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

[User]
[Spongebob Squarepants] Why is Plankton investing so much time and effort into stealing the Krabby Patty secret formula? Surely making his own KPs would be illegal?

Krabbs being the shrewd businessman that he is, *must* have copyrighted/patented/trademarked the Krabby Patty. So even if Plankton steals the formula, he can't legally produce and sell them, correct? Really he's dooming his own business venture by stealing and reselling an existing product.

Why doesn't he just focus his efforts on either making enough money to *legally* buy out Krabbs and the right to sell Krabby Patties, or improve his own products? I presume a large amount of his mission is down to his desire to beat Krabbs, but surely it would be even better to beat him legally by producing a superior product? Why not also create a side business selling technology and gadgets to fund research and development into decent food production?

And why hasn't any governing body shut down Plankton for his illegal business practices and (I'm assuming based on his lack of customers) presumed bankruptcy?

[Assistant]
Patients require you to post how a thing is made, when the patent expired anyone can make it. Trademarks protect the name, not the product itself, someone can still make the exact same burger under a different namr. And you can't copyright a recipe; you can copyright a specific wording but not the "concept" of the recipe itself.

There is a reason that Coca-Cola, KFC, Pepsi, etc keep their recipes in a vault, Trade Secrets are the only long term way to keep a recipe secure.

The industrial espionage that plankton engages in is wildly illegal though, in the real world companies are careful never to cross that line. Pepsi even turned in a Coke employee for trying to sell them the recipe for Coca-Cola.


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

[User]
Why are batteries considered voltage sources instead of current sources?

When using batteries as your source in a physics/engineering problem, it's considered as a voltage source. You'd say "a 9V battery". However, looking at the battery as an electrochemical cell, I'd guess that it's a current source. The reaction is going _this_ fast and therefore provides _this_ rate of electrons to the load. The only problem with me looking at it that way, is that I can also see it being a voltage source anyway: the ions diffuse through the electrolyte so fast that the total voltage across the battery is pretty much constant.

I still haven't fully convinced myself that this chemistry based argument for being a voltage source really makes sense, but the question still remains: why are batteries modeled as voltage sources?

[Assistant]
When a battery isn't connected to anything (an open circuit), the buildup of charge in each half-cell causes the internal reactions to reach equilibrium, stopping the current. This is contrary to the behavior of a current source, which would maintain the same current no matter the load resistance. Instead, what remains constant is the "push" behind the chemical reactions, so when the battery is hooked up to different devices, its voltage stays the same.

Also interesting is that when a battery tries to power a very low resistance, it cannot maintain the high current that an ideal voltage source would generate - so, if you connect your 9V battery to a 1 ohm resistor, its actual voltage might drop down to 4V.


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

[User]
[DC Universe] How has the discovery of aliens with similar physiology to humans impacted theories of evolution?

While aliens like Superman are very different to us in their genetic makeup, they share remarkable similarities in physiology, given the diversity in evolutionary traits in Earth. Have scientific theories of evolution developed to take account of this?

[Assistant] It's a semi-open secret in the DCU that all humanoid life was seeded billions of years ago by a race called the Dominators. Humans with the "Meta-Gene" actually should be the norm, the same way super-strong Kryptonians are the norm, but something fucked with the species's DNA so we wouldn't overrun everything.


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

[User]
[LOTR] How did Gandalf defeat the Balrog?

As I recall, his sword, Glamdring, had no special features other than being effective against orcs.

Was it just that lighting sword attack? Why didn't he use that more often in the trilogy.

[Assistant]
The sword had nothing to do with it.  It was Gandalf's power that defeated the Balrog.

He didn't use his power more often because he wasn't there to magically fix all the world's problems.  He was sent to Middle-Earth to act as an advisor and counselor to men to guide them into fixing their own problems.  The Balrog was a special situation as it was a divine being just like him, making it beyond the ability of men/elves/dwarves to handle.


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

[User]
What are the current limitation of our present technology of building a "Drydocks" around earth's orbit aside from budgeting?

I've always wondered if just like when we build naval ships to go on the ocean, we build them near the water so we don't have to spend all the energy to transport them to the water.

Why after so many shuttle launches / satellites, etcetera, have we not developed a "Dry dock orbital space launching station" that could be remote controlled from earth so that we don't need to spend so much fuel to launch from the ground, and just do it from orbit?

I realize the limitation of resources such as oxygen and materials to build said spacecraft are obvious at the moment, but what's stopping us from building some sort of an space elevator in a desolate area of Earth that we could launch materials to an orbiting station that would pass by this space elevator location certain times of the year?

From my layman understanding of satellites orbiting our planet, they are constantly in a decaying orbit, and it requires human manipulation to constantly adjust their trajectories. Is this also another limitation being imposed on building an actual structure to build ships?

I am incredibly fascinated by thinking that someday we will finally leave the cradle we call Earth, and I was wondering with all the budget and resource limitations aside is there any more explanation as to why we haven't done anything similar to this yet?

I don't believe power would be an issue, with solar power, so what are the current limitations we have?

[Assistant]
Heat.

Heavy industry produces a lot of heat, and without a convenient chunk of air or water to dump that heat into, your options are limited.

Heat is transferred by conduction, convection, and radiation...on earth, the first two dominate, but in space, you only have radiation, which is especially slow.

Thermal control of satellites is a whole field unto itself.  Thermal control of a space factory?  That would require technologies we just do not yet possess.


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

[User]
ELI5:Why does my cup of water that was left out during the night taste bad the next day?

What happens in there. I have a full cup of filtered water sit out over night. then the next day at any time it tastes very weird. Why is that?

[Assistant]
The water will also absorb odours from the air.
It used to be a painters' trick to leave a bucket of water in a newly decorated room. The water would absord some of the paint smell and solvents from the air.


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

[User]
[Marvel/MCU] How does Wakanda keep Vibranium in it's borders

I know Wakanda is supposedly a strong nation, but it is quite small and isolated, how does one small African nation keep the entire world from getting at least some of the rarest, strongest and most sought after resource on the planet?

EDIT: I knew they were strong but like everyone else I appear to have underestimated them, interesting stuff!

[Assistant]
Wakanda is not just a strong nation, it's a world power and either one of the most technologically advanced, or the most (Latveria gives it competition here). While they are small and could be overwhelmed, there hasn't been a terrestrial force powerful enough to take Wakanda. They have even repelled significant extra-terrestrial threats like Skrulls and even a portion of Thanos' army.

That's how, by bloodying the noses of anyone who comes knocking at their door. Don't underestimate Wakanda, and especially not their King.

EDIT: To give context it took Thanos' army's full force to just breach the Golden City's first wall. Thanos, the guy who crushes planets. The guy who breaks Kings casually.


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

[User]
How is friction possible if atoms never actually touch each other?

Hopefully I put the right words in the title. I don't know of any other way to put this.

[Assistant]
Atoms may not touch in the way we normally imagine touch, but that's just because that idea of touch doesn't make sense on an atomic scale. It does not mean that touch never happens, it just means that our mental picture is only accurate at human scales.

When things interact through touching, such as with friction, it just means that the atoms have gotten close enough together to interact across the gap between them. The same way that magnets can interact withought getting into physical contact, atoms interact across microscopic distances to create the phenomena of friction.


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

[User]
ELIF: Why is it that every time we put something down our throat toothbrush, finger etc. we start to gag but when we but food and water down our throat we don't gag at all?

ELIF: Why is it every time we put something other than food and water down our throat- a toothbrush or a finger etc. we start to gag?

[Assistant] Because when you eat, you're mushing it and mixing it with your saliva until it becomes a mushy soup of mushiness. For example, you can't shove a chocolate bar down your throat without gagging, despite it being food. An experiment you can do is to start eating something, but instead of swallowing you spit it out on a plate. It looks absolutely disgusting. But you will see the food is not solid at all anymore, it's like a mushy soup. And as we all know, swallowing soup isn't really an issue. Furthermore, we swallow things in steps, so to speak. If you put a lot of food in your mouth, you won't be able to swallow it all in one go (maybe some can). You will swallow it bit by bit, although you won't consciously think about it.


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

[User] ELI5:How do flocks of birds and shoals of fish communicate to make instant and sharp turns in the same direction?

[Assistant] In flocks of starlings (murmurations), one individual's actions affects its seven closest neighbours. Then each of those 7 starlings affect another 7 neighbours and it ripples outwards in a chain reaction.


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

[User]
Can neutrinos pass through neutron stars like they pass through earth?

Since neutrinos are super-abundant, nevertheless elusive and hard to detect even by brute force, I was wondering what happens when they meet a neutron star where matter is condensed.

Do they pass through as easily?

If not, what happens when they hit a neutron? Since they interact more often, do they make the weak force appear stronger in a neutron star?

[Assistant]
The density of a material affects how likely a neutrino is to interact. Neutrinos interact via the weak force, and only the weak force. The weak force is so named because of the relatively weak nature of the force. The interaction is also dependant on neutrino energy.

