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

[User]
CMV: MRAs are wrong when they argue that feminism is the mainstream perspective

This past weekend, I watched the documentary *The Red Pill,* a film that features interviews with many prominent MRAs as well as feminist critics of the men's rights movement. I appreciated the film for identifying a lot of important issues that disproportionately affect men. However, I was perplexed by some of the films other claims.

For full disclosure, I am a cis heterosexual White male working in the field of men's studies, and identify politically and theoretically as a feminist.

Several of the film's key voices, such as Paul Elam, argue that feminism is the "mainstream" perspective on gender. For example, they point to the apparent dominance of a view of women as victims and precious and men as oppressors and disposable.

My objection here isn't that this view isn't a predominant perspective. My objection is that this view is actually an *anti-feminist* perspective, one that trades on the sexist stereotypes that once justified preventing women from becoming lawyers or politicians because those careers were too cut-throat for women's supposedly gentle temperaments. I'd argue that most feminists actually oppose the view that women are always passive victims and men are always active aggressors.

Of course, there *are* self-identified feminists that claim that all men are oppressive. Feminism is an incredibly diverse movement. But this view is by no means representative of most feminists and by no means a mainstream view.

[Assistant]
> I'd argue that most feminists actually oppose the view that women are always passive victims and men are always active aggressors.

It isn't about *always*.  Everyone will agree that there are exceptions to the general rule.

But the "general rule" for feminism is that women are oppressed and men are the oppressors.  In fact, that the *whole point* of feminism.  If that isn't the case, then feminism has zero purpose.


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

[User] ELI5: How does numbness work? Why is it so hard to move a body part that's numb?

[Assistant] Numbness isnt always tied to lack of blood flow like has been described. A nerve itself can be compressed or pinched or otherwise impaired so that signals cant properly be sent. Like if you slip a disc in your back and a nerve is pinched. Or if you get inflammation in your wrist from overuse and the swelling puts pressure on the nerve.


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

[User] Why is breath cold when you blow in an 'o' but warm when you breathe out with a wide mouth?

[Assistant]
Take a sheet of paper, and roll it into a tube.  Now, blow through the tube with an 'o' - shaped mouth, and put your hand on the other side.  Once you push the ambient air out of the tube, you will feel your warm breath.

When you blow a narrow stream of air out of your mouth, ambient air is dragged along with it.  This mixture of breath and ambient air feels cold.  When you breath with a wide open mouth, the air stream is much wider (and slower) and doesn't grab as much ambient air.

Blowing through a tube prevents the ambient air from entering the stream.


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

[User]
ELI5:How did ancient armies manage to provide food for massive armies over long campaigns?

I tried searching for this and didn't find anything. I keep reading about military campaigns of thousands of men over months. Wouldn't they run out of food? What did they eat? How did they replenish? How did they know how much they needed to pack?

[Assistant] the pillaged from the enemy. steal the food from the farm fields. the goats. the women. if none was around then they would hunt/gather food from the wilderness the last step if no alternative was to ship food in from transports.


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

[User]
CMV: Marriage doesn't make much sense in the modern world (modern western standards) and I don't see the need to get married.

People don't need legal paperwork to enforce a union anymore, now marriage is (or should ideally according to modern western standards) based on a mutual decision to stay together. There are benefits such as tax cuts, custody rights for children of course, but these are outweighed IMO by the disadvantages when things don't work out, such as divorce fees, wealth splitting enforced by courts. If the argument is about commitment, several other large gestures such as having a child together or buying a property are probably bigger commitments than signing a symbolic piece of paper. Again in the past when marriages were more about securing alliances or people controlling each other marriage was more important but now legal contracts should have little to do with love. Of course I am assuming modern western standards are the most enlightened in allowing freedom and that freedom is an important thing to have over social stability which could be enforced by forced marriage / social pressure and legal penalties for adultery that exist in other cultures.

[Assistant]
Marriage provides legal protections if one partner plans to take time away from a career to raise children.

Marriage is legally recognized and can gain access to things like spousal visas for non citizens.

When you make an irreversible decision, your brain feels better about it than a reversible one because it will retroactively find reasons  to justify your decision as correct. By going for an irreversible relationship, your brain will feel better about it and create more justifications.


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

[User]
[Warhammer Fantasy/40K] What does "ever" part of "Everchosen" mean?

As far as I know there were multiple of them and got replaced when they died.

[Assistant]
The Everchosen of Chaos is the the final champion, prophesized to herald the End Times.

Each *Everchosen* is just the latest person claiming that title. All others before them were false and unworthy of the title. The prophecy could not have been about them because they did not bring the end times.


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

[User] ELI5: how are we able to see planets that are 100s of lightyears away? By continually increasing the magnification of a telescope? How do we know anything about the planets atmosphere if its that far away? For example, the Corot-7b, we are told it rains rocks there.

[Assistant]
Were not able to see them.
We see them block the light from their star.
Or we see their gravity tugging on their star.

We know about their atmosphere because when they block that star, some light pass through the atmosphere, which filters out some light but not others.


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

[User] ELI5: If "black" is the absence of all colour, why is the outcome colour "black" when I mix a bunch of colours of paint together?

[Assistant]
Paints color is based on what light they absorb. So red paint absorbs all colors but red, the red light bounces away from the paint and hits your eyes.

So mix a bunch of paint together and you end up with a mix that absorbs a little bit of everything, and the result is black.


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

[User]
[MCU] Did nobody seem to really care that a Ego (a nigh-omnipotent Celestial) was able to go out and about the known Universe?

I mean, we figured out why Ego went exploring for life. But everyone was aware of the existence of powerful Celestials that could use Infinity Stones to mow down civilization (like in GOTG), be large enough that Knowhere is a dead Celestial's head, and be the size of a planet. But why did nobody really care that Ego the Celestial (whose existence was recorded in navigation computers, seen in Vol. 2) was able to go out and about? Or did nobody really know that he was a Celestial in the first place?

[Assistant] What was anyone meant to do? You said it yourself Ego is powerful. Like one of the most powerful unbuffed characters in the MCU. He is a reality warper with billions of years of experience both using his powers and gaining knowledge. The only reason the guardians were even able to get close to the true Ego was because they were invited on planet. It would take an extremely large force to even think of taking on Ego and as far as anyone knew he was not really Causing any trouble. So why would anyone bother?


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

[User]
Why do we assume that "intelligent life" on other planets needs oxygen?

I guess looking for oxygen on other planets makes sense for our use...but why do so many papers assume oxygen = alien life?

[Assistant]
Just about every living thing on this planet requires oxygen and is carbon based.

While we can guess at other types of life forms that are based on, say, silicon, etc - and may use, say, methane - we don't have any proof that these exist.

It is easiest to look for what we are familiar with.  If it exists here, it probably exists elsewhere.

On the other hand, we would have no real way of knowing what a methane based life form would exhibit - that we could easily test for at a distance (e.g., looking at a planets spectrum, for example).


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

[User] Eli5 How does text to speech work? Do they get the people voicing the "speech part" to say a lot of words or is it a different way all together?

[Assistant] Depends of how advanced the text to speech is. In the early days of text to speech they only recorded sounds like "Ch" and "ee" combining them to make the words, The result was sloppy.  These days they voice whole words by getting the voice actors to read whole sentences, like from a book and put that into an AI. The voice actor for Alexa spent weeks to months reading out loud and recording it. The voice actors try to read with little to no emotion yet still fluid speech so when the AI does need to chop up a word it can without it sounding strange.


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

[User]
[Bioshock 2] Why did Subject Delta have a drill?

From my understanding the Bouncer big daddys were brought in after the Alpha series was deemed ineffective, so why was subject delta equipped with a drill before the bouncers were used?

[Assistant] As a prototype, Delta was kind of a trial run to see what worked and what didnt. Thats why he can use multiple weapons while the Alpha Series you see in the game only use one type. He was used to see if a guardian that used a drill as a weapon could be effective, as drills dont use ammunition and are thus cheaper to equip. Bouncers are essentially an Alpha Series that is a lot tougher, but can only use the drill.


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

[User]
ELI5: How is it possible for red card owners in Colorado (and I assume other states as well) to be denied the ability to own/purchase a gun? Doesn't this infringe on the 2nd amendment (which is federal law)?

From my understanding there is a question (11e) on form 4473-1 that asks, ' Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance?'

Even though a red card owner would be required (I assume so) to answer yes to this question, doesn't the second amendment still indicate the right for all americans to own guns as long as you are not a convicted felon, have any warrants etc.?

[Assistant]
> doesn't the second amendment still indicate the right for all americans to own guns as long as you are not a convicted felon, have any warrants etc.?

The second amendment doesn't talk about any of these issues, it literally states:

`"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."`

The amendment does not specify what limitations (if any) can be placed on the sales of firearms by state or federal governments. It is up to judges to provide a legal interpretation of the amendment to determine whether (and to what extent) the government can regulate firearm purchases.


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

[User]
[Groundhog Day] Would Phil's achievement of spiritual peace remain permanent had it not freed him?

Had Phil had to continue the cycles regardless of his good behavior, would he eventually have become disillusioned again and turned to a different direction from what was originally the activity and outlook that freed him?

