What do you want to know thread to make you smart and read good.

Capt'n Midnight

gw80 wrote: »

Does centrifugal force from the earth spinning so fast have any effect on gravity?

i.e if the earth was not spinning would gravitational force be greater

yes it does ,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravity_of_Earth
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8767763.stm

Capt'n Midnight

Merkin wrote: »

Can someone give me a brief synopsis of exactly what's going on in Syria right now?

Christians are getting killed all sides.

Capt'n Midnight

I Heart Internet wrote: »

What's the biggest animal on earth with more than 4 legs? I bet it's really scary.

North Atlantic Lobster

In the past it was probably the giant sea scorpions.

On land it was probably Arthropleura


Stuff with no legs can be even bigger, like some jelly fish / longer like worms

dirtyden

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

More importantly, why isn't the sky purple ?

I believe its nitrogen that gives the sky its colour.

bear1

If an asteroid comes crashing to Earth and its lets say the size of a football field, why has it the potential to wipe out life?

old_aussie

NiallSparky wrote: »

Properties of light. Light bounces off your shoes, reflects off the mirror and then hits your eyes. That's how we see anything.

No. All the other coulours are absorbed(not reflected) but the colour that is refelected is the colour that you see.

bnt

Blisterman wrote: »

Air conditioners essentially work by transferring heat from indoors to outdoors. Something which requires large amounts of electricity to do so. That I understand.

But if heat is energy, how come nobody's created an air conditioner which cools a room by converting that energy to something else, such as light or kinetic energy? Is is theoretically possible?

Because energy doesn't just have quantity, it has a quality, too. When the energy is in the form of heat, we call that quality "temperature". The waste heat from that air conditioner isn't all that much hotter than its surroundings, which means that there's a limit to how much useful "work" we can get out of it.

This idea - that getting work from heat depends on a temperature difference, not just on the amount of heat - is behind the 2nd law of Thermodynamics. A small gas burner might produce the same amount of energy per hour as that air conditioner, but it's more useful because it's hotter. You can boil water, produce steam, drive a turbine and charge a battery, which you can't do with the heat from the air conditioner.

You may also hear the word entropy at this point, which is a measure of how "diffuse" the energy is: the gas burner's output has a lower entropy. (That's the 1-line version of what it means.) I mentioned the "inevitable heat death of the universe" before: in that scenario, the universe will contain just as much as energy as it always did - because mass-energy is conserved - but it'll be all spread out evenly, and thus useless. It's the differences that make things happen. It's like that line from The Incredibles: "if everyone is special, then no-one is".

The principle applies to other forms of energy e.g. chemical energy. Petrol is great at powering cars, because it packs a lot of energy in a small, light package. A 100 horsepower engine may produce the same power as 100 horses, but the former runs on a few litres of petrol, while the latter runs on tons of grass, and I know which I'd rather have in my driveway. Then again, the horses do produce a lot of methane, which is also a useful fuel, if we could only capture it ... :cool:

the purple tin

bear1 wrote: »

If an asteroid comes crashing to Earth and its lets say the size of a football field, why has it the potential to wipe out life?

I think it's because the impact throws up loads of dust, sand etc into the atmosphere. That will block out sunlight and plants and animals slowly start to die off.

bear1

I think it's because the impact throws up loads of dust, sand etc into the atmosphere. That will block out sunlight and plants and animals slowly start to die off.

And all the explosions? Just very curious

the purple tin

bear1 wrote: »

And all the explosions? Just very curious

I'm not sure Bear. I think it's mostly shockwaves. Another effect I remembered is that the impact can cause massive tidal waves far bigger than any natural ones, that can go hundereds of miles inland and wipe everything out instantly.

bear1

That will do for me Purple Tin thanks

Oh and I have another one... Why do farts smell worse if you fart in the bath? Is it because of the bacteria mixing with o2?

Guill

bear1 wrote: »

And all the explosions? Just very curious

Get an Melon. Get the smallest calibre gun you can find./ Shoot the Melon. See what happens.

Daveysil15

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

<Knives> hey Daveysil15
<Knives> do you know the 4 types of female orgasms?
* Daveysil15 admits he does not
<Knives> Well, the first, is the Religious orgasm
<Knives> or the, Spiritual orgasm
<Knives> it goes something like this
<Knives> "Oh GOD! oh GOD! OH OH OH GOD!"
<Knives> the 2nd, is the positive orgasm---" OH YES! OH YES! OH YES!"
<Knives> to which comes the third, the negative orgasm... "OH NO! OH NO! OH NO!"
<Knives> and then finally
<Knives> the fake orgasm
<Knives> "OH Daveysil15! OH Daveysil15! OH OH Daveysil15!"
<Hawk> lol
<Daveysil15> ....bitch

Wrong. The correct answer is 'Chemical Chance.'

CastingCouch

Whatsisname wrote: »

Yeah....


....same.

Don't worry, that's simple stuff.

Just looks complicated with c's and v's etc.

The only formula you wouldn't know off your head is the momentum one.

