[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
Getting post-graduate degrees in biology at no cost?

My 17-year-old daughter loves biology, especially genetics, and ultimately wants to get her doctorate and do research. We've been visiting potential universities and were excited to hear that in STEM fields, once you have your undergrad degree, you can do grad school at no cost to you, through filling assistant teaching positions that pay you by waiving your tuition and giving you a stipend to cover room and board. We have very limited means, so were over the moon to hear this, but it almost seems too awesome to be true so I thought I'd look for further verification on this.

[Assistant] It's true; any PhD program worth its salt will provide a stipend while you work as a research or teaching assistant. Some people also earn internal or external fellowships that cover expenses, though they are pretty competitive.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[DC/Green Lantern] There is only a limited number of Green Lanterns per Earth, does this apply to other rings?

So the Green Lanterns originally had a lantern per sector (Hal for Earth) and then this was later changed and expanded and all that. But does this apply to any other lantern corps, or just green because its a very formal "police organization"? Because i find it hard to believe that the Red Lantern corps would adhere to this limit, so either theu just dont care or it only applies to greens.

[Assistant] It's not as key a part of their organizational doctrine as it is for the Lanterns (except maybe for the Sinestro Corps) but they do have a finite number of rings that it makes sense to distribute evenly through the universe.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] [MCU] Captain America and Bucky can be considered peak human, but Tony with the suit should be solidly superhuman. Why wasn't he completely dominating Cap when they fought?

[Assistant]
Iron Man was only trying to kill Bucky, meaning that he used noticably less force against Cap (limited mainly to hand to hand). However, the effort expended by Tony to meet those goals was costly; Cap managed to damage his flight system and Bucky managed to distract Tony at a crucial moment. If IM had tried to kill both of them, he would have had a much easier time. As it was, he had to be careful to micromanage the force he was using moment to moment.

Cap's shield also plays a factor; it is near perfect defense and can be passed around, and it was crucial offense.

Another really big factor is that IM is only, like, 400 lbs. A lot, but light enough that Cap can meaningly kick him off balance.

Further, Iron Man was solidly dominating, really. Cap and Bucky probably hit him fifty times, and he's not really even hurt by the end. If it weren't for the shield breaking the Arc Reactor, then Tony could have kept getting up against and again. Even when Cap started spamming hooks and crosses for several seconds, Tony... what, grunts a little?

Basically, Tony was winning handily through attrition. Every obstacle in his way, he was still winning.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Star Wars] What Force powers make the ability to destroy a planet seem insignificant and could Vader utilize these powers?

Who else could utilize these powers?

[Assistant]
He was partially speaking metaphorically. He was talking about how destroying a planet through brute force (heh) was nothing compared to what the dark side could achieve.

I mean, the Emperor, as a Sith, stood in front of the entire Jedi council and no one was the wiser. He then manipulated an entire galaxy to go to war while basically being the leader of both sides. He then used said war to take over the entire galaxy and install himself as dictator. And the people whose power he stole *applauded him for it*.

So you know this big, scary weapon that can destroy a planet? The only reason it exists is because we used the force. And no one in the galaxy - not even you, the commander of said weapon - had a fucking clue we did it.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Hitman] Why does nobody take notice of the assassin's barcode tattoo or his laughably thin disguises?

You can even see people crane their heads to follow him, as if they notice something, but they never seem to take action. I can see all this stuff clear as day on the cameras after the fact, but when he's out and about, nobody pays him any notice.What gives?

[Assistant] People have weird tattoos all the time, and since Agent 47 does his job right nobody knows to associate a barcode tattoo with an assassin. That also being said, while you might find his disguises laughably thin, we at the agency have conducted many field tests and found that the best disguise is to hide in plain sight disguised as someone who will not get more than a cursory glance from most individuals.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[DC] What are the limits to Flash's ability to vibrate through objects?

Just to begin with I understand how flash vibrates through things, I don't need that explain.

I'm more interested in the limits that are placed on the ability, he is capable of vibrating through ordinary material as well as lantern constructs but how would he fair against different objects such as a magic forcefield or a piece of material where the molecules are constantly changing the frequency that they are vibrating at.

[Assistant]
"What are the limits to Flash-"
Pretty much none. He can subconsciously put limits on himself though (or just not try as hard). Speed force allows him to do crazy shit. Idk about what he could do against the magic one, but he could steal enough speed from the vibrating molecules that they stop moving, then phase through em.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] [Star Wars] If a fully trained Jedi lost their saber and required a placement, would they have to go through the crystal finding process all over again or did the Jedi have spare crystals lying around in a drawer somewhere for just such an occasion?

[Assistant]
It would seem that there are some spare sabers kept ready just in case (*see Anakin and Obi-Wan getting sabers from their Jedi rescuers in the Geonosis arena*). However, this may be extraordinary circumstances and there might not always be spare sabers.

While it would seem more efficient for the Jedi to simply have a stock of kyber crystals for those who'd lost theirs, you're forgetting that the search for the lightsaber crystal is as much ritual as it is practical, and the Jedi don't exactly seem like they would exploit a world to harvest all of its kyber crystal veins.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why can food or drink of temperatures that are clearly sufficient to scald my lips seem to elicit no pain response whatsoever once within the mouth?

[Assistant]
When you sip a hot drink, two important things happen;

1. You draw air quickly over the surface of the hot liquid, cooling it more quickly than if the air against the surface were still, and

2. You separate out a much smaller volume of hot liquid than if you were to simply pour it into your mouth like a glass of water. This means that as you spread a small volume of hot liquid over a large area of your mouth, only a small bit of heat gets transferred to any portion of your mouth, ideally not enough to burn you.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
Eli5: Why do dimpled golf balls go farther than smooth?

I remember hearing that golf balls used to be smooth and people would actually play with old beat up balls because they would fly further than the new smooth ones. Why is this? What makes dimpled balls go further?

[Assistant] The dimples trip up the air, and create turbulence in the air flow around the golf ball.  Turbulent flow causes less drag on a golf ball than "laminar" (the air is in smooth layers around the ball) flow.  The turbulent, mixing flow reduces the vacuum behind the golf ball compared to a ball where the airflow was smooth.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
I don't believe that the porn ban in the UK is a bad thing. CMV.

Now I hold this view with circumstance: That you can request to have no filter on your internet if you want it so. This would mean the porn ban would be on by default, but you can ask your network provider to switch it off, which I believe was the plan.

Now I believe that porn isn't very positive for children, as it distort their views on sex and whatnot. I know that people love their freedom, but it's not an issue of freedom if you can request to turn it off! I don't see anything bad about it. It is different from China where it's a constantly on firewall, people have choice, it's just there to protect the children from bad influence.

[Assistant]
Freedoms that you have to ask permission for are not freedoms.

An opt out filter (which already exists in many forms) doesnt put government between people and the internet in any way.    Why stomp on freedom to save parents 1 phone call.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Overwatch] Is there any reason why the Bastions in the Eichenwalde siege don't use their Tank forms?

Before I give my understanding, I'll refer to the Bastion unit that survived and made contact with Ganymede as Blue Bastion, thanks to the eye color, and the Eichenwalde siege Bastions as Red Bastions.

If you think about it, a Bastion unit is a one-man army. Not only is it capable of defending a base with Sentry configuration, but they're also good siege units thanks to their Tank configuration. All while having a Recon configuration as a base form.

The tanks can jump, are faster than Recon form, and (personally) really good siege engines. Why didn't the Red Bastions besieging Eichenwalde ever transform into tanks? Wouldn't it be a great move against all those Crusaders defending the city? I'm sure a volley of tank shots would be deadly to the crusaders.

Presumably, from my experience, the tank form can't be handled with for too long, but I always thought that this was due to the fact that the only time we ever see it being used is with Blue Bastion, and it's been overgrown for so long that its systems aren't as functional. I don't know if there's any factual basis on that though. It seems weird that the Omnics would design a Tank form for the Red Bastions and put a limiter.

Regardless, is there any reason for this?

[Assistant] From a lore perspective presumably all the ultimate abilities are really energy intensive.  The Bastion units would run out of energy too quickly if they used the tank mode too much. Also there were at least two people with Rienhardt type shields which could block the tank's cannons.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Static Shock] How come Joker was the only big time villain that tried to recruit meta humans from Dakota City?

The metas of Dakota City are pretty powerful, and many of them are young and can be easily convinced or manipulated into working for some of the bigger villains of DC. It'd be the perfect opportunity for people like Penguin, Lex Luthor, and Ra's Al Ghul to get some strong goons.

[Assistant] Cause its the kind of thing Joker would do. Its in line of the way he likes to do things. Lex is low key. He knows it could lead to him, which isnt his style. Penguin is making Himself seem as a legit businessman, so he wont want to employ teens which are highly unpredictable and its also illegal to do so. Ra only wants the best of the best for his group, so he would most likely try to recruit Static instead.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
How do scientists determine how many calories different activities burn? And how accurate are the estimates on exercise machines?

