Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2008 October 26

= October 26 =

Actual Rating
Does anyone know what an actual rating for a plane is? Thanks.92.4.224.251 (talk) 00:14, 26 October 2008 (UTC)


 * Can you give us some context to work with (like a link to a document where the term appears)? Are you talking about an aircraft, a flat surface, or a tool for shaving wood? FiggyBee (talk) 02:31, 26 October 2008 (UTC)

I was talking about an aircraft, but I've worked it out now. Thanks anyway. 92.3.202.106 (talk) 20:55, 26 October 2008 (UTC)

Go (the game) and Nets
When an opponent plays a net around your stones, is there any way to block it or prevent being captured? Calamus Fortis  00:35, 26 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Yes. Well, sometimes. It depends on the position, unsurprisingly. Do you have anything in mind specifically? Algebraist 03:06, 26 October 2008 (UTC)
 * No, I was just wondering if it were possible. I suppose the person being surrounded would need another stone very close to the stone that forms the first part of the net, right? (Did that make sense?) Calamus Fortis  04:06, 26 October 2008 (UTC)

US Combined Statistical Areas
I believe that the Portland Or/Vancouver WA CSA has been left out of the table and map of the US Combined Statistical Areas page. Thank you,   —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.196.155.251 (talk) 01:59, 26 October 2008 (UTC)


 * The Table of United States Combined Statistical Areas article specifically says that the "Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA MSA [does] not have a defined CSA". Is that information out of date? FiggyBee (talk) 02:53, 26 October 2008 (UTC)

Reagan Park?
Could someone tell me where the most famous one is located? Thanks --Crate3940 (talk) 04:51, 26 October 2008 (UTC)


 * List of honors named for Ronald Reagan offers several possibilities:


 * Reagan Park, Tampico (named 1985, formerly Railroad Park).
 * Reagan Park, Medina, Ohio.
 * Ronald Reagan Park, Diamond Bar, California.
 * Ronald Reagan Park, in Gdańsk, Poland.


 * Google found another one in Lawrenceville, GA, another in Palestine, TX...I'm sure there are lots more. I have no idea which is the most famous through.
 * SteveBaker (talk) 05:11, 26 October 2008 (UTC)

Colleges
I simply would like a list of colleges with a good philosophy dept. Filosojia X Non (Philosophia X Known) 06:51, 26 October 2008 (UTC) --Earthan Philosopher
 * Which country? Schools from the major anglophone countries are ranked here. Rockpock  e  t  07:32, 26 October 2008 (UTC)
 * I know from experience that Yale University is trying to rebuild its philosophy department. To do this they have hired large numbers of outstanding faculty, trying to draw students in. The offshoot being that until the department starts attracting droves of students it will enjoy a very favorable student:faculty ratio.  Plasticup  T / C  17:08, 26 October 2008 (UTC)
 * St. John's College, U.S. in Santa Fe, NM and Annapolis has the best bookstore I've ever been to. Philosophy based, teaches dead languages. Very trippy. --Moni3 (talk) 19:22, 26 October 2008 (UTC)

By the way, are we talking about graduate studies, or undergraduate studies?  Plasticup  T / C  20:01, 26 October 2008 (UTC)

Astoria, Oregon
(non-question removed by User:SteveBaker)


 * The ref-desk is not a soapbox. If you have a question, feel free to ask it and we'll try to answer.  If you want to appeal to people - you might also try using a few capital letters! SteveBaker (talk) 19:37, 26 October 2008 (UTC)

My Chances of Being Accepted into Cornell?
Hey everybody! I'm a student from Vancouver, Canada doing a full load of IB work. But I scored poorly on the SAT Do you guys think I can get into the Cornell College of Arts and Sciences in Early Decision? Will be applying for financial aid.


 * Female
 * White/Caucasian
 * 17
 * Blonde


 * GPA: 92.9% unweighted, weighted I don't know but I'm doing IB.
 * SAT I superscore: 1970 (CR 660, W 620, M 690) I know, terrible!
 * SAT II: Haven't taken them yet- taking 3 in Nov 1.


 * Predicted IB Marks: 42/45


 * Taking currently:
 * Higher Level English
 * Standard Level Spanish
 * Higher Level Math
 * Higher Level Chemistry
 * Higher Level Biology
 * Standard Level Geography
 * International Business (non-IB)


 * GPA has steadily risen by 0.5 - 1% from freshmen to junior year.


 * Extra-curriculars:
 * School Yearbook- Head of Photography, Senior Editor, Chief Layout Designer
 * School Newspaper- Head of Photography
 * Reach for the Top- a fast-paced general trivia competition against other schools
 * Grade 9 and 10 Science Fair winner at the City level
 * Did various graphic and logo design for the school and sports tournaments
 * Volunteered at a hospital for 54 hours during summer
 * Peer tutor for school from grade 10-12
 * Member of various activist groups: SAVY, Amnesty International.