Jesus Wept

twinytwo wrote: »

here is a completely random fact: every person you ever visualise in your dreams is someone that you have seen, even for a split second at sometime in your life. It is impossible ( proven by people smarter than me) for the human subconsious to "create" people in your dreams.

Load of arse I reckon.

Mardy Bum

If you would like to learn about macroeconomics and monetary economics Karl Whelan, Professor of Economics in UCD, has all his lectures and notes freely available here.
His lectures are excellent and highly recommended if you have an interest he has both undergraduate and master's lectures.

Ted_YNWA

Andy Carroll wrote: »

Load of arse I reckon.

How do you know what i dream about ??

Fussgangerzone

Fussgangerzone wrote: »

Why can't we have passenger boats that go as fast as passenger planes? I can think of some problems, but is there anything which represents a hard limit?

Damnit, I'm rumbled! (See: Irish take over the world thread in Conspiracy theories....)

Cookie_Monster

FoxT wrote: »

Why doesn't the train stop for a split second as well?

a few molecules in the immediate area the fly hit probably will

bnt wrote: »

That's some serious SuperFly you have there. Just how fast is it going?
...
Now, the speed of light in a vacuum is about 3e8 metres per second (300,000 km/sec). So, to stop that train, your fly would need to be going at over 3,600 times the speed of light. Maybe in Star Trek ... "Fly Warp Factor 9.7, Wesley!" :cool:

so it would simply create a 2-3mm whole right down the length of the train rather than stop it though?

Canard

You know the way suitcases often have that weird zip going around them, and when you unzip it, it makes the whole thing a little bit bigger? Like it gives it breathing room - would it not make more sense to just make the case that size in the first place?

Blisterman

Because it would take up more room in storage.

FatherLen

How is babby formed

floggg

Optimalprimerib wrote: »

They dont, theyre so boring and irritating they never get laid.

Pfft. Shows what you know.

We get anal sex, oral sex, gay sex, protected sex, unmarried sex, extra-marital sex, public sex, tantric sex, unisex hair stylists, etc.

"Christians" are stuck with missionary sex with their spouse - with no prospect of divorce or madtirbation once that dries up.*

I know which I'm happier being.







* It obviously goes without saying that all Christians observe the sexual tenants of their faith, and not just the ones that only affect other people.

kylith

floggg wrote: »

Pfft. Shows what you know.

We get anal sex, oral sex, gay sex, protected sex, unmarried sex, extra-marital sex, public sex, tantric sex, unisex hair stylists, etc.

"Christians" are stuck with missionary sex with their spouse - with no prospect of divorce or madtirbation once that dries up.*

I know which I'm happier being.

* It obviously goes without saying that all Christians observe the sexual tenants of their faith, and not just the ones that only affect other people.

Don't forget that this missionary position sex is ONLY to be had for the purposes of procreation. If you don't explicitly intend for a pregnancy to result then you are sinning.

stefan idiot jones

If two women are talking and there is no man around to listen to them, are they still wrong ?

twinytwo

bear1 wrote: »

If an asteroid comes crashing to Earth and its lets say the size of a football field, why has it the potential to wipe out life?

A football field is too small... it would need to be bigger say a mile wide. something that big travelling at the speed it will be ( which will be in the 10's of thousands of mph) would strike with such a force that the resuting energy release of somewhere in the range of a 1 million megaton bomb. this is a very hard figure for people to comprehend.

For example the biggest man made explosion on earth was the tsar bomb dropped by the russians in 1961 was approx 50 megatons... this produced a fireball with a 3.5km diameter and a 35km destruction radius.

A million megaton bomb is 10 millions times stronger than the bomb the yankes dropped on hiroshima.

A blast like that would instantly kill everything a 200 mile radius with the resuting shockwave getting everything for another 1000 miles. If it lands in the ocean it will flashboil the water and take out most of the planet with tsunmais a couple of miles high and kick so much dust into the atmosphere that it would completely block out the sun for years, taking everything else with it.

Chancer3001

Hey you, how come all these rocks are different sizes?

Well.....rocks are generally different sizes.

God ted, I'm learning loads.

B0jangles

BrianJD wrote: »

But what happens to the smaller boat? Does that mean you need to have someone drive you out because you don't see boats towing another too often and the boats out to sea which I am talking are really only small pleasure boats...

Probably waaay to late on this one but there are a couple of answers to this one:

1. If you are just going out in the bigger boat for a short trip, then you'd leave the smaller boat (dinghy) attached to your mooring buoy in the harbour ready for you to use when you get back, like this:



2. If you're going to be going on a longer trip onwards to another harbour, you either tow the dinghy behind the bigger boat, or take it onboard and put it somewhere on the deck.

ectoraige

fergiesfolly wrote: »

If I press ctrl, alt, delete and sneeze at the same time, will the internet shut down?

No, but you might pee a little.

daveyeh

Stone Deaf 4evr wrote: »

where do ice cream vans go in the winter?

north

michellie

Stone Deaf 4evr wrote: »

where do ice cream vans go in the winter?

