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May 5

Gas mileage

Lets assume that the speed is constant. In which situation would i use more gas?

Going:

67 miles in 1hr 23mins

Or

80 miles in 1hr 18mins

MISSING VARIABLE You made absolutely no reference to the gas efficiency of the vehicle in question.

If you rode a racehorse 67 miles in 1hr 23mins, you'd certainly use less gas than if you rode a tank going 80 miles in 1hr 18mins. It would appear that you haven't quite cut and pasted your homework assignment as precisely as you should have. Loomis51 01:16, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

For most engines, the one with the lower speed would be more efficient. Rmhermen 00:59, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

How can the speed be CONSTANT while you travel further (80 miles) in less time?

Air resistance in CARS.

Aero Drag:

Fd = Rho * Cd * A * V^2

For .26 drag coefficient Fd = .002558 * .26 * 21.9 * 30^2 = 13.1 lbs.
For .20 drag coefficient Fd = .002558 * .20 * 21.9 * 30^2 = 10.1 lbs.

Rho = constant to adjust for normal air pressure, convert from Metric 
to American, and to account for the ½ normally present in the 
formula Fd = ½ * Rho * Cd * A * V^2
Cd = coefficient drag
A = vehicle frontal area in square feet
V = velocity in mph
Fd = aerodynamic drag force in lbs.

As I understand it: each car has a speed at which its engine is most efficient. It is not the case that simply slower = more efficient. Going faster or slower than that speed is therefore less efficient. So the answer depends on the specific car. Notinasnaid 09:51, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Isn't that what the gearbox is for, to let the engine run at (near) its optimal efficiency (and at an RPM at which it can operate in the first place). Which would bring us back to the air resistance analysis. Weregerbil 10:44, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

I was talking about overall car efficiency, not engine efficiency. That would take into account engine efficiency, gearbox, tyre friction and wind resistance. But if we just take engine efficiency, and posit that a car has a peak efficiency at a particular RPM; then in a steady state that RPM can be translated into only as many speeds as the car has gears. So, typically there are five speeds at which maximum engine RPM is maximized. Now, as the speed increases, so does the drag. So, at peak efficiency of RPM, the lowest wind resistance occurs in first gear. But the distance covered, for the same number of engine revolutions, is much less in lower gears. So the peak efficiency of the car depends on wind resistance, peak efficiency of the engine RPM, gearbox and on other drag factors. I understand that engine efficiency will have a peak; in fact there will be an efficiency graph for each gear. I don't think that the statement "the lower the speed, the greater the efficiency" holds up. Notinasnaid 11:03, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

There's an interesting graph on http://eartheasy.com/live_fuel_efficient_driving.htm. It shows two peaks, perhaps for different gears (as US graph, it may assume an automatic gearbox). Of course, it oversimplifies; not all cars will have the same graph. Notinasnaid 11:05, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Please notice that my answer agrees with Notinasnsaid's graph. Some seem to have interpreted my statement as a general case, not as specific to the two examples given. Rmhermen 14:09, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Pants.

Would it be legal to, say, wander around St. Paul, Minnesota without my pants? Or dress, or skirt, or shorts, or kilt? Just shirt and underwear? And maybe trenchcoat? 172.147.55.9 02:31, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

I'm not a lawyer, but I don't know why it would be illegal if your genitals were covered. It would be like walking around with a swimsuit on. Dismas|^(talk) 04:03, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Here's the relevant statute. Sounds like it could at worse be a misdemeanor, if they decide it is "indecent" despite not showing genitals directly. In some states getting convicted for indecent exposure can get you "sex offender" status, though I don't know about Minnesota. In any case it probably isn't worth it. --Fastfission 04:10, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

What if I wore a trenchcoat over the shirt and undies? ±172.147.55.9 04:16, 5 May 2006 (UTC)!

Won't matter as long as you keep that trenchcoat closed, you flasher, you. Tijuana Brass^¡Épa!-E@ 05:15, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Were you planning to do this in January? If so I think you might have to worry about shrinkage that was discussed earlier. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 11:30, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Shrinkage#Slang. Just thought I'd whip the link out there... Dismas|^(talk) 11:44, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

I, Ref-Elf, hereby give the honour of You Have to Try it Out To Answer it Question of The Day to this question. Congratulations! Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 06:01, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Aussies

Do you pronounce 'Z' as zee ? Tintin (talk) 05:27, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Like most countries speaking Commonwealth English, they pronounce it as "zed". See Z.-gadfium 06:29, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

"Zee" has a bit of a foothold in a certain demographic, but it's not a standard pronunciation. JackofOz 07:09, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Well, now, that's just unnecessarily tantalising. Which demographic? --Bth 11:46, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

I was being deliberately vague because I can't verify this assertion. Just my personal observation of certain people aged between about 18 and about 30. It's by no means universal in this age group, but you hear it enough to notice. JackofOz 12:03, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Perhaps it's the ones's who were raised by Sesame Street? Notinasnaid 12:53, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Ouch! I was taught 'zee' by a legitimate real life teacher in an elementary school in the states. (Assuming we're the demographic you're talking about. It's not our fault the rest of the english speaking world is starting to come around to some of our improvements.) ;-) -LambaJan 22:27, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Lambajan, some changes are improvements, and some are just changes :--). JackofOz 23:20, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Notinasnaid, the ones's who were taught by Sesame Street to write ones's are the same ones's who now teach English to American school kids - and run the world.  :--) JackofOz 23:20, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Seriously though, American linguistic influence is incredibly powerful and American English will probably become the world-wide standard form of English eventually. But only over my dead body. JackofOz 23:20, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Amen to that, Jack. It'll be Zed 'till the day I die. Same goes for the inclusion of the "U" in words like ColoUr, NeighboUr, HonoUr etc... Loomis51 01:09, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

TIME ZONE - LONDON - YEAR 1949A.D.

Please let me know time zone changes during the Year 1949A.D. as I wish to know the London Time Zone used at 0200hours London Standard Time on 17 October 1949A.D. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.143.10.137 (talk • contribs)

That would be GMT - ever since the concept of time zones developed, London has been in the same time zone as Greenwich. Our article on British Summer Time tells you that summer time ended on 30 October in 1949, so on the 17th of that month, the clocks would still have been one hour ahead. -- Ferkelparade π 17:02, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

<after edit conflict> Curious question. See British Summer Time - On 17 October of that year the UK was still on BST and was therefore 1 hour ahead of GMT. 17:08, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

To clarify Ferkelparade's comment London is only on GMT for half of the year and at the time we are talking about it wasn't on GMT. It was one hour ahead. Jooler 17:17, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

To become totally nitpicky, London would then still be in the same time zone as Greenwich - which, strangely, is also one hour ahead of GMT during summer time :P -- Ferkelparade π 17:25, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Why Stangely? Greenwich is in the same timezone as Greenwich because Greenwich (London Borough of Greenwich) is in London ? Jooler 01:11, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

No, strangely because Greenwich is one hour ahead of Greenwich time (GMT) during summer time -- Ferkelparade π 15:46, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

I can confirm the 30th of October thing. My parents got married on 29/10/49 in London, and apparently got quite a bit of ribbing from their friends about timing it so they could have one hour longer in bed the following morning. Grutness...wha? 02:27, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Slot Machines: Designing

I am trying to design and program a couple of slot machines for use by guest of an IRC chat room that i own. I think im able to do tyhe actual programming, but im having a problem with the actual setup. The problem is i want this slot machine setup to be as realistic as possible. I have read the wikipedia article on slot machines and know that it should give 85-95% of the money back to the player. My wish is to design a game similar to "Money Honey" games found in the united states and supposedly australia. (it is a game which has 5 reels, a "Wildcard" which is available on some reels, and a second screen which will randomly come up and allow a free mini game or free spins.) It would be most beneficial if i could see the layout of all 5 wheels of a digital slot machine along with its payout table. however, its probably information which is unavailable for fear of using it to know about the machine "too much" ? I only want to use the information to substitute with my own symbols, and maybe id change the payout table slightly so that there is no association with the origional game. ive found some images of some 3 wheel slots with help from a friennd.

http://i24.ebayimg.com/02/i/05/45/13/0c_1.JPG http://i9.ebayimg.com/03/i/06/f4/fa/e0_1.JPG

but first of all these images are only three reels, and theres no payout table shown. Maybe im asking for info thats not available, but the full point of asking this is that im trying to design a machine and i have problems with trying to figure out the statistics of being able to pay back 85-95% to the player, and how i should place the symbols on each reel etc. If anyone has ideas please help, it is very well appreciated!

172.148.221.65 17:45, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

This may not be the answer you're looking for, but there is an excellent website called the Wizard of Odds which deals with gambling statistics and the like. It may not have exactly what you're looking for, but would probably be a better resource than Wikipedia for this type of thing (and the author is good about answering questions). Good luck. Tijuana Brass^¡Épa!-E@ 07:26, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Random Phone number Generator

Is there any website that can generate valid phone numbers?

Can you specify a bit more? What do you want it for? And do you want a website guaranteed to return a phone number that might get picked up (in which case there are various directory enquiries sites, at least for the UK that I suppose you could feed postcodes and trial house numbers, though for very good reasons the number of requests per day for a given user are highly limited), or just a phone number of the correct format for some locality? Are you aware of 555? --Bth

Because folk are constantly relocating, disconnecting, and reconnecting, there is no way to check a number is valid (i.e. connected) without dialling it. --Shantavira 09:21, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

If you are asking this because you want to build a device for randomly dialing people to ask if they want to buy products then I recommend beating yourself on the head with a large piece of wood until you promise yourself that you will never do it. DJ Clayworth 17:54, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Now, that was funny..! Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 18:05, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

See also War dialing. —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 19:27, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

I am looking for a particular movie

Hi,

is this the right place to ask for a particular movie?

Wouldn't it be great if there was a special talk page just for this, where people could say : i saw this film or series some time ago and I wanna know what it was?

Anyway: it's this French chess film, where a little genius chess player, a bit clumsy and not so quite attractive ends up playing a tournament against a snobby more handsome chess player, and a beautiful lady is the price. He wins by playing a trick on the other one : he touches a piece, which results in punishment, but ultimately it is a trap, and in his advantage so he wins. The snobby player doesn't accept this, and even wants to fight him. However the little chess player decides not to marry the woman. In the very end, we see him, early in the morning, outside of a castle in the mountains, playing against himself with huge pieces. Then he jumps off the rocks.

I have been looking for five years now. Please help me I will be very happy!

Evilbu 18:34, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

A search of IMDB for movies with chess as a plot keyword and French as a language of production leads me to believe your film might be the 1984 Best Foreign Picture Oscar winner, La Diagonale du fou, released in the USA as Dangerous Moves. The capsule descriptions make it sound like a film with a strong political subtext, rather than the romantic one you describe, but it's one of the few French movies with chess as a main plot element. --ByeByeBaby 19:41, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

I found La Partie D'Echecs; the plot summary mentions that a young girl is the prize. It is set in 1828. If neither of these films is the one you are looking for, additional details (such as the time frame depicted) could help. --LarryMac 20:06, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

USS Vincennes, May 1939

Hello, I'm trying to find out where the USS Vincennes was in May of 1939. More specifically, I need to know if it was in San Fransisco during the few months before leaving for Hawaii, (or at any time between 1936-1940.)

Thank you very much.

Yes, if you count Mare Island as San Francisco - see USS Vincennes (CA-44), section on operations in '39 Rmhermen 20:06, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Polls

Is there anywhere on Wikipedia were I can post or answer polls?--Porsche997SBS 21:37, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

No, if they're unrelated to the building of the encylopedia. For polls which are relevant, see Wikipedia:Current surveys.-gadfium 23:49, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Thanks!--Porsche997SBS 02:59, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

william cameron menzies

I have a painting or sketching of "the hooded falcon" signed by william cameron menzies what do i have? thank you michelle heston

The Hooded Falcon was a Rudolph Valentino movie that was not released. William Cameron Menzies was a art director but it's there is no listing for him working on that film. However, he may have worked on it as he worked on both of Valention's "Cobra" and "The Eagle". See also Cobra commentary.

need help

what is it called when you are a 22 year old woman, but you have child like tendencies?

immature?

