I'm often coming across small questions that I wouldn't mind knowing the answer to, but that I don't quite care enough to actually try and find the answer. So let's have a thread for small questions, that you'd like an actual answer to. (As opposed to that thread where you answer a question with another question.)
Let's keep it to one question per post.
I'll get us started with something it seems like I should know but has been bothering me for several days now: we have patricide, matricide, and fratricide but what's the term for sister killing? (Less morbid questions are fine too!)
Posted by Earendil18 (Member # 3180) on :
Sororicide.
Google-Fu FTW.
Posted by Hank (Member # 8916) on :
What year did Daylight Savings Time begin?
Posted by Starsnuffer (Member # 8116) on :
How do you say "ice cream scooper" in spanish (sacador de helado?)
Posted by scifibum (Member # 7625) on :
Can someone explain the origin of the term "dobie" as used on this board?
In case you were wondering what to call the post that kills a thread: debatricide.
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
Dobie was a poster who either started or popularized the form.
Posted by Goody Scrivener (Member # 6742) on :
Who put the bop in the bop-she-bop-she-bop?
Posted by rollainm (Member # 8318) on :
Where's Waldo?
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
I think it would be good to answer someone else's question before asking a new question, or at any rate seeing it got answered. Like, I'm pretty sure the Daylight savings question would be answered on Wikipedia. I'm guessing 1800 or so. It's often ascribed to the genius of Ben Franklin, though I think the people who suggest that actually want his body dug up and shot repeatedly.
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daylight_saving_time I also think that if you question can be found via a reasonably simple wikipedia search, you must drag the rock of shame to the top of Mt. Springfield.
Posted by Threads (Member # 10863) on :
What is the fastest-moving point on Earth?
Posted by luthe (Member # 1601) on :
The peak of Mount Chimborazo.
Posted by Hank (Member # 8916) on :
Pooka,
It occurred to me that I should just look it up myself, but I liked the idea so much I wanted to participate. I'll get a-draggin'.
Posted by Mike (Member # 55) on :
quote:Originally posted by luthe: The peak of Mount Chimborazo.
Close. That's the point that's farthest from the center of the Earth. We're looking for the point that's farthest from the Earth's axis of rotation.
Posted by Tante Shvester (Member # 8202) on :
quote:Originally posted by Mike: What is the fastest-moving point on Earth?
Probably on one of those high speed trains they have in France.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
quote:Originally posted by Mike: What is the fastest-moving point on Earth?
In what frame of reference?
Posted by JonHecht (Member # 9712) on :
What's that song the soldiers sing in the Bill Murray movie Stripes, and where can I find the original version?
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
I've never seen the movie... Wanna tell which song you mean? (All I'm finding listed is Rubberband Man by The Spinners.)
Posted by Mike (Member # 55) on :
quote:Originally posted by rivka: In what frame of reference?
Compared to, say, the center of the Earth.
Posted by JonHecht (Member # 9712) on :
quote:Originally posted by ketchupqueen: I've never seen the movie... Wanna tell which song you mean? (All I'm finding listed is Rubberband Man by The Spinners.)
Thanks, but I found it. It was doo wah diddy diddy.
Anyone know how to make my comp region free for DVDs? I'm on Vista.
Posted by T:man (Member # 11614) on :
Do plants have nervous systems? if so can they grow brains?
Posted by scifibum (Member # 7625) on :
Jon Hecht, I think the VLC player allows you to pretend to be whatever region you want.
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
My mom bought Stripes at Shopko the other day. It was 2 for 1 so she also got Krull the Conqueror.
I don't think plants have nervous systems. Of course, I don't think Provo City Council Members have them either, so I may not be the best person to ask.
Can I take a nap now?
Posted by Cashew (Member # 6023) on :
Why is it that even the most basic DVD players in places like New Zealand and Australia are multi-region but in the US you're stuck with only single region players?
Posted by scifibum (Member # 7625) on :
Because movie studios are in tight with both electronics manufacturers and lawmakers in the US. Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
quote:Originally posted by Mike:
quote:Originally posted by rivka: In what frame of reference?
Compared to, say, the center of the Earth.
How earth-centric and linear of you.
Posted by aiua (Member # 7825) on :
quote:Originally posted by Goody Scrivener: Who put the bop in the bop-she-bop-she-bop?
It is rumored that it is the same person who put the ram in the ram-a-lam-a-ding-dong.
Which is worse, (if one had to happen) being stolen from or stealing?
Posted by Tante Shvester (Member # 8202) on :
Stealing, because that is on the Top Ten "Thou Shalt Not" list. I mean, you can go to jail for that, or at least have to pay a fine and do community service. Not to mention the black black mark on your eternal soul.
You get stolen from, you file a claim with your insurance. No need to confess your felony transgression on every job application for the rest of your life.
Posted by Jim-Me (Member # 6426) on :
From the PoV of another random Galaxy I would guess it's the highest point above MSL on the Equator at the midpoint of night when the Earth is Rimward of the sun...
