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May 16

US President Impeachments

I was shuffling through some dusty digital archive of American history and I found some sort of ticket to the Impeachment of Andrew Johnson. That got me wondering, was this common practice back then, selling tickets to prominent court cases? If so, when did it stop? Many thanks, cheers ~Helicopter Llama~ 00:56, 16 May 2014 (UTC)

Did the ticket have a price on it? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 01:18, 16 May 2014 (UTC)

I don't think so (copies can be found all over the web). See, for example, the United States' Senate website: " Popular interest in the trial was so intense that the Senate, for the first time in its history, issued gallery passes, beginning a practice that continues to the present." (See also "Display of Gallery Passes 1890 to Present"). ---Sluzzelin talk 01:30, 16 May 2014 (UTC)

They may not have been sold, but instead awarded based on a lottery or given out as favors to prominent friends of senators and the like (or a combination thereof). The main reason to use tickets is for crowd control. It isn't necessarily a means to raise money by selling them. --Jayron32 11:12, 16 May 2014 (UTC)

Well, the first attempt was agaist John Tyler, but there was nothing found for an impeachment trial (so the trial never started). As far as I know, these were the only attempts in the 19th century. --78.50.203.183 (talk) 18:15, 16 May 2014 (UTC)

I don't know about selling court tickets, but they handed out tickets for the Casey Anthony trial. It was basically because the trial was so high profile and crowd control and all that. I attended another high profile trial (though less high profile than the Anthony trial) and they just had a line and it was first come first serve, but no tickets. They reserved a certain number of seats for family and for the press. The rest were up for grabs by the public. When the court room was full, they just closed the doors. Bali88 (talk) 03:07, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

Oldest recorded voice of a president

Which US president was the first, whose voice was recorded? As far as I know, McKinley was the first to be filmed. But the first voice recording? Theodore Roosevelt, or Woodrow Wilson? I never heard a presidential voice before FDR and Hoover. --78.50.203.183 (talk) 18:13, 16 May 2014 (UTC)

Benjamin Harrison (see section I linked to) in 1889. ---Sluzzelin talk 18:24, 16 May 2014 (UTC)

May 17

posters with similar causes

I've been trying to find a couple of posters. One was created after the 9/11 attacks, the other was created after the Boston Marathon bombings. The former one is described as having the caption UNITED WE STAND above Old Glory. That one came from a Sunday newspaper. The latter one is described as having pairs of athletic shoes forming a heart around the word Boston. I believe that one also came from a Sunday newspaper. Where can I find the posters I'm trying to describe? Anyone know?142.255.103.121 (talk) 03:55, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

The heart is from the Boston magazine's May 2013 cover. Runner's World advertised it for sale as a poster here, for example, with proceeds going to One Fund Boston, but the corresponding link is no longer available. ---Sluzzelin talk 04:02, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

Have you tried googling "United we stand poster"? When I tried it, I got quite a few hits for companies selling posters depicting flags and that motto. Not sure if any of them are the one you are thinking of. Blueboar (talk) 14:03, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

Jakob Lorber's personal life

After the v thorough response to my last question about Lorber, I'm guessing there might not be much more about him for people to find - but in case there is, I'm curious about his personal life; from the digression in the book by Susan Youens about Schubert, I learned where he lived, and how he raised money - as a medium - but what else? Anything? Was he ever married? Children? Unfortunately, apart from one or two small entries, everything about Lorber is of a mystical bent, very partisan - I need something more prosaic; just his day to day life.

Thanks all - sorry to be so demanding.

Adambrowne666 (talk) 04:26, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

how various instution promote culture in uganda?

using illustrations show the various instutions that promote culture in your country. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 197.239.32.36 (talk) 11:33, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

Please do your own homework.

Welcome to the Wikipedia Reference Desk. Your question appears to be a homework question. I apologize if this is a misinterpretation, but it is our aim here not to do people's homework for them, but to merely aid them in doing it themselves. Letting someone else do your homework does not help you learn nearly as much as doing it yourself. Please attempt to solve the problem or answer the question yourself first. If you need help with a specific part of your homework, feel free to tell us where you are stuck and ask for help. If you need help grasping the concept of a problem, by all means let us know..--Shantavira|^{feed me} 13:47, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

What was the first state with a republic government system?

What was the first state to hold a republic system of government.

