# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=356 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 357 --- ## [How do I Close the Facebook Android Instant Messenger Bubble?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-close-the-facebook-android-instant-messenger-bubble/855019)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 4, 2020, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-close-the-facebook-android-instant-messenger-bubble/855019 "2020-06-04T02:54:19Z")
Whenever I receive a message from Facebook messenger a round bubble appears on my screen. It has the person’s photo. I click the bubble, Android Messenger App opens, and I reply. I close the Messenger App. But this bu… --- ## [Does looted stuff often appear on eBay or other online sites?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-looted-stuff-often-appear-on-ebay-or-other-online-sites/854843)
**Author:** [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [June 4, 2020, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-looted-stuff-often-appear-on-ebay-or-other-online-sites/854843 "2020-06-04T02:51:29Z")
Seeing images of Targets/GameStops knocked over makes me curious if we’re going to suddenly see a ton of eBay listings for video games that are “New/Sealed With Slight Water Damage”. Is there anyway to prove stuff is sto… --- ## [Can anyone explain why we can't just stream the big 4 networks live?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-explain-why-we-cant-just-stream-the-big-4-networks-live/854836)
**Author:** [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [June 4, 2020, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-explain-why-we-cant-just-stream-the-big-4-networks-live/854836 "2020-06-04T01:50:55Z")
Hey gang, I can’t understand why this is. I live halfway between Madison and Milwaukee. With Spectrum I had the networks from both. With an antenna both markets are picked up. The problem is with how my apartment is sit… --- ## [Freedom of assembly in the time of Corona and protests](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-of-assembly-in-the-time-of-corona-and-protests/854832)
**Author:** [@ALOHA\_HATER](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ALOHA_HATER)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-of-assembly-in-the-time-of-corona-and-protests/854832 "2020-06-03T22:58:53Z")
I’ve got a pretty simple question for ya: do I misunderstand what ‘freedom to assemble’ means under US constitutional law? There have been all kinds of restrictions at different levels about who can be where, how many o… --- ## [Looters breaking into a Subway restaurant, what's there to steal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looters-breaking-into-a-subway-restaurant-whats-there-to-steal/854900)
**Author:** [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looters-breaking-into-a-subway-restaurant-whats-there-to-steal/854900 "2020-06-03T22:48:55Z")
Watching local news and they showed video of looters breaking into multiple fast food restaurants and carrying things out. My question is, what is there to steal at a place like McDonald’s or Subway that makes it so att… --- ## [Fairly simple math question (controversial subject)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fairly-simple-math-question-controversial-subject/854861)
**Author:** [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fairly-simple-math-question-controversial-subject/854861 "2020-06-03T20:26:04Z")
So, I’m trying to figure out your chance of dying in a police encounter in the U.S. based on race. This website: Our visualizations – Fatal Encounters shows that there have been 13,337 white people who have died in a … --- ## [Is kneeling on the neck of someone being detained acceptable police procedure?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-kneeling-on-the-neck-of-someone-being-detained-acceptable-police-procedure/854687)
**Author:** [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\ **Replies:** 62\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-kneeling-on-the-neck-of-someone-being-detained-acceptable-police-procedure/854687 "2020-06-03T16:42:09Z")
I’m guessing it probably is since I haven’t heard anyone in the last two-three days make the point that it isn’t. My next question would be whether “I can’t breathe” or something to that effect is sufficient to change l… --- ## [What’s the purest element or compound (mass more than a peanut) ever made by humans ?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-the-purest-element-or-compound-mass-more-than-a-peanut-ever-made-by-humans/854963)
**Author:** [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-the-purest-element-or-compound-mass-more-than-a-peanut-ever-made-by-humans/854963 "2020-06-03T13:32:38Z")
For the purpose of this question, let’s assume a peanut weighs 0.5 grams. What’s the purest element or compound with a mass greater than a peanut, ever to be purified by humans ? It can be a solid, liquid or gas. And it… --- ## ["1060 West Addison???....that's Wrigley Field!"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1060-west-addison-thats-wrigley-field/493714)
**Author:** [@ScatteredFrog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ScatteredFrog)\ **Replies:** 98\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1060-west-addison-thats-wrigley-field/493714 "2020-06-03T11:56:17Z")
Okay, I just wanted to get some opinions and thoughts here… My favorite movie ever is Blues Brothers, and my wife’s a big fan of it too…so we do have discussions once in a while about certain things in the movie, and re… --- ## [Photobucket has kidnapped my pictures.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photobucket-has-kidnapped-my-pictures/854852)