At energies characteristic of beta decays, the mean free path of a neutrino is such that about half of the neutrinos will decay in about 1.5 lightyears **of lead**, or 17 lightyears of water. The theoretically much denser neutron star density would therefore contract the mean free path through the star. However, due to the extreme conditions in the local area of that interaction, the interaction is likely discouraged by the effects causing neutron degeneracy to be favored in the first place: if protons and electrons could survive in the core, they would. Instead, the effects of gravity favor denser neutron degenerate matter. The energy of the neutrino likely isn't enough to allow for a neutron-neutrino interaction to form a proton-electron pair.


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

[User]
Could you non destructively remove a viruses dna?

And would it afterwards be harmless while still providing enough information to further immunity?

[Assistant]
Can you extract a virus genetic material while leaving the capsid intact? No.
I dont quite know what you mean by the second question. Are you asking whether the empty capsid triggers the immune system? If so, yes. For instance, Gardasil, the vaccine for HPV, consists of engineered, empty capsids.


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

[User]
How do we know what dinosaurs ate exactly if only their bones were fossilized?

Without their internal organs like the stomach, preserved or fossilized, how do we know?

Edit: Thank you all for your very informative answers!

[Assistant] The shape of their teeth is still intact in some of the fossils. From the shape you can determine if the teeth was used for example grinding plants, or ripping and tearing flesh. Omnivores typically have some middle ground.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] How might Wilhuff Tarkin have responded, had he been aware of the fact that Palpatine was behind the Clone Wars (and, by extension, the extermination of the Jedi order)?

This excerpt from the book, "Tarkin," features a conversation between him and Count Dooku that implies that he was never aware:

>The count nodded in assessment. I may not be able to forestall repercussions, Governor, but should this situation escalate to war between the Confederacy and the Republic, I will do my best to see that no lasting harm comes to your homeworld.

>Tarkins brows beetled. Why would you?

>Because in the end, you and I are likely to find ourselves under the same roof.

>Tarkin had long wondered why Dookus prophecy had never come to pass. It was the Separatists who had wound up on the losing side, along with Dooku and, most unexpectedly, the entire Jedi Order, and the Emperor and Tarkin who had found themselves under the same roof.

If Tarkin was aware of Palpatine's role in the war, is there any indication that he might have tried to stop him?

[Assistant] Honestly, he probably wouldn't have cared. He was on a first name basis with Sheev Palpatine and was in full support of the eradication of the Jedi. He might have been annoyed at the deception, but that's it.


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

[User] ELI5 How does a thermal camera work?

[Assistant] You know how hot things can glow red and very hot things might even glow white hot. The same effect works with colder things as well. But instead of glowing in red they glow in infrared. A thermal camera is a camera which does not capture the regular red, green and blue color bands but rather captures several infrared color bands. And by looking at what colors of infrared they glow it can determine what the temperatures are.


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

[User] ELI5: Why are humans ticklish?

[Assistant] Think about where people are ticklish: Their sides, the bottom of their feet, armpits, the back, etc. The prominent school of thought is that parents instinctively tickle their young to teach them a defensive response  to protect the most vulnerable areas of their bodies.


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

[User] [TLOTR] Is the Arkenstone of Thrane the silmaril lost by Maedhros into the fiery pit?

[Assistant] Almost certainly not. The light of the Silmarils is the last remnant of pure untainted light in all of Arda and would be immediately recognizable as such; the Arkenstone is described as giving off "a little globe of pallid light". The Arkenstone was "cut and fashioned by the dwarves", but the Silmaril could not have been cut and would have needed no fashioning. The leaders of the Army of Valinor also predicted that "those jewels could not be found or brought together again unless the world be broken and remade", which could refer to the Downfall of Numenor but more likely refers to the much more relevant (to the Silmarils) Second Music of the Ainur, when the Silmarils will be used to recreate the Two Trees.


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

[User]
Eli5: why does it feel good to crack your back?

I know what chiropractors would say but I want to hear others.

[Assistant]
In people with back pain, one theory is that your joint is slightly off its axis, kind of like those sliding closet doors when one of the pegs comes out of the track.  Cracking your back restores the two surfaces of the joint to their optimal position.

The "cracking" sound you hear is called cavitation, which is essentially gas bubbles forming and instantaneously being reabsorbed back into your joint fluid.  This happens because of changes in pressure in your joint.


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

[User] [General Sci-Fi] Would being born from incest be an issue for one's physical and mental health if there is a significant amount of progress in the field of genetic engineering?

[Assistant] Nope. Then again, it isn't an issue in the modern age either, unless the parents either have or are carriers of genetic diseases, or it is done over many generations. If you add in genetic engineering, you can easily do gene therapy to fix any issues that could arise.


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

[User] ELI5: How small chips in toy cars/action figures can contain melodies/sounds?

[Assistant]
The answer to this is the same as the answer to "how can a thousand decent-resolution pictures or iStore songs fit on a single little tiny microchip in a USB drive?" - digitization.

Sounds can be transformed into digital signals, where a series of numbers is used to represent frequency and other characteristics that comprise a complex noise. You use computer hardware and software to transform it from a listened-to-noise into a digital string of numbers. Then you store those numbers on a microchip. We've miniaturized computer memory to the point where the numbers can be so closely packed together on a single chip that we can easily store TRILLIONS of numbers in something that'll fit on a fingernail with tons of room to spare... and that's a tremendous amount of room to store pre-recorded voices plus some programming logic to play them in a certain sequence as needed.

All you need to do then is have a second battery-powered microchip (or some other storage room on the same microchip) that is programmed to transform those sounds back into electrical signals that are then sent to a tiny speaker... and Furby is given the gift of annoying the living hell out of anyone within earshot that older than four years old.


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

[User]
[MCU] How can Thanos resist the beheading attempt from Thor and Cap in Endgame?

In Endgame just after Captain Marvel tries to fly to the van with the gauntlet and Thanos destroys it, Thor comes at Thanos to stop him getting the gauntlet and then attacks him with Stormbreaker and calls Mjolnir using that to force Sb towards Thanos who is barely holding it back. Then comes in Captain America who jumps on Thanos's back and pulls sb towards Thanos while Thor is pushing it forward.

Since cap has the power of Thor at this point in the movie due to being worthy, why are basically 2 Thor's not able to behead Thanos right then and there?

[Assistant]
I think it could be that yes, both Cap and Thor are really powerful, but consider that

-Cap just learn about the powers and might not know how to use the full potential of it all. And he was wrecked in the beginning of the battle. He did have part of his arm exposed.

-Thor has been idle for 5 years, recked with depression, guilt, and PTSD. He definitely not as peak as he used to be.

Compare to Thanos who was at peak on that point.


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

[User] ELI5: How do we know forsure that light has to be the fastest thing in the universe if we haven't observed it all?

[Assistant]
The idea that nothing can be faster than the speed of light is not really an observation about light so much as it as an observation about how speed really works.

The problem is that the normal idea about how we treat speeds, like that you can simply add one speed to another does not actually work.

In school you had problems about one train going 130 km/h one way and another train going 200 km/h the opposite way and you calculated that they are going away from one another at 330 km/h.

It turns out that what you were taught in school was a lie.

Speed does not really work that way at all in real life.

It turns out it only looks that way when you have really slow speeds. If you get faster speeds the error becomes more obvious.

if you add half the speed of light to half the speed of light, you would expect to get out the speed of light if you use the math they taught you in school. It is actually closer to 4/5 of the speed of light.

The math works that no matter how you add stuff up you can never go over the speed of light.

So there really is no way to go faster than light, not because light is special, but because it already moves at the fasted speed there is. The idea that there might be faster speeds is an illusion that comes from being taught about speeds the wrong way in school.

The speed of light is the speed at which the universe works in general.


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

[User] ELI5: Why does putting one foot out from under the blankets bring so much relief of heat while laying in bed?

[Assistant] The veins in your foot are relatively close to the surface, making heat transfer from your inner body to the outside temperature much easier. The blanket (or socks) are isolating your feet, making this transfer more difficult.


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

[User]
ELI5: Please explain the differences in roles and responsibilities among different military ranks (lets say Corporal to General)

What different roles do different ranks in the military have? What is the major difference between a 2nd Lieutenant's responsibility and a Major's responsibility? At which point does a particular rank stop seeing frontline combat, or combat at all. You get what I'm saying.

[Assistant]
Think of it in comparison to a large retail chain.

Think of privates and specialists like the on-the-floor salesmen and stockers, who do the actual work of working with customers, stocking shelves and that kind of thing.

Now you've got your NCOs (non-commissioned officers), your corporals and sergeants. These guys are sort of like the shift supervisors and department managers, who keep the regular workers organized and on task based on the directions they're given from management.

Lieutenants are your store managers. The whole staff reports to them, the floor managers carry out their instructions, and the performance of the store as a whole is their responsibility.

Majors are your mid-level managers. Some of them might be attached to one larger store, others might be working at headquarters, others are running half a dozen stores in one given area. Most haven't set foot on a retail floor in years, except for the occasional tour or inspection. These are the guys who organize the bigger picture based on the strategy handed down from senior management. They're responsible for ensuring standards are met consistently, and for keeping senior management informed of conditions in the stores and in the market.

Colonels are your junior vice presidents. Same as majors, one rank might involve any of ten different roles, but generally they're running larger business units or working at HQ to coordinate overall strategy, supply and performance.

