# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=767 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 768 --- ## [How to add files to a DVD RW disc](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-add-files-to-a-dvd-rw-disc/781426)
**Author:** [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [March 5, 2017, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-add-files-to-a-dvd-rw-disc/781426 "2017-03-05T16:22:41Z")
My problem seems simple. But googling gives me hundreds of hits-- NONE of which answer my simple question–which is: I made a DVD with some jpg files, and now I want to add a few more files to the disc. But I can’t. WHY… --- ## [Rotating an image](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rotating-an-image/781135)
**Author:** [@Roadfood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roadfood)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [March 5, 2017, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rotating-an-image/781135 "2017-03-05T13:40:10Z")
When I rotate an image in Photoshop, I try to rotate by an amount that is an integral divisor of 360 degrees, i.e. 36 degrees, 30 degrees, 18 degrees, etc. My thinking is that this will result in a better image, with few… --- ## [Is there any evidence that a mentally declining Jonathan Swift engaged in coprophagia?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-evidence-that-a-mentally-declining-jonathan-swift-engaged-in-coprophagia/781461)
**Author:** [@davidmich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidmich)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [March 5, 2017, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-evidence-that-a-mentally-declining-jonathan-swift-engaged-in-coprophagia/781461 "2017-03-05T13:00:15Z")
Hi Is there any evidence that a mentally declining Jonathan Swift engaged in coprophagia? I had seen this written in articles in the past. I have searched online but could only find references to it in Gulliver’s Trav… --- ## [Odd result when microwaving.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-result-when-microwaving/781459)
**Author:** [@Kedikat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kedikat)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [March 5, 2017, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-result-when-microwaving/781459 "2017-03-05T08:21:39Z")
This just popped back in my head after many years. I used to work in a restaurant. I often had to microwave frozen peas. I would empty the bag of peas into a plastic pail partially filled with water. The peas would be … --- ## [Why is the appellate process so slow in California?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-appellate-process-so-slow-in-california/781430)
**Author:** [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [March 5, 2017, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-appellate-process-so-slow-in-california/781430 "2017-03-05T03:41:44Z")
I was browsing to see the current status of convicted murder Scott Peterson in the appeal process. Appeal Information He was convicted in 2004, but his direct appeal was not even filed until 2012. Then the State respo… --- ## [Are all USB sources equivalent?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-usb-sources-equivalent/781205)
**Author:** [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [March 5, 2017, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-usb-sources-equivalent/781205 "2017-03-05T03:25:46Z")
I have a bunch of devices (two e-readers, two cell phones) that are charged through what I call a mini-USB port, the one that is smaller than the one on my computer and with one pair of corners rounded. They come with c… --- ## [In 1937 Dirac suggested force of gravity deceases over time--What was he thinking?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-1937-dirac-suggested-force-of-gravity-deceases-over-time-what-was-he-thinking/781391)
**Author:** [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [March 5, 2017, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-1937-dirac-suggested-force-of-gravity-deceases-over-time-what-was-he-thinking/781391 "2017-03-05T03:22:35Z")
See query–and I’m not certain the premise is even true. I read it in a shitty article on physical constants not even worth citing. But the topics e.g. “why is c c and not x” come up here a lot, always fruitfully. --- ## [Tin foil: Commonly used term, but was there ever such a consumer product?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tin-foil-commonly-used-term-but-was-there-ever-such-a-consumer-product/483059)
**Author:** [@stuyguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stuyguy)\ **Replies:** 92\ **Last updated:** [March 5, 2017, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tin-foil-commonly-used-term-but-was-there-ever-such-a-consumer-product/483059 "2017-03-05T00:23:06Z")
“Tin foil” is a commonly used term to describe what is, in reality, aluminum foil. In my experience the term is used, mostly – but certainly not exclusively – among oldsters. And, while the term is not thriving, it is ce… --- ## [HILT (High Intensity Laser Treatment). Snake oil?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hilt-high-intensity-laser-treatment-snake-oil/557224)
**Author:** [@Dog80](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dog80)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [August 4, 2013, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hilt-high-intensity-laser-treatment-snake-oil/557224 "2013-08-04T18:57:16Z")
My mother suffers from pains from arthritis and was convinced by a friend to visit these guys: http://www.hilterapia.com/ I read the brochure and visited the website and my gut feeling is that these people are quacks. W… --- ## [What is the origin of "You owe me a Coke?"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-origin-of-you-owe-me-a-coke/631038)
