# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=814 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 815 --- ## [Awful molded plastic and other heinous packaging](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awful-molded-plastic-and-other-heinous-packaging/771903)
**Author:** [@Lee\_Q](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lee_Q)\ **Replies:** 42\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2016, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awful-molded-plastic-and-other-heinous-packaging/771903 "2016-11-21T16:25:30Z")
Why? Why are some products packaged in those awful plastic shell things that are nearly impossible to open without risking slicing oneself on the sharp plastic edges as you desperately hack into it with a pair of scissor… --- ## [Logistics behind Hannibal's crossing of the Alps](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/logistics-behind-hannibals-crossing-of-the-alps/772621)
**Author:** [@dofe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dofe)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2016, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/logistics-behind-hannibals-crossing-of-the-alps/772621 "2016-11-21T15:06:28Z")
Do historians know much about the logistics behind Hannibal’s crossing of the Alps? More specifically, did he have a supply train backing up his campaign, or did his men obtain supplies through pillage of the land that t… --- ## [Why aren't there any "miniature" cat breeds?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-any-miniature-cat-breeds/772295)
**Author:** [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)\ **Replies:** 48\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2016, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-any-miniature-cat-breeds/772295 "2016-11-21T12:35:05Z")
My sister-in-law and her family recently got a new kitten. In the middle of discussing just how cute that widdle kitten is, oh she’s so cute, someone wished the kitten could just stay that size forever. And then my sis… --- ## [a man's wife and his mistress' menstrual cycles will sometimes sync](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mans-wife-and-his-mistress-menstrual-cycles-will-sometimes-sync/546742)
**Author:** [@jstacy4444](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jstacy4444)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2016, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-mans-wife-and-his-mistress-menstrual-cycles-will-sometimes-sync/546742 "2016-11-21T05:06:18Z")
Is this true? Bring your A game. I do not believe it but I have gotten some interesting comments from a friends facebook. We debated until the next day…:slight\_smile: --- ## [Electroweak Stars](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electroweak-stars/772385)
**Author:** [@ricksummon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricksummon)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2016, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electroweak-stars/772385 "2016-11-21T04:08:15Z")
I just found out about a possible type of neutron star called an electroweak star in which a tiny core is so dense, it unifies the electromagnetic and weak nuclear forces into the electroweak force and generates energy b… --- ## [Did Mt. Saint Helen's Shatter Windows?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-mt-saint-helens-shatter-windows/772401)
**Author:** [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2016, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-mt-saint-helens-shatter-windows/772401 "2016-11-21T03:58:48Z")
My son is learning about the famous Mt. Saint Helen’s eruption of May 1980. Having friends across the country in Portland, OR, this event was of special interest to me when I was his age. At the time, I seem to recall th… --- ## [US President has misplaced nuclear codes - contigency plans?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-president-has-misplaced-nuclear-codes-contigency-plans/772290)
**Author:** [@Atomic\_Alex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atomic_Alex)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2016, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-president-has-misplaced-nuclear-codes-contigency-plans/772290 "2016-11-21T03:15:23Z")
I was kind of surprised to read this: Bill Clinton 'lost vital White House nuclear codes' Without giving away any national secrets I assume there are some sort of contigency plans in place in case the president can’t ac… --- ## [Pressing Scientific Issue: Do Pump-Caps Preserve Soda Fizz?, Part II](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pressing-scientific-issue-do-pump-caps-preserve-soda-fizz-part-ii/168380)
**Author:** [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2016, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pressing-scientific-issue-do-pump-caps-preserve-soda-fizz-part-ii/168380 "2016-11-21T02:12:46Z")
There is a device called Fizz-Keeper, which allows the user to pump compressed air into soda bottles, thereby allegedly “preserving the fizz”. I am curious about this item’s effectiveness. A recent thread discussed thi… --- ## [How can I climb stairs wihtout getting winded?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-climb-stairs-wihtout-getting-winded/772377)
**Author:** [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2016, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-climb-stairs-wihtout-getting-winded/772377 "2016-11-21T01:21:35Z")
I’ve been exercising three times a week since August, and am well towards the end of a couch to 5k program. I’ve lost 8 pounds and have seen gains in strength and my cardio. However, when I go up the stairs at work to … --- ## [mysteriously blown outlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysteriously-blown-outlet/772429)
