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

[User]
[Warhammer/Warhammer 40k] Why does Khorne hate magic?

I know it's meant to be because it's cowardly, but he's OK with ranged weaponry, heavy artillery and AFVs. Why is shooting people with a rocket launcher OK but shooting a fireball is too cowardly? For that matter, when has team "20ft indestructible firebreathing heavily armed greater deamon vs barely armed planetary defense force" ever particularly cared about fair fights? I could get an opposition to *stealthy* magic or *illusion* magic but if i telekenetically throw knives at someone, what's his issue there?

Khorne doesn't care from where the blood flows- unless it's from magical attacks, *then* he gets picky. What's his issue?

[Assistant] Khorne is sustained by hatred, anger, martial zeal, courage and discipline. Using warpcraft doesn't involve you doing *any* of those things, and mostly just inspires fear, which is more Nurgle's cup of tea.


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

[User]
[Warhammer 40k]What's the life expectancy of your average...

...civilian?

...politician?

...guardsman?

...Astartes?

...inquisitor?

...psyker?

...techpriest?

etc.

[Assistant]
Civilian? Depends on the world. Most Imperial worlds maintain perfectly adequate standards of living for their citizens. Some are Death Worlds. Comparing Fenris to Terra to Macragge will give you wildly different answers.

Politician? Impossible to know, same as civilian. A wealthy politicians? Centuries, rejuvenat treatments can extends lives for around 300+ years.

Guardsmen in combat? 15 hours. (edit: in case this wasn't clear, this was a bit tongue-in-cheek. IG life expectancy will range from hours to decades, it all depends on the conditions of deployment.)

Astartes? Several centuries. Space Marines like Chapter Master Dante of the Blood Angels that are over 1,000 years old are exceedingly rare, so we have to assume the average age of a SM is something around a few centuries, give or take a few decades.

Inquisitor? Likely same as a wealthy politician or noble family, they can...acquire augmetics and rejuvenat treatments.

Psyker? That can range from a few hours to a few days to a long and happy normal life. A member of the Adeptus Astra Telepathica, for example, will suffer from early physical degradation and decline, as the toll of using their powers will weaken and age them. A Navigator may last for decades or centuries, until they are little more than cocooned mutants, entombed inside their vessels and preserved by nutrient baths and arcane science. Other psykers will lead normal lives (as much as they can), until something in their mind snaps, a Daemon possesses them, and their entire planet is consumed in the birth of a million, billion gibbering daemonspawn and Chaos corruption reigns supreme. Others will be taken before the Golden Throne itself, bound to the God-Emperor's soul in the infamous Soul Binding ritual, and proceed to spend the rest of their mortal lives as astropaths for the Imperium.

Techpriests can range from standard human ages to thousands of years old. Belisarius Cawl, an Archmagos and no mere Techpriest, has been alive since the Heresy itself. The Adeptus Mechanicus can prolong the life of its members almost indefinitely, provided they are of a high enough rank to deemed worthy of that level of communion with the Machine-God.


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

[User]
Why are people and objects still dangerous after severe radiation exposure?

I can't seem to find the answer through a google search.

[Assistant]
Two possible reasons:

1) They are contaminated with radioactive material. This is the most likely explanation.

2) They have absorbed a lot of neutron radiation, which has converted stable isotopes to unstable isotopes. This only happens with neutron radiation, and requires a very large dose of it to make the object dangerous.


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

[User] ELI5: If its basically a straight shot from your outer ear to the ear drum, how does water get 'stuck' in your ear after swimming?

[Assistant]
Two things.

* If you look in an ear, it's not a straight tunnel but rather, a hollow area going straight back before droping down at around a 40-45 decline.

* Air pressure/water tension. The water has it's own tension keeping it in your ear. So long as the tension holds, there's no way for air to naturally make it behind the bit of water which results in the water staying stuck in your ear.


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

[User] If hot air rises and cold air sinks then why are the peaks of mountains so cold and places like Death Valley so hot?

[Assistant] Death Valley receives an awful lot of sunshine and that probably is the bulk of its heating. Mountain peaks are colder because the air is less dense at higher elevations. You can think of less dense as fewer molecules to carry the heat energy with.


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

[User]
Nietzsche Apologetics: Am I missing something?

I'm currently reading 'On the Genealogy of Morals'. Before starting I had the vague understanding that:

1. Nietzsche and his ideas were distorted by his sister to make him seem more nazi-esque
2. He doesn't actually support the brutal master morality in the first essay and is more nuanced than that

But reading the first essay, it seems to be nothing but glowing appraisal of the noble master morality folk, including justification of their 'murder, arson, violence and torture'  as a natural 'need' (point 11) and part of their glory, as opposed to the regressive compassionate slave bunch. He seems to be longing for a return of more master morality, else face mediocrity... Wouldn't that include more of the bloodshed as above?

So I suppose my question is: am I misinterpreting or misunderstanding Nietzsche so far? I went in expecting to find something different because I'd heard he's so misunderstood but it seems at least a bit nazi-like (even if the blond beast is an animal rather than Aryan metaphor).

I'd appreciate if someone who actually knew what was going on could give some insight.

[Assistant]
> But reading the first essay, it seems to be nothing but glowing appraisal of the noble master morality folk, including justification of their 'murder, arson, violence and torture' as a natural 'need' (point 11) and part of their glory, as opposed to the regressive compassionate slave bunch. He seems to be longing for a return of more master morality, else face mediocrity... Wouldn't that include more of the bloodshed as above?

So, here's the bit you're talking about (my emphasis to sustain the line of thought):

> **Here there is one thing we will be the last to deny: the man who knows these "good men" only as enemies, knows them as nothing but evil enemies**, and the same men who are so strongly held bound by custom, honour, habit, thankfulness, even more by mutual suspicion and jealousy inter pares [among equals] and **who**, by contrast, demonstrate in relation to each other such resourceful consideration, self-control, refinement, loyalty, pride, and friendshipthese men, **once outside where the strange world, the foreign, begins, are not much better than beasts of prey turned loose**. There they enjoy freedom from all social constraints. In the wilderness they make up for the tension which a long fenced-in confinement within the peace of the community brings about. They go back to the innocent consciousness of a wild beast of prey, as joyful monsters, **who perhaps walk away from a dreadful sequence of murder, arson, rape, and torture with exhilaration and spiritual equilibrium, as if they had merely pulled off a student prank**, convinced that the poets now have something more to sing about and praise for a long time.

So, here Nietzsche is making a genealogical concession about the origin of what we now see as aristocracy/nobility - that it is rooted in barbarism.  He says next, for instance:

> It was the noble races which left behind the concept of the "barbarian" in all their tracks, wherever they went.

In the rest of the passage Nietzsche is trying to point out a general problem he thinks that history presents us - prior ages are barbaric by the lights of our refined taste, but responding to that barbarism with a *total* rejection of it creates (he claims) a problem for how we're supposed to continue to progress.  His comment about Hesiod's reaction to Homer is a representative anecdote for this.

What follows is a repeated attempt to solve the contradiction - that is validate our disgust in the barbarian without a mistaking our relation to them, in particular in how we think about the 'domestication' of nobility.  Roughly, we should be reasonably afraid of the baser impulses, but if we *only* fear them then we risk creating something which he thinks is much worse - *comfort* with the absolutely tame.

All of this is to say that, in some sense, you're right - he does think we should admire the barbarian, but it's wrong to say that it's "nothing more than a glowing appraisal."  It's a measured appraisal - an appraisal combined with disgust and prudential fear buttressed by a fear of something which, on his account, is much worse for humankind.

On his own account he's trying to push back against a narrative which *only* is disgusted with the barbarian, so perhaps he's overdone the counter-narrative or, at least, offered cover for those who wish to accept an overdone counter-narrative.  He's probably being intentionally provocative here, and, unsurprisingly, we're provoked.  (That is to say - it wasn't hard for his sister to transform his works into Nazi propaganda.)


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

[User]
CMV: MLK was entirely against rioting and to say otherwise is to misquote and misrepresent him.

Honestly, Im not entirely sure how I feel in regards to rioting as a form of protest, but regardless of that, I feel that when leftists say something along the lines of well actually, MLK did riot and supported rioting actually! I just cant help but chuckle to myself and shake my head in disprovable.

Its unfortunate because Ive been delving into leftist politics and watching debates, and every time a leftist in a debate brings this up, I go to research it. Every time I do, I always wind up finding videos of MLK directly saying that he believes rioting makes people more immoral and that its wrong and other such things.

I understand he stated that rioting is the voice of the unheard but I still feel as if that wasnt an approval of rioting, but more so just MLK playing devils advocate and explaining to the interviewer why people feel as though they should riot.

I would like my mind to be changed on this and Im more than willing to have my view swayed, I just cant seem to find an article or video that can truly convince me to see it that way, and so I figured Id come here as a last resort since I know that Reddit is overwhelming left leaning from my observations. My hope is that a big brained leftist chad will prove to me exactly why MLK supported riots and actually started some of his own that he never came to regret or something like that.

[Assistant]
I mean, yeah, MLK did not like riots, did not want riots, and thought riots were generally bad.

However, generally when people bring up MLKs quote about riots being the language of the unheard, they're usually not saying "nah he was totally fine with riots".  Theyre typically pointing out that MLK understood (correctly) that riots are an unfortunate but predictable outcome of failing to address the needs of the people, and of failing to produce positive change in an oppressive system.  I've never really encountered anyone who said "actually MLK was super cool with riots and thought they were great".

