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1k5339
|
what is activation energy?
|
I know the definition, but I just can't get my head around the concept.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1k5339/eli5_what_is_activation_energy/
|
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"It depends on which branch of science you mean. I'm going to assume Chemistry - the activation energy is the energy barrier that must be reached in order for a reaction to proceed.\n\nImagine a big hill, and you're pushing a cart of rocks up the hill, you need to work very hard to get the rocks to the top (supplying energy) but once you reach the top, the cart can roll down the other side easily (the reaction). This metaphor works particularly well in my opinion because energy activation graphs often look like [hills](_URL_0_)\n\nLet's assume we're dealing with a liquid mixture of two chemicals that require a certain energy to react, by supplying heat you increase the mixtures temperature - which increases the kinetic energy of the individual particles, bonds can break or form - depending on the kind of reaction. When the particles are more energetic they become more likely to react (different temperatures result in different particle elasticities) and so the reaction is more likely to proceed.\n ",
"the amount of energy need to be input to start the desired reaction.\nevery day example: you want to light a match, you first must expel energy to strike it."
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"http://www.google.ie/imgres?imgurl=http://www.chem.ufl.edu/~itl/4411/matter/FG14_013.GIF&imgrefurl=http://www.chem.ufl.edu/~itl/4411/lectures/lec_m.html&h=400&w=600&sz=49&tbnid=Zsbg5gJkaGjtLM:&tbnh=82&tbnw=123&zoom=1&usg=__eS7Fp2wVbxcsFC_jn0tgwBc8YK0=&docid=eF6_5cuKIBUtJM&sa=X&ei=34sHUqS5I8SEhQe3xYGADQ&ved=0CEIQ9QEwAw&dur=4442#imgdii=Zsbg5gJkaGjtLM%3A%3BPBsNceyBzJcQfM%3BZsbg5gJkaGjtLM%3A"
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|
1l2sdj
|
why can't iran build a nuclear bomb yet?
|
I mean its the 21st century, the first nuke was made decades ago and made drastic improvements only a few years later after its conception (Soviet H-Bomb). Why dont they just google it?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1l2sdj/eli5_why_cant_iran_build_a_nuclear_bomb_yet/
|
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"Because its Iran. Anything they do, you better believe that someone is watching or listening. I mean look at N.Korea, every nation is watching that place. Sure, NK (allegedly) built a nuclear weapon, but that's all because they are borders with china. On the other hand, Iran is surrounded by countries where The US armed forces are base. They can't easily get Resources and the right manpower to do the job\n",
"notsureifserious.jpg... but hey, why not?\n\nMaterials. Hard to come by any fissible (or fusible) nuclear materials such as weapons grade Plutonium or Uranium. These have to be highly refined to get. Not an easy task. \n\nThe recent Stuxnet trojan helped make sure they still don't have the materials... yet. And they're still under a LOT of sanctions, but nothing that money can't get around if they want The Bomb that bad. Yet and still, it appeared that Iran was getting close, enough that Stuxnet became a thing... and actually worked.\n\nNot to mention that other countries are actively, beyond the sanctions and cute trojan programs, doing all they can to ensure Iran doesn't get The Bomb. You can probably imagine some of the ways that's happening...\n\nHowever, excepting those problems, technically, they can. Probably. Maybe. Won't know until they actually pop one off underground or something. Point is, either a Fat Man or Little Boy is just THAT simple to make for any decent sized and funded program, when you get down to it, but it still remains that the problem is decent fissible/fusible materials for them to make it with.\n\nAnd if you're wondering why they can't just use the non-weapons grade material that would run a nuclear plant, well, it's not dense enough and/or the right isotopes of the material to achieve criticality. In a Little Man type bomb, nothing much would happen, it was totally dependent on the criticality to explode (excepting a charge to force the materials together to achieve said criticality.) In a Fat Man type bomb, you'd just have a bomb that's a little dirty (spreads a bit of nuclear material about, throwing off radiation, sort of like Chernobyl or Fukishima) because it is dependent on crushing the material to criticality, so it is an actual bomb on it's own, even without the nuclear payload.\n\nThe other way they could get the materials is buy it... but the Big Nations of the Earth are probably watching for that so... they're trying to do it with their own centrifuges instead of buy it.\n\nWill they ever get there? Time will tell... likely as not, they will, given enough time and effort. And sneakiness. I would hope that the day will come they don't have to think they need it. But that's for another thread.\n\n(Ok, reddit... lay it on me how I'm so wrong I should crawl into a small cave and die.)",
"A couple of reasons. The first part is they need uranium. And not just any uranium, but weapons grade uranium at 90% purity. Typical uranium for reactors is below 20%, usually around 5% I think. Enriching from 5-90 is hard, but enriching from 20-90 is relatively easy. This is part of the reason why Israel is so concerned about Iran enriching even to 20%. Currently, I don't know how much uranium they have on hand, but from what I know, they have enough uranium where if they decided to enrich it, they could probably get < 5 bombs.\n\nAnother is building the bomb itself. Nukes require delicate and precise implosion triggers to start the reaction. It's essentially a sphere of bombs that crush the uranium within it. Getting the detonator to fire precisely is incredibly difficult. It's also believed to be a tell-tale sign that Iran does indeed want a bomb, and Israeli intelligence would likely find out sooner or later. It was rumored that Iran ran computer model simulations of implosion triggers several years ago, but not much has been heard since.\n\nThere's also the Mossad, the Israeli intelligence unit. They've assassinated several prominent nuclear scientists, which would hurt any effort. Nuclear physicists aren't exactly common, especially in Iran. The Stuxnet virus also hurt their enrichment program, but it's widely believed that Iran has regained their lost capability by now. They've also supplied Iran with faulty parts, and even were purported to have slipped a bomb into a shipment that detonated within a nuclear facility. That's just a rumor, though.\n\nThe last is political. The ultimate decision rests with Khamenei, and currently he has not given the green light for production. \n\nThe most likely scenario currently playing out is that Iran isn't necessarily trying to build a bomb, but rather the capability to do so quickly should they feel the need. They know if they tried to actually build the bomb, Israel would find out eventually and a military strike would be imminent. Therefore, Iran wants to be able to make the decision to build a bomb and have it be made within a couple of months. Right now, it would probably take a year, giving Israel and the US plenty of time to nip it in the bud. 2-3 months is probably the goal, with 6 months probably more realistic. Even that might be too long, but it's pretty obvious that Iran simply isn't willing to risk their own annihilation over building a bomb unless they felt as though an invasion was imminent. "
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ennuxb
|
why/how does talking therapy work?
|
[deleted]
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/ennuxb/eli5_whyhow_does_talking_therapy_work/
|
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"We have an inborn need to talk about things that bother us. Sometimes though, due to mental issues (depression or illness whatever) we don’t & hold things in. Some illnesses cause you to dwell on the same issue for a long time, and think it’s way worse than it is. Or you imagine that others around you have an opinion that they don’t. \n\nTalking to someone who can help you sort through those thoughts can be very helpful. \n\nThe medicine that’s prescribed for different mental conditions can help lower the mental barriers to correcting your thinking, but it’s not a cure-all. You need to talk through your feelings and thoughts.",
"From what I can understand, it is the process itself. I will actually use a plot point from Season 6 of Brooklyn 99.\n\nJake Peralta despises therapy and therapists because 'they do not work'. Jake stated he went to therapy once and it didn't do anything. Even though he has been shot, held at gunpoint and forced to read a suicide note, imprisoned for crimes he didn't commit, etc, he never went to therapy to deal with those issues.\n\nIn one particular episode, where they were dealing with a murdered wife and missing husband, who the suspect committed the crime, Jake insists the bad guy is the therapist, because 'all therapists are creepy'. He uses the fictional character of Hannibal Lecter to prove his point.\n\nAt the end, the therapists turns out to be the bad guy, and is holding Jake at gunpoint. As a delaying tactic, Jake talks about why he thinks therapy doesn't work.\n\nHe was forced to take therapy due to an incident at school, and in the process his parents realized they had nothing in common and filed for divorce, even though the therapy was supposed to be about Jake's actions, That is why Jake dislikes therapy and therapists.\n\nBy actually discussing the point, Jake was able to get to the core of this issue and understand the why of it, relieving any tension this may have created subconsciously.\n\nAnalysis, comparison, extrapolation of a problem can alleviate a problem. But it may take more than one attempt to come to a breakthrough like that. It can take multiple sessions. Others may have a a similar problem and they would discuss their coping mechanisms. Others may offer a viewpoint that you hadn't considered to the issue in a new light that allows you to understand it just a little bit better. But you can't get to that point, without discussing the issue"
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g0mvie
|
why do wild animals in need of help so easily trust humans?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/g0mvie/eli5_why_do_wild_animals_in_need_of_help_so/
|
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"They don't, unless they are in such a dire situation that they're unable to attack or escape. The snake in the video seems barely able to move.",
"I present you this [counter point video](_URL_0_) that they don't actually know, and most of the time it's very dangerous to approach animals, even if your intention is to help. Sometimes, if nothing bad happens to the animal, it may relax a little bit and you can try to pour water etc. to help them out. A lot of times though they can snap at you even if nothing bad happened and it looks calm.",
"I'm not an animal expert but I have two possible theories:\n\n1. Small animals (and even large ones when injured) are helpless and completely at our mercy. Maybe they don't fight because they know that they don't have a chance. \n\n2. Animals are way smarter than we give them credit for. My cat, for example, knows when I'm feeling down and sits in my lap. I can't tell him that I'm sad but he can read my body language and generally catch my vibes. Animals speak primarily through body language, it's a very important way of communicating. Let's say you're walking down the street at night and a random guy comes up to you and says \"hey, come here, I won't hurt you\" but you can tell just by looking at him that he's going to mess you up if you follow him. So you react accordingly. Animals are the same. \n\nThis is not to say that they aren't also terrified of us, but if they are injured or stuck all they can really do is let someone help or hurt them."
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bkwhea
|
how do animals keep their teeth healthy without visits to the dentist?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/bkwhea/eli5_how_do_animals_keep_their_teeth_healthy/
|
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"They don't, really. Wild animals have dental problems much earlier and much faster than animals in captivity whose owners force better dental hygeine on them. For many wild animals, this means the age they live to in the wild can be drastically lower than it would be in captivity, as many animals die shortly after they start having major dental issues.\n\nBut some species do have some habits that help, like chewing on hard things in a way that rubs plaque off their teeths' surfaces, etc."
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9uxrgv
|
why is china cracking down on the uighur people?
|
From official reasons to political reasons to social reasons to unofficial reasons for this crackdown?
& #x200B;
All the news outlets are only talking how they are cracking down on these people not why.
Wikipedia has some information but theres a huge gap between 2009 and 2018. I mean 9 years is a lot of missing time. If anyone can enlighten thank you very much.
& #x200B;
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/9uxrgv/eli5_why_is_china_cracking_down_on_the_uighur/
|
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"The basic idea is that they don't want a religion to be superior than the communist party. This is the basis on which they've systematically rid the country of Islam, Christianity and some other folk religion.\n\nThat said, no one wants to fight back because of economic retribution. Most middle Eastern countries don't speak a word because they can be punished. For example, Pakistan has taken loans from China and isn't able to repay. Now they can't talk back as it will only bring them trouble.",
"The reasons go all the way back to the 1930s and 1940s when there were two attempts by (mainly) Uighurs to break away from China and found an \"East Turkestan Republic\".\n\nThere are still some separatist groups , and there has been an increasing ethnic tension between Uighurs and Han Chinese who moved into the region, especially its northern cities.\n\nThere have been many terror attacks from separatists over the years, and the current crackdown seems to be the result of an escalation beginning with a knife attack in February 2017 in wich eight people died. But China keeps tight control about information in that region and we don't know enough to really give a clear picture of how things have developed.\n\nIn any case, ultimately the reason is that the Chinese government is *extremely* worried about any kind of separatism because they have a gigantic multi-ethnic country with dozens of groups that might get ideas if they see anyone succeeding in breaking off - that could lead to a civil war with horrendous death tolls. So the government cracks down very hard on any active separatists. This is also ultimately the reason for the situation with Taiwan.",
"If China allows any political dissent within their country, the communist party loses. They have consistently chosen economic reform over political reform since Deng modernizations in the 1970s. The have moved away from the communist system in hopes of buying loyalty from the common citizen. \n\nThe Uighurs represent a competing claim from loyalty from the citizens of western China. This also explains the repression within Tibet. I would characterize the repression as political rather than religious, however. Yes the repression is happening to religious groups, but not necessarily because they are religious. Rather they would undermine the control the Party has over the citizen. ",
"The Uyghurs have made a number of previous attempts to separate from China, or at least to obtain a greater level of independence from Chinese rule. \n\nMuch like Tibet, China has responded to this by cracking down on the Uyghur people, and flooding the Xinjiang Province (the north-western part of China where Uyghurs live) with Han settlers. This has caused even greater tension, as the richer cities tend to be dominated by Han Chinese, and there is a perception among some Uyghurs that the Chinese are essentially trying to stack them out of their own 'homeland'. \n\nThis has led to bombings and other terrorist-style attacks by Uyghur Separatists, which in turn has fuelled even greater crackdowns by China. It's basically a vicious cycle that you see with lots of separatist movements: greater resistance leads to greater crackdown, which in turn spawns even stronger resistance/attacks.\n\nThe other main reason for China cracking down so heavily is to discourage other ethnic groups (especially the Tibetans) from having similar ideas. China is made up of many different ethnic groups, often located in the more remote parts of the country that are difficult to administer from Beijing. "
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87ykob
|
how has my phone (and other phones belonging to lucky people) survived falling onto hard floor without even a crack?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/87ykob/eli5_how_has_my_phone_and_other_phones_belonging/
|
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"Glass is surprisingly a lot stronger than most people believe. The reason glass shatters or cracks from impacts is usually due to imperfections in the manufacturing process. These imperfections are often too small to see with the naked eye. Depending on how precisely it is made, there will be more or less imperfections. These imperfections give a weak point in the structure so when it receives an impact, that is the first area to fail. Since glass is very brittle, once a single area is compromised, the crack tends to propogate (spread) quickly and even shatter. It's like how something is easier to rip once a notch is cut in it. The force required to propogate a crack is much less than the force required to cause a material to fail on its own. There are very well engineered glass cups that are made to have minimal imperfections that you can easily drop from above your head onto a hard floor without shattering or cracking. ",
"When a force impacts a larger surface area, the force is spread out. Plus the case and glass are engineered to be at least moderately resistant. Plus just blind luck.\n\nI took my phone on a half-marathon to play music from. I dropped it at one point and it skidded across the pavement and struck a curb with only a minor dent in the corner. A few weeks later I bent over to tie my shoes and my phone fell a foot from my shirt pocket and lightly landed on the pavement but the screen had cracked.",
"I once threw my sister's Samsung at the floor as strong as I could, and all it ended up doing was just separating the phone parts. We combined the parts back and not only did it survive, but there were no visible cracks.\n\nI believe it does come to how your phone was made, whether carefully or hastily. ",
"It depends how it lands as well. If it lands flat face down with a smack then it puts the most G force into all the components which can be damaged. If it lands on one corner and sort of rattles around a bit before it touches down, that can reduce the overall impact of the fall. ",
"Gorilla glass keeps getting better and they design phones to be dropped. I've never used a case or screen protector and never get a scratch, even with keys in my pocket.\n\nI think cases and screen protectors are a gigantic scam. You pay $300 for a phone to be thin and then wrap it in a thick, ugly piece of plastic. Everyone acts like you're crazy to not have one though.",
"Part of it is luck (how the phone lands coupled with the internal structure of the phone), part of it is the specific materials the phone is made out of. Some use better glass than others, and some use other materials as well that help absorb shocks.\n\nI'm still using a Note 3 that has been dropped dozens of times on hard surfaces. It's edges are deformed, cracked and chipped... but because they and most of the body is plastic, and it has just the tiniest gap between the screen glass and the actual edges, the flexible plastic can absorb enough of the energy before it reaches the glass.\n\nPersonally, I'm a big fan of plastic. Sure, glass or metal look and feel nicer, but functionally they are inferior for a phone."
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1wvvk5
|
why do girls, with virtually no boobs, wear bras?
|
Hi!
Just thought if this as I, in my hallway, looked at my magnificent semi-fatguy-goes-bodybuilding-body; I've got bigger boobs than my ex-gf and my current.
Both of them uses bras, but I don't. I don't see why I should wear one. They, on the other hand, who are as good as completely flat with the bras off, uses them.
There's nothing to support, really, so that one reason probably goes away.
So, why is this? Marketing? Habit? Because girls are supposed to wear them? Trying to make the boobs look bigger like some Spinal Tap-stuffing-thingie?
I don't want to ask my gf, because I don't want her to think that I don't like the way she looks :)
TL;DR Why do girls without boobs wear bras when there are nothing to really lift/support/whatever?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1wvvk5/eli5_why_do_girls_with_virtually_no_boobs_wear/
|
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"To create the illusion of boobs",
"- Embarrassment. \"What if somebody sees my nipples through/down my top?\"\n- to feel 'female'\n- actually, not all of them do!",
"Bras help some girls look like they actually have a little bit of something there. And without bras, girls' nipples often show through their shirts.\n\nBut basically, in our society, girls are expected to wear bras so these girls are just following the social norm",
"My grandmother once told me that when she was a young married woman, she wouldn't have dreamt of going outside--even just to the edge of her yard to empty the mailbox--without a girdle on. She wasn't looking for compression. (She was slender as a reed.) It was just What One Does. The bra thing is similar. There are women who will walk down Main Street without them and not care whether people can tell, but the majority accept, without question, that that is just not acceptable behavior. It's a cultural thing. It's got nothing to do with any practical consideration. (I'm speaking of the U.S., here.)\n",
"Firstly, there is often more breast tissue than is immediately apparent. For wide-rooted breasts, a significant portion of breast tissue can lie around the underarm area. So don't underestimate the mass of boob just because they don't stick out much at the front! \n\nA well-fitted bra will support all the tissue and cup it so that the stuff which tends to lie at the sides is comfortably moved to create fuller breasts and more cleavage. \n\nBreast tissue can also be very uncomfortable when moving quickly, especially when jogging. Imagine wearing a hoodie, with something heavy in the pocket on the front. You know the way it bounces around when you run? That's how boobs feel, even small ones, and it can be painful! The right bra eliminates that. \n\nThey can also protect sore breasts and nipples from rubbing, smooth outlines under clothing, and make you feel good about your body. ",
"Because even if I have small boobs, I wear a 10B, if I walk up and down the stairs, it still hurts... and I don't love my small boobs so bras give them better shape.\n\nAnd youd be surprised just how far breast tissue actually goes.\n\nEdit: 10B is the same as 30B. The 10 measures the circumference too. \n\nAlthough 30 is the supposed inches around my underbust... I actually measure 28\". So i should be wearing a 28C (8C) bra but that's so insanely hard to find so I wear it's sister bra. \n\n/r/abrathatfits is amazing. Friend went from 30B to 30E cause she didn't know how to size herself... And hasn't bought a Bra in years. ",
"Because it's kind of chilly without one. Also I just kind of feel naked without. But I couldn't care less about looking like I have boobs, so I definitely don't wear one to \"look like I have more\".",
"Even small-breasted girls undergo changes in their nipples during puberty. Most women's nipples are larger and puffier than men's, and so even a small-breasted woman will have nipples that are noticeable through clothing. Women's shirts also tend to be made of thinner fabric than men's, and women don't commonly wear undershirts as men do, so the nipples will be even more noticeable than on men. \n\nSure some of it is marketing, some of it may be for the visual effect of padding, and some of it just because it's what women are taught is proper. But even small breasted women have some breast tissue, and it can be nice to have support for what is a sensitive area. Men's breast tissue is not the same as women's - men's is just adipose tissue, while women's is a lot of glandular tissue surrounded by connective tissue and adipose tissue - and this results in our breasts being more sensitive, even if small. Even a small-breasted woman has all the necessary mammary equipment! Just as some men like to wear briefs or boxer briefs to keep their junk secure, it can feel more comfortable for a woman to have her breasts, however small, feeling secure. \n\nTL;DR nip-related social propriety and personal preferences for comfort",
"I have a small chest, I wear a bra because I dislike my nipples showing and a little extra padding is more comfortable. They look smoother with a bra on. ",
"to hide the nips",
"Because clothes are rough against sensitive breasts. Smaller tits does not necessarily mean less sensitive.",
"I am extremely flat-chested and never wear a bra unless I go out in public wearing a tight/thin shirt so my nipples don't show. I hate wearing one though because they are very uncomfortable. ",
"I have small boobs ( like halfway between an a and b cup) that probably don't need a bra but if I don't wear one, they look all pokey and awkward through my shirt. The bra helps them look normal. Also it prevents my shirt rubbing on my nips. Chafing's a bitch.",
"To make it look like we have boobs and to protect le nips from the harsh elements. ",
"I know it's been said already but I'll say it again: I'm a flat chested woman but I have to cover up my prominent nipples. I actually don't care if they show but it's inappropriate and I get tired of the stares, from both men and women. If it were socially acceptable to show your nips then I would never wear a bra.",
"Nipples poking through shirts are taboo in some places, so that's not a great idea. I myself use a bra even though I don't fill the cups much. Mine are weird shaped and lumpy. I use a bra, with a tank top over it to give me a nice shape and a bit of chest. It just looks better in clothes to have a bit on top cause I'm a bigger girl.",
"A female friend of mine sleeps with her bra on. I have seen her boobs, and they're just not present. I (also female) asked her why she slept with her bra on (we were travelling and shared a hotel room). Her answer? \"So I can feel like there's something there\". ",
"I used to be a C but I lost a shitload of weight due to illness, dropped down to an A. Wearing a nice bra with a bit of padding helps me feel more confident while I'm trying to pack the fat back on.\n\nAlso yes, the nipples thing everyone else has sad.",
"To make it look like they have boobs. \n\nSource: female.",
"As a member of the itty bitty community, I'm much more comfortable not wearing a bra. However, society frowns upon women who don't wear them in public--somehow it's ok for women to show a ton of cleavage, but seeing a woman's nipple underneath her shirt is very taboo :/ For that reason, the workplace is about the only place I wear a bra. But even with a sports bra and a thick t-shirt on, my nips will sometimes pop through, so I wonder if it's even worth the trouble..lol :)",
"i really (personally) dont like my nipples showing that is all.",
"For support. Even if you barely have boobs, what you do have still needs to be supported. And definitely the nipple thing that everyone else is saying, too. ",
"Cuz its cold",
"2 words: nipple guards. ",
"Still looks better than all pokey in the t-shirt\n\nWe still get saggy as time goes on\n\nIt hurts when we run",
"Certain fabrics irritate the nipple during prolonged wear, sometimes a bra is just worn to prevent that kind of discomfort. ",
"I'm not a girl but I'm just gonna take a shot in the dark. Chafing? It happens with guys and their best friend."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[]
] |
|
2sx97a
|
how my brain made a dream about my alarm going off
|
I just woke up from a dream when my alarm went off. The funny thing is, in the dream I was being berated by my mom and she got extremely angry and started to scream the noise my alarm clock makes and I woke up. Can someone explain how my brain knew my alarm would go off?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2sx97a/eli5_how_my_brain_made_a_dream_about_my_alarm/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cntppck",
"cntrxmr"
],
"score": [
3,
2
],
"text": [
"Your alarm had probably already been going off for a short while. It's like the kicker in Inception. Noises from the real world can seep into your dream world and then your brain just uses that sound for whatever it feels like.\n\nI have the same thing sometimes. Like my alarm is the sound of a bomb about to explode or a birdsong. ",
"Studies have shown that dreams are often *had* in a few seconds/ minutes, but our brain maps them into a real-time sensation, because of how brains work. \n\nThere are schools of thought that posit that dreams are your Brains way of organising activities that have happened in the day, and filing them neatly, to defragment the file system. Thus, when something happens, it can be picked up by your subconscious. e.g., pee. :("
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
1wkx0f
|
prostitution vs. pornography: why can't i have my friend pay the lady, film it and call it pornography?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1wkx0f/eli5_prostitution_vs_pornography_why_cant_i_have/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cf2xiiy",
"cf2xjc1"
],
"score": [
7,
3
],
"text": [
"A misconception is the filming pornography is legal everywhere in the US. It isn't. In fact, I think it is only legal in CA, even though companies film elsewhere as well\n\n\nAlso, there are laws that state all performers need to be paid, or else it is prostitution. So unless you are getting paid, it is also not legal.\n\nNext, anyone working in pornography has to submit paperwork to document proof of age, this requires real name, age, photo id, etc. Good luck getting a hooker to let you keep that on file\n\n\nFinally, performers need to be paid via a real payroll, with tax withholdings, w-2 etc. Good luck getting a hooker to agree to that as well. ",
" > If I give my friend the money, have him hand it to her and then film it, it's pornography and somehow legal. \n\nOnly if you're a fully licensed production company and have filed the paperwork necessary to hire both your friend and the woman as actors."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
j2fcs
|
can someone explain what would happen if america's credit rating is dropped?
