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June 30

What is the Logo with 2 hands (cupped) holding a cube?

I've been trying to search this all day! Can you tell me what company would have that Logo? On the side of a black box? Thanks — Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.212.96.79 (talk) 04:47, 30 June 2013 (UTC)

Where did you see it? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 04:55, 30 June 2013 (UTC)

It's not a company logo. It's a standard symbol used on shipping boxes. There are some examples at Packaging_and_labeling. There's an image of it here [1]]. I couldn't find a description of it, but I think it means Handle with Care (the broken glass icon means Fragile). RudolfRed (talk) 06:00, 30 June 2013 (UTC)

found another link. It does mean Handle with Care. [2] RudolfRed (talk) 06:02, 30 June 2013 (UTC)

new word definitions

There seems to be a real trend developing ...since the introduction of computer dating it's found so many using a new term for "whore" ..being 21st century....that " POF Whore"....referring to the new type of skanky person who dates while dating 20 others on line .....what is the procedure for updating terms..can this new term be added??? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.39.140.142 (talk • contribs) 13:48, 30 June 2013‎

Wikipedia is not a dictionary - we have articles about subjects, not terms. We do not have articles on slang phrases. AndyTheGrump (talk) 13:52, 30 June 2013 (UTC)

I believe you could add new terms like that to the urban dictionary, [3]. SemanticMantis (talk) 14:09, 30 June 2013 (UTC)

See WP:NEOLOGISM. Dismas|^(talk) 14:19, 30 June 2013 (UTC)

While Wikipedia is not a dictionary, our sister project "Wiktionary" is exactly that. If you look up "whore", on that site, you get the following definitions:

1. A prostitute.
2. (pejorative) A person who is considered to be sexually promiscuous (see also: slut).
3. A person who is unscrupulous, especially one who compromises their principles for gain.
4. A person who will violate behavioral standards to achieve something desired.
5. A contemptible person.

I'd say that your usage is somewhere between (2) and (4)...with a touch of (3) and (5). I think Wiktionary has your modern usage about right. FYI: "POF" stands for the online dating site "PlentyofFish" - so that prefix is a bit overly specific. Similar behavior patterns on other online dating sites would have different names.

It also offers "attention whore" [4] - which I think is the precise usage you're after here.

SteveBaker (talk) 15:53, 30 June 2013 (UTC)

• Urban Dictionary would love to take the new word. It's exactly what it is made for. Wikipedia does not do this sort of thing, but Urban Dictionary does, and you should submit your new word there. --Jayron32 19:39, 30 June 2013 (UTC)

July 1

100K Initiative, Project Pengyou, and Golden Bridges

Hello!

I was hoping that you could let me know if these organizations are notable enough to write about. Obama's 100K Strong Initiative is meant to promote U.S.-China cultural understanding by encouraging American students to study abroad in China. Project Pengyou and Golden Bridges are two organizations meant to promote this initiative as well as other programs promoting this cross-cultural dialogue (which, obviously, is very important).

Thank you! Joey — Preceding unsigned comment added by Jfritz14 (talk • contribs) 01:54, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Hi, I replied to your original posting of this question on the help desk but it looks like it's dropped off into the archive. You can see my reply by clicking this link: [5]. CaptRik (talk) 20:49, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

When legally can a former two term president serve as a technical third term president?

When legally can a former two term president serve as a third term president? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.65.140.206 (talk • contribs) 03:20, 1 July 2013‎

Basically never, assuming you are asking about the USA, unless he were appointed vice president with only two or fewer years left for the current president to serve. See 22nd Amendment. μηδείς (talk) 03:24, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Since the question is "when", the answer that the OP might be looking for could be: before the 22nd amendment was ratified. --Lgriot (talk) 10:30, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Does the answer perhaps depend on some hypothetical technical distinction between being "elected to the office of the President" (the language used in the 22nd Amendment) and "serving" as President (the language used in the question) ? For example, does an acting President "serve" as President even though they are not "elected to the office" ? Gandalf61 (talk) 10:59, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Assuming you mean the US as others have done and presuming you mean full terms or close to it, my impression and I believe it's been discussed before is that it's fairly unclear whether someone who has served two full terms (or one full and more than half of one) can be elected to be the vice president and can take over of president, it depends a lot on how you interpreted 'elected' and 'qualify'. See e.g. [6] [7]. If the courts interpret it as allowed, then the obvious case is when someone is elected vice president and the president or president elect resigns or dies. If you want full terms I believe the president-elect will have to die, perhaps by commiting suicide per President-elect of the United States since even if the president-elect refused to take the oath of office, they will still become president, although I'm not particular sure about other cases like the president-elect giving up their citizenship. Of course the other obvious case is when the constitution is amended to allow it. Nil Einne (talk) 15:12, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

--Jessica A Bruno (talk) 03:58, 6 July 2013 (UTC)

European to North American power conversion

I know that Europe and North America have different plugs and different voltages. If I want to use a European appliance in North America, would it work OK with just a plug adaptor, or do I need something else as well? The appliances I would be using are a laptop computer and a mobile phone charger. Thanks, --Viennese Waltz 07:43, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Check your power-bricks - these days most are universal and will work with 100-240 V and 50-60Hz. If yours are marked as such, all you need is a plug-adaptor. If they are not, you'll need a power-converter to turn US power (110VAC, 60Hz) to European power (230VAC, 50Hz) - these things are usually heavy, expensive and tends to run hot; you might be better off purchasing new power-bricks that will accept universal input. WegianWarrior (talk) 07:55, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Also note that this applies to laptops and mobile phones (and USB chargers), but much less to other appliances (TV, washing machine, blender, ...), which are less likely to be moved around and more specialized to a particular market. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 11:27, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

I've burned out a fan and a white noise machine in my time. Check the back or the brick on the power cord and see what voltages it will take. If it says 100-240VAC, you are safe.--Wehwalt (talk) 11:37, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Concur with all above advice. If the 'plug pack' / 'power adapter' / 'wall wart' / 'brick' says "100-240V AC" and "50-60Hz" then all you need is a an plug adaptor or AC power cord that allows it to plug into the type of mains power outlet in the country you are in. Checking my Toshiba laptop 'brick' it says just that "Input/Entree: 100-240AC~ 50-60Hz", and as the mains in is a plug-in lead all I need is a lead with the appropriate 'foreign' pin configuration or adapter to Australian mains plug. 220 of ^Borg 12:04, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Actually, you already have a foreign pin configuration (nearly everywhere ;-). What you need is a cable or adapter with a local layout. See mains electricity by country. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 12:15, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

It is worth checking out your laptop and phone charger, but I would be very surprised if it didn't say 100-240 V 50-60 Hz. If so, it turns out you just need a plug converter, and they can be found in many stores in Europe and at every airport (eg. the post office at Vienna Airport stocks 'Reisezubehör' according to the airport's website). Astronaut (talk) 20:22, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Southwest Freeway(Houston) Article

In the article above there is a picture of the southwest freeway 1972 traffic. The lead car is a red 1963 VW.with a Texas Medical Center decal? in the lower left windshield & an Alabama Alumni? sticker in the lower right. I am 99.9% sure that is me. ARE there any more pictures that might show the tag? 98.81.97.7 (talk) John , July 1,2013 —Preceding undated comment added 16:13, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

The relevant page is U.S. Route 59 in Texas. I cannot say if there are any more photos of the same vehicle. The date is given as 05/72 which should be May 1972 if that helps? This photo was taken as part of DOCUMERICA , sponsored by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The originals are held by the National Archives and Records Administration. See its' page on Wikimedia Commons for more information. 220 of ^Borg 16:35, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Vicky from india. looking for a software's name along with photos,history of origin this method by whom article and where it using or can get rit now??

