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

[User] ELI5: Why do some card readers at the register seem like they take forever to process (asking debit/credit, double confirming total) and others are done completely in 3 seconds?

[Assistant] The reader only reads the card.  It has to go thru internet connection to reach the bank to live process the transaction.  If internet at the vendor is slow or being disrupted, the transaction can stall.


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

[User]
ELI5: How it comes that such common words as "candy" and "saga" are allowed to be trademarked, just like King.com did?

Wouldn't it lead to absurds like copyrighting  more common phrases such as "the game"? Can I trademark something very common and then sue other companies for using it?

[Assistant]
Trade marks can only be enforced when there is a reasonable chance of confusion.

"Candy saga" as a name doesn't really refer to anything but their games.

Them trademarking them allows them to sue companies that try to profit off their name through confusing customers, like a game called "Saga of Candy" which is just a poorly made clone.

You can't trademark "game" because tons of other things clearly already use that word.  They also can't sue a company that makes an RPG called "Saga of Time" or whatever, there's no confusion there.  They don't own the words, they just are staking a claim to that phrasing and it's been agreed that anything using those words in a too similar way is an effort to confuse customers.


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

[User]
CMV: Saying only actors who are like the part should play them is racist/discriminatory.

So I'm really confused by these changes over the past few years.

I think I saw the simpsons saying they would only have actors of the same ethinic background doing the voices for those parts. I was surprised by the hank azaria thing and think it's sad.

And I've also seen other people saying that parts for a disabled role should go to a real disabled person rather than someone just playing the role.

I don't get how that isn't just saying that actually we aren't all the same and therefore you shouldn't play for example play an Indian part because you're not Indian.

I can understand how portraying a person of a different race to you can be offensive but that depends on how the character is portrayed not by the mere fact that it's a person not from the same ethnic background playing it. There are definately lots of films such as the carry on movies for instance where they are in black/brown face doing terrible stereotypes and you can see how that would be offensive.

There have been plays/films where actors who were black or female have famously played a part typically portrayed as a white person or a man and there is a big hoorah about how groundbreaking it is etc.

Isn't that just undermining the whole thing of us all being equal? Shouldn't it just be a case of whoever the actor is is bringing the best of what they have to the role.

So yeah I just don't understand this at all, and if we are doing it carte blanche based on who the people are rather than the content of the role or portayle then you're just doing the same thing you are acusing them of doing which is judging them for who they are.

[Assistant] You've failed to take into account the fundamental argument, and that argument centers on the lack of proportionate representation of people of color in entertainment. There would not be as much an issue of a white person voicing a black character, for example, if the number of working black actors were proportionate to their demographics. Because they are disproportionately under-represented, we have to ask... why do white people voice black characters when there are talented black actors available?


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

[User] ELI5: why is it that if I boil my pet crab, it's totally legal, yet if I boil my pet dog, I would be arrested? What's the difference?

[Assistant] In the US The Animal Welfare Act excludes a number of animals: birds, rats and mice bred for research, and animals raised for food or fiber as well as all cold-blooded animals. Animal cruelty laws do not apply to crabs.


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

[User] [Star Wars] Were the Stormtroopers clones?

[Assistant] Yes and no. The first batch after the formation of the Empire were, simply because they had a lot of clone troopers still active from the Clone Wars and there was no sense letting them go to waste. By the time of the Galactic Civil War, though, most stormtroopers were recruits. Interestingly enough, standard training for Stormtroopers included grueling physical challenges meant to screen for Force sensitivity. Those who performed suspiciously well on them were often handed over to the Imperial Inquisition-- whether as new members or for execution was up to them.


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

[User]
Why wasn't Batman an ideal green lantern candidate?

I'm sorry if this question has been asked before, I tried searching for an older post but couldn't find any.

Why wasn't Batman ever chosen to be a candidate for the green lantern corps? Multiple iterations of Batman emphasize on the fact that he has enormous willpower. His constant struggle with himself to not give in to the temptation of killing anyone, and how he maintains his code just by willpower is  a very integral part of his character. Why did he never end up being a green lantern?

[Assistant]
He wasn't ideal for one main reason:

He has channeled that willpower into repressing his parents' deaths. He's haunted by it, and the fear that results is one that he just can't overcome. His big motivation is ironically what keeps him from using the Ring.

Also, he has a huge reliance on fear. He's devoted himself to it, and so he's much like a Sinestro Corps. member, and GLs don't like the SC. It doesn't *exclude* him from being a member, but it hurts his chances.


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

[User] ELI5: Why do humans blush when they are embarrassed?

[Assistant] Blushing is a reaction of the sympathetic nervous system and part of our fight or flight response. When youre embarrassed, adrenaline is released, speeding up your heart rate and dilating your blood vessels to improve your blood flow and oxygen delivery. In humans, facial veins react to this adrenaline by blushing. But this response doesnt happen anywhere else in your body, which is why you dont blush all over.


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

[User]
Why does fission happen randomly?

It seems for a given nucleus either the Coulomb repulsion would overcome the strong force, or the vice versa.  From where does probability get involved?

[Assistant]
Spontaneous fission is a quantum tunneling process. You have two (or more) "lobes" of nuclear matter, bound by a mutually attracting potential. In order for fission to occur, they must tunnel out of their attractive wells. Depending on how strongly deformed the nucleus is, this could be very easy (meaning small lifetime) or very hard (long lifetime).

Exactly when tunneling will occur is of course probabilistic.


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

[User] ELI5: Difference between swamp, marsh, bog, pond, fen and other wetland terms.

[Assistant]
It's based on plant life, water source, flow, and level, and soil composition mainly.

For an ELI5

Swamp has trees. It's basically a really wet forest with water on the ground.

Marsh has less trees more grasses

A bog has typically has peat and the ground is a mire (water/soil mixture) but it's raised up above the other terrain, fed by rain.

A fen is like a bog but it's on sloped or flatland and usually fed by underground water.


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

[User] Acid rain, does it still happen? If so, why is it not taught in schools like it was 20 years ago?

[Assistant]
Acid rain was an environmental disaster in North America between 1970-1980 centered over Lake Huron because of the manufacturing processes in the rust belt. Luckily for us, acid rain was apparent in its destruction of infrastructure which caused bridges to prematurely fail and trillions of dollars in corrosion. These apparent failings caused politicians to act pretty quickly and acid rain is a fraction of what it used to be.

Unfortunately, some of these manufacturing sectors left the rust belt to continue the exact same practices in a country that cares less about air quality and acid rain. So its not a problem for North America infrastructure or North Americans health anymore.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] How did Yoda, in either Legends or Canon, know of Darth Banes Rule of Two during the events of The Phantom Menace?

It is the belief of the Jedi that the Sith have been extinct for 1000 years.

Darth Bane lived 1000 years ago, and remade the Sith under his Rule of Two.

How did Yoda know of the Rule of Two to reason there would be no more or less than two total Sith.

[Assistant]
The Jedi have been vigilant for any presence of the Sith Order. When they do find one and raid its lair, they gather lore and artefacts. Throughout all the post-Ruusan literature they've acquired, the concept of "the Rule of Two" consistently appears as it pertains to masters and apprentices.

The Order can't verify that the Sith are truly extinct, so they must remain vigilant, guarding an entire galaxy from the possible influence of just two sapient beings.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] Would Palpatine have been successful of Anakin died before becoming Vader?

It is heavily implied at the end of TPM that Palpatine had plans to use Anakin in his plan to rise to power. However what would happen if Anakin had died some point before his plan came to fruition, for instance during the Clone War? We know that Palpatine is the Grand Chessmaster, playing both sides, having plans and contingencies. How would he go about restoring the Sith without a powerful piece like Anakin to precipitate the fall of the Jedi?

[Assistant]
Anakin was always incidental at best to Palpatine's overall plans. The plans for the Clone Wars were already laid before Anakin was even discovered, after all.

Had Anakin not been around, he would have taken a different apprentice instead.


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

[User] [X-men] Can the X-gene be wiped out and/or can the evolution from humanity into mutants be prevented?

[Assistant] This was a plot point in Logan. They were adding something to the corn, which is in basically everything, that suppressed the mutant gene and there hadn't been any new mutants born in a generation. Logan was slowly killing himself by drinking whiskey with the gene suppressant in it, which made him eventually succumb to the adamantium poisoning.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why are illnesses like chickenpox normally harmless in children but deadly for adults?

Just curious since you would think that the more robust immune system of an adult would make the illness less dangerous.

[Assistant] Generally kids have weaker immune systems than adults do. Symptoms of disease are sometimes products of the immune system fighting the infection. Since adults have stronger defenses against infectious diseases, adults will have worse and more apparent symptoms.


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

[User] If everything is a social construct, then what influenced it?

[Assistant]
No one who is seriously thinking about what's going on is calling everything a social construct. It's much more likely that you heard this directly from a randomer on the internet or possibly some right-wing news media source that wants to tell lies about social science academics.

A lot of things almost certainly are: money, nations, genders, races, companies, etc. Some things almost certainly aren't: trees, protons, capybaras. Someone might object to inclusion of protons in the second list there but, regardless, what science says about protons is not *entirely* constructed.

So do you have anything more specific in mind? Is it any one of these categories in particular that you're interested in?


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

[User] why do cellphones cause that "dat da da, dat" noise when place next to my powered speakers?

[Assistant] The wires in your speakers are acting like little antennas, picking up radio signals from your phone. Since the speakers are powered, they have an amplifier built into them which amplifies this unwanted interference.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why is a Plancks length the smallest possible distance?