Generals are your senior management, your heads of marketing or your VPs. These guys are working out detailed strategy in support of the overall plan, bringing multiple different elements together in a coordinated effort to overcome the competition.

Then of course you've got your three- and four-star generals, who are your top-level executives (CEO, CFO etc). These guys are generally doing big-picture strategy and representing the company to the board, the investors etc.


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

[User] ELI5: if plants need to absorb sunlight in order to do photosynthesis, why aren't they black?

[Assistant]
There are two reasons.

First, Because they need to absorb certain colors of light.

During photosynthesis plants use the light hitting them to excite electrons. They then use the energy of those excited electrons in a series of reactions to store that energy as sugars like glucose.

For this to happen most effectively there are specific colors of light the plants want to absorb, because since different colors of light have different energy levels which excite the electrons to different energy levels, certain colors excite the electrons just the right amount. Those happen to be in the blues and reds, since the plant doesnt need the green light, its reflected away.

Also. Fully black leaves could absorb TOO much sun and overheat the plant.

Plants can also overheat and get burnt by the sun, if they were black they would absorb even more light and really heat up on a hot sunny day. Like when you wear a black shirt out instead of a light colored or white one.


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

[User]
[The boys] Would A-train have won the race against supersonic if he never used the V compound in the first place and thus being healthy for the race?

Basically is healthy A-train faster than healthy supersonic?

[Assistant]
That's hard to predict.

- Other top-tier superheroes (Homelander, Stormfront, Soldier Boy) don't seem to have problems with aging, and A-trains main character flaw is his own insecurity, so it's entirely possible he never needed the boost in the first place.

- On the other hand, not *everyone* gets the lack of aging thing, so he might have just lost the superpower lottery.

- On the other *other* hand, A-train is just the first speedster to get famous, he isnt necessarily the fastest one.  Supersonic, or some other speedster, might just be faster than him out of luck.  The trend does seem to be newer superheroes being more powerful as Vought gets better at making and using Compound V.


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

[User]
Are dreams powered by the same parts of the brain that are responsible for creativity and imagination?

And are those parts of the brain essentially writing your dreams?

[Assistant]
The topic of dreams is still very much an open question for Neuroscience but scans from fMRI and EEG data seem to suggest that both dreaming and daydreaming are related, though obviously there is even more deactivation of task specific areas of the brain during actual dreaming.

Imagination and kind of idle behaviour are all linked to a large collection of different parts of the brain called the Default Mode Network. This network is generally active when subjects in scans don't have a set task they are trying to accomplish. Sleep and Daydreaming are also linked to this same network.

However, there is much more to dreams than just that. There is a lot of reactivation of parts of the brain during sleep that basically replays recent memories. This is thought to help with memory consolidation and formation and more detailed analysis on other animals (as this requires implanting probes directly into the brain) show brain patterns that both match previous awake patterns in the past, match those patterns but in reverse, and patterns that are similar but with some variation. So it seems the brain not only goes through the days experiences but also creates variations based on them. While most of this seems to happen in Slow Wave Sleep rather than REM Sleep where most Dreams are, there's more recent evidence showing it happens there too.

Together, it seems that, at the very least, Dreams are combinations of imagination, your previous experiences and memories, as well as variations and combinations of them.

That is not to mention the very likely possibility of other smaller (in terms of measurable electrical activity, not in terms of effect) contributions that we can't easily find with non-invasive methods in humans.


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

[User] How did Max Planck calculate a Planck Length?

[Assistant]
Essentially you have three constants which relate to different areas of Physics.  There is planck's constant hbar which relates to quantum mechanics,  the speed of light c,  which is to do with relativity,  and the universal gravitational constant G,  which relates to gravity.

There is only one way to combine these three to get a length which is

L = sqrt ( hbar  G / c^3 ) =1.61 10^-35

By dimensional analysis, this should occur as a natural length scale when dealing with the quantisation of gravitation and the curvature of space. It also occurs in an entropy calculation for black holes

S = A / (4 L)^2

With A the area of the event horizon.


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

[User]
ELI5:What is "information" as used in physics?

Hello,

I have been watching a ton of Youtube videos trying to under exactly what is meant by "information" when used in physics. All the videos they discuss possible means, methods, conceptions of "how, why where" information is.

But, I cannot wrap my head around what exactly information IS?

[Assistant]
You ever play the game Guess Who? You get to ask a series of yes/no questions to identify one person among 24. On average, the best questions will eliminate half the available characters from 24, to 12, to 6, to 3, to 2, then finally 1. Meaning you should be able to win in 5 questions.

So we would say, then, that this system has 5 bits of information. Information is basically the number of yes/no questions you would need to completely specify all of its properties.


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

[User]
CMV: when recruiting, asking 'where do you see yourself in five years?' serves no purpose

I'm looking at this from an office job perspective as it's really the only one I've ever had in my professional life.

Hardly anyone can reliably tell you where they see themselves in five years. Five years is a very long time; people may develop a passion for completely new things, obtain new skills, discover hidden talents. They also may not fully know the organization where they're applying and therefore they may not be fully aware of the opportunities that the organization may or may not offer.

Moreover, someone may be a kickass employee right now but lack the foresight and maturity to be able to tell where they would like to be in five years' time.

I would be happy to find out what recruiters would like to hear as a response to this question.

[Assistant]
It isnt a practical question. Its supposed to highlight ambition and see if the candidate is interested in growing with the company.

Ive certainly asked this plenty of times and had a slew of answers. If youre chasing ambitious people the answer is important.


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

[User] If we knew the exact age of an atom of radioactive material, would we be able to predict its alpha and beta decays?

[Assistant]
Current theory strongly suggests this is absolutely random.  This is known as the Copenhagen Interpretation of quantum physics.

The alternative is the hidden variable explanation, there is some non-random mechanism, we just can't see it.

Scientists have been looking for these hidden variables ever since Copenhagen, but have found little evidence for it.  In fact, Bell's Theorem puts serious restraints on what form these variables can take.

Science is about finding the best explanation for what we observe, no matter how strange it may seem.  Theory and experiment point to randomness, so it would be unscientific to discard this explaination.


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

[User] ELI5: What is "space - time"?

[Assistant]
Imagine the universe is a table with ants crawling across it.  Then you could take a bunch of pictures of that table and stack them on top of each other.  The table itself is two-dimensional (flat), but the stack of photos is three-dimensional.  That third dimension is proportional to time (scaled by the rate you take photos and the thickness of each photo).  So what we have is a single object made up of two spatial dimensions and one time dimension.

Now, the real universe has three spatial dimensions.  If we were to similarly "stack" snapshots of the universe, we would get a four dimensional object, where the fourth dimension is proportional to time (scaled by the speed of light).  That's what we call space-time.


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

[User] [MCU] Why out of all powerful superheroes, it was Spider-Man that resisted dematerialization from Thanos Snap for the longest time?

[Assistant] Spidey's Spider-Sense told him that *something* real bad was happening, but not exactly what, so he was basically having a super-powered panic attack. He didn't fade away faster, he just called attention to his own dematerialization earlier than the others, so we saw it all in excruciating detail.


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

[User] [Harry Potter] Do all of Hogwarts' houses produce Dark Wizards, and if so, what is the frequency of each? And do Heads of House have any sort of training on working with potential future Dark Wizards? Like how to discourage the Darkness?

[Assistant]
Well, yes, for any number of reasons. People may attempt to justify their actions any given way, but everyone has the potential to become a Dark Wizard - it's our choices that make us who we are, remember?

However, Slytherin has a reputation for producing Dark wizards more frequently than others and this may be due to the fact that one of the House's key traits is ambition and cunning, traits you'd commonly see in someone who'd go bad.


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

[User] [Deathnote] If you had a Lifenote which was the polar opposite of a Deathnote, what would it's rules be, how would it work and what could you do with it?

[Assistant]
**Rules of the Life Note**

1. The human whose name is written in this note shall not die *from a particular cause of death.*

2. This note will not take effect unless the writer has the person's face in their mind when writing his/her name. Therefore, people sharing the same name will not be affected.

3. If the cause of death is written within the next 40 seconds of writing the person's name, it will *not* happen.

4. If the cause of death is not specified, the person will simply be restored to perfect health.

5. After writing the cause of death, details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds.


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

[User] ELI5: What happens if a person is given the wrong type of blood for a transfusion.

[Assistant]
Blood has anti other blood sensors on it. Type A has anti-B, type O has anti A and anti B, type B has anti A and type AB has neither. So following these rules, Type A can receive from only A or O. Type B can receive B or O.  Type O can only receive O. Type AB can receive O, A, B, and AB.  This is why type O is considered the universal donor while type AB is the universal receiver.  If they are not a blood match, the blood will attack the foreign blood. The reason someone is getting a transfusion is because they need blood. Adding bad blood triggers an auto response from the blood to destroy the foreign blood. This exacerbates the lack of blood issue by causing existing blood cells to die and destroying the transfused blood cells as well. Now the body not only has survive whatever trauma but also has to clean up the giant mess in the bloodstream now with multiple clots that can reach cause heart attack or stroke. Most likely it kills the patient if not caught immediately.
.
Edit: Rh factor is another aspect of the blood. This is either you have Rh factor (+) or you don't (-).  Those who don't, don't want it and those who do don't care if they don't get more.


