# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=560 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 561 --- ## [Can the U.S. government force a private citizen to be interrogated by a foreign power? (aka Russia)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-u-s-government-force-a-private-citizen-to-be-interrogated-by-a-foreign-power-aka-russia/818224)
**Author:** [@Rusalka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rusalka)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2018, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-the-u-s-government-force-a-private-citizen-to-be-interrogated-by-a-foreign-power-aka-russia/818224 "2018-07-20T03:23:42Z")
I’m reading about the reactions of people to Trump’s seeming agreement with Putin that he might consider providing US citizens to answer the Russian government’s questions. The first thing that came to my mind was “yeah… --- ## [Languages That Are Mutually-Intelligible.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/languages-that-are-mutually-intelligible/817903)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 84\ **Last updated:** [July 20, 2018, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/languages-that-are-mutually-intelligible/817903 "2018-07-20T00:24:51Z")
I just know I once read an interesting entry in an almanac once. (You all do remember almanacs. That’s what we used before we had the internet;).) Anyways, they said speakers of Swedish could almost understand other Scan… --- ## [Dry canned beans](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-canned-beans/818168)
**Author:** [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-canned-beans/818168 "2018-07-19T21:54:31Z")
I was just getting set to make myself some supper, and I opened up a can of beans (specifically, the kind labeled “pork and beans”, which contain only homeopathic traces of pork). Usually, when the can is opened, you se… --- ## [Usage of have vs of](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/usage-of-have-vs-of/818163)
**Author:** [@Ornery\_Bob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ornery_Bob)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/usage-of-have-vs-of/818163 "2018-07-19T21:11:50Z")
I see people writing things like, “That could of been me.” when I believe they mean “That could’ve been me” which really means, “That could have been me.” The “have” in the contraction sounds like “of,” in terms of spee… --- ## [Gulf War I - Ultimate cause miscommunicated statement by President Bush 41?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gulf-war-i-ultimate-cause-miscommunicated-statement-by-president-bush-41/818207)
**Author:** [@Hirka\_T\_Bawa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hirka_T_Bawa)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gulf-war-i-ultimate-cause-miscommunicated-statement-by-president-bush-41/818207 "2018-07-19T19:07:05Z")
I’ve always understood the First Gulf War, Desert Storm, was ultimately caused by a statement, from someone, that lead Saddam Hussein to believe that he could invade Kuwait without the USA intervening. Is this true? Ig… --- ## [Are prison inmates allowed to sleep in?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-prison-inmates-allowed-to-sleep-in/575870)
**Author:** [@Submerged](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Submerged)\ **Replies:** 64\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-prison-inmates-allowed-to-sleep-in/575870 "2018-07-19T18:44:37Z")
I’m pretty sure the answer is no. But that got me wondering…why? Googling daily routines in prison, it seems that inmates are required to get up very early in the morning (some cites list it as 4 am for some prisons!), … --- ## [Microsoft Word and strange unwanted horizontal lines](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word-and-strange-unwanted-horizontal-lines/818211)
**Author:** [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word-and-strange-unwanted-horizontal-lines/818211 "2018-07-19T18:02:39Z")
I’ve taken a temp job in an office and I’m retying some old forms that are xeroxes of xeroxes (and faded and slanted on the page etc). All is zipping along merrily and then I hit a hard return to start a new line and MS… --- ## [Question on dieting re: "calories out"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-dieting-re-calories-out/797526)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 64\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-dieting-re-calories-out/797526 "2018-07-19T14:25:58Z")
Please no comments about “take the fork out of you mouth” or exercise more. This is specifically about the calories out part of dieting with metabolism, ghrelin (satiated) vs. leptin (starving), “paleolithic” biology, … --- ## [What happens to a fraudster who has no hope of paying back a huge restitution fine?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-a-fraudster-who-has-no-hope-of-paying-back-a-huge-restitution-fine/818165)
**Author:** [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-a-fraudster-who-has-no-hope-of-paying-back-a-huge-restitution-fine/818165 "2018-07-19T13:40:58Z")
When financial fraudsters are prosecuted, their sentence may also include a huge restitution fine to be paid back to the victims for their losses. But the fine is typically so high that the fraudster has no legitimate h… --- ## [... and as Venus sets in the west ...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/and-as-venus-sets-in-the-west/818122)
**Author:** [@A\_Dodgy\_Dude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_Dodgy_Dude)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/and-as-venus-sets-in-the-west/818122 "2018-07-19T13:38:06Z")
These nights, in the northern hemisphere, Venus is impossible to miss in the western sky not long after sunset. I’ve been watching it these past few evenings and noticed it seems to be following the same path/arc the su… --- ## [unique genetic ID number](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unique-genetic-id-number/818169)
