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How is Canadian healthcare different from Obamacare?

Canadian healthcare is, more or less, single-payer. Basically, you pay a tax to the government and the government insures you. American healthcare is a big old mess. We have single-payer for some people (Medicare), full-on nationalized healthcare for some (the Veterans' administration, where doctors are government employees), private insurance for many, and no insurance (fuck you and die) for some. Obamacare is actually working--it's fixing some of the worst problems with private insurance and reducing the number of people with no insurance. But our health care system is still a big old mess. Obamacare didn't create the mess, but it does sort of freeze it in place. If you want more detail, I created a comic to explain Obamacare here: _URL_0_.

Why do app developers like supercell release their updates/apps way earlier on one platform than the other?

If you're referring to the time gap between Android and iOS releases, the answer is because of Apple. Things get on the Android market very easily and quickly, because the Android market is cool. Apple has dozens of excessive rules and guidelines that they strictly enforce, so they actually look through the app/code. This takes time, so they usually push the update to Android and iOS at the same time, and Apple takes forever to approve. edit: of course this doesn't mean that Android doesn't have or enforce guidelines. They just aren't ridiculous like Apple's.

Why do the vast majority of good police officers and other form of L.E. protect the "bad apples" and not outcast/ help remove them?

Cop here. Truly "bad" cops don't want to get caught. If they're doing something shady, they're probably hiding it. A couple other factors: Police departments operate independently from one another. I have nothing to do with the department in the next town over, let alone across County or state lines. Even within the same department, you'll have your own beat. You'll go most of the day without interacting with your fellow officers. I work in a department with over 1700 sworn officers. I see about 10 of them a day, and only 2 or 3 of them will I actuality go on calls with in my response area.

If we were still at war with Nazi Germany, Nazi supporters would be tried for treason. Why now are Nazi groups aloud to persist, unchallenged by law?

Simply expressing support would not be sufficient to try someone for treason even back in war times. That would be deeply unpopular, but not treason unless you'd do something *material* in regards to the enemy war effort. For example, you can look at organizations like German American Bund or British Union of Fascists. In general, their organized activities were prohibited during the war and leaders were detained for various issues; but the detained people, as a rule, were not tried for treason and the vast majority of their members (tens of thousands of them!) weren't tried for anything ever.

Why is pencil graphite referred to as Lead instead of graphite?

Before chemistry was really a thing, everyone thought that graphite was a type of lead, probably because it's so soft.

Why are the words "Yeah" and "Oh" always in pop songs and said for so long?

They are used as *filler* where the tune requires a note, but the singer doesn't have anything more to say. An excellent lyricist will try to adjust the wording so that not too many of these are needed.

Where does color goes when the sun "bleaches" it?

It breaks the molecules that make the color, and the byproducts don't have any specific color. The atoms are still there, but formed into different molecules.

Why does my phone echo sometimes?

issues with the line. there is noise on the line when you call. when you hang up an phone it makes a new connection and this time no issue with the connection. it can be either the person you call or your phone line causing this issue

Why does inbreeding cause the offspring to have a significantly lower IQ than average? What is the science behind it?

take it that a human body has 2 sets of genes. When a baby is made, half the genes are from the mother and other half is from the father. These genes make proteins which help our body work. However, there are occasionally some errors in the genes which ends up making defective/too much/too little proteins which give rise to diseases. Some of these diseases require 2 faulty set of genes in order to manifest. So if daddy has a defective gene but mommy contributes a normal set, the disease does not manifest clinically (or is milder). If there are many generations of inbreeding, the set of defective genes are kept within the same family tree; there is no new genetic input from a different family and thus the probability of having a child with 2 sets of defective genes increase. This increases the risk of diseases, out of which some may feature a lower IQ/brain malformations.

Why is it that after waking from a bad dream, even though I am awake and aware that the dream was not real, I am still irrationally freaked out and disturbed by the events of the dream for a good amount of time?

If you are having a scary dream your body may start producing Adrenaline, or other hormones that help you deal with stressful situations. Even though you have woken up, those hormones are still active in your system and the heightened sense of awareness sticks around until your hormone levels return to normal.

Why can't modern houses be economically independent with solar + battery+ a little backup generator just incase?

A) You need a large array of solar powers to provide full coverage to the home (large initial cost, requires a lot of surface area, potentially takes away from the visual appeal of the home) B) until very recently, there hasn't really been any cost-effective battery solution for homes (Tesla Powerwall is helping to change this) C) Most people who live in developed countries don't have to worry about power outages because they are extremely rare. In these countries, it doesn't make sense to install solar panels just as an emergency backup... you would only do the install if your intention was to go off-grid so you don't have to pay a monthly electric utility bill (and/or because you can sell excess electricity back to the grid / power company to potentially earn money).

If we are 70% H2O, why are we considered Carbon based?

The chemistry that keeps us going is based on carbon-chain molecules. We do use water for some reactions but most of it is just solvent for molecules to float around and react in. It's somewhat like why we say tea is a plant-based beverage even though it's mostly water. The interesting part isn't the water.

