Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2009 April 4

= April 4 =

6-on-3
Has any team scored while being short three players in a hockey match (5-on-3 + pulled goalie)? Kurtelacić (talk) 00:33, 4 April 2009 (UTC)


 * I'd be very surprised if it's never happened in the NHL (with an empty net, it just takes a lucky shot down the ice), but I don't know of an instance. A Google search on the two phrases "empty net" and "six on three" turns up one fairly recent instance in US college hockey: Chad Kolarik of Michigan did it on October 14, 2006, as part of a 7-5 win over Connecticut.  --Anonymous, edited 01:11 UTC, April 4, 2009.
 * Thank you a lot :) Kurtelacić (talk) 12:59, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

Zulu War Campaign Game
Does anyone know of any games that deal with the Zulu War? I have heard rumours that Total War has a few scenarios, but I am not sure which version. Empires Total War might be the one. Can anyone confirm this before I buy it?--KageTora (talk) 11:05, 4 April 2009 (UTC)
 * This game may be of interest to you. Our articles on the Total War series don't seem to indicate any Zulu-themed campaigns. Matt Deres (talk) 12:35, 4 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Unfortunately, it looks like production ceased on that game in 2001. -Elmer Clark (talk) 06:13, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Academics
I am from India... studying in the Indian Institute of technology (IIT) Madras.

As you might have heard, this is a very prestigious institution in our country, requiring years of preparation and hard work to get into, and once in, provides high quality education to its students. Getting here is like a dream for many children here...

However, on a global scale, the IITs are ranked, by most surveys, pretty low... not even in the top 100s. Despite it being the most preferred institution for a billion people, i feel it doesn't quite get the recognition it deserves. Being a student here, i know what's going on here as well as in other colleges, but despite the high standards, its not quite in the league of the big guns as per most surveys, say compared to NUS (National University of Singapore), which is ranked in the top 20 in most surveys. I tell you, any person from India will go to NUS if and only if he doesn't get a branch of his choice in any of the premier IITs. The cream of the country come here, but on a global scale, its just not there!

I just wanted an explanation on this... Wondering out loud where we are going wrong...Rkr1991 (talk) 13:21, 4 April 2009 (UTC)


 * It will depend on the survey. Most surveys are made with relevance to the proximity of their readers. A BBC survey, for example, will rate British universities higher, purely because it is more relevant to British people. Similarly, an American survey will rate American universities higher. It's got nothing to do with what the universities are doing wrong or doing right. It's just a simple fact. Be happy you are in a prestigious university and don't worry about whether it is Number Whatever in the world.--KageTora (talk) 18:01, 4 April 2009 (UTC)
 * I'd take any ranking with a large amoung of salt, apparently I go to one of the best in the country and the world and I find that slightly disturbing. I was looking at this website which is cited on the Imperial College page for where it finds out it is 5th in the world, and the terrible typing errors on the page where it explains how the ranks were worked out so it doesn't fill me with a lot of confidence. Then looking at their criteria it looks like establishments are ranked based on survey of academics asking them to say which university they think is best, only 6000 odd people responded and it although there was weighting it respondents could only reply once and not their own institution, so maybe the your institute just wasn't rated very often, 50% of the final score was based on this and another very similar type of question. Then there is another 10% based on 'international factors', on the IIT page it explains that there are not many international students or faculty the and considering the [brain drain] gives other institutions more points in these areas. These factors are a bit unfair because as you said they are preferred establishments in India because they fall at the hurdle of not being as well known in the rest of world, and when they are known given they might not be the number 1 of the people being asked. However, the article on IITs says that they fall on not having internationally recognised research, the ranking systems do use citations by faculty so if the work that is being done isn't being cited by as many people as work by other establishments that's another (arguably important) reason that they are not as highly ranked.
 * If you really wanted to go up the ranks, I'd imagine getting a better PR dept for the institute would help and they go on a global drive to get themselves more recognised. But, does it matter that much? I understand there is an issue of pride in your alma mater but as you said they are the prefered establishments of a billion people that's pretty good, and the fact that the brain drain exists mean that you're coming out with an internationally recognised degree that puts you in good stead to compete with people around the world for jobs so in reality must be ranked as high as if you went to any other establishment.MedicRoo (talk) 18:32, 4 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Does it matter that much? Yes, it does — for lots of practical reasons. The higher ranked a place is, the more respect and importance it conveys if you graduate from it, the more people of higher calibre who want to go there to learn or teach, the more money it generally is able to raise, and so forth. These things do matter in material ways for those who attend said institutions. Rankings matter a lot — Harvard wouldn't be Harvard, for example, if people didn't understand that "Harvard" means at or close to #1. (Are the ranking accurate, sensible? An entirely different question. I suspect in most cases not. Harvard is an excellent example — there are plenty better places to get an undergraduate education in the world. But if Harvard wasn't in the top 5 then people would cry and whine and discount the rating system in question. Ratings very quickly start to be a mirror of expectations... which is the tail wagging the dog.) All that being said, if you are not planning to leave India, then all that matters is the respect it conveys within India. In the USA I doubt most people could name any educational institution in India; but the same goes for China and most of Europe as well. --140.247.250.235 (talk) 19:42, 4 April 2009 (UTC)