Hi sir,

i am looking for a astrology software which is seems like red umbrella or avira antivirus,compatible with mobile and no need to pur date of birth,English alphas name or surname simply input ur name in Hindi and ur father name an make your horoscope 100% accurate.

also don't know who created this method and how old it is want to know abt this every thind in your wikipedia articl.........

plz. let me know the details......... — Preceding unsigned comment added by 59.97.136.65 (talk) 19:49, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

I don't know about software, but I suggest have a good read of our article about astrology and its associated articles, to understand why I would seriously doubt any "100% accurate" claim. Astronaut (talk) 20:09, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

I wouldn't. Though the interpretations of such things are pure hooey, there's a mathematical accuracy and precision to the calculations of astrological charts. Not too long ago you had to know how to do stuff similar to logarithmic interpolations. Now you just plug dates into a program and it draws pretty pictures with the resulting data. --jpgordon^{::==( o )} 21:17, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

The OP is interested in a program that uses as its input data only the subject's name and their father's name. That has nothing to do with astrology or horoscopes. -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 21:24, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Hmmm... I guess it depends on how broadly those terms are used. For instance, this page [8] says "This horoscope is aimed at informing you of what's likely to happen to you this week according to your first (given) name." The site also claims that making predictions based on names is called "prenominology" -- though that word only returns a few google hits. Anyway, I suspect the OP is looking for some specific application that did that kind of thing. SemanticMantis (talk) 21:43, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

It's funny how something as hooeyful as astrology can have versions that are even more hoeeyful than others. --jpgordon^{::==( o )} 21:48, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Actually, it's no more, and no less, hooeyful than any other method of divination or fortunetelling, whether astrology or flinging poo on the wall and deciphering the splats. Dominus Vobisdu (talk) 22:31, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Horoscope describes what a horoscope is all about. A horoscope itself is not any kind of prediction; that's something that might feature in a particular interpretation of a horoscope. That people sometimes mistakenly use the term "horoscope" - including ones totally unrelated to the positions of celestial objects at the subject's moment of birth - to mean "prediction", is just an artifact of human fallibility. It doesn't mean the word has general currency outside of astrology. -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 22:48, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Does the Bible say marriage can only be between one man and one woman?

In the Old testament, it was acceptable for a man to have multiple wives.(King David's wives). When did that fade out or become prohibited under Jewish marriage rules?Was polygamy legal only for kings, like Solomon and Rehoboam, who had scads of wives? Was it still common in Jesus' time, or was a Jewish man then limited to one wife at a time? Is there a chapter and verse where Jesus explicitly states the one wife rule, and did he create the rule, or was he reiterating some earlier rule? Edison (talk) 19:54, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

As a point of order, it was reported that people had multiple wives. The fact that it is written about in the Bible doesn't make it acceptable, either then or now. I'm pretty sure that murder isn't considered acceptable then or now, and that story of Uriah the Hittite is in the Bible doesn't mean that the Bible condones murder. Which is not to say anything about whether anything written in the Bible does or does not condemn any particular marriage. But the excuse that "someone does it in the Bible", even prominent figures such as David or Moses or Solomon or others, does not mean that it's "ok" according to the Bible. --Jayron32 23:17, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

True, but on the other hand, Leviticus lays out forbidden unions in great detail, and "the man is already married" is not one of them. --Trovatore (talk) 23:23, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Fair enough, but the OP didn't bring up Leviticus, he brought up King David. Distinctions are to be made between historical events reported in the Bible and specific laws and statutes. The fact that an event is reported does not necessarily mean one way or the other whether or not it is or is not condoned. But your point on Leviticus is a good one. --Jayron32 23:38, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

On the last question - it depends how you define "explicit". The relevant passage is Matthew 19:4-6 - "And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, and said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." If "wife" (singular) excludes "wives" (plural), and "twain" implies "_only_ two", then it's explicit. If those assumptions don't hold, it isn't. Tevildo (talk) 20:31, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Polygamy was banned by a rabbinic ruling, ie a stringency over and above Biblical interpretation / Talmudic exegesis. This took place in the 11th century CE (ie roughly 1000 years ago) and is ascribed to Rabbenu Gershom. The ruling applied and applies only to Ashkenazi Jews. Prior to that, polygamy was legal for all although it's hard to determine how common it was. --Dweller (talk) 22:18, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

Our article Polygamy in Christianity says that the Early Church followed the law of the Roman Empire in allowing only one wife. This was finally confirmed at the Council of Hertford in 673 AD. Alansplodge (talk) 21:32, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Dronestream

How does [9] collect its data aside from news sources? Does any research institution consider Dronstream's data valid? Thanks. 105.236.20.136 (talk) 21:11, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

The web page says that the data comes from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism. Looie496 (talk) 21:34, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

July 2

Car speaker replacement

I'm trying to replace a cracked car speaker with a comparable speaker (not an exact replacement though). What figures do I need to be concerned about matching? It's not some esoteric design, it's run off a central amplifier (no individualized amps for each speaker). I know the OHMS rating, and the wattage, and its size. Is this enough to find a suitable replacement? It doesn't have to be perfect, I just don't want it blow a fuse or fry the sound system. Shadowjams (talk) 01:00, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

As long as you have the wattage, the impedance (ohms), and the size matched, it will be a safe replacement. The only other questions are matters of taste (e.g., frequency response, distortion). --Atethnekos (Discussion, Contributions) 17:35, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