Why do we have speed limits rather than a speed range?

Because that's the top speed you can safely do, assuming ideal conditions (at least that's the premise). When it's raining, snowing, cold or dark, this changes it from being ideal conditions. It's not safe to drive at that speed any more. Worse it is, the slower you need to go, especially if your visibility is impaired. Too much variation in the weather to set a "minimum speed". Not sure about you are, but here there is a 5% tolerance on our 100kph speed limit - 105 before they'll ping you. (which quite funnily is, in mph, equating to 63mph in a 60)

can you explain the NFL lockout to me (what it is, why it happened, outcomes of it etc.) LI5

One answer can be found in the other thread created here _URL_0_ As for the outcome, I haven't found much of a resource on what has been created but a few things like Rookie Wage system has been set up so that draft picks will be paid a certain amount depending on where they were drafted. I also believe the rights of refusal which is a teams ability to choose three of the teams free agents and match any offer given to them. So for example, if Chad Ochocinco was a restricted free agent looking for a team, and the New England Patriots agreed with Chad that they'd pay him 30 million for 2 years, the Bengals could match the pay and keep Chad despite him wanting to play for the Patriots. Other outcomes include each team's salary cap for their players being 120 million. (the number might be wrong but that is one gist). There are many more but those are the main ones I know of.

The world can't agree on standard units of measurement for anything except time. H ow come?

They can and did. ISO standard units called the SI units. Most everyone doing serious business is using them for most everything and have been for a while, non-SI units are just used in day-to-day stuff because people have preferences and it's generally not worth it to, for example, force Canadians to actually measure their mass in kilograms.

We all mostly skip or block ads. What makes companies still believe online ads like on youtube is worth investing?

"We" is comprised of tech-savvy desktop/laptop users. Mobile users and most internet users don't use adblock, and their revenue makes it worthwhile.

Can someone explain what quantum suicide and quantum immortality are?

Some people think that when something happens, new versions of reality are made, one for each possible outcome of the thing happening. For example, you flip a coin. In one universe, the coin comes up heads. In another universe it comes up tails. Now say you decide to kill yourself. You get a gun and point it at your head and pull the trigger. In one universe, it goes off and you die. In another, the gun jams and you live. Since the only universe you are alive in is the one where you live, you experience that universe. Therefore, according to you, you do not die. This happens every time you have a chance of dying. According to you, you can never die.

Why is it that plants comparatively much less diverse (only ~250,000 species) than other clades of life?

I don't know for certain, but think about it: Plants are sedentary. They find a particular kind of environment that suits them well and, for the most part, stay in one place for their whole lives. They don't need to develop systems that allow for locomotion. They don't need to develop complex tissues and organs that make up that system, nor the vessels and oxygen transport mechanism to ensure the cells in the locomotion system stay energized. They don't require much energy since, again, they stay put; they make their own energy, and it's enough to get by on. Much of the complexity of animal life revolves around how they tweak the basic mechanics of moving around. Where does it move? How does it move? What does it require in order to move? How much and what kind of energy does it need? Does it regulate its own internal temperature?

Why do we randomly get this weird/burning sensation in the nose when inhaling?

Always assumed it was a dry spot where there was no mucous.

how do sinkholes happen

Student Civil Engineer here. To put it as if you are actually 5. Imagine there is a road, now underneath that road there is soil. Over time water can erode (takes away) bits of soil. Over a period of time there is now no more soil under the road since the water has eroded it and there is just a big hole. Eventually the road cannot support its own weight and collapses into the empty space. This is a sinkhole. The reason why i said over time and over a period of time is because these can happen fast (during floods) or very slowly. A leak in a sewage pipe over years dropping small amounts of water every few minutes can still create a sinkhole. Hope this is helpful.

Are mobile ads intentionally the last thing to load while opening a page, so more people would accidentally click them?

No. Ads are usually provided by a 3rd party company from their servers, not the same server that is delivering the rest of the content on the page, so they can often take longer to load compared to other stuff on the page. They are often also image-heavy, which means they take longer to load than text. They are also usually inserted into the page using javascript, so that they can load several different ads to different viewers on the same page, or target ads to different users, or track impressions, & c. The script that loads these ads often runs after other content in the page has loaded, so that the page doesn't have to wait on the ads & just display as blank while the ads load (this would lose you a ton of visitors, & make the ads worthless because there'd be no visitors to see them once they do load).

why are we producing more aluminium than we recycle if it takes 95 percent less energy to recycle?

