Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2006 December 21

=December 21=

It's not a question about what Penguins taste like - but whether they drink fresh water?

 * We just went to see 'Happy Feet', and enjoyed it immensely. But we asked afterwards whether penguins drink fresh water - and if so, how? And if not, how do they remain hydrated? But then we also asked if they give each other pebbles? And if so, why? And do they really have a personalised, 'Heartsong' so they can identify each other? And - Oh Ok then, what do penguins taste like? Please don't tell me "Chicken".


 * Many birds have elaborate mating ceremonies, and giving a nice stone to "seal the deal" is common among homo sapiens sapiens, as well. StuRat 02:14, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

I imagine they swallow a bit of snow to get fresh water. StuRat 01:34, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

"Pen-gu-ins is practically chickens." - Bugs Bunny - StuRat 01:34, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Many animals digest pebbles as a way of improving their digestion — the rocks are known as gastroliths when used in this fashion. Now I don't know if penguins specifically engage in that sort of behavior but many large birds do, I think. --24.147.86.187 01:54, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * What do penguins taste like? A serious answer, And a humorous one. Anchoress 02:28, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Water: Penguins do not need fresh water. Indeed it is doubtful whether they drink water at all. A salt load in their food is simply excreted via the nasal salt organs (no article on that, see Seabird), which leaves the bird in fluid and osmotic equilibrium. Sounds: Calls are individualised (as human voices are different). The problem is: how is it recognised in the cacophony of a penguin colony? See Finding a parent in a king penguin colony: the acoustic system of individual recognition (pdf file) for a scientific study on this. Pebbles: I am not aware of observations of stone sharing as a ritual, but penguins do steal stones for lining their own nests from surrounding nests, when pebbles are not abundant. One can imagine that a good rock-thief may make a valued mate, but that is speculation. The function of gastroliths, whether for digestion of for control of buoyancy (or both) is uncertain. --Seejyb 10:56, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

Many Movies,Many Musicals
what do you think re some of the greatest movie musicals of all time.


 * Geez... I thought you'd run out of movie genres with that last one. Anyway -- South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut contained a couple memorable songs. Namely, I'm Super Thanks for Asking, and the venerable Uncle F*****.  ←Vranak

The Blues Brothers, it is a musical, go and watch it, they break out into song a couple of timeGunthar 04:43, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * What thousands are thinking, and ... boy, do I feel old. Musical to movie: Fiddler on the Roof, My Fair Lady, The King and I, The Sound of Music, Oklahoma!, Cabaret (film), A Chorus Line (film), West Side Story (film), Oliver! (film). Movie only (or first): Yentl, Victor/Victoria, The Prince of Egypt, White Christmas (film), Meet Me in St. Louis, All That Jazz. Anchoress 13:07, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Rated PG?
I was watching Looney Tunes: Back in Action and after that, I was checking the MPAA ratings and it said rated PG for mild language and innuendo. Where is the proof that there was mild language and innuendo in it?


 * Here is a christian site which goes into incredible depth on what is wrong with individual films and how they differ from the bible. Its got "violent, nihilistic and sexual programming" I must go and watch it. meltBanana 01:14, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Yes, we don't want kids seeing sex and violence, they should read the Bible instead, there's Lot's daughters, Cain and Abel, etc., all sorts of healthy role models there. :-) StuRat 01:31, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * "There were no uses of the three/four letter word vocabulary except for a muffled use of one and no uses of God's name in vain noted." I'd say if Bible-belt central over there—who seems to think that tame burlesque will ruin children—couldn't find any "mild language" then it probably isn't really in there, or less they have a different idea of "mild language" than you and I. --24.147.86.187 01:50, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

I think Yosemite Sam does most of the mild language. -- Dagnabbit! --Zeizmic 02:02, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * What is a "bad" three letter word? And what movie has more murder, wars of aggression, adultery, torture, pedophilia, and child sacrifice than the Bible?Edison 06:04, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Let me assuage your fears, I will assemble an assault on this assignment and assess the answer: I assume an assay of the assignation of 3-letter words associated with obscenity is quite low. StuRat 09:05, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * I don't see it - the "bad" word is "arse" (and that ranks with "bum" for naughtyness here). The three letter word denotes an animal. 203.22.236.14 12:37, 22 December 2006 (UTC)