I'd agree with immaturity. Being childish, infantile, and juvenile would also work. If you're after physical characteristics rather than personality, neoteny/Pedomorphosis are more applicable. GeeJo ^(t)⁄_(c) • 23:57, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Bear in mind that some childish tendencies are normal and healthy, especially if you are under stress (or drunk). --Shantavira 09:29, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

The question referred to "child like" tendencies, which may be referring to something very different, eg. innocence, naivete, trust, curiosity, wonder, love. The whole Christian religion requires child-like qualities of its adherents: "Except ye become as little children, ye shall not enter the kingdom of Heaven". Or something like that. JackofOz 09:51, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

The term ingenue might also be a possibility, depending on in which sense you mean "child-like". Grutness...wha? 13:14, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Berkshire Hathaway

I wonder how much BRK.A and BRK.B will drop if Warren Buffet (in his mid-70's) were to quit/die/become seriously ill? Are there any historical instances of a very respected individual in the investing world dropping out of a company because of personal circumstances? I'd like to see what happened to the stock after that. -snpoj

Certainly there are precedents for that situation but BRK is rather a unique stock. I think we will have to wait and see. Rmhermen 00:31, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Hey snpoj...got you message, thanks!

If I were an investor in Berhshire Hathaway I wouldn't worry much. But then again, I wouldn't start investing at this stage either. In fact, I'd probably start to sell my stocks slowly, reaping my rewards while watching how the stock moves in price.

I wouldn't worry too much about Buffet's mortality because the company is essentially a holding corporation, it holds such a variety of stocks that it's virtually the equivalent of a mutual fund. Each of the many companies it holds stocks in are governed by their own set of directors and officers, all of whom Buffet obviously has confidence in; however:

BRK's past performance has certainly been "priced in" to the shares by the "street", so the price that you'd be buying them at now is very likely more a reflection of past performance than a prediction of future performance (that's why I wouldn't buy them...they've done so good in the past that people are likely overpaying for them now just in the hope that they'll continue such a phenomenal performance; and:

Like I've always stated, the "street" has certainly priced into BRK's shares the fact that Buffet is in his 70's and won't be running the company forever, meaning that the price of the shares reflects whatever concerns you may be worrying about.

I always remember what one of my favourite professors said: The key to investing is to "buy low, sell high." Unfortunately most unsophisticated investors seem to be focussed the wrong way, they essentially try to "buy high, sell higher."

BRK's stocks are hot now and that's why I wouldn't buy them. If I did, I'd essentially be hoping to "buy high, sell higher," which is never a good strategy. The stocks to look for are the ones that seem to be cheap now, but have the potential for really appreciating in value. Of course, it takes a committed stock analyst to comprehensibly study the annual reports of each company and figure out which stocks are best to buy. As I don't have the head or the patience for that sort of thing, I leave it up to the mutual fund managers, who are experts at reading financial reports and are paid to watch stocks 24/7, while I can spend my time doing whatever it is that I do best.

Buy low, sell high!

Good luck snpoj! Loomis51 01:01, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

interesting, thanks again for the comments. Not sure I'm totally convinced that buy high/sell higher is a bad strategy. Like you say, it's too much research and analysis for someone who doesn't do it as a job to find a company that is so undervalued that you'd be buying low and selling high. I may consider putting money into a mutual fund, though. When researching companies and buying stocks and checking my %-gain/loss every day when I get home gets boring or too time consuming, I think that's the next step. -snpoj

May 6

Manhattan, island of mysteries

• 1. Does anyone know what the big metal canisters of nitrogen on the corners of 5th Ave & 43rd and 45th are? Theres a pair at each corner which have been left out there for months - maybe a year or more? they even seem to be leaking a little (frozen nitrogen on the outside).
• 2. Where to buy a decent Cornish pasty and Scotch egg and pork pie in the city which never sleeps?

Bwithh 01:00, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

That would be water freezing out of the atmosphere, not leaking nitrogen freezing. The tanks will offgas gaseous nitrogen to maintain pressure, though that is a design feature not a leak. Many industries use liquid nitrogen. Rmhermen 01:54, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

I, Ref-Elf, hereby give the honour of A Pair of Questions Which Are Completely Unrelated to Each Other to this question. Congratulations! (I am in the mood for giving away awards today!) Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 06:06, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

There is a rather tenuous Manhattan connection, but I think the award is richly deserved, Jayant. This reminds me of the line from Field of Dreams where the Kevin Costner character, talking about his wife when they first met, says something like "We had nothing in common except she came from Iowa and I had once heard of Iowa". JackofOz 09:45, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Sound like Myers of Keswick (634 Hudson Street) is what you're after. They have a wide range of British foods. According to their website, they stock all the foods you mention. --Canley 02:42, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Pedro Lopez -- hoaxer or not?

We have this guy included in List of hoaxes, and have a Hoax category on his article. It's not obvious why. Anyone know? Moriori 01:19, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

See the links on the talk page for more info. Rmhermen 02:01, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

The word hoax is not mentioned, in the article, or on its talk page. Moriori 02:38, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Try this link from the talk page: [1] Rmhermen 03:41, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

The word hoax does not appear on that link either. Wikipedia seems to be the only site categorically stating it is a hoax. I'm not saying it is not, but we should not be saying it is without reputable references. Moriori 03:51, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Golf ball damage

How can I stop a golf club from using it's driving range while I attempt to work with them to find a solution to golf balls striking my home causing damage? Would this be through the courts via injunction, or some other kind of temporary, or permanent, action?

IANAL ANWB (And Never Will Be), but the first step might be to talk to the club owner. Tell him you want him to put up additional meshes around the driving range. If he says no, threaten him with litigation (you DO have a valid complaint, so threat of litigation is appropriate). If this fails, meet him in court, and get your injunction. A judge will listen, and hopefully give him, at the very least, a deadline to implement measures to reduce damage to your property. Or I could be full of it, what do I know? --WasteOfTime 02:07, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

We had a similar incident in my city. Somebody built their new home in a vacant lot next to #3 in a private club. I think all the fancy new super clubs and nasa-balls allowed the duffers to really start whapping their house. They eventually got a court order, but I still don't think it's resolved. --Zeizmic 12:48, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Zeizmic, that story kind of reminds me of idiots who move in next to an existing airport and then complain about the noise. --Nelson Ricardo 17:33, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

The remedy you would seek would be called an interlocutory injunction. However, I tend to agree with Nricardo. Didn't you realize you bought a home in the direct path of a driving range? If I were the judge, I wouldn't grant the remedy, but merely restate the age-old rule:caveat emptor.

What analogy can you come up with to explain the meaning of analogy?

--WasteOfTime 01:53, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

I don't suppose our article on analogy would help to get you started? — QuantumEleven 09:00, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

OOO! I looked at the article and really like this one. I think it'll probably work perfectly for you.

In anatomy, two anatomical structures are considered to be analogous when they serve similar functions but are not evolutionarily related, such as the legs of vertebrates and the legs of insects.

-LambaJan 18:14, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

9/11 and the Internet

What effects did September 11 have on the internet and the use of the internet?

This smells like a Homework question to me.. Do your own homework.. And this page gives you something to start on. Best of luck.! Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 05:01, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

And this also gives you a lot of information. I found both of them by just searching for 9/11 and effects on internet on google. You can find a lot more also by trying out other searches. Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 05:04, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Thank you. And this isn't a homework question, I just wanted to know.

Oh, well.. I guess anyone could be wrong once in a while.. ;-D .. And you are welcome. Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 05:55, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

One thing you might find interesting is that after 9/11 all US federal government sites dealing with things relevant to national security were required to go over all of their content and remove anything potentially useful to "terrorists". Los Alamos National Laboratory, for example, removed public access to all of their old technical reports (even though most of them were declassified 45 years ago), and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory no longer provides access to their old Environmental Impact Reports because aerial images of the lab or descriptions of where their hazardous materials are kept are on the "don't give out" list. Most of these things are still unclassified but have been labeled "Sensitive But Unclassified" -- it's not illegal to have them, but the government isn't going to give them to you. I imagine similar things have happened elsewhere with government sites. --Fastfission 15:16, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Regular expression web search engine

Are there any public web search engines that support search by regular expressions?

• http://www.exalead.com seems to. --jpgordon∇∆∇∆ 06:05, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Ask.com claims to as well. --Shantavira 09:34, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

John Titor and hackers question

why hackers didn't tried to find john titor by searching the pc of titor, the he posted the forums????

If you are trying to ask why hackers didn't try to find John Titor via his IP, I'm sure they did. And I'm sure you would get a better answer by asking at one of the forums dedicated to this nonsense, which are referenced in the article. --Shantavira 11:22, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

socrates

I am trying to find the ansewer to Socrates claim that moral error occurs only as a result of ignorance. Any help would be greatly appreciated.....

Tons of hits on Google for this; try typing in socrates "moral error" ignorance. Here's an interesting one, in blog form: http://dissoiblogoi.blogspot.com/2005/11/i-didnt-mean-to-do-it-so-what.html Tijuana Brass^¡Épa!-E@ 07:18, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

volcanos - mt etna

Please help me find a site where I might find the answers to :-

What were the effects of the volcano (mt etna) on people plants and animals, and what did the people do before, during and after erruption?

What measures were taken to reduce the effects in the future?

Many thanks Kim

Our own article on Mt. Etna gives a lot of information. And this page gives the health affects due to Mt. Etna. And also check out our article on Volcano. Hope that helps you. Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 07:01, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

You also might find this interesting. And a quick google search for Mt. Etna effects of eruption gives you a lot of hits which you might find very useful. Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 07:05, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

The Right Mix

http:// files.liquidlight.co.uk/rightmix/loader.swf —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 199.31.3.197 (talk • contribs) .

You haven't really asked a question. If you are trying to advertise your game, please do not use Wikipedia as a vehicle for advertising. Thank you. SCHZMO ✍ 15:36, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Format so it can't link out. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 15:49, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Iranian

How many Iranians Live in Canada?

According to the 2001 census, there are 88,225 people in Canada that are at least part Iranian. 73,450 are 'completely' Iranian and 14,775 reported as Iranian and another ethnic origin. - ulayiti (talk) 17:05, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

These numbers are also reflected in the article List of Canadians by ethnicity. Weregerbil 17:12, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Five Pence Piece

Looking closely at a British Five Pence coin, I noticed in tiny letters, just below the Queen's head, the letters IRB (or maybe IRE). It only seems to appear on some 5p coins. What does it mean? smurrayinchester^{(User), (Talk)} 14:26, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

It also appears on two pence piece; you can see it in this image. smurrayinchester^{(User), (Talk)} 14:28, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

The first thing I noticed was the designer's name: Ian Rank-Broadley. JackofOz 14:54, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

When you say it is only on certain 5p coins, is it that the ones without the letters have an older picture of the Queen? But if you could please send me some coins (with and without the letters) to look at, I can offer you a more considered opinion -- particularly £2 coins, on which the letters also appear... :) Arbitrary username 16:26, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Ah, of course! Yes, it the newer ones. Obviously the other designers didn't feel the need to sign their coins. Thanks! smurrayinchester^{(User), (Talk)} 19:35, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Titanium Dioxide

I recently purchased some chewing gum that contains some Titanium Dioxide as one of the ingredients. Being unfamiluar with this ingredient I was wondering how the Titamium Dioxide would react in the body? I don't wish to ingest something that is harmful. Please let me hear back from you as soon as possible.

I don't think it will do any harm becuase, if it did, then, under the Sales of Good Act, would be illegal to sell. And, from our article on titanium dioxide, Titanium is used as a white food dye. In that use, its E number is E171. The white color of toothpaste is that of titanium dioxide. It is also used as a tattoo pigment. So it just makes the gum white. Kilo-Lima|^(talk) 17:06, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

It is not harmful. At least not in the amounts in which it is present in food. --BluePlatypus 23:15, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

This question probably should have been posted to the science desk. --Chapuisat 20:25, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Heather Poe

I would like biographical info on Heather Poe,I have a friend that thinks they knew her parents.