**Author:** [@PoppaSan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoppaSan)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unique-genetic-id-number/818169 "2018-07-19T13:24:39Z")
Would it be possible to take a persons genome and convert it to a unique ID number? Assuming a 32 character numbering scheme, what would be the smallest number of digits possible to identify everyone now? and for the ne… --- ## [Question regarding Denisovan girl's right?? pinky bone.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-denisovan-girls-right-pinky-bone/818164)
**Author:** [@davidmich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidmich)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-denisovan-girls-right-pinky-bone/818164 "2018-07-19T12:08:19Z")
Hi Every photo I’ve seen ob the female Denisovan pinky bone has it resting on the right pinky of a human hand. I have not found any source for that detail anywhere. How do anthropologists know it came from a right hand… --- ## [What is "dry ammunition" in a defense-industry breakdown? (here, Israel)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dry-ammunition-in-a-defense-industry-breakdown-here-israel/813474)
**Author:** [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Replies:** 45\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dry-ammunition-in-a-defense-industry-breakdown-here-israel/813474 "2018-07-19T04:48:00Z")
See query. From Jpost: According to \[the defense export ministry\], in 2017 Israeli companies exported missiles aerial defense systems (31%) \[sic\], radar systems (17%), avionics (14%), dry ammunition (9%), communication… --- ## [What's the proportion of "dumb/gravity bombs" to JDAMs in the US? When are they used?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-proportion-of-dumb-gravity-bombs-to-jdams-in-the-us-when-are-they-used/818149)
**Author:** [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-proportion-of-dumb-gravity-bombs-to-jdams-in-the-us-when-are-they-used/818149 "2018-07-19T03:06:13Z")
See query, regarding the JDAM (Joint Direct Attack Munition) which per se is a retrofit kit for unguided gravity bombs. The cost differential, as far as these things ago, and the amount of bombing we have acknowledged t… --- ## [Is there a "ch" sound in Hebrew?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-ch-sound-in-hebrew/382552)
**Author:** [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-ch-sound-in-hebrew/382552 "2018-07-19T02:51:36Z")
I’m not referring to the gutteral “ch” sound in “Chanukah,” but to the actual “ch” sound, as in “church.” Does it exist in Hebrew? --- ## [Citizenship number (need answer fast)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizenship-number-need-answer-fast/818119)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [July 19, 2018, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citizenship-number-need-answer-fast/818119 "2018-07-19T02:30:01Z")
What is a “citizenship number” for someone born in the US (not naturalized?) Different than SSN? I haven’t heard of this before. --- ## [Why do they serve orange juice, pineapple juice and grapefruti juice in a small glass?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-serve-orange-juice-pineapple-juice-and-grapefruti-juice-in-a-small-glass/818089)
**Author:** [@Mr\_Quatro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Quatro)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-they-serve-orange-juice-pineapple-juice-and-grapefruti-juice-in-a-small-glass/818089 "2018-07-18T22:24:24Z")
Perhaps not so much today, but back a long time ago in the morning the orange juice and the pineapple juice and the grapefruit juice came in small glasses. At least smaller than the water glass. Was it the cost or the b… --- ## [Asymptotic and Parallel Lines Crossing.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asymptotic-and-parallel-lines-crossing/818092)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asymptotic-and-parallel-lines-crossing/818092 "2018-07-18T21:30:51Z")
I hope I am using the right terms here. But as I recall from math class (and bear with me, it’s been a while), asymptotic lines get closer and closer, but never really touch. But is that true? Do they really never touch… --- ## [When was the last time a bill got 40 - 60% support from both Democrats and Republicans?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-last-time-a-bill-got-40-60-support-from-both-democrats-and-republicans/818134)
**Author:** [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-last-time-a-bill-got-40-60-support-from-both-democrats-and-republicans/818134 "2018-07-18T19:49:22Z")
Is there a data source that lists every bill that has ever come up for vote in the US and the party affiliations for who voted for & against? I’m curious when the last time there was a bill which was genuinely controvers… --- ## [What happens if you refuse to pay a medical debt?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-you-refuse-to-pay-a-medical-debt/818136)
**Author:** [@EricaRoche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EricaRoche)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-you-refuse-to-pay-a-medical-debt/818136 "2018-07-18T19:15:04Z")
I have what would be considered a relatively small debt of €350 from an MRI scan back in March of this year. I’m not able to pay as I’ve been unable to find a job but I heard that it’s not something that I should be conc… --- ## [Returning junk mail to sender?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/returning-junk-mail-to-sender/817816)