I know its only theoretical, but why couldnt something be just slightly smaller?

[Assistant]
It's a combination of several fundamental constants. Specifically the speed of light, Planck's constant, and the gravitational constant G. If you combine these three constants in a certain way, you get a length, a very very small length, and that is the smallest length where light and gravity have the properties we see that they do.

It's not known if it truly is the smallest scale, only that our laws of physics break down at scales that small.


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

[User] Why is it that the inside of fresh water pipes that feed houses don't need regular cleaning?

[Assistant]
They are designed so that there are no blind ends or dead angles, where bacteria or deposit could build up. An example of how this failed was a case where the cooling system of a power plant had a blind end in their piping. *Legionella* bacteria found the place, made a little colony and then spread around the area with the mist from the cooling tower, infecting many people.

Second, tap water is chlorinated, even if it's pure at the source, exactly in order to avoid bacterial buildup. Small concentrations of chlorine are good enough to prevent growth, even if they can't be used for desinfection as such. A little ammonia is added, because when chlorinated, it forms more persistent nitrogen chlorides that retain the active chlorine in the water better than plain chlorine, which gives only a chlorine solution. If there's a breach of the integrity of the piping or a problem at the source, a "shock chlorination" is done to actually desinfect the pipes.

Even so, buildup is a thing. Fortunately, much of it is inorganic, like calcium and iron salts. Because it's washed continuously with water, it attains a pseudo-steady state where it releases little material into the water. However, over time, it can build up to such a point that it affects the water pressure.


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

[User] [Gremlins] Why is Gizmo so nice and sweet, but its spawn are really mean? Do Mogwai reproduce other than water? Does water replication cause faulty Mogwai? If you want more Mogwai to sell, why not use water?

[Assistant] Gizmo might have benefited from a decent upbringing by the old shopkeeper. While splashing them to make money is certainly a valid tactic (if one remembers to raise no more devils than one is able to put down), the shopkeeper didn't even want to sell the one.


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

[User]
What effect did the evolution and emergence of birds have on Earth's ecosystems?

I was thinking recently about animals which are accidentally or deliberately introduced to new habitats (like starlings being brought to North America, or rabbits to Australia) and it made me wonder - did the emergence of birds (or any other flying creatures capable of travelling between different isolated ecosystems, for that matter) have a similar effect? For example, did a certain species of bird ever migrate to a new continent/island/whatever where it had no natural predators, and then profoundly alter the balance of the ecosystem in that place?

I realise this might be a bit of a simplistic question because obviously birds evolved the ability to fly over a very long period of time, and also that it might be quite difficult to determine precisely when and where different animals first appeared, but I'd still really appreciate any insights you can provide.

Thank you.

[Assistant]
>For example, did a certain species of bird ever migrate to a new continent/island/whatever where it had no natural predators, and then profoundly alter the balance of the ecosystem in that place?

New Zealand is actually a very good example of that; before humans arrived the only mammals on the island were bats.  Every other niche that would normally be filled with mammals in most ecosystems were filled with birds.  A couple of examples are the "large herbivore grazer" niche that is commonly occupied by ruminants in other ecosystems was occupied by the moa, a large flightless bird, and the role of apex predator which is normally filled by big cats or canines was filled by an eagle that was large enough to prey on moa.


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

[User]
ELI5: The process of repacking goods for resale after they are returned.

Many times, items themselves will be returned in like new condition for a full refund but their packaging is more or less destroyed (e.g. plastic film/bags torn open, styrofoam broken, etc.), or certainly not in good enough condition to be sold as new. What happens to these items and who eats the cost of repackaging them? I can't imagine it makes sense to ship the item all the way back to its factory in a different country for repackaging. Are there specialty firms that handle repackaging things to a manufacturer's spec? Do retailers do it? Are there laws about disclosing that the item is returned?

[Assistant]
a lot of them are sold as refurbished or scratch and dents or customer returns.  a lot of them are also sold as oem without original packaging.

basically in the usa, if any item has their original packaging opened, then it no longer qualifies as new and must be sold as refurbished/used even if new packaging is used.

it depends on the store, but some stores like fry's just puts them back on the shelf as a customer return while others puts them on pallets and sells them at auction or in bulk to someone who then tries to flip them on ebay or sell it as used/refurbished.

for food items, if it's non perishable items like canned or boxed or sealed packaging items that don't require refrigeration and isn't expired, they can be put back on the shelf.  but perishable items, they are always discarded.


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

[User]
[The Dark Knight] What does Batman say/do immediately after the events of the film?

So at the very end of the film, he's driving in traffic on the Bat motorbike. So he returns to the cave or compound, what does he say to Alfred or Fox? Does he immediately quit once he gets back?

Does any source material cover it?

[Assistant] According to the beginning of Dark Knight Rises, it seems he just disappeared from action. Im sure Alfred and Fox (probably) were told the truth, but the rest of the narrative of what happened was reported by Gordon and the cops who corroborated him going rogue and taking them down in the tower, etc.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] Why was C3PO driving the speeder?

When R2 runs away and they're looking for him in the speeder, Luke can be heard to tell C3PO to "hit the accelerator". Why is Luke letting this untested (and at this point, not exactly trustworthy) droid drive him around?

[Assistant]
Droids are used as capable pilots across the galaxy, and there's not a lot to crash into in the Tatooine desert for the most part.

C-3PO hadn't shown any defects, so Luke made a judgement call that he'd rather focus his attention on locating R2-D2 himself than on driving.


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

[User]
[Fallout] The Great War was far from the first time nuclear radiation existed in the Fallout universe. Were ghouls ever created by this radiation?

I mean, we know Hiroshima and Nagasaki were still nuked, and nuclear weapons were used in the resource wars. They probably had their fair share of Chernobyl style accidents, and by the time of the Great War nuclear power was absolutely commonplace and waste was often improperly disposed. With all that radiation going around, would at least a few people have been exposed just right to become ghoulified?

[Assistant]
The process to become a ghoul is not fully understood.  Certainly large doses of radiation are necessary, but given that the vast majority of people who get hit by intense radiation don't become ghouls, there's some additional X-factor at play.

For example, it's possible that some additional genetic mutation is necessary for ghoulification, and only the people who have this mutant gene will become ghouls.  Alternatively, perhaps ghoulification is related to the forced evolutionary virus (FEV), which was only released on the world after the war.  A third possibility is that only certain types of radiation will lead to ghoulification.

Now, we do know of two cases of pre-war individuals who irradiated themselves to deliberately become ghouls: Desmond Lockheart and Eddie Winter.  However, the procedures they underwent were experimental, and have now been lost to time (and the War).

So, ultimately, we cannot say for certain that no other ghouls existed pre-war, but currently we have seen no indication of their existence. Furthermore, given that the only pre-war ghouls we know of underwent ghoulification deliberately, this suggests accidental ghouls were probably not a thing prior to the Great War.


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

[User]
ELI5: What is heat and/or energy?

It never really occurred to me before, but heat doesn't really make sense to me. As in; what is it? We can't observe it the same way as we can observe material, can we?

I remember that particles vibrate which causes heat, and that absolute zero is when "nothing" moves, or something like that. Does that mean heat is the vibration of something? But it doesn't make sense that air can be hot too...?

Also, I read/heard somewhere (I think my teacher) that heat does not generate, it only moves. If so, then how come a room becomes warm with a fire in it? Shouldn't the room become cold because the fire draws all the heat from around it?

[Assistant]
All matter, including air, is composed of very tiny particles called atoms.  Sometimes the atoms are joined together in groups called molecules.

Atoms and molecules can have two kinds of motion, ordered and disordered.  An example of ordered motion would be a baseball bat being swung; all the molecules in the baseball bat are moving together as a unit.  Temperature is a measure of disordered motion.  Even when the matter appears to be at rest, the molecules inside it are jiggling and bouncing around (you could say they are vibrating, but they are not vibrating in sync with one another, each one vibrates at random).  The faster the molecules move when they jiggle, the higher the temperature (this isn't quite the whole story because temperature is a measure of average kinetic energy and not average speed, but it will help you visualize what's going on).  Absolute zero does indeed refer to a state where the molecules would not be moving at all, but there is no way to put matter into a true absolute zero state in reality.

If you place matter with a low temperature next to matter with a higher temperature, the temperature of the lower matter will rise and the matter with the higher temperature will drop, until they both reach the same temperature.  We call this process "heat transfer", and "heat" refers to the energy that is transferred from the higher temperature matter to the lower.

Finally, energy is a number that physicists associate with physical laws.  This number can be expressed in various ways in different situations, but it always has a specific property.  The property is that the change in energy for any physical process is zero; energy is "conserved".


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

[User]
ELI5 Why does using a tea towel and an iron help remove burn marks on a wooden table?

Recently I burned my table when I put down a paper plate with hot food on it. After watching some videos I tried "ironing" the wood with a tea towel over top. I used a little bit of steam and sure enough, it worked. However, in none of the videos I watched, did they explain why this works. so what is happening exactly that is causing the fix?

[Assistant] It doesn't remove burn marks, it releases moisture trapped in the finish. When you put a hot plate down it softens the finish and moisture gets trapped. Heating it up with the iron softens it again, releasing it.


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

[User] ELI5: What happens to my money if my bank closes down?