Yes, it would be, but then there would also be a finite amount of aluminum on earth and we would never be able to have more bottles and cans than we do right now. The world is growing and we still have a need for new aluminum. People like airplane manufacturers and NASA need lots of high quality aluminum so they are willing to pay for the good stuff, coke doesn't need anyhting other than tin cans so they likely wont pay a premium for new aluminum and jsut use the recycled stuff.

why are there no comedy categories at the Oscars

Each awards show has their own thing. You're probably aware of the Oscars and the Emmy, but there are like a hundred others with their own style and categories. However you're not alone in your thinking. Not having a separate comedy category has been a regular criticism of the Oscars. They tried to assuage this a bit (and add some flair and promo to the show) by upping the best picture category from 5 films to up to 10, hopefully to allow more diverse films outside of dramas (such as animated, comedy's, and sci-fi films), but this is still pretty new. They changed the voting on it a bit too, but its unknown if this had any effect on the eventual winners. In other words... this particular award show does its own thing, just like the others, and this does not seem like something they are particularly interested in.

Why is it when I love someone a lot, that sometimes I have to hug them tightly and it feels like I can't be close enough.

No answer, but that is fucking adorable. I hope you two have a long happy life of being this in love together.

Why are the stairs of an escalator higher than the stairs of a staircase?

To give you better timing to get off the step at the end, and to somewhat discourage you from running up them while moving (primarily for children).

Why does half and half in containers not have to be refrigerated? How come it can be left out for days while milk has to always be kept cold?

Are you sure you're not referring to non-dairy creamers? Half and half most certainly needs to refrigerated.

Why are smoke shops allowed to sell bongs?

Next time you go there, look for a sign. There will be one saying "For Tobacco Use Only" While bongs are commonly associated with marijuana, they are also used for tobacco and in that regard are perfectly legal. By saying they're only for tobacco it protects the stores from the drug laws you mention. So in order for there to be any legal consequences, people would have to prove that the shop is knowingly selling them for use with marijuana and not tobacco. This is impossible to prove in almost every case.

How does hot water work in hotels?

While all buildings are a little different, most use a single boiler and a recirculating hot water system. Hot water circulates in big loops on each floor, driven by small magnetic pumps. This means the water is "instant-on". The storage tank is kept warm by the boiler and inflowing water is warmed before it goes into the tank. This provides constant temperature hot water all day.

How do pornography sites stay in business?

For the same reason Youtube is allowed to exist. The law determined that these sites cannot reasonably be expected to control uploaded content to such a degree, in other words they cannot be held accountable for copyright infringement *as long as* they comply with DMCA requests and delete videos on demand. This does happen even now, I remember a certain popular account on xvideos/xhamster that got banned multiple times for example. The problem of course is that videos get uploaded faster than they can be taken down. Commercial porn sites probably have given up on that battle more or less and adapted. Instead, they release "sample clips" in order to advertise for their sites of full HD content. Those commonly 5-minute long vids are just small parts of hour long productions that you usually *don't* get to see.

How am I a W-2 employee, yet do not qualify for any benefits, including unemployment? Details in comments.

It varies from state to state. One reason could be that you didn't earn enough in at least one of two consecutive quarters. Depending on exactly when your season ends, that could screw you. Or just simply not enough hours. No matter what the reason, I think you're entitled to a hearing. I'm sure that varies as well, but it's worth looking in to. EDIT: To clarify, I believe this hearing is like an appeal. If you've applied and been denied, it's an opportunity to meet with whomever it would be and plead your case.

How come Humans can't learn animal languages and communicate to them?

Because animals don't have language. They communicate emotions with sound like angry growls, panicked screams, horny rumbles, and affectionate purrs, but they can't communicate abstract thoughts, form sentences, assign arbitrary names to objects and events, combine terms to make new concepts, etc, which is what we consider language to be. A Mandarin-speaker and a Finnish-speaker can communicate anger and fear and happiness and affection perfectly well without using language, right? Just by sounds, tones, movements, facial expressions? Well, that's the level on which animals communicate.

How and Why exactly does encryption work? Dont you need to transfer the key, and couldnt (lets say the NSA) not simply obtain it by saving all your internet activity?

Nope, because of the magic of asymmetric cryptography. The short version is that the key used to *encrypt* the data is not the same as the one to *decrypt* it. When Alice sends something to Bob, she encrypts it with his *public* key. This is a key that everyone has the right to see and access. Only Bob, who has the only copy of his *private* key, can then decrypt the message. He then sends a reply, encrypting with Alice's public key, and she decrypts with her private key. The same sort of thing happens with an SSL transaction (HTTPS). When you connect to a secure site, you know you have the right site because they have a certificate proving they are who they say they are. That certificate is also the public key, so you send the data encrypted with that key, and only that site can decrypt it. The site sets up a special session key to encrypt the rest of the data, so you and the site can continue to talk encrypted without anybody else being able to view the contents of the traffic.

What do degrees (temperature) actually measure?

At a basic level you can think of temperature as the average molecular energy of a system. Temperature can be measured in different ways, but they all come down to measuring changes in heat energy (molecular motion and jiggling). In everyday thermometers, what is measured is how a liquid (originally mercury) expands with temperature, travelling up the bulb. The expansion is due to the atoms in the liquid moving faster and pushing on each other harder. In devices called thermocouples, the temperature affects how well a piece of metal conducts electricity, which can be measured precisely. There are also infrared thermometers, which measure the heat energy in the form of light that objects give off. It's important to note that temperature isn't the same thing as energy, but the explanation requires delving into the wonders of thermodynamics, which is a bit too complicated for me to ELI5.