I.e. Would he have gotten bored of being at peace and well-loved after, say, another thousand years? If so, what do you think would be other directions he would go?

[Assistant]
The end game for Phil would be dark.

As the centuries passed by Phil would become tired of living. Everything that could be experienced he experienced. Every book within a hundred miles he has read a dozen times. Nothing excites him anymore. He finds it harder and harder to get out of bed each day.

Eventually Phil learns how to 'die'. Now if Phil really dies he just comes back to the beginning of the day. He doesn't want that, he wants it to be over. So instead he learns how to just turn himself off. It takes many years of searching his mind and training but eventually learns how to switch his body and brain off.

Phil lays there every day. His mind and body unresponsive. At first he would be conscious for a short time each day as he goes through the process of shutting himself off. As he gets more efficient at it, it becomes effortless. He is aware for only a brief moment each day before he returns to nothingness. Eventually the process becomes automatic. Even if Phil wanted to he couldn't wake up.

Hundreds, thousands, millions of years pass. Phil lays in his bed, divorced from existence. He probably doesn't even remember anything anymore. His mind as developed as a newborn child. All he knows how to do is sleep.


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

[User] ELI5: How does alcohol interfere with the fat burning process in our body?

[Assistant]
Alcohol can be metabolized for energy but it produces toxic byproducts. It also is easier to metabolize than fat so while your body is processing alcohol it isn't burning fat.

Also alcohol has significant amounts of calories so drinking alcohol is similar to just eating more food. For obvious reasons that tends to interfere with losing weight.


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

[User]
[DiabloII] Why isn't Andarielle destroying the Rogue basecamp with the fuckton of devil force she's got available?

Kurast got a defensive spell cast on it. Pandemonium is protected by angels, and Harrogath is under siege, but why are the evil forces not taking the base of Act I and II already?

I can't step ten meters out of them without being already face to face with a lot of them, so it's not like they don't know where it is.

[Assistant]
Remember the Den of Evil quest?  Andariel sent her minions to establish a base there so that they could finish off the Rogues.  Andariel's minions were only about a day or two away from kicking off the final stages of their attack when an unnamed group of heroes got there and purged it at Akara's request.

EDIT:  As for Lut Gholein, you may recall that the city gets invaded by Radamant's minions at night.  ~~Warriv~~ Meshif has had to fight them out of his boat once or twice, so he keeps a close eye on the southeast sewer entrance at night.  The palace itself has been overrun, and pretty much all of the guards are dead by the time the unnamed heroes arrive.  In short, Lut Gholein is royally screwed.


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

[User]
Emojis should be embraced

Emojis are a natural evolution of our written language. We have essentially added heiroglyphics that provide nuance to short, written messages. I believe they are first step to a universally understandable language.

I want to challenge the widely held view that emojis are childish and unprofessional.  Another dimension of written language is a necessity for the future of efficient communication. How many office disputes could have been avoided if someone hadn't misinterpreted the "tone" of an email?

If you don't use emojis, you are standing in the way of progress.

[Assistant]
While some emojis can be useful in helping identify tone of a written message, with the current array of emojis we still have problems.

A much better way of communicating tone would be to follow that of HK-47 and his successors the HK-50 and HK-51 series of protocol droids from the *Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic* Franchise. Where each section of speech begins with the type of speech being listed such as "Statement" or "Observation" or "Query" with further adhectives being listed such as "Gleeful Statement".

Simply listing the tone would be much better for a writteb language than small pictures which can still be misinterpreted.


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

[User]
[Disney's The Little Mermaid] - If Ariel had gotten Prince Eric to kiss her before the sun set on the third day, would she have gotten her voice back? Or was the deal only that she would stay human forever?

I think we all assumed she would get her voice back, but this wasn't really clear in the terms of Ursula's contract.

[Assistant]
If Eric had kissed her, she'd have stayed mute. Her voice was payment for services rendered.

I would assume, however, that there was some kind of additional clause where if he had, Ursula would have received a secondary payment of some sort (most likely a firstborn child) in exchange for making her human permanently

Ariel should have had an attorney read that contract before signing it.


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

[User]
eli5: why does it get so cold in the desert at night.

Lets take the Sahara for example, its a lot closer to the equator, yet at night temperatures fall to -4c (25f). Yet in the uk which is a lot further away from the equator, the night temperatures are around 15c (60f) during the summer. Why is this?

[Assistant] Large bodies of water act as a temperature shock absorber. Water is relatively difficult to heat or cool. That means large bodies of water tend to stay about the same temperature despite the ambient air temperature. When the air cools at night, the warmer water heats the air. The opposite happens during day when the warm air is chilled by the cooler water (which is still the same temperature as it was 12 hours prior). In the desert, there is no water to do this resulting in larger temperature swings between night and day.


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

[User] [MARVEL] If Rhino and Juggernaut charged each other, what would happen?

[Assistant] Rhino goes flying/gets trampled/insert other gruesome fate here. Rhino's powers are that he's super strong and tough. Juggernaut is literally empowered by a god/demon with the power to be unstoppable. Not figuratively, *literally* unstoppable: characters can redirect his momentum or shut down his brain or body, but if juggernaut runs in a direction, no physical barrier will stop him.


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

[User]
What happens when an atom of anti-matter hits a regular atom of a much heavier element?

I heard this question on NPR's "Science Friday" recently, and the guest's answer didn't seem to make any sense. So I thought I'd ask you guys. If an anti-particle of hydrogen hits a heavier atom (like gold), my understanding is that the entire anti-hydrogen is annihilated.

But what happens to the gold atom? Is it also annihilated? Is only part of it annihilated? Is it still gold at the end?

Thanks.

[Assistant] an atom of anti-hydrogen consists of an anti-proton and a positron, which will annihilate with one regular proton and an electron, respectively. So at the end the Gold particle would be left with one less proton and one less electron, turning it into platinum.


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

[User]
[Interstellar] Where did the wormhole come from?

I finally got around to watching Interstellar, and it was amazing. I think I understood most of it, but one thing really bothered me. Who exactly are "they"? Did "they" make the wormhole? Or did Cooper make the wormhole?

[Assistant]
It was built by the robots.  Its the only way to avoid a predestination paradox where humans made the wormhole to save themselves, but wouldn't have been able to survive the blight and live long enough to do so.

So basically, here's how it goes:

1.  Humans die from the blight, our AI robots live on and evolve (CASE/TARS)

2.  Eventually, the AI develops the technology to build wormholes, and creates the one we see in the movie.

3.  Humanity then goes through the wormhole and leverages technology allowing it to survive (figuring out "gravity" and all that)

The reason this works is because the AIs would evolve anyways to their next state and simply shepherd and safeguard their creators.

The clues are pretty clear:

1.  When in the tesseract, TARS is more aware of what is going on than Cooper is.  Why?  Because a robot is not constrained to a human viewpoint of 3 dimensions + time.

2.  Cooper says something along the lines that "it's us, we built [the tesseract] to save ourselves", but then TARS chimes in: "i don't think that is what it is".

TL;DR - Humanity didn't save humanity, the robots did.  Even despite their best efforts, we still almost failed thanks to general human shittiness (Dr. Mann)


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

[User]
[Mass Effect] Why aren't Geth Fighters remotely operated?

Geth, as we know, are code based entities who can communicate and travel between mobile platforms(bodies). From what Legion tells us in Mass Effect 3, Geth don't even use escape pods because they can simply travel to other servers/platforms, So then why do physical Geth bodies pilot their ships? Not only are they then restricted by the physical response times of their bodies, but they're pretty much just wasting resources on manufacturing physical geth pilots. Wouldn't it be much more efficient to just have their ships controlled remotely, seeing as how they don't actually need bodies?

[Assistant]
Physical pilots allow for more versatility than simple drones. They can preform complex repairs, can function as boarding units, or provide a threat on the ground. Furthermore, if the fighter is in a place where it can't easily transmit the consensus to save them a platform can be useful for recovering the AI.

They already manufacture largely homogenous units so it likely doesn't increase the resource cost of building fighters or platforms.


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

[User] ELI5: What happens to the leg muscles during leg lengthening surgery & recovery? Do they stretch permanently? Is muscle taken from somewhere else?

[Assistant] When bones are lengthened, the stretch on the tissues causes them to grow and lengthen. We know that his happens normally in growing kids as well. Only the bones themselves are lengthened in the surgeries.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why do horror movies get low critic ratings and high audience ratings, or the exact opposite?

Usually on any site that collects both Critic scores as well as Audience/Viewer scores, you'll find that they're usually polar opposites for horror movies. A movie with a 96% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes will have a 1 star on Netflix, or a 4.5 star horror on Netflix will usually have a <30% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

What gives?

[Assistant] Many people go to the theater for the experience.  They want to laugh, or cry, or be thrilled, or terrified.  You need a reason to go to the theater.  Movie critics view several films a day.  The novelty of a "theater experience" is irrelevant to them.  That's their office.  Critics instead are looking for something new, fresh, and original.  After all, if you watch movies all day long and every single one seemed like a rehash of something else, you'd be dying for ANYTHING new and different.  Well most regular people want to spend their money on a sure thing - not something risky and new.  If a regular person is going to spend their money on a horror film, they expect to see all the staples of a horror film.  And when they do, they enjoy it.  Meanwhile, when a critic sees what they are already expecting, they are bored by it.