[Assistant] If you're in the US, your checking and/or savings account is almost certainly insured by the US government for up to $250,000. The FDIC (the agency insuring it) will generally try to have failing banks bought by another bank, in which case you become a customer of that new bank. If that proves impossible, the US government pays out the account value.


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

[User] ELI5: What would happen to the economy of everybody reverted back to trading for everything?

[Assistant]
Almost complete collapse. Realistically, very few people have anything worthwhile to trade aside from their time and personal possessions.

Money gives individuals liquidity so that they can get the things they need as they need them.


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

[User]
How well connected is the human brain to the rest of the body? How many points (nerves, arteries, connecting tissue) would need to be severed to "cleanly" remove it without definite loss of function - assuming it could be kept alive at all?

I'm trying to understand how a full brain transplant might be possible (assuming those severed connections could be reconnected and healed on the other side, of course) - I have the mental image of the brain floating about in the skull with just the brainstem and nerves for the eyes coming out and linking it to the body - though surely it is not this simple, right?

[Assistant]
If you want some nightmare fuel, look up the head transplant experiments of the 50s and 60s.

One of the big barriers to brain/head transplantation is that there isn't an effective method to reconnect nerve tissue (severed nerves do not heal to a functional state, this is why spinal cord injuries can result in permanent paralysis).


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

[User]
[Destiny] Why are there signs in the Tower written in Spanish and Chinese?

Tower's been real empty recently, what with all the Guardians palling around with Saladin in a mountain nowadays, I hear. Got me thinking about the signs all around. Why do the Guardians need signs in Spanish and Chinese? Far as I can tell, they all speak English. I don't think they have any fancy translators either -- I've heard 'em listening to Cabal transmissions and they gotta have an interpreter to help 'em out.

So, what gives? If anything you'd think they'd have them in Russian, since it seems a lot of our favorite resurrected soldiers come from there. Or Fallen, since I hear those Awoken out there in the Reef employ a few, and you never know when they'll visit. I hear a lot of chatter hanging around the Tower.

Heh, maybe they should scratch out some signs in whatever the Hive use, to help out Eris Morn. Don't tell her I said that, though, she gives me the creeps.

[Assistant]
"Guardian, these sigils date back to the earliest history of the tower; before the collapse. When the traveler first graced our skies humanity was fractured. Cultures from around the world began to work in earnest together for the first time. An age of cooperation.

Many of those early explorers and visionaries held on to their original language though. You can see signs of this in the Cosmodrome, ancient Russian, or the Chinese bases that still dot the moon's surface. Mars and Venus were mostly colonized by English speakers from Europe and North America.

We have kept these messages as reminders that we fight for all of humanity. Even though so much is lost to us. So many cultures and languages extinguished in the blink of an eye. We fight in their memory.


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

[User]
[Aliens] Do Xenomorphs have a more human-noid form they've yet to evolve into?

Do they have that potential of further evolution if they learnt how to "absorb" humans instead of just heating them?  Like Perfect Cell from DBZ, I picture Xenomorphs as below Imperfect Cell.

[Assistant]
No.

The alien lifecycle in the comics was generally Facehugger>Chestburster>Xenomorph>Praetorian>Queen.

Their "absorbing" was mostly restricted to lifting useful traits from the thing they were incubated in. That's why the Alien in 3 was quadrupedal, because it was birthed from a dog (or Ox, depending on the cut) and why the predalien exists. Might change if Ridley Scott continues his metamorphosis into George Lucas, but hopefully not.


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

[User]
[Fellowship of the Ring] Does Arwen give up her immortality to save Frodo?

When they're fleeing from the Ringwraiths and Frodo is dying, she prays over him, saying, "What grace is given me, let it pass to him." I know this scene isn't in the book, but given the wider Tolkein-verse, is it possible movie-Arwen is passing some of her immortality to him?

[Assistant] It is just a generic prayer.  Immortality cannot simply be "passed" to someone else.  Arwen does give up her immortality to be with Aragorn, but she is able to do this for completely separate reasons relating to her family's history.


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

[User] ELI5:We've all heard the phrase you can't shout fire in a crowded theater, what law are you actually breaking, what is the punishment?

[Assistant]
When you ask about law, you really need to specify a jurisdiction. The famous saying about shouting fire in a crowded theater comes from a Supreme Court ruling on which types of speech are protected by the First Amendment, *case Schenck v. United States*--false shouting fire in a crowded theater, one justice suggested, would clearly not be. (*Schenck* was later overruled, but this particular example is probably still true.) This only means that this is a kind of speech a state or city *could* establish a law against.

To pick a jurisdiction, causing a commotion in this way could violate Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Statutes,  5503:
> A person is guilty of disorderly conduct if, with intent to cause public inconvenience, annoyance or alarm, or recklessly creating a risk thereof, he:

>1. engages in fighting or threatening, or in violent or tumultuous behavior;
2.  makes unreasonable noise;
3.  uses obscene language, or makes an obscene gesture; or
4. creates a hazardous or physically offensive condition by any act which serves no legitimate purpose of the actor.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] What are the helmets the rebel soldiers are wearing on Tantive IV? And how effective are they?

Also why couldn't the rebels have armor as effective as storm trooper armor? Even stolen storm trooper armor painted a different color or something wasn't a thing for them.

[Assistant]
Rebel troopers of various units spread across the galaxy were often equipped with uniforms bearing a striking resemblance to the uniforms of the Alderaanian armed forces. Alliance sympathizers within the Alderaanian government helped fund, train and equip many militant groups outside the Alderaan system. The unadmitted military support of the Alliance was to such an extent that it helped shape the look of Rebel troopers for years to come. Even after the Destruction of Alderaan in 0 BBY, and perhaps because of it, many Rebel units began showing up in uniforms greatly inspired by the former Alderaanian armed forces. Much of the uniforms and equipment came from the Galactic Republic's Planetary Security Forces.

The Alderaanian-looking and most common uniform of the Rebel troopers consisted of blue shirts, black combat vests, gray trousers and black calf length boots. To protect officers and general infantry from head injuries, white blast helmets with blast visors and extended neck guards were issued as standard head-wear. They, however, lacked the level of armor utilized by their imperial counterparts. This basic uniform was seen all over the galaxy, often with smaller differences in design and coloring.


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

[User] [General Sci-fi] I've chosen to begin my career of being a low level starship crewman. Which captain am I most likely to survive serving under, and which is most likely to get me killed?

[Assistant]
As for who's going to get you killed:  Any capsuleer piloted ship in the EvE universe.  Obviously some ships are safer than others, but those capsuleers are immortal and they know it.  Death means little to them, and everyone loses ships.
The mantra among them is "Don't fly what you can't afford to lose."  So if they undock with you aboard, they've decided they can afford to lose you.


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

[User] ELI5: Why does tooth paste come in a tube? and are there any companies that dont put it in a tube?

[Assistant]
You don't want it to get manky or dry out. So it needs to be in a closed container without air, and you don't want to be touching the bulk of it. Also you don't really have a suitable tool to scoop it out of e.g. a tub.

So the options are pretty much a flexible tube or an airless pump. You could probably do aerosol toothpaste like shaving gel, but it is much gloopier so might struggle to come out.


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

[User] ELI5: Why, when I have a cold, is my nose stuffy when I'm sitting down, but clears up when I'm walking?

[Assistant]
It helps to explain the source of the stuffiness: blood capillaries that are leaky and cause the sinus tissues to swell and "stuff" your nose.  When you become active (like walking), your sympathetic (fight or flight) nervous system becomes slightly activated and some epinephrine (adrenaline) is released into the blood stream.  This epinephrine works to constrict blood vessels and raise your blood pressure. The blood vessel constriction in your nose stops the capillaries from leaking so much, and the swelling in your nasal tissues decreases.

This also helps explain why your nose gets more stuffy when you lie down, because it increases the blood flow to your nose, and the capillaries leak. Leaky vessels + blood pooling there => nasal congestion. If you're congested, sleep sitting up to help clear your nose.

Pseudoephedrine is a common medication that stimulates the blood vessels to constrict and stop being leaky, which explains why it works as a decongestant.


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

[User]
How does a seed know when to grow?

My wife just started growing an avocado pit by letting it float in a glass of warm water for a few days (using a heating pad).  It got me thinking about how seeds can sit on a shelf (or in this case in an avocado) for months or years without growing, but as soon as you put them into water or soil they begin to sprout.  What exactly happens in a seed to convey that conditions are right for growing to occur?  Is it some kind of chemical reaction triggered by warmth and/or water?  Does this reaction vary greatly among different seeds?

[Assistant]
Dry seeds on a shelf don't germinate because they are dormant, and dormancy is broken by the seed getting wet. Most (all?) seeds need to imbibe water in order to soften the seed coat, because if this doesn't happen, the seed isn't going to germinate. The process of absorbing water (imbibition) also activates enzymes stored in the seed, converting them into chemicals which are useful during seedling growth.

Seeds also need oxygen and heat to germinate, and different plants germinate at different temperatures - but it's complicated, some need heat, some need alternating periods of heat and cool. Very few seeds need light to germinate, but some forest plants do, so they only germinate when a tree falls near them, creating a gap in the canopy.

Plants are wicked smart for things with no central nervous system.


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

[User]
Can birds "converse" with other types of birds?

I was just watching a crow and a broad-winged hawk perched together on the top of a tree, a few feet apart. They were facing each other, with what really seemed like a clear back-and-forth type dialogue. They honestly reminded me of two strangers sitting at a bus stop having a friendly conversation.

Am I anthropomorphizing a coincidence or could they actually have been having a conversation/dialogue?

