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January 29

Freezing food

Let's say you've got some meat or produce that's supposed to be eaten within four days of purchase. On the fourth day, you put it in the freezer. When you defrost it, does the clock reset -- do you get another four days to eat it? Or do you have to eat it right away? -- Mwalcoff (talk) 00:14, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, first of all, those "clocks" are hardly precise. They generally say "best before Jan. 31", not "Must absolutely be eaten before Jan. 31 at 23:59 (UTC) or else you'll turn into a toad." So if it said four days, you probably have at least eight days before it starts tasting really rank, regardless of whether those days are interrupted by a stint in the freezer.

With that said, there are a number of factors that affect the answer:

Are we worried about the food going stale, or about it being contaminated by microorganisms?
If we're worried about microorganisms, are they killed by freezing? If so, we can say the "clock resets". If not, it certainly does not.
If we're worried about the food merely going stale, then clearly freezing it does not "reset the clock", as freezing is not generally a way of making stale food taste fresh again. Moreover, depending on what kind of food we're talking about, freezing doesn't necessarily even preserve freshness -- there may be damage due to freezing, particularly if the food is left frozen long enough to suffer freezer burn.

—Steve Summit (talk) 01:05, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yes and no. Per Steve's comment, 'best before' dates are approximate guides—food that's been properly handled and stored will often still be safe to eat well after the given date (though I've had the odd product that is visibly spoiled 'early'.) There's no hard and fast rule, and you should always be alert for signs of spoilage. (How do you know some minimum-wage slacker didn't leave a shipment of meat out in the sun on the loading dock for a few hours while he took his 'lunch' break?)

Freezing will stop or greatly slow the growth of all microorganisms, and will kill many (but definitely not all) of them. So to an extent, the clock is partly reset. What freezing won't do is eliminate any toxins that have been secreted by foodborne pathogens. Our article on foodborne illness discusses the wide variety of nasty chemicals secreted by or released from the bugs that can contaminate our food. TenOfAllTrades(talk) 14:04, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Electicity from Wood

Is there any type of wood furnace out their that allows you to get electricity for your house? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.119.61.7 (talk) 00:36, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Its done on a commercial basis [1] but I cant find anything on domestic generators. —Preceding unsigned comment added by TreeSmiler (talk • contribs) 01:34, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Google search "home wood burning furnace." -- Mwalcoff (talk) 03:09, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I tried your google search, Mwalcoff, and it didn't work. The question is about making electricity from wood, not about making heat from wood. --M @r ē ino 05:35, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You could always stick one end of a Stirling engine in your furnace, and run a dynamo offf it. DuncanHill (talk) 20:00, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If you can raise steam from burning wood, you can use any old steam turbine generator to generate the electricity.--TreeSmiler (talk) 22:56, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Densely populated islands

Hi. Where can i find a list of the most densely populated islands in the world? Together with repective data for population density? I can't find an article on wikipedia, nor can i find much googling. kawaputra^torque 05:38, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

According to worldislandinfo, Ap Lei Chau is the world's most densely populated island (60,000 inhabitants per sq km). Malé is the most densely populated unbridged island (40,000 per sq km). The smallest island with over one million inhabitants is Manhattan (only 26,000 per sq km). No real "list" though, sorry. ---Sluzzelin talk 05:55, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

We have List of islands by population and List of islands by area. Cross reference those and you can calculate a List of islands by population density. Rockpocket 05:59, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Actually, this seems to be what you want. Rockpocket 06:01, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

That list is interesting, but very incomplete. It seems to only list islands that are involved with the United Nations Environment Programme. Manhattan, for example, is missing. --M @r ē ino 14:11, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yes the list seems incomplete as it also omits Ap Lei Chau. But still useful. Thanks. I may just create that page when time permits. :) kawaputra^torque 15:38, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Joe Arpaio for US President ?!

Has Joe Arpaio considered running for US President ? 65.163.113.170 (talk) 07:50, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The reason I asked is that some claim a "common sense" approach to crime, terrorisim is greatly needed. 65.163.113.170 (talk) 08:00, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

He appears to be publicly backing Mitt Romney, which would suggest he isn't thinking of running himself this time around. [2] Rockpocket 08:15, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thank Ghu. Corvus cornix_talk 22:33, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Correlation of Eyeglasses and Presidential Campaigns

Has there been a presidental candidate that usually wears glasses while campaigning? They all seem to start wearing them after they win. --Niyant (talk) 08:56, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt. Teddy's glasses actually helped save his life by slowing an assassin's bullet when he was giving a campaign speech! Rhinoracer (talk) 13:35, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The bullet hit his glasses case (and also the speech itself, which he hadn't yet started giving), but I don't see anything to say that his glasses were in them. Presumably he had them on. --Anonymous, 03:10 UTC, January 30, 2008.

Also, Truman is wearing glasses in the most famous campaign victory photo of all time. From a historical perspective, it's important to remember that the big alternative to glasses, contact lenses, didn't make major inroads until the development of oxygen-permeable materials during the 1980s. --M @r ē ino 14:18, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Synchronicity time: Truman's daughter Margaret died yesterday. -- JackofOz (talk) 03:25, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

"Sent a wire"

What does this expression mean? Saw it in a 1960s episode of The Twilight Zone. Does it mean to send a telegram or something? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.218 (talk) 13:47, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It means exactly that. FiggyBee (talk) 14:10, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Telegrams were sent by wire, hence the expression.86.200.5.16 (talk) 14:43, 29 January 2008 (UTC)DT[reply]

To send a message by telegraph--TreeSmiler (talk) 22:58, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

what's the longest toll road in the world?

I work for a company that manages toll roads, and the other day some of us were trying to figure out what's the longest toll road in the world. The Pennsylvania (U.S) Turnpike (532 miles long in three sections http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_Turnpike) came to mind, but we thought there must be something longer elsewhere in the world. A search of Wikipedia and Guinness Book of World Records failed to turn up any citations. As I continue to research this on my own I thought I'd see if any of Wikipedia's volunteers had any info or suggestions. Thanks.Mearch (talk) 14:33, 29 January 2008 (UTC)mearch[reply]

The New York State Thruway is supposedly the longest in the US and the World. FiggyBee (talk) 15:03, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association has a global list of toll facilities here. Some of the numbers for (mostly under-construction) toll roads in China are much larger than the figures above (4000, 4400, 5200 miles, etc). --Sean 15:11, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, all the ones in China on that site that are longer than the North American examples are shown as under construction.. --Anonymous, 00:25 UTC, January 31, 2008.

The spy satellite

Why doesn't that spy satellite have built-in TNT that can be remotely activated?

If no electricity works, it should auto-explode if it doesn't get a signal in 30 days or something. A mechanical one which ticks down and is winded back with an electric arm. If it doesn't, it explodes (its lost).

Why don't they think of these things before firing it up in space?! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.218 (talk) 15:12, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The problem with that would bethat instead of having 1 satellite breaking up in the atmosphere, you would add to the already huge amounts of space junk in the atmosphere. Vagery (talk) 15:44, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Additionally, it's all still going to crash. Breaking up the satellite won't meaningfully change its orbit, and all the pieces (some still significantly large) will rain down over an even larger area. The normal "think of these things before firing it up in space" is to reserve some maneuvering fuel for a controlled de-orbit, which was certainly done with a military satellite that the US doesn't want recovered by anybody else. Something went wrong. Oops, things aren't perfect. As for the specifics of why a break-up isn't a solution, badastronomy.com discusses the dangers of both light and heavy uncontrolled pieces. Again, note that the common theme isn't size but control, which TNT does not confer. — Lomn 16:15, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

As has been pointed out, it is more of a risk to have it blow up in space (and potentially damage all sorts of other satellites up there) than it is to let it crash (most of the planet is just ocean, after all, and much of the land area is sparsely inhabited). --24.147.69.31 (talk) 16:58, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You can drive around the M25 motorway in England for eternity ;D 86.139.90.67 (talk) 20:47, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Interior volume of an MX-5

Can anyone discover, or work out, the volume of the interior of a 2007 Honda MX-5? The reason I would like to know is because I plan to fill one up to the window-line with rubber ducks. This is a serious question; I currently have a colleague contacting suppliers to price the kind of quantity we would need. Our original plan was to fill the boot only; figures are published on luggage capacity so we know that would have required 150 litres of ducks. Now that we need the volume of the cabin up to the window line, figures are obviously harder to find. I'm hoping the dedicated people here can come up with a convincing estimate so that we know how many ducks to order. 205.205.219.5 (talk) 15:53, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

This google search sems to suggest 46 cubic feet. --Tagishsimon (talk) 16:12, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Isn't the MX-5 a Mazda? My rough count suggests about 1500 dm3 ~ 53 cu ft (but I didn't adjust for your up-to-window-line requirement, it's rather for the whole cabin). And we want a photo when it's done. --Ouro (blah blah) 16:14, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry, yes, it's a Mazda. Thanks for the quick responses here too. Might I ask how you arrived at your rough count? My colleague is somewhat sceptical (having not seen the power of the Reference Desk as I have) about asking some random people on Wikipedia to make this crucial estimate. Being able to reassure him with an idea as to the method would help. As for the photo, I can't promise to be able to take one, but if I do I'll try to make it available. 205.205.219.5 (talk) 17:17, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, take first of all the measurements from here. I took the given height and width (reduce the height a bit), and about a third of the overall length of the car. That gave me just above 3000 dm3. But that's a rectangular shape, and the car's interior is nowhere near that - so shave off a bit for the seats, angles and I've come to my estimate. It's rough as pumice, though. Cheers, Ouro (blah blah) 18:03, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If you want to get a similar visual effect at lower cost, you could fill the footwells and so on with balloons, and then add a thin layer of rubber ducks to cover them. SaundersW (talk) 18:57, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hmm, that's a very interesting idea - thankyou. The cost of a whole car full of ducks is quite high; we're currently investigating arranging to lease the ducks (or rather, buy with an agreement in place to sell back) but if that proves fruitless then your suggestion might come into play. 205.205.219.5 (talk) 19:58, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I know we're not supposed to give legal opinions, but I must advise you that's it's against all laws of God and Man to fill a person's car with rubber ducks and not take a picture. --Sean 23:31, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

:-) 205.205.219.5 (talk) 09:59, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Noted. --Ouro (blah blah) 12:59, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

OK, it looks like we might be on for the full-car option. The cost of buying the ducks is, um, high (like thousands) but we've located a wealthy patron willing to put up the cash in exchange for the amount of amusement it will bring him. We're probably looking at a couple of months' lead time to get everything in place, but I should be able to get you a picture. 205.205.219.5 (talk) 15:38, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

In Melbourne on Australia day a charity floats thousands of ducks in a race. Perhaps you could borrow theirs.Polypipe Wrangler (talk) 18:01, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Unfortunately our "welathy patron" has turned out to be not quite as generous as he initially indicated. He's putting up GBP200 (still a very hefty amount) leaving us just over 400 to find (we successfully arranged the leasing thing so the costs aren't as high as they might have been). We're putting in some of that ourselves, and starting to trawl work colleagues for additional contributions.205.205.219.5 (talk) 18:09, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Keepin' our fingers crossed (right, people?) so your duck-filled Mazda works out (for whatever purpose you need it). --Ouro (blah blah) 13:08, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

cats

"There is a bus with 7 girls.

Each girl has 7 bags.

In each bag, there are 7 big cats

Each big cat has 7 little cats.

Each cat has 4 legs.

How many legs on the bus? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 12.191.136.2 (talk) 17:13, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

None, buses have wheels. --LarryMac | Talk 17:16, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Nice. --Masamage ♫ 17:28, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Dammit! I got this question wrong on an internet quiz a few months ago and spent half an hour doing multiplication, trying to figure out where I went wrong. Grrrrr. Deltopia (talk) 19:37, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Was this an actual question or were you just trying to see if we would fall for it?--Dlo2012 (talk) 17:28, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

For way too much analysis on the time-worn ur-example, see As_I_Was_Going_to_St_Ives. jeﬀjon (talk) 18:07, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

this is a real question, i have seen riddles on here before and though you people might enjoy this one. there is no bus driver. and the answer is not the same as as i was going to saint ives —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.18.35.90 (talk) 18:11, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Alright, if you say it's a real question.... The number of cat legs on the bus is: 4 (cat legs/cat) x 8 (cats/cat family) x 7 (cat familes/bag) x 7 (bags/girl) = 1568. The number of total legs is unknown, because it is doubtful that girls would be left unattended on a bus -- even if the bus is stationary, the girls are still at risk of harm from the unsanitary conditions caused by almost 400 cats in a cramped space. But it's at least 1568 + (7x2) = 1582. --M @r ē ino 20:51, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

SPOILER WARNING it is in fact ten thousand nine hundred and nintey —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.18.35.90 (talk) 21:10, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Citation Needed! --LarryMac | Talk 21:12, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I like the one that goes "you're driving a bus with 7 girls, each girl has 7 cats, each cat ... [and so on] ... What color are the bus driver's eyes?". By that time, most listeners have filled their head with enough math to forget that you told them they're driving the bus. --Sean 23:34, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

On the assumption that "on the bus" means "in the bus", the answer is what 86.18.35.90 said. Seven bags for each of the 7 girls - that's 49 bags; each bag has 7 big cats = that's 49x7 big cats; each big cat has 7 little cats - that's 49x49 little cats; that's 49x56 cats in total; each cat has 4 legs - that's 49x56x4 legs = 10,976 cat legs; plus the 14 human legs belonging to the 7 girls = 10,990. -- JackofOz (talk) 03:23, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

For people who were confused, (as I was) the discrepency between JackofOz's answer and M@rēino's answer is that M@rēino forgot to multiply by 7(girls/bus). APL (talk) 04:50, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Why not more vandalism?

Why isn't just about every car everywhere "keyed"? It is nearly impossible to get caught and causes a major headache and annoyance for the owner. I personally have never done anything like that, but less than a year ago, I went out with a hammer wrapped in a plastic bag and was going to smash/damage cars in the middle of the night, being sick of society and humanity in general. But I ended up at home again, having not done anything but walked around. I couldn't make myself do it, even though I had many, many perfect chances with not a soul around as far as the eye could see.

Obviously not everyone has that kind of barrier like I do. So how come the civilized world isn't full of damaged property and basically total anarchy? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.218 (talk) 19:58, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

There are many theories as to why people perform malicious acts. But I think it's safe to say that most people are reasonably happy with life in general. --Merovingian (T, C) 20:01, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Have a look at natural law and Jurisprudence. Also consider the logical implications of your question: What 'benefit' do people get from keying a car? Randomly being extremely mean to a complete stranger is hardly the actions of a 'normal' person and brings no benefit to the individual doing it - yet it introduces risks such as... you may be found doing it, you may feel guilty for having done it (social conscience), you may believe that by your doing something it makes it more likely someone else may and eventually it may 'catch up' with you and happen to your car. Personally i'd suggest you speak with someone who can help if you genuinely considered randomly attacking other people's property because of your own state of mind - it is certainly not the actions of someone who is functioning in society perfectly normally. ny156uk (talk) 20:37, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

This New York Times article recently took a swing at the general question of why people exhibit moral behavior even when no enforcement is present. Short answer -- the vast majority of humans appear to be hard-wired for it, most likely because it makes evolutionary sense for a species as extremely social as humans to want to play nicely (or as a Dawkins follower would say, it's The Selfish Gene, not The Selfish Organism). --M @r ē ino 20:56, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

And while Richard Dawkins may not believe there's an invisible man watching all the wicked little things one does, enough people do believe that to make a significant contribution to people generally behaving themselves. --Sean 23:37, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Personally I doubt fear of God keeps most people from being bad. I have more faith in the power of civil law to control people than the power of religion. People huff and puff a lot about religion a lot but I don't honestly see it keeping most of them from doing what they'd rather being doing anyway. As a case in point, most people engage in "sinful" behavior on a daily basis, but relatively few engage in behaviors that have high legal consequences and a perceived high chance of getting caught on a daily basis. People have lived in communities before formal religion ever came about -- community rules, norms, etc., are probably much more powerful than the literal threats of scripture. --24.147.69.31 (talk) 02:29, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

In all fairness, the invisible man doesn't have to be God... I speak from personal experience (original research, sorry sorry) that the fear of being caught by somebody is enough to quell my occasional destructive impulse. Poechalkdust (talk) 19:33, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The basic answer to your question is that on an evolutionary timescale humans that could integrate with a social group well had a higher survival rate and passed their genes on. People who committed random acts of violence became social outcasts and died of. Defiantly something to think about before smashing that window! --S.dedalus (talk) 00:28, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Most vandalism that does occur seems to have a rationale other than causing damage. If you tag (graffiti) a bridge, for example, you can look at it every day and point it out to your friends until it gets painted over. If you key a random car, you'll probably never see it again, and even if you come across it again, you have to look fairly close up to see the damage. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 01:26, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I have gained this by philosophy: that I do without being commanded what others do only from fear of the law. -- Aristotle--M @r ē ino 18:07, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

ebay

Why can one buy an archery bow, including bolts, and gloves on ebay, but not a cross bow? What can one do with a cross bow that one cannot do with a compound bow? also, if a country has very weak gun laws such as uSA, if some one sells a gun on ebay, why can i not buy it in the uk? I need a crossbow! A 1.5kg compound bow, 224km/h mmmm, that'll do. but I would like a crossbow. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.18.35.90 (talk) 21:16, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

In the UK, the Crossbows Act 1987 prohibits the sale to, or possession or purchase by, a person under the age of 17 of certain types of crossbow. (Stones, 8-22660) Section 44 Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 increases the minimum age for sale, letting on hire purchase and hiring of crossbows to 18 with effect from 1st October 2007. I'm going to guess that eBay, being unable to vouchsafe for the age of the bidder, refuses to handle the goods. IIRC, that act was passed after a particular crossbow murder somewhere in London ... I think one part reaction and one part concern about the relative accuracy of crossbows drove the legislation ... you almost certainly do not need a crossbow. --Tagishsimon (talk) 21:22, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Not that it's terribly important, but FYI, vouchsafe is not a synonym for "vouch" :) -Elmer Clark (talk) 00:24, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks. --Tagishsimon (talk) 00:25, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The crossbow has the same advantage now that it had when it was invented—it takes little skill to hit the target with it. Without at least rudimentary instruction and a bit of practice, you're as likely to hurt yourself as the target with a regular bow. Also, the crossbow can be small enough to conceal easily, and its bolts are relatively small, too. --Milkbreath (talk) 17:27, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The US might have weak gun laws, but eBay still doesn't risk letting their users sell firearms either, presumably so they don't develop a reputation as some sort of international arms dealer. Recury (talk) 20:33, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hi

Please kindly I request you to e-mail me some islamic duas for my health, marriage, child birth and conception, labor pain ease, For repentance of sins, for studies, education, protection from Bad jinns and species of all the worlds that can cause harm to me - living , non-living, dead, alive, all non-living, living materials, etc., prosperity, success, Respect, love, care , support, good nature, all the bounties of Allah?