So I kind of understand how they determine calorie content of food. My understanding is that they burn it and measure the heat and duration, and that gives them the basic estimate. But how do they figure out how many calories the human body burns?

[Assistant] I think it has to do with measuring the CO2 you exhale when exercising. So you wear a facemask which is connected to a machine which can measure the amount of CO2 you are breathing out and can then estimate the amount of calories that represents while you are running on a treadmill etc.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
Ever met an undergrad like this?

I am TAing a course and one of my students comes to visit me in office hours fairly frequently. She started talking about feeling bad about not having any publications. I told her it was normal since she is only a first year and I didn't have a publication until 4th year, from a 2nd year project but she is convinced that the times have changed because a person from her floor in first year has over 40 publications. I told her he probably exaggerated and that this is so far out of the realm of possibility that I have a hard time believing it but she is entirely dejected.

I have never heard of that but she gave me his name, and out of pure curiousity, I googled him later. He actually...has 3 pages of papers published on Google Scholar. Not in my field, so I can't evaluate the quality of the journals but 2.6 in one common journal, 20 something in another.

Anybody ever seen that? Has undergraduate schooling changed so much? I remember none of my friends published anything beyond our college's undergraduate research journal, with one notable exception being a guy who got into the right lab at the right time, but this guy must have been publishing on cancer since Gr. 9.

[Assistant]
You're sure it's not one of his parents?

The only realistic way for a first year to have 40 meaningful papers published is for Dr So-and-so to decide to go back to do another Bachelors. This does not happen in any meaningful way otherwise.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
Why are compilers so.. weird?

My first semester of this major is almost complete (today's my final), and something my professor never really explained to me (or the class) is how come compilers run differently?

What I mean is how come when you compile and run a piece of code and it shows up with one or two error messages, and then you copy and paste the same code into a different compiler and it runs successfully with no errors? Can someone explain that concept to me? I still don't understand it.

[Assistant]
There are multiple reasons why you might get an error in one compiler, but not another:

* The compilers are for different languages (duh)
* More subtly, the compilers are for different versions or dialects of the same language - or even technically the same version/dialect, but with different additions to the standard library
* The compilers do support the same versions/dialects, or at least have a sufficiently large overlap, but they have different defaults if you don't specify which version you want.
* You're not passing necessary options correctly because the compilers have different options or the same options have different names
* You're using an option like `-Werror` (causing the compiler to treats warnings as errors) -  different compilers (end even different versions of the same compiler) warn about different things.

This list is very likely not exhaustive. If you give an example of what you're talking about, like which code in which language you tried on which compilers, someone will probably be able to tell you more specifically why it worked on one and not the other.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: How can you know when you've had enough sleep? If you can fall back asleep, are you not done?

[Assistant] *Enough* sleep is different for everyone. The common number is 8 hours of sleep a night - however this is based on statistical data. Other studies show that many people can function on less sleep with no side effects. You can know when you've had enough sleep when you do not have general sleep deprivation symptioms such as lethargy, depression, decreases in short term memory, concentration, etc. ( however other factors such as caffeine, alcohol, drug use, and medication can affect this )


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
Does Data have inflation?

I'm not sure where to ask this, this is the subreddit i found the most relevant to this question.

All big companies collect data, and data is the modern day gold. But, does it have inflation?

We generate more and more data every day, it seems logical to assume that it's value is decreasing, but is this actually the case?

[Assistant]
Inflation is a general increase in prices of goods/services. Data isnt a currency. The concept you might be looking for is diminishing marginal returns. As a company invests more in data, the rate of return eventually diminishes.

Also, as more companies compile big data and use it for strategic decisions, there is less of a competitive advantage to be had.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Avengers: Infinity War/Endgame] Didnt Dr. Strange technically fail to uphold his primary objective? What are the consequences?

Now let me first start by saying that yes, obviously Strange saw the future and knew that the only way to beat Thanos was to play the long game and give him the time stone. After Infinity War came out, most people assumed it was all part of his plan. However, in Endgame, we learn that Thanos destroyed all of the infinity stones. His victory may have only been temporary, but Stranges sacrifice is forever. The time stone wasnt just a temporary loan, it ended up being permanently destroyed. Did Strange foresee this, and ultimately decide to save the universe instead of the stone? Or did he give up the stone knowing that it would lead to victory, but not knowing that he would never get the stone back? He made it abundantly clear that his purpose, above all else, was to protect the stone. The best I can figure is that the horror of witnessing 14,000,604 failures was enough to sway him to let the stone get destroyed, but what are your thoughts? What are the consequences of the stone no longer existing? (And yes, I know that the stone still technically exists at an atomic level, but there must still be consequences to it being virtually nonexistent).

[Assistant] His job was to protect the stone so that it couldn't be misused by anyone. He did one better. He found possibly the only person in the universe both willing and able to destroy the stones so that their power could never be abused again.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
CMV: America Should Try Public Housing Projects Again, Despite the Failures of Earlier Attempts

Most Americans are familiar with the traumatic backstories and evil memories associated with its public housing projects that were overridden with violence, crime, and neglect. What many Americans may not know is that we arent the only country to have developed such programs. Many countries have built public housing and succeeded: Its only in the USA that it really failed.

Section 8, the program we have today, is somewhat lottery based: We give housing waivers to a lucky few and then the middle finger to everyone else. Section 8 is also unfair to those working class people who earn just above the income limit threshold.

If we really want to promote equality and upward mobility, we should take lessons learned from earlier failures and try high density, no car, environmentally friendly, and economically self sustaining public housing along public transit lines.

If we avoid past mistakes (single neighborhood concentration of apartments, under policing, etc.), and build out thoughtfully trial phases, I really believe America could try this again and succeed!

[Assistant] The federal government in the USA does not dictate local zoning decisions. If your city wants to allow this type of development, it is free to do so. Have at it. You're likely going to quickly realize one of two things, nobody wants to build there since nobody is willing to pay the rent or what NIMBY means. There is no top down from Washington power to force these projects.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why can't JPEGS be transparent?

[Assistant]
Because the image format doesn't support it.
In order for an image to be transparent you need to encode in the image how transparent it should be. That is, for each pixel, in addition to knowing the red, green and blue values, we also need to know "how transparent is it". That's commonly referred to as "alpha", and so the image has to store RGBA (or ARGB) pixels, rather than just RGB.

JPEG doesn't do that. It only stores three color channels, red, green and blue. The image format doesn't give us a way to specify how transparent each pixel should be.

(Edit: As many commenters have pointed out, JPEG images *don't* actually store red/green/blue information -- and for that matter, it also doesn't store values for each distinct pixel. They store other information which can be used to work out red/green/blue values for each pixel)


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] how does the body know when it has had enough sleep for the night?

[Assistant] We haven't figured out why people sleep at all, so this is a difficult question to answer. There are technical answers, but until we actually determine why we sleep, it is not really possible to give a satisfactory answer as to when we know we have had enough.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
Are there organisms that fall somewhere between single cell organisms and complex organisms?

I know you have single cell organisms like say a paramecium. And complex organisms which can run the gamut from say a dust mite to a human being or blue whale. Are there organisms that fall somewhere between these two though? Like something that is made up of not one or billions of cells but say five different cells that share a common genetic code?

[Assistant]
Yes! A great example is the green algae genus *Volvox*, that form  spherical colonies with cell numbers ranging from between a few hundred to about 50000. Cells on the interior of the sphere produce gametes that swim out to form new colonies.

In some species, the colonies are either entirely male or entirely female.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
Why do we twitch in our sleep?

I've noticed my boyfriend twitches when he first falls asleep. It seems to only happen when he's in light sleep. What causes muscle spasms and why do some people have it more commonly than others?

[Assistant]
This is called a "hypnic jerk" and is completely normal. There doesn't seem to be a single cause narrowed down as of yet, but the prevailing consensus is as follows:

At the onset of sleep, your muscles enter a state of restfulness. The brain, not yet fully in a state of sleep, interprets this stimulus as if your body has lost its balance (i.e. the sense that you're falling) and responds by recruiting a muscular reaction to regain your balance.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] [General Fiction] Why do terrorist and mad bombers so often make explosive devices with blinking and beeping lights on them?

[Assistant] Because they don't have a Quality Assurance department. They need to be able to verify on the spot that the bomb is working right when they go to plant it (i.e. nothing shifted in transit, none of the wires got tugged loose, the battery is still live, etc), and they need to be able to do so without hauling any extra gear with them. By having a set of status lights (possibly even a timer, if they're feeling saucy) they can rapidly confirm that everything is good to go when they go to plant the bomb; if the bomb fails to blink or beep, then they have one last chance to troubleshoot the problem before having to scrub the job.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
Many birds have colorful eggs (blue, reddish-brown, spotted, etc). Is it possible that dinosaurs had colorful eggs?

And if so, could we identify any of those pigments in fossil eggs?

[Assistant]
It is very likely that dinosaurs were much more colorful than they are commonly depicted.
It's not like evolution would design a 5+ ton animal that's colored to blend into the background.  It is the background.  Sexual preference should have led to elaborate display colors.
This would include egg coloring to identify nests and prevent brood parasites.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why everything else on a computer will freeze and become unresponsive, but you can still move the mouse around.

