# Things you've been surprised you've had to explain at work
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [May 13, 2021, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959 "2021-05-13T02:42:26Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 5
### Author:  [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/81 "2021-05-13T17:16:15Z")
This was well before there was a cloud.
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### Author:  [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/82 "2021-05-13T17:16:25Z")
> [@kayaker](#):
>
> … she held up both of her hands and traced the left “L” with her right index finger…
That’s what I do but I do it down low where nobody will see 😂
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### Author:  [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/83 "2021-05-13T17:17:41Z")
> [@TheGunIsMightierThanThePen](#):
>
> From article:
> _People thought a third of a pound was less than a quarter of a pound. After all, three is less than four!_
They missed out on the chance to call it the “Double Sixth-Pounder” and get everyone expecting a mountain of meat.
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### Author:  [@its\_the\_daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/its_the_daddy)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/84 "2021-05-13T17:21:39Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#):
>
> I’ve heard the stories about places like Britain, Australia…
And where
“A pint of pure water weighs a pound and a quarter”
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### Author:  [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/85 "2021-05-13T17:25:21Z")
> [@RollOutTheBarrel](#):
>
> I was a jet engine mechanic in the Air Force and in tech school out instructor taught us the snap trick for when you get confused about which way you should be turning a wrench. Position your fingers as if you’re about to snap, point your fingers at the bolt, and then snap. If you are using your right hand, your fingers will move in a similar way to how they would move if you were tightening a bolt. The reverse is true for your left hand.
Engineers are familiar with the **[right hand rule](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right-hand_rule)** for vector multiplication. Since most screw threads are right-handed, the RHR is also useful for understanding which way to turn a nut or bolt:
1. Point thumb of right hand in direction you want the nut or bolt to move.
2. Clench other four fingers of right hand into a fist.
3. Fingers indicate which way to rotate nut or bolt to achieve movement in direction indicated by thumb.
Exception is left-handed fasteners, which are sometimes used on rotating machinery (e.g. the left pedal of a bicycle).
Obligatory XKCD reference:
> **[Right-Hand Rule](https://xkcd.com/199/)**
>
> To really expand your mind try some noncartesian porn. Edwin Abbot Abbott has nothing on 'Girls on Girls in Tightly Closed Nonorientable Spaces'.
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### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/86 "2021-05-13T18:07:49Z")
> [@kayaker](#):
>
> I know a woman who can’t differentiate right and left without doing a trick she learned. She holds her hands up, so that she is looking at the backs of her hands. Her left hand-thumb form an “L”, so she then knows that is her left.
> [@FloatyGimpy](#):
>
> I have this and it’s embarrassing if I get caught making an “L” with my index finger and thumb to know which is left. I am ambidextrous.
Also mentioned in the the Psychology Today article cited upthread:
> [@](#):
>
> Left-right confusion seems to happen more often when we are under [stress](https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/basics/stress) or time pressure, so slowing down a bit is probably a good idea. Also, when you are in doubt as to which side is which, an old trick is to make an L shape with the thumb and the index finger of each hand. The one that actually looks like the letter L is the left hand.
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### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/87 "2021-05-13T18:09:53Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#):
>
> I believe the correct terms are “driver seat” and “passenger seat”.
Which is how Mrs Piper gives me driving instructions when she’s in charge of the map. Or “Your side” / “my side”. Much more effective than “left” or “right”.
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### Author:  [@its\_the\_daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/its_the_daddy)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/88 "2021-05-13T18:16:36Z")
My son is dyslexic, and he does this too.
Of course, we drive on the left side of the road, from the right-hand seat. But I guess that doesn’t make much difference?
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### Author:  [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/89 "2021-05-13T18:20:22Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> Left-right confusion seems to happen more often when we are under [stress](https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/basics/stress) or time pressure
If we had to give my dad immediate directions, left/right did no good. “Turn east now!” was better, or “Tack to starboard!” (ol’ WWII Navy man…)
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### Author:  [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/90 "2021-05-13T18:35:26Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#):
>
> We require people change their password every year. Students try to use the same password they used before, unclear on the meaning of “change.”than
Apparently sometimes “change” means " type in your old password as the new one" and then " type in your old password to confirm it’s the new one" - because using the same password has worked for me more than once
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### Author:  [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/91 "2021-05-13T18:36:06Z")
> [@its\_the\_daddy](#):
>
> Of course, we drive on the left side of the road, from the right-hand seat. But I guess that doesn’t make much difference?