[[Email adress removed to prevent spam. 71.117.47.242 (talk)]] —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.29.18.124 (talk) 21:55, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Perhaps you should talk to your caliph? He can answer the questions better than we can. --71.117.47.242 (talk) 23:02, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Caliph!! Good grief. That title, which confers a unique authority, has not existed since 1924, when the Ottoman caliphate was abolished. Clio the Muse (talk) 23:44, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Although certain Muslim radicals are trying to revive it...Corvus cornix_talk 23:54, 29 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

To the original poster - the Reference desk probably isn't the best place to ask for religious help. Your Imam or prayer leader may be a better person to ask. Best wishes, DuncanHill (talk) 00:04, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Can this question be considered as a request for "professional" advice? If so, it should be removed. --Taraborn (talk) 00:56, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Let's not go out of our way to find loopholes allowing us to remove people's questions... -Elmer Clark (talk) 03:57, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Anyway, professional advise is permitted. --Masamage ♫ 04:09, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Oops! Shows you how much I know about Islam. Well, at any rate at least I learned something new today, caliphs are to Islam like priests are to Judaism. Haha, next time I will spend a bit more time researching my answer before I post! xD --71.117.47.242 (talk) 05:21, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

January 30

Cold packs

I often need to use a cold pack for various aches and pains and have tried ice (cons: chipping from a large bag, pointy edges), single-use (I'd get through a lot) or my usual, frozen peas (cons: mushy and kind of smelly after a while). Also, I always end up damp, somehow. I recently read about a flax seed-filled cold pack which sounded good, but I'm having trouble finding anywhere that sells them in the UK. However, someone in my family works in a health-food shop which sells the stuff, so I was wondering if it would be possible to make my own. It's quite expensive, but maybe there's a lower grade for non-food use? Or is there something else that would work for me? Wheat? Rice? Ball-bearings? Any ideas?

(Sorry if I don't reply promptly; my WP time may be limited at the moment.) Thanks --Kateshort forbob 00:17, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

AFAIK corn & similar works well, if popped in a bag then into the freezer or microwave - example google search. A UK supplier. --Tagishsimon (talk) 00:21, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

That looks good, Tagishsimon. Thanks for your help, and for finding me a supplier! --Kateshort forbob 22:48, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What's wrong with my wah pedal?

I have a Dunlop Crybaby, I've had it for a few weeks, and I used it a few minutes ago and my guitar's signal wouldn't go through, and this noise comes out, it's sort of like a siren or bad clarinet playing, or a kazoo play through the small end. What's wrong? Should I return it, and get a cheap auto-wah? Or could I take it to my local music store and have it fixed there? How much will this cost? MalwareSmarts (talk) 00:31, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry to ask the obvious, but did you check the battery? If you want people to estimate the cost of repair, it might help to tell us where you're located. --LarryMac | Talk 01:01, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If you been using it a lot since you got it, then depending on the current consumption, and the state of the battery when you bought it, it is conceivable that your battery is discharged somewhat. the squealing noise sounds a bit like what you may get with a battery that has gone high internal impedance. Try new battery first.--TreeSmiler (talk) 01:19, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

stereo

Hi. On Panasonic.ca, I found the SC-AK750 Stereo under home theatres. It's 660 watts. Is this the single most powerful stereo (in North America), anyways?Jwking (talk) 00:44, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Is that 110 watts per channel times 6 channels? If so, then the answer to your question is no - here is a Yamaha home theater receiver that supposedly has 140 w x 7 ch (so that might be 980 total?) I don't think total wattage is a big a deal in home theater receivers as it used to be back in the day when we had but the two channels. And we liked it! --LarryMac | Talk 00:58, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You're kidding, right?

Carver ZR1600 Digital Amp Spec's[sic]

Power Rating
1200 watts mono (8ohm)RMS
600 watts x 2 (4ohm)RMS

350 watts x 2 (8ohm)RMS

[3], just for one. Gzuckier (talk) 19:10, 6 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Siamese Twins

I actually read this off of a MindTrap card, but it's still a valid question all the same. Is it possible for siamese twins to recieve opposite rulings (e.g. guilty and not)? Any historical cases? I can't imagine how the sentence would be delivered without some miscarriage of justice. --The Dark Side (talk) 01:18, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

There is an old movie, Chained for Life, related to that. I don't think there is a precedent for that. -- ReyBrujo (talk) 02:42, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

This is a bit different, but illustrates the same principle: According to this website, "On April 2, 1865, Union Major General George Stoneman rolled into North Carolina hoping to draft some of the locals, no matter which side they were cheering for, and the names of all males over 18 were put into a lottery wheel. One of the names drawn was Eng Bunker, but Chang refused to go, and since his name hadn’t been drawn, Stoneman couldn’t force Eng either." Lantzy ^talk 02:53, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Another thing I've wondered: conjoined twins can and do have fulfilling romantic lives by "tuning out" of each other's private moments. But sometimes thetwins are united at the pelvis, meaning they have one set of sex organs. My question is, would you be instantly cheating on your spouse just by consummating the marriage? Would it count as polygamy? Is there any precedent relating to that? --Masamage ♫ 05:27, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I don't think it would be "cheating" since the person would agree before hand. It probably would either be polygamy, or only one of the two people would be considered the official spouse. What about a drivers license? As for precedent read about Abigail and Brittany Hensel - they are about to turn 18, and they have a drivers license. Ariel. (talk) 07:28, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Dear diary: JACKPOT!. --Sean 14:38, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

They have two drivers' licenses, actually. --Masamage ♫ 16:58, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

At least according to TV show QI, the OP's situation did happen with Chang and Eng Bunker. See here for the episode transcript, but I can't find a more reliable source. 130.88.151.210 (talk) 13:57, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I want to be a jungle adventurer but...

I don't have the balls to be anything more than a dilettante. So what tropical forest will have the least scary bugs?

Lotsofissues 02:35, 30 January 2008 (UTC)

Arkansas. Also got crazy hillbillies. 205.240.146.188 (talk) 07:17, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Rainforest Cafe. Or something at Disneyworld, perhaps the Enchanted Tiki Room or the dinner show at the Polynesian Resort.

Atlant (talk) 13:06, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I don't think Arkansas has tropical forests. Please provide reliable sources. Corvus cornix_talk 18:13, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Perhaps the Daintree River area? It doesn't have as many bugs, but there are some larger creatures to watch out for, such as crocodiles. Steewi (talk) 06:38, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If sub-tropical will do you, try New Zealand, including, for example, Waipoua Forest. see Te Ara Encyclopedia. As for wee beasties: nothing nastier than a sandfly. If temperate rain forest excites you, then the rest of NZ has numerous examples, including around the famous Milford Track and the almost-impenetrable Fiordland. Gwinva (talk) 21:29, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The Hoh Rainforest in Washington state is a pretty place. It's not tropical, but it is very much a rainforest. bibliomaniac 1 5 23:38, 5 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Bronze skin effect Photoshop

Dear Wiki contributors,

How do I achieve this effect on the hands [[4]] (link is work-safe) with photoshop? The hands look like they have been desaturated and most importantly, a bronze-ish look and glow to them. Thanks. 99.240.177.206 (talk) 02:41, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I found this comment by the artist:

I desaturated the entire image then painted in color back on the watch and places I wanted it, then put a heavy golden filter over it, to give it the bronzy hue, and also used several overlays of texture

Quoted from this comment.--Bloigen 02:49, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

About Dior

Hello, I am going out on kind of like a report competition and the subject is Buisness. So, I decided to do one on the Dior company. But there was only about designers'(Christian Dior)informations. the competition is in about 2 weeks and I need to be prepared till next week so that I can fix my mistakes and get helps from my teachers.

I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR HELPS!!!! THANKS A LOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! p.s. my e-mail adress is(e-mail removed) so can you send Dior information to here? thanks! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.138.50.241 (talk) 08:21, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It's not a good idea to post your e-mail address as it may encourage unwanted attention. Any info or links will be posted here. I hope your competition goes well. Richard Avery (talk) 08:36, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Actually, we have articles on both Christian Dior and on the company he founded, Christian Dior SA. Unfortunately, neither article is in the best of shape. (Given my near total ignorance of everything to do with fashion, I am not the one to improve either article.) You might also try Yahoo's fact page on the company or the company's official website, particularly the page with corporate and financial details. Marco polo (talk) 19:57, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

How to get another Top Level Domains world wide as .com, .org, .mil, etc...

66.53.214.90 (talk) 08:51, 30 January 2008 (UTC)Any info is greatly appreciated on how to get/apply for another new Top-Level-Domain that will known world wide such that *.com, *.org, etc...[reply]

For example, another top level domain name to be: www.-----.xxx where xxx is a new top-level-domain that I would like to get its certified.

Thank you.≈—

Top level domains are created and administrated by ICANN. .xxx has been proposed before; see the article for the history. FiggyBee (talk) 09:36, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Oh, I see you weren't actually suggesting .xxx - still it's an interesting article which helps to explain the processes. FiggyBee (talk) 09:38, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

FiggyBee, Thank you for your information. I will definitely go to ICANN website rightnow...again, Thank You.

"Nothing" character/string in table fields

Is the character/string denoting "null" or "nothing" in a table/output intended for an "end user" (such as a Web page) to be considered a "locale" variable? I suppose "-" is accepted by all cultures and people to mean "nothing is here", no? While "N/A" is an English thing? I have never seen simply leaving the field blank. It always has some sort of "fill character" to show that it is in fact empty. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.50.126 (talk) 11:12, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

This comment intentionally left blank. Lanfear's Bane | t 13:05, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If your table has a visible border, I would think leaving it empty is acceptable. It really depends on the context, since anything you come up with could be valid for certain data sets, such as for a "Table of Common Markers for Intentionally Blank Data Fields". :) --Sean 14:25, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Placeholders are often used if there is some doubt about a blank field. eg. Is it blank because there is no data yet, is unlikely to have data, or could never have data? N/A means 'not applicable', so telling the reader that we needn't even consider that field for the specific example. But a "-" might mean any of the others, or it might mean 0 (zero), or "no result". (or be a field in a punctuation table). I would make a decision based on the specific table you are creating. Which is why you will see different examples, based on location, but also subject. Gwinva (talk) 21:39, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Strange tape recorder

This made-in-Japan Sony stereo cassette recorder/player/radio from the 1990s appears to have the buttons reversed.

Should not REWIND be to the left with arrows pointing to the left and FAST FORWARD be on the right with right arrows? Also, notice that the PLAY button's arrow is pointing to the left instead of to the right.

This confuses me. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.50.126 (talk) 11:16, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Another example from commons (Nakamichi RX-505) - Image:Nakamichi RX 505 Front2.jpg 84.69.93.205 (talk) 11:34, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Aren't some Asian languages read from right to left? As symbols then these would make more sense for the user. I have however no idea if the recording / playing mechanism works "in reverse". Lanfear's Bane | t 13:17, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

is it possible that the tape was in fact inserted upside down into the machine? then the arrows would make sense. 83.104.131.135 (talk) 14:38, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

That sounds like the answer. Many tape recorders were designed like that, I used to own one myself. It just looks a bit odd since intuitively we expect everything to travel from left to right. --Richardrj ^talk ^email 14:44, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not sure but I guess the arrows pointing to the left for Rewind show you the direction the tape moves and the arrows pointing to the right for Rewind show you the direction you want to go. Oda Mari (talk) 15:03, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'd never made that connection! Really confusing though. --Bearbear (talk) 20:18, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

fuel economy, DIESEL or LPG

Hi there. I am in the process of buying a second hand 4 by 4. I am wondering which fuel, either DIESEL, or a converted unleaded to LPG would be a better more economically engin to run. I am looking at a new model turbo intercooled motor, I will be doing an equal amount of city driving and highway driving.

Thank you for your time, and any assistance would be much appreciated.

Damien. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Ipl422 (talk • contribs) 12:38, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'll start the ball rolling by saying something obvious -- when dealing with used automobiles, maintenance is the most important factor in fuel economy. A new motor attached to bad parts won't run efficiently. --M @r ē ino 15:37, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

4 by 4?

Why are they called four by fours anyway? There are two sets of two wheels so surely they are two by twos (two by two equals four)? What does the by mean anyway? The 4x4 article doesn't explain this.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 17:00, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I once was told that common vehicles are known as 2 by 4 (or was it 4 by 2?) because only two wheels had traction. In the 4 by 4 model, all four wheels have it. Not sure if this is the real meaning, but it worked for me when I was 9 years old, and still works :-) -- ReyBrujo (talk) 17:07, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

See Four-wheel drive#Terminology --Tagishsimon (talk) 17:12, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

(ec) According to four-wheel drive, the first 4 is the number of wheels and the second the number of driven wheels (so a regular car could be called a 4x2). 8x8, 6x6, 8x6 and 6x4 also seem to be in use, no doubt among others. I can't find an explanation of how this usage arose, or what 'by' means in it (if anything). Algebraist 17:14, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Since I didn't see any specific references for that etymology in the article, I'll throw out that my understanding was 4 speeds x 4 driven wheels. But that means my truck is a 5x4. Or would be if the 4WD system was working. I'd love to hear what the OED has to say. --LarryMac | Talk 18:50, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

One thing to consider is how far back the terminology dates. Transmissions tend to have more gears now than they did in the past. Friday (talk) 19:05, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Merriam-Webster's online entry said 1942, but they had no other information. For what it's worth, Wiktionary agrees with my sketchy derivation. --LarryMac | Talk 19:10, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

OR Warning... In the years that I've been off roading with my 4x4 vehicle, I've never heard or seen any part of the "4 speeds x 4 driven wheels" explanation. My take on it was always that it was "4 wheeled vehicle driven by 4 wheels". Dismas|^(talk) 23:31, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

By extrapolation,

a bicycle is a 2 by 1
a human is a 0 by 0

The tricky bit is the Milky Way galaxy. Is it a 1 by 1, 1 by 0, 0 by 1 or a nought by nought ? --Cookatoo.ergo.ZooM (talk) 01:17, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

For Larry: The Big OED dates it to 1937, but gives no etymology except that it derived from "four, n", which is not much help. But I guess that means they don't know, as they get very detailed when they can. Gwinva (talk) 21:48, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Cool, thank you. But I'd like to think that was for everybody interested in this discussion. And what the heck, OED? Also derived from "by, prep." I'd wager. --LarryMac | Talk 21:53, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yep, a wager you'd win. You should write the OED. (and, yes, of course it was for everyone generally, you specifically :-) Gwinva (talk) 22:02, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yeah, it was 4 wheels total, 4 wheel drive. The total number of wheels was specified because this came from the truck world, after all, and having only 4 wheels was not in any way to be taken for granted.Gzuckier (talk) 19:13, 6 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

NHS

Hi, i recently had a foreign friend who was living and working in the UK, over a few months this person lost ALOT of weight and kept telling my how she was not well, she was pregnant, and had kidney stones. While talking to her, she would just fall over onto ground, unconsious. she was blatantly in alot of pain. now although she went to the local hospital every single day to try to get help, they just told her to take paracetomol and go home. eventually she went to germany, and was rushed to hospital and stayed in there for a few weeks. Then i recently had another friend from the same country, also in the UK, working and paying tax, I knew about the above and so when she got ill i went with her to the hospital, initialy they would not see her at all and told her that she cant see a doctor atall, i had an argument with the nurse, and was quite nasty. We then waited 6 hours and she saw a doctor, he said he did not know what was wrong with her (she had a pool ball sized growth on the neck, and half her face was paralized, but she was in constant pain) They told her to go to a ear nose and throwt specialist 2 towns over. she went and they told her that they too dont know, but they can cut it out and see,maybe its cancer, that would be cool, but over all she should just go home and take some paracetomol. and see her gP. well if the specialist does not know, what will a GP do? SO, my question is... What is wrong with the nHS? we went to the hospital and they told us we cant see a doctor?!?! We all pay tax, why are these people turned away time and time again, I have only mentioned two of numerous cases. Why must people go private to survive, or go to other countries and pay for a service they have already paid for? with all the money pumped into it by the government where does it go? Are the Doctorit exams here adequate? How can a normal minimum wage person get decent medical assistance with out paying? What do people do in other countries? i now have a genuine fear of getting ill. Is everything in the UK as false as it seems? This goes for crime too, this is one of the most violent societies i have ever experienced and i have lived in 5 different countries and this one seems the worst yet they profess to be a world leader, how is this possible? i am also the guy who was on here in Dec begging for phsycological assistance before i snap and kill, well i tried, and am still on the waiting list to see a councellor. and am now looking to buy a Bow or cross bow. Gotta love the NHS. Sorry for ranting and thank you.—Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.18.35.90 (talk) 18:38, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The reference desk is not an appropriate place for soapbox-style rants, but perhaps National Health Service and publicly-funded health care (often known as "socialized medicine" in the States) will answer your questions as to why the system works the way it does. — Lomn 19:23, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Aside form what Lomn rightly says...The experience of one person (and that which they hear about) is not indicative of the entire service provided by the NHS. It is, where it works, a wonderful system providing medical care for all. Additionally murders in the UK are extremely low as a % of society compared to many comparably wealthy nation. You appear to be viewing society in the UK through the window of your own situation, as opposed to accepting that your experience is not always a perfect indicator of the whole-system. In the UK there were about 800 murders in 2005/06, that compares to around 17,000 murders - that is with a population of barely 5x the amount, so the rate of murder by population is hugely smaller. The UK is, by no means, a perfect society - it is riddled with problems, some of which are systematic failures by governments, others social problems that could potentially be solved rather easily, but as far as healthcare and violence in society go the UK is no more dangerous than its companion nations. ny156uk (talk) 23:49, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Equal opportunity, affirmative action employer