76.107.253.105 (talk) 13:58, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

See our article on Republic. Blueboar (talk) 14:13, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

They probably predate writing (unless you specify that the laws must be in writing), so we wouldn't have a record of the form of government in that prehistoric period. StuRat (talk) 16:30, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

Probably better to reframe the question as the first state we have knowledge of. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 19:37, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

It all depends on what you mean by a state, and what you mean by a republic... DuncanHill (talk) 01:32, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

Public records / public information

As a general rule, governmental offices must provide transparency and allow the public to have access to the public records of the government. (Of course, there are some limited exceptions to what the public is allowed access to.) So, here’s my question. Does a public school (college, university, or even a high school or an elementary school) have an obligation to allow the public to have access to the school's grades? I am not referring to an individual student's grades (for example, Suzy Smith got an "A+" in Chemistry 101). But, I am referring to collective unidentifiable grade data (for example: in Chemistry 101 class, there were ten A's; twenty B's; forty C's; twenty D's, and ten F's; or similar "generic" data). Any insights? Note: I am referring to the United States. Thanks. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 18:47, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

Are freedom of information and privacy entirely federal matters in the USA? If, as I suspect, not, then this would depend on the particular state or district/territory you're interested in. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 19:35, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

The US Freedom of Information Act is indeed a Federal US law, but, as you suspect, US states have enacted similar laws. See Freedom of Information Act#United States. StuRat (talk) 02:18, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

Thanks! Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 14:35, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

London Auxiliary Ambulance Service

I've been working on the "History" section of our London Ambulance Service article, and according to this blog; "three members of the LAAS (London Auxiliary Ambulance Service) were awarded the George Cross and nine were awarded the British Empire Medal". Can anybody find a better source for this? I've failed miserably. Alansplodge (talk) 19:37, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

Imperial War Museum has this about one of the George Medal recipients. DuncanHill (talk) 19:43, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

Thanks for that. The George Medal is a separate award from the George Cross, so the hunt continues... Alansplodge (talk) 08:44, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

How about LONDON COUNTY COUNCIL, Interim Report of the County Medical Officer of Health and School Medical Officer for the year 1940. It names a number of auxillaries in the introduction (2 for the GM and 6 for BEM). You could always search through the London Gazette for more. Nanonic (talk) 12:34, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

And here's those 2 GMs in the Gazette as an example. Nanonic (talk) 12:51, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

Perfect. Thank you all. Alansplodge (talk) 14:07, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

Resolved

Queen Tuarii

When was Queen Tuarii of Raiatea born and when did she die? Also when was she proclaimed Queen in resistance to the French? I know she was proclaimed the queen of a dissident government sometimes between either when Tamatoa VI abdicated or even before that and 1897 and that she was exiled to Eiao. The French wiki also says she was the youngest daughter of Tahitoe but I can't find any source stating this and the names of Tahitoe's daughters don't match her. --KAVEBEAR (talk) 22:30, 17 May 2014 (UTC)

There is a mention of her in Edward Dodd's The Rape of Tahiti (1983), at p. 225, which quotes an account of the voyage of Isidore Chessé in 1895. This does not answer your questions, but it suggests that Tuarii was in an ambivalent position: "Chessé found a very different welcome at the main island of Raiatea. The situation at Uturoa must have been much the same as we left it in company with Midshipman Menthon some ten years ago. The other principal harbors around the island were; firstly Avera, on the east coast directly south of Uturoa. There a more or less independent queen, Tuarii, was supposedly in power. She inclined to side with the French because Uturoa was the only port where the comfortable provisions that most appealed to her were available. She was evidently an energetic and politically conscious lady, for she had voyaged to Raratonga in April of 1895 to ask protection of the British." Moonraker (talk) 01:11, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

There is an interesting photograph of Tuarii and her council here. The sources for her seem very limited. Moonraker (talk) 01:33, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

I've seen that photo. Yes, she popped up in the years after King Tamatoa VI abdicated and return to Huahine, evidently in disgust because of the French. She apparently seemed to have been propped up to the throne by Teraupoo and his followers the Teraupistes who needed a monarch in the absence of Tamatoa. --KAVEBEAR (talk) 01:55, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

May 18

"SOCIETEY ENDRACT"

Bonjour. J'ai trouvé sur un petit tableau manifestement du XIXe s. les mentions "SOCIETEY ENDRACT" dans un cartouche bleu clair d'un drapeau et "VIVA de LIEFDE EN GOED HERT" (vive l'amour et le bon coeur) dans un autre cartouche au bas du tableau visible ici.

Le drapeau, tenu par un angelot nu mais casqué et portant arc et carquois, comporte dans le haut deux mains serrées, qui font penser au symbole maçonnique, dans un anneau de feuillage et au centre un(e sorte de) coeur "porte-flamme" dans une couronne de fleurs enrubannée tenue par 2 lions. À l'arrière-plan, entre l'angelot et une rue formé d'immeubles (dont plusieurs avec pignons à gradins) avec un mur qui ouvre sur un jardin et qui dissimule la base d'une tour carrée, passe un cortège formé d'un cavalier, apparemment vêtu d'un uniforme rouge, botté, chapeauté et tenant un drapelet triangulaire, et de trois calèches découvertes remplies de, chacune, 6 à 7 messieurs chapeauté (haut-de-forme ? claque ?), tirées chacune par deux chevaux menés par un cocher également chapeauté... Des gens, à certaines fenêtres des immeubles, regardent la "société" passer ; j'aimerais identifier cette société ! Avez-vous une idée ?