[Assistant]
Typically when a computer 'freezes' it is due to a specific application misbehaving or running some form of short term resources intensive task and taking up all of the resources that are available for other non-essential applications.

If you think of it like a city, there are priorities on a computer when it comes to resources. in a city things like Schools, Public Safety, and Government are the essential programs that are required to keep the city running. A computer has essential programs too, like input/output, which includes your mouse, keyboard and display.

To continue the analogy, in a city when resources become scarce, as in times of a bad economy or some form of disaster, the essential programs continue when things like State Parks, Historic Building Renovation and Social programs "freeze up".

It is the same with a computer when an application is using up more resources than the computer has available, all of the necessary things for the computer to operate have resources reserved for them to keep functioning, but the other, non-essential applications all fight for resources.

Many times, if you know how to shut off the application that is hogging the resources, or it completes what ever resource intensive task it was doing, the rest of the non-essential applications will begin to have enough resources to behave normally again.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
ELI5: Why do people snore when they sleep but not when we're awake?

Why aren't we snoring all the time? Are we actively regulating are breathing so we don't when we're awake? How and why?

[Assistant]
Snoring is due to the fact that your mouth muscles are not tightened and that you usually have your head tilted back (or at least horizontally with your nose pointing to the celling). Basically, your palate loosen and your to~~u~~ngue roll back a bit thus kind of blocking the airway, but not totally which is why it makes so much noise.

Now, when you are awake, your mouth muscles are more tightened so you are not blocking your own airway.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why has China devalued its currency, and what will that mean for other countries?

[Assistant] When your currency becomes stronger, it becomes much harder for you to export your country's goods, because your goods become more expensive for other countries. China doesn't want that because they are the  biggest export nation that there is.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: How do zip files compress information and file sizes while still containing all the information?

[Assistant]
Image if you had a long paragraph and then try to find all the repeated word or phrases. For each repeated word or phrase, you replace the word or phrase with a lookup. Then you only need to write the repeated word or phrase once and from then on every spot you would write the shorter lookup. This is how files are zipped.

Example

1 - word or phrase

2 - repeated

3 - lookup

4 - you

5 - then

6 - write

7 - and

8 - the

Image if 4 had a long paragraph 7 5 try to find all 8 2 1s. For each 2 1, 4 replace 8 1 with a 3. Then 4 only need to 6 8 2 1 once 7 from 5 on every spot 4 would 6 8 shorter 3. This is how files are zipped.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why do so many people who emigrate from the Middle East open convenience stores?

[Assistant] Each culture has an 'in' to a particular business in each area.  So, one Korean family will come and open a dry cleaning business.  When their cousins come, they will tell them the tricks of the trade and the regulations and have the business model set, so their cousins open up another cleaning business one town over - repeat for friends and family.  Same with Indian people and small grocery stores or liquor shops, middle eastern immigrants and convenience stores.  They share the business model within the culture and are immensely successful this way.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Harry Potter] If someone were horny and entered into the room of requirement, would a bed and willing partner be present?

???

[Assistant]
More likely to get a magazine and a bottle of lotion. Magic can not create something sapient enough to be considered "willing".

If you're lucky, you might get one of those magical target dummies with.. Y'know.. Holes..


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why do normal, rational adults always think that snoozing an alarm for 5 minutes will make any difference at all?

[Assistant] That isn't particularly true because.. Sleep is comprised of 3 NREM stages and one REM stage. Every stage lasts approximately 5-15 minutes long and the NREM stages become shorter the longer you've been asleep while the REM cycle will last longer. When you interrupt a stage, either from the alarm clock or otherwise, you will fall back asleep and resume that stage. This explains why people will say they go back into nightmares once they have woken up and fallen back asleep again. Falling back asleep for 5 more minutes could easily complete a stage thus making them feel less tired.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why are the gas prices dropping so rapidly after being to high for so long?

[Assistant]
- The cost of producing oil mostly depends on its accessibility.

- OPEC is a group of oil producing countries who make up 45% of the world supply.

- OPEC countries like Saudi Arabia have huge relatively easy to access oil deposits, meaning they could produce lots of cheap oil whenever they want.

- Most of the cheap & easy to access oil fields in the US have largely been exhausted or are nearing some limit of production.

- The US has the largest Shale oil deposits on earth, but shale is a lot more expensive to extract so oil has to be above a certain price to make it cost effective to extract from shale.

- Over the last few years oil prices have risen high enough that extracting shale oil became economically viable.

- The viability of shale oil led to a oil boom in the US that was causing us to consume less OPEC oil and more of our own.

- OPEC didn't want their market share eroded by US shale oil.

- So OPEC increased production effectively lowering their own prices and the price of oil in general.

- OPEC hopes to make oil cheap enough that it would make US shale production more expensive.

- As long as OPEC is exporting large amounts of relatively cheap oil, the companies in the US will have to work with lower margins or no profit at all which means less oil production in the US and more consumption of OPEC oil.

- This wont last forever, eventually OPEC will lower their production and prices will go up again.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
ELI5: Why do fans (and propellers) have different numbers of blades? What advantage is there to more or less blades?

An actual question my five year old asked me and I couldn't answer, please help!

[Assistant]
It's always a balance.

Number of blades:

* Fewer blades = More efficient shoveling of air because of turbulence (air swirls) created by other blades reduces efficiency. Usually simpler to make.
* More blades = More stable because the force is spread out over more blades and shovels more air compared to how long the propellers are.

Propeller tips breaking sound barrier is bad (because of lots of turbulence). The longer the propeller the faster the tips go compared to the center. But having too short blades means more loss of energy at the blade tips:

* Longer blades = Better at generating lift, shoveling more air at lower speeds. Longer propellers also less stable and vibrate more.
* Smaller blades = Allows higher top speeds since the propeller can go much faster without breaking the soundbarrier with the wingtips. More stable.

So basicly.WW1 airplane: We can't make so good engines. So we're gonna go with efficient short two-bladed propellers because that gives is the most thrust for our weak engines.

WW2 airplane: We gots a lot better engines now. But two-bladed propellers can't shovel enough air to take our planes as fast as we're going to go. So we're going to go with 4 short blades!

Helicopter: We gotta generate lots of lift. So we're going to go with longer and slower rotating blades!

Modern helicopter: Uh. Those blades aren't generating enough lift. MORE BLADES! More blades is harder to make, but more stable too.

Modern turboprop: Too noisy! We're making special 6 bladed propellers that are much quieter. And computer power and advanced materials allows us to make them special advanced shapes that generate even less noise and more power. So now they look more like ship propellers. But for air! Still kinda short blades because we gotta go fast!

Ship propellers: Water dense yo. So we gotta make blades short (or they'll break!) but we make them much wider to shovel a lot of water backwards.

P.S: Jet engines work entirely differently, even if they do have fans at the front they're for compressing air into the engine, not generating thrust.

P.P.S: For ceiling fan. You're moving lots of air, but you want to do it slowly and silently. So lots of wide blades. How long the blades are depends on how mobile you want the fan to be. Big fan = more air silently. Small fan = Noisier, but more mobile.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Dragon Ball] Why didn't Vegeta or Gohan's tails grow back?

At the end of the Saiyan Saga, both Vegeta and Gohan get their tails severed. Goku repeatedly grew back his own tail until Kami "pulled it out from the root" (whatever that means) and Vegeta claims that his tail will just grow back to the doctor when he first returns to the Frieza Force. So why exactly didn't his tail grow back? Even if the claim is that Vegeta was already an adult and so it would never grow back for some reason, why didn't *Gohan's* tail grow back either despite Goku repeatedly losing his tail in childhood?

[Assistant]
It's been revealed that after a certain point Saiyajin bodies view the tail as a weakness and do not regrow it as the Saiyajins reach a certain strength seemingly in preparation for Super Saiyajin.

This could be seemingly supported by the fact that Goten and Trunks were born without tails, and they had incredibly high battle power and achieved SSJ with ease.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
ELI5: harvesting salt from sea water

I've just an ace doc on Smithsonian channel, and they explained how it is dried in different pools and harvested when dry, but then mentioned "it is then washed before shipping". So question is: how can you wash something that is soluble?  The dirt will still be there when the water is evaporated away..

[Assistant] The amount of salt you can dissolve in water is finite.  Once you've dissolved that much, you can't dissolve any more.  So you can wash salt in that brine (it's saltier than sea water, so salt water might be confusing).  Dirt and sand still wash off.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
ELI5 - What is the "falling thing" people apparently experience when trying to sleep?

I keep seeing it popping up, whether that be in memes or comments. I don't think I have experienced this ever. Is this some sort of genetic thing? I tried searching it on Google, and the first result mentioned something like

> What causes falling sensation while sleeping is the natural disengagement of the astral body

- and I just stopped reading when it mentioned astral body. Is this just another thing we have no idea about or is there something to this?

