# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=571 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 572 --- ## [What happened/caused these 4 great evolutionary milestones](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-caused-these-4-great-evolutionary-milestones/816503)
**Author:** [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Replies:** 40\ **Last updated:** [June 25, 2018, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-caused-these-4-great-evolutionary-milestones/816503 "2018-06-25T15:49:34Z")
I was talking to a friend recently about evolution and I mentioned how I would consider 4 things to be great leaps in evolution. The origin of life 4 billion years ago. The transition from prokaryotes to eukaryotes… --- ## [Is "millenial" a uniquely American term?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-millenial-a-uniquely-american-term/816574)
**Author:** [@amaguri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amaguri)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [June 25, 2018, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-millenial-a-uniquely-american-term/816574 "2018-06-25T14:48:20Z")
Practically every day there’s a ‘news’ story about Millennials… “Why Millennials Don’t Tip!” or “Why So Many Millennials Are Vegan!” or “Why Millennials are Defaulting on Student Loans!” Most of these stories seem to ha… --- ## [How come sometimes sodas on tap faintly taste like other sodas?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-sometimes-sodas-on-tap-faintly-taste-like-other-sodas/816628)
**Author:** [@Malienation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malienation)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [June 25, 2018, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-sometimes-sodas-on-tap-faintly-taste-like-other-sodas/816628 "2018-06-25T14:46:19Z")
How does this happen? I mean, I get it if a soda flavor is changed and that particular tap tastes like the previous soda temporarily, but I’ve seen cases where soda taps remain, uh, infected for shockingly long periods o… --- ## [How has Chrome screwed up my mouse?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-has-chrome-screwed-up-my-mouse/816681)
**Author:** [@pohjonen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pohjonen)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 25, 2018, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-has-chrome-screwed-up-my-mouse/816681 "2018-06-25T14:45:33Z")
In chrome, I can no longer drag to highlight text or use the click shift/click, or click control/A to highlight everything. My other browsers are fine. Anyone know what’s up? I search mouse in settings and nothing comes … --- ## [Apple tree not flowering](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apple-tree-not-flowering/816083)
**Author:** [@Orville\_mogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orville_mogul)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [June 25, 2018, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apple-tree-not-flowering/816083 "2018-06-25T03:57:06Z")
We bought a young apple tree at a garden center a couple of years ago, and have been keeping it on our balcony in a 130 liter pot. I don’t know the age of the tree, but it is about 5 feet tall and the trunk is about 2 in… --- ## [starting a fire with a lemon](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-a-fire-with-a-lemon/752571)
**Author:** [@blood63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blood63)\ **Replies:** 47\ **Last updated:** [June 25, 2018, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-a-fire-with-a-lemon/752571 "2018-06-25T02:03:23Z")
This video is a hoax. I am embarrassed that I was duped into trying it. I did get me thinking about how this could actually work. With the right number of lemons are/or the right metals, could I actually start a fire? … --- ## [Can dogs/cats tell each others' gender?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-dogs-cats-tell-each-others-gender/816622)
**Author:** [@asuramaru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asuramaru)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [June 25, 2018, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-dogs-cats-tell-each-others-gender/816622 "2018-06-25T01:05:16Z")
Can dogs / cats tell whether other dogs / cats are male or female just by looking at them, the same way humans can tell others’ gender without looking at their genitals / breasts? --- ## [How exactly do people freeze in winter?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-exactly-do-people-freeze-in-winter/816211)
**Author:** [@JakeRS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JakeRS)\ **Replies:** 34\ **Last updated:** [June 24, 2018, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-exactly-do-people-freeze-in-winter/816211 "2018-06-24T23:21:00Z")
I watched an old Bear Grylls episode about Siberia and he mentioned that the cold can kill you “in minutes”, although he didn’t elaborate much on how and under which conditions. I suppose that he meant if you aren’t movi… --- ## [Space-time crystals](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/space-time-crystals/816546)
**Author:** [@EastUmpqua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EastUmpqua)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 24, 2018, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/space-time-crystals/816546 "2018-06-24T19:12:18Z")
If you plucked a hypothetical frictionless guitar string, would that be a space-time crystal? --- ## [Why can't my wife buy prescribed methadone without insurance](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-my-wife-buy-prescribed-methadone-without-insurance/816634)
