Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2012 March 13

= March 13 =

Census data can be this detailed?
I was amazed by this article showing just how much data there is from the census. I have been playing around with America Factfinder for a few hours ( http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/index.xhtml ) and I can't figure out a way to replicate the data at the bottom. Does anyone know if its possible by Factfinder and if so how?

"There are roughly 15,500 households in the city with school-age children where the total income is at least $150,000 and both parents were born abroad. Of those, about 10,500, or 68 percent, use only the public schools, the data show.

That is nearly double the rate of American-born parents in the city in the same income bracket.

The census data include both immigrants and those temporarily stationed in the city for work. The disparity is even sharper for foreign-born parents with household incomes of $200,000 or more. About 61 percent send their children only to public schools, compared with 28 percent of native-born couples in the same income bracket." http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/15/nyregion/foreign-parents-in-new-york-prefer-public-schools.html?pagewanted=all

Momofukucakes (talk) 04:23, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Two things to remember:
 * 1) Only a teeny-weeny proportion of the information available from the Census Bureau comes from the 10-year general censuses, and the information that comes from the general censuses is not of the highest quality or significance. There's no practical reason to conduct the general census, in fact, as there are much better ways to collect better quality data. The only reason we still conduct it is that it's legally mandated, and serves as the basis for drawing up congressional districts, assigning electoral votes, and allocating federal funding.


 * 2)The Census Bureau possesses extremely sophisticated tools to search and analyze its vast array of databases, as well as the databases of many other government and non-government agencies and private databases. Factfinder is a blunt hammer (for "playing around with", as you put it). The New York Times subscibes to much more sophisticated services provided by the Census Bureau that can run rings around factfinder in the dark with one leg cut off and the other broken. An experienced researcher using these sophisticated tools can access exremely detailed information and find significant relationships between them, much more sophisticated than the NYT journalist did.


 * So the answer is that you probably cannot verify the information in the article using only Factfinder. You need more sophisticated tools for that, and you have to pay to use those. Dominus Vobisdu (talk) 05:45, 13 March 2012 (UTC)

Thanks Dominus for the complete answer. Do you know how sophisticated factfinder is? Like what's the most detailed info you've been able to pull using the program? Momofukucakes (talk) 06:15, 13 March 2012 (UTC)

