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April 5

Most Prestigious Oxford College

What is the most prestigious constituent college of Oxford University - the Oxford equivalent of Cambridge's Trinity College? Acceptable (talk) 00:40, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

See Norrington Table --199.198.223.106 (talk) 01:47, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Christ Church is hands down the most respected. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Clashbash (talk • contribs) 05:21, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Hands up if you agree. --Dweller (talk) 09:08, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Well obviously respected is not the same thing as prestigious (respected by whom?). Also it depends what you mean by prestigious. If you mean academically, you would have to go by the Norrington table as linked to above. But Christ Church certainly has more aristocratic Brideshead-y cachet than any other college. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 09:14, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Agreed. Kittybrewster ☎ 09:31, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

There isn't one. Christ Church was historically the most socially prestigious, and perhaps still is (though given the contempt for privilege commonplace among modern Britons, including Oxford students, that doesn't count for much any more), but that's quite different from the role of Trinity at Cambridge. The Norrington Table should not be taken very seriously at all. It is only a reflection of current undergraduate performance (and of very limited value even as that), whereas intellectual prestige is built up over centuries and determined primarily by the stature of a college's fellows. Another candidate for the most prestigious Oxford College is All Souls, but as a graduate only institution specialising in the humanities it is nothing like Trinity. Luwilt (talk) 12:21, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Disclosure: I'm an Oxford graduate, but not from any of the colleges mentioned. Luwilt (talk) 12:25, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

When was the sandwich invented?

When was the sandwich invented? Not the term "sandwich" itself, but the actual food item. - Vikramkr (talk) 06:37, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Popular myth has it that it was invented by John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich; the article has a section called "The Sandwich", which mentions an alternate candidate for the creator. Clarityfiend (talk) 06:44, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

But he just introduced it to high society. Poor people had been eating sandwiches for centuries if not millennia at that point. (sadly, I don't seem to still have the report I wrote in college on this topic, or I'd fork over the references. Sorry.) If I recall, the jist of it was that throughout history, almost at any point where people had the right sort of bread, the peasant or working class would come up with a way to use it to hold an entire meal together. APL (talk) 15:37, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

I have read this, although I find it hard to believe that a simple food item such as a sandwich came to existence in the 1700's. - Vikramkr (talk) 06:56, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Just like America being "discovered" by some Viking (despite the natives) and Machu Picchu being discovered by Hiram Bingham, whoever claims the honor first (usually) gets the credit. This says the earl copied the idea from the Greeks and Turks, and that it is "a culinary practice of ancient origins", i.e. nobody knows. Clarityfiend (talk) 08:14, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

It's so obvious to place something on bread and fold it over, I imagine it was invented within a short time after the first use of bread; probably around 10,000 BCE.--Fuhghettaboutit (talk) 16:13, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

The English form of sandwich does not involve folding the bread. Luwilt (talk) 12:26, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

I've always thought it odd that Cornish pasties have been around since at least the 13th century, yet it took four hundred more years for someone to try essentially the same thing with bread. A fanciful tale of invention to be sure, but hardly unique. Matt Deres (talk) 00:38, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Hillel was eating sandwiches 2000 years ago - something that will be remembered and imitated by millions of Jews worldwide this very week. --Dweller (talk) 11:06, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Remember also that matzo in Hillel's time was much lss crumbly than ours and much easier to fold over. Phil_burnstein (talk) 00:16, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

He ate a wrap, not a sandwich. Luwilt (talk) 12:27, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

height of territories?

Hey, I'm just curious, how high does a countries airspace territory go? I mean, we have satellites that orbit above countries, so presumably that isn't forbidden, but flying a russian jet flying over the US would almost certainly be considered a hostile act. Is there a certain height limit to which a county can claim to own? Cyclonenim :  Chat  11:01, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Our article Airspace states "There is no international agreement on the vertical extent of sovereign airspace" but then mentions ranges from 30km to 160km. ny156uk (talk) 11:28, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

There are international treaties dealing with high atmosphere / use of space. See Outer Space Treaty, also the proposed Space Preservation Treaty, and generally, Space law. Civilian use of another country's air space is by permission of that nation only; see, for example, Convention on International Civil Aviation, International Civil Aviation Organization, and more generally, freedoms of the air. Generally, most countries do not allow foreign spaceaircrafts to use their airspaces for non-civilian purposes, but see Treaty on Open Skies.

As to how far a country's sovereignty goes: theoretically, it goes on forever, at least under the Anglophone common law system and the Roman-derived civil law system, as a consequence of "cuius est solum eius est usque ad coelum et ad inferos". Practically, it goes only to the limits of the atmosphere, or usable atmosphere - but definitions of what is that limit varies. --PalaceGuard008 (Talk) 11:33, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

This question reminds me of a story from before most of those treaties. In The Man Who Sold the Moon, the main character successfully asserts that as property rights extend to infinity above a land parcel, only those countries in a narrow band north and south of the equator may lay claim to Earth's moon. Of course, taken to the next logical step, those countries would also collectively own all the planets in the solar system, but that wasn't touched on in the story. 152.16.16.75 (talk) 00:31, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

The state of Illinois recently passed a law re-designating Pluto a planet while it is overhead Illinois, so in their minds at least their jurisdiction extends 7 billion kilometers. DJ Clayworth (talk) 14:18, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

One might say that the state of Illinois is simply out of its depth. :) 87.115.166.150 (talk) 20:50, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Indeed. Those legislators should be sacked (and then burnt at the stake) for wasting the public's money on such utter absurdities. One might have thought that they'd have quite a few more pressing issues than this, particularly at the present time in history. -- JackofOz (talk) 21:55, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

IIRC certainn countries near the Equator did try to claim that their sovereignty went all the way up, in an attempt to get rent from geostationary satellites. BrainyBabe (talk) 15:02, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

That would be the 1976 Bogotá Declaration mentioned at Extraterrestrial real estate#Ownership of empty space. 152.16.16.75 (talk) 01:24, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

How to gain weight ?

This question has been removed. Per the reference desk guidelines, the reference desk is not an appropriate place to request medical, legal or other professional advice, including any kind of medical diagnosis, prognosis, or treatment recommendations. For such advice, please see a qualified professional. If you don't believe this is such a request, please explain what you meant to ask, either here or on the Reference Desk's talk page.

This question has been removed. Per the reference desk guidelines, the reference desk is not an appropriate place to request medical, legal or other professional advice, including any kind of medical diagnosis or prognosis, or treatment recommendations. For such advice, please see a qualified professional. If you don't believe this is such a request, please explain what you meant to ask, either here or on the Reference Desk's talk page. --~~~~

TenOfAllTrades(talk) 17:54, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Please see the discussion of whether this is medical advice here: Wikipedia_talk:Reference_desk/Miscellaneous#question removed as medical advice request (weight gain). StuRat (talk) 19:39, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

crazy electronics kit catalog

When I was a kid (1980s) I had this crazy catalog of electronic kits you could order. It included some things that in retrospect I'm pretty dubious about — your own laser interferometer microphone (which my reading of the Wikipedia page on such makes it sound like that is quite a complicated thing to set up!), all sorts of bugging equipment, all sorts of weird "make a machine that sends out rays that makes people uncomfortable" sorts of things. As a kid I thought it was the coolest catalog ever, even though I was well aware the prices were beyond me and there was no way I'd be able to assemble anything in it myself. My question is: does this ring any bells? Anybody have the slightest clue what this catalog was? Who put it out? I'd find it such a kick to see it again, I read it cover to cover a million times. But I can't remember too many details other than the above. Thought it would be worth asking about, though. --98.217.14.211 (talk) 15:01, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

I think I read something like that once. Try [1] <(^_^)> Pokegeek42 (talk) 18:18, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

If that's not it, maybe try asking this on the science desk? Just 'cause, they might read more science catalogs than I do. I'm really not sure. <(^_^)> Pokegeek42 (talk) 18:19, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Heathkit comes to mind (see here for some catalog covers), but I'm not sure how far they were into the crazy and weird category. Perhaps some other company in the Electronic kit manufacturers category may ring a bell. -- Tcncv (talk) 04:29, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

I remember that catalog! Wow, that was a long time ago. That was also one of my favorite catalogs as a kid. Some of the items (Tesla coils, infinity transmitters, etc.) were legitimate but it also had 'questionable' plans and kits that seemed really cool to me when I was too young to understand the science behind them. Similar to Consumertronics but with slightly more plausible concepts. The kits were usually based at least somewhat loosely on real research, but the small scale of the finished products would likely have been too weak to accomplish much of anything. Now, what was the name of that catalog? 152.16.16.75 (talk) 09:50, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, tesla coils! That sounds like the right one. Everything in there was wild and crazy and no doubt sounded about 50 X cooler in there than it would have been to actually make. It was printed on cheap paper, lots of tiny tiny text blurbs crammed onto each page. Most things sold in kit form. --98.217.14.211 (talk) 10:20, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

This sounds like the stuff at the back of the Superman comics, or the back of MAD magazine? --TammyMoet (talk) 11:29, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Mad Magazine didn't run advertisements until very recently. APL (talk) 12:37, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

And this was a full catalog. And in color? A short little booklet. Stand-alone. The pure stuff of adolescent geek fantasies. --98.217.14.211 (talk) 12:10, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Edmund Scientific. Still there. I got the catalog when I was a kid in the early 1960's. -Arch dude (talk) 18:41, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

I fondly remember the RadioShack kits from Tandy, but the ones I saw achieved mundane tasks well rather than attempting exotic pseudo-science. Certes (talk) 21:08, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Very cheap watch

Does anyone know of a high-street store in Britain where one could get hold of a very cheap watch (preferably one like this or this, without a strap, but other types also acceptable) in the £3-8 range? Cheers! ╟─TreasuryTag►contribs─╢ 20:53, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Argos okay? £5.89MedicRoo (talk) 21:31, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Beware cheap watches, they are run by a fly on a bicycle.--88.109.57.209 (talk) 05:46, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Ask a nurse. Kittybrewster ☎ 09:19, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Ooh, I think Argos looks good, thanks! ╟─TreasuryTag►contribs─╢ 09:21, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

You shouldn't buy that one, it's upside down.  :) Who then was a gentleman? (talk) 17:47, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Hmm, that was a pretty stupid mistake by the photographer, all the more expensive ones are pictured properly ;-)

Anyway, I now have it, works very nicely (was even set at precisely the right time when I bought it, battery and everything!) and if anyone's interested, it's a thoroughly good deal :p Thanks for the help! ╟─TreasuryTag►contribs─╢ 21:03, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

April 6

Making a "wiki"

I dont know if my definition of "wiki" matches other people's definition of "wiki" but I've noticed that many sites, such as game sites have a "wiki" page made for them. I was wondering how they made it, and if I could make one myself. I'm wondering if the game's wiki page is just another wikipedia page, or a completely different thing. I dont know if I explained myself clearly or not, but thanks for the help. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Sokushi (talk • contribs) 04:18, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

It's a common misconception that "wiki" and "Wikipedia" mean the same thing, but they don't. "Wiki" refers to a type of software, whereas "Wikipedia" refers to, well, Wikipedia. A wiki is a collection of web pages that can be edited by visitors -- either everyone, or just registered users, or a combination thereof. While Wikipedia is undoubtedly the most famous application of wiki software, there are many, many other wikis out there, and anyone can install one for their own purposes. (I've got a couple myself.) List of wiki software may be of interest to you. -- Captain Disdain (talk) 04:30, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Wikipedia:TourBusStop provides links to "guided tours" of several other wikis. -- SGBailey (talk) 15:13, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

I didn't even know that existed! Cool. -- Captain Disdain (talk) 19:03, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

