User:BrainyBabe

Wikipedia:Babel
en This user is a native speaker of English. fr-2 Cet utilisateur peut contribuer avec un niveau intermédiaire en français. es-1 Este usuario puede contribuir con un nivel básico de español. it-1 Questo utente può contribuire con un livello semplice di italiano.
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My primary interest on Wikipedia is helping to weave the web. Creating links between mere raw items of information turns data into the "aha!", the "I never knew that!", the "now I see!", the "eureka!"

Sometimes I act as a wikignome. Sometimes I add facts that come my way. Mainly I sprinkle in wikilinks, and "see also"s, and terms for things that previously had no name. (I love it that Wikipedia has given me names for concepts I knew of but had never really thought about. Once we have a name for something, it becomes a much more real mental construct, and suddenly we see examples all around us. So once Wikipedia led me to the Anglosphere and cousin couples and political decoy I want to add them wherever relevant, so other readers can be exposed to these ideas as well.) Sometimes I write opening sentences or paragraphs that tie the threads together, placing a subject in context. Sometimes I contribute to the reference desks, especially humanities and miscellaneous: answers, and also questions. Sometimes I hive off sections into separate stand-alone articles. So I really should join in with Wikipedia:WikiProject Reference Desk Article Collaboration.

I have wide-ranging interests. Don't we all? I also have my blind spots. Don't we all?

Articles of interest

Ones I've worked on

These are a few articles I've made substantial contributions to:

Biographies

• Isaias Afewerki, president of Eritrea
• Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Somali-Dutch politician
• Waheed Alli, Baron Alli, out gay Muslim politician
• Saartjie Baartman, the original Hottentot Venus
• Shukria Barakzai, Afghani feminist (took this one to Did You Know)
• Cyrano de Bergerac, French soldier
• Luisa Casati, Italian millionaire muse
• Quentin Crisp, English stately homo
• Father Damien, leper priest
• Lubna al-Hussein, Sudanese journalist who dared to wear trousers
• John R. Jewitt, slave in early Canada
• Helen Keller, socialist
• Leopold II of Belgium, who set the Congo up to fail
• Fitzroy Maclean, soldier, diplomat, adventurer, possible model for James Bond
• Irshad Manji, Canadian journalist, author of The Trouble with Islam Today
• Marquess of Bristol, a family of often notable and notorious aristocrats
  • Victor, inter alia jewel thief
    • his first son, John, drug addict, flamboyant user of rent boys, died in penury
    • his second son, Nicholas, traditionalist, schizophrenic, bankrupt, suicide
• Compton Mackenzie, prolific writer and Scottish nationalist
• Jessica Mitford and Esmond Romilly, lovebirds in the pink
• Craig Murray, "being a dissident is rather fun"
• White Rajahs of Borneo

Language

• Advanced Learner's Dictionary
• Bollocks
• Controversies about the word "niggardly"
• English language learning and teaching
• Franglais
• Sound symbolism

Authors and books

• Brave New World and Island (novel)
• The Handmaid's Tale
• Henry Rider Haggard
• Richard Halliburton and his sidekick for a year, Moye W. Stephens
• Anthony Hope
  • The Prisoner of Zenda
    • The Prisoner of Zenda (1937 film)‎
  • Rupert of Hentzau
• The Island of Doctor Moreau
• Misty of Chincoteague
• Adrian Mole
• Dervla Murphy
• Round About a Pound a Week
• Saki
• Mark Twain
• Utopian and dystopian fiction

Other

• Black as a colour and Black people, such as Black British, List of black Britons, and Black Canadians
• Breast, Breastfeeding, Breastmilk, and Wetnurse
• Category:Occupations
• Club (disambiguation) and Club
• Horse-related topics such as Horsemeat, Kumis, and Warhorse
• Islamic feminism and United Kingdom debate over veils
• Marriage and sex topics such as Bride kidnapping, Cousin couple, Female sex tourism, and Levirate marriage
• Tanzania, which led to History of Tanzania, Culture of Tanzania, and Music of Tanzania; then Zanzibar and History of Zanzibar as well
• Victoriana such as Governess, Lady's companion and Royal Baccarat Scandal
• Category:Festivals and especially Nuit Blanche, Long Night of Museums, and related articles