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

[User] ELI5 How did they find the exact location of the south pole in 1911. I know sailors used constellations to navigate but when they were in the south pole back then the sun never set.

[Assistant] Amundsens second in command was a naval navigator and the expedition spend three days taking observations of the exact possition of the sun and the moon from various possitions around the south pole to determine its exact possition. For Scott it was much easier as he could just see the big tent with the Norwegian flag marking the exact possition.


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

[User] ELI5: It makes sense that high power cell towers can reach cell phones. How do cell phones send signals back to towers?

[Assistant]
If you have a flashlight, it will illuminate a few feet in front of you. Not very bright, definitely not as bright as a high-powered lamp. But, if you move quite far away from a person holding a flashlight, you can still see the flashlight, even if you can't see anything it's illuminating.

Same with cell phones. The signal may be weak, but it can still be "seen" by the tower from very far away.


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

[User]
How many Minions are there, and what's with their language? [Despicable Me]

I cannot for the life of me get a good estimate. I'm also very curious about how their pidgin language formed, seems to have pieces of English, Spanish, French, and maybe more. Did Gru try to teach some of them different languages? Why would he do that?

[Assistant] 1. Assuming they're all present during Gru's State of the Union address in the first movie, about 1,000. 2. Best guess? Due to their unique vocal cords they can only say certain sounds ("Apples" are "Bapples", for example). So they created a language to let them communicate easier. Sometimes they borrow words from other languages because they find them easy to pronounce.


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

[User]
[The legend of korra] Since zaheer spends so much time in the spirit realm nowadays do you think its possible he would seek out P'li or try to find Guru Laghima?

Bonus if he connected with P'li again would it inhibit his flight?

[Assistant]
The Spirit World isn't an afterlife. Its just a different plane of existence to the material world where the rules of reality are a little different.

The only human spirits that are there are those with an innate spirituality (like Iroh) who chose to move there instead of passing on, those with a connection to a spirit (the Avatar and past lives), or those brought there by other means (Zhao and the others in the Fog of Lost Souls).


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

[User] ELI5: How did Prohibition get enough support to actually happen in the US, was public sentiment against alcohol really that high?

[Assistant]
Yes. Prohibition was very popular (when it was enacted: it rapidly fell apart afterward). Polling as we know it today wasn't around at the time, but it passed pretty overwhelmingly: only two states (Connecticut and Rhode Island) didn't ratify it.

The early 1900s was sort of a weird period from a modern perspective. There was a great belief all around the world in a natural progression to history that matched the progression of technology, and all sorts of movements were popping up to try to reform the world. Eugenics was popular almost everywhere, racial and gender rights were on the march, the labor movement won a number of major victories. The notion of trying to improve people morally came alongside a major religious revival in the form of the original Progressives (only loosely related to the modern movement by that name), who believed in progress in all its forms (hence the name), including some we do not look back on quite so fondly today.

It's probably worth noting that people drank a *lot* at the time. Think, like, Japanese businessmen or Russians - on average, about three times more than modern Americans drink, which is more than *any* country drinks today. And that drinking came with some of the same kinds of problems we associate with it today, e.g. spousal abuse. The newfound rights of women made them a major bloc in the temperance movement, campaigning against the drunken misbehavior of the men around them. Most suffragettes were also pro-temperance, and the two movements campaigned together.


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

[User]
Why is the whole world not covered in mildew?

Specifically in rain forests and things why is the whole thing not just covered in it?

[Assistant]
Plants basically wage constant chemical warfare against each other. Look at pine trees for example: When the die they take a really long time to decompose because they are filled with resin. Insects can't chew through that and other plants and fungus (usually) has a hard time growing on it.

Below living pine trees you won't find many other plants because the needles they constantly drop contain resin too. Eucalyptus trees do the same with eukalyptus oil. Species have to adapt (like Koalas) to these poisons before they can coexist or compete with these plants.

The same goes for mildew: It can't easily attach itself to plants that actively defend themselves, so it usually grows on dead plants, that cannot produce enough poison.


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

[User]
Sartres Existentialism and Marxism

So, Sartre was one of the first philosophers I ever read, and I still adore a lot of his work. However over the past year Ive been going through a little Marxist phase and going to campus reading groups and events and things of that nature. I now feel decently well grounded in both Sartres Existentialism and Marxism, although notably I havent read later Sartre. I have heard as he got older he adopted more Marxist views into his philosophy.

That turn Sartre took seems very strange to me, because I would have thought that Marxism and Existentialism were incompatible, as Sartre spent a good bit of time rebutting Marxist critiques of Existentialism in Existentialism Is A Humanism. I was under the impression that Marxists would scoff at some of Sartres ideas about human freedom and agency, and that Sartre could never reconcile himself to Marxisms rigidity.

So, I was hoping this sub could help explain Sartres turn towards Marxism, as well as in what ways he reconciled it with his Existentialism, and what the reaction to this has been from Marxists and other philosophical schools?

Now, I know the answer to my question is probably just read later Sartre, but Im busy right now and have more time for Reddit comments. I definitely plan on reading his later works in the summer, so Id love recommendations for what to buy as well as any insights you guys have!

[Assistant]
When Sartre was alive, Marxism (or a plurality of its adherents) was far more rigid and deterministic than it is today. The fact that Sartre tried to reconcile existential phenomenology with Marxism shows he saw himself as a kind of Marxist - just one at odds with his peers.

Sartre's leftism is indebted to the famous Marx quote of *"Men make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under self-selected circumstances, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past."* He is particularly concerned with the "*making"* as a verb. Marxism provides the field of opportunities to an agent but doesn't explain the radical particularity of any one choice.

The most clarifying comment from Sartre to me about his Marxism comes from his late career writings (A Search for Method and Critique of Dialectical Reason) where he says something like *"Existentialism would have no reason to exist if Marxism ever abandons its teleology."*  Sartre wanted a Marxism that explained and reinforced human agency in a world that is fundamentally ambiguous.


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

[User] [X-Force] I own a business and Domino just invested in my biggest competitor. How screwed am I?

[Assistant]
Not at all.

Domino's luck is immediate and situational. If you decide to drive 20 miles to her house and shoot her, your car will start just fine, but your gun will jam while it's pointed at her face. If your schedule for tomorrow includes "kill Domino", you won't slip and break your neck getting out of the shower that morning; you'll slip and break your neck in the moment of trying to stab her.

Long term, at a distance, it doesn't apply. If Domino wants to get rich she needs to play roulette, not the stock market.


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

[User] We've all heard stories about people acting drunk after unknowingly being served non-alcoholic beer, but could this placebo effect potentially impair one's ability to operate a vehicle?

[Assistant]
Neuropsychology researcher here. Some research has shown that expectancy/placebo effects of alcohol can affect more than social inhibition of behavior.

For example, Assefi and Gary 2003 showed placebo-induced impairments on eyewitness memory/response to misinformation.

Much more relevant to operating a motor vehicle is Gilbertson et al. 2010. Participants who believed they had received alcohol performed worse on measures of covert attention. The findings suggest that this effect may be mediated by one's previous experience with alcohol, but that conclusion is not fully substantiated and requires more research.

*edit for spelling*


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

[User] [mass effect] why did the council favor humans compare to the other races? for example the, drell,hanar, elcor and even the volus seem to have less favor with the council compare to humans.

[Assistant]
The Truth?

Because the council's favor is based on how worried they are you're capable of wrecking the current status quo. Humans showed up on the scene ramping up to throw down with one of the biggest militaries in council space, and the council is actually worried the Alliance might have put up a decent fight if not win.


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

[User] ELI5: What does ego death mean?

[Assistant]
So, what is ego in the first place? What does it do?

It fills a void. That void is there because we don't know ourselves. Therefore, a false identity is created, nourished, and it grows. Unless it is constantly fed, it dies. Stop feeding the ego.

 What happens then? When we stop identifying with titles, accomplishments, possessions and concepts, our true Selves begin to emerge.

Uncovered, our nature arises, like the sun. The ego, which is like a candle flame, is simply no longer noticed nor necessary.
Like a crutch, it is tossed away and we move freely on our own.

We trust our own wisdom and a new life dawns.


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

[User] If my speed is relative, not absolute, and the speed of light always appears the same no matter my reference frame, how is a statement like "I am travelling at 99% of the speed of light" meaningful?

[Assistant] It's true, this statement should be always be followed by "with respect to some reference frame." If you're carrying a cup of tea in your spaceship, the cup of tea doesn't care that some guy on the moon is measuring your speed at 0.9999c.


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

[User]
Why is the depressurization of Taal Volcano a bad thing?

The local authority in the Philippines says that the ground fissures from quakes are concerning because they suggest there will be an explosive eruption. However, to an ignorant fool like me, depressurization sounds like a good thing. It seems to me if there is less pressure then there would be a less forceful eruption. But it seems like I'm wrong and I would like to learn why.

[Assistant]
Think about what happens when you have a bottle of carbonated water that has been shaken, and you try to open it gently. When the bottle is sealed, the contents is under pressure, and thus stable.