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

[User] [TMNT] What would the offspring be like if the turtles fertilized some non-intelligent females of their same species?

[Assistant]
In nature a new species can be created when an existing species is divided somehow and the two groups begin to evolve differently. Over time mutations will arise in both populations and once sufficient differences have occurred it will no longer be possible for the two groups to mate and create viable children.

Although that's not exactly what happened here, certainly the four turtles underwent extreme mutations and it seems highly unlikely that they would still be able to produce viable offspring with females of their previous species.

I think that if they mated then the offspring would not be viable enough to come to term and the eggs would abort in early development. It's shame but the four turtles will likely be the first and last of their species and once they are dead their bodies will be stuffed and put on display in the natural history museum. Well that's what I'd do with them anyway.


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

[User]
As someone Diagnosed with Apsergers Syndrome, Social Anxiety and Depression I think that self medicating with Alcohol is a viable option to live a decent life CMV

When I say self medicating I don't mean getting hammered in social situations however the difference between me sober and quite tipsy is huge.

I feel like a totally different person when i'm drunk, I can talk to people more openly, empathize with them more, I'm much more flirty (I've only ever kissed girls under the influence). Sober i'm a nervous wreck in all aspects of life but even if I did want to change I rarely have the energy to do so. I get easily embarrassed and i'm scared of women despite me being a male in his 20's with a sex drive (drunk me is actually very brave around women). Lately being sober has become really boring and the highlight of my day is going to sleep at night or going out drinking, I've also been having many suicidal thoughts but as soon as I drink alcohol I feel fine.

I wouldn't call myself an alcoholic either. I can go for days sitting on my own or with close friends sober however I do prefer to use it when in social situations.

Alcohol does two things for me, it either calms me down if I've just had a drink or two making me almost human or it makes me the life of the party if I've had more.

[Assistant] Yes, to a certain extent many people who suffer with social anxiety use alcohol to calm down their nerves, but the problem is that the alcohol eventually becomes like a crutch if not used properly and can lead to dependency issues.


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

[User] ELI5: Why does electricity "fork" or move in a "branch out" pattern?

[Assistant] Electricity takes **all** the paths at the same time.  However, the lower the resistance, the greater the fraction of the current that takes that path.  It turns out that a few paths have less resistance, and almost all the current takes those paths.  If there is a fork, then at that time there are two paths with equal resistance, and half the current takes each path.


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

[User] ELI5: How do deserts form? Where are those sands coming from?

[Assistant]
So let's limit this to the classic Sahara-type "desert" with sand dunes and dry landscapes.

One of the main factors that turns a normal place into a desert of that sort is an absence of water. This prevents plants from growing, and in turn removes the normal process of plants capturing carbon dioxide from the air and converting it into carbon compounds.

Now normally those organic compounds plus tiny bits of rock plus water form a sort of glue that keeps the ground together as a form of soil... and then plant roots can sink into it and help keep it into place even better. But no plants or water in a desert means nothing to keep the bits of rock stuck down... and so the next ingredient, wind, takes effect.

Wind picks up the bits of rock and blows them around... and the lightest forms of grit become blown away completely, perhaps out to sea, while the larger, sandy-sized bits more or less stay. So you end up with fairly uniform and often very stable dunes of sand.

And the final piece is rock erosion. Hot sun, cold nights, constant wind abrading away rock faces with blown grit... over thousands of years it adds up into more crumbling dry rock that eventually forms more sand.


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

[User]
CMV: You can be racist to white people

Recently, my elementary school going brothers were learning about racism and anti-racism in their schools. I asked the question - can you be racist towards white people? My youngest brother (age 11), thought about it and said no. My other younger brother (age 15) said yes. Naturally, this led to a good discussion and we all agreed that on principle you can be racist towards white people.

We spoke about how marginalization exists beyond skin color - such as class and socioeconomic status. We talked about how imitating rednecks, hillbillies, white trash is similar to imitating Chinese people or Indian people. Or saying - no whites allowed in your restaurant is at the same level as saying no Blacks allowed. Which is why in my view - you can be racist towards white people.

Im open to all perspectives, and want to see my viewpoint can be changed. I understand from grad school that people in power can always go back to their comfort of power and privilege and that allows any racist attitude to simply rub off their backs - but this is a viewpoint that I believe to be contrary to human experience.

For context - I am brown, South Asian.

[Assistant]
Here are some tips that may save you a lot of time:

1. This question is incredibly common in CMV. If you want some insightful answers, just search "racist to white people" in the delta search.
2. The long QAs almost inevitably end up being a definition debate. The definition debate takes the following form:
Person A: Defines "racism" as prejudice + power as many people do, and then argues that the places where white people hold the power are places you can't be racist to white people.
Person B. Defines "racism" as prejudice based on race only, as many people do, and then argues you CAN be racist to white people.


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

[User] ELI5: How come that aerial bombs from WW2 are still found e.g. in Berlin nowadays? Weren't they visible after having been dropped? Why did they build over them?

[Assistant] Many of them ended up being covered by the rubble from other bombs dropped in the same area. Bombs were often dropped in clusters and by groups of bombers, so overlapping blast debris isn't uncommon. Once they ended up covered by rubble, nobody knew that they were there and they were bulldozed with the rest of the terrain when restoring the cities and ended up buried beneath the new structures.


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

[User] ELI5: Why are people either Righties or Lefties and not all ambidextrous? What makes us either a Righty or a Leftie?

[Assistant]
Some scientists think it has to do with how our brains divide up the labor, such as since most people use left side of the brain to do fine motor skills (aka speaking and handiwork), and left hemisphere of the brain control right side of the body, most of us are right handed.

of course, there's also genetic contribution to this. if both parents of a child are left-handed, there is a 26% chance of that child being left-handed.

There are other theories out there, all with very good evidences, but the top two i mentioned are the most popular one.

Source:

> Banich, Marie (1997). Neuropsychology: The Neural Bases of Mental Function.

> McManus, Chris (2003). Right Hand, Left Hand. Phoenix Paperbacks. ISBN 0753813556.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] If Jabba had ordered Han and Chewie to carry out an assassination/mob hit would they have done it?

So it seems to me that while wet work isn't Han's expertise he doesn't have any problem with killing people, stormtroopers and rival gang member mostly, in the course of his criminal enterprises. This begs the question would Han and Chewie be willing to do that sort of work for Jabba if he'd asked/ordered?

[Assistant] No. Han and chewie are criminals and willing to kill for a reasonable cause but aren't killers. They'd ask/beg jabba for anything else since they're better smugglers and gamblers than killers. If Jabba forced the issue they'd find a way to avoid killing the target and instead kidnap them for Jabba or find a way to scare them off permanently.


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

[User]
[Dragon Ball Z] What if Bardock had went to earth with Goku?

* Remove everything from the retcon from Dragon Ball Minus. Work with the Bardock from "The Father of Goku" movie. This one probably hooked up with some female Saiyan to have Goku, maybe Fasha or whatever.

Scenario: Bardock does not make a last stand, and the saiyans still get destroyed. He takes a ship and goes to find his son on earth. Goku has just hit his head. Bardock finds him with Grandpa Gohan, and takes him back. However, Gohan offers to teach Bardock about life on Earth, and Bardock accepts. Bardock and Goku become neighbors with Gohan. Bardock settles to live a quiet life with his son, but will still train and teach him about his home planet. Due to freak luck, Gohan still dies, but Goku still has his father. Bardock inherits Gohan's property. So when Bulma comes around, things are different.

What else changes? How does the character of Goku change? The others?

[Assistant]
Bardock sends Kakarot off (no one but Gohan ever called him Goku) with Bulma because why not, worst case he can probably eat her.  Brardok keeps his training up but generally considers Earth a bit of a backwater where he is hiding out.  Kakarot keeps his desire to get stronger, but probably acts more like Raditz.

Dragonball doesn't change much.  Bulma smooths down the rough edges of Kakarot somewhat just like the Anime but making him less abrasive and annoying to be around.  While there are some differences, ultimately the story line ends up playing off mainly the same.  Kakarot still marries Chichi but doesn't become a farmer as that is beneath his warrior heritage.   He makes bank off of all world martial arts tournaments and other feats of strength as necessary.  Bardok isn't idle, but he tends to do other stuff and really isn't up for world domination.  The Dragon cannot restore a planet (for plot reasons) so Vegeta stays destroyed.

DBZ is slightly different.  Raditz finds his father and brother on Earth, he's stronger than Kakarot but Bardok is very close to his level.  Piccolo plays a much smaller role in the series.  Bardok eventually convinces Raditz to join them when they figure out the dragon balls.  Prince Vegeta overhears and decides to go visiting.

The Saijan saga plays out similar, Kakarot never died and ends up being the weakest (but getting stronger) character.  Bardok and Vegeta fight while Nappa takes on the sons.  Kakarot doesn't learn the spirit bomb or the Kaio Ken, but has been training hard with his father and brother for a year.  The Z fighters still win, its narrow, Bardok allows Vegeta to escape because of some honorable reason.