There are really three layers to this. Firstly - the term 'Wiki' refers to a piece of software associated with a web site that allows communal document editing. There are many varieties of Wiki software - Twiki, ClearSpace, etc. The specific variety that's becoming by far the most common is called 'MediaWiki' - it's an OpenSourced package written in PHP and JavaScript that stores documents in a 'MySQL' database. It's free - and it's very easy to set up on your own website. Then, there are the specific web sites that use Wiki software - of which Wikipedia is probably the most well-known. So Wikipedia uses MediaWiki which is a Wiki. These 'game sites' you are seeing are almost certainly using the MediaWiki software - so that (by default) they look and behave almost identically to Wikipedia. However, if you look at the logo in the top-left corner, you'll see that they don't have the 'puzzle-ball' logo that Wikipedia uses...so you know that they are different. These sites are most certainly NOT related to Wikipedia (other than that they use the same software) - they don't necessarily have the same editorial standards, or the same attention to detail that Wikipedia does - they may not be 'open' and their content may not be freely licensed. For example, I run a car enthusiast's club called 'Mini Owners of Texas' - and we have a MediaWiki site at http://www.miniownersoftexas.org/wiki - which is not open to non-members...you have to create an account in order to edit it. My personal Wiki at http://www.sjbaker.org/wiki is even more private - nobody but me can create an account on it - so if you wish to edit it, you have to send me an email. My Wiki is customised so it doesn't look quite so much like Wikipedia either. Then there is another Wiki I use at work that is so private, you can't even read it without an account! SteveBaker (talk) 20:45, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Rape & Progress

Is there any record of a child that was born as the result of rape reaching high levels of success in it's life?--88.109.57.209 (talk) 10:12, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

I suspect this isn't the sort of scenario that is often publically discussed/mentioned so unless there is a high-profile example people are aware of i'd be surprised if data were available on it. Tracey Emin the artist is frank about her being abused as a child, but from my experience discussing/noting something like that publically is extremely rare. Also you'd probably have to define 'high levels of success' - would that be earning over X a year, famous for Y, creator of Z? Maybe someone will be along with some more useful information for you, can't recall any high-profile examples of this though. 194.221.133.226 (talk) 10:40, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Success of a sort (notability) came to Tituba, but the story that she was the product of a rape is far from reliable. --Dweller (talk) 10:58, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Here is a support group for such individuals. You could (tactfully) ask there. If you're just wondering whether it has occurred, the answer is almost always "yes" when you ask "has anybody in largish group A ever gone on to enter largish group B"? --Sean 14:09, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Sean, the answer may be more difficult here because a) victims of rape aren't always very keen to promulgate their misfortune b) victims of rape who had consensual sex around the same time as their rape may find it difficult to be certain whether their issue was or was not the result of the rape (especially in the days before DNA tests) and c) many of those who achieved "high levels of success" would be loathe to reveal such humble origins, even were they certain that they had occurred. So, all in all, I think this may be more accurately a case of "mathematics tells us that undoubtedly lots have, but logic insists that not many will be reliably known". --Dweller (talk) 15:59, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Why would a person whose male biological material came from a rapist be at a disadvantage in life? I am only considering the raping of a female by a male, because it is most common, but the same would apply in the case of a female raping a male. How does rape as the origin of life disadvantage the offspring? Bus stop (talk) 16:13, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

From a genetic point of view, not at all. If our experiences in life were 100% genetic, you may have a case. However, from an environmental point of view, children of rape have several disadvantages over children produced by mutual consent of his parents. Children of rape are less likely to have a reliable male presence in their lives, and women who are raped frequently suffer psycholgical trauma which unraped women do not. This trauma could certainly affect their ability to provide adequate maternal care for their child. --Jayron32.talk.contribs 16:20, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, the above is true. But the child produced as a result of a rape of a married woman (or an unmarried woman in a stable relationship) raped once by a stranger (whose spouse chooses to share in the raising of the offspring of the rape) would be at little disadvantage. I just wanted to state the extreme other possibility (the above), though it may be the less likely possibility. And another twist that can be added to this story is that the husband can be the rapist. It is simply a possibility. After conciliation the two may become good parents. Bus stop (talk) 16:34, 6 April 2009 (UTC) Bus stop (talk) 16:32, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

I would say that it most certainly has happened. It was very common in the past for nobility to have a 'bastard son', and if you take rape with the broader definition of 'abuse of power to gain sexual gratification', I think this would apply to non-consensual adultery. For example, household servants might seem consensual, purely because they have no other choice. I can't think of any specific cases on hand, but if you do a google search on 'bastard son', I'm sure you will find plenty of famous people.--KageTora (talk) 19:17, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

I think you might have left off a "but aren't..." between consensual and purely. Matt Deres (talk) 20:38, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Searching for "royal bastard" would give you an idea of how often this occurred in history. Adam Bishop (talk) 20:41, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

But it's interesting how we can't come up with any examples. The only case I can think of - and it's not even a real person - is the character Olivia Benson in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. -- JackofOz (talk) 21:51, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm not sure how unexpected the lack of results is - when you consider the population of "people who have achieved enough success that RefDeskers have heard of them" (which is probably no more than a few tens of thousands at the most) and "people who are known to have been born as a result of rape" (which is probably even smaller) it doesn't take any kind of real trend for there to be no meaningful overlap between the groups at all. ~ mazca ^t|c 22:53, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, though I think the emphasis should be almost completely on the second component of that equation. Unless a person's bloodline was of particular importance, the matter of their conception usually isn't a hot topic of interest. Yes, they're a bastard, which piques some interest, I guess, but until recently many victims of rape were held accountable for the crime against them; they would have nothing to gain by bringing out the facts of the conception, and possibly even more embarrassment and shame. Of the thousands of people you meet in your life, there's a very very good chance that at least some of them will be victims of rape, though you'd never know it unless you get particularly close or they turn into an activist or something; it's just not part of most conversations. Being the product of a rape would be even less likely to enter the conversation since it didn't impact the person in nearly the same way - they might not even be aware of it at all. Matt Deres (talk) 23:32, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

This claims that Ethel Waters was the product of a rape, but it doesn't provide any sources. The Wikipedia article doesn't mention this. This says so, I'm not sure how reliable it is. Who then was a gentleman? (talk) 22:47, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Another problem is that in pre-modern times a man could do whatever he wanted to a woman of lesser status. So when you see that someone was born to a noble/rich father and "a peasant woman", then the peasant women may very have been raped, and since nobody really would have cared about the woman, it may never be specifically stated how the man happened to father a child with her. It may not have been a violent rape, but it would have been semi-consensual at best. Benvenuto Cellini raped lots of women if you define rape this way, he brags about it all throughout his autobiography. Medieval kings and nobles may have also raped plenty of women in this sense; I'll see if I can find any examples. Andreas Capellanus says that it is perfectly acceptable to drag a peasant girl off into the bushes and have your way with her - maybe he was joking, maybe not. An example of a child born this way may be Leonardo da Vinci. Adam Bishop (talk) 02:12, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

If you're talking about droit de seigneur, then possibly the firstborn of any medieval marriage would be the result.--TammyMoet (talk) 08:59, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Except for the fact, as the article states, that the droit de seigneur is probably completely fictional. -Elmer Clark (talk) 14:39, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Collectively, the RefDesk is quite right to focus on the rapes as a result of power imbalances within a stable society, e.g. of peasant women by aristocratic men. For one thing, many of these would not have been one-off events, but long-term, thus increasing the chances of conception. However, there is another whole swathe of rapes, this time within very unstable societies, namely those at war. See History of rape (and History of war). Rape in war is of interest to genealogists, among others: here is a description of genetic testing and genealogy, with reference to the Cossack massacres of Jews in Ukraine. These war rapes still go on, not as isolated incidents but structured into the conflict: ten years ago in the former Yugoslavia, today in Uganda and Congo and elsewhere. There are also customs such as bride kidnapping, again still very common today, the basic elements of which involve abduction and rape. In some countries or ethnic groups, a large percentage of marriages begin this way. Logic dictates that some of these children will go on to great things. BrainyBabe (talk) 15:42, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Good Lord, I started something here. Thanks for the answers.--79.71.217.59 (talk) 06:12, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

I have one: James Robison. In addition, If a person's mother was below the age of consent at conception, and the father above, then the child would be the product of rape (of the statutory variety). There are a number of successful people in that situation, including Jesse Jackson. Rockpocket 06:37, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Newspaper copyright

I'm struggling to understand copyright law.

For example, UK newspapers like The Times or The Guardian say on their website that their material is copyright and can only be copied for personal use. I understand that. So, let's say a UK organisation broke newspaper copyright by photocopying pages, I'd guess they'd be liable to be sued. Fine. But what if the organisation destroyed its archive of clippings. Would that mean it is no longer liable? --195.194.4.65 (talk) 12:56, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

No. The crime was the copying (if done so in a way that violates fair dealing), not the possession. Just because you destroyed the product after the fact does not affect whether the initial crime was committed. --98.217.14.211 (talk) 14:10, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

(EC) No obviously any liability for previous copyright infrigement doesn't end when you stop infringing anymore then if you are speeding and stop speeding you'd not be liable for your previous speeding. However clearly if you respond to cease and desist orders or whatever and destroy copyright violating material the company would be less likely to sue you, particularly if you haven't greatly benefited from your copyright violations although often they may require at least some compensation which would likely be in the form a negotiated settlement if the infringing company acknowledges wrongdoing (why fight a lawsuit you'd lose?). Nil Einne (talk) 14:13, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

It's also worth noting that the legal notices and warnings a lot of websites have often have little to do with what can actually be legally done. It's not uncommon for publications -- online or otherwise -- to proclaim that none of their content may be copied anywhere for any purpose, no matter what, but that doesn't mean that someone couldn't legally copy a piece of text from the site under fair use so he can use it as a part of a critique of that text, for example. And, of course, copyright law differs from one country to another, and copyright warnings that are quite valid in one country may be meaningless in another. (Obviously, this is not to say that what the Guardian's website says is crap! I'm talking in generalities here.) -- Captain Disdain (talk) 19:22, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

• With so many newspapers going belly up in the crisis, newspaper owners should think about ways to preserve their archives of information rather than rigidly trying to keep the copyright that's likely never going to be used. Copyright is a good thing for the creator of a work, but too often I see information disappear due to financial issues and because of copyright no one was able to store it... - Mgm|^(talk) 08:35, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Eh, preserving information for newspapers is not that hard. There are plenty of services that will buy up your back issues and keep them in a paid archive (e.g. ProQuest). I don't know what the answer for newspapers as a business model is going to be but I don't see weakening their copyright to be a likely solution. They don't want people to reuse it freely — such an approach does not direct revenue streams back to them in any appreciable way. --98.217.14.211 (talk) 12:14, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Because The Guardian was mentioned, I have to point out their visionary understanding of what a re-interpretation of copyright can mean: Open Platform. They are ready for a whole new business model. (I have no affiliation with them.) BrainyBabe (talk) 15:55, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Shoot Up Hill

This question is probably too localised but if possible i was wondering why a street in Cricklewood, London was called Shoot Up Hill? Simply south (talk) 15:50, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

It shoots up steeply. I'm not sure I find it all that steep, but hey, I grew up on a very steep hill. --Dweller (talk) 15:54, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Installing a preamp and pickup into an accoustic guitar

I wish to install a preamp and pickup into my acoustic guitar. However, I am a little nervous about cutting a hole into the side of my guitar. Any suggestions about what tools to use, or things that I could do to prevent the wood from splitting would be greatly appreciated.130.113.115.53 (talk) 17:11, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

You can get pickups that come on a little bar that straddles the sound hole (and can, with some effort, be removed without damaging the guitar), and you tape the cable for them over the outside of the soundboard. Note that this will only work if all the strings are steel (or have a steel core); a pure bronze string won't work, and the (plastic) gut strings on a classical guitar won't work either. Alternatively you can install a microphone (which confusingly is called an "acoustic guitar pickup") that replaces the heel end strap hanger (for which you might need to enlarge the existing hole) and the mic part tapes to the guitar (I think to the undersurface of the soundboard). THe kind I'm thinking about is: this kind. Enlarging an existing hole shouldn't cause splitting, and neither should drilling carefully with the appropriate bit. You might need to put some tape around the hole you're drilling, to prevent the lacquer cracking. 87.115.166.150 (talk) 18:16, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Many years ago I had a Barcus-Berry. It was about 2 cm by 0.5 cm, had a wire coming out one end, and a sticky pad underneath which attached to the body. It was about the most unobtrusive way of amplifying a Spanish guitar we could find. I'm truly amazed to find (a) I spelt it right and (b) they're still around: this is their website [2] And no we don't have a page on them! --TammyMoet (talk) 18:25, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