Putting an outdoor pool indoors
I wonder if a small, inflatable ring pool could be used in an unfinished basement, like the 3rd smallest one here:. The concrete floor of a basement isn't quite flat, being slanted slightly toward the drain. Is it still good enough ? Then there's the weight to consider. At 8 1/3 pound per gallon, we're talking maybe 6000 pounds for the 3rd smallest pool, but that's over 50 square feet, or about 120 pounds per square foot, or less than 1 PSI. Can the concrete handle that ? It would need to be drained, slowly, into the basement drain, and filled with a hose from a nearby faucet. So, have I overlooked anything, or have I thought of a way to cool off in summer without having to clean out leaves (and the annoying corpses of those neighbor kids who keep sneaking into outdoor pools and drowning there) ? StuRat (talk) 05:13, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * I can't think of any reason why it wouldn't physically work out as far as the weight goes. At 8' across, it may make getting around the outside edge of the pool challenging unless you have a fairly open basement.  Another thing to consider is the humidity.  The evaporation will likely be minimal since it's your basement but it may be enough to at least take into consideration.  And not all the water is going to stay in the pool.  Some will get tracked out and such and it has to go somewhere.  The other advantage to having it outside is the enjoyment of being outdoors in the fresh air and sunshine.  Dismas |(talk) 05:55, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Good point about the humidity. I wonder how much evaporation takes place over a 50 square foot area of water at room temp.  Perhaps a pool cover would be needed, when not in use, to solve this issue.  StuRat (talk) 05:59, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * It is a weird idea and quite extreme just to avoid scooping out a few leaves. Get yourself a pool cover and put it in the backyard.  If you do put it in the basement, can you put 650 gallons down that small drain when you empty it, and is the ceiling high enough so you can climb over the edge without cracking your head open?  And I wonder how big th parts are - can you get them in the house and down to the basement?  Astronaut (talk) 07:32, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * The one I linked to is only 2.5 feet deep, so that should be easy to climb into and out of. It seems that the parts are quite small, being inflatable.  The hard-sided pools have much larger bits.  I expect it would take many hours to drain, but what's the hurry ? StuRat (talk) 08:04, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Oh, I see now. They're little kids in the pool, not adults.  Will 30" be deep enough for your enjoyment?  Astronaut (talk) 17:31, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Deep enough to cool off, yes. StuRat (talk) 17:59, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * This seems like a bad idea for a number of reasons. First, these rubber pools are rather prone to bursting (especially since you say the floor isn't quite flat). Imagine what several thousand gallons of water released all at once will do to your basement- especially if there are any electric outlets or devices. The high humidity from all of the evaporation will also be great for your floor and the walls and you'll probably have tons of mold. 71.223.2.17 (talk) 07:37, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * The humidity could be handled with a cover, as noted previously. But you say they are prone to bursting, not just leaking ?  That is bad.  I wonder what causes that and if measures could be taken to prevent it, like taping up the sides. StuRat (talk) 08:07, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Another thing to consider is the temperature of your basement. Mine stays fairly cool even on hot days.  Which means that the water would stay cooler than if it were outdoors.  You might find that you're only using it on the hottest of days since it's too cold on an average day.  It's a little like the debate over owning an air conditioner up here in Vermont.  Many people, my wife and I included, don't own one because we'd only use it maybe one week out of the year.  Dismas |(talk) 09:07, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * My basement isn't air-conditioned, so gets quite hot in summer. Hence the idea of a pool there. StuRat (talk) 18:01, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Not just the humidity, but how well sealed and water-proof is that concrete floor and the walls and ceiling? If it were me, I would at least want to put down a soft mat (even just stuff for under carpets) and a waterproof sheet. The soft mat would reduce the risk of holes in the bottom and make it more comfortable to sit in, and the waterproof sheet would protect the floor from some of the splashes. I'd probably empty the pool by syphoning most of the water directly into the drain with a length of hose, before scooping and finally tipping the last bits out (sorry if this whole sentence is obvious). I would not want to risk water soaking into the fabric of the building. 86.164.69.49 (talk) 23:51, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Don't quite understand what you mean about the "fabric of the building". As far as I know, all concrete is waterproof, once it sets.  I was hoping the pool would have a drain in the center which would be right over the floor drain, with an adjustable flow rate.  The mat is a good idea, but I'd need to put a hole in the center of that, too.  StuRat (talk) 00:35, 14 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Where does the drain go? Are you on a city water system?  Would they get upset with you for having that much chlorinated water go into their system?  (Can you tell I don't own a pool?)  Or does this go out to the back forty?  Dismas |(talk) 00:54, 14 March 2012 (UTC)


 * We have a lovely combined sewer system here, which means it would drain into the storm sewer, which then combines with the sanitary sewer at the end of our street. I would tend to think the rate I could drain a pool would pale in comparison with the rate rain can fill the sewer, but it would make sense to avoid draining the pool while it's raining.  Note that an outdoor pool would drain the same way.  That is, it would pour down the driveway into the street, and then into the storm sewer, and on to the combined sewer.  The only way to avoid this would be to drain it a few gallons a day, at a rate the postage stamp lawn could absorb.  StuRat (talk) 01:51, 14 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Assuming you cover it up in between uses and you have a standard U.S.-issue concrete-and-concrete -block basement, I don't see why it wouldn't work in principle: people have been sleeping on waterbeds since the '70s. A mat is a good idea, since any hard bits on the floor would quickly make a hole if trodden upon. I don't know about the risk of sudden bursting, which would be an obvious Bad Thing. I don't see weight as an issue: the lowest credible soil bearing value is 1000 lb/sf (you need to be more concerned with the soil under the floor than the concrete itself, which can take 2000+ lb/square inch). If there's a void under the slab, or poor compaction, you might get a cracked floor. I would worry about electricity + water, as there are likely power outlets close by. Structurally, it's way better than some of the insane hot tubs I see on dubiously-constructed elevated decks: I'm surprised there aren't more collapses.  Acroterion   (talk)   02:14, 14 March 2012 (UTC)

OK, thanks for the suggestions everyone. StuRat (talk) 02:53, 16 March 2012 (UTC)