[Assistant] songbirds will often make raspy, hissing sounds whenever there is a threat in the area, which other species can understand as a threat and respond to. Try this: go out to a garden or somewhere that birds are common, and repeatedly make a pssshhwssshhwssshh.. sound. This is called pishing in the birding field. Notice birds will likely come out to see what is going on or vocalize back to you.


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

[User]
Why does vibration loosen machine thread fasteners as opposed to tightening them?

I understand vibration tends to loosen nuts and bolts.  Thus, the lock nut.  Why is it that vibration can only loosen a nut from a bolt?

[Assistant]
The nut and bolt are slightly stretched when they are torqued. Vibration will allow them to relax which prevents the nut from re-torquing.

In addition, there are symmetry bolts with 2 sets of threads on them that are supposed to be vibration proof. They have a right handed course thread and a left handed fine thread, so you put a regular nut then a left handed jam nut and there you go.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] How good of a duelist was Luke Skywalker after his training with Yoda?

I just noticed that at one point in the exchange before he gets his hand chopped off that he actually lands a blow on Vader, and like a nice solid hit that if not for whatever armor the Dark Lord has on probably would have taken  the limb off. Now at this point Luke hasn't ever been shown to have any specific lightsaber training aside from his crash course with the Remote on the Millennium Falcon before the Death Star encounter, it never seemed like Yoda trained him for it instead more concerned with actual force stuff. To top it all off we have Cal Kestis who we saw was a fairly competent duelist for an amateur defeating two separate inquisitors and chopping his way through dozens of enemies without a single blaster, not to mention some unspecified amount of action he might have potentially seen in the Clone Wars (although given his age we don't know if he ever participated in any actual fighting) and when he fought Darth Vader he didn't even get the health bar only managing a single (if gruesome) blow on Vader with the help of BB8 tazing him. So does that mean that Luke is a better duelist than Cal was?

[Assistant]
Yoda has had twenty years to think up a lesson plan, on top of his (probably) century+ of teaching experience already, and he's working with a student with a tremendous amount of natural potential, so it isn't absurd that Luke is much better than the average Jedi would be after just a few weeks.

The major difference here is that Vader is explicitly not trying to kill Luke, and isn't taking him that seriously, while he couldn't care less about Cal. When Luke scores his glancing blow on Vader, that's likely the first time Vader considers this a serious exercise, and Luke is disarmed, missing a sword hand, and totally at Vader's mercy just a few seconds later.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] What sort of defences would Jabba the Hutt have for his Tatooine palace?

Would he be rich enough to have a hidden turbolaser battery, maybe?

[Assistant] Well, there's the army of green pigmen, the legion of heavily armed and heavily paid elite bounty hunters, the giant space Kong... Hutts pride themselves on their power over others. Their favorite method of protection is one that devotes many of those others to lay down their lives for the Hutt. Jabba was probably satisfied with the level of protection his bodyguards provided him, plus the dead man's switches his organization and his family's organizations would pull against any single assassin or small group. The only reason Luke and Leia weren't hunted down by every cash-hungry hit ~~man~~ thing within a thousand light-years is the Resistance and it's vast military resources (by comparison to the average street criminal, that is)


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

[User] ELi5: Why did eggs become such a common breakfast food?

[Assistant]
Most food choices were based on what was easy to raise and farm in an area. Chickens are easy to raise just about anywhere and provide an ample amount of eggs. They average 1 egg a day.

Eggs are good for you (except for a few years in the 1990s), are easy to cook, and can be cooked in a variety of ways quickly.

They specifically became breakfast food because eggs were typically laid in the mornings. It was better to eat them at their freshest.

Edit: updating due to correct comments on eggs and refrigeration.

Edit 2: there are several explanations about the 90s in the comments for those that don't know or didn't exist at the time.


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

[User] If alcohol damages our livers, why does our alcohol tolerance increase?

[Assistant]
The liver does have some specific cellular alcoho tolerance effects, but the liver is not the primary place that tolerance occurs. Keep in mind that alcohol is not a drug with acute cellular/neuronal action. It is readily absorbed throughout the body.

Tolerance to alcohol occurs at the molecular level at many places in the body. This involves lots of mechanisms including changing the activity of chanel protein production, interacting with membrane lipids, interacting with auxiliary proteins, modulation of membrane protein expression, and altering the spatial organization of membrane proteins.  Also, we don't really understand how any of the mechanisms listed above specifically affect alcohol intoxication behaviorally.


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

[User] ELI5: Why aren't exterior house doors designed to swing outwards, so that the jamb stop prevents it from being kicked in?

[Assistant] Household doors open inwards because they open in the direction the hinge pins exist on. If the hinge pins were on the outside, you could remove them and remove the door from its frame (certain security hinges notwithstanding).


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

[User]
Is Nietzschean philosophy anti-religion, or just anti-Christianity?

I'm not an expert, but I've read Thus Spoke Zarathustra and The Antichrist, along with bits here and there and it seems that much of what Nietzsche criticized about religion, what he called slave morality, was actually about Christianity. Christianity is unique, even among the other Abrahamic faiths, for its "blessed are the poor and meek" outlook and its negative view of sex, treating a celibate and monastic life as holier than marriage and children, while Judaism and Islam condemn a life of chosen celibacy and are quite positive on sex between husband and wife.

I've tried to find statements from Nietzsche on other religions, and while his statements on Jews are mostly talking about them as people (in the context of his opposition to anti-Semitism) and his statements on Buddhism are contradictory and misguided due to his knowledge of Buddhists being filtered through Schopenhauer, I did find his comments on Islam and Islamic civilization in The Antichrist to be very interesting.

>Christianity destroyed for us the whole harvest of ancient civilization, and later it also destroyed for us the whole harvest of Mohammedan civilization. The wonderful culture of the Moors in Spain, which was fundamentally nearer to us and appealed more to our senses and tastes than that of Rome and Greece, was trampled down (I do not say by what sort of feet) Why? Because it had to thank noble and manly instincts for its originbecause it said yes to life, even to the rare and refined luxuriousness of Moorish life! The crusaders later made war on something before which it would have been more fitting for them to have grovelled in the dusta civilization beside which even that of our nineteenth century seems very poor and very senile.What they wanted, of course, was booty: the orient was rich. Let us put aside our prejudices! The crusades were a higher form of piracy, nothing more! The German nobility, which is fundamentally a Viking nobility, was in its element there: the church knew only too well how the German nobility was to be won. The German noble, always the Swiss guard of the church, always in the service of every bad instinct of the churchbut well paid. Consider the fact that it is precisely the aid of German swords and German blood and valour that has enabled the church to carry through its war to the death upon everything noble on earth! At this point a host of painful questions suggest themselves. The German nobility stands outside the history of the higher civilization: the reason is obvious. Christianity, alcoholthe two great means of corruption. Intrinsically there should be no more choice between Islam and Christianity than there is between an Arab and a Jew. The decision is already reached; nobody remains at liberty to choose here. Either a man is a Chandala or he is not. War to the knife with Rome! Peace and friendship with Islam!: this was the feeling, this was the act, of that great free spirit, that genius among German emperors, Frederick II. What! must a German first be a genius, a free spirit, before he can feel decently? I cant make out how a German could ever feel Christian.

It seems to me that Nietzsche and his philosophy is less anti-religion as it is commonly perceived, and more anti-Christian, what do you think?

[Assistant]
Based on what he says in *GM* and *GS*, it seems like Nietzsche has grounds to object to any religion which involves investing yourself in a being who you take to be the author of your lifes meaning or moral value.

We might clarify, though, and say that Nietzsche *really* only objects insofar as such religions affect higher types.  Such religions might be perfectly healthy for people with certain wills.  Its not clear what proportion of society Nietzsche thinks is higher.


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

[User] ELI5: If influenza is always mutating, why does getting a flu shot help? Doesn't the shot only prevent attacks from a certain strain?

[Assistant] Every year the world health organization researches which variation of the flu is going to be most common.  After they come to a decision, the flu shot is made specifically for that virus. The flu shot contains a dead part of the virus that your body can identify and recognize when you actually come in contact with the virus later on.


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

[User]
I'm an undergrad and I want to learn how to get better at doing lit searches, can you give me some advice?

I'm a senior applying for grad school in social psychology this year, and I feel like one of my poorest skills is doing lit searches. I'm tired of coming up with a research question, looking to see if anyone else has done something similar, not finding anything, then telling an advisor about my idea only to find that Dr. X at U of X did something very very simlar a year or 10 years ago. I HATE this feeling.

What I do/can do...
What I curently do is boil down an idea or concept into a phrase, and then search various synonyms of this phrase and the words in the phrase on google scholar. If I find no articles, I will literally add the word "psychology" to the search. If I find relevant articles, I look at who they cited in their work, look at other work published by that author, and search within the "cited by" list using the same phrase as before. This yields mediocre results. I find papers generally related, but nothing at the heart of what I am looking for except for maybe a paper or two.

What I want to be able to do...
Come up with a question that has to do with a specific construct, effect, or method, and be able to find papers that are directly related to these things. So far I have been unable to do this. I also just use google scholar, and would like to be able to branch to social psych specific search engines.

