# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=938 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 939 --- ## [How to enlarge webpage text on Windows phone (Opera Mini)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-enlarge-webpage-text-on-windows-phone-opera-mini/747650)
**Author:** [@Briny\_Deep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Briny_Deep)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2016, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-enlarge-webpage-text-on-windows-phone-opera-mini/747650 "2016-03-10T08:07:25Z")
I’m pretty blind and phones are tiny, so it’s hard to read web content. You can zoom the screen all you like, but the text won’t wrap, so it’s not really possible to read something on the web without horizontally scrolli… --- ## [Origin of @username in online conversations?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-username-in-online-conversations/747209)
**Author:** [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2016, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-username-in-online-conversations/747209 "2016-03-10T02:46:44Z")
So, how did it arise? I understand why it was used, but not why it ever began. For example: Username1 says \[something\] \[other users comment\] Usernamex says “@Username1, I totally agree!.” What did the @ sign add th… --- ## [Wire/Cable Thickness and Data Transmission](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wire-cable-thickness-and-data-transmission/748407)
**Author:** [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2016, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wire-cable-thickness-and-data-transmission/748407 "2016-03-10T01:03:19Z")
I frequently use a Blackberry tethered to my computer for internet/network access. I have two cables that can be used. The wire of one (which I believe came with the Blackberry) is thinner than the other. It’s more conve… --- ## [How does the coriolis effect affect airline navigation?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-the-coriolis-effect-affect-airline-navigation/748298)
**Author:** [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2016, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-the-coriolis-effect-affect-airline-navigation/748298 "2016-03-10T01:00:36Z")
Hello Everyone, Just wondering how a pilot or navigator factors in the spinning of the Earth when flying long distances. Does this affect private pilots on say a two hour flight? --- ## [Born without proof](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/born-without-proof/748411)
**Author:** [@Norman\_Mallar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Norman_Mallar)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [March 10, 2016, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/born-without-proof/748411 "2016-03-10T00:46:59Z")
I believe I my birth was not recorded, I was born in January of 1964, But was adopted by another family. My birth mother’s name was, Duffina. And I did see a birth certificate at the hospital where I was born back in the… --- ## [Need help from a Korean speaking doper.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-from-a-korean-speaking-doper/748370)
**Author:** [@cuauhtemoc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cuauhtemoc)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-from-a-korean-speaking-doper/748370 "2016-03-09T23:16:23Z")
Can you tell me what the woman is saying in this video? Thanks. --- ## [Are virus attacks on home computers a thing of the past](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-virus-attacks-on-home-computers-a-thing-of-the-past/747909)
**Author:** [@Nansbread1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nansbread1)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-virus-attacks-on-home-computers-a-thing-of-the-past/747909 "2016-03-09T19:54:27Z")
Apple computers and tablets dont sell you anti virus software. The anecdotal incidences of home computers being wrecked by virus attacks is also diminishing. The press too are not making a meal of it. There is also lesse… --- ## [How to tell H. neanderthalensis from H. sapiens sapiens](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-h-neanderthalensis-from-h-sapiens-sapiens/747871)
**Author:** [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Replies:** 59\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-h-neanderthalensis-from-h-sapiens-sapiens/747871 "2016-03-09T17:26:04Z")
An everyday question we all come across at some point - let’s say I take a handful of Neanderthals and a handful of anatomically modern humans, both from circa 50,000 B.C. Unfortunately they’re all mixed up and I don’t k… --- ## [Grammatical Gender](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grammatical-gender/747464)
**Author:** [@EastUmpqua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EastUmpqua)\ **Replies:** 62\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grammatical-gender/747464 "2016-03-09T17:07:06Z")
As a native English speaker, grammatical gender seems unnecessary. Does it provide nuance or clarification of meaning? --- ## [This one will probably head to GD \[solved murder case rates vs race\]](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-one-will-probably-head-to-gd-solved-murder-case-rates-vs-race/748332)