|
I know that pure speculation is against the rules, and I don't want the-world-is-going-to-end answers. But, seriously, how would the average American's life be changed if Standard and Poor and Moody's drops our AAA rating?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/j2fcs/can_someone_explain_what_would_happen_if_americas/
|
{
"a_id": [
"c28lhld",
"c28mi4r"
],
"score": [
5,
2
],
"text": [
"Well, the reason why it would be bad for the S & P to drop our credit rating is a two-fold thing. 1) we have Government Bonds that are basically a note that say let me borrow $100 and I'll give you $108 the next year. Other countries are buying these up because it's an excellent way to invest and still beat inflation. Other people and governments buy these Bonds because the U.S. of A. can still pay it's debts. But right now we have a revenue stream problem, our debt-to-income ratio disaster. We spend more than we make.\nWe spend more than we get because we have to pay for the roads, schools, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and the list goes on. Our politicians will not cut these social programs because they are afraid to lose votes, so that's the money coming in. Nor will the raise taxes, because they will get kicked out. \"Us\" meaning Americans, want our cake and to eat it too. We want great social programs, but do want to pay for them.\nSorry, I digress 2) If our credit rating drops, all of the money China and Japan has let us borrow they will ask for it back because they don't think we can pay them back.",
"Alright, here we go.\n\nThe US faces deficit nearly every year. In order to pay for those deficits, it borrows from its citizens and foreigners. The way that they pay for this debt is through treasury bonds, which have a certain interest rate that the US must pay back after the allotted time has elapsed.\n\nThe US has a perfect credit rating because it has always paid its debts back in time. For this reason, US debt is the least risky and most secure debt in the world. (To tell you the truth, I believe it is the least risky *investment* in the entire world, though I may be mistaken.) This gives the US incredible power. The US can borrow *huge* amounts of debt because its debt is so valuable compared to other investments.\n\nSo let's say the US defaults. The credit rating is dropped. This means that US debt is no longer safe - or nearly as safe. Because US debt is now risky, the US can no longer borrow at its previously low rates. All interest rates rise very quickly. The US will still be able to borrow in the future, but at a much, much higher cost.\n\nSo how does this affect you? Well, US debt will be more expensive. So any interest rates that the US has its hands in - college loans, etc. - will increase. Not only that, but this interest rate spike will carry over to the funds market in the domestic US, meaning that mortgages, loans, interest rates for cars, etc. spike quickly. \n\nIf it spikes enough, economic forecasts will look very dim. Americans will start to predict a bad outlook for our country. When Americans begin to doubt the economy, recessions happen. This is because Americans are less likely to spend when they are uncertain about the future and GDP decreases.\n\nNo one is quite sure how this will affect everyone. It *will* turn into a recession - most economists do not argue over that. But will it become a depression? Probably not, though it's possible. The US has rarely had to deal with such events, so it's hard to predict. \n\nAlso, to add to the above, government will have to decrease spending to ensure that defaults don't happen in the future. With less government spending, entitlement programs become less effective - many will not get their social security checks, medicaid, etc. This alone could trigger the recession, or make the recession worse.\n\nWow, that was a lot. Hope it helped!"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
3gz6zu
|
why has windows 10 monitoring certain usage of its product upset so many people?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3gz6zu/eli5_why_has_windows_10_monitoring_certain_usage/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cu2rz38"
],
"score": [
3
],
"text": [
"If that's how you feel, then I want a camera installed in your toilet that broadcasts you taking a shit on public access, so that I can judge you on your technique.\n\nWhat's the difference? You're not doing anything wrong, you've nothing to hide, so you have nothing to fear. Broadcast your most intimate moments and personal secrets to all the world.\n\nRead [about your right to privacy](_URL_1_), some [legally influential opinions on the matter](_URL_0_), and ultimately, [about that bullshit \"nothing to fear, nothing to hide\" argument](_URL_2_)."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right_to_privacy",
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Right_to_Privacy_\\(article\\)",
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nothing_to_hide_argument"
]
] |
||
2j6578
|
why is it scary for people to approach a crush?
|
I'm sure you all know the feeling, the butterflies in stomach, instantly shy around pretty people of the gender you're attracted to.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2j6578/eli5why_is_it_scary_for_people_to_approach_a_crush/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cl8q6lx"
],
"score": [
5
],
"text": [
"generally because of fear, conscious or subconscious. fear of rejection, fear of looking foolish, fear of being judged or evaluated. the part of your brain responsible for fear and identifying threats, called the amygdala, picks up on what you're consciously or unconsciously worried about, and then kicks in with a physical response: stammering, feeling sick, feeling faint, feeling foggy headed, fast heartbeat, sweaty palms, etc. \n\nthe amygdala isn't very good at realizing that you should just talk to her because she's probably just as self-conscious as you are, and you have no idea the things in life you're missing out on until you become mentally OK with losing occasionally, take more chances, and realize winning a lot is pretty possible after all. \n\nstart facing the fear, and your conscious/subconscious brain realizes it's no big deal. then, your amygdala stays out of it and leaves you the hell alone until it sees an actual real threat, like a grizzly bear standing behind you while you're brushing your teeth and looking in the mirror or something. "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
|
5sa30e
|
during a disaster like an earthquake, how do surgeons and response crew deal with the massive influx of patients?
|
Surely there can't be enough doctors, and response teams to handle all the victims so do they prioritize victims to be handled first? Is it first come first serve? Do they fly in doctors from other places to help?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5sa30e/eli5_during_a_disaster_like_an_earthquake_how_do/
|
{
"a_id": [
"dddg8rt",
"dddikkv",
"dddjy5x"
],
"score": [
2,
9,
3
],
"text": [
"Triage - They sort patients by need (severity of injury)\n\nThe \"real\" doctors get the patients that require their help immediately, the nurses take care of the ones they can, and the people that don;t need immediate help wait...",
"My wife is an ER nurse, they drill for circumstances like this and every year she ropes me into being a volunteer. We're given a random secret medical problem and/or realistic behavior - confused, scared, concussed, pulse bouncing around, whatever - and scattered around the area (emergency services, police, and first responders are also part of the drill) or sent to the ER in zombie-like waves.\n\nThey triage incoming patients (i.e. \"prioritize victims to be handled first\") heavily: it is first-come-first-served until someone with more urgent problems arrive, then you get bumped down the list. They put beds/stretchers in the hallways and waiting rooms and parking lot. Staff are tasked with specific levels of engagement, to evaluate and periodically re-evaluate every patient, escalating those with more urgent needs up the chain to whatever level of care they need, or as close as they can get with the resources at hand. Nurses do a lot more doctor-y things than they would in normal circumstances, because there are only so many doctors. EMTs and first responders do more things that nurses would usually do. Everyone has to step up their game.\n\nOff-duty doctors and nurses are pulled in, as are doctors and nurses from elsewhere throughout the hospital (this is basically part of triage: people coming in for scheduled appointments aren't in as much need as people coming in to the ER after/during a disaster) but part of the drill - and part of real disasters - is that it doesn't matter how many people you have, at some point there will be more people in need of help than there are people who can help. Resources run out, either temporarily or for the foreseeable future... if you need something *now* and it isn't available, the distinction doesn't really exist.\n\nLast year the drill included (simulated) hazmat exposure, so much of the staff were working in hazmat suits. It is important to drill these things in a realistic manner: ER staff review how to use hazmat suits every year, but to prevent wasting resources they don't actually open up the air filters (or scrubbers, or whatever they are called), and eventually whoever was training them stopped mentioning that fact. During the drill everyone in the hazmat suits was thinking \"this is harder than I expected, I can't breathe and I'm sweating like crazy\". A half-hour passed before there was a pause long enough for someone to mention that, after which someone went and checked on every person in a hazmat suit to make sure they were configured correctly.\n\nMany (most?) emergencies that would require a massive influx of doctors also affect transportation, and highly-skilled people who don't know where a particular hospital keeps the resources they need aren't as useful as they could be, so flying in doctors isn't an option. For ongoing emergencies - long enough to coordinate relief efforts - people will be brought in from elsewhere, but the reality is that at any moment they have the resources they have and they help people as best they can. In normal circumstances an ER can 'go on divert', which means 911 calls and ambulances will be directed to other hospitals *if possible*; in an actual disaster, and on some ordinary nights, the other hospitals are getting slammed too. Sometimes there isn't time for the ambulance to drive to a different hospital, so even if there are patients in the hallways they take in new patients and triage as needed.\n\nBut to a large extent emergencies are emergencies, disaster-level emergencies are just more so. Every so often it happens that three ambulances and a few walk-ins arrive at the same time, and the people in the ER basically deal with a mini-disaster. During an actual disaster the rules governing triage change, but juggling staff and resources to meet the needs of incoming patients is something they do every day.",
"I think /u/BennyPendentes pretty much nailed the modern Western medicine approach to disaster medicine. I work at the ED/ICU/nPCC department of a large university medical center. Currently on night shift, and across from this room is a bunker from the Ministry of Defense containing an entire sleeping hospital (of about 120 medium care beds and about 12 ICU beds) that we can activate within half an hour. It's part of our national disaster preparedness chain, and has been activated often, e.g. bus and aeroplane crashes, large domestic fire in a nursing home, etc.\n\nWhat /u/BennyPendentes highlighted and what I think is the most important difference between our regular brand of medicine and disaster medicine is the resource scarcity you're bound to run into. In normal incident scenarios you'll have all resources you need available in quantity: need a CT? We can do that? Need blood gas analysis? We can do that. Need a surgeon? You can pick one. Actually, that last one was a joke, but still, even if the one on shift is busy, there's one more available on short order in most incidents.\n\nIn disaster medicine, everyone available is occupied, and you no longer have ample resources. Stocking them in sufficient quantities is a utopian fallacy, both in terms of manpower and physical items, even if for budget reasons alone. This means that you need to apply a more 'military' brand of triage: \"this one is not going to make it (or very unlikely to make it) < tags black > , so I'm going to try and help that one\" --- these are very hard decisions to make, but if you procrastinate, a lot more people may suffer worse than if you just made that decision.\n\n"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[]
] |
|
a0pxnn
|
what is the actual purpose of those electronic speed limit signs that show you your speed?
|
Are they just to keep you aware? Do they report the data somewhere?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/a0pxnn/eli5_what_is_the_actual_purpose_of_those/
|
{
"a_id": [
"eajjnpb",
"eajjrpd",
"eakuqqu"
],
"score": [
4,
14,
2
],
"text": [
"It is just to make you aware of your speed. But areas with those signs are more likely to be monitored by police. So slow down or you'll probably get a ticket.",
"Some of them track data. They can track traffic volume, and speed. (Assuming they are not connected to a speed camera), they are not reading your license plate, and you won't get a ticket, but the police might use the data to determine when to go run radar, or the engineering department can use the data for a traffic study.",
"We have the same thing in France, called ''pedagogic radars'' the name is well chosen and it works well. Knowing that everyone behind could see in red blinking numbers that they are speeding, alot slow down when they're just above the limit.\nThose who are less likely to speeding will slow down if they're over the limit. But...\nI personally find it funny to get the higher score (protip: if you're 50km/h over the limit it stops displaying your speed, there's only a red blinking warning sign)\nIt's powered by solar panels and the cops here are way too late with technology, I really doubt there's a collect of any data with that thing. (Even if I think it would definely be useful to have advanced stats on the roads)"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[]
] |
|
2wmca0
|
why are there plenty of laptops with hdmi ports, but there seems to be few desktop pcs with hdmi ports?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2wmca0/eli5_why_are_there_plenty_of_laptops_with_hdmi/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cos6cmy",
"cos6kca",
"cosa0xz"
],
"score": [
3,
5,
2
],
"text": [
"Desktops have dedicated gpus, and dedicated gpus most often have hdmi ports. They also more commonly have dvi which is slightly bigger and wouldnt really fit a laptop form factor. Idk, i havent seen a modern desktop without hdmi",
"HDMI is a cable standard set up by the HDMI group, designed to handle television based video connections at television standards. It's been co-opted to computers to allow them to connect with TVs.\n\nDVI and DisplayPort are the evolution of the VGA standards for computer monitor connection, and are much more versatile than HDMI. However, and this is a key note, that electrically the standards are nearly identical, which is what allows DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort connectors to have passive adaptors from one to each other. There are minor differences, DVI connectors support up to two channels of digital video AND an analog one at the same time, while HDMI only allows one channel at a time; DisplayPort is currently the only one capable of operating at the frequencies needed for true 4K @ 60P, etc.\n\nSo, if you're making a high-end graphics card, you're more likely to include a DisplayPort connector than an HDMI or DVI, especially if you can drive 4K displays, and more likely to have a DVI connector than an HDMI, unless you figure your clients are more likely to connect to televisions, which they are much more likely to do on a laptop. ",
"Every desktop I've seen in store in the past 6 months have HDMI ports, save for the $200 Acer POS."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[]
] |
||
5iknr0
|
what's the first thing i need to look for when reading a scientific article?
|
First of all, is there some easy way to distinguish between a good journal or a bad journal?
I know it varies from subject to subject, but I guess I want to know if there's some taboo's it's easy to miss when reading an article.
And if all of this is still too vague, how can I improve my critical reading when approaching a scientific research?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5iknr0/eli5_whats_the_first_thing_i_need_to_look_for/
|
{
"a_id": [
"db8vxwj"
],
"score": [
7
],
"text": [
"Sometimes it can be hard to tell if a journal is legitimate or not. But you can look for [red flags](_URL_0_) in the article itself.\n\nAt least for physics papers, you should always read the abstract first."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"http://math.ucr.edu/home/baez/crackpot.html"
]
] |
|
m5vv4
|
why is aged beef preferable, and what do they do to it?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/m5vv4/why_is_aged_beef_preferable_and_what_do_they_do/
|
{
"a_id": [
"c2ycz4a",
"c2ycz4a"
],
"score": [
16,
16
],
"text": [
"There are two ways of aging beef. One works incredibly well, the other is... meh.\n\nUnless you have access to fresh meat, killed and butchered and cooked within the first 12 hours afterwards. Meat has to be aged. \n\nAfter the first 12 hours, rigor mortis sets into the muscle. The fibers toughen and shorten. This makes the meat quite tough. As the meat ages, the enzymes in the meat begin to break down the protein structure of the muscle. This process is called \"postmortem proteolysis\" or in layman's terms... decomposition. \n\nMeat that you get in the supermarket, is wet aged. It's cut into big hunks and sent to markets vacuum sealed to retain moisture. They do this, not to improve the meat, but to prevent moisture loss, and prevent meat from drying out or getting moldy. Less contamination = more saleable meat. It increases profit margins. It's okay from the tenderness perspective, but lacks that strong beefy flavor. \n\nMeat that you get from a butcher, is dry aged. They get the sides of beef and hang them at a very cold temperature for days before it is butchered and sold. During this time the meat loses moisture, which concentrates the flavor and continues to allow the enzymes to work to break down the muscle fibers rendering it far more tender. Because the meat is losing moisture and parts are drying out on the surface... there is less saleable meat. This is why dry aged meat is more expensive.\n\nWhen you cook meat, you should always dry the surface of it. The process of browning meat (called the maillard reaction) adds a nutty, rich flavor to it. The less moisture on the outside of the meat, the stronger the flavor. \n\nYou can dry age meat that you get from the market, I always do this for filets and rib roasts. It makes a huge difference.\n\nUnwrap the beef, rinse it well, and pat it dry with clean paper towels. \n\n*Get meat with as much fat as you can find, and do not trim your meat.* \n\nWrap the meat loosely in a three layers of cheesecloth and set it on a rack set into a tray to collect moisture.\n\nRefrigerate for at least three to seven days. The longer the beef ages, the tastier it will get. Every day, carefully unwrap and then rewrap with the same cheesecloth to prevent the cloth fibers from sticking to the meat.\n\nAfter a time, you are ready to cook it. Unwrap the meat and, with a very, very sharp knife, shave discard the hard, dried outer layer of the meat. Shave away any dried areas of fat also, but leave behind as much of the good fat as possible. \n\nDuring this process, the meat will lose volume and weight. This is normal and nothing to be concerned about. It just means more tender flavor.\n\n\n\n\n\n",
"There are two ways of aging beef. One works incredibly well, the other is... meh.\n\nUnless you have access to fresh meat, killed and butchered and cooked within the first 12 hours afterwards. Meat has to be aged. \n\nAfter the first 12 hours, rigor mortis sets into the muscle. The fibers toughen and shorten. This makes the meat quite tough. As the meat ages, the enzymes in the meat begin to break down the protein structure of the muscle. This process is called \"postmortem proteolysis\" or in layman's terms... decomposition. \n\nMeat that you get in the supermarket, is wet aged. It's cut into big hunks and sent to markets vacuum sealed to retain moisture. They do this, not to improve the meat, but to prevent moisture loss, and prevent meat from drying out or getting moldy. Less contamination = more saleable meat. It increases profit margins. It's okay from the tenderness perspective, but lacks that strong beefy flavor. \n\nMeat that you get from a butcher, is dry aged. They get the sides of beef and hang them at a very cold temperature for days before it is butchered and sold. During this time the meat loses moisture, which concentrates the flavor and continues to allow the enzymes to work to break down the muscle fibers rendering it far more tender. Because the meat is losing moisture and parts are drying out on the surface... there is less saleable meat. This is why dry aged meat is more expensive.\n\nWhen you cook meat, you should always dry the surface of it. The process of browning meat (called the maillard reaction) adds a nutty, rich flavor to it. The less moisture on the outside of the meat, the stronger the flavor. \n\nYou can dry age meat that you get from the market, I always do this for filets and rib roasts. It makes a huge difference.\n\nUnwrap the beef, rinse it well, and pat it dry with clean paper towels. \n\n*Get meat with as much fat as you can find, and do not trim your meat.* \n\nWrap the meat loosely in a three layers of cheesecloth and set it on a rack set into a tray to collect moisture.\n\nRefrigerate for at least three to seven days. The longer the beef ages, the tastier it will get. Every day, carefully unwrap and then rewrap with the same cheesecloth to prevent the cloth fibers from sticking to the meat.\n\nAfter a time, you are ready to cook it. Unwrap the meat and, with a very, very sharp knife, shave discard the hard, dried outer layer of the meat. Shave away any dried areas of fat also, but leave behind as much of the good fat as possible. \n\nDuring this process, the meat will lose volume and weight. This is normal and nothing to be concerned about. It just means more tender flavor.\n\n\n\n\n\n"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
57vuhc
|
what changes on a speaker when it's volune is increased?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/57vuhc/eli5_what_changes_on_a_speaker_when_its_volune_is/
|
{
"a_id": [
"d8vefaz",
"d8vg749"
],
"score": [
3,
5
],
"text": [
"There are three major defining qualities of a wave. Frequency, wavelength, and amplitude. Let's imagine sound as a huge line of people coming up and hitting you in the face with a hammer. Frequency is how often they hit you, wavelength is how far apart they are in the line, and amplitude is how hard they hit you. Frequency is what determines what something \"sounds\" like, because the hairs in your ear resonate with different frequencies. That is to say, they wiggle back and forth only when they're hit at a certain frequency. Amplitude determines the volume, and thus how hard the hairs vibrate. \n\nSpeakers make the sound waves by vibrating back and forth at different frequencies. So, when you raise the volume, you're making it vibrate at the same frequency it was before, but HARDER, basically.",
"Let's assume the the speaker is playing a single note, an A, because I happen to know that an A is defined in Western music as a frequency of 440 Herz. That means the surface of the speaker is moving back and forth 440 times per second to play an A. Regardless of how loud the speaker is, the surface moves back and forth 440 times each second. But when it's louder, the speaker is moving farther each time it wiggles. If it's quiet it's maybe moving back and forth 1 millimeter each cycle, but as it gets louder it starts moving 3 or 4 millimeters back and forth each cycle. So the back-and-forth motion takes the same amount of time to complete no matter how soft or loud, but the speaker covers a greater distance as it gets louder. I made up those distance numbers and they may not be realistic, but what's important is that one is bigger than the other."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
71z3bo
|
is there a real reason why music streaming services restrict my skips is or is just to get me to pay for their premium service?
|
Economics
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/71z3bo/eli5_is_there_a_real_reason_why_music_streaming/
|
{
"a_id": [
"dnehg7j",
"dneroye"
],
"score": [
2,
5
],
"text": [
"Yes, it’s a feature that can compel people to want to upgrade to paid service without rendering free version unusable.",
"The service has to pay royalty for every song you start, regardless of how much you play. If you were able to just skip as many as you wanted they might not make money on free users."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
abcoq5
|
why do salt crystals formed millions of years ago expire in under a year?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/abcoq5/eli5_why_do_salt_crystals_formed_millions_of/
|
{
"a_id": [
"eczdicv",
"eczeqjt",
"ecza8ow",
"eczanu8"
],
"score": [
4,
2,
7,
5
],
"text": [
"The expiration date of products is not \"the date where it breaks down and becomes toxic\". It is instead more like \"the date beyond which the manufacturer is unwilling to guarantee it will behave as intended\". Old salt might clump for example but the producer isn't going to accept product returns from expired items. Expired canned goods might have a different flavor or consistency.",
"It may well be the expiration date of the **packaging**, which may degrade upon contact with the items inside the package, combined with moisture and heat from outside the package. Many water bottles and salt packages, for example, break down at least to the point where they might potentially leak/crack/wear down over a relatively short period of time.\n\nEver try reusing cheap plastic? Water bottles and the like? Gets nasty after a few weeks.",
"Because that's the date the manufacturer printed on the package. \n\nThat's literally the only reason. Salt does not degrade. \n\nAs far as why the manufacturer would choose to print a specific date, it's more likely to be used as a tracking number than an expiration date, enabling manufacturers to identify the cause of quality control issues. ",
"It's standard practice to include an expiration date on all consumable products, even water or salt. If I'm not mistaken it is a regulatory requirement in many countries."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[],
[]
] |
||
3zlqqk
|
the pros and cons of obamas gun plan.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3zlqqk/eli5_the_pros_and_cons_of_obamas_gun_plan/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cyn3yjl"
],
"score": [
25
],
"text": [
"Cons:\n\n1) Red tape. Lots of red tape. People hate red tape. \n\n2) Doesn't stop already illegal guns that are being sold illegally. \n\nPros:\n\n1) Tons of money going to mental health. \n\n2) Background checks on all sales, private and public, in order to ensure that legit gun owners/sellers aren't selling to a felon, etc. Private sales never had restrictions like these before. \n\n3) Places more importance on federal background checks. \n\n4) Doesn't place federal restrictions on any type of weaponry. \n\n5) Penalties for not reporting a weapon that is stolen. \n"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
6bs8ey
|
how does forcing laptops to be in checked luggage prevent bombs hidden in laptops?
|
_URL_0_
An altimeter (built in to laptops), GPS, Bluetooth, or other RF detonator can still set it off... So, if there is a bomb in a laptop, does it matter where it is on the plane? What is the point of banning them in the passenger cabin?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/6bs8ey/eli5_how_does_forcing_laptops_to_be_in_checked/
|
{
"a_id": [
"dhp3rkv",
"dhpcsu5",
"dhpmnz7"
],
"score": [
9,
4,
5
],
"text": [
"The idea is that a laptop bomb is usually going to be used in an attempt to depressurize the plane by detonating it next to a window.\n\nIf the laptop is stored with cargo, it will be dampened by all the other stored cargo and probably won't have any devastating effect except to the luggage of the unlucky people who got the storage space next to the bomb.",
"Many things about Airplane/Airport security don't really make much sense - a couple likely reasons are that a Laptop's removable Lithium Ion Battery, if handled the wrong way can explode, and as a result makes a good improvised bomb, placing it in checked luggage makes it easier to detect and prevent from being loaded onto the plane a battery or laptop which has been tampered with, as the owner won't have access to it in order to take a normal battery and convert it to an IED on the plane.\n\nYou mention C-4 and RDX in a second level comment, it is possible that the intent is to give airport security a chance to run a bomb dog over the luggage, but I doubt this has anything to do with reducing the amount of damage a plane takes if a bomb goes off, and more to do with preventing bombs from getting on in the first place.",
"You are looking for sense where there is none. The entire set of security rules is just a random patchwork of unsubstantiated fears."
]
}
|
[] |
[
"https://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2017-05-17/u-s-said-to-call-threat-critical-after-meeting-on-laptop-ban-j2tb876q"
] |
[
[],
[],
[]
] |
|
1q1bjt
|
what determines a planets atmosphere and what would happen in a cataclysmic disaster?
|
Lets say that the earth was split perfectly in half and the two halves were moved away from each other? What would happen to the atmosphere? would it vanish? would both parts now have their own independent "bubbles of life"? And to go one further if that would happen, how many times could you divide the planet into smaller chunks until you end up with a lifeless piece of rock with nothing left? What causes an atmosphere to be created around our planet at the distance it is??