Oxymoron, amirite?!?!?! Bellum et Pax (talk) 19:16, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Only depending on how you define your terms. Equal Opportunity Employment, as legally understood in the US, does not conflict with supporting affirmative action. — Lomn 19:28, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

From the page header: Do not start debates or post diatribes. The reference desk is not a soapbox. Do you have a actual question? --Mdwyer (talk) 19:29, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I thought it was a real question! Bellum et Pax (talk) 19:48, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

His question (as far as i can tell) is being an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer an oxymoron. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.197.3.211 (talk) 21:11, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Note: that ^ was me. I wasn't logged in. Cryo921 (talk) 21:13, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I thought the question was as Lomn and 98.197 figured as well. On the surface, and to many people this is the way it is, saying that you give equal opportunity though also encourage minorities to apply seems a contradiction. Dismas|^(talk) 00:02, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

In order to achieve equality of opportunity, it may be necessary to actively seek out applicants from under-represented communities. That is how I would read the advert. DuncanHill (talk) 00:08, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, but affirmative action goes further than encouraging applications from under-represented communities. It proposes preferential treatment in the selection of employees. --Richardrj ^talk ^email 08:33, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It also depends on your scope of "equal opportunity". You can restrict your view to all job applicants being given the exact same treatment in the current particular situation, regardless of whatever differences in opportunity existed in their past. You can collectivise or individualise your view. The articles on affirmative action and affirmative action in the United States give a lot of space to criticism and controversy and include links to other resources. Opinions differ, and there is no clear-cut answer to "Oxymoron, amirite?!?!?!" 77.56.99.133 (talk) 08:56, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Affirmative action may go beyond encouraging applications. The phrase comes from the observation that it doesn't help much to treat applicants equally if members of the victim class don't hear about the opening. Passive nondiscrimination is a "negative" action (compare negative and positive rights); going out of your way to make up for mechanical bias in the recruiting process, e.g. by targeted advertising, is "affirmative". But that's no contradiction to EOE. AA becomes controversial when, as Richardrj says, it goes beyond that – or when it becomes mandatory; you can't (imho) create a colorblind society by compelling color-conscious actions. —Tamfang (talk) 17:05, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Shopping for Diamond studs

I am searching for expensive diamond stud earrings. I have found a great deal at www.DiamondStudSource.com I would like to know if anyone has experience with this company. Also, I would like to know if I can trust them and if I can rely on the information that they provide me with the certificate. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Yungar (talk • contribs) 21:07, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I don't know anything about that particular store, but if you are a moral activist, I would be careful to avoid blood diamonds which are diamonds sourced in areas using slavery. Some online dealers are not particularly scrupulous about their source. I hope this one turns out to be a good one for you. Steewi (talk) 06:41, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe there are forums for diamond jewellery buyers (or similar) that could be of help to you? --Ouro (blah blah) 09:39, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

A good sign is that their website lists a physical address and telephone number for the store. Online retailers who are untrustworthy rarely provide this information. --Richardrj ^talk ^email 10:27, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

De Donde Son

Hey,it`s Me the brother of the guy who gives you all those Physics Questions. I`ve been reading this novel in Spanish called THE GREAT VILLAGE. There this phrase,reapeted again and again for an entire page De Donde Son,De Donde Son.I was,wondering If any of you guys had any idea what that meant I tried Google Translate,but the translation into English didn`t make any since. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.161.61.40 (talk) 23:14, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I think it means "where are they from?", or possibly "where they are from". --Trovatore (talk) 23:17, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, it's "where are they from?" or "where they are from".--Yamanbaiia^{(free hugs!)} 23:33, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

January 31

Confirming boarding on airplane

Is it possible to call an airline, more specifically Air Canada, and ask if a specific passenger was able to board his/her plane successfully? I'm guessing the airline could check the passenger manifest with the check-in counter or something; but would they be able to divulge this information to just anyone who calls? Acceptable (talk) 00:26, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

No. I've tried this before. All they will tell you is if the flight is on time, but they won't give any personal information. Corvus cornix_talk 03:39, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hm, but did you try it with Air Canada? It's at least conceivable that the rules are different between carriers, or at least between the US and Canada. --Trovatore (talk) 03:52, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It's reasonable that this is the same across further airlines, they won't give you details whether a specific person boarded the plane, just as people usually won't give out any other information, the obtaining of which requires personal presence and identification, for the sake of protection of personal details (like i. e. whether a letter to you had arrived at the post office and is waiting to be picked up). --Ouro (blah blah) 09:37, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It's reasonable, but is it true? --Trovatore (talk) 18:13, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not about to start checking whether it is true, but you're welcome to try :) as it stands, it's true enough for me. I suppose one could try and maybe after much persuasion the person on the other side of the line will cave in and tell you, but I don't suppose they should do it. --Ouro (blah blah) 19:41, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Back in the distant past (1981) I was able to persuade British Caledonian (long since taken over) to tell me that my son was booked out of Dallas for London on the next day's flight. But I doubt it could be done now.90.9.87.253 (talk) 15:45, 31 January 2008 (UTC)DT[reply]

A friend of mine had a sorry experience about 2 years ago. A friend of his was coming from Los Angeles to join him in Australia, so he drove to Melbourne Airport to meet him. Living where he did in the bush, this was a trip of about 3 hours, each way. The flight arrived on time, but the friend didn't show. He waited about half an hour in case there was some delay in disembarking all the passengers; still no show. He enquired at the counter to see if the friend was on board the plane, and without any fuss they checked and told him that no, there was no such person registered on board. It may have been a QANTAS flight, but I can't be sure. Maybe the airline staff would have been less forthcoming if he had enquired by phone rather than in person - but he was obviously very worried by this stage, and appeared to be genuine, so maybe they relaxed their normal rules, I don't know. Now my friend's worry turned to distress. However this distress was greatly magnified when he later discovered why the other person had not bothered to call and say he'd changed his mind about coming, but just let my friend go for a 6-hour wild good chase. Needless to say, that "friend" is no longer a friend. -- JackofOz (talk) 21:54, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Soyent Green Ice Cream?

I haven't edited a page before, so I'm not eager to muck it up, but I'm pretty darn certain that there is no Hagen Dazs flavor called Soyent Green. The prankster may have meant Soylent Green, but that's not really an ice cream either. Would somebody like to fix this? 67.166.93.238 (talk) 03:21, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It's all good now, next time just click edit on the section you want to fix and remove what shouldnt be there. If you figured out how to post a question here you should be able to remove vandalism no problem.--ChesterMarcol (talk) 03:52, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Oh.So the chewy chunks in my Soylent Green Haagen Dazs aren't really 'extra caramel' then.Oh dear. Lemon martini (talk) 13:27, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Is this greatest debate performance ever audio recorded? (repost from humanities)

[5]

David Lange v. Jerry Falwell, Oxford Union 1985

His diction is so immaculate and elocution so flawless--and it sounds to some degree improvised! Have you ever heard any performance that can top Lange?

132.239.90.214 (talk) 06:01, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

This is so arbitrarily subjective (and borderline 3rd-party soapboxing) that I'm not sure it has any place on the Reference Desk. Certainly no objective answer can be stated. — Lomn 06:04, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

No objective answer? We know that. Why did you even bother to say that? Lotsofissues 09:09, 31 January 2008 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lotsofissues (talk • contribs)

See the top of the page: Do not start debates or post diatribes. Debates about debates, doubly so. --M @r ē ino 23:50, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

income taxes

After an employee's payroll taxes are paid, he puts some of his net income (say, $10,000.00) in an interest bearing bank savings account paying 10% interest per year. Then he closes the account after a year, receiving $11,000.00 ($10,000.00,the original investment [or deposit] and $1100.00 interest). Is it correct to assume he will only be taxed on the $1000.00 interest, not the $10,000.00 original deposit and this is "not" double-taxation? --Hippidoman (talk) 07:13, 31 January 2008 (UTC)George[reply]

Only the money made on interest counts as an income. So he will be taxed as earning $1,000. The $10,000 was already taxed (as it was net). depending on what country you are in, you may be able to claim inflation, so if inflation was 3%, he might only have to pay tax on 7% or $700. Usually you add $1,000 to your taxable income though.--58.111.143.164 (talk) 11:28, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Summer Heights High

Where can I download the 7 episode of Summer Heights High?? 220.233.83.26 (talk) 07:15, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It will cost you $3 to download it from bigpond. I shouldn't think you can (legally) download it for free. FiggyBee (talk) 08:50, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Identifying a font

Hello,

I am trying to identify one of the fonts that is in use in the Mass Rapid Transit of Singapore. This font is the one the name of the station is written in, but it is different of the one that is used to indicate the way, although it seems to be the same). I have tried a web site (edit section to see url in comment) but without successful outcome.

Here are some links to images in a sufficient resolution, with signages using this font: [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], [12], [13], [14], [15], [16], [17], [18], [19], [20].

You'll notice the font is sans-serif, non-fixed width, very readable, that vertical strokes are smoothed on the top-left hand corner (see letters B, P). I'm really curious about who developed the font, and what its name is.

Thank you much for your help! ♦ Pabix 07:23, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Looks very much like Tahoma but more rounded. Lanfear's Bane | t 11:11, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I ran through the questions at Identifont, and didn't come up with anything close. It's an interesting font -- notice the distinctive notch in the capital P, among other features. jeﬀjon (talk) 14:06, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

WhatTheFont didn't get there either. FYI, I've posted this on the forums there in the hope that someone will recognise it. Angus Lepper^{(T, C, D)} 00:34, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Large organisations which need a lot of signage (and transport companies are the classic example) will often commission their own typeface from a designer - for the quantity involved it can be cheaper than paying royalties on a commercial font. So it's entirely possible that MRT's font does not exist anywhere else. FiggyBee (talk) 04:12, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Edit; the article List of public signage typefaces suggests that the font used by MRT is rotis. FiggyBee (talk) 04:18, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Comparing the image to the various official versions of Rotis turns up a few discrepancies, both in terms of notches and proportions. I'm not at home and thus can't do overlays to directly compare the two fonts, but my eyeball says that Rotis-Serif is not the same font as in Image:Boonlaymrt.JPG. EvilCouch (talk) 04:42, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hello, I knew about Rotis, but Rotis is used in the MRT for every signage, except station names. Maybe this is a modified Rotis... Thank you all for your help! ♦ Pabix 05:59, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

COLINS HRM MODEL

DESCRIPTION REGARDING COLINS HRM MODEL OR ANY WEB LINK TO IT. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Neekita Choudhury (talk • contribs) 07:37, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Could you explain in more detail what you mean? A google search for colins+hrm or collins+hrm doesn't turn up anything that looks relevant. 130.88.151.210 (talk) 13:36, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

HRM stands for human resource management. But I too was unsuccessful in locating anyone called Collins or Colins who has a model for it. --Richardrj ^talk ^email 14:18, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Azim Premji

Sir, I didnot find name of father and mother of Azim Premji? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 59.93.219.245 (talk) 14:57, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

This is better placed on the articles talk page. I have brought it up there. Cryo921 (talk) 04:11, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

diet pills

can the diet pill phentermine (fastin) interfere with my birth control pill lo-oval 28? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.224.134.222 (talk) 19:29, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It's likely you won't get an answer - we don't give medical advice - better ask your physician. --Ouro (blah blah) 19:39, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

And if you do get an answer, it will be worse than useless as it won't be given by a medical professional with access to you and your records. Get yourself down to a doctor and ask them. Perhaps the one who prescribed the birth control pill? 130.88.140.119 (talk) 13:44, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Never mix any two drugs unless your doctor says it is okay. − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 06:58, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Brussels changed their telephon numbers from 6 to 7 figures....WHEN?????

Anybody who can help me???? Al the best, Charlie —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.247.50.178 (talk) 19:42, 31 January 2008 (UTC) [reply]

As Liège changed theirs in 1996, I'd guess at least fifteen to twenty years ago if not earlier. You should try and see Telephone numbers in Belgium. --Admiral Norton ^(talk) 22:11, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Gmod?

I know that gmod is a mod for valve based games, but can I download it for my xbox 360 if I hook it up to my computer? Can I possibly get it for free anywhere?

Thanks! ❦ECH3LON ❦ 20:55, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

No. Garry's Mod is for the PC version of the games. APL (talk) 21:11, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Period After WSJ

Why is there a period after The Wall Street Journal's logo?Mdamedic (talk) 22:14, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

There's no period in the masthead in the infobox in our article, but there is in places like this. I think it's just a question of corporate style, and various companies use it for some sort of effect. It made you notice it, so maybe that's the object. Ansett Airlines planes had the word "Ansett" followed by a big round dot, on their livery - but Ansett is now defunct so maybe the period was an omen. They don't call it a "full stop" here for nothing. -- JackofOz (talk) 22:12, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Glitch side issue

Can anyone explain how this happened. In my original post [21], I spelled both "There's" ("There's no period ...") and "it's" ("I think it's just a question of ...") with apostrophes, yet they mysteriously vanished and I had to re-insert them. The apostrophe in "... maybe that's the object" was unaffected. -- JackofOz (talk) 22:39, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Disappeared in this not-so-useful edit. --Tagishsimon (talk) 23:03, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Mdamedic also seems to have deleted Larry Mac's post [22]. Bit of a worry. -- JackofOz (talk) 23:14, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

National Cheese on Toast Day ?

When is National Cheese on Toast Day this year? I haven't missed it already, have I?

Atlant (talk) 22:47, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, last year it was the 19th of April. So I don't think that you have missed it.--Dlo2012 (talk) 22:58, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Anybody know when this year's big day is?

Atlant (talk) 13:16, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

metroid prime 3

I was just wondering what the reception was for Metroid Prime 3 from Famitsu. I looked on the article, but i didn't find anything from Famitsu. Thanx in advance wikipedians.--Dlo2012 (talk) 22:54, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Never mind, i just found out that it hasn't been released in Japan yet. sorry

http://kotaku.com/347318/metroid-prime-3-dated-for-japan-took-long-enough--Dlo2012 (talk) 17:15, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Resources on doing a radio show

I'm starting my on radio show and I was wondering if anyone knew of any websites that gave ideas, and instruction to first time radio hosts. I particularly looking for help with talk radio, but DJ or radio drama instructions would help too. --Gary123 (talk) 22:59, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Heres a link that might help: http://www.ehow.com/how_2041933_radio-show.html. Ehow teaches you to do almost everything!--Dlo2012 (talk) 23:40, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Are police officers sarcastic ?

I just seen a Law & Order episode in which officers arrested a environmentalist.

Environmentalist:" This is a wasteland!"
Police:"Then you ought to see Riker's Island." (as the guy was being arrested)

This was part of a Arson and someone got killed in that episode. 205.240.146.242 (talk) 23:34, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

So what's the question?--Dlo2012 (talk) 23:42, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Are police that sarcastic in real life ? 205.240.146.242 (talk) 23:53, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Some will be, some of the time. "The police" are not sufficiently homogeneous to enable a simple yes-no answer. Doubtless most police forces will espouse professional values, which would tend to preclude the use of sarcasm. But police are a) human and b) often dealing with horrible people, which makes the use of sarcasm occasionally understandable. So. No good answer to your question. --Tagishsimon (talk) 23:57, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Very few people in real life, police officers included, are as consistently sarcastic or witty (wit being a more accurate term for the Riker's joke than sarcasm) as their fictional TV counterparts. That's one reason why TV is entertaining. --M @r ē ino 23:57, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Police can be sarcastic and/or funny at times. I have listened to them on a scanner. Once i heard them talking about some kids fishing at some intersection. This was an intersection not even near a river so the other officer came on and said "Well, If they are fishing there, i bet they are having a hard time catching anything. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.210.143.173 (talk) 03:23, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

True story: Guy in California gets a letter informing him he had been caught speeding by photo-radar and had to pay $45. The letter included a photo of his car speeding. The guy's a bit of a smartass, so he takes a picture of $45 in cash and sends it to the police department. A few days later, the guy gets another letter from the chief of police. It contained one thing: a photo of a set of handcuffs! Verified by Snopes. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 04:45, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I think what the writers and actors realized was that they could portray a guy, say Lenny Briscoe, who could have a tough, impossible-to-impress, cynical New York attitude, a forthright, wise-cracking, no-nonsense blue-collar worker attitude, and the gallows humor of the experienced cop who has seen most everything bad that there is to see, and it would make for snappy dialogue. Jerry Orbach, who played Briscoe, trained as a method actor and I'd imagine there's a good deal of truth to a depiction like this, just as there may be to that of the younger partner in the show, who is slightly more circumspect and who is much more likely to AGF. Lenny Briscoe quotes ftw though. 86.44.6.14 (talk) 10:37, 5 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well if you do want to find sarcastic police officers, i recommend watching the show speeders, which is basically what the whole thing is about.--Dlo2012 (talk) 16:36, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I know two officers well both were sarcastic.

Go ahead and laugh about this pizza question.

