What is the newest installment of 'Random Thoughts' on Physics Forums?

[zoobyshoe]

Zero - love
One - for all
Two - company
Three - crowd
Four - suits
Five - starfish
Six - eggs
Seven - days
Eight - octopus
Nine - cat's lives

A list like this can be used mnemonically. To remember the number 546, you form a mental image of a starfish wearing a suit eating a plate of eggs. An octopus sitting on a cat's head in the middle of a crowd would be 893.

Your list would have to be tuned up for this purpose. Concepts like "for all" are hard to translate into images.

 

[zoobyshoe]

I'm absolutely convinced infants sense our state of mind .

Babies are great biofeedback.

Quite possibly true, but a couple years of good biofeedback is outweighed in my mind by the 18 year obligation.

 

[Astronuc]

If you were riding a motorcycle, the last thing you'd expect to see in your mirror is a guy pedaling a bicycle closing in on you. That's exactly what happened to a group of motorcyclists somewhere in California, and thankfully, one recorded the hilarious results for posterity.

http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/videos/a30638/biker-passes-motorcycles/

I wonder if that is downhill.

 

[Astronuc]

Unintended Consequences in agriculture

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...-pesticide-spreads-across-america-s-farm-belt

Herbicides going where they are not supposed to go. It's called drifting.

 

[Pepper Mint]

Today I had a new idea to correct a car design.
The accelerator should be on the left and used by its driver's left foot and the brake be on the right and used by his right one. What do you think ?

 

[Tsu]

Today I had a new idea to correct a car design.
The accelerator should be on the left and used by its driver's left foot and the brake be on the right and used by his right one. What do you think ?

Ok...Time to go to bed and get some sleep Pepper Mint.

 

[Ibix]

The accelerator should be on the left and used by its driver's left foot and the brake be on the right and used by his right one. What do you think ?

I need to reflect on that.

 

[RonL]

Today I had a new idea to correct a car design.
The accelerator should be on the left and used by its driver's left foot and the brake be on the right and used by his right one. What do you think ?

That would throw the entire world, as we know it, into complete chaos

 

[fresh_42]

It always takes me one or two unintended heavy brakes when I switch to an automatic car and hit the brake instead of the clutch. Thanks.

 

[jim hardy]

A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Ellsberg

In late 1969—with the assistance of his former RAND Corporation colleague Anthony Russo—Ellsberg secretly made several sets of photocopies of the classified documents to which he had access; these later became known as the Pentagon Papers.

Ellsberg is the recipient of the Inaugural Ron Ridenhour Courage Prize, a prize established by The Nation Institute and The Fertel Foundation.[46] In 1978 he accepted the Gandhi Peace Award from Promoting Enduring Peace. On September 28, 2006 he was awarded the Right Livelihood Award.[47]

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-cyber-guccifer-idUSKCN1175FB

A Romanian hacker nicknamed "Guccifer" who helped expose the existence of a private email domain Hillary Clinton used when she was U.S. secretary of state was sentenced on Thursday to 52 months in prison by a federal court in Alexandria, Virginia.

Marcel Lazar, 44, who used the alias online, had pleaded guilty in May to charges including unauthorized access to a protected computer and aggravated identity theft after being extradited from Romania.

Lazar's public defender, Shannon Quill, was not immediately available for comment.

 

[WWGD]

Insight: Harvard is the square root of Harvard Square.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Today was the day for the yearly ritual:

Scrape the old registration sticker off the license plate, out the new one on, then slice it into small squares.

That last procedure was recommended to me by a DMV employee after someone peeled the sticker off my plate many years back. If you slice it up, it can't come off in one piece and be transferred to some unregistered vehicle.

This annual automotive rite will probably soon disappear, though. More and more states are doing away with the physical sticker on the plate in favor of computer checks of registration status.

 

[Pepper Mint]

I am not either joking or insulting anyone (I have yet to say this because I *really* don't want to sadden or madden any readers or visitors on board) as I find people with some minor mental disorders are good at hyper-thinking.
All the details of the matter under discussion or thoughts they share with others are a little or very much discrete, depending upon the levels of their mental illnesses. I don't know how psychiatrists diagnose their potential patients in relation with their abilities to memorize things, yet I think this kind of discrepancy may be of use to verify how one is suffering from some sort of mental disorders.
So if they are extremely good at hyperthinking, you will surely know where they are most living now.