Good morning and sorry for my very bad English (I am a Belgian Franch speaking). I found in a small painting clearly nineteenth century the words " SOCIETEY Endract " in a blue cartridge on a Flag and " VIVA Liefde en GOED HERT " ( live love and good heart ) in another cartridge in the bottom panel visible here

The flag is held by a cherub wearing a helmet and bow and quiver ; it has on the a handshake in a ring of leaves and in the center a sort of heart " with flame " in a wreath wrapped held by two lions. In the background , between the angel and a street consisting of buildings with a wall that opens onto a garden and hides the base of a square tower, passes a procession formed by a rider, apparently wearing a red uniform, kicked , headed and holding a triangular drapelet and three carriages full of, each, 6-7 gentlemen, each drawn by two horses ... People also headed to certain buildings windows box, watch the "Company" pass; I would like to identify this company ! Do you have any idea ?

thank you in advance, Égoïté (talk) 08:17, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

Google didn't have any results for "SOCIETEY ENDRACT" (except for your question), but there were plenty of results for Society "Eendracht maakt Macht" [1] which is a Netherlands mutual benefit ssciety and a Flemish language society in Belgium connected with Lodewijk De Raet. This page says that the phrase was also used by a "Catholic revolutionary society during the French-Batavian period in Nijmegen". Of course, all this may be entirely unconnected with your painting. Your English is fine except "cartouche" is a better word than "catridge" in this case (we love stealing words from other languages). Alansplodge (talk) 13:15, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

I think the name of the society on the flag is "Societey[t De E]endragt" (note the g instead of c), which in modern Dutch spelling would read "Sociëteit De Eendracht" (Society The Unity). There have been a number of Dutch societies with this name, founded in the 18th and 19th centuries, but I can't find either the flag or the buildings depicted on a google image search. It could prove quite difficult to identify without either more information or someone who recognizes the buildings (and we don't know if these buildings still exist). I can't really make it out, but I suspect the text at the bottom actually reads "VIVA de LIEFDE en GOED-HEYT" ((LONG) LIVE the LOVE and GOOD-NESS), because the definite article "de" cannot be applied to the neuter word "HERT" (heart), and it sounds weird without an article. - Lindert (talk) 13:49, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

I've had a good search through Google without result, but the use of the Sacred Heart emblem suggests a Catholic society, and the libertarian slogans leads me to think that they might have been involved in the Dutch Patriot Revolt, 1787 or the Batavian Revolution in Amsterdam of 1795, but that's just a guess. Alansplodge (talk) 15:11, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

Many thanks ! I'll continue to search. Égoïté (talk) 20:15, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Tahiti queen journal illustre

Can someone help me find a larger version of this File:Tahiti queen journal illustre.jpg on gallica? --KAVEBEAR (talk) 08:45, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

I don't think that publication is on gallica. Here is a larger version from ebay.ca. I do not know if it is okay to use on Wikipedia.--Cam (talk) 14:02, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

Gigong and yoga

can combine qigong and yoga? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.255.1.156 (talk) 14:39, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

I took the liberty of creating a new section for this question and adding wikilinks. In answer - see Zen Yoga which claims to be "a revolutionary yoga system that combines elements of Taoist Yoga, Hatha Yoga and Qigong". Alansplodge (talk) 17:09, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

You can if you want. No one here is interested in stopping you. --Jayron32 23:08, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

Will no one think of the children? —Tamfang (talk) 23:24, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

May 19

Reliable biography of Nikola Tesla

I have seen all sorts of nonsense about Nikola Tesla, pro- and con-. Can anyone recommend a sympathetic but not credulous biography? Thanks. μηδείς (talk) 21:14, 13 May 2014 (UTC)

I am reposting this from the Science desk, whence it is about five minutes from archiving, the two disembiggened comments below were from the prior thread. μηδείς (talk) 23:58, 18 May 2014 (UTC)

Where do you draw the line between sympathetic and credulous? InedibleHulk (talk) 06:04, May 15, 2014 (UTC)

Well, one that doesn't embrace crackpot conspiracy theories, but which gives reliable, objective information on projects he's believed to have worked on--basically one that takes neither a pro- nor a debunking stance as a whole. I only ever learned enough electricity to pass Physics for Science Majors 201 & 202 over the summer, then promptly forgot it. So I know there are depictions of him by David Bowie and suggestions he was the basis for Ayn Rand's John Galt, but that's not very helpful or reliable. μηδείς (talk) 17:47, 15 May 2014 (UTC)

Thanks, much clearer. No suggestions, sadly. Just wondering. Most of what I know about the man is from Wikipedia. Here's an "Epic Rap Battle" between him and Edison, though. You might like it. InedibleHulk (talk) 05:19, May 19, 2014 (UTC)

To bring up the obvious, did you look at the Wikipedia biography and its references? 70.36.142.114 (talk) 07:07, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

I haven't read this book, but I'd start here if I were in the market [2]. It's endorsed by the AAAS, which might be worth something. SemanticMantis (talk) 00:08, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