 * Sports:
 * Varsity Girls Basketball team- Grade 9-10, local tournament MVP, assistant Captain
 * Varsity Track and Field- 1500m provincials qualifier, various gold at lower level competitions
 * Varsity Cross-Country- Co-captain. No prizes
 * Tae Kwon Do (out of school)- 2nd degree dan black belt- 7 years


 * Awards:
 * Honor Roll- grades 9-12
 * Science Fair winner- grade 9 and 10
 * National math contest- 25th percentile and higher grade 9

Do I even have a chance at Cornell? I want to go into medicine later on. Please help!!! ITGSEETest (talk) 19:08, 26 October 2008 (UTC)


 * Why don't you e-mail Cornell's Admissions Office and ask them? (I don't think they will care about your hair colour though.) Adam Bishop (talk) 19:15, 26 October 2008 (UTC)


 * While you're at it, email the track coach. If one of the sports teams really wants you they can put in a good word with the admissions office.  Plasticup  T / C  19:57, 26 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Also, unless you are completely sold on Cornell, apply to every Ivy League school plus Stanford (and maybe Duke). They are all very competitive, and for even the best students it is a bit of a lottery, so enter many times to increase your chances.  Plasticup  T / C  20:00, 26 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Just curious. Why did you think mentioning you're a blonde would be relevant to this question?  --  JackofOz (talk) 21:10, 26 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Or your "race"? Itsmejudith (talk) 21:53, 26 October 2008 (UTC)

Many schools, Cornell included, will give an under-represented minority applicant a greater chance than an over-represented one. It's easier for African Americans to get in that it is for Asians. ITGSEETest (talk) 22:42, 26 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Whites and women, making up disproportionally large portions of the application pool, both suffer discrimination in the admission process.  Plasticup  T / C  01:11, 27 October 2008 (UTC)


 * It's been 20 years since I took the SAT, but if that's out of 800 maximum (I know it was in the U.S. last I heard) I wouldn't be too worried. Not everyone tests really well, and as long as your GPA and other things are good, you will defeinitely get looked at. (I don't know what the averge SAT score of a Cornell grad is.)


 * I agree with what others have said about applying to others, the track team, and would even see about basketball, though since you're presently in track they'll be better able to gauge your ability. The number of activities you have been in show that you're able to handle a hevy load and be a very well-rounded person.


 * So, while I can't say anything with certainty, I would say that they will defeinitely look at you, and you should apply for a variety of schools. A lot has to do with the luck of the draw, too, as far as how many very similar students have applied.Somebody or his brother (talk) 23:23, 26 October 2008 (UTC)


 * Your grades/activities strike me as probably pretty standard for Ivy Leagues, which probably would make you a borderline case. If you write an essay which really sparkles—makes you look like a good fit without appearing to be trying too hard—you'll probably be pretty safe. If not, then it looks 50/50 to me. What you need is something to distinguish you from the other A-, lots of activities, good-but-not-stellar test score kids out there, of which there are many. Most have no personality. Not all schools care about personality, but I'm fairly sure Cornell does. Draft your essay early, run it by a LOT of people. You want it to be about as engaging as an essay in the New Yorker, if you can. ;-) (My judgment of this comes primarily from conversations with someone I know who worked for many years in admissions at a number of top-tier US schools. Not all US schools do admission this way but the Ivies generally do.) --98.217.8.46 (talk) 23:57, 26 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Don't beat yourself up over the SATs. They're certainly not everything. Also, certainly don't focus everything on Cornell. That fact is, few people will get into their absolute-number-one-no-other-option school. (Unless your last name is Rockefeller or if your family is in the Social Register.) Nor do you have to focus on all Ivies, either. That fact is, schools like Berkeley or Michigan may well be better than a school like Dartmouth or Brown. (And if you're interested in engineering, MIT and Caltech are each better than any Ivy.) So your SATs are lower than those of some Cornell applicants, that's sure, but write a very good (that is, *distinctive* - you don't have to be a great writer, just set yourself apart from others) essay and you'll have a much better chance. zafiroblue05 | Talk 02:27, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Doug Hall
Doug Hall was a judge on American Inventor, and on there it said that the average American home has 18 of his inventions in it. I have looked on google and have found websites that say this, but none of them say what the 18 inventions are. Does anyone know? Thanks. W.i.k.i.p.e.d.i.a - Reference desk guy (talk) 22:28, 26 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Sounds spammy. The "18 inventions in every home" claim is no longer in the article. Consider WP:AFD. Edison (talk) 03:38, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

That claim was actually made on the television program, although no where is there any evidence of this (that I can find) such as a list of the 18 inventions.W.i.k.i.p.e.d.i.a - Reference desk guy (talk) 03:49, 27 October 2008 (UTC)


 * If we assumed it was correct, it's probably a chemical or chemical process. Which is not as interesting as "18 inventions" sounds at first (the light bulb! the phonograph! the motion picture camera!), but could be legitimate. Though I will note that I don't find very much obvious "Doug Hall" patents in Google Patents—certainly not 18. Which makes it a little more dubious unless he was not the primary inventor. --98.217.8.46 (talk) 14:00, 27 October 2008 (UTC)


 * Since he worked for Proctor and Gamble, I'm guessing that what he 'invented' were new kinds of shampoo or cosmetics. Since he was appointed "Master Marketing Inventor" he may also have included new product packaging or something like that. If he also took the credit for innovations that were produced under his supervision it's conceivable that the average home does indeed have some high number of products he was in some way responsible for. DJ Clayworth (talk) 17:15, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Thanks. W.i.k.i.p.e.d.i.a - Reference desk guy (talk) 18:44, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Time
[question and debate deleted --Anon, 05:58 UTC, October 28, 2008]

We have a rule that says: "The reference desk does not answer requests for opinions or predictions about future events. Do not start a debate; please seek an internet forum instead". This whole thread seems to be in clear breach of that. If we don't abide by our own rules, how can we reasonably expect our users to do the same? Sorry if that seems uncool, but we regularly send away users who arrive with these sorts of questions, so it seems a little unfair to be indulging one of our own. -- JackofOz (talk) 04:54, 27 October 2008 (UTC)


 * Sorry, it wasn't my intention to start a debate. W.i.k.i.p.e.d.i.a - Reference desk guy (talk) 15:31, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

So, putting the question in the form of a question, "Are there documented economic benefits or costs, and are there demonstrated differences in accident rates (such as school children being hit by cars while going to /from school in the dark) due to datlight savings time? Edison (talk) 18:42, 27 October 2008 (UTC)