 * It's only "arse" in UK-English, much to the dismay of Arsenio Hall. StuRat 18:53, 23 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Read through the ratings on the above-mentioned site. There are a few movies that take their best shot at it. --Carnildo 08:44, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

movie nude
Can a 16 years-old boy can direct a movie where he can tell a 16 years old girl to be naked in a scene? Is is legal?
 * I believe that depends on what country you're in, different countries have different ages of consent. --Maelwys 01:07, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * If you are implying that 16 is below the age of consent to have sex in a given country, the answer is most certainly still no. Directing a film of someone is not the same thing, legally or any other way, as having sex with them. The legality of it would not be judged by a different standard if the director was young, especially if one was trying to distribute it later. --24.147.86.187 01:45, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * I interpreted it as the age of consent to appear nude in a film, which is a serious issue in a lot of the world and has its own age of consent. For instance, as far as I know in the US and Canada, the age of consent for sex varies by jurisdiction, but the age of consent to appear nude is 18. Anchoress 01:49, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * According to our article on Child pornography, in the US nudity in and of itself does not constitute obscenity. Anchoress, do you have a source for the age of consent for nude appearances? --Lambiam Talk  01:58, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * No, it's the impression I've gleaned from various sources; for instance, I've read of several instances of teenagers being threatened with child pornography charges for photos and videos of themselves and/or under-18 friends. Also, there's a current news item about the Girls Gone Wild producers being liable for $1.6MM for filming two 17 year old girls revealing their breasts. Also, the people I know in various areas of the sex trade have to comply with US laws requiring them to provide proof that any nude pictures they make available for viewing or sale are of models who are 18 and over. Also, apparently the parents of actress Thora Birch had to jump through a lot of hoops to give consent for her to appear nude in American Beauty. Anchoress 02:13, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Well, Thora wasn't totally nude, she was topless. Christian Slater was 15 when he filmed The Name of the Rose but there was no frontal nudity from him in that.  User:Zoe|(talk) 17:03, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * LOL you remember it better than I do; I don't recall what she looked like, I only recall that there was a big fuss over whether or not she would be allowed to do it, and IIRC even if her parents were empowered to give permission. Anchoress 00:47, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

This is something from Canada. I would suspect it's fairly universal. Defining as illegal: (d) persons who are or who appear to be under the age of 14 involved in sexually suggestive scenes, whether or not they appear nude or partially nude; (e) persons who are or appear to be under the age of 18 involved in explicit sexual scenes; --Zeizmic 01:59, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Kiera Knightley revealed her breasts in The Hole (2001 film) and she was only 16. It was brief and not suggestive. I don't remember any jumping through hoops either. Vespine 03:46, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * That movie was made in the United Kingdom which has different laws than in the US. Our Cinema of the United Kingdom and Cinema of the United States pages state that Europe normally allows more nudity but less violence and the US is the opposite. Cbrown1023 03:50, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

A recent Savage Love column dealt with just this issue, see here. The long and the short of it is no, underage content is illegal regardless of the age of the producer. --Beaker342 05:52, 22 December 2006 (UTC)
 * A lot of the time, nudity is cleverly suggested, but not actually existent. Case in point: Birth (movie). What is sexually suggestive is open to interpretation depending on how strict your beliefs are. That's why there's a body governing such things in each country. - Mgm|(talk) 11:37, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Lump in neck
Is there normally a small, relatively firm lump under the skin in the gap just above the voicebox? I know Wikipedia can't dispense medical advice yadda yadda, but it seems to be pretty much exactly above the 'box so it might just be a feature. Just grasp above the voicebox horizontally with your thumb and forefinger or something. Maybe with the middle finger too if you're not sure what you're looking for yet, it brings you closer to the position. Maybe. Vitriol 01:32, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Adam's apple? --Justanother 01:58, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Is it the hyoid bone or rings of cartilage above or below the Adam's apple? By all means ask your physician at your next visit if you're concerned, or if you've noted changes in the size or shape of any feature.  Remember, you only have one neck.  TenOfAllTrades(talk) 02:00, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * No, it's pretty small and above all that. Like, under the eves of the chin. Quite a bit smaller than the fingerprint I'm feeling with. It feels pretty loose, too. Vitriol 02:02, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Try stretching your neck out really far. It sticks out a little. Vitriol 02:04, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * A discreet lump separate from the larynx, above the thyroid cartilage (feel for that notch at the top - bottom drawing - that is the top of the thyroid cartilage) and in the mid line is not normal or average anatomy: Wikipedia has articles on dermoid cyst, Thyroglossal cyst, and lymphadenitis, and it could even be ectopic but normal thyroid tissue. Most of these lumps are not cancers, but some are, so the secret is for a doctor to examine you and discuss a safe approach to management. Once you have determined the likely cause(s), you can discuss whether you want to leave alone for a while, or whatever.  --Seejyb 20:09, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * It's going away. Vitriol 22:05, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

Logically Defending Beliefs
Since its beginning, Christianity has gone through a lot of criticism and skepticism. Many people, especially secular evolutionary atheists, criticized and scoffed at Christianity and its holy book, the Bible; saying that it is false, unscientific, superstitious, illogical, fake, or impossible to be true, etc. They claim that there is no evidence for Christianity to be true, and they use things like evolution and the fact that nobody has ever seen God to argue that Christianity is false.

Because of that, Christians have started and tried to logically defend their religious beliefs, ideas, teachings, and claims, etc. This includes:

1. Giving arguments and evidences that they are true, logical, or scientific.

2. Refuting, disputing, and arguing against any arguments or evidences against them; refuting, answering, responding to, and arguing against any criticism, skepticism, or objections towards them.