 * The IITs are fairly new and need to build up their reputations. Despite India being huge the IITs taken all together are probably only the same size as one of the multi site US state universities. See for instance the highly regarded University of Pennsylvania and Cornell University that another person from India was asking about just a few questions after you below. They show what builds prestige and fame. You can't have loads of Nobel prizes for instance without a bit of history. Dmcq (talk) 09:22, 5 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Those universities I mentioned aren't one of the multi-site universities in the US state university system. See California State University for a huge example of that. Dmcq (talk) 09:32, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

dreaming while under anasthesia
does anyone dream while under anasthesia, such as during an operation? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.100.237.252 (talk) 17:54, 4 April 2009 (UTC)
 * I personally have some recollections of dreams while being anaesthetised, and a sizeable amount of people claim to have had NDEs, so I would say yes.--KageTora (talk) 18:03, 4 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Definitely. Kittybrewster  &#9742;  13:07, 5 April 2009 (UTC)


 * When having my wisdom teeth out, I was under local, and thought about something (a baseball game featuring some all-time teams) to pass the time. I found that I drifted into it sufficiently that I was there, enough that I would say it was a dream. So, yes, although perhaps not always a dream as most would classify it. It's almost like a cross between a daydream and a regular dream, in this case.Somebody or his brother (talk) 00:50, 6 April 2009 (UTC)


 * If you were the one that was making the story up, and it felt sufficiently real that you were there, that would be akin to a lucid dream.--KageTora (talk) 07:29, 7 April 2009 (UTC)


 * I've been under general anesthesia 4 times (the most recent was last week), and never dreamed. In fact, every time, it seemed like I just blinked and it was over.--Shuttlebug (talk) 21:24, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Are Penn and Cornell Good Universities?
Dear Sirs and Madams,

Recently, I have been blessed with the good fortune of being accepted into both the University of Pennsylvania and Cornell University in the USA. Coming from India, not many people have heard of these two, of what I think, excellent universities. From a Western point of view, especially from an American point of view, are these two universities considered "excellent" universities? If not, I will choose to attend a local university and save the 50k a year.

Secondly, in terms of reputation, which of these two are better? I realize that they are located in two geographically diverse locations, but only in terms of reputation, which is better in pre-med education and will help me get a job later, hopefully in the States if I can get a Visa.

Many thanks, 99.240.175.185 (talk) 19:56, 4 April 2009 (UTC)


 * In unofficial, off the top of my head rankings, both of the schools would be among the best (among the top 20 or so) schools in the US. There are probably more precise rankings on the university's articles, and rankings vary by subject, but they may very well be worth 50k a year. (However, cost of living at either wouldn't be cheap, due to their locations, just something to keep in mind if you don't have a scholarship.) Alexius  Horatius 20:03, 4 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Yes indeed, living costs can vary a lot, and be eyewatering for some places (hello Stanford). The dean of admissions for a given school will generally have (and often post on their part of the University's website) an estimate of the living costs for students living near the school. 87.115.166.150 (talk) 20:08, 4 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Both are excellent schools, both highly regarded, and both members of the Ivy League. I don't know about rankings for undergrad, but for medical school (if you chose to go onto medical school at the same institution) Penn seems to be ranked very highly . While I would assume that a school with a good medical school would do pre-med well, I frankly don't know for a fact that that's true. 87.115.166.150 (talk) 20:06, 4 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Both are excellent schools. In terms of differences, which may help making a decision, you probably want to visit each campus.  Cornell is also a part of the SUNY system, besides being an private Ivy League school (certain programs are state funded, like the Agriculture program, I think) and is, IIRC, the largest of the Ivy League schools.  Its in a fairly rural part of upstate New York, in a little town called Ithaca, New York.  The only city of any size nearby is Syracuse, New York, and that's not even that close, or all that large.  Penn, on the other hand, is downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and so has all the ammeneties (and drawbacks) of living in one of the largest cities in America.  So, both are good schools, but both are VERY DIFFERENT places to go to school.--Jayron32. talk . contribs  01:09, 5 April 2009 (UTC)