**Author:** [@simonb3355](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simonb3355)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [November 21, 2016, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysteriously-blown-outlet/772429 "2016-11-21T00:38:57Z")
The outlet in the kitchen that the refrigerator is plugged in has mysteriously quit working. I checked the power box and the fuse hadn’t been tripped. I’ve had move the refrigerator to another outlet. I have no idea what… --- ## [Electoral College weighting of votes by race](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electoral-college-weighting-of-votes-by-race/772450)
**Author:** [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Replies:** 38\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2016, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electoral-college-weighting-of-votes-by-race/772450 "2016-11-20T22:25:12Z")
I’m putting the question here because I’m looking for a mathematical answer. If you think it’s a silly question, I apologize in advance :). So I’ve seen some analyses of how the electoral college gives disproportionate … --- ## [Food calories and shit](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-calories-and-shit/772598)
**Author:** [@Nansbread1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nansbread1)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2016, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-calories-and-shit/772598 "2016-11-20T22:01:26Z")
When manufacturers note the calorie content of food is there any way they can also calculate how much of those consumed food will be undigestible in an average persons stomach and pass through as shit. Would it not be mo… --- ## [Truck mounted jib hoist](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truck-mounted-jib-hoist/772509)
**Author:** [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2016, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truck-mounted-jib-hoist/772509 "2016-11-20T19:43:57Z")
I’m looking for some direction with my latest project. Overall I want to hire someone to put a design into autoCAD for me and maybe get an engineer stamp but I don’t know how I’d go about finding/hiring someone for a sma… --- ## [Lost item in Dublin? (Quick Answers Helpful)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-item-in-dublin-quick-answers-helpful/772265)
**Author:** [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2016, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-item-in-dublin-quick-answers-helpful/772265 "2016-11-20T17:20:36Z")
Okay, suppose a person who is not a long-time Doper has a person who is not his spouse who is not on a quick trip to Dublin. Suppose this person left a purse on a Dublin bus from the airport to “Dublin 2,” wherever that… --- ## [Is it possible to completely screw over your lawyer from lawsuit fees?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-completely-screw-over-your-lawyer-from-lawsuit-fees/772217)
**Author:** [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Replies:** 38\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2016, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-completely-screw-over-your-lawyer-from-lawsuit-fees/772217 "2016-11-20T14:51:47Z")
No it’s not for myself, but apparently one of the attack stories against Hulk Hogan was that he employed a divorce lawyer during his messy/expensive divorce and then after the trial pretty much stiffed him on all his law… --- ## [A question for German historians/ collectors of paper money](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-german-historians-collectors-of-paper-money/772452)
**Author:** [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2016, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-german-historians-collectors-of-paper-money/772452 "2016-11-20T06:11:57Z")
Why is some German money from the early 1900’s engraved with the word Darlehenskaffenfchein instead of Reichbanknote? --- ## [Man dies in Yellowstone hot spring. How does the water get so acidic?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-dies-in-yellowstone-hot-spring-how-does-the-water-get-so-acidic/772274)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2016, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-dies-in-yellowstone-hot-spring-how-does-the-water-get-so-acidic/772274 "2016-11-20T04:07:40Z")
Man goes off path in search of hot bath. Slips into acidic pool and dies. Park officials did not expect there would be much left of him to recover. How does the water become so naturally acidic? --- ## [What do we know about the psychology of BDSM?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-know-about-the-psychology-of-bdsm/772421)
**Author:** [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [November 20, 2016, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-know-about-the-psychology-of-bdsm/772421 "2016-11-20T02:22:23Z")
Some people literally crave levels of pain, in a sexual context, that seems unimaginable to me. Not just tolerate or like the idea of–actually viscerally crave the sensation. How much do we know about this from a more s… --- ## [Does anybody have any idea what this Jewish shtetl/Russian place name might be?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anybody-have-any-idea-what-this-jewish-shtetl-russian-place-name-might-be/531799)
**Author:** [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2016, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anybody-have-any-idea-what-this-jewish-shtetl-russian-place-name-might-be/531799 "2016-11-19T18:35:16Z")
I’m helping a friend do genealogical research. His great-great-grandfather was a Yiddish speaking Russian Jew who came to America around 1885. Around WW2 one of the old man’s granddaughters compiling an oral history wr… --- ## [A giant 'Reply All' via Facebook.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-giant-reply-all-via-facebook/772403)