Why is it such a big deal that it costs more than 1 cent to make a penny? Shouldn't the cost and production of other coins and bills counteract the defecit of making pennies?

Just because you CAN make up a loss in one are with a gain in another doesn't justify that loss. You could say "sure, I throw away every other roll of toilet paper I buy without using it, but I buy toilet paper at half price." Well, it would be better still to buy that half-price toilet paper and NOT throw any away. There are a lot of other good reasons to get rid of pennies, but I won't bore you by going into them here.

Why does yellow mustard taste so different from Dijon mustard?

Because its a different kind of mustard. Full of different... stuff. Different *mustard stuff*.

Why are denim jeans both stiflingly uncomfortable in hot weather and freezing in cold weather?

When its too hot you will be hot in jeans. When its too cold you will be too cold in jeans.

the oligodynamic effect (i.e brass doorknobs disinfecting themselves after a period of time)

It's a fancy name for a simple concept. Atoms of heavy metals interfere with certain enzymes and proteins -- molecules that cells need to live. In other words, the metal simply poisons the bacteria, mold, etc.

I am short-sighted. If I look in a mirror which is close to my face, objects in the distance (in the mirror) still look blurry. Why?

A mirror is not a picture. Put your camera in selfie mode and you will see the background in focus, because the camera in your phone is properly focused and the screen on your phone is a real image. The image in a mirror, on the other hand, is a virtual image made by reflecting light from the real world to your eyes. The distance to the objects in the scene is unchanged (maybe a little longer by the distance to the mirror and back).

How do hair transplants work?

Hair from the back and side of your own head is used. It's not affected by male pattern baldness. They take individual hairs or groups and place them on your bald areas. To get more complex, this hair is unaffected by DHT which causes MPB hair loss. Older techniques would use awkward looking groups of hair (ie hair plugs) while more modern techniques take smaller follicle groups harvest from a removed strip of scalp or device that takes individual follicle groups directly from the scalp (called Follicular unit extraction, or FUE). [source](_URL_0_)

Do water filters (like those placed in Brita water pitchers) really make a substantial difference in the quality of the water?

Lots of people out there live outside of cities, they have water softeners, etc. But still the water is skanky and nasty. So, the britta filter comes to the rescue! It removes sulfer, iron, calcium, nitrates, and other nasty tasting stuff. In 3rd world countries they have similar things with silver membranes to kill nasties. Such as the Tata Swach. _URL_0_ The also have micron filters, UV lamps, and various other gizmos.

Why some people would rather help an animal than a human?

Speaking personally, animals seem more helpless and innocent. I feel like a human could help themselves in a way that a cat or dog couldn't, hence the animal is in greater need of help.

Why are second (and if lucky) third orgasms in a sex session (with a partner or alone) less intense than the first?

That's funny, my second ones are always way more intense.

Air pressure in houses? Why do some doors hit a cushion of air when they close, some doors slam when they close, and some doors get sucked closed?

It's depends on how air tight the room is. You will notice this with doors that are tighter to the carpet and not under cut. Take a door that you can't slam because of this and open a window in that room the air will be forced out the window and the door will close easier. Opening or closing a door rapidly will generate lots of air movement. Without somewhere to go it will be more difficult to close. Undercut doors allow air underneath. Similar to Windows letting air outside. Also to note in commercial buildings many glasses enclosed rooms and others have what's called transfer air duct that as well as allowing air out functionally assist in the same way. Source union sheet metal worker. Duct work.

Why do such well-known companies as McDonald's and Coca-Cola pay tens of millions to be the lead sponsors of the World Cup/Olympics/etc.? Do people really not know these companies at this point?

A part of it is about securing future customers through positive association. If you are 5 y.o. and love football, and everytime you watch it on tv a big coca cola logo is burnt into your retinas, then you're more likely to prefer it once you're older and actually have some disposable income. Thats the idea, anyhow...

The number system of Graphics Cards

There essentially isn't one. Within an individual product line from a given manufacturer the numbers may mean something, but mostly they are just the name the manufacturer gave to that video card. It's all about marketing. The first number in most cards indicates the "generation" of video card they belong to, but this is still just marketing. A higher number doesn't necessarily mean more performance. A high-end GTX 6xx card might outperform a low-end GTX 7xx card, for instance. Basically, you have to look at the charts. The numbers are made up to sell more video cards, not to be informative in any way.

Why can I hear a TV from another room, even if the volume is off?

Although I can't understand what you're saying in the explanation, I think I know what your'e talking about. Old TVs emit a very high frequency noise that is constantly on, even with the volume muted. you might be hearing this from the other room.

What does "single payer" mean in the american health care system ?

"Single Payer" means that there is a single entity that handles all of the insurance payments to medical providers. In this case, that payer would be the government. Instead of multiple private insurers that each cover a small portion of the population and each negotiate their own prices for procedures... we would have one big insurer that covers everyone and negotiates in behalf of everyone for lower prices on procedures. This would allow for lower and more fair pricing as well as universal coverage regardless of wealth or pre-existing conditions.