The ones around here were still driving around in December >:(

daveyeh

bear1 wrote: »

Why do farts smell worse if you fart in the bath? Is it because of the bacteria mixing with o2?

No, its the contrast between generally pleasant bath smells and your anal odours.

ivytwine

mickrock wrote: »

When a right-handed person plays the guitar why is it the left hand(ie the less dominant one) that does most of the tricky stuff?

Same deal with driving a car in a left-hand drive country, it's your weaker hand that does the gear changes...

Lefties must enjoy driving!

MusicalMelody

How come when i put a load of socks in the wash i never get the same amount of socks out of the wash. Does the machine eat them? If not where do they go!!

Celly Smunt

MusicalMelody wrote: »

How come when i put a load of socks in the wash i never get the same amount of socks out of the wash. Does the machine eat them? If not where do they go!!

What if i told you that the washing machine makes socks.So instead of losing 1 sock you actually gain 1 sock at a time.

Jonny7

MusicalMelody wrote: »

How come when i put a load of socks in the wash i never get the same amount of socks out of the wash. Does the machine eat them? If not where do they go!!

Most modern washers have a "sock chute", and as part of the wash cycle will generally take out a few socks depending on load size.

These are compressed and squeezed down the water pipe, and usually end their life joining the great Pacific Garbage patch

Next

Blisterman

One thing I've never really got my head around is how throughout history, jobs become obsolete as machines and computers take over tasks previously done by humans and yet, recessions excluded, the unemployment rate hasn't really changed. Add in the fact that hundreds of thousands of women have entered the workforce over the past few decades, who previously would have mostly been home makers.

So basically, where do all these new jobs come from?

IK09

twinytwo wrote: »

here is a completely random fact: every person you ever visualise in your dreams is someone that you have seen, even for a split second at sometime in your life. It is impossible ( proven by people smarter than me) for the human subconscious to "create" people in your dreams.

This is definitely the most interesting thing i have ever read on boards

podgemonster

Of all the people in the world who are living or have ever lived, 93% them are dead.

Cee-Jay-Cee

BrianJD wrote: »

I think we should have a thread for the simple questions we have always wondered but never got around to asking!

Can anyone answer these?

When you are at a port and you see loads of boats anchored down and out in the water, how does the owner get to it?

Why does the external temperature gauge in a car give a higher reading than the apparent highest temperature of the day according to Met Eireann?

In another boat or dinghy.

The temp sensors in cars are behind the front bumper so they don't take wind chill into effect. They will also be slightly influenced by the hit engine temperature.

John Joe McGinty

Why do girlfriends say that they don't want anything in a restaurant or takeaway and when the boyfriend gets something the beautiful girlfriend steals most of it.

twinytwo

Blisterman wrote: »

One thing I've never really got my head around is how throughout history, jobs become obsolete as machines and computers take over tasks previously done by humans and yet, recessions excluded, the unemployment rate hasn't really changed. Add in the fact that hundreds of thousands of women have entered the workforce over the past few decades, who previously would have mostly been home makers.

So basically, where do all these new jobs come from?

because everything is exponential. As the human population increases so does their requirements... more people need more food, clothes etc. Thus teh more people there are the "more" jobs there are.

As for computers/machines while they directly remove jobs related to them, the create a lot of indirect jobs.. as these machines/computers must be created, looked after etc

Zombienosh

What happens if you put anti-fungal cream on a mushroom?

Blisterman

twinytwo wrote: »

because everything is exponential. As the human population increases so does their requirements... more people need more food, clothes etc. Thus teh more people there are the "more" jobs there are.

As for computers/machines while they directly remove jobs related to them, the create a lot of indirect jobs.. as these machines/computers must be created, looked after etc

But the number of people needed to create and look after the machines is always going to less than the number of people the machines are replacing. Otherwise, why would they bother?

ivytwine

twinytwo wrote: »

because everything is exponential. As the human population increases so does their requirements... more people need more food, clothes etc. Thus teh more people there are the "more" jobs there are.

As for computers/machines while they directly remove jobs related to them, the create a lot of indirect jobs.. as these machines/computers must be created, looked after etc

Yup nightsoilmen are just replaced with plumbers, and printers' boys are replaced by software engineers!

P.C.

BeerWolf wrote: »

1. How would you describe a colour to a blind person ?

2. Do blind people dream? Suppose the person was deaf as well, what then ?

1. Two options that I can think of - either relate it to a object that they know, or relate it to a feeling/emotion.

2. Yes, blind people do dream.

the purple tin

John Joe McGinty wrote: »

Why do girlfriends say that they don't want anything in a restaurant or takeaway and when the boyfriend gets something the beautiful girlfriend steals most of it.

They love to say to themselves and their female friends 'I was very good last night, I only had the salad'. They never mention that they scoffed most of your meal too.

thee glitz

How do scienticians know what's at the centre of the earth?
Solid iron and nickel apparently

KeithM89

Just watched a video where a guy microwaved an iPhone and it didnt end too well so what would happen if i microwaved a microwave?

thee glitz

I think they make them to a min and max size so that's not possible.