**Author:** [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2016, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-giant-reply-all-via-facebook/772403 "2016-11-19T17:29:37Z")
The potential message is: “We’ve Moved”. I’d like to send it to anyone that has ever Liked or Friended us. Surely this is possible, isn’t it? --- ## [Who has Trump displaced as richest man elected President?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-has-trump-displaced-as-richest-man-elected-president/772362)
**Author:** [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2016, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-has-trump-displaced-as-richest-man-elected-president/772362 "2016-11-19T16:49:18Z")
Prior to Donald Trump who was the richest man, adjusted for inflation, to be elected President? Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk --- ## [Is there any mechanism for an early election in the US](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-mechanism-for-an-early-election-in-the-us/772358)
**Author:** [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2016, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-mechanism-for-an-early-election-in-the-us/772358 "2016-11-19T16:14:38Z")
Obviously nothing do with recent political events here :slight\_smile: In most democracies, there is a means to force an early election, if the ruling party has screwed up so badly it has “lost the confidence” of the ele… --- ## [How many laundry/dry-cleaning cycles to make clothes into nothing but lint?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-laundry-dry-cleaning-cycles-to-make-clothes-into-nothing-but-lint/772350)
**Author:** [@Atomic\_Alex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atomic_Alex)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2016, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-laundry-dry-cleaning-cycles-to-make-clothes-into-nothing-but-lint/772350 "2016-11-19T12:45:17Z")
Well I was cleaning the lint-filter and I was wondering how many cycles would it take for an average load of clothes to be broken down into basically nothing but lint? I realise that some clothing is more delicate than … --- ## [Trampoline science](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trampoline-science/772374)
**Author:** [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2016, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trampoline-science/772374 "2016-11-19T05:55:29Z")
Suppose I had two trampolines both 48" in diameter and both 1 foot off the ground. The only difference was the spring tension. The weaker of the two will bottom out if a 100# ball is dropped from 5 ft and the stiffer wi… --- ## [Does The POTUS Have Any Law Enforcement Authority?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-potus-have-any-law-enforcement-authority/772077)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [November 19, 2016, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-potus-have-any-law-enforcement-authority/772077 "2016-11-19T03:02:18Z")
Can the POTUS order a special prosecutor to investigate and/or prosecute… well, anyone he wants? Say, for example, his opponent for the election, whom he has accused of various and sundry crimes. Or a journalist who has … --- ## [Got Microsoft Office Pro](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-microsoft-office-pro/772378)
**Author:** [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2016, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-microsoft-office-pro/772378 "2016-11-18T23:58:09Z")
I downloaded it. How do I make it active? Does it need a code attached? --- ## [Archangel](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/archangel/772296)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2016, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/archangel/772296 "2016-11-18T21:44:16Z")
For some reason, I’ve had ‘Archangel’ in my head. I know that there is a city known in English by that name, in Russia, but that doesn’t seem to be what’s lurking in the back of my mind. Was Archangel a spy’s codename,… --- ## [Deliberate losses for tax purposes - how/why?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/deliberate-losses-for-tax-purposes-how-why/772101)
**Author:** [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Replies:** 32\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2016, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/deliberate-losses-for-tax-purposes-how-why/772101 "2016-11-18T19:33:08Z")
I was just reading about the London Palladium on Wikipedia and noticed this part: I know this isn’t an isolated example - I have seen plenty of references to deliberate loss-making ventures being used to offset tax. My… --- ## [Filter out games in online stores](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/filter-out-games-in-online-stores/772247)
**Author:** [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2016, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/filter-out-games-in-online-stores/772247 "2016-11-18T18:51:12Z")
I have an Apple tablet and an Android phone. On both devices I never play games, period, amen. When I go to either app store to find an app I’m inundated by games & (especially on Apple) music. Search is almost useles… --- ## [How exactly does the money move when you buy a house with bank money?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-exactly-does-the-money-move-when-you-buy-a-house-with-bank-money/772246)
**Author:** [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [November 18, 2016, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-exactly-does-the-money-move-when-you-buy-a-house-with-bank-money/772246 "2016-11-18T18:26:03Z")
Let’s say you buy a million dollar house with 20% down and 80% of the money coming from the bank and you buy it from a owner who still has half a million dollar left on their mortgage when they sell it to you. Does the … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=813) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=815)