**Author:** [@Damuri\_Ajashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damuri_Ajashi)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-one-will-probably-head-to-gd-solved-murder-case-rates-vs-race/748332 "2016-03-09T16:43:29Z")
But hopefully someone can provide some answers before it devolves. Do the murderers of white victims get apprehended more frequently than murderers of black victims? IOW, do people get away with murder more frequently … --- ## [What happens to really old bearer bonds?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-really-old-bearer-bonds/748333)
**Author:** [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-really-old-bearer-bonds/748333 "2016-03-09T14:17:27Z")
Had a reference question today where somebody had found a bearer bond from the 20’s in family effects, still has all the little coupons and stuff. He needed to know what happened to that company, so we spent some time w… --- ## [What happens following a vitrectomy?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-following-a-vitrectomy/748248)
**Author:** [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-following-a-vitrectomy/748248 "2016-03-09T14:17:17Z")
The vitreous in the eye gets removed and replaced by saline. Right? Does the body then, over time, replace the saline with new vitreous? --- ## [For Car dopers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-car-dopers/748356)
**Author:** [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-car-dopers/748356 "2016-03-09T13:57:42Z")
I’m giving away my parent’s 1997 Mercury Tracer. It has 60,000 miles on it. I’m trying to find the recommended Timing Belt replacement schedule, so I can tell the people who I’m giving it too how soon they need to repla… --- ## [Help with the mathematics of my thought experiment](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-the-mathematics-of-my-thought-experiment/748369)
**Author:** [@Chilliwack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chilliwack)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-the-mathematics-of-my-thought-experiment/748369 "2016-03-09T12:20:39Z")
The other day as I was walking west towards the setting sun, I got to thinking, my walking against the rotation of the earth would extend the length of daytime that I am perceiving. It got me wondering, if I were to sta… --- ## [Promoting an Adult Tube Site?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/promoting-an-adult-tube-site/748383)
**Author:** [@Assventura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Assventura)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/promoting-an-adult-tube-site/748383 "2016-03-09T11:16:32Z")
Hey, So I recently started a new adult tube site, I would post a link to it but I think thats not allow here. Anyways I was looking for ways to promote it, I heard quite a few people saying to watermark random porn vide… --- ## [What's up with the movie spam on Facebook comments?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-the-movie-spam-on-facebook-comments/748351)
**Author:** [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-the-movie-spam-on-facebook-comments/748351 "2016-03-09T10:50:55Z")
Just about every news story on Facebook gets spammed immediate with ‘links’ to unreleased summer movies. What’s the scam behind this? --- ## [Flying to Colton CA](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flying-to-colton-ca/748377)
**Author:** [@sitchensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sitchensis)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flying-to-colton-ca/748377 "2016-03-09T07:58:32Z")
I need to get to Colton CA for a work conference, do people usually fly into Los Angeles and drive? It looks like there are a lot of airports in the area but I don’t know if any major airlines service any of them. Would … --- ## [Another Excel question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-excel-question/748358)
**Author:** [@Daylate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daylate)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-excel-question/748358 "2016-03-09T06:20:33Z")
I’ve got a neat idea to save quite a bit of work in a spreadsheet if I could only figure out how to do it. I don’t even know how to look it up in “Help”. The problem: I have a command in a cell that brings in the valu… --- ## [Horizontal Directional Boring: How Steered?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horizontal-directional-boring-how-steered/748367)
**Author:** [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horizontal-directional-boring-how-steered/748367 "2016-03-09T06:15:18Z")
I see more and more horizontal boring machines used to install cables & plumbing without the bother of trenching. Today I saw one of these on a job: Vermeer Horizontal Directional Drills for Pipeline Installation I have… --- ## [Why is phone+internet cheaper than internet alone?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-phone-internet-cheaper-than-internet-alone/748359)
**Author:** [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-phone-internet-cheaper-than-internet-alone/748359 "2016-03-09T05:38:34Z")
A lot of companies that offer home internet will provide a phone+internet package cheaper than internet alone. Why do they do this? Do the telemarketers subsidize it? You would think a company would want to charge ext… --- ## [Oh gawd, it hurts!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-gawd-it-hurts/748374)