It's also easier, and often possible, to replace with one that's physically the same in terms of mounting, (i.e. number of mounting screws and distance between them, etc.), depth, etc. Depth can especially be a bear, if you are replacing a door speaker which might be shallow to clear the window mechanism, and try to install a better quality speaker which will generally protrude further backwards. Anyway, without being an ad-supported site, I'll tell you my OR and that of many others suggests contacting www.Crutchfield.com, whose mobile sound department has been compiling specs of vehicles and sound systems since before there was an internet, and what fits what. If there is any physical or wiring adapters necessary, they will have it also. Note that you don't necessarily have to buy from them if it turns out there's nothing special about your setup, although their prices and service are pretty good. Gzuckier (talk) 17:29, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

car insurance for elderly non-driver

In the US, my elderly mother no longer drives, but she has a car and has insurance on it that seems relatively expensive. She hasn't driven for over a year and doesn't intend to drive any more. The car is seldom used - maybe 1,000 to 2,000 miles per year, tops. It is driven a little by other members of the family and by people who are running errands for her. Is there a cheaper type of insurance for this type of car and non-driver? Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 02:21, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

She may not need insurance at all if she does not drive. The folks driving the car should have their own insurance to cover themselves when they drive. This is not legal advice, of course. You should talk to several different insurance companies and see what they say. Do you have insurance yourself? If so, ask your agent for advice. Perhaps a small liabiity policy to protect herself is all that is needed? RudolfRed (talk) 05:33, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

It might be better to have one of the other drivers as the primary driver on the insurance (whether this is possible without them owning the car will depend on jurisdiction, and I don't know the US). Work out who would be cheapest of the people who actually drive it, and get the insurance in their name. A 30-40 year old in good health is going to be a better insurance risk than an elderly lady. MChesterMC (talk) 08:01, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Most states (I know Virginia, Georgia and Texas) require that if the vehicle has a current registration, then the owner must have insurance or pay an uninsured fee. Check with your local department of motor vehicles (DMV). --  Gadget850 ^talk 10:46, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

That's right and this is in one of those states. Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 12:40, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Talk to the insurance agent - there are all sorts of discounts they may be able to apply. I use my car less than 5000 miles a year, and get a great rate because of that. Depending on where she lives, the standards for minimum insurance will vary. My car isn't worth enough for me to pay for collision coverage - if it gets smashed up it will stay that way until I pay to fix it or just replace the car. That saves a bunch too. If she has the savings to cover it, a higher deductible plan will have lower rates. Let the agent know that she doesn't drive it - they'll know if the insurance must be under her name, but they also may let you name primary drivers and base the rates off of them instead of her, even if it is in her name. 209.131.76.183 (talk) 12:12, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

You should definitely (I think urgently) talk to an insurance agent, not just because you want a lower price, but because what you're doing now might not actually stand up to scrutiny. When you insure a vehicle, one person is typically the habitual driver (they're the insured party) and you may name other people as additional drivers. The insurance company assumes the first driver its the habitual user, and calculates the risk based on that person driving the vehicle most of the time. It sounds as if, right now, you've told the insurer that your mother is driving the car most of the time, but that's not the case. They may well consider that a misrepresentation sufficient to allow them to deny a claim made when one of the other named drivers has an accident. A friend of mine had a claim driving his brother's car, of which he was a named driver - the insurer tried to refuse the claim, saying he was really the habitual user and that the insurance had thus been deceptively obtained. So if the insurer isn't fully aware of who is driving the car, you may really not have insurance at all. An agent can advise you about pool and group insurances (like the kind companies have) where there genuinely isn't a single habitual user. -- Finlay McWalterჷTalk 14:14, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

My mother doesn't drive (she's legally blind), but she was a co-owner with my father of their car. When my father died, she attempted to get the insurance in her name, but the company that insured the car refused to insure her because she didn't have a driver's license, even though she had co-owned the car since they had bought it. As I was going to be the driver of the car in order to carry her around for her errands, etc. (I have my own car for my own use), we eventually put it on my insurance, even though I'm not a co-owner. RNealK (talk) 07:11, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Wasted food in Africa

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-06-30/africa-s-richest-man-vies-with-china-in-nigerian-tomato-market

"The 2011 study showed that Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, pays $360 million to import more than 300,000 metric tons annually of tomato paste from companies including Hebei, China-based Baoding Sanyuan Food Packing Co. and Singapore’s Olam International Ltd (OLAM). a year. The country produces 1.5 million tons of tomatoes annually of which about 900,000 tons rot, Agriculture Minister Akinwunmi Adesina said at a June 13 presentation in the capital, Abuja."

That's a lot of wasted food. From the point of view of business, how does this happen? I mean if there isn't much storage and not enough transport, why do the farmers grow so many tomatoes? Surely it costs them a lot of money to grow tomatoes that will be wasted.

Peoplelikeyou (talk) 05:13, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Tomatos are quite cheap to grow in the right conditions. They are also fairly perishable in the best of cases, and much more so without expensive cooling and storage. Production and demand are both variable. So if the price is right, it makes sense to overproduce to a certain degree. Compare e.g. cut flowers in advanced markets - they have a shelf life of one to two days, but the price makes it profitable to offer them even if most are thrown out in the end. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 07:23, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Thanks. That was a really good answer. Peoplelikeyou (talk) 07:37, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

It might help you to picture the kind of farmers you're dealing with here. I don't know much about Nigeria, but in parts of East Africa that I'm more familiar with, a surprisingly large proportion of the crops are raised by smallholders with tiny plots of land, who find it very difficult to reach profitable markets. Roadside sellers are especially commonplace. --Dweller (talk) 16:01, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Even in rich, developed countries (e.g. USA), crop spoilage is embarrassingly high. See this nice publication "Global Food Losses and Food Waste," [10] from the Food and Agriculture Organization. It discusses many of the causes and consequences, and gives some suggestions for solving the problem. The current estimate is 30% of global harvest is lost to spoilage. The FAO website is generally a good place to go for this kind of thing, its publications are freely available, and they are a highly reliable source. SemanticMantis (talk) 16:20, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Embarrassingly high is a matter of opinion. If a tomato gets a water crack or rotten spot, a family gardener can cut it out and eat the rest of the tomato but a commercial farmer can't load it into a semi trailer and ship it hundreds of miles to the ketchup factory or sell it in the city farm market. That counts as food loss. When Gerber sends their off-spec veggies to a local electricity plant as fuel or the potato farmer sells the poor quality spuds for deer feed, that counts as food loss too because humans didn't eat it. Food waste is defined as waste of food at the retail and final consumer levels. Rmhermen (talk) 17:33, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

If it goes to deer, there could be more deer, and more hunting, and more deer meat consumed. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 01:22, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

• Crop spoliage is an effect of diminishing returns. The farmer's goal is to make as much money at as little cost possible. He could certainly take harsher measures to stop pests, more care not to damage tomatoes. The price of his product would go up and fewer people be able to afford it, driving him out of business eventually. μηδείς (talk) 17:50, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Telephone number in Reading , Berkshire, England

In about 1991, a telephone number in Reading, Berkshire, England was 0734 470*** (for privacy reasons, the last 3 numbers have been written as ***). However, since then there have been changes in dialling codes. I would therefore be grateful if a user could please tell me what this telephone number is today. Thank you. Simonschaim (talk) 06:20, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

See [11]. The area code changed from 0734 to 0118 and a 9 was added to the existing local six digit numbers to make them seven digits, thus the new number should be (0118) 947 0xxx from within the UK and +44 118 947 0xxx from outside the UK (according to [12]), if I've read this correctly. --Modocc (talk) 07:09, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Thank you.Simonschaim (talk) 18:20, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

How come we didn't know about the "disappearing 90-year olds" before the census?