Okay, I left a frozen pizza in the car (which was hot) for around 26 hours, and I'd like to know if it's still safe to eat. Anyone know? Thanks in advance. *stomach grumbles* · AndonicO ^Hail! 23:47, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

NO! Its spoiled. 205.240.146.242 (talk) 23:54, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I wouldn't. --Kurt Shaped Box (talk) 23:55, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Unless you left your car outside in a freezing winter night, I wouldn't take my chances. bibliomaniac 1 5 23:57, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Aww. :( Too bad, now I have to find something else to eat... · AndonicO ^Hail! 23:59, 31 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Have you considered ordering a pizza? Pizza shop pizzas are usually nicer (IMO) than frozen pizzas anyway. --Kurt Shaped Box (talk) 00:01, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What, out of interest, do we think the problem will by now be, which will not be solved by a ten minute bask under a hot grill? Salmonella? (Maybe I can put you off food altogether. Maybe not; I'm hungry too :( --Tagishsimon (talk) 00:02, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The problem is that many food born pathogens release toxins into the food which are not broken down by cooking. Don’t take the chance. If food's been sitting out at room temperature for more than about two hours it’s usually not safe to eat, even if cooked. I’ve had food poisoning before and it was the worst I’ve ever felt. --S.dedalus (talk) 04:21, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for saving my life guys. ;) Ordering a pizza is more expensive around here, and they taste like greasy cardboard, but maybe I can do that... · AndonicO ^Hail! 00:03, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'm sorry S.daedelus, I can't let your remark go. "If food's been sitting out at room temperature for more than two hours it's usually not safe to eat, even if cooked." This is a tad misleading. I eat lots of things that have been at room temperature for way more than two hours, bread, cheese, eggs, meat from the freezer, cream cakes, fruit, and so on. I suspect many other people do as well and do not suffer any negative health consequences. Maybe you were referring to prepared frozen products? Richard Avery (talk) 08:08, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

He was most likely referring to a defrosted-then-cooked meal, or anything prepared for your average lunch (i. e. cooked, boiled, fried, baked or whatever suits your tastes) and left to wait for you. I also wouldn't touch this. Most of the stuff you described (like eggs or fruit) can of course be left lying about without harm for a certaim time, however I keep most of these things in the fridge. --Ouro (blah blah) 10:21, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It all depends on the person, I can eat things that make other peiople very sick like spoiled fish, stomach of iron i guess. But it does depend on the individual, I sujest eating some, than giving it an hour or so, if you feel okay, eat it all mmm good luck. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 12.191.136.2 (talk) 12:50, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Ouro is correct. Food safety#Basic practices --S.dedalus (talk) 22:45, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, if anyone is interested in the result: I went back to the supermarket and bought the same pizza again. · AndonicO ^Hail! 23:18, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

February 1

Lost my iPod

I lost my 16GB iPod touch a few weeks ago. Is there anyway I can recover it? Like if the person who found/stole it access the internet with it, is there any can locate them or something? I know the serial number of my iPod too, so could I contact Apple and get them to locate it for me or something? I live in Canada bt the way.. THanks! 71.18.216.110 (talk) 00:31, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I wish you luck, but I'm not over-hopeful. The following couple of links might give you a better idea of the territory you are in: Google: "finding lost ipod" How to Find a Lost Ipod. --Tagishsimon (talk) 02:15, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Federal Refund Checks

If and when we get those federal tax rebate checks later this year, will they have to be reported as income on next years taxes? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.210.143.173 (talk) 03:20, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

No. A tax rebate is not income. --Tagishsimon (talk) 03:27, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The Senate version of the rebate promises to give $500 to everybody who earned at least $3000 from Social Security, whether they had to file taxes or not. Since that wouldn't be a tax rebate, would it be income? Corvus cornix_talk 04:01, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

According to the very compelling publication Automatic Fiscal Policies to Combat Recessions by Laurence S. Seidman [23], the IRS letter which accompanied the last of these rebates included a sentence "You will not be required to report the amount as taxable income." I'm guessing the same will pertain this time around - it looks as if some non tax payers were included in that last round. --Tagishsimon (talk) 04:14, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

True Magazene

I have been left a collection of True Magazene from my father and wondered if they were worth anything and if so to who. It starts with one from 1938 I believe and then skips a lot of yrs to 1949 or so and just about every one after that up to the 1970s. I want to say it goes to 1975 but would have to dig them out to see for sure. Some of them are in good condition considering and some are pretty rough. I remember him getting them in the mail and he would kill me for touching them without his permission, but I would sneak around and read them later on when I was old enough to appreciate them. I liked the articles for the most part but after all it is a mans magazene. thanks for any info 71.49.11.134 (talk) 04:51, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Best thing is to take them to a shop that sells old newspapers and magazines and see how much you get for them. Also look on eBay and see how much they are going for. I would say it's unlikely you're sitting on a goldmine, though. Rarity value depends on scarcity, and there must have been thousands of copies of this magazine printed, many of which will still be around today (especially the later ones). --Richardrj ^talk ^email 06:30, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Something that can often be done with magazines which are still published is check the classified ads at the back of a recent issue. Some magazines, such as Private Eye, are popularly collected, and people advertise which issues they have, or want, in the classified ads. 130.88.140.119 (talk) 13:36, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Just by flipping to our article (True (magazine)), it looks to me like the January 1950 issue might have some degree of worth, at least in UFO circles. Matt Deres (talk) 21:16, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Sunflower seeds harmful?

aRE SUNFLOWER SEED SHELLS HARMFUL TO CHILDREN? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.48.36.123 (talk) 07:07, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It depends in which context and the age of the child. If a child has swallowed some sunflower seed shells then they are harmless. The seed shells don't contain any poisonous substances. They will probably pass through the child unaltered because they are a woody material that humans are unable to properly digest. For a very small child sunflower seed shells could be dangerous if inhaled. Richard Avery (talk) 07:56, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The Reference Desk cannot give medical advice. If you are in any doubt, please see a doctor or contact your local Poison control center (in the US, call (800) 222-1222). Bovlb (talk) 08:55, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

may 2nd again

i had a few days ago inquired on a question about may 2nd.i changed the world as we know itand may 2nd is my day?what is it and why? i was directed to an article on all events that occurred on may 2nd.the only relevant one was the fall of the Berlin wall.so did the world war end on may the 2nd or what.coz i thot the fall of the Berlin wall marked the end of the world war. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.49.84.64 (talk) 07:15, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You don't mean the fall of the Berlin Wall, which divided Berlin into two parts from 1961 to 1989. That event was related to the end of the Cold War. What you mean is the fall of Berlin in the Battle of Berlin during World War II. That was May 2, 1945. There were still some German armies left after that, but they surrendered a few days later on May 8, ending the European part of the war. However, the Japanese part of the war continued until August 1945. --Anonymous, 07:50 UTC, February 1, 2008.

My bro was born on the 1st of may so by the 2nd my world had certainly changedPerry-mankster (talk) 23:10, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Legal?

In the UK, is it legal for a gas company to break into your house to read a gas meter? Seraphim ^Whipp 11:31, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Ironically enough, a meter reader has just come to my house. I asked him the above question, and he said that only with certain permits, and only after following a number of stages, can a gas company legally break in. Seraphim ^Whipp 11:59, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Coincidence doesn't necessarily amount to irony.--The Fat Man Who Never Came Back (talk) 15:55, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The Reference Desk cannot give legal advice. You may want to consult a solicitor or your local Citizens Advice Bureau. It is possible that either you or a previous owner has granted the gas board an irrevocable right of entry or easement. Bovlb (talk) 15:56, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Asking whether something is legal is not necessarily asking for legal advice. --24.147.69.31 (talk) 16:12, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Indeed, but it's not the asking that's problematic so much as the answering. IANAL. TINLA. Bovlb (talk) 16:25, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Exactly. If one of our wikipedians were to make a mistake and answer incorrectly, the person could get into some serious trouble for just taking some legal advice from us. This could result in a lot of unnecessary chaos that could've been avoided.--Dlo2012 (talk) 16:42, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

He already answered the question himself so the point is moot. 64.236.121.129 (talk) 17:21, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'm a she! :) Seraphim ^Whipp 17:29, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Answering incorrectly about whether it is legal for a company to do something is not going to get anyone in trouble. It's not the same thing as someone saying, "Oh, should I just push my neighbor's car out of my driveway?" and then doing it. Don't mistake asking about laws with asking for legal advice. They're not the same thing at all. The questioner was clearly not asking for legal consultation. We can give all sorts of answers regarding laws on the books, common interpretations of rulings, and so forth. We do it every day on all aspects of the encyclopedia—think of all of the legal issues involved in properly tagging photographs! Just because it is legal doesn't make it off-base; it's only a problem if we are advising someone in how to handle their own personal affairs. --24.147.69.31 (talk) 17:25, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

As 24.147.69.31 says, I wasn't enquiring to take action; it was purely a whimsical wondering. Seraphim ^Whipp 17:29, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The prohibition on giving legal advice is important, but I can't see that it actually affected whether your question was answered, so I'm not sure what we're discussing here. Bovlb (talk) 21:17, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, but only after some serious LEGAL shit has happened, sue me if i'm wrong - the previous answer is not a legally binding response and should not be taken as such, mankster, perry does not represent wikipedia and is in fact a burnt out acid case, man - i work in a local social work dept and have to work with various companies along side 'service users' whom sometimes don't pay ther bills —Preceding unsigned comment added by Perry-mankster (talk • contribs) 23:21, 1 February 2008 (UTC) oopsPerry-mankster (talk) 23:23, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It is my understanding that the gas company have a statutory right of entry if there is, say, a suspected gas leak. They cannot enter for reasons such as collecing outstanding payments. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.41.139.85 (talk) 23:57, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Mastodon

In Moby Dick, who wins the whale or the man? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 12.191.136.2 (talk) 13:29, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Sounds a tad homework-y, but I'll say Herman Melville wins in the end. 206.252.74.48 (talk) 14:15, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Try page 214, if you're desperate. Richard Avery (talk) 15:48, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

A fox chases a rabbit. If the rabbit wins, the fox loses only one meal, but if the fox wins, the rabbit loses its entire life. This disparity is the problem in deciding what it means for the man or the whale to "win". You can read the last few paragraphs here, but they won't tell you who won without reading the whole book. --Sean 16:57, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Have you read our article on Moby-Dick? The plot summary tells you what happens. As for Mastodon, that's a very different animal.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 17:13, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The heading is in reference to the band Mastodon and their album Leviathan, which is based on Moby Dick. --Joelmills (talk) 03:48, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Crappy old movie filter effects

Why is it that every single "old movie" filter effect I have ever seen looks like total fake shit? How hard can it be to simulate some changing in light etc., instead of simply making it black and white with some random lines at random frames? This pisses me off. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.50.29 (talk) 14:00, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Perhaps the point is not to make it look real but to make it obvious. —Tamfang (talk) 16:24, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

superbowl gambling

How much, in total, will be spent gambling on the 2008 Superbowl? How much, in total, was spent gambling on the 2007 superbowl? I am at school and cannot access gambling sites, but I need this number for a class.

Thanks --Omnipotence407 (talk) 14:03, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

CBS suggests "Americans will throw down more than a half a billion dollars on the [2008] game (legally and otherwise)." [24] ESPN agrees, noting that "more than $400 million dollars will be gambled on Internet sites this year... [and] an estimated $100 million will be wagered in Sin City." [25] The Morning Sentinel cites "one gambling expert" estimating that $8 billion was wagered on the 2007 Super Bowl. [26] Thats seems pretty high compared to the other sources, but may be a global figure, while the other appear to refer to Americans specifically. Rockpocket 20:01, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

significance of flags outside hotels or inns

rows of colourful flags are seen outside hotels and resorts or a potentail site for their construction, varying in number and color..are they jst a gimmic or do they signify something? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.168.61.182 (talk) 14:13, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

They're a gimmick which signifies that the hotel appreciates that travellers from foreign lands may be customers. --Tagishsimon (talk) 14:47, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You might guess that if you see a eg spanish flag outside they will have staff who speak spanish etc (or maybe not)87.102.12.64 (talk) 15:07, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You might be encouraging rash & wrong guesses. --Tagishsimon (talk) 15:20, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Actually, I think this question may be about those small triangle-shaped flags tied in a row, which I also see at many car dealerships. I believe they are simply for decoration. 206.252.74.48 (talk) 15:57, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Perhaps. I think such strings of pennants would be called bunting ... not something I'd associate with a hotel I'd care to stay in, but as in most things, YMMV. I'm thinking in terms of flags on poles, fwiw. --Tagishsimon (talk) 16:04, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What is the point of Coke Zero?

As far as I can tell, Coke Zero is 100% identical to Coke Light but in a different can and targetted towards young, retarded males (judging by the commercials).

What does "full taste" mean? It sure as hell doesn't taste anything even remotely in the same universe as original Coke, so is that a plain old lie? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.50.29 (talk) 18:48, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

A glance at the Coca-Cola Zero article, peppered with some original research of my own, has led me to conclude that Coke Zero is a (destined-to-be-short-lived) marketing ploy targeted toward males (mostly, but not necessarily young and "retarded) who find the idea of Diet Coke distasteful. These males believe that diets are for girls and that Diet Coke tastes palpably inferior to regular Coke (a premise which the TFMWNCB rejects). Naturally, these males must be convinced that there is a less-girly alternative that purportedly tastes exactly like regular Coke but has no calories. That's the idea, anyway.--The Fat Man Who Never Came Back (talk) 19:00, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well diet-coke and coke-zero taste different. The idea (as i understand it) is that coke-zero is the same flavour as coke, unlikely diet-coke which, lets be honest, tastes awful. ny156uk (talk) 19:01, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Additionally, Coke Zero is likely a late response to Pepsi ONE, which contains the same type of artificial sweetener.--The Fat Man Who Never Came Back (talk) 19:10, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

From what I can tell from the articles, the both use aspartame as sweetener. Some people don't mind it, but some people find that it tastes bad. If you're noticing a bad, un-Coke-like taste, that may be it. I like Coke quite a bit, but I don't like drinks with aspartame- I'd rather just drink water, which is less interesting but doesn't taste bad. Friday (talk) 19:11, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Diet soft drinks have always contained aspartame. But newfangled diet sodas such as Coke Zero and Pepsi ONE also contain Ace-K. That's what I was referring to.--The Fat Man Who Never Came Back (talk) 19:14, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Always is a long time. Aspartame wasn't approved for use in carbonated beverages until 1983. Prior to that, drinks such as Tab and Diet Rite used cyclamate and then saccharine. --LarryMac | Talk 21:44, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Indeed, Diet Coke was marketed as the first diet soft drink that (to Coke lovers) was good enough to include the word Coke in its name, and that was because aspartame was now available whereas its predecessor, Tab, had had to use other sweeteners. --Anonymous, 00:02 UTC, 2008-02-02.

From what I see, Diet/Light Coke has no (real) sugar, Coke Zero has no sugar and no calories. That also means that Coke Zero is about as unnatural as a drink can get. What hath we wrought? 206.252.74.48 (talk) 19:16, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

errr... water. Zero calories. Zero sugar. All natural. 161.222.160.8 (talk) 00:05, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What I meant was that in order to have a soda with no sugar and no calories that (in theory) tastes exactly like the original soda you would have to load it up with chemicals. 206.252.74.48 (talk) 14:23, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

And then there's Diet Coke Plus ... Corvus cornix_talk 23:15, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Coke zero does not get you high, (i know cheap laugh, i'm sorry)...Perry-mankster (talk) 23:27, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I always assumed the point of Coke Zero was to be the coke equivalent of Pepsi Max. That is, a low/no calorie cola that is not viewed as girly, and thus is acceptable for men to buy and drink. The slight flaw in this, I feel, is that Pepsi Max is very tasty in its own right and Coke Zero just taste almost like Coca-Cola. That, and the ad campaign for Coke Zero is awful. Pepsi Max managed to sell itself as tasty first, low calorie second, which I suppose is what Coke did with Diet Coke, but Pepsi didn't feminise their campaign. And all of this is an example of market segmentation, which we probably have an article about. Rather than trying to produce one product that will do for everyone, it can be more profitable to target a market segment with something closer to what they want. Spaghetti sauce is, I believe, a favourite example of this. Some people want chunky sauce, some prefer smooth, and you'll please more customers and sell more sauce if you target different sauces to the different groups, rather than selling one semi-chunky sauce. Skittle (talk) 16:30, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well duh, Market segment. Not a particularly good article though. Anyway, Coke Zero is supposed to taste closer to Coke than Diet Coke does, and uses a different sweetener, and is not viewed as girly. Pepsi Max is a lovely drink that is tastier than normal Pepsi and is not viewed as girly. Coke Zero is still being sold, so I assume the tactic worked, but I personally see much more point in Pepsi Max :) Skittle (talk) 16:39, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I like Coke Blāk better, myself, but it's pretty expensive. Corvus cornix_talk 21:46, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What is paper shredder oil?

Having searched from Google to Wikipedia to try and understand exactly what paper shredder oil is made of I have come up empty. If anyone knows and will share the specification or maybe how to make some at home.

Jim78418 (talk) 19:07, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I believe it's just a light machine oil. --Carnildo (talk) 20:48, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

My manual recommended using vegetable oil. I don't think that is a good idea, since it will go rancid and start smelling. The benefit of store-bought oils is that they come in a bottle that makes is easy to apply. --Mdwyer (talk) 00:02, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I appreciate the feedback. I was thinking about using 3 in 1 oil as it is good quality and light. Not sure if it's cheaper than buying the stuff they have in the store. Seems to me you can take a cheap something, put a name on it and then sell it for much more than it's worth. Since I couldn't find anything on the internet about it I start to wonder what it really made from.

Jim78418 (talk) 00:29, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

WD40 lubricates everything.--Johnluckie (talk) 07:42, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Not quite everything.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 08:26, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

*facepalm* Is that a refrence to sexual lubricants? For the record though looking at the article on wd 40 it wouldn't be a good choice as i think the petroleum in it would dissolve latex condoms. Cryo921 (talk) 03:37, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Eating/drinking with headphones -- different taste?

