# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=876 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 877 --- ## [What Is The Name for a Two-Legged Centaur?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-for-a-two-legged-centaur/759281)
**Author:** [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Replies:** 37\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-for-a-two-legged-centaur/759281 "2016-07-12T20:55:22Z")
i.e., a half-horse, half-person, along the lines of a faun or satyr. The hind-quarters of a horse and a human abdomen, chest, shoulders, arms, and head. Does this mythological form have a specific name? --- ## [What is this (park in Lima, Peru)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-park-in-lima-peru/759738)
**Author:** [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-park-in-lima-peru/759738 "2016-07-12T20:23:10Z")
There is a traffic circle on the drive from the airport in Callao, Peru en route to Miraflores. There is a grassy area and some kind of monument (no picture of monument, sorry!) and there are three dog statues in variou… --- ## [Social Security](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security/758663)
**Author:** [@Roky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roky)\ **Replies:** 66\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security/758663 "2016-07-12T14:52:13Z")
\*\*I was just wondering if anyone knows the answer? If you start receiving social security at 62 do you ever receive full benefits after the age of 66? Thanks in advance. \*\* --- ## [Exploding cars/motorcycles/etc](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exploding-cars-motorcycles-etc/759495)
**Author:** [@Malachi\_Constant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malachi_Constant)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exploding-cars-motorcycles-etc/759495 "2016-07-12T13:56:44Z")
If the 80’s have taught me anything it’s that cars will always explode when they fall off a cliff. We’ve all seen real examples of this happening with airplanes, on 9/11 if nowhere else. My question is what exactly cause… --- ## [Questions about fighter pilot aviation "language"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-fighter-pilot-aviation-language/759710)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-fighter-pilot-aviation-language/759710 "2016-07-12T13:41:03Z")
I have a couple of questions about the \*“Angels 21” “Mud Spike” “Bandits” “Bogeys” \*lingo used by American military aviators: What’s the term for this “language,” for lack of a better way to put it? Does anyone hav… --- ## [Why aren't our brains red? Perfusion, "suffusion"(?), and stuff gushing out](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-our-brains-red-perfusion-suffusion-and-stuff-gushing-out/759484)
**Author:** [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-our-brains-red-perfusion-suffusion-and-stuff-gushing-out/759484 "2016-07-12T10:03:34Z")
Cut my finger trimming some steak last night. First-aid thoughts: Where did the blood go in my steak (raw) since the cow was using that muscle? Because my finger’s bleeding, why not it? Answer: ok, maybe I have a b… --- ## [Japanese Culture Question: Importance of School/Parents and Children](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-culture-question-importance-of-school-parents-and-children/759300)
**Author:** [@BeepKillBeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeepKillBeep)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 9:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-culture-question-importance-of-school-parents-and-children/759300 "2016-07-12T09:20:30Z")
I watch a fair amount of anime, usually in bursts, and lately I’ve been watching a lot. A very common theme which shows up in anime is the importance of school. Some specific examples are: 1 - Cram school or extra tutor… --- ## [Apparently nytimes.com has been working on their paywall.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apparently-nytimes-com-has-been-working-on-their-paywall/653498)
**Author:** [@janeslogin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janeslogin)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apparently-nytimes-com-has-been-working-on-their-paywall/653498 "2016-07-12T05:47:02Z")
Putting nytimes.com in a Google News search \[In that column down tne left hand side.\] would get me access to many articles. Clicking a nytimes.com article selected by Google news will now only get me ten articles a mont… --- ## [Is it possible to just lay down and die?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-just-lay-down-and-die/759705)
**Author:** [@wigwag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wigwag)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-just-lay-down-and-die/759705 "2016-07-12T04:34:24Z")
Am weighing my options. --- ## [How long will a housefly live without food or water?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-will-a-housefly-live-without-food-or-water/759332)
**Author:** [@Anny\_Middon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anny_Middon)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-will-a-housefly-live-without-food-or-water/759332 "2016-07-12T01:56:59Z")
Lately there have been a few houseflies buzzing around and bugging me (bad pun of course intended). At lunch 2 big ones were beating against the screen in the kitchen window. So I closed the window and trapped them. T… --- ## [Early MP3 player by Creative Labs.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/early-mp3-player-by-creative-labs/759667)