MLK also understood that, despite anyone's best efforts, bad actors are going to find their way into any social movement, and also that opponents of any social movement will seek to characterize that movement will as violent, riotous, and criminal.  MLK himself was accused many times in the press of starting and encouraging riots, despite his efforts to the contrary.

MLK was a pretty radical socialist himself, and he believed and repeatedly said that true change would only come with huge systemic change and redistribution of wealth.  Without that change, riots would continue.  Towards the later parts of his career, he also began to write that he was seeing the limits of what non-violent protest could achieve, and became increasingly radical.

So you're basically right MLK isnt saying "riots are cool", he's saying "this is going to keep happening if things don't change for the better".  But he's also saying "I know why these happen, and the solution is radical social and economic change.  Eventually that may require something more than non-violent protest."


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

[User] ELI5 - Howcome you shouldnt refreeze food once you have taken it out of the fridge?

[Assistant]
It has less to do with safety and more to do with food quality. Every time you freeze food, the ice crystal formation ruptures cells or otherwise breaks down the food. Meat in particular gets mushy.

The other posters are correct that any time above freezing is time where bacteria can be growing more quickly, but this is the same "clock" the food was on before you froze it. If you thaw something and immediately refreeze it, you wouldn't face real increased risk, just degraded quality.


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

[User]
[Demolition Man] How did society change so much in the 40-odd years Spartan spent in cryo-prision?

Seems like a pretty drastic change, really.

[Assistant]
40 years prior to the beginning of the 21st century, ago jet aircraft were first generation. There was no internet, home computer, the only visual media was film, the only two audio media were magnetic tape and pressed records.

Cars did not come standard with air conditioning, seat belts, safety glass cruise control, power steering, or fuel injection.

I can go on, but you get the point. A lot can happen in 40 years. In the 40 years before the merger of the coast cities into San Angeles, a massive earthquake took away the City of Angels and replaced it with a destroyed lawless chaos. It did not take long for the US to allow Dr. Cocteau to try a new way to end the incredible wave of violence and hopefully return the region to some kind of economic prosperity.

Besides, the rest of the US healed from the great quake and grew and evolved in it's own way, most places not choosing quite the extreme path of Cocteau's tightly planned society. Those that wish to live a more contemporary American life can simply move north to Upper California, which is mostly the old state, pre-quake.

But yes, things can change mightily in 40 years. In fact, most of the device you're using right now, the forum you're using it to communicate, and all the totality of the various infrastructure, signals and transmission it consists of did not exist 40 years ago.

You must remember- human technology and society now moves at the speed of dreams. Not much is denied to us in the 21st century that we truly want or can dream of. The few things that are, we can actually see the path to, few things are completely out of reach anymore.

Imagine where we'll be at the beginning of the 22nd century. You may even live to see it.


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

[User] ELI5:Why is there a seemingly larger risk of getting viruses on a laptop/desktop than there is while accessing the internet through a smartphone/console?

[Assistant]
Consoles and some mobile operating systems (iOS) are "sandboxed".

This means that only authorised code can run, for example in iOS you can only run apps signed by Apple from the App Store; unless you jailbreak it.

Consoles are the same.

On normal computer you can do whatever you want, which allows bad stuff in.


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

[User]
[DC] If Superman existed in our universe with all the abilities he had from his original, How would it effect our society?

Bonus Question: How long would it take for him to turn us into a Utopian Society of Peace?

[Assistant]
Our universe has no Kypton, no Kryptonians, and no kryptonite. It doesn't have Metropolis, Gotham, or Coast City. There's no Lex Luthor, no New Gods, and no Doomsday.

Superman would be absolutely indestructible. There are no limits to what he could do, and no force could hope to oppose him.

Superman's existence as an 1) extraterrestrial 2) interdimensional traveler would at first terrify many people and put governments on alert. However, after his actions prove he has no (immediate) intent to conquer the planet or exterminate us, he'd probably be embraced as the hero he is, gradually, at least by large sections of the public.

The fact that he exactly resembles a human likely prompts questions about whether Kryptonians of his home universe actually are aliens at all, or if they are some kind of advanced offshoot or progenitor race. His appearance (white skin, blue eyes) probably revitalizes numerous white racist organizations, despite Superman disavowing their beliefs. Others take him to be a god, or even God, prompting numerous cults to spring up. Other cults arise to name him Apophis, the Anti-Christ, etc. and prepare for the end of the world, but they become marginalized over the years.

People will soon demand "real" work from Superman. Rather than just stopping bank robberies in big cities like Chicago and New York, people will ask him to irrigate the Sahara desert, use his breath to counteract global warming, etc. If he refuses, he probably causes figures like Lex Luthor to become prominent - influential people will wonder aloud why Superman refuses to help in major ways when he clearly can. If Superman replies that we need to learn things on our own, huge numbers of people will consider him to be merely patronizing us.

If he does do these things, however, we might stagnate. Why improve space travel if Superman can simply carry our colony supplies to the moon, or if he can terraform Mars by just vaporizing ice comets over it? Why bother trying to become a peaceful species if Superman's mere presence tends to make war impossible? If Superman does such things, widescale worship of him is practically inevitable.

Given the choice between stagnation or global resentment of Superman, someone will make a bold suggestion: Use Superman's DNA to advance the human species. With his DNA, we might unlock a way to hybridize humans with Kryptonians. With such a transformation, we would see an end to war, disease, hunger, and death. Our intelligence would increase by several factors. Stagnation is unlikely, because as we expand, we will find thousands of habitable worlds which don't orbit yellow stars (some research indicates that most earth-like planets actually orbit red stars). We will continue to develop technology in order to explore these new planets.

We may eventually meet other intelligent species. With Superman as our inspiration, we will be peaceful teachers to them and create a multicultural intergalactic society. In time, we will explore time- and interdimensional-travel, both to help Superman find his home universe, and to meet the people of countless worlds.


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

[User]
ELI5: how do bladeless fans work?

Those fancy Dyson fans. How they push the air?

Edit: thanks for the information. It's amazing the amount of thought that goes into a little fan.

[Assistant]
Theyre unfortunately not bladeless :/

Theres a small fan in the base of the fan that sucks in air at the base. Then the air is forced up into the bladeless portion and forced out of the narrow slits around the ring.

This is the cool part because that tiny little fan isnt enough for all that air to be pushed out of the ring. The ring is slightly tapered like an airplane wing. We take advantage of the coanda effect where the air likes to stick to the surface of the ring rather than mingle with the rest of the air. And it creates a zone of low pressure just outside the slit/ring. This zone of low pressure then coaxes passive air molecules behind the ring to flow forward in the direction of the rest of the air thereby increasing the air flow.

They also take advantage of a phenomenon called entrainment where air flowing into our out of something will force adjacent air molecules to move along in the same path, thus increasing the air flow again.

This results in a ton of air from a super tiny fan allowing you to go bladeless


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

[User]
[Ghostbusters] Shouldn't the Destructor have taken the form of J. Edgar Hoover?

>I get it, I get it. Very cute! Whatever we think of - if we think of J. Edgar Hoover, J. Edgar Hoover will appear and destroy us, okay?

Now, unless Venkman managed to say that without thinking of J. Edgar Hoover, that should be the form that was selected for the Destructor, no?

[Assistant]
Listen, Gozer is the Destructor, not a rules-lawyer in a mortal RPG game. It understood that Venkman was simply explaining the concept to his fellow not-gods, and wasn't going to go and get all gussied up in a nice frock and stockings just to be a dick about the whole process.

It waited for Ray to make an actual, conscious choice. He literally chose a thing that he thought could never, ever hurt them.

He was wrong about that, of course.


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

[User] [General sci-fi/comics] What distinguishes super-science from mad-science from weird-science?

[Assistant]
Super Science: *Things Man Should Know*, but hasn't really gotten around to knowing yet.

Mad Science: *Things Man Must Not Know*, but some do.

Weird Science: *Things Man Really Would Probably Be Better Off Not Knowing*, but since you do know, might as well make use of.


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

[User] This may be crude but I'm not trolling and I need to know to resolve an argument: Is the inside of a vagina considered skin? Where does the skin end and the internal organ start?

[Assistant] The dividing line between skin and non-skin is not epithelial vs. non epithelial (ovaries and blood vessels are epithelial but not skin). The important distinction is dry (skin) vs. wet (mucus membrane)--compare outside of eyelid with inside of eyelid, outside of cheek with inside of cheek, outside of foreskin with inside of foreskin, etc. Skin proper is only on the outside where it's dry like normal skin, the inside of the vagina is not considered skin.


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

[User]
What causes the sensation of one's "blood running cold"?

I got a call from my confused and hysterical girlfriend in the hospital last night, after she gave her head a good crack on the floor, falling down some stairs. The combination of SOMETHING being wrong, but NOT being able to tell me herself because of memory loss/confusion, made me experience the most novel sensation.
The nape of my neck, down and around my shoulders, and some of my back and then down deep deep in my tummy, I simultaneously felt something like a bizarre cool icy stingy feeling. The phrase "my blood ran cold" suddenly made sense.

Is this side effect of some sort of hormonal stress response? Is it related to the "freeze" response in prey animals? Is the experience of this sensation universally similar?