The Namek saga is where it falls apart.  Bardok has gone SS in some continuity.  So Kakarot is sent on ahead, again while he's strong he doesn't have that special training to make him Goku(tm) with Bulma and Yamcha (still dating) .  The Namek saga plays out mostly the same, Vegeta fights Kakarot and can beat him up with great difficulty.  Eventualy the Ginyu force arrives and tries to take the Dragon Balls.  Fight is MUCH more even (rather than a Goku stomp) because Super Kami Guru unlocked Kakarot's hidden potential which was immense.

Vegeta and Recoom fight, Vegeta loses but then unlocked Kakarot fights and easily defeats Recoom.  The fight continues and then the ship shows up with Piccolo, Raditz and Bardok onboard.  Those three, along with Kakarot and Vegeta easily crush the Ginyu force.  Ginyu does the body swap with Bardok, but Bardok swaps back before Vegeta kills him.

Back to mainly normal,  Piccolo goes to get the last Dragon Ball while everyone else rests up.  Frieza appears and the fight is on. Due to the fight Vegeta got his boost, he's as tough as Kakarot again.  Raditz and Bardok trained under 100g and are both actually higher than that.    Piccolo finds the shattered remains of Nail and fuses with him and gets the boost from SKG.  Dende comes along.

Frieza goes through his first 2 forms pretty quickly as they are outclassed by the Z fighters.  Third form does better because they insist on one on one fights.  Frieza takes down a few of them, not knowing that Dende is healing them.  Kakarot does very well in one pass so Frieza changes to his final form, unpowered.  Bardok hasn't entered the battle yet letting his sons and the prince go first.

Finally Frieza gets annoyed and decides to destroy the planet.  All the Z fighters join up for a massive Final Spirit Cannon to deflect Frieza's enormous planet buster attack.  They are able to narrowly deflect the shot back into Frieza, but all of the Z fighters have collapsed.  Game over...

The Frieza returns, cripples Raditz and Vegeta and Kills Kakarot with his exploding attack.  Bardock loses his mind and goes SS1, and they fight.  Blah Blah, good wins, evil dies.

Bardock learns the Teleporting technique after not dying.  Kakarot learns the Kaio Ken and Spirit Bomb, after dying.  Raditz and Vegeta develop a strong rivalry .  Bulma breaks up with Yamcha (he's useless) and both Saijans spend their time courting her while beating up on each other (it is set in the DB universe)

Next we move to the cell games but that's just Kakarot becoming Goku for the most part (Gohan exists but he's a kid and doesn't fight).  All the Saiyan's can go SS1.  Kakarot figures out how to do SS2 correctly.

The Buu saga is also impressively similar.  Kakarot is now more powerful than the other Saiyan's, Bardock is getting up in the years.  Raditz married 18. Vegeta married Bulma.  They all have a mess of kids.  Series still focuses on the adults so the tournament plays out somehwat normally but the kids (Trunks, Goten and Turnip)  form up into a 3 man version of the masked fighter.

Vegeta and Raditz get the buu marks and fight against Kakarot and Bardock.  Kakarot gets trained by the Supreme Kai.  Final battle between tall of them ends up with Kakarot playing most of Gohan's parts and Bardock playing Goku's.  Vegeta and Raditz fuse into Rageta.  But the story line is more or less the same.  Bardock takes out Majin Buu, but this is is retirement fight and he fights smarter not harder to achieve it.

Dragon Ball Super has Kakarot, with the other Saiyans doing stuff.  Power levels are basically the same with Raditz and Vegeta being on a level thank Kakarot.  It would basically be DBZ with one extra Saiyan.


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

[User] [Fresh Prince of Bel Air] How did Will manage to seamlessly transfer from a potentially below average high school in the ghettos of Philadelphia into a top private school in Bel Air?

[Assistant] Will was actually always a good student, he brought his text books home hidden in a pizza box.  He would have no problem with any entrance exams Bel Air academy had.  On top of that a lot of private schools have rules about letting siblings in as a legacy even if they dont meet the enterance requirements.


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

[User]
Can a star be so hot it is invisible to the naked eye?

The hotter a star is the higher the frequency at which it glows. So can it be so hot that it is 'glowing' at x-ray frequency and is invisible to normal light?

[Assistant] No.  As temperature increases, the intensity of every wavelength always and only increases.  Different wavelengths increase more than others, causing the peak to shift, but still the intensity everywhere increases.   If it's glowing at X-ray frequencies, it also glowing quite brightly in the visible as well.


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

[User] ELI5: How come when im expecting something to happen (like a jump scare) I get spooked/jumped more than I would not expecting it?

[Assistant] If you're expecting it, your fight or flight response is already readied and your body and mind are focused and tense. However, in a situation where you're not expecting anything, there's a delay between when the stimulus is registered and the body reacts. There's less built up tension and prepared response with a random spook than if you're already expecting something to happen.


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

[User]
How difficult is it to provide cell service on underground services such as subways?

If we can have cell assisted Internet access on above ground services like trains why can we not do the same underground?

[Assistant] Very good question. It depends. If you put your transmitter above ground, it is almost impossible to get the signals deep underground and it would be a waste of energy to try to. If you put transmitters inside a tunnel you can actually reach quite far with them because the signals would reflect a lot. So we could do it. We probably don't because it takes a lot of money and it isn't really worth anyone's time since you will be above ground soon anyway.


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

[User] ELI5: How come human infants are (seemingly) much needier and more frail than any other infant animals in the animal kingdom?

[Assistant] Humans are born with underdeveloped brains.  This is for multiple reasons such as we grow up to have really huge brains and that'd kill the mother during birth.  Another reason is that the human brain evolved to learn rather than just be filled with extincts.  We start off behind and then catch up and overtake by a lot.


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

[User]
[Marvel] Can Flora Colossi produce speech using the same phonemes as, but in a different order to the phrase "I am Groot" ?

Hypothetically it should be able to produce words such as Arm, Room, and even Rhyme, no?

[Assistant]
Possible, but likely very difficult.

When you hear "I am Groot" that's mostly a side-effect of the Flora Colossi speaking.  It' s unlikely that they're even consciously forming those sounds.  Imagine if we met a species who communicated using the specific way they flex their diaphragms.  We too flex our diaphragms when we speak (and breathe), and could make noises in their language--but it would be very difficult for us to actually replicate their language.


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

[User]
The US has a ~6% inflation, but the $ went up ?

Hi, me and my boyfriend have been stumped by this question, we don't know a LOT about economics so the answer might be really simple.
We both live in France, but he works for the US, and is paid a US salary in dollars. When he gets his salary in his account, the money is transfered to . In recent months, his  salary has went up by 300 approximately (but his salary in $ remains the same). I told him that was because we are currently suffering from a huge inflation spike right now, so the value of the  went down. But we recently learned that inflation in the US is actually worse than that of France right now, which is confusing because then you would think the dollar would have lost a ton of value, right ? And yet, the dollar is much more valuable than the euro right now. How is that possible, when inflation in the USA is around 6% and we are at around 4% in France ?

Thank you for anyone who takes the time to answer.

[Assistant]
Prices of consumer goods are sticky, but exchange rates are not sticky.

This means it's possible to forecast medium term inflation from past price data. But you cannot forecast exchange rates from past price data.

For a simpler example, say Apple announces that it will raise the price of iPhones in one month because it thinks that will increase its profits. Even though the price change hasn't actually happened yet, the price of Apple's stock will increase today because people expect higher profits next month.

Exchange rate prices are going to reflect all information currently available to investors and inflation forecasts should be priced in.


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

[User] [Marvel] I'm in a Karate kid scenario where I have to become a competent fighter and 3 experts are offering to train me. One is Steve Rogers, one is Matt Murdoch, and one is Danny Rand. What can each mentor offer me that the other 2 can't?

[Assistant]
I'd go with Cap.  He'll put you through brutal workouts and give you the willpower to complete them.  His encouragement and leadership skills will push you farther than the other two possibly could, and his fighting is grounded in practicality.  He'll give you the best baseline competence most quickly.

Danny Rand is a distant second choice.  Vastly competent as a fighter, but his discipline requires years of meditation and body hardening to master.  You're not going to reach more than "good henchman" level training under Danny.

Despite being the strongest of the three (fight me!), Murdock will be the worst coach.  His skills are based on abilities you'll never have, and he can't translate that into sight-based fighting for you.


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

[User] If humans need connection to other humans to survive and thrive; why do so many humans hate being around other humans?

[Assistant]
People need other people, but often, the particular people available aren't capable of meeting specific needs.

So we end up needing people, but not *those* people, and many eventually give up trying to find their people.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] How was the blockade of Naboo "perfectly legal"?

Do we know when a private group blockading an entire planet became ok? That seems like an insane proposition. Could you imagine if some shipping company decided to blockade an entire island nation here on Earth?

[Assistant]
It's not.  This is rhetoric by the trade federation, who are acting under prior instructions.  Calling it legal allows them to stall for time and makes sure the blockade actually takes effect.  They're unhappy about something the Naboo government is doing, they have droids to back it up, so they hold everything up.

It makes more sense if you consider the private groups as more like sub-nations.  Almost everyone is under the republic, but the republic is a little like a more powerful version of the UN.  Like the UN, they have a big discussion forum and they have a peacekeeping force, but they're not going to intervene unless they absolutely have to.  Mostly this has worked pretty well for them.