**Author:** [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/early-mp3-player-by-creative-labs/759667 "2016-07-12T01:52:24Z")
Prior to the introduction of the iPod, I had a small, flash-based portable mp3 player by Creative Labs. All I can find is the Muvo, which was introduced later. Can’t seem to find it via Google. Any suggestions? Thanks. --- ## ["take the candle on this one" Is this a proper phrase?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-candle-on-this-one-is-this-a-proper-phrase/759565)
**Author:** [@davidmich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidmich)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-candle-on-this-one-is-this-a-proper-phrase/759565 "2016-07-12T01:46:34Z")
Hi When Paul Ryan weighed in on the FBI’s decision not to indict Hillary Clinton,he said of the Clintons that “they take the candle on this one.”. (1 minute into the video) Is this a proper phrase? Is this some variat… --- ## [What does "a buck three-eighty-two" mean?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-buck-three-eighty-two-mean/368753)
**Author:** [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-buck-three-eighty-two-mean/368753 "2016-07-12T01:32:40Z")
I had a teacher in high school who, whenever someone asked a stupid question, would say “a buck three-eighty-two.” I once asked him what it meant, and he just looked at me in a weird way, as if I should have known what h… --- ## [Why is the Weather Channel rainfall measurement so inaccurate??](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-weather-channel-rainfall-measurement-so-inaccurate/759631)
**Author:** [@Anise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anise)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-weather-channel-rainfall-measurement-so-inaccurate/759631 "2016-07-12T01:27:31Z")
Hey all, So the weather.comsite has insisted for two months in a row now that there wasn’t any rain in the city (Portland, OR in this case) for several days during each month. But I certainly KNOW there was rain in a nu… --- ## [Is this photo just released by Iran of a ballistic launch a Photoshop?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-photo-just-released-by-iran-of-a-ballistic-launch-a-photoshop/759499)
**Author:** [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-photo-just-released-by-iran-of-a-ballistic-launch-a-photoshop/759499 "2016-07-12T00:29:34Z")
See subject: http://www.timesofisrael.com/defiant-iran-says-it-will-continue-ballistic-missile-tests/ They’ve done it before. The outlining of the rocket and the focus of the sheen just looks weird to me. --- ## [Are there any Russians descendants living in Alaska from the original transfer?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-russians-descendants-living-in-alaska-from-the-original-transfer/759539)
**Author:** [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [July 12, 2016, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-russians-descendants-living-in-alaska-from-the-original-transfer/759539 "2016-07-12T00:28:01Z")
Alaska was purchased from the Russians in 1867. Were any Russian citizens from before the transfer allowed to stay and become naturalized Americans or were they all forced to return to Russia? If they were allowed to sta… --- ## [North Korea Nukes Quetion](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-nukes-quetion/759426)
**Author:** [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-nukes-quetion/759426 "2016-07-11T23:37:01Z")
I’ve been thinking about this for a while and can’t come up a good answer. We know that NK has the ability to make nukes, and we know that NK has missile technology, and while we don’t think they’ve worked out how to mi… --- ## [Dishwasher Detective Mystery - What Caused this burning?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishwasher-detective-mystery-what-caused-this-burning/756141)
**Author:** [@andrea\_green](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andrea_green)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishwasher-detective-mystery-what-caused-this-burning/756141 "2016-07-11T23:05:37Z")
I just moved to a new apartment with a KitchenAid dishwasher (not sure of it’s age, may 5 years old?). After using the machine once or twice, I noticed the following: The soap-dispensing mechanism is not working prop… --- ## [Remote Controlled (RC) bombs for domestic law enforcement use](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/remote-controlled-rc-bombs-for-domestic-law-enforcement-use/759385)
**Author:** [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/remote-controlled-rc-bombs-for-domestic-law-enforcement-use/759385 "2016-07-11T22:07:13Z")
So after hours of negotiation with one of the suspected snipers in the deadly police shooting last night in Dallas, the authorities decided that the suspect wasn’t backing down, and further confrontation was going to put… --- ## [Revving Motorcycles](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/revving-motorcycles/655345)