When I eat or drink something while listening to music or something in headphones, the taste seems less distinctive and more vague. Is this all just in my head? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.50.29 (talk) 19:18, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Since the organs of taste, smell and hearing, along with the processing apparatus for same, are all in your head, I'd have to assume so. Algebraist 22:31, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I honestly cannot think of any reason why things would taste different when you're listening to music on headphones, so it probably is just all in your head. Maybe you're not paying as much attention to the taste because you're listening to music. Cryo921 (talk) 03:59, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

There has been some research done into the phenomenon which relates the lack of being able to hear a food's crispness to a modification in the taste sense of a food being 'stale' or less flavoursome. See [27] and [28] [29] including the quote - "Dr Charles Spence, at Oxford University, asked volunteers to munch on crisps in a booth while they listened to an amplified sound of themselves through headphones. By changing the tone of the crunch as heard through the headphones, Spence fooled the volunteers into thinking the crisps were soggier or crisper than they were." with more at [30]. Foxhill (talk) 04:15, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Could this be a manifestation of synesthesia? − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 06:51, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The Big Tall Wish

I just watched The Big Tall Wish. I expected the Wikipedia article to say something about "magic negros", but it does not. Instead it praises the episode. Hmm. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.50.29 (talk) 19:27, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What specific criticism of the episode were you expecting, and do you know of any published sources that voice this criticism? (Alternatively, what sort of bias are you accusing the article of?) If you have something to say then just say it, innuendo is just pointless.

(In any case, Ref Desk is not the best place to ask for an article to be fixed.) APL (talk) 21:33, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Don't "magic negroes" generally direct their magic towards (usually authoritarian) white people? As The Big Tall Wish contains an all black cast, if the article is correct, this rules it out of inclusion in the category. 81.159.218.124 (talk) 21:36, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

'Ethical' Behaviour?

In my younger days before iTunes Music Store existed I would download songs from Napster - I came to use it as a bit of a 'radio' station, trying just about anything. As a result I have extremely diverse taste and a rack full of CDs i've purchased of artists i've found. At the time I felt 'justified' because no 'download single song' service appeared to exist. This all changed with the introduction of the music store and I have not used any free-download services since. Now this is reasonably questionable ethically speaking (there always existed legally importable CDs to get my music etc.) but I wondered if anybody else experienced similar ethical policy? Additionally I am, to an extent, in the same boat with some tv series. I will happily buy them on DVD but some shows are 'region 1' only and my dvd player is not region-free (nor do I wish to make it so). As a result i'm stuck unable to get all the series on DVD but still want to 'watch' the shows (oh and they're not on UK Satellite tv currently). Again does anybody else get this un-ethical ethical dilemma? Oh and I don't want legal advice just wondered about the ethics and would like input from fellow well-rounded people like yourselves. ny156uk (talk) 20:11, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

So you're looking for an answer on ethics? I wouldn't be able to direct you to any article or references regarding ethics of this nature, but I can throw some ideas around. The problem is the law; in many cases the law is designed around ethics, but ethics and law still remain two separate (although sometimes overlapping) systems. It is entirely possible to have laws that conflict with your ethical system - some examples for some people include laws that hamper freedom of speech, freedom of thought, equality. Already such laws exist, covering Affirmative Action, or possession or distribution of pornography of minors even if they are computer generated or in written/story form. In some religious countries there are laws against homosexuality - often citing religion as the moral or perhaps ethical compass. Again you can usually use ethical models to justify the laws, again you have ethical models that opposes them.

But at the end of the day, why consider breaking the law? Laws will usually supercede ethics and morals. It's because you're not afraid of getting caught. All you have left is your ethical and moral compass. And you're right: the people that usually get caught and punished for copyright violations are those that are the biggest violaters, for example people with accounts on p2p programs that have thousands of files and share these files for many hours a day - or people that make money from it, like people that make pirated DVDs and CDs and sell them illegally. The average p2p user violates copyright laws often but simply doesn't get detected, and even when they are, the big corporations don't waste their time going through the arduous process of forcing them to stop, reporting them to the police, or seeking damages.

So your ethical quandry is more about whether you can violate copyright on a small scale in the unlikelihood of ever getting caught. In an ethical system with millions of people doing this every day, you know the answer: it is going to affect the industry (it already has). Even in cases where you have no access to the DVD for your region, or a single song when only full albums are available, on a large scale you are costing the artists and companies millions and billions of dollars. The ultimate result is these things become more expensive, to justify the efforts of producing them, and as a result less gets produced (although in my opinion there is already an overproduction of music and media content - but small artists do get affected)

One common ethical excuse is "I wouldn't have paid for it anyway, even if I had the money or it was easily available". This is usually a lie because how else do you justify downloading it anyway?

Copyright laws do make some room for research and education purposes, but these are generally legal definitions.

There is yet another ethical excuse: "I simply can't afford it". This is less likely if you can afford an internet connection that can handle the kind of bandwidth needed to leech pirated content off the net. But the user is protesting that even if it was easily available, even if I was offered only the songs I want, or the DVD in the region I want, I wouldn't be able to justify the expense. No doubt, this type of excuse doesn't hold up to the law; copyright violation is copyright violation, but at least no artists are getting harmed, and in a way, you may be assisting the popularity of those artists or of the copyrighted material because you will probably go on to talk about it and it becomes part of popular culture.

But let's make one thing clear: even such an ethical excuse (the lack of money) cannot be successfully or feasibly tested by the courts. It's for this reason that such an ethical excuse doesn't hold up to the law.

At the end of the day it seems there is no real ethical justification for violating copyright law.

Good luck, and I hope that shed some light

Rfwoolf (talk) 13:01, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'd question your reasoning on several points there, Rfwoolf.

Firstly, if you're talking about ethics rather than legality, whether "such an ethical excuse [would] hold up to the law" is irrelevent. Illegal acts can still be ethical (and vice versa, of course).
Secondly, even accepting that piracy as a whole has a detrimental effect (which I'm not sure I do), a) why does that mean that *I* shouldn't do it, given that other people are going to do it whether I do or not, and b) do I care - how high on my ethical agenda are the profits of music producers?
Thirdly, your counterargument to "I wouldn't have paid for it anyway" ("This is usually a lie") seems like a big bullet to bite, and I'd take a lot of convincing that your average illegal downloader would have paid for more than a tiny fraction of their downloaded collection had the free option not been available. FiggyBee (talk) 13:47, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

First - I covered that in the first part of my post

Second - that's precisely what ethics is all about "If everyone did 'x' what kind of world would we live in" or "if everyone behaved in such a way, if I was at the receiving end of the behaviour, would I endorse the behaviour?"

Third - I don't follow what you're saying. What I was saying is that it is really odd that someone will think themselves justified in not paying for something because they wouldn't have paid for it even if they had the money or opportunity. It's basically saying they would have stolen something even if they could have obtained it without stealing.

Rfwoolf (talk) 14:34, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What is it that the pirate-who-wouldn't-have-paid-anyway has actually stolen? FiggyBee (talk) 15:28, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Ethically, you must consider not only the consequences of your own actions, but also the consequences of your actions on others. Although you are not downloading wholesale, are you implicitly supporting a means of others who are misusing the program? You may use it as a springboard for finding new tastes, etc., but others are not necessarily doing so. Steewi (talk) 01:30, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

mary jane research question

Medical question removed. See the marijuana article for a general overview, but the Ref Desk is not suitable for providing specific effects and symptoms of marijuana doses. — Lomn 22:41, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

what is the name of this building?

http://web.mit.edu/facilities/photos/construction/Projects/stata/1_large.jpg —Preceding unsigned comment added by Dreftymac (talk • contribs) 23:52, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Stata Center. --24.147.69.31 (talk) 23:56, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yep. Here's the web page that that image is used on. --Anon, 00:05 UTC, 2008-02-02

February 2

Is there a unique kind of paper?

Just wondering, is there some kind of paper to write on that is clear and see-through so you can put it on something like a TV screen and trace with a pen or pencil? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Sirdrink13309622 (talk • contribs) 01:43, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

yes. Tracing paper. You can buy it from specialist supply shops for artists, architects and designers. Check your local yellow pages or ask at a university book shop. Gwinva (talk) 01:53, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Tracing paper is not totally clear, but it's clear enough that you can trace anything with fairly high contrast. If you need something still more transparent, you could use a plastic sheet such as the "foils" for an overhead projector and write on it with a fine-pointed marker. --Anonymous, 02:02:08 UTC, 2008-02-02.

Or, for nostalgia or giggle value, use an authentic Winky Dink screen tracing kit. —Steve Summit (talk) 03:52, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Waxed paper and a permanent marker may do in a pinch.

Atlant (talk) 17:46, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Oh, man, I had a Winky Dink kit when I was little! :) Corvus cornix_talk 21:52, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What is the point of the stock market?

If I had a big company, I would never want people having shares and getting money that I could have. What is the purpose of stocks? They pay a tiny ONE-TIME fee and get percentage of the profits for eternity? Insanity.

Also, what determines the stock value of a company? I don't get it. A magical number that changes somehow. And why do people scream a lot in stock exchange places? Sounds like a real mess and exactly the place where I would not want to be. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.50.29 (talk) 02:41, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Stock is used by a company to raise capital. Say you had a company and needed to build a factory. You could issue stock, selling part ownership and rights to future earnings in exchange for capital now. Alternatively you could borrow the money; determining which is the prudent decision is the subject of corporate finance.

Paying dividends on stock is not insanity. If you were to offer me $100 today in exchange for a dollar a year for the rest of time, I would certainly take it, since the dollar I pay you 74 years from now is worth very little today (another concept in finance, called an Annuity (financial contracts)).

A stock is worth exactly what somebody will pay you for it, just like anything else. That's how the market prices you see in the newspaper or on a financial website are determined. But its value is really the present value of all of the future dividends that stock will pay. Of course this is not known precisely ahead of time, which accounts for stock prices fluctuating.

The article on the stock market covers why people are yelling at the stock exchange itself.

anonymous6494 05:20, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Fixed your link. --Anon, 07:15, 2008-02-02.

What I don't understand about the stock market. The owner must give away control of the company for eternity just so capital can be raised one time only? 66.91.224.203 (talk) 14:14, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The owner is selling part-shares in his/her company. Selling things tends to be permanent. Algebraist 14:23, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The owner isn't selling to make money. The money is supposed to be for the business? So again how can the owner accept such a high cost of essentially getting financing? Losing total control of the company forever. Lotsofissues 14:40, 2 February 2008 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lotsofissues (talk • contribs)

Look at it this way ... You want to start a factory, but have only half the required money. So you team up with your friend who provides the remaining half, and you both share ownership. It's a win-win situation for both. The end objective is making money. In this case, there would be no factory in the first place had the first person insisted on sole ownership of the factory. ReluctantPhilosopher (talk) 16:21, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

And the answer to Loi's question is that often they don't. Becoming a public company is not appropriate for every business, and there are a lot of companies - including quite big ones - that are not traded on stock exchanges. FiggyBee (talk) 16:41, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Let's answer the original poster's questions in order:

1. What is the purpose of stocks?

A company sells part ownership of itself to raise money.

2. They pay a tiny ONE-TIME fee and get percentage of the profits for eternity? Insanity.

Not really. First of all, stocks don't give investors "percentage of the profits." A minority of stocks provide a dividend to shareholders, which is set ahead of time as a given amount of cash per share. It does not automatically fluctuate based on the company's profits, although a company can lower or eliminate the dividend if it starts losing money. A typical dividend yield nowadays is about 2.5% per year. That's far less than the company would pay if it were to raise money through debt financing like corporate bonds.

3. What determines the stock value of a company?

The same thing that determines the value of apples or oil or anything: supply and demand. Sure, there are many methods used to determine the proper valuation of a company. Those methods incorporate things like book value, projected earnings, cash flow, and the like. But some people's idea of what a company should be worth differs from others'. If I think the stock price reflects a valuation that is too low, I'll buy the stock. If enough people do so, the price goes up.

4. And why do people scream in a lot of stock exchange places?

Actually, nowadays, most trading is done electronically. The New York Stock Exchange still has a trading floor. Floor trading is basically a form of auctioneering, and people have to yell so they can be heard.

5. The owner must give away control of the company for eternity just so capital can be raised one time only?

A business has to raise money somehow. New businesses may have trouble getting debt financing, such as loans, since they have no track record and may go out of business early. Some companies manage to grow without going public (selling stock on the open market) by raising money from friends, family, venture capitalists and the owners themselves. But the lure of the millions that can be made through an initial public offering can be very strong. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 00:07, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks Mwalcoff for the very clear answers. But I still don't understand why some companies sell stock. Take UPS for instance. It went public years ago when it was already a massive company with probably billions in other forms of financing available to them. Why would they accept loss of total control for ETERNITY for just a ONE-TIME windfall? Lotsofissues 00:28, 3 February 2008 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lotsofissues (talk • contribs)

This New York Times article about UPS should answer your question about that company. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 01:08, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for the link. So before UPS went public, the stock could only be purchased by employees? In that case someone could have started a couple of months beforehand, bought a shit ton, and made bundles? Flaw in the plan? Cause I'm going to be watching for movements in Cargill Lotsofissues 03:57, 3 February 2008 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lotsofissues (talk • contribs)

You don't have to change employers to get pre-IPO ownership of a company. One trick some people use is to open an account in a mutually owned savings & loan. If the S&L opts to go public, the account-holders, who are technically the owners of the S&L, get first crack at the IPO and get to buy shares for a low price. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 04:32, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

To put the question in another light: Suppose you own 10 % of the stock of a company. Why would you ever sell your (partial) ownership of the company when you could hold on to your shares for eternity? Surely this situation is comparable to that of the founder of the company before the IPO. Some people do hold their shares for a long time but every day millions of people sell their partial ownership of one company of another. The market is free - the seller asks for as much money as they think the share is worth today, and the buyer can either take it or leave it (or vice versa). Perhaps the crux of the issue is the present value of future earnings. Uncertain income far in the future is not worth much today, since few of us can count on living forever. 84.239.133.86 (talk) 09:36, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

There are three reasons to sell shares:

You need money.
You think the shares are overvalued and may go down in price.
Some combination of the two.

Holding on to the shares for eternity is pointless unless the company issues dividends to shareholders or you have some kind of personal connection to the company. A share is just a piece of paper; it doesn't get you a dime until you sell it. (Except for dividends, of course.) -- Mwalcoff (talk) 14:48, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Can I put my thoughts on to Wikipedia?

What I meant was could I put some information on to Wikipedia?

Signed, Catapult-1423 —Preceding unsigned comment added by Catapult-1423 (talk • contribs) 02:48, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You can put most anything you want on your user page (although there are limits). I see you've registered a user name, but have not yet created your own user page. Maybe that's the next step, as the most appropriate repository for your thoughts. -- JackofOz (talk) 03:32, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

As for actual articles, any relevant information you want to put on must be sourced. Paragon12321 (talk) 03:36, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

That's not quite true...it's certainly nice if it's sourced, but it really only needs to be verifiable. -Elmer Clark (talk) 17:28, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If it isn't sourced, it's likely to get a "citation needed" tag and then a deletion down the road. Corvus cornix_talk 21:48, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Latin auto-translator

Where is an automatic translator (like AltaVista BabelFish) that can translate English-to-Latin and Latin-to-English? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.220.211.235 (talk) 02:53, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Latin, unlike english, is a heavily inflected language - the form that words take depends a lot on their role in the sentence and other context. So an automatic translator that was anything near accurate would be very difficult to construct. If you want a general english-latin dictionary, I can recommend William Whitaker's Words, but you'll need some knowledge of latin grammar to be able to make meaningful sentences, or to make sense of translated latin. FiggyBee (talk) 03:33, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Over at the Latin Wikipedia they have something called a Taberna - a place where Wikipedians hang out of sorts - if you ask nicely they will probably be able to help you. Cheers, Ouro (blah blah) 07:21, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

As la:Vicipaedia:Latinitas says,

Cum lingua Latina haud facilis sit, machinae interpretes commentationes aliis ex linguis in Latinam convertere nequeunt.

or, "As the Latin language is hardly easy, machine translators cannot translate text from other languages into Latin." —Keenan Pepper 15:25, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Russian is also a highly-inflected language, at least as much as Latin, but both Babelfish and Google have English-Russian options. I don't remember enough Russian to know how well they work. AndrewWTaylor (talk) 16:06, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

For Latin-English, Babelfish-style translation can be useful, although the output may be a little difficult to understand (you need to fiddle with it to make it sound right). For English to Latin, you have the same problem, except that as an English speaker, you don't know how to fiddle it to make it into good Latin, so it will be, essentially, wrong. So if you want to do Latin to English, I think there are some that will do it, but English to Latin is probably something you would need a human to help with. Steewi (talk) 01:35, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Jumping into Sulfuric Acid

Recently, I came across this excerpt from [[31]]:

A physician we interviewed recounts the story of a laborer in Africa who worked around vats of sulfuric acid --one of the most caustic forms of acid. The man fell in one day. He quickly leapt out, but was covered in sulfuric acid, which immediately began to burn him chemically. In a panic and excruciating pain, the man ran outside. By the time his coworkers caught up to him, the man had essentially dissolved.

Suppose the vat of sulfuric acid is 100% concentrated, how long really does it take sulfuric acid to kill and completely dissolve a human? I'm guessing it would take hours or days, but the article seems to imply that it is instant. Is it correct? Acceptable (talk) 04:09, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not sure about how fast you would die, but from my understanding, sulphuric acid will do two things to you: denature the proteins in your body, making the damage irreparable, and react with the water in your body to create very, very severe burns and dehydration. I doubt the veracity of the story, but needless to say, falling into sulphuric acid will definitely screw you up big time. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Bibliomaniac15 (talk • contribs) 04:17, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I must point to WP:BEANS here-we do not take responsibility if you decide to jump into a vat of sulfuric acid to see what happens and dissolve.We may award you an honorary Darwin Award Barnstar though... Lemon martini (talk) 13:36, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Save your self the trouble of experimenting; watch the end of Robocop where Emil (Paul McCrane) drives the van into the vat of "hazardous waste" and then dissolves before our eyes. Extrapolate from that. It's probably close enough.

