# Latest **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=589&state=muted [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 590 --- ## [General Solar Eclipse Question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-solar-eclipse-question/999837)
**Author:** [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-solar-eclipse-question/999837 "2024-04-11T21:20:14Z")
In looking at the paths of solar eclipses, I’ve noticed that the shape of the moon’s shadow on the Earth changes from an oval/ellipse to a circle and back to an oval/ellipse. See here: My question is: If one is with… --- ## [Anybody Use TurboTax Desktop?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-use-turbotax-desktop/995959)
**Author:** [@MindsEye\_Watering](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MindsEye_Watering)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-use-turbotax-desktop/995959 "2024-04-11T20:58:22Z")
For years (decades?) I’ve been using Intuit’s TurboTax desktop program to do my taxes and have never had a problem. Buy the disc or purchase download from Amazon, install on my computer and do my taxes. No problem This … --- ## [AV Club and related sites](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/av-club-and-related-sites/1000169)
**Author:** [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/av-club-and-related-sites/1000169 "2024-04-11T20:32:04Z")
The AV Club website seems to have changed recently. Previously the top of the page included links to sister sites like Gizmodo, Jalopnik, the Onion, the Root and the Takeout. I would start out reading the AV Club and the… --- ## [Extreme Closeups -- Got One To Share?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extreme-closeups-got-one-to-share/1000071)
**Author:** [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extreme-closeups-got-one-to-share/1000071 "2024-04-11T19:34:33Z")
Here’s an extreme closeup of a cat’s tongue, in case you were wondering what it looks like. I bet y’all have some even better ones. --- ## [Checking in head injury when living alone?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checking-in-head-injury-when-living-alone/1000112)
**Author:** [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/checking-in-head-injury-when-living-alone/1000112 "2024-04-11T19:21:27Z")
I tend to be a hypochondriac, so be warned. While on a staircase, I bent down to tie a shoelace. I got up at full speed and somehow banged my head against the hollow metal railing. I feel okay, but being somewhat hypoch… --- ## [If you go to Costco, get me some peanuts, a towel, and some gold, will you?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-go-to-costco-get-me-some-peanuts-a-towel-and-some-gold-will-you/1000150)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-go-to-costco-get-me-some-peanuts-a-towel-and-some-gold-will-you/1000150 "2024-04-11T18:09:16Z")
It’s not the first place I’d check for precious metals, and I’d think they would tighten security. I’m assuming they don’t have it out on big shelves like the books and clothes. --- ## [99 Cents stores, The end is here](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-cents-stores-the-end-is-here/999904)
**Author:** [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Replies:** 68\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/99-cents-stores-the-end-is-here/999904 "2024-04-11T17:31:09Z")
Too bad, that store really help me when I was unemployed for a few months 3 years ago. Now it will be Dollar General or Family Dollar. Both not generally a dollar, and unfamiliar with one dollar items. --- ## [Explain a charge of felony death to me?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-a-charge-of-felony-death-to-me/1000099)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-a-charge-of-felony-death-to-me/1000099 "2024-04-11T16:52:30Z")
Frank and Joe are robbing a store. Frank, for some reason, just blows away the clerk. They try to escape but get arrested. Joe had no idea Frank would kill the clerk. Why should Joe get charged with any kind of murder? O… --- ## [OJ Simpson dies of Cancer age 76](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oj-simpson-dies-of-cancer-age-76/1000161)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oj-simpson-dies-of-cancer-age-76/1000161 "2024-04-11T16:24:24Z")
OJ was a great running back. He’s among the best that ever played. Heisman trophy in 1968. I became a Bills fan when he played. Whatever his personal faults, I’ll always remember him on the field. RIP https://www.c… --- ## [Any electrical power Dopers here? What is this on the power pole?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electrical-power-dopers-here-what-is-this-on-the-power-pole/1000123)
**Author:** [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electrical-power-dopers-here-what-is-this-on-the-power-pole/1000123 "2024-04-11T15:41:05Z")
About every eight poles, there was one that had this arrangement of wires- one connected to each power leg, then an insulator, then all connected to (ground?): … --- ## [Looking for President Wilson's "war to end the war' speech to Congress in 1917](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-president-wilsons-war-to-end-the-war-speech-to-congress-in-1917/999983)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-president-wilsons-war-to-end-the-war-speech-to-congress-in-1917/999983 "2024-04-11T15:10:35Z")