[Assistant]
When you are acutely stressed your body secretes epinephrine, which activates the sympathetic nervous system that drives the fight or flight response.

Part of that response includes shunting of blood away from *unnecessary* systems to your muscles, lungs, brain, and eyes to help keep you alive in case of a fight or needing to run away. One of these systems that gets less perfusion is your skin, so you may feel cold from the loss of blood flow keeping it warm. The digestive tract also has blood shunted away from it, and it stops moving and digesting food as quickly, so you feel an unusual sensation in your belly.


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

[User] ELI5 How does the brain remember something it forgotten when we think hard enough?

[Assistant]
Longer-term memories aren't stored as specific or whole parts, they are stores in bits linked by associations and neural networks. You can access memories by associating something that is currently happening with a specific memory. For example, you can walk past a restaurant and remember a great meal you had there. You can also bring up memories unrelated to anything around you by recalling them. In order to recall memory, you have to work through the different links and fill in the blanks. If you are trying to remember someone you met at work, you might recall their face, put a name to the face, bring up their job title, etc. until you have a complete picture.

Thinking and remembering are functionally similar processes. It's basically all about finding connections, and that might not be an instantaneous process.


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

[User]
If Superman fired a gun directly ahead of himself, while running "faster than a speeding bullet", what would happen to the bullet?

What would happen? Would he fire the gun normally, but run into the bullet when it hit friction and started to slow down? Would it be boosted and be "the bullet faster than a speeding bullet"? Would he be a poorly written interpretation of Superman?

Copy-pasted from a question in AskScience, they were kind enough to point me here. Probably because of the last question, which was misguidedly intended as a joke. Thanks for the time!

[Assistant]
Assuming he's firing perfectly straight to the direction he's moving, the bullet is already travelling at the speed of Superman (S) and would gain more energy from being fired and should travel even faster.

Though there are a lot of other variables including drag and air displacement from the movement of Superman. Don't even get me started on cape dynamics.


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

[User]
ELI5: What do lost ants do when moved away from their colony?

Everyday, a lot of ants are moved away from their colony because of human interaction (for example, ants which are on human objects). What do those lost ants do?

[Assistant] Well ants have a special thing called pheromones, which are basically a unique substance that they can put out to convey messages to others of their colony such as food or danger. This is why you often see ants moving in long single file lines, because they are following the pheromone trail. As more workers use the trail they reinforce it and it becomes more predominant, but to answer your question, a lot of times if they are displaced theyll be able to pick up on a pheromone trail after wandering around (workers move pretty far to get food), but if they cant find a pheromone trail and rejoin the colony theyll probably die.


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

[User]
Question about basis in infinite dimensional vector spaces?

I read that in infinite dimensional vector spaces, a countable ortonormal system is considered a basis if the set of finite linear combiantions of elements of such system is everywhere dense in the vector space. For example, the set {ei / i in N} is a basis for l^2 (oo) (where ei is the sequence with a 1 in the i-th location and 0 everywhere else). I was wondering if there was a way of considering a set a basis if every element in the space is a finite linear combination of the elements of the set and this set is linearly independent. I guess the vector space itself generates the vector space, but it's elements are not linearly independent. Is there a way to remove some of the elements of the vector space in such a way that the set that remains is linearly independent and it generates all the space only with finite combinations?

[Assistant]
These two notions of "Basis" are different. Technically, a *Basis* is a set of linearly independent vector where every other vector in the vector space can be written as a *finite* linear combination of elements from the basis. In this case, your "basis" for l^(2) is not an actual basis, since we would need infinite combinations of these things. The Axiom of Choice guarantees that there is an actual Basis for every vector space, but it's not always possible to explicitly find them.

If we're in a more geometric setting, we can look at a different kind of basis called a "Continuous Basis", which is what you describe. In this way, we can write every vector as a convergent infinite linear combination of basis vectors. You need the extra geometry to talk about converging sequences like this. Generally, these are the kinds of bases that you find when doing Fourier Analysis or in Functional Analysis in general. So, while l^(2) does have a basis, it's not very helpful, but it does have a continuous basis that helps us understand the space as an Inner Product Space rather than just as a Vector Space.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why do people smell different when they've been outside in the cold?

I've noticed that during winter/autumn months, when people go outside into colder weather, they tend to carry a distinctive smell when they return. You can smell it on their clothes, particularly on coats, but it does fade quickly. What is it?

[Assistant]
because most of the things we smell are volatile substances (evaporate easily).

however when these substances get cold they have more difficulty evaporating.   so the person who has been in the cold made their jacket cold and so they stop emitting their normal smell.  and any smells in the air condense on the jacket.  like the water condenses on the cold toilet. so smelling them only smells the smells that evaporate in the cold.

then after they have been inside and warm up the compounds can start evaporating easily again and their smell returns to normal.


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

[User]
CMV: Sitting during the National Anthem does not show disrespect to the military

Ive seen everyone saying how all the NFL players protesting are disrespecting our military and first responders by sitting for the National Anthem, and I dont understand it.

How is sitting during the National Anthem showing disrespect to the military?

I completely understand how many are saying that is disrespectful to the flag and what it represents, but what about that makes it disrespectful to our military? In my opinion, its anything but disrespectful to the military because our military fight to preserve our democracy, and the freedom of speech is something that falls within democracy. The way I see it, theyre just expressing themselves in a way they see fit, whether it is effective or not.

Perhaps it would be different if I was part of a military family or if I was in the military, but I just dont see the connection that many others are seeing, and Id like to understand that point of view.

[Assistant]
I agree completely with your view, OP, but here's the argument I've heard:

*The flag and anthem are symbols of the country and refusing to stand for the anthem is disrespecting the country, and by extension those who have fought for the country.*

Do you believe that anthem protests are disrespectful to the country? Or do you just dispute the link between country and military?


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

[User]
Why are our veins asymmetrical?

I would think that since most things in our bodies are symmetrical, that our venous channels would be as well. I was looking at my arms today and found it strange that my veins are quite different in each forearm. Does this have something to do with development, or are veins just formed randomly? Do our veins change location throughout our lives (like rivers) depending on where they are needed?

[Assistant]
Veins aren't exactly formed randomly, but there are random elements in how they are formed. Identical twins will have different vasculature, for example.

This is because the body doesn't have a blueprint in the traditional sense, it is procedurally generated. Limb buds set up gradients of hormones that tell bones where to stop and start.

Many blood vessels are set in stone, like the aorta and vena cava, but farther out the vessels are procedurally generated, so left and right end up similar but different.

Veins do not move based on need.


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

[User]
[DC Comics] Could Matter-Eater Lad eat Doomsday?

Assume conditions allow for it as it's obvious that Doomsday could wring Matter-Eater Lad out like a washcloth without batting an eye.

Would Doomsday regenerate too quickly for Matter-Eater Lad to chew and ingest? How would Doomsday reincorporate himself if he were totally devoured, and what defenses would his body evolve to not die like this again if death were to occur?

[Assistant]
It's very likely, given doomsday's backstory, that basically all variants of "eaten alive" are things he's already adapted to.

Likely he does just regenerate too quickly, yes. He might well be able to make himself poisonous too (it is the obvious adaption to being eaten), which would be bad for matter eater lad.


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

[User]
[Star Trek] So I'm an Earth citizen in the 24th Century. We live in a post-scarcity society where money is unnecessary. So where's my fucking private spaceship?

All I want is a private starship. Galaxy-class, kinda like the USS Enterprise, except twice as long and shaped like a penis. The local government tells me I can't have one. What gives? I'm starting to think this whole "post-scarcity" thing is just a big fucking lie the government tells us.

[Assistant] Post-scarcity doesn't mean 'whatever you want'. Responsible organisations and people ensure that resources such as Galaxy class starships are not abused, and in cases where they are abused there is suitable reprimand/punishment.


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

[User] [ASOIAF] How would Tywin, Ned, and Robert react if Jaime tried to stop The Mountain from raping and killing Elia as well as her children? What would have happened to him?

[Assistant]
Robert would be angry, not because he's pro raping and killing babies, but he just wouldn't want to have to deal with the situation. He's a guy who just wants to fight and get laid, not have to get involved in politics. Now he's forced to deal with what to do with Rhaegar's family. If he gives the order to kill them, he's made an enemy of the Martell's. If he spares them, he looks weak.

Ned might have more respect for Jaime, and would be more likely to hear him out about what happened with the Mad King, and probably doesn't look down on him for being a kingslayer. Depending on how Robert handles it, it could end their friendship if Robert orders them to be killed. This means Ned wouldn't become the hand years later, and the story would change dramatically. It may even put him on the Lannister side if he believes the Joffrey is actually Roberts son, and Stannis and Renly are in the wrong.

Tywin would be dissapointed in Jaime, and annoyed like Robert at having to deal with this now. The Mountain and Amory Lorch killing them let Tywin show his loyalty to Robert, now he doesn't have that going for him and has to deal with the Martell's wanting the safe return of their Elia and her kids.


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

[User]
[Godzilla] How do militaries (particularly the Japanese armed forces) not have incredibly high rates of desertion?

Based on past experience, there is a 100% chance that no one in a regular tank or aircraft is going to accomplish anything against Godzilla aside from making Godzilla angrier and causing him to destroy a bit more than he otherwise would have.

OTOH there is also a near 100% chance of anyone shooting at Godzilla getting radiation-breathed or squished or crushed by a building, or whatever.

