# Latest **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=1341 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 1342 --- ## [Holy crap! My new 1GB USB drive is tiny!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-my-new-1gb-usb-drive-is-tiny/359327)
**Author:** [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [September 15, 2021, 9:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-my-new-1gb-usb-drive-is-tiny/359327 "2021-09-15T09:01:50Z")
I ordered this last week, and it just got delivered. I didn’t realize when I bought it that it was so small! It’s no wider than the USB port itself. Here’s a pic of it with a dime: http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j… --- ## [Did any psychic predict Covid?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-psychic-predict-covid/950529)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [September 15, 2021, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-psychic-predict-covid/950529 "2021-09-15T05:21:21Z")
I mean it seems like such a big event. How did they miss it? I haven’t even heard anyone trying to twist a Nostradamus quatrain into an after-the-fact prediction. They really let us down. --- ## [Fostering kids](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fostering-kids/950677)
**Author:** [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [September 15, 2021, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fostering-kids/950677 "2021-09-15T05:17:31Z")
Here it is, looking down the line at my last few years of having a child in the house. I’m wondering, what will I do when Vaderling is out on his own? I’m having a hard time with visualising more than a few months afte… --- ## [Removing rust from an 'artifact'](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/removing-rust-from-an-artifact/950616)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [September 15, 2021, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/removing-rust-from-an-artifact/950616 "2021-09-15T04:48:02Z")
As I was excavating a flat spot for the new wood shed I built, I unearthed an axe head that had been buried for a minimum of twenty years but more likely at least 30 years. Needless to say, it’s encrusted in rust. I us… --- ## [Something mysterious that happened you could never explain how or why](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-mysterious-that-happened-you-could-never-explain-how-or-why/949237)
**Author:** [@PozhanPop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PozhanPop)\ **Replies:** 97\ **Last updated:** [September 15, 2021, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-mysterious-that-happened-you-could-never-explain-how-or-why/949237 "2021-09-15T04:47:01Z")
Mysterious voices, sights, sounds … I was on a train once going home from school for the holidays. I often sit at the door during these journeys because the compartment can get unbearably hot. One night I am sitting at… --- ## [Questions about how writers introduce their work to publishers](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-how-writers-introduce-their-work-to-publishers/949819)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [September 15, 2021, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-how-writers-introduce-their-work-to-publishers/949819 "2021-09-15T04:30:10Z")
When writers introduce their work to prospective publishers do they typically send excerpts of their work for review or the entire work/manuscript?. Is it sent by email or by post? How do writers typically evaluate the p… --- ## [Any better ideas for disrespecting someone's ashes than this?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-better-ideas-for-disrespecting-someones-ashes-than-this/950197)
**Author:** [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [September 15, 2021, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-better-ideas-for-disrespecting-someones-ashes-than-this/950197 "2021-09-15T00:25:32Z")
Let’s say you have the cremains of someone you hate, and you wish to do something terrible with them. The best(worst) thing I can come up with is to put a pinch of the ashes in the toilet each time before you take a dum… --- ## [Have there ever been any true matriarchal societies?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-there-ever-been-any-true-matriarchal-societies/950562)
**Author:** [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [September 15, 2021, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-there-ever-been-any-true-matriarchal-societies/950562 "2021-09-15T00:25:04Z")
I am talking about societies where women actually ruled, and not just allowed by men to hold certain high positions. --- ## [Why does my UPS output power go off when switching from battery to mains?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-ups-output-power-go-off-when-switching-from-battery-to-mains/950629)
**Author:** [@wisernow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wisernow)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-ups-output-power-go-off-when-switching-from-battery-to-mains/950629 "2021-09-14T23:30:21Z")
I have a small 600VA UPS(includes battery) that I use to power my Denon AVR. I have noticed that the UPS switches smoothly to battery when the mains power is interrupted. and the AVR does not switch off. However, when t… --- ## [Star Wars: Do droids have gender?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-do-droids-have-gender/950548)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 34\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-do-droids-have-gender/950548 "2021-09-14T23:10:56Z")