**Author:** [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Replies:** 46\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/returning-junk-mail-to-sender/817816 "2018-07-18T17:27:42Z")
I don’t care whether USPS actually returns it to the sender or sheds it, but if I don’t open it and clearly mark it Return to Sender aren’t they still obligated to take it away? Or does that only apply to First Class … --- ## [AD 793 were the Vikings really that bad](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ad-793-were-the-vikings-really-that-bad/817991)
**Author:** [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Replies:** 59\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ad-793-were-the-vikings-really-that-bad/817991 "2018-07-18T17:18:47Z")
I’ve always thought about the Vikings in the traditional way - bloodthirsty marauders. Then quite by happenstance I’ve run across three articles that states this was not the case. Wikipedia even says… \*”Viking traveller… --- ## [Are the cremains of different people ever mixed together at a crematorium](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-cremains-of-different-people-ever-mixed-together-at-a-crematorium/818041)
**Author:** [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-cremains-of-different-people-ever-mixed-together-at-a-crematorium/818041 "2018-07-18T16:58:34Z")
Within the last month or so someone here on the Dope made the claim that, when a person is cremated, the ashes their family receives will have the cremains of other individuals mixed into those of their loved ones. Of co… --- ## [Is an extremely short airline flight especially dangerous or challenging?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-extremely-short-airline-flight-especially-dangerous-or-challenging/817880)
**Author:** [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-extremely-short-airline-flight-especially-dangerous-or-challenging/817880 "2018-07-18T16:49:37Z")
My question is inspired by the opening of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. In May, 1999, the City of Austin closed Robert Mueller Municipal Airport and began passenger operations on the site of the former Bergrst… --- ## [January 1981 Lake Tahoe Kool-Aid/Cyanide poisoning: Any resolution?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-1981-lake-tahoe-kool-aid-cyanide-poisoning-any-resolution/818090)
**Author:** [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-1981-lake-tahoe-kool-aid-cyanide-poisoning-any-resolution/818090 "2018-07-18T16:28:08Z")
In January 1981, two women, Helga Franks and Anna Russell, were having dinner with their three children, ages 1½ to four years old, during which the three children became seriously ill. An investigation determined that … --- ## [Are the steroid-based medicines they're giving me for my asthma also the ones athletes use?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-steroid-based-medicines-theyre-giving-me-for-my-asthma-also-the-ones-athletes-use/818126)
**Author:** [@Gumwuzzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gumwuzzle)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-steroid-based-medicines-theyre-giving-me-for-my-asthma-also-the-ones-athletes-use/818126 "2018-07-18T13:08:17Z")
Just wondering if I could have been building illegally huge muscles this whole time. --- ## [What bone could this be?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-bone-could-this-be/817850)
**Author:** [@brossa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brossa)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [July 17, 2018, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-bone-could-this-be/817850 "2018-07-17T02:36:14Z")
This weird bone here. Context: a roadside curiosity shop/museum in Iceland, with random displays of bones of birds, sea mammals (including whales and orcas), and land mammals, as well as rocks and minerals and other tch… --- ## [Three questions about the largest (ever) living organism](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-questions-about-the-largest-ever-living-organism/817992)
**Author:** [@Steven\_Estes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steven_Estes)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-questions-about-the-largest-ever-living-organism/817992 "2018-07-18T12:00:45Z")
1 On a recent visit to New York’s Museum of Natural History I learned that some or all of the hugest dinosaurs lived some of their lives in water. This was necessary because the buoyancy of water was required for their g… --- ## [What's the highest street address in th world?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-street-address-in-th-world/521256)
**Author:** [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Replies:** 83\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-street-address-in-th-world/521256 "2018-07-18T10:16:53Z")
Los Angeles is pretty big and on my commute I regularly drive through neighborhoods with 5-digit street addresses. It got me wondering … what’s the highest legitimate street address in the world? (By “legitimate” I mea… --- ## [Question about amoebas vis-a-vis the evolution of blood-sucking behavior.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-amoebas-vis-a-vis-the-evolution-of-blood-sucking-behavior/818127)
**Author:** [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [July 18, 2018, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-amoebas-vis-a-vis-the-evolution-of-blood-sucking-behavior/818127 "2018-07-18T09:41:10Z")
A friend and I got to talking about mosquitos tonight, and that made me wonder about how their specialized bloodsucking system evolved. I said, I wonder if there were single-celled organisms that developed organelles to… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=559) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=561)