# Things you are shocked people don't know **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 19, 2016, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348 "2016-09-19T14:50:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 15
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/281 "2016-09-29T06:59:10Z")
> [@Leo\_Krupe](#): > > I’ve come close to being mutilated by my mower: mowing on a slope, I have slipped, and the mower could’ve (but never did) run over my foot. With the safety bar, the blade would stop and I’d be bruised, but whole (if the mower hit me, which it never did–slipping only gave me a slightly twisted ankle). With a spinning blade, there would be blood on the outside of me. I prefer my blood to be inside. My grandfather got his foot under the deck of a riding lawn mower and lost the middle toe on one of his feet. To be fair to granddad, this was a [deeply funky lawn mower](http://www.mytractorforum.com/1267517-post6.html). (That may not be the exact model, but it’s pretty damn close.) ---
**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:** [September 29, 2016, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/282 "2016-09-29T10:11:10Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Some people find it easier to divide by two and add 10%? Really? Sure, our brains don’t all work the same way, and I certainly can use that method (like you, I have for tips), but multiplying by point six is like a no-brainer; you multiply by 6, and (obviously) shift the decimal point. What could be easier than that? > [@cochrane](#): > > Dividing by two and adding 10%. It’s easier mental math than multiplying by .6. That’s how I do mental calculations, too. Dividing by 2 and adding 10% is much easier for me, if anyone is keeping score. mmm ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/283 "2016-09-29T11:16:47Z")
If you asked me to multiply something by six, you know how I’d do it? Multiply by two, then multiply that result by three. It’s just easier for me to break it down into parts. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/284 "2016-09-29T11:21:11Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > you multiply by 6, and (obviously) shift the decimal point I do it like you. Thought I’d say something in case you were starting to feel lonely 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/285 "2016-09-29T12:19:11Z")
> [@Leo\_Krupe](#): > > I’ve come close to being mutilated by my mower: mowing on a slope, I have slipped, and the mower could’ve (but never did) run over my foot. I’ve come closer. At the edge of a yard, I stepped backwards off of a 5-foot-high retaining wall, and as I fell I managed to pull the lawn mower down after me. This was back in the '80s, when the mower didn’t shut off until/unless you hit the kill switch down on the engine. Fortunately the mower landed upside down next to me, but it damn well could have come down with the spinning blade on my head. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/286 "2016-09-29T13:00:25Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Dividing by 2 and adding 10% is much easier for me, if anyone is keeping score. I’m pretty sure the score is: 0.6 people do it one way, and 600 people do it the other way. ---
**Author:** ![WildBlueYonder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@WildBlueYonder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildBlueYonder)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/287 "2016-09-29T13:16:45Z")
> [@leahcim](#): > > My rule of thumb: In “college-educated person”, the “educated” describes the person, but “college” modifies “educated” – not the person directly. So it is hyphenated. > > Contrast “smelly educated person”. Both “smelly” and “educated” modify “person” directly, so no hyphen. > > I.e. a “smelly educated person” is an “educated person” who is also a “smelly person”. But a “college-educated person” is not an “educated person” who is also a “college person”. Exactly, but one has to know what this “modifying principle” is :D…I try desperately to not end sentences with prepositions but I only learned that relatively recently, so I imagine I can learn about hyphens! :dubious: That is a very good explanation though! Excellent! I’ll work on it! Appreciate it immensely. :D:D > [@pkbites](#): > > With only a very few states as an exception, no. In Michigan, its required-I cant imagine why any state would not ---
**Author:** ![Jennshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Jennshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennshark)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/288 "2016-09-29T14:26:10Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Don’t over-complicate things; just multiply kilometers by 0.6. It’s completely accurate enough for everyday use. > > ETA: And for temperature, just double Celsius and add 30 to get Fahrenheit. (20 C = 70 F) Again, completely fine for weather temperatures. Thanks, this is handy. I’m actually going to print it out and keep it handy! ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/289 "2016-09-29T15:52:52Z")
> [@WildBlueYonder](#): > > …I try desperately to not end sentences with prepositions but I only learned that relatively recently, so I imagine I can learn about hyphens! You can stop worrying about the prepositions: ending a sentence with a preposition is perfectly normal and natural in English, and most of the time it’s fully grammatical. John Dryden came up with the idea that avoiding “preposition stranding” sounded swanky for no better reason than that it wasn’t done in Latin. He was wrong then, and he hasn’t got any righter in the 316 years since he died. ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/290 "2016-09-29T15:58:48Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > I’m puzzled by this. It is elementary standard practice in navigation to orient the map so that north on the map points north, with the map is held horizontally. In other words, so that right/left on the map is oriented to right/left on the ground. The fact that (on a printed map) text may not be upright is of little consequence relative to the fact that landmarks may be identified in their natural positions without constant mental rotation. > > I can understand that many people do not orient their maps to the ground when driving, because the “landmarks” are usually just intersections, and the mental rotation is not difficult; keeping the text upright may be more important. But it’s certainly not true that “truly adept map-practitioners” fail to orient their maps to the ground. Any trained pilot or experienced cross-country hiker will always orient his map to the ground through force of (good) habit. That’s interesting – I seem to meet a lot of people who are quite dogmatic about “always hold the map the same way – north at the top – and always do the mental rotation whatever way”; and they appear to consider that the mental-rotation bit, in all its variations, is ridiculously easy (for me, it isn’t). I feel vindicated, to some extent ! ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/291 "2016-09-29T16:34:10Z")