So I’m posting in a Star Wars online RP as a droid, but it’s occurred to me that I don’t know if droids have gender? Should I write “He walked forward through the hanger, considering his next move”? Or use “its”? Do they… --- ## ["Christian" publishers are crooks, sky is blue.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-publishers-are-crooks-sky-is-blue/785905)
**Author:** [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Replies:** 69\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-publishers-are-crooks-sky-is-blue/785905 "2021-09-14T22:38:58Z")
I’m putting this in The Pit because it would probably end up here anyway. Christian vanity press Tate has folded after the founders and owners are charged with embezzlement, and still manage to wrap themselves with self-… --- ## ['I feel stupid, and contagious' - Smells Like Teen Spirit released 30 years ago today, apparently foresees America's future](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-feel-stupid-and-contagious-smells-like-teen-spirit-released-30-years-ago-today-apparently-foresees-americas-future/950491)
**Author:** [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Replies:** 46\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-feel-stupid-and-contagious-smells-like-teen-spirit-released-30-years-ago-today-apparently-foresees-americas-future/950491 "2021-09-14T21:35:57Z")
How big was this song to you? Oh, and it was released as a single on this date. Radio stations got it a couple of weeks earlier. --- ## [Help identifying a SF short story from the 80s](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-identifying-a-sf-short-story-from-the-80s/690672)
**Author:** [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-identifying-a-sf-short-story-from-the-80s/690672 "2021-09-14T18:57:43Z")
I recall reading a short story in the 80s, either in Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine or Analog. It took place in a somewhat post-apocalyptic society, that was only slowly returning to any semblance of civilizatio… --- ## [Can a pitcher get a blown save and a win in the same game?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-pitcher-get-a-blown-save-and-a-win-in-the-same-game/950660)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-pitcher-get-a-blown-save-and-a-win-in-the-same-game/950660 "2021-09-14T18:53:58Z")
White Sox reliever Craig Kimbrel came into Sunday’s game in the top of the 9th with the White Sox ahead by one, and gave up a run, tying the game. That usually counts as a blown save. The Sox pulled it out with a walk-… --- ## [Hey, I wrote a joke!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-i-wrote-a-joke/950494)
**Author:** [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-i-wrote-a-joke/950494 "2021-09-14T18:39:46Z")
Q. What is D. B. Cooper’s least favorite season? A. Autumn, because he died in the fall! I haven’t fact-checked this, but I did think of it all by my lonesome. --- ## [The "I's" have it](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-is-have-it/950652)
**Author:** [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-is-have-it/950652 "2021-09-14T18:29:40Z")
The naming of hurricanes (North Atlantic) in alphabetical order began in the early 1950’s. Since then, 88 names have been “retired”, due to their ferocity, damage, and/or casualties - never to be used again. The most co… --- ## [What’s with all the Blackstone griddles?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-with-all-the-blackstone-griddles/950558)
**Author:** [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-with-all-the-blackstone-griddles/950558 "2021-09-14T18:23:31Z")
My Facebook newsfeed seems to be getting flooded with people cooking on their Blackstone griddles. AFAICT, they’re heavy duty propane griddles similar to what most cafes would have. Does anyone have personal experience … --- ## [What did "mark" mean on Star Trek?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-mark-mean-on-star-trek/732913)
**Author:** [@A\_Dodgy\_Dude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_Dodgy_Dude)\ **Replies:** 70\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-mark-mean-on-star-trek/732913 "2021-09-14T18:17:19Z")
“Heading 315, mark 7” “Heading 041, mark 319” That sort of stuff. I used to think it was angle of inclination until I started noticing the really big numbers. Mark 7 would have the Enterprise flying(?) on a 7-degree in… --- ## [Annoying vocal mannerisms: "right?" is the new "like"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/annoying-vocal-mannerisms-right-is-the-new-like/950465)
**Author:** [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/annoying-vocal-mannerisms-right-is-the-new-like/950465 "2021-09-14T18:12:01Z")
It’s now commonplace that people say like like a zillion times in the average sentence, right? And the number of times they say “like” is in inverse proportion to their age, right? So if you’re a teenager, right?, every … --- ## [How to load eBooks onto an iPhone Kindle APP](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-load-ebooks-onto-an-iphone-kindle-app/950169)
