askscience

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Most descriptions of general anesthesia (as used in surgery) include the use of agents such as midazolam or propofol. These are intended to cause amnesia. Why are these agents used?	285
I just punctured my thumb rather deeply with the tip of a knife but didn't feel significant pain until I rinsed the cut with water. What accounts for my perception that contact with water was more painful than the initial injury?	122
Is it true that some victims of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear bombings had their shadows etched into concrete? If so, what accounts for the phenomenon?	5
Why do isopropyl alcohol bottles have an expiration date. Does it go bad and/or chemically degrade?	1
I want my skull, teeth, and bones to be studied after my death. How can I go about ensuring that happens?	1
Water leaking into my refrigerator from the ice maker froze solid. Why did it freeze when the other liquids in the refrigerator did not?	1
Very often, I see people wearing hospital scrubs in public, especially at the grocery. Am I wrong to fear that they're spreading horrifying antibiotic-resistant pathogens to everything their sputum-encrusted garments are brushing against?	1
Are there any species of parasites or pathogens that are intrinsically harmful to individuals but would catastrophically disrupt an ecosystem if they suddenly went extinct?	1
When sharpening knives or straight razors with sharpening stones, the last step often amounts to "stropping" the blade against a strip of leather. Subjectively, this seems to make a genuine difference versus blades that are sharpened on stones but not stropped. But does it really, and if so, why?	1
How long does frozen food realistically remain safe to eat, assuming it wasn't contaminated when it was frozen?	1

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