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1q1bjt/eli5_what_determines_a_planets_atmosphere_and/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cd87m9p"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
" > What causes an atmosphere to be created around our planet at the distance it is??\n\nYou are thinking about atmosphere incorrectly, it isn't some sort of life support field that extends a certain distance from planets. It is just stuff, matter like rocks, dirt, or water. It is just on top of everything else because it is less dense, just like how a rock sinks in water because it is more dense. Atmospheric gasses are stuck in Earth's gravity just like everything else, and are sitting on the surface of the Earth just like the oceans do.\n\nIf Earth was sliced perfectly in two and separated by significant distance, the first thing to happen would be that each half would collapse into a sphere, utterly destroying all surface features in the process. The atmosphere would flow around the new surface, which would be about 124 million square miles each compared to Earth's 200 million square miles. Because the atmosphere is covering more ground and isn't being compressed as much by gravity it would be much less dense."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
|
5hjynn
|
canadian carbon pricing
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5hjynn/eli5_canadian_carbon_pricing/
|
{
"a_id": [
"db0qfcw"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"_URL_0_ is a decent reference and explanation \n\nTL;DR\nYou can think of carbon pricing in one implementation as a tax on emissions. Economists believe one way to control greenhouse gases and impacts from them is to charge the emitters of the gases, in this case carbon monoxide.\n\nAnother mechanism is to issue carbon credits and make a marketplace so that the market trades these credits in order to essentially pollute. But the overall pollution is limited by the total credits that government placed in the marketplace.\n\nThe alternate is a gas tax where the consumer actually ends up paying upfront for using the carbon generating fuel and the government uses those funds to control the effects of the omissions."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"http://www.carbonpricingleadership.org/what/"
]
] |
||
3kqqpi
|
what happens to inmates serving life sentences when they become too old to look after themselves in a prison?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3kqqpi/eli5_what_happens_to_inmates_serving_life/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cuzodwq",
"cuzq82c",
"cuzshni",
"cv01d3p"
],
"score": [
108,
62,
12,
2
],
"text": [
"There are a couple of scenarios that can play out. They may just spend the rest of their lives in the prison infirmary, or they can be granted a compassionate release if they are terminally ill and death is imminent. ",
"Hi there. I'm a social worker and I did one of my internships in a prison. The prison I went to had a program where inmates take care of other inmates in a hospice type setting until they pass.\n\nOf course, every program and prison is different, but I have had some contact with prisoners who were in life for murder act kinder than some other people I had worked with in a non-prison setting. It's hard to describe unless you see for yourself. I know hbo had a mini-documentary about this subject. \n\nAnother was from Angola.\n_URL_0_\nYou can watch it here if you'd like, its about 22 minutes long, but it gives a good idea of what happens.\n\nI hope this helps and answered your question correctly. If you have any questions I can help you if you have them.",
"When a guy I know who was in prison, not for a life sentence, fell quite ill, he was taken to hospital where he was put under constant guard but apart from that, was treated like a regular patient.\n\nActually wound up better for him, it meant his family could actually visit him more often since they weren't constrained by prison visiting hours. \n\n(Also, as a disclaimer, this is in New Zealand, not America)",
"Here in Oklahoma, Oklahoma State Penitentiary has an infirmary. We also have an old hospital converted into a prison where we keep another infirmary. They are given all the treatment they need. "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[
"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMLjANwBRDk"
],
[],
[]
] |
||
6e7pkh
|
why a breaking news on reddit is almost always linked to a bbc article?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/6e7pkh/eli5why_a_breaking_news_on_reddit_is_almost/
|
{
"a_id": [
"di874bd"
],
"score": [
3
],
"text": [
"BBC is very highly regarded, not only here on Reddit but across the world as being focused on news for the sake of informing the public not for the sake of shareholders. Obviously they need to make money and make mistakes but it's generally a very good source for information.\n\nThere's a meme out there that encapsulates this well but I can't find it.... It's like this\n\nImagine a picture were Obama accidently knocks over a Pepsi\n\nFox News: Obama Declares War on Pepsi\n\nCNN: Obama Saving Us All from Sugary Drinks!\n\nBBC: 13 Killed in Batswana Due to Insurgency\n\nEdit: Woo found it! [here](_URL_0_) and wow was I a little off....."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/64/9f/ff/649fffa07840ff0c29c2a4a204795a81.jpg"
]
] |
||
6h7nuo
|
if a phone battery can explode when punctured, what would happen if a tesla's battery bank was punctured or caught on fire?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/6h7nuo/eli5_if_a_phone_battery_can_explode_when/
|
{
"a_id": [
"diw3pey",
"diw3ygl",
"diwn5tl"
],
"score": [
9,
2,
3
],
"text": [
"If it's punctured, it has a high likiness of catching on fire. As it did happen with 1st Gen ModelS, at least twice. So Tesla changed the design and put a titanium impact shield under the battery compartment. ",
"The same, there is the risk of fire or explosing.\n\nIf you have an accident with a Tesla you have to change the batteries. Even if it's just a hit just on the front or back (Batteries are in the middle) insurance and warranty order you to replace them",
"Like others have suggested, the batteries in a car have the same type of catching-fire-issues that a cellphone does. It's just that since the battery is so much larger and pose a lethal risk, it's better protected.\n\nA lot of thought is put into how to make the electrical car batteries safe. Because the battery in itself is not very safe, it has to be well caged in.\n\nSome electrical cars have a safety mechanism that shuts down the battery permanently (as in, there is an electrical connector that cuts off internally that can't be replaced) if the airbags deploy. It's all in the name of making the car as safe as can be.\n\nMany of the safety measures are for the sake of the rescue services. What happens if an electrical car is capable of electrocuting the first responder when he reaches for the door? What happens if the opening of the door lock creates a spark that potentially ignites gases coming from the battery? Not to mention, what happens if a car that sits still on the side of the road, wrecked, all of a sudden catches fires simply because it's been sitting there for a while?\n\nSo, yeah. Batteries are a safety risk. But it's handled. Because it has to be handled."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[]
] |
||
a4yp5g
|
what do banks do with us coins that people exchange for money in their account?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/a4yp5g/eli5_what_do_banks_do_with_us_coins_that_people/
|
{
"a_id": [
"ebihf8s",
"ebiho7w",
"ebij56x"
],
"score": [
9,
3,
2
],
"text": [
"They pour them into coin sorters. The coin sorters feed coin rollers. The rolled coins are sold to merchants. The merchants put them in the cash registers and use them to make change for you.",
"They sort it and give it out to those who come in for coins. It is the same exact thing that they do for paper bills as most money in people's accounts is digital on the computer. Banks only have to keep a percentage of their total funds in cash. \n\nAs for who goes in for coins? That is primarily businesses who need them for their change drawers. But you also have people who use laundromats, vending machines, etc going in for quarters a lot. ",
"When I was a teller I handled coin deposits like any other cash deposits. I'd put it in my drawer and if I needed to take money out of my working safe (where I can grab more of whatever bills I need) into the main one (this was done for security reasons) then I handled it the same as if someone came in with a fat stack of 20s or 100s."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[]
] |
||
2d3z7k
|
why does marketing and advertising work so effectively?
|
I'm asking because personally I'm not sold on anything I see or hear in advertising. Commercials and radio ads seem campy and moronic while internet ads are just down right annoying.. Why do the sales and revenue tell me otherwise?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2d3z7k/eli5_why_does_marketing_and_advertising_work_so/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cjltr0r"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"You can't buy what you don't know about. It's as simple as just informing people about products and, if possible, influence their perception of the product and, especially, the brand."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
|
5zt9eb
|
why do hard drives copy really fast at first then trickle the rest of the way?
|
I was copying some big files between drives and had this thought as the copying process slowed down. [Here is a screenshot](_URL_0_) of the copying progress.
This question is NOT tech support. I just was curious how hard drives work.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5zt9eb/eli5_why_do_hard_drives_copy_really_fast_at_first/
|
{
"a_id": [
"df0v3g4"
],
"score": [
5
],
"text": [
"Most large hard drives have a RAM cache which is an order of magnitude faster than the platters.\n\nWhen you copy a bunch of data, it fills the cache, quickly, then once it's full the transfer rate has to slow to the speed the drive can write to the platters.\n\nIt's very much like pouring liquid into a funnel. You can pour quickly until the funnel itself fills up, then you have to slow down once it's full as it can only drain so quickly."
]
}
|
[] |
[
"http://imgur.com/V5j7tHl"
] |
[
[]
] |
|
3dguvp
|
it's not considered okay to ask for a bite of a sandwich or a chip from a strangers bag, when and how did it become an accepted practice to ask for cigarettes? what is the psychological implication of this as well?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3dguvp/eli5_its_not_considered_okay_to_ask_for_a_bite_of/
|
{
"a_id": [
"ct50b7o"
],
"score": [
5
],
"text": [
"Smokers are a dying breed, in various ways. This, along with the frequent need to huddle in doorways bracing against the driving rain, creates an extremely strong sense of camaraderie, where helping out a smoker in need is second nature, particularly where it's a random act of kindness (less so when there's always that one guy bumming a smoke). Sharing food is less acceptable, although your example of chips did make me laugh - in Australia chips are fair game (I have seen strangers steal chips from strangers in McDonalds - although wouldn't advise doing so and relying on no reaction!)"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
f6daxk
|
if magnetic fields are continuous, why do iron filings around a magnet arrange themselves in neat lines as a series of concentric circles?
|
ELI5: Example [_URL_1_](_URL_0_)
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/f6daxk/eli5_if_magnetic_fields_are_continuous_why_do/
|
{
"a_id": [
"fi40mpv",
"fi40zob"
],
"score": [
5,
2
],
"text": [
"They are in lines because the filings are attracted to each other. Each concentrates the magnetic field inside itself, which lines up with the next one, etc. The position of those lines is random, since as you say the field is continuous.",
"That image is the magnetic fields of two bar magnets with the same pole to the center. It is [this configuration.](_URL_0_) \n\nIron filing creates lines because the iron is Ferromagnetic and it creates is own magnetic field. So it and the field from the magnet will be stronger on the tip of the filing then just beside it. Two parallel iron filings will have the same poles next to each other so the will be a repelling force and they move apart."
]
}
|
[] |
[
"https://media.sciencephoto.com/image/c0284180/800wm/C0284180-Magnetic_field_with_iron_filings.jpg",
"https://media.sciencephoto.com/image/c0284180/800wm/C0284180-Magnetic\\_field\\_with\\_iron\\_filings.jpg"
] |
[
[],
[
"https://bam.files.bbci.co.uk/bam/live/content/zqmsfg8/large"
]
] |
|
1rfyl6
|
what kinds of posts does the "rising" tab on reddit sort? how is it calculated?
|
I've noticed for most subreddits, there are only 2-3 posts in that tab. And many of these are not even "rising" per se, they are just stagnating and soon to die.
From prior posts, I can see that it was changed a while ago, but I want to know what it even is (as in a definition) and how it is calculated.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1rfyl6/eli5_what_kinds_of_posts_does_the_rising_tab_on/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cee6jry"
],
"score": [
3
],
"text": [
"This is the first result on google and not a single answer."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
|
7e0rzt
|
why is that fire smoke sticks to clothes more strongly and for longer than anything else?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/7e0rzt/eli5_why_is_that_fire_smoke_sticks_to_clothes/
|
{
"a_id": [
"dq1mj6g",
"dq1rg9d"
],
"score": [
3,
2
],
"text": [
"Smoke sticks to surfaces about equally good or bad, just the amount of surface matters. Now think about a sheet of plastic and a dishcloth, and the smoke molecules as water. \nWhen you soak both for an equal time and then check how much water both carry, you will find the cloth holds much more water. While on plastic it is only on the surface, the cloth has a lot of internal surface the water can stick to, as can the smoke molecules.",
"It doesn't. Our brains have evolved to recognize fire and somke above all else, because of the danger it entails to our safety. \n\nIts the same reason why some people light a match after they use the bathroom. Our brains focus on the smoke, forgetting the rest."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
1uynp3
|
when did google move from respected company to evil corporation?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1uynp3/eli5_when_did_google_move_from_respected_company/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cemy8lf"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"Your question is loaded (comes with a clear bias), and so it has been removed. Try rephrasing objectively or else post in /r/changemyview.\n\n[Here's some help](_URL_0_) in reformatting questions for CMV."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"http://www.reddit.com/r/changemyview/wiki/converting_posts_to_cmv"
]
] |
||
1nhu5n
|
why dogs have so few teeth?
|
I always wondered why when a side of a dog's jaw is shown on TV or in a movie it has so few teeth - it's just gums with a couple of tiny stubs poking out here and there. Like on [this](_URL_0_) picture.
Don't they need more teeth to get a good grip on/tear a piece of meat of a body?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1nhu5n/eli5_why_dogs_have_so_few_teeth/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cciq9l9"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"Those teeth in the back are the cutters, those are Sharp pair that with the strength of the jaw and it is enough to cut though bone. \n\nThe larger ones in the front are made to grip the pray. \n\nWhat we must remember is that dogs are carnivores and us humans are omnivores, so we need all our teeth because we evolved in that particular direction, while the dogs are doing fine with theirs. \nWe are both specialists in our respective field of chewing. \n\nWe Can eat meat, but since out \"cutting\" teeth are in the front we have to bite down hard to cut through raw meat, while dogs has their \"cutting\" teeth in the back there the force is tremendous. \n\nSo simple version; \n\nHumans have weak cutting teeth and strong grinding teeth. \nDogs have strong cutting teeth and quite strong holding teeth. \n\n\nEdit: \n\nThey do get a good grip on the body, but they will kill the pray while holding it, and then they work with the back teeth when the pray is still. "
]
}
|
[] |
[
"http://www.kingwestvets.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/clean-teeth.jpg"
] |
[
[]
] |
|
1y5xdi
|
why is bass the most overpowering channel in music?
|
Why is it that it's always the furthest to carry on and it seems the loudest?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1y5xdi/eli5_why_is_bass_the_most_overpowering_channel_in/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cfhm9vw"
],
"score": [
12
],
"text": [
"Sound consists of vibrations in the air. The air moves back and forth like it's being compressed and decompressed. The speed at which air does this determines the \"frequency\" of the sound, or whether it's bass or treble, for example.\n\nBass is a very low frequency, so large amounts of air move at once. Less energy is wasted moving the air because it doesn't change direction as often . Those two things combined, large volume plus less energy loss, enable low frequency sounds to penetrate further and more deeply than high frequency sounds. \n\nAnother factor is low frequency sounds can move \"around an object\". Because a low frequency sound has a longer wavelength - the air moves farther back and forth. This enables the air movement to go around corners, and to also hit solid surfaces with more force. \n\nLow frequencies actually pass through everything much more effectively. "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
|
1ihn50
|
what exactly is bankrupcy?
|
I know it is what people in debt do to get out of their debts. But what exactly is it and what are its ramifications?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1ihn50/eli5_what_exactly_is_bankrupcy/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cb4ivic",
"cb4nst3"
],
"score": [
2,
6
],
"text": [
"It's a legal process, overseen by a court. What happens is that they line up all the people that you owe money, and they line up some your property, money, and valuables. Then the court decides which of your property you get to keep, and which should be sold to pay off your creditors. The court also decides which creditors get paid, and how much, and which creditors don't get paid. At the end of if, you don't have any more debt, but your credit rating is screwed, and you may have had to sell some property.\n\nIt is important to note that not all debt can be discharged via bankruptcy. Student loan debt, for example, can't in most circumstances be discharged.",
"Going bankrupt is a way for you to say to the government \"I owe so much I can never hope to pay it off: I need you to protect me from the people I owe money.\"\n\nIf the government agrees that you qualify, it starts issuing court orders that stop debt collectors and creditors from seeking repayment from you. Then it negotiates with people who you owe money, and decides which will get paid at all, and how much, based on what money and stuff you have. In some cases, the court will require you to sell certain things to try to pay off as much debt as you can.\n\nOnce the creditors have what the court decides they'll get, *you no longer owe them any money*. (We say the debt has been discharged).\n\n\nThis gives you a \"clean slate\" financially. However, since this sucks for the creditors -- they get little or no money compared to what you owe, in most cases -- you'll have a hard time getting anyone to lend you money or give you any kind of credit for a very long time.\n\nSince there are a great number of things that are very hard or impossible to do without credit, bankruptcy has a pretty significant effect on your life. It should be considered a last resort."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
5n32gg
|
how are surfers unharmed by "wiping out"?
|
I have wondered this for ages. In [this video](_URL_0_), specifically around 3:30, how does something like that not kill a person? None of these people seem to have suffered any significant injuries.
I've never surfed or lived anywhere near the ocean; maybe that's why I don't understand.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5n32gg/eli5_how_are_surfers_unharmed_by_wiping_out/
|
{
"a_id": [
"dc8c4qa"
],
"score": [
7
],
"text": [
"They are hurt all of the time. People die surfing waves like that. That is one reason those shots are so amazing. Pros though know techniques to try and not die but at the end of the day a wave smashing you into a reef is going to hurt. Certain waves the goal is to dive deep and avoid getting thrown over the top again. Also in that first few seconds of fall the goal is to get into the water and not skip over the top like a rock, because if you don't go into the water you will end up \"over the falls\" and smashed into whatever is under that water that caused that giant wave. "
]
}
|
[] |
[
"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYww-y8j71s"
] |
[
[]
] |
|
4emdrh
|
is human perception the same as reality?
|
Is what I see, feel, hear, etc. reality? Is there any way that we can prove that we can perceive the reality of the universe? I suppose this is a more philosophical question, but I'm damn curious.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/4emdrh/eli5_is_human_perception_the_same_as_reality/
|
{
"a_id": [
"d21c41p",
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"d2258y6",
"d22aoll"
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"score": [
6,
31,
3,
2,
2,
3,
2,
2
],
"text": [
"No. Our brains take mental shortcuts constantly. _URL_0_\n\nWe base what we see, feel, hear largely on what we have experienced in the past. ",
"No not at all. Sounds are your brains interpretations of vibrations of pressure in a medium (air). Light is your brain's interpretations of certain wavelengths of radiation striking receptor cells clustered in your eyeballs. There are things you don't see, don't hear, and what you do see and hear is your brain's description of it, not the actual literal thing. You are not 'directly connected' to any sense which discerns 'reality', all of your senses are interpreted through your brain. \n\nThis also leads to the interesting thought problem of the brain in the vat. In short, there isn't a way to prove you aren't a brain in a vat and something is simply manipulating the parts of you that discern sensations.",
"Its not always reality, our brain is infamous to adjusting its sensations to make sense. \n\n\nThings like blind spots in our visions, we should technically have *zero* visual input in a small point in each eye, but yet we don't see black emptiness, our brain fills it in. (there are dot thingies to let you \"see\" this in action, but you may need to print them, hard to do it from a screen)\n\n\nOr situations where what you hear is changed based on what you see, there are videos where the sound you \"hear\" seems to change because the mouths of people are wording different sounds, despite the sound not changing",
"Technically you're always perceiving the reality of your own thoughts.\n\nBut the degree to which our thoughts accurately mirror the external world varies a lot based on many contributing factors.",
"You are correct, this is a question of philosophy and it even has a name! [Solipsism](_URL_0_)\n",
"Look up the book \"The holographic universe\". Really interesting thought provoking stuff, even if some is pseudoscientific.",
"Generally speaking, your question is related to the subject of [epistemology](_URL_0_): How do we know what we know?",
"We're still 'limited' to believing what our lying eyes and other senses are telling us. We're still just a brain inside of a skull and rely entirely on our body to tell us what's going on outside.\n\nExample is that our eyes are already filtering out a MASSIVE amount of things like blood vessels, the shadows of our optic nerves and general irrelevant details that have not changed. So even working perfectly you're not seeing reality...\n\nNow introduce some good ol hallucinogenic drugs into the mix and having those signals start to glitch can make you really question what your body is telling you. \nEG: Watching a laptop screen grow to the size of an IMAX theater and having your whole body go \"yeah, that's real what we're seeing.\""
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbKw0_v2clo"
],
[],
[],
[],
[
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solipsism"
],
[],
[
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistemology"
],
[]
] |
|
e86msg
|
how do airlines work? do they just slap their logo on a plane? do they own the planes? can anyone make one?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/e86msg/eli5_how_do_airlines_work_do_they_just_slap_their/
|
{
"a_id": [
"fa9k0hn",
"faa63d1"
],
"score": [
8,
2
],
"text": [
"Some airlines own their planes,v others lease them. The usual case is a combination, some planes are owned, some are leased. Some airlines share planes with other airlines in the same alliance - you can be booked with SAS but the plane says BA on it. \n\nThere's also \"wet lease\", where an airline rents a plane including crew from a leasing company.",
"With most airlines, it's a combination of both. The majority of their fleet will usually be owned, but some planes are leased. This is for a number of financial and practical considerations. Some airlines mostly lease, and these are often short-haul carriers. Long term, the cost of leasing an aircraft is greater, but if there a lot of uncertainty about future demand, it's less financially risky. \n\nThe cost of painting a logo on an aircraft is usually small compared to the cost of lease or the cost of a yearly payment on a loan. Or even compared to the typical cost of maintenance and inspection in a given year.\n\n > Can anyone make them \n\nTheoretically, yes. However the cost of developing a totally new passenger jet, and having it comply with a multitude of international regulations, is in the range of tens of billions of dollars. Airlines don't typically have the capitol, or the expertise to do this."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
3ga3nn
|
how do automated ice makers work?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3ga3nn/eli5_how_do_automated_ice_makers_work/
|
{
"a_id": [
"ctwa4rx"
],
"score": [
6
],
"text": [
"Water goes into a tray and freezes, turning into ice.\nThe tray then empties into a large container.\nWater goes into empty tray and forms more ice.\nRepeat until you have lots of ice.\n\nPress button or open container for ice stockpile."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
9fwdd1
|
how does a monitor work? what does it have inside?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/9fwdd1/eli5_how_does_a_monitor_work_what_does_it_have/
|
{
"a_id": [
"e5zrvja",
"e6b5bw0"
],
"score": [
3,
2
],
"text": [
"Old cathode-ray tube (CRT) monitors have several coordinated beams of electrons that scans a coating of phosphorescent powder inside a vacuum-filled tube. The glowing of the powder makes the individual pixels, but it’s scanning so quickly that your eye sees it as a reasonably still image. \n\nFlat-panel LED monitors use a grid of tiny individual LED pixels to portray the image. The pixels are shown pretty much simultaneously, with much less of a scanning effect. ",
" \n\nNewer plasma monitors have millions of pixels that are tiny dots on your screen that are made up of sub-pixels, which are a combination of three little lights very close together that are red green and blue, that get electronically activated on their own or together to create different colours\n\nThat’s how plasma monitors and TVs work. Let’s dive into LCD and LED TVs and monitors.\n\nLCD stands for Liquid Crystal Display, and LED screens have the same principle. The LCD monitor originally was the term for back when we used Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) monitors. A CRT television or monitor is a screen where there are no pixels per se, but light shined from the back at a liquid crystals and a polarized glass screen to allow the monitor to block certain colours that it doesn’t need at the time.\n\nLED monitors work in the same general way, just with newer fluorescent lights to create the colour, but they still use the method of the liquid crystal and polarizers.\n\nNow you may see LCD monitors on the market but they aren't giant CRTs, what does that mean? It means it’s basically a cheaper LED screen.\n\nWith that out of the way, no matter which of these you choose, they all connect to your computer and display the graphics output from your graphics card or integrated graphics from your CPU (central processing unit) via a cable such as DisplayPort, HDMI, DVI, VGA, USB-C, etc."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
3s5811
|
why do people care if google/online companies sell your interests and browsing habits to interested marketers?
|
Seems like a better way to have stuff paid for and it's not like interested third party is going to buy data for 1 or 2 people at a time. They'll likely buy them in chunks of 10K plus so I doubt anyone has the time to go through and check someones history?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3s5811/eli5_why_do_people_care_if_googleonline_companies/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cwu64a0",
"cwu6akl"
],
"score": [
3,
2
],
"text": [
"It's about privacy. If you want to sell your browsing habits to an advertiser, that's one thing--but if someone else, usually a company you have no business relationship with, collects information on you without your knowledge and then uses it for commercial gain, that's quite something else.\n\nThe chief problems with mass data collection the Internet are that it is done without people's knowledge or consent, by companies they do not know. Consensual collection based on informed consent isn't a big deal, but it rarely works that way.",
"Some people don't mind. People who do are concerned that conclusions might be drawn about them based on information that's not completely correct. Credit reporting agencies used to have a lot of problems like that, and so laws were passed that they had to provide people with copies of the data they sold and make changes if there were mistakes. \n\nWhile people might not have time to \"check someones history\", that's what computers are for. Amazon's still trying to sell me hunting stuff because I bought my uncle an expensive rifle scope three Christmases ago. I'm sure their data shows I'm a gun-nut, and that kind of mistake can cause a lot of social mischief."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
4b31da
|
what is jealousy, biologically?
|
Lately I've been suspicious of my boyfriend cheating on me.
I have no appetite, weak legs, can't focus, and a general "not good" feel.
What happens to your body when you're jealous? I'm intrigued!
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/4b31da/eli5_what_is_jealousy_biologically/
|
{
"a_id": [
"d15n2lg",
"d15v5s3"
],
"score": [
11,
15
],
"text": [
"You probably have multiple things going on. To start with 'jealousy' is not what is directly causing all of this, mental stress is. You would most likely be going through all these same symptoms if you had lost your job and were worried about paying your bills. Something in your life happens and that causes the emotion stress. \n\nDifferent people react differently to emotional stress and one of the big dividing lines is some people will start binge eating and some people will stop eating. Both of these tie into evolutionary mechanisms to handle external stresses to your safety. It sounds like you are one that stops eating.\n\nWhen you stop eating, or severely decrease how much you eat, it results in all kinds of side effects to your body. Physical weakness is a very common side effect. Adding to that a lot of people have a hard time sleeping when they go through stressful times. Lack of sleep also does really bad things to the mind and body.\n\nSo in short, the jealousy results in stress, the stress results in lack of eating and/or lack of sleeping, these result in a lot of the physical and mental symptoms you are experiencing.\n\n(Just as a note everything I said was generalities for the most common things that occur in most people. Individuals can be wildly different, and there is always the possibility you could have an undiagnosed disorder that is occurring at the same time as these life events)",
"Jealousy is a mate-guarding behaviour.\nOur ancestors who got jealous more often took action to eliminate the threat/distraction.\nThe action might involve a huge piece of rock to the head.\nOur inheritance of this trait speaks for its success."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
1aywk2
|
why is cyprus on the verge of bankruptcy?
|
How can an entire country go bankrupt? I guess this also relates to Greece. Is there a connection with these countries and their adoption of the Euro?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1aywk2/eli5why_is_cyprus_on_the_verge_of_bankruptcy/
|
{
"a_id": [
"c9217hx",
"c921bf1",
"c921fwg",
"c924gjv"
],
"score": [
5,
18,
3,
2
],
"text": [
"[Here](_URL_0_) is a post from yesterday that goes into Cyprus.\n\nA country can go bankrupt like a person or a company, by racking up more debt than they can possibly pay off.\n\nIn Greece's case, they lied about their finances and racked up massive debt for nearly a decade.\n\nCyprus had an oversized banking industry that search as a tax haven for rich Russians. Those bank lost a lot of money investing in Greece, and now risk failure. ",
"Cyprus has a large banking industry that functions largely as a tax haven for foreigners (read: \"legitimate businessmen\" in Russia). Cypriot banks had enormous deposits, and invested those deposits. The financial crash caused many of those investments to fail, and the banks lost so much money that they are no longer able to pay back depositors. The nation of Cyprus doesn't want to lose all of the foreign banking business, but it simply doesn't have the money to fully guarantee everyone's deposits. And, since it doesn't control its own currency or monetary policy, it can't simply inflate away the brunt of the losses.\n\nTheir plan is to take out large bailout loans from the rest of the Eurozone, guarantee most of those deposits, and \"tax\" the remainder. This proved massively unpopular with ordinary Cypriots, who would lose part of their savings so that the government could bail out foreign ~~mobsters~~ investors. It seems that the new plan is to fully guarantee \"smaller\" deposits and tax larger deposits more heavily, which will probably spell an end to the Cypriot tax evasion industry.\n\nIf Cyprus had its own currency, and owed its debts in that currency, then it could simply \"print money\" using conventional monetary policy and avoid the worst of these problems, at the cost of inflation. But more powerful Eurozone nations don't want inflation, so Cyprus is out of luck on that front.",
"Thanks to you both. :)",
"I recommend [Planet Money Podcast by NPR](_URL_0_)"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"http://redd.it/1ax30u"
],
[],
[],
[
"http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2013/03/19/174766799/episode-445-cyprus-takes-away-the-security-blanket"
]
] |
|
2hdcur
|
why do people cover webcams with tapes on laptop? should i do it?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2hdcur/eli5_why_do_people_cover_webcams_with_tapes_on/
|
{
"a_id": [
"ckrm3cs",
"ckrm78l",
"ckrm97w",
"ckrmhh6"
],
"score": [
4,
2,
7,
4
],
"text": [
"They are scared of security threats. There are programs that can view and operate your webcam remotely. It's not a bad idea for someone who doesn't know that much about computers, but in general it's unnecessary unless you are using a work laptop. ",
"They already answered the first part, the second part is no; the chances of your webcam getting hacked are low, the chance of you doing something Infront of your webcam that's important to hackers is near 0; you don't fill out your bank information Infront of your camera; you don't hold ISIS meetings Infront of your camera- so there's no actual reason to",
"I know a guy at work who covers over the red \"camera on\" led. Why?\n\nHe had a program installed that snaps a picture of anyone who sits in front of the machine. He doesn't want potential impostors to know they're on camera.",
"if it's not your laptop and you didn't personally install the software/os. there is a high possibility that from whomever you got the laptop from has the ability to take pictures remotely through your webcam. "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[],
[]
] |
||
58ryt0
|
after fetal surgery, how do doctors seal up the amniotic sac? how do they make sure there is enough amniotic fluid during and post surgery so fetus doesn't get exposed to breathing in air?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/58ryt0/eli5_after_fetal_surgery_how_do_doctors_seal_up/
|
{
"a_id": [
"d92v6a3"
],
"score": [
49
],
"text": [
"There are a few types of fetal surgery. One type can be done basically laparoscopically, and the small hole in the amniotic sac will usually seal itself, preserving most of the fluid. \n\nThe second type of fetal surgery is done similar to a c-section. The incision in the uterus is done to expose as little of the fetus as possible while still allowing the surgery to be performed. For example, surgery for spina bifida only exposes a small part of the spine. Once complete, the amniotic sac and uterus are stitched back up and most of the fluid is preserved, ideally. \n\nThe final type of fetal surgery is more \"partial birth\" and is called an EXIT procedure. In this case the surgery is followed by immediate delivery of the baby so the amniotic fluid is no longer necessary.\n\nAll of these are risky, with the biggest risks being premature rupture of membranes, preterm labor and birth, or fetal demise. Most fetuses can survive for some time without amniotic fluid as well, although this carries additional risks. In all of these surgeries (if the fetus is viable) there is a neonatal team standing by in case emergent delivery is necessary, in which case they will attempt to resuscitate the baby and provide care in the NICU.\n\nSource: NICU RN"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
5jrca8
|
how do brand new authors submit their books for publishing?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5jrca8/eli5_how_do_brand_new_authors_submit_their_books/
|
{
"a_id": [
"dbibx6t",
"dbieq6t",
"dbiln2w"
],
"score": [
9,
3,
2
],
"text": [
"Option 1: Self-publishing Generally via an online service that lets you self-publish as an eBook. There's also companies you can pay to print your books but this is generally a bad idea.\n\n\nOption 2: Submit your work (generally in the form of a sample chapter) to an agent. If the agent likes your work enough that they think it'll sell decently, they'll represent you for a commission and work to get a publishing house to publish your book. You can't really go direct to the publishing house, the agents tend to filter out the inferior books. This is the best route to be a commercially successful author, that being said it's a crapshoot as agents get metric boatloads of submissions and even if you have an objectively great book, some of it depends on your presentation in the submission, the agent's mood at the time, market demand for the genre/type of book/themes, and random chance.\n\n\nSource: Wife is an aspiring author, made the mistake as a teenager of paying for self-publishing which cost money and she was getting phonecalls for years with them wanting her to pay to print more. Has since become a much better writer, has been trying to get a few books published for several years.\n\nShe also has a friend that got a relatively monster first book deal who shared some of her experiences.",
"They start small and work their way up.\n\nWhile it can happen, your first book isn't going to be a grand novel you sent to a big publisher. More likely it is going to be a short story you submit to a regional magazine or anthology.\n\nYou get a few of those published, you might attract the attention of an agent or a publisher, or at the least have build it up a portfolio of published work that makes publishers take you more seriously. ",
"It's hard as hell. It beats you down and you eventually lose all drive to create. (failed author here)"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[]
] |
||
1yoqwp
|
how can people trust a slot machine to give you a win if they can be programmed to rarely do so?
|
I never understood the appeal. Some machine that always takes your money, and is made by some company you don't know, and given to some casino that always wants to win over you do, and people just sit there pumping quarters in.
