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1500 questions
49
votes
11 answers
Why did HAL's voice slow down when he was disconnected?
Is there a good mechanical or electronic reason for HAL's voice to slow down, record-on-a-turntable-style, as he's disconnected?
It's aesthetically effective, and I'm happy to grant artistic licence, but I'm just curious whether there's actual…
Pete
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6 answers
Why was Sméagol affected by the ring so fast, while both Frodo and Sam could handle it without immediately trying to choke each other?
I was reading this question and I noticed Daniel Roseman's comment:
Point of clarification: Smeagol wasn't "hobbit-like", he was actually a hobbit. "I guess he was of hobbit-kind" means that he was of the same "kind"—i.e. race—as the hobbits that…
Kevin
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49
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10 answers
Did Daenerys' stillborn have dragon features?
In the book, Dany's handmaids (or maybe it was the maegi) mention features of her stillborn having to do with scales, a stub tail, among other "monstrous" traits, if I remember correctly.
Does this mean it was maybe half-dragon? Or made to have a…
Vic Goldfeld
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49
votes
7 answers
Why do the Borg announce themselves?
As we all know, the Borg announce themselves with some variation of the classic:
We are the Borg. You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile.
The question is - why exactly they are doing this? Announcing that resistance is futile is not likely…
StasM
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49
votes
10 answers
Why would any Federation starship (such as the Enterprise) have any spouses or youth onboard?
The original Star Trek series and Star Trek movies basically portrayed the Star Fleet culture aboard ship as similar to the U.S. Navy. The culture is predominantly male but women are allowed on most ships, especially in "support" roles such as…
KeithS
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49
votes
2 answers
How accurate is the Chinese spoken in Firefly?
In the Firefly-verse, Western and Eastern cultures are mixed and many people inject Chinese into their speaking habits, usually to swear (a la frakking and frelling).
Can anyone with knowledge of Chinese speak to the accuracy? Are the actors…
joshbirk
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49
votes
8 answers
Why didn't the Jedi use Order 65?
Order 65 states:
Order 65 was one of the 150 contingency orders that the clone troopers of the Grand Army of the Republic were trained to carry out in the event of different emergency scenarios during the Clone Wars. Order 65 stated that if a…
joshbirk
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49
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4 answers
Does the T-1000 use 3 hands in the helicopter chase scene?
I recently re-watched Terminator 2: Judgement Day with a friend. When it came to the helicopter chase scene, my friend commented "He's reloading the gun, how is he still flying the helicopter?"
Now we've seen the T-1000 form knives and take on…
Robotnik
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49
votes
3 answers
What special powers did the Dwarf rings give their users?
I think it's fairly well explained what powers were given to the One Ring, Elves, and Humans, but the dwarf rings are little explained in the series. Why were these rings important, or what kinds of powers did they give?
PearsonArtPhoto
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49
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8 answers
Why did Daenerys follow her brother's bidding at all? What was their relationship like before the events of the first episode?
So the sixth episode of Game of Thrones just aired, and while I enjoyed it very much, I couldn't help but be bewildered at why things had to come to the extreme end they escalated to — the threatening of her unborn child — before Daenerys finally…
Uticensis
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49
votes
7 answers
What is the etymology of Doctor Who?
I recently decided to watch Doctor Who, and started viewing the 2005 version. I have the first two episodes from the first season, and I can't help but wonder what is the etymology of the name "Doctor Who"? And why does the protagonist call himself…
apoorv020
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49
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12 answers
Did Neo die in the end of the Matrix trilogy?
Towards the end in The Matrix Revolutions, Neo is jacked by the machines into the Matrix to fight Agent Smith. During the fight, Smith seems to have killed Neo then we see the machines pumping a charge into Neo to revive him. Neo however doesn't…
KalenGi
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49
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3 answers
What happened to the Doctor's daughter after the Doctor Who episode “The Doctor's Daughter”?
In the episode “The Doctor's Daughter”, the Doctor encounters a cloning like device and his daughter is generated. I was really upset to not have anything come about the Doctor's daughter after the show. I was expecting a spin-off series, or at…
jumpcutking
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49
votes
1 answer
Has the light from the Star Wars galaxy reached us yet?
Star Wars is set a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Has Earth received the light from any of those events yet?
RandomEngy
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49
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8 answers
To whom was Yoda referring when he said, "There is another?"
In the original trilogy Yoda refers to another hope:
Obi-Wan: "That boy is our last hope."
Yoda: "No...there is another..."
The assumption being after seeing Return of the Jedi (Episode VI) that the other was Leia.
If, however, you consider the…
Jeremy French
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