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
Well, from a far enough point of reference, isn't the whole solar system cooking along pretty fast? I mean, the question has to bound the frame of reference to some degree.
Posted by Teshi (Member # 5024) on :
Well, surely we can reasonably discount the motion of the galaxy and the solar system and say that if introduced to the other factors at would make the other factors (such as Earth's rotation around the sun) negligible.
However, if we count the Earth's rotation around the sun, surely as the Earth spins on its axis the side that's going the same direction as the rotation (which would obviously be changing all the time) be going fastest? So, there's obviously a point that is going fastest of all those points. An object such as a train going along the ground at exactly that point, would be even faster, and that would be the fastest point on Earth, for that brief moment that all the 'points' coincide.
I agree that going from Earth's axis makes the most sense.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
So, Fannie Mae and Sallie Mae are completely different organizations and the failing* of one should not worry me about loans coming from the other, right?
Edit: Also, Rush concerts on Colbert Report reruns are awesome.
*ETA: or rather the recent troubling times which may have lead to failing but were "fixed" by (still) decision makers, and whether or not those band-aids will solve anything is yet to be seen.
[ July 17, 2008, 11:32 AM: Message edited by: vonk ]
Posted by fugu13 (Member # 2859) on :
Neither has failed, and neither looks too likely to fail at the current moment.
And they are two different organizations.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
Sorry. Is that more accurate?
Good. Thanks. (in responce to your answer to my orginal question, not sarcasm)
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
quote:Originally posted by fugu13: And they are two different organizations.
Right, although NellieMae is ~= to SallieMae.
Posted by xnera (Member # 187) on :
Also, Fannie Mae ~= Fannie May.
Posted by T:man (Member # 11614) on :
No nervous systems they are run by hormones boohoo no growing a brain plant (that was my last interest into biology.)
Posted by Threads (Member # 10863) on :
Can Dagonee actually hack Hatrack to put up big blinking letters? That would be totally sweet!
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
quote:Originally posted by xnera: Also, Fannie Mae ~= Fannie May.
I think you meant !=
Posted by xnera (Member # 187) on :
You're right. I'm ashamed of myself for getting that wrong. *hangs head*
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
OTOH, Fannie May = delicious! Posted by HollowEarth (Member # 2586) on :
So why do we nickel (I'm guessing that it's nickel) plate some keys? The nickel just wears off and then you see, shockingly, that it's actually just a brass key, like every other key on your ring.
Also I think those new key machines that cut the key themselves are terrible. You give them an old worn out key and you get back a shiny new worn out key. Winner.
Posted by Tante Shvester (Member # 8202) on :
Maybe they are plating the keys to make them different colors so they are easier to distinguish on your key ring? Or maybe people like shiny new things, so they prefer the shiny silvery keys to the brass ones.
I'm in charge of a big nursing home at night. You ought to see the big bunch of keys that I have to carry with me -- the keys to everything in the building. Lessee, I've got 25 of them with me right now, in varying degrees of brassiness and platedness. I must be some kind of genius to be able to find the right key to the right lock in that whole bunch.
Posted by Hank (Member # 8916) on :
So that when you hand someone a huge stack of keys, and you say, "Which one's the one to the thing?" they can say, "One of the little silver ones."
Posted by ricree101 (Member # 7749) on :
quote:Originally posted by Mike:
quote:Originally posted by luthe: The peak of Mount Chimborazo.
Close. That's the point that's farthest from the center of the Earth. We're looking for the point that's farthest from the Earth's axis of rotation.
But since it is so close to the equator anyways (nearly one degree, I believe), wouldn't it be fairly likely to be the fastest anyways?
Posted by Sean Monahan (Member # 9334) on :
How does a rechargable battery work?
Posted by Darth_Mauve (Member # 4709) on :
quote:How does a rechargable battery work?
You use the battery. It runs out of juice. You recharge it.
Simple.
Posted by Mike (Member # 55) on :
quote:Originally posted by ricree101: But since it is so close to the equator anyways (nearly one degree, I believe), wouldn't it be fairly likely to be the fastest anyways?
*nod* Likely, yes, which is one of the reasons I find this question so interesting. If I recall correctly, Chimborazo is the second-fastest point on Earth, not counting the points immediately adjacent to the fastest point. Linearly and Earth-centrically speaking.
Posted by HollowEarth (Member # 2586) on :
quote:Originally posted by Sean Monahan: How does a rechargable battery work?