[Assistant] When you're new to the field (or that particular section of the field) start with at least two different, recent reviews. As you go through them, note down all of the questions and sub questions that come up in your head that might be loose ends that still need to be explored. Then, follow up on them to see if you can find the answer to them in the literature and take note of each answer you find until you're left with a big list of answered questions and a short list of unanswered (theoretically). One thing to be aware of though is that the authors of the reviews usually point to a few key questions and these are probably the ones they are actively working on, which is why you don't want to build all of your questions from just one review. Once you have your favourite question (s), focus the literature review on the information that pertains to that question, aka, the research that has led to this hole in our knowledge.


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

[User]
How can collisions between molecules in the gas-phase result in cooling i.e. "collisional cooling" when collisions are also used to activate and fragment molecules i.e. "collision-induced dissociation"?

This seems contradicting to me. Can someone explain the difference between a scenario where collisional cooling dominates and a scenario where collisional activation dominates? My particular example is for peptide ions in a mass spectrometer in case different theories apply for different regimes.

[Assistant]
The difference is the kinetic energy involved in collisions.

Collisional cooling: very cold gas in weak trap. Kinetic energy involved in collisions is way smaller than bond energy. Collisions occasionally give individual molecules higher-than-average kinetic energy, enough to exit the trap, at which point they remove that kinetic energy from the system, decreasing the average KE and therefore the temperature.

Collision-induced dissociation: very hot gas, or molecules accelerated toward each other. Kinetic energy involved in collisions is on the order of bond energy.


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

[User]
Why did Asians evolve? [LI5]

From what I understand, human skin became lighter as they moved north out of Africa due to lower sunlight, in order to get more vitamin D.  This would explain why there are whites and blacks, but why did Asians evolve?  Are my initial premises about whites and blacks wrong?

[Assistant] Asians tend to live in coastal regions.  China's interior is practically empty compared to the coasts.  Fish provide a lot of vitamin D, so the skin doesn't need to get as pale.  That's why, for example, Spaniards and Italians tend to be pretty swarthy.


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

[User] Why don't dogs recognize their reflections?

[Assistant]
I would like to point out that humans gain this ability at some point between ages 2 and 5.

There is a common test for this ability, place a dot on someone's forehead, then place them in front of the mirror, if they reach for their own head, then they recognize that they are the same as the person in the mirror. Not very many animals can pass this test.


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

[User]
[LOTR] How did the Balrog get beneath Moria?

Khazad-dm was a Dwarven kingdom established well before the 1st Age. How did the Balrog delve so deep under Moria after the War of Wrath, and without any one noticing, even though there was already a Dwarven Kingdom there.

[Assistant] Morgoth delved deep into the earth to create his fortress, and it's therefore quite possible he had tunnels and passageways all under Middle-Earth. The Balrog, fleeing the destruction of Morgoth's forces through these passageways could quite possibly find it's way to Moria, which is not really that far from where the fortress was said to be.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why is there a debt ceiling at all when all they do is continually raise it?

Seeing as it has only gone up in history, why bother with having one at all? Is it just for the sake of trying to keep track of the money?

[Assistant]
The short version is because the idea is to give Congress oversight, even if they've never actually exercised it (and it would be destructive to do it).

It's important to remember that prior to the existence of the debt ceiling, every single time the U.S was going to go into debt required separate congressional action.  The debt ceiling was created to allow the executive branch to take out debt without specific Congressional approval up to a certain amount.

At various times, there have been streamlinings of the process: the Gephardt rule stood for 16 years and basically said that when Congress appropriates money, it is deemed to raise the debt ceiling to cover whatever they appropriated.

But the reason it's still around is that while it would be terrible to not raise the debt ceiling (and it's rare for them to even consider not raising it), Congress doesn't want to give up that oversight power.


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

[User]
[Star Trek] What are the things I have to pay for in the 24th century?

Context being on earth, not space stations or other planets.

[Assistant] On Earth? Nothing. Food and convenience items could be created with Replicators and If you wanna some entertaiment Holodecks are free. The only thing that comes to mind is space travel, since outside of diplomats, Star Fleet and Auxillary people People that travel are mostly traders, not afficiated with Federation.


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

[User]
Central Limit Theorem and the assumption of Normality

Hi all,

Parametric tests assumes that the distributions of means should be normally distributed, in order for its results to be valid (along other assumptions, of course).

CLT says that the sampling distribution of means of most distributions follows a Normal distribution (for N > 30 or so).

People often check the Normality of the sample (not the means), and if it's not Normal, they go with non-parametric tests. Why's that? Why not go with parametric tests even if the sample is not normally distributed given the CLT?

What would be a good formal test for the normality of the means for a given sample? Bootstrapping the sample would be valid?

[Assistant] First, ANOVAs assumption of normality does not pertain only to the sampling distribution of the mean (although that is a frequent misconception). Remember that the F statistic also has a denominator. Second, significance tests of normality are not informative because they test the null hypothesis that the distribution is exactly normal, which it never is. You can consider the robustness of ANOVA or whatever analysis you are using to the kind and degree of normality you have.


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

[User]
[Lilo & Stitch] How does FTL work in this universe?

In the beginning of the documentary, Stitch hits the hyperdrive on his relatively small ship, and a shockwave that seems to be mostly light spreads across the big ship near him, and it looks like the power goes out briefly.

Does this imply that their hyperdrive has a weird EMP blast? Is the light radiation? Does this mean that hitting FTL effectively creates an nuke?

[Assistant]
[](/apathia) The EMP is a form of Cherenkov radiation, essentially FTL's equivalent to a sonic boom. Usually starships take a number of small jumps to reach a distant destination to avoid creating a burst of Cherenkov radiation potent enough to disable a ship, but that crazy trog didn't exactly care about our regulations. Cruisers aren't even supposed to enter FTL except in an emergency!

Also, he took the red one. :(


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

[User]
Eli5 How does super glue really work?

On a molecular level what exactly is happening? is it actually creating new bonds with the electrons of the objects that it is binding with?

[Assistant]
Cyanoacrylate more commonly known as superglue is a type of resin that reacts with water

When you put super glue on something it starts to react with the moisture in the air. This causes the chemical molecules (monomers) to form long chains (polymer) which quickly hardens to a tough plastic likely consistency.

This is also in part why superglue bonds to you skin so fast. For one your skin has a lot of moisture, and two your skin has a lot of surface area due to the natural folds which helps super glue bond.


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

[User] ELI5: Why did latin, a language spoken by a huge portion of Europe, completely die?

[Assistant]
Plenty of folks have pointed out that it didn't die, it just transformed, as languages do.

A more interesting question is: why do we *remember* Latin, and not all the other ancient language-forms? Old English, for example, is just as dead, but hardly anyone besides linguists knows about it or speaks it. The Church has kept the ancient version of this one language alive.


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

[User]
[Elder Scrolls V] Do people not die naturally?

whenever I explore and people tell me of events, they always say the were years ago, or sometimes even longer. but act as if they were there. so does death not come naturally on nirn?

[Assistant]
Oh, death does indeed occur naturally, but some events (such as the Great War) are still well within the living memory. Others, such as the Red Year, the Void Nights and the Stormcrown Interegnum are more distant.

It largely depends on who you speak to as well. Men, regardless of race, typically don't live more than a century. Mer, on the other hand, can live much longer, with the Altmer in particular able to live a thousand years before old-age takes them.

Thus, if you're talking to a Mer, they are likely far older than they appear. Many Dunmer actually remember the Red Year, because they lived through it.


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

[User] ELI5: Why cant a planet the size of Jupiter be rocky like Earth? Side question: if it was possible to be rocky could Jupiter break from the Suns orbit?

[Assistant]
They can be, at least there isnt like a LAW making it so they cant exist.

The biggest weve found though is a massive planet around another star 40 times the size of earth by material. So 40 times by mass

Jupiter on the other hand is about 318 times as massive,

A the thing that is possible limiting giant rocky planets from existing is just the need for material.

Jupiter is only so massive because its made up of A LOT of gas, Jupiter is 90% hydrogen, the most abundant element there is.

Compared to hydrogen, there is just significantly less material of the larger elements that make up rocks, your carbons, silicons, irons, oxygens, and others.

For if it could break free from the solar system, if you replaced jupiter with the same MASS of rock, then gravitationally nothing would change and its orbit wouldnt change.

If you replaced it with the same VOLUME of rock, it would be significantly more massive (since gas is less dense than rock) which would possibly cause some weird gravitational problems.


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

[User]
[Superheroes] How much control does each hero (or villain) have over their own IP?

Can anyone just start selling Spider-man figurines or Superman towels? Since they're anonymous, does that mean they're not able to contact a lawyer to represent them in IP court?

[Assistant]
For Spider-Man, it's been an ongoing problem that there's tons of unauthorized merch that Peter Parker gets no cut of, especially painful when he's having money problems.

For Superman, he's very politely set up a non-profit charity that has the exclusive license to market his image, so while there are occasional bootlegs, most people recognize that the Superman Charity is worth supporting and buy the licensed T-Shirts or Hats.

In general, it really depends on that hero's relationship with the law.


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

[User] ELI5 why in moments of extreme fear or anxiety, you may get a metallic/bloody taste in your mouth?

[Assistant] High blood pressure can cause small vessels in your sinuses to burst, causing a nosebleed.  If it's only a tiny bit of blood from a really small vessel, you get the taste of blood without noticing it otherwise.


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

[User] [The Terminator] Why did the T-800 think it could buy a plasma rifle in 1984's Los Angeles?

[Assistant] Judgement Day destroyed numerous historical records, hence the Terminators uncertainty as to which Sarah Connor was the correct target. The exact date of various weapons introduction appears to be included in the lost data.