> [@Sangahyando](#): > > That’s interesting – I seem to meet a lot of people who are quite dogmatic about “always hold the map the same way – north at the top – and always do the mental rotation whatever way”; and they appear to consider that the mental-rotation bit, in all its variations, is ridiculously easy (for me, it isn’t). I feel vindicated, to some extent ! I don’t know if it’s relevant, but mental rotation is one of the specific skills that shows the greatest sex bias (in favor of men). In any event - yes, you should certainly feel vindicated that people who do this are doing little more than a party trick, it’s poor navigation technique that works only under limited circumstances where the identification of landmarks is easy and exact bearings don’t matter. No trained navigator would do this in “real” navigation - if you have to (say) identify a distant runway from the air in haze, or distinguish two mountain passes separated by a bearing of 10 degrees, step one is to figure out precisely where north is and to orient your map correctly to the ground. It’s easy to find cites online, any basic instruction course on use of map/compass for orienteering etc. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/292 "2016-09-29T16:55:10Z")
I’m a valet driver and often must bring out the vehicle to someone who misplaced their ticket. In order to get around that obstacle we need to get the ticket number to match against the rack of keys we have hanging on the wall. For that we need: 1. Make, model, and color of the vehicle…license plate number and state would help, as would the approximate time you came in. 2. MATCHING license and registration. We need PROOF that _you_ and _this vehicle_ actually go together. _Oh, you borrowed this BMW from your Aunt in South Carolina? NOPE._ Rental? we need to match your name on your ID against the name on the rental agreement. **We need more than the say-so of a stranger to release a multi-thousand dollar piece of property!** ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/293 "2016-09-29T17:15:21Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > I don’t know if it’s relevant, but mental rotation is one of the specific skills that shows the greatest sex bias (in favor of men). I’m male; but don’t have that aptitude. The “mental-rotation-snobs” I’ve encountered, have tended on the whole to be male (by the way, **Nava** , no snark meant anywhere with any of this, against you – you discuss the matter civilly); and have tended to come up with disparagement of “clueless women who can’t handle a map properly” – and unfavourable comparison of me, to said clueless females. I’m glad to be made aware that these types are the ones who need to get a clue. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/294 "2016-09-29T17:15:39Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Some people find it easier to divide by two and add 10%? Really? Sure, our brains don’t all work the same way, and I certainly can use that method (like you, I have for tips), but multiplying by point six is like a no-brainer; you multiply by 6, and (obviously) shift the decimal point. What could be easier than that? Well, it depends on what the number is. Something like 60, yeah, I can do that easily. But convert 1480 kilometers into miles, it’s easy for me to half 1480 into 740 and then add 148 to get 888 rather than try to multiply 1480 by 6 in my head. If you find it easier and faster to do 1480\*6 in your head that’s great! (And even if I were doing it that way, I’d multiply 150 by 6 and then subtract 2 by 6 rather than directly try to figure out 148x6, since I can do the first two operations with minimal mental effort, but the latter would require more than I’m capable of.) ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/295 "2016-09-29T17:26:31Z")
I said “for everyday use,” meaning driving. If you want to drive at 1480 KPH, be my guest. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/296 "2016-09-29T19:26:27Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I said “for everyday use,” meaning driving. If you want to drive at 1480 KPH, be my guest. 😉 OK. The original post was more general, but the numbers given were in the small range. Yeah, for something like 50 or 60, that’s just times table stuff. No need to halve and 10% it. I was thinking in terms of distances, not speed. That would also fall under “everyday use.” ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/297 "2016-09-29T19:31:39Z")
The map orientation issue is what I dislike about driving with GPS. The orientation is constantly changing, and I can’t get used to it. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/298 "2016-09-29T19:51:19Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > The map orientation issue is what I dislike about driving with GPS. The orientation is constantly changing, and I can’t get used to it. I don’t know what you are using, but the 3 types that I’ve used all have the option to lock the display to up = North, if you prefer that. The thing that drives me nuts it’s when they don’t display the scale. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/299 "2016-09-29T19:55:14Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > The map orientation issue is what I dislike about driving with GPS. The orientation is constantly changing, and I can’t get used to it. The real answer, though is to change your mental model. The map is not changing its orientation. The map is steady, and you are turning around it - just like what you see when you look out of your windscreen. ---
**Author:** ![EdwardMartinIII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/59ef9b/32.png) [@EdwardMartinIII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EdwardMartinIII)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2016, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348/300 "2016-09-29T23:45:34Z")
> [@StGermain](#): > > I took a minor poll and was truly amazed at the number of people who didn’t know that flour was ground grain, most often wheat. They had no clue as to the origin. How could you not know that? > > StG For a while, I had a partner who was celiac and we had to check every restaurant carefully for wheat/gluten (this was before the big GF craze kicked in). I was kinda gobsmacked at how many restaurants had to be asked about flour. On at least two occasions (one of which ended unhappily for my partner), we were told “Oh yeah, there’s flour in it, but not _wheat_ flour.” (I wanted to ask “Was it… _monkey_ flour?!”) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348.md?page=14) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-are-shocked-people-dont-know/766348.md?page=16)