Look, I can understand the spirit of heroism and all that, but even in historical cases there was generally at least the thought of "taking as many of those ******* down with me as I can", or something along those lines...

Yes, I am sure there are devoted soldiers who are just trying to do their duty (insert obligatory reference to Japanese cultural values here), but come on.

Attacking Godzilla is like attacking the Incredible Hulk.  Nothing good can come of it.  Hell, if I ABSOLUTELY HAD TO face Godzilla in a tank or something I'd at least take care to position myself between Godzilla and the Ocean (assuming there were no cities between the ocean and my back :P) to lure him that way, orders be damned.

[Assistant] See in 1954 (the time of the first Godzilla attack) no one thought that Godzilla would be as invincible as he was. Thus the JSDF was crushed when defending Tokyo. Later Godzilla attacks were fueled by a desire for revenge against the Kaijus after 60 years nearly everyone in Japan knows someone who lost someone in the attacks. Japanese propaganda plays up that desire to protect their homeland made all the stronger when you remember that this isn't getting them to fight against other soldiers who want to go home as much as they do but trying to kill a rampaging monster. Morally clean violence to defend ones homeland what's not to love?


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

[User]
Why do dogs enjoy fetching things?

is there some biological reason that they get pleasure from bringing a tennis ball back only to go chase it down for long periods of time?

[Assistant]
Many breeds of dog have been selected for use as hunting dogs. In these dogs there may be a genetic component that gives them a tendency or disposition such that they will probably enjoy 'fetch'.

More generally, though, they like fetch because when you play humans do interesting things. Usually the human makes congratulatory noises and scratches their head, as well as yelling encouragement to get the ball and to bring it back.


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

[User] [Marvel] Does Thor ever fight street crime the way Superman and Batman do?

[Assistant]
When he's traversing the entire universe and fighting intergalactic threats, it's hard for him to pick up on a "gang of thugs harassing a street block on Earth."

But if he's flying to meet up with the Avengers and spots crime he'll step in.


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

[User] ELI5: How does ripping apart muscle and building on top of it allow us to lift more weight?

[Assistant] That's not what happens exactly.  Your muscles do take damage from heaving weight, but your body doesn't "build on top of it."  It essentially "upgrades" the muscle tissue in order to make it stronger and better suited to the stress it is put under.  Your body is good at adapting to circumstances in order to survive.  Musciles get used, it makes them strong.  They don't get used, it make them weaker to use the resources elsewhere.  Lose weight quickly and your metabolism drops to keep you from starving to death.  So forth.


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

[User] ELI5: Does the President have to follow the orders of the Secret Service?

[Assistant]
The folks saying "no" are correct, but in an emergency, he probably simply wouldn't have much choice. If you've ever seen the footage of Reagan getting bundled into the limo and driven off during Hinckley's attack, you have some idea of exactly how much decision-making authority he had at the time: none at all.

As a practical matter, the guys who have prepared and trained for the moment are the ones who are going to act.

That doesn't prevent the President from overruling the Secret Service most of the time, of course. If anything imminent was happening, it's hard to imagine the President having the presence of mind to object, though.


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

[User] [The Expanse] Does the Ring have a stationary position or does it have an orbit?

[Assistant]
In one of the later books, they specifically say the rings do not orbit the sun.
They just hold a relative distance from it. Ships need to use their drive (just a little) to stay stationary relative to one.


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

[User]
ELI5, What makes stocks rise/fall?

I've been granted stocks by a company I work for, and I really want to know how they work! I understand it's net worth, but there are some things that happen that affect the stock market that seem totally unrelated to me.

Specific stock I'm interested in happens to be a video game company, what would affect that as well?

[Assistant]
Stock moves for a lot reasons. Taking some common examples from a gaming company:

* Company specific news - say your example gaming company announce they are developing a new game. That information could affect the price positively or negatively depending on whether people think it is good news or bad. If enough decided it will add value to the shares and try purchase them then the price is driven up, if enough think it will be bad for shares and sell the price will drop. What can seem strange to some people is that stocks can drop even when companies announce large profits.. This is because a lot of assumptions are made by analysts and investors and if what really happens is below what they anticipated it can affect the share price.

* Sector specific news - say Sony announce they have sold 10m more PS4s than people expected. Your gaming company might get a 'bounce' because the market thinks the general gaming market is better than people thought and so your company might be undervalued (given it now has access to 10m customers previously not anticipated)

* General Market news - the wider air of confidence or concern in the general stock-market tends to spread around and if the general markets are down it can drag down good stocks too as people look to other investment mechanisms to try get a return on their money (thereby suppressing demand for the stock)

* Political / economic activity - anything major going on in national or international politics can have a big impact. Maybe it's specific activity about the sector (e.g. a party wanting tighter rules on what games can be sold in a country) as can wider political activity

* Major events - things like war, terrorism etc. often have an impact on the markets as markets change and people move investments to 'safe havens' (e.g. gold) during times of uncertainty.

Basically publicly traded stocks can be affected by pretty much anything, because they can be bought and sold by pretty much anybody.


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

[User]
Could Wolverine become an organ farm?

Getting to them might be some work, maybe you could go through the stomach?

[Assistant]
There might be compatibility issues, and the mutated cells might act like cancer in a normal body, wolverine likely has an different immune system as well, so due to weird outgrowths and the recipient bodys reaction it wont work.

But you can chain him to a rock and have a large bird eat his liver everyday, as long as you feed him enough.


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

[User]
[Avatar, post LoK] could Proto-Avatars now exist by making pacts with Spirits?

Basically, The Avatar can hold All Four Elements inside themself because Raava is Basically acting as extra storage for their Sparks.

But there are a lot of great and powerful Spirits in The Spirit World, so could someone step through one of the portals and potentially make a Pact with one to hold an extra Element or 3?

[Assistant]
Conceivably, yes, but its slightly more then "get a powerful spirit".

You need a powerful spirit who is given the ability to bend all four elements by the lion turtles- note the "dark avatar" can still just waterbend. Your spirit ally means you can be granted more then one element, but you still need to be granted them.

This is still theoretically possible- there are still a handful of lion turtles around- but its gonna be a lot harder then in prehistory.


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

[User]
How are plumbing and drains designed for a mountain?

On vacation in a cabin on a big mountain in the Smokies. Curious how they get water pressure to be available and reasonably constant for structures located at all different heights on the same mountain. Bonus: If the soil is full of boulders, I assume septic systems are out?

[Assistant]
In places with a gravity fed system via a large overhead reservoir, the water pressure at the house on top of the mountain is lowest and increases as you go down.
Intermediate pumps can be placed in between levels of houses if the reservoir is downhill and water is pumped up to the houses.
Most low cost houses will have their own overhead tank to maintain a constant head while the water is pumped by the municipality or extracted from the ground at a different pressure, rate and time.


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

[User]
[The Cabin In The Woods] What would have happened if they had chosen the Unicorn?

Would it have just run around stabbing them randomly like a big, stupid horse with a spike in its face (which it is, really), or is there a "scenario" in place for it?

[Assistant] Unicorns are traditionally considered very dangerous monsters unless you are a virgin. They're essentially a larger, stronger, more intelligent version of a horse with an added weapon, so sure they'll stab you - they'll also bite, kick, trample and gore you. Not fun.


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

[User]
CMV: Russian interference in an American election is really not such a big deal. Governments and foreign citizens interfere in other country's elections all the time.

I'm hoping this can stay relatively non-partisan. I don't understand why the Russia story is such a huge deal. We live in an increasingly global world and online people from other countries can easily talk to each other and influence each other's political views.

In recent history the Obama administration campaigned against the Brexit referendum and campaigned strongly against the re-election of Netanyahu in Israel. The Trump administration campaigned for Le Pen in France and I'm pretty sure the French aren't outraged about an American president trying to interfere in their election.

Going back even further in history the American government did a lot worse than just posting propaganda on social media. The Reagan administration had secret assassins infiltrating communist countries and installing leaders that were politically favorable to the U.S.

Is it a crime if I, a random American, got interested in, say, British politics and started posting persuasive messages on social media about my position on a British election issue? Would I be "attacking a British election" if I was doing that and got to be somewhat influential on social media?

I don't understand how the Russian interference story is much different than these kind of situations. How is this more significant?

[Assistant]
One obvious difference you are ignoring is that all of the efforts you are talking about are *public*. Some people might see it as crass or overstepping his bounds, but Obama can perfectly legitimately tell Britain "if you do X, we will respond by doing Y"; that's fundamentally what diplomacy is.

The Russian interference campaign, per the indictment, was not Russia openly claiming to support Trump, but utilizing fake and/or stolen identities and fake and/or stolen funds to pose as Americans in order to appear more legitimate. That is what makes the acts wrong (and specifically illegal for a number of reasons listed in the indictment; it's only 37 pages, so I'd encourage you to read it).

As an additional point, the Russian interference in the election was not solely aimed at boosting Trump (though it was partially). It also promoted Bernie Sanders and Jill Stein, intentionally acted to suppress minority turnout, and post-election organized a few anti-Trump rallies. This shows that it was at least partially about intentionally sowing dissent in America, which is a much more hostile motivation than any of the situations you've mentioned.

E: Small aside, but there's zero chance to keep an incredibly politicized event from being non-partisan.

E2: "America did worse" is irrelevant, since your point is "it's not such a big deal." The obvious response is "nobody is saying America was benevolent in its actions."