Presidental candidates not determined before convention?
In US presidential elections, in the Democratic and Republican parties, when was the last time that in one of the parties, no candidate had more than 50% of the delegates going into the convention? Bubba73 You talkin' to me? 05:17, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Brokered convention answers my question. I thought that some in he 1960s or 70s were that way, but they weren't.  Bubba73 You talkin' to me? 05:20, 13 March 2012 (UTC)

Surnames ending in -win.
Could anyone be so kind as to provide me with a list (or at least several examples) of surnames that end in -win, e.g. Baldwin? Thank you in advance. --190.19.96.72 (talk) 05:45, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * See Goodwin (surname). Dismas |(talk) 05:47, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Or Godwin. StuRat (talk) 05:54, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * And Unwin. AndyTheGrump (talk) 06:08, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Litwin, Darwin, Irwin, Kerwin, Orwin, Gladwin.   → Michael J Ⓣ Ⓒ Ⓜ 07:10, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * and Chatwin, Corwin, Elwin, and Selwin, ---Sluzzelin talk  07:17, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * and Ashwin. --   Jack of Oz   [your turn]  08:05, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Chegwin, Lewin, Medwin, Merwin, Sherwin.--Shantavira|feed me 08:44, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * (*cough*): Gershwin. --   Jack of Oz   [your turn]  09:46, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * By George, you beat me to it. :) Grapewin also comes to mind, although that could be a corruption of "Grapevine". In general, that "-win" suffix means "friend". ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 09:50, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * And once we've left the Anglosphere: Golowin, Czernowin, and Win (though the latter isn't a suffix). ---Sluzzelin talk  10:26, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * (Edit conflict) Bodwin, Goodwin and Goldwin. Win itself is also a surname, only perhaps only in Burma/Myanmar (eg. Soe Win and Nyan Win) and it's not etymologically related to the other names (though the fairly common surname "Wynn(e)" might be). Smurrayinchester 10:33, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * How bout Winsock? Oh no I got it transpoded :{--PoppetSucker (talk) 17:01, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Theres's also Botwin, as seen on Weeds. StuRat (talk) 18:57, 13 March 2012 (UTC)

A good friend of mine has the surname "Win," nothing else. His father was Burmese. DOR (HK) (talk) 08:42, 14 March 2012 (UTC)
 * There's also Trewin; Wikipedia has articles about Dennis Trewin, J. C. Trewin, and Ion Trewin. Graham 87 08:50, 14 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Most of the "win" suffix names are Old English, like this chap Godwin, Earl of Wessex, (the "win" element from "wine", meaning friend or protector or "sweyn", meaning "follower of") but Trewin is a Cornish language name; it is a Habitational name meaning "white homestead" from "gwen" which is Cornish for "white". Polwin and Penwin are Cornish surnames too. "By Tre Pol and Pen / Shall ye know Cornish men". [User:Alansplodge|Alansplodge]] (talk) 16:32, 14 March 2012 (UTC)
 * "Win" is also a variant spelling of the Anglo-Welsh surname "Winn" or "Wynn(e)", again meaning "white", Welsh and Cornish being related. Alansplodge (talk) 18:54, 14 March 2012 (UTC)

There's lots of derivate names (in whatever direction) too. Lewin / Levin / Levine / Lewinsky etc. 67.117.144.57 (talk) 03:26, 17 March 2012 (UTC)

Places that rent culinary equipment in Charlottesville, Virginia
Can anyone recommend a business in that area that rents dishes, pots, pans, utensils, and anything else related to cooking to individuals as well as companies? Thanks in advance. 70.52.77.66 (talk) 06:14, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * I'd try places which cater. After all, they normally rent you pots containing food, so I'd expect some to be able to rent them without the contents, too.  I'd also expect some rental halls with cooking facilities to provide dishes for use during the rental period.  And I know places like Extended Stay America rent out efficiencies, dishware included.   StuRat (talk) 07:26, 13 March 2012 (UTC)