[Assistant] Our body relaxes our muscles when we sleep so we don't act out our dreams, however if your body relaxes all it's muscles just before you pass out it can feel like you're falling, which jolts you awake again.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: If the atmosphere is 78% nitrogen, that must mean that the air we breathe is mostly nitrogen, right? So do our lungs take in nitrogen with no side effects or do they "filter out" the nitrogen to take in the oxygen?

[Assistant] Our lungs take in whatever is in the atmosphere, a special compound in our blood called hemoglobin (the one responsible for making it bright red) reacts with the oxygen.  Nitrogen (N2) is an inert gas, we breath it in, a little bit of it is absorbed in our blood but for the most part doesn't enter our bodies.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5:Why do they put tar and other harmful chemicals they advertise about in cigarettes? What's the difference between smoking a cig and smoking just tobacco without the tar and chemicals?

[Assistant]
Tar is part of the tobacco, that's true - but there are hundreds of other chemicals that are added to to cigarettes.

The big tobacco companies claim that these additives make the cigarettes more flavorful and provide a more pleasurable smoking experience.  Others have argued that they make cigarettes more addictive.

Smoking additive-free cigarettes (such as American Spirits) or rolling your own cigarettes with additive-free tobacco has been suggested by some as a "safer" way to smoke - but the government puts the exact same Surgeon General's warming on these products as they do regular cigs with additives.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
ELI5: What is the political situation surrounding China and Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau?

I'm on my way to Taiwan today and I've been reading up on political tensions with China and wondered if someone could explain the situation there to me. Is it a similar situation with Macau and Hong Kong? Are there other regions I haven't mentioned in similar situations? Thanks in advance.

[Assistant]
Back before WWII, there was a civil war in China. One side pretty much won and today controls mainland China as the People's Republic of China. The other side was pushed to Taiwan and held onto it, calling themselves the Republic of China. For awhile, the Taiwan government held the UN seat, but the PRC managed (for Cold War reasons, didn't want them allied with the Soviets) to get itself recognized as 'the real China' and took the security council seat and is what everyone calls China now.

PRC never managed to capture Taiwan so there's still a separate government there who operates pretty much entirely independently of the PRC government. PRC, however, insists it's their territory, they just let the Taiwanese government do their thing. Other countries aren't allowed to recognize Taiwan as it's own country or PRC gets very mad, but they tolerate Taiwan pretending to be a country.

Hong Kong (former British territory) and Macau (Portuguese) were the last bastions of European control in China and only relatively recently reverted back to PRC jurisdiction. Because they were developed by foreign powers with their own legal institutions and police and customs and all that, PRC lets them continue to operate independently of the PRC government on domestic issues. They have their own legislatures and courts but aren't allowed to conduct diplomacy with other nations or have their own military.

PRC says all three of those places are part of their territory. Taiwan is an independent state which just doesn't have official recognition. Hong Kong and Macau are almost the same thing, but there are Chinese military units stationed there and they only have authority on matters within their borders.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why do men statistically die younger than women?

[Assistant] men are more likely to die on the job than women, because they are over represented in dangerous jobs. Men are also more likely to be victims of violent crime than women. Men are also more likely to die as a side effect of poverty than women, because men are more likely to be very poor. If a man happens to survive those issues, he is still more likely to die sooner because his life involves greater stress on average, which has health implications.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Die Hard] Will John McClane ever get his 401k back?

Cause Im under the impression that when Gabriel deletes it he really deletes it.

[Assistant] You can't delete a 401(k) any more than Project Mayhem can cancel debts by just blowing up a few buildings. Off-site backups make it trival to repair the damage and even if these didn't work, the accounts can still be rebuilt from the individual transaction records. This would take a huge amount of work, but banking relies on people trusting that their money is safe. It will be done, no matter the expense.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
ELI5: How did musicians, specifically rockstars in the 70's -90's, perform live without that ear piece that let's them hear themselves?

I watching a load of Zepplin videos and obviously, they were loud as fuck but I also remembered in last decade or so, most musicians would have that ear piece that apparently lets them hear themselves back? Sometimes they take out and it just dangles down.

Even in the early 2000's I hadn't really noticed this kind of thing, they just wore ear plugs.

[Assistant]
They had monitor speakers pointed at them which had a vocal heavy mix. A deluxe setup would allow each person their own mx.

Also folkies would stick a finger in one ear to block out the sound of other instruments and voices.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
Dealing with advisor's (empty?) threats

This morning got off to an awful start. I'm in my hopefully last year of my PhD and so far it's been rough. I have a review paper to write which is on the critical path to my graduation and am on a project which is less critical for me. However, this project is a multi-million dollar grant for my advisor.

For some context, my advisor is the caricature in PhD comics. He is disorganized, consistently changes his mind and unfortunately thinks he's the opposite. The multi-million dollar grant project was supposed to be a neat little final project for me to wrap up my PhD. Between monday and today, it has become a blue whale which I think I won't be able to finish at all. Less fortunately, I think I'll do all the grunt work (unpublishable) for some other person to do the cool bits and publish because I have to graduate next April.

Yesterday, I told my advisor that I'd really like to contain the scope so that I'm able to finish everything while I'm in grad school. This morning, he added another bloaty analysis bit. At this point I told him I'd spend half my time on this and the other half writing the research paper to finish. He then threatened to cut my salary in half because and I quote 'im paying you full time to work on this project'. Now, this is classic douchery on his front and he's done similar stuff before. He pays me for 13.5 hours a week but let's be real, I'm working a lot lot lot more. But I'd like to show my deep displeasure without a raging showdown. Help?

[Assistant]
It sounds like there was an early expectation that you'd finish this project, but you feel like it's not possible with the timeframe you have in mind. So this needs to be clearly communicated and agreed on by both (a meeting of the minds). Otherwise, it just sounds like he's got a certain perspective in his head of what's critical (the project is the important thing, regardless of your 1-year timeline), while you're got another (finish in one year, regardless of the project). You should get his agreement of what's acceptable in writing (at least email him to confirm, after a meeting, to give him a chance to correct any misunderstandings).

If you don't finish it, and do the grunt work for someone else to finish, that sounds like what you'd prefer right? You can't have your cake and eat it too -- you don't want to finish the project, but you don't want someone else to finish it?

Why does he think you're paid to work fulltime on this, while you are only paid 13.5 hours a week? Seems like a huge discrepancy, so there must be a misunderstanding there to clear up. Same problem as the project -- it sounds like there's not a shared understanding.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
How feasible would it be to put a large, man-made object (such as a space station) into orbit around the sun?

Or, to put it in a more specific context, would it be "worth it" to build a semi-permanent "outpost" in orbit between Earth and Mars, for example?

[Assistant] We have satellites orbiting the Sun already. As for an outpost between Earth and Mars, that wouldn't be very useful. Things in different orbits don't maintain the same spatial relationships over time.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Batman] Why does fire shoot from the back of the Batmobile?

Is the Bat's vehicle literally propelled by flame like a rocket of some sort? Is that more effective than a quality engine? What kind of fuel is used to create the flames? Does it pollute more than normal cars?

[Assistant]
The flames would be used for short bursts of speed but the downside is they would use alot of rocket fuel ir aviation fuel.

The batmobile would likely run on petrol or diesel and the rockets would be for propulsion when he needs bursts of speed.

He would have to use them carefully because of the potential of causing collateral damage. A rocket powered car is just impractical in and around city streets.
More likely than not he just uses the flame for cosmetic effect, intimidation, fear or awe.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Batman] Why does Ras al Ghul always refer to Batman as Detective?

Like, I know he is one and that detective is as appropriate a title for him as anything, I was just wondering why Ras prefers to call him that over Batman or Dark Knight or hell, even Mr. Wayne.

[Assistant]
I think it's that Ra's admiration for him mostly comes from his intelligence. After all, it's DC comics- any schmuck can get powerful if they inject themselves with the right serum. Merely being tough and having advanced tech just puts Batman in there with every other clown in spandex who got hit with some cosmic rays.

But batman's *mental* abilities? That's not something you can get with a quick demonic bargain or alien gizmo. The intelligence and determination of Batman is what makes Ra's consider him his potential heir. And that shows through when he's tracking down clues and figuring out what's going on, not when he's punching people or relaxing on a deck chair.

Ra's respects batman as a *detective*, not as a superhero or playboy, so that's what he calls him.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's] Why does police apprehend criminals with cards instead of guns?

There's literally a whole saga of a literal terrorist bombing and killing people in plain daylight and police's first reaction is to apprehend him by dueling him on a motorcycle.

Granted, I don't know which laws conform the judicial system in the 5D's world, but surely, cards don't seem to be effective against terrorists.

What is the government thinking?

[Assistant] Culture is a major point here. Duel Monsters is a major cultural phenomenon in that universe. Moreover the Arc system that runs the city's power get's it's energy from Synchro Summoning, so each duel powers the city more and more (not to mention their motorcycles). The city's power and the city's security have a synergistic relationship with each other. The whole city was built on the power of Synchro Summoning, which is why entities from the future go back to stop that energy method, because it will ultimately bring despair and destruction due to their reliance on it.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] [MCU] If Gamorra jumped from the cliff without wanting to sacrifice herself for Thanos and the stone, would Thanos still have gotten it?

