Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2019 November 16

= November 16 =

amerigo vespucci maps
Did Amerigo Vespucci draw actual maps that were the basis for the Waldseemuller map? Do they still exist?Hoover12345! (talk) 14:00, 16 November 2019 (UTC)


 * Likely somebody aboard the ship of any explorer of that era would have been responsible for drawing maps, if only for their own use. They may not have always made those maps public, however, as they would provide an advantage over their rivals. SinisterLefty (talk) 19:16, 16 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Dear Mr. Lefty, please try not to guess the answers until other avenues have been exhausted. Alansplodge (talk) 12:20, 17 November 2019 (UTC)


 * "By 1508, when it became clear that the Casa needed a resident navigational expert, Amerigo Vespucci was named piloto mayor (pilot major) and authorized to examine and license pilots who wanted to navigate ships in the Indies. He was also directed to prepare an official set of maps, or padrón general, of the newly discovered lands. With the imposing name padrón real, or master chart, these were required equipment for all pilots navigating ships to the Indies... So little of his cartographic work has survived that it is nearly impossible to rate it in comparison with that of other cartographers of the time".
 * The Mapping of the Entradas Into the Greater Southwest edited by Dennis Reinhartz, Gerald D. Saxon (p. 57).
 * Alansplodge (talk) 12:20, 17 November 2019 (UTC)


 * The King-Hamy Chart has been attributed to Vespucci, there is some discussion in Not sure about Hapgood, he seems to confuse Amerigo and Juan. This was not a source for the Waldseemuller map, according to the article the sources were Caveri and Cantino.&mdash;eric 16:36, 17 November 2019 (UTC)

inner monologue
Has the inner monologue in psychology been studied much from a speech-analysis standpoint? I.e. is it louder for some people than others, have differences in timbre and dynamics, etc.? I think mine might be quieter than most, since I can't hear it if there is background sound such as music or other people's conversations. That is, I get easily distracted by any type of sound, and need quiet surroundings to do anything requiring concentration. E.g. right now I'm trying to read a Wikipedia math article while someone is watching TV in the next room, and it's difficult. Also, is there a name for the above as a psychological condition? Not misophonia or hyperacusis which mean that the external sounds are painful or distressing. If someone is playing music not too loudly, it can be nice music and I can enjoy relaxing and listening to it, but still have trouble focusing on anything else. Thanks. 67.164.113.165 (talk) 19:57, 16 November 2019 (UTC)


 * Since it doesn't involve the ears, I wouldn't expect any audio quality to be associated with it at all. Similar to reading. Of course, if you are in a noisy environment, that is apt to cause a distraction, and some are more easily distracted by this than others, with the popular expression that "it's so loud I can't hear myself think". SinisterLefty (talk) 21:30, 16 November 2019 (UTC)


 * Yes, some are more distracted than others but I'm wondering if there is a name for being unusually distracted. Like there are supertasters, and maybe "super distractees".  As for audio quality of the internal monologue, mine certainly has one.  I thought it was a form of audiation.  Thanks. 67.164.113.165 (talk) 21:37, 16 November 2019 (UTC)


 * Being particularly annoyed by noise is a feature of autism spectrum disorder, which is fairly common. Being easily distracted is a feature of attention deficit disorder, also fairly common. If you suspect either, consult a doctor. SinisterLefty (talk) 06:20, 17 November 2019 (UTC)


 * Oh great (not), but on the other hand, if there's a pill that fixes it, I'm game ;-) I don't think I'm unusually distractable in general, just in particular by noise.  You know the mental shift you make if you want to listen intently to something, so more of your awareness goes into your hearing?  That's what I do when I try to think hard.  So any sounds present stop me from thinking.  I know that the famous mathematician von Neumann was the opposite, and he could work easily in noisy environments.  That would sure come in handy for me sometimes.  I'm finding the article cocktail party effect informative, though it's not exactly what I'm looking for. 67.164.113.165 (talk) 06:47, 17 November 2019 (UTC)


 * You might just try some earplugs, ear buds playing music without lyrics (or relaxing nature sounds), or noise cancelling headphones. SinisterLefty (talk) 07:00, 17 November 2019 (UTC)
 * BTDT. Earplugs cause ear pain and tinnitus.  Noise cancelling headphones take out low frequency street noise etc. which is nice, but they don't help at speech frequencies.  Music adds MORE sound instead of removing sound so it's the wrong thing too.  Being able to simply sit around quietly and work on something seems to have become a luxury reserved for kings and queens.  Oh well. 67.164.113.165 (talk) 09:39, 17 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Such luxury would probably take some of its essence from a talisman disguised as some obscure order's ribbons and cross. But to reveal its magic your own layman's talisman will have to work like a pendulum: what you've stored in it for your intents displayed back and preemptive into your view. Or a small metronome which casing could also hold some inspiring, and relaxing pictures. That is, the drawbacks of pendulums are fetishism, which can be a very bad thing, and mimetism which would drag you into it indirectly, if the system worked and unfortunately started to catching on too. Worth considering also and also tricking a string, the bilboquet, the yo-yo, and clackers. Such jugglery toys can be handled following various strategies, for example leaving the toy in order to become free of refocusing and studying the math. More importantly such toys have the benefit of recentering your personal or individual scenery at yourself, because you're the one to re-introduce the unreasonable or arbitrary disturbance in the global scenery. Unfortunately all these jugglery sets act in a vertical plane (note that a pendulum is handled in a vertical plane, but can be used to focus on an horizontal tracing). That same vertical plane is the one for computer screens, which is probably why some people uncertain with their smartphone coming your way in the street - or backstage, you'll see - will tend to point to you with it holding it flat and pretending that you're not there. They are recentering the scene at themselves. They may even fancy you are walking a pendulum. Trying to establish that if you had it your way you would be walking a pendulum. But in the end, anyway, in any case of disturbance it's not the concrete level of sound that matters until it becomes objectively unbearable. I don't think any inner speech is to be lost while evolving at a reasonable distance from the loudspeakers at an hard-rock concert, if you're a fan; rather the opposite. --Askedonty (talk) 20:02, 17 November 2019 (UTC)