According to the BBC article Where are the missing 90-year-olds? the census shows that:

"There were 30,000 fewer people aged in their 90s than previously believed," he says - 429,000 instead of 457,000.

That was about 15% fewer men; 5% fewer females. There were also fewer centenarians than previously believed - the number of female centenarians was [out] by about 10%."

It says that a similar thing happened in the USA:

Something similar has happened in the United States.

A projection made in 2004 suggested that by 2010, there would be around 114,000 people aged 100 or over...But, in reality, the 2010 census counted less than half that number.

Surely these people must have registered deaths, stopped collecting pensions, etc. Why was this a surprise from the census instead of something the governments already knew? -- Q Chris (talk) 10:01, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

They only "disappeared" in the sense that earlier projections of the numbers expected to be living to that age at that date were wrong. It was only a "surprise" to people, like the actuary quoted, whose livelihood depends on the accuracy of projections. All demographic projections are always "wrong", in the sense that they are based on statistical assumptions - well informed guesses, in other words - that change will occur in precisely predictable ways. There could be all sorts of reasons why the precise projected changes did not occur - but, essentially (and assuming that the census figures are reasonably accurate) mortality rates were higher than expected. The reasons for that will be explored - it may be related to health care funding resulting in a slower rate of improvement in mortality rates than previously assumed, or simply to a slightly incorrectly calibrated population projection model. Ghmyrtle (talk) 10:31, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

I understand that, but why was it only revealed in the census? Surely pension payments, etc. would have told the government before hand that the figures were not following projections. -- Q Chris (talk) 10:38, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

There is no single national database (in the UK) containing information on every individual - there has been strong political resistance to setting up any such thing. And, "the government" is not the monolithic all-knowing entity that you seem to suggest. Information, and estimates, are collated from a variety of sources, and those are drawn upon by, for example, ONS in preparing their annual mid-year population estimates. But the information they use is not comprehensive, and inaccuracies build up the more years have passed since the last census (to which should be added the fact that the 2001 UK census was in some respects notoriously inaccurate). I'm not sure anyone is really "surprised" by this, apart from one person and a journalist writing up an eyecatching story. Ghmyrtle (talk) 10:54, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

(ec, but similar) Contrary to common understanding, The Government is not a monolithic entity with perfect awareness. Pensions will be handled by one branch, social services by another, and demographic projection by a third. Coordinating all that information is impossible with current technology (and I don't throw words like that out easily). Even for smallish companies, managing information flow so that managers at all levels have the relevant information (but are not overwhelmed by less important data) is a big challenge. As an example, at one time, Microsoft Word used to have 30 implementations of sorting algorithms, many inefficient and some buggy (and despite the fact that qsort is part of the C standard library). Even for such a comparatively simple project, managing information is hard. Now imagine the same thing times 1000 or 10000 for a mid-size state. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 11:00, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

This is basically headline-grabbing hype. "30,000 missing 90-year olds" sounds much more exciting than "Actuaries make some incorrect assumptions and over-estimate number of people in their 90s in UK by about 6.5%". Gandalf61 (talk) 16:31, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

• You'd need to know the assumptions upon which the predictions were made. If for example, they predicted only deaths by natural causes, suicides could have played a significant role. The people aren't physically missing, the projections are off. μηδείς (talk) 17:46, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

ref vw twin s1960/61 convertable

ref vw twin s1960/61 convertable this vehicle was made for the frankfurt motor show 60/61

i lived in stuttgart from nov 1963 to oct 1964

training at the usa based factory manufacturing union special industrial sewing machines for which my family company was their agents in south africa i bought a used vw twin s racing green with convertable black top from the vw company in stuttgart which was manufactured for the 60/61 frankfurt auto show i am trying to trace information and pictures of the model - can you help or put me in touch with the relevant party i sold it towards the end of 63 on my return to south africa

thanks jeffrey cyril berzack — Preceding unsigned comment added by 41.135.169.66 (talk) 10:19, 2 July 2013

Hah, I lived in Stuttgart at the same time (I was six years old, and my father was in the US Army). The question is a bit difficult to understand: if I get it, you're looking for a picture of a 1960-61 Volkswagen Beetle convertible with twin carbs. Is that correct? Looie496 (talk) 14:34, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

If the vehicle was a custom car made for an auto show - then it's probably a collector's item and may well be known to the VW enthusiasts community out there. Have you tried asking on one of their forums? A good starting point might be the South African VW Owner's Club - if the car is that rare, then it's quite possible that one of them currently owns the car. SteveBaker (talk) 14:46, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

I think he means that he sold the car in Germany before returning to South Africa. It wouldn't make sense to transport a car all the way to South Africa only to sell it there. Looie496 (talk) 14:59, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Latvian Gypsies - real or fiction?

What type of Gypsy live (or lived) in Latvia? In Holes, by Louis Sachar, Hector Zeroni's ancestor is implied to be Madame Zeroni, the character who tells Stanley Yelnats' ancestor to go the United States and seek his fortune there. Are there really real gypsies in Latvia in the mid-to-late 19th century, or is this a fictional invention from Louis Sachar's mind? Also, what is the type of gypsy that is so often portrayed in the mass media as the old-lady-with-the-magical-ball-thingy? Sneazy (talk) 15:53, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Our article on Roma (Romani subgroup) mentions the Lotva, which are Roma in Lithuania and the Pskov Oblast. I would be very surprised if they weren't in Latvia as well. They're a subgroup of the Ruska Roma, who have been in Russia since the C17th. Rojomoke (talk) 16:52, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

The Gypsy Holocaust in Latvia says that "According to Latvia's 1935 census, 3,839 Gypsies lived in the country, the largest population of any of the Baltic States. Many of them did not travel about the country, but lived settled, or "sedentary" life." Alansplodge (talk) 12:47, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Looking at the final part of your question, Gypsies have traditionally sought to supplement their incomes by whatever way they could; agricultural labouring was their main trade. In my 1960s childhood in London, English Romany Gypsy women would go from door to door selling sprigs of "lucky" heather. Fortune telling at fairs was another source of income, especially as many people believed that gypsies had some innate occult powers. The Daily Express newspaper until recently employed a series of astrologers from the Petulengro family, the latest being Claire Petulengro [13]. "Her grandmother was Eva Petulengro, the Romany gypsy, who established her name as the palmist and clairvoyant on Brighton Pier. Her mother, also called Eva Petulengro, was well known in the sixties and seventies with several celebrity clients to her name and over 60 newspaper columns." Romany Gypsies in the UK now seem to make most of their income from scrap-metal recycling, at least according to the popular stereotype. Alansplodge (talk) 16:44, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Is that because their fortune-telling businesses failed due to unforeseen circumstances? -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 00:07, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