3. Refuting, criticizing, and arguing against any religions, philosophies, or ideologies that contradict them.

In fact, they have written entire books and set up entire websites on this subject.

But what about people such as "witches", "sorcerers", fortune-tellers, astrologers, psychics, parapsychologists, pagans, pantheists, nature worshippers, believers in paranormal phenomena, and believers of New Age religions, etc? Have they also logically defended their beliefs, ideas, teachings, and claims? (Or have they at least tried to defend their beliefs logically?) Don't tell me whether their attempts to defend their beliefs are successful or not (or more or less successful than attempts to defend Christianity). Just tell me if they have, and if so, what those attempts are.

If they have been trying to logically defend their beliefs, then are there any books, Internet websites, sections of websites, or articles, etc, that contain or are about their (any of the people I've mentioned up there) statements and arguments to logically defend their faith and their responses to the criticisms of their beliefs?
 * Unfortunately, in our modern materialistic society, the definition of reason has been shrunk down to mean the same as "supported by science" or perhaps "supported by logic". Those are both human inventions that seek to explain the wonderous world that surrounds us. Equally unfortunately, in trying to capture that wonder in the "science box" or the "logic box" that selfsame magic is often lost and man is diminished thereby. Some things simply ARE or one chooses to belief that they ARE and acts accordingly. I address this subject on my user page as it applies to editing wikipedia and reference the Pope's recent lecture on the subject. --Justanother 03:52, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Present in your query seems to be a little assumption that only by using logical arguments can any position be adequetely defended. Is this correct?


 * "Logic, logic, logic. Logic is the beginning of wisdom, Valeris, not the end." - Spock
 * ←Vranak→


 * This has already been asked here before. Let me save you some time. The argument went along the lines of: you can't logically defend a system based on belief, like religion, the two are mutually exclusive. End of story. Trying to logically define any God is by very definition impossible. Vespine 03:50, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * "Witches", "sorcerers", fortune-tellers, astrologers, psychics, parapsychologists, pagans, pantheists, nature worshippers, believers in paranormal phenomena, and believers of New Age religions, etc don't invade countries in the name of God and try to convert everybody they meet. --Nelson Ricardo 04:09, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Awesome false induction there, Nelson. I appreciate the irony. --Haizum   μολὼν λαβέ 05:34, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Not sure what you mean, but them again I can never figure you out. --Nelson Ricardo 20:27, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Nricardo, then how about the Jehovah's Witnesses. They always knock on peoples doors trying to convert them... Catholics don't knock on people doors instantly trying to convert people. Anyways, I think I'm getting a little off topic here. FellowWikip e dian 17:21, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * I believe Jehovah's Witnesses are Christians, so I;m not sure where you;re going with that except to prove my point. Catholics may lie low these days, but what about the Crusades and colonialist missionaries?  --Nelson Ricardo 20:27, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Nelson, you whipped up a fat false induction. I'm very sorry you don't seem to know what that is, and how it is ironic when used in this section. --Haizum   μολὼν λαβέ 22:30, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Oh my God! Not a false induction!  How will I ever face the folks at work after inducing falsely?  --Nelson Ricardo 00:34, 22 December 2006 (UTC)
 * You answer to your fellow editors, not the people at work. --Haizum   μολὼν λαβέ 00:45, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

Um, the question does not seem to have been directly addressed. A short answer would be yes, in the mystic and speculation type religions there are books that do address the logic and reasonableness of their beliefs. (I work for a bookstore in which we carry over two hundred titles that might fit this request, and of course can't remember a single title at the moment.) In Buddhism particularly the book The Quantum and the Lotus (ISBN:1400080797) a monk's and a physicist's dialouge concerning the agreement between their two systems of thoughts and beliefs. I would argue that most systems of belief are themselves inherent statements of their own truth, logic, and resonableness. The origin of beliefs can be seen as an attempt to explain the workings of the world, much like the scientific pursuits of the modern era.

The question also addresses the possibility of other religions having their own form of Apologetics. This might be a conflict of worldviews, in that apologetics may be particularly Christian, due to the historical process of theological development. Christianity spent its first three hundred years argueing against other philosophies and religions in order to carve out its own niche within the greco-roman world. Saint Paul in his Epistle to the Romans offers a very early logical argument for the neccesity of his belief. Most of Christianities theology is the result of controversy that was later ajudicated by a council; Gnosticism, the doctrine of the trinity. Thus the feild of apologetics may be specific to the historical worldview of the developing Christian faith.


 * Sidenote on Logic and Scientific: A point was raised earlier concering logically defending a belief. Unfortunately I did not catch the earlier discussion, but the logical defense of beliefs has existed since the greeks. Pythagoras in his mystical work used math and logic as proofs. Anselm in the ontological argument, and Aquinas in the teleological argument both use logic to make a proof of belief. I mention this not to suggest that use of logic neccistates truth, merely that logic and religion have been hand in hand for some time. However, if the idea of logic is solely restricted to the concept of scientific, then the point may be valid. Scientific I take to mean discernable through repeated observation, observation that produces data which can be collected and analyised. I do not take Logic and Scientific to be interchangable, citing the field of logic as being seperate when compared to science, and often included in the humanities cirriculum, rather than science.