How is mass extinction humans fault?

> Considering most people at that time and prior loved in mud huts HA! Humans had already been farming for 9,500 years, living in cities for most of that, China had been a sprawling empire for 4,500 years, Rome had risen and fallen. Just because we hadn't built a steam engine yet didn't mean we weren't causing change to the environment on a massive scale, and had been for ages. And one of the biggest ways was with our stomachs - it's likely that human hunting played a major role in the disappearance of all the megafauna species in the new world, starting perhaps 10- to 20,000 years ago.

How are branded drinks mass produced? (Gatorade, Monster)

There are huge companies out there that you have probably never heard of that make all different components of food and drinks. This includes flavor companies, food coloring companies, salt... pretty much every component on the back of the can was produced by someone else besides the one actually making the drink. So then gatorade has research facilities, pilot plants(kinda like a small scale plant to do trial runs, experiments on a bigger scale) and full scale industrial plants. The researchers figure out the exact formula they want for a product, it gets scaled up once for the pilot plant so they can figure out how to mass produce it and get the engineering kinks worked out and then it goes to full scale production. At the plant, they have filtered water that mixes with either a concentrated syrup or powder and then its pumped into cans or bottles. Then CO2 can be added and it is sealed and labeled.

what's an API? (computers)

It's an "application programming interface". It's a defined set of methods by which you interface with functions and data of a program from another programmer. E.G. google's API would allow me to submit (programmatically) a string as a search and get back a dataset of results that include descriptive text and url.

Why are Japanese fan content creators so much more strict about their activities in order to avoid copyright issues than Western fan creators?

Social responsibility. In general, Japanese culture has a bit more sense of morality in respect to the original creators. They don't want to hurt the creators. Theres also this sense in Japan of following the order of things just for the sake of the law. A lot of westerners will do things they know they aren't supposed to, if they think they can get away with it. Japanese I think are more likely to take the "safe" road. Lots of generalizations here, but I think it mostly holds true.

The difference between a parody and a satire

Parody is imitation. Satire is humorous, constructive, social criticism.

How come—when looking at the light produced on earth VIA satellite imagery, they are always yellow, when in fact, there are lights of all different colors being produced?

It's not VIA, it's just via, a word. :-) Anyhow, the answer is simple: most electric lights are actually yellow, so when you look at a lot of lights grouped together from far away, you see mostly yellow light.

Why is insurance handled by private, for-profit companies rather than by the government?

> and that's definitely not who I would want backing me if I get in an accident. ...except that, unless you were criminally stupid when signing a contract, in this particular case you get to sue them, i.e. get the government involved. Under capitalism, the government is the policeman, not the entire economy.

How do tunnel builders know where they are going?

i dont know anything about that specific project, but in general there is an engineer that surveys in the centerline of the tunnel using a theodolite (_URL_0_). you basically move a known point down the tunnel using the previous point along the centerline as a reference. you offset each point from the actual centerline so that you can mark the actual points with a nail along the tunnel wall, out of the way.

How exactly do Saline pools work?

Salt water pools still use chlorine, the difference is that the chlorine is produced through electrolysis using the salt as the base material. The advantage is that the salt electrolysis process creates free chlorine ions (the type of chlorine that kills bacteria) and burns off chloramines (the type of chlorine that burns your eyes and smells like strong bleach). As long as they are maintained they will work just as well at killing bacteria, and people tend to find them less irritating, especially if they have sensitive skin. The salt system also has the benefit of "softening" the water. They tend to have a higher initial setup cost though, and saltwater is more corrosive than freshwater so you have to keep an eye on the internals and plumbing of the filtration system.

Why did I just pay $250 for a passport with a 3-week turnaround, when a driver's license is $25 and take 30 minutes?

A driver's license is a state-issued document accepted by state governments certifying your identity and ability to drive. A passport is a federally-issued document accepted by international governments certifying your identity and travel eligibility and history. Whereas you can get away with a temporary driver's license printed on a DMV receipt printer, a passport has a LOT of liability tied to it and basically is your country insuring you as "This person is a Normal Person" The cost comes from the legal backing, as well as whatever background checks they need to run on you

Why is financing a car through a bank cheaper than financing through the dealership, even though dealerships have lower interest rates?

Quite often, its not. Many times you can combine a rebate with incentivised financing and end up much cheaper than your bank. For example, my wifes 2012 altima is currently financed at 0.5 percent and we bought it several thousand below invoice due to rebates/dealer incentives. No banks/credit unions were anywhere close at the time. The cheapest was around 4% at the time. Where dealerships get you is with all of the add-ons like extended warranties, window etching, undercoats, etc and you will get offered those regardless of whose financing you use.

how come we don't yet know the perfect diet for humans?

There isn't one. It would vary person to person and even to some degree day to day per person.

Why do aeroplanes/airplanes have headlights?

