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

[User]
[40k] Abaddon and a small company of his chosen get lost in a warp storm and end up on present-day Earth. What happens next?

Obviously he can't rage at the Emperor and the Imperium cause they aren't a thing yet. Well the Emps is here but no one knows where. What does Abaddon do?

[Assistant]
The Emperor most definitely exists as a person at that point, he's just either working behind the scenes or he is living as a 'normal' human would live, with a family, job, etc and occasionally faking his death.

I would bet he would sense something about Abaddon, a familiarity but also his corruption.  Even before he was Emperor, the man who would become Emperor was a force of immense proportions.  His psychic powers and physical abilities were immense but purposefully shielded from the humans of Earth who were not ready to realize him in his glory.

Abaddon has two options, he can either make a big show of himself and attempt to draw out the Emperor, such as attacking cities or killing innocents or he could attempt to find the Emperor through subterfuge.  Either way the Emperor probably wouldn't like being called out/searched for.  Either way Abaddon would be picking a losing fight.


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

[User]
[edge of tomorrow] how does Rita know...

How does Rita know she lost her power?

[Assistant] she did say ( or cage did) that after using the reset powers, both could feel the power inside, like a sixth sense kinda feeling. Rita could probably feel the lack of power when she woke up after the blood transfusion.


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

[User] [Big] Josh Baskin is 43. How has his second adulthood gone compared to his first go as a grown up?

[Assistant]
Broken and disillusioned.

He thought finding love and a dream job was as easy as showing up in the city for a couple of days.  That's how it worked the first time.  He's been chasing that high ever since.

Now his third marriage is winding down, he's crushed by child support and alimony working in a menial dead-end position, and his only refuge is the bottle.

Somewhere that Zoltar machine is laughing.


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

[User]
CMV: 'Private military contractors' should be addressed as what they are: mercenaries

Imagine being so money-oriented that you agree to potentially injure/kill someone you've never met, just because of money. Imagine taking part in a war you have no right to be in, for money. Imagine being security for some scumbag, be it government, company or entity that hired you, ensuring their places, where heinous things occur, are safe from people who rightfully want to liberate that place and bring the place staff to justice.

Imagine literally risking your life for money, simply. That is the life of a mercenary, or, as they have begun to call themselves because the word that symbolizes what they are isn't too Public Relations friendly, "private military contractors". Governments and shady organizations are hiring them more and more because if they die, they die. They agreed to it.

We as society should repel the normalization of this concept. I do not see anything positive in "private military contractors", and that is where I want you to change my view on.

[Assistant]
>	I do not see anything positive in private military contractors,

Suppose you are a small, new government just having won your freedom from an oppressor. You need to start a government which includes a military but you lack knowledgeable personnel to train your forces. This is a service that private military contractors can provide. In fact during this period of training you will likely need security services from your military that they are ill-equipped to provide themselves, so this private military contractor could also supplement your forces as they get on their feet.

What is immoral about this? The government is going to pay its own soldiers to do that same job, why not pay a private company to do the same thing? They are in essence fulfilling the same role as a staffing company just for military services.

Now imagine an established government with a competent, capable military. Instead of their main concern being able to provide security, they now mostly worry about reducing costs. Personnel costs are a huge part of that and their demands vary over time. One year they may want 50,000 soldiers and the next they want 53,0000, but it will be back to 50,000 the following year.

Training 3,000 soldiers takes a long time and a lot of money so they would spend a year or more getting them up to speed just to use them a year and then do what, let them go? Inevitably this is going to lead to a lot of waste, training new soldiers who won't see much use and/or paying a bunch of soldiers to just sit around when not needed.

Instead why not cover a lot of this variable demand with a private military contractor? Just hire them for the time you need, you don't have to train them from scratch or keep them on for a whole tour of duty. The country saves a ton of money and you achieve the goal that was already reasonable and ethical to perform.

As for the actual contractors consider their motivations. They almost always started out in the military and after completing their contract are out looking for a job. They already have a military skill set and private military contracting pays better than reenlisting. If they are still up for doing military stuff then why not?


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

[User] Is it true every atom in our bodies came from a star that exploded?

[Assistant]
Except some hydrogen, helium *and lithium* atoms , whom have existed since the Big Bang, all elements comes from dead stars, since it's the only place, where it is hot and dense enough, for larger atoms to form.

Edit: Thanks **LoyalToTheGroupOf17** and **demostravius** for letting me know about the lithium.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] Aside from the Jedi and Sith, what other factions of force users are there?

I know there's force users that belong to neither, but have any of them formed factions that follow neither Jedi nor Sith teachings (exclusively at least)?

(both for Legends and Disney canon)

[Assistant]
**The Aing-Tii Monks** that lived near the Kathol Rift saw the force as a spectrum of color, not simple light and dark. Among other "tricks," they could teleport things, up to and including their fleets, and had a burning hatred of slavers.

**The Witches of Dathomir** were force users from the planet of the same name. There were a number of different tribes/sects, including the dark side Nightsisters, who struck a bargain with Darth Sidious at some point before the Clone Wars.


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

[User]
Why is it that when a person gets kidney stones, he/she has a risk of getting stones again?

From what I understand, those who got kidney stones have a high chance of getting it again. Is there a difference in the risk of getting stones before that person got the stone?

[Assistant]
One interesting reason is that the crystalline formations of minerals can be "contagious" - i.e, as a crystal starts forming, more and more oxylate gets "locked" into position and forms a bigger stone. When it finally breaks off, some might be left behind, serving as the "seed" for the next stone.

Since the conditions that gave rise to the first stone probably haven't changed, the second one is an inevitability.

Drink more water! That means more dilute urine and less free-floating calcium oxylate.


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

[User]
[Destiny] I am a Guardian, one of the last protectors of Humanity. Recently, I was charged by the Queen of the Reef to kill her old enemies, except.. I could've sworn I've killed them before....

In fact, I keep being sent on missions to kill the same creatures over and over again, or destroying the same Devil Walkers and Shrines, invading the same Black Garden over and over again... am I going crazy? What's going on here?

[Assistant]
What's a virtual life worth? Nothing.

You bub are living in a simulation. Nothing but numbers being crunched in hopes we'll find a solution to this forever war.

We don't even have a holo hooked up to your sim. You kill by the thousands and die the same and no one cares unless you happen to produce some statistical anomalies in the data.

Otherwise like you said, you're being sent on the same mission over and over.

How it is you have memory of past resets is the real question here. Bug in the system? Enemy A.I. infiltration? Are you the one?

Maybe. But we aren't going to find out today. Anomalies in the system only bring debugging and lot of paperwork. Let's reset and throw something harder are you.


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

[User] Why do phone screens/tvs/monitors always look awful and pixelated when recorded from a phone?

[Assistant] It is due to the Moire effect. The rows and columns of pixels in the camera's sensor and the monitor alternately coincide and mis-align. Ironically, if you defocus the camera slightly, the effect can be reduced or eliminated. You can see the same problem with halftone printing and scanners. Two window screens overlaid also demonstrate it.


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

[User] ELI5: Why do some fridge magnets fall off after a certain time? Do magnets lose magnetic properties?

[Assistant] Magnets do lose strength over time. Basically, the magnet is made up of a bunch of microscopic magnets. The magnet is at it's strongest when all the microscopic magnets are pointing in the same direction. Heat causes some of the microscopic magnets to flip in a random direction, which, on average, reduces the strength of the magnet. A lot of heat can cause the magnet to stop being magnetic rapidly, a small amount of heat (like room temperature) means the magnet loses strength more slowly. Your fridge magnets that fall off are either old or just made with bad magnets.


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

[User] [SCP] How does the foundation stay secret if theres so many people working for it ?

[Assistant] Cover granted by the various world governments and a lot of less than friendly incidents. One nation may have the foundation disguised as a hazardous waste clean up team and another as a part of the military. Enough cover to keep the average citizen from looking too closely. And those that see too much or get too close to the truth are either recruited into the foundation or given a choice. Forget everything you've seen and take some pills to help you forget. Or the foundation can make it look like a suicide when you die or make it look like you died in an embarrassing way to discredit you.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why do some languages have masculine and feminine nouns?

I'd like to understand both from a historical perspective, and also how it is decided for new words?

Being English I've found this the most difficult aspect of learning a new language such as Spanish.

[Assistant]
It's important here to distinguish between grammatical gender and biological gender. Grammatical gender describes what rules a specific word follows in the grammar of that language. Biological gender describes living things that reproduce sexually by splitting in two separate genders. Despite the name the two aren't strictly related.

Grammatical genders are more akin to word classes: words in the same class will behave in similar ways, such as declining and conjugating after similar rules, using similar adjectives when described in a sentence (i.e all blue masculine words in Icelandic are "blr", all blue feminine objects are "bl", all neuter blue things "bltt"), or take a specific determinate forms (i.e la vs le in french).

So grammatical genders are a description of how a word behaves, not the other way around.

>  Historical perspective

We frankly don't know for sure. Some theories suggest that genders initially started as classes to separate inanimate and animate objects, Later feminine and masculine split due signify a group of things, and words that didn't properly fit with the other two classes.