In this case, as per usual protocol, they're not too keen on the blockade.  They don't think it's legal, so they send some Jedi to negotiate.  Hopefully this can calm things down and they can avoid some sort of escalating violence.


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

[User]
[Dungeons & Dragons] Outsiders don't have a soul that's separate from their body, but "native outsiders" can be resurrected the same way mortals are. How does that work?

Both the thing with outsiders having wonky body/soul structures and how native outsiders can be revived like mortals when non-native outsiders can't.

[Assistant]
>The souls of outsiders and elementals are so intrinsically tied to the essence of their home planes that they evaporate into the fabric of the plane rather quickly. That's why it takes thetrue resurrectionspell to bring them back from the dead; the magic must sift through the plane and reconstitute their dispersed souls.

Basically, outsider souls are part of a greater whole, only existing independently when embodied, while mortal souls are independent entities and don't need bodies to remain independent.  Think of it like humans versus Eldar in the 40k universe; human souls dissolve into the Warp on death, while Eldar souls are powerful enough to maintain cohesion (at least until She Who Thirsts noms them).  This comes with benefits (some outsiders reform in their home plane after death outside it, because their life energies naturally return to that plane) and disadvantages (you can't resurrect outsiders as easily outside their plane, and need some material from their home plane to do it.)

Because outsider souls don't remain coherent, they lose their individuality on death, as their souls dissolve into the whole.  This is what's meant by 'outsiders don't have souls' or 'outsiders have no afterlife' - the energies that composed them remain, but they cease to exist as independent beings unless their bodies are reformed.  Some planes (eg the Hells) allow for that reformation, others don't.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why does the Isle of Man have a disproportionately high number of motorbike related deaths?

Even when you don't include those that take place during the Isle of Man TT, why are there so many motorbike related deaths on such a small island?

[Assistant]
Just because a death doesn't occur as a *direct* result of the TT, it doesn't mean it's not TT-related.

Plenty of bikers go there all through the year and ride like they're Joey Dunlop - right up to the moment they discover they're not Joey Dunlop.


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

[User] Is electricity affected by gravity?

[Assistant]
It is, in principle; electrons have mass and energy, and hence they are pulled by gravity.

In practice, the strength of gravity on an object with a mass of something like 10^-31 kilograms is imperceptible, especially in comparison the relatively huge effects of electric fields on electrons. So in almost every instance, we can neglect the effects of gravity on electricity.


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

[User] ELI5: If Canada is to legalize marijuana, what would happen to all the folks in jail convicted of marijuana crimes? And what would happen to the arrest records of those arrested for these crimes before it was legal?

[Assistant] Nothing.  It was illegal when they did the crime, so they are still guilty.  They might then go back and let people out, or commute people's sentences, but that would be a separate piece of legislation to do that.


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

[User]
Political Philosophy: Equality of Punishment?

Equality of justice is supposed to be a fundamental aspect of democratic societies. But it seems there are many difficulties in actually implementing it.

Let's say there's a law that punishes a crime with imprisonment of 3 months. Now for two different persons, this punishment can have different costs. One of them may have a family to take care of, an examination to appear in that would affect his career significantly or other promises/contracts to keep. The other person may not have similar obligations. Therefore, the punishment, although equal in duration, will have completely different costs to these two convicts who committed an identical crime.

This becomes a very real issue when we consider fines. Let's say there's a 100$ fine for speeding. Now to someone rich, 100$ is bare change while to someone who only had 100$ to get some urgent medicine for himself, the effective costs are huge. Clearly, the law has affected them unequally.

EDIT: On the other hand, if the fines are made proportional to wealth, the system will have incentives to target the rich.

How can we actually achieve "equality of justice"?

[Assistant] many countries calculate fines on (serious) traffic violations as percentage of income, or a combination of fixed amount+percentage of income. the process is usually automated, so incentives to target "the rich" are not realy a problem. the reasoning behind all this is not necessarily to achieve equality in justice, but rather that not doing so would not have a deterrent effect on wealthy people.


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

[User]
Are there any defenses of feudalism as an economic system?

I am not a neo-feudalist or anything, I just need help with a DnD character.

[Assistant] Since questions like these are grounded in morality (as economics cant answer moral questions), I'd say most economists think liberal society is the most preferred society. Feudalism is at odds with liberalism.


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

[User]
[MCU] How is it possible that only Hank Pym discovered the pym particles in the whole universe?

How come other intelligent creatures with more advanced technology(and maybe brain) haven't discovered their existence?

[Assistant]
We don't know that some alien species hasn't found them.

We only know that Pym found them and was working with them. We also know that Pym found that unshielded work with them is... detrimental to mental well-being.


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

[User] ELI5: How do our hearts beat 24/7 without needing to take a break/rest period?

[Assistant]
Theyre hyper-specialist cells for just this purpose.  Cardiac muscle cells ditch all the storage space and reproductive parts and max out on mitochondria.

100% power all the time.

They dont need to save fuel, theyre in the heart and have first dibs on fuel.

They dont need to have regenerative capacity, youre double dead if you take damage there anyway and theyre encased in a bone shield

They dont need to worry about waste buildup - just dump it into the passing blood flow.

They dont need to manage temperature changes, theyre deep in your core and well insulated.

All the things normal muscle cells have to worry about dont matter, just max power all day every day.


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

[User]
[Family Guy] Why don't the Child Protective Services do something about the abuse that Meg suffers from her parents?

Peter named her "Megatron". That alone should have been a huge red flag.

[Assistant] I think there was an episode, where Meg had enough and told all of em to kiss her ass and was about to leave. The threat of her leaving was causing her family to fall the fuck apart and we find out that shitting on Meg was the only thing keeping the family together, so she took one for a team that clearly doesnt deserve her and stays.


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

[User]
[Star wars] I am a mid ranking imperial officer on board the Executor who has made a mistake on a command decision. When confronted by Lord Vader I told the unaltered truth and made no attempts to hide my mistake. Prior to this I had a flawless record. Will I survive the encounter?

It has been two years since the empire lost the death star and a general broadcast order said to conserve replacement parts due to a supply shortage.

I was in command of a weapon's battery, one of the power conduits showed slight signs of damage but remained serviceable for standard use. I made the command decision not to replace it.

In our last encounter with a rebel ship, lord Vader attempted to engage the cannons at a higher power level than standard. Doing so overloaded the conduit and caused my canon to misfire. My team was able to replace the conduit within half the average repair time however the rebel ship escaped. Its shields had failed right before it entered hyperspace and it is likely even one more shot would have crippled it.

I have taken full responsibility for the failure of my canon and attempted no subterfuge. What will lord Vader do with me?

Edit: Bonus question, how would it differ from Grand Admiral Thrawn?

[Assistant] Most likely, yes.  Vader is actually pretty chill as long as you follow basic workplace etiquette.  Don't make fun of the guy's disability or his religion, and you will most likely survive any encounter with him.  Even gross negligence would really only get you a brief choking as a warning.


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

[User]
[General Fiction] Are there any stories where the existence is the afterlife is not only a confirmed part of the setting, but also actually affects how the characters think about death?

I was watching the latest season of the Magicians, and one of the main characters was pretty unbothered by the possibility of their imminent death because one of the consequences of their various adventures was that they knew the afterlife existed, they had a rough idea what it was like, and they knew they could be reunited with a love one in death.

Are there any other stories that have scenes like that? Any horror stories/movies where the protagonist stops and thinks about how, if ghosts exist, than souls must also exist, and so stops fearing death quite so much? Or stories where farming karma in order to get a good reincarnation is actually something somebody cares about?

Essentially, any good works of fiction where the afterlife isn't just something people believe in, but an actual, tangible part of the setting that actually affects how people think and act?

[Assistant] Order of the Stick takes place in a D&D universe so resurrection spells are available to anyone who can pay for them. Roy's girlfriend isn't really that broken up hearing about his death since they have the body and he didn't die of old age. There's still a whole story arc revolving around coming up with the expensive material components, but at the end of the day it's an obstacle, not a tragedy. Roy's father's death of old age, meanwhile, is treated as seriously as the comic can manage, since that means no coming back to the material plane. But even then the comic has an afterlife to soften the blow.


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

[User] ELI5: How do stealth planes work and why can't radars detect them?

[Assistant]
Radar works by shooting out invisible light waves in all directions. That light gets reflected back to the antenna which can detect it and based on any frequency/amplitude changes and signal lost it can determine the size of an object and its distance away.

Stealth planes operate on the basic principle of making sure as little of the reflected light makes it back to the radar antenna to be detected.

The first method was design of the craft. By situating the panels of the craft at specific angles you could ensure that only small bits ever reflected light in one direction at any given time. That's why the initial stealth craft, like the F-117 Nighthawk, looked weird with their triangular shape and sharp edges.

The second method was material type. By making the shell of the craft out of special material it could absorb the radar light, rather than reflect it, making it invisible to radar.

As technology improved they could rely more on the radar absorbing material and less on the design, which allowed them to go back to the more standard aircraft design as seen in the F-22 raptor.


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

[User]
What is fire?

Essentially, is it a kind of plasma?  Is it pure energy?  What?

[Assistant] It's a reaction between oxygen and a fuel (usually a hydrocarbon or related compound) producing carbon dioxide and soot. The reaction is really hot so the products start to emit blackbody radiation, and also rises because hotter gas is less dense.