I play a Takamine Jasmine full-dreadnought style acoustic guitar, and use a Dean Markley ProMag in-hole pickup. It's a litle rectangle that wedges in the soundhole quite easily; there's little foam pads that allow it to grip the edges of the hole. I use both the single coil (in natural wood) and humbucker (in black) varieties. I've not used them with any signal processing equipment, but they sound great using a simple Countryman direct-box patch in to a sound board or PA system. They work fine too using a personal amplifier, and I have used them to record simply soundfiles on my computer as well. Versitile, removable, and sound great. They should be what you are looking for, and require no "surgery" on your guitar. See http://www.deanmarkley.com/Pickups/ProMag.shtml for the ones I use, I have the ProMag Plus and the ProMag Grand. --Jayron32.talk.contribs 20:26, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

work on quantum mechanics

hi, I'm a student of B.sc of chemistry honours . In future I'm insterested doing work on quantum chemistry but I see many of the scientice who worked on quantum chemistry are physists. So is there any scop for me to wok on quantum chemistry and how I go ahed ?Supriyochowdhury (talk) 18:53, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

There's absolutely scope for you to proceed. Going to graduate school and pursuing a Ph. D. is an effective prerequisite for this sort of cutting-edge science, and the precise nature of your Bachelor's degree matters little in the end. Focus future studies on your area(s) of interest and an undergraduate degree of chemistry vs physics will not matter in the least. — Lomn 19:32, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

The proper way to proceed is to familiarize yourself with scientists currently working in Quantum Chemistry and to seek to study under them in seeking your PhD. Unlike your undergraduate school, which may have any of a number of reasons for you to choose it (social life, campus location, cost), you should choose a PhD program primarily for the work you intend to do while seeking your PhD. So find a quantum chemist working at a university, ask them if they have any openings in their lab for PhD candidates, and if they do, ask them how to go about applying for that spot. If they are interested in taking you on, getting through the university application procedure should be a breeze... Oh, and don't worry about whether the scientist works in the Chemistry or Physics or whatever department, just try to find one whose interests match your own... --Jayron32.talk.contribs 20:18, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

April 7

Extrapolating Free Speech To Allow Political Donations

How did it ever happen that our greatest legal minds could stretch their imagination so much as to prove to us all that the right to free speech includes the right to give money to political candidates? Such a practice obviously would, and obviously has, led to corruption in our governments at all levels.

Can my question be answered in less words there are in the First Amendment?

Thanks for any info.

Xesandohs (talk) 00:04, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

See burden of proof. --Sean 01:10, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

As long as there are political campaigns, there will be political fundraising. Or would you rather that only the rich run for office? Phil_burnstein (talk) 03:57, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

It's not allowing limits to be placed on donations (because they're considered "free speech") that causes the problem. We can end up with a few people giving most of the money to a campaign, which results in the "representatives" only representing those people. This undermines democracy. Incidentally, another option is to have public funding of elections, either with taxpayer money or by requiring TV and radio stations to air free ads and debates for all candidates (if they want their broadcast licenses renewed). StuRat (talk) 06:07, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

This looks to me more like an attempt to start a debate than a Reference Desk question. Much as I appreciate the irony of attempting to stop a discussion about free speech, I don't think this is the place for it. --Anonymous, 04:55 UTC, April 7, 2009.

By defining the question as "free speech," the answer is given. However, define it as "freedom of expression" and the right to express oneself through donations becomes more meaningful. DOR (HK) (talk) 08:50, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

See Buckley v. Valeo, a US Supreme Court case that ruled spending money to influence elections is a form of constitutionally protected free speech (though the later Davis v. Federal Election Commission also had something to say on the matter). The full judgment of Buckley v. Valeo is here. I think that's the factual answer to the question. --Maltelauridsbrigge (talk) 16:54, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

english language

which of the following statements are correct. 1. Unlike trains, terrorists don't come with an announcement(can we make use of two negative's in a single sentence?) 2. Like trains, terrorists don't come with an announcement —Preceding unsigned comment added by Nag183raj (talk • contribs) 04:11, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

They're both correct; they just mean two different things:

1. Trains come with an announcement; terrorists do not.
2. Trains and terrorists come with no announcement.

In general, each negative in English negates the premise: "unalike" means "different", "not unalike" means "similar", "insignificantly not unalike" means "different", etc. (though stacking negations tends to make sentences difficult to parse and should be avoided in most cases). – 74  04:57, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Not quite correct. See litotes. There are shades of meaning in these terms, for example "not unalike" is not identical to "similar". Language is not a set of binary conditions which strictly obey boolean operations; as such different word choices do carry subtle differences in tone and meaning which strict logic would not allow... --Jayron32.talk.contribs 06:10, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

They certainly aren't identical (you'd be hard-pressed to find any two words that are). But, as an answer to the question "can we make use of two negative's in a single sentence?", I believe broad strokes are sufficient. Besides, even though my answer was technically incomplete it was not incorrect. – 74  11:47, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

As far as English grammar is concerned they are both correct and mean two different things, both of which I believe are incorrect. Both trains and terrorists may or may not come with an announcement. Dmcq (talk) 09:38, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

It's not a double negative - the two negatives refer to completely different things. The first negative ("Unlike") says that terrorists are not like trains - the second one says that terrorists don't come with an announcement. You can't cancel them without changing the meaning. It's not like "My dog doesn't have no legs" which you can simplify to "My dog has legs". Hence there is nothing wrong with the first version. If you are hell bent on getting rid of a negative, at best you'd have to say something like "Unlike terrorists, trains come with announcements"...but even that has changed the subject of the sentence from something about terrorists to something about trains. (Although it works better as a joke, IMHO) SteveBaker (talk) 21:56, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Just as a matter of interest, when did the word unalike creep into the language? That was a new one to me. -- JackofOz (talk) 20:54, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

According to Google, it was included in a book published in 1755. That doesn't, however, mean it has been in common usage since (or ever!); Google helpfully suggests the correction "unlike". You (and potentially the OP) might receive a better answer at the Language desk. – 74  21:48, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

The OED has unalike both as an adjective (with four quotes, all from the twentieth century) and as an adverb (with a single quote from Thomas Gataker in 1616). Algebraist 22:00, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh my

Has the world really come to this? [3] Am I the only one that thinks the anchors completely ignoring not only her fainting but a part of the set falling on her is horrible? Sure, they're live on the air but come on, I'm sure they could cut to break or something. It absolutely disgusts me. 75.169.196.140 (talk) 04:42, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

To answer your question: No, you are probably not alone. —Tamfang (talk) 05:35, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

I doubt you're alone, but it is considered a very good quality in a newsreader to be able to continue no matter what is going on around them. There are a number of bloopers around of when that's gone too far, including an anchor vomiting, wetting pants, animals being very inappropriate, being hit on the head, etc. Steewi (talk) 06:12, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

There was one where a bird crapped in the anchor's mouth while he was looking up at some trees.--KageTora (talk) 07:18, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

I saw that in a lol site. The reporter was also talking about the bird population in that particular area. --Lenticel ^(talk) 07:24, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

I see no problem with what happened. Have you not seen anybody faint before? They'll have other people around the place who can help her. There's no need for the world to stop because someone faints and some props fall down on her. The props would be pretty light and what what would you expecting them to do after rushing up to her? She'd be best left lying down to revive and I'm sure they've some first-aiders around to have a look if there's anything worse. Any waving of hands and rushing around showing concern would be due to either cosmetic, ignorance, or headless chicken reasons. Dmcq (talk) 09:28, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

I'll bet it would make more sense if it wasn't cut right after the set fell. I'll bet either A) people from offstage came rushing on to check on her, or B) Something more ridiculous happened indicating this was a parody.

If it's real, I'll bet there was someone talking into the guy's ear-piece saying something like : "Keep going, we'll take care of this.". APL (talk) 22:14, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

I enjoyed one clip of a newsreader continuing to read without a falter as a fly landed on his lip and walked into his mouth, never to be seen again. Edison (talk) 22:24, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Sue Lawley exhibited famous sang froid when a team of lesbians invaded the TV studio and interrupted her news anchoring. (They were protesting Section 28, a piece of anti-gay legislation.) She said, "We have been rather invaded by some people who we hope to be removing very shortly." Full story here. YouTube clip here -- her eyes do not even flicker as the shouted protests can be heard off camera. BrainyBabe (talk) 16:08, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Pack of dogs and cat

A long time ago, I saw a picture (not in Wikipedia) of large pack of dogs (perhaps the German Shepherds) standing in a row and a cat passing by next to them without any fear and all the dogs were watching the cat. The dogs were trained by US military and the picture was to show how obedient and restraint the dogs were who won't do anything without the order of soldiers. Can anybody point me to that picture. That picture is not in Wikipedia perhaps. Thanks - DSachan (talk) 09:04, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Go to http://images.google.com. Type in German Shepherd Cat. Hit Enter. Dismas|^(talk) 09:14, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Lol, well thanks. I googled before only with dogs and cat. But now this gives me the right picture. :) - DSachan (talk) 09:17, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

What I want to know is, how the heck did they train the cat? 87.81.230.195 (talk) 11:26, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

If the cat never had any negative experiences with dogs, or had been in a household with friendly dogs, he may have never had any reason to feel uncomfortable. --Jayron32.talk.contribs 12:13, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Some cats taunt dogs they know can't reach them. (e.g. walk along the top of a fence just out of reach.) OR I've had to patch up more scratched dog noses than cats that got bitten. Dogs that aren't trained to go after cats often try to befriend them. Cats will try to dominate and unless the dog is defense mode it will let them. Guess who ends up in the comfy spot that used to be the dog's? ;-) Feral dogs in packs are another matter, though. 76.97.245.5 (talk) 15:01, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

FYI, I believe this picture was made at New Skete. --Sean 15:35, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Push-ups

The corresponding article is lacking some information. What is a good number of push-ups, if I want to be on the top 5%? How many push-ups Marines and the like must do? What is a good complement for push-ups? If I combine push-ups with pull-ups, what muscle am I NOT working? --217.12.16.53 (talk) 09:42, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

The top 5% of what? Also, please be aware that we can't give medical advice here. AlexTiefling (talk) 10:13, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

That's no medical advice. It's a question about fitness. Top 5% of the people who do push-ups. --217.12.16.53 (talk) 11:24, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

I mean, the top 5% by what criterion? Muscle mass? Body mass? Duration of continual push-ups? And note that 'the top 5% of those who dio push-ups' is a different thing to 'the top 5% of the population'. In any case, I don't think that sufficiently precise data exist for you to be able to determine this. AlexTiefling (talk) 12:48, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Here are the charts for the Army PT test. You need to score a 270, if I remember correctly, to get into Special forces. So if you want to be in the 0.4% percentile, you'd need to score enough push-ups in 2 minutes to allow for a 270 score on the PT test. There is also, the One-Hundred Push-Ups test. What do you mean a good complement? You mean in terms of muscle groups? If so, it isn't as though your body has muscles that are complementary. If you mean another exercise that requires little material and works a decent number of different muscle groups, then squats would be it.--droptone (talk) 11:34, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Did you mean Press-ups? Edison (talk) 22:22, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

That's the same thing, n'est-ce pas? Just transatlantic variation. Algebraist 00:36, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for the answers so far. I meant a good complement in terms of what muscle I was not training. Doing Squat (exercise) is also a nice tip.--217.12.16.53 (talk) 09:11, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

PHD on a subject

I'm a student of B.sc on chemistry honours . I'm interested in Quantum mechanics . I want Ph.D on this subject after my graduation. Without M.sc can I doing Ph.D ? It is possible ? If possible how I go ahed ?Supriyochowdhury (talk) 13:54, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

You certainly need a Masters degree before you do your PhD. But you can choose programs which offer joint Masters and PhD program which lasts about 5-6 years or more depending on the subject. - DSachan (talk) 14:28, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

(EC) Have a look at PhD. You could always become rich and famous and try to get an honorary degree. There are companies that call themselves "university" that sell degrees. Unless you are interested in a rather expensive piece of wall art, stay away from those. You may encounter that - even with a Masters - finding a PhD program in quantum physics that has openings is a rather rare thing. Highly competitive doesn't even begin to describe the field. 76.97.245.5 (talk) 14:37, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Without the knowledge and skills gained through an MSc degree in an appropriate subject, you probably wouldn't be in a position to take a PhD, even if a course would take you on. My (strictly non-professional) advice to you is to be patient, do an MSc, and get a research job in the field. This is difficult, but still nothing like as difficult as applying for a PhD placement on spec. A good MSc topic for the career path you have outlined would be something like physical chemistry or quantum physics. Quantum mechanics is a pretty specialised field, even within atomic physics, so a good theoretical grounding will be essential. AlexTiefling (talk) 14:41, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