There are some evidence that genders slightly increase comprehension and comprehension speed of a sentence, as well as slightly reducing ambiguity, but research seems to be situational.

> How is it decided for new words.

By observing how people use the word. Remember: Gender isn't imposed from on high by an absolute authority.  it's a handy box that we use to group similar words together. If the new words is displaying characteristics of either gender we put it in that gender. People will morph new words so that they fit in with the grammar and don't sound stiff and unnatural, and during this morphing process people decide if the new word sounds better as masculine, feminine, or neuter (or other genders some languages might have).


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

[User]
CMV: The same arguments that are made in opposition to minors voting can be made in opposition to old people voting

Most of the arguments that I have heard as to why minors are not eligible to vote fall into the category that minors are not mature enough to vote; that they do not really understand the issues or the ramifications of the election.

This argument can easily be applied to old people. In the same way the minors tend to be less mature than the average citizen, older people tend to be more senile than the average citizen. This means that, like minors, they are less able to understand the issues, and therefore, like minors, they should not be allowed to vote.

Edit: I am making this comparison as an argument for lowering / eliminating the voting age restriction.

[Assistant]
Every five year old is too immature to vote.

Only some 95-year-olds are too senescent to vote.

All minors have guardians to look after (and vote in) their interests.

Not all old people have guardians to look after their interests.

What are you arguing for?
Barring all people over a certain age, or allowing everyone to vote regardless of age?


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

[User]
DRACO (a potential cure for most viruses) will it really work?

Do yo guys have any interesting thoughts? I did my research and even read the AMA that was done 8 months ago. I understand that funding is the biggest problem but why wouldn't any multi-millionaire or billionaire try to fund him? not even one?!?

[Assistant] Funding is straightforward. This requires lots of funding. It's novel research, unproven, it may not generate any clinically useful medicines. Success in the lab and in a mouse model far from guarantees clinical success. Also it looks to me like Rider wants to retain control over his work and attract funding. And lastly, as you would have seen in his AMA, there are many practical hurdles yet to be overcome.


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

[User] ELI5: If rebooting is turning a system off and then back on again automatically, how does the system turn itself on while being off?

[Assistant] Whether or not your computer is "on" ( power states of the computer) are controlled by something called the ACPI (Advanced Configuration and Power Interface). When you tell your computer to "shut down", the operating system tells the ACPI to stop all processes. However, your computer does not actually completely power down, it has some stored juice with which it can restart itself when asked. This is called a standby power supply. The power button these days does not actually physically stop electricity to flow into the computer, it just tells a subroutine to go into a standby and wait for a new input to restart itself. At the end of a shutdown process, your computer tells the ACPI that the computer should reboot. When this happens, the components are reset with commands stored in them by the bootstrapping process (booting, as it were). So in other words, as long as the power is connected these days, the computer never actually turns off, it only resets various components and then behaves as if it was turned off.


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

[User]
[Marvel] If Green Goblin resurrected Gwen Stacy, captured Mary Jane and Spider-Man and forced Parker to choose which one he would kill, who would Peter choose?

If he doesnt choose one, both will die horribly. Escape and rescue is not an option at the moment.

[Assistant] I believe that Peter once stated that he loved (loves?) Gwen Stacy but he loves Mary Jane even more. If he had no way of saving both or sacrificing himself instead, he'd most likely pick Mary Jane still. However such an event where he caused the death of Gwen again, he'd probably wind up killing/seriously injuring the Green Goblin and be shaken for some time (more than usual).


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

[User]
Would I have to retake classes Ive already taken in my MS for my PhD?

Suppose I take several graduate classes in a subject for a MS and after getting the degree, I jump into industry for several years (say ~5 yrs). If I decide to pursue a PhD in a closely related or the same subject and some of requirements for this PhD have already been met from my MS degree, would they still be eligible for consideration despite having been taken years ago? As such, do credits expire? Do you typically have to give a test proving you are knowledgeable of those classes or do you have to repeat them?

I know this would vary a lot from college to college but I just wanna get a general idea since its too far in advance for me to even have an idea as to what graduate school I would go to for a PhD.

P.s. The subject in question is mathematical finance.

[Assistant] Credits can expire. The rule is set by the university, so youd have to contact them specifically to ask. They also may not accept your specific courses because they dont think they match their courses closely enough, and if theyre mostly 500-level they may not count them toward the Ph.D at all.


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

[User] What happens in the body to create the "loss of appetite" sensation after experiencing something unpleasant?

[Assistant] Activation of the sympathetic nervous system and the neuroendocrine stress response. This puts the body in what is termed "fight or flight" mode by diverting blood flow away from the internal organs and more towards the skeletal muscles, and by causing pupillary and bronchial dilatation as well as other effects.


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

[User] [The Elder Scrolls] If someone reads an Elder Scroll to an audience out loud, will the audience become deaf?

[Assistant]
No.

First off, you don't "read" an Elder Scroll.  The Scroll grants a vision to whoever looks at it, but you need training to interpret it.

Secondly, in Dawnguard, a Moth Priest relates the vision granted to him by a Scroll, and nobody listening suffers any ill effects.


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

[User]
ELI5: How did ancient peoples make it to Hawaii and other geographically disparate islands centuries before reasonably modernized shipbuilding?

I'm not talking about riding a ship over a few dozen miles. I'm asking how people navigated thousands of miles of treacherous open ocean before sails were even commonly implemented. Ships in the 1400's and 1500's were still dodgy risks.

[Assistant]
On a boat.

The Polynesian people lived on strings of islands for thousands of years, some islands that were close together and some that were further away past the horizon. They were experts at seafaring, had excellent boats, excellent navigation, and understood the cyclical way the ocean current and winds changed over the year to let them go far out and then circle back. They knew what supplies to bring, how to get fish and fresh water on long trips. They could spend weeks at sea.


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

[User]
[BSG] What is the nature of the calculations required to make an FTL jump?

What exactly are they calculating? Why are the calculations so difficult? For routine jumps, does this process still have to take place, or can pre-calculated data be punched in in order to make the jumps almost immediately once the decision to jump has been made?

[Assistant]
One thing to remember is that their computers are intentionally kept below a certain threshold of capability.
Since this is a space folding type drive, the calculations that need doing mostly involve the specific parameters of local spacetime both at the origin and the destination.  Gravitational gradients, vacuum density,  and a few more exotic parameters as well.
Those parameters are constantly changing, so it is not possible to pre-calculate jumps by great spans of time.


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

[User] ELI5:Do other species commit suicide? why or why not?

[Assistant]
Yes, there are other species that do commit 'suicide', or rather engage in behavior that will likely result in its demise. Rarely its at their own hands, rather an act that gets them killed by something else.

For example, there are spider species that, during the mating process, the male will impale himself on the female's fang. By sacrificing himself, the female is more likely to allow the copulation to finish, thus ensuring that his genes pass on to the next generation.


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

[User] [Star Trek] What's the purpose of Locutus's laser?

[Assistant] As spokesperson and defacto leader of the Borg in the Alpha quadrant a large part of Locutus' job involves giving PowerPoint presentations. The laser pointer is an essential tool of middle management.


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

[User]
Is there such thing as a cytotoxic memory T cell and if so what is its role?

I havent been able to find a definitive answer from google but I was just wondering is it a thing? I was under the (very possibly wrong) impression that there are only cytotoxic T cells and memory T cells.

[Assistant] Cytotoxic T cells are defined by their expression of CD8 in contrast to the CD4 ecpressed by the helper T-cells. After developing a functional T-cell receptor and undergoing selection,  cytotoxic T-cells are in a naiive state and have to come into contact with an corresponding antigen. When they do, they differentiate into one of several different activation states including the cytotoxic effector and cytotoxic memory T-cells. The effector T cells have the highest cytolytic function but are short lived, while the cytotoxic memory T-cells are there to perserve the "memory" of the antigen. They are longer lasting and are able to rapidly proliferate and differantiate into the effector cells upon renewed contact with the antigen.


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

[User]
CMV: There are way too many Americans and Canadians that drive big SUV's and pickup trucks

Let's be real, I doubt people who are daily driving F-150's  are going to be doing stuff on a regular basis that requires the grunt of a vehicle that big. Usually, they might be doing stuff that a decent sized sedan, wagon or hatchback can do just fine. When you aren't fully utilizing a big vehicle, they get worse gas mileage and thus pollute more, parking in tight spots can be a pain and bigger isn't always better when it comes to car wrecks. I get that some people do really need big vehicles (large families, construction workers, etc) but just because you tow an RV once a year doesn't mean you should drive a Super Duty to work every day. They also aren't as responsive as smaller vehicles, don't brake as quickly and can wear out roads more quickly because of their weight.

[Assistant]
Your arguments can largely be made about any vehicles outside of motorcycles and smart cars.

You never know when youre going to need a truck, so its best to have one when you need it. Similar to insurance.

In fact, theres probably a better argument for everyones first vehicle being a truck.


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

[User] ELI5: How do helicopter blades actually lift a 20,000 pound helicopter?

[Assistant]
To generate lift we use wings, which we move fast through the air. We can do this by making the vehicle go fast (planes) or by rotating the wings fast around a midpoint (helicopters).