**Author:** [@Cardboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardboard)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-gawd-it-hurts/748374 "2016-03-09T04:58:28Z")
I don’t know where to put this, exactly. But for whatever reason, my body has decided to start making turds of enormous girth and it’s causing my anal region to expand to diameters greater than anything I’ve previously … --- ## [Why Woodchips?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-woodchips/22061)
**Author:** [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Replies:** 37\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-woodchips/22061 "2016-03-09T04:41:26Z")
I’ve noticed that at almost every park & play ground there are woodchips scattered in areas where a child might fall down, like under the swings. This is somewhat a new thing. When I was young there was sand or dirt, or… --- ## [Can a desirable for-profit company have fundraisers, accept charity?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-desirable-for-profit-company-have-fundraisers-accept-charity/536182)
**Author:** [@Mesquite-oh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mesquite-oh)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-desirable-for-profit-company-have-fundraisers-accept-charity/536182 "2016-03-09T02:33:42Z")
Could a for-profit company have fundraisers or accept charity in order to provide or continue to provide a desirable service to the community, or would they have to be a non-profit to do so? By desirable service I mean… --- ## [Is it possible to reduce false alarms from smoke detectors](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-reduce-false-alarms-from-smoke-detectors/747994)
**Author:** [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\ **Replies:** 57\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-reduce-false-alarms-from-smoke-detectors/747994 "2016-03-09T02:14:15Z")
A very common theme in fatal fires is that the smoke detectors were disconnected. How could they be designed to stop having false alarms? People disconnect them because they keep going off for no apparent reason. --- ## [Examples of procrastinate used as a transitive verb](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/examples-of-procrastinate-used-as-a-transitive-verb/556344)
**Author:** [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/examples-of-procrastinate-used-as-a-transitive-verb/556344 "2016-03-09T01:58:25Z")
The title says it all really. M-W says procrastinate is both transitive and intransitive. Intransitive I’ve no trouble with, but I can’t come up with a transitive example. And just in case this question seems trivial I … --- ## [iPod Touch synch problem](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-touch-synch-problem/748363)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-touch-synch-problem/748363 "2016-03-09T01:31:55Z")
It’s been a long time since I synched ‘Titanic’. I got some new tracks and wanted to put them on the iPod. I ran into a problem in that the iPod is only 16 GB and I was about 1.8 GB short for all of the stuff that was … --- ## [9/11: Was there ever any doubt that it was al-Qaeda?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/9-11-was-there-ever-any-doubt-that-it-was-al-qaeda/748023)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [March 9, 2016, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/9-11-was-there-ever-any-doubt-that-it-was-al-qaeda/748023 "2016-03-09T00:34:31Z")
The instant the 2nd airplane hit the WTC, it seems the immediate consensus was “al-Qaeda.” Which, of course, was accurate. Now, did the U.S. government ever entertain, however briefly, the likelihood of other possible c… --- ## [Nitrous type head rush](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nitrous-type-head-rush/748017)
**Author:** [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [March 8, 2016, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nitrous-type-head-rush/748017 "2016-03-08T23:57:24Z")
Is there a medical term for this experience? I used to get it when I was really drunk and then, as a non-smoker, smoked a cigarette. It’s when you lose it and your mind goes into an echoey vibratory state, for a few se… --- ## [Space shuttle reentry: what altitude/speed for aerodynamic control?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/space-shuttle-reentry-what-altitude-speed-for-aerodynamic-control/748288)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [March 8, 2016, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/space-shuttle-reentry-what-altitude-speed-for-aerodynamic-control/748288 "2016-03-08T22:59:21Z")
At some point during the space shuttle’s reentry process, attitude control transitioned from using its reaction control system to using its aerodynamic flight control surfaces. In NASA’s own words: OK, so they’ve spec… --- ## [Questions for AZ / US residents](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-for-az-us-residents/748187)
**Author:** [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [March 8, 2016, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-for-az-us-residents/748187 "2016-03-08T22:41:23Z")
I just spent 9 days in Arizona, and had a great time, but also accumulated some questions which I hope someone can answer: \[ul\] \[li\] What’s with all the paper license plates? I saw dozens of people driving around look… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=937) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=939)