Ones I have actually started

• High Arctic relocation
• Human rights in Canada
• Roundhouse (eco-dwelling)
• Newington Green Unitarian Church, my best so far
• The Wodehouse
• Essex Street Chapel
• Brenda Colvin, self-effacing garden designer

Amusements

• JackofOz's favourite insults

Reminder to self: articles to work on and things to do (someday)

• Find templates for troublesome articles, e.g. weasel words, limited scope, needs citations
• Label the articles that deserve it
• Start
  • Royal Military Exhibition, London, 1890. Material here
  • Newington Green Academies, a subset of Dissenting academies

• Sandbox
  • The Lawrence family was significant in Unitarian movement in England in the 19th century, and later. They tended to be Liberal politicians, had a building firm, and were wealthy and generous.

Q&A

User:BrainyBabe/Q&A

Useful links

Tools

• Using Google to search within Wikipedia
• Media files (images and other)
• Workspace
• Workspace2
• /Sandbox
• Resource requests

	This user has been on Wikipedia for 7 years, 2 months and 26 days.

A welcome message

• First, take a look at the Wikipedia Tutorial, and perhaps dabble a bit in the test area.
• When you have some free time, take a look at the Manual of Style and Policies and Guidelines. They can come in very handy!
• Remember to use a neutral point of view!
• If you need any help, feel free to post a question at the Help Desk
• Explore, be bold in editing pages, and, most importantly, have fun!

Editing links

• Wikipedia:Editor's index to Wikipedia
• Wikipedia:Policy Library
• Wikipedia:Utilities
• Wikipedia:Village pump
• Wikipedia:Public domain image resources

• Wikipedia:How to edit a page
• Wikipedia:Editor assistance

• Wikipedia:Five pillars
• Wikipedia:Attribution
• Wikipedia:Cite your sources
• Wikipedia:Verifiability
• Wikipedia:Wikiquette
• Wikipedia:Civility
• Wikipedia:Conflict resolution

• Wikipedia:Brilliant prose
• Wikipedia:How to write a great article
• Wikipedia:Pages needing attention
• Wikipedia:Peer review
• Wikipedia:Boilerplate text
• Wikipedia:Requested moves

• Wikipedia:Userboxes

Categories, tags, and templates

• Wikipedia:Template messages/User talk namespace includes vandalism warnings
• Category:Categories
• Template:Globalize
• subst:sofixit in {{ }} produces "Thank you for your suggestion.....(Please do something about it)".
• {{Wikipedia template messages}}

Reminders to self of things done

• How to delete an article

Things I've learned on Wikipedia that I never would have heard of without

• CamelCase. Of course I had noticed it, and indeed used it myself, but I never thought to enquire if it had a name.
• Anglosphere
• Cousin couple

Info about Wikimedia and wikis generally

• Wikimedia
• Images & other
• More editing help
• Wikimedia Main Page
• Wikipedia:TourBusStop

Just in case

[1]

To read

• "Thus I Refute Beelzy" by John Collier

Awards

This editor is a Grand Tutnum and is entitled to display this Book of Knowledge with Coffee Cup Stain.

		The Original Barnstar
		Your recent work on Farid Esack (besides other articles) is careful and skillful, and I can't help but appreciate it. Jizakullah! -- Rob C (Alarob) 22:28, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

		The Barnstar of Diligence
		To User:BrainyBabe I hereby award the prestigious Barnstar of Diligence for sweeping questions from the wrong desk to the right desk with unfailing, deft wrist motions and alacrity thereby saving the rest of us our time and hair pulling, clearing the refdesks of clutter and restoring their precision, so improving Wikipedia. With thanks, Julia Rossi (talk) 01:00, 18 April 2008 (UTC)