Wings moving at an angle through the air will push that air down. As a result, the wing is pushed up. A helicopter moves a *lot* of air down (which is one of the reasons it's so noisy), so it can lift quite some weight up.


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

[User] [Star Wars]Why does Finn refer to Han Solo as a war hero even though he was raised by the First Order?

[Assistant]
"There are heroes on both sides"

It's possible that the word 'hero' is used slightly differently in the SW galaxy, meaning someone who commits acts of bravery for a cause but lacking the moral approval that is commonly implied in Earth usage.

Or, it could just be that Finn has realigned his moral perspective on history since breaking his indoctrination and recognizes that figures the First Order portrayed as villainous were probably actually valorous.


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

[User] ELI5: Why does my dog shake his leg like he's "scratching the air" everytime I scratch his belly?

[Assistant]
Sometimes something will go in your nose and it will bother you and make you sneeze.  Or if something comes fast towards your face your eyes will close to protect them.

The doggie sctaches the air for the same reason.  Part of the doggie's brain thinks that your fingers are something it needs to protect it from - a bug or something else that it wants to itch away.  So it makes the doggie's leg start moving.  But the doggie isn't really bothered, because your fingers are also scratching the itch (if the doggie really didn't like it, he could still move away or growl or try to bite you).


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

[User] what are the benefits of having a stock market? how does a stock market benefit society?

[Assistant] The primary purpose of the stock market is to provide a means for companies to get funding.  By selling ownership in the company, companies are able to raise large sums of money without taking on debt.  This money is then used to grow the business and everyone gets to make money.


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

[User] [Dragon Ball Z] Why does the Frieza Force even bother with weaker soldiers (such as Raditz or the soldiers that Gohan and Krillin/the Namekians killed on Namek) that could easily be replaced by Saibamen?

[Assistant]
Saibamen seem to have low intelligence/will, and probably only accept simple direct orders. Raditz and the fruit aliens can follow directions and manage logistics on their own.

Also Saibamen probably dry up in the sun if you forget to water them or something.


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

[User]
Eli5 Why are we so terrible at comprehending large numbers?

When somebody says there are 100,000, people there your thinking wow thats a lot of people but if somebody tells you there are 10 million people there your reaction is still the same.

[Assistant]
Your brain needs some physical comparison, not just abstraction.

100,000 people is like two packed stadiums, or one enormous stadium.  Youve experienced something like that.

2000 miles is the drive from Chicago to the tip of Florida.  You know about how long that takes.

But how far is 700 million miles?  How big is a crowd of 2.7 billion people?  Theres no reference, its off the scale.


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

[User] ELI5: How do allergies develop in kids?

[Assistant]
Basically, the body encounters something it hasn't encountered before. It usually is a foreign protein. The body encounters it and thinks that it is something bad that is trying to harm the person. The body then creates an immune response to protect the body. The next time the body encounters this allergen it reacts as if it is trying to harm the body, leading to an allergic response. This often means massive release of histamine which can cause swelling of the lips, tongue, throat, and gut in the case of a serious anaphylactic reaction.

Source: Am doctor.


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

[User]
ELI5 the differences between the major Christian religions (e.g. Baptist, Catholic, Methodist, Protestant, Pentecostal, etc.)

Include any other major ones I didn't list.

[Assistant]
Agree: Jesus Christ is our lord and savior

Disagree: God is divisible, ex. Trinity, saints, communion, role of pope, women ministers, can ministers marry, everything else besides the first statement.


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

[User]
[Star Trek TNG] What is meant of "full stop" on the Enterprise?

The Enterprise is in space and velocity, by definition, must be in reference to something. On Earth, the reference point is typically the ground. What is the reference point the Enterprise uses? "Full stop" can't simply mean acceleration=0, there are several incidents in the series where they are "stopped" in front of an object.

[Assistant] It means stopped relative to the local spatial context.  Absent all reference points, it just means engines to zero.  In the case that there are local references to be used, it means stopped relative to them.


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

[User] [Warhammer 40K] Is there a "best" shade of green for Orks? If there is one, what is it?

[Assistant] More green is better, doesn't matter what shade. Orks only care who is the biggest. Incidentally they are always correct about that, because of their psychic gestalt the most energy goes to the best fighter and he becomes the biggest.


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

[User]
ELI5: why did cars used to have their engines in the back, then with more modern cars the engine was moved to the front, then with some sports cars the engine is in the back again?

ELI5: why did cars used to have their engines in the back, then with more modern cars the engine was moved to the front, then with some sports cars the engine is in the back again?

[Assistant] Most of the high end sports cars put the engine behind the driver, but ahead of the rear axle for better weight distribution.  These are considered mid-engined cars.  A car with 50/50 weight distribution front to back will be more stable, easier to control and faster through curves.


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

[User]
Why did Acemoglu never win a Nobel Prize in economics?

I feel like almost every topic on development he is the leading name, and his works seem disruptive.

Are there some specific reasons? Is it probable that he is going to be laureate soon due to his contributions?

[Assistant]
Laureates generally tend to be older and prizes tend to take their time. Card, one of last year's laureates, won the prize for work that in part goes back to the 90's. Not to mention that you of course always have to pick someone and at the same time forego picking everybody else who's also an excellent candidate.

That said, Acemoglu certainly contributes a lot and there's a good chance he gets one at some point.


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

[User] If we were to build the Voyager space craft today would it be orders of magnitude better than the 1977 version or are there limitations (e.g. power source, propulsion, sensors, etc) that keep us from really improving this design?

[Assistant] I imagine the instrumentation would be fantastic! one drawback, however is that voyager took advantage of the "grand tour". the planets had lined up nicely as to allow NASA to plot a course with several "gravitational slingshots" to accelerate the probe beyond escape velocity. we won't have another planetary arrangement that good for a long time. so we'd have to have a hell of a lot more propulsion on it to get it out there.


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

[User]
Why do I sometimes lose weight on days when I eat much more than I should have?

I've been trying hard to lose weight - and succeeding. I've lost more than  forty pounds over the past five months, since I started running and eating right. Yesterday I ate waaaay too many calories, and it wasn't a workout day. But when I woke up this morning, I had lost two pounds! This isn't a unique experience. It has happened in the past. I'm 30, 6'4", 285lbs. I've been trying to eat under 2,500 calories every day. Yesterday I probably ate closer to 3,500, maybe more.

TL;DR - in the context of a calorie cutting diet & exercise program, I ate a ton more calories than I should have and woke up two pounds lighter. Why?

[Assistant]
There are a lot of short term factors that case your weight to fluxuate beyond your core weight loss, your water content in particular.

If you drank a lot and ate a small amount of high sodium foods, you would would have been overhydrated for your weigh in.

Then the next day, you eat a lot, include some diuretics, then maybe sweat a little more than usual that night, you'd be underhydrated, enough to compensate for the extra food you ate.

Also note that bathroom scales are sensitive to temperature and humidity, and aren't always that accurate to begin with.  A 2 lbs. swing is not terrible significant.


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

[User]
ELI5: Mitochondrial Eve - How can it be that we are all descendant from a single person?

If the population at the time of Mitochondrial Eve was ten thousand people, how can all the other lines of descendants disappear, and how can we know that they did without testing every single human alive?

[Assistant] Mitochondrial Eve isn't a real single person, it's a concept for a theoretical person, but the actual person isn't known, and would constantly change with time.  It's not really useful to think of it as an actual person.


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

[User]
ELI5: why does eating human flesh lead to "the shakes"?

For the record - I'm not planning on any crazy dietary changes. I just watched The Book of Eli and it's mentioned repeatedly, I'm curious as to what the correlation is.

[Assistant]
Kuru is a real life disease caused by a prion transmitted through consumption of infectious brain matter.

It was first noted in Papua New Guinea in the 1950s and 60s and has largely remained only in that area due to endocannibalistic practices. They eat their dead.

Eating the flesh of a person who wasn't infected with the disease isn't harmful. At least no more harmful than eating most other meats.


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

[User]
[The Expanse] What's going on in the rest of the Solar System?

I'm using the TV series as my basis for this as I have not read any of the books.

The action and intrigue seems to focus solely on Earth, Mars, and the Belt. What about the rest of the Solar System? Does humanity have a presence beyond the Belt, on moons such as Europa and Titan, which I would imagine are prime candidates for colonization?

We have the Outer Planets Alliance, which I would imagine encompasses everything that's not Earth and Mars. What about Venus and Mercury?

[Assistant]
~45 million live around Jupiter, with the largest colonies on Ganymede and Callisto.  Ganymede's magnetosphere helps shield it from radiation, making it a prime location for growing food and having children.

The Saturn system has a population of ~20 million.  Titan is known for its amazing dome resorts.  Phoebe is a point of contention because Belters aren't even allowed into orbit due to the secretive nature of the research outpost there.

The furthest outpost is a small science settlement on Titania, around Uranus.  Population ~5000.

Mercury and Venus aren't populated.  Venus remains a hellhole, Mercury has nothing in particular to make it worth the effort.


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

[User]
According to the theory of relativity, when I fly in a plane time goes a teeny tiny bit slower. When I go back to the ground, do I sync back up like setting a watch or have I "lost" time?