Yes, I know they sometimes pay out, but how can you trust them to do so fairly? At least at the tables, you're watching the "mechanism" at work when the dealer pulls cards, or at the roulette table, you're watching the dice all the way, etc.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1yoqwp/eli5how_can_people_trust_a_slot_machine_to_give/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cfme4jx",
"cfme8iu",
"cfmect0"
],
"score": [
3,
6,
2
],
"text": [
"Random behavioural rewards are an extremely effective way of conditioning people to repeat a process",
"You don't \"trust\" the machine to give you a win, you hope you'll get a win, while the smarter part of your brain tells you that you're just throwing your money away.",
"There are very strict laws and regulations for the casino industry (both game manufacturers and the casinos themselves). They can be put out of business in a heartbeat if they violate them, so you can feel very confident in the fairness of casinos (in America at least).\n\nThat being said, casinos in most places in America are required by law to return a set percentage of the money played in slot machines (between 77% and 99%). But that often applies to all the slot machines in total, not any machine in particular. So they can, and do, set the exact rate of return on each machine - some being loose (close to or over 100% return) and some being stingy (close to or at the minimum return) - provided that overall the slots in general are returning the required percentage.\n\nThe result is that on average - playing many different machines - your chances are the exact percentages required by law. But if you play only a single machine all day you may be getting either a higher or lower rate of return."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[]
] |
|
3b5rds
|
what is going on in eastern europe? is this actually a war?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3b5rds/eli5what_is_going_on_in_eastern_europe_is_this/
|
{
"a_id": [
"csj3yw1"
],
"score": [
6
],
"text": [
"Russia invaded a part of a Eastern European country called Ukraine it took an area of land called the Crimea. In addition, it gave tanks, artillery and other weapons to pro-Russia rebels in Ukraine. The US and EU responded with sanctions and other measures. Many other Eastern European countries have been threatened by Russia and are either building an army, scared or both. The US and EU are also giving aid to Ukraine but no weapons."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
65ckst
|
if cancer is due to an abnormal cell growth, why is there a terminal stage? isn't it possible to just removed by surgery all the time since it's just a bunch of cells?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/65ckst/eli5if_cancer_is_due_to_an_abnormal_cell_growth/
|
{
"a_id": [
"dg955w4",
"dg956go"
],
"score": [
4,
5
],
"text": [
"There are some cancers that are too deep or widespread to be removed. \n\nBrain cancer, for example, is tricky because if you remove too much you are literally removing parts of a person's being and personality \n\nBlood cancer is vile because how do you surgically remove blood? \n\n",
"Sure its possible to remove it, and it often works. But the problem is, like you said, its a bunch of cells and cells are very small. And if you leave even one, it can grow back. When removing these things surgically, doctors have to also remove a not insignificant amount of healthy tissue, just in case some of the cancer cells are there too. And even that isn't always enough.\n\nAnd sometimes, cancer cells can spread to multiple places in your body through your blood. At that point you can't cut them all out."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
5fm8wt
|
why is it once coral reefs are dead they are dead forever?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5fm8wt/eli5_why_is_it_once_coral_reefs_are_dead_they_are/
|
{
"a_id": [
"dalamf4",
"dalb7a3",
"dalezyj"
],
"score": [
3,
5,
4
],
"text": [
"Coral reefs are a really complicated ecosystem. Even if a wizard came and made the coral itself come back to life all the hundreds of other fish and plants and bacteria and stuff that all live off each other would still be gone and the coral would just die again. \n\nThere is no good way to jumpstart that stuff, it takes basically hundreds of years to get it all working and once it's gone it's really good and hard to make come back. ",
"They're not dead forever, they're dead for a few hundred-thousand years. First whatever conditions that killed the original colony has to go away.\n\nCoral reefs are a living ecosystem. There are the corals themselves, which grow fairly slowly. So even if new larva land on the old reef, it takes a long time for them to grow to the same population. Second, because it's an integrated ecosystem, there are creatures that feed on the algae and other stuff that may grow on the shells of the corals. There are creatures that feed on the various things in or near the reefs.\n\nFor example, the oyster reefs of Chesapeake Bay were massive until about the early 1900s. Over fishing, poor water quality and habitat management and disease have destroyed them. Because oysters are filter feeders, they kept the waters clearer by removing a lot of sediment and algae in the water. \n\nToday with about 98% of the original reefs gone, oyster spat don't have a hard surface to land on, and those that do land are exposed to crabs and are eaten before they can grow large enough. The remaining reefs are being smothered in silt because the water quality has declined.",
"Coral is an animal. When the animal is dead, it remains dead. The stony house the animal used to live in remains, but it's not going to \"come to life\"."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[]
] |
||
3t2s5o
|
if someone stood near the north or south pole, say, at the shortest possible lattitude line, could they walk in a perfectly straight line and meet back where they started? could such an experiment take a short enough time to show any noticeable effects?
|
Title
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3t2s5o/eli5_if_someone_stood_near_the_north_or_south/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cx2kuix",
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"text": [
"Well, yes, but they could do that anywhere, and the walk would take a while because it would be a 25,000 mile journey.\n\nWhat you're getting at is a little different, because you're talking about walking along a latitude line very very close to 90 degrees, north or south. And the thing is that latitude lines are circular everywhere -- it's just that at most places, for short distances and practical purposes, they appear straight.\n\nIf you walk a line at 89.99 degrees south, you'll be walking in a small circle. If you walk a line at 35 degrees south, you'll be walking in a circle, just a much larger one. Either way, it won't be straight, but the one at 35 degrees will *look* straight for any one small portion of your walk.",
"Not sure exactly what you're asking and why it's specific to the Poles. You could pick any point on the planet (ignoring the oceans), and walk in a straight line until you were back where you started, because the Earth is spherical. It's only 40,000km or so, all round. \n\nIf you're asking whether it's possible to go \"around the world\" by following a latitude line around one of the Poles, then yes: not only is it doable, there's [video of someone doing it] (_URL_0_)!",
"Lines of latitude are not straight lines. \n\nThe \"straightest\" possible line on a sphere is always an arc which would be as wide as possible, so it would be a piece of a diameter. (These are the paths satellites take)\n\nThe only latitude line that is a diameter is the equator (Longitude lines are all diameters). That means that if you are, say, north of the equator, and you want to reach a point perfectly to the east of you, the shortest path (assuming the earth is a sphere and we neglect topography) would take you first northeast, then southeast. \n\nThe effect is very tiny as long as the distance you are traveling is much shorter than your distance to the north or south pole, but very large when the point you are going to is farther than the pole."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[
"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZYk7N7AA1M"
],
[]
] |
|
4c8mg0
|
dc rebirth
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/4c8mg0/eli5_dc_rebirth/
|
{
"a_id": [
"d1fz5nl"
],
"score": [
3
],
"text": [
"It's another universe reboot that for some weird reason, nobody from creaters, writers, or fans, wants to really admit is actually just another reboot."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
2cnaat
|
what makes a "lossy" file lossy?
|
Are there certain file types that are less lossy than others? Are any "lossless" files perfectly lossless?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2cnaat/eli5_what_makes_a_lossy_file_lossy/
|
{
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"text": [
"Here is a very simplified example. Suppose you were asked to remember this list of numbers:\n\n1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20\n\nNotice there are 2 12s.\n\nAn exact representation would just save these numbers as they are. This would be a 'lossless' file.\n\nSuppose you wanted to make a smaller file though? You might be able to -encode- the list with something like this:\n\n\"Start with 1, then add 1 19 times\"\n\nYou might be able to store these instructions in a shorter file. You wouldn't recover -exactly- the original data, but for some applications that might not matter.\n\nWhen does it not matter? Well in particular for sound, picture and video data. Using some very sophisticated algorithms that have been developed in the past few decades, people have figured out how to represent sounds, images and videos as mathematical curves that take up much less space to store than the original sound or image data. A -decoder- converts this data into an approximation of the original data before playing it back to you. The data isn't exactly the same, but your eyes and ears can't tell the difference (unless the compression is applied too severely).\n\nAre \"lossless\" files perfectly lossless? Yes. For example, the PNG format is a way to take a digital image and compress it to a smaller file size, but when you decompress the image, you get the exact same pixels as the original uncompressed image.\n\nAre some files more \"lossy\" than others. Yes. First of all, it depends on the compression algorithm. New compression algorithms are more clever reducing the file size while producing an acceptable result. Older algorithms were not as good. Second of all, it depends on how severely the compression is applied, as I hinted at above. This is usually expressed as 'image quality' for a lossy image format like JPEG, or as 'bitrate' for a lossy sound format like MP3. A higher bitrate for MP3 means more of the true original sounds are preserved, but the files are correspondingly larger.\n\n",
"I'm going to assume you're talking about compression formats.\n\nTo answer your first question, yes, absolutely. And for your second, \"lossless\" files are always perfectly lossless. Anything less than pefectly lossless is called \"lossy\". To explain the difference between lossless and lossy file formats, I'll explain a little bit about how compression works.\n\nFiles are often times much larger than they strictly need to be. The reason for this is because they are usually easier to work with when they are in the expanded format. Think of it like a table: A table takes up a lot of room when it's put together, but we use it like that because it's easier to eat off of when it's standing up. However, if we want to put the table in storage or give it to a friend, it doesn't really do much good being put together. We can take a table apart to make it smaller, but it is no longer useful until we put it back together.\n\nFiles are much the same way: We can \"take them apart\" by compressing them, but they can't be directly used until they are \"put back together\". That's how lossless compression works. We \"take apart\" the file in such a way that we can put it back together exactly how it was before, provided we have the instructions. This sort of compression does things like replacing \"000000000000\" with \"0 x12\". You can undo it perfectly to get back the original.\n\nLossy compression takes this idea one step further: Imagine your taken-apart table still won't fit in your friend's car. You can saw the table in half to make it even smaller, then glue it back together at your friend's house. The problem with this approach is that it permanently damages the table. Even after you glue it back together, it isn't exactly the same as it was before. Most of the time, putting it back together is good enough, and the damage doesn't matter.\n\nLossy file compression is the same way. It makes the data even smaller, but it's only able to do this by doing permanent damage. You can put the file mostly back together on the other side, but it won't be a perfect copy. Not everything can be sawed in half and glued back together. Your refrigerator for example, won't work again if you try this approach. Similarly, certain file types are not very suitible for lossy compression. If you tried it on text files, you'd get back `gibberish taht waz olny srot of whta you tzped`. This sort of compression does things like replacing \"blue, light blue, slightly darker blue\" with \"blue x3\". You can undo it, but the result is \"blue, blue, blue\", which is similar but not exactly the same as the original.\n\nAdditionally, repeatedly sawing the table in half and gluing it back together will result in the table degrading over time. By the tenth time you did this, the table would likely barely resemble the original. Similarly, files that are edited repeatedly shouldn't be saved in lossy formats, or they will degrade in quality.\n\nIf you'd like to learn more about compression, here's a few interesting links:\n\n - [Huffman coding](_URL_0_) is a more complex method of lossless compression that doesn't require there to be twenty zeroes in a row to be effective. It's used in zip files, among other places.\n - [Compression artifacts](_URL_2_) are the \"damage\" that accumulates on lossy files.\n - [Generation loss](_URL_1_) is what happens when you save and re-save a file in a lossy format repeatedly",
"\"Lossy\" is a terrible name for variable-quality audio, picture, and video codes.\n\nThere are some codes that are more efficient than others. At high quality, AAC is a bit better than Vorbis, which is a lot better than MP3. At low quality Opus does better than almost anything else. JPEG2000 is fantastically good for low-quality photographs, but JPEG survives because it's good enough.\n\nAnd so on.\n\nThe critical idea behind these codes is that a sound or picture is represented as a mathematical function that can be approximated by a big formula. The encoded data tells how to fill in the blank spots in this formula. (Assume these are fractions between 0 and 1)\n\nIn Morse code, more common letters are shorter. In AV codes, some numbers are shorter than others. Simple fractions like 3/4 and 5/8 are shorter than complex ones like 49/64 or 163/256.\n\nSo the steps of encoding are \n\n1) take the sampled data and re-write it in the form of the code's formula \n\n2) cheat the fractions where the viewer / listener won't notice\n\n3) pack these numbers into a series of bytes.\n\nStep 3 is perfectly reversible. Step 1 is often reversible, but not always. Depends on the code. Step 2 is where the \"loss\" occurs, and this only happens during encoding.\n\nAn MP3 decoder is 100% lossless - there is exactly one \"correct\" way to play an MP3 file if you follow the standard.",
"Yes, lossless formats are completely lossless. The simplest lossless compression is run-length encoding, where long runs of the same value are replaced with a number representing the length of the run. So instead of storing \"00000000000000000000\" longhand, they'd store something like \"0*20\" instead. In something like an image file with big areas of the same colour, this can save a whole lot of space. \n\nLossy formats, on the other hand, *approximate* the data fed into them - the one you're likely most familiar with is the .jpg image format. \n\nUsing some mathematical trickery, it's possible to roughly replicate any 8*8 block of pixels with only a handful of bytes - stitch enough blocks together, and you have an entire image stored in far fewer bytes than you'd otherwise need, saving vast amounts of disk space. The rougher the approximation you're willing to put up with, the more space you save.\n\nOf course, this comes at a price in terms of image quality; overly-compressed jpgs can [look awful](_URL_0_).\n\n\nSimilar techniques can be used with audio and video files - most lossy formats tend to exploit the limits of human perception, and throw away the details we're least able to notice. \n\nThe human eye, for instance, is very sensitive to the brightness of each pixel in an image, and will instantly notice blurring or glitching from lost brightness detail. \n\nOn the other hand, it's almost comically insensitive to smeary detail in the *colour* of each pixel - so the .jpg format faithfully stores as much brightness detail as it can, but throws away most of the fiddly colour detail, and you don't even notice. \n\nSimilarly, it's almost impossible to notice fiddly high-frequency sounds when there are low-frequency sounds masking them, so the .mp3 format exploits this in a similar way. \n\nMost formats are tunable with regard to how much information they throw away, storing more or less detail according to how much space you need to save. "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huffman_coding",
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_loss",
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compression_artifact"
],
[],
[
"http://shutha.org/node/829"
]
] |
|
aom0rb
|
could someone explain what "photodynamic therapy" is and how it works?
|
I read an article on how Mexican researchers have had success treating people with the HPV virus using this technology and actually curing the disease. Can anyone explain how this works?
Edit: added link to article.
_URL_0_
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/aom0rb/eli5could_someone_explain_what_photodynamic/
|
{
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"eg2w7pd"
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2
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"text": [
"Photodynamic therapy uses a combination of light and chemicals to kill bacteria, viruses, cancer cells, etc. There are different methods of how this is done depending on the disease being treated, but in general they all start with the targeted cells/viruses getting exposed to a specific chemical which only they absorb; this chemical is inactive until it's exposed to light. When it IS exposed to a certain kind of light, the chemical reacts with oxygen to kill the cell/virus etc. \n\nPhotodynamic therapy is used among other things as a cancer treatment and also for treating acne. Obviously it only works if the area to be targeted can be exposed to light easily, so it's limited in how well it can work and what kind of problems it can help with. \n\nThat article about HPV being cured in Mexico is interesting but it omits a lot of detail, like how can the virus be totally eliminated from a person since their entire insides can't be lit up? Or is that virus only found where it can be exposed to light? It would be good if it explained that kind of thing better. "
]
}
|
[] |
[
"https://www.eluniversal.com.mx/english/mexican-scientist-cures-human-papilloma-virus"
] |
[
[]
] |
|
4d9n91
|
how does autopilot for a tesla work?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/4d9n91/eli5_how_does_autopilot_for_a_tesla_work/
|
{
"a_id": [
"d1p0c11",
"d1p0spd"
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"score": [
10,
5
],
"text": [
"Well, you got adaptive cruise control, active lane guidance, lane changing, and some other neat features. It isn't on the same level as self-driving cars like what Google is testing, but it's close.",
"The Model S has \"a forward radar, a forward-looking camera, 12 long-range ultrasonic sensors positioned to sense 16 feet around the car in every direction at all speeds, and a high-precision digitally-controlled electric assist braking system.\"( [source](_URL_0_)) it uses all that to not run into things"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[
"https://www.teslamotors.com/blog/your-autopilot-has-arrived"
]
] |
||
5r6fzp
|
in areas where there is a waiting list for organs, why isn't organ donation mandatory?
|
[deleted]
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5r6fzp/eli5_in_areas_where_there_is_a_waiting_list_for/
|
{
"a_id": [
"dd4u434",
"dd4u9qu",
"dd4zpt1"
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"score": [
5,
2,
2
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"text": [
"Mandatory organ donations, like anything else, is an issue that has to be inducted into law by the nation's legislator. If the country is democratic, and people of the nation don't want mandatory organ donations, then the legislator is going to have little reason to mandate organ donations, even if it's a good idea.",
"In some places it is by default, meaning you need to take steps to opt out. The reason it is not more widespread is because grieving relatives often will not let organs be taken from a loved one - remember it's got to be done quickly, so there's not time for family to sit beside the bed of the deceased. Even in places where you can be an organ donor, relatives will often stop the process and doctors being carers, they don't push back on people who're grieving at that moment.",
"This is actually a human rights issue. While it may not be apparent these days, you have complete control and ownership of your body. Mandatory donations means you have no say in what you own. That is a dick move. They're violating one of the core values of justice and law. \n\nIn the states we talk about life liberty and the pursuit of happiness as the core tenets of America. Your case would violate the first two."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[]
] |
|
lgyta
|
subprime mortgage lending
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/lgyta/eli5_subprime_mortgage_lending/
|
{
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"text": [
"Every month, your average Joe pays for his mortgage. These payments are fairly regular and reliable - for the most part. The financial powerhouses were bundling these mortgages that people were diligently paying month over month and selling them all over the world. \n\nNow many financial institutions were responsible for rating these mortgages based on their likely-hood of being paid back fully (and not being foreclosed on). During 2006 - 2008 there was boom in the price of houses causing them to as much as double or even triple. This meant more mortgage payments and more (hopefully) mortgage bundles sold by the banks. Due to the risk, corporations like AIG were insuring the mortgage bundles and making a healthy sum as they were so reliable. \n\nThe financial institutions received a cut during the process of rating the mortgages, so wanted to rate as many as they could. More and more loans were being lent for mortgages and more and more people who couldn't pay their loans back were being lent to. These people are the ones who held the 'subprime' mortgages. \n\nWhen the sub-prime people began to default, those holding the bundled mortgages were losing money and wanted to sell the bundles. They recalled their insurance money from AIG or sold their bundles to other people for far less than they were worth. This spiraled out of control initiating the 2008 recession.\n\n\nTL;DR: People who were given big loans for houses without being able to pay them back would be \"sub-prime mortgages\"\n\n\n*I didn't talk more about the actual recession or more direct causes because that wasn't the question, but I can if you want. ",
"Banks make money by lending money to people. But to make sure that you don't just take the bank's money and run, they say \"if you don't pay us back, we get to take your house.\"\n\nSo let's say you want to buy a house that costs $500,000, but you don't have the money. If you go to the bank and say \"Can I borrow $600,000? If I don't pay it back, you can have my house,\" the bank would say \"hell no - if I give you the $600,000, you'll just say 'thanks for the money' and walk away. I'll be stuck with a house worth only $500,000, and you'll get to walk away with that $100,000 for free!\"\n\nBut let us now say that your house value goes up $200,000 per year. That means, next year, your house will be worth $700,000, and in another year it'll be worth $900,000. So why would you let the bank take such an awesome house? In just a few years, you can sell it and be a millionaire!\n\nSo if you ask the bank \"can I have $600,000? My house value is going up a lot each year,\" the bank wouldn't be suspicious of you since if you do walk away from the house, they'll get this awesome house that'll be worth a lot in just a few years.\n\nThat is why all the banks gave out big loans for houses that weren't worth that much. They thought \"hey, the house prices will keep going up! so people won't walk away from their houses!\" The problem is, house prices *don't* just keep going up.\n\nSo when the house prices stopped going up and started going down, that's like if you got a loan for $600,000, but now your house is only worth like $300,000. You'd definitely just walk away from the house and keep the money. When a bunch of people did that, it caused banks to have a bunch of these worthless houses, which they can try to sell, but they won't get too much for it.\n\nBecause of that, the banks lost a lot of money, which led to this crisis.\n\ntl;dr if a bank gives you a loan for a house that is not worth too much, and can perhaps even be worth less than the loan.",
"[Here](_URL_0_) is a response from a previous post.",
"[Best explanation I've ever seen.](_URL_0_)",
"Seems to be an awful lot of responses here that vaguely cover the bases of sub-prime lending but don't hit the topic specifically. \n\nSub-prime lending was the practice of handing out loans to people who could not necessarily afford those loans or who would not necessarily be approved for a \"prime\" loan otherwise. \n\nThis loan structuring was created by those in power during the Clinton Administration and were created so that any person could own a home, despite their income. So if Joe the Contractor was making 100,000 a year in off-the-books contracting work, but couldn't get the credit extended to him that his current salary allowed because he had no, or a bad credit rating, he could take the loan he could or could not afford at a higher interest rate to accommodate for the risk. \n\nNow the problems occurred mostly because of the things detailed in other posts. However, you should also note that this practice was also very loosely regulated as it was instructed by Alan Greenspan and then President Clinton. They believed that keeping these transactions unregulated would allow the housing market to remain a steady and ever increasing flow of income for lenders. \n\nYou could also note that the Clinton Administration and every Presidency since has been heavily invested in the companies that profited most from the fall outs, like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, who now own the majority of all housing loans in the US. ",
"Every month, your average Joe pays for his mortgage. These payments are fairly regular and reliable - for the most part. The financial powerhouses were bundling these mortgages that people were diligently paying month over month and selling them all over the world. \n\nNow many financial institutions were responsible for rating these mortgages based on their likely-hood of being paid back fully (and not being foreclosed on). During 2006 - 2008 there was boom in the price of houses causing them to as much as double or even triple. This meant more mortgage payments and more (hopefully) mortgage bundles sold by the banks. Due to the risk, corporations like AIG were insuring the mortgage bundles and making a healthy sum as they were so reliable. \n\nThe financial institutions received a cut during the process of rating the mortgages, so wanted to rate as many as they could. More and more loans were being lent for mortgages and more and more people who couldn't pay their loans back were being lent to. These people are the ones who held the 'subprime' mortgages. \n\nWhen the sub-prime people began to default, those holding the bundled mortgages were losing money and wanted to sell the bundles. They recalled their insurance money from AIG or sold their bundles to other people for far less than they were worth. This spiraled out of control initiating the 2008 recession.\n\n\nTL;DR: People who were given big loans for houses without being able to pay them back would be \"sub-prime mortgages\"\n\n\n*I didn't talk more about the actual recession or more direct causes because that wasn't the question, but I can if you want. ",
"Banks make money by lending money to people. But to make sure that you don't just take the bank's money and run, they say \"if you don't pay us back, we get to take your house.\"\n\nSo let's say you want to buy a house that costs $500,000, but you don't have the money. If you go to the bank and say \"Can I borrow $600,000? If I don't pay it back, you can have my house,\" the bank would say \"hell no - if I give you the $600,000, you'll just say 'thanks for the money' and walk away. I'll be stuck with a house worth only $500,000, and you'll get to walk away with that $100,000 for free!\"\n\nBut let us now say that your house value goes up $200,000 per year. That means, next year, your house will be worth $700,000, and in another year it'll be worth $900,000. So why would you let the bank take such an awesome house? In just a few years, you can sell it and be a millionaire!\n\nSo if you ask the bank \"can I have $600,000? My house value is going up a lot each year,\" the bank wouldn't be suspicious of you since if you do walk away from the house, they'll get this awesome house that'll be worth a lot in just a few years.\n\nThat is why all the banks gave out big loans for houses that weren't worth that much. They thought \"hey, the house prices will keep going up! so people won't walk away from their houses!\" The problem is, house prices *don't* just keep going up.\n\nSo when the house prices stopped going up and started going down, that's like if you got a loan for $600,000, but now your house is only worth like $300,000. You'd definitely just walk away from the house and keep the money. When a bunch of people did that, it caused banks to have a bunch of these worthless houses, which they can try to sell, but they won't get too much for it.\n\nBecause of that, the banks lost a lot of money, which led to this crisis.\n\ntl;dr if a bank gives you a loan for a house that is not worth too much, and can perhaps even be worth less than the loan.",
"[Here](_URL_0_) is a response from a previous post.",
"[Best explanation I've ever seen.](_URL_0_)",
"Seems to be an awful lot of responses here that vaguely cover the bases of sub-prime lending but don't hit the topic specifically. \n\nSub-prime lending was the practice of handing out loans to people who could not necessarily afford those loans or who would not necessarily be approved for a \"prime\" loan otherwise. \n\nThis loan structuring was created by those in power during the Clinton Administration and were created so that any person could own a home, despite their income. So if Joe the Contractor was making 100,000 a year in off-the-books contracting work, but couldn't get the credit extended to him that his current salary allowed because he had no, or a bad credit rating, he could take the loan he could or could not afford at a higher interest rate to accommodate for the risk. \n\nNow the problems occurred mostly because of the things detailed in other posts. However, you should also note that this practice was also very loosely regulated as it was instructed by Alan Greenspan and then President Clinton. They believed that keeping these transactions unregulated would allow the housing market to remain a steady and ever increasing flow of income for lenders. \n\nYou could also note that the Clinton Administration and every Presidency since has been heavily invested in the companies that profited most from the fall outs, like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, who now own the majority of all housing loans in the US. "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[
"http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/jdn07/eli5_what_a_subprime_mortgage_is_and_what_the/c2b965m"
],
[
"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bx_LWm6_6tA"
],
[],
[],
[],
[
"http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/jdn07/eli5_what_a_subprime_mortgage_is_and_what_the/c2b965m"
],
[
"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bx_LWm6_6tA"
],
[]
] |
||
34zbjs
|
why is unisex not called ambisex?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/34zbjs/eli5why_is_unisex_not_called_ambisex/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cqzjfsq"
],
"score": [
6
],
"text": [
"The idea is that facilities that are unisex can be shared. Think in terms of the words \"united\" or \"universal\". "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
2oz3wx
|
why does the japanese language use so many english words, even in cases when you know they must have an equivalent word in their language?
|
I'm an avid gamer, so I've encountered this too many times to count over the years. For example a game like *Battlefield* will be called something like *Baturafierdu* when ported to Japan, as opposed to simply using the Japanese word for battlefield. I've noticed this also stretches across other media like manga, anime and movies as well.