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

[User]
[Star Wars]How good of a military leader was Darth Vader?

What were his tactics? How was he strategically? The rebels were able to elude him for quite some time.

[Assistant]
His tactics and stratagem were a lot like they were when he was Anakin, just much more direct and brutal. He *could* be as creative as he used to be, but after Mustafar he definitely developed a just get it over with mentality to combat, preferring overwhelming force to complex tactics.

He was pretty good at it (in direct battles with Rebels he demolished them nearly every time; the Rebels kept alive in the early days of the war by *evading* him and trying to avoid fighting unless necessary) but everyone has their off-days and his methods tended to leave little in the way of salvage; if the Empire wanted someone alive or to use the resources of a conquered location, Vader wasnt usually the first choice outside of extraordinary situations like the fiasco with the Death Star plans or hunting Jedi that were too strong for the Inquisitors to handle.

The Battle of Hoth really gives a good idea of what Vader was like as a wartime leader; he did everything he could to arrange a perfect ambush, but when an overzealous admiral fucks it up by dropping out of hyperspace too close to the system, Vader just rolls with (after killing the guy of course) and proceeds to launch a full-scale assault that is so effective the Rebels only barely make it off-planet and still take major casualties.

So yeah Id say he was a quite good tactician/strategist, if not *as* good as he was during the Clone Wars.


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

[User]
Is it possible to interface with the operating system of simple devices, for example, a toaster?

I have some programming experience, but certainly nothing of this level. I believe devices like this often have Linux operating systems. Can anyone shed some light? I would be grateful.

[Assistant]
Something like a toaster probably wouldn't have an operating system. Something like a smart fridge or a TV with chromecast-like features would.

This is usually called "rooting" a device similar to when it's used towards phones. You gain access to the OS and can do whatever you want with it.

A toaster usually has no software, and you will see this is a common theme for most if not all appliances.


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

[User]
[Stargate] How did Apophis dial out in the first episode of SG-1?

I'm rewatching SG-1 and it just occured to me that Apophis came to earth at the beginning of the first episode and managed to gate back without a DHD or a computer capable of correcting for stellar drift. How did he do it?

[Assistant] System Lords have all sorts of technology and devices on hand to better facilitate their godlike images. We've seen a few, like their hand devices and personal shield generators. It's very possible Apophis and others like him have very small DHDs on them, perhaps integrated into the hand device, or maybe something else. It could be limited in use, or maybe it's as good as the original podium designs. Either way, having a goa'uld wave their hand and instantly activate a chappa'ai would be a pretty impressive thing to see.


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

[User] [The Flash] Just moved to Central City, and on my way to work this morning I saw a streak of lightning pass me on the street and vanish around a corner. People are telling me it was 'just the Flash'. How often can I expect to see speedsters running around? And do I have any chance at snapping a pic?

[Assistant]
"He could be watching us right now. Moving so fast he's invisible"- Barry Allen, Flashpoint #2, on Professor Zoom.

With normal human reflexes, you can't snap a photo of a speedster making even token efforts to avoid it. You can't even *see* they're there unless they want you to. Luckily, most of the flashes are nice guys. They might well oblige. Take out your camera after a battle and hope for the best!

(sidenote: The initial quote is for demonstrative purposes only. Should you meet Professor Thawne, it is probably best not to start up a conversation.)


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

[User]
Why do rocket ships appear snowy on take off?

Hey so I'm watching CNNs "The Sixties" this morning, and I just watched the one about the space race and Apollo missions and so forth. Great documentary series by the way if anyone needs something to watch.

But, I've noticed that, on lift off, the rocket boosters and large cylinders beneath the shuttles or capsules or whatever, have sheets of what appears to be ice/snow falling off them.

Is this the result of storage? A thermo dynamic phenomenon? Is this even snow/ice?

Thanks!

[Assistant]
Most large rockets use very cold propellants. What you see is mostly ice due to the condensation of water in the air on the very cold tanks. As the rocket engines start it falls off due to the vibrations.

In a rocket you need to bring not only your fuel, but also the oxidizer (oxygen) to burn it. You also need a lot of it while keeping the whole rocket as light as possible. The reason you want very cold (we call them cryogenic) propellants is to be able to store more in a smaller and lighter tank.

There are two options to make the propellant take as little space as possible. If the propellant is a gas you can compress it. The issue is that then you need very strong and thus heavy tanks. The other solution is to use a liquid. However a lot of the good rocket fuels (like hydrogen) and oxidizers (like oxygen) are gases under normal conditions. The solution is to cool them enough (-183C for oxygen for example) that they become liquid and then launch the rocket before it boils off. To give you an idea of how much space you save, liquid oxygen is 861 times denser than gaseous oxygen.


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

[User] How has the Russian ruble gone back above preinvasion levels? The US unleashed the toughest ever sanctions on Russia and it seems like their currency is unaffected. One US Dollar now equals 73 rubles.

[Assistant] They did a lot of things from raising interest rates to instituting capital controls. These things stabalized the Ruble, but that's not to say the sanctions failed. So long as Russia has to adopt these measures, their economy will be structurally shifted to lower growth than it otherwise would have.


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

[User]
[ELI5] If Astronauts can be delivered safely back to earth using parachutes, why couldn't the same technology be used to save a doomed aircraft?

I definitely have a five year old's understanding of aviation and engineering but I'm envisioning a system in which the wings/tail section are intentionally designed to break away in the event of a catastrophic failure, and a parachute deploys to carry just the fuselage back down at a safe speed.

[Assistant]
This one gets asked a lot.

Multiple reasons:

1 - planes tend to crash during takeoff and landing, too low to deploy a parachute.

2 - large commercial planes that drop out of the sky *drop* out of the sky, blown apart by some catastrophic failure or hostile action.  There arent many cases where a plane is sort of crashing.  Either theyre flying or theyre going down in a fireball of twisted aluminum and body parts.

3 - a 747 weighs 400,000 pounds, thats a gigantic parachute youre gonna need to haul around *every flight* for the 1-in-a-billion chance you may need it.  It must also be unfolded and inspected periodically.

4 - some light propeller aircraft actually do carry a big parachute, its just not feasible for a much larger, heavier, and faster jet aircraft.


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

[User] [Spider-Man] What effect does the wall-crawler have on New York's window cleaning industry?

[Assistant] Window washers in NYC in the Marvel universe is extremely dangerous with all of the super powered fighting that regularly goes on NYC streets. The love Spidey though and are some of his biggest fans. He is always careful not to catch their platforms with his website and throw them off balance. On slow days when Spider-Man is just swinging around he will sometimes even deliver up a hot dog. That being said they do get caught up in the danger sometimes. He has saved more than one from certain death as they fall following an attack by Green Goblin, Vulture and any of the other villains who regularly operate vertically.


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

[User]
ELI5: How does 'glow-in-the-dark' work exactly?

I'm sitting here sleeping at a family member's house in the Seattle area and there's a big blackout in my town. The room I'm in has those stars that stick to your ceiling and glow when you shut the lights off. How does this work exactly? Additionally, I've noticed from past experience that using a blacklight as the light source really intensifies their glow. How come?

[Assistant]
Incoming photons, which are a form of energy, are absorbed by molecules of (usually) zinc sulphide. This energy pushes an electron in one of the atoms into a higher energy orbit (state would be a better word, since electrons don't actually orbit). It's not happy there, and will eventually fall back, at some random time in the future, and the energy released as it falls back comes out as another photon - which is light.

To start with, there are lots of energised electrons in the material, so there are lots of chances for some to fall back, so the glow is bright. As they fall back, there are fewer and fewer ready to jump, so the glow gets dimmer and dimmer.

UV has a much higher energy per photon (which is why it burns your skin when you get sunburn) so it's able to bang a lot more electrons up into higher states, so there's more energy stored, so the glow is brighter as it's released.


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

[User] Why are some pimples really painful, and others are not?

[Assistant] What I've always heard is that it's related to how deep the infection is.  So, a pimple with sebum down to the second layer will hurt more than a pimple that is only present in the first.  Something along those lines.


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

[User]
[X2] Magneto's plan to have Charles kill all the humans is successful. Now what?

Besides a world where nearly 6 billion are dead, and a random selection of people who happen to be mutants are left, how do they go on?  It's unclear on how many mutants exist in the XCU, but it probably isn't as high as the 27+ million from the Comics. So how does Magneto presume to rebuild the world with a relative handful of random people?

[Assistant] I would imagine there would be a greater-than-zero number of mutants who are displeased that their parents and families have just been murdered by a self-proclaimed mutant messiah. So Magneto would probably have quite a bullseye on him.


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

[User]
[Dark Souls 1/2] Questions about Hollows and the undead

The main story itself I think I have understood but some stuff about being undead is still confusing.

1. What does it feel like to be hollow? Is it just like being a mindless zombie?

2. Why can some hollows wield weapons effectively (Royal soldiers in the tomb of Giants, Viking people in no mans wharf) while others just charge at you barehanded?

3. Does everyone who dies come back undead? Is it just people with the Darksign? How do you get the dark sign?

4. What factors affect an undead's degradation into hollowness?

[Assistant]
1. It's apparently something similar to Alzheimer's, just on a much greater scale. Early stages of hollowing are marked by memory loss, forgetfullness, and paranoia, and as it progresses the symptoms only worsen until the subject no longer remembers who they are or what they are doing at any given moment. So yes, basically just a mindless zombie.