I've read the wikipedia article, but the problem is that it is not itself a reliable source. I certainly wouldn't read, say, the Ayn Rand article, and rely on its bibliography or citations for reliable sources. Semantic's recommendation seems to be what I am looking for. Except for some very obvious trolls, I trust the contributors here enough to expect an educated answer when someone says, well, I have read X and found it useful and reliable. μηδείς (talk) 02:36, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

A general blackout

I have just seen the movie The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and there is a complete power outage in the city caused by the villain. Even the airport lost all power, and struggled trying to contact with two planes about to crash in midair for the sudden loss of communications that forces them to fly blind. The heroes manage to defeat the villain and restore power, just in time for the airport to tell the planes of the imminent clash, prevented with one of those crazy plane maneuvers usually seen in WWI fights.

This left me with the doubt: what if there was an epic fail somewhere in the line, and New York gets in a complete power outage as the one seen in the movie? Do airports or planes have backup plans for such circumstances (ignored in the movie for the sake of drama), or would they be in the same state of imminent disaster hinted by the movie? Cambalachero (talk) 00:01, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

If hospitals have generators, batteries, etc for vital functions (which they're supposed to), I'd assume airports do, too. Ian.thomson (talk) 00:04, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

Modern airliners are equipped with airborne collision avoidance systems (particularly something like TCAS that operate independently of air traffic control or other ground facilities -- in the US, the mandate is over 20 years old. Additionally, in the event of catastrophic failure of ATC at a given airport, other area ATC centers would take up control, and all airliners would abort takeoff or landing procedures at the affected airport(s). Note further that such abort procedures are well-documented for all airports served by commercial interests in the US, and are required information to have on-hand in the cockpit. So no, the movie bears no resemblance to reality. — Lomn 00:57, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

Note that New York City did in fact suffer "epic fail" blackouts in 1965, 1977, and 2003, and none of these resulted in any airline disasters. --50.100.193.30 (talk) 03:54, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

However, Scandinavian Airlines 911, almost ran out of fuel due to lack of ATC at what is now JFK in the 1965 blackout. CS Miller (talk) 14:25, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

• Just incidentally, it was it already JFK then. JFK had died in 1963.

Not a propitious flight number though. Alansplodge (talk) 17:09, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

The first episode of Connections (1978) discusses that blackout and portrays that flight (among other incidents), with James Burke narrating as he walks around the WTC. —Tamfang (talk) 23:23, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

Not a propitious place to be walking around talking about that flight, then! --50.100.193.30 (talk) 03:37, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

I remember watching that programme, the point of which was that if there was a big enough power cut, modern society would quickly end and we'd all have to revert to subsistence farming. Even as a teenager, I thought that was nonsense. Alansplodge (talk) 12:49, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Agreed, and he unfortuntely says so explicitly a couple of times through the series, but it served as a decent device to illustrate how interconnected everything is, which was his main point. He clarifies his position in the final episode, which is then hamstrung by a ridiculous extended sequence of things getting smashed with a hammer. Thankfully cut from most North American broadcasts. Matt Deres (talk) 20:17, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Isidore Chesse

Could someone help me find the exact dates or just months in which Isidore Chesse stayed on Huahine, Raiatea and Bora Bora, respectively and when he finally return to Tahiti? I'm guessing the dates are between July 1895 and February 1896[3]. Also was he on the Aube when this was taken in 1897 (the rebellion ended in 1897).--KAVEBEAR (talk) 01:50, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

Found this account, at (http://histoire.assemblee.pf/) Histoire de l'Assemblée de la Polynésie Française: Voyages autour du monde, p.20-24. --Askedonty (talk) 06:49, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

Corporate influence over politics in first world democracies

After looking over this study (and other works by the same authors), I've gotten to wondering:

• If there's any counter research showing flaws in that study.
• What the difference is between public opinion and actual policy is in other first world democracies or democratic republics.

For those who don't feel like reading the study, but might have run across it in the news, it's a Princeton study that concludes that policy-making in the US does not reflect the common voter's will at all but almost purely those of corporate interests, and that this has been a solid fact for decades. Ian.thomson (talk) 02:10, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

This is a matter of ongoing controversy. If you look for flaws, you will be disappointed to find confirmations. It's economic elites and special interest groups, not just corporate interests. EllenCT (talk) 05:29, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

Just pointing out that study says "Forthcoming in Fall 2014" in a large watermark -- it isn't even fully "published" yet. I'm sure we could dig up critical references to other works by those authors, but nobody will be submitting critiques of a pre-print to peer-reviewed journals. Sometimes, an important article can get a critical response note in the next issue of the same journal. So keep your eye out for that in the fall. If you just want general criticism of the authors or their methods, use google scholar to search for papers that cite some earlier work, then search within those for articles that seem to come to different conclusions. SemanticMantis (talk) 15:56, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

How about if you're trying to avoid confirmation bias? EllenCT (talk) 17:14, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

wondering about a strange sociology documentary

I'm wondering about a documentary that we watched in high school Sociology class, about poor, rural Americans. I only remember two parts:

- A man wearing a "CAT" baseball cap said that he likes to sit on his porch holding a copy of the Bible to impress people, but that in fact he does not know how to read.

