Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2014 February 1

= February 1 =

Agency ranking private schools in Mexico
Is there an agency that ranks or gives objective evaluations of private schools in Mexico? In es:Discusión:Liceo_Mexicano_Japonés on the Spanish Wikipedia the editor stated his belief that sources stating the school is known to be the "most prestigious" of a country should only be indicative of notability if a third party organization objectively ranks it as such. However typically private schools aren't put on rankings but public schools are. WhisperToMe (talk) 00:39, 1 February 2014 (UTC)


 * That's a rather subjective term. Something more objective, and easier to verify, would be the most expensive private school in Mexico. StuRat (talk) 02:41, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
 * It was the school where President of Mexico Carlos Salinas de Gortari sent his kids, and one source states that in Japan because the Mexican President sent his kids to the school, the Japanese perceived the school to be the best in Mexico. The user said in Spanish: "El que Salinas de Gortari haya tenido a sus hijos en el instituto, tampoco le otorga relevancia a este, véase es:WP:NOHEREDA. Saludos." WhisperToMe (talk) 07:04, 1 February 2014 (UTC)


 * Have you tried http://www.sep.gob.mx/wb2/ ? There is no clear evidence that any mexican private education is superior to mexican public education in general and specific. Seriously! EllenCT (talk) 10:31, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
 * Thank you for providing the link! I'm not saying private schools are always better than public schools. I'm just trying to find "objective" rankings/credentials that will satisfy the user on the Spanish Wikipedia. WhisperToMe (talk) 10:53, 1 February 2014 (UTC)

Two similar men?
Here's an intriguing mystery.

We have an article on James Spens (cricketer), who was born 30 March 1853 and died 19 June 1934 (our article says 19 August, but the linked source gives June). It talks entirely about his cricketing career.

Here is a modified copy of the Who's Who entry for James Spens, a British Army general - according to the full one ([http://ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whowaswho/U217420/ paywalled) he was born 30 March 1853 and died 19 June 1934.

Both are listed as educated at Haileybury. Were they the same person? It seems somewhat plausible - army officers frequently had the leisure time to be amateur gentleman cricketers - but I'm reluctant to say so for sure without any specific evidence. Andrew Gray (talk) 10:45, 1 February 2014 (UTC)


 * This Wisden obituary suggests they are one and the same. - Ka renjc (talk) 10:57, 1 February 2014 (UTC)


 * Thanks - exactly what I needed! I'll get them updated. Andrew Gray (talk) 11:02, 1 February 2014 (UTC)

Contemporary realist painter: series of paintings of young adults partying
I have seen these paintings (which I think are 1990 to post-2000) some years ago, and can't get them out of my head:

Each of them are realist (maybe slightly stylized) depictions of about a dozen (young) adults partying in a wealthy environment (large, expensively furnished rooms, maybe a penthouse), some of them in "various stages of undress". Although the colors are quite intense (almost comic-book-like) and the lighting is bright, there is a sense of boredom and depression in these paintings.

Does anyone recall these paintings? I don't even know if the artist is here on Wikipedia... -- megA (talk) 15:46, 1 February 2014 (UTC)

Terry Rodgers does something like that. Would you please confirm if this is what you were looking for? DanielDemaret (talk) 17:41, 1 February 2014 (UTC)


 * Thank you. Wow. Stendhal syndrome. Didn't know these paintings existed... They are similar to those I remember, but the style is different... "mine" are less... "baroque", they are still realistic, but look a bit more two-dimensional, as far as I can remember. The lighting is brighter. And there is actually less nudity on them. And more free space, less crowded. I've looked through as many collections as possible, but the paitings I remember are definitely not among those by Terry Rodgers that I could find. -- megA (talk) 12:23, 2 February 2014 (UTC)

What plantation did this person live on before the Civil War?
I'm doing some research on a man who lived two miles west of Courtland, Alabama before and after the Civil War. I'm trying to figure out what plantation he lived on or near during this time. The Sherrod/Wheeler plantation is looking promising, but how can I be more sure? Wrad (talk) 18:55, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
 * Do we know what his name was? Alansplodge (talk) 19:06, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
 * Robert H. Tucker. Actually, it says on an old court record that he lived 2 miles west of Courtland on the "Shackelford plantation" in 1872, but I'm having trouble finding out more about that plantation and how it may have changed hands earlier on. Wrad (talk) 19:10, 1 February 2014 (UTC)