2. Not everything we see in Dark Souls in a hollow, for one, but it likely has to do with various stages of hollowing. Some of the more well-trained, well armed hollows could likely manage to scrape by with a meager amount of humanity and souls taken from others, and thus can retain some sembalance of their personality and will. Others have nothing, and are either attacking you out of desperation or sheer instinct.

3. Not everyone, just those marked by the Darksign. HOW you get the Darksign is unknown, and there are a lot of conflicting accounts. Some seem to think it acts like a plague you can catch in contact with the Undead. Some think it's a curse, from the gods or otherwise. Some people think it's the natural state of humans, and that our "normal" mortality is actually an abberation; a corruption by the "Dark Soul" of our normal existence. Whatever the case, nobody knows, but once you are branded you cannot die permanently.

4. It progresses naturally over time, and dying speeds up the process. There is some indication that being focused on a particular goal or quest can slow the process, and on the flip side having nothing to live for or just losing hope can speed it up. Possessing a powerful soul, or abundant stores of humanity, can also stave off the effects of hollowing, which is why shopkeepers can remain sane and why some Hollows choose to hunt others to steal their humanity.


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

[User]
[MCU] Hawkeye question (minor Civil War spoiler)

Hawkeye scored 18 hole-in-ones while golfing.  While not impossible, that's incredibly improbable (much like some of the other things he does).  His accomplishments are far, far beyond what even the best Olympic archers could achieve.  He's far above peak human when it comes to shooting things.  Does this mean he should be classified as a metahuman even if he was never splashed with radioactive goo or tampered with by aliens?

[Assistant] Meta humans are people that gain extraordinary powers from outside sources. Mutants are people born with powers naturally. So he's not a meta human based off this alone. He's not a mutant either though, he's just really damn talented.


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

[User]
[Discworld] I'm a student at Unseen University and I think... I'm in love? Please help

I didn't mean to, but I snuck out with some lads the other day and went down to the Long Bones. And that's where I saw her. Deirdre, the Fishmonger's daughter. A nice upturned nose, locks like copper wire and forearms like...

Excuse me, I need to take a quick cold shower.

Now oddly enough, she seems to have shown some interest in me as well. Is there any way I can continue pursuing both her and my studies? Or am I doomed to be caught betwixt the rock and the proverbial hard place?

[Assistant]
Ipslore the Red was banished for marrying. Or to rephrase, he wasn't banished until the married.

There's no rule against speaking to her. There's no rule against speaking to her in a friendly manner.

If her feelings are the same as yours, then for the continued integrity of the temporo-spaciel continuum you musn't have children, but thanks to the intervention of Wallace Sonkey, and indeed the manufacturers of leather goods and novelty items, that leaves you with a fairly wide variety of options.


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

[User]
[DC] Will you cut your hand if you ruffle up Superman's hair?

I mean the guy can take a rocket to the face and just get a little dirty on his forehead, if even that.

[Assistant] I think you'd be fine as Superman's hair isn't sharp, it's just incredibly strong. It's not like wire which is stiff, it has the properties of normal hair, just normal hair that you couldn't cut or pull out.


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

[User]
ELI5: why does make and female handwriting look so different almost all the time? Generally speaking, females write neatly with fluffy, bubbly letters. Men on the other hand usually have messy, jagged writing.

Male**

[Assistant] There are cultural pressures, however it is partially due to the differences in motor and cognitive development between boys and girls.  At the age when children typically learn to write girls generally have more developed fine motor control, which allows them to learn to write neater.  When boys' fine motor control catches up, they have already learned to write messy and changing muscle memory is quite the process.  Boys also tend to have slower cognitive development especially when it comes to attention.  They are less able to sit still for long periods of time and would rather be physically active.  As a result boys generally develop gross motor skills faster than girls of this age.


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

[User] [WH40k] What does space marine combat training actually consist of?

[Assistant]
Everything you would imagine it would, but more rigorous.

They learn to shoot, sure, but they will also learn the recoil and spray patterns and the very "feel" of an assortment of weapons. They will learn how to wield a number of melee weapons, but will also be taught when and why to use them. They will learn the limits of their bodies and their power armor such that they become one and the same. They will learn tactics built upon a foundation of literally countless battles over the course of millennia. They will learn to work as tight-knit teams with any peers under any circumstances. They will learn of the enemies they will face in excruciating detail.

They will learn how to effectively harness their loathing and despair and vigor, and they will learn to know no fear. They will learn to be the very fire that brings light to the darkness. They will hone themselves into the point of the Emperor's spear. They will be the very weight of our Lord's hammer. They will become paragons of virtue and justice and unmitigated power such that they can once again bring all of Humanity to a golden era of superiority.

Space Marines spend every second of their waking lives, from the time they were basically toddlers, honing and perfecting their bodies and their minds. They are molded into the absolute epitome of what a soldier should be in any given circumstance or situation.


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

[User] ELI5: If uranium is radioactive for millions of years, why do nuclear reactors go through spent rods so quickly?

[Assistant]
think of it like burning wood vs burning cordite(gunpowder). One is a raw material which releases its chemical energy slowly, the other is a well refined, chemically similar product (carbon) which burns very quickly.

Uranium decaying naturally releases its energy very slowly. Refined into nuclear fuel it releases its energy much faster (though still in a controllable way, unlike in a nuclear weapon)

Whilst theoretically possible, there is a very low chance of finding naturally-occuring uranium which wouldn't need refinement. Similar to the unlikelihood of finding naturally occurring cordite.

TL:DR, We make the Uranium get "burnt" much faster than would happen naturally.


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

[User]
ELI5:Why is the Queen of England's husband a Prince?

If Queen Elizabeth is married to Prince Philip why is he not King Philip? I am confused because when Prince William becomes King won't Kate become Queen Katherine? How is title decided? And what about Camilla when Charles becomes King, what will her title be?

[Assistant]
There are two types of queen.

Queen Elizabeth is a Queen Regnant, meaning she is the queen by succession (ie. by birth).

A Queen Consort is the wife of the reigning king.

However, there is no equivalent for kings. The only way to be a king is by succession.

When William is King, Kate will be Queen Katherine, because she will be the Queen Consort. When Charles is King, Camilla will have the right to call herself "Queen". However, it's unlikely that she will do so. She will probably be known as Princess Consort Camilla. This is because the memory of Princess Diana is a sensitive subject, and she doesn't feel it would be the right thing to call herself Queen.


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

[User]
Just finished my undergrad, should I ask my professors now for a letter of recommendation for grad school even though I'm taking time off?

I just finished my undergrad in the social sciences with a B+ average. I wasn't a student that sat at the front or asked a ton of questions, but I participated in class, rarely missed a class, and a few of my professors knew me by name. I plan on taking about a year off to figure out what I'd really like to do, and want to continue on my education with a Master's in the future. Most of the grad programs I am looking at ask for 3 letters of recommendation, and I'd like to have some from my academic career. I was planning on applying to Master's programs in about 1-2 years.

I think of myself as a completely average student, so I'm wondering if I should get some letters before too much time passes and my professors forget about me?

[Assistant] That's a good idea. It's way better to get recommendations from professors while they still remember you and have some kind of relationship with you. Make sure you give them a current resume/CV and some written information on what you're passionate about for graduate school (even if you haven't picked where you'll apply yet).


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

[User]
[The Mist] Could the Army really defeat all of those fucked up huge creatures?

I mean, some of them were the size of buildings. And there was a lot of mist. I mean, eventually, they'll run out of flamethrower ammo.

[Assistant]
The big ones are easy to target. It's the little ones hiding in cellars and breeding in drainpipes that are going to be the problem for years to come.

And then there's the possibility of escaped alien diseases immune to any known therapies spreading through the world.  Funguses and bacteria analogs that consume your flesh from the inside.  Humanity may yet be in serious trouble.


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

[User] [The dark tower][the stand] why does Randall flag feel the need to interfere in earthly affairs, and why can he not remember who he is in the stand?

[Assistant] Flagg is a creature of chaos and mischief. He stirs the pot by causing destructive change, toppling what was reliable, stable, and good. While Roland walks the land full of memory and tradition, fighting for the good things of the past, Flagg is a man of the moment. He's hip. He doesn't *need* a long memory  even more, it actively goes against his nature.


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

[User] ELI5: If given enough distance to lose velocity, is it possible for a human to catch a bullet shot from a gun? For any particular gun/caliber, how much distance would be needed for it to sufficiently slow down?

[Assistant] It is, but if fired horizontal a bullet usually hits the ground before it slows down sufficiently, since it has velocity only in the horizontal direction and falls as normal. The easiest thing to do, mathematically, would be to fire upward, and have someone at high elevation catch it as it slows down to near zero velocity.


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

[User] ELI5: What's the difference between white and brown sugar, and why does more brown sugar make cookies so much softer?

[Assistant]
White sugar is brown sugar after being processed to take molasses out of it. Originally, brown sugar came first, but most commercial brown sugars are actually made from adding molasses back in to the white sugar, rather than just leaving it in its first stage. Probably because it's easier/cheaper for a company to get a hold of white sugar post-processing than to nab it in its raw form.

Brown sugar makes things softer because the added molasses adds moisture to the baked end result.


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

[User]
ELI5: Since education is incredibly important, why are teachers paid so little and students slammed with so much debt?