Blood tests in the UK
In the UK, if a person suspects there is something wrong with them but a doctor is unwilling to offer a blood test, can the person bypass the doctor and arrange a blood test themselves (presumably at their own expense) or are blood tests ONLY available via a doctor and if the doctor thinks you're a hypochondriac then it's tough cookies? Mightcause88 (talk) 11:34, 13 March 2012 (UTC)
 * This company offers blood tests at centres throughout the UK and "includes a Total Blood Screen which consists of over 40 individual tests that have been selected by our Specialist Consultants to measure and evaluate the body's major organ functions such as the Liver, Kidney, Bone, Muscle and Thyroid. Some of the other areas that are focused on are the blood's red and white cell levels, blood sugars and minerals and a comprehensive examination of your cholesterol levels can assess and evaluate future risk to heart disease.".
 * Whether you can get a test probably depends on what you want to have your blood tested for. You can also get screening for AIDS, hepatitis, etc, at sexual health/GUM clinics.  Some pharmacists will test for diabetes and possibly other conditions.  And you can request a second opinion from another doctor. --Colapeninsula (talk) 11:41, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Other perhaps than infectious disease, blood tests by themselves are rarely sufficient to diagnose illness - which is why they're ordered by doctors, who have access to the rest of the patient's information (their medical history, age, gender, and symptoms). There are dozens of possible blood tests, which test for specific indicators - which is why they're ordered by doctors, who pick appropriate tests for candidate diagnoses, based on other factors. Some person who picked tests for himself, based on his own uneducated guesswork, and who then attempts to interpret those results based on more uneducated guesswork would be acting very very very very very very very very very very very very foolishly.  Such a person should obviously see a doctor; if they're not happy with what that doctor tells them they should see another doctor. 87.113.79.33 (talk) 14:18, 13 March 2012 (UTC)

Surreal joke
Many years ago I remember reading a joke in a student rag mag. It went thus: ''Whats the difference between a duck? One of its legs is the same!'' I found it amusing and sort of worked out the joke, but when I tell it to other people, there is a stunned silence. Why dont other people get it??--92.25.105.29 (talk) 17:23, 13 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Why does a flamingo stand with one leg up in the air? ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 23:31, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * I don't know the answer to your question, but I heard that joke many years ago, and I get the same reaction as you whenever I tell it 86.134.43.228 (talk) 17:32, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * I don't get it.Anonymous.translator (talk) 17:54, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Perhaps you should explain it. StuRat (talk) 17:56, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * I'm glad the OP said they "sort of worked it out", because to have completely understood it would say something I'd rather not get into here. The version I've been telling for many decades (and I told it to some new victims only this past weekend) is "What's the difference between a chicken? One of its legs is both the same".   I've never claimed to have got it, because it's not meant to be understood - it's a koan, like "the sound of one hand clapping". I like asking it because the answer has a lovely symmetry with the question, in that they're just as absurd as each other, and I love the look of bewilderment on people's faces.  Almost everyone I've ever put this question to has come back with "Between a chicken and what?", so I just restate the question.  People crave answers to things, their psyches demand a logical pathway to resolution, but this is the sort of thing that will never, ever satisfy that need.  People ought to be regularly bewildered, flummoxed, confused, upset, disturbed and distressed.  Nothing worse than going through life being permanently in control, always confident; that would be the greatest lie one could ever tell to oneself.  --   Jack of Oz   [your turn]  19:23, 13 March 2012 (UTC)
 * We have an article on anti-humor. Note the section "Nonsense jokes". Deor (talk) 20:35, 13 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Maybe the OP needs to talk to the "Why is a chicken?" poster on the Science page. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 23:31, 13 March 2012 (UTC)
 * The line is one of its legs is both the same. I think it's not as funny without the word both.  Try that next time. --Trovatore (talk) 23:49, 13 March 2012 (UTC)
 * By the way, why is a mouse when it's spinning? The further the higher! --Trovatore (talk) 23:51, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * The answer could also be 'nothing'. The way I analysed the joke was as follows:
 * To have a difference between something, you must have two of them. Now, since the duck is on :::ts own, we make two almost identical parts by splitting the duck from beak to tale, length :::wise. Now we can compare the two halves. We see that each half is a mirror image of the other :::and that therefore there is no substantial difference between the halves. The answer given in :::the joke (one of its legs is the same) means that both legs are identical nad there fore there :::is NO difference between a duck or for that matter any other animal split in a similar manner. :::But ,hey, too much analysis takes all the fun out of things, dont it? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 92.25.105.29 (talk) 00:17, 14 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Hmmm - way too much analysis. Some jokes are not intended to be explained - and this is definitely one of them!  Anyway, you're wrong - the legs of bipedal animals are different. See Chirality. 216.136.51.242 (talk) 13:46, 14 March 2012 (UTC)