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

[User] ELI5: If radioactive elements decay over time, and after turning into other radioactive elements one day turn into a stable element (e.g. Uranium -> Radium -> Radon -> Polonium -> Lead): Does this mean one day there will be no radioactive elements left on earth?

[Assistant] Perhaps we could run out of uranium one day, but some radioactive elements like carbon-14 are constantly replenished by cosmic rays, and others like bismuth-209 have long enough half-lives to outlast the Earth by a wide margin.


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

[User] ELI5: How do we know that the sun was formed around 5 billion years ago?

[Assistant]
There are various methods, such as using computer models of stellar life cycles, but the most tangible way is simply that we know that other things that probably formed around the same time as the Sun were formed around 5 billion years ago.

It's likely that the entire solar system (the Sun and the planets) formed at roughly the same time, so to approximate the age of the Sun, we can take a look at the age of objects in our solar system.  The oldest meteorites we've found are approximately 4.6 billion years old, according to radiometric dating; round that up to 5 billion and there you have it.


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

[User]
Could someon explain to me (like i'm five) the differences between the Republicans and Democrats?

I just never really understood the different parties.

[Assistant]
In the US, the Democrats typically believe in more liberal policies. They tend to be pro-choice (support abortion rights), support the legalization of same-sex marriage, support government benefits like Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid, and tend to lean toward larger government.

Republicans typically believe in more conservative policies. They tend to be pro-life (anti-abortion), oppose the legalization of same-sex marriage, mostly oppose what they call "government handouts", and lean toward smaller government.


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

[User]
[LotR] Why is Gandalf considered so powerful?

#

[Assistant]
First, some words about Sauron, since that is a worthwhile comparison:

Sauron, at his strongest, was physically powerful enough that the size of the army facing him was irrelevant. He could enter the fray and cause enough destruction and terror that his enemies would either rout or be slaughtered to the last man. He was only defeated by chance in a moment of hubris.

However impressive this display may have been, many scholars agree that *this did not represent his true power*. His most terrible work was in fact orchestrating the fall of Numenor, many years earlier. From a forgotten cell in the depths, he wormed his way into the confidence of the greatest men who ever lived, corrupting their hearts with madness and evil. He was able to steer the will of an entire nation away from the path of enlightenment and peace, until they in a righteous fury sailed West to make war on the gods themselves.

It is clear that, without Gandalf's intervention, the War of the Ring would have progressed quite differently. Sauron's true power was at work not on the battlefield, but in the hearts of his foes. Through the Palantir, Sauron sowed the seeds of despair in both Saruman and Denethor. The former defected to the Deceiver entirely, and was able to subject Theoden of Rohan to his will. Denethor had not the will nor the means to organize an effective defense of Gondor. Both kingdoms were expected to crumble with minimal effort... and they would have, if it had not been for Gandalf.

Sauron's greatest power is the ability to encourage the worst in people to manifest -- and Gandalf has the power to do the opposite. Over and over we see those near him rise above themselves and become great: Bilbo becomes the greatest burglar in the world. Theoden breaks free from Saruman's thrall and leads his nation to glory from the brink of defeat. Aragorn realizes his true destiny as the King of Gondor, and rallies his beleaguered nation. Frodo Baggins and Sam Gamgee, diminutive folk of a forgotten people, are empowered to do the impossible and carry the One ring to its destruction.

These events were not accidents. There is hardly an event that occurs during the War of the Ring that cannot be traced back to Gandalf's influence. This speaks of unnatural foresight. Defeating the Balrog should not be taken lightly either -- it was a feat of supernatural exertion comparable to Sauron's physical display. But his true power, in the end, was used to undo Sauron's ruinous campaign of despair and replace it with the power of hope.


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

[User]
[Predator] What exactly is Yautja culture like?

I understand they put a LOT of emphasis on hunting, but what exactly does their culture say about it? Is it a passtime? A rite of passage? A necessity? I want to know why the obsession with it.

[Assistant]
The Yautja hunt the most dangerous life forms as a source of honor and prestige. The females of the species (who do not participate in hunts themselves) apparently regard skilled male hunters as highly desirable mates.

The City Hunter in Predator 2 appears to be a youngster finishing up his first hunt in a possible manhood ritual of some kind, but the Jungle Hunter in the first movie is apparently more aged and experienced, hunting with no assistance in an environment with comparatively more natural threats.

Failure in the hunt seems to mandate suicide; this might be a ritual to cleanse shame, or an attempt to prevent their technology from falling into the wrong hands, or something else.

Hunters are expected to seek out worthy, challenging prey; they will not target children, the defenseless, or even recently pregnant women (so they're also pro-lifers?). In a typical hunt it seems that they will target multiple individuals and harvest trophies from the most prized catch; the others are skinned and left hanging, possibly to indicate they were not worthy prey, or at least not a big enough challenge. Xenomorphs are apparently considered an especially challenging prey, with xenomorph hunts being led by skilled, experienced veterans.

"Predator**s**" introduces a trio of black-clad Predators who are apparently dishonorable by the standards of other Yautja; we don't know exactly why, but they do use different hunting tactics, like smuggling humans offworld for hunting on a preserve, and using more sophisticated technology.

\*\*\*\*\*

Or you can believe the newest movie and say they're harvesting DNA from the trophies,  to use as genetic enhancements to improve the species. Whatever.


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

[User] [Rick & Morty] Why are all Ricks male?

[Assistant] They aren't, just that the female Rick equivalents (Rikki?) find their male counterparts to be obnoxious and ridiculous, and actively stay away from them. Presumably they have their own citadel and society.


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

[User] ELI5: How is it that fiber can both help you with constipation and make your stool more solid?

[Assistant]
The fiber cannot be fully broken down by your digestive system, so it basically just passes it on through your body whole.  This process helps to "push out" other waste material, and thus helps with constipation.

Meanwhile you have these whole strands of fiber that are not broken down, that get mixed up with the rest of your waste material.  The end result is sort of like the rebar that runs through steel re-enforced concrete.


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

[User]
How much running did early humans actually do?

On a documentary I watched the other day, (origins of us) about human evolution, the woman who presents it went to stay with a tribe in Africa. This tribe hunts wild game for meat, and the men usually go off alone and jog constantly for hours to catch wild game.

On wikiepedia I found this, about 'persistance hunting';

> Persistence hunting is a hunting technique in which hunters use a combination of running and tracking to pursue prey to the point of exhaustion. While humans can sweat to reduce body heat, their quadrupedal prey would need to slow from a gallop in order to pant.

So basically my question is, is would early man see the need in walking as often as we do? If they were going somewhere (like to a local tree to get some berries to eat) would they lightly jog there instead or is there any evidence of them doing this?

I know it might be open for interpretation, but how much running could they have actually done on a daily basis?

And if anybody has any information that you think is interesting although not really specifically relevant, I'd be interesting in reading more about what you know too.

[Assistant]
I actually just wrote a term paper on this. The answer is: people probably only ran for purposes of persistence hunting! Chances are meat only comprised a marginal amount of the diet, but considering that the transition from  Australopithecus to Homo involved a suite of anatomical changes that would have facilitated endurance running, we may indeed have evolved into this particular niche. Here's a bibliography on the subject to get you started:

Bobe, R., M.G. Leakey, 2004. Ecology of Plio-Pleistocene mammals in the Omo-Turkana Basin and the emergence of Homo. In: F.E. Grine, J.G. Fleagle, R.E. Leakey (Eds.), The First Humans: Origin and Early Evolution of the Genus Homo, Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology. Springer Science+Business Media, New York, pp. 173-184.

Bramble, D.M., Lieberman, D.E., 2004. Endurance running and the evolution of Homo. Nature. 432, 345-352.

Bunn, H.T., 2001. Hunting, power scavenging, and butchering by Hadza foragers and by Plio-Pleistocene Homo. In: C.B. Stanford, H.T. Bunn (Eds.), Meat Eating & Human Evolution. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 199-218.

Carrier, D.R., 1984. The energetic paradox of human running and hominid evolution. Curr. Anthropol. 25, 483-495.

Carrier, D., 2004. The running-fighting dichotomy and the evolution of aggression in hominids. In: D.J. Meldrum, C.E. Hilton (Eds.), From Biped to Strider: The Emergence of Modern Human Walking, Running, and Resource Transport. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, New York, pp. 135-162.

Carrier, D.R., C. Anders, N. Schilling, 2011. The musculoskeletal system of humans is not tuned to maximize the economy of locomotion. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 108, 1863118636.

Cavanagh, P.R., M.L. Pollock, J. Landa, 1977. A biomechanical comparison of elite and good distance runners. Research Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 301, 328-345.

Churchill, S. E., 1993. Weapon technology, prey size selection, and hunting methods in modern hunter-gatherers: implications for hunting in the Paleolithic and Mesolithic. In: G. L. Peterkin, H. M. Bricker, P. A. Mellars (Eds.). Hunting and Animal Exploitation in the Later Palaeolithic and Mesolithic of Europe. American Anthropological Association Archaeological Papers, vol. 4, pp. 1124.

Fung, Y.C., 1990.  Biomechanics: Motion, Flow, Stress, and Growth. Springer, New York.

Hamner, S.R., A. Seth, S.L. Delp, 2010. Muscle contributions to stop propulsion and support during running. Journal of Biomechanics. 43, 2709-2716.

Hgberg, G.P., 1952. How do stride length and stride frequency influence the energy-output during running? Arbeitsphysiologie 14, 437-441.