I do not know too much about the theory of relativity and the concept of time (although I'd like to think I do) but I find it extremely interesting. Please feel free to tell me I am looking at it the wrong way or have it plain wrong.

[Assistant]
Well actually when you fly in a plane time goes a teeny bit *faster* than for people on the surface. If you were travelling in a fast car, then yes time would go by more slowly, or you would have *more time*, i.e. your time would be dilated. But the fact that you're on an airplane puts you farther out of the Earth's gravity well, which means you experience less dilation than we do on the surface, and it is this latter effect that dominates when you're on an airplane.

So yeah, flying on airplanes makes you age faster than travelling on the surface. No, it doesn't "sync" when you decelarate or re-enter your previous level in the gravity well.


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

[User] ELI5: Churches, chapels, cathedrals and basillicas- what's the difference between them all? Is it denominational? Architectural? Size based?

[Assistant]
A church is a place of Christian worship. A cathedral is a type of important church where you'll find a bishop, who is in charge of many priests. A basilica is a Catholic church which has been granted that title by the Pope because it has some special historical or architectural significance.

A chapel is a smaller place of prayer which is either part of a larger church, or which is attached to some non-religious institution: for example, a place of worship on a military base is a chapel, and the cleric in charge of it is called a chaplin.


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

[User] Did/do insects evolve faster than say, an elephant with a much longer lifespan?

[Assistant]
In general, yes. The more number of generations you can fit inside a span of time, the more chances of random mutations you get.

This is why microorganisms can evolve to a certain antibiotic resistant strain quite fast (there also other ways to gain resistance, mutations are one of them.)


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

[User] What would average life expectancy be if there was no healthcare? No doctors, hospitals and modern medicine.

[Assistant] You would end up with a number that is a little misleading. You know how people say the Romans only lived to 35? The number of young person deaths skews the average way lot. At a guess, in an otherwise-stable society, without doctors, hospitals, and medicine? Plenty of people living into their 60s, lots of people not living past 4 or 5.


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

[User] [Bruce Almighty] When Bruce makes Evan say all that weird stuff on air, doesnt that constitute messing with free will?

[Assistant] He made him do those things, but not WANT those things.  Basically, he can directly pilot someone but not actually change what they want/who they are.  Mind rape is an option, but Bruce is generally a good guy and that would cross one of his ethical lines.


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

[User]
If collagen is a protein, and proteins are broken down during digestion, why would collagen or collagen supplements be beneficial? Is it just hype?

Is it more to do with the types of amino acids after breakdown? And would cooking collagen for example in pork crackling matter?

[Assistant]
Eating collagen, smearing it on your face, rubbing it into your hands, does absolutely nothing. When you eat it your digestive system breaks it down into amino acids as with any other protein.

Your body (fibroblasts) synthesizes collagen from amino acids, primarily glycine-proline-X or glycine-X-hydroxyproline. It makes as much as it needs or as much as it can. You don't push more into your cells through consumption or osmosis.

There is as much science behind collagen supplements or cremes as there is behind eating a bear's gall bladder for sexual potency.


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

[User]
[Alien Hominid] If the FBI didn't go out of their way to be cruel, vicious assholes to everyone around them, would the Alien have reacted violently to them? Or is the Alien just violent by nature?

I'm just asking because >!a larger, stronger alien is the final boss of the game and as it's fighting the player alien, it looks like the Area 51 personnel are cheering it on i.e. it's friendly towards them. This leads me to the impression that the stronger alien is defending the base and its new homeworld. Maybe because it was picked up by someone who didn't immediately try and kill it?!<

[Assistant] His main goal during the game is to escape, and he's only killing people because they're trying to stop him from leaving.  All we really know for certain about him is that he reacts violently to being shot at unprovoked and then kidnapped, which is the same reaction you'd expect out of most humans.


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

[User]
Comedians and philosophers

Not all comedians fall in this area but people like George Carlin, bill Hicks and Doug Stanhope come to mind. Although they aren't what we would call intellectuals. They bring up alot of good points and observations in their stand up comedy specials.

Some examples: "shouldn't the long term goal of any society be complete unemployment?" - Doug Stanhope. (In context to machines taking people's jobs)

"It's all about money, not freedom, y'all, okay? Nothing to do with fuckin' freedom. If you think you're free, try going somewhere without fucking money, okay?" - bill hicks

"Rights aren't rights if someone can take them away. They're privileges. That's all we've ever had in this country, is a bill of temporary privileges" - George Carlin

Where do they stand in the spectrum of philosophy or do they even have a stand.

[Assistant]
Nowhere, really.  Although in the general sense sharing one's thoughts on life and society can be called philosophy, what comedians are doing doesn't have a great deal to do with what modern academic philosophers are doing or the Western philosophical tradition.

  In general, for observational comedy to work you need to say things that your audience agrees with.  More perceptive comics might share observations that their audiences never even knew they agreed with until they heard it and edgier comics might share observations that their audiences would never admit to agreeing with in polite company, but agreement in some sense is necessary.

The other factor is that comics generally make no real attempt at justifying their observations.    They may elaborate or try to relate it to something their audiences will understand, but to actually provide some sort of logical basis by which an outsider to the observation may come to agree with it is rare.

So when you strip away the comedic aspect of a comedy routine, what you tend to have is people sharing information that is commonly agreed on with no justification for it.  This can hardly be considered philosophy, although that's not to say that there aren't works of philosophy arguing for the ideas expressed in the quotes you gave (or the ideas present in any given comedy routine).


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

[User] [DC] How similar are Kryptonians and Humans, both physiologically and culturally?

[Assistant]
Physically, Humans and Kryptonians only share an outward similarity. Our internal organ structure is wildly different from that of Superman's (he has a bigger heart, additional organs, lots more... tubing).

Culturally, it would depend on which adaptation you're talking about. From what we've seen however, they're all pretty different from ours. In the Mainline DCU, children are raised inside a birthing matrix separate from their parents until they reach a certain age.

And in the DCEU babies are born out of these weird underwater pods and the world is led by a council of old people. Everything is also pin art for some reason.


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

[User] ELI5: Why do some ammo types use caliber (.50, .45, etc.) and some use mm measurements (10mm, 5.56mm, 12.7mm, etc)?

[Assistant] Those are both caliber specifications. .50 cal means a caliber of .5 inches. Things developed in the US used to use inches for caliber, although there's been a shift in some cases to millimeters (among other things, the US military uses metric these days, as does NATO).


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

[User]
[IT/Mary Poppins] If Mary and Pennywise are connected, why are they so different in temperament?

A popular fan theory that Ive seen around the Internet is the idea that Pennywise and Mary Poppins are actually similar entities (maybe even siblings) and take place in the same universe.

Im pretty sure that one could poke holes in this idea immediately, but if we take the idea at face value:

Why is Mary good and Pennywise evil? What is her relationship like with Maturin and similar entities?

Why does Mary never head over to Derry to stop Pennywise from eating children?

Under what circumstances would Mary reveal her true form to someone, something that Pennywise seems to likes to do frequently?

[Assistant] They are the same entity in two iterations. Good and evil, evil within the good and good within the evil. A schizophrenic tulpa manifesting in the various fields of energy produced by the intensity of childhood emotion. Eventually the thoughtform will gain enough energy and power to manifest as a full physical realm of existence instead of a transient entity, where whole cultures and civilizations of warped, deformed beings live out their lives. Obviously these beings will also subsist off of children's fear, at least unless they realize the other side of their universe- the Poppins side, which can gain even more energy from children's mirth.


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

[User] ELI5- Tactically, where did the US go wrong in the Vietnam war?

[Assistant]
You're not using the word "tactically" properly.  Tactics is the hour by hour planning of a single fight.  Wars are only lost tactically if there is a huge pitched battle that crushes an army or navy, like the Battle of Midway or Waterloo.

*Strategy* is the overall planning of a war, from supplies, weapons used, units brought into the theater, tactics they employ, and final objective.

The US did not have a strategy for victory in Vietnam.  In conventional war, capturing the enemy capital city is often the objective; the US never invaded North Vietnam at all, as this would have caused China and the USSR to become involved.  Instead, they tried to fight communists in South Vietnam and hope they would get tired of fighting and quit.  In fact, after the Tet offensive, the North Vietnamese were just about ready to stop active military campaigns in the south, but the threat wouldn't have ended at all.


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

[User]
Do the beneficial microbes that live inside me have an "easy life" where they have unrestricted access to everything they want, or do they have to compete for resources like most other life forms on earth do?

I just want to know if I'm being a good host.

[Assistant] They compete for resources with each other. For example, a person with c dif infection may have come about because the c dif out competed the natural gut flora for resources after an antibiotic killed off the less harmful gut bacteria.


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

[User]
[Marvel] Can weapons forged in Asgard hurt Ghost Rider

Because from what I know, only weapons forged in Heaven and a small niche of other things can finish Ghost Rider.  I know Asgard isn't Heaven Heaven, but I mean it seems holy?

[Assistant]
Depends on the continuity.  Sometimes Ghost Rider is able to stare down galactus, other times he's a punk who can get taken down by conventional super strength punches.

In general though, something like Mjolnir would probably be able to harm Ghost Rider, but a generic Asgard-forged sword would probably just sting a bit more than an earthican sword.