Religion has recently begun to react with the advances in scientific understanding, and anecdotaly, I have seen more recently published books that would fit into the mystical speculative religions category which embrace and are even inspired by such advances. In summary, I intended to point out that the question depends upon the age of a particular religion, as external factors may or may not create an necceisty and therefore the existence of apologetics within that religion. Thus in looking for such a system, we may be imposing an inconsistent worldview. --Dmarney 10:04 25 December 2006 (UTC)

Circulation Specialist
What does a circulation executive of a publishing company do? Thanks. --61.6.254.4 03:35, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * I would imagine he would be a marketing director as circulation likely refers to magazines and other periodicals that the firm publishes. --Justanother 15:44, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout
I have a "mini" project to do, and I'm Stuck. I need 15 items that pertain to the Character in the novel named "scout". I have come up with a couple, but I am stuck. The items need to be something that symbolizes her or has something to do with her in the book. If I could get a couple of suggestions, it would be helpful. Thanks
 * Just curious - have you read the book yet? --Justanother 04:29, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Yeah I have, I'm just drawing a blank on household or printable items that relate to her
 * Check the external links at the To Kill A Mockingbird page. Anchoress 04:38, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

You don't understand, i have read the book, but I need creative ideas on Specific items that would relate or represent her in some way
 * Were you replying to me? If so, I already understand that you've read the book, and I'm suggesting you check the external links on the article page. Anchoress 08:46, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * A paper maché ham. A cigar box of childish junk. A tire (to roll in). Edison 06:09, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * A medal, a watermelon, a chiffarobe, a glass of water, some white trash, a table cloth covered with maple syrup, sam hill, lynch mob, a finch. Pair of pants blasted by rock salt, and then patched. A cemented-up knothole. Picture of Al Pacino shouting "ATTICA, ATTICA!" (Atticas, get it?) Gabbyhayes 18:47, 22 December 2006 (UTC)
 * "some white trash" - I like that. You could just crumple up some paper and when the teacher asks "what's that?" you reply, nonchalantly, "white trash". --Justanother 18:57, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

HMAS Darwin, Melbourne to Brisbane
How long would it take the HMAS Darwin (travelling at roughly 20 knots) to travel from Melbourne to Brisbane? Battle Ape 04:30, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * The sea distance between Melbourne and Brisbane is about 1020 nautical miles. If the ship travels at a steady 20 knots, it will take 51 hours (2 days and 3 hours) to make this passage.  Marco polo 15:28, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Thanks. I suck at maths. Battle Ape 04:22, 24 December 2006 (UTC)

What, exactly, do those people who receive a "Special Thanks" in the credits do?
I'e seen video games that have, at the end of the credits, "Special Thanks to:". What did those people do that made them so "Special"? Thanks. -- Ķĩřβȳ ♥  Ťįɱé  Ø  06:44, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * It could be anything, just something they don't want to say. For example, if somebody picked up the director's dry cleaning, so he could stay at work longer and finish editing, that would look pretty silly on the credits, wouldn't it ? StuRat 08:47, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * It's often people who have provided moral support or inspiration to the creative forces of a project (the director and writer usually). It can also be family members who provided funding, mentors, people or organisations who gave the project or its principals a break here or there. Anchoress 08:50, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Or it could be people who allowed the crew to film at their home or on their land. _ Mgm|(talk) 11:24, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * I've heard that bring bacon sandwiches to the actors/director is a dead cert for getting a special mention.87.102.22.58 11:48, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Hmmm... Depends on who it is. :-))) Anchoress 11:55, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Yes ok. (I did base what I said on an interview I heard - can't remeber who unfortunately - clearly these ones would require some sort of bagel - do I still get a mention in the credits - you film actors are so fussy.) 87.102.22.58 12:19, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * LOL ok, I picked them cuz they're all vegetarians, but Jewish works too I guess. Anchoress 12:22, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Album status - platinum, gold, etc
Does anyone know how best to determine if a certain album has platinum status in the UK? Google totally messes up here. Its result mention platinum recordings of other musical groups mentioned on the same web page. - Mgm|(talk) 11:23, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Which Wikipedia page has the longest title?
I thought the Borat movie was a good contender until I stumbled across Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Incredibly Naughty Cafeteria Ladies from Outer Space and the Subsequent Assault of the Equally Evil Lunchroom Zombie Nerds while searching for something unrelated. Is there any way to tell which Wikipedia article has the longest title of all?