Now you slightly unscrew the cap so that the over pressure can start to equalize. Some of the carbon dioxide dissolved in the liquid will start to escape and form gas bubbles when the pressure drops. Since a gas is much less dense than a liquid, these will quickly rise to the top and escape out through the opening in the cap. However, if the amount of gas that escapes is large enough, the temporary increase in volume will force the liquid all the way up to the cap and, if you're not fast enough in your reactions to screw it back in place, will cause the water to spray out. If you're fast enough, the liquid settles back down, and you can repeat the process until the pressure is equalized to the outside.

In both cases the end result is a completely un-pressurized container of water. But in the first case, you will get sprayed by some of it due to the violent manner of depressurization.

Now imagine the water is molten rock and shit, and the bottle is as large as a mountain, and someone just unscrewed the cap slightly.....

Edit: Clarified the conversion from dissolved carbon dioxide to gas a bit, to make it a bit more accurate and less hand-wavy.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why do extremely hot items glow "red hot" as opposed to other colors, like green, blue, purple, etc.?

I was watching those recent videos on YouTube where a knife is heated until it's red hot and cuts into various objects...

I never considered it before, but I started to wonder why things turn red when they're extremely hot instead of other colors...

[Assistant]
Heated objects produce light.

Even room-temperature objects are emitting light. It just isn't *much* light and the wavelength is way too long to see (it is low-energy).

The more an object heats up, then more energy it emits. It also starts to emit more energy of higher frequencies (higher energy levels). So if it gets hot enough, some of that light is now going to be in the visible spectrum, since it will be energetic enough to produce red light (but not much of a higher wavelength like green or blue light).

If you keep heating it, it will get yellower and yellower as more yellow light gets emitted (relative to the other energy it is emitting).

Eventually it does reach a point where it emitting enough higher energy light that it has a considerable amount of green or blue light being emitted. However, at this point, so much light is being emitted (and a lot of it is still red light) that the object will just appear white to us.


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

[User]
How does a hard drive compensate for the expansion of itself when in use?

It is my understanding that there are very precise points of magnetised sectors within a hard drive, an expansion of just fractions of millimetres could disrupt the whole hard drive, or so I would presume. Why does it not?

[Assistant] The head positioning amplifier is driven from processed feedback out of the heads that are reading in a dynamic fashion. Fine positioning is determined by the picked up signal, not absolute, predetermined locations.


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

[User] ELI5:What feminists mean when they say "empower women" and how "empowering women" will lower rape rates.

[Assistant]
There are a number of stereotypes about sexuality in women in modern society, and many of them are problematic. The major one when it comes to rape, is that a womans value lies in her genitals, and that sex is an object or treat, that a woman can give or grant access to. To say it as simply as possible (minding that it is more complex than this), if someone believes that they are owed sex (whether it be because they have been dating someone for a while, because they are married, or even just because they were being flirted with), and they are sufficiently violent, frustrated or mentally unstable, they may try to take the sex that was owed to them. The empowerment idea comes from reinforcing the idea to women (and men) that women are not objects, or gate keepers to sex, but muti-dimensional **people**. Who have choice. And the choice to say no is one that they are entitled to.

(Subnote: Not all rape occurs in a dark alleyway with a stranger. A lot of the time, it is someone known, or dating; where the woman is either too afraid/feels unable to say no, or the man does not listen to that no.)


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

[User]
Why exactly do the tectonic plates move in different directions?

I fully understand that tectonic plates are just pieces of crust that move because of the convection cells of lava and rock beneath the surface moving them towards a certain direction. But my question is *why* do the different convection cells all move in different directions, what determines that? So for example, the Indo-Australian and Pacific plates have a convergent border, so my question is why does the Indo-Australian plate's convection cell move east and the Pacific Plate's convection cell move west rather than both of them just moving in the same direction?

[Assistant]
There are a few different forces driving the motion of tectonic plates.

*Slab pull* is thought to be the main one. The part of the plate that is subducting is old, (relatively) cold, making it dense, making it sink in the mantle. It pulls the surface part of the plate along. Like a tablecloth sliding off a table because of the weight of the part already hanging down.

*Slab suction* is also associated with the subduction. The sinking slab drives flow in the surrounding mantle which then acts on other parts of plates. Slab suction means that even if the slab breaks it can still drive plate motion.

The fastest moving plates are the ones with most subduction, and this is taken as a major piece of evidence for subduction-related forces being dominant.

*Ridge push* is from mid-ocean ridges. The plate near the ridge is new, warm, so it's less dense and sits high. Away from the ridge it's colder and more dense and sits low. So the plate basically slides downhill. Ridge push is estimated as 5-10% as strong as slab pull plus slab suction.

Mantle convection acting on the underside of the plates was once assumed to drive the motion, but it's now thought to be a very minor part. For it to be significant the convection cells would need to be comparable in size to the plates themselves, but evidence based on density measurements of the mantle by seismic waves indicate any convection cells are actually much smaller. Thus to the extent they exert forces on plates, they'll be pushing different bits of the same plate different ways with little overall effect.


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

[User]
I don't think Native Canadians should be given any special concessions simply because they first inhabited the land, CMV.

Native Canadians have been afforded many concessions by the government due to historical reasons. No taxes on reserves, free education, job privileges through affirmative action, scholarship priority, increased hunting and fishing rights, monetary payouts, etc. I feel as if the reasons they have been provided these things is now too far in the past to be a legitimate reason to be providing them anymore. The argument that Native Canadians have been exposed to trauma that makes these benefits necessary is outdated. I think it is well past time that the Canadian government cut these benefits and tried to put an end to this shameless victim mentality that hasn't seemed to actually help the situation at all.

I may just be bitter because I am from Saskatchewan, but please try to change my view. I have grown up with white shame for what my ancestors did. One of my parents have also worked in the poorest neighbourhoods where I live (90% Native) and I feel as if it has skewed my view as well. I constantly see my parent taken advantage of and being made to feel guilty because she is white.

EDIT: While I now understand that my opinion is kind of harsh, I am still of the same opinion. Thanks everyone!

[Assistant] You are completely missing the main reason for the Treaty rights.  It isn't about social justice, preserving traditions, or guilt.  The Treaties are in effect because we promised that they would be, and that's it.  Breaking treaties is very bad for a government's reputation, no matter if it happened centuries ago or not.


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

[User]
Would it be beneficial or harmful to get more than two doses of the Pfizer or Modern COVID-19 vaccine?

If the purpose of two shots is to increase the efficacy and long term staying power of the antibodies, then could you theoretically get as many vaccine doses as you wanted? Would this be helpful for protecting from COVID? Would it be harmful? Is there a diminishing return after a certain point?

[Assistant]
It would not be harmful, but it probably would not provide much in terms of additional protection.

For example, in the MMR vaccine, they give it in two doses.  One dose is 78% effective against mumps, the second dose raises it to 88%, certainly a diminished return, but still significant.  Two doses of COVID vaccine gets you to 95%, not much more ro be gained.


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

[User]
[Attack on Titan/Shingeki No Kyojin] How does such a corrupt/lazy government and society grow out of an apocalyptic event?

Those who survive in these times are born of those who managed to build three layers of walls, the outermost with a 480km radius, in the midst of the extermination of their species by a far more powerful adversary. Surely such people would not be the kind to spawn a system of useless lords and cowardly warriors?

[Assistant]
First off, the walls were not built, they were discovered. The surviving population took refuge within, and has conducted some minor detailing, but the walls themselves were found largely as they are.

Second, the fall of the outer wall was the first breach ever. For the most part, people just lived inside the walls for a century with only the Rangers actually encountering Titans.

A century of no real fighting, and no real concern, is more than enough time to breed an ineffectual military and a corrupt government.


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

[User] ELI5: How did the modern guitar come to be? Why aren't there any guitars with strings designated for each note?

[Assistant]
>Why aren't there any guitars with strings designated for each note?

Because at that stage it stops being a guitar and becomes a harp. The important part of the guitar is the fingerboard, and an important aspect of being a guitar is that it's organised into spaced by frets -- the little wires you see going across the fingerboard at various intervals. Other string instruments can be fretless, such as the violin or the double bass, and violinists and double-bassists have to be much more precise about where they put their fingers; that's why chords on these instruments tend to be less common than they are on guitar. Other string instruments, such as the Indian sitar, have movable frets, which means you can change how the strings behave in relation to one another and to themselves.

Those frets are wider at the bottom than at the top because of the mathematical basis of music: it's all about ratios. At the bottom of the string (up towards the top of the neck of the guitar) the spaces are wider than they are at the bottom because the ratio changes. This is analogous to the way the strings of a harp change as you get closer to the player, from the long low strings at arm's length to the short, high strings right next to the harpist's nose.

Being able to isolate a few different strings in different positions you can make pretty much any chord imaginable, and you also get lots of different options for making the same chord. That gives the guitar some of its trademark features; chords and versatility.


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

[User]
[The Simpsons] What kind of friend relation does Bart and Nelson actually have?