 * This Shackelford Clan Magazine article claims that a "Captain Jack Shackelford, (1790-1857)" moved to " to Courtland, Lawrence County, Alabama, where it is said that he lived like a baron of the middle ages, on a large plantation. His home, a mansion of that day, was built near the Coose River". I rather imagine the Civil War had something to do with the change of ownership. This Shackelford also lived in Shelby County, Alabama, where the Coosa River flows, so his plantation would be in the wrong place. Clarityfiend (talk) 23:26, 1 February 2014 (UTC)

Non-judicial agreement
X thinks that Y has commited a crime against him, and opens a legal case, asking for an ammount of money as a compensation. Y proposes X to pay him a smaller ammount of money, if X declines the lawsuit. X may accept the deal, as the payment would be immediate (instead of after a long lawsuit and the appeals, wich may take years), and there's no risk that the judge may eventually declare Y innocent. Which is the name for this kind of agreement? Cambalachero (talk) 22:06, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
 * The reason for a civil case is a tort, not technically a crime, although lots of torts involve crimes. The voluntary agreement is called an out-of-court settlement.  There are also mediation and arbitration which usually come into place when contracts are involved or things like family issues. μηδείς (talk) 22:59, 1 February 2014 (UTC)


 * I wonder why it would not be called a settlement out of court. Have our prepositional phrases been taken over by Germans or something? —Tamfang (talk) 09:37, 4 February 2014 (UTC)


 * I actually hesitated over that, decided it wasn't important, and went with what I thought was the more common phrase. Given out-of-court serves as an adjective, initial placement is cromulent. μηδείς (talk) 17:36, 5 February 2014 (UTC)

Viking boat construction
Were Viking sailing boats in medieval times built in some sort a building for protection against inclement weather? --Christie the puppy lover (talk) 22:22, 1 February 2014 (UTC)


 * About the only contemporary visual depiction of a Viking boat being built is part of the Bayeux tapestry, and it doesn't show it happening indoors... AnonMoos (talk) 05:53, 2 February 2014 (UTC)
 * It's pretty much right in the middle of https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Tapisserie_de_Bayeux_31109.jpg (click on the image to bring it up to full resolution), but this isn't at all a Viking boat: the Normans were well established and didn't send out vikings by this point. I've also added an image of a reconstruction of a typical Norse building (a longhouse) from the period; build a longship in there, and you're going to have to knock the building down to get it out.  Nyttend (talk) 06:05, 2 February 2014 (UTC)
 * Warning -- clicking on the above link will try to open a 30,000-pixel-wide image! (Normal image description page link is File:Tapisserie de Bayeux 31109.jpg.) It was included as being relevant to Viking ship construction in a Scientific American article a while back (don't know anything more)... AnonMoos (talk)


 * The description in Longship makes me guess that they were built outside. Hauling a vessel that's so large would be hard enough (note that it describes the method of overland transportation as "dragged", not "carried" or "portaged") if you built it right next to the water and just had to move it a few feet over open ground.  It would be substantially more difficult if you had to take it a longer distance (presumably big buildings wouldn't be next to the water, since they'd be more vulnerable to flooding) and get it to squeeze through a doorway.  Remember that Norse architecture wasn't particularly advanced throughout the viking period (they didn't have chimneys, for example), so the building might not be able to accommodate the construction and exit of a ship, even if moving the ship were easy.  On top of all of that, consider the issue of a massive tarp or tent: it would probably be a lot easier just to cover the construction site with fabric, especially since the light and open design of these ships meant that almost every part would get drenched with seawater anyway.  Yes, you'd be out in the elements while you were building it, but houses weren't exactly well sealed by modern standards; a fire on the ground might be just as good as a fire inside, and you wouldn't have the disadvantage of tons of smoke floating around trying to escape through the hole in the roofline.  Nyttend (talk) 05:58, 2 February 2014 (UTC)


 * What good's a boat if you have to protect it from the weather? Clarityfiend (talk) 10:59, 2 February 2014 (UTC)


 * That rather depends on the weather. If a normal rain destroys your boat, then it's not much of a boat.  But severe storms and sitting in water as it freezes over are much more challenging for any boat, so giving them some type of shelter from those conditions will certainly extend their lives. StuRat (talk) 14:20, 3 February 2014 (UTC)


 * In Norway, if they want to make themselves a Viking long ship, they do it outdoors. See Building the world's most iconic Viking ship. Alansplodge (talk) 17:56, 3 February 2014 (UTC)