 * The usual problem with speech is that it causes us to pay attention to try to understand it. Music (without words) or nature sounds won't do that, and will hopefully drown out any speech we would otherwise strain to hear. Noise cancelling headphones can also have sound-proofing to block speech frequencies, as those are easiest to block that way. (Low-frequencies either require much thicker sound-proofing, or noise-cancelling technology.) You can also get passive noise protection without the electronics, for far less money: . And you could combine ear buds and headphones, for more noise reduction. SinisterLefty (talk) 05:09, 18 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Trust me, I've done all that stuff and there is no substitute for actual quiet. 34db is pretty good for a headband-style protector, though, so I might check out that model.  And I find music with or without lyrics to be as distracting or almost as distracting as speech.  I will look into some soundproofing stuff.  The most effective material was supposed to be a mass loaded foam sandwich with a lead core, but that was a horrible idea because of lead's toxicity, and thankfully it is not made any more.  Thanks for all the suggestions.  67.164.113.165 (talk) 21:14, 18 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Have you tried vaporwave? Sometimes it's annoying but sometimes it does the trick for me. 93.136.31.83 (talk) 03:17, 19 November 2019 (UTC)

Engraving of Burning Idols in Tahiti
Trying to find the original publication of this engraving of the burning of idols (Tahitian tiki) in Tahiti. KAVEBEAR (talk) 20:55, 16 November 2019 (UTC)
 * credited London Missionary Society, Missionary Sketches, VI, July 1819.&mdash;eric 01:46, 17 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Can't find that volume on worldcat, but should be good enough if you are just uploading to commons.&mdash;eric 01:59, 17 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Here's the full image.&mdash;eric 02:12, 17 November 2019 (UTC)


 * There's a Google Books preview here. Alansplodge (talk) 11:59, 17 November 2019 (UTC)


 * Here's Missionary Sketches VI. No publication information in that collection, but July, 1819 as a periodical looks first.&mdash;eric 13:59, 17 November 2019 (UTC)


 * Oops, that version was missing pages, this one is better.&mdash;eric 14:12, 17 November 2019 (UTC)

Mussolini's Hat
What is the name of the type of hat Mussolini is wearing in ? 108.21.79.135 (talk) 21:13, 16 November 2019 (UTC)
 * It's a type of fez, worn by the MVSN (Blackshirts). ---Sluzzelin talk  21:18, 16 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Thank you! 108.21.79.135 (talk) 21:19, 16 November 2019 (UTC)
 * See Arditi Andy Dingley (talk) 21:34, 16 November 2019 (UTC)


 * Various forms of Fascist caps and fezes are shown here. Alansplodge (talk) 11:54, 17 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Try to imagine Hitler wearing a beret. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 14:07, 17 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Time to put a lid on that thought. ---Sluzzelin talk  15:53, 17 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Here's hoping. Martinevans123 (talk) 11:02, 18 November 2019 (UTC)

I did Nazi that coming! Anton 81.131.40.58 (talk) 10:43, 18 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Praising a thank for that edit - an expression new to me well suited to some my needs - . --Askedonty (talk) 10:55, 18 November 2019 (UTC)

I once tried to change Tommy Cooper's fez to a tarboosh, and the kind IP response I received was: "I can't believe the stupidity of your revert. He wore a fez and only the most insanely pedantic wikipedia editor would wish to change that fact of history." So I think I'll leave this well alone. Martinevans123 (talk) 10:58, 18 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Hm, wait, and see ? --Askedonty (talk) 11:33, 18 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Nazi pride. He didn't want to lose fez. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 13:17, 18 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Oh! Shameful! Not to be confused with that small town in Bangladesh. Martinevans123 (talk) 13:34, 18 November 2019 (UTC)
 * or Morocco. -- Jayron 32 13:49, 18 November 2019 (UTC)

Lady Selbourne's diary
Who was "Lady Selbourne", whose 1765 diary entry is quoted in s:Page:Showell's Dictionary of Birmingham.djvu/97 and otherwise mentioned online only in sources quoting that? Andy Mabbett ( Pigsonthewing ); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 22:32, 16 November 2019 (UTC)


 * Possibly Lady Sophia Carteret (1745-1771), the first wife of William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne. She appears to have written a diary (see here. There are probably better sources, but it does show the text including "the making of guns" as quoted in Showell's Dictionary). ---Sluzzelin talk  22:43, 16 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Thank you. See also s:Life of William, Earl of Shelburne, in whcih extracts of the diary were published. . Andy Mabbett ( Pigsonthewing ); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 15:31, 17 November 2019 (UTC)