**Author:** [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-origin-of-you-owe-me-a-coke/631038 "2017-03-04T22:01:14Z")
Too people say the same word(s) simultaneously. First person who says “you owe me a Coke,” is, ostensibly owed a Coke. But it’s just a fun acknowledgement of the event. I guess the fake punch to the shoulder is a refine… --- ## [What is this liquid that hardens clear?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-liquid-that-hardens-clear/781319)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-liquid-that-hardens-clear/781319 "2017-03-04T19:24:17Z")
In this video, a man takes a container of pencil stubs and pours in a liquid, which hardens. (He goes on to turn the whole solid cylinder on a lathe to make it into a container with a lid.) It’s not a how-to so much as a… --- ## [Geometric Progression Ratio](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geometric-progression-ratio/781141)
**Author:** [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geometric-progression-ratio/781141 "2017-03-04T18:17:07Z")
I was looking over some ancient posts of mine and can’t find one of my earliest threads. Take a circle, and draw an equilateral triangle around it. Now circumscribe another circle, … --- ## [Did the Great Wall of China really worked?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-great-wall-of-china-really-worked/781208)
**Author:** [@apersongt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apersongt)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-great-wall-of-china-really-worked/781208 "2017-03-04T18:12:33Z")
Did the Great Wall of China was worthwhile to build or it was a miserable waste of resources? Did it really served to its purpose all over its length? --- ## [Is it actually against the law for a Presidential candidate to collude with a foreign government?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-actually-against-the-law-for-a-presidential-candidate-to-collude-with-a-foreign-government/781211)
**Author:** [@Blalron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blalron)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-actually-against-the-law-for-a-presidential-candidate-to-collude-with-a-foreign-government/781211 "2017-03-04T16:22:13Z")
What specific laws that are on the books outlaw such behavior, and what is the penalty for violating them? --- ## [NN's number - math video I can't find again](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nns-number-math-video-i-cant-find-again/781091)
**Author:** [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nns-number-math-video-i-cant-find-again/781091 "2017-03-04T13:18:06Z")
I watched a youtube video not long ago about some set of pairs of numbers named, of course, after a mathematician. The interesting bit was that it was conjectured that the three pairs mentioned in the video, that satisfi… --- ## [Pearblossom (CA) ruins](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pearblossom-ca-ruins/428490)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pearblossom-ca-ruins/428490 "2017-03-04T08:25:08Z")
Somewhere on the Pearblossom Highway (138) there are some ruins. IIRC there was a commune (Communist settlement?) established in the 1920s. I used to take 138 to get up to Wrightwood to go skiing when I was in high sch… --- ## [What keeps killing my FM band?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-keeps-killing-my-fm-band/781089)
**Author:** [@Jrubas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jrubas)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-keeps-killing-my-fm-band/781089 "2017-03-04T03:45:54Z")
I clean office buildings at night and have a Panasonic pocket radio I listen to. Tonight the FM band stopped working. All I get is flat static. AM works fine. I had another radio, different manufacturer, do the same. I j… --- ## [e-mail spam......specifically from outlook.com](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-mail-spam-specifically-from-outlook-com/781337)
**Author:** [@LiveFree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LiveFree)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/e-mail-spam-specifically-from-outlook-com/781337 "2017-03-04T03:33:08Z")
Wondering if anyone has any insight on this. My primary e-mail address is getting spammed. It’s basically ONLY from the domain @outlook.com Always a different email address but always outlook. I could just block the … --- ## [Do we have sensory neurons inside our heart?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-we-have-sensory-neurons-inside-our-heart/781325)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-we-have-sensory-neurons-inside-our-heart/781325 "2017-03-04T01:54:18Z")
A friend had cardiac ablation a few days ago and it took them quite a while to complete it. They worked on him for about 6 hours. Today he mentioned that his chest is sore, and I’m wondering why that is. Do we have se… --- ## [Can you hit the Sun from Ceres](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-hit-the-sun-from-ceres/781261)
**Author:** [@pmwgreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pmwgreen)\ **Replies:** 38\ **Last updated:** [March 4, 2017, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-hit-the-sun-from-ceres/781261 "2017-03-04T01:42:58Z")
Factually. I mean, as far as I know, if you’re on an asteroid that’s in orbit in the belt, if you threw a rock, it would end up merely in a slightly different orbit around the sun. So, to rephrase the title, if you were … --- ## [Spoken captioning for the blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-captioning-for-the-blind/103695)
