# In My Humble Opinion **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/in-my-humble-opinion/14.md?page=6 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 7 --- ## [Please help me sell my mobile number](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-sell-my-mobile-number/1031835)
**Author:** [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [August 15, 2026, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-sell-my-mobile-number/1031835 "2026-08-15T17:39:35Z")
I’ve recently decided to give up my mobile and rely on my landline (which is being upgraded.) When I got my mobile, I chose a memorable number (it cost £5.) Apparently such numbers are valuable :sunglasses: I’ve had an… --- ## [How and/or where do US citizens learn that the USA is the best country in the world etc?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-and-or-where-do-us-citizens-learn-that-the-usa-is-the-best-country-in-the-world-etc/1031943)
**Author:** [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Replies:** 220\ **Last updated:** [August 15, 2026, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-and-or-where-do-us-citizens-learn-that-the-usa-is-the-best-country-in-the-world-etc/1031943 "2026-08-15T17:13:05Z")
I’m Canadian and I don’t think that Canada is “the best country in the world”, though I do believe that Canada is one of the best. I also believe that I’m bloody fortunate to be a Canadian. I am also fully capable of loo… --- ## [What kind of noise do you require for sleep?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-noise-do-you-require-for-sleep/1031566)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 53\ **Last updated:** [August 14, 2026, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-noise-do-you-require-for-sleep/1031566 "2026-08-14T18:48:00Z")
This was an issue for me and Mrs. H when we first moved in together. I’ve slept with a fan since I was a tween+, and I can’t sleep without it. I find the silence deafening. She always slept with a radio on, but for me, m… --- ## [Advice, please: dealing with insurance after an auto accident](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/advice-please-dealing-with-insurance-after-an-auto-accident/1031179)
**Author:** [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [August 14, 2026, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/advice-please-dealing-with-insurance-after-an-auto-accident/1031179 "2026-08-14T17:53:57Z")
My wife was siedswiped in her 2004 Prius by another driver who moved into her lane in a traffic circle. It was clearly the other driver’s fault. The police arrived, issued a crash report, and didn’t ticket my wife. (We d… --- ## [Tell me about home solar](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-home-solar/1020878)
**Author:** [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Replies:** 124\ **Last updated:** [August 14, 2026, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-home-solar/1020878 "2026-08-14T10:19:41Z")
We are currently in the beginning stages of looking for a new house. Yesterday we drove around the area we are interested in looking at some of the houses currently on the market. I’m sure that by the time we are serious… --- ## [Do you think practical nuclear fusion energy will ever be a thing?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-practical-nuclear-fusion-energy-will-ever-be-a-thing/1032173)
**Author:** [@spacecadet86](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spacecadet86)\ **Replies:** 45\ **Last updated:** [August 13, 2026, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-practical-nuclear-fusion-energy-will-ever-be-a-thing/1032173 "2026-08-13T21:38:05Z")
Fusion has been the power source of the future for decades, and while progress has been made, actual fusion power plants seem as far off as ever. And let’s not even get into spacecraft fusion propulsion. So many concepts… --- ## [What Mandela Effect example gets you the most?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-mandela-effect-example-gets-you-the-most/1029005)
**Author:** [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Replies:** 111\ **Last updated:** [August 13, 2026, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-mandela-effect-example-gets-you-the-most/1029005 "2026-08-13T13:36:35Z")
There is an endless list by now of Mandela effect items like…the alternate ending of Big, the spelling of Febreze, the Kit Kat logo, the spelling of Looney Tunes, the spelling of Froot Loops, the spelling of the Berensta… --- ## [Ants! (parenthetical used to reach minimum topic length)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-parenthetical-used-to-reach-minimum-topic-length/1032241)
**Author:** [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [August 12, 2026, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-parenthetical-used-to-reach-minimum-topic-length/1032241 "2026-08-12T04:25:54Z")
After leaving us pretty much alone so far this summer, the local ants this morning mounted a full-scale home invasion. The formicid fiends attacked multiple targets from multiple ingresses seemingly simultaneously. Are t… --- ## [Rich people and white carpet](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rich-people-and-white-carpet/1032234)
**Author:** [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Replies:** 44\ **Last updated:** [August 12, 2026, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rich-people-and-white-carpet/1032234 "2026-08-12T00:41:18Z")
My wife and I spend some of our weekends going to estate sales. A lot of these sales are in expensive homes. Almost all of those homes have deep piled white carpet. Why do they do this? How do they keep it clean? --- ## [How universal is the term ‘shotgun’ for a vehicle’s front passenger seat?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-universal-is-the-term-shotgun-for-a-vehicle-s-front-passenger-seat/1031620)
**Author:** [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Replies:** 63\ **Last updated:** [August 11, 2026, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-universal-is-the-term-shotgun-for-a-vehicle-s-front-passenger-seat/1031620 "2026-08-11T19:47:27Z")
The other day my son, who is home from college for the Summer, had a friend from high school ride his bike over to visit. Just as he got to our house his bike broke down and was unridable. So my son asked me if I could l… --- ## [My cat keeps pulling up the registers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-cat-keeps-pulling-up-the-registers/1032187)