 

[jim hardy]

I find people with some minor mental disorders are good at hyper-thinking.

what's hyperthinking ?

 

[Pepper Mint]

what's hyperthinking ?

I might have used an incorrect word to describe what I truly wanted to say.
I think about humans who do have a high level storage of thoughts. Like the orbits for electrons in a chemical element, thoughts are created and gone when they don't get absorbed into its central processing unit - our brain anymore. This process is run again and again until a particular thought is fully rooted and so we can remember how things established by such a thought or concept are e.g to be done. Now the point is electrons do have their own interactive levels with others. Thoughts are the same, they linked together to create e.g a memorable event. Some people with minor mental disorders don't seem able to fully link them; their comments and speech by their own thoughts might become less coherent, like electrons that live in the outermost orbits.

 

[WWGD]

I finally understood why I was having trouble logging on to coffee shop Wi-Fis : my system decided somehow that the logon browser pages were too risky, so . Now I need to figure out how to address this.

 

[Pepper Mint]

I finally understood why I was having trouble logging on to coffee shop Wi-Fis : my system decided somehow that the logon browser pages were too risky, so . Now I need to figure out how to address this.

if you are that shop owner, then it won't be a real matter anymore.

 

[beamie564]

I finally understood why I was having trouble logging on to coffee shop Wi-Fis : my system decided somehow that the logon browser pages were too risky, so . Now I need to figure out how to address this.

The same thing happened with my home WiFi. I had to disable some features of my antivirus and reduce the security.

 

[WWGD]

The same thing happened with my home WiFi. I had to disable some features of my antivirus and reduce the security.

Isn't it possible to just "de-quarantine" certain pages?

 

[zoobyshoe]

I think the Mothman was almost certainly a large owl.

 

[beamie564]

Isn't it possible to just "de-quarantine" certain pages?

I don't know. I'm not very good when it comes to computer-related things.

 

[DennisN]

A mini series I really, really enjoyed:
The Night Manager (IMDB)
The night manager of a Cairo hotel is recruited to infiltrate an arms dealer's inner circle.
Trailer:

 

[ProfuselyQuarky]

A mini series I really, really enjoyed:
The Night Manager (IMDB)
The night manager of a Cairo hotel is recruited to infiltrate an arms dealer's inner circle.
Trailer:

I never heard of that one, but I'm not even going to look at that trailer. I've become hooked to the 2016 version of Voltron...that's enough craze for one year

 

[WWGD]

This dude keeps misspelling ( or so I hope) , repeatedly asking me to massage (message, I hope) him when I am ready.

 

[fresh_42]

This dude keeps misspelling ( or so I hope) , repeatedly asking me to massage (message, I hope) him when I am ready.

Be careful! I would quote Pulp Fiction now but my Tarantino quotes are usually censored here.

 

[WWGD]

Be careful! I would quote Pulp Fiction now but my Tarantino quotes are usually censored here.

Ok, just enjoy your Royale with cheese for now ;).

 

[ProfuselyQuarky]

This dude keeps misspelling ( or so I hope) , repeatedly asking me to massage (message, I hope) him when I am ready.

Would you mind if I use that for a comic strip punchline?

 

[WWGD]

Would you mind if I use that for a comic strip punchline?

No problem, just please send me a link to it.

 

[zoobyshoe]

This dude keeps misspelling ( or so I hope) , repeatedly asking me to massage (message, I hope) him when I am ready.

Maybe he is a fan of Marshal McLuhan.

 

[zoobyshoe]

I think the Batman was almost certainly a large owl.

 

[fresh_42]

I think the Batman was almost certainly a large owl.

That's an interesting equation:
hitter = batter = batman = large owl = Eurasian eagle-owl

But why in the world do you call them Padres = fathers? I could understand Pennae = feathers. Is this again a misspelling thing?

 

[WWGD]

I think the Batman was almost certainly a large owl.

The weird thing is that the person in question is in a position usually held by people with degrees in areas such as History,
English, Communications, etc. that require a lot of reading and writing so that it is strange that s/he misspelled a relatively
common word.

 

[zoobyshoe]

The weird thing is that the person in question is in a position usually held by people with degrees in areas such as History,
English, Communications, etc. that require a lot of reading and writing so that it is strange that s/he misspelled a relatively
common word.

Which position? Batman or large owl?