Atlant (talk) 17:54, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 06:42, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

A dental materials company I worked for had vats of acid (Type unknown) As were were young and stupid it was a challenge to dip your finger in. Method. Dip in tip, withdraw, wave around wipe on rag. Feel tough but stupid. The acid was slightly gelled and by being quick with the rage we didnt feel burning. Paul. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.86.166.234 (talk) 19:47, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I literate ?

why does art and design student study literature? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 218.111.50.206 (talk) 06:34, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Good question. Ah, so your words will impress clients in the same way your beautiful designs will. It's weird but how well you write or express yourself gets respect... or not. The more reading and writing you do, the better you can communicate and that counts in the final product. Just my opinion (and experience) ; ) Julia Rossi (talk) 11:26, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Nomenclature and an ability to express and explain the complexity of the theory of your study is of course important. Do you study art and design yourself, 218? 81.93.102.185 (talk) 23:14, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hi, 218.111. Words are the prime tool we all use in conscious communication, listening and talking. You may be able to function quite efficiently, even if you had never heard of Mozart or Leonardo, of Christo or the Bauhaus.

If, however, your language skills are inadequate, then your cognitive skills of analysis and synthesis will be affected as, after all, you partly think in words and you certainly mainly speak in - and listen to - words.

A designer - be it architecture, stage, automotive or advertising - will have to translate his or her concepts into natural language to communicate, to sell these design ideas better. If you feel strongly about an avant-gardish design (the Sydney Opera House, the Guggenheim in Bilbao or the stunning oevre of Calatrava come to mind) then the realisation of such a project may stand (or fall) with your verbal skills in the presentation of your plans.

Also bear in mind, that in the course of your studies you may have to analyse the design work of the great masters of the past. If you write an assignment on, say, the Wassily Chair, you will work with the single tool of language to "paint" the image of this item of furniture in the imagination of the reader. Ideally, the reader, knowing nothing of Breuer, will "see" what this object looks like and what it says.

Literature is a process to encode concepts into a long string of small black letters which reproduce these concepts in the mind of the reader. Design is a process to embed these same concepts in concrete or steel or glass or music or oils and pigment or whatever. As a designer, you will have to "speak" this language of shapes, of light and shadow, of texture and proportions, of materials and harmony.

The only difference to literature is the language chosen.--Cookatoo.ergo.ZooM (talk) 00:56, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Another thought is that writing is a skill, and expression is a skill and studying literature helps with these but the other thing is, study of literature exposes the design student to a world of references they'll use in creating solutions to design projects. It really gives the student a range of symbols, quotes, cultural knowledge and content. When you look at ads, a lot of them refer to things people know about already. Literature can get you connected to this material and much more. Studying other creatives and thinkers only helps you develop in your field. You can be a designer, but knowledge of literature raises the standard and the scope for you. For what it's worth, Julia Rossi (talk) 06:29, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hay

How many square bales of hay can you get of an acre? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.119.61.7 (talk) 17:48, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

if you stack them on top of each other, id imagine you could get alot —Preceding unsigned comment added by 128.101.53.138 (talk) 19:53, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The amount of hay produced on an acre of land will depend on a number of variables including environmental conditions. Additionally, the number of bales will depend on the type of hay baler - the size of each bale, it's compaction etc. will vary depending on the make of the baler. The article on balers suggests that a square baler will produce bales weighing 20-25 kg (although this type of baler is less common than the rectangular baler, which may come in different sizes). A quick Google search suggests that 2 tonnes of dry hay per acre would be reasonable, which would make around 80 25kg bales. If you're interested in calculating a more exact figure, there is an equation which may help. --Kateshort forbob 01:24, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Slaughterhouses

In what way do they kill animals in a slaughterhouses? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.119.61.7 (talk) 17:50, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It varies, but according to slaughterhouse a knockout electric shock followed by exsanguination is typical. Algebraist 17:55, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

(ec) You may find our article on Slaughterhouses informative. Cattle are usually stunned/knocked unconscious/have their brains scrambled by a Captive bolt pistol and are then bled to death. It is assumed that the animal feels no pain as it isn't conscious. Chickens and other birds are stunned by hanging them upside down and then either putting an electrode in their mouth to knock them unconscious or by dipping them in a trough of water with a current running through it (in mechanised slaughterhouses). They are then either bled from the mouth using a scalpel or (in mechanised) decapitated to bleed out. 86.21.74.40 (talk) 17:58, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Eww. Bellum et Pax (talk) 05:55, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well it's better than this very disgusting PETA propaganda video. I'm glad that's not how animals are usually slaughtered. NOTE: Don't watch the video if you have a weak stomach, don't have Quick Time installed, or very much like eating steak. The video is small though so at least one isn't exposed to the full details. --Emery (talk) 07:41, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Or Meet your Meat, another very disgusting PETA propaganda video. I'd like to apologize for posting links to those two videos. --Emery (talk) 07:41, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

For the sake of balance here is something anti PETA [[32]](warning bad language). Cryo921 (talk) 09:34, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

My father and grandfather were licensed slaughtermen in Winchester, England. Until the 1920s the standard method for beef was to encourage the animal into a chute, then drop a trap across its neck. Then using a pollaxe the slaughterman hit the animal between the eyes, killing instantly. The axe had like a tube an inch across on one side to kill and a standard blade on the other to cut up the carcass. (Awful, wasn't it!) The animals, I am told, sensed death and the whole process was grusome and cruel by our standards. In the 1920s the axe was replaced by a "humane killer" - a type of gun that shot a bolt into the animal's forehead. Rabbits and chickens were killed by being held by the hind feet and then their necks stretched and broken by the other hand.90.4.247.4 (talk) 11:08, 3 February 2008 (UTC)petitmichel[reply]

Speaking as a conscientious meat-eater: my impression of factory farming is that the actual killing is the least cruel part (no doubt since it gets the most press). I don't think it matters much what an animal's last moments are like as compared to depriving it of any natural experiences for its whole existence. I think it would be much kinder to give an animal a lifetime of fresh air, sunshine, and some dirt to root in and then "cruelly" kill it with a frightful poleaxe than to keep it on concrete and corn rations with a later immaculately "humane" death. --Sean 00:17, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

World Tour

hello,

basically if i were to do a 'world tour' (eg go everywere!, see everything etc) for many years where should i go...any suggestions, are there any websites for this sort of thing, anyone done a similar thing,

thanks, --The world tour (talk) 18:24, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, that would depend on a lot of factors. But generally you'd like to stick to places where your genre of music is popular, and play in major cities (to draw the biggest crowds which leads to bigger profits) of industrialized countries. You probably won't be touring much in third world countries (unless you're doing humanitarian work for good publicity) or countries such as Saudia Arabia and North Korea. You'll get better responses from smarter people in a while; I just gave you a quick response. Cheers --Emery (talk) 18:37, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Oops! Misread the question. xD --Emery (talk) 18:51, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I read this as more of a holiday-tour question rather than music world-tour. If i'm right then sites like (http://www.thetravellerslounge.co.uk/planning/) and http://www.travel-nation.co.uk/roundtheworld/planning/ and http://www.gapyear.com/rtw/ or http://www.travel-library.com/rtw/html/faq.html. Hope you have fun. The places i'd suggest as 'vital' to see on such a tour would be... Tokyo, Sydney, New York, Rio De Janeiro, Paris, Rome and London. ny156uk (talk) 18:44, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Baltimore, Maryland Greatest city in the world. BonesBrigade 18:46, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

1,000 Places to See Before You Die? Clarityfiend (talk) 18:47, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You could travel and travel and still you wouldn't be able to see everything that's worth seeing. So start now. I'm starting soon. --Ouro (blah blah) 11:46, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Dogs

Has Ivan Basso still got his dog Birillo? -- Leptictidium (mammal talk!) 18:49, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Spike Lester vs. Chuck Palumbo

How are Spike Lester and Chuck Palumbo similar and different from each other? Ericthebrainiac (talk) 20:00, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Please stop. --Ouzo (talk) 20:46, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Read both articles and compare for yourself. --Ouro (blah blah) 14:48, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hand powered railway thingie

In films of a certain age, you would often see a couple of people propelling themselves on a railway track on a strange thing thus:

  o--.--o
     ^
 --------
  O    O

where each person would push up and down on the handles.

My question: Did these things exist outside of the realms of silent movies, and if so, was this really an efficient way of moving along the tracks?

Sorry for the ascii picture, but you wouldn't want to see my mspaint attempt at this :) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Situationist (talk • contribs) 20:35, 2 February 2008 (UTC) ````[reply]

See Handcar. Dismas|^(talk) 20:41, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks, didn't know the name and couldn't find it in search Situationist (talk) 20:45, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I've always known them as jiggers. Finding no referenced to this at jigger, a dictionary search has confirmed that is a dialect thing (mainly NZ English). Interestingly, the OED has no reference to "pump trolley", which handcar states is the UK term, but states "hand car" is North American English. So what are they called elswhere in the English-speaking world? Gwinva (talk) 00:37, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry nothing! I'm nominating you for Best Use of ASCII Art in a Reference Desk Question! --Sean 00:20, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Also, I love how in this picture you see that the white guys get to control the brakes, no doubt after some locals did the obvious thing with the local imperialists. :) --Sean 00:25, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The songs featured in Dame Chocolate

What were the songs used that were featured on Dame Chocolate? Ericthebrainiac (talk) 20:59, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

February 3

Why isn't basketball big in Britain?

Except for maybe Scandanavia, the British Isles are the only area of Europe that does not produce great basketball players and competitive teams. Why is this? I can understand why, say, baseball isn't popular--because they play cricket instead. But there's no real sporting equivalent to basketball. Please explain.--The Fat Man Who Never Came Back (talk) 00:23, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

There is netball, which is popular among girls in British schools and Basketball in England claims it is among the second tier of popular sports in the UK. It may simply be because the UK is a small country with a long sporting history. Football, cricket and rugby are such popular sports and had a big head start: all and were played in an organized form for at least 50 years before basketball was introduced in the late 19th century. Rockpocket 01:38, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It helps if there are people 7 feet ( 2.1 meters) tall or so who have the type of muscle tissue useful in fast jumping. Edison (talk) 02:33, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, but statistically speaking any population should have quite a few of those if you are searching for them. (And lest we are tempted to provide some sort of biological explanation, let's remember that Britain is not racially homogenous.) --24.147.69.31 (talk) 03:45, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Indeed; how many people live in, say, Slovenia or Lithuania, compared to Brtiain.....yet those countries seem to churn out basketball players with no problem.--The Fat Man Who Never Came Back (talk) 06:01, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I thought that basket balls were the same size wherever.--Johnluckie (talk) 07:14, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

At my gym basketball is popular but there is no street culture of playing basketball. The reason why is because if the weather is good PE teachers send the kids out to play. If the waether is crap they send the kids out to play. They do not use the gym facilties in case the kids damage or use them up. Thats why we have no gymnasts or trampolinists or other basically indoor and equipment oriented sports. Sad but true. The teachers are tossers. Paul. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.86.166.234 (talk) 19:38, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I sympathize, but at least you still have physical education in your country.--The Fat Man Who Never Came Back (talk) 19:10, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I totally agree with the comment about the head start traditionally british sports have had over basketball it will probably never even come close to catching these sports. I think it is becoming more popular though with the improvement of the national team (now including a few young NBA stars) and i believe it will probably only get bigger with the influx of eastern europeans to britain —Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.150.232.163 (talk) 19:50, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

in a word 'fitba' - {speaking from a scottish veiwpoint} football is played at school, on the streets and watched on the TV, other sports are played {my mates and i played rugby and for one summer, street hockey}, but most kids play football.Perry-mankster (talk) 20:52, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Formula 1 - length of race

Hi, how long in time (hours/minutes) is the average formula 1 race? Do they vary hugely between circuits? ps. I think 'Sports' should be put under one of the categories on the reference desk main page. Boomshanka (talk) 02:45, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

In the 2007 Formula One season the winning times for the first 8 races were (in order of the races run):

1:25:28.770
1:32:14.930
1:33.27.515
1:31:36.230
1:40:29.329
1:44:11.292
1:31:09.965
1:30:54.200

Which seems to suggest that the races are set up to last around 1.5 hours. Rockpocket 03:12, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, 1hr30 -> 1hr 45 is probably usual. Races are limited to 2hrs, and you usually get close to that in the wet, though not quite there. Spa Francorchamps or Monte Carlo are probably the slowest races as they are in turn extremely long and extremely slow. -mattbuck 03:34, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It is worth noting that the length of an F1 grand prix is defined by distance rather than time, so the duration really depends on how fast the distace is completed. This is all regulated in [33], section 5.3. A Grand Prix is 305 km plus the remainder of the lap that completes that distance, unless it's at Monaco where the distance is 260 km. The two hour time limit that Mattbuck mentions is also there, but I can't recall more than maybe once that it has come into play in the last couple of years. /Kriko (talk) 10:48, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Tallest Cricketer

One more for the kids back home; does anyone have any idea who the tallest (international or other) cricketer is/has been? I know Jacob Oram is 1.98m (6ft 6 in)... thanks :1 Boomshanka (talk) 02:48, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Some candidates from the past - Curtly Ambrose, 2.01m (6ft 7in). Joel Garner known as 'Big Bird' stood 2.03m (6 ft 8 in). There was a fairly tall Aussie bowler in the early ninties but I'm not sure if he was taller than these two. Oh and Peter Fulton is pretty tall, he's nicknamed 'Two-metre Peter' but neither our page or cricinfo's gives his height. For a definitive answer you might want to ask the gurus at cricinfo. Lisiate (talk) 23:10, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Two Questions:

Did you know about

The "Killdozer" ? Seen it on the history Channel show Shockwave.
that Mississippi will make it illegal for FAT people to go to resteraunts, incl. burger joints and greasy spoons ? Heard about this on the news.

Did you know about this ? 65.173.105.118 (talk) 03:32, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

We have an article on the Killdozer. Didn't know about the Mississippi law. Cryo921 (talk) 03:43, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Just in case it's not obvious, I'll iterate that a claim such as the Mississippi law would absolutely require appropriate sourcing to be added to an article. I'm quite skeptical of the claim as stated (I'm quite skeptical period), but I could see a case where some state representative has introduced a bill that will never see the light of day, one of thousands such unremarkable events each year. — Lomn 04:47, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Printing USPS customs forms

When completing a united states postal service customs form online do you need a special type of printing paper or can you use regular printer paper. I look at the samples of the customs forms and they are small so i am wondering if i need small paper.--logger (talk) 03:56, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Which for in particular are you referring too? I don't think it will matter unless you need to print it on a label or something. Cryo921 (talk) 04:03, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Form 2976A Thants the one--logger (talk) 04:07, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I think regular paper will work. If not you can always trim off the excess. Cryo921 (talk) 04:19, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

"Travel stickers"

In comic books and sometimes movies you see pack cases/briefcases with tons of stickers on them that say the name of a country or city. What are these called, and do they exist IRL? And why do you put them on the briefcase?

I'd call them a form of bumper sticker. They certainly exist, and are often placed on briefcases, suitcases, etc, to show where the traveler has been. They do not serve a formal purpose. — Lomn 06:37, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If you travel by air and check your baggage, you know that a tag with a bar code and flight information is attached to the handle of your bag. Other forms of tag were used in the past. Well, baggage was also commonly checked on ships and trains when most people traveled that way. (Of course, what you checked might be different in the case of a multi-day voyage.) I think it must have been true at one time that the destination tag was a sticker applied to the side of the bag rather than fastened to the handle. Since stickers are hard to remove, they would accumulate on the bag over time, creating the effect being asked about. This could have inspired the "bumper sticker" type stickers that Lomn describes, after handle tags replaced the other kind.

But I'm guessing. Anyone actually know how baggage checking actually used to work, say 50-100 years ago? --Anonymous, 09:27 UTC, February 3, 2008.

When I was young (around 100 years ago) colourful stickers were commonly used to identify baggage. They also acted as a form of advertising - for most people, however, they were a kind of status symbol. (They were hartd to remove, anyway.)90.4.247.4 (talk) 10:59, 3 February 2008 (UTC)DT[reply]

Google Books result, describing the stickers. --LarryMac | Talk 14:02, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

police chase

In the US, are the police obligated to chase everyone who avoids them? For example, if I was pulled over for going 5 over the limit, would the police be required to pursue me until I was caught, or could they decide that it wasn't worth it and give up? 70.162.25.53 (talk) 04:52, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

They can use their own discretion depending on the circumstances, but more than likely you'd get chased. Sometimes what they like to do is trail a suspect until they can get a helicopter in, and then follow from a distance from there. Bellum et Pax (talk) 05:48, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It would be extremely suspicious if you decided to flee for going only 5 over the speed limit, assuming you mean something like 5 mph or 5 km/h. − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 06:14, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

And the desire to escape the police, even if you haven't apparently done anything/much that was illegal, indicates to them that you are likely afraid of something else even more illegal (like the car you are in is stolen, or you are transporting contraband, or you have a warrant out against you, etc.). So they'd probably assume it was "worth it" in such circumstances. --24.147.69.31 (talk) 15:56, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If you're only going 5 over, then they'll catch you almost immediately. So to avoid them you'd have to speed up...so disregarding all the other fine reasons above, the speeding offence has just increased in seriousness. Gwinva (talk) 19:27, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Many police jurisdictions have policies forbidding the police from chasing your for minor occurrences such as minor traffic incidents. They have your license number, anyway, and can track you down that way. They're also forbidden in other jurisdictins from chasing faster than a certain speed limit. That's to prevent accidents with innocent bystanders. The rules are up to each jurisdiction. (This is in the US). Corvus cornix_talk 21:57, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I know that the following text is a reference to some video game.