**Author:** [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 3, 2017, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-captioning-for-the-blind/103695 "2017-03-03T21:18:02Z")
Last week on the local news, KCBS Channel 2 in Los Angeles, feature reporter Mike Castalucci did a short bit on spoken captioning for the blind. How would I get in touch with people who are looking for persons willing to… --- ## [220v hot tub breaker to 110v](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/220v-hot-tub-breaker-to-110v/781249)
**Author:** [@Keiths5n10](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keiths5n10)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [March 3, 2017, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/220v-hot-tub-breaker-to-110v/781249 "2017-03-03T18:16:08Z")
We have an old farm house , old electric box. Got a 50amp hot tub box, well it’s not being used… can I drop a 110v off it - 12-2 wire & run a line off for a treadmill? Wire neutral, white, off bar, & black off breaker … --- ## [Cutting Quarter Round](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-quarter-round/781158)
**Author:** [@anomalous1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anomalous1)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [March 3, 2017, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-quarter-round/781158 "2017-03-03T17:47:25Z")
I built an apartment, and it turned out great, took me months, but I got it done. It was my first attempt at doing such a thing, so I took my time and did it right, very little in the way of “getting creative” and did ev… --- ## [Accents](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/accents/781083)
**Author:** [@Xerulian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xerulian)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [March 3, 2017, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/accents/781083 "2017-03-03T17:41:41Z")
Is there an accent for any language that makes the letter o sound like oo (ü in german)? --- ## [So why are there still primitive societies?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-there-still-primitive-societies/386698)
**Author:** [@hotflungwok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hotflungwok)\ **Replies:** 73\ **Last updated:** [March 3, 2017, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-there-still-primitive-societies/386698 "2017-03-03T15:41:05Z")
I’m talking about groups like hunter/gatherer tribes in Africa, the ones you see on National Geographic specials. Why are they still so primitive after all this time? First, they’ve had encounters with the rest of the … --- ## [How does ground surveillance radar work?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-ground-surveillance-radar-work/780664)
**Author:** [@MichaelEmouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelEmouse)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [March 3, 2017, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-ground-surveillance-radar-work/780664 "2017-03-03T11:31:37Z")
I’m wondering how ground surveillance planes like the E-8 can claim to track targets at more than 250km or how the Coyote’s radar can detect vehicles at more than 20km. I understand how it works in terms of horizon. I c… --- ## [Markings on printed food packaging](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/markings-on-printed-food-packaging/781267)
**Author:** [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 3, 2017, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/markings-on-printed-food-packaging/781267 "2017-03-03T10:34:08Z")
I recently noticed that if you look on the bottom seam of most potato chip and other snack food bags there is a series of colored dots. And every bag is different. I am currently looking at 3 different bags. One has 8 d… --- ## [How long lasted pilot training during WWII?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-lasted-pilot-training-during-wwii/781051)
**Author:** [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Replies:** 40\ **Last updated:** [March 3, 2017, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-lasted-pilot-training-during-wwii/781051 "2017-03-03T04:14:54Z")
I was reading the wikipedia article about German ace Erich Hartmann, which details his training. It took him two years of training between the moment he joined the airforce and the moment when he was first assigned to a … --- ## [Defense money reimbursed?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/defense-money-reimbursed/781244)
**Author:** [@Tom\_Terrific](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Terrific)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [March 3, 2017, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/defense-money-reimbursed/781244 "2017-03-03T04:11:58Z")
When we sell a piece of military hardware to another country, who gets the money. Does it go into the general fund, back into the defense budget, or where? The F35 for example, is being sold to some of our allies. Once … --- ## [Density of a star as a function of time](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/density-of-a-star-as-a-function-of-time/781076)
**Author:** [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [March 3, 2017, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/density-of-a-star-as-a-function-of-time/781076 "2017-03-03T01:10:40Z")
For sake of simplicity, please assume a star of 2 solar mass. If one were to plot the density (bulk density) over its lifetime - will the curve be linear, parabolic, exponential, etc ? Also, how does the curve look when… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=766) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=768)