Questions you've always wanted answered

[Gavin Chipper]

Those big multi-chamber revolving doors that some offices, hotels etc have. Why?

Keeps the inside relatively well insulated while allowing easy access/egress?

Not too popular on bring your pet to work day though

Two sets of doors sorts out the insulation problem. Works like an airlock.

[Mark Deeks]

Those big multi-chamber revolving doors that some offices, hotels etc have. Why?

Keeps the inside relatively well insulated while allowing easy access/egress?

Not too popular on bring your pet to work day though

This is apt as it was reading about a dog getting stuck and dying in one of them that prompted me to post this. I feel like they are an inefficient solution to a problem that doesn't really exist.

[Marc Meakin]

Much as I love my dogs, the idea of taking them to work with me sounds ridiculous.
And not just because I work in a supermarket
Unless of course you work from home then that's fine.
I have also noticed since Lockdown, more and more shops are allowing dogs (not just guide dogs) in their shops to attract customers.

[Jon O'Neill]

Keeps the inside relatively well insulated while allowing easy access/egress?

Not too popular on bring your pet to work day though

This is apt as it was reading about a dog getting stuck and dying in one of them that prompted me to post this. I feel like they are an inefficient solution to a problem that doesn't really exist.

If you speak to anyone who works in reception of one of these buildings you'd see that it's a problem that definitely does exist. It's more a winter problem here as AC is less widespread but I would imagine in hotter climates that it serves effectively the same purpose.

[Mark Deeks]

Well there we are.

[Gavin Chipper]

The solution I suggested doesn't kill dogs.

[Mark Deeks]

Could do. Could cleave one in two. In fact, if it was a really long dog that got stuck in both doors at the same time, it could get cleaved into three.

[Marc Meakin]

I was going to buy an Air Fryer and my friend said that he bought one and his parrot died because of the fumes.
What fumes?

[Thomas Carey]

I was going to buy an Air Fryer and my friend said that he bought one and his parrot died because of the fumes.
What fumes?

I was in a spoons toilet a couple hours ago and the hand dryer was smoking and sounded like it was going to explode. Someone got the staff to tape a bit of paper saying DO NOT USE! to it. This feels worth adding to this conversation

[Gavin Chipper]

Did someone fry the air? Is that why we have a heatwave?

[Marc Meakin]

I was going to buy an Air Fryer and my friend said that he bought one and his parrot died because of the fumes.
What fumes?

I was in a spoons toilet a couple hours ago and the hand dryer was smoking and sounded like it was going to explode. Someone got the staff to tape a bit of paper saying DO NOT USE! to it. This feels worth adding to this conversation

After some research it appears that an Air Fryer super heats the Teflon coating which is toxic to birds.
More fool you for keeping a bird in the kitchen
Take it to work with you

[Mark Deeks]

Is it good or bad for your credit rating to have multiple credit cards?

[Matt Morrison]

Is it good or bad for your credit rating to have multiple credit cards?

Good, if you keep your balances away from your credit limit and pay bills on time. Bad if you don't.
And when it comes to multiple credit cards, the bad effect would be more noticeable on your credit score than the good effect.
Also don't apply for multiple credit cards close together.

https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-expe ... it-scores/

[Gavin Chipper]

I've always thought credit scores are incredibly dodgy. This weird opaque system that companies can use against you depsite it clearly having no official or legal standing. Just something made up by private companies for private companies. They can essentially do what they want - fuck you over, basically - and there's little you can do about it. Also, see insurance companies.

[Marc Meakin]

I get less credit than Milli Vanilli.
Huge debts because of them mothers.
I should take some of the blame as I have bipolar.
Ironically was missold PPI but the amount I owed the bank probably evened itself out.

[Gavin Chipper]

Doesn't rhyme or scan. 3/10.

This c4c limerick competition hasn't got off to the best of starts.

[Marc Meakin]

Doesn't rhyme or scan. 3/10.

This c4c limerick competition hasn't got off to the best of starts.

Should have made it a Haiku

[Mark Deeks]

What is the point of:

a) armpit hair?
b) pubes?

[Andres Sanchez]

What is the point of:

a) armpit hair?
b) pubes?

I'd say sweat collection, but after Googling it says that the hair prevents skin-to-skin contact and reduces friction when doing certain things like running, any exercise, or just plain doing it.

[Marc Meakin]

What is the point of:

a) armpit hair?
b) pubes?

A follow up question is, why doesn't any other mammals have pubes?

[Callum Todd]

What is the point of:

a) armpit hair?
b) pubes?