These statements do not describe the American degree system so you may want to consider studying internationally. In an American course, you would probably be expected to get a good result on a GRE subject test in your chosen field which, of course, requires study of the subject (like a B.S. degree might offer). Once accepted into a PhD program, obtaining a Master's first may, in fact, be discouraged as it may require additional classes and papers - and takes away time available for conducting the research required for the PhD. The edges of the fields of physics and chemistry overlap as much as the fields of biology and chemistry (biochemistry). Perhaps instead of pure quantum mechanics, you would be interested in some branch of theoretical chemistry such as quantum chemistry, computational chemistry, mathematical chemistry, statistical mechanics. All of these require mathematical and computer skill as well as a chemistry and physics knowledge. Rmhermen (talk) 15:28, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

As already mentioned, a masters degree is NOT a prerequisite in the American system; in fact it is most common to enter a PhD program directly from a bachelors program. If you intend to get the PhD, there is usually no need to enter a seperate master's degree program first. At some schools, they just give you a master's certificate in your second or third year of your PhD program; I have several friends who got theirs in the mail without even realizing they earned it along the way. In other cases, some schools offer what is sometimes derisively known as the "Consolation Masters Degree". It is usually awarded to PhD candidates whose doctoral research doesn't pan out; either the research leads to a dead end, and there isn't any publishable data from it, or often more likely they get "beaten" to publishing the information. I had a teacher in High School who got his master's degree in History this way; 1 month before his dissertation, someone published a book that basically usurped all his ideas. No novel research = No PhD. He got the 5-year Master's instead, and such is the way it goes. --Jayron32.talk.contribs 16:50, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

In many American universities it is perfectly possible to enter a doctoral program without obtaining a Masters degree first. This allows the student to obtain the doctorate somewhat faster and at slightly less cost. The downside is that if some problem arises toward the end of the program - typically with one's doctoral thesis - you have obtained nothing. So, let us say, it becomes necessary for you to rewrite - or even rethink and rewrite - your thesis, you'd only have the bachelor's degree, not a master's, with which to get a job while reworking the thesis. Essentially, going straight for the Ph.D. is a gamble; getting the Master's first may be construed as insurance in this context. ("A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.")

Those are the options, but I wouldn't presume to advise you as to what to do. B00P (talk) 00:22, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

In Britain, I know that some universities (if they think you show promise) are willing to accept you provided you complete relevant lecture courses from their masters or undergraduate courses whilst enrolled as a research student. I'd say that you should contact the admissions department of any university you are interested in, they are generally very helpful at explaining exactly what they require: it's not in their interest to mess you about. 163.1.176.253 (talk) 10:38, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

animal trivia

a sea creature found all over the world considered royal by blood. it's also edible. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 213.255.218.250 (talk) 15:23, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Almost definitely Squid. Royal blood is apparently 'blue' (not really) and a squid's ink is 'blue' (indigo?). 194.221.133.226 (talk) 15:36, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

My first thought was King crab. --Onorem♠Dil 15:43, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Horseshoe crab, I'd say, actually. They literally have blue blood. I remember reading that in National Geographic, I believe... --Alinnisawest,^{Dalek Empress} (extermination requests here) 15:53, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Haustellum brandaris, from which Tyrian purple was made? Adam Bishop (talk) 16:12, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

How about emperor seahorse? 65.121.141.34 (talk) 18:59, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Goats in Paris

What are the relevant ordinances on keeping goats in residential areas of Paris? Thanks. --Sean 16:36, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Without wishing to give legal advice, they seem to get away with it in the Menagerie at the Jardin des Plantes. Certes (talk) 21:20, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

News pictures aggregator

I used to go on a site that shows good quality images of news events. It gathered pictures from different agencies, Reuters, EPA, Getty news, etc. I lost the address. Anyone knows which site I'm talking about? Alternatively I'm looking for news pictures in high quality. Thank you. 190.220.104.35 (talk) 16:37, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

The Big Picture has some high quality news photos. Tomdobb (talk) 17:10, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

This is probably not exactly what you are asking for, but may be appropriate. You can find millions of Time Magazine photos through Google Image search. Just enter your search term(s) along with the term source:time as in this example [4]. --Joe^Talk_Work 01:16, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

Story Ending?

So a friend of mine gave a speech in Writing & Public Speaking class today. It was a great story, but he left it hanging intentionally (for suspense. He thinks it's funny.) My creative juices aren't flowing, so I'll give the jist of the story:

A man lives in a fictional town in a fictional city. He makes pots. He learned the craft from his father, who learned it from his father and so on. Every day he makes five pots, sells them, and uses the $ to buy food. But eventually everyone has a pot. What does he do now?

Any brilliant endings? Just curious...76.120.179.184 (talk) 18:24, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

This type of question doesn't really belong on the reference desk. Tomdobb (talk) 18:37, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh that is so disrespectful to the masters of the universe approach to re-invigorating a stagnant economy. He obviously has to persuade his clients to re-cycle their old pots and make them feel guilty and anti-social and off-green if they choose not to do so. He, of course, will give them a 5% discount off the price of their new pots in return for surendering their old pots for re-cycling BUT the cost of raw materials and green processing and disposal has unfortunately lifted the new-pots-price by 15%. Result? Everybody (plus the environment) wins. 92.21.155.155 (talk) 19:28, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Stories without an ending are not always designed to annoy you. Sometimes, including in this case I would expect, they are designed to make you think about the resolution. As 92.21.155.155 pointed out there are real world parallels here. Of course there are plenty of possible endings to the story, some nice and some not so nice. But coming up with what you think is a good ending is the point. DJ Clayworth (talk) 19:41, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

For instance, you might think about how K.C. Gillette got rich. In particular, the second paragraph under Biography. For a related subject, see also Ponzi scheme. --Anonymous, 20:50 UTC, April 7, 2009,.

Obviously, this is a parable designed to make you think about surviving at business even in a saturated market.

It's clear to me that our hero needs to convince people to replace their old pots. Perhaps by inventing a new style of pot that is better in some real or perceived way. Or perhaps by expanding his territory, if people from neighboring towns need pots.

(Alternate answer : Pot lids. Everyone in town will want one. )

Personally, it seems contrived. Three generations of pot makers in a small town and only just now the market saturated? APL (talk) 20:57, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

1. At 3am he takes a baseball bat and goes visiting the kitchens of people of the village. Mysteriously, pots around the village are found to have spontaneously disintigrated during the night. The demand for replacement pots goes through the roof.
2. He continues to make the same pots as before but puts up a large sign saying "Our pots are now carbon-neutral!" - everyone is guilt-tripped into buying new pots.
3. He continues to make the same pots but puts a little purple dot on each one. Then he merely has to find a local movie star to say that pots without purple dots are un-cool and everyone will switch.
4. Pots don't last forever. They get broken. Since pots are presumably a necessity and he has a monopoly on the market, as his sales volume goes down, he may simply increase his prices proportionately. If he sells only 1% of the pots he once did - but makes 100x the profit on each one (noting that his manufacturing costs have now decreased) - what does he care?
5. He can invest in technology to adapt the product to make it better. Consumers will see the advantage of the new pot design and replace their old ones in great numbers.
6. He can do research to find new uses for pots, thereby increasing the number each person will need.
7. If you put a certain part of the male anatomy into one of these new purple pots, it will get bigger!(These claims have not been tested by the FDA and make no claim to diagnose, treat or cure any medical condition)
8. Instead of selling pots, he leverages his brand image to make pot-themed novelty items - hats with pots embroidered on the front - "Potty" action figures for the kids.
9. Showing the amazing sales figures from previous years, he stops making pots and instead sell franchises.

SteveBaker (talk) 21:41, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

@ SteveBaker. I think that is the entire content of my MBA marketing courses summed up in 9 points. Nice work, that! // BL \\ (talk) 22:09, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

This is an old story. He invents tins and can openers and cardboard boxes with plastic bags inside which people buy and throw away instead of storing stuff in pots and we get the modern world. Then he invents recycling and being green. Oh and saving is anti-social it'll stop the economy growing. Dmcq (talk) 22:59, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

(for ceramic pots only) He makes a new kind of pot that is quite suitable for Molotov cocktails and sells them to local extortionists. Coincitentally, he makes a new fireproof building material, since there seems to be a sudden demand for it. -Arch dude (talk) 23:15, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Being a clever lad, he opens both doors, and after the Tiger eats the Lady, our hero marries the princess. B00P (talk) 00:31, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

There's the "fashion" angle, where you change the line of pots every year and advertise to convince everyone they need the latest fashion and that their current pots are "so last year".

Then there's planned obsolescence, where you design the pots to fail, so you can then sell replacements. The most blatant case of planned obsolescence is toothbrushes designed to have half the bristles dissolve after a few months, ostensibly as a reminder to replace "that old, germy toothbrush". Of course, they don't mention that a normal toothbrush could last for decades, and you could just dip it in bleach periodically when you get paranoid about germs.

You could also make the pots either entirely disposable or have a disposable liner, so people can "avoid the hassle of cleaning them". StuRat (talk) 05:25, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

You get the local press to run a story on how the government is going to require a high tax to be paid on all old pots, or make it patriotic to melt your current pot so that you can buy American. 65.121.141.34 (talk) 13:49, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

The question didn't say whether it was in Iraq or not... --PalaceGuard008 (Talk) 15:58, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

He sells pots to neighboring villages as well. And be may diversify into teapots, roof tiles, and mugs. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 20:59, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

The problem is that he has a finite demand for a product that generally doesnt need to be replaced. If this artisan is only making enough money from selling the pots for food, he is going to be in big trouble once the demand runs out. So he needs to either expand his production to another town/group of people or diversify. Maybe people also need other pieces of furniture that match the pot, like cups or bowls or plates. If he has a surplus of pots, he can start selling these products as a set. He can start selling "limited edition" pots as status symbols. Pots don't really lend themselves to planned obsolescence or any sort of loss leader business model unless they are very, very poorly constructed and who wants a pot that falls apart in a year? Livewireo (talk) 21:33, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Well, if he has the monopoly, as it seems from the wording of the OP's question, it would make perfect sense to make pots that fall apart after a year or so, so they need to be replaced or repaired. He would have an endless supply of customers, then.--KageTora (talk) 01:38, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

And, with my suggestion of disposable pots or liners (the ultimate planned obsolescence, a product which only works once) this can be sold as being an advantage. The trick is to rip people off without them knowing you are doing it, the environment be damned. StuRat (talk) 14:49, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Eventually, people will catch on to the price and environmental problems of single-use pots. Then it's time to make a big deal about your brand-new "Reusable Pots". These can be more expensive and lower quality than the original pots because they will still seem superior compared to the disposable ones that people are currently using. APL (talk) 23:33, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Another approach to planned obsolescence, more in line with the toothbrush example, would be to claim that some type of toxic chemical builds up on pots after a while, and use that to justify pots made to fail after a certain number of uses. You could also use that justification to lease pots instead of selling them, so those customers don't have to deal with those "nasty old, polluted pots". StuRat (talk) 14:54, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

...whilst recycling the old pots by selling them to people in another town or village....I think we are developing a working business model here.--KageTora (talk) 20:15, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

...and selling the pots that are now being given up by the people in that other town as "antiques" which you can now sell to the elite clients in your own village. SteveBaker (talk) 11:48, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

The obvious answer involves marijuana. (Pot? Eh? Get it? Never mind...) -- Guroadrunner (talk) 05:20, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

seth bullock's family history

my dad and i are trying to find out if it might be possible that we are related to the famous seth bullock. what i can't seem to find out is any information about his father or his father's family. i have relatives, henry bullock born 9-29-1825 who had a child leonard bullock born 1-13-1852. according to my records he was born in Elba, N.Y. genesee co. and i though i read where some of seth bullock's family came from new york. can you help me in my search. it would mean a lot to my dad and i would love to find some information for him. thank you for taking the time to read this, and help me with any information or suggestions —Preceding unsigned comment added by Bullockrelative? (talk • contribs) 23:36, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

The Seth Bullock article says his father was British, his mother was Scottish, and he came from Canada, so it's unlikely. Who then was a gentleman? (talk) 01:55, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

April 8

protectionism

How deep are the roots of protectionism responsible for the currunt economic meltdown . Is it really responsible? What are the other factors. Anyone. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.122.36.6 (talk) 09:40, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Wikipedia's reference desk is not really the place to start an open discussion. We do have articles on Protectionism and on the Late 2000s recession and on the Financial crisis of 2007–2009. You are free to form your own opinions based on your reading of those articles. --Jayron32.talk.contribs 12:29, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

It is worth noting that the period since the early 1980s has seen unprecedented globalisation and the removal of protectionist policies. There has also been many calls since the start of the crisis for nations not to introduce new protectionist measures (clearly, these are being made because some countries have been tempted to). If you were to claim that protectionism was responsible for the current slump, you would have to explain why it caused a crisis now, rather than ten or twenty years ago, when globalisation had not moved so far. Warofdreams talk 13:41, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

I haven't heard anyone argue that protectionism got the world into this economic downturn. Mostly the fears seem the other way around: that the economic slump will cause protectionism. That indeed seems to be the case, and is of great concern to people that believe free markets are a crucial element of advancing the human condition. TastyCakes (talk) 14:37, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

The concept that unrestricted free markets and free trade will lead to global economic growth has certainly been widely discredited by the current crisis, which could lead to what critics call protectionism and advocates are more likely to call fair trade (requiring trade partners to have comparable environmental, health, and safety standards, for example). StuRat (talk) 16:00, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Although it would take some gall to present the US government's attempt to exclude foreign steel in stimulus projects or European banks' beggar thy neighbour policies as "fair trade". I'd also say the dramatic improvements in the lives of millions of Chinese and Indians suggest that, "fair or not", global free trade has been of net benefit to the world. TastyCakes (talk) 16:15, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

There certainly are those who benefit from free trade, at least initially. The wealthy in every country seem to benefit, for example. For the poor and middle class it's not so clear. In the West those groups are likely to lose their jobs or have lower wages as a result of competing with third-world wages, health, safety, and environmental standards. This is somewhat offset by lower prices for imported goods, but not for long.