- A family sitting in their living room spontaneously decide to wrestle.

I think (although I am not certain) that it was black and white and filmed in the 1970's.

At the time I was shocked by how ignorant and strange the people seemed. Perhaps that was the intention.

Anyone know anything about it? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Snoopies622 (talk • contribs) 16:31, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

The "CAT" is probably Caterpillar Tractor, which makes it likely to be set in the central USA. StuRat (talk) 16:57, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

I saw someone wearing a CAT hat just the other day, here in Hong Kong . . . DOR (HK) (talk) 03:51, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Do they have hipsters yet in Hong Kong?--06:10, 21 May 2014 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.204.228.240 (talk)

Three newspapers that dropped Doonesbury because of the Andy Lippincott story

As explained, among other, in our article on Andy Lippincott, that "storyline led to a Pulitzer Prize nomination for Garry Trudeau, but three newspapers of the 900 carrying the strip refused to publish it as being in bad taste." The given reference is a snippet from the Miami Herald, but I'd have to purchase the article in order to find out which three newspapers are meant. Does anyone here know or can anyone find the names of these three newspapers? Thank you in advance! ---Sluzzelin talk 20:31, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

Web search finds the three papers were the "Columbus (Ohio) Citizen-Journal", the "Cleveland Press" and the "Houston Post". 70.36.142.114 (talk) 00:25, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Thanks! ---Sluzzelin talk 06:03, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

It's worth pointing out that as Trudeau's characters became more and more like political commentators, a number of newspapers got around this controversy by moving the strip from the comic page to the editorial page. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 04:40, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

May 20

Long and short term U.S. Natural Rate of Unemployment derivations?

How are [4] and [5] derived? I'm also asking at WT:ECON and promise to cross-merge the best answers. EllenCT (talk) 01:37, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

How do I not plagiarize myself

I am working on a biography of the artist Sidney Gross (1921-1969) and as it has developed, versions appear on my websites LSDArt.com and LeonardDavenportFineArts.com with invitations to add to it. It is informally documented (i.e., quotes are identified as to source, Critic name, publication and year, but not currently as formal end or footnotes). I tried before to write an abbreviated version of the biography for Wikipedia, but it was rejected as plagiarized from my websites.

I don't know what to do, since almost anything I would write about the artist would be self-plagerism.

I have a similar problem with other artists of note, and a particular interest in women artists who get lost due to name changes. The WPA artists Helen West Heller and Marion Gilmore Hulse, for example. I think I have a lot, including time, to offer on many articles in other areas I do read, but, I'm embarrassed to say, find the process confusing and difficult.

For the record, if it matters, I am a retired English/Journalism/math teacher, union president, historical society president, political campaign manager, blah, blah.

I seem to log in, but I don't know what exactly my user name (lsdart with or without caps) is or my password.

LSDart (talk) 02:08, 20 May 2014 (UTC) Leonard Davenport

If agreeable, try adding a note on your site indicating that you release the content under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License and the GNU Free Documentation License. —Nelson Ricardo (talk) 02:18, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Hi LSDart, your username is LSDart. I have put a "Welcome Box" on your user talk page, which has a number of useful links to get you started. If you set your email address when you made your account then you can get a password re-set emailed if you have difficulty in logging in again. I'm not so sure how to re-use your own content from other sites, but I am sure that it is possible! Hopefully another editor will be able to help you with that part of your query. DuncanHill (talk) 02:19, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

There's no such thing as plagiarizing yourself. What would be improper would be to list your own web site as a reliable source for the Wikipedia article, or to copy text from someone else's web site (or other writing) illegally into Wikipedia. Obviously the person who assumed the text was plagiarized because it was copied from your web site simply didn't realize that you yourself were the one copying it. However, do note that you are likely to have legal rights over text you write and post on your web site, whereas you give up most rights to text you post to Wikipedia, even if it is the same text. (I'm not going into details because that would be legal advice, which we don't do here; but for example, you may have the right to not have someone else copy text from your web site and post it to Wikipedia.) Duncan's sugggestion about "releasing the content" means giving up some of those rights, the same as you would by posting the text to Wikipedia. --50.100.193.30 (talk) 03:47, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Why are you bringing up legal rights? Legal rights are relevant to copyright, not to plagiarism. Two completely different things (though they have overlapping instances). Copyright is about an artificial statutory property right, which can be bought and sold.

• I brought it up because (1) Nricardo did above, but in a way where it might not be clear it was about legal rights; and (2) as Nil says below, "I strongly suspect copyright was the primary concern, not plagiarism." As you say, plagiarism and copyright violation are two different types of impropriety, though the same act may be both at once. --50.100.193.30 (talk) 18:16, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Plagiarism is about who gets credit, and it's not a legal question at all, at least in most cases. To avoid plagiarism, you don't have to get any sort of permission from the original author; you just have to give correct credit to your source. (You might still be guilty of copyright violation in that case, but not plagiarism.)