At least not to the rest of us. If you really must, at all costs, avoid trying to explain it. I've no idea who you are and you may say you're not a scientist, but I say, you've definitely missed your vocation. --Dweller (talk) 13:02, 14 March 2012 (UTC)


 * french anecdote : in the times of Georges Courteline, freshmen intering the infantry 'd be ready to answer the sergent's question : "What are your feet ?" with a quick : "My feet are the object of my most complete care and concern...". So....( Just passing by, to deposit a question about a whisky flask in the '40 ) cheers, Arapaima (talk) 10:31, 15 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Or the Edwin Carp answer, "My feet are what keep my legs from fraying at the ends." ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 02:29, 16 March 2012 (UTC)


 * It's the way you tell 'em (maybe). I remember The Grumbleweeds doing this joke on their (mostly dire) ITV teatime show in the 1980s, although I would hesitate to credit them with inventing it. It was delivered in the style of the late Frank Carson, if I remember correctly, and played on the stereotyped 'Irish' logic.--Michig (talk) 12:49, 15 March 2012 (UTC)

No soap radio ? 67.117.144.57 (talk) 03:28, 17 March 2012 (UTC)

chess ratings?
When I look up chess ratings, I've noticed that under their current rating, there is often a "current floor" rating less than their current one. What is that? Is that used in other rating systems too? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.43.78.36 (talk) 18:23, 13 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Have you read our article on the Elo rating system, which includes a subsection on rating floors? The floor is a point below which a given player's calculated rating will not drop.  My understanding, though I'm going from memory here, is that it's an artifact created because of the tendency towards inflation in the Elo scheme.  &mdash; Lomn 18:42, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * I think the reason for rating floors is to keep someone from getting a rating that is much lower than their actual playing strength so they can win prizes in a lower group. In the US (at least) it is common for there to be sections for, say, under 1800 or under 1600, or prizes for the best under 1800 or under 1600 in an open tournament.  Bubba73 You talkin' to me? 19:19, 13 March 2012 (UTC)

It might also be to prevent distortions due to getting frequently beaten by much stronger opposition that you mostly play. Imagine being the freshest Grandmaster in the world. Most of the time, you'll probably now be playing other Grandmasters, who are better than you. While you build up your experience, your Win:Loss ratio is going to be rather different than it was while you were beating all the weak International Masters - but you're actually a better player now than you were. So to prevent your rating seeming to show you being weaker than you were, there's a floor put on it, so even if you lose all the time, you can't seem to be a worse player than you are. It's the chess world saying, "we know you're at least this good - even if you suffer a bunch of losses in a row."

Other sports' ratings systems currently or have in the past found other ways to try to prevent distortions. The Tennis rankings include a system for ignoring the "results" of badly injured players, within certain criteria. Snooker's system takes account of the fact that elite players qualify for tournaments where they can easily lose in the first round, so gives points for doing so, to prevent the others who lose in this round, but pre-qualified against inferior opposition, accruing more points simply because they had to qualify. Cricket's system includes other measures to prevent distortion, such as artificially subduing the impact of newcomer's performances and 'decaying' the impact of performances over time. I also vaguely remember a sport's system that discounted the worst xx results a player had over the period in review, but I cannot remember which sport it is or was. --Dweller (talk) 12:57, 14 March 2012 (UTC)


 * No, in chess the rating system takes into account the rating of your opponents. You can actually lose more games than you win and have your rating go up.  Bubba73 You talkin' to me? 17:06, 14 March 2012 (UTC)
 * As I understand it, the ELO system calculates a propotion of matches against an opponent you're supposed to win. So GM A plays GM B x times. The system will expect each GM to win a certain proportion of x. But if he doesn't, his rating goes down. So the newly qualified GM, with a great rating, will be expected to beat grizzled old GMs a certain proportion of the time, but if he doesn't his rating will fall - potentially artificially low. --Dweller (talk) 12:11, 15 March 2012 (UTC)


 * That is basically right. Each player is expected to score a certain percentage against the other, based on the ratings.  Naturally the higher-rated player is expected to win more than the lower-rated player.   If you do better than expected, your rating goes up.  If you do worse than expected, your rating goes down. But it isn't artificially low, unless the person is underpreforming on purpose.  Bubba73 You talkin' to me? 05:31, 16 March 2012 (UTC)