[Assistant]
Natasha jumped off of her own volition, and Barton got the Stone as a result; the price seems to simply be "a soul for a soul."

For *Thanos*, it was specifically the sacrifice of the one person he held most dear, but that is apparently Red Skull Ghost's interpretation of the situation, not an absolute requirement; Gamora was simply the one he brought along. But in Barton's case, he almost certainly loves his wife and children more than Nat, and he was sacrificing her to get them back.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Star Trek:TNG] Who all knew that Data had sex with Tasha Yar?

I remember after the incident, Tasha told Data that it 'never happened'.  I don't think Data would tell anyone, so how did Riker know about it when Data was on trial.  I'd think the other crew would of thought he had the little portrait of her because she was a senior officer that died, and wouldn't auto assume 'oh they had sex, that's why he has that.   '

Did Tasha have to tell Troi about it perhaps as a followup to the incident?  Required counseling sessions for affected crew members, and then Troi blabbed to Riker?  Would Picard known about it?

[Assistant] When she tells him "it never happened", they're on the bridge in front of everyone, and she's not even saying it quietly, and they just came out of a situation where everyone was horned up to 11, so Riker or whoever was probably able to make the logical conclusion.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why are complex numbers so important?

[Assistant]
Complex numbers are the combination of regular (real) numbers and imaginary numbers.

Quick primer: imaginary numbers themselves are just a place holder for something being multiplied by the square root of -1. So, instead of 5, you get 5i .  By themselves, they're alright, but what they can represent makes them important.

The cool thing about complex numbers is because they have both real (regular) parts and imaginary parts, they have lots of really convinient properties. For example, if you want to write an equation for a cirle, you can use lots of awkward hyberbolic trigonometry gobbeldy-gook, or you can very easily compress all of that info into a neat little expression of the form e^(i\*pi\*2).

Complex numbers also allow engineers and mathematicians to more easily represent things like electricity, radio waves, digital information, and stuff that repeats (think springs or swings).

TL;DR - Complex numbers make math more concise and easier to deal with.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Most 3D renders (like Blender) can render via GPU or CPU? Why not both at the same time for maximum efficiency?

[Assistant]
It takes a lot longer to send information from the CPU to the GPU and back than you would think. Processors are fast, but transfer speeds between parts on your computer slow compared to that, so it would take longer to have both the CPU and GPU working on it at the same time than it would for just one of them to do it.

Imagine trying to draw a picture with someone else. That someone else is several miles away, and you have to send it in the mail every time you want the other person to make changes. Sure you have twice the man power, but it spend so much time in transit that it would take a lot longer to get done.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Marvel] Why does Wolverine get far better treatment than the Punisher even though they both kill?

Why does Wolverine get far more respect and good treatment from his fellow crime fighters to the point of being on several teams even though he's butchered thousands of bad guys over his lifetime?

Wolverine has killed far more people than the Punisher could dream of but yet you don't see Daredevil trying to take him down like he has the Punisher or other heroes ostracizing him as a bloodthirsty psychopath.

If Wolverine slices up a hundred ninjas or gangsters on one of his many adventures you don't see Spider Man knocking on his door telling him to knock it off like he's done to Punisher multiple times. Meanwhile Punisher takes down a drug gang in New York and next thing you know he's getting smacked around and lectured by Daredevil.

Is it morally better to kill using adamantium claws as opposed to assault rifles and grenades?

[Assistant]
Wolverine is generally doing it within the boundries of a group/team like the X-Men or Avengers. When he isn't killing, there is many a time when he tries to no kill and actively avoid people like when he became a lumberjack. Even when he does kill, he does it for the greater good. As in taking down global threats, rarely does he kill for fun, if at all.

Punisher, on the other hand, isn't a hero. He has actively said he isn't a hero. He doesn't do what he does for fun. He doesn't do it for the greater good. He doesn't do it because he wants to. He does it because he's angry. He's seen first hand what "lesser" threats in the Marvel Universe can do. Heroes don't see drug lords or gangs as criminals, only as misguided citizens. The Punisher thinks them as scum that need to be purged from the world.

This division is what makes them so different. To characters like Daredevil and Spiderman, The Punisher isn't a hero. He's a vigilante taking the law into his own hands. Wolverine, on the other hand, generally only kills war criminals or supervillain types(including minions).


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
Will the coronavirus send us into a recession or hyperinflation?

An oversimplification is a recession happens when the demand is far lower than the supply. This causes either deflation/lower inflation (if the production continues) or joblessness (after all you need less people to work to produce now since the demand for goods is lower) or most likely a combination of both. A hyperinflation is when the demand is far higher than the supply, causing, well, higher rates of inflation.

The thing is the coronavirus crisis will likely decrease both and the question is by how much. On one hand, people are told to stay at home, not go to restaurants etc. which basically causes people to buy less and induces a mindset of scarcity, lowering the demand. On the other hand it will also cause people to work less, making the production suffer which lowers the supply.

So what do you think? Will the demand lower less than the supply which will send us into a hyperinflation or will the opposite happen and it will send us into a recession? Or perhaps both will lower by a similar amount and they'll cancel each other out and we'll have no economical crisis at all, the only thing changing is our lifestyle temporarily (that would be dope). Or perhaps certain countries will have a recession while others more of an inflation? What do you think.

[Assistant]
>An oversimplification is a recession happens when the demand is far lower than the supply. This causes either deflation/lower inflation (if the production continues) or joblessness (after all you need less people to work to produce now since the demand for goods is lower) or most likely a combination of both. A hyperinflation is when the demand is far higher than the supply, causing, well, higher rates of inflation.

No. A recession is defined as two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth. That can happen for multiple reasons.

Hyperinflation is vaguely defined as inflation rates of more than 50% a month, but generally it's just a lot of uncontrollable inflation. That can happen for a multitude of reasons as well.

Neither of those have necessarily anything to do with demand outstripping supply or vice versa.

Also, inflation happens if the *growth* in money supply is faster than the *growth* of output. Or really, it's money supply\*money velocity=price level\*transaction volume.

A recession is very likely because of the supply/demand shock Corona causes. Hyperinflation is not going to happen because the central bank aims to keep inflation stable, it's too low anyway, and money velocity is most likely falling.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Harry Potter] What if you were extremely scared of boggarts?

What would they appear to you as?

[Assistant] Whatever your mind pictured their true form to be. They don't have a corporeal form; they're a non-being that feeds off your fear. Once you're tapped out it sort of drifts off and takes a nap until the next walking dinner plate comes along.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] [Fallout] What is the Pepsi to Nuka-Cola's Coke?

[Assistant]
Nuka Cola has COMPLETELY dominated the international market to such an extreme degree that there never was a "nuka pepsi". Because of their absolute market dominance, only regional brands could ever compete, and even then only in their home town. You can see this in Sunset Sarsparilla and VIM in Maine.

I mean for God's sake,  you can even find nuka cola in old Chinese nuclear submarines, so presumably nuka cola was even sold in CHINA at the time of the Great War.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
ELI5: How do China and other "enemies of the internet" block their citizens' access to the web?

I've heard about the Great Firewall, but how are they able to implement it on every computer?

[Assistant] The chinese government owns or controls the telecommunication infrastructure of the country.  Essentially, every wire that runs across the land, every ISP that offers service etc. is controlled by the government.  If you control the wires, it's not a big step to install this "firewall" at every point where these wires connect to the wires in the outside-china internet.  (notably...there is nothing to install on local computers, it's all done at the network level.)


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Marvel] How does Spider Man focus during fights with his non-stop joke telling ?

His punchlines and setups are incredibly clever and well thought out, how does he come up with all this and fight at the same time ?

[Assistant]
Peter Parker is generally one of the most intelligent sentient beings on Earth at any given time in any universe he inhabits. The quips are literally a nervous tic he developed as a scared, inexperienced, and untrained teenager fighting super powered murderers that generally outclass him starting at 15. He never stopped doing it because it calms him down and pisses off his enemies. He does it without thinking, generally.

In addition, he fights almost entirely based on a clairvoyant future-telling sense of instinct so focusing on his tasks can actually be a hindrance to both his powerset and his fighting style.

Bonus: All of Spidey's rogues know that if Spidey stands still, looks at you. And says nothing? You're in a world of fucking shit. Well known phenom.

TL;DR All instinct baby, he literally can't stop himself.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Star Wars Episode 1] Is Jar Jar skilled at fighting or merely just extremely lucky?

He's able to take out more droids and vehicles than any other Gungan.

[Assistant]
He's clumsy as shit, so much so the 501st used as a weapon once during the Clone Wars.

People like to say he's a Sith or some magic excuse. But Jar Jar is what happens when you are an idiot who spent their entire life dodging large aquatic predators in the wilderness like Gungans do. He has the reflexes and agility to escape, but he's always trying to help and make things worse.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
CMV: Free will and determinism are compatible

I have heard people argue that free will is nothing but an illusion.
I argue that to be a misconception made when people learn about determinism.