**Author:** [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-load-ebooks-onto-an-iphone-kindle-app/950169 "2021-09-14T18:04:30Z")
A friend is asking that question & I have no knowledge of how to use that, either using Calibre, which she also has or not. Thanks for any advice, --- ## [Can you identify these two books?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-identify-these-two-books/950654)
**Author:** [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-identify-these-two-books/950654 "2021-09-14T18:03:00Z")
Both are young adult novels that my best friend read as a teenager. One is about an ancient Egyptian called into the present by a spell or something. Romance novel. The girl who called him into the present had an amul… --- ## [Always paid credit card on time, has my bank made money?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/always-paid-credit-card-on-time-has-my-bank-made-money/949911)
**Author:** [@spifflog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spifflog)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/always-paid-credit-card-on-time-has-my-bank-made-money/949911 "2021-09-14T16:12:55Z")
I recently received a snail mail letter from my bank thanking me for being a 30 year customer. In it was the number of checks I’ve written, and other somewhat fun trivia, and they also noted that I’ve never paid a finan… --- ## [Why are beings born from the armpit in mythology?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-beings-born-from-the-armpit-in-mythology/950605)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-beings-born-from-the-armpit-in-mythology/950605 "2021-09-14T16:04:05Z")
I’ve read about it in both Norse and Native American myths. Is there something special about the armpit? Is it considered to be close to the heart, or just weird? --- ## [Anybody going to watch the Ken Burns Hemingway Documentary on PBS?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-going-to-watch-the-ken-burns-hemingway-documentary-on-pbs/938696)
**Author:** [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Replies:** 54\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-going-to-watch-the-ken-burns-hemingway-documentary-on-pbs/938696 "2021-09-14T15:06:13Z")
My experience with Burns docs is probably similar to many of you-- I thought the Civil War series was fantastic at the time (though I understand it didn’t age well), then had diminishing returns of little or no interest … --- ## [What does fbclid tell a web site?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-fbclid-tell-a-web-site/950649)
**Author:** [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-fbclid-tell-a-web-site/950649 "2021-09-14T15:01:36Z")
If I reach a web site through a link from Facebook, Facebook tacks on a parameter to the URL like this: fbclid=IwAR3tB20k54fz\_p66ZfsNttm8QlXTip7bRvDlGGpM3WT-JACCNKtEZ4Ci5Fs Aside from telling the web site that the user… --- ## [One bonkers US Open (tennis)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-bonkers-us-open-tennis/950426)
**Author:** [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-bonkers-us-open-tennis/950426 "2021-09-14T14:32:02Z")
Without question the most cray-cray major, period, I’ve ever seen. The women’s final this Saturday will have Emma Raducanu, an 18 y.o. who’s the first-ever qualifier to make the final of a major in the open era, against… --- ## [What Is This Sandwich Being Discussed Here? (Sounds like "Bee-ALL-ee")](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-sandwich-being-discussed-here-sounds-like-bee-all-ee/950611)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-sandwich-being-discussed-here-sounds-like-bee-all-ee/950611 "2021-09-14T14:11:18Z")
In this video, the talk show host and the house band are discussing flattened bagels (“flagels”) and they discuss the apparently-similar … “biali”??? WTF are they saying? --- ## [What is this 10 foot tall weed?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-10-foot-tall-weed/948534)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-10-foot-tall-weed/948534 "2021-09-14T13:03:34Z")
Found in NE Ohio. It has a slim central stalk and is 10 feet high at the moment. Judging by the buds at the top it shows no signs of slowing down. --- ## [Any recommendations for bluetooth ear protection headphones?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-recommendations-for-bluetooth-ear-protection-headphones/950523)
**Author:** [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-recommendations-for-bluetooth-ear-protection-headphones/950523 "2021-09-14T11:20:01Z")
I need good ear protection for using the mower and the tractor, and, since I mow +/- 7 acres of lawn and pasture, I like to have Bluetooth to listen to books while I rattle back and forth. My old heavy duty ones died an… --- ## [I’m having a problem replacing fluorescent tubes with LEDs](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-m-having-a-problem-replacing-fluorescent-tubes-with-leds/950552)
**Author:** [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [September 14, 2021, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-m-having-a-problem-replacing-fluorescent-tubes-with-leds/950552 "2021-09-14T10:19:17Z")
I bought 2 four foot LED’s that are “plug and play”, no re-wiring required. Not of the new tunes light up when I install them or twist them during troubleshooting. When I turn the switch off and back on, only one tube li… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=1340) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=1342)