As long as nobody is striking a happy medium! Alansplodge (talk) 07:24, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

See also Corlinda Lee, who read Queen Victoria's fortune. Alansplodge (talk) 07:28, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Band Aid question

Can anyone see Adam Clayton (U2) in the performance of Do They Know It's Christmas? At Live Aid concert? Ms.Bono^(zootalk)☆ 20:03, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Are you looking for this? --Ye Olde Luke (talk) 23:56, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Adam Clayton wasn't on the original song, as far as I know. Only Bono was. I can't see him on the video posted above, either. KägeTorä - (影虎) (TALK) 00:51, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Yeah KägeTorä - (影虎), that's what I thought. I read this and I started loooking for Adam but didn't see him. I just saw Bono trying to remeber the song a couple of times... :P Ms.Bono^(zootalk)☆ 12:40, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Oh, thanks for that article. I didn't know Adam Clayton was on the backing vocals in the chorus on the original. Perhaps - and speculating here - he may not have decided to go on for that song because around about that time he had a drink problem, and U2's set was several hours before the end of the UK part of the show. Yes, and Bono holding the lyrics - I've never seen him do that before :) KägeTorä - (影虎) (TALK) 00:38, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Neither have I, KägeTorä - (影虎). He makes the lyrics up now (no paper) :P, I think he learnt it from that show. He seemed lost among the back then super stars (Freddy, Bowie and McCartney)... But then, whe I saw Live8... What a change!!! Those were the years :P Ms.Bono^(zootalk)☆ 13:08, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

How do online ads that promise actual sexual contact work?

Visit porn sites and you see a lot of ads saying things like "A website that gets you laid instantly! Just message and ask to f*ck!" or, "37 viable women found in <<your relative location>>, waiting to have sex with you!"

Now, I know they're lying. Obviously. In that case, I want to know how they make any money. Don't their customers realize "Hey, I'm never actually getting to the part where I have sex with somebody!"

How do they keep their customer base when the ads bold-facedly lie about what the site will give you?2602:306:C4B4:ADF0:5969:D568:F6EB:832D (talk) 23:30, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

Have you tried purchasing a membership? I am not sure what source you think we have that will tell you the quality of what you would actually get from any such site, and whether you would find it worth resubscribing. μηδείς (talk) 23:44, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

If a million people see the site, and just one of them gives them their credit card details, the site is on a winner. Most, like you, won't believe it, but as P. T. Barnum allegedly said, "There's a sucker born every minute". HiLo48 (talk) 23:51, 2 July 2013 (UTC)

I don't really see why it's an obvious lie. As I understand it, members of such sites post profiles which indicate their general area of residence and their willingness to engage in sexual activity. Geolocation will enable the host site to determine the area where a visitor is connecting from, and display the number of profiles in that area. One would suspect that a considerable percentage of such profiles will be of a certain type of female, but that doesn't make the basic figure or the claim inaccurate. Tevildo (talk) 00:55, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Some are legit, some are malware-infested websites. AdultFriendFinder gets you screwed, that string of gibberish in your junk filter screws you. It's a good rule of thumb to never click any Internet ad, but the crappier and more insistent they look, the worse. InedibleHulk (talk) 01:20, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

And no, I can't vouch for the quality of partner you'd get. I had a friend (and not one of those "friends" who is actually me) who used AFF a similar site. I heard happy stories, but never met anyone or saw anything. I imagine they're roughly the same mixed bag that used to go to singles bars. InedibleHulk (talk) 01:27, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Also worth remembering that advertising is its own business. If people click ads, advertisers make money. Doesn't matter what the ad offers or doesn't. I see a lot that just say "Download" "Free Download!" or are a picture of tits. Some are empty windows with an X in the corner that wants you to "close" it.

$17,000,000,000 spent on Internet ads in the first half of 2012. InedibleHulk (talk) 01:38, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

I guess I should explain why I think such sites are scams. (1)I believe it would be impossible for them to have a worldwide network of women ready to have sex with anybody who "just signs up"; the costs would be impossible, as would the screening process (making sure every customer is underage and STD-free, etc). Not to mention paying the women's employment wages, even on a "per customer" basis. (2)If it's volunteer-based (like a social dating site) where on earth would they find women who'd sign up for such a thing? Surely the men who apply would vastly outnumber the women, indeed I find it hard to believe women would be attracted to such a crude and self-debasing site (many have pretty misogynistic claims about what their women will do). I'm not trying to play to stereotypes, but the notion that such sites would ever get anything but men is a hard pill to swallow. Some even say things like, "MEN JOIN FREE due to high amounts of female members!!!" 2602:306:C4B4:ADF0:5969:D568:F6EB:832D (talk) 02:17, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

No, most aren't escort services. Especially not the worldwide ones. Just Facebook for sex. Many women aren't "ladylike" and enjoy debasing anonymous sex. Others like casual "normal" sex with people they've chatted with a bit. But yeah, it seems certain there will be more men looking for those kinds of women than actually exist. Fortunately, nobody minds sharing.

Capital letters and exclamation points are usually a sign that it's just a clickable ad, rather than anything. Especially if there's no mention of the service's name.

And I think you have a typo. Any company that makes sure its customers are underage isn't one you'll see promoting in the open. InedibleHulk (talk) 02:45, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

The sex trade has always been at the forefront of technology so I wouldn't be in the least surprised to find organisations on an international level arranging for matches just like selling holidays, hotel space, tickets to shows etc. Dmcq (talk) 12:48, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

The only way I can imagine a legitimate business like this working, is for it to be like a dating or contact site, just a little more racy. So you would sign up and provide a profile and the site would match you with other members who meet your criteria. I really can't imagine the site having any employees or carrying out any age or STD checks. Astronaut (talk) 17:36, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

When I was a little younger, I thought, in my foolishness, that those sites must have some level of legitimacy because how else could they survive and advertise on all of the adult sites. So I thought I'd check it out. How they do it (at least the many I tested multiple times) is they give you a free sign-up page, and you can create a profile and stuff all for free. But then they have automated fake profiles that message you, and you have to pay subscription to read more than the first line of the tantalising message. They will also very frequently e-mail you telling you that people are looking at your profile and messaging you. Once you pay a subscription, even once, they've made enough money that they don't need your custom anymore and can attract the next sucker. That's just from my experience. 78.42.201.216 (talk) 20:57, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Not sure I'd call them suckers, in the scam sense. These sites generally don't promise or even offer sex (thought the ads might). They offer a chance to meet horny people, and deliver. It's a nudge in the right direction, but it's up to the customer to make themselves (their online selves, anyway) attractive. Roughly the same as real life. Someone like Carice van Houten is going to do better than Bubbles once the mingling starts. InedibleHulk (talk) 03:31, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

xkcd 713 is relevant.-gadfium 02:22, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

July 3

Washing machine

Will my washing machine topple over and explode if I load it only with one piece of clothing like a judo gi? Especially the jacket is very heavy and I would imagine it getting really really heavy when wet and the whole machine being unbalanced because there is nothing to balance the weight.