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

[User] ELI5: What is the "gamey" flavor of wild meat?

[Assistant]
The gamey flavor in certain meats can be due to various reasons.  It usually is attributed to fats and fatty acids, the animal's diet, muscle use, sex hormones, exsanguination procedures utilized, and carcass handling.

Many of our domesticated animal species are fed out on grain based/corn diets, which changes the flavor of the meat.  Most wild species are not going to be grainfed, or even strictly pasture grassfed.They're going to have consumed whatever greenery is available, safe, and palatable to them.  It could be various grasses, weeds, leaves/pine needles, in some cases various insects or carcasses of other animals.  Whatever they eat is going to influence the taste of meat and milk.  For example, if they eat a significant amount of wild onion or similar strong plants, there will be an oniony taint to the milk and meat.  Even grassfed vs. grain fattened domesticated animals are going to have at least moderate differences in taste due to diet intake.  Corn and grains usually produce a more sweeter to neutral taste than grassfed does, which is often stronger and more earthy tasting.

Additionally, even between domesticated species, there are differences between the fatty acids/fat compounds that are present, which also influences taste.  This is one example which applies to why lamb has a more gamey flavor than beef typically does, raised in similar feed out scenarios.  This is why in certain cases removing any excess fat off meat cuts from wild animals, will reduce the gamey flavor which is often most prevalent in the fat and fatty tissues ("marbling" in domestic animals).

Muscle that is more often utilized is going to have less fat, will be tougher due to use than cuts of meat which are in less or unused areas of the body (abdomen, flanks, buttocks, etc...), and can be more acidic depending on the extent of activity and time of butcher/hunt.  There will be a difference in animals that have had more activity/exercise than those who have a more leisurely lifestyle.

Hormones can taint the flavor of the meat as well.  Intact male animals usually have a stronger tasting meat than females or those who have been castrated, particularly before sexual maturity.  Boar taint is an example of this, where intact male hogs (boars) produce meat which can be unpleasant in smell and taste versus the pork products derived from female hogs or males which have been castrated or not reached sexual maturity.  Testosterone causes stronger flavors and smells than does estrogen.

Lastly, if the carcass has not been properly drained of blood and other fluids, it will impact the taste.  As will improper handling of the carcass, especially if internal organs are accidentally opened during the process and contaminate the meat.

Edited to add, because a couple of people have asked, exsanguination just means the way that the blood is removed from the animal's body.  Depending whether it is done when the animal is dead (no heartbeat) or stunned (unconscious and/or vegetative state with heartbeat), can have some impact on the efficiency, especially if someone is a beginner or is limited in resources (cannot effectively elevate the carcass for appropriate drainage).


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

[User] ELI5: Why does shaking a match put out the flame?

[Assistant]
When a simple flame on a match or candle is burning, what's happening is that gases released by the heat of the flame are rapidly oxidizing, creating heat, and causing more gases to be released, etc. etc.  The whole process relies on the heat produced by the oxidizing gases being next to the object that's burning long enough to continue to heat it and release more gas.  So when you blow out a match, you're blowing enough air past it to push the heated gas and disturb it enough that it doesn't heat up the wood enough to keep burning.

Shaking it is introducing turbulent air by moving the match instead of the air around it.


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

[User] ELI5: Why does winRAR say it has a 40 day trial yet, never runs out?

[Assistant]
winRAR lets you continue to use it even after the 40 day trial has ended because that's the best way for them to make money.

If winRAR really only had a 40-day trial, and you had to buy the program after that 40-day trial, less people would use winRAR and therefore it wouldn't be as well-known, therefore less people would use it and less people would buy it.

If winRAR said that it was completely free, they wouldn't get any money at all.

The way winRAR is right now, it is extremely widely used, and therefore they get many users who actually pay for the program and give the developers money because either 1. The users don't realize they can continue using it after the 40 days, or 2. The users feel obligated to pay because they aren't comfortable exploiting the fact that you can continue using the software.

TLDR: They are trying to make you feel like you have to pay while still controlling most of the market share.


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

[User]
Why do commercial aircraft fly against the jet stream?

I've noticed (in the USA) that flying from west to east is significantly faster than flying from east to west.  This is because of the jet stream.    For instance, flying from Philly to Denver will take about 4 hours and the aircraft will manage a ground speed of about 440mph at 36,000 feet.  From denver to philly takes about 3 hours, the aircraft will average a ground speed of about 550mph.  I've also noticed that if the aircraft stays down around 27,000 feet, it can stay out of the Jet stream (or be in a slower part).  So why don't planes heading west fly lower to stay out of the jet, save fuel and time?

[Assistant] Many of them do depending on the air streams for that particular flight. However weather and other air traffic will dictate the altitude and course that particular aircraft takes. For instance an aircraft heading west might be scheduled for 27,000 feet but half way through its journey there may be a storm that would create some considerable turbulence. To avoid the turbulence or "chop" said aircraft may climb several thousand feet to get above the rough air.    Airlines have spent decades studying and planning  the fastest/most fuel efficent routes for their aircraft to take. This helps them since their motto lately seems to be "fuel costs money"


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

[User]
[General Zombies] Do Zombies poop?

No, seriously. If we are to get to the science behind it, all organisms need to gain energy from other substances. There has to be a conversion process. Conversion process causes by products, in the case of animals, fecal matter.

So... Do they?

[Assistant] Whatever they eat simply collects in their digestive tract and stays there until it bursts.  There is no conversion process because it is not required.  A zombie no longer "grows" after it is created.  New muscle is not created, new skin does not grow, etc.


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

[User]
[The Matrix] What's the official story given about people who are freed from the Matrix to the other people still in it?

Are they declared dead, missing?  Are they erased?

Is there a body?

[Assistant]
Morpheus and Trinity are known as terrorists. The official story is likely that the person joined a terrorist organization with cultish insular secret practices.

Which honestly isn't too far from the truth.


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

[User]
[MCU] The best minds on Earth use every resource available to build the most advanced spaceship they can. How does it rate on the intergalactic scale?

The Iron Man suit is basically a cute toy compared to the tech Rocket Raccoon is familiar with, but that's just the work of one dude using the materials he can get (which is admittedly a lot).

So let's say that Tony Stark, Shuri, Bruce Banner, Hank Pym, Peter Parker, even Doctor Strange all come together and pool their knowledge of arc reactors, vibranium, Pym particles, Dr. Cho's flesh-printing machine, spider silk and freaking magic and use all of this (plus whatever else you can think of, as long as it's found on Earth) to build the most technologically advanced spaceship that MCU Earth is capable of. What do various aliens, like Rocket and the Kree and Asgardians et al., think of the result? Would they be impressed? Laughing at it? Somewhere in between?

(No Infinity Stones or Asgardian tech are available for this hypothetical, but they do know about them and can draw inspiration).

[Assistant]
Well, Tony invented a space-time GPS that can hop anywhere in time and space by navigating the quantum realm..so along with Hank and his Pym particles, the Wakandan's ship design and vibranium, they should eventually have an interstellar vessel that can travel to anywhere in the universe almost instantaneously. The Rhody/Nebula/Widow/Hawkeye team traveled to Morag, a planet in the Andromeda Galaxy in seconds.
Where they might be lacking is artificial gravity...perhaps a spell from Strange is possible.


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

[User]
How do dogs recognize other dogs of different breeds as dogs?

Dogs seem to have the capacity to recognize other dogs that look absolutely nothing like them as other dogs. They will respond by getting excited and barking in a way that they do not respond to other animals including human strangers or other small mammals. It is my understanding that all dog breeds are man-made as a result of breeding over the course of thousands of years. How then have dogs maintained the capacity to recognize other dogs of different breeds as still being dogs?

[Assistant]
I wouldn't take it for granted that the dogs actually recognize that the other animal is a dog. A Great Dane doesn't understand that it is a dog and the Chihuahua next door is also a dog in the same way that we do. But it *can* see that the Chihuahua 'speaks the same language'. Body language is how dogs do a lot of their communication. Unlike humans, the Chihuahua is going to use its ears and tail to signal friendliness or aggression, for example. This is one of the many reasons it's important to socialize puppies with other dogs; if a puppy grows up never interacting with another dog, then it's often bewildered and frightened when it finally does encounter one.

Secondly, don't discount the power of smell. All dogs, no matter the breed, interpret their world through smell so much more than humans do. While we can't know for certain exactly what a dog's nose tells it, many breeds of dogs have been trained to track a specific species of animal, like foxes or raccoons. There is most likely a species-specific 'dog' smell that dogs can recognize as being similar to theirs in a way that the scents of humans or cats are not.


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

[User]
ELI5: Can someone explain why you sometimes break out in sweat before you have explosive diarrhea?

Asking for a friend.

[Assistant] It's due to a vasovagal response.  The Vagus nerve can be stimulated during a bowel movement when you strain.  Bearing down can cause the veins in the legs to dilate causing a sudden drop in blood pressure triggering your vagus nerve.  Severe attacks can cause fainting.  Unless you faint, vasovagal responses or attacks are benign and are fairly common.