Try looking it up. If that doesn't work, google is your friend.--Frenchman113 on wheels! 20:18, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Actually, if this "Heather Poe" is a nobody, you won't find information on her anywhere.--Frenchman113 on wheels! 20:19, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

"Blacking up"

hi, an ethics question for you: if its OK for able-bodied actors to play a disabled characters, or straight actors to play gay characters (and vice-versa), why is a white actor playing a black character not done anymore and can be considered racist? any thoughts.....andrew

Well the actor who plays Will in Will and Grace is not gay in real life; he has kids. At least I think... Kilo-Lima|^(talk) 18:11, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Yes I believe he is straight. But having kids is no proof of a person's sexuality one way or another. JackofOz 02:12, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

• Because taking a white person to play a black character's role implies you think black actors are not able to play the part. - Mgm|^(talk) 20:41, 6 May 2006 (UTC)
  • Well, no, because I would assume that disabled people can play disabled characters, likewise for gays and gay characters. I would assume the answer is because you can tell that someone is white just by looking at them. I know you can make people up so you can't tell the difference nowadays, but what's the point when you can hire someone of the right ethnicity in the first place? --Sam Blanning^(talk) 01:46, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

I assume the context of the question is film and TV. No such conventions apply in opera (or in theatre more generally). In opera, it's more important to have the right voice; looks are secondary, which is why there's no problem having whites singing Madama Butterfly (Japanese) or Turandot (Chinese) or Otello (moor); or black-skinned people playing white or Asian characters; or full-bosomed mature ladies singing sickly consumptives such as Mimi or Violetta. JackofOz 02:12, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

• Well I assume that "whites playing blacks" taboo is a result of the old minstrel shows, which depicted very racist character arctypes. Deathawk 04:36, 7 May 2006 (UTC)
• Eric McCormack is definitely out as a straight actor. DJ Clayworth 17:46, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

How can I find a software for VOB?

I need to convert a Windows Media file into a VOB (DVD Video Object) because I'm trying to burn it onto a DVD and the burning program won't accept my Windows Media file. Can you tell me if there's any software I can use? (I also posted this question on the mathematics reference desk here but maybe that was the wrong place for a computer question.) Jonathan ^talk File:Canada flag 300.png 17:50, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

There might be something here CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 20:17, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

performa invoice

What is a "performa invoice"?

Please remember to sign all of your posts on talk pages. Typing four tildes after your comment ( ~~~~ ) will insert a signature showing your username and a date/time stamp, which is very helpful.

A mis-spelling of "Pro forma invoice". Google will explain to you what this is. Sandstein 19:51, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Football League?

Hi,

Bit of a random question here but I'm told you can ask anything.

What is the largest town in England and Wales not to be represented by a club in the Football League? Premiership? What about if you include the Conference?

Many thanks, --86.130.25.206 20:22, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

This get's my vote for the question of the week. I think that for The Football League it might be the second biggest city Birmingham as it looks as if both of their teams are in the Premiership. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 21:38, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

For the Premiership, maybe Sheffield? - ulayiti (talk) 21:44, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Leeds is bigger than Sheffield, List of English cities by population CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 21:46, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

I think I have it. Dudley looks to be the biggest without a team in either the Premiership or the Football League. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 21:53, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

It looks as if they also qualify for the entire question. Dudley Town F.C. is in the West Midlands Regional League Premier Division and looks to be the highest ranked team they have. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 22:07, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

I, Ref-Elf, hereby give the honour of Question of The Week to this question. Congratulations! (Although another question might be honoured with the same honour in the near future, that shouldn't take away any sheen from this honour. ;-P ) Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 22:02, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

Dudley is a bit misleading though because it is part of the West Midlands conurbation which does have lots of teams - West Bromwich Albion must be all of five miles away. The largest urban area without a team in the Premiership or Football League is Aldershot (243,344). They play in the Conference. Warrington (158,195) is the largest urban area without a team in the Prem/FL/Conf at all. (Warrington is a rugby league town). Jameswilson 23:03, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

As of today, I'd have thought it was Oxford, but it is smaller than Dudley, surprisingly, and also Basingstoke and Telford - Telford United is no longer in the conference, AFAIK, and Oxford United has just - in a piece of poetic symmetry - been replaced in the league by Accrington Stanley, the team they replaced in the league back in the early 60s. Grutness...wha? 23:41, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

And Telford isn't a city anyway. It's more of a penal colony for Shropshire. Slumgum | yap | stalk | 23:47, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

I did think of the West Midlands conurbation but the question was about towns. And Dudley appears on the List of English cities by population. If you look at List of English districts by population then you see that the Metropolitan borough of Kirklees is without a team in the Premiership and I suspect that London Borough of Croydon (340,200) may qualify as they appear to only have non-league teams. It just depends on what way you define the original question. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 00:27, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

True, true. The local govt boundaries have been changed so frequently the word "town" is difficult to apply with any consistency in England. The List of English cities by population is interesting but not really helpful because it produces weird results such as Newcastle only being 21st or Portsmouth being smaller than Southampton. List_of_conurbations_in_the_United_Kingdom corresponds better to the reality as it takes the whole built-up area in each case, whereas the other one splits up some but not others. Jameswilson 00:46, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

And technically, I think that many Croydonians would regard Crystal Palace as their "town"'s team (certainly that's what it was regarded as when my mum lived there - but that's some time back). Grutness...wha? 06:59, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Hi, thanks very much for all those wonderful answers. By the way it was me who asked the original question - I just forgot to log in first. Apologies. I don't think I'll take Dudley as it's just part of the conurbation, and as Jameswilson points out, West Bromwich Albion must be only five miles away. I'm more interested in conurbations really - not London boroughs or cities-inside-cities but whole urban areas. So tell me - out of all the possible answers you've given - Aldershot, Oxford, Telford, Basingstoke, which one is largest? Thanks again for putting in the time and effort to answer totally random questions. Question of the Week? Are you serious? --Mark J 09:44, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Don't get a swelled head! That, and a buck might get you a small cup of coffee. --Zeizmic 13:44, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Aldershot. Jameswilson 23:17, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Please answer this time

I asked this question six monthes ago, and I still do not have an answer. Could some please put my mind at ease and provide one? I would really apreciate it. The question is as follows:

When uploading an image from source deemed to be an Original Video Animation, should we use the tv-screenshot templete or the film-screenshot templete, or does it matter? TomStar81 20:39, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

• Hm, apparently the {{screenshot}} template is deprecated. The best thing you could do is make a {{ova-screenshot}} template specifically for this type of material, since it's neither from television or from a film released in theaters. Assuming you took the screenshot from your own tv, the tv-screenshot one could work too. Just add a note explaining the situation after adding the tag. The copyright rules for regular film and tv and OVA don't differ anyway, so using the other templates can't hurt. - Mgm|^(talk) 20:47, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

I'd say film, because it's analagous to a straight-to-video movie in the west. Night Gyr 20:49, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

I was thinking film myself, since the OVA would roughly corospond to an American direct to movie or direct to DVD release, but I was not sure that that would be legally acceptable. I will see about creating an OVA template for this type of visual media. Thanks. TomStar81 21:21, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

i have old money

Hi,my name is Denise i have money i've found for over ten years i wanted to see the history of the money all i have on it is some china words on it and if you hold it up to the light you can see a lady picture on it so it is real.thank you!

                                           70.149.191.82 23:57, 6 May 2006 (UTC)

You'd need to show us some photos of the money, and more information on it (the date, country of origin, colour, size,etc...)--valuefreeperson2

May 7

Internet Browser

I'm looking for a browser that is simple, has no frills or features and is free and is a small download (0-1.5mbs) I just want to use it for looking at websites that contain text, pictures and maybe eventually Flash but nothing else really. It should also work on Windows ME. Can anyone suggest one? --172.146.101.35 00:46, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

There are plenty to choose from. You might like to look here to start with. --Shantavira 08:07, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Mozilla Firefox isn't really as bloated as some people say it is. Or you could try K-Meleon. —Keenan Pepper 08:14, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

I don't know why you need the brower to be that small. Hard drive space can't be an issue at that size. If you have a slow connection speed you can leave it running overnight, or you can order the open cd which contains many useful free programs (including Firefox). I would recommend Firefox, and if possible getting rid of Windows ME. Jon513 15:25, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

I'm a Firefox user myself, but Opera (browser) is slightly leaner. Sum0 19:24, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Get lynx, or e-links, or use telnet.--Frenchman113 on wheels! 19:54, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

HEY!I will never use that evil firefox. I'm against it. I hate mozilla. Plus, it's too big. ----172.147.33.50 01:08, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Toothpaste

I hate mint flavoured toothpaste, but it's the only type that I see at stores. Now, I've read the article on Toothpaste, and I know that there are other flavours, but WHY is toothpaste mint flavoured? Who got the bright idea to make my breath smell like mint leaves? I'd rather have toothpaste that is unflavoured. --anonymous.

Makers of consumer products do countless hours of market research to determine what flavors and types of products to offer. My guess is that unflavored toothpaste would seem pretty gross. Mint, of course, has long been used to freshen breath, and therefore people associate it with fresh breath. Most people have smelly breath when they wake up, so they want something that will make their breath smell fresh. -- Mwalcoff 02:09, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

There are different kinds of mint flavors too. I don't particularly like spearmint (though it's better than morning breath), but I find peppermint rather tasty. This entirely personal opinion brought to you by --WasteOfTime 05:53, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Forget the stores. Toothpaste is a rip off. Googling "make your own toothpaste" brings up hundreds of suggestions. --Shantavira 08:14, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

There are other flavours: there are various herbal toothpastes, and when I was nobbut a lad we had fruit-flavoured toothpaste, which may still be around. Henry^Flower 11:53, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

I, Ref-Elf, hereby give the honour of The Most Thought Provoking Question of The Day to this question. Congratulations! Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 18:21, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

This site sells toothpaste in such flavors as Vanilla, Bitter Chocolate, Caramel, L'Espresso, Pumpkin Pudding, Green Tea, Indian Curry, Tropical Pineapple, Darjeeling Tea, Cinnamon, Rose, Honey, Lavender, Lemon Tea, Cola, Fresh Yogurt, Monkey Banana, Kiwi Fruit, Strawberry and Blueberry. User:Zoe|^(talk) 21:15, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Thank you, Indian guy. I guess that I can always use baking soda. But I still hate mint- no matter what subtype you want to call it. --anonymous

Red-eye effect in photography

Does anybody know the technical term for the "red-eye" effect in photography? I thought that it began with "hemo-", but I might be totally wrong. Please, please, please, if anybody knows, I'd greatly appreciate it. (I doubt that I'll be able to sleep until I find out!) —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 70.57.168.48 (talk • contribs) .

Please don't post the same question on multiple reference desks. If your question is about the word for something, the correct place is the language desk. —Keenan Pepper 04:57, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

CTU window manager

What X window manager do the CTU workstations use on 24? —Keenan Pepper 08:11, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

At a guess, I'd say they just use Hollywood OS. GeeJo ^(t)⁄_(c) • 14:55, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Does Australia have any government-controlled spy satellites?

Like, for surveillance? I know we have communications satellite, for cable TV etc. But do we have any of those cool ones like the Americans use for war operations and so on.

If the article on spy satellites is up to date (which is not guaranteed) the answer would appear to be "no". And the really cool ones you see on 24, where Chloe can get you live TV feed from any random street corner at a minute's notice, nobody but Hollywood has those :-) Weregerbil 11:18, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

It is not uncommon for satellites to have a undeclared military purpose, although this is often something of an open secret. I don't think it's outside the realm of possibility that Australia could covertly have such a program.--Pharos 23:19, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

I doubt the Australian government operates spy satellites on its own, but as a signitory of ECHELON and the UKUSA Community, Australia has almost total access to the satellite intelligence of the USA and UK. Australia also runs a satellite ground station at Pine Gap which is a joint operation between Australia's Defence Signals Directorate and the US National Security Agency. --Canley 01:59, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Hmmm. I would think that "total access" might be somewhat of an exaggeration, but you're basically right. However, in most cases where Australia might want satellite imagery of its local region it would probably be in America's interest to provide it. Australia does have one cool toy that lets us keep an eye on our neighbours that very few countries have; the Jindalee over-the-horizon radar, which lets us watch aircraft and shipping movements over very large distances to our north. --Robert Merkel 07:18, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

XviD to SVCD

What's the best way to convert XviD encoded AVI files to SVCD? --Phil 1970 12:36, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

"Best" may be a bit difficult to answer unless someone who has done a serious comparison happens to read this. May depend on whether you want freeware or commercial software, whether you prefer a simple program or you are prepared to learn how to twiddle with programs' settings, ... For video how-to's I usually go to videohelp.com; click the "convert" tab on the left, select "AVI to SVCD" on a dropdown. Weregerbil 15:38, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

The simplest option would be to use XMPEG.