What video game is this text a reference or parody to:

"With the release of "DumbGood", the final reGame of the season, two children entered a state of extreme frenzy after just seeing a copy in a shop window. Their mother, trying to inflict some sense into their heads, opened them with pliers and barked some military words. The effect was disastrous: the children became giant tortoises armed with blowtorches and nukelar [sic] weapons! After leveling the entire Los Angeles Metropolitan Area, the two demigods went into heaven for a Eon of peace and fraternity." [sic]

71.220.211.235 (talk) 04:58, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Where did you read it? − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 06:12, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It's from Uncyclopedia. So there's no guarantee that it's a reference to anything, it may just be a stream of stupidity. FiggyBee (talk) 09:42, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

TMNT? I don't recall seeing a tortoise with weapons anywhere else... --antilived^{T | C | G} 07:58, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

There's a mutant turtle in one of the episodes of the first season of South Park, and I think he has some weapons. Unrelated to the OQ, just for you, Antilived. --Ouro (blah blah) 11:42, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It's from here, which is Uncyclopedia's page detailing nonexistent crimes based on existing video games. Therefore, it must be a reference to SOME video game. 71.220.211.235 (talk) 20:37, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

City lights

Something that has had me wondering for a long time. If you are looking at very distant lights (maybe street lights or car headlights), they tend to flicker constantly and any lights up close are solid and do not flicker. What exactly causes lights to flicker when veiwed at long distances and not short distances? Kelownian Pilot (talk) 05:41, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The same phenomenon that makes stars twinkle. Basically, turbulent air refracting the light. FiggyBee (talk) 05:47, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Mailing Coins to Canada

in order to send coins to canada it says in the United States Postal Service restrictions page for canada that i must do the following:

Coins; banknotes; currency notes; securities payable to bearer; traveler’s checks; gold, silver, platinum, manufactured or not; jewelry; and other valuable articles may be sent only in registered items.

Does this mean that i must add on registered mail service to my package to ship to canada or must i make insurance mandatory--logger (talk) 06:45, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It means they have to be sent as registered items. I assume the payment for registration includes an insurance premium as it does in the UK (otherwise there's not much point in registering them). Check that the insurance is adequate for the value of the goods.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 10:00, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

All right thank You--logger (talk) 10:11, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Mailing coins or other forms of money is generally a very bad idea. Even registered, the envelope may arrive empty. I would not personally ever send cash by mail if it is identified as such. ៛ Bielle (talk) 21:51, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

boy or girl name

is Burleigh generally a boy's or girl's name? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 128.101.53.138 (talk) 10:35, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

No. It's generally a surname. FiggyBee (talk) 10:41, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

In some cultures (southeastern USA, e.g.), it's common to give a child the mother's maiden name as a given name without much regard to gender, so around here it could be either. --Sean 00:57, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If I were just given that name and asked what gender the person who had it was, I'd probably guess female, but wouldn't be confident. If you're thinking of naming a child Burleigh, consider that it is pronounced the same as "burly". Steewi (talk) 01:53, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

For what it's worth, the only Burleigh I've ever known was a "he" of Jamaican ancestry. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Santegeezhe (talk • contribs) 23:27, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Bovril/Marmite drink

If I were to make one of these, how much bovril/marmite should I use?--Porcupine (prickle me! · contribs · status) 12:00, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I have no reference for you, but I think in my life I once dissolved a teaspoon of borvil/marmite in a cup of hot water. So my anecdotal answer is 1 teaspoon per 250ml or thereabouts. Rfwoolf (talk) 13:28, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

OK - thanks. Was it nice? :D Porcupine (prickle me! · contribs · status) 13:37, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

According to Yahoo Answers found here: http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071129085713AALsnJU the answer is 1-2 teaspons per half a pint, depending on how you like it Rfwoolf (talk) 17:54, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I have a mug of this drink every night before bed and I use 2 heaped teaspoons of either product dissolved in scalding water, to which I add 6 or so drops of tabasco. Stir, drink, enjoy, go to bed, tummy "full", sleep, snore and wake up fresh and ready next morning. Don't think women like the taste when you're kissing them after drinking it though?81.145.242.50 (talk) 11:39, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Snow on beaches

How does snow settle on beaches? I would have thought the salt content of the sand would act just like grit on roads and melt it? thanks, RobertsZ (talk) 16:19, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

See them. [34] [35] [36] Oda Mari (talk) 19:30, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

(ec) There are a couple of principles at work. First of all, salt doesn't prevent water from freezing, it just lowers its freezing point. Seawater (about 3% various salts by weight) will freeze at a temperature just a couple of degrees Celsius below zero. Even very concentrated solutions of salt (twenty or thirty percent sodium chloride) will freeze if the temperature gets low enough: twenty below, give or take. Road maintenance crews take this into account when sanding and salting roads in the winter—if very low temperatures are forecast then their trucks will spread mostly sand, to improve traction on the ice and snow. If temperatures are forecast to be only slightly below freezing, road crews will spread mostly salt, to encourage melting. Back to your original question, then, if temperatures are low enough on the beach then the snow won't melt regardless of the amount of salt present.

The second point is that it takes a fair bit of salt to melt appreciable quantities of snow. If enough snow falls, the salt present will be diluted to the point where no additional melting can take place. As well, snow that melts and dissolves salt in the top layer of sand will tend to sink further into the sand, carrying salt with it. This leaves less salt at the surface, inhibiting further melting. TenOfAllTrades(talk) 19:36, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The third point is that road salt is often calcium chloride, which heats up when it dissolves in water, while sea salt is mostly sodium chloride, which doesn't. --Carnildo (talk) 23:04, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

18 to buy a lighter?

I'm 17, and I purchased lighters before. WEll today I go to the gas station and the cashier tells me I have to be 18 to buy a lighter. I was at a shell/true north gas station. Is this a store policy, or state or local law? --AtTheAbyss (talk) 19:01, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

That depends on the state and municipality. It could also be a cashier confused about the applicability of laws prohibiting the sale of cigarettes to minors. You'd have to be a bit more specific about where you were for us to take a guess. TenOfAllTrades(talk) 19:09, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

NOrthwest Ohio. --AtTheAbyss (talk) 19:11, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Recruiting

I go to an East Coast Ivy League school renowned for the intelligence of its students and all that, but lately it's struck me that a huge percentage of the students got in here because of sports (and strong academics) rather than academics alone. I think it's somewhere close to 30 percent of the students in my grade were "recruited". And of course that means that they were still quite smart and hardworking in high school, but it inevitably also means that were it not for athletics, they wouldn't have gotten in here, because they weren't THAT smart and hardworking. And I was wondering why my school even bothers with recruiting. We are basically uniformly noncompetitive in athletics. Because we will only recruit students who are also extremely good in school, our athletic standards aren't up to even competing well in the Ivy League divisions. And apart from one historic game that draws many alumni every year, there is tremendously low fan support or interest in athletics. I went to my friend's varsity tennis game the other day, and there were maybe 20 fans total. For a varsity sport. With so little interest among the student and alumni bodies in athletics, I don't see why my school bothers recruiting. How would they make any money off of it with so little fan support and such relatively middling athletic talent? If they aren't making any money, what are they trying to accomplish? They are simply lowering the quality of their applicant pool (and probably their odds of having rich alumni to donate) by accepting students for non-academic merits. Am I missing a part of the picture here? I just don't get why the school invests itself in this so much. It's quite costly for them, I suspect. 140.247.41.23 (talk) 20:27, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Trying to introduce a mix of students into the school? Whether you are the best sports-school or not really doesn't matter - unless you only believe in competing in events you stand a chance of winning. Perhaps the school has a tradition of welcoming less academically gifted students, but ones who excel at other forms of intelligence (academia after all is really only a small part of real world intelligence). I would also note that somebody who is 'given a chance' and then becomes very successful may be more likely to donate - if they feel they've been given a chance when they might have been passed over if the school were more 'normal' in its hiring policy. Sports themselves are a huge indicator of many positive traits - team-work, commitment, openness to learning, drive, psychological strength etc. etc. and they may believe that these traits are equally as important as being academically excellent in a series of other subjects (i'm not trying to suggest one form of intelligence is better than the other). ny156uk (talk) 20:53, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yeah. That makes sense, but then why such a huge percentage of the population? And why would the school focus on one form of diversity and not others? And the school certainly doesn't have a history of accepting non-academic students. And by academics I mean everything school and extracurricular-related (People here are editors of high school papers, founders of NGOs, kids who did serious research in high school, etc, not just skilled SAT takers.) I don't mean to be dismissive, but I don't see intellectual diversity and giving students a chance to be sufficient reasons for my school to recruit about 500 athletes every year. It just seems far-fetched. I have my suspicions that somehow my school makes big money off of this. I just don't see how. 140.247.41.23 (talk) 21:04, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Would the government give funding/tax reductions/whatever to the school based on having a high-level of sports background students? The school will presumably make money on almost every student. I'd say the amount of students that go through the system V those who donate a significant amount will be such that hiring based on potential future donations would be unlikely. A school must also get the right 'mix' of students for the courses and qualification it can deliver. It me be bound by regulation (or even just market demand) to offer courses in areas that are more likely to have students from a sports background. I think there could be any number of reasons, you could always approach the school and ask them about it? (If you haven't already). ny156uk (talk) 21:53, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I have figured out which college you attend based on your IP address, and I am somewhat familiar with it. I think that Ny156uk's first answer was correct. (The second was an intelligent guess, but incorrect. The US government doesn't offer funding linked to athletic recruits.) Harvard does make a point of leavening the population of brainiacs with people who have other abilities—not just athletes but people with musical talent, for example. It is probably also true that they have discovered, over the years, that athletes who meet their academic standards have intelligences in areas such as teamwork that tend to make them very successful in business. Those same people might tend to be very grateful to Harvard for offering them the connections and credentials to succeed in business. A decade or two later, that could yield very substantial alumni contributions for the university. Marco polo (talk) 20:46, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

My height, and predicting it

Hi. I'm a very tall 16-and-a-half year old, and I've always been curious about my height. I've always wanted to get a good estimate of how tall I'm going to be when I stop growing. My doctor predicted I'd be 6'2" - 6'4" when I was a kid, which I have since surpassed. Here's my height chart as far back as I can remember (all were measured sometime in the first quarter of the given year; I was born at a normal size).

Year	Height
2003	5'7"
2004	5'10"
2005	6'0"
2006	6' 2 1/2"
2007	6'4"
2008	6'5 1/2" (possibly 6'6")

If there's anyone with some expertise in this field, or anyone who has a good guess, any help would be appreciated. Thanks. 70.105.164.43 (talk) 21:15, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You might want to take a look at the human height article. I'm not going to pretend I can make an accurate guess, but maybe the section I pointed you out to will be of some help. And just out of curiosity, how tall are your parents? --Emery (talk) 21:50, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I've read that article, but I will definetely re-read that section. My mom is 5'8", and my dad is 6'1". My tallest relative is my uncle, who's 6'3". 70.105.164.43 (talk) 21:54, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

This (http://www.eparenting.co.uk/health/howtall.shtml) would give you a rough estimate if you put in your parents height. I think they say it is basically the average of your parents +/- a given amount depending on whether you're a boy or girl. Not very scientific and there are many factors that will affect how tall you become but as a nice little gauge it might be helpful ny156uk (talk) 21:57, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If you're happy with your height then it doesn't matter so much. I'm 5' 7" and I am incredibly envious :-) - Whatever height you are, just be happy with it! Scarian ^{Call me Pat} 21:59, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Growth projections are notoriously unreliable so don't make any plans for NBA stardom just yet. I was projected to be around 6'10", but then I basically stopped growing after the beginning of middle school (12-13) so all those years of shooting the basketball went to naught, sans the benefits of the exercise.--droptone (talk) 12:42, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

February 4

Birth year of Maryam Nemazee

I've been searching everywhere for the birth year of Al Jazeera English news anchor Maryam Nemazee. I would like some more background information as well, as place of birth, where she grew up, education. Tee tolten (talk) 23:15, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Silly taxes in Twilight Zone episode?

I just watched an episode of TTZ and I wonder how the tax could be over 90% of the one million dollars?! $900,040 or what they said is more than 90% of a million and I don't get this........ —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.192 (talk) 23:25, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Are you sure it's not a marginal rate - eg 90% on all earnings over $500,000 with earnings up to $500,000 taxed at a lower rate or rate? Some countries used to have the highest take rate at this level or higher - for example the United Kingdom had an extremely high top marginal rate (over 80%) up until around 1980 I think. Lisiate (talk) 00:14, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

- Taxes really can be that high, and higher. Here's a quote from the biography of James Herriot, the English author. "In 1976... [James] had to pay a top rate of tax of 83%, together with the hardly credible figure of 98% on investment income." 75.157.3.142 (talk) 00:37, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The top rate of income tax was 95% in the UK in the sixties, as recorded in Taxman. Algebraist 00:40, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

95?!???!?!? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.192 (talk) 03:35, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Worse than that, at one point in the 70s the top tax rate could work out higher than 100%, so there had to be special provisions to reduce it in that case to make sure people were making something on the money. Skittle (talk) 03:40, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What is a Carper ?

Looking into family history found the job undertaken by an ancestor was a CARPER in Scotland. First thoughts were he was involved with fishing of Carp.... but is this the case ? please help. Thank you —Preceding unsigned comment added by Cliveybabey25 (talk • contribs) 23:36, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The OED has this quote from 1835:

The business to which children are first put in this business is carping; that is, preparing thistle-teasels for the workman, who fits them into the rods and handles for dressing the cloth. The little carpers sit at this easy work.

Algebraist 00:38, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

?teasel comb, have a look here[37] —Preceding unsigned comment added by Richard Avery (talk • contribs) 15:44, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Why has the Internet died?

I don't know how to put this, but the Internet has died to me. It was much... better years ago. It was full of life, and joy. These days, everybody ignores me and nobody wants to talk about stuff. At the same time, more people than ever use it. WTF are they doing? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.192 (talk) 23:47, 3 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe they're diluting it? Be a wiki editor instead! : ) Julia Rossi (talk) 02:28, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

This may be as good of an indication as any of what people are doing on the internet. anonymous6494 04:17, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Where is this music from?

Link to mp3 file. Found it in a YouTube video. — Kieff | Talk 00:55, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I don't recognise it, but it makes me think of The Gothic Archies (fronted by Daniel Handler AKA Lemony Snickett). It's kinda cool. Steewi (talk) 01:58, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

OPEN DOOR

In a video game called Deja Vu, it says "OPEN DOOR" every time you open a door. Is this valid grammar? It should say DOOR OPENED or THE DOOR WAS OPENED or something. Not OPEN DOOR. Even DOOR OPEN would suffice. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.192 (talk) 03:35, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It has been a long time since I played Deja Vu, but am I wrong in remembering that OPEN DOOR was a command, in the imperative? That is, you were telling the game that you wanted to open the door. It was not a description of what had happened. Anyway, "open door" can either be meant in the imperative—as a command, as in, "please open the door"—or it can be meant as a present-tense description—"there! an open door!" It is not in any way possible for it to, by itself, be in the past tense. With some extra words, it could be—"there was an open door"—but by itself, no. --24.147.69.31 (talk) 04:29, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It is not the command. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.192 (talk) 14:22, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Bikini Atom bomb tests Julu 1946

Can u tell me how far the USS Fall River(CA 131) was from the target ships??? She was the flag ship for the tests. Thank u , nedirf... —Preceding unsigned comment added by Nedirf (talk • contribs) 05:07, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Our article on Operation Crossroads says the auxiliary ships took safe positions at least 10 nautical miles (18.5 km) east of the atoll.. --Ouro (blah blah) 08:11, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

According to Shurcliff, Bombs at Bikini (1947), the USS MT MCKINLEY (AGC-7) was the "Force Flagship", whereas the USS FALL RIVER (CA-131) was the Target Vessel Control Group (Appendix 8, Support Vessels). Off-hand I don't see any reference in the book to the distance of the observation fleet much less individual vessels. Note that they would have been far away not only for fallout reasons but because most of those participating in the operation were not permitted to see what a Fat Man bomb looked like (the appearance of the bombs were not declassified until 1960—it gives away a lot of its design details to a trained eye). --24.147.69.31 (talk) 15:17, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Can a person be........

.......arrested, jailed for having no ID in the US ? 65.173.105.118 (talk) 06:07, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

As far as I am aware, being an American, there is no law that says that you must have any sort of identification. That's if you're a citizen. Although, if you are believed to be an illegal alien, then you can most likely be held until your identity is proven. Also, legal aliens/tourists/etc. are required to have some sort of identification, normally in the form of a passport, although you aren't required to have it on your person at all times. Dismas|^(talk) 06:22, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

A person can be arrested for practically anything. Whether or not they can be lawfully arrested is, of course, another question.

Atlant (talk) 13:41, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The case of Hiibel v. Sixth Judicial District Court of Nevada might be of some interest, here. --LarryMac | Talk 13:53, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Body Piercing

I have some questions about body piercings: 1. Are there issues associated with the metals used in body piercing? For example, could a person be allergic to a metal? 2. Is a range of metals offered? 3. Do the costs vary much? Is metal tarnishing a problem? 4. Do piercings set off metal detectors? 5. What are some of the risks of body piercing?

Thank you in advance. --124.254.77.148 (talk) 09:22, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

1) Not quite, a person can have a reaction to certain metals. See Contact dermatitis for more on this.

2) Sometimes a couple different metals are offered. It depends on the style of the piece.

3) Costs can vary between metals, how much depends on the metals. If you're comparing titanium to gold to surgical steel, there can be different prices. The metals used generally don't tarnish.

4) They can if the gain on the detector is set high enough, but generally this isn't an issue.