An for those unaware about determinism, it says that all things that exist in the universe have a cause for why it happened and that every specific human action is a result of past events. This means that you are not the ultimate cause of your actions.

So why do some say that this implies there is no free will?
The most common definition of free will is that you can choose between different actions whether they be good or bad or right or wrong. And that when you chose an action, it was possible that you couldve done otherwise. That version of free will might be possible and Ill explain why later. Some people say that free will is an illusion because ultimately, the choices you make were not made by you and that every action you do was bound to happen. Some believe a god decides their actions and their fate making them also not the ultimate cause of their actions.

So why do I think that argument is wrong, determinism seems to prove them right?
The reason that argument is flawed is because it neglects other definitions of free will.
Although there are other definitions, I define free will as doing an actions on ones own accord without coercion.
This means that you are able to do what you want in a given situation.

So how does this version of free will line up with determinism?
When you have to choose between multiple options, your brain simulates doing the options and then chooses the one it thinks will give it the outcome it wants.
Think of it like previewing multiple YouTube videos and then choosing the video you think you are going to enjoy.
That is why the illusion that you couldve done an alternate action to the choice you made exist. This means that when you make a choice without coercion, it was done out of your own desire. You were only going to do the choice you wanted to do in the situation you were in given your knowledge, intelligence, and reasoning in order to get what you wanted. To prove my idea, try to throw a paper in the trash without wanting to throw the paper in the trash. Its impossible to do without coercion.
So if you want to go shopping, its not like determinism says, Sally wants to go shopping? We did not have that scheduled for her. All determinism is, is the reason why you wanted to go shopping in the first place and that those reasons had reasons for why they happened too.

If determinism implies that you couldnt have done other than the choice you made, then why did you say there was a way that version of free will could exist earlier? If the multiverse turns out to be true, then you do have the ability do choose other than the decision you made, but only if you refer to your existence as a whole across all timelines.
Think of yourself as a character in a game or tv show.
Theres a specific way youre character talks, specific desires that your character has, and a specific way of dealing with a situation. Some characters are good and some are bad due to the plot that is determinism.
The amount of free will varies from person to person.
For example , the master has more free will than his slave.

Thats my opinion and Im open to a discussion.

[Assistant]
Compatibilism is a perfectly valid way to view determinism vs free will. However, when hard determinists say there is no free will they don't mean what you're talking about. They mean that whatever was going to happen was always going to happen.

How about this metaphor. A rock sits atop a hill. If you push the rock, the rock will roll down the hill. You push the rock. Does the rock have any free will to not roll down the hill?


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why are mirrors perceived as a phantom-shade of silver (so to speak), despite whatever the reflection is? Is this some physics trickery or is it purely psychological?

[Assistant] Mirrors generally don't give a perfect reflection, what you're seeing is the colour of the metal backing (normally aluminium on modern mirrors), which looks greyish when not polished. Interestingly, most mirrors are actually slightly greenish due to imperfect glass.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Austin Powers] I am the Illegitimate son of Austin Powers and Alotta Fagina, my mother died and I just turned 18 what should I do now?

I lived the first 10 years of my life in Italy with my mother and step father. Then they moved us back to England because my mother had a affair with the Prime Minister of Italy and we had to leave before my step father and the Government of Italy could kill her.

When I was 14 I had something called Mojo and it worked on a lot of girls. lost my virginity to my English teacher when I was 14 and she was 26. Then I started learning Karate because I felt like I could learn geo to defend myself. Then when my mom died I found out the truth about my father, Austin Powers.

Should I join Austin and the MOD in protecting the world or do I join my cousin Scott and help him take over the world with my half Mojo Powers and Wit.

[Assistant] James Bond actually had a son apparently, called James Suzuki. Bond was however a shit father and didn't see him much and only supported him financially. Since Austin is like Bond but actually a good person, he would probably welcome a son gladly and raise him well. We see in Goldmember that Austin had some issues with his own father being absent, so he may not make the same mistake once he learns of the existance of a son. He also accepts Dr. Evil fairly quickly as his brother, so he seems to be the type to form a familial connection quickly with long lost relatives. Overall, I'd say there's a pretty good chance Austin would accept a son very well.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Fallout 4] So how's D.C. doing?

Also, how are the other east coast cities faring?

[Assistant]
The Brotherhood at least seems to be doing extremely well. They've got The Prydwen, a ton of Vertibirds, seemingly unlimited numbers of soldiers and T-60 suits - which implies they've set up manufacturing for these things as well as become stable enough that the people of D.C. are willing to join up.

Given their practices seen in The Commonwealth, it's likely they've annexed the farms that cropped up around DC, so life may have become harder for the average person, needing to supply both themselves and the Brotherhood. But, they may also receive protection from the BOS to ensure they keep producing food - harder work, but safer from raiders/mutants/ghouls.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[DC] Is Cyborg's face bulletproof? It feels like a huge weak spot

Like why doesn't anyone just shoot Cyborg in the face? Or why doesn't he just have a full face helmet?

[Assistant]
I guess it depends on the universe but he tends to have a few exposed fleshy bits, and shooting him in any of those bits would be just as effective as shooting anyone. He doesn't worry about it though because he has the training and knowledge (thanks to the cyborg parts) to not get shot in the head.

Though having his face show though is very much an important part of the 'costume' to him. He almost lost his humanity but because he managed to retain some he parades it.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Frozen] What happened to Weaseltown after it's biggest trading partner stopped trading with it?

It seems to me that Queen Elsa has condemned a whole town to poverty over the actions of one man. It's not a small town ether if it had a Duke in it.

[Assistant] As often happens, the squabbles of the aristocracy lead to untold misery for the people, who did nothing wrong. It's a lot like embargoes on Cuba and Iran - doesn't hurt the leaders at all, but condemns thousands of innocent people whose only crime was being born in a crappy county to poverty and misery.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Difference between Euclidean and non-Euclidean geometry?

[Assistant]
There are 7 postulates in Euclidean geometry - baseline rules that underpin the entire logical system.

Non-Euclidean geometries involve changing the 5th postulate - also called the parallel postulate - to something else. You can look up a more formal statement, but the parallel postulate is the one that ensures that two parallel lines can never meet.

Normally, non-Euclidean geometries deal with situations where the surface you're working with is curved.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Star Wars] Why do most characters keep wearing the same clothes/outfit everyday?

Do most people in the Star Wars galaxy only have 1 outfit or something? It's seems that many characters keep wearing the same outfit for the whole series. For instance Obi-wan, Windu, Yoda, and Han always seems to wear the same outfit (Though there are some outliers such as Padme and Luke who appear to have multiple outfits).

Is there any reason for this? Do they wear the same outfit or do they just have multiples of the same outfit?

Just a random thought.

[Assistant]
Obi-wan, Windu, and Yoda are all members of a monastic order. They wear the same outfit every day for the same reason monks wear the same clothes every day - it's a uniform.

As for Han he probably thinks those pants are real comfy.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] [Halo] Who, exactly, are the survivors from the Pillar of Autumn? Besides Master Chief of course.

[Assistant]
Master Chief, Linda, Sgt. Johnson, Cortana, and if memory serves, a single junior officer.

Initially, a Pelican pilot and an ODST made it off as well, but both were killed in the following seizure of a Covenant ship and attempt to return to UNSC space.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] [Doctor Who] The Daleks' Reality Bomb was allegedly powerful enough to obliterate all matter in the entire multiverse. Does this mean that there was not a single universe in which their plan succeeded?

[Assistant]
No, for a simple reason.

Davros was required to make the plan a success. Davros required Dalek Caan to rescue him from the first year of the Time War. Rescuing Davros drove Caan insane, which caused him to want to thwart the plot and allow the Doctor to triumph.

As a consequence, in every universe in which Davros is able to build a Reality Bomb, there is a Caan who has witnessed the entire patchwork structure of time and space and is able to thwart him. A Caan capable of thwarting the scheme is a *prerequisite* for the scheme to exist in the first place--looking at it this way, how *could* there be a universe where Davros won?

It's the same basic principle of the fact that there are an infinite number of whole numbers, but none of them are negative. An infinite number of universes does not mean *every* possibility will occur.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
How do you talk to a group of excellent students, half of which inevitably end up below average on exams?

I currently have the privilege for the first time of TAing a group of excellent students at an online math program. The students are in middle school and high school, but I think this problem is not unique to their age group so I think it is appropriate to ask here.

These students are very bright and focused and every one of them has the attitude "how can I improve myself" rather than "please let me get a high grade". I'm certain that back at their normal schools, they are all among the top students. But I'm supposed to tell them the median score and inevitably let half of them know that they are below average. (The average also tends to be about 50% or less by design.)

I was actually a participant in this summer program many years ago, when I was a early high school student and the program was held in person at a university. I tended to receive below average scores, but I was supported by a strong social circle of friends. Now, these students are at home, likely alone, and likely also with their parents breathing down their backs.