Break words, but not lines?

In HTML, &nbsp; breaks words for purposes of CSS text-transform:capitalize; but not for purposes of line breaking. Is there a space that behaves the same way, but is zero-width (e.g. to go after a slash)? Seahen 14:42, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

I am not sure what you are asking, but it seems that you want to a have a character capitalized in the middle of a word with text-transform:capitalize;. You want to do this by placing a zero-width space in front of that letter. I doubt very much that there is such a character. Even &nbsp; does not have universal support on all browers and sometimes won't capitalize the next word. Why not just capitlaize the letter? Text-transfrom capitalize only makes the first letter capital it does not affect the other letters! If you need the letter sometimes to be captial and sometimes not, and you want CSS to affect it, use a span tag for the letter. Jon513 15:51, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

It's not as simple as span classes: I'm using wiki, so AFAIK I can't just define a new class. (Or can I? I'm an admin on the wiki in question.) Seahen 20:11, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Update: I've found a way to do what I wanted using a span class at the site's MediaWiki:Monobook.css. So now this question is academic. Seahen 23:59, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

There is a zero-width non-breaking space, now replaced by the word joiner. You can also use something like {{nobr}}. --cesarb 03:19, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

J.D.Farrar

I have recently come into possession of a number of glass slides of a world trip taken in the early twentieth century. They start in what I believe to be Egypt continue through India, Tibet, Australia and Canada. Amongst them is a picture of a notice board displaying notice of election in the Northern Territories, Australia warning that voting is compulsory and failure to register or vote will result in a fine not exceeding two Pounds. The name on the bottom is J.D.Farrar but the date is just too small to identify. I would be obliged if someone could inform me as to the period when this person was holding this office as it will make dating of these slides possible. Thanks in anticipation, Marstafitta.

This is Joshua Dayson Farrar who was the Senior Electoral Officer for the Commonwealth of Australia from 28 August 1924 to 17 April 1930.[2]. There are three elections this could be referring to: 15 December 1925, 8 December 1928 or 7 December 1929.[3] --Canley 01:49, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Thanks very much for the information. It is good that someone has taken the time and trouble to date photographs with so little to go on. Thanks again, Marstafitta.

Corrector plate for C8 telescope

Hello,

I have a Schimt & Casgrain Celetron 8 (Orange tube). Last night I drop the telescope and broke the corrector plate. I'm looking for someone or a business that couls provide me with a replacement.

Does anyone know where I could get one?

THanks,

Yves (From Canada)

Oops! Try here. --Shantavira 16:42, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Long Lasting Lipstick

I have a couple of sticks of long lasting lipstick. I tried them on my hand and rubbed gold on them. (That's the way to test for lead in lipsticks.) They both had lead. I was wondering if the lead in the lipsticks could hurt me, or if it's too insubstantial to really do anything. Thanks for the help!

Try reading this article that will show the common myths involved with what you are talking about. Hope that helps! --Matterbug 19:27, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

According to the reliable Snopes on this page, the amount of lead in lipsticks is next to nothing and not dangerous. Sum0 19:30, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Yes, the lipstick story is a hoax, with respect to the lead content as well as to the way of testing for it. In the line of gold, however, a test for lead has been developed using gold nanoparticles and a DNA-based enzyme on a test strip. This would eliminate the problem one has with chromate causing false negatives in previous tests, as well as being cheaper. [This] is a newspaper article, the work was published in Jan 2006. --Seejyb 22:11, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

The elderly and savings theft

Here in the UK (I don't know if customs are different in other countries) you often hear about elderly people having their life savings stolen from their homes by burglars - substantial amounts of money in most cases. While this is terrible, it begs the question: why don't they just keep their savings in a bank like everyone else? I think someone told me once that it was because of the Depression and that people who grew up in the 30s don't trust banks, but this seems unlikely to me. Thanks lads/gals. Sum0 19:35, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

In this matter, for once I think that asking any elderly relatives of yours might give a better answer than asking people on Wiki. Just find an old folks' home or something along those lines. ;)

For one thing, it's probably only a minority of elderly people that do so. For another, elderly people generally have less education than younger people, and may have a poorer understanding of the curse of inflation and the miracle of compound interest. And, finally, the number of elderly people who get their life savings stolen in this manner is probably very small; it's the rarity of this type of crime that makes it tabloid fodder, rather than it being representative of the amount of crime being perpetrated. Identity theft and shoplifting account for far greater financial losses than this type of crime; on a related point violent crime is overwhelmingly performed by young men, mostly towards other young men. --Robert Merkel 06:05, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Also bear in mind that fifty years ago most people were paid in cash, there were no ATMs or credit cards and all one's shopping had to be paid for in cash. And people couldn't get around so easily to get to a bank. For most people there was simply no point in having a bank account. --Shantavira 07:28, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

They might remember the Great Depression, when some banks failed, taking depositors' life savings with them. -- Mwalcoff 08:35, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Um, dude... the original poster already mentioned that...  ;) --Dismas|^(talk) 08:38, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

greeting and business etiquette

In Iran, what is their greetings and their business etiquette?

A Google search resulted in a number of relevant pages, of which the first one is a nice guide to business etiquette in Iran: Iran Business Etiquette, Culture - Doing Business in Iran at Executive Planet. –Mysid 11:55, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

banning user from commenting.

how do i ban an annoying user from commenting on my user page? is this possible? am i allowed to revert any edits the person makes to the page?--Manboobies 20:05, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

You can do pretty much whatever you want (to within limits) to your user page. In particular, you can revert any edits by anyone. Furthermore, your user page can be protected or semiprotected. If you want your user page to be protected, say so, and I will do it. -lethe ^{talk +} 20:10, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Of course, if I protect your userpage, then you won't be able to edit it. And if I semiprotect it, then logged in users will still be able to vandalize. Also, let me suggest for the future that questions about using wikipedia normally go to the help desk. The reference desk is for general knowledge questions. -lethe ^{talk +} 20:15, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

• Of course, banning someone from talking to you should only be done in severe cases of personal attacks or incivility. Protecting your userpage means no one else can contact you either and since Wikipedia is a community project being able to talk to you is essential to the site's success. - 131.211.210.11 08:00, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

No it doesn't; they can still use your talk page, which is where they're supposed to be contacting you anyway. Skittle 15:49, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

How to work in a computer magazine

What do I have to do to apply for a job in any kind of computer magazine? such as PC World or any magazine about games? Thank you.

Working in journalism is often all about contacts, but if you're new to the field, initiative will be all you've got to start with. If there's something specific you have in mind, most magazines will have business information listed near the beginning in small text in a sidebar (there's an actual word for this, but I can't recall what it is right now). There you'll find names of people on the staff, contact information, and the like. Try writing or calling to ask about job opportunities. You may also have some success by contacting the journalism or computer science programs of a local university; if you take the time to write a polite email to a professor, he or she may be able to point you in the right direction. Tijuana Brass^¡Épa!-E@ 00:05, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

To begin with, you can start by just writing stuff and submitting it to various magazines. Most computer magazines have relatively few staff-writers. It's probably more likely you'll get a full-time job through free-lance contributions than through a formal job application. But in either case, it'd be important to have on the resume anyway. --BluePlatypus 03:59, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

BluePlatypus and Tijuana Brass have some good points. Probably the most important thing you can do to improve your chances of working at a computer magazine is work on improving your writing, learning about the broader craft of journalism, and improve your technical background in computers (not that a severe lack of technical understanding has ever stopped some of the more famous "computer journalists"). If you're still in school, joining the school paper (if your school has one) would be one of the best things you could do.

One other possibility, if you buy (or your parents buy you) a lot of computer games already, is to start a blog and review them on it. But concentrate on doing a professional job - use correct English, make sure you get any factual content right, and try to make your work appealing for readers. Having a well-read blog about a topic would be a good demonstration of your abilities to a potential magazine employer. --Robert Merkel 06:00, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

to publish a book in New York

 hi,

 My name is Raul Carrasco, I am living in New
 York City, and I make  books in 3 dimensions ( like
 the  "Magic Eye") I have more than 25 thousand graphics,
 I would like to publish. What do you recommend?
  
  thanks,
 
  Raul Carrasco

You might want to check out our article on print on demand services. However, we are not a business directory, so you'd be better off checking somewhere else if you want to find a local publisher. In NYC, that shouldn't be too hard. Night Gyr 23:06, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Inexperienced users and talk pages?

Are inexperienced users on Wikipedia and similar wikis more likely to edit talk pages than any others? (Inexperienced users can probably be detected by being anonymous, not signing their comments and not using wiki markup where called for.) Seahen 23:56, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Wikis vary greatly, but based upon my limited experience at Wikipedia, talk pages are used far more often by experienced users, who will post messages to try to reach consensus, collaborate, ask for suggestions, thank people, add warnings, or just to talk. Also, while an anonymous IP address will often indicate an inexperienced user, that's not always the case (some editors don't create accounts, or it may be in use by an editor who isn't logged in). Another imperfect way of determining experience is by checking their edit count... more contributions often means more experience and understanding of how Wikipedia works, but not always. Tijuana Brass^¡Épa!-E@ 00:01, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Why, then, do so many talk pages (such as Talk:Adversarial system until just now) consist entirely of unsigned comments by IP addresses, with no Wiki markup and lacking such abbreviations as CVG and copyvio? The combination of these things makes them look to me like an inexperienced user. Seahen 00:05, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

We're talking about a generality here. Any user, anonymous IP to bureaucrat, could get on a page and edit it hundreds of times if they so desired. Some pages will attract more attention, especially controversial ones. Vandals, whom are typically inexperienced, may accumulate an enormous amount of edits. Just depends on the person. Tijuana Brass^¡Épa!-E@ 00:13, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

I'm no expert, but I have an account; yet I haven't the foggiest idea what CVG means. --LarryMac 01:11, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana, of course. We talk about little else over at WP:AN/I. Henry^Flower 14:19, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

May 8

First North Western

Three questions please:

1. What were the dates of the franchises?
2. What was the fleet size?
3. How many stations did they own?

Ive tried looking at the article, but none of this information is there. Thanks in advance DannyM 17:13, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

I don't know the answers, but I suggest you post this question on uk.railway on Usenet (or Google Groups, if you must). Chances are someone there will know. --Richardrj 10:27, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Thanks for you help Richardrj!!! DannyM 17:58, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

disabling images on internet

Is there a way I can surf the net without viewing in any photos ? I would prefer disabling photographs only and not icons . but if thats not possible I'll do with disabling all images . Thanks 212.138.47.14 10:30, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

It depends on the browser you're using:

• In Internet Explorer, select Tools → Internet Options. Go to the page Advanced and scroll down to Multimedia. Uncheck Show pictures.
• In Mozilla Firefox, select Tools → Options. Go to Web Features and uncheck Load Images.
• In Opera, click on the camera/eyeglasses in the upper-right corner or press the G key.

–Mysid 10:48, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Note that all these will disable all images. The browser has no way to tell the difference between a large icon and a small picture. — QuantumEleven 13:11, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

• In links... do nothing. —Keenan Pepper 12:44, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

On Business Letters

What are the formats for composing a letter of recommendation? Say, when one is to enter an institution or corporation.

Using a Google search I found the following, among others: a Letter of Recommendation Guide at boxfreeconcepts, and even a free template in RTF format. –Mysid 11:48, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Forms of address - armed forces

Are female officers in the British and US armed forces addressed as "ma'am" where a male officer would be addressed as "sir", or is "sir" used for both? Walton monarchist89 11:59, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

According to The Soldier's Guide (PDF, 428 pages), US army field manual 7-21.13, "we train soldiers to say sir or ma'am when talking to a higher ranking officer" (page 178). –Mysid 12:24, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Sometimes it's difficult to tell the difference, in which case it's "Sir!" ;-) --Shantavira 12:43, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Land height and Sea level

Does anyone know of an on line resourse where I can determine the height of land against sea level for the whole of the UK? I'd like to enter a post code and get the result if possible, can't afford to buy loads of OS maps!

Could someone please let mw know on [email address removed]

Cheers.