When I’m in a car, I remember:
Right turn = easy
Left turn = watch out you don’t get killed.
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### Author:  [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/92 "2021-05-13T18:44:54Z")
> [@74westy](#):
>
> When I’m in a car, I remember:
>
> Right turn = easy
> Left turn = watch out you don’t get killed.
He’s turning left. Good luck everybody!
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### Author:  [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/93 "2021-05-13T19:01:31Z")
> [@doreen](#):
>
> > [@RealityChuck](#):
> >
> > We require people change their password every year. Students try to use the same password they used before, unclear on the meaning of “change.”than
>
> Apparently sometimes “change” means " type in your old password as the new one" and then " type in your old password to confirm it’s the new one" - because using the same password has worked for me more than once
You usually are blocked from using the same password. It’s basic security, though some organizations don’t do security well.
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### Author:  [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/94 "2021-05-13T19:03:23Z")
I’ve had coworkers that often need to calculate pretty simple things like markups and discounts and can’t do it without a percent button on a calculator. Mark up a $250 item 35%? 250 x 1.35. They simply couldn’t see how it worked.
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### Author:  [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/95 "2021-05-13T19:04:13Z")
I am a teacher. My coworkers all have graduate degrees.
I once was discussing the barriers some of my students have and that many don’t know simple everyday things that we all take for granted. The example I used was a 17yo girl who did knot know how address an envelope for mailing, where to put the stamp, or how to write a return address.
One of my fellow teachers then said that he didn’t know that either.
Uh…
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### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/96 "2021-05-13T19:13:31Z")
How old was the other teacher? Writing a letter is a lost art for the new crop of young adults. Bills are paid online.
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### Author:  [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/97 "2021-05-13T19:22:57Z")
> [@Lancia](#):
>
> The example I used was a 17yo girl who did knot know how address an envelope for mailing, where to put the stamp, or how to write a return address.
I used to have a hard time knowing where to put the return address, but then I realized it was the part of the envelope that I usually ripped up when opening a letter.
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### Author:  [@veryfrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/veryfrank)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/98 "2021-05-13T19:33:51Z")
I work building services, and unfortunately our work order software allows the tenants, who usually have a “facilities” person on their staff whose duty it is to report deficiencies to the building, to choose what category to put things under. Hence they’ll choose Security for a funny smell, fr’example. Or they’ll skip what should be obvious: they’ll scroll right past “Locksmith” in the pulldown menu and submit a request for keys under “Miscellaneous.”
One tenant kept putting burned out lights under “Electrical - No Power” which is the category that’s supposed to be used for tripped breakers. I called to tell him he could choose “Lights to be replaced” and he insisted “But these are electric lights!” Biting back some serious levels of sarcasm, I calmly told him, “I think you’ll find that all the lights in this building run off of electricity.”
I still don’t know how many of our tenants choose their facilities people, as few of them understand even rudimentary basics of simple office maintenance.
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### Author:  [@TheGunIsMightierThanThePen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheGunIsMightierThanThePen)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/99 "2021-05-13T19:49:05Z")
Sounds great at first, but then people get underwhelmed by what they _thought_ would be a mountain of meat, bad word of mouth gets around and bad reviews flood the web, and A&W goes right back to square one.
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### Author:  [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2021, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-been-surprised-youve-had-to-explain-at-work/941959/100 "2021-05-13T20:22:01Z")
> [@Saintly\_Loser](#):
>
> But I played hockey as a kid, and played left-handed. I wear my watch on my right wrist, unlike most righties.
We played “garage hockey,” and I naturally played left-handed even though I’m completely right-handed otherwise. I always wore my wristwatch on my right wrist, because I was copying my dad, and he was left-handed.
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