 * It'd be hard to top that one. Last time I checked the longest one listed was Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others &mdash; Kieff 15:33, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * This one is pretty long: How Hedley Hopkins Did a Dare, robbed a grave, made a new friend who might not have really been there at all, and while he was at it committed a terrible sin which everyone was doing even though he didn't know it. It would be really easy for someone with SQL access to the Wikipedia database to figure out which one was the longest using the LEN function.--24.147.86.187 15:48, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * I believe the maximum length of a title is 255 characters, and that there are several articles whose "proper" title has been truncated to accommodate that limit. —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 17:30, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * What about on Wikimedia: Wikipedians Who Dislike Making Broad Judgements About the Worthiness of a General Category of Article's and Who Are in Favor of the Deletion of Some Particularly Bad Articless but That Doesn't Mean They Are Deletionist A ndonic O Talk 22:22, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Some of the articles on german words like Donaudampfschiffahrtselektrizitätenhauptbetriebswerkbauunterbeamtengesellschaft and Rinderkennzeichnungs- und Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz have rather long names!! ɪŋglɪʃnɜː(r)d  ( Suggestion? | wanna chat? ) 22:11, 22 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Clerks: The Animated Series episode five? --Maxamegalon2000 22:46, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

New York City Subway
How do I get from LaGuardia Airport to Yonkers, without driving, and using buses/taxis as little as possible? --Samuel 69105 13:39, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Looking at you can catch the Q33 bus to Roosevelt Avenue-Jackson Heights or 74th Street and Broadway in Jackson Heights Queens. If you get off the bus at 74th Street, you can catch the #7 train heading into Manhattan. The 7 stops in Grand Central Station, where you can take a Metro-North train to yonkers. Hipocrite - « Talk » 13:57, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * No, no, no, you want to take the M60 bus from LGA to Park & 125th ST where you can get Metro-North to Yonkers. It will take about 25 minutes to get to the train and you won't have to take the subway plus you get a great view of the city from the Triborough Bridge and don't have to mess with the confusion that is Grand Central. Make sure you have $2.00 in bills or change for the bus plus bills or a credit card for the Metro-North ticket which will be $7.50 max each way peak fare if you buy it in the station and not on the train, where it costs about $3.00 more. And take the Hudson line train, more than one stops on the same track. Ask the people on the platform if it's going to Yonkers or Connecticut. -THB 20:59, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

Insect enigma
Where do flies hide the moment you pick up a fly swatter? Where do mosquitoes hide when you put the light on? Where do freakin ventriloquist crickets hide - period? Sandman30s 14:16, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * These are examples of Confirmation bias. Hipocrite - « Talk » 14:18, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Crickets tend to know enough to not move, and we tend not to see things that are holding still unless we perform a very careful, area-by-area investigation. Plus, crickets like to hide in cracks and crevices so they are often just plain not visible. Each autumn, I can usually count on several crickets moving into my garage and chirping away, saying in their tiny cricket voices what I think translates to "there can be only one". Then, as the autumn goes on, I find little cricket carcasses with various bits of their anatomy ripped off until, I suppose, there is only one cricket left. But I usually only find the carcasses and not the living cricket warriors, even if they're chirping away.


 * Atlant 17:16, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * (edit conflict) Flies and mosquitoes do, however, have eyes that can see in many directions at once and are very good at detecting movement. Their brains are very simple, but one thing evolution has optimized them for is noticing imminent threats, like an approaching object or the slower motion of something trying to sneak up on them.  After all, nature is full of things that would like to swat or catch flies and mosquitoes.  So the moment you pick up a fly swatter, it's quite possible that the flies do notice the odd change in your movements and, just to be on the safe side, scatter.  The things flies do and don't react to can sometimes be puzzling to humans, but the continued existence of flies — and the demonstrable difficulty of swatting them — make it clear that whatever rules they use, they work pretty well even if we don't always understand them.  As for the sound of mosquitoes and crickets, I would simply suggest that, in a quiet environment, they are much easier to hear than to see.  If you look hard enough, you will find that annoying mosquito — but even if it sounds like it must be right next to your ear, it may actually be in some dark corner meters away.  —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 17:26, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Get one of these (or cheap equivalent) It's fun to hear them explode! :) --Zeizmic 17:58, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Wow thanks I've ordered one *evil laugh* - and thanks for the replies, they are certainly thought provoking Sandman30s 08:44, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

Road numbering
hello,

In the UK the road lettering is M for Motorway, Pri A & Sec A and B roads. And in other countries, France for example there are N and A etc. Can anyone help fill in this table of as much countries, inc the UK, with the road lettering with eachothers eqivilant. Ive started it off. Thanks, --81.79.10.11 15:50, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

See Numbered highways in the United States and you should be able to finish the US part yourself. I should have sent you there first instead of filling it out for you. Oh well. Anyway, good luck! --Justanother 16:08, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Great_Britain_road_numbering_scheme is a good start for the Uk, also the way you have done your table is a little odd. You should have the road-types going across and the nations going down, so it should go something like this (not knowing how to do graphs...) ||Highest Volume Road||Middle Volume Road||Low Volume Road||Rural Road||Other|| with the nations underneath. That way the equivilent to motorway (for example) can be seen by country quite quickly and will ensure some organisation to the order that the road-types are put in. Just a suggestion but that's what I would do. ny156uk 17:17, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