I'm sorry, but I have removed your email address for your own good, to prevent it from getting into dozens of email spam lists (this is a very popular site, also among spambots). The questions are not generally answered via email. –Mysid 12:41, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

You can get online OS maps (in annoying little chunks) at http://getamap.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/getamap/ It's a bit difficult to read the altitudes on the contours, but it's possible with perseverance. And the search engine takes postcodes. Middenface 13:52, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

LIfe insurance beneficiary

My father in law passed away over 30 years ago. I recently found an insurance policy of his. I cannot find the company online. National Educators Life Insurance Company out of Fort Worth, Texas was the company. He took the policy out in 1949 when he entered the service. He named his mother as beneficiary. She has since died. He married and had three children and never changed the beneficiary. After all this time, who would be the rightful owner to claim the $1500.00, his children or his brother which was the heir to his mother's estate?

To find the insurance company (or its legal successor), check with the Texas Department of Insurance. Middenface 13:47, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

I'm not a lawyer but I'd say if his mother died after him the claim to the insurance payout would be part of her estate & pass down to your uncle in law. If your father in law's mother died before he did the claim to the insurance money would pass to his heirs, probably in accordance with the terms of his will if he had one. AllanHainey 15:22, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

state colors

What is Connecticut's state color? Dana

The lack of a state color on [4] leads me to believe Connecticut does not have a state color. I can't think of a state that does have a state color, but I could be wrong. --Chapuisat 20:19, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Connecticut's not listed on Wikipedia's List of U.S. state colors, and I couldn't find anything relevant in a Google search. It's possible that Connecticut doesn't have any official colors: if the Connecticut state legislature hasn't adopted any colors, then there aren't any official colors. Chapter 33 of the Connecticut State Code (specifically sections 3-105 to 3-110) defines all sorts of official emblems and symbols of Connecticut, down to a state shellfish, state tartan, and state cantata--but no state colors. Chuck 20:21, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Printer Problem

Hey, everybody..

I' m using a HP LaserJet 1020 printer ( yeah, from the 17th century ).... The trouble is , it takes 3 or more days for the thing to print 5 pages !!!!! I tried hp.com and that forum of theirs, but no can do... I just installed a "new" driver...the green light kept flashing for a while

, then it just stopped....

I even tried to copy the file to Microsoft Word ( someone said that sometimes helps)... well it didn' t. So I keep looking for "guru" to help me out of this .... shit !!!...... please......?? Felix.Italic text

I gave this question a heading.. Maybe the Rollers in the printer are stuck... At what speed is the printer supposed to print the pages? Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 14:46, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Insurance or funding forinvestment

What are some choices for investing in educational policies for my 6 year old so he will have money for college, or I can get to it if an emergency arises.

You will need to tell us what country you are in before anyone can answer that. Frankly you are going to be better off going to a financial adviser. DJ Clayworth 17:34, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Ashlee Simpson

Did she get her nosejob before she hosted the mtv australia music awards? or after!?(sorry) .--Cosmic girl 17:50, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

She got a nose job? --Zeizmic 00:04, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

she did! --Cosmic girl 01:44, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure it was after, the show was in April and the magazines have been saying she got it at the beginning of this month. -- 134.29.182.50 19:33, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

cool! thank you :) --Cosmic girl 16:26, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

LOOKING FOR A GRADUATE IN CONSTRUCTION.

<Company name removed> IS LOOKING TO HIRE A GRADUATE IN CONSTRUCTION. NEEDING TO SET UP AN APPOINTMENT OR TALK TO SOMEONE THAT CAN HELP ME IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. I WOULD LIKE SOMEONE FROM SOUTH TEXAS UNIVERSITY IN SAN MARCOS. I CAN BE CONTACTED @ <phone number removed>. MY NAME IS <removed>. I AM THE SUPERINTENDANT OF OPERATIONS.

I finished High School!! Please...O PLease take me in! I promose not to break anything! Oh, wait.... This question deserves an award! Here it goes! I, Ref-Elf, hereby give the honour of The Question of The Day Likely to Get The Most Number Of comments Rather Than Answers. Congratulations! Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 18:45, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

P.S. Remember the Likely part of the award. I am not sure that some other question might get it in the near future.

Please dont write all in capitals it gives the Impression of shouting and it wont give your question any special status or something. And this is an encyclopedia and not an Ad Agency. And please dont give your personal details on a public forum. I wouldn't be surprised if your house was broken into tomorrow or you start getting threatening calls on your telephone. And you are better off looking for people to hire on the many Job sites on the internet. [5] is a good place to start. But probably the best thing to do is to post an ad in the local newpaper in the area. Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 18:57, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

It seems to me if you want to hire someone from South Texas Univeristy in San Marcos the place to look is San Marcos, not wikipedia. --Chapuisat 20:13, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

self retracting

I am looking for any information regarding the making or design of anything that retracts into it's self. Mostly projector screens but cords, pins or measuring tape will work. I want to understand how they are built and what they use

A builder tape measure works with a spiral of metal "tape" attached at the inside end to a spiral spring. As the tape is pulled out the spring winds up. When the latch is released it pulls the tape back inside. -- SGBailey 22:00, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

A retracting FM aerial is a series of hollow cylinders with an inwards lip on the top end of each cylinder and an outwarsd lip at. the other end. This means that when extended, each section limits its motion with its bottom end against the next bigger cylinders top end. When retracted the cylinders all align bottom to bottom and top to top, generally pushed against some mounting endstop. -- SGBailey 22:00, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

When a lousy politician says something incorrect, he sometimes retracts. Good politicians never do it. --DLL 19:54, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Noodles and Spaghetti

I've read both noodles and spaghetti. They leave me a little confused - are they the same thing or is there some subtle difference? -- SGBailey 21:53, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

I think "noodle" is the general term for the thin strip of pasta itself, while "spaghetti" refers to the dish with the sauce and noodles. SCHZMO ✍ 22:24, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Spaghetti is one type of noodle, but by no means the only type. I disagree with Schzmo that the sauce is also required for "spaghetti"--boxes of spaghetti are commonly available in supermarkets (at least in the U.S.)--with the dried noodle only, no sauce--and labelled "spaghetti." Spaghetti is a long noodle with a round cross-section, and wider than, say, angel hair pasta. See also List of pasta. See also pasta, although there's currently some dispute on Talk:Pasta about whether pasta is a type of noodle, or vice versa, or some other relationship. Chuck 22:47, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Spaghetti is one specific shape of pasta, using a dough (pasta=paste) made from wheat flour and water (sometimes eggs too). Noodles (different language) are made from the same dough, but grains other than wheat may be used, e.g. rice. So spaghetti is a specific kind of noodle, but most noodles are not spaghetti. --Seejyb 23:09, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

While all spaghetti is noodles, all noodles do not contain the same ingredients as spaghetti noodles. For example, there are oriental "glass" noodles which I believe do not contain wheat flour. DDGordon --70.230.198.110 21:32, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Mutually Exclusive National/Flag Colours

The question about Connecticut's state colours (colors, sorry) got me thinking. Australia's official national colours were proclaimed in 1984 as green and gold, yet our national flag is blue, red and white. Are there any other examples of countries or states with mutually exclusive national colours and flag colours? JackofOz 23:19, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Typical Aussie - forgets his smaller neighbours across the Tasman... New Zealand: flag, RWB; national colours, black. A case could also be made for blue being the national colour of India: although the wheel on the flag is blue, it's hardly a major colour of the flag. Grutness...wha? 01:22, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Actually, I suppose NZ's colours could be considered black and white, with white being part of the flag. The Netherlands have orange as their national colour, so that one definitely counts, though (althout it used to be on the flag a few centuries back). There are quite a few countries which have a major and minor colour for their national colours, and which don't have the main colour on their flag, only the minor one. NZ probably falls into that group, along with Italy and Tonga (both of which have blue as their main national colour). Grutness...wha? 08:26, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Do your governments actually decide this is going to be our "national colour", what is the purpose in having a national colour? AllanHainey 10:04, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Mostly no (although it sounds like Australia might have). But national colours are very useful to stop your national sports teams having to compete nude :) Grutness...wha? 12:30, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I'd like to see that, Grutness, but that's just me. On 19 April 1984, Bob Hawke's government made a swag of official declarations about our national symbols, including for the first time giving official status to our national colours. Allan, the same basic purpose would apply as proclaiming a national anthem, or a national flag, or any other national symbol.

To clarify, my question is about cases like Australia where there is an officially proclaimed set of national colours that have nothing in common with the colours of the national flag. The national colours shown in our article don't tell us which have official status and which are de facto. JackofOz 13:06, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

information about final fantasy...

in the final fantasy series, there is a status effect calld "paralysis" and nowhere on the internet tells how to cure it. what is the cure to paralysis?

I don't know anything about FF, but here's a result of a quick search on Google (regarding FFXI):

Spell Name: Paralyna

Level: 9

MP Cost: 12

Description: Removes paralysis from target.

–Mysid 06:42, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I've only played FF8 all the way through, and I don't think it had a 'paraylsis' effect. It did have being turned to stone (can't remember the proper name), which could be cured by the 'Soft' item. There was also the 'Stop' effect, which I think could only be cured by the 'Remedy' item, which cures all status effects, and I'm sure there's a spell that does that as well, but I can't remember what it's called now. --Sam Blanning^(talk) 10:57, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Esuna removed all negative status effects, IIRC. -Howard Train 04:48, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

It depends on which specific Final Fantasy game you're referring to. If you could tell us which one, it's much more likely we could come up with a definite answer. Flea110 01:05, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Painting plastic car bumpers

How come I see so many bumpers with the paint peeling off and grey or black plastic underneath? I know that replacment bumpers come like that, and that originals may be extruded in colour, but why is the painting so pathetic? Anybody know how to spec the paint job, if my bumper falls off? --Zeizmic 00:08, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I put the same question to the panelbeater who redid my car. He was supposed to be "good" and does the Mercedes and BMW fixes for the insurance companies locally. He said that it is impossible to get the paint to stay on as it would on metal, because the bumper bends with impact, and then springs back, which the paint cannot do, so the bond gets stressed and broken. His claim was that he makes the paint layer thicker, so that the membrane does not crack that easily, but warned me that it works only for small bumps, and I may then see a "bubble" where the impact occurred. --Seejyb 07:53, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

May 9

Question about Firefox

I don't normally use Firefox but because of where I've been editing I can't install Maxthon. I open a page for editing and make my edits. When I try and click either "save page" or "show preview" the whole thing jumps up and is no longer under the mouse and I have to click it a second time. Is there any way to stop this and is there any way to speed up Firefox? CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 00:58, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

The easiest way is to use Microsoft Internet Explorer, which everyone finds works best. --LED [GMT -12,04]

I use Firefox and have the same problem. The button will work the first time if you hold it down a bit longer, or if you just press enter. SCHZMO ✍ 01:26, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I'll use IE if you explain to me how to get its tabs to work. I need to be able to click on 50 tabs one after another. That's why I use Maxthon it's faster than Firefox, has tabs and is compatible with IE. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 02:02, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Judging from this discussion, I'm guessing that LED is none other than Bill Gates!  ;) Dismas|^(talk) 09:53, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Never mind, I found the administrators password under the anti-static mat. I can install what I like now. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 16:10, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I wonder about your network security... Also, Maxthon is just IE, therefore it sucks as much as IE does.--Frenchman113 on wheels! 21:02, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I am using Firefox 1.5.0.3, and I don't have this problem. What version of Firefox are you using? Perhaps upgrading will help. Jon513 16:54, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I'm at home now and have the latest version here without the same problem at work. I'll check in a couple of days when I go back to work. Thanks. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 21:32, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Thanks that solved the problem. The work computer had 1.0.7 and once I upgraded the problem vanished. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 07:18, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

pizza pops

almost everyone knows what Pizza Pops are but there are hardly any websites about, and no wikipedia article on them‽ What's the deal with that‽ I realize that I can make an article about them, but I'm too lazy. --233.3.29.04

Hahaha, nice use of the interrobang. The deal is probably just that: almost everyone knows what they are, so there's no need for a description of them. What information would people want to know about Pizza Pops? I don't know, so I'm not going to start an article, but I'm sure there's someone interested enough... —Keenan Pepper 04:01, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Come on Keenan, in that case why is there an article on Cat or Dog (I bet more people know about them than Pizza Pops), especially seeing as we have an article on Hot Pockets. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 04:38, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Well, people might want to know things about cats and dogs, like their binomial names or whether they will really die if you feed them chocolate. Off the top of my head, I can't think of anything about Pizza Pops you would look up in an encyclopedia. If you want to know what they're made of... read the box. —Keenan Pepper 05:53, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Other people are lazy too. If you're too lazy to start an article, why should anyone else put in the effort that you're not willing to expend? Chuck 05:37, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Have I been living under a rock for too long? I've never heard of them. And frankly, just going by the name, I don't think I want to have one either. Dismas|^(talk) 05:56, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I haven't heard of them either. Let's make a stub. –Mysid 06:45, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Okay... how about:

Pizza Pops are things that everyone has heard of, except for Dismas, Mysid, and Grutness. It is claimed that they are less well-known that cats and dogs, and come with detailed information on the box (unlike cats and dogs). Mild health concerns have been attributed to Pizza Pops, including article-writing lethargy and a disturbing tendency to interrobang. If this occurs, consult your doctor.