I’ve come across references to a speech given by President Wilson to Congress in which he uses the phrase ‘war to end the war’. I have not been able to track it down online. I hope someone can help me with this. --- ## [Exercises in magical thinking are a waste of mental effort](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exercises-in-magical-thinking-are-a-waste-of-mental-effort/999832)
**Author:** [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Replies:** 51\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/exercises-in-magical-thinking-are-a-waste-of-mental-effort/999832 "2024-04-11T15:08:43Z")
We get a lot of “what if” threads here about what would happen if some fantasy/religious/magical thing had happened a different way. I always roll my eyes, say to myself “none of that stuff actually happened anyway” and … --- ## [Explain the ending of Dirk Gently's Detective Agency](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-the-ending-of-dirk-gentlys-detective-agency/220361)
**Author:** [@Yumblie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yumblie)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-the-ending-of-dirk-gentlys-detective-agency/220361 "2024-04-11T15:04:57Z")
I’m not well read on Coleridge poetry, so I’m not sure exactly what happened at the end. From what I gather, Dirk interrupts Coleridge and prevents him from finishing the poem that inspired Michael to be possessed by th… --- ## [Without Photoshop, can I eliminate lines in a photo I took?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-photoshop-can-i-eliminate-lines-in-a-photo-i-took/1000058)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-photoshop-can-i-eliminate-lines-in-a-photo-i-took/1000058 "2024-04-11T14:19:59Z")
Amateur model builder. Built a WW II airplane model, suspended it from some very thin monofilament and took some cool pictures of it against the sky. But, of course, the mono showed up. If I could find a way to erase … --- ## [Is it too late for America to Save Itself?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-too-late-for-america-to-save-itself/1000023)
**Author:** [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Replies:** 64\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-too-late-for-america-to-save-itself/1000023 "2024-04-11T14:00:35Z")
(Mods, I considered this a Great Debate at first, but since it’s so very tied into Political decisions, I used P&E, if you feel otherwise, feel free to move) NOTE TO ALL - Not a Pit thread, so please argue, do not RANT. … --- ## [What's plausibly the most number of total solar eclipses an ancient person could have seen in their lifetime?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-plausibly-the-most-number-of-total-solar-eclipses-an-ancient-person-could-have-seen-in-their-lifetime/1000093)
**Author:** [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-plausibly-the-most-number-of-total-solar-eclipses-an-ancient-person-could-have-seen-in-their-lifetime/1000093 "2024-04-11T13:06:53Z")
Let’s set the cutoff as pre-Copernican. Before we had a heliocentric model of the solar system, nevertheless ancient astronomers & mathematicians from various civilizations around the globe were all able to independently… --- ## [Did cecils comeback fade away?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cecils-comeback-fade-away/994501)
**Author:** [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-cecils-comeback-fade-away/994501 "2024-04-11T13:00:48Z")
hi, I was wondering because I haven’t seen anything new or an announcement … --- ## [Slay the Spire 2 is coming in 2025](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slay-the-spire-2-is-coming-in-2025/1000113)
**Author:** [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slay-the-spire-2-is-coming-in-2025/1000113 "2024-04-11T11:19:09Z")
No real concrete information other than what looks like a new character to play but here is the teaser trailer. --- ## [Kurt Cobain died 30 years ago today. Do you remember when you heard the news?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kurt-cobain-died-30-years-ago-today-do-you-remember-when-you-heard-the-news/999899)
**Author:** [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Replies:** 51\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kurt-cobain-died-30-years-ago-today-do-you-remember-when-you-heard-the-news/999899 "2024-04-11T08:32:41Z")
It was a big thing for me, maybe the rock death that hit me hardest (after John Lennon, but then I was only twelve years old). I heard the news on the radio while shopping in a jeans store with my girlfriend. I wasn’t su… --- ## [Foods you prefer cooked "wrong"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-you-prefer-cooked-wrong/998787)
**Author:** [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Replies:** 314\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-you-prefer-cooked-wrong/998787 "2024-04-11T08:10:21Z")
I just put some pasta water on to boil, and started musing about the “right” way to prepare pasta vs the way I like it, and other foods and other people’s opinions on that sort of thing. I completely understand pasta co… --- ## [Have political purges ever succeeded for a society?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-political-purges-ever-succeeded-for-a-society/999195)
**Author:** [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Replies:** 89\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-political-purges-ever-succeeded-for-a-society/999195 "2024-04-11T05:52:41Z")
To start, I am NOT advocating for purges of any sort. I was wondering if a political purge has ever achieved the goals they set out to do? Certainly, they are often a means to keep power for those few at the top. But,… --- ## [The two Three-Body Problems problem](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-two-three-body-problems-problem/997443)