 

[Sophia]

The weird thing is that the person in question is in a position usually held by people with degrees in areas such as History,
English, Communications, etc. that require a lot of reading and writing so that it is strange that s/he misspelled a relatively
common word.

Maybe they wrote on mobile and it changed the word. It happens all the time to me.

 

[WWGD]

Maybe they wrote on mobile and it changed the word. It happens all the time to me.

Could be, could also be auto-correct; it was a text message after all.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Could be he is a fan of Marshal McLuhan, who, incidentally, was almost certainly a large owl.

 

[zoobyshoe]

 

[JorisL]

On the topic of birds

 

[The Illusive Man]

 

[Sophia]

First time when I gained something by being an annoying customer!
There was a technical problem with my order from Amazon and I wrote to customer service a few times with no reply on time. I got annoyed and said I was not satisfied with their services.
In reply, they said I don't have to pay the shipping cost (8€)!

I'm writing this because this sort of customer service is still not so widespread here (though it's getting much better recently) and mainly, I've never been so rude to the seller before!

 

[zoobyshoe]

First time when I gained something by being an annoying customer!
There was a technical problem with my order from Amazon and I wrote to customer service a few times with no reply on time. I got annoyed and said I was not satisfied with their services.
In reply, they said I don't have to pay the shipping cost (8€)!

I'm writing this because this sort of customer service is still not so widespread here (though it's getting much better recently) and mainly, I've never been so rude to the seller before!

We have a saying, "The squeaky wheel gets the oil." The meaning is that, only those who complain will get their problems addressed; it's assumed those who don't complain are satisfied.

In the case of ebay and Amazon, they take your money first, then you are at their mercy as to timely customer service. I don't think it's rude to say you're not satisfied when you aren't, under those circumstances.

 

[Sophia]

We have a saying, "The squeaky wheel gets the oil." The meaning is that, only those who complain will get their problems addressed; it's assumed those who don't complain are satisfied.

In the case of ebay and Amazon, they take your money first, then you are at their mercy as to timely customer service. I don't think it's rude to say you're not satisfied when you aren't, under those circumstances.

Added the saying to my vocab list :-)
In this case, the problem was that they didn't take my money, even when there was no error message and I was told that "your order was lost in the system" :-)
I know I'm crazy but I ordered the new kindle Oasis. The reason is I like reading but I'm mainly sentenced to reading eBooks because the only book shop in my town has bankrupted a long time ago and the average book age in the library is about 20-30 years. There are some new books, but mainly crime novels which I can read if I'm bored, but it's not something I enjoy much.

 

[Ibix]

Apropos of a post I made in the Lame Jokes thread, here's a famous site in the UK:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Roundabout_(Swindon)

Remember that we drive on the left. Readers in countries who drive on the wrong (right) side of the road may find this more comprehensible viewed in a mirror. Or not.

 

[fresh_42]

Apropos of a post I made in the Lame Jokes thread, here's a famous site in the UK:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Roundabout_(Swindon)

Remember that we drive on the left. Readers in countries who drive on the wrong (right) side of the road may find this more comprehensible viewed in a mirror. Or not.

I always assumed the roundabouts are a British fetish, but a roundabout of roundabouts? Who designed it? Terry Jones?

 

[zoobyshoe]

In this case, the problem was that they didn't take my money, even when there was no error message and I was told that "your order was lost in the system" :-)

That's one I haven't run into before.

I know I'm crazy but I ordered the new kindle Oasis. The reason is I like reading but I'm mainly sentenced to reading eBooks because the only book shop in my town has bankrupted a long time ago and the average book age in the library is about 20-30 years. There are some new books, but mainly crime novels which I can read if I'm bored, but it's not something I enjoy much.

I guess bookstores are not a very lucrative kind of business. Quite a few have closed down here as well. The San Diego Public Library system is doing very well, but, to tell you the truth, I don't know how it operates, where the funding comes from.

 

[jim hardy]

the average book age in the library is about 20-30 years.

What genre do you like to read ?

Some of my most memorable reads were very dated library books
Nonfiction Adventure:
Lowell Thomas's fascinating accounts of World War 1 German sailors, 'Raiders of the Deep" about early U-boats
and "The Sea Devil" a sailing merchant raider that sank 100,000 tons of Allied shipping

( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMS_Seeadler_(1888) ) ;

Lindbergh's "Spirit of St Louis";
Joshua Slocum's "Sailing alone around the world", actually not from library but loaned by another PF member...
Farley Mowatt's "Never Cry Wolf"
Fiction(barely)
"Spoon River Anthology", precursor to modern psycho-drama .
Terror: Frank Herbert's "White Plague" (I was sure i remembered that one by Michael Crichton though)

I know one shouldn't judge them by their covers but i find myself reaching for old cloth bound books just to see what they're about.