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

[User]
I believe that some redistribution of wealth is a necessary component of a healthy, reasonable society. CMV

I don't believe that spontaneous voluntary charity sufficiently provides the sufficient resources or proper allocation of those resources to aid those in need in a way that we as a society feel would be appropriate. I believe that some portion of the tax collected by any major government should go to ensuring the basic human wellness and dignity (clothing, food, education) of those who would not experience it otherwise due to economic circumstances.

I concede that this is not always a perfect arrangement for the health of the economy, but that it is better to reduce suffering at a reasonable cost to economic growth (within the bounds of diminishing returns and necessary growth) than to routinely place net economic prosperity above human dignity.

At risk of sounding stereotypically left-wing, I've only heard one side of this argument presented reasonably and convincingly.

[Assistant] A much more compelling solution to me would be to figure out why we have growing inequality between the rich and poor in the first place, and address the root cause. Government Robin Hood-ery is just an inefficient bandage put on in lieu of curing the disease.


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

[User]
[Batman]What sort of crimes does Batman allow?

Okey, let's say Weed is illegal in Gotham and I like to smoke. What would happen if Batman saw me consume Cannabis? Would he beat the ever loving crap out of me or just not care?

What if I like to download music or movies illegally? Will Batman use the Batcomputer to track me down and put me behind bars?

What if i litter? ( Admittedly I would punch myself for that)

So like, what crimes does the Dark Knight not punish?

[Assistant]
Ask yourself: are you hurting anyone (or potentially hurting anyone)? If so hell intervene if he finds out about it and doesnt have anything more important to do. If not at worse hell just send an anonymous tip to the GCPD. As for your examples

Weed: if youre doing it at home and recreationally youre fine. The absolute worse you can expect is a bit of intimidation to give up your dealer, and only if youre getting your supply from someone really bad.

Illegal downloading: there is absolutely no reason for Bats to get involved.

Litter: hell try to stop you if you are in one of Gothams parks or forests, but this is for your own protection since Poison Ivy doesnt have a no kill rule.


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

[User]
CMV: Avoiding partisan hackery does not mean compromising your positions, nor does it mean being some sort of centrist who wants to meet in the middle. It simply means that you shouldnt allow your position on one subject, dictate your position on another non-related issue.

Your position on abortion policy should not be a good predictor for your position on climate policy.

If I can guess your position on abortion, gun control, healthcare, education, affirmative action, capital punishment, drug laws, minimum wage, free speech, foreign policy, and corporate taxes, simply by you telling me your views on climate change policy, then odds are youre just a victim of tribalism and group think, and you havent actually come to many of these conclusions through objective research.

If I were to say Im a centrist, it isnt because Id want to meet in the middle and compromise on issues I care deeply about.  It is because Id be all the way left on some issues, all the way right on some issues, in the middle on some, mixed on others, and uncertain some as well.   Its possible that going all the way in one direction for every issue just so happens to be correct, but Id say its rather unlikely.

I dont want to give away any of my positions, since they arent relevant to my point.

[Assistant]
From what I've seen, people's views on specific political issues are often motivated by more basic views regarding which things are important and how people should interact with society.

"Objective research" doesn't really determine what one's view is by itself; it just provides information *about* the issue. Your base values are still going to determine what your view on the issue is.

The reason you can usually guess someone's position on many issues based on their position on one issue isn't because of groupthink, it's because that one issues indicates what they value, so it's likely that their views on other issues are consistent with those values.


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

[User]
[Harry Potter] Is there a wizard jail?

Or do you get sent to Azkaban for even a wizard misdemeanor?

[Assistant]
Hagrid got his wand and magic privileges revoked, Arthur Weasley got fined and his job was threatened.
I think it's just Azkaban for jail, and heavy penalties, sanctions, or social ramifications for the rest.


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

[User] ELI5:Why are many members of Congress (US) so rich?

[Assistant] because the campaigns to get elected are expensive, it is a job with not much job security, not the highest income but high prestige. so it attracts people that have more money than they need and look for other forms of power/attention.


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

[User]
[Batman] Wouldn't his cape be difficult when getting into the Batmobile?

There has to be times where his cape gets caught in the door or he sits down on it weird where it pulls down on his back.

[Assistant]
100%, 100% the cape can be a draw back, so many times that cape gets stuck in doorways, crevices, cracks in the wall.

100% of the time that cape causes more trouble than its worth.

But its bullet proof, and that's why he keeps it.


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

[User] Does drinking a large amount of water during or after a meal decrease the effectiveness of stomach acid for digestion?

[Assistant]
Any time you increase the volume of your stomach contents, you increase the surface area on which stomach acid can "work." If it begins to work well--by digesting and emptying its contents--the chemical feedback loop inhibits further production of acid.

Water itself is not a signalling factor for gastrin, which is the main chemical that induces the release of hydrochloric acid from the parietal cells of the stomach.

However, there are pressure receptors in the stomach that activate when your stomach distends. So while drinking a lot of water may dilute the HCl concentration initially, the mere presence of additional volume would induce the release of more HCl shortly thereafter.

**TL;DR:** Not really.


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

[User]
[Disney] [Gaston] I have a few questions about Gaston.

He used to eat 48 eggs every morning. Now he eats 60 eggs every morning. That can't be healthy. Is there any way someone could live like that? Considering the time period he lived in, was he considered a giant because of his size? How did he afford all those eggs?

[Assistant]
An egg has about 78 calories, 6g protein, and 5g fat.

So for breakfast, Gaston is eating 4,680 calories, 360g protein, and 300g of fat. It should be noted that the fat in eggs is one of the good kinds, and that the idea eggs cause high cholesterol has been debunked.

Let's guess that Gaston considered breakfast the most important meal of the day, and that it is twice as large as either lunch or dinner. Let's also assume he's eating similar foods in terms of fat and protein.

That would mean he's eating 9,360 calories, 720g protein, and 600g of fat, every single day.

A moderately active man needs about 15 calories per pound of bodyweight just to maintain. An active man needs closer to 20 calories. That would put Gaston at about 468 pounds, about 70 pounds heavier than Hafthr Bjrnsson, also known as The Mountain.

A very active man would be eating more like 25 calories per pound of bodyweight. That would put Gaston at more like 375 pounds, about 22 pounds *lighter* than The Mountain.

Athletes try to eat about 2g protein per pound of bodyweight. If we use Gaston's lighter weight, he's taking in 1.92g protein per pound bodyweight, almost dead on.

So yes, Gaston is definitely an outlier, and on the higher end of what's humanly possible, but it is within the realm of reason. This also explains why he was able to wrestle a giant ax-bear-wolf-monster thing without getting his arm torn off.


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

[User] Eli5: What does it mean when an autocratic leader falls into a "Dictator Trap"?

[Assistant]
No dictator can be everywhere and do everything.
They depend on people to tell them things, and do things for them.
The problem is that dictators are human, and humans don't like people telling them they're wrong, something they want to do is stupid, or something has gone really really bad.
And when you tell a dictator he's wrong, something they want to do
is stupid, or something has gone really really bad, they start feeling upset.
And when they are upset they can make the person who made them upset dead or far far away and nobody can stop them because they are the dictator.
So after a few years, all those people are dead or gone, and the only people around are people who always tell the dictator that they're right, that what they want is smart, and things are going well.
Which is a problem because sometimes dictators are wrong, want something stupid, and things are going horribly, and nobody tells them and things keep going worse and worse.
In addition, being the kind of person who always tells a dictator they're right often aren't very good at actually doing their jobs. Meaning that things go bad much more often.

So that's the dictators trap. A dictator tends to end up surrounded by people who tell him everything is fine and right, while screwing it up and making it stupid.

Now when things get bad enough, you can't hide it's bad anymore, so the dictator might kill you or send you away. You realize that everyone else is feeling it. So you might have the idea that killing the dictator is safer, and that anyone who actually brings it up to the dictator might be killed by the dictator because everyone plotting against him is REALLY bad. So it often results in a bunch of people getting together, and the first sign the dictator gets that anything is wrong is when they start killing him.


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

[User] Are end-stage Alzheimer's patients still conscious?

[Assistant] this is largely a philosophical question. AD can get to the point (before it outright kills you) where you are unconscious, but there is also the time before then where the patient is not exactly asleep but certainly not there completely either. is that what you call consciousness? what do you base it on? mini mental status exam? EEG findings? you could argue about this forever.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why was the discovery of zero (or the lack of a concept of zero) by ancient civilizations such a big deal?

I read things like that zero was invented independently in Mesopotamia and Mesoamerica, or that the Romans didnt have a concept of zero.

What does it really mean to have discovered zero, and what was made possible that was impossible before?

[Assistant]
It just sort of wasnt a concept before then. Like, people knew what having 1 apple was like, or having 2 apples, or 3, etc but no one really thought to define a number that represents no apples. If you have no apples, you dont need to describe the number of apples you have because there are none to describe.

But then someone decided, hey, you know what? It might be useful to have a number that represents nothing. They just sort of decided to make it a thing, and then followed through on the logic of what having a zero meant. Turns out, its a very useful idea that extends to way mole than just whole numbers, and allows for much more complicated math.

But yeah. There wasnt anything preventing people from having a zero other than just people not thinking they needed a zero.