5) See Body piercing. Dismas|^(talk) 09:37, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

An important issue is to make sure all aspects of the body piercing are being handled by a reputable, licensed professional, as questions 1,2,3 and 5 depend upon this. 130.88.140.120 (talk) 10:53, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Why is international business law so uttlerly Anglo-American?

List of 100 largest law firms globally

It looks like ~95% of the world's largest law firms are based in the US/UK. English is the language of business but in many countries college grads are all fluent in English. And, sure, US/UK are leaders in finance but they are leaders in a multipolar world. None of these advantages can account for such UTTER dominance. So why?

Lotsofissues 09:32, 4 February 2008 (UTC)

The US and UK are very wealthy and powerful countries with a lot of influence. Bellum et Pax (talk) 17:44, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

English-speaking countries have a tradition of respect for the law. What's the point of being a lawyer in a (blatantly) corrupt system, e.g. China, Russia? Clarityfiend (talk) 17:59, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'm wondering why Germany isn't represented? The breakdown goes: UK/US 94, Oz 4, Holland 1, France 1. There are other wealthy and influential nations than the US/UK. Isn't it incredible that they can't be found? Lotsofissues 19:12, 4 February 2008 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lotsofissues (talk • contribs)

The practice of building law firms with numerous partners originated in the United States and spread to the United Kingdom. Historically, most law offices in European countries were small, consisting of a single lawyer or a handful of lawyers who worked, often, directly with clients. It was in the English-speaking countries that a business model developed involving a complex division of labor among lawyers and different kinds of support staff, and among lawyers specializing in multiple areas of law within a single firm. I am not certain about this, but I think that large British and American corporations tend to hire outside law firms to handle legal matters, which is a huge source of business for law firms in those countries, whereas large European corporations tend to rely on internal legal staff. Marco polo (talk) 20:35, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Large Canadian and American companies tend to have in-house legal counsel and also to have at least one (sometimes more) private firm either on retainer or by way of a gentlemen's agreement. Each group tends to do a different type of work, though how the work will be divided varies from company to company. The "out-house" firms are specifically used when a third-party opinion is required for decision-making. ៛ Bielle (talk) 21:44, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Background music for a Teeny Digipc Disk?

Hi folks - I am a 61 year old grandfather of a 13 year old Scottish grand-daughter who, like most kids that age, is really into pop divas, teeny fashions, etc., etc. For part of her Birthday this year I want to give her a surprise DVD of all the Birth-to-Teen digital pictures I have taken of her over the years (several hundred once edited)including birthdays, foreign holidays, Christmases etc., all set to music. I have the right software so that's not a problem. But what kind of music? I would like it to be "poppy" but to reflect the joy of being young, adventurous, happy, loved, and developing and growing as God intended. Maybe several tracks will be necessary to cover 15-20 minutes or so. Any suggestions will be most gratefully received. Thanks.81.145.242.50 (talk) 11:30, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What a lovely idea! It doesn't meet your "poppy" criterion at all, but What a Wonderful World seems ideal to me. AndrewWTaylor (talk) 13:46, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Don't like to put a damper on this, but would your grand-daughter actually appreciate this? I'm thinking that many of her age might not, because they prefer not to be depicted as young children but as young adults. I know I have no idea what she's like so I'm not in a good position to advise, but I thought I'd raise it.--217.44.170.51 (talk) 20:29, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe 217's thinking of older teens, but 13 is still when it's nice to have someone make you the centre of their (DVD) attention. You could borrow some of her CDs maybe? : ) Julia Rossi (talk) 21:16, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Mezcal de gusano

What's the deal with the worm in mescal? Does it really have hallucinogenic properties? I already looked on the internet and I've seen yes and I've seen no. Anyone? --AtTheAbyss (talk) 13:52, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe there is confusion here will the mescaline found in peyote cactus?87.102.90.249 (talk) 14:30, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

No, I thought that too at first; mescal is just the english spelling. --AtTheAbyss (talk) 14:58, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

OR: no. --Sean 15:22, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'm afraid I don't see your point, Sean. --AtTheAbyss (talk) 15:48, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

He's just saying that, in his personal experience (in Wikipediaspeak, original research), it doesn't. Algebraist 16:01, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, I had a bottle of some distilled drink with a worm in it - drank it and ate the worm - nothing - the liquid was absolutely vile though - tasted (and smelt) like embalming fluid..87.102.90.249 (talk) 17:49, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

is it ok copyrightwise to quote eg from here http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/04/15/WIGEM64I001.DTL&type=wine

Mezcal attracted attention north of the border in the late 1950s, when proto-hippies headed to Oaxaca in search of marijuana, psilocybin mushrooms and peyote. Because peyote extract can be used to create mescaline, a popular hallucinogen of the era, and because locals got rowdy after drinking a local firewater named a mezcal that came from clay jars with no labels, the tripping visitors assumed a connection between the similar-sounding substances. In fact, there is none, and mezcal will not make you hallucinate any more than single- malt Scotch.

or try http://www.winexmagazine.com/winexaus/issuetwo/ss.htm section on the right (yellow box) "tequila myths"87.102.90.249 (talk) 17:54, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Searching for a picture

I am searching for a picture I hope someone recognise it by its description and could send it to me or provide a website where it is displayed. It is a grayscale picture (a photograph) which consists of an illusion trick. It shows silhouettes of anormally tall people, with short shadows, walking on plain ground (maybe on cement or sand). The picture is taken from a height. When it is flipped on the side, the silhouettes appear to be the people's shadows caused by an evening sunlight (hence they appear taller than the people). Does someone recognise it? thank you. 212.98.136.42 (talk) 14:11, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Why is everyone greedy?

I keep hearing that the only purpose for a company to exist is to make as much money as possible. To maximize profits. Why? Why must it be like that? I refuse to believe that it is like this. Why can't the company simply give people jobs, while making the world better by making a great, useful product or selling services people like, naturally making a profit, but not at the cost of morals and "doing the right thing"? At some point, you have more money than you can waste. Isn't it enough to be able to give your employees a good income?

Sigh. I get pissed off when I hear that companies buy other companies, ruining a product, and sell-outs who care more about the money than their child (the product/company name).

There is no point in being greedy after a certain point as far as I'm concerned. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.192 (talk) 15:33, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Publicly traded companies are expected to maximize the return to their stockholders, so formally speaking, yes -- that's the only purpose. However, it's naive to assume that "maximize" is always interpreted in the strictest possible sense. Plenty of companies (most if not all, I would expect) contribute to charities, for instance. This is unlikely to be with the aim of maximizing profits. Others may decide that "maximize" means to fill the market niche they occupy rather than rampant expansion, which seems to fit the spirit of what you'd like to see. Finally, this question has come up before, and a cursory search of the archives should find related content. — Lomn 15:45, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I think that the notion that a business's purpose is to make as much money as possible falls part of business philosophy, i.e. it is only a necessary philosophy under which people govern businesses. The philosophy when applied remains quite correct - in order to compete, grow, and nurture your business you do have to take care of profitability. Any other philosophy that said "grow as fast or as slow as you please" or "forget about the competition, they're not threat" or "forget about generating revenue to reinvest into your company." The other sad side of the story is that many small businesses don't do well, and very few stay open longer than 5 years. I'm sure you agree that the philosophy to run at a profit (and maximize the profit to ensure you continue to run at a profit) is sound business sense. And as others point out, many companies get to the point where they invest in charity, spread the success amongst its staff, or are able to invest in research to improve their goods and services which in many cases is good for the consumer. Rfwoolf (talk) 17:35, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Look at mutual company and cooperative. The way the business is setup, however, is not the issue - the issue is in your perspective. You appear to be deciding that the drive for profit means that firms will pay low/not treat staff well etc. This is not the case. Most businesses pay salaries well above any national minimum requirement. Most businesses provide benefits above and beyond that laid out by national law/regulatory requirements. Look at the high-profit companies Operating Margins, they are generally tight in highly-competitive industries. The profits are huge but they are part of the business, nothing else. Shareholders/Owners don't just pull all that money out, it gets reinvested/spent within the business and some distributed to the shareholders. Companies can (and unfortunately many do) treat their employees poorly, provide a poor amount of pay, not help society but so can any other form of organisation - government, businesss, societies, groups etc. etc. The problem is not 'greed', it is the application of making money. Businesses can make money in many ways (and paying staff more does not necessitate reduced profits). ny156uk (talk) 17:57, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Ignore it - the people who talk like that are called shareholders/financial analysts (..no offence to them).. For people who work for a company there's a sense of pride in doing a good job or making a good product. Often people start a company just to make something they really want to exist - nevertheless losing money hand over fist is not the way to go. You're probably getting a narrow view of the world from the news .. something like that?87.102.90.249 (talk) 18:04, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If a company is privately owned by an individual or a group of individuals who have other goals for the company than maximizing profits, then the company need not maximize profits. However, to stay in business (and not wipe out the owners' savings), the company must run at least a small profit, sufficient to replace worn out equipment and such.

On the other hand, if a company is publicly owned and traded, then it will have to compete in the market for investment capital. Public investors seldom care about much beyond maximizing the return on their capital. For most people, that is the point of investing rather than accepting the meager returns offered by savings banks. Also, investing in a company involves taking on some risk that your investment will lose value if the company falters or fails. People expect to be compensated for this risk with competitive returns (profits). The price of shares and the company's ability to borrow money for investment depend on the returns generated by the company. So, really, publicly traded companies have little choice but to do what is necessary to maximize returns. Sometimes this will mean offering employees excellent wages and benefits to attract the most qualified staff. Other times, particularly if the company's product does not require skilled labor, this will mean minimizing labor costs. So, it isn't a matter of greed for the companies. It is a matter of survival in the fiercely competitive marketplace that is the precondition for capitalism.

Note that I am not defending this system. I am myself a kind of democratic socialist who favors ownership by workers. However, I came to that by recognizing that capitalism offers no alternative to the tyranny of capital markets. Marco polo (talk) 20:20, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If a company does anything other than try to make money any way it can, it will be destroyed in the marketplace by its competitors or find itself the target of a shareholders' revolt. Let's say you're a garment company, and all of your competitors make clothes in sweatshops. But you decide to have your clothes made by a supplier that treats its workers well. That will probably be more expensive, which means that you may have to sell your products for more than your competitors do. If there's no market out there for more-expensive, non-sweatshop clothes, you're in trouble. Most people know their single purchase of a T-shirt isn't going to make a difference, so they opt for the cheaper, sweatshop T-shirt. That's why we need government to get involved to do things like outlaw sweatshops -- because the nature of the free market precludes companies from doing it themselves. That's a gross oversimplification, of course, but should explain the basics of it. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 23:47, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

CVFs HMS Queen Elizabeth & HMS Prince of Wales

I am hearing rumours of another delay to the 2 CVFs currently in development by UK MOD. Can someone point me to a web page of good reputation for confirmation of this?

I can only find rumours without back up...

Cheers Gertie100 (talk) 15:56, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=&xml=/money/2008/01/12/cnbae112.xml this page of good reputation states that they are only 'fears' nothing solid87.102.90.249 (talk) 18:07, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

In other words as of today it is still just a rumour.87.102.90.249 (talk) 18:08, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

A Thing About Machine

Having just seen "A Thing About Machine" (Twilight Zone episode), I wonder how they made the typewriter seemingly type one its own. I mean... technically. Also, some questions about old TVs:

1. Why were they round (screen)? 2. Can they be plugged in today and used to watch modern broadcasts? 3. Same questions 2 but for ancient radios. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.192 (talk) 18:14, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Round screen CRTs are technically easier to build than rectangular-screen CRTs (the mechanics of the glass envelope are simpler). So the first tubes were round but, yes, they still used the same standards and so would still be able to display a modern broadcast. And ancient AM radios will still receive modern AM broadcasts.

Atlant (talk) 18:18, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

They'll be able to display modern broadcasts until February of 2009 (in the US), when over-the-air broadcasting will no longer display in the same format. At that point, you'll need cable TV or a new television. And I doubt if the old TV sets with the round tubes have cable connections. Corvus cornix_talk 19:57, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I gave some thought to mentioning that, but in fact, the TVs will still work with anything (like a VCR, DVD player, video game, or set-top box) that includes a modulator that can output channel 3 or 4.

Atlant (talk) 23:24, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Very old US TVs would be able to receive channels 2-13, but not the higher (UHF) channels, which were introduced later. In some countries there have already been incompatible changes like the coming change to digital in the US and Canada. A very old British TV would not be able to receive modern broadcasts, even if it could be tuned to the channel, because the number of lines per frame has changed. --Anonymous, 20:12 UTC, February 4.

I don't specifically remember the typewriter in that episode, but teletype machines have been around since the 1920s. That episode aired in 1960. --Milkbreath (talk) 18:59, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

A Question about Venevision International

How many Venevisión International studios are there in Miami, Florida? Ericthebrainiac (talk) 18:51, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

2--143.200.225.109 (talk) 01:02, 5 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

roofing standards

Are there any industry standards dictating that a roof which sustained damage in the form of uplifted (not broken) shingles should be replaced rather than repaired? Gabe W. Lawson —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.38.12.17 (talk) 19:32, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Very, very probably yes, there are industry standard practices. Depending on where you're from, turn to a local construction company, they will probably tell you first hand what you should do, upon a site inspection I presume. Hope this helps. --Ouro (blah blah) 20:49, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If you are asking because you've already been told by a roofer that you need to replace the roof, and you are doubtful, then you might try getting a second opinion from a different roofer. Try saying that you want the shingles replaced, see if you get an objection from the second roofer that you need a new roof, then ask why. Marco polo (talk) 21:20, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

BBC

There is a DJ on BBC Radio 4 in the mornings, he interviews politians as well as numerous other people, what puts him outside the scope of your average radio dj interviewer, is that he seem to be rather hard on his interviewees, he eats lying polititians for breakfast. and is great fun to listen to I think his name is John Nochty (Nochty pronounced like Loch Ness Monster) can some one please provide me witha link to his article, if there is one, as well as the correct spelling of his name, if there is not one, i will start one, but first i should get his name right. Thanks —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.18.35.90 (talk) 20:05, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

That would be James Naughtie. --Richardrj ^talk ^email 20:10, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Though do you mean John Humphrys, the more combative of the two?--217.44.170.51 (talk) 20:21, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Neither of them could really be called a 'DJ'. AndrewWTaylor (talk) 21:24, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

the legendary Swedish and Norweign welfare states

Is anyone familiar with these systems? Do they have limits? Or can you collect unemployment for eternity?

Lotsofissues 20:33, 4 February 2008 (UTC)

Phoebe Holcroft Watson?British ranked Tennis player

I can't find an obituary or date of death on her anywhere on the net. I haven't actually resorted to trekking to a library yet as there are none really close to me. However if this woman is still alive she'd be 107ish which is possible I guess. Williamb (talk) 21:00, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

If our birth date 7 October 1898 is correct, she'd be 109 now. Quite possible, but unlikely. Other than some stray facts about her matches, I've found no biographical material about her at all on the web, unfortunately. -- JackofOz (talk) 21:19, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Is there any way to get the word out to do a search? The info would much more likely be found in the UK than here in the states. Williamb (talk) 21:32, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Raising the issue here is putting the word out quite effectively. Many thousands of people read these pages, and I'm sure someone will have the information, or know someone who does. That's assuming she's died, which she may not have. -- JackofOz (talk) 23:08, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

you shud see, whit i kin see, wen em cleanin windaes

i live in a small village, in Fife, Scotland, we get a semi-regular window cleaning service and when i lived in the larger towns of fife there was a regular service. My question is, do other countries such as USA, Mainland Europe etc have this type of local, town/village size service? From reading novels, watching the 'box' i do not recall seeing/reading of such a service, all responses would be gratefully ackownledged, taPerry-mankster (talk) 21:05, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Poland: Businesses normally have regular window cleaning services that they pay for, so that it feels nice for the customers. Private houses - no. Cleaning ladies clean our staircases once a week or two, but I don't think I ever saw them cleaning the windows on the staircase (I live in a block of flats). Cheers, Ouro (blah blah) 21:12, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I've never heard of any such service in North America at all. Either you clean your windows yourself or you hire someone to do it. Businesses have to hire people as well, unless it is a skyscraper in which case it is usually done by robots bought by the building owners. 206.252.74.48 (talk) 21:22, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

mean that the municipal government cleans the windows of privately-owned property? When I was renting, my landlords cleaned the windows twice a year, but, believe me, the cost was included in the rent somewhere. (We were always warned, well in advance, to close the windows and pull the shades. Perhaps they knew of George Formby.) The same is true of office buildings. I have never heard of this service for private ownership, though. There are certainly private companies that clean windows, but you contract with them and pay them directly. I've never seen a robot doing a skyscraper. I have, however, seen a person on a "stage" cleaning the 26th floor of an apartment building. I speak here of timee I have spent living in Canada and the US. ៛ Bielle (talk) 21:28, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Well, I know there are robot window cleaners on the Sears Tower, I see them go up all the time. They may have had them on the WTC towers as well. 206.252.74.48 (talk) 21:32, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Where I live (near Bristol), there's a local window cleaner who comes round every couple of months. We pay him, and I assume he only works locally. -mattbuck 23:44, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

"Everything's bigger in Texas"

What's this from? Is it true? Huh? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.192 (talk) 23:35, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Texans think everything is bigger because their trees are so small. -Arch dude (talk) 00:47, 5 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Bread

What is a bread recipe that is healthy? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.119.61.7 (talk) 00:44, 5 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

@@ Line 839: / Line 839: @@
 How many [[Venevisión International]] [[studios]] are there in [[Miami, Florida]]? [[User:Ericthebrainiac|Ericthebrainiac]] ([[User talk:Ericthebrainiac|talk]]) 18:51, 4 February 2008 (UTC)
+:2--[[Special:Contributions/143.200.225.109|143.200.225.109]] ([[User talk:143.200.225.109|talk]]) 01:02, 5 February 2008 (UTC)
 == roofing standards ==