WWI gif
Does anyone know on what program this animated gif was made? I tried making one online but all the ones I found would only make 400px ones. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks! 64.229.204.143 (talk) 18:44, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * ImageMagick can stitch together frames of any size to create an animated GIF. Or are you asking about software which will create the frames, as well ? StuRat (talk) 18:53, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * GIMP is another open-source tool that can do this. GIMP lets you both create the frames of the animation - and write them out as a GIF movie. 216.136.51.242 (talk) 13:41, 14 March 2012 (UTC)
 * That gif looks like it's based on File:BlankMap-World6.svg or some variant thereof, if that's what you're looking for. -- N  Y  Kevin  @951, i.e. 21:49, 15 March 2012 (UTC)

Repairing headseats and similar stuff
What tools do you need to simple repairs of home devices with poor contact, and how difficult is it to do? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 189.59.196.95 (talk) 19:07, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Probably a soldering iron and solder, to reconnect any broken connections on circuit boards, and some wire strippers and electrical tape, to fix broken wires (you just intertwine the stripped wires and tape them up). You could also use a wire nut, but that might look even tackier than electrical tape.   A soldering iron takes some skill and is inherently dangerous.  Fixing broken wires is fairly easy and safe, as long as the device in unplugged and doesn't have a large capacitor (a headset (audio) wouldn't).  StuRat (talk) 19:15, 13 March 2012 (UTC)


 * Some kinds of simple 'poor contact' problems can be fixed with a squirt of 'switch cleaner' or 'contact cleaner' - which you can get in an aerosol spray can at places like Radio Shack - or sometimes in big electronics stores. Most problems with headset contacts are where the socket inside your device has broken free of the circuit board.  Generally you can fix that (at least for a while) by re-soldering the socket - or fixing a broken circuit board track by soldering a wire directly from the pin of the socket to wherever the circuit board track went to.  Simple soldering like that is pretty easy - get a fine-tipped soldering iron and some solder with flux in it.  With many modern devices such as MP3 players, phones and laptops, the hardest part of the problem is getting the case open so that you can get to the circuit board.  There are specialized tools (called Spudgers) for getting into some of these devices without scratching up the case or breaking the internal plastic parts.  Some brand-name devices such as the iPhone and iPod have even more specialized tools - sometimes these have to be purchased from the manufacturer for ridiculous amounts of money. 216.136.51.242 (talk) 13:39, 14 March 2012 (UTC)

heat-shrink tubing is way better than electrical tape. If you plan to fix broken wires, do yourself a favour and get some in the right diameters (one for the individual wires and a bigger one to fit around the cable. Use hot air gun for best results, but a lighter will get the job done as well.  84.197.178.75 (talk) 16:47, 15 March 2012 (UTC)

Historical Persian Gulf
I remember reading somewhere that the upper (near Kuwait) shoreline of the Persian Gulf was historically different, like there was a different water level. I can't remember if it used to be higher or lower though. Assistance? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.24.43.97 (talk) 20:50, 13 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Substantially higher: it went much farther northwest than it does now. I don't have any sources at hand for you.  This is covered in our article on Ur, an inland city that was once a seaport, but the relevant sections don't cite any sources.  Nyttend (talk) 21:28, 13 March 2012 (UTC)
 * I think this map shows the approximate ancient coastline, File:Karte Mesopotamien.png. Here's another, showing the Assyrian Empire, c. 700 BC, and the Tigris and Euphrates still entering the Persian Gulf separately: Pfly (talk) 05:20, 14 March 2012 (UTC)
 * River deltas are highly dynamic things; I doubt that for any river system moving as much water (and sediment) as the Tigris-Euphrates system, that the delta region remained static for very long. The contemporary deltas of other major river systems, like the Mississipi, Nile, Amazon, Yellow, Mekong, etc. etc., likely looked just as different from the modern coastlines as did the Persian Gulf.  I have a historical atlas that shows some significantly different flow patterns and coastlines for the river systems in China around 0AD, for example.  -- Jayron  32  05:37, 14 March 2012 (UTC)

Animation3d PDN
This question belongs at the reference desk for computing. I've moved it there; please look there for an answer. Nyttend (talk) 21:35, 13 March 2012 (UTC)