I don't think there's a complete consensus why humans have retained hair in any of the places we have done given that we have largely evolved to lose the full-body hair our ancestors had.

But generally speaking the main two benefits are hair appear to be heat retention and protection from germs, so it makes sense that we have hair on the sweatier parts of the body, or in parts liable to contract a microbial infection. Heat retention explains head hair too.

I don't know if there's a reason why men tend to have facial hair and more body hair than women. Presumably it's to do with sexual selection but not sure what the advantage would be in those terms.

[Mark Deeks]

I get heat retention for head hair and expression for eyebrows (though God knows how that evolved to be the case, I guess genetic mutations are sentient and receptive to feedback), with most of the remainder of body hair being largely the remnants of the days we were all hairy all over. And I guess I can buy the idea of pit hair facilitating movement. But I've never needed to modify the amount of surface friction of the area just above my knackers (which admittedly might be more of a measure of how well my life hasn't gone than anything), and nor can I see why it needs any greater layer of temperature regulation. But hey.

[Fiona T]

Could just be an indicator of sexual maturity - no hair, no go.

[Mark Deeks]

So you're saying I should stop tidying up down there?

[Mark Deeks]

Why would anyone want to drive without a seatbelt on?

[Marc Meakin]

Why would anyone want to drive without a seatbelt on?

Back in the day (ie before you was born, there was uproar when the law came out.
Similar to the anti vaxers/ mask wearers it was treated as nanny state gone mad.
But thinking about it alcohol regulations hadn't long come in so maybe it was a step too far .
Aaaah the 1970s, don't ya just love it.

[Fred Mumford]

A lot of drivers hated it. I spent part of January 31st 1983 gesticulating to unbelted drivers, correctly anticipating how much it would wind them up. Clearly belts are uncomfortable and restricting. That's why. How anyone could think the downsides outweigh the upsides is beyond me though.

[Mark Deeks]

Are they uncomfortable, though? I mean they might have been made of chainmail back in the early days, but now, it's the most minor inconvenience. And in terms of restricting movement, a driver shouldn't be moving anyway! I just find it such an odd battle to pick. Just put the belt on and stop whinging. Says Mark, to an imaginary strawman.

[Gavin Chipper]

I think some people claimed seatbelts were actually dangerous. Like in some accidents it's best to be thrown clear of the car, and also they might get jammed in an accident so you'd get trapped.

[Fred Mumford]

Racing drivers often made that claim, especially in the days when the cars caught fire easily and the marshals wore t-shirts and smoked. I didn't know road users argued against belts on safety grounds, I assumed it was just about comfort and infringements of civil liberties etc.

[Gavin Chipper]

This git I used to know used to make safety claims.

[David Williams]

Originally seatbelts weren't the loose ones with a locking mechanism we have now. So you either strapped yourself in so tight that they were uncomfortable and you couldn't reach the dashboard, or you had it loose enough that it would probably break all your ribs and garotte you if you had an accident.

And there were no seatbelts in the back of the car and child seats hadn't been invented, so you'd probably be killed by one of your children smashing into the back of your head anyway.

[L'oisleatch McGraw]

Says Mark, to an imaginary strawman.

Anseo!

Seat belts are a nuisance if you are casually touring around.
Two occasions I can clearly remember being irked by it:
1. Up in the mountains, stopping every so often to take pics. Seatbelt goes on, seatbelt goes off, seatbelt goes on... etc. Annoying.
2. When driving down the fields towards the beach. You have to open 2 gates and a wire. These days, when going down there, we tend to stick the seatbelts in their holes and then sit on top. Solves the problem without any incessant beeping.

[Mark Deeks]

It's like a two second inconvenience each time, just do it already. If it was like relacing a shoe every time, I'd understand, but it's just a clicky thing, it's fine.

[L'oisleatch McGraw]

It's like a two second inconvenience each time, just do it already. If it was like relacing a shoe every time, I'd understand, but it's just a clicky thing, it's fine.

Yeah, it's mostly fine. I cannot think of too many situations where I'd want it off.

The seatbelt reminder beep on the other hand... is something I have a strong moral objection to.
In my last car I found a garage (eventually, after running into loads of dopes who refused to help) who agreed to disable it for me. Probably will do the same with the new car, but am not arsed to until it needs a service anyway.

[Mark Deeks]

They're definitely annoying but they must also have definitely saved some lives in the past, so, OK. Bleep away, bleepy thing.

[L'oisleatch McGraw]

definitely saved some lives in the past.