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

[User]
[MCU] Does Iron Man have a Doctorate Degree?

Random thought. I don't think it's ever mentioned in the MCU, and that version of Tony seems like the type of person who'd skip getting an official degree just to prove how smart he already is.

[Assistant] comics Tony "only" got a double master's in engineering and physics no reason it would be different for mcu.  when has parents died he probably left school under the very true idea that he was already beyond anything MIT could teach him.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] What were the separatist planets grievances with the Republic?

Did the separatists have legitimate grievances? It seems like hundreds of systems joined Count Dooku for nothing and were then willing to trust their fate to droids.

[Assistant]
The Trade Federation, intergalactic banking clan and several other powerful economic factions were disillusioned with the Republic as it was growing inefficient and full of corruption with a heavy bias towards the core worlds.

All of the problems of course were orchestrated by Palpatine to start a rebellion.


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

[User]
If I hit a baseball with a bat, can the ball go faster than the speed that I'm swinging the bat?

I'm thinking of a ball that is stationary, like on a tee. I guess that maybe the question would work better for a golf ball now that I'm thinking about it.

If it is a pitched ball, can the ball ever go faster than the combined speed of the bat and the ball? Does it matter what the ball is made of, or how strong the person swinging the bat is?

[Assistant]
Yes, the ball can.  Assuming an elastic collision, both kinetic energy and momentum of the system must be conserved.  Focusing on the small period of time surrounding the hit of the ball, obeying these two conservation laws means that the ball can shoot off with a much higher velocity than the bat, because the bat has a much larger mass (and benefits from the mass of the person holding the bat).

The material matters because this determines how elastic vs. inelastic the collision (between the bat and the ball) is.  More rigid materials will lead to more elastic collisions (meaning less energy is lost to heat) and hence more energy stays as kinetic energy and the ball shoots off faster.  Squishier materials lead to more inelastic collisions (meaning more energy is absorbed into deformation of the materials and generating heat) and so the ball will not bounce off as fast.


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

[User]
[Sandman] if the Endless are single entities that do one thing at a time, how do they affect all humans?

We see Death bringing...well, death to people. and doing the first phase of bringing people to the afterlife. We see her do this as a single entity that does only one thing at a time just like a regular earthly mortal animal would. Her actions, movements and thoughts move at human speed.

So how does Death kill all the people it kills at once and is everywhere when she is not?

How does Morpheus bring sleep and dreams to all the humans that are sleeping at the same time?

[Assistant]
We know Morpheus visits individual peoples dreams but also delegates much of his work to others (the Corinthian, Fiddler's Green, etc). There's enough infrastructure and support in place that the dreaming continues even in his absence (albeit slowly decaying).

Presumably Death's operation works the same way. She handles some cases herself, but has enough support to tackle the whole volume without her individual involvement.


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

[User] [MCU]Why did Stane tried to kill Tony in Afghanistan?

[Assistant] Plausible deniability.  Stane wanted control of Stark Industries, hence the implied assassination of Howard Stark.  He already played the "car accident" card, don't want to be too suspicious.  A reckless playboy getting blown up in the middle of a war zone wouldn't merit too much investigation.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] Why didn't Vader kill Admiral Piett?

Was the revelation to Luke far too upsetting to him, or did he have ah int it wasn't Piett's fault and that executing him would not have helped?

[Assistant]
He killed Ozzel because he was an arrogant priss who thought he knew better than Vader. He screwed up a large military operation with his own pride.

He killed Needa because he had the Falcon dead to rights and lost it off his scope. Instead of continuing the search, he gave up. Vader probably knew the ship couldn't have gotten far and was pissed Needa came grovelling instead of keeping up the chase.

Piett wasn't arrogant and didn't show weakness. He was a good commander and didn't flinch even in the face of failure and retribution. Vader recognized that and combined with his own internal turmoil decided it wasn't worth it to kill him.


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

[User]
eli5: If most electronic appliances' efficiency losses are through heat, does that mean that electric heaters are 100% efficient?

Edit:

Many thanks for your input everyone!

Just to clarify, I don't want to take into account the method of generating electricity or shipping it to the home, or the relative costs of gas and electricity. I just want to look at the heater itself! i.e. does 1500W of input into a heater produce 1500W of heat, for example? Or are there other losses I haven't thought of. Heat pumps are off-topic.

[Assistant]
Yes, electric heaters convert 100% of the power that they consume into heat. So they have an efficiency of 100%.

Heat pumps move heat from one area (outside your house) to another area (inside your house) The amount of heat they move is typically about 3 times more than the power they consume. So the in terms of energy-to-heat efficiency, they are 300%+ efficient.

But thermodynamically they are not creating heat from nothing. So heat pumps are not perpetual motion machines, they dont break any of the laws of thermodynamics.


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

[User] [Star Wars] Why was the Death Star falling to pieces around Luke while he was dragging Vader to the ship?

[Assistant] The reactor had just had a furious ball of Dark Side-fueled lightning dumped into it, and sections of the unshielded Death Star were being pounded by rebel forces, and the *Executor* had just crashed into the side of the thing. The station was in horrible shape already, the destruction of the central core was just the final nail in the coffin.


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

[User] CMV: Deadpool is one of the most annoying characters I've ever seen.

[Assistant]
I would you encourage you to actually read some of his comics. Anything from the Joe Kelly run, Cable and Deadpool, or his most recent run.

Personally the arc "the good, the bad, and the ugly" (deadpool vol.4 15-19). Is the best comic arc that I've read in the last 5 years.

When Deadpool is done right he is a tragic character first, who uses humor to mask his depression. When deadpool is done wrong he is a Jar Jar binks who makes pop culture references. We just have to hope we get a well written dead pool during the movie.

Also both of the images that you linked aren't from deadpool comics, they are fan made.


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

[User]
CGP Grey said that Brown Dwarf Stars "blur the line" between what a planet is, and a star. What exactly differentiates a cool Brown Dwarf from a Gas Giant?

Are there other oddities in the universe that make the difference between certain stars and planets hard to define? What is the difference between extremely cool gas giants, and extremely cool stars?

[Assistant]
There are a couple different ways you can draw the line between brown dwarfs and planets.

The most common one is that anything massive enough to fuse deuterium for a short time in the core is considered a brown dwarf. The pressure never gets high enough to stably fuse normal hydrogen like a star, but can fuse deuterium and release some energy very early in its life. But we're not exactly sure where that limit is, and it's tough to observationally prove that an object we see managed to burn some deuterium when it formed.

Another possible dividing line is one of formation. It's thought that brown dwarfs can form in the same manner as stars via collapse of material from a gas cloud. Gas giant planets are instead typically thought of as forming from the core-accretion model of planets. But again, when you look out and see a particular object near the border line, you can't generally prove how it formed to differentiate it.

In the end, it's likely that there's going to be a continuum between the two, and any line you try to draw between gas giants and brown dwarfs is going to be somewhat arbitrary and you'll probably find exceptions to it.


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

[User] ELI5: What is the feeling in my stomach when i drive over a hill?

[Assistant] Theres a cast network of nerve connections within the body, handling messages between the spinal cord, the brain and other structures.When you hit the peak of a roller coaster and start dropping so quickly, things inside start to shift around.The liver and spleen are relatively secured by suspensory ligaments,But the intestines themselves are relatively mobile. While your body is secured by your seat belt, the organs are free to move about by some extent. That contributes to the free-fall floating sensation that either calls us back for more, or has us running to get sick from nausea.The movement isnt only the movement of the organs, it is also the movement of whats inside the organs.The intestines, the stomach, they hold liquid,The bladder; the same thing. Its relatively fixed, but the fluid within those structures probably plays a role in that sudden drop.Theres no long-term danger from your organs slightly shifting around. They go back to where they started. But the movement is enough for your nerves to notice that somethings happening.


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

[User] ELI5: how is there a color wheel if colors of light are on a linear spectrum?

[Assistant]
Its an artifact of human vision.  The human eye can only detect the amount that our red, green, and blue color sensing cells are triggered.  Put red green and blue at equal distances around a circle, and all the other colors will appear to us to lie somewhere in between those regardless of where they lie on the wavelength spectrum.

So for instance violet happens to excite our red-and blue- sensitive cells, so we see violet as somewhere between red and blue even though its totally not between them in wavelength.


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

[User] [Star Wars] So the jedi have 7 types of lightsaber combat. Do the Sith have any equivalent forms of combat? Or do they use their own forms?

[Assistant]
There are actually more than just 7 forms. There is the Vapaad variation on Juyo, Jar'Kai and forms dedicated to specific weapons, the saberstaff, saberpike, and lightwhip.

I'd assume we can infer from this that there would also be a dedicated form for crossguard lightsabers.

But the answer is no.

Consider that the Sith Order is a organisation that stems from the Jedi Order as it is. Their combat teachings are the Jedi teaching. The evolution of forms happened to counter the threats as they arose in the Galaxy. The Sith faced the same challenges.

What's more probable is that the Nighsisters of Dathomir likely have their own forms of combat that are ancient and specific to them.


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

[User]
[Far Cry 5] what did the Peggies do to all the cars in the county?