Liebenberg, L., 2006. Persistence hunting by modern hunter-gatherers. Curr. Anthropol. 47, 1017-1026.

Lieberman, D.E., D.A. Raichlen, H. Pontzer, D.M. Bramble, E. Cutright-Smith, 2006. The human gluteus maximus and its role in running. J. Exp. Biol. 209, 2143-2155.

Lieberman, D.E., D.M. Bramble, D.A. Raichlen, J.J. Shea, 2007. The evolution of endurance running and the tyranny of ethnography: a reply to Pickering and Bunn. Journal of Human Evolution 53, 439-442.

Lieberman, D.E., D.M. Bramble, D.A. Raichlen, J.J. Shea, 2009. Brains, brawn, and the evolution of human endurance running capabilities. In: F.E. Grine, J.G. Fleagle, R.E. Leakey (Eds.), The First Humans: Origin and Early Evolution of the Genus Homo, Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology. Springer Science+Business Media, New York, pp. 77-92.

Nelson, R.C., R.J. Gregor, 1976. Biomechanics of distance running: a longitudinal study. Research Quarterly 47, 417-428.

OConnell, J.F., K. Hawkes, N.B. Jones, 1988. Hadza scavenging: implications for Plio/Pleistocene hominid subsistence. Curr. Anthropol. 29, 356-363.

Pickering, T.R., H.T. Bunn, 2007. The endurance running hypothesis and hunting and scavenging in savanna-woodlands. J. Hum. Evol. 53, 434-438.

Raichlen, D.A., H. Armstrong, D.E. Lieberman, 2011. Calcaneus length determines running economy: implications for endurance running performance in modern humans and Neandertals. J. Hum. Evol. 60, 299-308.

Reed, K.E., S.M. Russak, 2004. Tracking ecological change in relation to the emergence of Homo near the Plio-Pleistocene boundary. In: F.E. Grine, J.G. Fleagle, R.E. Leakey (Eds.), The First Humans: Origin and Early Evolution of the Genus Homo, Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology. Springer Science+Business Media, New York, pp. 159-173.

Rose, M. D., 1984. A hominin hip bone, KNM-ER 3228, from East Lake Turkana, Kenya. Am. J. Phys. Anthropol. 63, 371378.

Ruxton, G.D., D.M. Wilkinson, 2011. Thermoregulation and endurance running in extinct hominins: Wheelers models. J. Hum. Evol. 61, 169-175.

Sanders, W. J., 1998. Comparative morphometric study of the australopithecine vertebral series Stw-H8/H41. J. Hum. Evol. 34, 249302.

Steudel-Numbers, K.L., M.J. Tilkens, 2004.The effect of lower limb length on the energetic cost of locomotion: implications for fossil hominins. J. Hum. Evol. 47, 95-109.

Trinkaus, E., 1986. Bodies, brawn, brains, and noses: human ancestors and human predation. In: M.H. Nitecki, D.V. Nitecki (Eds.), The Evolution of Human Hunting. Plenum Press, New York, pp. 107-145.

Ungar, P.S., R.S. Scott, 2009. Dental evidence for diets of early Homo.  In: F.E. Grine, J.G. Fleagle, R.E. Leakey (Eds.), The First Humans: Origin and Early Evolution of the Genus Homo, Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology. Springer Science+Business Media, New York, pp. 121-134.


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

[User] Why does the panama canal need locks? Shouldn't the fact that the Pacific and Atlantic are one body of water equalize the altitude between them?

[Assistant]
The panama canal needs locks because it goes over a mountain. The locks lift the ships up to the level of a man-made lake, and then let them down again to the ocean on the other side.

You can have a canal that is all at sea level. The Suez canal in egypt is just such a canal. Because the land was flat and level, they could cut the canal through at sea level. Panama is too mountainous, so a sea level canal wasn't feasible.


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

[User] ELI5: Why is such an emphasis placed on only a couple states during the U.S. presidential elections?

[Assistant]
The "swing states".

Most states are typically majority conservative or liberal.  It's a waste of resources to go campaigning there.  The majority party wins all of the electoral votes.

But certain states are very close to 50/50 splits.  These ones are worth a focus because a few points swing in voting makes a huge difference.

(It's time to discard the electoral college and restore a popular vote, that's a discussion for another time)


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

[User]
[40k] What would have happened had the Primarchs note been scattered?

Had the Primarchs not been scattered across the galaxy at their creation and the Emperor had trained them from birth, how different would the outcome of the last 10,000 years have been?

Would the Imperium be stronger / weaker? Would the heresy have occurred?

What would the state of the galaxy be?

[Assistant]
The Heresy would likely never have happened. Lorgar's corruption by Chaos is beleived to have happened on Colchis, and it was Lorgar who finally swayed Horus to Chaos (with some help from the Davinites).

Had the Primarch's never vanished from the Lunar Gene-Labs, Lorgar never would have been indoctrinated by the Covenant. The Primarchs never would have been touched by Chaos, and the Imperium would be a very different place.


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

[User]
[DC Comic] Why is magic a notable weakness for Superman

It's magic, everyone is vulnerable to it. What makes Superman special?

[Assistant]
For Superman its less that he's weak to it, more that its one of the few things that *can* hurt him.

Keep in mind, he's still tanky as shit - it's not like Superman takes magical missiles the same way a normal human would take 9mm bullets, but the fact they're "magic" means that Superman has no innate resistances to that element of it. He still won't instantly burn up if hit by a fireball, but he's still going to actually *feel* the heat and pressure of it, even if its not physically damaging him, the reality altering element of magic is still doing its leg-work.


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

[User]
If I were traveling in a vehicle (or on an object, etc.) fast enough to break the sound barrier, would I hear the sonic boom?

Or would I outrun it, as it were? What else - associated with the boom - would I experience?

[Assistant] No.  For a given speed, the shock location is fixed relative to the aircraft, like a bow wave is fixed relative to a ship.  Hearing the sonic boom means that the shockwave has passed over you.  Since the shock is fixed relative to the aircraft, it doesn't pass over you if you're inside the aircraft.


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

[User] ELI5: Why do dogs eat grass?

[Assistant]
Your doggie sometimes eats grass to help with tummy aches or if they ate something that didn't agree with them. But dogs and cats also think it tastes yummy, so will occasionally have it as a snack. It doesn't always mean something bad!

Edit: in your dog's case, he/she may have gotten into the garbage, eaten something bad outside, or may have been fed at a different time than usual. Some dogs just have sensitive stomachs.


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

[User]
Do the bacteria in our stomach become resistant to antibiotics over time?

If we are creating antibiotic resistant bacteria that can infect us, I was wondering whether our microbiome would also become resistant.

[Assistant]
There are no bacteria in your stomach (unless you are infected with *H. pylori*).

For the most part, there are no bacteria in your small intestine either, as the forward motion of the muscle lining (peristalsis) keeps them moving forward toward the large intestine.

There are colonies of bacteria in your large intestine though. To get to your question, the answer is definitely *YES* your intestinal bacteria (flora) can be affected by and become resistant to antibiotics. Sometimes you get an intestinal overgrowth of a "bad" bacteria (not really "bad" unless they overgrow) when the "good" bacteria are killed by taking antibiotics (another reason to avoid antibiotics unless absolutely required). One example of this is a *Clostridium difficile* colitis (aka *C. diff*) which can cause severe abdominal pain, bloating, and diarrhea... which also requires antibiotics to treat.

But, in general, your gut bacteria can (over time) develop resistances to antibiotics which can cause further problems down the line, given enough time and enough exposure to antibiotics... this process can be accelerated by the improper administration of antibiotics or a failure to fully follow the regimen enough times.


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

[User] [Marvel] What was Tony Stark's and the rest of the American public's reaction when Captain America forced the repeal of the Super Human Registration Act at the end of Siege?

[Assistant]
Largely relief. There are always going to be some people who argue for it. Hell, Reed Richards shot down a nearly identical proposition in the 90s (which is more than he ever did for muties and the Mutant Registration Act). But with people like Norman Osborn in charge, it was a really bad time for America. And you had idols, Avengers who had saved the world, hiding like rats because their own friends were being forced to hunt them down. As time went on, the SHRA became more and more unpopular for various reasons.

Tony had to go with the act because it was the least radical plan there was. There were plans to capture and depower every superhuman they could get their hands on. Making heroes register their identities and receive mandatory training was the best argument he could make without forcing a more drastic war between the normal humans and the superhuman community. People gave Stark shit, but he did the best he could in a godawful situation.


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

[User]
What is the difference between a philosophy and an opinion?

If there is a difference, how does one create a philosophy?

[Assistant]
It sounds like you're conflating the academic field of philosophy with the colloquial way people use the word 'philosophy' to refer to their view on something, as when they say "my philosophy on dating" and things like this. There probably isn't any difference between the latter sense of 'philosophy' and an opinion, but that doesn't have anything to do with the academic field that gets called philosophy.

This is kind of like going to a chemist and saying, "What's the difference between chemistry and the feeling or vibe you get with someone or a group of people when you're out doing something with them?"

In the academic field, we don't typically say "a philosophy" but rather just "philosophy". Just like we don't typically say "a chemistry" (and "your chemistry" versus "my chemistry" and so on), but just "chemistry".

Academic fields like philosophy and chemistry aren't typically interested in mere opinions, but rather in what can be warranted on rational grounds.


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

[User] [Star Wars] Did Jar Jar ever find out that Anakin turned to the dark side?