Of course, there is a % chance of loss of life or injury.
In my preteen years I liked to explore the cliffs off Brownstown Head... some of these were treacherous. Some of them -in particular the cliff on the way down to Deathrocks- had a higher % of death or injury (a MUCH higher %) than travelling by (increasingly safe) car on (increasingly safe) roads. By the "bleepy thing bleep away" logic, whereby protection against things that might (but probably won't) happen is the priority, I should not have gone near those cliffs. If I could turn back time, would I change it for safety's sake? God no! Those were wonderful adventures.

As regards the bleep... my habit is to wear my seatbelt at (pretty much) all times, with ridiculously few exceptions. I never forget. I don't need reminding. Just like with other laws. I don't need an alarm to sound any time an opportunity to rape or murder arises, because I know those are bad and illegal things, and I'm not going to do them.

My car is supposed to be my buddy and my pal... if I have an evil scheme, it should be a loyal co-conspirator, not some F**KING RAT who whines at me to be virtuous. No thank you. The fact that the alarm exists is an insult and a betrayal.

EDIT to clarify:-
Reading back, the last sentence is a little melodramatic.
The fact that the alarm cannot be easily disabled if the owner so desires, is an insult. Wearing a seatbelt is law; the existence of a pester alarm - even if it's one that you never actually hear - is not.

[Callum Todd]

Taking 2 seconds to use the seatbelt every time you stop and get out then back in again must be very annoying. It will take almost as long as opening and shutting the car door when you get in and out! Best leave that open too. Except the car beeps just because you're driving with the door open! What a nuisance.

[Fiona T]

Agree with Eoin re the bleep, but for different reasons. For those of us who dump stuff (overloaded handbags) on the passenger seat, you can be driving along happily, then something moves slightly and the bleep goes off - when you're driving along this can actually be quite distracting/alarming (arguably could conceivably cause an accident as you're distracted wondering why you've got an alarm going off!). I now have to remember to do up the passenger seat belt too to avoid being distracted by an alarm I don't need as, like everyone else who always uses a seatbelt, I don't forget to use a seatbelt.

[Mark Deeks]

Society has to cater to its lowest and simplest. We all have to go to the "how to use a ladder properly" training session, even though we all know, because there's that one guy who doesn't. We all know to put a seatbelt on, but there's one guy who doesn't, so he needs bleeping at. Etc.

[Peter Mabey]

Remember Princess Diana? The one person wearing a seatbelt survived.

[Gavin Chipper]

I always wondered why they didn't make more of that. Princess Diana wasn't wearing a seatbelt and recklessly endangered her own life.

[Callum Todd]

"One of the reasons, for example, we have a law that says we must wear a seatbelt is not just to protect the person wearing the belt; it is because if you don't wear a belt and you have a high speed crash you could go through the windscreen and hit somebody else! That can actually happen!!" - Richard Madeley

[L'oisleatch McGraw]

Taking 2 seconds to use the seatbelt every time you stop and get out then back in again must be very annoying.

100% agree. Very annoying in fact, which is why I had that feature disabled in my last car... must get around to doing the same for the new one.
As regards the ridiculous door point... while you are right that it takes time to open it, and that is a slight nuisance too... the downsides of either leaving the door open or having it lopped off altogether, far outweigh the downsides of having the seatbelt left off (or plugged in underneath you) in those sorts of situations.

Remember Princess Diana? The one person wearing a seatbelt survived.

Her body her choice.

but there's one guy who doesn't, so he needs bleeping at.

So you see that seatbelt alarm as a punitive measure rather than as helpful?

"One of the reasons, for example, we have a law that says we must wear a seatbelt is not just to protect the person wearing the belt; it is because if you don't wear a belt and you have a high speed crash you could go through the windscreen and hit somebody else! That can actually happen!!" - Richard Madeley

Mark's right! I am not going to be able to outfunny that. The probabilities involved remind me of this scene from the Life of Brian.
Cheers for that.

[Fiona T]

How about the Tullock spike

On a similar note, I've followed the debate on cycle helmets for some years (I didn't used to wear one, I generally pretty much do all the time now) and there is some evidence that cars give less room to helmet wearers. Cycling UK still don't mandate (or even recommend) helmet wearing on their rides, leaving it to individuals to choose. Many of their promotional pictures don't include helmets. "Cycling UK supports politicians, celebrities and other role-models who choose to cycle un-helmeted. Far from “acting irresponsibly”, they help to boost the perception of cycling as a normal, safe, aspirational and stylish activity that anyone can do in whatever clothes they normally wear." The group I cycle with do all wear helmets.