*edited for more general examples:*
ice cream - aisu kurīmu,
bargain - bāgen,
book cover - bukkukabā,
ballpoint pen - bōrupen,
button - botan,
cheerleader - chiarīdā,
personal computer - pāsonaru konpyūtā,
coin laundry - koin randorī,
cup - koppu,
keyboard - kībōdo,
pro wrestling - puroresu,
remote control - rimōto kontorōru,
restaurant - resutoran,
sex - sekkusu,
stove - sutōbu,
talent - tarento,
yacht - yotto
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2oz3wx/eli5_why_does_the_japanese_language_use_so_many/
|
{
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"cmrthjl",
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],
"score": [
5,
2
],
"text": [
"While Japan does have inherently Japanese words, what they're translating is a franchise name, not a word. Trying to be faithful to the original name does have its advantages: firstly it shows some respect for the country's culture and secondly it increases cultural diffusion, and thus, globalisation. Japan, as you might know, has been under the influence of the West for a very long time, and in their culture respect is very important.\n\nOf course, another good reason is simply that it reduces the language barrier, especially when it comes to an imported franchise, so that people know it's the same thing even when it's not written in their native tongue.",
"Hi!\nFirst thing about Japanese: there is two types of Japanese that is usually used together. I learnt Japanese in Chinese not English, but here's the idea:\n\nFirst time is the primitive type. All words don't resemble words from other languages on purpose. If it does, it's just a coincidence. \n\nSecond type is more or less a direct translation of English. However, grammar and language structure follows the original primitive type of Japanese\n\nA lot of times, the two types are used together in the same sentence. And since in Japanese you don't pronounce words but spell them, they all sound different to differentiate them\n\nFor example, if we want to say hi in Japanese, we'd say h I. The two letters separately\n\nThe reason they use it is just for convenience. Rather than making a new Japanese weird, just translate into Japanese characters and you're done. A lot of times it is also converted from other languages\n\nThey also use the translational type for naming. A good example is Gundam. It is a huge anime franchise in Japan, and even though it was originated from Japan, it uses the translational version of Japanese to make up the word and pronounce it. Guun da mu "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
11uwnk
|
how does any american citizen know that the vote they cast is actually counted?
|
If I vote, I wanna know how it all works and if my vote actually works or goes anywhere. Is there a place one can go to find out how the voting process works?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/11uwnk/eli5_how_does_any_american_citizen_know_that_the/
|
{
"a_id": [
"c6ptrl0"
],
"score": [
26
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"text": [
"Here's how the process works, in pretty general terms:\n\nFirst, I go to my voting precinct and fill out my ballot. Around my neck of the woods, that means that I get a big card with little broken arrows next to each of the candidates. I draw a line to complete the arrow next to the candidate I want. My ballot is then fed in to a machine, which scans for the arrows that have been completed and registers my choice in the machine's storage. The paper version of my ballot is placed in a locked storage bin. \n\nWhen the polls close, all of that stuff is taken to the office of the County Recorder, whose job is to tabulate the votes. They do so by grabbing the data file out of the machine's computer, and adding it to the data from the other precinct computers. The paper ballots in the boxes are stored in case of a discrepancy or a need for a recount. \n\nThen absentee or provisional ballots are collected and fed into tabulation machines (that is, if they fill the criteria for validity - which is to say if they arrived on time, or the information from the voter on a provisional ballot indicates that the ballot is to be counted). That data is also included.\n\nIf there's a recount demanded, they unlock the boxes of paper ballots and a group of people hand-count the ballots for the disputed race. \n\nSome places work a little differently. Touch screen voting machines, for example, don't always have a paper backup or receipt (though some do, as helix400 points out below). That means that whatever data is written to the memory is the only data we have in case of a dispute. \n\nIn the 2000 election, many places (including Florida) used punch-cards (I'm sure many places still do), which had a number of problems. Basically, you'd get a punch card, slip it into a slot in the voting booth, and turn pages with indicators of where to punch to select the candidate or position you were voting for. Incomplete punches, \"hanging chads\" (the little tabs of paper that don't always get completely separated from the card), and confusing ballot printing meant that people's intended votes weren't always properly counted. \n\nIn 2004, there were some concerns over computerized touch-screen equipment registering incorrect votes. There's been some concern over fraud being the cause of these anomalies. \n\nIn short, you can't know for sure at any point if your vote is being counted. It's not a 100% certainty that there won't be screw-ups, problems, or fraud at any point in the system. It's a system that is flawed in many ways. For the most part, however, the system works reasonably well, and you can have a fair amount of confidence that your vote will be counted. \n\nThis is a good question, primarily because it does offer a chance to reflect on the problems with the system. Every place works a little differently, there isn't always sufficient oversight of those places where things can go wrong, it requires trusting folks who often have particular agendas, there are broad efforts afoot to disenfranchise all sorts of folks around the country, and there are places where we use technologies that don't offer strong means of verification and validation of votes. All of those are things that need to be addressed. \n\nThe ability to vote is your right, your privilege, and (some might say) your duty as a citizen. It's very important that you check with your local county recorder's office, and whichever division of your state executive branch that handles elections (where I am, that responsibility falls to the Secretary of State's office). Ask them what sort of technology is used in the process, and specifics about how they tabulate votes. Often, that will be listed on their website. \n\nLike I said, you can't know for sure that your vote is counted. But, I would argue, most of the time it probably is. \n\nEDIT: Revised statement regarding touch screen machines and paper receipts."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
|
2ivaem
|
how could we possibly survive on mars for any long period of time, when it has almost no atmosphere and it's over 6 months away? food, oxygen and infrastructure would be almost impossible to expand on mars?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2ivaem/eli5_how_could_we_possibly_survive_on_mars_for/
|
{
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"cl5sptn",
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],
"score": [
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2,
2
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"text": [
"We'd send unmanned craft to drop off supplies for the colonists.",
"That is the difficult part because there is a problem with things like how to sustain mini Eco living without killing the inhabitants etc. There is such a large gap in us being able to do this and actually executing on it. Mars one is a project that is the closest thing to a reality on this project with a near time table. MIT however has critiqued their plan and has found serious flaws that could jeopardize the lives of all the colonists they hope to send. Here is a quick search of the article discussing that review. _URL_1_\n\nEdit: here is a better one sorry.\n_URL_0_",
"No one knows yet, that's why there's no one there right now. \n\nWe won't be there any time soon either. A manned mission to mars and back would take 5 completed SLS rockets (read this in a NASA employee blog somewhere). That's like half the effort of the entire Apollo program in one mission. We don't even plan on using the SLS for a moon mission until 2032 at best. Then add on the fact that we can't protect astronauts from the radiation yet, and even if we do find a material that allows it, who knows how much that's going to weigh and add onto other problems. \n\nThe list of miracle materials and technologies we need to make it possible is pretty long at this point. So no one has an answer to this question, if they do they're keeping NASA and every other space faring agency in the dark.\n\n\nWith current abilities we could (With 1960s Roscosmos reliability) *probably* get someone to the surface with air in their lungs but there's no way in hell they're coming back."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[
"http://www.leonarddavid.com/mars-one-mission-red-planet-pilgrimage-critiqued/",
"http://www.spacenews.com/article/civil-space/42120mit-analysis-paints-bleak-outcome-for-mars-one-concept"
],
[]
] |
||
bosr09
|
why can’t we text using bold, italics, or underlines?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/bosr09/eli5_why_cant_we_text_using_bold_italics_or/
|
{
"a_id": [
"enk7jbi",
"enk9vhk"
],
"score": [
6,
2
],
"text": [
"The SMS service standard simply doesn’t allow for “markup” as, for example, HTML does for the web. It was invented at a time when phones only had numeric buttons. You could just start using a markup standard but it would be confusing for the many older phones that didn’t understand and presented things like < b > to their users. The mobile networks could try to remove markup for old handsets but it would be problematic. Also, markup would be abused by spammers sending you huge, bold, red, flashing messages. Fonts with coloured characters, i.e., emoji, are already bad enough.",
"Because SMS wasn't built with those features in mind. Basically SMS hijacked existing system messaging protocols, so there was only so much space available to add custom text, which is why SMS is limited to 160 characters. Adding a way to format text would leave even less room for the text content.\n\nSMS hasn't fundamentally changed today, just now because of advancements in technology it's cheaper (with many mobile plans including unlimited SMS) and messaging software makes it more seamless when sending a lot of text. However there is a replacement for SMS called Rich Communication Services (RCS) which another user linked above, which is slowly gaining more support, and allows more instant messaging-like features, but even then it's not clear if it will natively support rich text formatting."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
2kq7kf
|
when the mainstream media reports that unemployment levels have dropped, how can i tell if it dropped because people found work and not because people gave up altogether?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2kq7kf/eli5_when_the_mainstream_media_reports_that/
|
{
"a_id": [
"clnq73a",
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],
"score": [
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2
],
"text": [
"There's a second number called the participation rate that's also listed when the government puts out the unemployment reports.",
"There is not one single unemployment number. The Bureau of Labor Statistics releases *six* separate numbers. From [Wikipedia](_URL_0_):\n\n > - U1: Percentage of labor force unemployed 15 weeks or longer.\n > - U2: Percentage of labor force who lost jobs or completed temporary work.\n > - U3: Official unemployment rate per the ILO definition occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively looked for work within the past four weeks.\n > - U4: U3 + \"discouraged workers\", or those who have stopped looking for work because current economic conditions make them believe that no work is available for them.\n > - U5: U4 + other \"marginally attached workers\", or \"loosely attached workers\", or those who \"would like\" and are able to work, but have not looked for work recently.\n > - U6: U5 + Part-time workers who want to work full-time, but cannot due to economic reasons (underemployment).\n\nIn addition, the BLS tracks the labor force participation rate, which includes people with jobs or who are looking for jobs.\n\nWhen you hear about \"unemployment\", it generally means the U3 rate. Sometimes you may hear on the internet that the \"real\" unemployment rate is higher. This is just a misleading way of saying that the widely reported U3 will be a lower number than, say, U6. Each metric must be compared to comparable figures at other times or in other countries."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unemployment#United_States_Bureau_of_Labor_statistics"
]
] |
||
3x6wmw
|
in quantum physics, how do we know that a particle doesn't have a definite state until we observe it?
|
I understand that we have no way of predicting the state of an particle, only the odds of which state said particle will take. But, if I understand correctly, we also believe that particles actually don't have any fixed state until we observe them. That the very act of observing a particle allows it to choose a state. How do we know this? How can we know that a particle has no state before having observed it?
I'm aware that I'm most likely stating falsehoods in my question, I hope that it still makes sense.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3x6wmw/eli5_in_quantum_physics_how_do_we_know_that_a/
|
{
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"text": [
"[This video](_URL_0_) describes an experiment with pairs of entangled particles which will give different results if the particles have a \"secret plan\" or if the state really isn't decided until you measure the first particle, and we get the second result.\n\nI'll probably only confuse things if I try to explain it myself, but the idea is that you randomly choose to measure each of the particles in one of three ways and look at how often the results match. If the particles had a secret fixed plan for which result each measurement will give, then no plan could explain the probability of matching that we observe.",
"Actually we don't, it's just the most common interpretation (because the others are even weirder :P), you also have pilot-wave theory and other interpretations.",
"A good analogy a physics teacher told me was to picture quantum physics as a coin. When you flip the coin and it is in the air, it is simultaneously heads AND tails. When you slap the coin on your hand it is either heads OR tails. \n\nWe do not know its definite state because it is both things at once, the same way the coin that is being flipped is both heads and tails, at once. I hope this helps."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"http://youtu.be/ZuvK-od647c"
],
[],
[]
] |
|
3ql1ts
|
how is the value of bitcoins determined?
|
Also, how many are in circulation? I understand the concept somewhat, as my grandfather mines bitcoin in his spare time, but where are all of these extra fractions of Bitcoins coming from if there's a set amount of them in circulation? Can they be created?
Edit: Thank you so much /u/Elder_yautja and everyone else for explaining this so thoroughly.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3ql1ts/eli5_how_is_the_value_of_bitcoins_determined/
|
{
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"text": [
" > How is the value of Bitcoins determined?\n\nThe value of anything is determined by what people are willing to exchange for it. If you cannot exchange bitcoins for something else, they are literally worthless. If you can find someone willing to give you US dollars for bitcoins, they are worth whatever that person is offering you. \n\n > Also, how many are in circulation? \n\n[As of July 29 2015](_URL_0_) 14437500\n\n > Can they be created?\n\nNew bit coins are created by finding solutions to the bitcoin hash. This is very computationally expensive, and a lot of the easy solutions have already been found. ",
"The same way anything else is determined. Somebody wants to buy it and is willing to pay a certain price for it, if somebody is willing to accept that price, that's the value.\n\nWhen you've got thousands (or millions) of people interested in buying things, asking each seller how much they will accept gets complicated. You set up a marketplace (much like a stock market).\n\nWith a market like this, each seller lists how many they have & how much they want for their shit. Buyers also place offers on how much they're willing to pay. If a seller is willing to accept a buyer's price, the transaction is completed automatically - similarly, if a buyer is willing to pay somebody's price, they'll buy from them.\n\nAt any given point, the \"current price\" is really just an average of recently completed transactions. If the average price is $500/BTC, a seller might list some for $600. They won't sell until somebody comes and buys all the < $600 offers but it never hurts to be prepared for a bit movement in the market.\n\nIf you search for some ELI5 posts on how the stock market works, mechanically it's very similar. A key difference is that you can freely move your BTC between markets while a stock is only ever listed on a single exchange.",
"Shared delusion. It has value because people collectively agree it does. Nothing more, nothing less. Similar to the dollar or any other currency that doesn't have intrinsic value e.g. doesn't have use-value by itself apart from functioning as currency.\n\nELI10:\n\nIt is advantageous to have society agree on some sort of tally/accounting method that everyone shares, to make trade and value retention easier. It's much easier to say \"I'll give you four bitcoin (or dollar or whatever) for this product\" than to try and find some equivalent value item the other person wants.",
"The same way the value of anything is determined. \"Value\" is entirely subjective it is worth what someone else is willing to pay for it. How much is a bottle of water worth? In a grocery store you'd pay about a dollar. How much would you pay for a bottle of water in the middle of the Sahara Desert?\n\n*Price* is determined by supply and demand. If supply is fixed and demand increases, then price goes up. If demand is fixed and supply increases, price goes down. \"Price\" is the balancing point between demand and availability. Even money has a price. If a bottle of water costs $1, then you can just as easily say $1 costs a bottle of water.\n\nBitcoins are created via mining. To date there have been something like 14.5 million bitcoins mined. When a miner solves a mathematical puzzle (the kind that only a computer could solve) they are rewarded with a batch of newly minted previously uncirculated bitcoins. Right now, the reward is 25.\n\nThe puzzle gets harder over time though. By design, it consistently takes about 10 minutes to solve the puzzle, so every 10 minutes there are 25 coins up for grabs. The reward halves every 4 years. It used to be 50, now 25, soon 12.5 and then 6.25 and so on until the reward drops to zero and it is \"mined out\". This will take about another 120 years, at which point there will be a total of 21 million bitcoins.\n\nSo yes bitcoins are created, but they are created in accordance with a set algorithm. The final ultimate cap is 21 million coins, and this number cannot be changed, so we're about 2/3rds of the way there."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Controlled_supply#Projected_Bitcoins_Short_Term"
],
[],
[],
[]
] |
|
4f4dea
|
why will a nuclear bomb have such a long lasting effect on the area of detonation?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/4f4dea/eli5_why_will_a_nuclear_bomb_have_such_a_long/
|
{
"a_id": [
"d25s72t",
"d25sfay"
],
"score": [
3,
3
],
"text": [
"The long term effects of a single nuclear detonation are usually greatly overstated in popular media.\n\nThe most dangerous isotopes are short lived, the background radiation in the detonation area returns to safe levels fairly quickly.\n\n*Mass detonation* of thermonuclear bombs all over the world may produce some climate effects by kicking up huge volumes of smoke and ash, but one bomb is little different from a conventional carpet bomb strike.",
"It doesn't. If it functions properly, and all of the radioactive material explodes, the area could be inhabited as soon as the dust settled. \n\nFor example, Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan. The bombs dropped a little over 60 years ago and today both cities have people living in them.\n\nOn the other hand, Tchernobyl, where there was the reactor meltdown in the 80s will be uninhabitable for many thousands of years because the radioactive material is still there, and is decaying extremely slowly.\n\nIf you want to take over an area, why would you develop a bomb which renders an area completely uninhabitable for thousands and thousands of years?"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
32s1kf
|
why do some pubic hair pores have 2 hairs grow out of them?
|
Why do some pubic hair pores have 2 hairs grow out of them and is it bad?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/32s1kf/eli5_why_do_some_pubic_hair_pores_have_2_hairs/
|
{
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2,
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"text": [
"... no, that's true of hair follicles all over the place. Take a look at your arms and legs and head, I guarantee you'll find some follicles with more than one hair in them. On my arms, every follicle has at least two hairs. ",
"Perhaps you're referring to this?\n_URL_0_\n\nI occasionally get them on my chin.",
"Humans have an average of about 3 hairs per follicle, other species have way more, chinchillas (known for being particularly soft and fluffy) have about 80. Perfectly normal. ",
"It is called Pili Multigemini. It is a hair follicle defect where multiple hair follicles clump together and exit out of one hair canal. Shaving them can cause ingrown hairs. There are only a few treatments that actually work: Electrolysis, to destroy the hair follicle, and cryosurgery, to remove the hair follicle. "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pili_multigemini"
],
[],
[]
] |
|
3n8hmd
|
how come the us doesn't seem to have any plan whatsoever about paying down it's national debt which currently sits at $18 trillion 393 billion 640 million 000,000?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3n8hmd/eli5_how_come_the_us_doesnt_seem_to_have_any_plan/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cvlqz0n"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"Because the US recognizes that **it doesn't fucking matter**.\n\nThe US is paying it's debts **all the time**... but we're also taking on new debt at the same time. \n\nKeep in mind that Government (Sovereign) debt is not like household debt. Nobody is going to come repossess Rhode Island, and the US has an effectively infinite lifespan to pay this off."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
ebdyzc
|
how do soldiers know how many shots they have left in a magazine?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/ebdyzc/eli5_how_do_soldiers_know_how_many_shots_they/
|
{
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"text": [
"Experience, and the fact that they're rarely blazing away at full auto as guys pop up from behind walls like Call of Duty. Riflemen are trained to take fewer, more accurate shots. Suppressing fire is provided by support weapons like light machine guns. Even these are fired in bursts rather than long sprays, and the belt feed system usually found on these weapons gives a better visual idea of how much ammo you have left.",
"In most magazines, there is a cutout that allows you to see how many bullets are remaining in it",
"In Russian army they place a tracer bullet in a magazine somewhere near the end, so when you see a tracer shot it means there are not much bullets left.",
"We learned that we had 30 rounds per magazine, depending on rate of fire ie 1 round every second, or controlled fire, 1 round every 6 seconds, it became easy to judge as you aren't just firing willy nilly. Plus now theres p-mags where you can see how many rounds are left in the magazine.",
"Practice. The more you shoot the more you get used to the feeling of when your magazine is running dry. Depending on the situation you can usually swap a low magazine for a full one and then cross load rounds later when you have time.\n\nAnother option is put three tracer rounds as the last three rounds. When you see the tracer your almost out.\n\nNew magazines are polymer and have a window to show round count so it's pretty easy to look when able.",
"I don’t know if it’s everyone but My friends unit always had a tracer round as the fifth shot from the end. Anytime he saw that bullet fly he knew it was time to reload. \n\nThat’s how he explained it to me anyways.",
"In a firefight you really don’t know. When the bolt locks back to the rear - change magazines.",
"Hands on experience as well as engineering controls.\n\nMagazines can have little slots where you're able to see how many rounds you have left in mag.\n\nYou're trained to be familiar and intimate with firearms. For instance, if weapon is set to burst fire, that soldier knows how many bursts they have until they need to reload. Single mode means they'll be counting and know how many rounds are left. Auto, it's a combination of all of the above and experience.",
"I used to put a tracer round every four or five AP rounds. So I knew whenever I shot around 5 rounds. I loaded my magazines to about 28 rounds out of a possible 30 so the springs weren’t completely compressed. Lastly, I put 2 or 3 tracer rounds at the end of the magazine. Add to that experience shooting and you always have a good idea of how many rounds you have left.",
"Tracers. Cutouts. \n\nAlso... If you go empty the cocking handle stays back and you just reload. Takes a seconds. In a traditional firefight this is not an issue. \n\nRound counting if far more important in a cqb situation. In a real situation you would reload between rooms if necessary.",
"We 'count'but in reality right before you assault a position you change your magazine for a fresh one and as others have said experience"
]
}
|
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[] |
[
[],
[],
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[],
[],
[],
[],
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[]
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||
l1pnz
|
credit rating agencies (moody's, standard & poor's)...