If students today are literally the people who are building the future, why are they tortured with such incredibly high debt that they'll struggle to pay off? If teachers are responsible for helping build these people, why are they so mistreated? Shouldn't THEY be paid more for what they do?

[Assistant]
You don't get paid more just because you ought to be.  You're paid more because there is more demand for your service.  There are a lot of teachers, and people are fine hiring teachers who don't expect a lot of money, and so that's what they get paid.

Students have a lot of debt because colleges are expensive, for a similar reason.  If EVERYONE wants in, they can jack up the price, since they'll still fill all their classes but they'll make more money.  This is even more likely when loans are so easy for students to get that they can easily sign on to 60-100k in debt.

Prices for most things aren't fixed by command, they're a result of the marketplace at work.  What "should" happen isn't really relevant in ELI5 though, as that's entirely a matter of opinion.


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

[User] Is it possible to create sound waves without the vibration of a physical object like a speaker?

[Assistant] You don't necessarily need a physical object with mechanical motion to create sound, but you need a physical *medium* with mechanical motion to create sound. For instance, lightning doesn't vibrate or have any real mechanical motion itself, but it generates thunder by rapidly heating the air and causing it to expand, which in turn creates a pressure wave (vibration) that propagates through the air (the medium).


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

[User]
Should i learn C in 2019?

Hey I just want to get opinions about should I learn C in 2019? Is it worth it to put time into it ?Where it is used?and is it still relevant where languages like Python and Java are there.

[Assistant]
IMHO, yes. Mostly to learn pointers. Even if higher level languages won't have them in their syntax, the concept is still there.

You will also appreciate more the garbage collector in managed languages ;).


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

[User] ELI5: Why does the fire department drain the fire hydrants and why does it turn the water in my house yellow?

[Assistant]
There are a few possible reason to open the hydrants (just be aware that they won't drain as they are connected to the city's water).

1) They are testing the hydrants for pressure. This allows the firefighters to know they will have enough pressure on the hoseline if they ever have to use it in a fire.

2) They were doing some form of maintainence or repair on the hydrant.

3) They were opening it up to clear any debris/ garbage that someone may have put into the hydrant.

The reason why your water might change color is that both your house and the hydrants run off the same water source. Seeing as the flow of the hydrant is quite high, it will dislodge some fine particles in the system that will mix with the water to give you that color. It is perfectly safe.


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

[User] ELI5: Why does glass break when transferred from hot to cold water, but not something like an egg?

[Assistant]
First, a plaque of glass is very solid and strong, an egg shell is very porous and bendable.

Second, hot objects expands while cold objects contract.

Because an egg shell is bendable and porous, it is able to deal with the internal stresses caused by the temperature difference. And because the glass is solid and strong, the internal stresses caused by the temperature difference can make it shatter.


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

[User] Why can certain blood transmittable things (West Nile, Malaria, Zika, etc.) be transmitted through mosquito bites, but other (AIDS, Hepatitis, etc.) cannot?

[Assistant] It's mostly a missconception that mosquitoes transmit diseases by allowing virus infected blood of one person to be innoculated into another. What happens ia that some virus actually infect mosquitoes (they actually multiply inside the mosquito gut and salivary glands), from which the virus is then innoculated in another person (usually, but not always) through the mosquitoes saliva. So why some virus can be transmitted by mosquitoes and others can't? Because some virus infect mosquitoes and thus survive and multiply inside the mosquito, those that dont infect the mosquito are just digested with the host's blood.


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

[User]
ELI5: How do people die from jumping off a bridge into a river?

Do they force themselves to drown or does the impact kill them? Could they have second thoughts and swim to safety? Is there a natural current under bridges that pulls them underwater and keeps them there?

[Assistant]
Typically it is the impact that kills them.
The surface tension on the water from a very high fall would feel just as hard as if landing on concrete.
That's why divers must use their fingertips to enter the water first to break the surface tension and allow for a smooth entrance.
If high divers did a belly flop it could do loads of damage.


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

[User]
CMV: Rural areas should not get mail on Wednesdays

Awhile back Rand Paul caught a lot of flack for saying rural areas should only get mail every other day. His idea was it would provide a big cost savings to the USPS for a small reduction in service since rural areas don't have as many people and the mailboxes are far apart and few in between.

The rebuttal was fuck you Rand Paul and also quit trying to hurt rural people.

But he had a point. It costs us more to deliver mail to rural areas due to the distances between boxes and low density of letters delivered to them. Far more efficient to send mail to cities and suburbs. But yeah every other day is annoying af.

So how about Wednesdays? Just get rid of Wednesdays. Then your farm or mountain holdfast still gets mail M T R F Sa. How often are you really going to say *Welp my life is ruined now.  If only I got this letter from my Aunt on Wednesday instead of Thursday.*

Also we're trying to fight global warming right? So why not keep those mail cars off the mile long dirt roads one extra day a week?

The USPS cost savings plus the atmospheric CO2 savings are well worth the minuscule annoyance. Also I am sure Rand Paul will present other opportunities to say fuck you Rand Paul. So cut rural mail service on Wednesdays.

[Assistant]
We live in the wealthiest country on the planet. Mail delivery to rural areas has been achieved for over a century. It isn't mail that is bankrupting the country, it's endless wars, and failure to collect taxes that is bankrupting. You could get rid of the US postal service completely and you would be in the same mess as when you started. Because it ain't the USPS.    It's the constant bending of the knee to the corporations and billionaires.

Edit: also, you may cut mail delivery on Weds. But that is just going to to force people that would otherwise recieve their mail to drive to the post office. Completely negating any projected carbon emissions reductions.


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

[User] [Star Wars movies] When lightsaber fighting, shouldn't Jedi use jabbing fencing thrusts rather than broadsword swinging motions, especially when fighting other Jedi or non-mechanized humanoid creatures?

[Assistant]
Thrusts are certainly faster than swings when it comes to a physical blade, but the same can't be said for a lightsaber. The main drawback for a physical swing is the recovery of the blade, as momentum carries it away. The blade of a lightsaber, however, doesn't weigh anything, and as such you can swing to your heart's content without sacrificing too many options.

The nature of a lightsaber makes tactics that would be inadvisable with a real blade very useful with the saber instead.


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

[User] ELI5 - Why does everything sound muffled underwater if sound travels 4x faster in water?

[Assistant] Its a lot to do with how fast your diaphragm in your ear can vibrate which increases clarity.   The faster the eardrum can move the more information it can resolve.  The increased viscosity of the water compared to the air reduces the sensitivity of the ear.


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

[User] ELI5: Why is it necessary to have course thread bolts (UNC) and fine thread bolts (UNF)? Wouldnt having only one or the other be just fine?

[Assistant] In general, coarse threads are easier to start and faster to screw in, while fine threads are stronger for a given base diameter. Having two options as widely available, standardized choices for each screw diameter allows engineers to pick a thread pitch which is most useful in the particular application they are designing for.


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

[User]
[Star Wars] If Padme hadnt fallen out of the Airship, how would that have affected the final battle in attack on the Clones?

Does she really change anything?

[Assistant]
>Your thoughts dwell on your mother.

>I sense much fear in you.

>Be mindful of your thoughts, Anakin, they betray you.  You have made a commitment to the Jedi Order; a commitment not easily broken.

>Be mindful of your thoughts.  She *was* pleased to see us.

>I can feel your anger.  It gives you focus.  Makes you ***stronger***...

>I sense confusion in you, Skywalker.  There is much fear that clouds your judgment.

>Your feelings for them are strong, especially for...*sister*. So, you have a twin sister. Your feelings have now betrayed her too.

If Padme - the love of Anakin Skywalker's life - had not been blown out of the gunship en route to Dooku's getaway ship, it would go badly.  Skywalkers are not known for having particularly good control over their emotions.  Even at the height of his wisdom, Luke Skywalker was prone to making fatal mistakes out of fear (*and that's all we have to say about that*).  And as such, this makes reading them less like sneaking a peek at their diary and more like having that diary read aloud by the author at a poetry slam; anybody with a whiff of Force sensitivity - let alone a gifted Jedi Master turned Sith Lord - would be able to tell that Anakin had strong feelings for Padme.

A senator with no Force potential, who is a shatterpoint for Anakin Skywalker, and who is completely unable to defend herself against a Dark Lord of the Sith, being within range of both?

Being thrown out of a gunship was probably the single best thing that could have happened to her that day.

Edit: Forgot about the bad motherfucker and the conehead.


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

[User]
[Deadpool movie] How does Colossus know about Deadpool?

Since he's an artificial mutant, is he detectable by Cerebro? And when did Colossus learn about Deadpool's existence? Although not in chronological order, the movie shows pretty much everything that happened after Wade escaped the workshop, how do they know about each other?

[Assistant] I assumed it's because Deadpool is pretty much the opposite of discreet. When word gets out that a dude in a red suit with crazy healing powers is slicing and dicing people in broad daylight all over the place, the X-Men probably find out very quickly.


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

[User]
[Star Trek Voyager] Was Tuvok on the Event Horizon, or did he just watch the movie?

When shown a glimpse of the suppressed violence within Tuvok's mind, in Epis- I mean, *Log* "Random Thoughts", some of the events from the disaster on board the Event Horizon can be seen. Was Tuvok somehow involved with the Event Horizon, or is it simply a fictional late 20th century film that he's watched at some point?