[Mark James]

How do you grow up in Ireland where this ad was a prominent feature on Irish TV and not know that you not wearing a seat belt doesn't just affect you?

[Gavin Chipper]

Remember Princess Diana? The one person wearing a seatbelt survived.

Her body her choice.

Shame she didn't take her responsibilities as a mother seriously.

[L'oisleatch McGraw]

How do you grow up in Ireland where this ad was a prominent feature on Irish TV and not know that you not wearing a seat belt doesn't just affect you?

At the time, I found those murder-porn ads as disgraceful as I do now.
This one was so OTT that Russell Howard used it as part of his TV comedy show.

Shame she didn't take her responsibilities as a mother seriously.

The same could be said of any person who commits suicide, or of anyone who engages in any sort of risk taking.
I mean, we could bubble wrap the world, if ensuring people stay alive at all costs is the only priority.

[Mark Deeks]

So you see that seatbelt alarm as a punitive measure rather than as helpful?

No idea why this pedantic distinction matters, but, eh, sure, it's both.

[Gavin Chipper]

Shame she didn't take her responsibilities as a mother seriously.

The same could be said of any person who commits suicide, or of anyone who engages in any sort of risk taking.
I mean, we could bubble wrap the world, if ensuring people stay alive at all costs is the only priority.

Maybe I was being simplistic, and maybe she was generally a good mother, but putting on a seatbelt is such a simple thing to do. It's much less of an ask than e.g. telling someone to give up some dangerous sport they've done all their life.

[Marc Meakin]

It was rumoured she didn't have a seat belt on because she was performing a sex act.
Cant find where I read it though

[Mark James]

How do you grow up in Ireland where this ad was a prominent feature on Irish TV and not know that you not wearing a seat belt doesn't just affect you?

At the time, I found those murder-porn ads as disgraceful as I do now.
This one was so OTT that Russell Howard used it as part of his TV comedy show.

What's disgraceful about them? You know horrible car accidents happen in real life. The scenario in that ad might be over the top but it's still possible. I bet you would think an ad that showed a motor cyclist being decapitated would be over the top but that really happened recently. Anyway the point of the ad I linked is that someone not wearing a seatbelt doesn't just affect them. Do you not believe this is true?

[Fiona T]

Why do tins of coconut milk not have ringpulls like every other canned good since the start of the 21st century...

[Marc Meakin]

Why do tins of coconut milk not have ringpulls like every other canned good since the start of the 21st century...

Biona does but that's around 8 quid a tin mind

Ambrosia custard and rice pudding is still old school.

[Ian Volante]

Why do tins of coconut milk not have ringpulls like every other canned good since the start of the 21st century...

I hate those bloody ringpulls on tins. Quite apart from requiring some force to open them fully, they leave a lip on the tin which means that all the juice doesn't come out.

And they get in the way of tin-openers.

[Marc Meakin]

Why do tins of coconut milk not have ringpulls like every other canned good since the start of the 21st century...

I hate those bloody ringpulls on tins. Quite apart from requiring some force to open them fully, they leave a lip on the tin which means that all the juice doesn't come out.

And they get in the way of tin-openers.

Turn the can upside down and use a tin opener or use the tin openers that cut below the lid

[Mark James]

Sometimes when I listen to certain podcasts on my phone the podcast is playing away but because I haven't touched the phone in a while it will go into screensaver mode but then this makes the podcast stop playing. It used to never happen and now happens with some podcasts and not others. Anyone have any ideas on why it's happening and how to stop it happening?

[Ian Volante]

Why do tins of coconut milk not have ringpulls like every other canned good since the start of the 21st century...

I hate those bloody ringpulls on tins. Quite apart from requiring some force to open them fully, they leave a lip on the tin which means that all the juice doesn't come out.

And they get in the way of tin-openers.

Turn the can upside down and use a tin opener or use the tin openers that cut below the lid

A lot of cans have a reinforced base which precludes this action. And I'm not buying a new opener when my current one works perfectly well.

[Fiona T]

I hate those bloody ringpulls on tins. Quite apart from requiring some force to open them fully, they leave a lip on the tin which means that all the juice doesn't come out.

And they get in the way of tin-openers.

Turn the can upside down and use a tin opener or use the tin openers that cut below the lid

A lot of cans have a reinforced base which precludes this action. And I'm not buying a new opener when my current one works perfectly well.

My current one fell apart when attempting to open a tin of coconut milk. My finger is still recovering from attempts to get into the tin without it

[Marc Meakin]

I have The same trouble getting milk from a real coconut