# Discussion thread for the "Polls only" thread (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 28, 2022, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380 "2022-09-28T11:33:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 499
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9964 "2024-02-15T17:02:57Z")
Schrodinger’s cat isn’t actually a cryptid, it’s a thought experiment. Those are pretty easy to care for if you don’t fret too much about them. (I’m leaving it in its box; that way, it can stay simultaneously alive and dead _and_ enjoy being in a box, since it’s a cat.) ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9965 "2024-02-15T17:11:36Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > My answer to the “ride a horse” poll would be: I don’t know; I’ve never tried. Mmm, think of it like playing a violin with the same answer. > [@thorny\_locust](#): > > ‘change gates’ doesn’t make much sense – with your ass It’s generally your knees – I suspect an attempt of humor here. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9966 "2024-02-15T17:50:05Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > is that supposed to be ‘change gaits’? ‘change gates’ doesn’t make much sense – with your ass; and while I used to be able to come close to doing that with a horse that was trained and willing Yes, “gaits”. Sorry. If I knew the horse well, I could get it to go from a trot to a canter with seat alone, after which gentle coaxing with butt and reins to set the speed. I liked to coax a slow canter at similar speed to a trot because it’s a more comfortable ride. I admit it’s been decades. And I always found backing the horse up difficult but not impossible. Usually? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9967 "2024-02-15T17:52:38Z")
I have my California driver’s license memorized, even though I surrendered it in 2010. I do not have my British Columbia driver’s licence memorized. I am not confident about how to spell “licen(c/s)e” in either jurisdiction anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9968 "2024-02-15T18:01:30Z")
I had my old drivers license number memorized, but they changed it when I got REAL ID. I don’t know the new one. When you had to put your license plate number on your credit card slip when paying for gas, I always knew my plate number. That was several decades ago. On the very rare occasion I need it now, I have to go look. ---
**Author:** ![peccavi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peccavi/32/388_2.png) [@peccavi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peccavi)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9969 "2024-02-15T18:07:00Z")
Social Security number is what you enter when going into many federal facilities as a visitor. Once you’ve punched it in a dozen times, you’ve got it memorized. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9970 "2024-02-15T18:11:04Z")
And med facilities (and I think some businesses) used to constantly ask for SS as a records identifier, though they’ve moved away from that. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9971 "2024-02-15T18:16:25Z")
I know all the three-digit sections of my DL#, but I always mess up the order. I know my license plate and have memorized at least one credit card’s full info. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9972 "2024-02-15T18:21:41Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > > [@thorny\_locust](#): > > > > ‘change gates’ doesn’t make much sense – with your ass > > It’s generally your knees – I suspect an attempt of humor here. I don’t think I could manage a gate with either my knees or my ass; I’d need a hand. At least, unless the issue is jumping one instead of changing one. And as @squeegee says, if the horse is well trained you can get it to change gaits by shifting your seat. Helps a lot if you and the horse know the same signals. Some horses are easier to back up than others. A really good dressage horse with a skilled rider will back with a bit of seat adjustment and a nearly invisible hand motion. A horse that’s not trained to back up at all may be next to impossible whatever you do, at least whatever you do from on top of the horse. I actually tried pretty hard for years not to memorize my SSN (when I was a kid you only gave it to the tax people and your employer), but it eventually happened anyway; though when I’m writing it on forms at home I usually double check. I know the numbers on the car license plate but always have to check the letters. I don’t know the number on the work van at all. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9973 "2024-02-15T18:42:55Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > I had my old drivers license number memorized, but they changed it when I got REAL ID. I don’t know the new one. I have the same problem with my credit card. I had my _old_ credit card number memorized, then there was fraudulent activity on my account and they had to issue a new one. I have not yet memorized the new credit card number. Same with my license plate now that I think of it. I used to be able to remember the plate number on my old car, but I got a new plate issued when I got a new car, and I never memorized that one. I have never had my drivers license number memorized. I haven’t needed to enter it on paperwork often enough to do so. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9974 "2024-02-15T18:47:59Z")
If I’m being made a caregiver of one of those animals it’s my responsibility to keep them alive. I don’t want to have to worry about that damn cat every second. I was in the Army at a time before the internet when your SSN had to be on everything. It was on my dog tags, my ID card, I had to sign into the chow hall and with it. Every bit of Army paperwork has my SSN. Of course I have it burned into my brain. I don’t have anything else memorized. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9975 "2024-02-15T19:10:46Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > > [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > > > My answer to the “ride a horse” poll would be: I don’t know; I’ve never tried. > > Mmm, think of it like playing a violin with the same answer. Yes, exactly. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9976 "2024-02-15T19:21:14Z")
I rode a horse a few times in my youth. I suspect I could still ride a compliant horse. My niece had horses that would kill an inexperienced rider. Not one of them. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9977 "2024-02-15T19:31:49Z")
Basic rule of renting a horse at a stable: Turn down the one named after bad weather. The memorization questions: SSN, yes, after a stint in the navy. License plate, One of the two, the vanity one. The other is in a notepad on my extended memory (the phone). All else, No. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9978 "2024-02-15T19:35:02Z")
The metric system is the tool of the devil! My car gets forty rods to the hogshead and that’s the way I likes it! ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9979 "2024-02-15T19:40:26Z")
> [@colinfred](#): > > The fork never goes into the dominant hand. That’s where the knife goes. How often do you need a knife to eat? Soup? Nope. Salad? Nope.. Pizza? Nope. Sandwiches? Nope. etc etc etc. Just steaks and such. > [@thorny\_locust](#): > > Not all food needs to be cut with a knife. > > Some food doesn’t need to be cut at all, because it’s already in small enough pieces when it’s served. Other food doesn’t need to be cut with a knife because it’s tender enough to cut with a fork. > > For food that does need to be cut with a knife, I cut several pieces at once, then switch hands and eat them. Yep. And yes, the metric system is in everyday use. It’s just that many of us think in standard. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9980 "2024-02-15T19:41:28Z")
I know my license plate number from three plates ago by heart, but I’m a little iffy on my current one. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9981 "2024-02-15T19:50:39Z")
I just got a new car with a new plate. I don’t have it memorized. To be honest I didn’t have the previous one memorized either. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9982 "2024-02-15T20:01:42Z")
I’ve memorized my DL number, but it took decades. I intentionally memorize at least one CC number so I can use it w/o looking at the card for online purchases. Also for travel, so I can report it lost by number; I used to also memorize the CC phone number on the back. The travel thing is less necessary these days, since you can report a stolen card via the CC issuer’s app on your phone. What’s really cool, and I used this feature last summer after losing a physical wallet in a cab, is if you keep the credit card in your “wallet” app (at least on iPhone), _the issuer’s app will notice and put a new CC into your wallet app instantly_. Sweet! This worked really well in the EU where every big or tiny establishment has one of those little pay devices and you just touch your phone to it. You really don’t need the physical card almost anyplace you’d be in the EU. Cash still has utility, but not like other places. So if you lose a card (at least if you don’t lose your phone) it’s no biggee. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2024, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/9983 "2024-02-15T20:15:56Z")
Christ, can we just go metric already? I will celebrate by melting down one of my socket wrench sets. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380.md?page=498) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380.md?page=500)