# The little mysteries of life which you can't understand **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 29, 2009, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995 "2009-09-29T16:21:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f08c70/32.png) [@Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crowbar_of_Irony_3)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/1 "2009-09-29T16:21:39Z")
Some people are confounded by quantum theory and mathematical proofs; but I’m sure there are many other little mysteries of life which just leave us reeling. Like 1. How does those ladies manage to survive in a lecture theater where the air-con is freezing cold but they dress as if they are going to beach? All the hunks are wrapped up in jackets and etc. 2. Where does all those meat come from? I never studied how, but looking at the amount of chicken, beef, fish and etc. we consumed per day as a civilisation, are there really so much poultry to go around? 3. It’s still befuddling to me how a computer work. Yes, I study Computer Science, but how could just a millions of 1s and 0s enable networking, 3d graphics, word processing and more is still like a ‘wow’ to me. What’s yours? ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/2 "2009-09-29T16:25:12Z")
Why does the traffic light always turn red just before I get there? ---
**Author:** ![luvrbcs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@luvrbcs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/luvrbcs)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/3 "2009-09-29T17:06:32Z")
Why do people, while annoying you by passing a car slowly, speed up when they move over to the right lane. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/4 "2009-09-29T17:13:54Z")
How do telephone, CD players, TV’s, etc., reproduce all those sounds? Do they have a little orchestra hidden in there somewhere? ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/5 "2009-09-29T17:49:25Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > How do telephone, CD players, TV’s, etc., reproduce all those sounds? Do they have a little orchestra hidden in there somewhere? Don’t be silly. It’s just the speaker membrane vibrating just the right way. Now computers, on the other hand, have tribes of little dwarves (yes, I know it’s a pleonasm. They’re really small) engraving stuff on the hard drive and running information to and fro. How come the last cookie is always the best one ? ---
**Author:** ![I\_Am\_The\_Lorax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19adc/32.png) [@I\_Am\_The\_Lorax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Am_The_Lorax)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/6 "2009-09-29T17:57:24Z")
Because I always lick the last cookie, you didn’t know? Why is Mom’s mac and cheese always so much better than mine, even though I use her recipe? ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/7 "2009-09-29T18:24:17Z")
> [@CrazyChop](#): > > Some people are confounded by quantum theory and mathematical proofs; but I’m sure there are many other little mysteries of life which just leave us reeling. Like > > 1. Where does all those meat come from? I never studied how, but looking at the amount of chicken, beef, fish and etc. we consumed per day as a civilisation, are there really so much poultry to go around? [23.383 _million_](http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_chickens_are_killed_each_day_for_consumption_in_the_us) chickens are killed for food production _every day_ in the United States alone. That’s nearly nine billion a year. You don’t see it because (generally speaking) society chooses not to look at slaughterhouses. . ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/8 "2009-09-29T18:38:07Z")
Why, when people stop at a traffic light, do they not go all the way up to the line (if there is one) and then stop? Why do they stop far away from it and then, as they are sitting there waiting for the light to change, do they lift their foot off the brake, let the car roll a few feet, brake again, and repeat four or five times? What is up with that? ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/9 "2009-09-29T18:44:20Z")
When women do that thing where… no, when women say that… no, when women feel that… okay, just women in general. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/10 "2009-09-29T18:50:38Z")
What’s up with socks? ---
**Author:** ![Tikki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5daacb/32.png) [@Tikki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tikki)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/11 "2009-09-29T18:54:18Z")
I shall be eternally baffled as to why people litter. Especially when there is a trash can nearby. It makes no sense whatsoever to besmurch one’s surroundings that way. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/12 "2009-09-29T18:54:43Z")
> [@CrazyChop](#): > > 1. Where does all those meat come from? I never studied how, but looking at the amount of chicken, beef, fish and etc. we consumed per day as a civilisation, are there really so much poultry to go around? If you want to see evidence of chicken farming, fly over Northwest Arkansas sometime. That is where Tyson is located as well as several other producers. You can see giant chicken houses one after one all over the place for many miles on end. ---
**Author:** ![sparky\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/77aa72/32.png) [@sparky\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sparky_1)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/13 "2009-09-29T18:54:54Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > Why, when people stop at a traffic light, do they not go all the way up to the line (if there is one) and then stop? Why do they stop far away from it and then, as they are sitting there waiting for the light to change, do they lift their foot off the brake, let the car roll a few feet, brake again, and repeat four or five times? What is up with that? I HATE that when I am on my motorcycle. If a car is stopped behind me, then I have the bike in neutral and both feet on the ground. So, the slow creeper makes me have to put it in gear and ride forward repeatedly. Grrrr. ---
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Juicy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@Soylent\_Juicy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Juicy)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/14 "2009-09-29T19:26:50Z")
> [@Tikki](#): > > I shall be eternally baffled as to why people litter. Especially when there is a trash can nearby. It makes no sense whatsoever to besmurch one’s surroundings that way. …and why smokers flick their butts or stomp them on the ground and _just leave them there._ There is no “magic butt fairy” who will clean them up. How hard is it to squash out a cigarette and throw the butt into the trash? Honestly. Walking in my neighbourhood is like wading through an ashtray, I’m not exaggerating. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![CT\_Damsel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CT\_Damsel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CT_Damsel)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/15 "2009-09-29T19:27:28Z")
Why do the shelves in the grocery store have a lip on the edge? Ostensibly to keep the products from sliding off? I could understand this if I lived in CA where there is always a chance of an earthquake. I ask because some of the products I purchase are as tall as the shelf and the lip makes it very difficult to remove the item. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/16 "2009-09-29T19:32:46Z")
> [@Soylent\_Juicy](#): > > There is no “magic butt fairy”… Well there was, but then she married Marc Anthony and it got a lot bigger. ---
**Author:** ![PatriotGrrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9dc877/32.png) [@PatriotGrrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatriotGrrrl)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/17 "2009-09-29T20:16:30Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > Why, when people stop at a traffic light, do they not go all the way up to the line (if there is one) and then stop? Why do they stop far away from it and then, as they are sitting there waiting for the light to change, do they lift their foot off the brake, let the car roll a few feet, brake again, and repeat four or five times? What is up with that? > [@sparky\_1](#): > > I HATE that when I am on my motorcycle. If a car is stopped behind me, then I have the bike in neutral and both feet on the ground. So, the slow creeper makes me have to put it in gear and ride forward repeatedly. Grrrr. Because they enjoy controlling you. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/18 "2009-09-29T20:31:35Z")
> [@I\_Am\_The\_Lorax](#): > > Why is Mom’s mac and cheese always so much better than mine, even though I use her recipe? Because Mom makes it with _ **love** _. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/19 "2009-09-29T20:37:22Z")
Why can’t I figure out algebra? I’m not stupid. I’m good at sitting down and picking apart problems and taking them one step at a time. I soon bogged down in algebra in high school, and nowadays, when I try to take an online tutorial, my brain glazes over about two pages into it. I think I’m missing that lobe of my brain. ---
**Author:** ![Surly\_Chick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Surly\_Chick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surly_Chick)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995/20 "2009-09-29T20:37:56Z")
> [@Tikki](#): > > I shall be eternally baffled as to why people litter. Especially when there is a trash can nearby. It makes no sense whatsoever to besmurch one’s surroundings that way. When I lived in Albania, I would watch people standing **next** to a trash can throw their garbage on the ground. They just didn’t get it and it made me crazy. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-little-mysteries-of-life-which-you-cant-understand/511995.md?page=2)