**Edit:** *Thats a response to the body of your question, but as for the title, zero is just a really useful concept. It showed a precedent for negative numbers, irrational numbers, complex numbers and quaternions by extending our concept of numbers to beyond what we first though they were. The idea of approaching zero is fundamental to the creation of calculus, and a zero is needed to define vector spaces. Basically none of modern math would be possible without zero.*


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

[User]
What would it be like to swim in a pool on the moon?

Assuming it was inside a pressurized, breathable environment.  In terms of the lower gravity, how would the viscosity and buoyancy of the water play a role?  Would it be like swimming through syrup?  Would we be able to swim more efficiently?

[Assistant] Actually, and surprisingly, there wouldn't really be any difference at all. First, water is (nearly) incompressible, meaning it would be at the same density on the Earth or on the Moon, and buoyancy is not a function of gravity so you would have to swim just as hard to stay afloat in both locations. The only real difference would be since gravity is pulling you down less on the moon, you would sink slower if you did nothing to keep afloat, or after cannonballing in.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] How do you join the rebels?

Is there like a recruitment center hidden somewhere?

[Assistant] A lot of times you just get some buddies and start rebelling.  Contrary to popular belief, the rebellion isn't one singular entity like the empire.  Sure, they've got a central command and fleets but they also span the galaxy.  Many rebels are just small cells with little to no contact with command who defy the empire in their own special way.


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

[User] Why do the skulls of dead people retain their teeth instead of loosing them to tooth decay?

[Assistant]
"The short answer is that in order for teeth to decay, pH levels need to be below 5.5. When our bodies are in the ground, our teeth are actually safer from acidic tooth decay  what can be caused by foods like lemons, tomatoes and other highly acidic produce.

Therefore, since the teeth are not repeatedly soaked in acids, they are actually, ironically enough shielded from acidic decay, keeping them intact."


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

[User] ELI5: Why do electronic screens look like they're having a seizure whenever you take a video or a picture of them?

[Assistant]
Because they are being refreshed a certain number of times per second.

The device you are using to record shoots a certain number of frames per second as well.

The chances of these rates aligning is very small.

Therefore, you might capture empty frames sometimes.

Also, screens are refreshed from top to bottom, or some other method. You might catch half a frame even.


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

[User] Why does it take so much longer for the eyes to adapt to darkness than to brightness?

[Assistant]
When going from dark to light, all your eyes have to do is constrict the pupils to restrict the incoming light to a range that allows proper vision.

When going from light to dark, 2 things need to happen. The fast step is (like above) dilation of your pupils to their maximum size to allow as much light in as possible. The slower step is regeneration of rhodopsin (what the other commenter called visual purple), the light-sensitive protein in your retina, which takes 30-60 mins.


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

[User]
Why do we only see one side of the moon?

Why do we only see the same side of the moon from the earth? Is the reason for this random?

EDIT: thanks for the quick replies!

[Assistant]
The Moon is tidally locked, so its orbital period is equal to its rotational period.

Because the Moon has some size, the force of gravity felt by the near side of the Moon is slightly greater than that felt by the far side. This causes the Moon to bulge (with one bulge towards the Earth and another exactly opposite, away from the Earth). If the Moon could deform instantaneously the bulge would always point exactly towards/away the Earth but, since the Moon cannot deform so quickly, if the Moon is not spinning at the same rate it is orbiting then the bulge will get rotated away from that position. This causes torques on the Moon and acts to change the Moon's rotational period to its orbital period.


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

[User] What's the minimum size necessary a thing has to be to be seen from the ISS?

[Assistant]
The human eye has an angular resolution of phi =1'=1/60 and the ISS has an average orbit altitude of z= 400 km. So the length l of the object in question is calculated as follows:
tan(phi/2) = l/z so l=400km*tan(0.5')= 58 m. So theoretically, astronauts should be able to see football fields (as a dot). Note that this calculation works only if the astronaut is looking at the object in an 90-angle.


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

[User]
I'm reading about the electrical system of a dual engine aircraft. It says that the maximum load for single generator operation is 400 amps up until 32,500 feet. Then the max is 280 (the max load with dual generators working). Why does altitude matter in the electrical system?

This is in an engine out scenario with only one operating generator.

[Assistant] The engine produces less power at a higher altitude, because of the lower density. The effect is less pronounced on the apparent propulsion performance because the drag on the aircraft also drops with density (or altitude).


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

[User] ELI5: Why do men start accumulating more stomach fat at around the same age range?

[Assistant]
Generally, as people get older they become less active and eat the same amount of calories or more and therefore gain weight. Men tend to gain more weight around the stomach than other areas as opposed to women who tend to put on more weight on their legs etc.

While, there is some decrease in metabolism with age, its fairly small. The main culprit is lack of activity compared to youth.


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

[User] [MCU] Would Sokovia really destroy Earth if it'd hit the ground?

[Assistant]
There'd still be an Earth. Humans just couldn't live on it.

The impact would be akin to one of the extinction-tier meteor hits that happened during the ages of the dinosaurs. The area around the immediate impact would be destroyed, and everywhere else would be under a cloud of dust and debris so thick that the biosphere would collapse from lack of sunlight.

In the following year, the human race would run through it's food stores, which are now functionally irreplaceable. Crops can no longer be grown in sufficient quantities. Plants and grasses die off, killing the herbivores and then the carnivores in turn. Many will starve to death. Many will die in conflict over the remaining food on scales ranging from individuals stabbing each other over the last contents of the local grocery store to full-scale war as nations prioritize their citizens over the rest of the world.

In places with advanced technology, small groups of humans may be able to sustain themselves. The power requirements to grow food for an entire settlement without the sun are massive, and few are equipped to make the need. The Wakandans and small pockets of Americans equipped with arc reactors, and so on. Meanwhile, the surviving members of the magic community find themselves as a nucleus for survivors and refugees, using dimensional travel to access realms where crops can grow... or where refugees can leave permanently.

But Ultron isn't done with them. Any pockets of human survivors are going to come under assault. The tech-based survivors get it first, half because they'd be easier to detect, and half because of his hatred for Tony; anyone living on the energy from an arc reactor has got a target on their back.

Wakanda holds out longer, both as a nation and as individuals, but Ultron's dominion over the world gives it a massive resource advantage. Eventually the raw numbers game of siege warfare will work out in the machine's favor, with the Wakandans either engaging in a crash interplanetary evacuation (which is only buying time) or making a deal with the magicians for evacuation. Either way, the final human civilization on Earth falls.

The last ones out the door are the magicians. They stay as long as they can, getting out as many as they can, and more than a few die holding the line to get a few more out before the portals close.

Humanity lives on, but the Earth belongs to metal.


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

[User]
ELI5: If one were to strike a billiards ball with the cue ball, and we disregard the deceleration as the target ball hits each bumper as well as other balls on the table, would the ball eventually, but always sink into a pocket regardless of where on the table it went?

I have wondered this for quite some time. My cousins and uncles play often. It is frequently that I see them shoot crazy angles around the table to strike a particular ball, but miss.

Essentially, if we disregard the deceleration due to hitting bumpers and disregard all other balls on the table, would the target ball eventually end up in a pocket no matter what?

In reverse, would it be possible, on a standard billiards table, to hit a ball at an angle where it would never enter a pocket if it kept up its momentum without deceleration?

(Pardon my poor terminology and ramble explanation)

[Assistant]
No, it won't always sink. It's easy to think of a situation in which it won't happen.

If you hit the ball parallel to any side of the table, it would bounce back and forth forever, never entering any of the pockets (unless it was right in front of the pocket already.


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

[User] ELI5: What happens to the information when you "delete" a file? (Ex. Empty your computer's trash, delete a picture)

[Assistant]
Trash is just a folder where files go when you delete them so that you have an option to restore them if you deleted accidentally, they work just as any other folder. When you empty the bin, the file is really deleted from the file system perspective. Typically the data that were stored in the file is not erased, only the reference to it (so called inode if you want to google) is deleted and the space the file occupied is marked "empty" so the next time a file is created, or an existing file gets larger, the data of the original file will be overwritten. It is done so because it's a fast way of deleting files, it takes practically the same time to delete a 100 GB file as it takes to delete 1 KB file and since many programs use files to communicate with each other, this prevents writing big amounts of data when deleting temporary files. If the data haven't been overwritten yet, i.e. shortly after deleting the file, it can usually be restored using some tools. There are even techniques to (at least partly) restore data that have been overwritten.

There are programs that try to delete the files in a way that is really permanent, i.e. they rewrite the data several times to ensure the data can't be restored. This is handy when you want to get rid of some sensitive data.


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

[User] Why can you rename, or change the path of, an open file in OS X but not Windows?

[Assistant]
The Windows filesystem identifies files by their paths (including the file names)if you change a files path, applications and the operating system will perceive it as a new file with no connection to the original.

The OS X filesystem identifies files by an independent file ID, which remains fixed if the file is moved or renamed.


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

[User]
What happened to the surviving Star Destroyers and Tie Fighters after the second Death Star was destroyed?

Did they flee or was their a longer battle we simply weren't shown?