**Author:** [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photobucket-has-kidnapped-my-pictures/854852 "2020-06-03T11:47:07Z")
Some years ago I opened a free account with Photobucket and for a while it worked fine. I now ant to recover all of them (several hundred) but I can only download them one at a time. It seems that if I want whole albums… --- ## [Getting rid of McAfee?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/getting-rid-of-mcafee/854686)
**Author:** [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/getting-rid-of-mcafee/854686 "2020-06-03T10:58:37Z")
My new laptop came with the McAfee virus pre-installed. Even as Administrator, I was unable to delete. Once or twice a day, it pops up, usually when I am in the middle of something, nagging me to buy it. Needless to s… --- ## [How many complaints are filed against a typical police officer?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-complaints-are-filed-against-a-typical-police-officer/854708)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-complaints-are-filed-against-a-typical-police-officer/854708 "2020-06-03T10:30:21Z")
The media has reported that the officer involved in the death of George Floyd had racked up 18 formal complaints against him over 18 years of duty. This was presented without any context. For context, how often does a … --- ## [What is this machine? (Supposedly the Nazi "Die Glocke" Wunderwaffen)(Cue Theramin)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-machine-supposedly-the-nazi-die-glocke-wunderwaffen-cue-theramin/854754)
**Author:** [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-machine-supposedly-the-nazi-die-glocke-wunderwaffen-cue-theramin/854754 "2020-06-03T01:32:41Z")
Many here I’m sure are aware of the rumor/popular myth of “Die Glocke” (“The Bell”), a mysterious device built in secret by Nazi Germany using fiendish superscience—described alternately as an anti-gravity device, a time… --- ## [Why did Nazi Germany allow foreign reporters?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-nazi-germany-allow-foreign-reporters/852161)
**Author:** [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 3, 2020, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-nazi-germany-allow-foreign-reporters/852161 "2020-06-03T00:27:34Z")
I’m watching World on Fire and Helen Hunts character is an American journalist in Berlin. I get that the US was neutral at this time, but she has appears to have a surprising amount of freedom. She does have a minder fr… --- ## [Whatever happened to Capt. Thomas Stradling? \[From the events that inspired 'Robinson Crusoe'\]](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-capt-thomas-stradling-from-the-events-that-inspired-robinson-crusoe/854941)
**Author:** [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 2, 2020, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-capt-thomas-stradling-from-the-events-that-inspired-robinson-crusoe/854941 "2020-06-02T19:49:59Z")
Alexander Selkirk, whose story formed the basis of the novel, was marooned after he decided his chances were better on a desert island than on the leaky old tub that he was traveling on. His suspicions turned out to be … --- ## [Why is some ice white and some clear?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-some-ice-white-and-some-clear/854830)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 2, 2020, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-some-ice-white-and-some-clear/854830 "2020-06-02T19:01:27Z")
I mean the kind from ice machines. My fridge at home makes white ice. I don’t think it’s impurities because I have a filter. But ice machines in hotels, bars, and restaurants all turn out these crystal clear cubes. How … --- ## [Internet issues - router or provider?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-issues-router-or-provider/854865)
**Author:** [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 2, 2020, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-issues-router-or-provider/854865 "2020-06-02T12:23:32Z")
Ever since COVID-19 has forced my kids to all do Zoom schooling from home, our internet connection has been strained. I want to make it better, but first things first - how can I tell if the problem is the bandwidth I’m … --- ## [1807 Insurrection Act vs the Posse Comitatus Act](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1807-insurrection-act-vs-the-posse-comitatus-act/854888)
**Author:** [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [June 2, 2020, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1807-insurrection-act-vs-the-posse-comitatus-act/854888 "2020-06-02T11:40:20Z")
Can anyone explain to me how the 1807 Insurrection Act and the Posse Comitatus Act can exist simultaneously? The former letting national military act against US citizens, and the former disallowing it? Obviously that’s … --- ## [Whales dehydrated in fresh water?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whales-dehydrated-in-fresh-water/854867)
**Author:** [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 2, 2020, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whales-dehydrated-in-fresh-water/854867 "2020-06-02T10:46:48Z")
As some of you may have heard a humpback whale has come up the St. Lawrence as far as Montreal. A woman described as a marine biologist was on the radio this morning. She claimed that an extended stay in fresh water wo… --- ## [What are my options for locking these French doors?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-my-options-for-locking-these-french-doors/854765)
