Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2013 October 8

= October 8 =

Qur'an download website ru'ku
Is there a website where you can download the Qur'an recitation of some qari like Mahmoud Khalil Husary by ruku and when I mean ruku, I mean like from verse 27 to 55 of Chapter 27: the Bee or in Arabic, An-Naml? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.53.230.38 (talk) 00:25, 8 October 2013 (UTC)


 * Here you go. Omidinist (talk) 04:47, 8 October 2013 (UTC)

missed broadcasted add
I missed an add you had on the news broadcast on 10/08 at6:00am news,add was about,We buy houses for any reason can you send me info about this add at [redacted email address].Thank You 67.234.137.33 (talk) 10:38, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * Hi there, you are at a Reference Desk at Wikipedia, we do not have "news broadcast"s and we do not sponsor, work/partner with or operate any "buy houses for any reason" program. I would advise you call or e-mail the station you saw it on, or as television ads are bought in blocks just stay tuned since the commercial is sure to come up again.  Google will also have thousands of results.  Market St.⧏  ⧐ Diamond Way   10:54, 8 October 2013 (UTC)

Commonly Accepted Myths originally invented by Governments.
The myth that carrots are good for eyesight (or rather that they help you see in the dark) was the British propaganda explanation to cover up their pilots use of radar and has since become a quite pervasive myth. Are there any other (or probably more accurately, what are the other) examples of government "lies" that have become "common knowledge"? Biggs Pliff (talk) 14:31, 8 October 2013 (UTC)


 * However, our carrot article, right before explaining the source of the seeing-in-the-dark myth, does say The carrot gets its characteristic and bright orange colour from β-carotene, and lesser amounts of α-carotene and γ-carotene. α and β-carotenes are partly metabolised into vitamin A in humans....Lack of vitamin A can cause poor vision, including night vision, and these can be restored by adding vitamin A to the diet. So they are good for maintaining normal vision. Duoduoduo (talk) 17:55, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * Such things make count as Lies to children or White lies. Another WW2 example is when park railings were removed, supposedly to be used in making ships, planes, etc; people also donated kettles and saucepans for the same purpose. According to some accounts it seems that most of the metal was unsuitable, and a lot of it was dumped: see some discussion here. A further example might be the use of so-called lie-detectors in law enforcement. AndrewWTaylor (talk) 15:36, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * I saw a TV interview with a steel worker who said that British Steel in the 1970s were still feeding railings in the furnaces, a little at a time. The legacy of this is that in London, many Victorian terraced houses had iron railings fronting their gardens; today there is a hotch potch of wooden or brick walls and fences instead. Alansplodge (talk) 12:55, 10 October 2013 (UTC)


 * Talking of detectors reminds me that there is some discussion as to whether the so-called TV Detector Vans supposedly used in the UK (to find people watching TV without having paid their licence fee) were either dummies with no effective technology or non-existent. See e.g. here. AndrewWTaylor (talk) 15:40, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * They were from the Ministry of Housinge [sic]. --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  19:13, 8 October 2013 (UTC)


 * I don't know if the detector vans were real or not, but it's easy to find a superheterodyne receiver (the sort of radio receiver used just about everywhere these days): just attach a directional antenna to a receiver tuned to either the target's likely local oscillator frequency or their likely intermediate frequency. For analog television this is especially easy, since there are only two intermediate frequencies in common use. --Carnildo (talk) 23:53, 8 October 2013 (UTC)

Thanks everybody for your responses. The closest thing to what I'm looking for is the WW2 railings story, although I'm looking for the extra dimension, similar to the carrots story, that they spawned a phrase or an erroneous belief that has survived long past the relevant context. Biggs Pliff (talk) 20:39, 9 October 2013 (UTC)

Côte d'Azur
Why does it cost a fortune to buy a house there? I mean, it's like having a beach house. Why people would want to buy a house there or spend vacations at the French Riviera. Is for the geographical location or because the weather or... what? I apologize for my ignorance but... I don't understand. I hope there are references for this.  Miss Bono  [hello, hello!]  14:41, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * Why would people want to live there: beautiful scenery, great weather, fine food, nice beaches, etc. etc. Why do houses cost so much there: there is a finite amount of land (especially land near the sea) and a large number of people who have noticed the qualities enumerated in the first part of my answer. --Xuxl (talk) 15:10, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * Oh, I understand now, it's somehow heaven on earth. Thanks. I am not underestimating the territory, it's just that I see people dying to own houses there and I didn't understand why. Sorry for the question.  Miss Bono  [hello, hello!]  15:22, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * I used to live quite close to the Côte d'Azur - in Aix-en-Provence - and would happlily go back there. You might find https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Antibes will give you an idea of what attracts people to the area (I hope you are able to access that Wiki project, Miss Bono).  Astronaut (talk) 16:44, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * Nope, I am not able to access that WProject, not at work.  Miss Bono  [hello, hello!]  16:51, 8 October 2013 (UTC)

Russian food
I live in the UK, but for reasons that aren't relevant to this question I have offered to host a Russian-themed dinner party for some friends (mostly also British). This is just for fun, but I'd like to make it reasonably authentic, as least as far as the food is concerned.

I've visited Moscow a few times in the past, but when we ate out it was mostly in Georgian-style restaurants so I'm a little hazy on specifically Russian cuisine. I'm familiar with the concept of закуски, and am quite looking forward to preparing a spread of dishes, but I'm struggling to recall specific items so any suggestions would be welcome. Also, would it be considered normal to have a meal consisting only of this kind of "Russian mezze", or would there always be some kind of main dish as well? If the latter, then I'm definitely looking for ideas.