[Assistant] It's unknown but highly possible. He was with the delegation that returned padame's body. He was likely questioned by her loyal guards who discovered Anakin's involvement in her death and later his transformation into Vader. They unsuccessfully attempted to assassinate him after the battle of Hoth. Ambassador Binks did take up the mantle of senator for the remainder of Padame's term but retired to naboo afterwards. He was filled with remorse over his role in aiding chancellor Palpatine to usurp the republic but his tale ends there as of yet. It's possible he never learned the fate of Anakin or simply chose to into exile with the other Gungans in opposition to the empire and Naboo's complicity.


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

[User] ELI5: what exactly is that "new car smell" and why can't it be duplicated?

[Assistant]
They're various types of petroleum-based solvent used in plastics and vinyls on the inside of the car. For a while they give off a gas that you can smell.

It could be duplicated but it shouldn't be, because it's basically huffing glue. Nothing to worry about in tiny doses but not something you should be actively seeking.


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

[User]
How the TSA continues to get funding and exist despite all the public outcry and disapproval.

Everyday I hear of a new scandal with the TSA it gets worse. Plain child-molesting, harassment, intimidation, unsafe, etc. Why aren't they replaced with a new, reformed agency?

[Assistant]
Imagine you had a job as a candy inspector, and you got paid based on how many bad candies you find. Nobody bothers to check if the candies actually are bad, however; they just take your word that the candies that you say are bad are bad.

Now, because you keep rejecting a huge portion of the candies that come through, you're pissing off the candy makers and the people who like to eat candy. However, you don't have to care; Mr. Sam, the owner of the candy factory, is the one who gave you the job, and he only cares that you look like you're doing a good job. It doesn't matter who you bother, as long as you keep finding "bad" candy. So you keep kissing up to Mr. Sam, talking about all the "bad" candies you kept from going out. He trusts you, so he just believes that the people who are saying mean things about you don't care about the safety of the candy.

That's why the TSA still exists. They keep finding "bad" people who want to do "mean" things, and they don't answer to you or me, but to Congress, who thinks they're doing a good job.


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

[User]
How are deep-sea dwelling creatures not crushed by the pressure of the water above them?

I am curious as to how small fish and other creatures can survive at up to 11km underwater without being crushed, yet we need specialised equipment and submarines to reach such depths. Thanks!

[Assistant]
Their body's internal fluids are at the same pressure. Since fluids are incompressible, it doesn't affect them at all.

Now gas-filled organs, such as lungs or shallow water fishes' swim bladders, are a different story entirely. They'd be squished.


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

[User] What makes a work of art 'good' by contemporary philosophy of art standards?

[Assistant] Im an undergraduate taking an Aesthetics course. Gordon Graham provides three normative theories for evaluating art: expressivism, cognitivism, and hedonism. Graham is a cognitivist, meaning he thinks what the extent to which art helps us understand truths about the world and our place in it is the metric by which we (should) judge the value of art.


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

[User] Eli5: How did scientists "map the human genome" and what does that mean for the rest of us?

[Assistant]
The human genome was fully sequenced in the early 2000 by an international team of researchers. A human has 3,000,000,000 bases (letters) in the genome. Each letter is a chemical, one of four that we assign a name or letter to. These are cytosine(C), guanine(G), adenine(A), thymine(T). Each letter is attached to another in a long string. Inside the body, this long chemical body is read as instructions. A typical stretch of the sequence might read

ATGCATGGTTAG

Imagine that but 3 billion letters long and split across multiple separate chains called chromosomes.

To map the human genome, we had to sequence all of those letters, in order. That was a massive undertaking. For one reason, you have a lot of repetitive regions. And at the time, you might only be able to sequence about 800 letters at a time. Once you do all of that, it is pretty hard to connect all of these sequences are pieces back together in an ultimate jigsaw.

There were some tricks to figure out how to connect all of these sequences back together even if we couldn't just from the 800 letter long pieces. But once we did this, we could use it to understand a lot about how humams work. We could count how many genes (parts of the genome that have a particular function, like making the protein actin, which helps power muscles). Not only can we count them, but we can figure out what there functions are. This is much faster than looking at then one at a time, as was done before the whole genome was published.

One really useful thing about the genome is to look at genes that are mutated in people are are ill. If for example, you have cancer, you can sequence the tumor cells and the healthy cells around it to find chances in the letter only found in the cancer. Now we have a whole reference genomes published, and sequencing technology became cheaper, we can now sequence even smaller chunks of DNA. Instead of doing complex and expensive things to figure out how they all connect, we can just match them to the reference genome we already have and find where the mutations are (ie where the letters do not match).


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

[User] Why is the visible part of many galaxies flat? What is a dark matter halo and how does it figure into the visible shape of a galaxy?

[Assistant]
For the same reason planetary systems, rings around and planets and black hole accretion disks are flat. Friction between components brings everything into the same plane eventually, where the plane is determined by the initial angular momentum of the cloud.

Dark matter doesn't have interactions that would align the matter, so it stays in a spherical shape.


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

[User] [dceu] Aquaman - how did Arthur get full body tattoos when he's never visited Atlantis and submachine guns and grenades do not Pierce his skin?

[Assistant]
Couple ways.

1) A needle can get higher psi than a bullet. Less pounds, but a tiny surface area.

2) his powers get weaker's away from water (at least, they did when he was younger / not king)

3) his powers seem to react at least partly to his will, if he wanted to be a little weaker to get a tattoo he probably can.

So if he went inland and stayed out of water for a while, he could probably manage.


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

[User] ELI5: How are there multiple variations/stories of the same super hero characters, and how do you know which storyline/universe you're following is the chronologically "correct" one?

[Assistant]
Retroactive continuity, aka retcons.

They give a superhero an origin story, 30 years later they decide that story is too goofy/racist/dated, and they come up with some crazy time travel/doppelganger/alternate reality nonsense to explain, "Oh, well that didn't REALLY happen, what REALLY happened is ___."

Because this gets fairly confusing, comic universes occasionally "reset," using some extravagant plot device, and they basically start from scratch.  DC is particularly fond of doing this.

Comics from the same "run" should follow chronologically.


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

[User]
Am I right that, fundamentally, any productivity is better than no productivity? And that there should always, in the near future, be at least something for someone to do?

Obviously there's a lot of talk about automation and jobs lately.

Something that occurred to me is that, anywhere and everywhere, there's always *something* that needs to be done, or could be done. You can tell me if I'm wrong about that, but my intuition is that we need just look around our house, or our community, and you should pretty easily be able to spot myriad things that could be done, that aren't getting done.

Fundamentally, if we have things to be done, and if we have people not doing anything, that has to be completely inefficient, yes?

I'm imagining some world in which unemployed people can do some kind of community service, and where there is 'something to do' for everyone who wants to do something. Is there a reason this doesn't work? Even in a future world of automation, it seems like this doesn't cease to be. If you've got, for example, machines manufacturing all the materials needed for infrastructure, that just means we have more stuff which which to improve infrastructure. I mean, are we going to run out of infrastructure to build and improve? It seems like having an unemployed person busy doing that is vastly preferable to having them sitting at home.

As far as compensation, perhaps their labor isn't worth a ton at first, but it's worth more to them, and us, than having them idle. Suppose I'm a reasonably bright person who is unemployed or underemployed, and I go down to the community planning office and say, "I'd like to help, maybe I can sit in on the meetings and start learning?" I know, that's basically what an internship/apprenticeship is, and that that exists in places, but it strikes me just how strict, then, the barriers are to doing that. Why don't we have more places where people can easily get into that? You could argue that people don't like to contribute to society for free, but then...why would any of you be here taking the time to answer my questions?

I'm sure there are flaws in my thinking, but I don't see them straight out, so I'd love to hear more about it. Thanks in advance.

[Assistant]
What is you core question? Or barring a core question, what is your thesis? It seems like you're making a roundabout argument that automation won't put everyone out of work because there is always more work generated by productive developments. There are certainly those who argue that.

Something to consider - is efficiency or productivity the ultimate good in a society? If not, then we must consider how optimizing efficiency affects other things we might wish to pursue, like leisure time.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] Were you to write an obituary for Darth Maul, what would you say?

Like, say you were charged with writing a summation of Darth Maul's life, from womb to tomb, based on what is known about him, what would you say? Who would you say the man was?

[Assistant]
Have you ever heard the tragedy of Darth Maul the vicious?

I thought not. It's not a story that any could tell you.

He was an apprentice, once, to the Dark Lord of the Sith. This Dark Lord was powerful, and conniving, and even as he used Darth Maul, he had plans for a new apprentice - a greater apprentice.

In fulfilling his duty to make his Master's plans reality, he was defeated by a young Jedi, and thought dead.

Instead, his hatred sustained him, and he survived in forgotten places, until he could plot his own revenge.

Maul, seeking a return to his Master, found an apprentice of his own, and built up a power base, seeking to impress himself upon the Dark Lord. But the Dark Lord saw not a returned favourite, but a new rival, and struck his apprentice down, defeating Maul in turn.

Captured and defeated once again, Maul despaired. But he was not lost.

He escaped, and spent years seeking out the one enemy he blamed for all of this. The one enemy who had started his fall from grace. The young Jedi who had first defeated him.

This Jedi was now a Master himself, and when Maul confronted him, he was struck down again, this time to die. Which he did, alone and forgotten.

And the point of the story is this;
Desire is no substitute for strength. Maul was weak, so it mattered not how his lust for revenge burned. He would never have it.