(restoring my answer from when this was originally posted here.) No, it won't. But make sure you set it to the lightest setting so you won't waste water/energy. --Yellow1996 (talk) 18:09, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

I would it is extremely unlikely - I have never hear of this kind of thing ever happening - but don't take the word of a random guy on the internet if you are really worried about it. I would suggest contacting the manufacturer, or the shop you bought it from. KägeTorä - (影虎) (TALK) 18:59, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Not toppling over and exploding. However, one heavy item could make the machine very noisy, particularly suring the spin cycle. In my experience, modern machines reduce their speed if the vibration gets to be too much. You could try balancing it out by adding another heavy item like a towel. Astronaut (talk) 19:03, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Many washing machines have a "half load" function for this contingency. "Do I Need a Half load button on my washing machine?" suggests that newer machines have a sensor instead, in case pushing a button is too much effort. Alansplodge (talk) 21:16, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Thanks very much for that information - I now know what that button is for! Perhaps I might use it one day. :) Tevildo (talk) 22:02, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

You're very welcome. My specialist subject: "The statement of the bleedin' obvious". Alansplodge (talk) 16:55, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Well, it wasn't obvious to me. :) "Half load" should mean "half the normal load size", not "unbalanced load". Tevildo (talk) 22:22, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Since I am frequently unbalanced myself, I feel I can contribute: Many washing machines will detect an imbalance and stop, with a loud buzzer sounding to warn you. StuRat (talk) 23:43, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

The owner's manual for my washing machine notes that it has a vibration sensor that will keep the spin cycle from reaching full speed if the load is too unbalanced (eg. if there are only one or two items in it). If you're worried, you could follow the other part of the note and toss in a few towels to balance things out. --Carnildo (talk) 23:49, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

The really sophisticated machines will make the heavier side spin more slowly. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 01:20, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

More seriously, my machine, if the load is unbalanced (and I've not pressed the button), will pause the spin for a few seconds and rotate slowly in an attempt to rebalance itself. And my grandmother had an ancient evil vertical spin-drier that _did_ fall over quite often, but it never exploded. Tevildo (talk) 23:41, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Editor is biased. Need help .

One editor is so biased about an article and he does not allows any one to update the article in positive manner .He is not even allowing the facts from the reliable source. How can I seek help from an neutral editor to resolve this issue . --Suryavarman01 (talk) 23:16, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

This isn't the right place for a question like that one. Try posting at the administrator's noticeboard instead. Make sure to give more detail there, like specifying the user who you have a problem with. Howicus (talk) 23:20, 3 July 2013 (UTC)

Actually, that's the WRONG location... by far. There are about 4-5 steps before "running to get mommy". The user should:

• First, start a discussion on the article talk page, inviting the other user to participate directly with a message on their use talk page. It is most important to not take an accusatory tone, assume good faith on the part of the other editor, and discuss with an aim to reach a consensus, rather than to look at it as a competition to "win". If the OP instead takes the tone they do above, it is sure to go badly.
• Second, if the discussion reaches an impasse, they can try to ask for a third opinion and see if outside editors can weigh the difference between the two versions of the article and make helpful suggestions as to how to break the impasse.
• Third, the user can try a request for comment and advertise it at relevant Wikiprojects, with a goal of bringing in even more outside opinions to break the impasse.
• Fourth, the user can ask for help at the dispute resolution noticeboard to get some more help at resolving the dispute.

None of these options involve getting anyone sanctioned or blocked, as it should be. The goal of Wikipedia is not to win battles, but to make the best encyclopedia possible, and we should not look at other editors that disagree with us as opponents, but rather as good-faithed editors with different viewpoints. --Jayron32 00:30, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Looking at the edit history for the Vanniyar article, I'm seeing one biased editor repeatedly trying to insert poorly worded and based on an original misinterpretation of a source, with very little discussion with other; while a number of other different editors follow the site's guidelines and policies and remove the material. Ian.thomson (talk) 00:36, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

That is all solved using the procedure I outlined above. No one has to get mommy still. --Jayron32 00:57, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

I know, a lot of biased editors usually either give up before going through all those steps (and just leave the article alone or edit war and get a short-term block), or jump the gun and do something short-term-blockworthy. The short-term block is then often interpreted as a perma-ban for some reason, though occasionally they actually bloody learn. Ian.thomson (talk) 01:01, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Yet another instance where it becomes clear how much I still have to learn about how Wikipedia works...oh well. Howicus (talk) 00:23, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

July 4

Flagpole Statues of the New York Public Library

Do the statues at the bottom of the flagpoles (2 poles) have names? If so what are they? The artists/designers are listed but not the names of the statues.

Typing the title of your question into Google produced this as the first hit. It explains in wonderful detail who the artist was, how they were cast and by whom and so forth. SteveBaker (talk) 02:58, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Paint thinner and latex paint

I'm painting a room and using a brush that says it's designed for "all paints and stains." I used an oil based primer sealer, then washed the brush with paint thinner. Now that the brush has had paint thinner on it, can I use it to paint with latex paint or will it ruin the latex paint when I dip it in the bucket? Can I wash off the paint thinner with soap and water?

Yes. That's the right approach. HiLo48 (talk) 03:45, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Yes, or a cheap detergent to get rid of the paint thinner, then dry thoroughly before re-use. Dbfirs 07:54, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Idenfication of an old game

Hey, I use to play an old game that I would like to find again, I was hoping someone might put a name to it.

It was a old game where you had a Fighter jet of sorts, where the screen kept advancing and you moved around the screen and killed enemy aircrafts in normal fashion.

But in addition to that there was alot of upgrade features, such as shields and power generator, and alot of weapons such as beams lasers rockets and normal projectiles.

Between each mission you would earn money which you could then use to buy these upgrades.

I played it on a PC but it might have been ported over from some console.

Has anyone heard of it?