|
...and how they have the power to affect a country's economy.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/l1pnz/eli5_credit_rating_agencies_moodys_standard_poors/
|
{
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"text": [
"**Let's start with businesses in general**: \nIn order for a business to operate, it needs to get initial money at first. Much of its money comes in bonds (a form of debt), or money that it borrows at an interest rate from investors and has to give back. \n \n**So?** \nThe interest rate that the business pays on these bonds is dependent on a number of factors, including *how likely it is to pay it back*. A measure of how likely it is to pay back is known as a credit rating, and it's sort of like a credit score for people like you and me. High credit ratings such as A or AA mean lower interest rates generally. Poor credit ratings like B or C mean higher the interest rates. This is because, if I'm an investor giving you money, and you're rated like a B or C, I want to be getting more interest from you to offset the chance that you may actually just fail one day and not pay any of it back. \n \n**Credit rating agencies** \nMoody's, S & P, and to some extent Fitch, are critical to our economy because they provide very popular credit ratings to the world's leading businesses. They even rate countries! You can imagine that if a credit rating agency downgrades an entire country, that means that the interest rate that the country pays to investors will likely increase. This dramatically affects cash that comes in and out of the country and has a potentially drastic impact on our economy. They also affect what kinds of investors they attract, as well as how much they get in the future. \n \nDid that help?",
"**Let's start with businesses in general**: \nIn order for a business to operate, it needs to get initial money at first. Much of its money comes in bonds (a form of debt), or money that it borrows at an interest rate from investors and has to give back. \n \n**So?** \nThe interest rate that the business pays on these bonds is dependent on a number of factors, including *how likely it is to pay it back*. A measure of how likely it is to pay back is known as a credit rating, and it's sort of like a credit score for people like you and me. High credit ratings such as A or AA mean lower interest rates generally. Poor credit ratings like B or C mean higher the interest rates. This is because, if I'm an investor giving you money, and you're rated like a B or C, I want to be getting more interest from you to offset the chance that you may actually just fail one day and not pay any of it back. \n \n**Credit rating agencies** \nMoody's, S & P, and to some extent Fitch, are critical to our economy because they provide very popular credit ratings to the world's leading businesses. They even rate countries! You can imagine that if a credit rating agency downgrades an entire country, that means that the interest rate that the country pays to investors will likely increase. This dramatically affects cash that comes in and out of the country and has a potentially drastic impact on our economy. They also affect what kinds of investors they attract, as well as how much they get in the future. \n \nDid that help?"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
3t27wj
|
why are so many teenagers depressed
|
I'm currently a senior in high school and it seems like ever sense the beginning of high school it seemed like I've been the only one in my friend group that hasn't been clinically depressed at some point. So why is it that so many teenagers end up being clinically depressed?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3t27wj/eli5why_are_so_many_teenagers_depressed/
|
{
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"cx2fchu",
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"score": [
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"text": [
"Tons of factors. Depression wasn't diagnosed as much as it is now. Teenagers are hormonally all over the map which can lead to all sort of psychological issues. We also don't really know how spending so many hours on smartphones or laptops affects developing brains. Finally, social media and being constantly surrounded by every detail of every person's life seems pretty damn overwhelming. I was a teenager right before all of this Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/YouTube stuff got going. It was hard enough being a teen then, but adding to that the fact that everyone in school knows every single thing you're up to now and can judge you on it would have been torture for me. ",
"Good question.\n\n1 - physically an adult but mentally and socially not ready to make their own decisions. so you have a group of people who THINK they are ready to \"be free\" but they aren't so they get depressed.\n\n2 - at the end of high school your world goes from care-free to thinking about college, jobs, real life, etc. in school it's pushed on you that if you don't get perfect grades you'll never have the perfect career or life.\n\n3 - many teenagers grow up in areas where there is little to do so they hang out on their phones or watch TV with each other. that's not very stimulating so it makes people sad.\n\n4 - stress about life in general. end of high school is a huge life transition for most people. you're leaving your safe childhood for the unknown. that's really scary."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
394i0s
|
the button
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/394i0s/eli5_the_button/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cs0auab"
],
"score": [
5
],
"text": [
"On April Fools Day, Reddit made a button. There was a timer next to the button that counted down from 60s. Only accounts created prior to that day could press the button, you could only press the button once. When you clicked the button, the timer reset to 60s and the time on the clock when you hit the button was set as your flair for the /r/button subreddit. The Internet made a fake religion around the button."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
1x1d9x
|
why is it illegal for a brewery to distribute their own beer?
|
If you go to a brewery / distillery website, the most they can do is have you click a link that says, "Find where you can buy our product!" Apparently, they have to sign a contract with another company that distributes it. Why is that?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1x1d9x/eli5_why_is_it_illegal_for_a_brewery_to/
|
{
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"cf792uz",
"cf7a9wf"
],
"score": [
3,
5
],
"text": [
"It depends on the state laws. In my state (Texas) we are allowed to distibute up to a certain amount on our own, but until recently were NOT allowed to tell you where to get the beer and are still not allowed to sell it directly from thw brewery. It can get very complecated depending on your size and what states you are trying to sell in, but for the most part tje laws limiting distribution rights have been in place since the prohibition era and retail and distributor lobbies prevent them from being changed.",
"Let's say you're Budweiser (the #1 beer in America) and you sell directly to a store. You might be tempted to use your weight to push out Coors (the #2) by threatening to pull your product if they keep selling Coors (or offering them better prices or whatever).\n\nThe idea behind relying on independent distributors is that the manufacturers can no longer try to squeeze the competition out.\n\nForcing everything to go through a handful of large distributors also makes it easier to track where all the alcohol is & make sure that the right taxes are applied. It's just easier to just audit one warehouse in a city than a dozen different ones run by different companies with different procedures & stock keeping systems."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
eadepq
|
what causes a personality trait to be more nature and one more nurture?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/eadepq/eli5_what_causes_a_personality_trait_to_be_more/
|
{
"a_id": [
"faphivc"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"Nature is when naturally without intervention and/or despite intervention ones behaviour is a certain way and was always that way. \n\nNurture is when a behaviour is learned...as in the intervention changed the natural behaviour. \n\nFor example children are naturally inclusive and loving of other children, but they can learn to hate others and be racist or what ever from their parents and environment.\n\nA lot of studies have happened to see if things like murder and psychopathy are nature or nurture and there's lots of results out there on it. There's also a lot of studies on trying to rehabilitate those people (IE nurture them)."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
bplyii
|
what differentiates brands of the same alcohol, like vodka or rum, that make it taste smoother than others? is it a process or perhaps ingredient driven?
|
[deleted]
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/bplyii/eli5_what_differentiates_brands_of_the_same/
|
{
"a_id": [
"enuvjrz"
],
"score": [
6
],
"text": [
"Comes down to number of times distilled (removes impurities) and what it is made out of mainly. This doesn't always apply though as I've had multiple distilled varieties that don't taste much better than some mid-grade."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
|
edrct2
|
why is the sunset considered romantic while the sunrise is not?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/edrct2/eli5_why_is_the_sunset_considered_romantic_while/
|
{
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"fbk1oeo",
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"fbk3he8",
"fbk41ar"
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"score": [
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3,
2,
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"text": [
"Have you ever watched the sun rise over the Atlantic ocean with your SO? I beg to differ",
"Sunrises *are* considered romantic. The problem is that in most parts of the world people generally aren't really in a position to enjoy a sunrise. Either it's so early most couples will be fast asleep, or they are around the same time as people working and not on dates.",
"Sunrises are generally more colorful because there is usually more dust in the atmosphere at the end of the day. More particles in the atmosphere will make the sunset more colorful.",
"Sunrises are for when you stay up all night doing drugs; so there’s something pretty too look at when its all over"
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[],
[]
] |
||
7yrf5s
|
how do midterm elections affect the outcome of the presidential elections?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/7yrf5s/eli5_how_do_midterm_elections_affect_the_outcome/
|
{
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"duilxti",
"duinmz7"
],
"score": [
7,
3
],
"text": [
"Midterm elections do not directly effect presidential races, however, if the midterm election results in the opposing party gaining a majority of one or both houses, the president's party could find it difficult to pass any partisan legislation, as a combination of one or both houses and/or the president could face gridlock if everyone votes along party lines. \n\nThe above situation can reflect badly on a sitting president two years later, when that president is up for reelection.",
"They don’t directly, but are a type of poll about how the president and his party are doing, also could be important in terms of things like impeachment."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
2xsgo6
|
how do pears get juicy?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2xsgo6/eli5_how_do_pears_get_juicy/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cp2yf4y"
],
"score": [
6
],
"text": [
"It's a matter of the structure of the pear breaking down and releasing the locked up water.\n\nImagine, if you will, bubble-wrap where the bubbles are filled with water, and not air. A roll of that wrap will be hard and annoying. But you start popping the bubbles, and it gets softer and water will start dripping out."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
||
3l0tg7
|
zeitgeist movies and their validity, especially addendum.
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3l0tg7/eli5_zeitgeist_movies_and_their_validity/
|
{
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2
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"text": [
"Seen it and agree with is. Which is apparently not a very popular opinion on the internet. And no, I'm not a fucking hippie or any other crap like that. I'm an engineer.\n\nThough applying Project Venus on a scale of 7.5 billion people is pretty much impossible, it may be best started on a smaller scale, like an existing smaller city or a town, a \"test town\".\n\n(expecting hate comments as replies...)",
"Zeitgeist has always struck me as more conspiracy theory fodder supporting its creator's own utopian philosophy regarding the 'resource based economy'. While there is certainly a valid debate to be had over the feasibility/desirability of such an economy, that's beside the point. The issue is that the rest of Zeitgeist is made up of poorly researched claims no better than any other conspiracy theory. \n\nPart I revolves around claims peddled about in the *Christ Conspiracy: The Greatest Story Ever Sold* books.\n\nPart II is standard 9/11 Truther conspiracy.\n\nPart III is the most interesting, as it's probably the closest thing to directly supporting his beliefs. As said previously, while you can criticise capitalism and the banking industry to your heart's content, Zeitgeist relies heavily on conspiracy theory style claims, including quote mining to make its point. \n\n You can agree entirely with the end goal of moving to a resource based economy, but Zeitgeist includes a lot of misinformation. There's a well documented list of such here for: [Part I](_URL_2_) [Part II](_URL_0_) and [Part III](_URL_1_). ",
"I am really interested in an answer to this ELI5, I have no good answer but I would love to live in a project venus world/city/town. ",
"They take a series of small, independent truths and creatively connect them to make a grand, fictional story. ",
"It's a dirty mix of presuppositions, half-truths, soundbites and quotes taken out of context, fantasy and pure conspiracy theory. There is some facts displayed but so much bullshit is piled on and lots of opinion presented as fact. It's best not to think into it too much because it will warp your worldview in a way that you think you are a \"skeptic\" and you'll start referring to people who don't agree with you as sheep. "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[
"http://conspiracies.skepticproject.com/articles/zeitgeist/part-two",
"http://conspiracies.skepticproject.com/articles/zeitgeist/part-three/",
"http://conspiracies.skepticproject.com/articles/zeitgeist/part-one/"
],
[],
[],
[]
] |
||
2ugd4z
|
what determines the suffix of any given race? why is it chin-ese instead of china-n, or fr-ench instead of fran-ese?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2ugd4z/eli5_what_determines_the_suffix_of_any_given_race/
|
{
"a_id": [
"co86fy4"
],
"score": [
2
],
"text": [
"These are called [demonyms](_URL_0_), and it varies from place to place. In each case it is going to be the combination of history, language of origin, what sounds right, and a bit of randomness. Like most things there is no grand, underlying system to it."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demonym"
]
] |
||
3aq527
|
what is that "heavy" feeling in my chest when i don't feel like i got enough sleep?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3aq527/eli5_what_is_that_heavy_feeling_in_my_chest_when/
|
{
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"text": [
"Can you elaborate on what you mean by 'heavy'? ",
"Likely its a crossfire between your body's attempts at staying asleep to get a full rest by keeping your body relaxed and at a slower deeper breathing rate. Happened to me this morning too",
"It could be a rise in blood pressure that you're feeling. I worked graveyard shift for a couple years and consistently ran off 3-5 hours of sleep per night. During that time, my blood pressure went from 110/70 to 150/90.\n\nMy chest felt heavy at times. Look into reflex bradycardia also. That can create a temporary heavy feeling.",
"Has anyone ever said that you snore loudly? Were you congested at all or seasonal allergies? Usually it means your chest muscles were working pretty hard to keep you oxygenated. \n\nIf snoring loudly could be early indicator that you are developing sleep apnea - you didn't share your age or overall health. Not always a result of obesity - one of the risk factors is whether your neck size is 17.5 or bigger. Can answer more but apnea is not to be ignored."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[],
[]
] |
||
4re0rc
|
is the 'neutral' of the ph scale based on something scientifically objective, or simply what is ideal for humans?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/4re0rc/eli5_is_the_neutral_of_the_ph_scale_based_on/
|
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"text": [
"It's objective. pH is all about the fact that water molecules (H2O) sometimes separate into charged fragments known as ions: H+ and OH-. A neutral pH (such as is found in pure water) is the level at which the number of these two types of ions is equal. Adding other substances can skew the balance to Acidic (more H+) or Alkaline (more OH-).",
"\nIt's objective. PH is based on the fact that water molecules (H2O) sometimes separate into charged fragments known as ions: H+ and OH-. A neutral pH (found in pure water) means that the two types are present in equal numbers. Adding other substances can skew the balance to Acidic (more H+) or Alkaline (more OH-).",
"It is based on the molarity (moles per liter, basically a measure of how much stuff there is in a certain volume < not density though) of hydronium (H3O+) (or H+, the value is the same due to stochiometric ratios) in normal water at room temperature. (water breaks up, very little, into OH- and H3O+ from 2H2O; this is where we get these). Since pH is negative log, if you get more H+/H3O+ ions, you will get a more acidic (lower ph) solution, whereas in the opposite scenario you get the opposite result. There is also something called pOH which measures the negative log of the molarity of OH- instead of H+ or H3O+ (fun fact: generally pSOMETHING is the negative log of the molarity of something). Heat changes neutral pH.",
"I'll just chip in with something not discussed here. There are some products - [mainly skin creams and such](_URL_0_) - which claim to have \"neutral pH\".\n\nThis is simply a marketing term and has no connection to the scientific and objective neutral pH that the fellow redditors talk about here (7).\n\nThis marketing term simply states that the product's pH is close enough to human skin's pH and coined it \"neutral\". ",
"Its objective based on the dissociation properties of water as a solvent. Why we chose water as the solvent has some objective and subjective reasons (its everywhere and pretty stable)",
"A somewhat related question. What's more dangerous to humans, substances with a very low pH or a very high pH? We frequently hear about the dangers of extremely acidic solutions but what about the dangers of extremely basic solutions?",
"For people who have well water in the country, is \"hard\" or \"soft\" water still ph neutral?",
"It's objective. pH of 7 means there is .00000001 (ie. 7 zeros) of moles in a litre of water. Moles is a tiny (atomic) unit of measurement. pH stands for \"power of hydrogen\" , because another way of expressing 0.00000001 is 10^-7 (ie: 10 to the power of -7 hydrogen atoms) ",
"It is, indeed, scientific. The pH scale, you could say, is a simplified 1-14 scale of something a bit more complex. (For people who know about Logs, it involves that - pH means -logH, where H is Hydrogen). So what pH is basically telling you is how many positive Hydrogen ions you have in your substance (an ion being an atom which as gained or lost electrons. Positive means it has lost an electron). The two 'sides' of the scales represesent two things: For numbers less than 7, your thing is acidic. For numbers greater than 7, it is basic. The scale tells us about the balance between 'acidic' ions (H+) and 'basic' ones (OH-). If the number of each of these is equal to one another, then you will have a pH of 7, neutral pH.\n\nSorry for lack of cohesion, it's after 11pm and I'm tired.",
"It's objective. pH is actually based on water - There are two ions which determine whether something is acidic or alkaline: more H+ ions make it acidic, and more OH- ions will make it alkaline.\n\nMost people think \"H2O\" when thinking about water, but that can also be written as HOH. Water is literally an H+ ion and an OH- ion bonded together, and they neutralize each other out.",
"The two Hydrogen and the Oxygen atoms of the water molecule usually live together pretty well, but sometimes they have fights and break up in H^+ and OH^- (the oxygen takes one electron from the hydrogen because he is bigger stronger and evil, so there are these electrical charges). This is very rare and you'll only around a billionth of the water molecules do that, but this is important because the H^+ and OH^- may interact with other compounds and are responsible for the acid/basic properties.\n\nSome other molecules also have these fights when they are with water, for example, HCl breaks in H^+ and Cl^- and NaOH breaks in Na^+ and OH^-, then you will have more H^+ than OH^- if there's HCl added to water or more OH^- than H^+. In some substances the atoms simply can't stand one another and all of the molecules break apart so the changes are very significant.\n\nPure water is neutral, witch means there are as much H^+ as OH^- , but if you throw an acid(substances which release H^+ ) there will be more H^+ so the PH will be acid, and if you throw a base(substances witch release OH^- ) there will be more OH^- so the PH will be basic/alkaline.\n\nSome non-EL5 math: the PH is defined from the molar concentration of the H^+ ion. Since the concentration is so small it would often be written as a potency of 10, like 10^-7, but taking only the 7 from the expression is more readable, so the PH means taking only the opposite of the exponent. For reasons concerning the chemical equilibrium of the water the product of the concentration of H^+ and OH^- is 10^-14 (at 25ºC), witch means if there's the same amount of the ions, both will have a concentration of 10^-7 witch is why the neutral PH is 7.\n\ntl;dr: The water and some other molecules have fights and break apart, and the parts of these divisions are responsible for the acid/basic properties.\n\nEDIT: I wrote hydrogen as hidrogen, just fixed it. Sorry for my Engrisch",
"Nobody has said it yet, but I think it is worth mentioning that pH is in a logarithm scale, so you should be aware of it when you compare two values:\n\nSomething with pH 6 in comparison to 7 has 10 times more of the H+ ion in the solution. If you go to 5, you will have 100 times more of H+ in the solution! So just keep that in mind when comparing values...",
"The ph scale is a easy way of saying the concentration of H+ atoms, because the more H+ a solution has the more acidic it is. How the sale works is that you take the -log of the concentration of the H+, and that number is the ph value. Water is 7 because of whats called auto ionization, rarely a water molecule will give of a H+ and become OH-.Oh- is the basic definition of what is a base. At this point for every 1 H+ there is a Oh-, so the Ph is considered neutral, the same would be said of the POH which is the amount of OH-. \n\nOn a side not most chemist I have met prefer the molar concentration of acid because not all acids fallow this strict definition, such as Al3+, as well as it is kind of a pain in the ass because you always have to reconvert into molar concentration known as ka, for acids.\n",
"I think the question being asked is actually, \"Why 7? That seems random to be the median/neutral number.\" \n\nIt's because like others have said \n\n1. pH is really the -log[H] ; AKA -log of the **concentration** of hydrogen atoms.\n\n2. The concentration of hydrogen atoms of *pure* water at room temperature is 1x10^-7 Molar (unit of concentration).\n\nThat number is a measurement and is therefore scientifically objective. (if you still want to know why 1x10^-7 M, that has to do with the specific interactions of Hydrogen atoms with the molecules (in this case H2O) they \"used to be\" attached to)",
"To add to some great comments on here in cosmetology school we are learning that the ideal pH for skin and hair is 4.5 to 5.5 and for the eye it's around 7.5, part of some services like dying hair require us to bring the pH back down to safe levels after using bleach or ammoniated color ",
"Water is H2O: Two H's and one O. It actually combines with itself like this:\n\n\nH2O + H2O < ---- > H3O + OH\n\n\nTwo waters can become one H3O and one OH. Another name for H3O is simply H. The pH is a measure of H and reflects how much the above reaction occurs. If the water is 100% pure, then exactly 10^-7 moles of H3O form in 1 L of water. The p in pH comes from removing the \"10^-\" and just saying 7.\n\n\nNote that I didn't include charges on the H3O and OH, nor the -log calculation to keep things simple.",
"A pH of 7 occurs when the amount of H+ ions (naturally occur in water as the fickle hydrogens rebel from the stability of water to form H3O+) is approximately equal the the amount of OH- ions (also occur naturally when water decides that if you love something then you must let it free, and it loves Hydrogen).",
"From what I understand, in a pure neutral fluid i.e, when there is nothing else dissolved or mixed with it. If the H+ ions (Hydrogen) and the OH- ions (a Hydrogen atom and an Oxygen atom bonded together) are balanced, then the pH of the chemical is Neutral",
"Objective. It has to do with the number of OH molecules vs H2 molecules.\n\nSource: vague recollection of chemistry class from like 10 years ago.",
"To add to the discussion (but not necessarily answer your question..), advertising and people complaining about the 'acidity in coffee' is a pet peeve. Coffee is only slightly more acidic than milk, and is about the same as bananas. It's *less* acidic than tomato juice, orange juice, and soda.",
"Late but \n\n* pH = -log10([H3O+]) where [X] is the concentration of X\n\n* That said, [H30+]*[OH-] is always equal to 10^(-14) mol/L in water, so when the ratio [H3O+]/[OH-] is equal to 1 you have a neutral solution, this only happens when [H3O+]=10^(-7) hence a neutral solution has a pH equal to 7.\n\nAnd there is always ions OH- and H3O+ due to water's auto-hydrolisys .",
"The significant part of pH is the number of H on its own, you can fit in the same sized cup. \n\nWater is made of 3 atoms in an L shape, there are two types of atoms in water, called hydrogen and oxygen. The oxygen is in the middle, so it looks like H-O-H. Sometimes the water breaks and you get an H by itself and O-H left over. \n\nBecause water is very important, it's a good idea to have a number for the amount of H on its own in a liquid, so you can tell how it will react. And that's what pH does. \n\nTo find the pH of a liquid you have to:\n\n* pour the liquid into a special sized cup (so you can compare with everyone else) \n* zooming in and counting every H on its own\n\nBecause atoms are very small, you can get a huge number with lots of digits before the decimal point (e.g. 100000000), or a tiny number with lots of digits after the decimal point (e.g. 0.00000004). Because the number can be so different, it's easier to just count how many numbers are between the start of your number, and the decimal point. \n\nSo that you can tell if they're digits before the point, or after, we say for before the number is positive (+) and for after, it's negative (-).\n\nThis is a bit confusing so I'll give an example:\n\n* 123456.553 is 5\n* 0.0000055338 is -5 \n* 1235000.35833 is 6\n\n\nThe final confusing step is that they change the sign to the opposite of what it was before. E.g. For 100000 H on its own, there are 5 0s to the decimal point, so would have a pH of -5.\n\nThe H by itself, really doesn't like being alone, and all the reactions with acid and alkali are to do with the H trying to join to something again. It'll be more like an acid if there are more Hs by themselves, and more like an alkali if there aren't many. So somewhere in the middle, it will behave neutrally. It just so happens with the size of cup scientists use, the number of digits between the start of the number and the decimal point, for the number of Hs by themselves in a solution that behaves neutrally, is -7, so as a pH this is 7.",
"Pure water at a pH of approximately 7.0 is in a state of what chemists call dynamic equilibrium. A very small amount of the water is at all times constantly converting from H2O, to H3O+, or OH- upon reacting with itself. The net result is a pH which is neutral. Upon addition of a soluble acidic substance, the pH goes down as more H3O+ can now be formed. Lower pH indicates the presence of greater amounts of hydronium ion (H3O+). If a basic substance is added to the solution, in other words, the amount of OH- concentration is increased, the solution can be brought back to neutral, or even higher pH. Because working with the number of molecules involves very large and inconvenient numbers, the pH system was developed to make it easier to work with. pH is just a shorthand notation which mathematically translates to the negative, base-ten logarithm of the concentration (in moles per liter) of hydronium ion (H3O+) present in an aqueous solution. Using 7.0 as the neutral marker for the pH scale is a natural conclusion for the system where the benchmarks are concentrated (1 molar) hydrochloric acid as the zero pH marker, pure water as neutral at 7, and concentrated sodium hydroxide (1 molar) at 14. Logarithmic scales such as this are often used in science to simplify a number scale where the actual numbers are cumbersome to deal with."
]
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jln78
|
why do you kick when the doctor taps your kneecap?
|
Why do we have reflexes like this? Is there an evolutionary explanation, or a physiological explanation?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/jln78/elif_why_do_you_kick_when_the_doctor_taps_your/
|
{
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"Do you see this mouse trap? It has a metal thing in the middle. Now I put the cheese on it an arm it. When a mouse takes the cheese, it pushes down in this the metal thing and *clamp noise* voila!\n\nNow we have a different trap. There's a cheese right here and up high there there's a big rock! The rock comes down when there is a mouse. I install a detector and a camera. Whenever something gets near the cheese, the detector goes off and there is panic. But we don't know if there is a mouse! So we use the camera! The camera will look and if there is a mouse the rock drops and blammo! Dead mouse.\n\n\nMouse = stimluli (hammer tap in first case)\nTrap setup = nerve system\nKaboom = kick\n\nThe first trap is a monosynaptic reflex, the second one is polysynaptic reflex.\n\nWhen the doctor hits your kneecap, he causes a stimuli (mouse hits pressure plate on the trap). The stimluli activates nerves that sends a response to your spine and an immediate response is sent to your quadriceps to flex (trap is sprung!). You then kick your doctor in the face (dead mouse). This is a monosynaptic reflex. The signal never gets to your brain, it gets to your spine and back to your leg muscles.\n\nMany nocifensive reflexes (defense vs pain) are polysyanaptic in because they use other senses (then touch) such as sight.",
"Do you see this mouse trap? It has a metal thing in the middle. Now I put the cheese on it an arm it. When a mouse takes the cheese, it pushes down in this the metal thing and *clamp noise* voila!\n\nNow we have a different trap. There's a cheese right here and up high there there's a big rock! The rock comes down when there is a mouse. I install a detector and a camera. Whenever something gets near the cheese, the detector goes off and there is panic. But we don't know if there is a mouse! So we use the camera! The camera will look and if there is a mouse the rock drops and blammo! Dead mouse.\n\n\nMouse = stimluli (hammer tap in first case)\nTrap setup = nerve system\nKaboom = kick\n\nThe first trap is a monosynaptic reflex, the second one is polysynaptic reflex.\n\nWhen the doctor hits your kneecap, he causes a stimuli (mouse hits pressure plate on the trap). The stimluli activates nerves that sends a response to your spine and an immediate response is sent to your quadriceps to flex (trap is sprung!). You then kick your doctor in the face (dead mouse). This is a monosynaptic reflex. The signal never gets to your brain, it gets to your spine and back to your leg muscles.\n\nMany nocifensive reflexes (defense vs pain) are polysyanaptic in because they use other senses (then touch) such as sight."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
|
5dz9ar
|
how do keyboards and other peripherals work with just 4 connectors on the usb port?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5dz9ar/eli5_how_do_keyboards_and_other_peripherals_work/
|
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"text": [
"One wire is power, one is ground, one is data to the peripheral, and one is data from the peripheral. USB-3 is more complex than that, but the concept is mostly the same.",
"The S in USB stands for *serial.* That mean the device sends a whole *series* of electronic pulses to indicate what is happening. As few as 2 pins (or in a pinch, even 1 pin) can be used to send any number of pulses, one after another.",
"There's a microcontroller -- basically a small, simple computer chip -- inside the keyboard. The microcontroller receives power from the computer the keyboard is plugged into.\n\nThe microcontroller takes the raw keystroke inputs and codes them into a series of pulses using the USB protocol. As other posters mention, USB is serial, meaning that data (such as which key is pressed) is sent as a coded series of pulses over time.\n\nAlso, the \"U\" in USB stands for \"Universal\" (meaning, it's a common standard that everyone uses). In particular this means there are standardized codes a device will send to identify what kind of device it is and who made it, so you can have nice interoperability features like:\n\n- The most common types of USB devices -- keyboards, mice and disks -- generally work with any operating system on any computer without any special software beyond what comes with the OS (exceptions may exist but they're rare).\n- You can plug any kind of USB device into any USB port, and it will generally work (exceptions may exist, uncommon types of devices may need special software that's not part of your OS by default).\n"
]
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|
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[
[],
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||
84m71h
|
what happens to plants & trees when we have 2 weeks of warm temps and everything blooms, then temps drop back down to freezing?
|
[deleted]
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/84m71h/eli5what_happens_to_plants_trees_when_we_have_2/
|
{
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"Native plants (especially those that live many years and those that bloom early) are generally prepared for volatile spring weather and will be fine. They've spent millions of years optimizing for the local climate and can shrug off a moderate spring freeze if it's a common occurrence.\n\nVery late freezes may stunt their growth cycle, but they'll survive.\n\nThey usually base their bloom cycles on day length, not temperature. As you know, warm temperatures are an unreliable sign of spring (it was 65F on new years day in Chicago a few years ago) and may come super early or strangely late. Day length is exactly the same every year.\n\nNon-native plants may not be prepared for the wild temperature swings of a North American spring, and can be badly damaged by freezing in the late spring after they've begun their bloom cycle."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[]
] |
|
58v2ex
|
why do some ceiling lights blink a few times when you turn them on, while others don't?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/58v2ex/eli5_why_do_some_ceiling_lights_blink_a_few_times/
|
{
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"text": [
"Some types of fluorescent lights have a startup circuit that oscilate until stabilizing in the on position\n\nNewer circuits get to this stable position faster keeping the flicker to a minimum\n\nFluorescent lights need special circuits to turn on, unlike old incandescent lights. ",
"Fluorescent lights require an [electrical ballast](_URL_0_) to ignite their plasma.\n\nThere are several types of electrical ballast, and some of the older designs use a rather inefficient process to start the lamp which causes this flickering. It's also visible in lamps with failing ballasts, as you can see in any fluorescent light that's flickering under normal operation.\n\nNewer solid state ballasts are much more efficient, run cooler, are silent and do not generally have these flickering issues. ",
"Most bulbs that flicker when they turn on do so because they are fluorescent bulbs that require a starting circuit to work. These tubes contain a gas that emits light when stimulated with electricity.\n\nYou can think of this like lighting a gas stove. The starting circuit needs to apply a few \"sparks\" to get the gas going. Once it's going, the starter isn't needed any more. But, if the supply is weak, or if the spark is too small, it will take a lot longer to light the stove, so the bulb will flicker even more. It might not light at all, which is when you just get the continuous flickering.\n\nIn a fluorescent lamp the equivalent of the spark is the starting circuit. On older lamps, this consists of a large coil of wire - an inductor - which generates a pulse of electricity when the starter switch turns off. This pulse hopefully causes the gas inside the tube to start working. \n\nNewer lamps use advanced electronic ballasts, which can start the tube instantly so no flickering occurs. ",
"The circuit of a fluroescent light is in a state of short circuit when the power is off, since the after the ballast, the bulb and the starter are in parallel. The starter has a bimetallic strip inside that when the power is turned on, flows the short circuit current that will cause the disimilar metals to expand at different rates, and eventually snap apart and break the circuit. This break in the circuit causes the collapse of the electromagnetic field established around the ballast, where the relative motion between flux and wires induces large voltage spikes back towards the starter. Since the starter is now an open circuit, the path becomes the fluro, where the gases act as the current path, and 'ignite' with the energy (heat) produced by the current flow. Note that the resistance in the cold gases are too high for current to be pushed through by low voltages. When the gases are hot enough, they also become a short circuit, however by now the current in the circuit has established a stable field around the ballast, which 'chokes' the current and only allows ~0.5 amps to flow through the bulb. This sustains the energized state of the gases in the bulb, which causes them to produce UV light, which reacts with the phosphur coting on the inside of the bulb, causing it to glow white and produces the light you see. \n\nBut I'm just an electrician that can't find a job, dont take my word for it.",
"There is gas in the tube. The gas lighting up is like it being angry, the flickers are the same as poking the gas until it gets more and more angry.",
"Regular and LED light bulbs work instantly, while flourescent have to warm up to work, and their starting ballast may take a few times to get them to start.",
"They said it, older fouresent ballasts with the pcb tar with t-12 ballasts tend to do this versus the newer t-5 fouresent tubes with solid state ballast. All we have left for efficient 'incandescent style' bulbs are the LED's. At least for now."
