# Latest **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=839&state=tracking [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 840 --- ## ['At Time The Dragon Got In The Back Yard (An Exercise In Sentence Construction)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-time-the-dragon-got-in-the-back-yard-an-exercise-in-sentence-construction/983441)
**Author:** [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-time-the-dragon-got-in-the-back-yard-an-exercise-in-sentence-construction/983441 "2023-05-02T18:45:45Z")
Waaaal, there was that one time ‘at dragon got into the back yard because the neighbor won’t stop leaving meat scraps in the damn garbage, and then he climbed the fence and saw the cat, miracle he didn’t wreck the fence,… --- ## [What have you memorized, intentionally or not?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-have-you-memorized-intentionally-or-not/982972)
**Author:** [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Replies:** 140\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-have-you-memorized-intentionally-or-not/982972 "2023-05-02T16:43:18Z")
Here is the most mundane and miscellaneous and pointless and personal of questions: what things have you committed to memory, whether on purpose or just by happenstance? Possibilities include: Songs Poems Parts of play… --- ## [TV shows you like, I which you dislike one character/actor](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-you-like-i-which-you-dislike-one-character-actor/956951)
**Author:** [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Replies:** 158\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-you-like-i-which-you-dislike-one-character-actor/956951 "2023-05-02T16:04:39Z")
Right now, my wife and I are binging Bosch. Pretty good show, and pretty consistently decent acting - except for Bosch’s daughter - Maddie. Not sure if it is how the character is written, or the actor’s performance, bu… --- ## [Question on 240v appliance wiring](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-240v-appliance-wiring/983372)
**Author:** [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-240v-appliance-wiring/983372 "2023-05-02T15:34:34Z")
I am replacing an electric cooktop in a house that is ~40 years old. The service to the old cooktop has 2 black wires and 1 gray. I assume the blacks are L1 and L2 and the gray is neutral. I tested the neutral with a dis… --- ## [The Brag-On-Your-Kids Thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-brag-on-your-kids-thread/32151)
**Author:** [@Persephone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Persephone)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-brag-on-your-kids-thread/32151 "2023-05-02T15:26:54Z")
Got great kids in your life? Your own kids, someone else’s kids? Grown kids or infants? Doesn’t matter. Share their wonderfulness here. I’ll start: My daughter got home from preschool just a few minutes after I got home… --- ## [2022-23 Ski and Snowboard Thread - It's all downhill from here](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2022-23-ski-and-snowboard-thread-its-all-downhill-from-here/976187)
**Author:** [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Replies:** 108\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2022-23-ski-and-snowboard-thread-its-all-downhill-from-here/976187 "2023-05-02T15:00:33Z")
I guess it’s time for the new ski thread. Pretty dismal here in the Northeast; warm rain is the order of the day and areas have very limited terrain open. We got one day in two weeks ago, and plan to get another day in t… --- ## [Lisping - has it taken over as "normal" speech?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lisping-has-it-taken-over-as-normal-speech/602858)
**Author:** [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Replies:** 62\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lisping-has-it-taken-over-as-normal-speech/602858 "2023-05-02T14:58:01Z")
I remember when having a lisp was considered a speech impediment. Anyone remember the Brady Bunch episode with Cindy and Peter walking home from school, and Buddy Hinton jumps out and sings to Cindy"Baby talk, baby talk… --- ## [Keeping neighbor's dog out of our fenced yard](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keeping-neighbors-dog-out-of-our-fenced-yard/982529)
**Author:** [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Replies:** 62\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keeping-neighbors-dog-out-of-our-fenced-yard/982529 "2023-05-02T14:43:11Z")
We have had issues with one of our neighbors in the past - about things like fences and water run-off. In each instance, what they were doing was directly prohibited by local ordinances. When we tried to discuss it in … --- ## [Home security cameras and wifi](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/home-security-cameras-and-wifi/983427)
**Author:** [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/home-security-cameras-and-wifi/983427 "2023-05-02T11:56:31Z")
A neighbor’s car was broken into, and I’m now considering a security camera setup. We’re near the end of a dead-end street, and all I think I need is one camera facing the street to pick up comings and goings. I’d like… --- ## [TIL: Older Laptops Hate Janet Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/til-older-laptops-hate-janet-jackson/983436)
**Author:** [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/til-older-laptops-hate-janet-jackson/983436 "2023-05-02T11:40:26Z")
Apparently Janet’s song Rhythm Nation emits a frequency that for a popular brand of Hard Drives from 15+ years ago, would disrupt the arm and disk which would crash the laptop. No point to this; I just thought it was fun… --- ## [I'm Starting an Online Malagasy Course Today](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-starting-an-online-malagasy-course-today/982788)