The West also loses it's industrial capacity, which has both negative economic and defense implications. In China and India there are more factory jobs, but they often pay the bare minimum that a person needs to survive. So, like in Dickens' London, conditions are often horrid. I saw a description of a town in India where leather is tanned. The entire town smells of rotting animal skins, chemicals pollute the water, and clumps of animal fur blow through the streets. It might be worth it if they were getting rich, but only the factory owners are. In the case of China, this economic growth also props up a deeply corrupt and anti-democratic government. And products and services from China and India are often inferior. A wrench from China that breaks when you use it or a call center operator from India who can't understand you or do anything more than read "answers" from a book aren't really very helpful, even when the lower cost is factored in.

But the most troubling aspects are what happens in the long run. In the case of earlier "third-world nations", like Japan, which competed with the West, the size of the population was such that bringing Japan up to the economic level of North America and Europe only required small economic dislocations here. However, the populations of India and China are such that achieving economic equality via free trade will be more about bringing the economies of the West down the their level than bringing them up to ours. StuRat (talk) 14:34, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

If you really believe free trade only benefits the wealthy, and that it is "not clear" for the lower and middle classes, please watch this video and share your thoughts on it with me. Also note that poverty rates in China have dropped from over 60% to under 10% since economic reforms were started. Similarly, the rate in India has dropped from 60% in 1981 to 42% today. Liberal economic reforms can be shown to have been beneficial throughout the world in every size and type of economy, from South Korea to Singapore and Hong Kong to ex-soviet states. And yes, now in China and India as well. If your argument is that China and India shouldn't be allowed to compete with the rest of the world because their economies could become so big they'd swamp our own, then I think you're starting to demonstrate the thin line between protectionism and "fair trade" quite well. TastyCakes (talk) 14:56, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

You said "beneficial throughout the world in every size and type of economy" but then only listed developing nations in Asia. Can Africa be shown to have benefited ? Can the poor and middle class of Western Europe and North America ? As for poverty levels in China and India, there's a problem in measuring poverty strictly by income level. Subsistence farmers can, and have, existed for centuries with little or no cash. They tend to have a barter economy, not a cash economy. This makes determining the rate of poverty of such people quite difficult. So, a good portion of those former 60% "living in poverty" in China may have been doing just fine. Of course, once they leave the farms and move to factories in the cities, then they do need cash. I've seen lots of documentaries on the life of the average Chinese factory worker, and it doesn't look like much of a life. StuRat (talk) 23:33, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Ok, how about Ireland, Spain, Ukraine and other former soviet satellites? Indeed, that Western Europe has seen the growth it has since the 70s as mature economies is somewhat surprising. I would also sheepishly add Canada to the list, NAFTA and other trade has been of measurable success on a holistic basis. Africa remains crippled by corruption, misgovernment, disease and so forth. To suggest "free trade" is alive on the continent seems a reach to me, as does the expectation that free trade alone can solve all of society's problems. But when the continent's emergence does finally happen (as we all presumably hope it will, sooner rather than later) it will be powered by engaging the outside world in trade, and using the funds generated to educate their population and keep it healthy, not by "riding it out" on the developed world's charity.

I'm pretty surprised you went the "living as a Chinese peasant wasn't so bad" tack. Perhaps you could peruse Wikipedia's list of famines. By my count of the list, in the 20th century alone 29 million Chinese peasants died in famines, that we know of. It seems almost obscene to me that someone would claim that they were better off quietly starving in the countryside than they are working in factories. Ya, the work and the pay suck. But it beats the hell out of being dead, and at least they have the opportunity to provide stability for themselves and their families and the promise of a better life. All of which explains why hundreds of millions of Chinese have moved from rural areas to cities, the motivation behind which was a little unclear under your tele-tubby-esque depiction of their barter-system life in the country.

I'm sorry, I don't mean to be flippant or start a big argument here. But I don't agree at all with what you've said on this topic. I feel that if the world doesn't manage to better equalize the living conditions of its people globally, humanity's long term prospects are dim. The only realistic way to raise hundreds of millions of people in the third world out of poverty seems to me to be allowing them access to a fair marketplace, to our marketplace. You try to justify excluding them from it by saying they have to work in terrible conditions, when it seems to me your real fear is that they will work so cheaply as to endanger Western jobs. You seem to be trying to disguise protectionism as altruism. TastyCakes (talk) 06:27, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Indeed; I will say that on the balance free trade has been a net benefit. The question, largely unanswerable, is whether the "bottom" of this current crisis would not be better than the "top" of what our world would look like without a general commitment to market economics. Certainly, things need tweaking, but there are babies that need not be thrown out with any bathwater here... --Jayron32.talk.contribs 21:56, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, and the free trade movement describes that "tweaking" as insisting on equal pay, health, safety, and environmental standards. StuRat (talk) 14:42, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Well, if anyone had been saying that free trade will prevent bank fraud and housing bubbles, they're discredited; otherwise I gotta say, huh? —Tamfang (talk) 03:39, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

My thoughts exactly :) TastyCakes (talk) 04:51, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

It's more "free markets" (as in a lack of government regulations) which has caused the current economic crisis. StuRat (talk) 14:45, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Because of course regulation had nothing to do with, say, the unhealthy concentration of banking — pull the other one. The Democrats do seem to have it somewhat right that Republican administrations are lax in their oversight of government-created pseudo-private entities (subsidized deposit insurance in the Eighties, Fannie & Freddie recently) but that's hardly "free markets". —Tamfang (talk) 07:14, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Some of the problems, like when Bernie Madoff made off with $65 billion, are purely due to lack of oversight, not government-created pseudo-private entities. StuRat (talk) 14:47, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Royal Mail's Red Rubber Bands

I ran across this article on the BBC news site. "The Royal Mail is under pressure to stop its posties from dropping red rubber bands onto the ground." Not being from the UK, I'm slightly baffled. Can anyone explain the Royal Mail/red rubber band thing to me? Why do they seem to be a cultural artifact in Britain - I'm not aware of the rubber band usage of my local post office, and I seriously doubt there would ever be a "on a lighter note" news piece about them. -- 128.104.112.117 (talk) 14:23, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

They appear to be widely used by postmen, who join together bundles of letters with them (e.g. all letters for this road), and who then discard the bands once they've delivered the letters. I can attest to having picked up many of the things, fwiw. --Tagishsimon (talk) 14:26, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Indeed. Royal Mail uses over 800 million rubber bands per year. Gandalf61 (talk) 15:07, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Don't normal anti-littering laws apply to postal carriers ? StuRat (talk) 15:54, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

And why don't they take them back to base to re-use them the next day? BrainyBabe (talk) 16:15, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

I recommend Stu & BB read the link in Gandalf61's post, which somewhat answers their questions. --Tagishsimon (talk) 16:20, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

As a former letter carrier (summer job when I was in college) myself, I can confirm that rubber bands are also used in the U.S. as described by Tagishsimon. I put the "used" bands in a pocket of the leather satchel and brought them back to the post office, though. Deor (talk) 17:16, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

It has become such a ubiquitous sight that the BBC website even has a page for '10 things you can do with all those discarded Royal Mail rubber bands'. Tongue in cheek, of course.--KageTora (talk) 19:33, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

which is, in fact, the same story the OP linked to...--Tagishsimon (talk) 19:38, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Whoops! Same link as the OP's!--KageTora (talk) 19:37, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Nah, you linked to BBC1; they linked to BBC2 - totally different. If anyone has the ITV link, maybe we can get Benny Hill's take on this... Matt Deres (talk) 19:52, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

My mail comes wrapped in a rubber band probably once a month or so. I'm not in the UK, I'm in the US. Basically it's on days that have a sale flyer wrapped around a lot of smaller pieces. And this is when I go out to meet the mail lady. If it's in our mailbox, there generally isn't a rubber band. Dismas|^(talk) 02:39, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Similarly, here in Canada I sometimes get mail with a rubber band around it. Presumably it happens when my mail is the last thing in the rubber-banded bundle. And presumably British postal workers were told not to do that, so they started discarding the rubber bands instead. --Anonymous, 04:10 UTC, April 9, 2009.

My parents' mail (in the UK) sometimes has a band round it, but mine never does. They live on a very short "spur" of three houses, so I guess they get the band when there's no post for either of the others. I live on the middle of an urban street, so will never be the last in the bundle. 93.97.184.230 (talk) 07:56, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Ah, but so do I! So there! :-) --Anon, 08:37 UTC, April 9.

I think it would be a good idea to get the posties to put the rubber band through with the last bunch of letters, as it saves us picking them all up. Having said that, the last house in the street would probably end up with loads of rubber bands!--KageTora (talk) 20:05, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

I've been helping out with a friend's paper shop recently, delivering papers in the morning for 15 minutes on my mountain bike (starts the day off nicely before spending the rest of it sitting down typing like a maniac!), and it's around the same time that the Postmen are delivering, and I find one of these things on EVERY street, proving Tagishsimon's statement that they are bundled one set for each road.--KageTora (talk) 04:43, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Of course, all of this background doesn't necessarily prove it's the posties who are dropping the rubber bands. It could be the recipients of the mail, who, in their rush to open their latest batch of unexpected bills, drop the items themselves. Or it could be some of both. -- JackofOz (talk) 17:27, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

No, Jack. In the UK, most letters are delivered directly through the front door (a wonderful source of pleasure for kids on Guy Fawkes night!). We don't have outside postboxes like in the US (I don't know about Oz). If they dropped them, they would be in the hallway, not in the street.--KageTora (talk) 20:09, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, in an episode of MI-5, a "safe house" was built with a large mail slot in the front door, suitable for sliding a bomb through. That, combined with the inability of anyone inside to leave without a working key-card, made the house into a death trap. StuRat (talk) 20:35, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh, yes, in the UK there are plenty of instances where someone who (presumably) doesn't like the occupant of the house has poured petrol through the letter-box (as we call it, even though it's not a box, just a direct opening into the house) then threw a match in. It's really a good idea to have outside postboxes, like everywhere else seems to have!--KageTora (talk) 22:12, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

What, no outside post boxes at all? (Yes, they're the norm in Oz, too). -- JackofOz (talk) 20:44, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

I think we should collect the rubber bands they drop and shoot them at them the next time they drop one. This suggestion has been approved by the Ministry of Fitting Punishments. StuRat (talk) 20:38, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

My dad is a mailman and he always hangs onto his rubber bands, but when he has holidays and someone else covers his walk he usually comes back the next week to find a bunch of rubber bands scattered around the pick-up boxes along his route. He says he's definitely in the minority about not dropping them. (Then again, it was a number of years ago he told me this, so I don't know if the phenomenon is changing as "greenness" is becoming more mainstream.) This also says something about Jack's suggestion that it might be the customers dropping the rubber bands. The pick-up boxes (this is the system in Canada anyway - I don't know if it holds true for other countries; and I should point out that I made up the name "pick-up boxes;" I don't know what they're actually called) are where the mailmen pick up the mail every so often along the route so they don't have to carry it all at once. My dad says this is where the rubber bands accumulate and only the mailmen use these boxes, not the customers, so the posties are definitely the culprits. Needless to say, this is all completely OR. Cherry Red Toenails (talk) 22:13, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

'Institute' Definition

Hello I am looking to find out where the first 3-4 sentences for the definition of 'Institute' came from? I am asking because I would like to cite that source or Wikipedia if it is an original Wikipedia definition? Thanks Ted Auch —Preceding unsigned comment added by Wauch (talk • contribs) 16:33, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

I think you'd probably be better off using a decent dictionary for this kind of thing. I'd also add that using dictionary definitions in a paper or speech never strikes me as particularly clever, and is certainly overdone. TastyCakes (talk) 16:38, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

The sentence will almost certainly have multiple authors. See Wikipedia:Citing Wikipedia for the preferred method of doing this. DJ Clayworth (talk) 16:54, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Why is land advertised as "x acres, more or less"?