"Self-plagiarism" is a term that is sometimes heard. Of course you can't steal the credit from yourself, exactly; either way, you get the credit (or blame). But what you can do is keep repeating the same stuff. Is that a problem? Sometimes, maybe, if there's an expectation that what you're producing is new work. --Trovatore (talk) 03:54, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

In case anyone missed it, our article on plagiarism actually has a subsection on self plagiarism with a resonable degree of info. BTW, in terms of the original question, both Wikipedia:Plagiarism and Wikipedia:Copyright violations are likely relevant although copyright tends to be of greater concern here for various reasons. I don't know what was specifically said to you, the OP. From what I can tell we never had an article on Sidney Gross (1921-1969) and Sidney Gross, maybe it was at WP:AFC. But I strongly suspect copyright was the primary concern with the material that appeared on the website, not plagiarism. Note also that beyond clarifying the copyright status of the material on your websites as being compatible with importation in to wikipedia (or alternatively proving you are the author), there could potentially still be concerns depending on how careful you were with your original writing to comply with our requirements (some people use extensive quotation but excessive quotation is unlikely to be accept on wikipedia, worse if you weren't always careful identify when you were simply quoting). But there are people much more used to dealing with this sort of stuff who could offer better advice, I suggest you follow the links you've been given. Nil Einne (talk) 17:18, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Rule Of Not Ruling Anything (Out?)

What is its origin? Is it just a play on words? Is it with or without 'out', that makes a lot of difference? Thanks for any comment. Omidinist (talk) 07:02, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

"Rule out" is an idiom, and here is the Wiktionary entry which should answer your question. The OED credits the first written usage to Mark Twain in 1869.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 09:47, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Thanks. How about its usage in this context? I don't think 'out' has been left out. Omidinist (talk) 10:41, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

You are right. There it is used as explained in wiktionary: to rule" (see the 1. or 5. entries under Verb). Rather probably it only rarely can be found followed by "nothing", but why, in the example which you're giving, this can perhaps be explained by the context. --Askedonty (talk) 11:11, 20 May 2014 (UTC) Or were you meaning in that sentence its first occurence of "rule"? In any event, you may also visit at WP:RD the Reference Desk:Language.

In that context, I interpret it to mean that there is a rule out there somewhere that says you should not rule anything. Always be in opposition to the existing power - not be the power. A quick google of the phrase gives very few hits. 196.214.78.114 (talk) 11:31, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

I do not think it should say "you" in "you should not". This no-rule is attributed to a minority current inside a minority current. They probably would mean "we". --Askedonty (talk) 12:35, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Thanks for comments. Any follow-up would be appreciated. I still wonder where that 'rule' has come from. Omidinist (talk) 14:35, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Australia

We are doing an ABC book on Australia and we need an X word.Thank you. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.235.184.3 (talk) 13:29, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Xenophobia? 131.251.254.110 (talk) 13:31, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Note that finding words that starts with an X is always problematic, as most of the few words that do start with X make a Z sound. So, this is why you might want to use a word with an X somewhere else in it, where it at least still makes an X sound.

I suggest you use the word "eXcons", as convict ships were an important part of Australia's past. Assuming this is a children's book, you might want to emphasize that they had made mistakes and were given a chance to reform, and avoid listing their actual crimes, like prostitution (so an not to make the book X-rated). StuRat (talk) 13:44, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

There's this bloke, if you do your list by surnames. DuncanHill (talk) 13:50, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Or, even better, X. DuncanHill (talk) 13:54, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

How about xerophyte or xeriscaping?

Like SemanticMantis (talk) 14:38, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Considering that AFAIK the word 'excon' isn't used much in Australian English, I'm not sure that's a good choice. Nil Einne (talk) 17:04, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

In that case, they can still mention that the convicts were eXiled (as an alternative to eXecution). StuRat (talk) 17:13, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

If you are looking for an initial X, another option is Xenica, the common name for a genus of butterfly endemic to Australia. If you want a word in which x has its characteristic sound, maybe spinifex, a type of grass found in Australia, or perhaps the Spinifexbird, which feeds on an unrelated type of grass also called spinifex. Marco polo (talk) 18:34, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

And Xanthorrhoea.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 19:55, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

A lot of the most recent works of rock and bark paintings depicting the outsides and insides of animals and humans, so-called X ray art, can be found in Australia (e.g. Ubirr rock art , or this saltwater fish) ... Xavier Rudd ... ("Xanadu" :-). ---Sluzzelin talk 19:27, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Four for the price of one: Castlemaine XXXX.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 19:45, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

And five more: The stereotypical blond surfer could be described as xanthochroid. Despite our supposed xenophobia, we are rightly famed for our xenodochy. Many of our citizens are xenoepists. Our native flora is xerophilous, but most introduced species are xerophobous. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 21:20, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

For another genre of rock art: INXS. --Cookatoo.ergo.ZooM (talk) 21:33, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Global net worth

What is the global net worth of the entire human population? I have previously considered posting this question here, but now I am prompted by a report of a lawsuit for two undecillion dollars (US$2,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000).