**Author:** [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-starting-an-online-malagasy-course-today/982788 "2023-05-02T08:09:07Z")
I’ve been interested, on-and-off, in the Austronesian languages for the past 25 years. I started learning bahasa Indonesia in the late 90s with a conversation guide that my then-girlfriend’s brother offered me after his… --- ## [Pepperoni Hug Spot](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pepperoni-hug-spot/983384)
**Author:** [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pepperoni-hug-spot/983384 "2023-05-02T05:54:36Z")
Anyone else seen this? A.I.-created advertisement. I know little to nothing about its origins. Simultaneously hilarious and terrifying. Pepperoni Hug Spot “Like family, but with more cheese” is brilliant. I may have to… --- ## [Is it true that the tradition of raising the right hand in court was to check for branding?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-true-that-the-tradition-of-raising-the-right-hand-in-court-was-to-check-for-branding/983395)
**Author:** [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-true-that-the-tradition-of-raising-the-right-hand-in-court-was-to-check-for-branding/983395 "2023-05-02T02:58:54Z")
I just came across this online, but I’m not certain if if it’s accurate. The story goes that the reason people are asked to raise their right hand when being sworn in is to see if they have been branded a criminal. I’m… --- ## [A President Adam Kinzinger (R) ends this whole seven-year nightmare and "brings the temperature down in the room", right? anyone else?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-president-adam-kinzinger-r-ends-this-whole-seven-year-nightmare-and-brings-the-temperature-down-in-the-room-right-anyone-else/983343)
**Author:** [@Win\_Place\_Show](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Win_Place_Show)\ **Replies:** 98\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2023, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-president-adam-kinzinger-r-ends-this-whole-seven-year-nightmare-and-brings-the-temperature-down-in-the-room-right-anyone-else/983343 "2023-05-02T00:08:22Z")
From what I understand he (Kinzinger) has zero plans of pursuing a future in high-stakes politics, but somebody like him could pull us out of this tailspin, right? Maybe Liz Cheney, or some other (R) that the left could… --- ## [When do you expect the first snow of the season?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-you-expect-the-first-snow-of-the-season/973848)
**Author:** [@Sandra\_Battye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sandra_Battye)\ **Replies:** 146\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-you-expect-the-first-snow-of-the-season/973848 "2023-05-01T23:52:36Z")
Tell us when you expect the first snowfall of the season and when you expect the last snowfall. Date or week/month. I moved to Sierra Vista in May, so I have nothing to compare to. But according to Wikipedia, average is… --- ## [Fun etymological realization: "smacks of"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-etymological-realization-smacks-of/983378)
**Author:** [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-etymological-realization-smacks-of/983378 "2023-05-01T23:51:57Z")
The other day I was thinking about the phrase “smacks of” (“That smacks of treason,” etc.), and wondered about its etymology. My first guess was that it was cognate to the German verb “schmecken” (“to taste”) - and surp… --- ## [FiveThirtyEight.com decimated by Disney layoffs](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fivethirtyeight-com-decimated-by-disney-layoffs/983242)
**Author:** [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Replies:** 99\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fivethirtyeight-com-decimated-by-disney-layoffs/983242 "2023-05-01T22:41:23Z")
Nate Silver has had an up and down career since he came to fame forecasting the 2008 election. He went from the New York Times to Disney, which tried to make him a personality at ESPN and then transferred his website fiv… --- ## [Slow Living](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slow-living/983432)
**Author:** [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slow-living/983432 "2023-05-01T22:21:07Z")
I first encountered the term ‘slow living’ only after having spent some years trying to cultivate this way of life. Slow living to me means living one’s life as consciously as possible. Our environment and culture promot… --- ## [Which is better, PNG or JPG?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-better-png-or-jpg/983321)
**Author:** [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-better-png-or-jpg/983321 "2023-05-01T21:48:35Z")
I’ve been saving a ton of photos lately, and don’t know much technically. Is one better than the other? I’ve been saving everything in JPG out of habit, but my PC has a default option of PNG. If JPG is the better optio… --- ## [Anybody watching "Almost Royal" on PBS?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-watching-almost-royal-on-pbs/983434)
**Author:** [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-watching-almost-royal-on-pbs/983434 "2023-05-01T20:46:32Z")
I stumbled on this the other night at three in the morning. It’s hilarious! It’s Borat with a couple of upper class twits. “Eating Sugar Pops makes your wee smell funny.” Episodes are also on YouTube. --- ## [It's Raining Rants (Hallelujah) - April mini-rants](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-raining-rants-hallelujah-april-mini-rants/981982)