What the hay, here's my attempt at reorganising it:

ny156uk 17:22, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * The road numbering system doesn't work in quite the same way in the United States as it does in the UK. For example, people do not always preface interstate route numbers with "I", and they preface US route numbers with "US" even less often.  (US routes are generally known just as "Route X", and many people are not aware that they are any different from state highways.)  Also, some of the highest-volume roads in the US are state highways, not (federal) interstate highways.  Examples include many of the parkways around New York (which carry no route number but are known by name) and many of the freeways around Los Angeles.  Marco polo 17:31, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Also, the state highways (which make up the vast majority of numbered highways in the United States) do not have any letter prefix. They are known simply as "Route X" or "Highway X" (the usage may vary regionally).  There is no distinction between the highest-volume numbered state highways, which would be considered motorways in the UK, and the lowest-volume numbered state highways, which include unsealed (dirt) roads that may carry only a few vehicles per day.  Marco polo 18:23, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Beg to differ Marco but the official name of the road usually does include the letters. It is just in casual conversation that we leave out the letters; i.e. we say "take 95 north" when we mean I-95 and "where it intersects the 101" when we mean State Road 101 or SR101 (may also be the state like MA101 for Mass. State Road). Also see State highway. You are right that designated roads can vary in their size and state of maintenance. --Justanother 18:35, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * I'm not sure what Justanother means by "official name" of the road, but the official web site of the Massachusetts Department of Highways, while it does use a hyphenated 'I-' prefix before interstate route numbers, does not use a 'US' prefix before US route numbers mentioned on the page. On this page within the official website describing routes to Boston's airport, US Route 1 is referred to simply as "Route 1".  State Routes 1A and 16 are referred to simply as Route 1A and Route 16.  No 'US', no 'SR', no 'MA'.  None of the signage on these highways includes any of these prefixes.  Instead, there is just the highway number.  It is the same in other US states where I have traveled.  The only thing to distinguish the different categories of highway is the shape of the sign.  I say 'categories' of highway because, unlike in the UK and Europe, the different numbering systems in the US are not for different types of road.  Instead, the numbering systems differ depending on which governmental body has jurisdiction over the road.  However, letter prefixes (apart from sometimes "I" and very occasionally "US") are not used.  Marco polo 19:14, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * I picked MA at random. But for MA it looks like state roads are named Route XXX. A good clue as to the "official name" of a road is to look at what it is called in more official documents like contracts. In this list of public hearings you can see the naming by Route XXX. See also State highway which has a good example of how naming the "same" road varies by state. My point simply being that calling a road by just its number is casual, even if common, and that bare numbers is not the official naming schema. --Justanother 20:01, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * To add to the variety, Michigan's state highways are not refered to as "Routes" but simply by their M-nn designations. Where M stands for Michigan, not motorway and includes roads from eight lanes to one which allows non-motorized vehicles only. Rmhermen 19:43, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * California calls them "Routes," "State Routes" or "State highway routes" in the Streets & Highways Code. From a strictly legal perspective, all the highways in the state are State highways that are owned and operated by the State of California.  So the route commonly known as U.S. Route 101 is actually referred to as plain "Route 101" in the Streets & Highways Code.  The same goes for Interstates; thus, "Interstate 80" is actually legally defined as "Route 80."  The only substantial difference between routes is that some routes are federal-aid highways where some funding came/comes from the federal government.  This is reflected in their signage but not in their statutory designation.
 * The really confusing part, of course, is that most Californians use "Highway" as the prefix in casual speech for state highway numbers rather than "Route" or "State Route." But Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol do consistently use "State Route" in their documents nearly all the time.  --Coolcaesar 22:37, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

To follow up on what Marco Polo said, you can't really make a comparison between the US and the heirarchical British M/A/B/C system. Many freeways are state routes; a few are even just county highways. There's no clear difference between a "US" route and a "state" route -- the former just happen to keep the same designation between states. In some states, you can separate roads heirarchically into state-maintained ones (interstates, US and state highways), county-maintained ones and locally maintained ones. But some states don't have county roads -- or have nothing but county and state roads in some areas. -- Mwalcoff 01:44, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

Above question continued
I cant seem to find the name for the motorway equivalents for Norway, Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands and Iceland. Can anyone help?


 * Iceland doesn't have any - the closest is Route 1 (Iceland). Belgium, see List_of_motorways_in_Belgium.  Try the categories, e.g.Category: Transport in Norway, substituting the name of the country you're interested in for the others.  --Mnem e son 18:47, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Denmark: According to the Danish Wiki article on motorways in Denmark, the Danish use either their (unprefixed) national highways numbers or the ‘E’ prefix for the international E-road network for highways that are part of that network.
 * Norway: The same seems to be true for Norwegian motorways per this Norwegian Wiki list of motorways
 * Belgium and Netherlands: Per the Dutch Wiki article on motorways the prefix ‘A’ is used in Belgium and the Netherlands, along with the ‘E’ prefix where it pertains.
 * Iceland: There is no article on motorways in the Icelandic Wikipedia. A quick look at Google Earth revealed only two very short stretches of road, on the major highways into Reykjavik from the north and south, that might be considered motorway. According to the maps on Multimap, these roads (like those in Norway and Denmark that are not part of the E-road network) do not carry prefixes, but are numbered as part of the national highway numbering system that encompasses all roads.
 * Marco polo 18:56, 21 December 2006 (UTC):

