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1500 questions
35
votes
1 answer
Are old car models more reliable than new ones?
I heard that components from older cars (like the ones before '92-93) are more resistant than the ones from new cars. New ones are made from cheap elements, so if you push them to the limit they will almost certainly fail.
Is this true?
PS: my…
Alex
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35
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Does Hamas divert humanitarian aid donations towards the military budget?
In order to better understand how Hamas operates, I was trying to look up how they manage their budget. It seems there's suspicion that some of the international humanitarian aid goes towards the military budget:
NBC
Experts, enemies and Western…
Angriffsreiher
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35
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1 answer
Did the residents of Aneyoshi survive the 2011 tsunami thanks to the warnings of a stone marker?
According to Forbes:
In Aneyoshi, a small village on Japan’s northeastern coast, all the inhabitants survived the tsunami of 2011 by climbing to higher ground, following the warnings of a stone marker. The tsunami stone was erected here after a…
JonathanReez
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35
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1 answer
Does it take 16 kg of CO2 equivalent to make two hamburgers?
Does it take 16 kg of CO2e to make two hamburgers? It seems an exaggeration
It’s also worth putting the amount of carbon involved in having a Christmas tree in context. The Carbon Trust estimates that a 2m-tall (6.6ft) Christmas tree burnt after…
Sergey Zolotarev
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35
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4 answers
During the Iran-Iraq war, did the Iranians use small children to trip land mines planted by Iraq?
I'm reading one of Paul Theroux's books, which was published in 2006 during the height of the second Gulf War, and there is a passage in it in which the author apparently claims the activity described in the title of this question:
“We were a…
Robusto
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35
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1 answer
Did the percent of humans living on < $2/day drop from 94% to 8.6% since 1820?
In a recent Vox article, the author claims (without citation):
In 1820, some 94 percent of humans lived on less than $2 a day. Over the next two centuries, extreme poverty fell dramatically; in 2018, the World Bank estimated that 8.6 percent of…
johnDanger
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35
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4 answers
Can we grow enough crops to feed all people on Earth?
Vegetarianism is heavily promoted. But let's say all people on Earth stop eating animal products. Can we grow enough crops so all people on the Earth are provided with enough healthy, nutritious food?
The question is of course very theoretical, but…
Egle
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35
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3 answers
Do Russians drink as much alcohol as their stereotype suggests?
It's a widely held stereotype that Russians drink a lot of alcohol.
Is there any research supporting or refuting this belief?
Possible metrics I can think of (though you're welcome to add more) can be:
Average volume of alcoholic drinks consumed in…
user5341
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35
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1 answer
Is slime mold eaten in Mexico as a dish called "feces of the moon"?
Various web sites make the claim that slime mold is eaten as a dish called "caca de luna" -- feces of the moon -- in Mexico. Sometimes the claim is attached to Fuligo septica, "dog vomit slime mold", as in this representative example:
Fuligo…
jwezorek
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35
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1 answer
Did Pakistan lose each and every war it fought with India from 1947 to 1999?
The speaker in this video says that:
The Pakistani army has lost every war it's fought with India from the original war in 1947 until the latest war in 1999 ...
This is a recurring narrative that is found/heard/seen in Indian media and among the…
user366312
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35
votes
1 answer
Are gender dysphoric teenagers more likely to take their own lives if they are not allowed to transition?
In a recent essay defending her controversial views on sex and gender issues, author J.K. Rowling writes:
The argument of many current trans activists is that if you don’t let a gender dysphoric teenager transition, they will kill themselves. In an…
Oddthinking
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1 answer
Did the Soviet Union murder over 20M people under its control after the war?
Richard Rumelt (business professor at UCLA, 2011):
During the whole post-WWII period, the Soviet Union murdered upward of 20 million people, its own citizens and others under its control
True?
user17967
35
votes
4 answers
Do one quarter of Swedes named 'Ali' have a criminal record?
I saw on Reddit that a site called Sputnik News reported that one-fourth of people named Ali in Sweden have a criminal record. I researched a little bit but couldn't find any other source validating this claim.
Is this true?
Source:…
OddDev
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2 answers
Did Michelle Obama have a staff of 23 people, while Melania has a staff of 4?
According to this picture (shared over 100k times)
Text reads,
Obama donated none of his salary, Michelle had a staff of 23
Trump donates all of his salary, Melania has a staff of 4
I'm more interested in the claims about comparative staff size.
Evan Carroll
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35
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2 answers
Did Michael Jackson artificially lighten his skin?
When it comes to superstars of his level, there always seem to be controversies, conspiracies, or some other mystery, and just one of the many surrounding Michael Jackson is that he for some reason intentionally had his skin color…
Monkey Tuesday
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