**Author:** [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Replies:** 308\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-raining-rants-hallelujah-april-mini-rants/981982 "2023-05-01T19:50:55Z")
I wet the (floor under the) bed last night. Not sure if it was me or the pup (probably me) but when I went for a drink this morning, the travel mug, with the lid, was lying on it’s side…empty & there’s a big wet spot un… --- ## [Does Katty Kay sound silly to Brits?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-katty-kay-sound-silly-to-brits/614725)
**Author:** [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Replies:** 42\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-katty-kay-sound-silly-to-brits/614725 "2023-05-01T19:19:21Z")
She’s the BBC rep in Washington DC, a frequent talking head, and she speaks with what sounds to me like an extreme uppah-clawss British accent. You know, she speaks of events happening “oveh hyah” as opposed to “beck huu… --- ## [What ever happened to Helios, the solar plane?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ever-happened-to-helios-the-solar-plane/983422)
**Author:** [@sweeteviljesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweeteviljesus)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ever-happened-to-helios-the-solar-plane/983422 "2023-05-01T18:14:39Z")
I know what happened to the original plane, but what I really want to know is what happened to the program? Does it live on in other research? NASA, IIRC, flew Helios, a solar powered airplane in about 2004. The origi… --- ## [Work-from-homers, retirees, etc., what are your signs that you need to shape up and get out more?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/work-from-homers-retirees-etc-what-are-your-signs-that-you-need-to-shape-up-and-get-out-more/983283)
**Author:** [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Replies:** 42\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/work-from-homers-retirees-etc-what-are-your-signs-that-you-need-to-shape-up-and-get-out-more/983283 "2023-05-01T17:19:55Z")
Been working from home for over 3 years now since the lockdown began. These days, other than a weekly or so trip to shop and run errands, I hardly go out much at all. Haircuts went from every 6 weeks or so to every 6 mo… --- ## [When you don’t mind suspending disbelief](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-don-t-mind-suspending-disbelief/983151)
**Author:** [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Replies:** 95\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-don-t-mind-suspending-disbelief/983151 "2023-05-01T17:09:07Z")
There have been threads about unrealistic plot points and tropes in Hollywood. What are some common unrealistic tropes that don’t bother you so much? I’ll give two off the top of my head. Doctors performing tests on pat… --- ## [It's been WEEKS since there's been a colonoscopy thread!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-weeks-since-theres-been-a-colonoscopy-thread/980963)
**Author:** [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Replies:** 79\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-weeks-since-theres-been-a-colonoscopy-thread/980963 "2023-05-01T17:05:55Z")
I’ve got my ninth one coming up on Monday. Oh joy. Well, since I’m one of those whose life was saved by a timely screening procedure quite a while back, let’s just say that it may not be fun, but it beats the alternativ… --- ## [Movies Where Protagonist is Regretful after the Revolution](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-protagonist-is-regretful-after-the-revolution/983370)
**Author:** [@MortSahlFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MortSahlFan)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-protagonist-is-regretful-after-the-revolution/983370 "2023-05-01T16:28:49Z")
There’s many movies about revolutions, from practically any country… I’m looking for a movie where the protagonist (who supported the revolution, maybe even fought) is regretful after the revolution, for whatever reason.… --- ## [Flat on one's back: recuperating stories](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flat-on-ones-back-recuperating-stories/983230)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flat-on-ones-back-recuperating-stories/983230 "2023-05-01T14:52:47Z")
So I had prostate surgery, and apparently I have since been spending too much time sitting in front of my computer, contributing to pain and bleeding. I am now told minimal chair time until I heal more. Thus the tedium o… --- ## [The international community claims not to want nuclear proliferation, yet rewards nuclear proliferation](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-international-community-claims-not-to-want-nuclear-proliferation-yet-rewards-nuclear-proliferation/983403)
**Author:** [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-international-community-claims-not-to-want-nuclear-proliferation-yet-rewards-nuclear-proliferation/983403 "2023-05-01T14:51:17Z")
The international community, particularly the West, does this strange song and dance whereby they claim they don’t want nuclear proliferation, or frown upon nukes in general - yet they show great deference, fear and resp… --- ## [John Rosemond retires!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-rosemond-retires/983360)
**Author:** [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2023, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-rosemond-retires/983360 "2023-05-01T14:21:55Z")
This clown. Self-proclaimed child-raising expert. And he’s only semi-retiring. But from here on in, he’ll only be preaching to the converted. So I can do a guilt-free happy dance without his having to die! “My trusted … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=838&state=tracking) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=840&state=tracking)