U.S. elections (Update)
I asked this question months ago. It requires an update. HR member Keith Ellison (D-MN) is the first Muslim to be elected to the United States Congress. -- Toytoy 17:51, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * How many current/former U.S. governors and congress members are Buddhists or Muslims? -- Toytoy 14:44, 16 July 2006 (UTC)


 * It seems there has never been a Muslim member of Congress. Probably no governors either. --Cam 18:04, 16 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Is Jerry Brown a Buddhist? I know he had some kind of association with Buddhism, but it may have been just a flirtation. Wikipedia categorizes him as a Catholic. Bhumiya (said/done) 01:05, 17 July 2006 (UTC)


 * No muslin members of congress, however their was once zoastarian, their is also a Roman Catholic, who was raised hindue (both of indian origin).

Are any Reps or Senators from Hawaii Buddhists ? Some are of Japanese ancestry, so it seems like a possibility. StuRat 18:57, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Keith Ellison, a newly-elected U.S. Congressman is the very first Muslim elected to U.S. national office; he's been in the news recently as one yahoo congressman (Virgil Goode from Virginia) has been trying to tell us this is the end of the world.


 * Atlant 14:54, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

Literary fingerprinting?
What is the term for the technique of guessing a document's author based on the writing style? Does it have an article on Wikipedia? Neon   Merlin   17:58, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Graphology? It should be noted the operative word is guessing. Forensic scientists prefer questioned document examination. - Mgm|(talk) 19:10, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * That's for handwriting. I think he/she might mean some sort of philological investigation where you try to figure out the author by means of the literary style (not the handwriting). --24.147.86.187 23:31, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * In a criminology context, the field of forensic linguistics includes techniques for using the style of anonymous documents to identify their authors. In an academic context, higher criticism or "historical criticism" attempts to establish the authorship of historical documents, especially religious texts. Gandalf61 12:39, 22 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Some kinda comparative writing has been applied to texts. By means of statistical tools only, you can tell that one Corneille tragedy was surely written by Racine (or the opposite). -- DLL .. T 19:07, 22 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Stylometry. Wareh 20:12, 22 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Newer methods inculde Computational Discourse Analysis with computer programs such as Linguistic Inquiry Word Count (LIWC) or Latent semantic analysis (LSA). LIWC counts words in predefined categories and then calculates the means for each category. Statistical analysis of these means can lead to informative, and valid claims. Research has currently been focused on the topics of lying and emotional states. LSA has been used to grade essays, accurately, but has the ability to analyize documents for similarities related to authorship, though I am not aware of this particular application having been researched to present. --Dmarney 10:21 25 December 2006 (UTC)

Island
This has been torturing me all day! There is an island, that I think belonged to the UK, and now, I think it is still theirs, but the US uses it as its base. I think it's somewhere in the Indian Ocean or around right handside of Arica, as you can see I am not 100%. And I can't remember what it is called! Does anyone know what I am talking about? Recenlty it has been in the news, because the inhabitants that used to live there, had to move out, when UK gave the island to US navy or army, but now the supreme court of UK has allowed them to come back, but then again something happen that prevented them, and so on and so on. So, I just can't remember what it was called, but from the photos I saw on the web, it looked beautiful!!

thanks,

Svetlana Miljkovic 19:56, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Perhaps you are referring to Diego Garcia? Marco polo 20:26, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Well if im not wrong the US is allowed to use all british isles as military bases from the "Destroyers for bases" act in 1942 I think. Its most likely Diego Garcia but it could also be The Seychelles or Mauritius. Joneleth 00:28, 22 December 2006 (UTC)


 * yup it was Diego Garcia! thank you!

Svetlana Miljkovic 09:37, 22 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Seychelles and Mauritius are independent, not owned by the UK or anyone. The story of Diego Garcia is one of the saddest stories of the Indian Ocean (which is full of terrible stories). The UK decided they needed the whole island, so they simply got rid of the native peoples. While people had lived fairly well on Diego Garcia, most of the natives could not find a way to make a living, even on a subsistence level, in the Maldives, where they eventually ended up. Now they are often homeless beggars. This issue was taken up in a British court, which ordered the Admiralty to make reparations, but these were never made. This is all discussed at length in the wikipedia entry on Diego Garcia, which I often slip up and call Diego Rivera.Gabbyhayes 18:39, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