**Author:** [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Replies:** 34\ **Last updated:** [April 11, 2024, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-two-three-body-problems-problem/997443 "2024-04-11T02:47:16Z")
I hated the book Three Body Problem enough that I skipped the rest of the books in the series and I haven’t decided yet if I’ll watch either series, but this is an interesting issue. There are going to be simultaneous du… --- ## [Auto burglaries without broken windows](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/auto-burglaries-without-broken-windows/999892)
**Author:** [@sweeteviljesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweeteviljesus)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2024, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/auto-burglaries-without-broken-windows/999892 "2024-04-10T23:46:46Z")
My wife told me some neighbors had their cars broken into and that the alarms were set and no windows were broken. She claimed the thieves had key fobs they used to gain access and rummage through the cars. This sounds… --- ## [If you have experience with gas-fired combi-boilers (hot water plus hydronic floor heating) please check in here](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-have-experience-with-gas-fired-combi-boilers-hot-water-plus-hydronic-floor-heating-please-check-in-here/1000121)
**Author:** [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2024, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-have-experience-with-gas-fired-combi-boilers-hot-water-plus-hydronic-floor-heating-please-check-in-here/1000121 "2024-04-10T23:31:37Z")
This is going to be a boring topic, sorry. I am looking for ways to research prices, brands, and configurations in the US for a replacement combi-boiler, The people who service our 12-year-old combi-boiler, an Italian b… --- ## [Ronda Rousey is awesome](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ronda-rousey-is-awesome/713918)
**Author:** [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2024, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ronda-rousey-is-awesome/713918 "2024-04-10T22:50:25Z")
14 seconds! --- ## [Canadian paternity test firm amits it knew its tests weren’t accurate](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-paternity-test-firm-amits-it-knew-its-tests-weren-t-accurate/1000051)
**Author:** [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2024, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-paternity-test-firm-amits-it-knew-its-tests-weren-t-accurate/1000051 "2024-04-10T18:08:01Z")
Guy running the firm made the admission in a hidden camera interview, but backtracks in CBC interview --- ## [Income reporting for filing federal taxes](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/income-reporting-for-filing-federal-taxes/850197)
**Author:** [@erpa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erpa)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2024, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/income-reporting-for-filing-federal-taxes/850197 "2024-04-10T17:45:28Z")
My daughter worked as an independent contractor for a business doing Henna tattoos at the state fair last year. Her income was $860 over a 4 day period. She did not get a 1099 from the business she contracted with and … --- ## [How Do The Senses Of Other Great Apes Compare To Those Of H Sapiens?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-senses-of-other-great-apes-compare-to-those-of-h-sapiens/999981)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2024, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-senses-of-other-great-apes-compare-to-those-of-h-sapiens/999981 "2024-04-10T17:32:53Z")
I know that, as regards eyesight, some birds leave us in the dust. Dogs’ sense of smell is exponential stronger than ours. Prey animals (such as deer) can hear us coming from a mile away. And so on. How are the senses … --- ## [2024 College Basketball Tournament Pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2024-college-basketball-tournament-pool/998960)
**Author:** [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2024, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2024-college-basketball-tournament-pool/998960 "2024-04-10T16:03:51Z")
Attention hoops fans! March Madness is here again! Time for the annual NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament Pool. Enter your brackets at ESPN Men's Tournament Challenge - Make Picks or download the ESPN Tournament Challenge… --- ## [What fictional worlds present what you think is closest to a utopia?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-fictional-worlds-present-what-you-think-is-closest-to-a-utopia/1000060)
**Author:** [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [April 10, 2024, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-fictional-worlds-present-what-you-think-is-closest-to-a-utopia/1000060 "2024-04-10T15:43:56Z")
Which fictional worlds do you all think present a society that is as close to what you think of as a utopia? I’ll leave the definition of utopia up to each individual poster, as that’s part of what this thread is about.… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=588&state=muted) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=590&state=muted)