]
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[] |
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||
5z611e
|
what's the difference between a business and a corporation?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/5z611e/eli5whats_the_difference_between_a_business_and_a/
|
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"\"A business\" in this context is a general term for some sort of entity that exists to make money/participate in the economy. So you could have a drug dealing business or do freelance edits as a business, or you can be a Fortune 500 conglomerate that makes billions and be called a business. \n\nA corporation is a specific type of legal entity that is often/usually used to conduct \"business.\" It's one of a handful of ways to create a separate legal \"person\" that serves as the organizing structure for the business, and insulates the owners and workers from things like debt and liability. ",
"A corporation is just an organizational structure that someone may choose when starting their business. The corporate structure has advantages and disadvantages; an advantage is limited liability for owners, meaning an owner (stockholders) is only liable for the money they willingly give to a company. The stockholders are not personally liable for any of the corporation's debts. Personal assets are also protected from a legal standpoint, so long as they aren't obtained illegally through the company.\n\nA disadvantage of the corporate structure is double taxation. Because a corporation is its own legal entity, it is responsible for paying taxes. A corporation pays income tax, then the owners again pay taxes when corporate income is paid out in the form of dividends.",
"In UK legal terms I would describe a business as a set of activities that a person carries on for the purposes of profit. A person can carry on more than one business (I might have a business selling cars and a separate business manufacturing and selling chairs, for example).\n\nThe \"person\" carrying on a business can be an individual (self-employed) (referred to as a \"natural person\") or a \"legal person\" - in the U.K. a (private (usually owned by relatively few shareholders) or public (usually owned by lots of shareholders and listed on a stock exchange so that anyone can buy or sell shares)) limited company, an unlimited company, or a partnership. Different countries have different forms of companies but the idea is usually very similar.\n\nA legal person is (for many but not all purposes) treated the same as a natural person, and it can own assets and owe liabilities in the same way as a natural person. A legal person can sue other legal persons or natural persons to enforce its rights. \n\nThe shareholders of a company own the company and so, indirectly, the company's assets. One main reason (apart from more favourable tax treatment) for people to operate a business through a company whose shares they own is that their liabilities are limited (hence \"limited\" company) - so usually the most that shareholders can lose if the business fails is the amount they paid for their shares and creditors of the company can't (usually) try to get money out of the shareholders if the company owes it to them. If this weren't so people would be very reluctant to invest in new businesses - because they could lose more than they invest. It also allows multiple people to invest into a business without handing over their money to one individual who could run off with it - there are strict rules about what a company can do with its money and other assets."
]
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[],
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3sci70
|
how do anti-satellite missiles work?
|
[Referencing to this.] (_URL_0_)
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/3sci70/eli5_how_do_antisatellite_missiles_work/
|
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"They are kinetic impactors. They fly up at high speed, manoeuvre onto a collision course, and crash into a satellite. Because the collision happens at extremely high speed (several kilometres per second) the resulting collision destroys both the missile and the satellite. ",
"These missiles work a lot like the rockets used to launch satellites into space, except that they don't go as high and the payload isn't a satellite, but a kill vehicle. The kill vehicle is typically just a mass with a very complicated guidance system on it. It doesn't carry explosives because when it hits the target, it will be going so fast (several kilometers per second) that the force of impact alone is enough to wipe out the target. Beyond that, details are rather scarce, but it most likely receives radar guidance to the target from powerful ground stations and then once it gets close, the kill vehicle will probably use something more precise like an infrared seeker to guide itself onto the target. ",
"Well. Some of them are impact vehicles, designed to ram the target. They might explode! Some of them may throw out debris in front of the target. Lots of sand in the eyes. Some of them may, ah, America got in trouble for one of these a while back... create a kind of fog, call it, that destroys all computing machines in a possibly wide area. EMP device. That one turned out to be a little more exciting than intended.\n\nYou are probably considering the recent Chinese missile. That's politics, not engineering so much. It is not that difficult to take down satellites. It just tends to mean the end of the world. Hardly anyone actually wants that."
]
}
|
[] |
[
"http://freebeacon.com/national-security/china-tests-anti-satellite-missile/"
] |
[
[],
[],
[]
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|
7nqapa
|
why do computers need to consume electricity?
|
Sure, they need power to compute, I get that. That's just how it works. But why? How is electricity literally just 'consumed' to solve problems and generate answers? Where is the energy even going, I heard most of it as lost as heat, so how is the remaining part used? I'd say I understand computers, just not so much electricity. So, ELI5! Cheers
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/7nqapa/eli5_why_do_computers_need_to_consume_electricity/
|
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" > How is electricity literally just 'consumed' to solve problems and generate answers? \n\nCalculations are done by moving electrons around in circuits. And all circuits have resistance, meaning that the electrons lose energy.\n\n > I heard most of it as lost as heat, so how is the remaining part used?\n\nThere is no remaining part. It's *all* lost as heat. All energy that we use to power things is eventually lost as heat.",
"Simple enough, thanks!\n\nEMEDIT: Aimed at u/multifazed, not sure how I hit the wrong reply button.",
"Pretty much all electricity in a computer that isn’t used to emit light (for screens, LEDs and such) or for moving parts (fans, mechanical drives) is going into heat.\n\nTransistors, the main component of the circuits in computers are basically electronic switches: when you apply a voltage between one pair of its three connectors, a current can flow between the other pairing of connectors. That current can then go to applying a voltage at another transistor and so on. The important thing is that some current has to flow, at each transistor it’s a tiny current but a CPU has billions of them these days. This adds up to substantial current and that generates heat.",
"You have some good answers already on why today's computers consume electricity (they have billions of switches, and moving those switches to do calculations takes energy).\n\nBut it also can be interesting to look at the limits of how efficient a \"perfect\" computer could be. A good starting point is [here](_URL_0_)."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[],
[
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limits_of_computation"
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|
1plkvj
|
risky question: why is black face as part of a costume racist?
|
If you are a white person dressing up as a black celebrity or character you would look a lot more like the person if you had a black face, just like you would look a lot more like a person with red hair if you wore a red wig. In no way are you saying black people are inferior, all you are saying is that black people are black.
If I saw a black man dressed as me, and was wearing white face, I would shrug it off because I am white, and wearing a white face would make them look more like me.
Edit: Woah. Went to do homework (because my procrastination was getting ridiculous) and came back to heaps of responses. Thanks! Seems to me there are heaps of opinions on the matter from "they're all whiny bitches" to "They deserve a bit more respect because of what they, as a race, have been through". I think it's sad that it is an issue, and that people feel discriminated against when people innocently dress as a black character/celebrity. Hopefully in a bit (or a lot) of time skin colour will be something not unlike hair colour, where it doesn't mean anything other than your parents probably had the same colour as you do, and we will be able to do things like dress up as someone without fear of insulting people.
Edit 2: Imma log off now because reading all of these responses is too interesting and is stopping me from doing my homework which is due fucking tomorrow.. Judging by responses and messages i can see that not everywhere is as accepting as where I am, and I am therefore rather naive on the matter. I keep trying to write a summary sentence or something, but the fact of the matter is, it is not a simple matter, and as a person who has not experienced racism i dont think i could fully understand it. Thanks for all your input lads n lasses, I've learnt alot. :)
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/1plkvj/risky_question_why_is_black_face_as_part_of_a/
|
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"Because it has historically been associated with racist performances.\n\nIt's also not *true* that black people are black. All but the darkest skinned black people have a brownish skin color, which looks nothing at all like blackface.",
"If a black person were to dress up as the Macho Man Randy Savage would they need to paint their body white to make the costume work? Probably not. If a white person wanted to be Mr. T would they need to paint their body brown to make the costume work? Probably not. If a person wanted to be Bruce Lee would they have to tape their eyes back to make them \"slanted\" to make the costume work? Probably not.\n\nThe point where anyone has to mimic the race of a character to make the costume work... it's not a good costume. \n\nAlso, if a black person wore a kilt and traditional Scottish/Irish garb and a makeshift bagpipe for Halloween as a \"costume\" where other people dressed as Vampires, Zombies, and Gorillas... I mean it's just rude and disrespectful. \n\n ",
"I would add that when it was done historically the blackface character was the buffoon/idiot/fool who played up this role in relation to the white characters for the amusement and enjoyment of white audiences who laughed. I would argue that this representation was more than just a joke but had real power to define all black people in the minds of most whites. Similar power dynamics are at work today when it comes to representation. ",
"In the United States, blackface was used as part of [Minstrel Shows](_URL_1_), which is basically a comedy show where the only joke was basically \"Wow, black people sure are stupid!\" As you can imagine, *incredibly fucking offensive*. Blackface was also used on stage or screen so that a show could have black characters, without having to actually, you know, hire black people. The white actors would then usually play up negative black stereotypes in the process.\n\nSo there is a lot of history of blackface being used as a method of mocking black people. But, hey, that's just history. Why would it be offensive today?\n\nYour point that you wouldn't be offended by a black person in \"whiteface\", or that it is the same as wearing a red wig, is what we might call 'false equivalency'; within a larger cultural context, it isn't the same thing. There are several reasons for this.\n\nThe first and most straightforward is that the mentality of the ministrel show hasn't disappeared. A lot of people who wear blackface in their costumes for Halloween or whatever use it as an excuse to make fun of black people, so people are wary of it. But that doesn't make in *intrinsically* racist, right?\n\nWell, no, nothing is \"intrinsically\" anything when talking about race, because race isn't skin deep. You appear to believe in a sort of colourblind mentality towards race, in that it doesn't matter at all what race you are. Well, race is kind of an absurd concept (see below the break) because humans pretty much just made it up, but humans also just sort of made up things like governments, laws and economies, which are also important and \"real\" things. So let's talk about race. Really talk about it.\n\nTo many people, especially people of colour, race matters. It can matter in a lot of negative ways, manifesting in poor treatment, harassment, or simply the circumstances into which they were born, statistically. It can also matter in many positive or affirmative ways; concepts like \"Black culture\" or \"Black pride\" exist as a counterpoint, a way for Black people to take pride in themselves and their experiences, and to explore concepts that dominate culture, white culture, doesn't have experience with that many Black people do. Serious stuff, like mistreatment by the police and justice system, or basic stuff, like hair. Hair! Bet that's something you've never thought about at length (lol) but [it's a pretty important issue for Black folks in America.](_URL_2_)\n\nTo white folks like us, this often doesn't make a lot of sense; we were taught as kids that race doesn't matter. But it's very easy to say that something that rarely seems to affect us doesn't matter; our race as white people is seen by society as default, our experiences as normal. Our stories get to be the ones that get retold and remembered, and we retell and remember them quite frequently. It's like saying it doesn't matter who wins or loses, after collecting the trophy and the prize money.\n\nSo something like whiteface doesn't affect us; it's just skin tone, after all. It's also why, as Americans who are very disconnected, often by generations, from our European ancestors, we often don't give a shit about those stereotypes either. I don't give a shit when people make Scottish jokes, and I wouldn't give a shit if people made Czech jokes, if those were jokes people over here made. It's not all that important to me.\n\nIf you are a person of colour in America, it is *impossible* not to notice race. Even if you've never been subject to malicious racism, you know that you are perceived as an outsider to the dominant culture. Even if you didn't want to care about race, race has been made important for you, personally. You've experienced a lot of shit you know is basically invisible to white people because of \"just\" your skin tone.\n\nSo when some white guy rolls along in blackface, or using black slang or trying to use the n-word positively or neutrally, it rings hollow. It's a mockery, somebody who thinks that all you need to emulate this giant, deeply personal and nuanced concept of Blackness is some shoe polish. \n\n**That's** what's offensive.\n\n-------------------------------------------\n\nIf you look at history, race is often only tangentially related to skin colour. A century ago, the Irish weren't considered \"white.\" A hundred years before that, there was no such thing as \"white people\"; the concept that all people of European descent were one \"race\" would have been incredibly insulting, in fact. The concept of \"whiteness\" or of a \"white race\" is a very, very recent invention which was essentially cooked up as part of racist justification for 19th century top-down colonialist structure. It's also a somewhat American idea, a result of a whole jumble of people rubbing shoulders off boats from Europe (yay!) and elsewhere (boo!), and segregating themselves based on that. You might find European conceptions of race to be somewhat different.\n\nIt's the same for Black people in the United States. There is a conception of a singular black race in the United States, including everyone with roots in Africa (usually excluding the northern bits). Any African would tell you that is absurd; there are lots of races in Africa! Who's right? [Well, nobody, really.](_URL_0_) Racial classification is mostly something that people just made up, and it varies immensely from culture to culture.",
"Did anyone see the latest episode of Its Always Sunny In Philadelphia?....some surprising and interesting use of blackface in that episode",
"I seem to be of a minority that thinks that there are varying levels that make black face offensive in some situations, and harmless in others. The traditional black face included putting shoe polish on your face (an exaggeration of most African skin tones) and exaggerated the size of the lips. This coupled with mocking and making it seem that black people were well, idiots. This sort of costume today is still highly offensive as it should be.\n \nOn the less offensive note, many view the final touches of a costume as putting on makeup. Let’s say that you wanted to be Will Smith from the Fresh Prince of Bell Air. He’s cloths aren’t very distinctive in that show (I don’t feel anyways for that time frame) and if you aren’t allowed to “talk black” because that’s also offensive, many would have no idea who you’re dressing as. Putting on tasteful makeup in this situation should not be offensive. Many people say that if you have to go to these levels to make your costume work, than it’s probably not a good costume. I’ll ignore that because I’m in the group that thinks that if you’re going to put on a costume, you should go all the way. But this is for the individual to decide and also decide how the group they will be with will react to the costume. \n\nA lot of people also ask why black face is wrong, while wearing a red wig and dressing as an Irishmen isn’t. The answer to this is normally that Irish weren’t/aren’t repressed or looked down upon. [This isn’t the case] (_URL_0_). Irish were highly looked down upon in American culture for a very long time and still are treated poorly (see Kick an Ginger day and all the Ginger bashing in the media) because they aren’t viewed as a “race” and therefore aren’t protected under hate crime laws. And while I’m not saying that the struggle that those with Irish/Scottish decent have had it worse or even near as bad as African-Americans in the time of slavery or even pockets in of the US today, there is still historical proof of oppression. And if you want an example of where you need the wig to make the costume make sense, well, look at trying to be any redheaded character without it. Chances are, without the wig, the costume won’t make any sense. You can go as Joan from Mad Men, but putting on wig, drawing dime sized freckles and carrying around a jar for souls is offensive.\n\nAt the end of the day, if you’re wearing a costume to make fun of a culture, no matter if it be black, white, or purple, you’re going to offend someone. However, if you’re making a costume of someone, and you have to put the final touches, be it make up or a wig, if done tastefully, should not be offensive.",
"If you're talking about the literal black face with red lips, then it is offensive because it is a rude portrayal of black people being stupid, and dumbing down their traits to their most simplistic description, purely to be insulting.\n\nHowever, painting yourself to actually look like a black person, what with brown makeup and all that, is not racist in the least. The point of a proper costume is to make yourself look like someone or something. The makeup is just part of the costume, and is no more racist than, say, wearing a blonde wig to appear to have a different hair colour.",
"My take on why it is offensive:\n\nBecause it make race the most important part of the costume, above the person. The same reason it's kind of offensive to draw on/tape on squinty eyes for an asian costume.\n\nIf you dress as someone/something and put the effort into mimicking their ethnicity, it is a way of expressing that they are really only an exaggerated portrait of a stereotype, rather than an individual. \n\nCombined with the history of blackface, as mentioned in the top post, moves it beyond uncomfortable as a social statement. ",
"I'm a little surprised that no one here mentioned Jim Crow. Jim Rice became extremely famous for his blackface minstrel show around 1830. Rice traveled the U.S., performing under the stage name \"Daddy Jim Crow\". Jim Crow soon became a derogatory term for blacks. After Reconstruction, the Jim Crow name was attached to codes and laws enacted to humiliate and further subjugate black people.\n\nAdditionally, DW Griffiths used all white actors in blackface in Birth of a Nation (1915), which was based on Thomas Dixon's book The Clansman. The release of the film, along with Woodrow Wilson's endorsement (he was friends and former roomates with Dixon), motivated Ku Klux Klan recruitment into the millions.\n\nSo yeah, blackface is bad.",
"To put it in a bit of context for you OP, as an Australian would you consider it appropriate to wear black face and dress up as an Aboriginal? Fellow Aussie here and I think this would be seen as hugely offensive given the dramatic history between Anglo Saxon and Indigenous Australians and the fact that in the not so distant past white Australians would mock Indigenous Aussies with excessive face paint, savage costumes etc in the main stream media because they were seen as a novelty and inferior. Dressing as an Aboriginal person, even a famous one, as a costume today would be considered offensive because it would be a throw back to those times.",
"Me and my friends were talking about this yesterday. Here is another question-is it racist or offensive to dress up as a black person but not go black face? For example-hey everybody! I'm White Bill Cosby!",
"This montage from Spike Lee's film \"Bamboozled\" should help give you some context: _URL_0_",
"Urgh, there are so many irritating ignorants on here, who clearly have no idea what it is actually like to be discriminated against. I am a very pale mixed race girl and because of my face and hair throughout my life have constantly noticed difference in treatment and discrimination. This isn't about your mate dressing up as Will Smith on Halloween, its about something so much deeper and ingrained that continues to still really affect people. ",
"another point that I don't see clarified yet. \"Black face\" makeup is something very specific: [see here.(_URL_0_). I'd say mimicking that while knowing the history is likely racist.\n\nMaking an honest attempt to look like a black person with brown makeup, etc, I don't think is racist.\n\nUnfortunately, racism is all about what's in your heart vs what people think is in your heart. wearing something like this in public makes people you don't know try to figure out what's in your heart. That's the tricky part.\n",
"I cannot express my joy in seeing that someone does not understand. We're closer people!",
"One thing rhat stuck me that you said is how Americans consider being black one homogenous race. I am from Brazil so Americans see me a \"latino\" , but when I tell them I relate more to the black race they often say \" your not black your Brazilian\". Little do they think about how Brazil is 51% people of African decent and has more people of African decent then most of the countries in African. \n\nAmazing response man. Its nice to see someone out thought into this in reddit. I was expecting the typical bullishit.\n\n",
"*USA-centric, this doesn't really apply to anywhere else I've been.*\n\nRisky answer: Because context is unimportant in the eyes of the brainwashed masses.\n\nSome background, because it's important to the racists who only think certain people can speak about race: I'm white-ish. I have very few white friends. The least diverse neighborhoods I've lived in were more black or hispanic than white. By least diverse, I mean they were nearly all black or all hispanic. I have fewer white friends than any other demographic.\n\nThe race dynamic in the US has moved beyond reason. The people who will chastise you and downvote me for this post are probably white and have few real friends outside their own race. That's just my experience. Why? A few reasons, but mostly just plain old social conditioning. There's something that floats around the military e-mail circles every few months, that goes roughly like this:\n\n*\"Start with a cage containing five monkeys. Inside the cage, hang a banana on a string and place a set of stairs under it. Before long, a monkey will go to the stairs and start to climb towards the banana. As soon as he touches the stairs, spray all of the other monkeys with cold water. After a while, another monkey makes an attempt with the same result - all the other monkeys are sprayed with cold water. Pretty soon, when another monkey tries to climb the stairs, the other monkeys will try to prevent it. Now, put away the cold water. Remove one monkey from the cage and replace it with a new one. The new monkey sees the banana and wants to climb the stairs. To his surprise and horror, all of the other monkeys attack him. After another attempt and attack, he knows that if he tries to climb the stairs, he will be assaulted. Next, remove another of the original five monkeys and replace it with a new one. The newcomer goes to the stairs and is attacked. The previous newcomer takes part in the punishment with enthusiasm! Likewise, replace a third original monkey with a new one, then a fourth, then the fifth. Every time the newest monkey takes to the stairs, he is attacked. Most of the monkeys that are beating him have no idea why they were not permitted to climb the stairs or why they are participating in the beating of the newest monkey. After replacing all the original monkeys, none of the remaining monkeys have ever been sprayed with cold water. Nevertheless, no monkey ever again approaches the stairs to try for the banana. Why not? Because as far as they know that's the way it's always been done round here. And that, my friends, is how Air Force regulations are written.\"* (I've seen the same exact e-mail for companies I worked for and as far back as '97 when I was in the Marines)\n\nRight now we are at the last stage. This isn't to say racism doesn't exist. It *absolutely* exists and it exists in every racial niche in America and in the world to varying degrees. What this *does* say is that the ability to think critically about these issues has been beaten out of everyone. You either chime the response you were conditioned to respond with or you are beaten down by people who don't even know why they are doing it. You are called racist, bigot, etc. when neither your intent or your actions are racist.\n\nThere's some other things I've seen at play, and another dynamic that I saw a lot growing up. People are going to leverage whatever power they hold against you. They do it instinctively. In this case, there are opportunists within the black community who derive their entire power base from fostering feelings of resentment and hatred. In essence they are racists, but that word is devoid of any integrity anymore and that's not the root of the issue. The root of the issue is power. If a group of people can not only control your behavior but also your language and thought process, they own you. In America, the guilty white masses are owned in whole by the race baiters. They live in fear of being called a racist. Personally I don't give a fuck, given my life history and questionable heritage I know what I am and what I am not, and what some moron who has never lived in the diversity they espouse says about me is irrelevant.\n\nNow, can you go in blackface dressed as a specific person with no racial intent in mind? Sure, if we were a critical society. We aren't though. It's more emotion and conditioned response than reason, *especially* regarding race. It is devoid of reason but it's not unreasonable. There are plenty of Americans who are alive right now who lived through segregation. They certainly lived through the marginalization. It will take generations for it to go away. Going in blackface is insensitive to them. They've seen and experienced things we can't fathom as the younger generations. It is insulting to them, though if they knew you and knew what you were doing they would probably be the most rational and accepting of your costume. They've seen the *real* ugly and they would know you are not it. You still can't do it though. The people who never knew the cold water will beat you down or call you a racist.\n\nYou know the most profound racial experience I've had in adulthood? I met a man from Nigeria while serving as an officer in the Air Force. He had a thick accent. He moved to New York from Nigeria when he was younger. He is AFRICAN. He told me once \"you know when I moved to America I had to learn to be black.\"\n\nIt's all conditioned, and sadly most of us have nothing to do with the cause.",
"Imma log off now because reading all of these responses is too interesting and is stopping me from doing my homework which is due fucking tomorrow.. Judging by responses and messages i can see that not everywhere is as accepting as where I am, and I am therefore rather naive on the matter. I keep trying to write a summary sentence or something, but the fact of the matter is, it is not a simple matter, and as a person who has not experienced racism i dont think i could fully understand it. Thanks for all your input lads n lasses, I've learnt alot. :)",
"Here In Mexico during xmas time people will dress up as the three kings or wise men and tradition says that one was black. Since our black population is not very large someone will undoubtedly be painted black. I have never heard of anyone being offended by this as our view of racism is different and more tolerant, only person who ever made a comment about it being racist and offensive was a white American exchange student.\nMany kids in Mexico don't receive gifts from Santa on Xmas day, instead they get them on 6th of Jan brought by the three kings. Kids get their photo taken with them at the mall as well.I was lucky and got loot both days. I'm glad we don't have racial issues that label innocent fun and costumes as bigotry. Remember it's all about context.",
"It's considered racist because back in The Old Days (at least the mid to late 1800's), white people would portray black characters in plays and such, and those characters being portrayed were almost always offensive, horrible stereotypes.\n\nIt's basically because, when black face was first \"invented\", people only ever used to to make fun of black people and be racist, so now, black face *in and of itself* is racist and offensive because it's a call back to the fact that black face was pretty much invented solely to make fun of black people. It's very exploitative, even setting aside the other negative connotations at work.\n\n[Wikipedia link for more information.](_URL_0_)",
"I'll just share this anecdote:\n\nWhen I was in my twenties, in the 1970's, I was the only white person working for an otherwise all-black company, I came to understood, in a very minor way, what black people in the South had to go through.\n\nI was privileged to attend a performance by Ben Vereen, fresh off his \"Roots\" success, that my company produced. (I was also able to bring my parents, visiting from out of town, and take them backstage to meet Mr. Vereen--he was astoundingly gracious to every single person waiting to see him, truly admirable man.)\n\nOne of the most moving skits he put on was about a black man preparing for a minstrel performance. The man sits at his makeup table, pondering the irony of a black man having to put on the exaggerated minstrel blackface in order to perform in front of a white audience. \n\nThere is a profound sadness in the performance I cannot describe; even so many years later, I remember the emotions of sorrow, laughter, joy and pain he evoked--and my embarrassment at my own whiteness as an audience member.",