I live in a city with a large Polish population, so there are many shops with generically "Eastern European" items which could substitute for some Russian ones. In addition, there is one small Russian shop where I will be able to get things like red caviar and квас (for any non-drinkers declining the vodka!). The only thing that I know is unobtainable in this country is Советскоё Шампанское (obstruction by the French!) but I plan to stick some printed-off labels to bottles of cava for the look of the thing :-)

Looking forward to any suggestions. 46.65.127.58 (talk) 18:49, 8 October 2013 (UTC)


 * Blini (please don't call them blintzes or the * double-plural blinis), pelmeni and pirozhki (* ditto for piroshkis) are great crowd pleasers, at least as starters. Check out Category:Russian cuisine.  --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  19:10, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * But "blini" doesn't rhyme with "princes of the Czar". --Trovatore (talk) 19:41, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * Those Polish despots can go to hell for all I care. :) --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  19:54, 8 October 2013 (UTC)


 * Yep - блини are an obvious one. I've got half a bag of buckwheat flour in the cupboard - they do sell them ready-made in supermarkets here but the prices are silly :-) 46.65.127.58 (talk) 19:19, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * And the quality is non-existent. Make your own; for the love of God, make your own.  --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  19:37, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * Just mail order them from The Russian Homeland in Brooklyn. μηδείς (talk) 21:33, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * I'm quite sure that блини which have been shipped across the Atlantic will be even worse, and more expensive, than the fresh ones in my local supermarket. Irrelevant, anyway, as I was always going to make them myself. 195.212.29.94 (talk) 14:41, 9 October 2013 (UTC)
 * Молодец! --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  07:21, 11 October 2013 (UTC)


 * Ayn Rand's favorite ethnic foods (she was a Russian Jew from St Petersburg) were Borshch and Pierogies, which are called Pelmeni in Russian, and which Jack has already mentioned. These are very hard to make from scratch without practice, especially pierogies.  I love pierogies, my mother loves borshch.  (My dad will eat what's put before him.)  You can usually buy these from a Polish or Ukranian deli if there are no Russian delis.  I can't speak for pirozhki, but they look good.  Blintzes are hugely filling, one per customer.  We aren't proper Russians in my family, but except for the exact names, the cuisine is the same. μηδείς (talk) 21:23, 8 October 2013 (UTC)
 * I'm sure I've had good borscht somewhere. But I recently ordered it at Canter's Deli and honestly it was less than thrilling (the latkes were good though). --Trovatore (talk) 21:30, 8 October 2013 (UTC)


 * See List of Russian dishes for some visual ideas. --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  00:57, 9 October 2013 (UTC)

Thanks for the suggestions so far; I'm still looking for an answer to the question of whether a meal of only закуски, without a "main dish", would be considered normal in Russia (say for a family birthday party) or would be seen as unusual / eccentric. Bear in mind I'm looking for "typical" with a dose of nostalgia, not necessarily what the cool kids are doing in 2013. Thanks. 195.212.29.94 (talk) 14:41, 9 October 2013 (UTC)


 * Well, they are hors d'oeuvres, so they'd be fine for a long party in place of a fancy sit down meal. The rule in my extended family (Russians, Poles & Lithuanians) would a fancy sit down meal of ham, piergoies, beets and horseradish, cucumber salad, boiled eggs for Easter and Christmas (with variations) and then a buffet of kielbasa in sauerkraut, stuffed cabbage, pickles, meatballs, boiled eggs and so forth for get togethers like birthdays and non-religious holidays. I doubt there would really be any expectations unless you were hosting Easter or Christmas. μηδείς (talk) 16:15, 9 October 2013 (UTC)


 * Here are various links (the first one works) for Ayn Rand's personal Beef Stroganoff recipe, which I ate at an evening party once. It is simple and almost impossible to mess up, although the given proportions only serve four for a full meal. μηδείς (talk) 22:00, 9 October 2013 (UTC)

Wiley Post
In the article Wiley Post, it says that his first flight around the world took 8 days, 15 hours and 51 minutes, and his second flight 21 hours less; however, I want to know in what frame of reference were these times taken -- in a frame of reference fixed on Roosevelt Field, or in a frame of reference that moved with the plane? This is important because if the frame of reference was moving with the plane, both times would be longer by 24 hours than if the frame of reference was fixed. 24.23.196.85 (talk) 19:55, 8 October 2013 (UTC)


 * If they just stated it in days in the sense of sunsets, it would matter because his days would be shorter than Roosevelt Field's days (since he was traveling east toward places where the sun sets sooner). But with it being stated in days, hours, and minutes, the word "day" must mean 24 hours. And if it's measured in hours and minutes, they'd get the same answer no matter who is watching the hands of the clock go round (in the absence of relativistic effects -- I assume he was flying at non-relativistic speeds, since it was back in the slow days of 1931!). Duoduoduo (talk) 22:24, 8 October 2013 (UTC)


 * OK, so I should take this to mean that these figures were taken in a fixed frame of reference? Thanks! 24.23.196.85 (talk) 22:34, 8 October 2013 (UTC)


 * Both flights took off from and returned to the same place (Roosevelt Field [6/23/31-7/1/31] and Floyd Bennett Field [7/15/33-7/22/33] respectively), so we're talking about elapsed time. Clarityfiend (talk) 03:12, 9 October 2013 (UTC)