> Why do aeroplanes/airplanes have headlights? Aircraft commonly land at night when it is dark. Being able to see the ground when coming in for a landing is important because they need to touch down at a reasonable speed. So not to put too fine a point on it, they are so the pilots can see when it is dark. You know, like with regular car headlights.

Why do i sleep better when its cold?

The temperature that your body sleeps at is lower than the temperature your body maintains the rest of the day, this is for energy conservation and obviously to let your body rest. Simply put, keeping the temperature in your room lower may help your body to achieve this lower resting temperature. This makes falling asleep and staying asleep easier.

How does a contagion spread from contact with an open wound to the target organ in the body ?

Generally through the blood stream or the lymphatic vessels. When a contagion attacks a specific organ I.e. Hepatitis, it is because something about those cells allows that particular pathogen to attack/reproduce better than they do in other cells. They don’t move towards that organ specifically, they just keep getting pumped through the bloodstream until they find a good place to start reproducing, or they’re killed by the immune system

Why can some people smoke and never get addicted, while other are addicted for life?

Not everyone is equally susceptible to addiction to cigarettes. I can chain smoke for a few weeks and then just stop for a few weeks without it being an issue. I'm not sure why that is true for me but its possible it may be because I was around second hand smoke a lot as a child.

Why do trained muscles get more volume rather than density?

They get both volume and density, but there's an effective limit on how dense muscle tissue can be since it still needs to move and breathe and heal. There's less of a limit on volume, and it's also more visibly noticeable.

In US, when a city is divided into two states, if a crime occurs in a part of city and the criminal is caught in different part of city, Is he also violated Federal Interstate laws?

Only if he committed the crime across the line. For example, if I knock over a Quickie Mart in KS, and then flee to MO I've only committed a crime in KS. If a kidnap a guy in MO and take him to KS now I've committed a crime in both states as well as federally. Its the cross-border nature of the crime that is important, not where the criminal is located. If I knocked over the Quickie Mart in KS *from* MO that'd be federal too. I don't know how I'd manage that though :P

what happened to the hole in the ozone? Did we fix it, is it still there, was it never that big of a threat?

We found replacements for chlorofluorocarbons and drastically cut down the rate at which we released them into the atmosphere. The holes are still there but have stopped growing and are on the path to recovery.

When I put pressure on my eyes for an extended period of time I see really cool patterns that alternate. What is that?

your eye is full of liquid called the vitreous humour. when you press on your eyes, you're increasing the pressure of that fluid inside the eye; that in turn causes pressure to be applied to the nerves in the back of your eye, on your retina. those nerves get confused and start sending out random signals that you see as cool-ass patterns.

Why is Saudi Arabia an ally of the USA?

Saudi Arabia has oil and wants money. USA has money and wants oil. It's pretty much as simple as that.

How can Brick and mortar retailers continue to exist with online competitors

Somethings need to be touched or experienced. They can also do onsite repair and warranty work for value add Value add is the key. The appeal to niche markets or do something that email and returns isn't quite comfortable Would you buy a house online?

Why does the shower water become hotter when someone flushes the toilet?

your water heater heats water to anywhere from 120 to 180 degrees F. So in order to keep you from burning yourself cold water is mixed with the hot water to make a comfortable temperature. when a toilet is flushed it pulls a few gallons of water. thus, limiting the amount of cold water available to cool the shower.

Do uncontacted tribes know we're here, like we are aware of their presence?

My impression is that most of them are aware that some kind of big, huge, technologically advanced world exists, but they don't know shit about it. Commonly they are uncontacted because they want to be: being contacted tends to screw them over. (They flee from contact, or hear rumors from neighboring contacted tribes.) Either they have few useful skills and end up in the bottom of the heap of capitalism, or they get massacred by brutal 3rd-world mining and logging companies. OTOH, they likely have very little idea of the scale or workings of industrial civilization.

Why can't we just gargle an antiseptic to get rid of a sore throat?

Because the source of your sore throat is not lying around on the surface of your throat, but within the soft tissue surrounding it. Its like saying that washing your chest with a bar of soap should alleviate a chest cold.

Why can't governments print "temporary" money to cover important expenses?

They do, and it causes inflation because the money doesn't have any material value behind it. Money is just something we use to represent value. Without creating the value, the printed money isn't anything more than paper, which in turn, makes every piece of money less valuable.

Why can humans eat almost anything, yet so many foods like chocolate, grapes, and xylitol are dangerous for dogs and other mammals?

The premise of your question is basically flawed. We can't eat almost anything. About half of the red berries in existence are poisonous to us but not to birds, for example. The same is true about mushrooms. Also, not everything that is edible is food. Uncooked grains are edible, but you would eventually die if that's all you ate. OTOH, if you cook it into bread, you're pretty much good to go.

Why are Americans more or less complacent with the income inequality in their country?