• Man suing almost everyone for all the money on Earth—New York Post (May 16, 2014)

—Wavelength (talk) 17:00, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

I bet we can get him to settle out of court for a mere 200 decillion. StuRat (talk) 17:09, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

I can't get the link now because I'm at work, but there is a recent XKCD What-if about this lawsuit. I don't recall if it covered total net worth specifically, but it is definitely worth checking out. Katie R (talk) 17:39, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Here's that link. --50.100.193.30 (talk) 18:19, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Thank you for that link. Apparently, the author did not provide reliable sources for his or her figures. Anyway, someone might wish to mention the lawsuit in the article "Au Bon Pain".

—Wavelength (talk) 23:34, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

Or probably not. The lawsuit seems to be the sort of random crap that doesn't seem to have any real significance to Au Bon Pain and so not the sort of stuff you'd expect to read in a comprehensive encyclopaedic article about the subject (which we unfortunately don't have). Nil Einne (talk) 06:20, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

• Wikipedia has an article titled Money supply, which has various ways in which "all the money in the world" can be calculated. The CIA factbook has figures here for the "M2" money supply for every country in the world, though the figures are based on different estimates from different years, and I'm having a hard time with the fact that there's only $3,000,000 in all of Suriname, but taking the table at face value and adding up everything, (done quickly by pasting the table into Excel and using the sum() function) we get the global M2 money supply to be $95,680,593,065,000 or about 95 trillion dollars. Two undecillion would be roughly the number of individual atoms in all the money of the world, if it were all printed in one dollar bills. In other words, just silliness. --Jayron32 01:58, 21 May 2014 (UTC)
  • More: This transcript of an excellent episode of This American Life from 2008 titled "The Giant Pool of Money" explains the global money supply in pretty easy to understand terms (and also uses its growth to explain the macroeconomic pressures that led to the financial crisis of that time) and arrived at a global money supply of about $70 trillion dollars; in 2008. Given the way the world economy has been growing, that the seems in the ballpark of the 2013 numbers I estimated above. --Jayron32 02:05, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Thank you for your replies. The world population (of humans) is a little more than seven billion (7,000,000,000), so ninety-five trillion dollars ($95,000,000,000,000) amounts to about $13,500 per capita (per human).

• World Population Clock
• Worldometers - real time world statistics
• WORLDCLOCKS: World Population and Productive Land Clock in JavaScript

—Wavelength (talk) 02:41, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

• Global net worth is somewhere in the low millions of dollars, perhaps $3-4M. The value of the your life is routinely measured at such an amount, and there is no personal and metaphysical difference between your life and the value of the world you experience during your life. Other metrics may differ. μηδείς (talk) 04:21, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

May 21

American soldiers and American society's regard for them

For quite some time, from watching and reading American media, I've noticed that America has an especially high regard for their soldiers (which is of course, a good thing). However, I've noticed a number of practices that they do that I don't seem to see either in my native country of the Philippines nor in other countries. For example, if something good or bad is done to a war veteran outside of battle (for example, a case where an Iraqi war veteran was asked to leave a restaurant made the newspapers, while another instance involving a waitress and a war veteran led to the waitress being interviewed on Ellen DeGeneres' show), American media will cover it. Another thing I noticed involves deceased soldiers: when a soldier dies, when their remains are flown back to their home, police will come, the plane's passengers will be informed that the flight is carrying a fallen soldier, and the plane will be given a water cannon salute. There are even cases when fallen soldiers get funerals in large sports stadiums.

I'm asking this because I noticed that such practices seem to be non-existent, or at least rarely or never covered upon in other countries' media. For example, I sometimes watch BBC World News and I have never seen them report on war veterans to the extent that American media (particularly Fox News) does. While, for example, British media sometimes reports on fallen soldiers, never once did I see a British soldier get a funeral in a sports stadium, nor are their deeds outside of battle covered in their media.