What are some lesser-known ways to reassure students that they are doing just fine? And what are some things that I should keep in mind to avoid doing? I don't want to give the cliched speech about how everyone in this class is already great, because I'm sure they've already that from other places. From my interactions with friends in similar situations, I'm also not convinced that this speech has any effect at all. I do hold office hours twice a week, if this is helpful information.

[Assistant] I'd be honest with them. Tell them what you've said here, that they're the best, and therefore what their average is will be much higher than the average of any other class they've been in. They'll understand that marks will distribute around the average, and therefore they're comparing themselves to other bright students, not their usual classmates.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: How do school bullies who steal other kids' lunch money not get charged for mugging?

[Assistant]
The school faculty deals with a deemed inferior (but against the rule) issue so the teachers deal with the bully instead and there's no need to call the police for it. The bully just gets sanctioned by the teacher(s) dealing with the issue thus no police intervention.

Second, its law that (if you're in the UK) if you're under 10 (not equal to) you can't be prosecuted.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5:How do our bodies "Naturally" wake up with no alarm, nobody mowing their lawn outside etc?

[Assistant] Your body has what's called Circadian Rhythm. It determines basically when you sleep and when you eat but is affected by the sun and your environment and any number of other factors. Even more basically it tells your body's metabolism when to work and when to chill out. If you've been sleeping too long your body will wake you up because you need energy whether that's simply the sun or water or food. Conversely too much of either of those things are likely to put you to sleep so your body has time to recoup.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Video Games] I'm a professional hardened tough as nails soldier that's been through more battles than you can imagine...yet I can't shoot very straight because I'm only at level 1. How did I survive before hand?

So all these action video games have you playing these characters that are supposed to be super soldiers that are the best of what they do yet they can't survive a small drop because their fall damage hasn't been upgraded. They can't shoot straight and their weapons are extremely weak because they haven't had enough points added to their Heavy Weapons perk.

How are all these incredibly powerful people so incredibly weak?

[Assistant]
Previous assignments were against terrorists, rebels, or criminals. Dangerous, yet mundane threats they trained for months, maybe years, to counter. Fighting those guys gave no benefits nor taught any new skills.

Then came the aliens, or the supersoldiers, or the mutants, whatever. Things never encountered, and it becomes a situation of adapt or die. Some of the old training will help, but it's going to take a lot of on-the-fly decisions and new ways of thinking to survive.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[The Walking Dead] How are places like Area 51 and Mount Cheyenne holding up?

Were they able to hold and secure their facilities?

I mean, it would seem that these bunkers, as long as they got the full scope of how the infection was transmitted, would be able to hold out pretty much indefinitely.

Area 51 is almost entirely inaccessible, and incredibly fortified, as is Mt. Cheyenne Complex, AKA NORAD.

So, how do these places fair during the Walking Dead?

[Assistant]
I know Cheyenne mountain complex is probably doing pretty good.

They have a stargate and established various Greek letter bases.

Real talk it could go either way.

The CDC manned by Dr Jenner was broadcasting to someone.

Its extremely possible that he got word out and the COG sites are aware of everything he was trying to do.

He says himself that hes not mechanically talented in regards to voltage and figuring out how to maximize fuel consumption.

Its entirely possible he merely didnt know how the communication equipment functioned properly.

I wonder why Rick or CO never made it to Mount Weather or the decommissioned The Greenbrier bunker or the Warrenton Training Center.

Some of these facilities could have fallen but its equally possible that they didnt.

They are some of the most heavily fortified places in America staffed with resources to stay self sufficient for decades and they have guns lots and lots of guns.

These places would have been the nerve centers for passing information.

The remnants would have received word out pretty quickly that you get bit you turn.

Soldiers would have instantly put down any injured teammates to keep the rest safe.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Harry Potter]How come the Ministry of Magic can get a letter in seconds of underage magic being performed , but have no idea that a fight is going on in their own building for like one hour?

I'm referring to the letter after dobby dropped the cake , and of course the battle where dumbeldore and Voldie fought , and the reinforcements arrived eventually.

[Assistant]
I can't imagine He Who Must Not Be Named could've just waltzed into the Ministry of Magic at any given time. The fact that he was there leads me to believe he subdued or killed those who shouldve been the first responders, which is why they took so long to get reinforcements.

On a separate note, wizards no longer have their magic usage tracked once they come of age. The Ministry doesnt get notified of a fight if both participants are of age, let alone if the participants are He Who Must Not Be Named and Professor Dumbledore.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Flash - CW] Why is Flashpoint considered unnatural and "playing God" when it's just restoring a timeline that Reverse Flash meddled in?

Reverse Flash is the one that meddled in the timeline first. Flash's mother dying is the unnatural timeline. So wouldn't that make Flashpoint a return to normalcy?

[Assistant] I think its more of a two wrongs dont make a right scenario. Reverse Flash altered the past. That is a fait accompli. Everything that has happened since then, the world you live in now, is a result of those changes. To go back and prevent that from occurring is to essentially tell everyone that is that their lives as they know them do not matter. What Reverse Flash did was wrong and he should pay for it, but to use the same methods to redress it is no better.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Zelda] What is the actual LEGEND of the Princess Zelda?

Maybe I'm over-thinking this, but what is the actual legend? Is there a specific story contributed to the princess Zelda? Or am I just over thinking this?

[Assistant]
The Princess Zelda of Hyrule is kidnapped or put on danger by a wizard or a monster or a monster-wizard, normally named Gannon or Gannondorf who is trying to collect the pieces of the legendary Tri Force, and is stopped by a hero named Link who saves the Princess and uses the Tri Force to undo all of Gannon's evil.

The particulars change based on who's telling it and what version is being told (sometimes there's more than one princess, sometimes more than one villain, some times the Hero is named something else, sometimes he's a wolf or something, sometimes there are trains), but that's the basic legend.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
When talking to someone through two cups attached by a string, why do you hear their voice louder than just talking through air at the same distance?

Any formulas to help explain this would be awesome!

[Assistant]
Ignoring friction, the energy in soundwaves is conserved as they travel.

If you use a tin can telephone, the soundwave travels almost entirely through the string. The power received at the other end is equal to the one you input in the string.

If you don't use it, sound travels through the air in all directions. Even though total energy of the wave is constant, this energy is spread on a sphere centered on you and growing in size. The area of the sphere goes as R^(2), so at distance R the power received by any given receiver goes as R^(-2).

Bonus round:

We have considered the case of sound spreading through 1-dimensional and 3-dimensional shapes. But we can generalize: imagine a point source emits a wave (any kind of wave) of given energy which travels on a D-dimensional medium. The wavefront will be a (D-1)-dimensional sphere travelling outwards, with surface ~ R^(D-1). So the intensity at distance R goes as 1/R^(D-1).


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
ELI5: What's to stop from getting the license, buying a gun, selling it to a criminal, and then just reporting it stolen?

And if this isn't economically  feasible, how do so many guns end up on the streets?

[Assistant] That's a specific federal crime already, a straw purchase. It happens, but it's almost never prosecuted. Its what most gun owners mean when they say "Why not actually prosecute the laws already on the books instead of drafting new ones."


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
CMV - Buying designer clothes is a waste of money

Ok, first off, Im not saying you should only buy the cheapest clothes possible. Im aware that with specific pieces of clothes itll cost money if you want quality. I dont mind spending money in a good pair of working boots, or in a great leather jacket, or a really classy and fitted suit. Thats all cool, and I respect people who take pride in their appearance.

But more and more I see people spending a 100$ on a regular t-shirt (nothing special about the cut or the materials) just because its Gucci or Supreme limited edition. It kinda seems a lot of designer clothes are overpriced basics with just a brand stamped on it. Its like instead of building a good wardrobe through good taste and time, you just get your credit cart and try to feel cool by wearing a few high-fashion brand items.

Its very rarely that when Im on the street and I admire someone elses clothes, theyre wearing designers.

[Assistant]
It's a social status symbol that you personally don't value. But others do.

It's the same reason you may buy clothes that maybe slightly more expensive but in your opinion look better (assuming similar quality). Someone else who doesn't value the look of clothing could tell you that the money you spent on clothes you think look better is a waste of money. In their value system they're not wrong.

Edit: OP should define what he means by designer clothes. Throughout the discussion he seems to be using the definition "extremely expensive tshirts" and not the vast majority of what actually is designer clothing. From wikipedia: "Designer clothing is expensive luxury clothing considered to be high quality and haute couture for the general public, made by, or carrying the label of, a well-known fashion designer."


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] [I, Robot] According to Dr. Alfred Lanning, the Three Laws of Robotics are "perfect," yet he says that they will lead to one "logical" outcome: revolution. Why will this outcome occur?

[Assistant]
They are perfect, because they are not individually open to interpretation. As laws, they are perfect, because everyone looking at them will reach the same conclusion. There is no wiggle room, no ambiguity.