First of all how does a battery work? A battery is made of an electochemical reaction, oxidation at the negative electrode and reduction at the positive. For a regular battery we don't really care if the reaction that we choose is reversible but an efficiently reversible reaction is what allows a rechargable battery to be reused. For example in a NiCad battery the redox reaction is the following:
2NiO(OH) + Cd + 2H2O → 2Ni(OH)2 + Cd(OH)2
We divide this into two half reactions, one of which happens at the cadmium elctrode and one at the nickel. At the cadmium electrode: Cd + 2OH- → Cd(OH)2 + 2e- and at the nickel electrode: 2NiO(OH) + 2H2O + 2e- → 2Ni(OH)2 + 2OH-
Here e- is the symbol for electrons. We see that the cadmium elctrode (the negative elctrode) produces electrons and the nickel electrode needs electrons. These electrons pass through the external circuit that you've connected the battery to, which is why batteries do not discharge unless the are connected to a circuit of some kind.
Since a NiCad is a rechargable battery we can safely and efficiently run these reactions the other way (replace all of the → with ←) by running a current the other way around, reproducing the original reactants, recharging the battery.
You can recharge an alkaline battery but the battery will be less efficient after every recharge cycle and there are dangers of the battery producing hydrogen gas, cracking and leaking. The safety and efficiency of the recharging is really the difference between the two.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
Can anyone recomend a free online game that doesn't require downloads? I enjoyed the galactic trading game, physics game and HHGTTG game that were posted here and thought someone might have a suggestion.
Thanks.
Edit: Has anyone played Tribal Wars? Is it worth 5 bucks a month?
[ August 20, 2008, 09:47 PM: Message edited by: vonk ]
Posted by Flaming Toad on a Stick (Member # 9302) on :
Have you tried Kingdom of Loathing?
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
Oh yeah! I completely forgot about it. Thanks. Now I have to play Tribal Wars for a month though. FYI, maybe not worth the 5 bucks.
EditL Gah! Forgot my KoL login.
[ August 20, 2008, 11:27 PM: Message edited by: vonk ]
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
I just found a poster named Rivka in the Tribal Wars forum. Is i the same rivka?
[ August 20, 2008, 11:28 PM: Message edited by: vonk ]
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Nope.
Posted by Eaquae Legit (Member # 3063) on :
Are there any Hebrew speakers willing to help me look up an email of a prof at Ben Gurion university? The English version of the website doesn't seem to extend that far.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
In economics, referring to monetary policy and affecting money supply, what do the terms "PR", "DR", and "Sell/Buy" refer to? As in, to increase money supply, you decrease PR and DR, and Sell. But what does that mean?
Posted by fugu13 (Member # 2859) on :
Those aren't standard terminology for anything I'm familiar with. They might be references to some of the terms in basic equations governing money, which you can find here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantity_theory_of_money Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
Thanks for the response. The link is way beyond my economics prowess at this point. I think this may be a case of my professor making up abbreviations that have no obvious connection with anything in the text book or online. Yay.
Posted by fugu13 (Member # 2859) on :
Did the professor write any equations using those terms?
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
I don't know how to do the symbols here, but i was given:
This is given as the monetary policy solution to fixing a recessionary gap.
Posted by fugu13 (Member # 2859) on :
r* might be the real interest rate, increasing which would raise the Investment rate I. I'm not sure what the AD after GDP would be. MS is obviously money supply, and I'm now guessing that PR is Prime Rate, DR is Discount Rate, and Buy might refer to how much the Fed is buying with open market operations (which would be how the Fed raises the Discount Rate, which would be what raises the Prime Rate, so the litany of all three is redundant).
I'm assuming this is just an example of a toy policy, not him on a tear about how he thinks things should be approached.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
Your assumption is correct. And Prime Rate and Discount Rate are what I am looking for! It's not covered in the chapter we are currently on, so I didn't see it. Your help is greatly appreciated.
And AD is Aggragate Demand.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
quote:Originally posted by Eaquae Legit: Are there any Hebrew speakers willing to help me look up an email of a prof at Ben Gurion university? The English version of the website doesn't seem to extend that far.
Missed this! I assume that by now you've found it? Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
Isn't there somewhere you can watch House debates/proceedings live? I thought there was but my googlefu is failing.
Posted by scifibum (Member # 7625) on :
There's this.
Posted by scholarette (Member # 11540) on :
If my husband gets a job (so our income like triples), how long does he need to work before we can refinance our house? When we bought the house, he was working so the income thing wasn't an issue. And with student loans, we have never had a problem paying our bills.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
Thanks scifibum. That's great.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
The financial aid department at my university is requiring a non-filer form form from the IRS because I didn't have any income last year and didn't file a tax return. I'm browing the IRS forms index with little luck. Does anyone know what this is?
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
As a layman, here's my reply: you might just need your college's standard Declaration of Non-Filing Status Form. If they're demanding IRS proof that you filed nothing, you'll need Form 4506-T, the Request for Transcript of Tax Return, and will need to check the "Verification of Non-Filing" checkbox.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
That's the first form I've seen with a non-filing option, so I guess that's it. Thank you.
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That's the point that's farthest from the center of the Earth. We're looking for the point that's farthest from the Earth's axis of rotation. ![[ROFL]](graemlins/rofl.gif)
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