# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=60 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 61 --- ## [How dangerous are sprouting potatoes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-dangerous-are-sprouting-potatoes/1012144)
**Author:** [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Replies:** 43\ **Last updated:** [January 6, 2025, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-dangerous-are-sprouting-potatoes/1012144 "2025-01-06T18:36:26Z")
I read both that you can break off the sprouts and peel, and that they will be fine, and also to be cautious and discard. We won 10 kg (22 lbs) and don’t use them that quickly. Normally, I only buy enough for what I’m p… --- ## [Convincing a website I'm on a computer](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/convincing-a-website-im-on-a-computer/1012517)
**Author:** [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Replies:** 34\ **Last updated:** [January 6, 2025, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/convincing-a-website-im-on-a-computer/1012517 "2025-01-06T16:05:16Z")
I’m finally getting an iPad. I’ll use it mostly for music (using an app that will show chords and lyrics). I’ve played with iPads before and one thing that always irks me is that it presents as an iOS or mobile device,… --- ## [Pocket veto question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pocket-veto-question/1012199)
**Author:** [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [January 6, 2025, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pocket-veto-question/1012199 "2025-01-06T00:08:03Z")
I am well aware that I know so little of the subject that I may sound like an idiot even asking. So it’s my understanding that if a bill is put on the president’s desk he has 10 days to sign or to veto. If he doesn’t si… --- ## [English pronounciation Q: larboard/starboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-pronounciation-q-larboard-starboard/1012555)
**Author:** [@Mops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mops)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [January 5, 2025, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-pronounciation-q-larboard-starboard/1012555 "2025-01-05T16:10:34Z")
This question is occasioned by my reading again Patrick O’Brian’s The Surgeon’s Mate \* where a British naval vessel, circa 1813, is wrecked on the French shore when a British naval officer, who suffers from left-right-co… --- ## [What if I buy a car that is financed](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-i-buy-a-car-that-is-financed/1010403)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [January 5, 2025, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-i-buy-a-car-that-is-financed/1010403 "2025-01-05T10:39:46Z")
Not something I’m doing, just curious. With people looking to get out of their bad car deals, what happens if I buy a car that is financed? Do I owe anything to the finance company? Can they repo my car if the buyer d… --- ## [How Tall was Napoleon?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-tall-was-napoleon/1012540)
**Author:** [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [January 4, 2025, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-tall-was-napoleon/1012540 "2025-01-04T16:07:22Z")
Okay, he was cartooned by the British as being very short, and his nickname was “the Little Corporal” . So, for a century or more it was assumed he was fairly short. But recently I have seen many debunking articles tha… --- ## [The rules for capitalizing (food) dishes named for their inventor](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rules-for-capitalizing-food-dishes-named-for-their-inventor/1012482)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 46\ **Last updated:** [January 4, 2025, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rules-for-capitalizing-food-dishes-named-for-their-inventor/1012482 "2025-01-04T15:53:09Z")
Is it Oysters Rockefeller or oysters rockefeller or oysters Rockefeller? Is it Fettucine Alfredo or fettucine alfredo or fettucine Alfredo? …and so on. --- ## [When did humans like us originate?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-humans-like-us-originate/1012275)
**Author:** [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Replies:** 80\ **Last updated:** [January 4, 2025, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-humans-like-us-originate/1012275 "2025-01-04T13:34:24Z")
Over what span of time (because all estimates have error) did humanity as we conceive it proliferate? The answer depends upon your definitions. Match definitions to a range of estimates and we’re in FQ, not IMHO or GD. … --- ## [Moon crater question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moon-crater-question/1012073)
**Author:** [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [January 4, 2025, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moon-crater-question/1012073 "2025-01-04T11:29:30Z")
I was looking at selection of close up views of craters on the moon and it struck me that the larger diameter crater were not (apparently) proportionally deep. Googling, I see I’m not the first one to make this observati… --- ## [Old San Francisco Streetcars & Port de Sóller (Mallorca)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-san-francisco-streetcars-port-de-soller-mallorca/466889)
**Author:** [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [January 3, 2025, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-san-francisco-streetcars-port-de-soller-mallorca/466889 "2025-01-03T22:57:39Z")
Port de Sóller is a coastal village and resort on the north west coast of Mallorca. Between the port and the nearby town of Sóller there is a tramcar service, asserted locally to run on rolling stock sourced from San Fr… --- ## [Do banks normally keep a backup key to your safe deposit box?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-banks-normally-keep-a-backup-key-to-your-safe-deposit-box/1012477)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [January 3, 2025, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-banks-normally-keep-a-backup-key-to-your-safe-deposit-box/1012477 "2025-01-03T17:18:26Z")