Sometimes Nelson is portrayed as a terrifying bully that Bart wouldn't want to go near, or even look at. In other episodes however, Nelson is rather shown as a member of Bart's friend group, occasionally staying at his house, and at worst being a bit rude. It doesn't appear things changed drastically over time; sometimes we see one version of Nelson, sometimes the other.

[Assistant] Bart is a troublemaker and Nelson is a dirtbag.  Nelson's behavior is worse than Bart's only because it's slightly more malicious.  Bart is often an asshole, but he mainly acts that way because he thinks it's funny.  Bart as the troublemaker doesn't want to get on the wrong side of Nelson, but troublemakers and dirtbags often find themselves in similar circles.


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

[User] ELI5 : How are grass seeds made?

[Assistant] Grass produces seed heads, you've probably seen those before. The seeds from those seed heads are harvested, dried and sold. If you put them into soil and water them, they sprout and grow into new grass. People who don't want those on their lawn make sure the conditions for the grass stays constant, it receives enough water and is mowed regularly (so seed heads can't develop).


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

[User]
ELI5: Why do diseases only do bad things to us? Why are there no diseases/viruses that are actually GOOD for us?

Ladies and gentleman I don't need the old "Well it wouldn't be a disease if it was good for you" answers. That's obvious, but the spirit of the question is how come no one can cough in your face and give you increased strength for 2 days instead of making you feel ill?

[Assistant]
Yes, there are good diseases.  For instance, retroviruses and bornaviruses account for 8-9% of the human genetic code, and the same is true for most mammals and birds.  One pretty useful thing retroviruses help with is the formation of the placenta and differentiation early in fetal development.  These genes have been proven to come from multiple strains of human endogenous retrovirus (herv), and suppressing them slows and hinders development and the ability to latch onto the uterine wall.  Just one example of a beneficial virus, and 8-9% of our DNA comes from them.

There are a surprising number of retrovirus genes that protect and aid the development of the fetus.  It is kinda strange, but it fascinates me.


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

[User]
[SW] Is every Knight required to take a Padawan?

Despite his promise to Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan seems reluctant to take on Anakin,considering he had almost no interaction with him. And Anakin was the same with Ashoka.

[Assistant] Its not something they force you to do but it is heavily encouraged and by the time you are a Knight you can likely see even if its not something you specifically want its still the will of the force.


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

[User]
[Harry Potter] What would have happened if Voldemort had instructed Nagini to eat Harry?

There's a brief period - maybe 45 minutes to an hour where Voldy and the Death Eaters amble back to the castle with Harry's body to show it off.  What would have happened if Voldemort had Nagini eat Harry's corpse?  I know it's counter to his trophy-collecting lifestyle to have your pet consume your trophy...but when Harry came back from his conversation with ghost Dumbledore, would he have simply suffocated from being inside a snake's digestive tract?

[Assistant]
Yep, can't imagine many people survive being stuck inside the stomach of a giant man-eating snake. At that point, he's no longer a pseudo-Horcux so provided that the rest of the Horcruxes are destroyed then Voldemort becomes mortal.

Normally there'd be no chance for someone to kill Voldemort but given Harry invoking sacrificial magic on the Hogwarts army there's a decent chance that one or both of Professors Flitwick and Mcgonagall are able to finish him for good.


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

[User] [X-Men] What events occur between the time of X-Men: The Last Stand and Logan (2017)?

[Assistant]
#Spoilers for all X-Men movies below

**Original Timeline:**

**2013:** Logan travels to Japan. (*The Wolverine*)

**2015:** Xavier and Magneto find Logan at a U.S. airport. (*The Wolverine* ending)

**2023:** Sentinels hunt mutantkind. X-Men send Wolverine back in time. Wolverine wakes up in the body of 1973 Logan. (*Days of Future Past*)

As a result of Logans time-travel, the timeline is altered. People are born earlier or later. Events happen differently. Logically, only the timeline from 1973 and forward should be affected, but the movies havent really established how time-travel works in their universe. Therefore, there are also changes happening before 1973, such as Wade Wilson being born much later.

**Altered Timeline:**

**2023:** Logan wakes up in X-mansion after his time-travel adventure in *DoFP*. Sentinel future has been averted. X-Men still live in X-mansion. Jean and Cyclops (who died in *X3*) are alive.

**2029**: Events of *Logan*.

Apparently, something happens between 2023 and 2029 that causes eradication of almost all mutants.


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

[User]
Does high pH water have a lower capacity as a solvent to dissolve more because of the electrolytes and minerals already in the water?

Just a random question. I have some water with a pH of 8.8 and had the thought of using to make things like powdered gatorade, coffee, tea, etc.

[Assistant] It depends on the ions that are already in the water. If the ions are also the same ions that are in the substance you are trying to dissolve, then the substance will dissolve less. If the ions can react with the ions in the substance you are trying to dissolve, then the substance will dissolve more. And if neither of these occur, then your water will behave just as pure neutral water in terms of dissolving your substance.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why do Microsoft & Google spend $$$ making free browsers?

What do they get out of it?

[Assistant]
In the case of almost every browser developer, it's a way to draw you into using their other products.

With Microsoft, the advantage of Internet Explorer being integrated with the operating system was a smooth transition from your computer to the internet, thus promoting Windows to the user.

Google built its browser to offer better support to web-based applications, where Google has a nice stronghold. They, of course, want to draw you into using as many of Google's products and services, especially the paid ones, as possible.

Firefox probably has the most unique approach to making money off browsers. 90% of their money comes from ad sharing with Google, which is why all their search bars default to Google. (Much of the remaining 10% comes from charging mobile device makers for the right to use their software.)


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

[User]
[Pokemon] Are Gym leaders not allowed to level their pokemon above a certain number?

If Gyms are supposed to increase in difficulty, would that mean that Brock and Misty's gyms are not allowed to be super powerful?

[Assistant] Gym leaders have several teams. The team they use to fight a first-time challenger with less than 2 badges isnt the same team they use to fight on the weekends with their friends and/or seriously train.


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

[User] ELI5: Why do we raise our hands when we get excited; and for that matter, why do we clap? Is this the result of some kind of evolutionary process?

[Assistant]
Clapping isn't a reflex -- it's something you are taught to do. Likely, the same goes for this hand raising thing.

Why does it happen? Probably because people like to do what is expected of them. (Or, what they expect is expected of them.)


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

[User]
ELI5: Why do we use "pair" to indicate singular things?

For example, a pair of jeans, or a pair of underwear. It's a single clothing item, why do we call it a pair? Is there any situation on which we use this for anything other than clothing?

[Assistant] Pants were originally two things - actually a pair.  "Pantaloons" were put on one leg at a time.  Underwear, shorts etc. are all derivative things and have inherited their pluralness from their full-legged friend.


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

[User]
[Pokemon] Could a pokemon be a pokemon trainer?

I mean you don't *have* to talk to anyone, even though some pokemon can. I know most are smart enough to have very real conversations with their trainers. They don't seem like dogs, they seem more like small children in their level of competency.

Where would it even start, and would it be allowed to swap itself into battle as a 7th pokemon?

[Assistant]
Mewtwo does exactly this in the first(?) movie.

As for in-game, there are plenty of Pokemon that could, the question seems to be more "why would they." Basically, all the Pokemon smart enough to do so either actively avoid humans or have their own thing going on.

So yes, theoretically possible, but unlikely, purely by choice.


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

[User]
What causes powder mixed into drinks (such as protein powder or Nesquick) to clump together in a globulous ball that is wet on the outside, but still dry and powdery on the inside?

I'm sitting here drinking my protein shake and although most of it has dissolved into warm water, there are large clumps of powder that somehow remain dry on the inside. As I drink, I find that I sometimes have to chew the powder, and it's dry and disgusting. To clarify, this is MET-Rx 100% Ultramyosin Whey protein powder. I've also noticed this with Nesquick; could it have something to do with chocolate?

Thanks scientists! Laypeople, could you report in if you notice this phenomenon in other drinks with water and powder?

[Assistant]
Proteins (especially mixtures of proteins) are often amphiphillic, meaning part of the molecule has an affinity for water (hydrophillic), and part for fat/oils (lipophillic or hydrophobic).  This means that they tend to orient themselves into structures known as micelles where the molecules all orient themselves to isolate their lipophillic ends away from the water, which can result in spherical, tubular, or sheetlike structures.  While micelles are a microscopic phenomena, a similar thing is what causes the clumps - along the protein powder-water interface there will be bi-layer sheet type structures where the hydrophillic parts of the molecules are facing the water, 'protecting' the rest of the clump for getting wet.  Additionally, since you are using warm water, the proteins can become entangled, so it makes it very difficult to break up the clump since the outer surface has essentially polymerized.

As others have said, the solution is to wet each of the solid particles individually first before dispersing them (eg, mix them in a small amount of water to form a paste), this will ensure that they disperse well.  Cold water will also help, since it will keep the proteins tightly coiled up and less likely to get entangled with each other.


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

[User]
[Star Trek] Why is the Federation ok with the ethical quandaries of holodeck technology, but not genetic engineering or breaking the Prime Directive?

The holodeck is capable of creating what are essentially sentient beings, pretty much for the use of the Federation as entertainment or what have you. How does this not conflict with the same ideas behind establishing the Prime Directive or banning genetic engineering?