I hope this works. Not sure how many of my fellow Cougars remember the ebulletin board at the library. It's hosted local, so we can still get to it. (Though it hasn't really been that big of a deal. I've been talking to people all week as far away as Georgia with my HAM radio. And when I get really antsy I just grab one of many, ***many** planes just sitting around and fly one or two counties over and go see a movie and get dinner someplace nice like Hardee's)

Got a little off topic there.

In the raids I've been in, and some of the gun fights, when someone gets killed while driving, why does the door open and they fall out onto the street? I've even seen this in a truck I was riding in when the driver took a 30.06 to the head. Next thing I know,  his body is no where to be seen.

Did the Peggies cut all the bolts on the door hatch to every car, truck, and bus in Hope county?

But if that's the case, why was I able to get the door shut when I slid over and drove away?

Is this just the Bliss talking?

[Assistant]
It's a weird cultural thing around here.  Folks drive with their hands on the door latch.  Lots of times it's that they're antsy about getting out, but half of it is just habit.
They get shot, they twitch, the door opens, and they fall out.  Simple as that.


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

[User]
How "accepted" is Feser's thesis that modern philosophy emerged out of a *desire* to displace scholastic Aristotelianism?

He makes this argument in *The Last Superstition: A Refutation of the New Atheism*.

He basically maintains that if the metaphysical assumptions of Aristotle/Aquinas/etc are accepted, then the idea of a God, the soul, objective morality, religion, etc. being true is almost inevitable. These assumptions include the distinction between actuality and potentiality, the idea that all things are irreducible to matter and form, realism about universals, four causes, etc.

He lays out some reasons for why modern philosophers (i.e. beginning with Descartes, etc.) were motivated to reject Aristotelianism. These reasons aren't as important as the fact they were motivated, not by rational argument, but a priori conclusions. They then constructed arguments to fit these conclusions. (Note that Feser *doesn't* claim that there was *no* arguement, but that there was *little* argument; and that the little argumentagainst scholastic Aristotelianismwas weak.)

This took place, primarily, in the scientific domain; where ideas like formal and final causes were displaced by "mechanical philosophy": a theory of science where everything is made of atoms which act in accordance to arbitrary laws of nature. This removed all meaning from nature. The modem project, then, defined itself *in opposition to* that metaphysics. It didn't offer solutions so much as it *rejected* that metaphysics.

I, being not well-read in this area, am not in a position to evaluate his conclusions - hence the question in my title.

EDIT: I was asked to provide quotes from the book. So here's a pertinent one:

> So, while the ancients pursued wisdom and virtue for their own sakes, and
the medievals applied ancient learning to shoring up the claims of religion and
directing man toward his destiny in the hereafter, the moderns, naturally enough
given the new cultural climate that shaped their values and perceptions, sought to reorient intellectual endeavor to improving mans lot in this life, and to
defusing post-Reformation religious tensions by sowing a general skepticism
about the possibility of attaining much in the way of religious knowledge, so that
thered be little left to fight over. Hence Bacons conception of a new science
that would give us mastery over nature, the promise of new technologies, and
hope for making this world a fitting habitation for man. Hence Lockes aim of
drawing definite limits to what was strictly knowable where religion was
concerned, so as to put all conflicting creedal claims on an equally low epistemic
footing and thereby to lay the predicate for his doctrine of religious toleration.
And what is wrong with all that? many readers will ask. Well, there
might be nothing at all wrong with it; and then again, there might be something
very deeply wrong with it. But the point for now is not to determine whether this
project was good or bad, but rather to emphasize that to a very great extent it
was *a desire to further the project*, and not an actual refutation of Aristotle, that
moved modern thinkers away from his metaphysics. The agenda determined the arguments rather than the other way around

(Emphasis his.)

Although, later, he does say this:

> Animus, attitude, agenda, but little in the way of argument. That, I have
suggested, is what lay behind the intellectual revolution that displaced the
classical philosophy of Plato and Augustine, and especially of Aristotle and
Aquinas, and enthroned the modern philosophy of Bacon, Hobbes, Descartes,
Locke, Hume, and all the rest. But little is not nothing, and there were some
arguments, though none of them very impressive.

He then goes on to explain how, in his view, early modern philosophers' criticisms of scholasticism were flawed. In particular, he focuses on Locke.

[Assistant]
The thesis you describe has not even negligible acceptance in the broader philosophical community. More than that, it's bad to the point of coming across like satire, and it would be good advice if you were encouraged to get your knowledge of modern thought from a different author.

Feser's account is unhistorical in a lot of ways. Popular Thomists like him like to present medieval philosophy as involving an enviable unity brought about by Aquinas, which continues until it's disrupted by modernity. There never was any such unity: Aquinas was met with sustained criticism from the get-go and represented only one of many major schools of philosophy even if we restrict ourselves to 13th century scholasticism. The challenge to the traditional metaphysics broadly shared by scholastics in this period didn't arise with modernity but rather with late scholasticism around the turn to the 14th century. The challenge to scholasticism writ large, including this later tradition antithetical to Feser's interests, likewise didn't arise with modernity but rather with humanism and subsequent schools of Renaissance philosophy beginning with the 14th century.

Invoking God in this narrative is particularly unhistorical, as modern philosophy remained not just theistic but theocentric, and the change away from this style of philosophy occurred not with the shift to modernity but in the middle of the 19th century.

And much of the technical content Feser likes to point to are just red herrings without significant bearing on the issue. For instance, actuality and potentiality: the sense of these terms needed for the cosmological argument is perfectly consistent with the characteristic premises of modern philosophy, in any case this argument is happily reformulated in terms of cause and effect or necessity and contingency or grounding relations... etc., in fact such formulations were already developed in the ancient and medieval periods -- in fact they predate Aristotle's formulation of actuality and potentiality, and in any case the cosmological argument remained a mainstay well into the modern period rather than being undermined by the shift to modernity.

The whole shtick about just "wanting" to get rid of Aristotelianism, rather than being persuaded to on rational grounds, is just a an extended exercise in ad hominem. There is extensive argument offered for modern anti-Aristotelianism, and it is a product of a long trend of philosophical development at each step of which we find extensive argument. The thing to do is deal with the details of those arguments, not try to impugn the chsracter of one's interlocutors.

The bit about not offering solutions is nearly uninteligible. There's, like, all of modern philosophy that offers putative solutions. Just open any page of any modern philosophy book and throw a dart at it, and you'll likely to hit such a putative solution being offered.


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

[User] ELI5: Why is Ronald Reagan held to be one of the best US presidents, even among scandals like Iran-Contra that would have destroyed the reputation of other presidents?

[Assistant]
Two reasons.

* He was really, really, likable. He filled the stereotype of a friendly old grandpa very well, so many people are willing to overlook his scandals.

* The modern conservative movement holds him up as an example of all that a US president should be. His actual actions aren't even that consistent with modern conservatism, but again, he's likable so people are willing to overlook that.


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

[User]
[RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK] When Belloq opened the Ark of the Covenant, why were he and all of the Nazis killed, but Indy and Marion were not?

Indy told Marion to close her eyes and not to open them. Both of them survived, and everyone else present was killed.

Why?

Also, what is the range over which the Ark is lethal?

[Assistant]
Because Indy was a scholar and knew Samuel 6:19

"And he smote the men of Bethshemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the Lord, even he smote of the people fifty thousand and threescore and ten men..."

The Nazis hadn't read their Bible.


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

[User] ELI5: Why does Scientology oppose Psychiatry so vehemently?

[Assistant] Mostly because psychiatry offers explanations and treatments for things Scientology offers.  Therapy and medications are better than E-meters and auditing, so Scientology wants rid of the competition.


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

[User] ELI5: How do bodily functions work when someone is in a coma?

[Assistant]
It's auto pilot; it just happens.

It's contained and managed most simply by briefs aka 'adult diapers' if you're not into promoting respect.

Specifically for urine: Texas/condom cath to mke it easier for caregivers. Maybe an indwelling cath, but this shouldn't be used as a long term solution. A suprapubic cath is a longer term solution.

For BMs/poop: One could get a colostomy bag to manage it easier... ish.


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

[User]
Is there a point somewhere inside Jupiter where the matter above you and the matter below you gives you a net gravity of 1 G?

Of course, I'm sure there'd be plenty of other things to worry about, like pressure and temperature and electrical storms, but regardless of all that, does such a point exist?

[Assistant]
It does exist, it's where the amount of mass below you is exactly the same as the mass of the Earth. The mass above you does not contribute at all to the gravitational pull on you.

**edit** See sxbennett's reply for an important caveat.


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

[User] ELI5: Is there a practical reason for a car's driver to be on the side rather than the middle?

[Assistant] Others have mentioned the proximity to the door. The only thing their answers don't explain is why cars with front bench seats (which are rare these days, but used to be common) don't have the driver in the middle. This is because of a couple of reasons. First, the steering column. This is a relatively straight piece of metal connecting the steering wheel to the steering rack (or in older vehicles, the steering box). This box needs to be on one side, because the engine is in the middle. The other reason is that older cars were predominantly rear wheel drive, which means the transmission sits between the driver's and passenger's feet. This means that if the driver was in the middle, log room would be minimal, and there would be no room for pedals.