**Author:** [@MikeF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeF)\ **Replies:** 150\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/revving-motorcycles/655345 "2016-07-11T21:52:18Z")
Two consecutive days, same red traffic light, two different crotch rockets nearby. One rider revved his engine almost continuously as we waited for the light to change. It was annoying to say the least. The other rider n… --- ## [Common Core distributing PETA pamphlets?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-core-distributing-peta-pamphlets/684753)
**Author:** [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Replies:** 60\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-core-distributing-peta-pamphlets/684753 "2016-07-11T21:04:51Z")
Someone help me understand this, because I am 99.9% sure that it’s bullshit but am not all that knowledgeable of common core. http://nation.foxnews.com/2014/03/25/peta-propaganda-used-fourth-grade-common-core-assignment … --- ## [Micro-commercials: Accidental, or deliberate?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-commercials-accidental-or-deliberate/759444)
**Author:** [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/micro-commercials-accidental-or-deliberate/759444 "2016-07-11T20:50:29Z")
Every now and then during a commercial break, there’ll be a commercial that flashes on the screen for, like, a second. They look like tiny bits of full-length commercials. Are they put there on purpose by the advertise… --- ## [The "projects"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-projects/759322)
**Author:** [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-projects/759322 "2016-07-11T19:05:33Z")
Those big city housing units like JJ and Weezie lived. How were they worse than any other apartment complex? --- ## [Why do gas prices end with 9/10s of a cent?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-gas-prices-end-with-9-10s-of-a-cent/759437)
**Author:** [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-gas-prices-end-with-9-10s-of-a-cent/759437 "2016-07-11T18:17:14Z")
Like this. Why is that? --- ## [Tracking an Errant (Hacker Neighbor's) IP Address](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tracking-an-errant-hacker-neighbors-ip-address/759651)
**Author:** [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Replies:** 22\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tracking-an-errant-hacker-neighbors-ip-address/759651 "2016-07-11T17:43:55Z")
I was doing some app additions to my really old PC and I found through means that an errant Apple product has been back door accessing / hacking my system. I don’t HAVE any Apple products in this house. The report gene… --- ## [Did American blacks look down on Indians as whites did?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-american-blacks-look-down-on-indians-as-whites-did/759653)
**Author:** [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-american-blacks-look-down-on-indians-as-whites-did/759653 "2016-07-11T14:44:44Z")
Or did they regard them as a fellow people oppressed by whites? Also vice versa, how did American Indians regard blacks? (I guess I should have put Native Americans in the subject line but alas, the exigencies of maxim… --- ## [Lawsuit about photo juxtaposition in crime news reports](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawsuit-about-photo-juxtaposition-in-crime-news-reports/759626)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawsuit-about-photo-juxtaposition-in-crime-news-reports/759626 "2016-07-11T09:47:33Z")
I’ve noticed that in some news reports about crime, it will tell about a robbery, a murder, an arson, or some other crime…and under the headline, there is a big photo of someone who is \*not \*the suspect or someone involv… --- ## [Help with GPS coordinate projection](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-gps-coordinate-projection/759354)
**Author:** [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-gps-coordinate-projection/759354 "2016-07-11T04:00:37Z")
For a personal project (hobby) I’m trying to project lat/lon coordinates from a given starting point. This not really being my strong suit, I’ve been googling around a bit. There are apparently some online calculators th… --- ## [ball bearing crushed in hydraulic press: why the explosion?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ball-bearing-crushed-in-hydraulic-press-why-the-explosion/759420)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ball-bearing-crushed-in-hydraulic-press-why-the-explosion/759420 "2016-07-11T01:58:18Z")
Video here; fast-forward to 0:40. A single ball bearing is crushed by a hydraulic press. After briefly distorting, it shatters and generates a whole lot of sparks. Why the sparks? --- ## [quality of car motor oils- true/false?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quality-of-car-motor-oils-true-false/759419)
**Author:** [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [July 11, 2016, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quality-of-car-motor-oils-true-false/759419 "2016-07-11T00:11:56Z")
I just had a mechanic tell me that the engine on my old Saturn (2001, 200K miles) is shot because of years of low-quality oil used in the engine. He said there is oil in all the cylinders and the rings are bad. He attrib… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=875) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=877)