> It seems like people are ready to bitch about how somebody is literally Hitler for collecting food stamps This is, unfortunately, the most successful way to *get* the extreme calcification of economies. When you blame the poorest and least powerful people for all the economic problems ('welfare queens') and put the rich on a pedestal ('job creators'), you get people fighting each other and ignoring the big issues. And because people are emotional, they want an enemy that is readily available and will make them feel good after getting some hits in on, not an enemy that appears untouchable and is difficult to have victories against. There are identity politics and self-worth issues at play here.

How are those huge cranes that work on skyscrapers setup/made taller/moved to really high floors?

They're modular and self-assembling. The first structural piece under the rotation head, the lifter module, is more complex than the rest; it includes slides and jacks. The complete assembly process involves anchoring the base and setting up the horizontal arm. Once that's ready, the lifter module jacks up the head and the arm, and the crane lifts a structural segment off a truck and into place. Once the new segment is bolted in, the jacks retract and are bolted onto the new top structural segment. This process is repeated until the crane is as tall as it needs to be. Disassembly is the same process in reverse, with a caveat. If there is more than one crane involved, they may build around a crane within the building, so long as at least one crane is outside to lift out the pieces. The last crane, however, always has to have enough clear space to disassemble itself in the same process in reverse that it assembled itself with.

Why is cooking wine not regulated in stores like regular wine is?

Its not intended to be consumed as alcohol. Vanilla extract is well known way for minors to get alcohol.

Why are Dolphins considered to be smart/advanced?

They have communities, basic communication skills, they understand death, they have sex for fun and rescue creatures that are in danger.

During the Middle Ages, what would happen if a country invaded another, and the invaded country couldn't afford to fight so it surrendered, but the invading country kept on fighting?

That's not really how treaties work. Treaties aren't like "you get to keep all the land you've taken," they always specify very exact borders. If Country B truly had no will to fight, they would have given up all of their land (which is basically what an unconditional surrender is). If Country A didn't take advantage of the situation and got a treaty that wasn't as favorable as it could have been, tough shit; they should have thought of that before they signed the treaty. Of course, they could just break the treaty. There weren't any real international institutions in place to enforce that sort of thing, but you don't really make any friends with a reputation for breaking promises.

How does the "brace" position in aircraft emergencies protect us?

The position places the body in a way where the damage to the body will be minimized. _URL_0_ this is the result of not bracing. Bracing minimized the forces to the body

Why can certain types of batteries be recharged when others cannot?

Non rechargeable batteries are based on an chemical reaction that is not reversible. Edit: electrically reversible that is.

The US has more youth playing soccer than any other nation in the world. Why don't we have our own Messi?

We have a lot of kids who play soccer, but the vast majority are in recreational leagues, not serious youth development programs like Messi went through. Those are growing along with the domestic league, though - the MLS Academy system just started four or five years ago.

(As an American) Why is freedom of speech protected from the government, but not corporations?

The Freedom of Speech does not grant you the right to say whatever you want, whenever you want, it merely prevents the GOVERNMENT from restricting your right to free speech. When it comes to private institutions, they are free to set their own rules regarding things like speech, because you always have the option to not use them. You are still allowed to keep your right to free speech, Tumblr is simply denying your ability to use THEIR website to do so.

Cosplay; is it just done for an event? Does one wear their outfit on multiple, random occasions? Is it just made for the photos?

It's usually for a convention, which will run for several days. Some people wear the same costume to multiple conventions, others make a new one for each one.

If there are concentration camps in North Korea that are similar to those found in Germany during WWII, why hasn't a military force such as NATO intervened?

This is asked a lot, but here it goes. North Korea would react violently if any force tried to offer aid to those in the camps. If North Korea acted violently, there would probably be a war. If there were a war, China would be upset. China doesn't want millions of refugees and nuclear radiation at it's borders.

Why is mercury the chosen substance for determining the temperature?

We actually don't use mercury anymore, we use alcohol. But the simple answer is because as a liquid metal it is conductive, and expands and contracts predictably (importantly, linearly) with temperature changes. Further, unlike water, it's freezing point is low enough there is little change of that happening, and even if it somehow occurred it wouldn't make the thermometer explode as water would.

How do women's menstrual synchronize if they spend a lot of time together?

They do not. It is a common misconception. They will occasionally *overlap*, in the same way as if you watch a bunch of cars with their blinkers on, but they don't synchronise.

I am confused about how many KB are in 1 MB. Some sources seem to say 1000 and others say 1024. Which is it?

1024, 1000 is rounded out, u don't say "hey that burger is 1,99" you say: "hey that burger is 2 dollars"

please ELI5 what the sound is when i put a cup near my ear

[Source](_URL_0_) The cup (or shell) amplifies the ambient noise, which is the thing you hear. Many people believe it's an echo of your blood, this can easily be disproved. Try to exercise and put the cup to the ear. The noise is no louder, even if you hearth is beating faster.

Why do you often feel to hot/cold when you want to sleep?