[Assistant]
They aren't sentient, they're simply very intelligent AIs. The 'mind' behind them is the ship's computer, which isn't sentient either. It merely predicts how they would react and makes them act accordingly.

The few times a sentient program has come up, such as Moriarty, it's been a glitch in the computer that is normally impossible.


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

[User]
Is an infinite Universe, and the Big Bang mutually exclusive?

How can the Universe be infinite, if it started out as something finite?

I understand the idea that if you go in a straight line, you'll end up back where you started. But, that's a function of gravity. Does an infinite Universe contain an infinite amount of mass?

[Assistant]
No sir.

We currently have no idea if the Universe is infinite. None whatsoever. Fortunately, that question has nothing to do with the Big Bang, because the Big Bang isn't an explosion of some small finite region of space outward. Rather, as you'll hear a million pop-sci expositions tell you, it was an explosion *of* space.

If the Universe were 2-D, you might think of it as a grid, and the expansion of the Universe is the expansion of the lines on that grid. The Big Bang is just what happens when you take that all the way back, when the grid lines were together.

Now, this can happen whether or not you have an infinitely large grid.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why is a dish cooked at home considered "healthier" than the same dish cooked at a restaurant?

So why is a dish made at home considered healthier than the same thing I get at a restaurant?

[Assistant]
It's not inherently healthier, but restaurants tend to do things slightly differently. They use tons of salt and butter or other fatty oils and sauces. It helps seasonings stick to the food better and tastes amazing, but does a number on its calorie count.

I used to work at a chain restaurant where, for a regular burger, they would butter the insides of the bun before lightly toasting them on the flat-top. Speaking of which, it did not get as hot on that surface as the regular grill and let the beef keep more of its grease and juices, compounding the "unhealthy" nature of it.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] Has there ever been a large scale battle of Jedi vs Sith?

I'm talking hundreds of lightsaber users just going at each other. In legends or canon. Not even Jedi and Sith specifically, just lightsaber users.

[Assistant]
In the Expanded Universe/Legends there are several battles that fit your criteria.

The Great Sith War of 2996 BBY had many such battles, and was one of the earliest wars to have battles like that.

The Jedi Civil War (the conflict that Knights of the Old Republic takes place during) also had many battles between large numbers of Jedi and Sith.

The Great Galactic War (the war that the Old Republic MMO takes place during) had plenty of battles in which many Jedi and Sith took part.

The last of the great wars to include massive numbers of Jedi and Sith taking the field was the New Sith Wars that lasted from 2000 BBY until 1000 BBY. The most climactic of this war's battles was its last battle, the Battle of Ruusan. The Battle of Ruusan was fought between the armies of the last great Sith empire, the Brotherhood of Darkness, and the Army of Light, which was a joint effort between the Jedi and the Republic.
This war was so devistating, that many systems had to be taken under the direct control of the Jedi, and a Jedi was almost always elected Chancellor of the Republic. The systems controlled by the Jedi became little fiefdoms of certain Jedi Masters, who were referred to as the Jedi Lords, ruling over the their kingdoms as enlightened despots.

By the time of the battle of Ruusan, the Sith had lost all the territory they gained due to the fact they had been greatly weakened by infighting as the Republic and Jedi continued to gain strength.

The most influential and powerful Jedi Lords, Lord Hoth, assembled his army, the Armies of his fellow Jedi Lords, the Jedi Order, and the Republic military calling this coalition the Army of Light. Lord Hoth led the campaign to destroy the Sith once and for all. Eventually the last great Sith army, the Brotherhood of Darkness, gathered on Ruusan to make their final stand.

The battle was long and bloody. Both sides sustained massive amounts of casualties, but the Sith's resources were far more limited than their adversaries in the Army of Light. So, as the battle dragged on, the Sith Started losing more and more ground to their foes. Eventually, in their desperation, the Sith unleashed their ultimate weapon, the Thought Bomb. The Thought Bomb was a special Sith force technique used by many Sith simultaneously, it created an explosion that engulfed all living things for miles around. The Thought Bomb killed many of the Army of Light's troops and all of the Brotherhood of Darkness, save for one Sith Lord, Darth Bane, who would go onto establish the Rule of Two and preserve the Sith in secret.

A monument was erected to honor the fallen from the Army of Light, called the Valley of the Jedi at the site where the Thought Bomb went off. Unknown to those who erected the monument the souls of all those who died from the Thought Bomb would be trapped in the Valley of the Jedi, creating a force nexus that could increase someone's raw force power if they were to enter it. Unfortunately the location of the planet Ruusan and the Valley of the Jedi were lost, due to changing star charts and some topographical errors. The plAnet's location would eventually be discovered by Jedi Master Rohm, who gave this information to Reblel sympathizer, Morgan Katarn, before he was slain by the Dark Jedi Jerec, and Morgan gave the Valley's location to his son, Kyle via a secret holo-recording tgt he hid away to give to him at a later time  (he died before he could give it to him directly so Kyle had to find it himself). The trapped souls were freed many centuries later when Rebel commando-turned Jedi Kyle Katarn, son of Morgan Katarn, defeated Jerec in the Valley, fulfilling a prophecy that stated that a hero would free the trapped souls after defeating a great evil in the Valley.

Large scale, Jedi vs. Sith battles would not be seen again until the Sith-Imperial war over 130 years after the Battle of Yavin, as the New Jedi Order and the Imperial Knights fought Darth Krayt's One Sith.


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

[User] Can someone explain to me the Big Bang Theory LI5?

[Assistant]
When we look at the universe around us, we notice that everything seems to be moving away from each other.  Imagine if you drew a few dots in marker on a balloon and started to blow it up, you'd notice every point moving away from every other point as the balloon expands.  This is exactly what space is doing, it seems to be expanding.

So a bunch of scientists got to thinking, if everything is expanding away from each other, what if we ran time backwards?  Where is everything expanding FROM?  Is there a point at which the entire universe was collapsed into a single point that exploded and caused everything to expand outward?

An explosion generates a lot of heat and energy when it goes off and we even think we've detected some of the heat from the giant big bang explosion in something called Cosmic Microwave Background, which is really just another way of saying heat.

Also, by looking at how fast everything is moving away, we can easily see how far we need to rewind for everything to be in the same place, 13.7 billion years.  This is how we arrive at the age of the universe.

EDIT: Spelling.


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

[User] ELI5: Could we change the US-Mexico border by redirecting the Rio Grande River?

[Assistant]
Maybe.

These are the sort of things that cause international incidents where two governments end up in a heated fight over their interpretations. It would, if not agreed upon in advance, certainly strain relations and possibly also strain relations with other countries that take offense on Mexico's behalf.


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

[User] ELI5: How do we get other pictures of far away galaxies that we can not see?

[Assistant]
Long exposures with cameras using powerful telescopes.

Many galaxies and other celestial objects are too faint to see with the eye, or with a regular camera. But if you let a camera have a long enough exposure these faint objects reveal themselves in the picture taken by the camera.


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

[User]
What does "m" in atomic mass number mean?

I sat down here reading and I don't seem to understand what "m" means in the ending of an atomic mass number. For an example the isotope 234m Protactinium. First of all what does it mean? And how would it affect decay?

[Assistant]
It denotes isomeric states. These are nuclear excited states which have long half-lives.

When the nucleus is in a metastable excited state it will eventually decay, either to the ground state of the same nucleus via gamma emission or internal conversion, or it will just decay directly into some other nucleus by alpha, beta, or whatever.


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

[User] ELI5: If light doesnt experience time, how does it have a limited speed?

[Assistant]
We don't know.  We have no idea why the speed of light (the speed of causality really) is what it is.  We are pretty certain our physical law would work just as well no matter what the speed of light is, but things might seem different if we were in that world, especially if lightspeed was "everyday speed" slow.

What we do know is that this speed limit is the only speed massless particles (without rest mass) can travel, and that at that speed, time doesn't pass.  It's as if the speed of causality/speed of light is a combination of movement in space and time - move faster through space, you move slower through time, and when you've reached the speed limit, there's no more time left to move through.


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

[User] ELI5: How is it that fission and fusion both create enormous amounts of energy when they seem to be the exact opposite processes? (i.e. splitting or combining atoms)

[Assistant]
For the same atoms, they don't. You're correct that undoing a fission reaction takes as much energy as it would release.

But they're not done on the same atoms. The binding energy of nuclei (basically the energy you'd need to rip them apart = the energy you gain by putting them together) peaks around iron and nickel. For smaller atoms than that, fusion produces energy and fission consumes it. For larger atoms, fusion consumes energy and fission produces it.

Most fusion (both in stars and for power generation here on Earth) fuses hydrogen, the lightest element, into helium. Fission takes place spontaneously (i.e. without you doing anything to the nucleus) only in the heaviest elements.


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

[User]
[Star Trek] Why isn't there a transporter pad in sickbay?

They have at least 5 separate rooms for just transporting, most of the cargo bays have transporter pads, and it seems like every other episode someone is being teleported directly to sickbay. Why not put a pad directly in sickbay to save power? Isn't that the whole point of having transporter pads to begin with, to save power when transporting someone? Seems like a pretty big oversight to me.