This fairly pathetic article is a stub. But that's OK because people won't look here for information on Pizza Pops anyway. You can help Wikipedia by just ignoring it. Move along - there's nothing to see here.

Grutness...wha? 08:35, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Somewhere there should be a rule that articles should avoid having a list of examples, because everyone will come along and add another item to the list even though it wasn't supposed to be exhaustive. In other words, my name should be on that list of people who haven't heard of Pizza Pops.-gadfium 09:41, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Thank you to whoever BJAODN'd that! That's the funniest thing I've read on the Ref Desk in some time! Dismas|^(talk) 09:51, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

What on earth are pizza pops, from the name I'm thinking it must be a cross between a pizza & a popsicle (icepole); or perhaps an exploding pizza. AllanHainey 10:07, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

They are a tiny frozen calzone, of the inedible variety, useful for stuffing teenagers for their pre- and post-dinners. Pizza pop may be trademarked. The generic name is 'hockey puck'. --Zeizmic 12:01, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

ohh this keeps getting better. Where's Jayant to give this question an award? Calzone... wasn't that Jon Seda's character in Homicide: Life on the Street? Grutness...wha? 12:34, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I see! "Pop" as in "pop it into the microwave" not as in "freezer pop" or "lolli pop"... That sounds much less nasty now. Dismas|^(talk) 13:18, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Look the red link turned blue. The original question was right there is little information on the product to be found. This is the only mention at either General Mills or Pillsbury oficial sites that I could find. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 20:55, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I've never heard of Pizza Pops... Vitriol 11:51, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Me neither... Kilo-Lima|^(talk) 20:04, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Please add me to the List of Ref Desk Contributors Who'd Not Previously Heard of Pizza Pops. --LarryMac 20:14, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

I can't believe there still isn't an article yet. You people are all talk! —Keenan Pepper 01:04, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

What are you talking about? I created the article on the 9th May. See my reply above. I even went out and spent CAN$6.35 to buy a box so I could include a picture and get a nice message from the orphanbot. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 05:44, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

gas plant

nigeria has been flaring her gas oil as she has been doing for years past,why has nigeria not develop her gas plant?and what is the future of the plant.

Gas flare might be a start, but in general, the only thing that can be done is to freeze the natural gas and send it by ship. This is very expensive, and is a limited market. Not many cities want these ships nuzzling up to them. --Zeizmic 12:05, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

The Mosquito on shop corners

I'm sure many of you brits have heard about the mosquito that is placed on shop corners to stop youths gathering. The sound can only be heard by people under 20 years of age. I know that somewhere you can buy something that can transmit his noise when it is turned on. You can carry it around with you. It is pocket sized. Where can I buy one of these from. It's sure to annoy my mates. Cheers

A quick google search gets this sponsored link: jne marketing  -- Run!  16:11, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

This is only the one where you put on walls. There is a prank version that is POCKET SIZED and is a lot cheaper

That is sooo neat! I need to attach one to the fridge light. --Zeizmic 16:55, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Our article on the Mosquito suggests it has undergone only limited testing. It might be wise to wait for some objective results. This distributor promises other models currently in preparation. I've been told that playing classical music is also effective! However, something tells me that there are more fundamental problems that need addressing here; there is no shortage of street corners. --Shantavira 18:47, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Guns, Germs, and Steel

Ok, so I've looked at the article about the book, but I wondering if anyone has heard of any scientifically and historically sound books that disagree with Diamond's theories. I'd like to have some dissenting opinions in my giant anthropology-history project. DuctapeDaredevil 15:53, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Differing how? It's not that hard to find somebody who argues that differing success is the result of inherent differences between the races, but among mainstream anthropologists, Diamond isn't that far out. The criticism section has a good start. Night Gyr 01:19, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Rose identification

I would like help in the identification of a rose that is multicolored. It is a large, non-fragrant rose that is red with hints of pink, and varigated with a lot of yellow. The back of all the petals are yellow. This is not a Tequila Sunrise nor does it contain anything that resembles orange. It is a large bush and is growing in Central California. Thank you for your help! 206.171.187.2 16:32, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

It is difficult to answer this without a picture, as there are over a hundred species, and thousands of varieties. Have you tried our rose gallery? Or try some of the links referenced at rose. --Shantavira 18:32, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Looking for a Johto Map (Pokémon GSC)

Hello. I am looking for a map of the Johto region in Pokémon Gold, Silver, and/or Crystal Version(s). There is no particular reason why I am looking for it; however, any and all maps will be welcome. I thank you so much for your concern. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 24.178.84.11 (talk • contribs) .

A map of Johto in the Crystal Version can be found here. SCHZMO ✍ 19:34, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Thanks for your help, but I'm online at school and the filtering will not permit me to view this page. Sorry, but thanks anyway. :-)

Do you have any other pages that might help me out? Thanks, even if you don't.

Well, this is called a map. don't know if it's what you are looking for.By the way, I found it by typing 'Johto' into the search box on the left and clicking 'Go'. Skittle 20:24, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I changed it to a link to reduce page loading times and before we get into trouble with the "fair use" copyright. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 20:59, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Try Johto in the Bulbapedia, there are three different depictions. SCHZMO ✍ 21:07, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

What is a popular sociological even going on today?

And again, I thank you for your concern; however, I am looking for an actual in-game map. Sorry for all the hassle. :-( Nolamatic

Instant Messengers

Hello, I use more than one Instant Messenger such as GoogleTalk, AIM, MSN Messenger, yahoo, skype, and a few others. I was wondering if there was a program that could make it so that all the IMes would be together. Thanks --Zach 21:46, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Try here and look for "multi-protocol" in the "type" column of the first table. --Howard Train 22:08, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Trillian takes care of all but Skype and GoogleTalk must be paid for. -- Mac Davis] ⌇☢ ญƛ. 04:58, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

google talk is free. it is based on Jabber. You can acess google talk from any service that supports jabber, however you can't get the talking part to work unless you use the google program (which is free). Personally I like Gaim. Jon513 16:44, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

blue murder

where does the phrase come from and what meaning does it have?

[6] -- Mac Davis] ⌇☢ ญƛ. 04:54, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Maybe it's short for "bloody murder." Brian G. Crawford 04:55, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

The origin of this one is said to be a play on the French morbleu. The related to get away with blue murder must have the same source, but has no overtones of fear or terror, merely good fortune. Blue is occasionally added to words to strengthen them, e.g. blue blazes, blue funk. -- Mac Davis] ⌇☢ ญƛ. 04:57, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Maybe its for the murder of Blue-blooded people or the aristocrats, or murdering someone very important or occupying a high place.(?I am not sure though??) Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 07:04, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

When the veryhotgreenhouse effect shall be completed, I think that we won't see the blue sky any more. Murdered by clouds. --DLL 20:30, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Authors?

How do you find out who wrote an article on Wikipedia, for use on a bibliography?

Thanks!

--Sorry mrjones 22:47, 9 May 2006 (UTC)Jessica

Please see Wikipedia:Citing Wikipedia, or click "cite this article" in the toolbox on the left. -- Rick Block (talk) 23:11, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

No one person can be held responsible for writing an article, depending on what style you are using (APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, etc..) you just put the article name or Wikipedia: The free encyclopedia. See Wikipedia:Citing Wikipedia -- Mac Davis] ⌇☢ ญƛ. 04:52, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Invisible Text/Strikethrough

How do I make text invisible except when editing? And also, how do I strikethrough outdated text on appropriate pages?--Porsche997SBS 23:01, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I would use <del> and </del> surrounding my words to get a strikethrough,
 and <!--- and ---> to surround invisible text.

They would look like this and . Slumgum | yap | stalk | 23:17, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Thanks!--SS 420 19:47, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Or if you're lazy like me. you could use <s> and </s>for strikethrough, saving you from typing a whole four characters ;-) Tonywalton  | Talk 12:18, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

May 10

Which college?

What college should i go to if i want to program video games? --orphan frequently 00:17, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

The DigiPen Institute of Technology is the leading specialist school. It will be extremely competitive to get in though. Bwithh 00:54, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

yes, i found that right after i asked, and though I'm sure I'll get in, does anyone have a second option in case my application gets lost or something? --orphan frequently 01:30, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

If you're open to less specialized schools, there are lots of computer science departments across the country worth looking in to. US News complies a variety of lists that rank schools for various criteria and in different categories, which might be a good start. - user:rasd

Anywhere except Bolton University. Trust me. --Howard Train 04:36, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Martial Art

Is it there any Mexican Martial Art and What is its name?

Hasta la vista, baby. --Zeizmic 00:42, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Well, there is that old trope in film where every time an American gets lost in Mexico, all the Mexicans stand around, laugh and say "Hey, gringo!" in the most menacing voice possible. Brian G. Crawford 01:34, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Boarder hopping. -- Mac Davis] ⌇☢ ญƛ. 04:50, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Best I can point you to is lucha libre (mexican wrestling), also try looking up tinku, which point to mexican tiger fights which involve hand to hand combat. Dessydes 05:31, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Boarder hopping: A type of activity mainly practiced in frat houses on the movies. --Zeizmic 16:16, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

What/who is Mozilla Firefox?

Hey, what is the symbol for Mozilla Firefox? Isn't it a fox? Is it a dinosaur? Is it a girl? If anyone knows why a dinosaur or a fox, pls tell me . --yaya

Well, you could check out our article on Mozilla Firefox, specifically the section Branding and visual identity. Jude (talk,contribs,email) 04:48, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

ITs a fox man! A red one hugging the Earth. Just check Firefox next time. -- Mac Davis] ⌇☢ ญƛ. 04:49, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

I don't know-I HAVE read the article, but I find all these other logos just by searching google images that claim to be Firefox logos(Whoa, is this a conspiracy or what?). What's goin' on? --yaya

The official logo for Firefox is the one at the top of the Firefox article. Some Japanese manga artists created Moezilla, personifications of Firefox and Thunderbird, but these are in no way official (and I have only encountered them on Wikipedia, although that's not saying much). "Firefox" is the name of a red panda, if I understand correctly, so someone at some point must have made a panda logo - but, again, it's not official (and I've never seen it). Hope that helps! — QuantumEleven 07:01, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

The reason you may have thought the Firefox logo was a dinosaur is that the dinosaur is the logo for the Mozilla Foundation. It's a separate entity from Firefox though. GeeJo ^(t)⁄_(c) • 07:46, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

List of Colleges for BBA in India

Hi, Could you please provide me with information or a list of undergraduate colleges in India which offer course in BBA.I particularly need some colleges from North India.

--Fareeda

Try using a search engine. I got some results from Google. People have asked here about business schools in India, and there really isn't anyone here qualified to give an answer that I know of. Brian G. Crawford 18:12, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Where is the 'fun' section?

There used to be a section called 'bad jokes' full of rejected articles-and they were SOOO funny! But now where did it go? --JD

It's at WP:BJAODN or Wikipedia:Bad Jokes and Other Deleted Nonsense. -Canley 06:19, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Never mind. As I browse throught this ref desk, I've already had a lot of laughs. --JD

Half Life 2 patch

Does anyone know if there's a patch/mod for the game to make the female characters nude or topless??