Why is it when you see land for sale the ad says x number of acres m/l which I presume means more or less?64.196.11.97 (talk) 20:03, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

It provides the surveryor with a margin of error if the land is difficult to measure up to a certain whole number. For example, the land may be 2.93 acres, or 3.12 acres but they will round it to 3 for an easier listing and easier pricing. Livewireo (talk) 21:00, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Some very old parcels of land in the US are described in land records (deeds and titles) by metes and bounds rather than by reference to geodetic survey markers. I have a farm in Tennessee that is "188 acres, more or less." Its western boundary is "bounded by the center of Kennedy creek, subject the meander" The farm "meets the farm to the east along the top of the ridge" -Arch dude (talk) 22:37, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Read 'Mr Blandings builds his dream house' for the effect of this phrase.--79.71.217.59 (talk) 06:09, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

In the Blandings movie, based on a book, based on a factual magazine article, the country folks would always cheat the city slickers and the "more or less" would always be "less." Some country properties have never had a proper survey all the way around, with old metes and bounds deed going back to the 1700, with corners being stakes, rock piles or stumps long gone, or referenced to long-gone barns, or creeks which meandered, with bearings based on magnetic compass readings which have varied by 8 degrees since the surveyor read his compass in 1862. The property may have gained or lost parcels by purchase and sale, with perhaps only the dividing line surveyed. It can cost $6000 or more to have a modern surveyor run a survey all the way around, and neighboring property owners may disagree with the survey, resulting in potential litigation. Edison (talk) 19:21, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

In the US, such signs are usually written as "+/- 3 acres" or "±3 acres". I'm always tempted to call the agent and say I'm interested in the negative area. -- Coneslayer (talk) 14:49, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

street names of detroit

what is the stories behind these Streets of Detroit Michigan and the street names are Laura,Rosa Parks Boulevard, Phillip,Carol,Raymond,and Bewick? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.112.134.30 (talk) 20:12, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Here's a good place to start http://www.geocities.com/histmich/streetname.html ny156uk (talk) 20:28, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

I would have hoped the origin of Rosa Parks Boulevard was easy enough. DJ Clayworth (talk) 20:39, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Note that Detroit also has Rosa Parks parks. So, if someone leaves their car at those places, then he "parks at Parks parks". StuRat (talk) 13:55, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Unless he's one of 8% of all Koreans - in which case, perhaps: "Park parks at Parks park". But of course that could be one of any number of Parks. If we're specifically talking about the guy from Park, Texas - then we should probably be completely clear and say that "Park's Park parks at Parks park". SteveBaker (talk) 13:57, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Forbidden versions of the German coat of arms?

I know that the public use of some Nazi Germany insignia, in order to commemorate or propagate the Nazi ideology instead of simply mentioning it in historical context, is a criminal offence in Germany. To what extent does this extend to the German coat of arms? Nazi Germany used a highly stylised version of the traditional Reichsadler, which has since been reverted to the traditional one. Nazi Germany had two versions of the eagle, one symbolising the Nazi party, the other symbolising the country, distinguished simply by the way the eagle's head faced. Leaving out the obvious use of the swastika, is either or both of these stylised versions of the Reichsadler forbidden on its own? JIP | Talk 20:43, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

There may be versions that are prohibited, but as you can see [5], [6] [7] the "Bundesadler" is still in use. Our German page says that they sometimes just chiseled out the swastika from Nazi eagles on buildings. de:Reichsadler 76.97.245.5 (talk) 07:37, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

April 9

19th Century Scottish Towns

For the purpose of family tree research could the towns of Armadale and Bathgate be considered the same? What information I've found on your site is that Bathgate appears first in the 12th century but there is no elaboration on Armadale. They are approximately 2.5 miles apart now but in the 1800's I wonder if that meant anything.

Thank you, --ScotsBloodline (talk) 00:15, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Simple answer: no. Longer answer: yes :)

Bathgate can, as you say, be traced back to the C12 or earlier. Armadale as a town dates back only as far as 1785, according to http://www.armadale.org.uk/localhistory.htm ("Armadale, from the building of the first house in the year 1795 up to the year 1850, had grown very slowly"). 2.5 miles is a considerable distance - moreso in the 1800s. I'm sure that is is unlikely in the extreme that anyone from Armadale would consider themselves to live in Bathgate. There is a big however, however. And that is that Armadale was in the parish of Bathgate, and so it would be accurate to say of an Armadale dweller, that they lived in the parish of Bathgate. And so far as genealogical records are concerned, I suspect that much of what is available will be parish records which may or may not draw a distinction between the two places. --Tagishsimon (talk) 00:32, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Just a word of caution, though I apologise if this turns out to be a bit of a red-herring. There is another Armadale I know of in Scotland (having visited last year), and that is on the Isle of Skye, a short ferry crossing from Mallaig, neither of which are anywhere within 100 miles of Bathgate, West Lothian. 92.20.13.27 (talk) 17:55, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Thai Wedding

If this constitutes a request for legal advice please feel free to ignore/delete. My question is simply this: If a man marries a thai woman in thailand is that considered a legal marriage in the western world, specifically UK?

cheers —Preceding unsigned comment added by 213.249.138.179 (talk) 07:34, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

This site (http://www.th4u.com/thai_marriage.htm) has some info. It suggests that yes it would be considered legal but that the UK would require 'evidence' by way of an Affidavit or Statutory form. 194.221.133.226 (talk) 07:58, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't know about Thailand, but I married a Japanese woman in Japan. The process was that I had to inform the UK Embassy that we were marrying, we would have an interview, then they would leave a notice up for 21 days, after which I had to go back to the Embassy to tell them that I still intended to marry. After that I was free to marry. You do not need to register the marriage unless she is coming to live in the UK, for which she will need a spousal visa. This is for Japan, but you are asking about the UK 'law' on this, so I think this is relevant. Good luck!--KageTora (talk) 20:00, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

White out

I have a note from someone where the bottom part is whited out. I would like to see what is whited out, but the person signed her name on top of it. Is there a way to see what is under the white out without damaging the note? Anonymous--12:10, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

If you turn the paper around and hold it up to the light it's often possible to see what is underneath what we in the UK know as Tippex. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 12:24, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

By the way, a bit of wiki-surfing just informed me that the original correction fluid was called Liquid Paper and was invented by the mother of Mike Nesmith out of the Monkees. Extraordinary. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 12:31, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

I already tried holding it up to the light, but I'll try again with a better light. And I never knew that about Mike Nesmith's mother. Any other responses are welcome! Thanks, Genius101^Guestbook 19:43, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

One time, I used a simple eraser and it took it off cleanly. Do it lightly, though. --Reticuli88 (talk) 19:49, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Can you take a penknife to it and try to scrape it off? Who then was a gentleman? (talk) 01:21, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

I'd rather not, as it would damage the note, but I'd be willing to give it a try! Thanks, Genius101^Guestbook 14:42, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Anti-trust

In the US, does the government have any way to legally prevent a company from getting so big that it's collapse would cause a recession or depression ? Certainly if they engage in anticompetitive practices an antitrust suit can be filed. And media companies can be limited by arguing that having control over too many outlets (newspapers, radio, and TV) infringes on freedom of the press and freedom of speech. However, if a company has no media outlets and doesn't do anything bad, can it be broken up just because it's "too big" ? StuRat (talk) 15:12, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

The US has the Federal Trade Commission (http://www.ftc.gov/bc/index.shtml). I would expect that went considering mergers/acquisitions they consider whether or not it is in the interests of the public for the companies to merger (or be acquired), but can't find definitive confirmation either way. ny156uk (talk) 15:56, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Two troubles: 1) a company doesn't have to be very big to be "too big to fail". Neither AIG nor Chrysler account for very much of their respective markets. In the banking sector the failure of even a small bank can be catastrophic. 2) "Too big to fail" is often a matter of politics. In my humble opinion the US economy would certainly survive the loss of either GM or Chrysler, just as Britain survived the loss of it's car industry; but it would cause a lot of pain to a lot of voters, and all concentrated in one area. DJ Clayworth (talk) 17:20, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Answering the original question, I don't think so. Antitrust law is the only tool that comes to mind, and as you note, the company has to engage in illegal anticompetitive practices in order to merit drastic remedies like breakups. There is no US law putting a ceiling on the size or power of a corporation. Tempshill (talk) 18:25, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

It sounds like one of those things that would require an act of congress; Rare enough to not have an official regulatory policy in place.NByz (talk) 02:56, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

US antitrust law cannot prevent the organic growth of a company (even if that company eventually grows to monopolize its market). Antitrust law can only prevent anticompetitive behavior (which might lead to growth) and certain very large mergers (see Merger guidelines). Calliopejen1 (talk) 15:48, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Regulation tends to discourage startups, and thus favors bigness. —Tamfang (talk) 07:35, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Longest red light

In Marin County, California there is a narrow tunnel about a half mile long. It is so narrow that it has a single lane to service both directions. There is a traffic light at each end of the tunnel, which stays red for about five minutes to allow traffic from the opposite end to go through. For a minute or two both ends have a red light to allow traffic already in the tunnel time to exit. Are there other places in the United States with a similar set-up? Where is the longest red light located? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.229.90.166 (talk) 17:24, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Drawbridges will have very long red lights when the bridge is up, but that's not normally a regular, predictable thing. APL (talk) 18:19, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

It's really fun when that tunnel is closed for repairs (like it was after the Loma Prieta quake); people instead get to drive on the edge of a cliff with nothing but optimism between them and the breakers far below. On the other hand, they don't have to wait for the red light to change. --jpgordon^∇∆∇∆ 19:51, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

See Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel in Alaska. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 01:41, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

The Easter/Christmas road toll and the media

I don't want this to sound like a rant, but I have to give some background first. In Australia, Christmas and Easter come with various traditions. One of them is how the road toll is reported in the media. Leading up to the events, we're told that all the police are going to be on duty, and speeding/drink-driving/drug-driving/mobile phone-using/seat belt non-wearing drivers "will be caught". We're assured it's not about revenue, but the public are being given an incentive to drive safely, and arrive alive. That's all good. Then the deaths inevitably start happening. That's bad. What we get given, though, is a state-by-state breakdown, which is updated frequently. Newspapers have maps, with the state figures shown prominently. We're told things like "<state> has had its worst Easter road toll on record, with 17 deaths; <other state> has had only 3". Maybe the fact that we have only 6 states and 2 territories lends itself to this type of comparison; I doubt it would happen if we had 50 states, like the USA. But apart from that, I've always wondered who is interested in this type of information. Why would a person living in Tasmania (say) have any real interest in knowing the number of people killed in Western Australia (say)? At any other time of the year, reporting of road deaths is generally confined to the state concerned, not broadcast throughout the nation, unless it's something particularly horrific or record-breaking. (I've always regarded this daily (or even hourly, on radio) reporting of the state-by-state tallies and the national total as extremely ghoulish, but I seem to be a lone voice on that score because it's become such a hallowed tradition that I doubt any opinion I may express on the matter would ever have any effect.)