"Yet when the Wayans brothers play and make fun of white girls in a movie it's okay and viewed as viable entertainment. You may argue that this is a false equivalency, because of the historical implications of black face, but if we continue to hold onto the scars of history as justification for a double standard, we will continue to see a culture where a black person is allowed to make fun of a white person and where a white person is not allowed to make fun of a black person. If race is \"made up\", then it serves our society to focus on the present, forget the historical implications of the past in an effort to move past race and go forward as a culture where rewards are based on merit not skin color and affirmative action. ",
"Why are people to ignorant to see that we are all equal and the same? By saying that it is \"wrong\" to dress up in Blackface is being racist itself and further differentiating people. Last I checked there is only one race, Human.",
" > Hopefully in a bit (or a lot) of time skin colour will be something not unlike hair colour, where it doesn't mean anything other than your parents probably had the same colour as you do, and we will be able to do things like dress up as someone without fear of insulting people.\n\nUm, after reading these responses, do you see the problem of this statement? It's not about the \"fear of insulting people.\" Blackface is insulting. ",
"Just for some balance. \nWhen I was little, (in the 50s) my family lived near 63rd St and Stony Island in Chicago, a black neighborhood. \nMy dad's religious background was Amish, and we were taught that all souls were God-colored, and the outside skin mattered no more than the color of your clothes\nWhen I was in 1st grade, there were only eight white kids in the whole school, my sister and I were two of the eight. \nAs little kids, we had no idea of any kind of prejudice. Another kid was another kid, with interesting differences. I used to think that black people had the coolest hair in the world, like little slinkies. In first grade, I would trade a strand of my hair (long and blonde) for a strand of theirs (springy and coiled).\nBy the time I was in second grade, people started to not want to play with me. I had no clue why. When my sister (one year older) got punched because she was white, my family moved.\nJust saying that I do not think prejudice is inherent, I think it is taught, and who teaches it has nothing to do with skin color.",
"Because in the past it was used offensively. If white people were discriminated in the past by black people painting their faces white, and then it starts showing up again, whites wouldn't appreciate it. So, it shows that we're all the same no matter what color. So, whites should never do this, even though white face has never been an issue in the past, it'd still have the negative effects of black face.",
"would really like to know why the facts that a) africans regularly sold other africans into the slave trade initially and b) at least HALF the country sent its sons and husbands to fight and die to erradicate the practice of slavery... are rarely mentioned as a 'oh hey, you know not EVERYONE in this country is a mouth-breathing redneck\"\n\nim not a racist, but i do think its silly to get upset at a child going to school dressed at Martin Luther King Jr because MLK is the kid's hero and wanted to share his admiration of the man....then to turn around and watching a Kat Williams/Kevin Hart/Chris Rock stand up making fun of white people and laughing your ass off...where's the cries of hypocrisy there?\n\nI honestly believe the root causes of racism today is predominantly the fact that blacks/african-american's/whatever the PC term is today, continue to discriminate and seperate THEMSELVES. Reserved from the dwindling amount of hate mongers, racists, 'old schoolers,' etc who generally are bigots and douches.\n\n\"I want a scholarship based solely on the color of my skin, but i dont want to be judged solely on the color of my skin\" -----this confuses me to no end.\n\nI understand offering scholarships for the less fortunate, disabled, or veterans...but to offer scholarships only to lesbian arab black women serves ONLY to discriminate and further draw the lines apart. I am a lower middle class white male who's parents BARELY made enough money to get by...and the hell if I couldnt have used some of those specialized scholarships to help pay for my education. I have did work my ass off, study hard for scholarships in subsequent years, and work 4 summers of high school to make my own way though.\n\nyou CANNOT claim inequality, demand equalization, then turn around and discriminate or demand preferential treatment for the same reason you DONT want to be discriminated against.\n\nI will not claim to be any sort of socio-economic authority, or even that I can speak intelligently to the subject; I believe this dichotomy will never be resolved until no race/gender/sexual orientation is preferentially treated in any way. THEN people will start to realize we are the same and the lines will blur and fade away.\n\n$ .02 take it or leave it",
"Ok white people. Allow me, a Black man, to give you a brief history on minstrelsy and blackface in America. I'm not really concerned with sinterklaas because I'm not Dutch or whatever the fuck that is.\nBlackface minstrelsy first became nationally popular in the late 1820s when white male performers portrayed African-American characters using burnt cork to blacken their skin. Wearing tattered clothes, the performances mocked black behavior, playing racial stereotypes for laughs. Although Jim Crow was probably born in the folklore of the enslaved in the Georgia Sea Islands, one of the most famous minstrel performers, a white man named Thomas “Daddy” Rice brought the character to the stage for the first time. Rice said that on a trip through the South he met a runaway slave, who performed a signature song and dance called jump Jim Crow. Rice’s performances, with skin blackened and drawn on distended blood red lips surrounded by white paint, were said to be just Rice’s attempt to depict the realities of black life.\n\nJim Crow grew to be minstrelsy’s most famous character, in the hands of Rice and other performers Jim Crow was depicted as a runaway: “the wheeling stranger” and “traveling intruder.” The gag in Jim Crow performances was that Crow would show up and disturb white passengers in otherwise peaceful first class rail cars, hotels, restaurants, and steamships. Jim Crow performances served as an object lesson about the dangers of free black people, so much so that the segregated spaces first created in northern states in the 1850s were popularly called Jim Crow cars. Jim Crow became synonymous with white desires to keep black people out of white, middle-class spaces.\n\nMinstrel shows became hugely popular in the 1840s exposing white audiences in the North with their first exposure to any depiction of black life. They would often feature a broad cast of characters; from Zip Coon, the educated free black man who pronounced everything incorrectly, to Mammy, a fat, black faithful slave who was really just obviously played by a man in a dress. Black children were depicted as unkempt and ill raised pickaninnies. The running joke about pickaninnies was that they were disposable; they were easily killed because of their stupidity and the lack of parental supervision.\n\nMinstrelsy desensitized Americans to horrors of chattel slavery. These performances were object lessons about the harmlessness of southern slavery. By encouraging audiences to laugh, they showed bondage as an appropriate answer for the lazy, ignorant slave. Why worry about the abolition of slavery when black life looked so fun, silly, and carefree? Even the violence of enslavement just became part of the joke.\n\nThese erroneous portrayals of black life were seen by thousands of Americans in the decades before the Civil War. Mark Twain and Abraham Lincoln attended and enjoyed minstrel shows. President Lincoln had the Union band play Dixie at Lee’s surrender; the comic dialogues in Huckleberry Finn are reminiscent of minstrel performances. Minstrelsy became America’s first national popular culture.\n\nMinstrelsy lived on long after the Civil War, with African-American performers donning blackface to perform as minstrels on stage. In horrifying irony, white audiences would reject black performers not wearing blackface as not appearing to be black enough. The preeminent African-American vaudeville performer Bert Williams donned blackface for his stage performances. Audiences refused to allow him to perform without blackening up.\n\nBlackface was used to push products from cigarettes to pancakes while minstrel songs were turned into sheet music, sold and sung around the world. Classic American songs such as “Jimmy Crack Corn,” “Camptown Races” and “Someone’s in the Kitchen with Dinah” all began as minstrel songs. Children’s rhymes and games also are drawn from our minstrel past. “Eeny Meeny, Miny, Moe,” initially commanded that the listener to “catch a ni**er by his toe.” “Do Your Ears Hang Low” was originally the 1829 song entitled “Zip Coon.” The story of the children’s book Ten Little Monkeys was first published as Ten Little Ni**er Boys where each boy was killed as the story progressed.\n\nBlackface became a mainstay of stage and later film performance in the twentieth century. Most often blackface was used as a comic device that played on the stereotypes of black laziness, ignorance, or crass behavior for laughs. Sometimes blackface was used simply to portray black characters. The 1915 film, Birth of a Nation, the first feature film to be shown in the White House, used blackface to portray Reconstruction era black legislators as incompetent and to paint all black men as threatening to rape white women. The first talking picture, 1927’s The Jazz Singer starred Al Jolson, one of the most famous American performers of his day, in blackface. Even America’s sweetheart, Shirley Temple, donned blackface in 1935 film The Littlest Rebel. While none of the black actors in The Littlest Rebel film wore blackface, they performed in a style first created on the minstrel stage one hundred years earlier.\n\nThe history of blackface minstrelsy isn’t talked about regularly today, but its cultural residue is all around us. Its painful to note that as one of the most unflinching portraits of American slavery hits the screens in 12 Years a Slave, people still continue to blacken up for laughs. Until we actively remember the ugliness of this history, people will continue to blacken their faces without recognizing the horror hidden beneath the paint.\nWritten by Blair L M Kelly",
"I grew up in L.A. In a poor neighborhood. We were the only white people in the area. Racism never entered my brain until WAY later. I didn't have a white friend until I moved states at the age if 12. My dad was telling me stories about how he would take his female friend to lunch(she is black) and they would be mistreated tremendously! So as we maybe not racist,others can be extremely so. Sad to say she said it happened a lot, almost daily. The worst is that she was apologizing for the bad service/mistreatment! There's been a lot of good points made here that I am thankful for and will pass on to my children.\n\nTL:DR. While you may not be racist, other people are, so you'll just be a white dude with a blackface, not the celebrity you tried to impersonate",
"I'm mulatto. I look like a white guy with a dark tan. I've been called a nigger in Florida. I've been called a cracker in New York. It's racists to say Whites have privileges. It's racists to calls Blacks stupid or thieves. We are all a little racist, and it's normal and healthy. I hate Black wanna be thug niggers stealing quarters off your desk, showing their asses cause it's gangster, complaining about how much life sucks but wont work, sucking down nickle bags every time they scape up 5 bucks. I hate white trash red-neck fat bud-light house_smells_like_dog_shit fucks & spoiled liberal rich_kid_thinks_hes_poor, wants_blacks_to_like_him_cause_he_understands college brats (You're weak and soft people slowing bleeding this country dry). I'm allowed to dislike anyone I want. :D",
"For long while, the association was black was bad. If you watched Malcolm X (staring Denzel Washington) or read the autobiography you will be shown when Malcolm read the definitions for black and white one represented purity and honesty, and the other, deception, decay, and so forth.\n\nThe perception that black was bad is so ingrained that even when used without any obvious racist intent some black people have said \"you cannot say that; its racist.\" I remember one occasion where someone demanded an apology because a bureaucrat said \"[Central Collections is a black hole](_URL_0_)\" when it came to missing paperwork.\n\nSo we get to the issue of sensitivity versus over-sensitivity. History and experience has shown black people need to be on guard for racism, so it makes sense they would be sensitive to it. Many white people have been called because they have been accused of being racist or doing something racist when they feel many observers would say that is not the case, and in fact, the accusation is just being made as a convenient leverage, not an honest complaint.\n\nSo now we are getting to some hard and fast rules that are not grounded in the intent of the person itself. Black face is one of those things. It was racist in the past. Therefor the assumption must be racist now. Even if the person wearing the makeup is not doing anything **explicitly** derogatory, there is an assumption that they are doing something **implicitly** derogatory.",
"Yeah, sorry, it's still offensive. Maybe in 100 years I can be Pootie Tang for Halloween, but not this time. :(",
"i haven't read any of the responses on here, and i'm assuming they've hit the major historic points of why it's offensive. after reading your edits in your original question, i can tell you're young, and that's a good thing. it will take your generation and those after you to make racism truly a thing of the past in the future. I'm glad that you didn't immediately know what it truly was, because that means that you'd never seen it the way it was originally done. when i was young, i saw many old black & white movies that either used a little blackface, or otherwise portrayed black people as buffoons. as a young black child, it was always confusing because i knew we weren't really like that, but here we are being shown to the world that way. same with a lot of cartoons that were still running in the 70s & 80. you can find a bunch of tom & jerry and bugs bunny cartoons with the same kinds of portrayals. imagine the damage that could do to a child, to be subliminally taught that you're some kind of joke; less than human almost. or actually in america, 3/5 of a human legally until 1868! so it's offensive for the people in society who still remember it's original usage, just like the N word is. it just hasn't lost it's sting yet, if it ever will.",
"Isn't there a difference between \"Blackface\" and painting yourself a darker skin color? Almost nobody paints themselves a darker skin color and uses the Blackface \"lips\". \n\n",
"here is an excellent documentary that explains the history of blackface symbolism - ethnic notions: _URL_0_",
"Because it's disrespectful to the legacy that black face has. You can't just ignore the decades of intentional racism that black face was used for just for a night of cheap entertainment. \n\nThere's a simple solution to this: don't go as a black celebrity.",
"I personally feel like it is because in history, blackface has been used in films and media to portray black people in an inferior way or to make fun of them and it still has that connotation. Its like the swastika, the symbol itself is completely innocent but because it was used to represent something shitty and cruel, it still holds that meaning.",
"I went as a rapper one time, of course with black face paint and all. Got beat up and harassed by the people dressed as cops all night. 0/10 would not recommend.",
"You will not believe how much controversy is going on about [this Dutch tradition](_URL_0_), it's not even funny anymore.\n\nIn my opinion: changing your skin color is no more racist than wearing a differently-colored wig.",
"According to the predominant argument here, couldn't it be said then that men dressing up as women should be equally offensive and shunned? Have women not suffered discrimination and marginalization due to a physical / biological factor- comparable to that of minorities? Women still continue to face inequalities today with differing severities depending on which part of the globe you look at. However men dressing up as women ( speaking of Halloween costumes not cross dressing) is considered comical. \n\nFYI I don't have a problem with this I'm just bringing up what I think would be a comparable observation "
]
}
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[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[],
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_and_genetics",
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minstrel_show",
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_hair_%28phrase%29"
],
[],
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_American#Discrimination"
],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[
"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C45g3YP7JOk"
],
[],
[
"http://www.orijinculture.com/community/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/blackface.jpg"
],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_face"
],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[],
[
"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oc1zGRUPztc"
],
[],
[],
[],
[
"http://aal.ucsd.edu/reserves/dmr/public/films/ethnicnotions.html"
],
[],
[],
[],
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zwarte_Piet#Controversies_surrounding_the_character"
],
[]
] |
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4lz5zk
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why can one of my web browsers take minutes/fail to load a page, but if i copy and paste the link into another one, it will load immediately?
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explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/4lz5zk/eli5_why_can_one_of_my_web_browsers_take/
|
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"The content on websites is often kept by web browsers for a period of time just in case it's needed again. After you load it from the first time, it's just being loaded from your computer/phone instead of over the Internet.",
"Each tab and plugin can run as a separate process. So one tab or window can be locked up or just waiting for a timeout on data transmission/reception. ",
"One of your browsers may have cookies that cause the site to behave differently (e.g. it tries to load some settings and fails). Your browsers can have different plugins (e.g. one has adblock or just doesn't support shitty flash ads so the site loads quickly). Based on cookies or open sessions, you might hit a different (faster) server in a multi-server setup.\n\nBrowsers can have different loading behavior, e.g. waiting for a certain element to load before rendering the page, while other browsers start rendering (showing) the page before that slow-loading element is loaded (at the cost of the site jumping around more while it loads).\n\n\n~~Finally, Chrome supports QUIC and HTTP/2.0 (different protocols for loding websites).~~ Edit: See gn0meCh0msky's comment below.\n\nThis assumes the behavior is consistent. Often, you try to load a page and it fails, and if you cancel and reload it loads instantly. That happens when the first requests e.g. hits an overloaded/broken server, or the connection is bad (congested or weak signal/high interference on wireless connections) during the first request but better by the time you do the second request.",
"Bad route at that moment, maybe the site is load balanced and you got a better server in the new browser. ",
"One reason I've found is a problem with with my internet. It's pretty crappy sometimes, so sometimes the \"get this webpage\" packet is lost along the way. When that happens, the server doesn't know to send the page back to my computer, so my browser gets stuck waiting for a reply that isn't coming. If I open the link in a new tab or refresh the current one, it resends the \"get this webpage\" message, and the server is able to send the page to me.",
"One browser follows directions and gets stuck in traffic. The other browser is like f that, and takes the freeway. Or one gets lost along the way and is waiting for someone to tell them that they are lost.\n\nAlso, cookies, add-ons, and browser compatibility with the hosting website if you are using different browsers. ",
"Cache, cache, cache, sessions and cache. \n\n- Your system (mostly windows) and the DNS servers serving you will store the \"map\" to the websites ip address. Sometimes if the DNS hasn't been accessed from your region it can take a while because the DNS server has to go ask other DNS services where to find the route to your weird Japanese porn site.\n\n- Then your browser caches pieces of the site depending on how long the server wants you to hold that data. Static content like images stylesheets or JavaScript can cache for weeks or months. Dynamic content will usually send a no cache header telling the browser never to load it from memory (always fetch from the server). Once in the cache those pieces will load from memory which frees bandwidth and computing resources allowing the browser to concentrate on downloading other stuff that hasn't been cached like the \"sexy singles near your\" banners. \n\n- server side caching. Sometimes sites will generate a piece of content on the fly but then keep a copy the generated content to avoid the overhead and time that it takes to generate it again. After a specified amount of time it will regenerate the page and cache it again. This is usually paired with browser caching. Forums do this a lot. \n\n- Then there's sessions and cookies. These are used to track you throughout your visit. On your first visit your usually given a session cookie which is a light weight cookie that relates to a file on the server, that contains data about your visit. Select actions will modify this data to keep do stuff like keep you logged in or remember mundane settings. Some sites just drop massive cookies with lots of data into your browser which is super inefficient. Either way writing is always more expensive and time consuming than reading. So first load will usually take a bit longer depending on the crap they put in it. \nCombined with terrible web design practices you could be reading or writing cookies and sessions for things that don't need them like on a animated gif of dickbutt. \n\n- Content delivery networks also help out a buttload. They are specifically designed to not use cookies or sessions, have high availability, and once they are accessed from a region they will cache a copy of the content at data centers geographically closer to the user. So your weird Japanese fetish porn will be slow when you hit it from Ohio the first time because you're literally going across the ocean to get it. Once the network sees you request that weird Japanese shit it will tell a data center near Ohio to cache it and serve it in that region for a while.\n\nDoes that help any?\n\nEdit: forgot to mention that cookies and sessions can bloat or sometimes hold bad data causing slow requests. Also cookies are transmitted to the server on every request so serving static content on cookieless domains is faster. Bad or stale data means the server has to correct the data before responding which takes time. Opening a different browser effectively starts a new clean and lean session or cookie. \n ",
" As others have said, it have to do with a thing called cache. Cache is like a *savegame* for the web. It saves pictures, especial typographies, what IP address correspond to hat URIs (web address), etc., in your computer / smart thingy. So, if it's the first time that you visit a page from a browser it loads slower. \n But sometimes it may also depend on the tolerance to errors in the page code. If the page code has errors on it, it's more or less easy to interpret what was the intention behind the code, but different browsers have different ways of doing it. Normally it only causes the page to not being showed properly, but sometimes it can make appear the page to be blank or make it load slow. \n The first cause is usually the one to *blame*, but the other one can happen, and sometimes does.",
"When you hit a URL to access a website, there are actually *several* requests sent by the browser to a *server* (A remote computer on which the website is hosted), when the first page of the website loads (Usually to fetch images, style sheets and other stuff that go in the page).\n\n*Some* of this data, such as images will be cached (Stored in the browser's memory) when you send the first request. This cached stuff can then be used by any subsequent requests by the browser, which makes these subsequent requests faster - this is because the browser does not need to request and wait for a response from the *server*, and can directly show you the content...",
"There could be a lot of reasons. I read through the comments quickly and the only one I didn't see mentioned was browser addons, some of these can slow the loading of pages, some outright block specific scripts from running (think about ad blockers). There may also be malware or other things on your machine spying on your traffic as well, perhaps some browsers are more easily snooped on than others. ",
"Web browsers are like cars. Web pages are like terrain. Some cars are made for steep hills and shallow waters and go slow. Some are built for the speedway and go fast, but break down on rough terrain. Sometimes something bad happens, like a traffic jam, or an earthquake, and everything just breaks down. It's just life.\n\nSome web pages are built to suit only some types of browsers."
]
}
|
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[],
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||
2sjppv
|
if every 10 decibels of sound doubles the volume, why is it measured the way it is?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2sjppv/eli5_if_every_10_decibels_of_sound_doubles_the/
|
{
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"text": [
"Keeps the scale actually manageable. Much like the Richter scale. If you tried to just use set values it would be unwieldy. \n\n",
"Its called logarithmic scale. Otherwise the numbers would be like 10decibels whisper, 100 decibels conversation, 100000 decibels jet engine. 10000000000 rock concert, 100000000000000 gunshot",
"Every additional 10 dB of sound is 10 times (not double) the previous lever. So 90 dB is 10-times the level (power) of 80 dB. \n\nMeasurements where the absolute fluctuation of values can cover a very large range of numbers is made easier by expressing them on a **[logarithmic scale](_URL_0_)** is a helpful strategy in terms of human conceptualization in that very large (and very small) numbers would become cumbersome if we talked about it in terms of their real number values."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[],
[
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logarithmic_scale#Logarithmic_unit"
]
] |
||
2bjxg0
|
why are board games so popular on kickstarter?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2bjxg0/eli5_why_are_board_games_so_popular_on_kickstarter/
|
{
"a_id": [
"cj62ptq",
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],
"score": [
3,
2
],
"text": [
"Board games are popular on kickstarter for a couple reasons.\n\n1. Board game fans are often looking for new concepts and games that they haven't played before, and kickstarter is a good way to find such things.\n\n2. Anyone can come up with a board game, but getting it made requires a production run if you want each copy to not be super expensive. It's much easier to get a production run if you know that you need at least N orders, and that's what being on kickstarter does for you (that, and get you the money to pay for that production run).",
"everyone has game ideas, board games are easy to prototype, and with their low material costs, the product has a good chance of making it to the market.\n\ncompare this to something like a videogame. high production costs, they dont really come together until the very end, and with years of development, it's easy for them to fail."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
2x7i3s
|
why do some men (myself included) lose all interest in the idea of intimacy after "finishing".
|
explainlikeimfive
|
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2x7i3s/eli5_why_do_some_men_myself_included_lose_all/
|
{
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"coxlmcn",
"coxlwuh"
],
"score": [
3,
2
],
"text": [
"Most likely the cocktail (no pun intended) of chemicals that get released after finishing such as serotonin and especially the hormone prolactin. Prolactin is the chemical that helps feel sexually satisfied... also keeps us from going again. It also makes us sleepy as there is a strong link between sleep and Prolactin.\n\n[source](_URL_0_)\n\nedit: grammar",
"In our prehistoric ancestral societies, the females received the semen of many males. The males' job was to deliver the load and then his job was finished. The rest is up to sperm itself. There was no monogamy back in the day. Today's social structure is different, yet our bodies have not evolved at the same rate. That is why you feel entirely accomplished after the load has been 'delivered' :) "
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[
"http://scienceline.org/2006/09/ask-wenner-sex/"
],
[]
] |
||
ffx7ez
|
how do people who do outstanding thing for charity (e.g. run across the us, or swim a very long distance) get money?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/ffx7ez/eli5_how_do_people_who_do_outstanding_thing_for/
|
{
"a_id": [
"fk12jso",
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],
"score": [
3,
2
],
"text": [
"Yes, but mainly donation from big companies, usually for visibility.\n\nAlso called advertisement.",
"They ask for it. \n\nI knew a guy who biked across the US for a hospital. While he did make personal requests for support, the hospital pursued all their heavy hitters and that’s where most of the money came from. \n\nI know a girl who ran across our state. She just decided she was going to do it and picked a cause and friends pitched in. She’s not a planner at all. Once it got media attention it kind of made a life of its own and everything she needed came to her."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
||
9zefrm
|
why do steam irons remove creases better than non-steam irons?
|
explainlikeimfive
|
https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/9zefrm/eli5_why_do_steam_irons_remove_creases_better/
|
{
"a_id": [
"ea8g7tv",
"ea8ps31"
],
"score": [
8,
2
],
"text": [
"The moisture helps to relax the fibers so that the kinks come out. Then the heat from the iron resets the fiber flat by drying them that way. \n\nIt’s just like how wetting your hair will take out a ponytail crease or hat hair. ",
"As already mentioned, the moisture works into the fibres and increases their compliance. There's also the fact that water is a better conductor of heat than your clothes are, aiding in heat transference through the clothing."
]
}
|
[] |
[] |
[
[],
[]
] |
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