Bit of a scandal in Japan: Short version: the bank had backup keys to customer’s safe deposit boxes. A bank employee used those backup keys to gain unauthorized access to those safety deposit boxes and steal from cus… --- ## [The cognitive process of "rhyming" in pop-art](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cognitive-process-of-rhyming-in-pop-art/1012415)
**Author:** [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [January 3, 2025, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cognitive-process-of-rhyming-in-pop-art/1012415 "2025-01-03T16:05:33Z")
random shower thoughts: why is rhyming (in pop/rock/rap-music, poetry, etc…) a thing … why does it cause us positive feelings ? why is it omnipresent in contemporary art? is it about “pro-active” pattern recognition (… --- ## [Netflix and the tobacco industry](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/netflix-and-the-tobacco-industry/1011935)
**Author:** [@R.P.McMurphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R.P.McMurphy)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [January 3, 2025, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/netflix-and-the-tobacco-industry/1011935 "2025-01-03T00:46:19Z")
Does the tobacco industry pay Netflix (and other streaming creators) to have the actors smoke in their movies and series’? It seems that I see a lot of characters smoking when it isn’t necessary or add to their role. Smo… --- ## [Bluetooth earbuds only connect in one ear. Any fix?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bluetooth-earbuds-only-connect-in-one-ear-any-fix/1012409)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [January 2, 2025, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bluetooth-earbuds-only-connect-in-one-ear-any-fix/1012409 "2025-01-02T22:39:14Z")
I’ve had problems with Android bluetooth earbuds only connecting to one ear. I had a expensive Bose earbud that completely quit connecting in one ear. I had to throw them out. My current earbuds are much less expensive… --- ## ["The Big Short" on car loans](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-short-on-car-loans/1012457)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [January 2, 2025, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-short-on-car-loans/1012457 "2025-01-02T22:12:00Z")
Looking at the car market now, the only question is when it crashes and a lot of people upside down on their cars get repoed. And dealerships cannot sell their cars now since they are horribly overpriced. Back in 2008 … --- ## [Audio presenting from only right speaker when using pc audio](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-presenting-from-only-right-speaker-when-using-pc-audio/1012459)
**Author:** [@DerSchneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DerSchneck)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [January 2, 2025, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-presenting-from-only-right-speaker-when-using-pc-audio/1012459 "2025-01-02T17:29:50Z")
My dual speakers have decided to only play game and other PC audio from right Speaker. If i imput audio from an external device via bluetooth both speakers work fine. Have also noticed that occasionally the game will ope… --- ## [Question about A/V receiver power output](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-a-v-receiver-power-output/1012447)
**Author:** [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [January 2, 2025, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-a-v-receiver-power-output/1012447 "2025-01-02T14:50:17Z")
I’m looking at this list of receivers, and the specs are: Receiver Price Channels Power AVR-X2800H $1,146 7.2 95W AVR-X3800H $1,689 9.4 105W Is the power divided among all channels? So 105 watts driving… --- ## [Rebuilding Notre-Dame cathedral (Paris)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rebuilding-notre-dame-cathedral-paris/845437)
**Author:** [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Replies:** 184\ **Last updated:** [January 1, 2025, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rebuilding-notre-dame-cathedral-paris/845437 "2025-01-01T19:32:59Z")
Recent stories say there is only about a 50% chance that Notre-Dame cathedral can be restored. What would be the feasibility of this following process - considering that churches (and other buildings) have been dismantle… --- ## [Carcinogen that 100% guarantees cancer?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carcinogen-that-100-guarantees-cancer/1012072)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [January 1, 2025, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carcinogen-that-100-guarantees-cancer/1012072 "2025-01-01T18:44:09Z")
In Pierre Boulle’s original novel “Planet of the Apes”, an ancestral memory recovered from one of the animalistic humans is that of a medical researcher who was giving test apes a carcinogenic injection. Jabbed with his … --- ## [Is "tied at the neck" a saying somewhere?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tied-at-the-neck-a-saying-somewhere/1012289)
**Author:** [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [January 1, 2025, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-tied-at-the-neck-a-saying-somewhere/1012289 "2025-01-01T14:03:39Z")
From the headline for this article: “world’s most popular streaming service is tied at the neck with its biggest rival” At first I thought it would be “tied neck and neck”, as in at an equal level, but it seems to mea… --- ## [Why is an expired drivers license not an acceptible form of ID?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541)