(Either way, the in universe implications are interesting)

[Assistant] I just watched that one last night! Tuvok was born in 2264, and the events depicted in Event Horizon occurred in 2047, so that rules out him actually being there. It's hard to imagine Tuvok sitting down with a bucket of popcorn and watching an Earth space-horror movie from 1997, but maybe he was doing research on the human psyche.


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

[User]
If female babies are born, on average, with 2,000,000 eggs, then why do they go through menopause. Dont they only excrete one egg a month after puberty?

In 2018 the average life expectancy of a female is 84 years. On average, girls start thier menstrual cycle at age 12 and start menopause at age 51. That leaves 39 years of menstruation. If each year has 12 months, then, on average, each female has 468 menstrual cycles. If, from what I've been taught, every female loses one egg every month, then why do they go through menopause at 51?

[Assistant] Because women lose many more eggs than the ones they release during ovulation. Roughly 11,000 eggs die every month before to puberty. A women will only have a few hundred thousand eggs remaining by the time she reaches her mid teens, and from that point on, roughly 1,000 egg die each month without ever making through the ovulation process.


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

[User] ELI5: Why do gasoline prices fluctuate so drastically from state to state in the US.

[Assistant] Different gasoline taxes. Different distances between the nearest refinery. Different blend requirements for the gasoline(California). Different requirements on who's allowed to pump gasoline into a car(Oregon/New Jersey). Different minimum wages. Different property values for a gas station sized plot of land. Different property taxes.


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

[User]
(lotr) What was Gandalf's plan for getting into mordor?

If only golom knew the way through the marshes, where the stair way was and the black gates were nigh impassable how did gandalf plan to get frodo and the fellowship into Mordor. Also what was his an for getting past the thousands of orcs and the great eye in order to get to mt doom?

[Assistant] They deliberately did not have a specific plan other than "Go to Mordor; throw ring into mountain." In fact it was alluded that *not* having a specific plan was an asset (since the Enemy would be less likely to predict their moves).


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

[User] Is the integer assigned to Kepler objects of interests random, or is there a system ? (for example, the star KOI-718, is the 718 assigned as a random integer?)

[Assistant] A Kepler object of interest (KOI) is a star observed by the Kepler telescope suspected of hosting transiting planets. 718 would be the order in which the star was catalogued. Then the object would be further designated KOI718.01, as in the first transit then KOI718.02 on to KOI718.03 and after the third transit it may be deemed a planet and renamed Kepler-718b,c,d and so on


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

[User]
ELI5: Why are groceries more expensive in poorer neighborhoods?

I just moved from an apartment that borders a pretty wealthy area with high line and chain grocery stores.  I have shopped at these stores for years and have a pretty good mental note of how expensive items are.
The house I moved into borders "the hood" and is in an older part of town.  After grocery shopping at two major grocery store chains here, I noticed everything is fucking 10-30% more expensive for the exact same stuff.
In the rich neighborhood, there are huge amounts of specials, by one get one free, sale tags everywhere for lower prices on things.  Meats, dairy, produce, toiletries, kitchen disposables and so on are all way more expensive in the poor neighborhood.
My theory is it's a fleecing of the EBT programs.   The population has a higher concentration of food stamps so stores jack prices and never put anything on sale because EBT users don't give a shit.
Am I wrong? Why so much more expensive in an area where people have a whole lot less money than the neighborhood I moved from?   Pisses me off because I pay for my food and have to travel to a rich neighborhood to get better prices.

[Assistant]
Let's look at what makes a rich neighborhood grocery store work (we'll use Safeway which is a large public grocery chain):

* *They are large.*  Their 2013 sales were $36.139 billion.  So volume is important.
* *The stores are large* Their average store size is 47,500 square feet.  This is necessary to get the volume and keep inventory turns high.
* *But their profit is slim.* Their 2013 operating profit was $635 million (1.8% of sales).  This tells us they don't have much wiggle room to absorb costs with the prices they charge.
* Looking deeper, they have 1326 stores.
* However they have 137,000 full and part time employees (103 per store).  Most stores are open 24 hours a day, which is 21 standard 8 hour shifts per week that must be covered.  If we presume all employees work in stores, all employees are full time, and all shifts are equally staffed that means of the store only has 24-25 people working on a shift!
* Combining the employees with the square footage data, each person is responsible for about 1,800 square feet (including specialists like cashiers and butchers who are really only covering a fraction of that).
* Their 2013 inventory was $2.089 billion (or $1.575 million per store).  That means there's 1.5 million dollars worth of stuff sitting around not well watched.

Combining the keys, a cheap grocery only works if they can have a huge store with a lot of inventory (to keep stocking fees from climbing), at low margin (to keep prices low), with few employees (low margin), and maintain controlled theft losses.

They can't do that in the poor neighborhoods.  So prices become the thing that gives.


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

[User]
What is better for the economy, middle class consumption or rich peoples' investments?

For example $1,000 invested or $1,000 in consumption?

[Assistant]
Roughly speaking:

The investment allows for more rapid rates of growth

The consumption allows for more immediate growth.

So imagine an X-Y axis where X-axis = time, Y-axis = GDP per capita as a proxy for living standards.

$1000 in consumption allows for a line starting at a higher level but with a low gradient. With no/ little capital investment the productive capacity of the economy struggles to grow.

$1000 in investment allows for a line starting at a lower level but with a higher gradient (or more steep sloping upwards).

Eventually the lower line will intersect and overtake the higher (consumption driven) line. But how long this will take is anyones guess. People will prefer each scenario based on their personal time horizons (for example, years of life left).


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

[User] How much does a holiday cost an economy?

[Assistant]
Depends where you holiday, holiday in the same economy probably between a negligible cost and a positive to the economy. Depending on how much you spend.

In a different economy, a basic economic assumption would be the value of your wage for the amount of time you're not working. However, you have to factor in any increased productivity you'd have due to alleviation of burnout. Plus if you're talking about all holidays and not just one you'd have to consider general equilibrium effects.


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

[User] ELI5: Why do TV shows like "House of Cards" have different directors for each episode?

[Assistant]
Principal photography (filming the actors etc.) may only take a week or so (depending on the show), but there's always weeks of pre-production (location scouting, script revisions etc.) and post-production (audio re-recording, any special effects) that the director is involved in (they're not doing all the work, but they have creative input.)

Principal filming is a full time, 10+ hr days affair. It would be challenging for a director to handle that, and also handle several hours/day of pre- and post- production for previous or subsequent episodes, so they spread the workload around.

Or, as the producers/show-runners, you may have an episode that calls for a particular skillset. Like the episode deals with a tricky subject matter or has a challenging action sequence and you know that a particular director has the skillset to translate that well into film.


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

[User] [Life is Strange] How did Max get her abilities? Did she keep them after the events of Ep 5?

[Assistant]
It's really difficult to say what granted Max's power. You could say that it was the impending storm, but the storm was only created because Max will save Chloe from death, when she was fated to die. However, she was only able to save Chloe because she was granted the power, so we're stuck in the loop.

Max uses her power to save Chloe -> Fate doesn't like it and creates the storm to kill Chloe -> Storm gives Max powers? -> Max uses her power to save Chloe

This makes no sense at all, so a more logical explanation would be that fate itself is sentient and granted Max the power to spend some time with her best friend in an alternate timeline before her death in the main one, and also to right some wrongs - kinda as a "sorry" for killing Chloe. Since her power was only granted for spending time with Chloe, it shouldn't stay with Max after her death.


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

[User]
ELI5: Why do "bad" smells smell bad, and "good" smells smell good?

Are "bad" and "good" smells learned or influenced, or are they just simply good and bad?

[Assistant]
It's a little bit learned and a little bit encoded by evolution.  For instance, poop has a lot of bacteria in it and other nasty things that you don't need to be around.  Evolution favored animals that stayed away from their poop (generally speaking), so poop smells bad so you won't go near it, so you won't get sick.  Likewise, rotting meat smells bad because you really shouldn't be eating it, so again it smells bad so you stay away from it.  Often what you're smelling is sulfate compounds, which commonly occur where there's decomposition by anaerobic bacteria.  Sulfur smells pretty bad on its own, and it can be poisonous, and when you add oxygen (the -ate in sulfate) it just gets worse.

Fun fact, garlic gets its smell from selenium, the next element in the same column as sulfur.  That whole column smells bad, except for oxygen.  Given how poisonous oxygen can be, it *should* smell bad, and the only reason it doesn't is because 1) you're constantly inhaling it and 2) you need it to live.

Similarly, many good smells, like cooking food, smells good because it's something you should be around.  Cooked food has more available calories and nutrients and is less likely to get you sick than raw meat.  Cleanliness and freshness smells good because being clean helps you avoid disease.  Evolution favored many of those smells.

But smell is also *very* strongly associated with memory in your brain.  So you're also likely to pick up some scents as being good or bad because of the memories associated with those smells.  That's why after a bad case of food poisoning, the smell of whatever food got you sick will make you nauseous - you've associated the smell with feeling awful.  That's a great trick to keep you healthy, of course - early humans would have learned very quickly to avoid the foods that were more likely to kill them.  Good memories can make smells seem more pleasant, too.  So there's a bit of both in there.

Also worth noting, what smells good or bad depends on your species, too.  Turkey vultures are one of the few birds that finds food with smell, and they eat rotting flesh.  So to them, the smell of dead things probably smells very good.