-asian-lions-and-elephants-share-similar-evolution-history/855158 "2020-06-07T08:59:10Z")
So the Asian / African lions share the same ancestor from about 200,000 years ago (cite : What Is the Difference Between African & Asian Lions? | Pets on Mom.com). I was trying to look for elephants common ancestor but … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=353) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=355)