Now my question: how come American society seems to have a very high regard for soldiers compared to other countries? Narutolovehinata5 ^tccsdnew 03:07, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Unfortunately, treating veterans with respect is often just something people in the US say, but don't actually do. The Veterans Administration is now in yet another scandal for covering up that they kept veterans on waiting lists so long that they died before they got to see a doctor. Many veterans become homeless. After an unpopular war, like Vietnam, they are treated even worse. Also see the Bonus Army for when World War 1 veterans were treated badly. It may sell papers to wave the American flag and trot out some veterans, but that doesn't mean much in the end. StuRat (talk) 03:59, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Narutoa5latinhovel has made at least a dozen unsuppurted claims it's none of our business to prove or disprove. Should he sincerely be interested in the issue he might look at Roman military and Spartan military, then get back if he has any serious questions. (There will be other helpful articles I expect our Commonwealth brethren to be more familiar with than I). μηδείς (talk) 04:29, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Newswriters obviously like a feel-good story, and they can be hard to come by where returning soldiers are concerned. Many of us in America are totally in awe of someone willing to take a bullet for us. Unfortunately, too many others do not share that respect of veterans. The VA scandal likewise makes for a good news story, albeit a "feel-bad" story. Every war has had this problem. Bill Mauldin became famous for his in-the-trenches cartoons about regular GIs during WWII. But after the war, as his cartoons began to expose the shabby way many returning veterans were treated, he angered the establishment. Too much reality, too close to home. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 04:37, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Check out this panel from July of 1946:[6] ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 04:43, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Surely it comes down to the fact that the Philippines (for example) has conscription, while the US does not, so they need some other way to persuade folk that joining the armed forces is a good, even heroic, thing to do.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 07:42, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Just a bit of clarification though: the Philippines no longer has conscription; enlistment in the Philippine Army is now optional. It used to be mandatory, but that was more than a decade or two ago and now joining the military is no longer compulsory. Narutolovehinata5 ^tccsdnew 13:11, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Two things from my experience in the UK stand out:

Firstly, that we have nothing like the resources to bring all our war dead home. Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries the length and breadth of the world are filled with them. If you travel through northern France, you will pass huge fields of gravestones commemorating British soldiers who fell there in two world wars; and many were never found, so a huge memorial at Thiepval and smaller ones at places like Vis-en-Artois bear the names of many thousands whose resting place is unknown. The next four years will see renewed emphasis on these soldiers and their struggle, as we mark the anniversary of WW1. There has already been some criticism that the current government is attempting to spin this activity into a patriotic exercise, rather than the solemn commemoration of so much slaughter that many feel appropriate.

Secondly, in recent conflicts we have moved to flying our war dead home, and for a long time the motorcades carrying the dead from the airfield passed through the village of Wootton Bassett, which in honour of the respect shown to these corteges by the local people was renamed Royal Wootton Bassett. Footage of these events was regularly screened on the BBC News channel; I was working in a government press office at the time, and on every TV in the office, of which there were many, we would often see the repeated image of many hearses rolling through this small village.

Separately, it occurs to me that it would be a mistake to attach additional moral value to someone just because they are a veteran; Lynndie England is a veteran. To me, America's military culture appears unduly uncritical, and it worries me that our education minister, Michael Gove, is determined to introduce what's described as a 'military ethos' into our state-run schools. Many here would (I believe - I have no citation for this) prefer a system which cared better for veterans, but also worked to emphasise the value of peace. In both countries, and elsewhere, the nation's need to recruit soldiers leads it to offer incentives to those who volunteer, and to depict itself and its military action in an unrealistically rosy light. AlexTiefling (talk) 07:55, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Crucifixions with nails & rope

Have there ever been cases of people being crucified with both nails and rope? --66.190.99.112 (talk) 12:35, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Ringer Edwards, a modern-day crucifixion victim, was initially crucified by tying his arms to the cross with "fencing wire" (presumably barbed wire or some similar), and when he tried to escape, they drove the wire through his palms, as nails, to keep him attached to his cross. --Jayron32 12:53, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

I think some of the people who do devotional crucifixions in the Philippines use ropes. Narutolovehinata5 ^tccsdnew 13:08, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Nuclear powers joining the nuclear non-proliferation treaty

If, by some chance, Israel, India or Pakistan decided to sign the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, would they either:

1) Be obliged to give up their nuclear weapons?

2) Given that they "legally" acquired them (i.e. whilst non-members of the treaty), be allowed to join the ranks of "recognized" nuclear weapons states, (alongside, China, Russia, the U.S., the U.K., etc) with their rights and responsibilities measured accordingly?

3) Or is this hypothetical question one which would need to be negotiated, if one or more of these countries decided to sign up to the treaty? 203.45.95.236 (talk) 14:06, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Phoenix Program targets / victims - "guilty" versus "innocent"

I know this question almost certainly cannot be precisely answered, but I'm interested to know if any military historians have tried making some kind of estimate on the matter.

Of the 81,740 suspected NLF (viet cong) operatives killed or captured under the Phoenix Program, how many are estimated (by historians or other experts) to have been "guilty" (i.e. voluntarily involved in viet cong political, military, or propaganda activities), and how many are likely to have been "innocent" (i.e. either un-involved on involuntarily involved with the viet cong)? (For the purpose of this question, I consider anyone voluntarily involved in the viet cong guerrilla campaign in any capacity to be a legitimate target, even if they never touched a gun).

Of course, to a large degree, we will probably never know the truth. But as I said above, I'm interested if any military historians or intelligence experts have attempted to give estimates to this question, given what we now know of the Vietnam war? 203.45.95.236 (talk) 14:19, 21 May 2014 (UTC)