Joneleth (talk) 13:38, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Category:Combat flight simulators might give you some leads. --Jayron32 14:29, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

It wasn't Tyrian (video game) was it? Alternatively, you might find it in Category:Scrolling shooters. - Cucumber Mike (talk) 14:30, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Another possibility is Raptor: Call of the Shadows, but the question could describe the entire scrolling shooter genre. MChesterMC (talk) 15:52, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

How old is old, roughly? And does the screen advance toward you (cockpit view), to the left (Gradius style) or down (like 1943: The Battle of Midway)? InedibleHulk (talk) 15:53, July 4, 2013 (UTC)

It was Tyrian, thanks alot I've been looking for that game for years. Joneleth (talk) 17:06, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Yay, nerd points to me! Tyrian is awesome - well worth a play after all these years. You might like to try Dosbox, which should get it running nicely on a modern PC, or the Android or iOS ports. - Cucumber Mike (talk) 17:27, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Thanks i found a Win7 compatible version on piratebay. Joneleth (talk) 17:51, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

facebook messages

I'm wondering, since my facebook friends come from a few different areas, would it be possible to divide them into groups and post messages specific to one group or another, that wouldn't pop up in the news feed of any of my other friends? would be a lot of help in organising things on that site.

thank you,

213.104.128.16 (talk) 17:00, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Sure, you can organize your Facebook friends into lists and then restrict postings and status updates to appear only to certain lists of your friends. On the left menu bar, select the light gray "FRIENDS" link (you may have to select "MORE" first if you have a lot of apps). That will bring up a new page. From that page, there's a button titled "Create list". You can create as many lists as you want, and can have the same friends on multiple lists even. Once you've created lists, when you write a new status update, before you post it, click the little blue down triangle to the left of the "Post" button, and you'll have the option to select who sees that post. Select any lists you want to see the post. If you have a lot of lists, you may have to select "See all lists..." to get them all. But that's how you do it. --Jayron32 18:22, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

I found it, thanks. Though, I am wondering, a friend I rarely talk to responded within moments when I tested this out, might it have made the post appear more prominently on his page, given that it was shared specifically with him, amongst others? Oh, and I also found that I can open the list page to view messages only from those people, and send statuses of my own automatically just to them, which is helpful :) 213.104.128.16 (talk) 19:04, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

route of the transcontinental railroad in Nevada in 1869

I have been trying to find the route of the transcontinental railroad at it's completion in 1869. I am specifically interested in the section through Nevada and from Nevada border to San Francisco. I found a map on the Union Pacific RR site but it was too small to read. Any help would be appreciated. If someone knows of one in a book I can order from a library that would be appreciated also. (disabled & getting out is difficult) thanks in advance for your help. Patarmom (talk) 17:52, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Do any of these serve your purposes? --Jayron32 18:13, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Also here is the route marked with virtual "pushpins" on Google Earth. --Jayron32 18:15, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

And here is the one hosted at Wikipedia. --Jayron32 18:15, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Here is a Flash Animation showing the development of the railroad in several maps. --Jayron32 18:16, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

This website also has some interesting information. --Jayron32 18:18, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

How would you handle a crying baby?

• How would you handle a crying baby? Do you alert its parent/guardian? Do you give it food? Do you cuddle the baby? Do you change the diaper? Do all babies behave the same way? Do babies have personal preferences? (I am talking about human babies.) How do you hold a baby properly? Is it safe to hold a baby with one arm? If holding a baby with two arms, is it best to hold a baby with one arm around the chest area and one arm supporting the bottom?

• Why does the pope kiss babies?

Sneazy (talk) 18:52, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

When you're in the position of becoming a parent, you can attend special classes where all the above are demonstrated to you. I suggest you have a look at a forum for parents such as Mumsnet where all the above (maybe with the exception of the very last point) are discussed in full. --TammyMoet (talk) 19:02, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

No, I mean holding a baby of someone else's child. Surely, there are some tips for non-parents and babysitters! Sneazy (talk) 19:13, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

I found these pages: [14] and [15]. They both list common reason why a baby is crying and how to help it. RudolfRed (talk) 19:30, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

The article on babysitting has several external links regarding childcare safety. --Modocc (talk) 19:34, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

The best method is to hand it back to the parents and let them deal with it. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 19:38, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

If they were around, most parents would take the baby back and look after it themselves, rather than just assuming the current baby-holder was up for the task. The question seems to assume the OP has been left in charge of the baby in the absence of the parents. But then, the OP should have been given plenty of instructions by said parents. So, one has to wonder where this question comes from, and what its real purpose is. -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 21:00, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Given the OP doesn't even know how to hold a baby, it would be irresponsible of the parents to leave their infant with him. However, there's always time to learn. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 21:39, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

What makes you assume that the OP does not know how to hold the baby? For your information, the question has the word "properly", implying there may be only one method of holding a baby while other methods are sub-standard but not too inappropriate or harmful to the baby. Sneazy (talk) 21:58, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Why babies cry --Dweller (talk) 21:34, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

It is bad enough there are 17 questions here. Let's not move into debating them. μηδείς (talk) 23:56, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

And no one even addressed the Pope question. I would think the answer is that it's for the same reason politicians do it. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 01:48, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

He wants to get reelected? Clarityfiend (talk) 04:17, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

I think politicians do it because babies have fuzzy memories and no concept of sexual harassment laws. Adults are trickier to kiss against their will. The Pope's kiss is more of a religious blessing, I think. I'll look for sources. InedibleHulk (talk) 04:57, July 5, 2013 (UTC)

This one suggests the Pope blessed the baby after kissing it, not by. The reason (at least in Benedict's case) seems to be that he "loves babies" and simply "wanted to kiss her". Apparently, it was also in exchange for front row seats for her family. InedibleHulk (talk) 05:03, July 5, 2013 (UTC)

On the bright side (perhaps), those certainly don't look like sweet nothings Francis is putting in this kid's ear. More like the third secret of Fatima. InedibleHulk (talk) 05:17, July 5, 2013 (UTC)

This is a surprisingly deep question. Let's try to peel it back into some sub-questions:

1. How would you handle a crying baby? -- Generally babies cry for one of a few reasons, as a parent, I'd go down a mental check-list:
   • Is there an immediate pain issue? This can vary from gaping wounds to tiny "ouchies" - but with small kids, it can be just as simple as clothing pulled around and pinching or other forms of mild discomfort or whatever. Do a quick check - if not, move on. After a while, you'll come to tell the difference between different kinds of crying - the kind that has you drop everything and run to them to see what happened - the kind where the baby is just "fussy" and can be ignored - and all sorts of other cries between those limits. But only experience can help you here.
   • Sick? Does the kid look a funny color or is (s)he hot to the touch? Now you're into realms of medical advice - so we won't go there. Call a doctor.
   • Diaper needs changing? This is testable by the "sniff" method - or by pulling the diaper out an inch or two and doing a quick peek. Modern diapers may change color to tell you that the baby is wet - but for poop, the sniff test is highly effective! (Experienced parents get very comfortable with the grossness of all of this!)
   • Hungry/Thirsty? Offer milk...if hungrily accepted - then we're done - if not, then move on.
   • Needs burping? After food (perhaps even as long as 20 minutes after), the baby may need some gentle jiggling and pats on the back to expel air from stomach. If a few minutes of doing this don't produce a satisfying burp...move on.
   • Bored? Just needs a hug? This is actually kinda common - and a cuddle and perhaps a bit of playtime can help.
   • Sleepy? Sometimes kids yell because they are over-tired and over-stimulated. Wrapping the baby in a blanket ("swaddling") and putting them down to sleep may (eventually) end the crying.
   • Meh, who knows? Well, maybe one time out of five, you get to the bottom of this mental checklist - and the little brute is still yelling at deafening volume. You may never know why. Cuddling and gentle jiggling may help - and once you get to know a baby, you can sometimes figure out what works - but very often, you never know why and the baby cries until falling asleep from exhaustion. This happens - if you've tried everything else at least twice, then try not to panic.
2. Do you alert its parent/guardian? -- This depends on the circumstances! If you find a baby abandoned someplace - then that's the very first step! If you're the appointed baby minder then perhaps you should go down the list of things first before calling them...they probably brought you in because they needed a break and may not want to be called out of the brief respite for the more trivial reasons. If you're called upon to mind a baby - you should ask what they want you to do if the baby gets upset and under what circumstances to call them. But if you're left in charge, then it's your responsibility - so if in doubt, call them.
3. Do you give it food? -- Only if the parents have said that you can - and told you specifically what food to give. Babies have allergies and very specific dietary needs - so care is required. Babies can survive for quite a long time without food - but if they're hungry they'll let you know that there is a problem!
4. Do you cuddle the baby? -- Sure! Every kid likes that.
5. Do you change the diaper? -- If you've been left in charge by the parents and have appropriate diapers on hand - but see if it needs changing...as I said before - do a "sniff" test.
6. Do all babies behave the same way? -- No, they most certainly do not. Even at one hour after birth, kids are different. At one month old, my son only liked to be rocked in one very specific motion - nothing else worked. Our granddaughter wasn't thrilled about being jiggled around. Our grandson has to be in near continual motion while you're holding him - but he doesn't seem to care what that motion is.
7. Do babies have personal preferences? -- Yes, and figuring out what those are (and perhaps influencing them) is what parents do. If you're left in charge, ask the parents about this before they leave.
8. How do you hold a baby properly? -- This depends on the age of the child. Very small babies have to have their heads supported at all times...as they get older, they can hold their own heads up and may prefer some freedom of movement. I don't think we can explain this in words - you need to get parent or other expert to show you this.
9. Is it safe to hold a baby with one arm? -- Well, experienced parents do this all the time - holding a yelling baby while making up a bottle of baby formula is an art we all learn! But probably it's best to gradually work up to this. Certainly while the baby is very young, supporting the head and generally protecting the kid is a two-handed job.
10. If holding a baby with two arms, is it best to hold a baby with one arm around the chest area and one arm supporting the bottom? -- Again, it depends on the age of the baby. Head support is important for newborns. For older kids, there are a half dozen ways to hold them - and if you're doing it for long periods, you have to switch positions just to stop your arms from hurting and to give the kid a bit of variety.

SteveBaker (talk) 14:23, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

July 5

U2 album

I recently heard about a U2 album (?) called People. I've never heard about that album before, it includes the track Slide Away ft. Michael Hutchence, I Wanna Be Around ft. Tony Benett and a strange version of Creep ft. radiohead. Is that an official album? I don't know but I couldn't find anything on it in any place. Does anyone knows about it?? Ms.Bono^(zootalk)☆ 13:28, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Wrong Bennett. It's Frank Bennett who did cover versions of 90s pop songs in the crooner style. It's likely his version of Creep you remember. --Jayron32 13:35, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Jayron, I am sure it says Tony Bennet. I also search in Wikipedia here. And the Creep song is this one, Bono sings in both of them. Ms.Bono^(zootalk)☆ 13:52, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Yes, Frank Bennett did a rather famous version of that one. --Jayron32 18:40, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

You should probably take these kinds of question (and your next one, below) over to our Wikipedia:Reference_desk/Entertainment - where questions like this are answered by experts in this kind of thing. SteveBaker (talk) 13:48, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

I always shot there first but as Iusually say: in my few months as Wikipedian, I've dicovered that there are places where people just ignore you if you are a newbie or a probie. I always have luck here and got my question answered. Ms.Bono^(zootalk)☆ 13:52, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Here's[16] a youtube of Tony Bennett singing "I Wanna Be Around", accompanied by Bono, et al. That song I think is one of Tony's old hit songs. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 17:17, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Thanks Bugs!! I'm afraid I have no access to Utube... But thanx a lot for the gesture :) Ms.Bono^(zootalk)☆ 17:19, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Bono dancing Tango

I saw the cover of Hello magazine for Argentina where Bono is in the front page. It said Bono was seen dancing tango in Puerto Madero. Anyone knows the date of that edition of the magazine?? For the way Bono was dressed and his shades I think it was 2007 or 2008 but I am not sure. Ms.Bono^(zootalk)☆ 13:33, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Type of Fly

Recently, I've been seeing insects that I have never seen before here up North (UK). At the moment, in the front garden, there is a fly walking around on the floor. It looks like it's probably going to die soon of old age, as it's unable to fly and walks sluggishly, yet it does not look injured. Anyway, I would like to identify it, to see where it comes from. It looks like a 'normal' housefly, but it has yellow stripes on it. It's about ½ inch long, with black eyes. It's legs are brown. Can anyone tell me what it is? I took some photos, but it's in the shade, so they were not very good, and getting in close to it just made the picture blurry (using my iPod). KägeTorä - (影虎) (TALK) 15:07, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

A hoverfly, perhaps? Falastur2 ^Talk 17:16, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Not quite. Same colours, but the body was the same shape as a bluebottle. There were two yellow lines going vertically down its back on its torso. Its abdomen was black, possibly with some more yellow on either side. KägeTorä - (影虎) (TALK) 17:29, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Gift

What would be a good present for a man's b-day?? Ms.Bono^(zootalk)☆ 17:44, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

What does he like? Buy him that. --Jayron32 18:43, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

He likes shades, dress shirts and wine. I can't decide between those options. Oh... and food. i want it to be a special present. Ms.Bono^(zootalk)☆ 18:49, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Looking after cats?

So one of my housemates' fiancée has some cats that they can't keep where they live now, so we're looking after them here. Thing is, we had cats once before, and said housemate didn't do a very good job of looking after them, in particular leaving the litter tray full a few inches deep with their mess, to the point where my other housemate threatened to move out. So, now we have more cats, any advice on things we can do to keep the place clean, tidy, not smelling too much, and make sure both the animals and people here are all happy?

213.104.128.16 (talk) 18:59, 5 July 2013 (UTC)