**Author:** [@GESancMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GESancMan)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [August 11, 2026, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-cat-keeps-pulling-up-the-registers/1032187 "2026-08-11T19:23:24Z")
This is Otto. We’ve had him for about two months. Nice boy, but he’s about as sharp as a sack full of wet mice. The last few days, he’s been obsessed with pulling the hea… --- ## [The Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event had to have been crazy fast, right?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cretaceous-paleogene-extinction-event-had-to-have-been-crazy-fast-right/1032096)
**Author:** [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [August 11, 2026, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cretaceous-paleogene-extinction-event-had-to-have-been-crazy-fast-right/1032096 "2026-08-11T15:53:59Z")
I’ve been catching up on a lot of the science that’s happened in 30 years since I had a formal science class, especially genetic studies and fossils that support evolution in really remarkable ways. Some of the more fasc… --- ## [Confusing Medical Conditions Part 1: Chronic Inflammation](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confusing-medical-conditions-part-1-chronic-inflammation/1032184)
**Author:** [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [August 9, 2026, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confusing-medical-conditions-part-1-chronic-inflammation/1032184 "2026-08-09T20:19:29Z")
I’ve recently noticed that chronic inflammation is now often described as a condition that leads to an accelerated demise of personal health, and eventually, an earlier death. This NYT interactive piece (I couldn’t find… --- ## [2026: Claude vs ChatGTP vs Whatever](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2026-claude-vs-chatgtp-vs-whatever/1031200)
**Author:** [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [August 9, 2026, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2026-claude-vs-chatgtp-vs-whatever/1031200 "2026-08-09T18:17:06Z")
Some recent threads on AI devolved into differences in style between options. This thread is for that specifically. This has been well covered for graphics and illustrations already. Claude, Chat. I’ve never grokked… --- ## [Why (was?) the Soviet economy during the Cold War era such a failure?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-the-soviet-economy-during-the-cold-war-era-such-a-failure/1031851)
**Author:** [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Replies:** 83\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2026, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-the-soviet-economy-during-the-cold-war-era-such-a-failure/1031851 "2026-08-08T21:05:15Z")
A spin off of the thread on what the Soviet Union did better than the west. An obvious theme is apparent in the replies in that thread. Almost everything discussed are weapons or other items that have military use (tan… --- ## [New horizons in spam--fake repairs](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-horizons-in-spam-fake-repairs/1032155)
**Author:** [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2026, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-horizons-in-spam-fake-repairs/1032155 "2026-08-08T03:37:40Z")
The phone rings. “Hello”. The guy starts be asking if I am \[real name\]. I agree. I was expecting a delivery, so I assumed it was that. Instead the buy starts in on a long song and dance about how wonderfully they have re… --- ## [What would you do with superpower pills?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-with-superpower-pills/1032183)
**Author:** [@Cmyers1980](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cmyers1980)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [August 8, 2026, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-with-superpower-pills/1032183 "2026-08-08T01:35:46Z")
You get five pills that each give you a flying brick power set. The powers are super strength (100 tons), durability (only the most powerful nuclear weapon can harm you), speed (Mach 100), reflexes (nanosecond reaction t… --- ## [How do dolphins and whales cope with extreme storms in the ocean (read gigantic waves)?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-dolphins-and-whales-cope-with-extreme-storms-in-the-ocean-read-gigantic-waves/1032198)
**Author:** [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [August 7, 2026, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-dolphins-and-whales-cope-with-extreme-storms-in-the-ocean-read-gigantic-waves/1032198 "2026-08-07T21:46:09Z")
Title says it all I think. I know they sleep with half their brain at a time so they can continue to surface and breathe but ISTM in extremely high seas (monster waves) these animals would have a very difficult time cop… --- ## [Renter's insurance - questions/advice?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renters-insurance-questions-advice/1031129)
**Author:** [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Replies:** 161\ **Last updated:** [August 7, 2026, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renters-insurance-questions-advice/1031129 "2026-08-07T02:42:37Z")
Confession time! I’m 43 years old and I’ve never had “my own place”. Ever since I moved out of my grandma’s when I was 20, I’ve lived in a succession of rented rooms in private homes. I’ve never needed more than that - I… --- ## [Second time I've been accused of using AI to compose posts. Should I be insulted or flattered?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/second-time-ive-been-accused-of-using-ai-to-compose-posts-should-i-be-insulted-or-flattered/1032151)