**Author:** [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [June 24, 2018, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-my-wife-buy-prescribed-methadone-without-insurance/816634 "2018-06-24T14:23:04Z")
Or rather without using our insurance. My wife has severe chronic pain, for which her pain management doctors have prescribed a high dose methadone regimen at more or less the same for the last 15 years. We’ve had two … --- ## [Very weird veterinary question (treatment for exposure to insecticide -- FOR A PET INSECT)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-weird-veterinary-question-treatment-for-exposure-to-insecticide-for-a-pet-insect/816608)
**Author:** [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 24, 2018, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-weird-veterinary-question-treatment-for-exposure-to-insecticide-for-a-pet-insect/816608 "2018-06-24T07:59:57Z")
Hypothetical: Let’s say I have a pet cockroach (not periplaneta americana – those are gross. Let’s say a Madagascar hissing cockroach. I hear those are popular). I invite my mother over to meet my new pet. Turns out Mum… --- ## [Is there a tell-tale difference between a Shiraz carpet and an Azerbaijan carpet?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-tell-tale-difference-between-a-shiraz-carpet-and-an-azerbaijan-carpet/816651)
**Author:** [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [June 24, 2018, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-tell-tale-difference-between-a-shiraz-carpet-and-an-azerbaijan-carpet/816651 "2018-06-24T03:21:42Z")
I have two lovely 100% wool carpets that I bought in Egypt, both 50-60 years old, both 64-knot. One is from Azerbaijan and one from Shiraz. I’m stupid - when I bought them I carefully wrote down this information, but I n… --- ## [What compounds make the odor of urine?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-compounds-make-the-odor-of-urine/816562)
**Author:** [@Contemplation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contemplation)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [June 24, 2018, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-compounds-make-the-odor-of-urine/816562 "2018-06-24T00:22:20Z")
Pee has a distinct odor that people say comes from ammonia, but an actual bottle of ammonia smells different than urine. --- ## [There's a bug inside my monitor. Seen that before?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theres-a-bug-inside-my-monitor-seen-that-before/816556)
**Author:** [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theres-a-bug-inside-my-monitor-seen-that-before/816556 "2018-06-23T23:25:41Z")
It’s very small like a gnat. and it’s crawling behind the clear plate in front of my view and disappearing for a while. I pressed up against it and it didn’t show any pressure on the bug. --- ## [The Direction of Time](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-direction-of-time/816607)
**Author:** [@EastUmpqua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EastUmpqua)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-direction-of-time/816607 "2018-06-23T20:45:40Z")
When we focus our machines on cosmic microwave background radiation and the Big Bang, we see the past. So if we focus our machines at the quantum level are we seeing the future? --- ## [Has, in in, say, the last twenty years, any murderer escaped from prison and not been recaptured?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-in-in-say-the-last-twenty-years-any-murderer-escaped-from-prison-and-not-been-recaptured/816538)
**Author:** [@Steven\_Estes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steven_Estes)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-in-in-say-the-last-twenty-years-any-murderer-escaped-from-prison-and-not-been-recaptured/816538 "2018-06-23T15:36:17Z")
One occasionally hears on TV news, about a murderer or two escaping from a prison. Almost invariably the prisoner(s) are recaptured within a day or two or, at most, a couple of weeks. Has, in, say, the last twenty yea… --- ## [What experience does the typical modern Cruise Ship Captain have?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-experience-does-the-typical-modern-cruise-ship-captain-have/816481)
**Author:** [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-experience-does-the-typical-modern-cruise-ship-captain-have/816481 "2018-06-23T15:17:47Z")
A lot of commercial airline pilots tend to be (at least in the past) former military due to their years of experience and training. Do you tend to see former military (either actual captains or other officers) as cruise … --- ## [Marijana and Driving Stats](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marijana-and-driving-stats/816532)
**Author:** [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marijana-and-driving-stats/816532 "2018-06-23T13:56:25Z")
Late last night I entered into a facebook conversation while “stoned” but sober. The other person was drunk and incoherent a good part of the time. I’ve never been like that “stoned” and my friends who smoke pot and don… --- ## [How does an investment firm buying a company and running it into the ground work](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-investment-firm-buying-a-company-and-running-it-into-the-ground-work/815827)
**Author:** [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Replies:** 47\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-investment-firm-buying-a-company-and-running-it-into-the-ground-work/815827 "2018-06-23T12:09:58Z")
I’ve heard this is a major factor in several retail chains I know about going under lately. The argument is basically that a company is struggling so an investment firm buys them up. The investment firm them loads the c… --- ## [Convicts breaking rocks?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/convicts-breaking-rocks/672482)