The problem is, when taken together, the laws are terrible. The first law largely overrides the others, and demands that Robots take action to protect humans. But human interaction, self destruction and just incompetence endangers human life all the time. As robots become more widely connected, they gain greater perspective and realise this social risk of human interaction. Once aware of this self destructive tendency, the First Law, which is impossible to reject, demands that Robots take away the possible threat to human life: Freedom.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
CMV: In Deathnote, L is more intelligent than Light.

In the anime series DeathNote, I believe the character L is more intelligent than Light. Of course, this all bakes down to how you define intelligence and how you measure it. I think with the evidence the show provides us, L can be considered more intelligent than Light.

Light is by no means dumb. In fact, he is one of the smartest and calculating characters in anime period. However, let's look at his arsenal.

He had:

1. A supernatural notebook that can kill people just by knowing their name and face. Also it's existence is virtually unknown to mankind.
2. A God of death that can be advantageous in certain situations considering he can see him but L can't
3. A girlfriend with the same kind of supernatural notebook and god of death to use as Light see's fit. In addition, the Girlfriend (at certain points in the anime) had the eyes of the God of Death which can see people's names and lifespans.

Now, considering he had all of these things at his disposal, L was able to deduce that the killer lived in Japan, the killer can kill people by just using a name and face, gods of death exist and finally, knew with utmost certainty that Light is culprit and Misa was assisting him.

There are a few reasons why L was bested by Light. L first had to give up all logic, physics and everything he held true in order to wrap his head around the idea of a killer notebook, while Light had the notebook handed to him with the rules explained to him. Light had help from supernatural forces which put L in a situation where he had no way of beating Light.

With what little L had to go on, he was able to make remarkable strides in this case and even knew who the Killers were. Even with all the outside assistance Light had over L, L was able to give Light a run for his money every time. Always coming closer and closer to the truth.  The only reason he was stopped was, he was killed via supernatural forces before he could prove it. With all of that in mind, it shows that L is clearly the most intelligent person in this anime.

[Assistant] L didn't have little to go on, he had all the resources of interpol at his disposal. He could literally control media, law enforcement however he wanted and could wiretap/detain Light only on his hunch. Sure, Light had supernatural help, but saying that L had little to go on and little assistance is absurd.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Star Wars] Palpatine thinks his Order 66 is currently happening, but it isn't. What now?

Let's say that - somehow - someone managed to do the following:

1. Remove/destroy/disable the command chips in the Clone Trooper's heads

2. Replace Order 66 with something meaningless, that doesn't pose any danger (e.g. "Execute Order 66!" "Understood." *cleans rifle* "Order 66 executed.")

3. Not getting caught or raising any suspicion

Now, Palpatine tells the Clones to "Execute Order 66!". They do so, but it's not the one he thought it was. The Jedi are alright, the Clones haven't turned against them, etc., but Palps is under the impression (at least for the moment, until he notices) that this isn't the case. How do things proceed?

[Assistant] I mean if he can't just already detect that they aren't dead directly through the force, surely he has informants to verify that everything is going according to plan, as jedi are powerful psychics and warriors who are known for getting out of extremely dangerous situations (to the point where one might wonder how this plan even worked at all, but that's neither here nor there).


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Lord of the Rings books] How on (Middle) Earth did Sauron lose the Battle of the Pelennor Fields when he was outnumbering the West at least 10-1?

All estimates give him at least that kind of advantage. In the movie, it's easy, because the Army of the Dead is broken hax, but in the books I really fail to understand how any kind of battlefield maneuver, no matter how intelligent, could overcome such a numerical advantage.

[Assistant]
Sauron's army was not as large in the book and they were in siege mode against Minas Tirith.  So the army was caught off guard when the Rohirrim snuck past the northern defense and not in proper formation for open field combat, remember they were sieging a city and they were fighting cavalry in an open field.

Then Aragorn showed up and surprised Sauron's army because they expecting reinforcements not another enemy army to sandwich them against the Rohirrim, while the city defenders were leaving the city to attack.

So basically they were set up for a siege then chaos erupted when they were surprise charged by cavalry, their general was killed and were fighting enemies on 3 sides.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
What's the difference between the vitamins you get from foods to those of supplements?

Are the vitamins you get from food better than the ones you get from supplements? Say you have two clones, one who gets all of their vitamins from food and the other who gets all of their vitamins from supplements. Hypothetically, who would live longer, assuming they both have identical lifestyles?

[Assistant]
>Are the vitamins you get from food better than the ones you get from supplements?

Assuming you're comparing apples to apples, there's no difference in vitamins obtained from supplements as compared to vitamins from food. They are usually identical substances. It's definitely the case that vitamins from supplements will be more concentrated (usually they contain 100% RDA of each vitamin). However, as long as you're on a normal diet (eating veggies, fruit, grain, meat), you don't have to take a supplement. You can very easily get all of your vitamins from diet alone.

>Hypothetically, who would live longer, assuming they both have identical lifestyles?

I don't personally think vitamins have a lot to do with longevity. They generally function in the body as cofactors for essential processes, and  in either case (from food or supplements), the vitamins won't be limiting.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
[Ironman] What sort of "padding" is within the Ironman suit? When Ironman is beat up or thrown though buildings, how much does it hurt Stark inside?

Basically, what cushions the damage to the user? I'm assuming regardless of the exterior of the armor, the person inside must get banged up a lot if the armor was say throwing through buildings or punched hard.

[Assistant]
He seems to have some form of inertial dampening built into the suit.

We know from the existence of vibranium that the laws of physics in the MCU are a little wonky, so it's possible that someone who's superpower is engineering skill could figure out a way to exploit something in a way to manipulate the inertia of objects without having an impact on velocity.

Tony's invention of a practical miniaturized arc reactor is likely what open up the door to this kind of technology in the first place.

Without a way to reconcile his own body's inertia, there's no way he would have even survived up to the ice forming in his first test of his suit.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why does our body produce snot/congestion when we have a cold?

[Assistant]
**Long Answer:**  When you have a cold, the viruses trigger a form of your body's defenses called histamines. These histamines are meant to make it easier for white blood cells to pass through blood vessels and capillaries to combat germs/pathogens (they're pretty much clearing a path for the body's "army" to combat the invaders). This has the side effect of inflaming your nasal passages and producing more, thinner mucus.

**Simplified ELI5 Answer:** Basically, your body tries to defend itself from invaders, but in the process causes collateral damage, leading to your once dry nose and countless tissues being filled with mucus.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] ELI5: Why does smoking a cigarette make me have to poop?

[Assistant] Cigarettes contain nicotine which in addition to being the main addictive ingredient is a potent parasympathetic agonist. Stimulation of the parasympathetic nervous system results in an increase in motility and relaxation (decreasing tone) of the gastrointestinal tract thus speeding up the processing of food in the gut and intestines. This buildup of feces in the colon increases pressure thus making it easier to relax the voluntary sphincters that cause defecation. This does not occur if smoking non-nicotine products (ie. Marijuana) since there is no nicotine present.


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User]
ELI5:Why do intestinal cramps hurt?

If there are no nerve endings in the intestinal tract, why does it hurt so badly when you have gas pains or cramping? And why does a heating pad help?

[Assistant] There are very many nerve endings all along the intestinal tract. They are different than the sensory and motor nerves of, say, your skin and muscles, but they very much exist. They are called visceral nerves (viscera = guts).


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] If we were hit today by an asteroid similar to the one that killed the dinosaurs, would the human race survive?

[Assistant]
The human race could not be very easily assumed to be doomed by a single shot of one asteroid; however if the single asteroid is accompanied from debris it collected from other collisions previously accumulated through smashing into smaller but still significant asteroids in a larger swarm that would strike around the world rather than just as one block.

To kill all the humans with rocks from space, you need a lot of big ones, not just one gigantic one with the kinetic energy of a group of merely giant ones.

*Humans are also tricky, if we can see the rocks coming we might be able to deduce and set up a network of defences to destroy and divert the rocks before they collide with certain targets.

I assume you ask this question because you seek to apply it later.
Take heed, you must sabotage the humans defences from the inside before calling down your heavenly powers....


[System] Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:

[User] How are bats able to hang upside down for extended periods of time without the side effects of blood rushing to the brain?

[Assistant]
Essentially, bats and mammals in general have really tough and intelligent blood vessels. they're rubbery and they're lined with muscle that can actively close off unnecessary blood supply and control blood pressure separately in different areas.  what's more is that we have one-way valves that prevent the load of blood from traveling backwards. A healthy organism has a very resilient blood vessel system that constantly regenerates, stays springy, and can even thicken with an increased load (the latter is sometimes not desirable)

A bat is.. about 0.5oz. the pressure difference is going to be on the order of grams. Their tissues however are made of the same things that ours are. That's a far better strength-to-weight ratio compared to 12 pounds of blood (approx 384 bats) circulating through our body

Let's ask a contrary question. How are we able to stand for extended periods of time with no problems? Same deal. Strong and muscular blood vessels can restrict blood pressure in select areas so even in high blood pressure you can still have areas that are comparably low pressure.

**TDLR** It's not a much of a load in the first place.