Hmmm.. I dont know..But let me know when you find out.. ;-) Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 07:06, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Yes, Google finds nude mods for HL2, e.g. Alyx Nude Mod for Hald Life 2 at digg. –Mysid 07:25, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

The link on that site is 404. :( --Kurt Shaped Box 07:29, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Damn. I'm at work so I didn't want to try the links in a page named like that. –Mysid 07:36, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Alyx is overrated anyway. Everyone knows that the hottest female character in HL2 is clearly Judith Mossman - MILF! MILF! MILF! --Kurt Shaped Box 07:49, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

She doesn't look Filipino to me... --Eivind^t@c 02:50, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Treatment of Gift cards / gift coupons in Accounting

How do we treat the gift cards / gift coupons issued by companies in Accounting ? If gift coupons are printed in advance, are they treated as stock ?

I'm going to guess that the answers to these questions lie somewhere in your text book or other reading material for whatever class you're taking. Although we will be happy to help with your homework, we don't do it for you. With that being said, you may find the article on stock of interest. Dismas|^(talk) 09:42, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

I am not studying for anything right now and nor does it relate to my area of work. I was thinking while I was using a gift card I had and thought of the question. It is not fair to 'think' that all questions raised are related to one's work.

Well, then it was my mistake since the general format and "feel" of the questions made me think that you were asking questions directly from some homework assignment. Dismas|^(talk) 09:51, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Also, to answer the second question first... No. Stock is ownership in a company while a gift card is just an amount of money that the company has promised to redeem at a later date. Dismas|^(talk) 09:53, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

I suspect that's "stock" in the UK sense (US: "inventory") rather than in the sense of equity. Not that I have any idea. Tonywalton  | Talk 16:55, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

SEX

If you get easily offended, please skip this, but I have a bunch of questions which I'm dead serious about asking and being answered. I do not consider this vandalism, as I am not maliciously editing someone else's page, or creating false articles. I would just like to know a few things. Since watching some porn, I would like to know:

• What is the fastest, easiest, and least emotionally painful way to get laid?
• How do I get 2 girls to have sex with me at the same time?
• How do I get a girl to masturbate in front of me (especially naked)?
• How would I get one of the girls at my local strip club to sleep with me?

Any assistance would be most appreciated.

Any answer besides "Lots of money" is going to require a significant amount of time and getting to know the women with which you want to engage in these actions with. Money would probably work the fastest for the first three. The fourth depends on the girl since, having dated strippers in the past, I can tell you with some confidence that not all strippers are also part time prostitutes. You don't mention how well you know this mystery girl, if there is in fact just one, so it's hard to say much more. Do you at least know that she's single? Or will that not matter with the particular girl? etc. Dismas|^(talk) 09:48, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

1. Prostitution is the fastest and easiest (if illegal in some jurisdictions). As to the emotional pain caused by any particular method of having sex, we are hardly in a position to judge how you feel about such things. Beyond that, you could try internet contacts; there are websites that seek to link people seeking long-term relationships, and also people seeking a short-term hookup for casual sex.

2. Ask nicely! Seriously, some of the adult contact internet sites let you search for people seeking sexual encounters in all sorts of forms. The :number of men seeking to have sex with two women may, however, far exceed the number of women interested in having sex with another woman and a man at the same time.

3. Form a relationship with a girl, and, again, ask nicely! You might have more luck if you discuss with the woman concerned what kind of things please them sexually, and act on those as well...

4. Mostly, you can't; at least, you most likely won't be able to form a relationship with them. Those women make thousands of dollars, often by deluding men that they are romantically interested in you when all they are interested in is getting you to pay them lots of money. Undoubtedly, on occasions strippers do form romantic relationships with people who visit their bars, but by all reports it's rare. Alternatively, some women at some strip clubs may be prepared to sleep with you if you offer them enough money, but it's equally likely that they'll reject your offer and have you thrown out of the club for good as I understand it. --Robert Merkel 09:52, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

• Woman's perspective?
• Any ideas on oral sex?

And if you're on a budget (how did I guess?) you get a load of towels and use your imagination. With practice, it is possible to train your imagination, and you save a lot of time and money!

Got plenty of time, trying to save on towels.

I'm sure most women wouldn't mind masturbating in front of you provided you were in a relationship with them. If you're naked too, that wold help them feel less self-conscious. Best option: suggest masturbating in front of each other as foreplay. Strip club wise: You could offer them money, but you may get banned from the club. I doubt any stripper would casually fuck or befriend someone who visits her club, so your chances are poor there. Threesome-wise: Suggest it to a girlfriend, and make sure its a hooker or someone you'll never see again so you won't make things uncomfortable, make your girlfriend jealous or make her suspect you have a crush on said woman. If your girlfriend refuses, I strongly advise you to just forget about it. How would you feel if your girlfriend asked you to participate in a threesome with another man? Consider that first.

Wikipedia is WP:NOT an escort service! Find your own pastatutes! Seriously though, I once knew a guy who screwed a crack whore bareback in a parking building for $20. I don't know if that's what you're looking for, but if you're willing to exploit drug addicts, you can open yourself up to new vistas of debauchery in no time! Brian G. Crawford 18:39, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

lol, good one brian, and i know what wikipedia is for (this isn't necessarily for you brian), which is why i chose this page and not some other talk page or some serious article.

Ha, all those good answers and he insults our little page, to boot. Well, go try Boarder Hopping, and Interbang yourself.

I answered your question. If I hurt your feelings with my answer, maybe you shouldn't be asking such questions of strangers on the internet. Brian G. Crawford 22:52, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

I never said you hurt my feelings. Did I hurt yours? The first sentence commends the joke (and supposedly the suggestion). Besides, I do this not simply for me, but for the rest of extreme nerdom as well.

Transcontiental Car Hire

I'd like to hire a car in the UK and then drop it off in the Netherlands. I don't even know where to start looking for a service like that - any ideas? --Username132 (talk) 10:58, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Hertz do it - tick the 'returning the car to a different location' box and type 'Amsterdam' (or wherever) into the field. I tried a few other companies (Avis, easycar, Atlas Choice) but they don't seem to - you should ask them for confirmation though. Natgoo 12:12, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

However don't forget that since the UK drives on the left and the Netherlands on the right, the car hire firm might not be too keen to do it as they'll end up with a RHD (UK style) car in Amsterdam that they'll either have to send back to the UK or have trouble hiring out. It might be easier to hire a car in the UK as far as the ferry port then hire another one on the other side. Tonywalton  | Talk 16:52, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

With the big bonus that you won't have to pay to get the car over the Channel. DJ Clayworth 17:46, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

They don't allow footpassengers on P&O Ferry Hull to Rotterdam, besides which what about my car-full-of-stuff? I want to emmigrate by I want a safe way of transporting my computer and other stuff. The ammount it costs through box-transporting companies, it'd be cheaper to just buy new things over there... :( --Username132 (talk) 20:49, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

France and a couple of other continental countries (Belgium? The Netherlands may be one too, but I'm not sure) has a really clever program called "achat-rachat" in French (buy-rebuy). I've done it twice in France and this is how and why it works: In France there is an incredibly high sales tax for nationals buying new cars. Something like 30%. So companies like Renault and Peugeot have set up a system whereby a foreigner (i.e. a Brit like you) can "buy" the car, with an agreement to resell it several weeks later (or whenever is convenient). This is great for them because they're then able to resell the car as a used car to their own citizens, who now won't have to pay the tax. It's great for you because as a "foreigner", you're not required to pay the new-car tax, and basically, you get a brand new car for your entire trip, at a cost that's even better than a rental. I don't know where you live in the UK, but if you could take an easy trip across the Channel, you'd be able to pick up one of these cars in Calais quite easily. Just go to the Renault or Peugeot websites and inquire about their "achat-rachat" programs. Believe me, it's a great deal and I'd look into that if I were you. Loomis51 23:18, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

o_o

[7] What's that a picture of? It's someone's avatar on a web site (shrunken, obviously) and I fear it's breaking copyright. This site is basically run by one guy with a job stacking shelves at Barnes and Noble, so being sued would break him. Vitriol 11:40, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

• I don't recognize it offhand, but I'm pretty sure the guy has nothing to worry about. As long as it's not being used in a commercial manner (he's not selling t-shirts with that image on it, for example) it's highly unlikely that the company owning the copyright is really going to bother to try to sue a "guy stocking shelves at Barnes and Noble" just because he allowed one of the users on his website to use the image as an avatar. --Maelwys 13:36, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Paranoia! Paranoia! Vitriol 13:38, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Large organisations don't sue people for giggles, it is a costly procedure, so it is generally only done if financial gain can come from the situation. Philc _T^E_C^I 21:59, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Of course, that doesnt stop them sending out Cease and desist letters to whomever they please. GeeJo ^(t)⁄_(c) • 09:50, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

It looks a lot like Babs Bunny. —Keenan Pepper 01:00, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Drought

drought are caused by semi-permament warm weather.how are people gong to remove it???

Please suitly emphazi. Vitriol 12:13, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Start from drought and its "see also" and "external links" sections. Weregerbil 12:38, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

I love how useless the word semi-permanent is. —Keenan Pepper 01:08, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

He he. A bit like slightly pregnant, or the ubiquitous very unique. JackofOz 10:09, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Peter Gale (ChuckleVision)

Can anyone please help me with this matter? I need a screenshot or photo of actor Peter Gale who played Mr Carrington-Smythe (pronounced "Smith") in ChuckleVision. Thank you.

--82.198.250.67 12:35, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

history

hi what is the oldest native american tribe that is still around today? Any ifo on them?

Your question is very difficult. Paleo Indians or Clovis people did leave ancient material as tombs. But there are no means to relate them to existing tribes.

Those did not write nor did they leave plenty of grave goods, pottery, &c. Try the linked articles and search some of those keywords on a pop'lar engin'. --DLL 20:19, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

1985 Oldsmobile El Dorado Biarritz

My husband needs to know the firing order for this vehicle or maybe have a copy of the owners manual

Try this. Also, I am pretty sure that the El Dorado is a Cadillac model. --LarryMac 15:17, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

UN

Was the Session of UN general Assembly that took place in 1949 is 2nd,4th or 6th? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 196.200.102.42 (talk • contribs) .

It was the 4th session of the General Assembly [8]. SCHZMO ✍ 22:09, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

documetries in india

how far documentries in india are successful and if somebody wants to make career in documentries' script writing then how can he get in to that?

Egypt

What are the main languages and literacy in Egypt?

• Arabic is the main language; the CIA World Factbook says:

Literacy
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 57.7%
male: 68.3%
female: 46.9% (2003 est.)

--jpgordon∇∆∇∆ 16:24, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

have you tried looking at the article Egypt?

Address Information

Dear Sirs/Madams,

What is Lech Kaczyński's mailing address? Thank you.

Stanislaw W. Dziurzynski, AIA

Assuming you mean the President of Poland

Pałac Prezydencki

Krakowskie Przedmieście 48/50, 00-071 Warszawa

Kancelaria Prezydenta RP

ul.Wiejska 10, 00-902 Warszawa

According to http://www.prezydent.pl/x.node?id=1011892 Tonywalton  | Talk 17:06, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Map of the Johto Region (again)

Sorry, but none of the suggestions were what I was looking for. I was looking for an actual in-game map that shows all the towns, the people that are in them, and the Routes. Sorry for the inconvenience, but thanks for your concern! Nolamatic

May 11

creating a page (with an image)

Good Evening,

I very recently created an account (after about three months of bieng consistantly satisfied with the overall quality of the material that is presented) I am interested in creating a new page. I belive I understand the process (as I got to the new page creation screen) but I seem to be unable to enter/submit a picture. If you could please tell me how to do so I would really appriciate it.

Thank you

Have you read through Help:Contents/Images and media. You need to upload your picture first. You can't link to it offsite. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 05:39, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

suppressing a table of contents

Hi. What template do I add in edit mode so that the table of contents does not appear? I recall seeing something like Template:NTOC but that's not working. This is my first question. Do I need to return here to check for answers, or will it appear on my user page? Thanks Ghosts&empties 06:14, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

I'll answer the second question for you. You have to check back here for answers as most of us will reply to the questions over here so that others can also read them. As the question gets older, some of the users might reply to it on your talk page. But its better to check back here everyday until the question is archived. Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 06:19, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Have a look at Help:Section#Table of contents (TOC) and Help:Magic words for __NOTOC__. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 07:07, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

I think CambridgeBayWeather has answered your question - if you have any more questions about how wikipedia works and how to us it, then the Wikipedia:Help desk is the place to go. Hughcharlesparker 15:07, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Citibank NA

In the name Citibank NA, what does NA stand for? Similarly for Citibank FSB. Thanks!

