Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2016 April 18

= April 18 =

car picture for Great Storm of 1987
What are cars shown in the picture featuring the red car being damaged by the tree in the article "Great Storm of 1987"? Thanks. Donmust90 (talk) 15:10, 18 April 2016


 * I linkified the article name and pointed it to the section with the pic. StuRat (talk) 15:27, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * The crushed car looks like a Datsun Bluebird. In the background there's a VW Polo, a Lada Classic, and I think a Mk II Ford Granada. -- zzuuzz (talk) 15:32, 18 April 2016 (UTC)

A Strange Power Strip

 * https://goo.gl/photos/ALnQKwMfEak8SBcU7

The site goo.gl is on Wikipedia's black list. You may need to copy and paste the URL to see the picture.

I saw this power strip in a library. This ungrounded power strip has two rails. It can accept a number of polarized or non-polarized NEMA-1 plugs.

Does this kind of power strip have a name? -- Toytoy (talk) 16:09, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * Here's a direct URL for the image at photos.google.com instead of goo.gl. --69.159.61.172 (talk) 19:46, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * Although I don't know the name, I've heard of this type. They tend to be more expensive, since they require more copper in the copper rails, and there's no provision for earth/ground and you can plug them in with either polarity.  So, higher prices and less safety makes them not a very popular option.  However, they might have some specialized uses where the ability to easily change the polarity is useful (you'd think reversing the polarity on a fan would reverse the direction, but I was surprised to find out this isn't the case, at least for my electric fan). StuRat (talk) 16:16, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * Er, are you imagining that your fan is running on DC power? (And even with DC, not all types of motor reverse direction when the power polarity is reversed.) --69.159.61.172 (talk) 19:46, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * Yes, this was a little fan that ran off the car cigarette lighter, but reversing the polarity did not reverse the fan direction. StuRat (talk) 20:54, 19 April 2016 (UTC)


 * So instead of a highly unusual DC 120V household fan you have an equally unusual AC 12V automotive plug-in fan. You seem to surround yourself with extreme rare collectibles. Could you post a picture of it?--TMCk (talk) 21:29, 19 April 2016 (UTC)


 * Who said I had a D/C house fan or that the car fan was A/C ? It was D/C, and, while I no longer have it, here's a similar one: . StuRat (talk) 23:32, 19 April 2016 (UTC)

Thinking about it, I would expect these strips to be unavailable in the US and Canada since the introduction of polarized 2-prong plugs. I tried some Google Images searches on things like "continuous power strip" and "twist to add outlets" and found nothing relevant, and I expect this is because nobody is selling them any more. I did find this interesting design from Japan where a 2-prong non-polarized plug fits directly into the slots in any position. --69.159.61.172 (talk) 21:29, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * The best term I can find for them is "sliding power strip". See .  -- Jayron 32 21:31, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * That device looks horrifying. It's hard to imagine, from here in the UK, why such a thing would be available. AlexTiefling (talk) 21:52, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * http://www.cepro.com/article/joe_whitaker_builds_a_better_power_strip_submits_to_quirky/
 * Joe Whitaker Invents a Better Power Strip, Submits to Quirky
 * CE Pro contributor and A/V integrator Joe Whitaker invents ElyctricSlyde, a power strip that guarantees you won't cover up precious outlets. Vote for it on Quirky to help it to the next step.
 * Julie Jacobson · May 8, 2015

I found this interest invention which is probably marginally safer because of its sliding cover. -- Toytoy (talk) 00:07, 19 April 2016 (UTC)

Emergency planning
What do emergency planners do on a day to day basis? Is it quite a repetitive job? 2A02:C7D:B907:6D00:B0EE:31D9:DB3D:39DA (talk) 16:47, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * Writing, implementing, providing, completing, analyzing, planning, acting, preparing, responding, communicating, conducting, helping, working, supporting, delivering, raising, liasing, giving and developing. The usual office gig. But also on-call to attend to the worst places on Earth. InedibleHulk (talk) 17:15, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * "Gentlemen, here at the Disaster Planning Group, we plan to cause a massive fire this year, a flood next year, and, if Doctor Evil succeeds in developing his weather-control machine, a hurricane and many tornadoes the year after that." StuRat (talk) 22:58, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * Emergency planning is not necessarily a full-time job. In the private sector, disaster planning might be done by a committee of people who have various regular job responsibilities. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 14:57, 19 April 2016 (UTC)


 * On the other hand, often it is. My Mother was a member of the Emergency Planning Team for Hampshire (England) for several years (so public rather than private sector). Much like any other admin office, most of the Head Office team (about 6–8 people) were full time, as I believe were those in charge of facilities (i.e. Nuclear bunkers) and all the usual lecture and training stuff elsewhere in the county. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 185.74.232.130 (talk) 15:54, 19 April 2016 (UTC)
 * For government employees, there is a lot more ground to cover, literally. Private sector disaster planning typically has to do with developing an escape route for fire or tornadoes, and how to recover if the computer blows up. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 17:18, 19 April 2016 (UTC)