Your body temperature decreases to initiate sleep. The recommended temperature for a good night’s sleep is 60 to 67 degrees. That’s a lot lower than what I think most houses are at right now. So if your house feels too warm and you’re noticing it when you lay down for bed that’s probably why. I know the first sign every year for me to break out my a/c is when I lay down at night even though it was most likely hotter during the day

Is it possible to make an app that is a scale for an iPhone? Since we have pressure sensitive touch, is there a reason we can’t have it measure just how much pressure for small items?

It is entirely possible and definitely a thing, such apps and sites did pop up when 3D touch became a thing with the iPhone 6 release, but IIRC Apple labeled the use of the phones in this way a liability and these apps were removed from the app store, but some websites are still around such as TouchScale.

when is space where there is nothing but emptiness, what do rocket engines thrust against that make them move forward?

The rocket engines push against the exhaust that is being expelled. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. It's exactly the same as if you were wearing ice skates (standing on ice, obviously) and holding a bowling ball. If you throw the ball forward, you'll slide backwards. This is not because the bowling ball is pushing against the air. It's because when you push the bowling ball forward, you're also pushing yourself backward. With a rocket, the exhaust from the engines is the bowling ball.

Why does the law allow companies to purchase or merge with other companies? Why aren't all purchases/mergers viewed as a consolidation within an industry and a step closer to monopolization?

Having a monopoly is not inherently bad or illegal. What is illegal is using your control over a market to stifle competition. That's when the government steps in and companies are broken up.

Why doesn't the United States FDA create a daily multivitamin they approve of?

Vitamins are not food and they are not drugs. They cannot regulate them because currently they do not have the authority to do so. They (or some other part of the government, I am not sure) would have to reclassify all vitamins to make them a drug and therefore able to be regulated. Edit: Also the FDA does not make any drugs, they regulate the companies that makes drugs. I am not sure how the FDA changing the classification of vitamins would magically make them more beneficial.

Why is Quebec still French speaking?

> why is it the only French speaking region of Canada? It's not. It's only the only province where French speaking people are a majority. > How come since Quebec was British owned and subsequently part of an independant Canada, English was not able to replace French? To avoid uprisings, the British accepted that it would keep its laws, language and religion thinking they would eventually assimilate. People decided they wouldn't and made efforts to preserve those. To this day, Quebec still works on a different legal system than the other provinces. > Is French still realy the dominant language of Quebec? Yes. > Do most people speak it there? Yes > What are the languages though in school/shown on tv/ radio etc.? School teaches some English but not enough to qualify as bilingual. Media produced in Quebec are in French.

Why does rain make people tired?

It's probably a combination of reasons. Humans like to be awake all day and sleep all night. And we take our cues from the sun. If it's raining it's darker, so our bodies think, hey almost time for bed! Let's get sleepy! The other reason is ( I'm not to sure about this one so other redditors feel free to debunk me! ): When we're in our mommy's belly we're constantly surrounded by the sound of her body, her digestive system gurgling but mostly the sound of her blood circulating. Which is a constant rushing sound. Rain kinda sounds like that, just like a rolling car, or vacuum cleaner. This makes us feel safe and comfortable. And again sleepy. Fun facts about this: If you drive a long way and don't have any distracting sounds like a radio the sound of your car can cause 'highway hypnosis' causing you to relax and fall asleep behind the wheel. Babies, when they're tired fall alseep very easily in the car or when a vacuum cleaner is running. Because it reminds them of being inside mommy's belly.

Why does smoking preserve food?

Smoking by itself is actually insufficient to properly preserve foods. Smoke is an antimicrobial and an antioxidant but only protects the outside of food, so it is usually combined with other processes like salt-curing and drying which protect the interior of food from bacterial growth.

Why when you stare at a moving pattern for an extended period of time and then look up, why everything's wavy.

This is due to how the movement is processed in the brain. Very basically, there are certain neurons that are firing in response to the moving pattern. The moving pattern is constant, so they are firing continuously. When you look away those same cells continue to fire because they've been doing so for however long you were looking at it. Your brain knows that the moving pattern is no longer in focus, but it still takes a bit to inhibit the neurons and stop them from firing. It's why optical illusions [like this one](_URL_1_) work.

Why are Saturday morning cartoons idealized? What’s so different about them as opposed to other days’ cartoons?

Way back when there weren't multiple channels whose only purpose was cartoons. There was a MARKET for cartoons, but not a huge market. What day and time are kids most likely to be available year-round to watch things marketed towards them? Saturday mornings. During the week they're in school. Sundays, might have church. Later in the day Saturday, might have family activities. Parents might even try to sneak in a little sleep by sleeping until 8 or 9, and kids might be able to get up early and watch cartoons.

What is CERN and what real problems can it cause?

CERN is basically trying to find out the origins of our universe and how everything works by using a very large particle accelerator to accelerate particles to 99.99991% the speed of light and have them collide with one another. When these particles collide they break apart and that is when we can see what holds particles together and how things work. Only problem is that there is years of data to go through and experimentally proving everything will take a long time. There is no real threat from this, what you see online is just that, "conspiracy theories." People believing that smashing particles will create a black hole and destroy the world.