**Author:** [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [June 2, 2020, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-my-options-for-locking-these-french-doors/854765 "2020-06-02T10:08:14Z")
We have French doors that lead to a study. I’m not sure that you can tell from the picture, but the handles are “dummy” handles. They don’t move. There is no mechanism to them. I would like to be able to secure this room… --- ## [Unusual outlet in home?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-outlet-in-home/854705)
**Author:** [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Replies:** 61\ **Last updated:** [June 2, 2020, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-outlet-in-home/854705 "2020-06-02T01:42:52Z")
I was looking at a house to buy and instead of having 2 electrical sockets, this plate had a round section in the middle that was not moveable. RE agent has seen many,many houses and he’s never seen this before. I… --- ## [I need a new roof!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-roof/854798)
**Author:** [@2Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2Bits)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [June 1, 2020, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-roof/854798 "2020-06-01T22:59:16Z")
But our unfinished, walk-up attic is poorly insulated and probably needs to be “properly” ventilated. We also want to add a vent fan to our master (only) bathroom. How many different people will we need to hire? And who… --- ## [I wanna buy an online magazine subscription....](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wanna-buy-an-online-magazine-subscription/854793)
**Author:** [@2Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2Bits)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 1, 2020, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wanna-buy-an-online-magazine-subscription/854793 "2020-06-01T20:22:21Z")
…but I don’t want it to automatically renew and charge my credit card again in a year. Is this achievable without much hassle? I’ve read where one of the benefits offered by certain credit card providers is that they wil… --- ## [Do complaints of police misconduct follow a power law distribution](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-complaints-of-police-misconduct-follow-a-power-law-distribution/854869)
**Author:** [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [June 1, 2020, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-complaints-of-police-misconduct-follow-a-power-law-distribution/854869 "2020-06-01T19:15:30Z")
Like do 5% of officers get named in 60% of all complaints and accusations of abuse? While the top 15% get named in 80% Top 1% get 30%? I’m making these numbers up, but I’m assuming misconduct charges follow a power la… --- ## [Identify Location of This Photo - Providence RI Park?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-location-of-this-photo-providence-ri-park/854853)
**Author:** [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [June 1, 2020, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-location-of-this-photo-providence-ri-park/854853 "2020-06-01T18:19:58Z")
The subject says it all. Where is this? I put Providence in the title, because my dear departed sister (actually, sister-in-law, but I’m honoring her request to always refer to her as my sister) is from there and gave it… --- ## [Sanitizing keyboards.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sanitizing-keyboards/854667)
**Author:** [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [June 1, 2020, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sanitizing-keyboards/854667 "2020-06-01T17:15:00Z")
How can we sanitize keyboards and mice? --- ## [Using stone milling wheels.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-stone-milling-wheels/854856)
**Author:** [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [June 1, 2020, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-stone-milling-wheels/854856 "2020-06-01T16:59:40Z")
How did people avoid eating bits of stone chips in their flour? Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk --- ## [Using stone milling wheels.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-stone-milling-wheels/854855)
**Author:** [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [June 1, 2020, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-stone-milling-wheels/854855 "2020-06-01T16:11:41Z")
How did people avoid eating bits of stone chips in their flour? Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk --- ## [a chain made of most known metals](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-chain-made-of-most-known-metals/854664)
**Author:** [@jonpluc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jonpluc)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [June 1, 2020, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-chain-made-of-most-known-metals/854664 "2020-06-01T09:04:33Z")
i was reading Game of Thrones and one of Maesters owned a metal neckchain made with links of every known metal in the realm. I thought to myself, well thats cool, i wonder if they make that in real life and if you could … --- ## [Are there video conferencing programs as good and as simple as Zoom?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-video-conferencing-programs-as-good-and-as-simple-as-zoom/854578)
**Author:** [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [June 1, 2020, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-video-conferencing-programs-as-good-and-as-simple-as-zoom/854578 "2020-06-01T00:37:01Z")
I apologize for my ignorance of Telecommunications and Computer Science. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=355) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=357)