 

[Sophia]

What genre do you like to read ?

Some of my most memorable reads were very dated library books
Nonfiction Adventure:
Lowell Thomas's fascinating accounts of World War 1 German sailors, 'Raiders of the Deep" about early U-boats
and "The Sea Devil" a sailing merchant raider that sank 100,000 tons of Allied shipping

( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMS_Seeadler_(1888) ) ;

Lindbergh's "Spirit of St Louis";
Joshua Slocum's "Sailing alone around the world", actually not from library but loaned by another PF member...
Farley Mowatt's "Never Cry Wolf"
Fiction(barely)
"Spoon River Anthology", precursor to modern psycho-drama .
Terror: Frank Herbert's "White Plague"

I know one shouldn't judge them by their covers but i find myself reaching for old cloth bound books just to see what they're about.

I'll look into blurbs of those books. I might like them. They remind me of All Quiet on the Western Front and Old Man and the Sea, which I enjoyed despite the fact that they were compulsory reading :D
Nowadays, I enjoy reading fantasy and non-fiction (currently reading: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0316051632/?tag=pfamazon01-20 and https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KUQIU7O/?tag=pfamazon01-20)
Besides that, I read biographies (e.g. Ramanujan and Marie Curie) and books about mental health. Also detective novels and YA a couple times a year, though they are not my favourite genres, but sometimes I just need to relax with something easy.
I also read about various religions from time to time, although not as often as I used to.
You're right, I am thinking about reading older classical books, mainly high school obligatory literature that I haven't read when I was supposed to.

 

[zoobyshoe]

@Sophia:

Here's a link to the SanDiego Public Library site:

https://www.sandiego.gov/public-library/about-the-library/advocacy

As you can see, it is part of the city government and is funded by city government money just like the city police, etc. So, it is not Federal or State, but local government behind it. More importantly, it also actively solicits donations from private individuals. There is a whole dedicated team, the San Diego Public Library Foundation, that works at that full time. A couple years ago the library constructed a new main library in downtown San Diego, which was very expensive. They boasted that this was all done by donations, without using city money. An indication that their fundraising efforts are quite successful and are really what keeps the system so healthy.

I suppose your library system there is limping along on some very minimal government money and your country hasn't discovered the possibility of fortifying it with fundraising.

 

[jim hardy]

They remind me of All Quiet on the Western Front and Old Man and the Sea, which I enjoyed despite the fact that they were compulsory reading :D

I recently (re)read Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" which of course inspired movie "Apocalypse Now". Amazing how different it seems now than it did in my youth. Then it was an adventure, now it's a character study .

 

[Sophia]

@Sophia:

Here's a link to the SanDiego Public Library site:

https://www.sandiego.gov/public-library/about-the-library/advocacy

As you can see, it is part of the city government and is funded by city government money just like the city police, etc. So, it is not Federal or State, but local government behind it. More importantly, it also actively solicits donations from private individuals. There is a whole dedicated team, the San Diego Public Library Foundation, that works at that full time. A couple years ago the library constructed a new main library in downtown San Diego, which was very expensive. They boasted that this was all done by donations, without using city money. An indication that their fundraising efforts are quite successful and are really what keeps the system so healthy.

I suppose your library system there is limping along on some very minimal government money and your country hasn't discovered the possibility of fortifying it with fundraising.

That's definitely true. Fundraising here is still "in diapers", as we say. it's still not a part of the culture, mainly because the economical situation in this area is poor and most people can't afford to donate. If they do, they choose health projects or helping young children.

I once brought a large bag of my books to the library. They were new and in a very good condition and the librarian was very happy about that! She told me that people do bring their old books, but they are mainly books after deceased relatives, which are often the same that already are present in the library or are outdated (e.g. there's a large collection of science books and textbooks from 1950-1990 and classical literature). They do buy a few new books each year, but it's mainly YA and detective novels, which as I said, are not my preferred genres. I think that the majority of money goes to the children's section because they feel that education should be their priority so not much money is left for the adults.