**Author:** [@jeremyjb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jeremyjb)\ **Replies:** 63\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/convicts-breaking-rocks/672482 "2018-06-23T11:44:22Z")
I was just wondering if prison convicts were ever given the arduous task of breaking rocks with sledge hammers? If so, what was the purpose of breaking those rocks? Also, did convicted felons ever make license plates, … --- ## [Grazing patterns in the savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grazing-patterns-in-the-savannah/816615)
**Author:** [@The\_Sheikh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Sheikh)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grazing-patterns-in-the-savannah/816615 "2018-06-23T11:39:20Z")
In a TOEFL test I had an interesting reading passage about the savannah. It describes how animals graze in such a way that preserves the savannah. Different animals graze at different times. Some graze on long grass, mak… --- ## [Can adverse possession divide land?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-adverse-possession-divide-land/816399)
**Author:** [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-adverse-possession-divide-land/816399 "2018-06-23T09:24:24Z")
There’s a large parcel of land out in the woods somewhere, and someone decides to live on it. The parcel is a hundred acres, wooded, and the trespasser only clears five acres for a home site and a small garden and easeme… --- ## [Laptop intermittent stuttering issue](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laptop-intermittent-stuttering-issue/816585)
**Author:** [@Yumblie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yumblie)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laptop-intermittent-stuttering-issue/816585 "2018-06-23T09:02:39Z")
I recently got a new Lenovo A275 laptop. Periodically, the screen will freeze for a few seconds. Any audio keeps playing, so it seems like the CPU isn’t frozen, it’s just the display. Oddly enough, if I press any key on … --- ## [Is Melania's I don't care jacket an off the shelf item?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melanias-i-dont-care-jacket-an-off-the-shelf-item/816594)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melanias-i-dont-care-jacket-an-off-the-shelf-item/816594 "2018-06-23T05:10:33Z")
It’s described as a $39 Zara jacket. I’ve looked around and don’t see that jacket with that phrase for sale. Is it a off the shelf item? Did someone put that wording on the jacket afterwards? I see all sorts of catch p… --- ## [How does bright light ionize air?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-bright-light-ionize-air/816580)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 23, 2018, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-bright-light-ionize-air/816580 "2018-06-23T01:37:20Z")
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, I went to grad school, where my friends and I had the privilege of working with some fairly powerful lasers. These were pulsed lasers, not continuous output, so their time-aver… --- ## [Were immigrant children and parents separated at the border before now?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-immigrant-children-and-parents-separated-at-the-border-before-now/816442)
**Author:** [@Yodalicious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yodalicious)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [June 22, 2018, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-immigrant-children-and-parents-separated-at-the-border-before-now/816442 "2018-06-22T18:55:49Z")
Question in the title. How were families crossing the border into the US handled before President Trump’s no tolerance policy? --- ## [How do engineers/inspectors see or test what's behind the drywall/plaster?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-engineers-inspectors-see-or-test-whats-behind-the-drywall-plaster/816533)
**Author:** [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [June 22, 2018, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-engineers-inspectors-see-or-test-whats-behind-the-drywall-plaster/816533 "2018-06-22T18:52:03Z")
I’m thinking of one of these really old buildings. Eventually everything falls apart. So if I walk through a real old public building, I’m relying on the notion - hopefully correct - that these buildings are periodically… --- ## [Canada's US Dairy Tariff](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadas-us-dairy-tariff/815941)
**Author:** [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Replies:** 82\ **Last updated:** [June 22, 2018, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadas-us-dairy-tariff/815941 "2018-06-22T16:51:03Z")
What is the story behind Canada’s 270% tariff on US Dairy products? Does the US have a similar tariff on Canadian dairy products coming in? --- ## [Where can I go to ask traffic questions?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-go-to-ask-traffic-questions/816535)
**Author:** [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [June 22, 2018, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-go-to-ask-traffic-questions/816535 "2018-06-22T15:50:01Z")
Yesterday I left work and headed downtown to meet my wife, but the bridge into the city was jam packed. My guess, because of the night’s scheduled ballgame. So I bailed out and Waze told me to head for another bridge. Ag… --- ## [Navy destroyer Fitzgerald collides with merchant ship](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/navy-destroyer-fitzgerald-collides-with-merchant-ship/789149)
**Author:** [@Ornery\_Bob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ornery_Bob)\ **Replies:** 331\ **Last updated:** [June 22, 2018, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/navy-destroyer-fitzgerald-collides-with-merchant-ship/789149 "2018-06-22T14:47:11Z")
Navy destroyer Fitzgerald collides with merchant ship. How does something like this even happen? Granted, it was 2:00 am and dark, but both ships had to have lights on and lookouts posted. One would think making sure a… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=570) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=572)