**Author:** [@phi\_a\_low\_gen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phi_a_low_gen)\ **Replies:** 109\ **Last updated:** [January 1, 2025, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541 "2025-01-01T07:58:22Z")
Why is it that an expired drivers license or other form of identification is no longer valid as a form of identification? How can it be that 2 or 3 days after the expiration date, the piece of identification no longer i… --- ## [Repo snatches on Youtube. What if AWD or 4WD?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/repo-snatches-on-youtube-what-if-awd-or-4wd/1012304)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [December 31, 2024, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/repo-snatches-on-youtube-what-if-awd-or-4wd/1012304 "2024-12-31T22:31:40Z")
I’ve been watching repo shorts on Youtube where the driver goes in fast while lowering his tow gear. Its a T where the back arms open up once it’s in position to lift one axel. Just look at this to see. So my question… --- ## [Fix Windows 10 blue screen](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fix-windows-10-blue-screen/1011993)
**Author:** [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [December 31, 2024, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fix-windows-10-blue-screen/1011993 "2024-12-31T07:25:04Z")
Subsequent to a power-supply failure, a non-backed-up utility computer running (supposedly) Windows 10 Pro initially seemed to be OK \[passed a CHKDSK and booted normally\], but after \[unclear precisely what happened\] the … --- ## [Facebook "Likes"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/facebook-likes/1012342)
**Author:** [@Jaycat.again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaycat.again)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [December 31, 2024, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/facebook-likes/1012342 "2024-12-31T00:19:20Z")
Every once in a while, someone I never heard of it “likes” one or more of my Facebook posts. This morning, I found 20 new “likes”, all given by a pretty young girl who lives in Las Vegas. Two questions: Why would some… --- ## [Why did all the McDonaldland characters disappear](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-all-the-mcdonaldland-characters-disappear/941369)
**Author:** [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\ **Replies:** 136\ **Last updated:** [December 30, 2024, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-all-the-mcdonaldland-characters-disappear/941369 "2024-12-30T22:03:41Z")
Being a child in the 60’s and 70’s I remember seeing lots of McDonalds commercials featuring a cast of characters, such as Ronald, Grimace, the Hamburgler, Mayor McCheese, and many others. The commercials were clearly ge… --- ## [Thermodynamic efficiency of an electric heater](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thermodynamic-efficiency-of-an-electric-heater/1012089)
**Author:** [@EnolaStraight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EnolaStraight)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [December 30, 2024, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thermodynamic-efficiency-of-an-electric-heater/1012089 "2024-12-30T18:11:30Z")
I had just seen a humorous Tik-Tok video regarding the thermodynamics of various electric devices, and how none can achieve 100% efficiency: there will always be some energy lost as waste heat. So…what is the thermodyna… --- ## [Charged particles are "more susceptible to" gravity?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charged-particles-are-more-susceptible-to-gravity/1012213)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [December 28, 2024, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charged-particles-are-more-susceptible-to-gravity/1012213 "2024-12-28T23:30:54Z")
I don’t understand the science behind this - from the New Yorker, in an article about Saturn’s “ring rain:” “At times, ring particles take on an electrical charge (from the sun’s ultraviolet light, for instance). When … --- ## [Traffic lights with stop/go signs?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-lights-with-stop-go-signs/1012241)
**Author:** [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [December 28, 2024, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-lights-with-stop-go-signs/1012241 "2024-12-28T17:39:54Z")
From an episode of Bewitched: I vaguely seem to recall seeing these in old cartoons before, but can’t remember seeing one in live-action media and definitely never in real life. Were… --- ## [The decline of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-decline-of-the-independent-order-of-odd-fellows/1011728)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 68\ **Last updated:** [December 28, 2024, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-decline-of-the-independent-order-of-odd-fellows/1011728 "2024-12-28T15:40:22Z")
My grandfather was an Odd Fellow and while reading about the organization I came across this statement on Wikipedia about the Independent Order of Odd Fellows (The US organization, not the original British one): “…Accor… --- ## [Crossword puzzle in medical record/report?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-puzzle-in-medical-record-report/1012214)
**Author:** [@Kedikat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kedikat)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [December 28, 2024, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-puzzle-in-medical-record-report/1012214 "2024-12-28T06:37:42Z")
Watching an episode of Elementary. Watson had a stack of records regarding another Doctors cases. As she was shredding them I noticed two had what looked like a filled in small crossword puzzle. Only about a ten by ten g… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=59) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=61)