The other part of the reporting is that this year's figures are always compared with last year's figures, state-by-state and nationally. I've always wondered what makes whatever last year's figures were some sort of benchmark. What if last year happened to be particularly high; or particularly low? What does that comparison tell anyone? I'd have thought a better comparison would be with an average over, say, the past 10 years. But why compare this year's figures with any previous years at all? When fewer people die this year compared to last year, newsreaders have a happy face; and when more die this year than last year, they put on a sad face. They seem to treat this subject as some sort of contest.

So, now that I've veered too close to a rant, what I want to know is: Do other countries have similar media practices? -- JackofOz (talk) 18:45, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

In Ireland the road toll (does everywhere use that phrase?, its kind of odd) tends to be mentioned on the news after bank holiday weekends. I suppose its because the number of deaths are higher than at other times of year; with more people on the roads, making longer journeys. The statistics may be more readily available from the police, in an effort to raise people's awareness.Stanstaple (talk) 19:49, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

I've never heard the term "road troll" in the US, but I like it. "Armed bandits" also seems appropo (and if the reason for giving tickets isn't for "revenue enhancement", we can assume they will give all that money to charity rather than keeping it, right ?). As for the reason for state-by-state and year-to-year comparisons, it's because people just don't know if a number is high or low without some context. A dozen people died ? Is that normal or not ? (How would they know what normal is, without a basis for comparison ?) StuRat (talk) 20:25, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

But that's why I suggest a 10-year average, not just last year's figure. What's to say last year's was normal? It may have been spectacularly low, or it may have been horrifically high. Just comparing this year's figure with last year's figure tells you nothing except whether this year is higher or lower than last year. You still don't know whether it's anywhere near "normal" or not. -- JackofOz (talk) 20:35, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Is the complaint that reporters and mass media news organizations are stupid and/or that they have the memory of a sand flea? Agreed. Tempshill (talk) 22:11, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

I guess there was a complaint implicit in my question, although that wasn't its main point. But since you've asked, I don't think it's down to either short-term memory or stupidity per se. It's more like total and absolute subservience to a media cliché (which is a form of stupidity): "We always present this information this way, we always have, and we always will, because ... we always have. We're not going to spend a single second asking ourselves whether it's useful or not, whether anyone actually wants this information, or whether there's a better way." -- JackofOz (talk) 02:28, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

I'll note in passing that the French phrase à propos (meaning 'on that subject'; anglicized as apropos) is not related to appropriate. —Tamfang (talk) 07:56, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

In the UK we have the national road deaths figures that come out and a big thing is made of them. I've never seen this sort of "this <festive> period we saw X deaths, compared to last year where we had Y deaths" but certainly the UK media is very interested by road-death statistics (and i'd have to say quite rightly - whilst under 3000 (2008 saw 2,943 http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/jun/27/transport1) is impressive obviously the less the better. Comparing this year vs last-year is pretty common-place in every sort of media reporting and it's definitely questionable statistics-wise, but then they often use it to be able to produce a 'good' or 'bad' story - ultimately the long-term trend is less interesting (news wise) if it is only showing a 0.5% drop per annum. ny156uk (talk) 22:11, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

It's definitely questionable statistics to compare the raw death figures for the Northern Territory (which has 221,000 people) with those of New South Wales (which has 6.1 million people). -- JackofOz (talk) 02:34, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Somewhat off topic (sue me): what I object to in the British media is the way they instantly jump on a single death on the railways, demand an inquiry and the spending of millions of pounds on new safety features, insist that it shows the railways are not safe, all the while not seeming to care so much about looking at the root causes of deaths on the roads. There is a real kind of doublethink at work here. The media seems to think that deaths on the railways are somehow more serious, outrageous and even preventable, because of the perception that rail passengers are trusting their safety to some authority. The fact that road users are doing exactly the same thing doesn't seem to occur to them. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 10:45, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

If you were particularly interested in assuming good faith among the media (not that you should, but it would likely be good exercise, like biking up a mountain... on two flat tires... with a large elephant on your back), you could say that they hope that the comparison between areas will provide a sense of competition. "Those beery swine in Tasmania had only three kills last year; no way we're going to exceed that amount! Come on guys, let's bear down!" Um, maybe. Matt Deres (talk) 13:52, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Forgive me for asking, Jack, but do folks in Australia celebrate Easter by getting liquored up? In my neck of the woods, Christmas parties where the booze flows freely are common, and the accident rate does go up on the roads as a result. Easter celebrations, however, tend to focus more on the religious aspects of the holiday, or on non-alcoholic stuff like Easter-egg hunts and lamb dinners. (Or are you referring to the "spring break" phenomenon among college kids?) Deor (talk) 15:08, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Since it's Easter, I forgive you, Deor. :) To many, it's a time of reflection, church attendance, and taking part in public professions of their faith. To many others, it's just time off, time to catch up with friends and family, go to sporting functions, go for a mini-holiday, etc. But to many others, it's just an excuse for getting pissed for 4 days straight (that's drunk pissed, not angry pissed). That's OK as long as they don't drive while in that state, but some do [8]. As you can see from the link, the police trot out another favourite cliché: "Drivers are just not getting the message", which is targetted at the tiny minority who drink drive, but is said to everyone, and comes across as if the actions of the tiny minority somehow make the entire community seem like a pack of irresponsible idiots who have to be lectured like recalcitrant school children. Re drinking generally: it would be quite unusual for any sort of social occasion in Australia, at any time of the year, not to be accompanied by more alcohol than anyone can drink. That doesn't mean that it has to be all drunk just because it's there, and most people know their limit, act responsibly, and there's no drama. Some others, however .... -- JackofOz (talk) 20:13, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Ah, so it's a four-day holiday. For most people in the U.S. there are no extra days off work; it's just a normal weekend, except for the religious stuff (and parading down Fifth Avenue in daytime formal attire if you're Fred Astaire). Deor (talk) 21:57, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh, yes. Good Friday and Easter Monday have been public holidays for many years in Australia. Good Friday used to be a day when newspapers were not published, sporting events did not happen, betting agencies were not open, cinemas and galleries/museums were closed - but most of these have now changed. -- JackofOz (talk) 00:10, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

In the U.S. it's the Fourth of July death toll that seems to get the most news coverage, with Christmas/New Year's Eve in second place (probably because the latter carnage is spread out over much of the month of December instead of being nicely confined to a period of a few days). Deor (talk) 13:59, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Consider it from the writer's point of view. If you've just got a document from the government that lists how many deaths occur in each state, you can fill up more column space if you mention them all. Better yet, you can just take last year's article and update the numbers. APL (talk) 00:16, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

(A little off topic, sorry) Here in the UK, the BBC does seem to have a particular obsession with the number of deaths in any incident. Shortly after the recent earthquake, the first thing the studio asked their roving reporter was something like: "can you confirm the death toll is 57?" Seems that no matter the incident, the numbers make the news, and comparing them to another similar incident (or last year) gives people a way to judge how "lucky" they have been to avoid death and destruction. Astronaut (talk) 02:49, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

In Canada we get death counts like this for Christmas/New Years, Canada Day, and especially Victoria Day weekend, where it is customary both to drive long distances (to cottages or campsites) and to drink extremely large amounts of beer, and inevitably many people do both and end up killing themselves and others on the highway. Adam Bishop (talk) 17:07, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

April 10

What's the background music in this video (and where can I get it?) ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYSXY3hWHJk --Wikinv (talk) 06:48, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

banking and finance.

wealth maximization a function of share price maximization.... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 41.219.251.117 (talk) 09:26, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

So?86.197.21.17 (talk) 09:58, 10 April 2009 (UTC)DT

What exactly is your question? SteveBaker (talk) 11:41, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm going to take the Q to be "Is wealth maximization simply a function of share price maximization in all of your stocks ?". In that case, the answer is no. Dividends matter, as do tax implications. So, a stock which pays high dividends and is tax-free may very well be better for wealth maximization than one with a higher growth rate in the share price. StuRat (talk) 14:57, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Benylin in France

Shall be grateful if anybody can say if Benylin cough mixtures are available in France? Perhaps under a different trade name?86.197.21.17 (talk) 10:00, 10 April 2009 (UTC)DT

They have a French site (http://www.benylin.ca/fre/index.asp) and a contact number listed - may be worth giving them a call if nobody else responds with a more definitive/useful answer. ny156uk (talk) 12:47, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

French language, but a Canadian site. I can't find a French site.

I assume you are in France. If you have an empty box or bottle, take it into the chemist with you, they should be able to find a similar product. If you have no box or bottle, why not print out the relevant page - it lists the active ingredients.

Please note that none of the above is medical advice. Consult a doctor if your symptoms persist etc etc. pablo_hablo. 13:53, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

From the packaging I see the maker is now McNeil, but their site does not mention the product at all! TQ for the advice re the pharmacist - tried that, with no joy. Wonder if it might be Tylonol (?) under a different brand ?86.197.21.17 (talk) 14:01, 10 April 2009 (UTC)DT

Tylenol contains paracetamol (acetaminophen) which is one of the active ingredients of Benylin. You should be able to get hold of any generic paracetamol if all you want is pain relief and ant-fever properties. :The other active ingredients are the decongestant (pseudoephedrine), expectorant (guaifenesin) (and anti-cough (dextromethorphan), depending on which product you have) stuff. See a doctor! pablo_hablo. 14:15, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

The thing is that the same drug may require a prescription in one country and not in another. I have never had occasion to buy cough medicine in France, so I have no idea whether all those ingredients are non-prescription there. --Anonymous, 03:33 UTC, April 11, 2009.

Indeed. So to repeat, discuss with a pharmacist or, preferably, a doctor - I know they have those in France! pablo_hablo. 23:50, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

IIRC, there is quite a large range of common cough-mixture medicines that are not availible in France. I'll try to find out more. Astronaut (talk) 01:36, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

My mistake - I was thinking of a different country. Astronaut (talk) 02:28, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes - of course they have those in France. But they tend to be French. Therefore literal. If it is on the list, fine. If not, too bad. Buy one that is on the list. They are lovely people but, to paraphrase a quote from an animals' rights person they have the imagination of a brussels sprout at times. Many thanks for all the help. Good to know the info is not easily available. I'll try the steam telephone next week. a bientôt86.197.169.220 (talk) 14:32, 11 April 2009 (UTC)DT

CSAT

how do we drive a customer service process(bpo) to attain maximum markings in a customer satisfaction survey as i am in a dilemma as the business existance in the company is dependent on it.Anyone please. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 61.95.140.188 (talk) 10:18, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Can you put this question into context? Don't see how a business existance (sic) can be dependent upon a process. Are you wanting to use a survey to measure satisfaction? Or what?86.197.21.17 (talk) 14:04, 10 April 2009 (UTC)DT

I expect that their company will lose it's contract and go under if it doesn't get their customer survey results higher. StuRat (talk) 14:46, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

One approach is to look closely at the survey and aim for improvement on each of the points listed. For example, if there's a question on if your services are timely, then work on that (perhaps by having more people working during peak hours). If there's no such question, put your efforts elsewhere. Also concentrate on those areas where the most improvement is needed and where improvements can be made the quickest and at the least expense (the "low-hanging fruit"). It would help us to give better recommendations to know what type of business you have and which marks are currently the lowest. StuRat (talk) 14:46, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Pay scale for government employees

How/where can I find an online public record of the salaries of United States government jobs? I need to search by job title. Am I mistaken in thinking that this would be available online? Thanks, 168.9.120.8 (talk) 16:43, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Is the data you're looking for here? Tempshill (talk) 17:13, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Ah, I can't seem to find what I need there. If the clarification helps, I'm looking for a locally-hired educational position whose salary is apparently funded by the federal government... that might change the landscape a bit. 168.9.120.8 (talk) 17:22, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

The salary tiers are presumably a matter of public record — check the school district's website perhaps, or call them on the phone? If it's funded by the federal government then you could find the specific funding authorization in the Department of Education labyrinth and perhaps it specifies how the salary is supplemented or funded. Tempshill (talk) 19:48, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

How to Print a few More Pages from Ink Cartridges (Q moved from RD talk page)

My ink cartridges are almost dry and all the stores are closed. I've heard somewhere that there is something a person can do to get a few more print pages from an old ink cartridge. Heat? Rinse in water? Shake? Does anybody know? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.2.40.36 (talk) 17:17, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Shaking it gently from side to side might help. Try it, it can't do any harm. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 17:22, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

If only one color is out on a multi-color cartridge, you could try changing the colors of each item you want to print to match those colors you still have. StuRat (talk) 18:14, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