[Assistant]
Legends Canon

----

Long story short, they scattered.  There was a massive performance drop in the Imperial Navy shortly before and immediately after the destruction of the Second Death Star.  Some blamed the collapse on a lack of morale--after all, the Battle of Endor saw the destruction of the *Executor* and the Death Star II, crippling losses to the fleet.  The loss of the *Executor* was especially disheartening: some of the best and the brightest young Imperial officers served on that ship.

Others blamed the sudden lack of coordination on the sudden loss of Emperor Palpatine's Dark Side Battle Meditation.  While attempting to seduce Luke Skywalker to the Dark Side of the Force, Emperor Palpatine was telepathically linked to the majority of the Imperial fleet.  His malice flowed through his troops, heightening their combat skills and improving morale.  It felt good to be bad.  But, after Palpatine took a vertical trip down a power conduit shaft, his Battle Meditation suddenly stopped.

In either case, the Battle of Endor ended **horribly** for the Imperial Fleet.  Faced with the destruction of the Death Star II and *Executor*, acting captain Gilad Pellaeon ordered the retreat of forces to Annaj.  Some forces went with him, others didn't, and basically the Empire tore itself to shreds over the following months.  This made it especially easier for the Rebel Alliance to continue its solidification into what would eventually become the New Republic.

----

Actual Canon

----

The battle ended and the Imperial Fleet fled, as the skies above the forest moon of Endor were clear enough to have starfighter-launched fireworks in celebration.  That celebration sure was organized quickly though, they were probably planning it on the Hyperspace trip from Sullust.


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

[User]
ELI5: What Do Atoms Really "Look Like"?

And what is really happening at the atomic level when two solids 'touch'?

[Assistant] For something to be visible to us, light would have to bounce off it in to our eyes. Atoms are so small that that model just doesn't work. Photons of light can interact with atoms in strange ways or not at all. For example, a LASER works by bombarding atoms with light so that one of their electrons is temporarily bumped in to a higher orbit. When it drops back out of that orbit, the atom emits a photon of light. Multiply that effect by billions or trillions and you have a LASER.


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

[User]
Thesis Defense

Is it typical for your thesis defense to be incredibly brutal? I recently had mine and the presentation went well, but when it came to the q&a portion, it was miserable. They dug in so deep!

Thankfully, I passed and my mentor said that they purposely asked me difficult questions because they knew I could handle it. Is that a true statement or was he just trying to make me feel better? What is the typical mindset of a committee?

[Assistant]
Varies enormously. Not unusual. Also your perspective as the one who was being "attacked" probably made it feel worse.

If your work is published, it's usually not as bad at the defense. Not because they give you a pass for being so good at scholarship, but because you've already been through a rigorous review.

Questions can be:

1. evaluatory, making sure you fully understand the broad context and details/limitations of work you're presenting. Also aimed at getting better explanations for anything you shared confusingly so that they can both understand it properly and make sure you do too. These can be hard or easy, but a prepared candidate should be able to answer most of them.

2. challenging, making you explain or defend the specific choices you made when multiple different options to approach the scholarship existed. Why this? Did you compare to that? There are not necessarily wrong answers, the goal is to demonstrate that you did this thoughtfully.

3. curiosity, taking your conclusions and just being interested in them and the implications. There are some of these you should anticipate as natural extensions of your work (but out of scope for your thesis because you have to graduate before solving everything), and some that could totally throw you for a loop - especially if they are deeply informed by your committee's own research interests.

You should expect some of each at any defense.


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

[User]
ELI5: why do mammograms require the breasts to be squished flat when we are able to take X-rays and ultrasounds through fat and muscle masses?

Ive never had a mammogram so I actually dont know how it works. Only heard the jokes about how they squish your breasts and that it hurts. We were talking about how men can have breast cancer so why dont they get mammograms? (Maybe they do). Then we laughed as we pretended to slip a tiny man boob into an imaginary mammogram machine (that Ive never seen).

So I thought they can do X-rays and stuff. Why do they *have* to torture you to get the results. Did some sick doctor invent the machine, laughing the whole time about how evil and unnecessary it is? /s

Biology tag? Idk.

[Assistant] X-rays are partially absorbed as they travel through flesh.  They are slightly more absorbed in some lumps, but it's not the "broken bone" sort of X-ray you might be thinking of.  To get enough contrast to spot lumps, the X-ray beam needs to be tuned to the amount of flesh it's passing through.  That's made a lot simpler by squishing the breast into a slab of uniform-ish thickness.  Since the natural shape is more hemispherical, some force is required.  The breast is also well instrumented with nerves, so the force can be painful.


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

[User]
[Marvel] How does Latveria military power stack up?

It seems like a small nation but is able to project real terror in the world?  What does a Doom military force look like?

[Assistant]
Technologically superior to any on the real world country. Less meat bag troops, but given time doom bots could be made in high enough volume to match the combined numbers of the entire real earth.

Latveria stomps the entire real world unless the militaries are hiding super advanced tech.


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

[User] [Game of Thrones] Why didn't Ned Stark demand a trial by combat?

[Assistant]
Because he took a plea deal. He would  confess his treason, and beg to join the Night's Watch. In return, no further punishment would befall his family.

In addition, trials by combat are more associated with the Seven than the old gods.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] What's the maximum length of time someone could be trapped inside a Sarlaac, then be rescued and recover?

After all, the Sarlaac takes 1,000 years to digest, and the victim is kept alive in at least some capacity that whole time, right? Of that milennium-long window, how long does it take before a victim is too far-absorbed to be recovered; would it in theory be possible for someone to live beyond their natural lifespan by intentionally being ingested into a Sarlaac with someone planning to rescue them a number of years later?

[Assistant]
What would make you think that they would be alive in there? You don't have to be alive to be digested.

How long you would last would depend on how the sarlacc's digestive system works. For example, if it chews or processes its prey before digesting, you'd last roughly until you got chewed to death regardless of how long it takes to digest you. However if it's like a pitcher plant where the prey just sits inside a chamber full of digestive juices until it's broken down, you'd survive until you either suffocated or starved to death, or the digestive juices killed you.


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

[User] What exactly is a 'rhizome' according to Deleuze and Guattari?

[Assistant] A decentralized network of ideas, notions, philosophies, actions, human forces, etc. The traditional Enlightenment/Western structure is a tree, where everything branches out of a larger authority. With the rhizomic structure there is no center, rhizomes can multiply and extend. There is no destroying them in the traditional method (by destroying the trunk), they are evolutionary and individual and potentially transformative. An example of the rhizomic system in effect politically would be #Occupy, BLM, or the #metoo movement in social media. None had any direct leadership but spread organically by self-activating agents.


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

[User]
[Batman] Where is Gotham City?

I'm pretty sure it's a major hub in the Northeast U.S., but where is it compared to NYC, Chicago and Boston?

[Assistant] When the Amalgam event happened, two cops-One from NYC, the other from Gotham-, started arguing about where a certain police precint was. Their cities had apparently merged. This makes me feel like they occupy the same geographical space in either universe.


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

[User] Do mirrors reflect only visible lights, or do they reflect light of other frequencies (if so then which types--x-ray, infrared, gamma, etc)?

[Assistant] Yes and no, a normal mirror reflects visible light and likely near IR and UV, but it's not optimized for anything past that. Mirrors can be made for most forms of light, though it gets far harder the smaller the wavelength gets, x ray mirrors have to be almost edge on to work well, much like how glass becomes more reflective when looked at from the side rather then straight on.


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

[User] ELI5, how do chemists extract specific substances from something like a flower?

[Assistant]
Mush flower down with solvent.
Leave solvent/flower mixture. (Solvent extracts a selection of substances)
Remove flower debris and keep solvent/substance mixture.
Either: add chemical which may precipitate desired substance. (Neutralisation reaction forming substance salt)
Or heat at different temps, evaporating/separating different sized molecules and separate.


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

[User]
[MCU] if Nick Fury is Director of SHIELD why is there even a council of shadowy people?

He even elects to ignore the councils decisions!
(Also, i havent watch the first bunch of MCU movies in a while, i might be missing my own answer.)

[Assistant]
Those shadowy people are the civillian representatives of the governments that oversee shield.

General Mark A. Milley is the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff the highest ranking person in the military (except the president) but he still needs to answer to Congress.


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

[User]
What causes the moon to take on a blood orange colour as it climbs up from the horizon at certain times of the year?

Tonight's moon was particularly large and orange as it rose tonight and prompted my 9 year old to ask a question that I couldn't answer. I thought that I'd reach out to Reddit rather than Google for this "Dad always finds the answer" info.

[Assistant] It's actually the same reason that the Sun (and especially the sky) may appear reddish during sunrise/sunset: scattering of light! The atmosphere scatters blue light moreso than other colors (this is a property of the gases the atmosphere is made of). When a celestial body is on the horizon, the light coming in has to pass through much more atmosphere to reach your eyes than it does when overhead because it is at an angle. Since the Sun's light, and hence the Moon's reflected light, is actually pretty much white, the blue color usually gets scattered, which is why the sky is blue and the Sun and Moon appear yellow (taking away blue from white light moves it toward the higher wavelength colors). When the light scatters even more, the highest wavelengths such as red and orange are left to be directly absorbed by your eye. Hope that helps!