[Assistant]
A transporter pad a is a key security point for hostiles to make for or try to take over.  In the event of boarding or other critical situation it is best to keep hostiles away from sickbay.

Also, transporter pads need routine maintenance.  Notice that there is always a chief on station.  A sickbay is not a place for unnecessary personnel.

If a medical emergency is called a site-to-site transport is still available.  The power savings is a minor concern.  The power produced by a M/AM warp core is more than enough.


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

[User] What are the differences between the types of gasoline at gas stations and how does it effect your car engine if you put one grade in over another?

[Assistant]
The efficiency of an engine depends on the *compression ratio*, which is the internal volume of the cylinder with the piston at the bottom divided by the volume with the piston at the top. The higher the compression ratio, the more energy goes into turning the crankshaft and the less goes out the tailpipe.

So you want the compression ratio to be high. Unfortunately, if it gets *too* high, the fuel-air mixture will detonate instead of burning progressively. This means the piston gets a hammer blow instead of a push, and it can wreck the engine.

The maximum compression ratio your engine can tolerate depends on the chemical makeup of the fuel; some fuels let you go higher than others, and the *octane rating* is a measure of this ability.

Your engine is designed to use fuel of at least a certain octane rating. If you use a lower-rated fuel, you're risking engine damage in a hard acceleration. If you use a higher rating, it won't *hurt*, but you're throwing money away because it won't *help* either.


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

[User]
CMV: The pro and anti-pineapple pizza debate is meaningless so long as the real enemy of the people continues to exist: Big Anchovy

Back in the 80s and early 90s, if you wanted to gross someone out with pizza, you'd put anchovies on it. In theory, fish shouldn't be terrible on pizza. Maybe a nice salmon bake, maybe some crab. It could work.

But it didn't.

But did Big Anchovy remove the product from market? No. The contracts were already in place. Pizza suppliers already owned the fish so they did their best to use it.

Once the contracts ran out, though, Big Anchovy wasn't doing so well since pizza places weren't ordering any more. But what's worse, anchovy pizza's been totally demonized and no one... NO ONE is buying it anymore.

The last thing Big Anchovy needs is their respective brands being hated on. So they come up with an ingredient that could never work and start marketing it: pineapple.

The idea is, if Big Anchovy can get people to hate on pineapple pizza more than anchovy pizza, they can distract from all the hate they get and keep out of the negative attention and bide their time for when Big Anchovy can do a relaunch, maybe in a few years.

The problem is, for some reason, people ended up loving pineapple on pizza. Now, I'm not here to argue for or against pineapple on pizza. I get the idea behind the flavor combinations. I get why some may like it and others not and for the purposes of this post, I'm taking a completely neutral stance on it.

Big Anchovy, though, is still up to their old games. They constantly make posts and memes taking both sides of the argument in the pro/anti pineapple debate, increasing rhetoric and polarization simply for the purpose of misdirecting the hate of the people away from anchovy pizza.

And it's working. Friends have fallen out. Marriages ended. Families torn apart. And for what? So a Big Anchovy company's stock can increase by a quarter of a point.

[Assistant] But what of a pineapple and anchovy pizza? How do you reconcile people who have no taste buds left from all the years of drinking, rife with the guilt of picking one over the other, to only come to the conclusion that they must have both?


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

[User]
Why does eye color change if you have blue/green eyes?

Is there a reason to it? And how does it happen?

[Assistant]
It has to do with the dilation of the pupil.

When the pupil dilates it also causes the Iris (the colored part of the eye) to compress a tiny bit. Because of this the eye tends to appear as though its different colors at different times.


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

[User]
In the context of the Ohio abortion bill, how is the reimplant of the embryo different than a surrogacy?

Sorry if I got any terminology wrong, it's not one of my strengths. Everyone keeps saying it's impossible to perform what the bill requires but it seems similar to how I imagine a surrogacy implantation in my head.

[Assistant]
Surrogacy takes a pre-implanted embryo and puts it into a non-pregnant womans uterus, where it implants; alternatively, sometimes surrogacy involves the womans own egg and artificial insemination. In either case, the embryo implants in the uterus.

The process of implantation is complex and detailed on a microscopic level; the embryos placenta builds up blood vessels that grow into the lining of the uterus and line up with the womans vessels on a cellular level and makes millions of connections. This *very intimate* connection has to be made to allow the embryos/fetus blood to be oxygenated, filtered, and supplied with nutrients by the womans body. Basically, the placenta is a liver, kidney, and lung combined for the developing embryo. On the womans side, the lining of the uterus is a specialized tissue that allows this intense, deep ingrowth of embryonic/fetal tissue *temporarily.* the whole structure is shed, (usually) safely,  after a baby is born.

An ectopic pregnancy is when the embryo attempts to grow into the tissue of a womans (usually) Fallopian tube, the lining of which did not evolve to safely allow this kind of invasive ingrowth, nor to stretch to the degree that a uterus allows as the fetus grows. The developing placenta cant be removed without tearing up the Fallopian tube, because it doesnt have that detachable lining, and the placenta cant re-grow those fine, microscopic, millions-fold connections after it has already tried to implant somewhere else. Just sticking an embryo in the right spot would be like sticking a raw chunk of liver in someone and calling it an organ transplant, without joining up any of the blood vessels or ducts, etc. Except worse, since the placental connections are microscopic and there are about seven orders of magnitude more of them.

Basically, it is entirely physically impossible to do with current technology, and will be until we have nanobots.

Edited for a terminology error.


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

[User]
[Wall-E] After the captains die are they chosen from the passengers or is their a certain unseen human worker class that are promoted?

It would be unusual for AUTO to pick a passenger if they are a paying customer descendant.

[Assistant]
Children receive an education and undergo aptitude testing.  Likely candidates are offered further training to become crew members.

The best of those qualify for the position of captain when the old one retires.  Usually the captain chooses his successor based on observation over years of faithful service.

Like all things on the ship, AUTO is able to manipulate the captain and candidates.


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

[User]
ELI5: How do people afford to be on a jury for weeks at a time?

Like in high profile cases, how can the jurors afford to be sequestered for more than 2 weeks?

Most jobs don't give jury duty pay, and those that do offer 2 weeks max. Do all of the jurors just happen to be able to take 6 weeks off from work and not receive paychecks?

[Assistant] I just had to do jury duty that lasted 3 weeks.  Before the trial starts during the selection process the judge will ask if anyone has any hardships that would prevent them from serving the entire trial, and they have a general idea of how long the trial lasts.  So a lot of people said that they couldn't afford to take that much time off of work, they wouldn't be able to pay rent etc. and were excused.  So in the end you wind up with a lot of people who can afford to miss the time because they're married and have dual incomes that can hold them over, housewives or retired people, and people who are on salary and don't need to worry about missing the time.


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

[User]
[MCU/Eternals Spoilers] So if the celestials....

If the Celestials are responsible for creating new stars/galaxies/etc., Does that mean that all the scientific phenomena of these processes occuring naturally is all a faade for their creation? And if that's the case, is it even possible for stars or planets to form naturally? And if they can't, wouldn't that mean gravity as we know it pretty much doesn't exist?

[Assistant]
The fact that they do it artificially doesn't mean those processes don't also happen naturally. In our world lakes and rivers naturally form over time, but we can use technology to form them much more quickly if it suits us.

Each celestial born requires (and destroys) a populated world, so it seems like the celestials are reshaping the universe as they see fit to use it as their breeding ground, like humans terraforming a natural landscape.


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

[User] [MCU] If Stark used all his battle data from fighting Thanos to create a Thanosbuster suit, what do you think that armor would be like?

[Assistant]
If Earthman Stark could singlehandedly build a suit that could go toe to toe with the Infinity Stones, I'd have to think Thanos was pulling his punches. How do you tech around the ability to stop time? Or the ability to manipulate the very fabric of reality.

Is there any suit Tony could build that Thanos couldn't immediately overcome by turning the power off? Turning into a fine Gouda? Mind wiping Tony so he thinks he's a set of mahogany drawers?

He phoned it in during the final assault on the Mind Stone, being about as unimaginative as one could get given the power at his command and yet barring a moment of shock/respect at Cap holding him up, he didn't even break a sweat.

If Thanos is anything more than comatose, you can't build around that. Tony can't win, Thanos would have to lose... pretty much intentionally.


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

[User]
[DC] If the flash, superman, or any other speedster were to clean a room would it be happening in real time to them

Ok say for some reason Barry is having to clean up the living room. To us its happening at super speed. But to Barry would it be like he is doing it at normal speed. IE would it feel to him like it was taking just as long as it would to do it in normal speed.

[Assistant]
Yes. Just because it seems fast for them, it's still taking the same relative time for them.

Washing dishes. Say it'd take ten minutes normally. He speeds through it, getting it done in ten seconds, but it still *feels* like ten minutes. Of course, with the Speed Force, he can slow down or speed up his perceptions so that each second feels like a second or feels like hours.


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

[User] [Avengers: Age of Ultron] Could HYDRA have realistically defeated the Avengers at the beginning of the movie?

[Assistant]
Dug-in position, heavily armed, and with resources including two superhumans and an Infinity Stone?

