Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2010 July 25

= July 25 =

Pocket Monsters Best Wishes
What's the attack that Tsutarja is using in the new Best Wishes promo (you can see it at http://pokebeach.com)? --138.110.206.99 (talk) 01:26, 25 July 2010 (UTC)


 * Since this is a new pokemon that hasn't been included in any released games, you're mostly going to get guesses and difficult to verify information. Based on the second link, I'd say it's probably either Leaf Storm or Grass Mixer. Incidentally, you might get more answers if you refer to the usual English term pokemon when asking in English rather than pocket monsters, since pocket monsters can mean different things in English. 86.164.66.83 (talk) 19:00, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * "Pocket Monsters" is the correct name! The so-called translators ruined it! --138.110.206.101 (talk) 21:21, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * You may feel "Pocket Monsters" is a translation that is more accurate and has better 'flavor', but Nintendo chose a different name than you did, and it's the name that 95% percent of players are familiar with, so if I were you I would go with the flow when fishing for answers, in the hope of expanding the number of people who are likely to volunteer an answer to you. Comet Tuttle (talk) 21:31, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * You do realize that while "pocket monsters" is indeed the full naming, the shortening "pokemon" is taken straight from the Japanese language? They are both correct, but "pokemon" is way more common. The "so-called translators" don't deserve your wrath, at least not in this instance. TomorrowTime (talk) 10:01, 26 July 2010 (UTC)

Concrete screed to reduce damp
Would concrete screed poured over a stone garage floor be likely to reduce damp? We have a double garage that we partitioned into a games room, a small garage for bikes and garden tools, and a utility/washing machine space. Last month we got linoleum fitted in the utility, with a layer of screed underneath to even out the surface. The floor below that is stone flags sitting directly on the ground. Since then, the utility feels warmer and more comfortable to spend time in. But on the other hand, it's summer, we've had lovely weather recently, and there might even be a placebo effect from the room looking nicer. Is the screed likely to have stopped damp coming up through the stone paving? 81.132.218.31 (talk) 03:39, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Yes, it would help, but to completely stop damp you would need the plastic film manufactured for that purpose. Often, what people call "damp" is not rising at all but is condensation on the cold floor from the moist air above.  Any thermal insulation will help prevent this.    D b f i r s   07:44, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * No, the damp would soak though the concrete as well, unless you put a damp proof membrane underneath. You should be able to buy one from a builder's merchants. There used to be a self-leveling plastic liquid that was made for flooring in these circumstances - it should be still available. 92.29.122.159 (talk) 13:16, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * I agree that some rising damp might still soak through. This commercial link might help in the UK Visqueen   D b f i r s   16:15, 25 July 2010 (UTC)

vague memory of watching TV
I remember seeing some TV program a while ago, where they gave energy drinks or such like to possibly a young child, until they ended up running so fast they went back in time, or something, and might have saved the world. Does anyone have the slightest idea what it might have been that I was watching?

80.47.195.242 (talk) 19:48, 25 July 2010 (UTC)


 * Was it a cartoon? Do you remember anything about the style or colours? 86.164.66.83 (talk) 20:18, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Something like that happened on The Incredibles, but that was a film. Chevy  monte  carlo  - alt 07:24, 26 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Mmm... not really. Dashiell "Dash" Incredible's superpower was speed.  There were no energy drinks (or time travel) involved.  Kingsfold   (Quack quack!)  18:38, 26 July 2010 (UTC)

It may well have been a cartoon, and quite possibly a film. I think I also remember one of the other charaters saying something like "the last thing you need is [whatever]" and then then thinking 'actually, maybe that is a good idea'. 80.47.204.116 (talk) 09:19, 26 July 2010 (UTC)
 * I believe the idea of going back in time when running super fast originally comes from Flash (comics). 195.35.160.133 (talk) 13:06, 27 July 2010 (UTC) Martin.
 * There was an episode of Bananaman where he flew around the world backwards, cause time (or the whole earth) go back in time. The same occurred in the first Superman film.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by Csmiller (talk • contribs) 19:15, 27 July 2010 (UTC)