Did Jack "the Nonpareil" Randall win a Lightweight title.
Jack Randall ("the Nonpareil") reputedly won a lightweight prizefighting title in 1817 by defeating either West Country Dick on 3rd April or Joe Parish on 27 November. Can anyone confirm that he did indeed win a lightweight title and, if so, who it was against. Thanks. --Adscm 20:55, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Update: Have I posted this question to the correct Wikipedia page?? :-) --Adscm 21:15, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Yep, this is a good place to go. The International Boxing Hall of Fame bio on Jack Randall (hey, we have an article!) has no indication of him winning a lightweight title at any time, nor does it mention either of the fighters you've asked about. I suspect that the only place that information might be available would be in paper archives. Tony Fox (arf!) 21:25, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Thanks Tony (that was a quick reply!!!). Anyway, I've read Randall's biog in the IBHOF - it's fairly brief! I've also checked other boxing websites without luck. Does anyone know the Nonpareil's ring record; someone with an old bareknuckle prizefighting book perhaps? --Adscm 21:37, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Found a source calling him a "lightweight champion" (no mention of any opponents) but stating that he was more famous for the bar he owned, The Hole in the Wall than his boxing career. See also: Hazlitt, W. (1822) "The Fight". EricR 21:42, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * "Yonder individual, who strolls about with his hands behind him, supporting his brown coat lappets, undersized, and who looks anything but what he is, is the king of the light-weights, so-called ---Randall! The terrible Randall, who has Irish blood in his veins; not the better for that, nor the worse; and not far from him is his last antagonist, Ned Turner, who, though beaten by him, still thinks himself as good a man, in which he is, perhaps, right, for it was a near thing. Doyle, Arthur Conan (1907) Through the Magic Door"
 * EricR 22:10, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Was there an official lightweight title back in 1817 amongst the bareknuckle breed? Or was it merely that public opinion at the time considered him the best of the small pugilists? --Adscm 13:14, 23 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Don't know, but I'm sure there were hundreds and thousands of the latter. :--)  JackofOz 01:43, 3 January 2006 (UTC)

Medical Words
Is there a description for the way that medical terms seem to be combinations of smaller words put together (e.g. dyspepsia being dys (hard) and pepsia (digestion)). I think -itis is a popular one at the end of words and -noma too. I know they are suffixes but wondered if there was a term for the way medical/other terms are 'built' from existing words. ny156uk 22:35, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * The Agglutination page calls it 'derivational Latin agglutination'; in essence a collection of morphemes Wolfgangus 23:32, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
 * It's a bit funny to call it "Latin" when all components are actually Greek. --Lambiam Talk  12:35, 22 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Thanks, useful links. ny156uk 00:40, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

requesting extra info?
Hi, I was wondering on how to request extra info be put into an artical or for a certain artical to be written? Im really new here and dont know how to do much! any help would be appreciated. thanks


 * Add a message to the talk pages of the wiki-entry you are interested in (located at the top of any page). Alternatively be-bold and add in the extra information yourself/create the page yourself. The main-page will direct you to the appropriate place for finding out how to create a new article (before you do you should do a check to make sure a similar article doesn't exist to save wasting your own time/having your page deleted by another wikipedian). Remember any additions should be 'non point of view', trying to be concise and accurate (referencing where possible) will help improve the quality of wikipedia's articles. ny156uk 23:01, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * If you wish to request a creation of an article, go to Requested articles and read the instructions at the top of that page. To request expansion of an existing article visit Requests for expansion and if you feel that some article needs cleanup, go to Cleanup. (cleanup had backlog of ~19000 articles in October. Now its probably larger.) Be aware that it might be some time untill your request is fulfilled. Shinhan 17:46, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

Many Movies,Many Movie Scores
What do you think are the greatest movie scores of all time. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Shakesphere17 (talk • contribs)


 * This is not really a factual question. But you could always look at Academy Award for Original Music Score in order to get a general feel of the answers. &mdash; Kieff 23:27, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Many Movies, Many Questions
With all due respect I think you may be stretching your proverbial quota of questions for the week. Assuming this recurring Many Movies theme is all by the same person. Cheers. →Vranak←

I like anything by Ennio Morricone. Sashafklein

I like anything by David Raksin, but my favourite movie score is John Williams' Schindler's List. JackofOz 01:46, 3 January 2006 (UTC)

Puzzle
The code is : 3 - 4 - 88 - 22 - 8 - 7

Hint: The answer is on the table. Hint #2: .ic table

It is a puzzle my friend made, so I do not know the answer. Thank you. Jamesino 23:19, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


 * I could be one of those stupid riddles where the first part is meaningless; the answer is literally "on the table". La  ï  ka  23:33, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Look at the Periodic Table. Using an obvious rule, I come up with a valid english word. Dunno the connection with anything else, however. Bunthorne 23:50, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

By the way, is your friend into politics? Bunthorne 00:11, 22 December 2006 (UTC)
 * I like it, good puzzle pity the BELOW SPOILS IT! ;) Vespine 03:05, 22 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Bunthorne was right. The answer is Li-Be-Ra-Ti-O-N. The numbers represents the atomic number of the elements on the Periodic Table. Thanks guys. Jamesino 02:09, 22 December 2006 (UTC)