They could win in the sense of repelling the initial assault, and possibly score multiple kills in the process; Quicksilver with a sharp knife is a very real threat to about half the party, and Scarlet Witch is a heavy enough hitter that even folks like Thor and Hulk would need to take her seriously. In the long run, even if the Avengers pull back, the castle's cover is blown. Victory would take the form of being able to evacuate the facility on their own terms before the World Security Council or similar organization could deploy a conventional military force.


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

[User] Why it is wrong to kill someone painlessly from a purely pleasure is good and pain is bad basis? Lets assume that no one else will be affected (family, friends etc.) Only the person that is being killed painlessly is being affected. Why is it immoral?

[Assistant]
There are a couple of ways to think about this. One is what Voltairinede already pointed out: you're causing lots of (future) pleasure not to exist, assuming the person you're killing isn't in an unusually debilitated state.

Another is to take on a slightly more sophisticated form of hedonism and think about the effects of rules and practices on the availability of pleasure and pain. Is a world in which it's normal and acceptable to kill people under the conditions you describe a world in which there's more pleasure and less pain? Much depends on exactly what this practice is like (under what conditions are we imagining people killing other people, exactly?), but plausibly such a practice would cause pain through the introduction of a source of dread and foreboding, since presumably many of us could be the potential victims of this practice and would prefer not to be.


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

[User]
On a standard double-glazed window, which part of the glazing radiates out the most heat from indoors? The higher or lower end?

It's a bit of a silly question, but I can't get it off my mind.

I'm putting up some Static cling window films for winter because it reduces heat loss through the glass. The dimensions are roughly about 50x38 inches.

Since I'm not covering the entire window I started wondering which part of it would be where the largest portion of the heat escapes through the window's surface. My intuition tells me it is the upper half, but I'm also not sure if there would be any appreciable difference at that scale. The way modern double-glazed windows are structured to help prevent heat loss also makes me more uncertain if it would work quite that way.

[Assistant] The upper part because heat rises. But using the plastic on only part of the window won't help much. Insulation is trapped air. Heat travels more slowly through trapped air than it can through a solid object like a window frame. If you cover only part of the window there is no trapped air. A convection current will occur behind the plastic- warm air will rise up the side closer to the interior as cold air drops down the side closer to the cold glass.


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

[User]
[Jupiter Ascending] what is the long term effects of a protected world like earth?

Secondary question is there any way to move away from their immortality economy?

[Assistant]
1)

It depends on how the world will eventually be "used". Say it is protected long enough for them to develop Space faring technology they could eventually either join the galactic community and also start using the immortality technology. Or they could see themselves as endangered and start a war against the other humans (most likely the other humans wouldn't (want to) accept them anyways and see them as inferiors).

So either you have a few billion more people on in this galactic community or you have a war (which humanity (Terranity?) would most likely lose).

2)

No. Not unless the royals (influential people) want to give up their immortality which judging by how far they would go just to get a planet with a few billion citizens on it would most likely not be the case.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] Isn't becoming a Force Ghost more of a Sith move?

The attachment implied by hanging around after you've died just seems a bit *off* somehow.

It seems to me that keeping conscious after your body perishes violates the circle of life. As everything lives, everything dies.

I could see sidious creaming his pants at the thought of becoming a Force Ghost and being able to wander to different planets and call down lightning strikes without a squishy corporeal form.

By the same token I would have thought jedi would "become one with the force" by experiencing ego-death and actually returning to the force like a Buddhist reaching nirvana or something.

How is using magic to return from the dead and influence the living in anyway maintaining balance and the natural order of the force?

[Assistant] From the right point of view, staying around as a force ghost can be seen as the more selfless thing to do. It can be compared to the Buddhist concept of the Bodhisattva, a person who becomes enlightened but chooses to return to the cycle of reincarnation in order to help others become enlightened, rather than escaping the cycle of suffering. The Jedi who we've seen become ghosts do just that: help to guide and mentor the next generation of Jedi. In the desperate times that the Galaxy was going through, Obi-Wan and Yoda likely saw this as preferable to becoming one with the Force immediately.


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

[User]
Is the optic nerve stretchy or is there some slack to let your eye move?

When you move your eye to look around, does the optic nerve stretch or is there a little bit of slack inside your skull to allow the nerve to be pulled?

[Assistant]
The optic nerve in an adult has about 8mm of slack to allow the eye to move.

Nerves in general do not stretch very much, and the optic nerve in particular cannot stretch at all. That's because it is part of the central nervous system.

Because the nerve connects directly to the brain, it is covered in an extension of the brain's protective membrane envelope. Those membranes are called the "meninges," and consist of three layers: the dura, the arachnoid, and the pia mater. The dura is the outermost layer. It's relatively thick and consists of tough, fibrous, connective tissue, to protect the other membrane layers and the underlying nerve itself. It doesn't stretch significantly, and that means the whole bundle has to stay a pretty much constant length.


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

[User] ELI5 what is a socialist?

[Assistant]
A socialist is someone who believes in economic democracy; under capitalism or feudalism, a relative few people are in charge of most of the wealth. In a socialist system, theoretically, the ownership and control would be much more spread out somehow. Different socialist factions disagree on exactly how that should be implemented and maintained.

A traditional capitalist business is usually owned by one person or a small group of people, who make all the important decisions. An example of a socialist business is a worker co-operative, in which all the workers own a share and run the place democratically.

Countries like the former Soviet Union, in which there is little to no democracy and the economy is planned, are often called socialist and called themselves that, but if we take socialism to mean economic democracy they were actually nothing of the sort. The USSRs first leader Vladimir Lenin himself called what they were doing state capitalismit replicated the concentrated, top-down structure of capitalism except with government taking the place of rich people.


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

[User] [Kaiju movies in general] Why do fighter jets and gunships that fire on giant monsters always fly within their melee striking distance?

[Assistant] Without the ability to "lock on" to something, either your dumb fire a missile from a mile away at a moving target or you get as close possible and dumb fire the missile into the building sized monster, which is a much easier if more dangerous shot to make. There are missiles that are guided by a person, but it's hard for a missile to make a sharp turn, so releasing as close as possible is your best bet to hit any target.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why aren't we supposed to put Q-Tips in our ears and how else are we to reach that level of cleaning without them?

I get that there's a risk involved when cleaning your ears with Q-Tips, but other risky stuff isn't explicitly said not to do.

[Assistant]
There is a very high likelihood that you will push ear wax into the ear canal possibly leading to an infection or piercing of your ear drum. You can even pierce the ear drum with the q-tip if you push it too deep.

And you are not suppose to reach that level of cleaning. Ear wax is a natural and needed component of ear health. To remove too much of it means you are removing the protection your ears have and leave them open for infection.


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

[User]
[General] I'm worried that my space empire is actually interleaved with other species' realms (methane breathers, solar dwellers, etc). How can I realistically protect my so-called "borders"?

In terms of them wanting my planets we should be pretty okay ... I don't want to live on Jupiter, for example.  But eventually there'll be contention over asteroid belt mining, or my Navy will get too jittery watching incomprehensible alien vessels flit about and simply blow them away.

[Assistant]
You either make the call to spend resources defending planets that are useless to you out of some sort of xenophobia, or you realize that interleaved borders aren't a problem.
In the latter case, you keep the lines of communication open, negotiate ahead of time, and in the worst case just defend the resources you care about rather than defending everything.


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

[User] [Star Trek] Why did Starfleet/Federation agree not to pursue cloaking technology despite two of its historical adversaries (Romulans and Klingons) having the technology and it giving them a far more advantage over them in battle?

[Assistant]
The treaty of Algeron.

In 2311 (between TOS and TNG), there was a short conflict between the UFP and the Romulan Star Empire that would later be referred to as the Tomed Incident. There is little cannonical information as to the specifics of this conflict other than that thousands of lives were lost on both sides.

Following the incident, the UFP and RSE redrew the borders of the neutral zone and amongst the terms of the treaty were that the UFP wouldn't pursue cloaking technology and the RSE would withdraw from galactic politicking.

On the face of it this was absurd terms for the UFP to agree to, but without knowing the specifics of the Tomed incident, we don't know just how desperate for peace they were. Another often overlooked factor that may have gone into their decision is that was about 20 years after the Khitomer accords, the UFP already had backdoor access to cloaking tech due to their alliance with the Klingons.

They didn't need to cloak after this point. They had established treaties to their galactic east with the RSE and Klingons, and to their west was relatively minor powers that also didn't have cloaking technology. It wasn't until the discovery of the wormhole that they had a technologically equivalent adversary that warranted a cloak, and the Romulans agreed that they should get one for that specific purpose.


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

[User]
[Pokmon] What's the nature of Dugtrio's consciousness?

Do all three heads share the same mind? If not, where do the other two come from when Diglit evolves? Do they just appear? Do they split off from the original diglit's mind? Does it ever explain this?

[Assistant]
According to the Hoenn Pokedex:

>  Dugtrio are actually triplets that emerged from one body. As a result, each triplet thinks exactly like the other two triplets. They work cooperatively to burrow endlessly.

However, there is but one sign of disagreement in *Ultra Sun's* Pokedex:

> While the three of them normally get along splendidly, on rare occasions a huge fight will break out over which head gets to eat first.