Lens colour question
Why are really expensive zoom lenses for SLR cameras coloured white instead of black, and really, really expensive zoom lenses coloured dark green instead of black? Is there some technical reason or is it just to visually set them apart from conventional lenses? J I P &#124; Talk 19:49, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * (OR) Large black tubes show up any fingermarks and green is a good camouflage colour for a Paparazzi. Cuddlyable3 (talk) 22:03, 25 July 2010 (UTC)


 * Not all long lenses are white, but many Canon L lenses are; see also here. I have not seen dark green lenses, but it may be a branding thing also. -- LarryMac  | Talk  10:09, 26 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Canon uses it as a marketing tool: the term Big White Lens is widespread in the photographic community for Canon's long lenses. I believe the original motivation was to reduce potential calibration effects of heating in the sun and to make them more comfortable to hold, as they are used almost exclusively outdoors.   Acroterion  (talk)  12:16, 26 July 2010 (UTC)

Tandem bikes
A TV program (Countryfile, if you are interested) just had a short bit on tandem bicycles and said that the person with the longest legs should go at the front. Does anyone know why that would be? --Tango (talk) 20:01, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * I've no idea but a blogger named cdnallie says "The EZ tandem geometry offers good adjustability regarding seat positioning so many different sized riders will feel comfortable in it. I do however think it works best for the rider with longest legs to steer on this particular bike." Cuddlyable3 (talk) 21:58, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * The shape of tandem frames typically has a sloping top tube from front to back. Therefore it fits best with the most long legged at the front.  You could, of course, have oddly sized seat pins or a strangely shaped frame, but that's not the normal way.  Steering and braking a tandem also takes a fair amount of strength, so it makes sense for the stronger person to steer and the weaker to be the stoker.  --Phil Holmes (talk) 16:34, 26 July 2010 (UTC)
 * A tandem is kept most stably at a standstill by a rider who both holds the steering handlebars and has both feet firmly planted on the ground. That suggests the person with the longest legs should go at the front. Cuddlyable3 (talk) 22:53, 26 July 2010 (UTC)

cemetery symbols
I visited a vault in an east coast cemetery. The 15 or so burials had taken place from 1869 - 1881. On the top shelf in the vault, in the two center spaces, there were the remains of metal crowns, one big (about basketball size) and the other smaller, like a large tiara. They had rusted to the point of looking like barbed wire. I don't know if originally they had been covered with cloth and/or other ornamentation. The vault occupants were not royalty. Most were Episcopalians and some were Baptists. What would have been the meaning of these crowns? Jaduff (talk) 22:01, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * East coast of where? "Episcopalians" suggests you might mean the USA, but it would be nice not to have to guess :-) . 87.81.230.195 (talk) 01:39, 26 July 2010 (UTC)
 * My guess is that they would be wreaths, where the foilage has gone and just the metal part remaining. 92.29.121.198 (talk) 08:30, 26 July 2010 (UTC)

Supervisor wages in Costa Coffee (UK)
Ok, this probably isn't the place but I don't know where else to look. Does anyone know what a shift supervisor, or a shop manager, makes in British cafe chains? I mean places like Costa, Nero, Starbucks, Pret à Manger etc. The ordinary servers will be on minimum wage, but surely their bosses get a bit extra? Just curious cause it looks like a lot of hard work, and I'm wondering if anyone might choose it as a career instead of just drifting there. 81.132.218.31 (talk) 22:03, 25 July 2010 (UTC)


 * This site says coffee shop managers in the UK earn between around £14k and £19k. That seems surprisingly low to me, though, so I'm not sure I trust it. I think a lot of coffee shops are franchised, meaning the managers are actually self-employed and their income will depend entirely on how well the shop does. --Tango (talk) 22:32, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
 * (ec) Actually, a better site is here - the Costa Coffee jobs page. It shows several vacancies for management positions. Store Managers seem to get around £17k to £21k, Assistant Managers get around £6.55 - £7.25 an hour (compared to minimum wage of £5.80/hr). It seems making coffee is really not a well paid job... --Tango (talk) 22:41, 25 July 2010 (UTC)


 * here's the current vacancy page for Costa Coffee UK, you can see the range of wages on offer for different positions there. Nanonic (talk) 22:35, 25 July 2010 (UTC)