"NA" stands for "National Association" [9]. I believe FSB is "federal savings bank." -- Mwalcoff 06:53, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

I thought that FSB was "full service bank". CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 07:01, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

I see there are two types. There is Citibank FSB and Citibank F.S.B. CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 07:09, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

It's no guarantee of accuracy, but a Google search on /"Citibank federal savings bank"/ gets 9,360 hits, while a search on /"Citibank full service bank"/ gets zero. -- Mwalcoff 09:10, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Ancient China

I am doing a project for school. I was just wondering if anyone knew when EXACTLY did the Chinese hero, Houyi ( or Yi ) shoot down the 9/10 suns? Thank-you for helping. =)

see Houyi and Yi the Archer. in Yi the Archer it says that he was a contemporary of Yao (ruler) which would place him around 2333BC-2234BC. Jon513 18:43, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

how can i set up an unique bid auction site?

i would like to set up a auction website, using the unique bid method, probably the highest bid wins. i would like to offer people the little things that matter, which people need but can't afford, example, short family holidays, subscriptions to educational tutorials, online courses etc. how do i go about setting the entire bidding process?

what type of software do i need?

how do i write up a business plan for this type of auction business?

your help and any help from the wikipedia community is highly appreciated.

thank you and may God bless.

This is beyond the scope of the kind of answers provided by the Reference Desk. You would do well to find a business consultant to pursue your interests. Good luck. Tijuana Brass^¡Épa!-E@ 07:59, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Help needed for creating articles.

Hello, I have lots of articles which i would like to create in wikipedia. But the problem is I just dont have the time to format them according to the standards which wikipedia follows. So what kind of message can i put up on top of my article, so that any volunteer could format it later? Also could you give me a link to such an article which is "unformatted"? And also, how can I use images in my articles.Thank you. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Oglethorpe1983 (talk • contribs) .

For formatting help, add {{wikify}} or {{cleanup}} to the top (or just drop me a line on my talk page and I'll help you myself). An unformatted article is just one that doesn't have the headers, wikilinks, and so on. Finally, try WP:IMAGE for instructions on how to use images; be sure to understand how licensing works before uploading a bunch at once. Oh, and you may want to look over WP:INTRO for some good beginners' advice. Tijuana Brass^¡Épa!-E@ 07:56, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Give me a shout as well, if you like. You'll also find that some recent changes patrollers will tend to wikify (to a greater or lesser extent) new articles as they see them come in. As long as the article isn't so badly formatted as to make no sense at all (and I'm certainly not saying yours will be!) and aren't straight cut/pastes from somebody's website you'll probably find that the kind and helpful Wikipedia community will pitch in and help. If you want to see articles that have been tagged for wikifying, see this. By the way, it's usual practice to sign edits on talk pages and pages such as this one by putting ~~~~ after your edit. this expands to your user name and the time and date of the edit. Tonywalton  | Talk 10:30, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

What species of penguin appears on the coat of arms of the Arturo Prat Antarctic Naval Base?

Just curious. Tijuana Brass^¡Épa!-E@ 07:58, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Looks like a gentoo penguin to me. —Zero Gravitas 09:08, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Actually, I just checked the archives to see if anyone else had ever bothered to actually ask that; someone did a few months ago and they would seem to be Adelie penguins. —Zero Gravitas 09:22, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Yes! Someone actually asked it again! Okay, now I'll change it to something even more ridiculous (or less, it's all good). —Keenan Pepper 00:44, 12 May 2006 (UTC)

Name of Tristan da Cunha

I'm tossing up between the miscellaneous and languages desk for this one, which has puzzled me for a while. The explorer was known as Tristão da Cunha to the Portuguese and Tristan da Cuña to the Spanish... so how did the island end up with this peculiar hybrid name? The article on the island says it was "Anglicised to Tristan da Cunha", but simply anglicising it would surely have removed the very un-English Cunha spelling... Grutness...wha? 08:53, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

I suspect it's not a hybrid name, and that Spanish has got nothing to do with it. With foreign names, it was quite a common practice to anglicise the given name but not the surname, eg. Pyotr Tchaikovsky used to be called Peter Tchaikovsky. If the choice was between changing the odd Cunha or the odder Tristão, the latter with its funny diacritical that the English don't understand would definitely come off second-best. I think it's probably as simple as that, Grutness. JackofOz 10:03, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

printing problems

hi, i want to print some of the quests, but some of the pages do not print anything. for example; the paradox tower quest----prints out pg. #1,4,& 5. pages 2, 3, & 6 are blank. there are other quests that do the same thing. Why is that and how to i fix it? thank you. vicki

I am not sure what you are tring to print, but if it is a wikipedia article clicking "Printable version" on the left under the words "toolbox" should help. However it seems like it might be a problem with your printer or printer setup. Jon513 18:35, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Complex financial concepts in Local Government finance.

I am looking for examples of where and how to use Complex Financial concepts relating to Local Government Finance. Can you help please? or guide me where to look? > > Thanks

Perhaps enumerating what you consider "complex" financial concepts would help, but as is, this reads as if the proper answer is found in your textbook. — Lomn Talk 12:49, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Lotteries and other gov sponsored gambling might be a good place to start. Govs seem to say gambling creates wealth when, in reality, they only transfer wealth. They typically justify them by saying all proceeds go to some worthy cause, like education, but omit that the exact same amount the lottery contributes is no longer contributed by the general fund, meaning there is no net increase in education funding. Negative effects, like gambling addiction, bankruptcies, etc. must also be figured into any calcs along with the cost of having an oversupply of gambling establishments. StuRat 00:59, 12 May 2006 (UTC)

Finding inventories

How to find the inventory in "SIMPLY ACCOUNTING PRO 2005"?--86.62.212.97 13:50, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

You would probably get a quicker answer if you check out the companies website or email them. --12.106.14.201 16:52, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

When in doubt, try Google. Luigi30 (Ταλκ το mε) 18:01, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Funny Girl Movie

What year and month was the movie Funny Girl shown in Philadelphia, PA, and when was it shown again at a later date if so.

Thanks,

Crf1

The Internet Movie Database lists the US nationwide release date as Sept 19th 1968 so I imagine that is when it first showed in Philadelphia. I don't know about later showings. --Chapuisat 14:57, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Well, except the same page I just mentioned says it had a limited re-released on August 31st 2001. --Chapuisat 14:58, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

You can go to the Philadelphia Public Library and get microfilmed copies of the Philadelphia Inquirer or other local newspapers for the relevant months in the above answer. If you are willing to browse through the movie pages, their ads and listings will obviously tell you every day the movie was shown.--Teutoberg 20:26, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Sherbert/Sorbet

I have run into much trouble in trying to define if Sorbet and Sherbert are in fact the same thing, or two different iced treats. Any information would be greatly appreciated

Short answer: it depends on where you live. See the articles on sorbet and sherbet. —Zero Gravitas 16:43, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Assassination

It seems to me that it would be incredibly easy for anyone (let's say, any member of Al Queda) to kill the President of the United States (or any other high-ranking person). He's often out in the open, and it seems that it would be a simple task for a disguised suicide bomber to get close enough, or a gunman to run up and start firing, or a sniper to shoot from (in an urban area) hundreds of nearby windows or rooftops. But it doesn't happen: how come? Of course, any assassin would run the risk of being caught, but many terrorists/assassins throughout history didn't make a serious attempt to escape.

(In case any worried FBI agents are reading, don't worry - as a young, white, middle-class student living in the UK, I doubt I'm even going to meet the President any time soon.) Sum0 16:36, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Not quite as easy as it might seem. Don't think that the only Secret Service/other protective people there are the Dark-Suit(ly-Emphazi)ed Guys With The Radio Earpieces trotting alongside the limousine. They'll have people on those rooftops and in those windows, or at least looking through them, and dogs on the ground sniffing for guys with bombs. And it's probably a safe bet that anyone close enough to see the President has had his/her picture taken several times, been through at least one (c)overt metal detector, and if at all suspicious-looking been put through 42 other kinds of scrutiny as well.

Any sufficiently creative person could find numerous security holes, but it's probably enough to keep the run-of-the-mill Czolgosz wannabes far enough away. —Zero Gravitas 17:05, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Comparing American security to Israel's I am very surprised that there have not been thousands of terrorist attacks everywhere. There are no guards at stores or restaurants and it would be very easy to kill many people and not get caught. I guess there are very few crazy people interested in killing people. Or perhaps they are caught by the FBI before they have a chance to do anything. Jon513 18:30, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

That's the thing that I wonder. Presumably there are plenty of people out there who want to kill the President (or the Vice President, or the Prime Minister, or even dear old Kofi Annan). The Beltway sniper just needed a small port in the back of a car to kill several people (and not get caught for a good while). I'm curious how security is managed, because it seems to be a mammoth task. Sum0 20:11, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Nobody's killed any British PM lately either! (Or ever for that matter)--Teutoberg 20:30, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Ah, I beg to differ! The thing which sparked this off in my brain was something I saw in On This Day on the main page today: on May 11th 1812 Prime Minister Spencer Perceval was assassinated by John Bellingham.

That's right. Curious how most well-read non-Americans could rattle off the names of the 4 assassinated US presidents, but ask them about UK Prime Ministers and most would probably say none of them had that fate. It always surprises me that Spencer Perceval is not better known, if only because of the manner of his death. JackofOz 21:23, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

That's pretty wild. I had no idea. And lots of Americans can name the four assassinated presidents and their assassins, not to mention attempts on Reagan, Jackson, Ford, Bush I. And the Federation President in Star Trek VI.--Teutoberg 22:29, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

White Buffalo

I am tring to learn about the meaning of the white buffalo.I know that it is a sacred animal to indians and I am tring to find out what in means. I have heard that it means that the world is coming to an end. However I believe it means something else. And I'm not sure what I think it means something good any information would be great and would be greatfuly welcomed.. THANK YOU Rowena

did you try White buffalo? perhaps the links there can help you. Jon513 18:31, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Hahn Family

I am trying to find out everything that is available to be known about the Hahn family thier personnnel life and business that they had the Hahn shoe store mainly in the Washington DC area.

Thank you.

THE SONG PROMISED LAND

COULD SOMEONE PLEASE ADVISE WHO SANG THIS SONG. ALL HELP WOULD BE APPRECIATED.

A search at The All Music Guide resulted in a whole bunch of hits on that title. Chuck Berry wrote and performed a song called Promised Land, but it was also performed by many others, such as The Grateful Dead and Dave Edmunds. There are dozens of other entries for the same title. If you have more detail about the song you're asking about, such as style (rock, gospel, electronica, ...), when and where you might have heard it (on the radio, in a movice ...), etc, that might help narrow it down. Please do not type in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS, it is like shouting. --LarryMac 19:04, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Searching Wikipedia for Promised Land also brings up something, like Promised Land (song). ––Mysid^(t) 19:21, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

hello

I need to find a Vietnemse family who recently moved to Carmel,Indiana. I am not sure how to prounce much less spell the fathers name but I would like to get an address or phone number. I am close to the family and they have no way of contacting me. Please let me know how I can find their address or phone number. Thank you. 19:11, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Sorry, but it's virtually impossible to find information about somebody without their name. --Saxsux 19:28, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

If you know any of the Vietnamese family's friends or neighbors, you could try asking them. SCHZMO ✍ 19:58, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Lyrics

Can someone give me a list of writers of Rock lirycs?thank you

i gots a couple of questions for you

hello wikipedians where ever you may be i have a couple of questions for you. THE FIRST who is Tesia Samara.I just read the martyr article and ended up with a red link.I plan on writinf an article about this person and it will obvislouy help to know who he or she is. THE SECOND is i just finished reading the article about Carl Panzram.and i would like to know if his autobiography is still availble or if it is out of print i really want to read it. HUGS AND KISSES FROM Sockboy3.

May 12

EWTN portrayals of Saints

I wonder if, when they lived, Saint Augustine of Hippo was as white as Saint Ephrem was black? I wonder how EWTN portrays Jesus? -Snpoj 01:36, 12 May 2006 (UTC)