**Author:** [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Replies:** 42\ **Last updated:** [August 6, 2026, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/second-time-ive-been-accused-of-using-ai-to-compose-posts-should-i-be-insulted-or-flattered/1032151 "2026-08-06T17:26:48Z")
Note: both of these instances were on Reddit. I’m not sure what the first accusation was based on, but today, apparently my “tell” was that I used emdashes. For the record, I have never used ChatGPT or any AI, ever. Tod… --- ## [Opinions wanted on a contractor’s estimate](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opinions-wanted-on-a-contractor-s-estimate/1032097)
**Author:** [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [August 6, 2026, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opinions-wanted-on-a-contractor-s-estimate/1032097 "2026-08-06T03:35:41Z")
\[Album\] imgur.com I’d like to know what people think of an estimat… --- ## [How long could a person dance on top of one of those industrial shredders before getting caught?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-could-a-person-dance-on-top-of-one-of-those-industrial-shredders-before-getting-caught/1031971)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [August 6, 2026, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-could-a-person-dance-on-top-of-one-of-those-industrial-shredders-before-getting-caught/1031971 "2026-08-06T02:28:35Z")
There was a shredding scene in one of the Bond films but it was a different type of high speed device. No chance to tap dance on it. Here is the slow but inexorable shredder I mean: --- ## [Who is responsible for this windshield crack in a rental car?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-responsible-for-this-windshield-crack-in-a-rental-car/1011846)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [August 5, 2026, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-responsible-for-this-windshield-crack-in-a-rental-car/1011846 "2026-08-05T22:52:11Z")
Might turn into a request for legal advice but I doubt it. My son rented a car from Turo. (Turo is like Airbnb for cars.) After he returned it the owner sent him a photo of the windshield, clearly with a crack running f… --- ## [Help with a family quandary -- freeloading relatives/cottage might be sold](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-a-family-quandary-freeloading-relatives-cottage-might-be-sold/1032020)
**Author:** [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Replies:** 76\ **Last updated:** [August 5, 2026, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-a-family-quandary-freeloading-relatives-cottage-might-be-sold/1032020 "2026-08-05T14:34:53Z")
One of my relatives has been allowing a “semi-relative” (the daughter of a man she’s been living with for nearly five years) to live basically rent-free in a small cottage she owns for the past five years. It was suppos… --- ## [When did changing laptop batteries become hard?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-changing-laptop-batteries-become-hard/1032115)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 67\ **Last updated:** [August 4, 2026, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-changing-laptop-batteries-become-hard/1032115 "2026-08-04T20:48:29Z")
I always carried a 2nd charged battery for my Dell laptop. Slide three plastic tabs and the old one popped out. Changing a laptop battery was a 2 minute job. My older Win 10, Dell Laptop was manufactured in 2017. I bou… --- ## [Could a warp drive escape a black hole?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-warp-drive-escape-a-black-hole/1032037)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [August 4, 2026, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-warp-drive-escape-a-black-hole/1032037 "2026-08-04T17:43:22Z")
The picture we have of black holes is that within the event horizon there are no paths through spacetime leading out again. But of course that’s with the caveat of being restricted to the speed of light. If it really is … --- ## [Would you mind if someone parked in front of your house?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-if-someone-parked-in-front-of-your-house/1031446)
**Author:** [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Replies:** 160\ **Last updated:** [August 4, 2026, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-if-someone-parked-in-front-of-your-house/1031446 "2026-08-04T13:23:07Z")
In the clover lawn thread @Stratocaster posted: I didn’t want to hijack that thread but that reminded me of this encounter I had the other day. I live across the street from a school, and teachers, parents, and other … --- ## [Neighborly situation](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighborly-situation/1031899)
**Author:** [@Sticks\_and\_Scones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sticks_and_Scones)\ **Replies:** 40\ **Last updated:** [August 4, 2026, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighborly-situation/1031899 "2026-08-04T10:59:46Z")
My neighbor loves mowing the yard so he voluntarily mows about 5-6 lawns in our neighborhood including mine. They’ve even gotten him a riding mower even though we live in little postage stamp sized lots. This is his thir… --- ## [How may holes are in this shirt?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-may-holes-are-in-this-shirt/1032004)
**Author:** [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Replies:** 58\ **Last updated:** [August 3, 2026, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-may-holes-are-in-this-shirt/1032004 "2026-08-03T22:11:37Z")
I see this at least once a day on FB: The vast majority of respondents say “16.” And I initially thought it was 16, too. I’m not a topologist, but having thought about it … --- ## [Has constant data hyper charged the worried well?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-constant-data-hyper-charged-the-worried-well/980726)
**Author:** [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [August 3, 2026, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-constant-data-hyper-charged-the-worried-well/980726 "2026-08-03T18:01:07Z")
From socks that monitor normal babies’ heart rates and oxygen level constantly in their sleep wearables that report and grade on sleep to movement to heart rate variability to who knows … the is an abundance of data now … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/in-my-humble-opinion/14.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/in-my-humble-opinion/14.md?page=7)