I was trying to print a photo but the people came out with bright green faces. I printed a test page and it said that I was all out of red so I asked you. Thank you very much Richard!! I took the color cartridge out and shook it plenty, then I ran another test page and it showed that the red was now fine so I printed the photo again, but I had forgotten to take out the 8 1/2 X 11 paper and put back in the 4 X 6 photo paper. So I changed the paper and printed it again, This time I walked away and when I came back to it I found that the new paper hadn't fed through and all the little bit of ink I had left went onto the roller. So I printed it again and this time made sure the paper feeded through and I got a lovely picture, suitable for framing!! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.212.182.145 (talk) 19:54, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

It's worth pointing out that, while gentle shaking won't do any harm, the process of removing and reinserting the cartridge might "reset" the control electronics such that they will *allow* you to print magenta again. Sometimes the "empty" warning is posted by guessing the amount of ink remaining—a guess which may vary widely from reality depending on how you use your printer. (Note, however, that printing on an empty cartridge may damage your printhead; if it's part of the cartridge then that's no big deal, but if it's separate you may need to replace it as well.) – 74  21:07, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Boys and Girls Club Logo

Can you tell me how the Boys and Girls Clubs of America came up with the clasping hands logo? What is the history? I am under the impression the Boys and Girls Club held a contest in the late 1960's or the early 1970's and asked grade school children to come up with ideas for a logo to adopt and decided on one of the children's ideas but after looking at all resources I can think of, I am not able to come up with anything. If you are not able to find the history on this question, can you please at least put me on the correct path by coming up with a date or an approximate date and or point me in the correct direction in which I can begin researching this? The reason why this is so important to me is because I believe I know the person who came up with this logo all those years ago and I would like to have something to confirm (on paper or by some tangible means) to prove the origin of the Boys and Girls Club logo. Thank you for your time regarding this matter. Sincerely, Wendy> a —Preceding unsigned comment added by Wkbowgo (talk • contribs) 19:03, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

The marketing website may possibly have some information about this - if you click "Logo Downloads", then "National Logo", then "Logo History" then there are several logos used throughout the years. The current logo is dated 1980, but it's not definitively stating that they only started using that logo in 1980. There's a "Contact Us" link if you want to ask them. Tempshill (talk) 19:55, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Santa Monica Freeway widening project

Is this possible that Caltrans will eventually widen the Santa Monica Freeway between Route 1 and East LA (5/60/10) Interchange? Since Santa Monica Freeway is one of the most congestion routes in probably in the USA, and only have 2 or 3 lanes in basic. If they plan to widen the Santa Monica Freeway when will this happen? Many freeways in Orange County also needs repairments.--69.229.241.215 (talk) 21:07, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Car noise

My girlfriend's 2003 Vauxhall Corsa has started making a metal-like scraping noise when braking at speeds < 10mph. I'm pretty sure it only happens when braking – is the likely cause of this brake pads? It's not a really loud noise, but it can be 'felt' through the brake pedal. We'll be having it looked at properly after the Easter weekend, but I thought a heads-up first may stop us worrying. Cheers. Cycle~ (talk) 22:05, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Have you checked/topped off all the fluids? 76.97.245.5 (talk) 22:55, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

That is almost certainly worn brake pads. Most cars have little metal whiskers embedded inside the brake pad material so that when the pad has worn down to the level of the whisker, it rubs against the brake disk (or drum) and makes that horrible noise which in theory provokes you into taking the car to a garage to get the noise sorted out and they can say "Aha! You need brake pads."...and it evidently works! These gizmos start making their noise well before the pads are worn dangerously thin - so you should be OK to drive it for a week or two after the noise starts. But don't forget about it...brakes are rather important! SteveBaker (talk) 23:21, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Note that the noise is still there at higher speeds but you just can't hear it over the engine and road noise.

The trouble is, those "metal whiskers" are really big metal studs. Leave it too long and they will dig deep grooves into the brake disks. You will get slightly better braking for a couple of months (metal against metal being better than brake pad stuff against metal disk), followed by sudden catastrophic brake failure. Really, don't leave it too long.

In my experience, as well as new brake pads, the garage may try to sell you new disks for ££££, especially if you make a big deal about metal scraping sounds when braking. It might be better to say something like "I think my brake pads might be wearing down. Can you take a look at give me an estimate for new pads". If the disks really are deeply gouged, they will let you know soon enough. Astronaut (talk) 01:19, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Cheers guys, I'll get it booked in in the coming week. Thanks. Cycle~ (talk) 10:33, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Global Power Consumption:

Dear friend(s), in a "Green Team" forum recently, a person suggested I quit reading books, and read ebooks instead, which I thought ludicrous. Therefore, I would like to ascertain the total global power consumption of the internet, including computers, peripherals, (power and cost of production), etc., compared to the cost of global book production. I am going to keep searching for data, but as I am disabled by severe anxiety, it gets rather nerve racking at times. Thank you for any help, MJ MichaelJ47 (talk) 22:51, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

That would hardly be a fair comparison. The internet is used for a lot more things than ebooks - and in fact, many ebooks (the Kindle, for example) don't use the Internet at all. (The Kindle uses the cellphone network). To do this comparison fairly involves a heck of a lot of assumptions. Aside from the cost of publishing your book - you have to consider the space it requires to store it - the number of people who might read it - whether you could get it in a library or not, etc. The paper book (if you dispose of it by recycling the paper - or burying it in a landfill) may lock up carbon and actually help the environment. If you burn it - then not. Similarly with your ebook - the cost for delivery of the ebook to your reader is certainly a lot less than the cost of the paper book - but if you are the only person who reads your copy - then that may not be such a good idea as a book that's loaned out. At any rate - your question contains an entirely false premise - so I'm not going to spend the effort to look up the numbers. SteveBaker (talk) 23:15, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Case in point: how would you suggest these folks replace the Internet with books, for their purposes, practically? 94.168.184.16 (talk) 00:43, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

The answers you seek are contained herein. Sustainable Energy Without the Hot Air 96.50.4.248 (talk) 02:28, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

April 11

List of world newspapers

Where would Wikipedia have a list of notable national-level newspapers? It would be great if there was a list of notable newspapers that are translated into English (and into various other languages, if the information were available).

Anyway, going to the "Newspapers" article gives me nothing. Where can I find a way to find out what newspapers to read when in Rome or are read in Rome or Madrid or Manila or any other place? Do I really have to search country by country? Is that information standard in each nation's article?Levalley (talk) 01:19, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Does List of newspapers, which breaks down various newspapers by country, help? Nadando (talk) 01:20, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Always head to the see also section, in a scan of any article: Newspapers#See also ;) 96.50.4.248 (talk) 02:25, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Didn't think of actually using the word "list" in the search - there must be lots of "lists of" articles for me to explore. Thanks for the tip on see also, as well.Levalley (talk) 03:24, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Actually, it's taking me awhile to get the hanging of using the list feature. The List of newspapers is helpful, it shows which nations are not yet listed on Wiki as having newspapers, which is what I wanted to see. Took me a bit to realize I had to click on "show" to see the list. I'm verry slooow.Levalley (talk) 03:30, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Date and money

Is it possible to find a girlfriend if you have no job, no income and no perspective of improving your situation?--88.6.158.100 (talk) 12:44, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Lol.--Crimpmunkla (talk) 13:04, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, mine married me!--79.71.217.59 (talk) 13:24, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Having no job, no income and no perspective of improving your situation will make you extremely attractive to certain women. However, to seal the deal you really need to get yourself thrown into jail so they can come see you for conjugal visits. :-) StuRat (talk) 14:29, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Autonomic alarm clock?

Is it true that some people can set a mental time clock to awaken at a given time? If so, can the skill be learned?86.197.169.220 (talk) 14:33, 11 April 2009 (UTC)DT

I used to do that when I was a student. I recall this being successful until I went out for one too many late nights and missed all my morning lectures. I decided it wasn't quite reliable enough and bought myself an alarm clock instead and I haven't tried it since. The biggest drawback, as I remember it, was that I had to positively think about the waking up time with respect to the current time before going to sleep. If I didn't 'set' my internal alarm, as happened when I was too far gone after a late night, it didn't wake me up. I've no idea if that can be learned. Mikenorton (talk) 16:20, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

I can do this but only if I've already set the alarm clock. Then I will wake up a couple of minutes before the alarm goes off. Adam Bishop (talk) 17:01, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

I often wake up shortly before an alarm, but only if it's an unusual time (eg getting up early to travel somewhere). It doesn't happen when getting up normally for work. I'd never rely on my "mental clock" for an important deadline, so I don't know whether the setting of the alarm is significant or not in triggering it. 93.97.184.230 (talk) 20:06, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Do you get use-once credit cards in the UK?

Like, you will pay 10 or 20 pounds for a card which can be used to make anonymous online purchases that won't show up on your credit card bills. I've heard you get these in America. If they do exist in the UK can you get them at ASDA, Tesco, Sainsburys etc?--Please let me die (talk) 14:35, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

A quick scan of Stored-value card tells me that they're available in Ireland. Dismas|^(talk) 14:48, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Ireland in itself is no use. But if they're available there they should be in the UK. But where do I get them? I want to get one today so I can get a month's pass to an internet porn site.--Please let me die (talk) 15:16, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

I thought maybe you could use paypal to be anonymous. I googled paypal "pay for porn" anonymously and apparently they no longer allow payment for porn sites, but I found netcash through that search and I think it might be what you are looking for.--70.19.64.161 (talk) 15:37, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Actually, now that I've explored their site it seems a little sketchy. But there has to be something like this so that you can use an existing card rather than searching for some one-use card that may or may not be able to be purchased in your area.--70.19.64.161 (talk) 15:42, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

There are a large variety of pre-paid debit and credit cards available[9][10], but most (if not all) require you to fill in an application and none seem to be available behind the counter in high street shops. Nanonic (talk) 16:48, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Can you buy pre-paid debit cards? You can do that in the US. Visa, MasterCard and American Express all have pre-paid cards. Who then was a gentleman? (talk) 21:24, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

query on article about the SPETSNAZ

the article on the russian special forces (SPETSNAZ) says, while discussing the spetsnaz knife, that the russian forces do not use the 7.62mm caliber round. but then what else do their kalashnikovs use?? the're the ones that made the 7.62mm so famous and lethal, alongwith the FN FAL. is it me or is the whole world conspiring to convince me that i'm delusional??? :P —Preceding unsigned comment added by Dustbite (talk • contribs) 17:16, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

"is it me or is the whole world conspiring to convince me that i'm delusional?" - Yes. – 74  17:46, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

I would imagine that they don't use the AK-47. It is common for special forces to have weapons more suited for their particular needs than the common infantry issue one. Rmhermen (talk) 18:16, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

I just read that section of the article and am certain that it is a mess but not sure what it is trying to say. Rmhermen (talk) 18:20, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

They may well not use Russian standard weapons, as Rmhermen suggests, but even if they did it wouldn't be the AK-47. The newer AK-74 looks broadly similar, but uses a smaller calibre much like NATO moved from 7.62 to 5.56. I can't remember what the newer Russian calibre is, I'm afraid. Incidentally, you talk about the AK-47 and the SLR both using 7.62 - it's true that they both use bullets of that calibre, but I'm pretty sure the rounds themselves are very different, the Russian ones being shorter and having less propellant (and hence being more suitable for an assault rifle). 93.97.184.230 (talk) 20:04, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Learning shorthand

Can you point me to some free resources for learning Teeline Shorthand? The first google hit for teeline shorthand has a "Free Lesson", but excluding that google seems to be failing me. Any other shorthand is also good, but it needs to usable for both Finnish and English (ie not too phonetic). Thanks --88.194.237.199 (talk) 19:18, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

seeds/spices

can you grow a plant from uncooked poppy seeds found in the spices rack? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.237.50.35 (talk) 20:18, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

rephrase of the last question.. (seeds)

can you grow a plant from dried seeds? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.237.50.35 (talk) 20:21, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Bugs on my car!

I drive to work along the Lake Michigan shore line every morning and soon when it warms up that will mean passing through swarms of millions of shore flies every day. Since my car is white the front quickly turns black from all the dead flies stuck to the bumper. As some of you may know getting the flies off of the front of a car isn't easy. So my question is does anyone know of anything that can either be applied to the front of my car to keep them from sticking or anything that will make them come of more easily? Thanks for any help!--ChesterMarcol (talk) 20:54, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

A bra? Who then was a gentleman? (talk) 21:27, 11 April 2009 (UTC)