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

In summary, the conversation consists of various discussions about documentaries, the acquisition of National Geographic by Fox, a funny manual translation, cutting sandwiches, a question about the proof of the infinitude of primes, and a realization about the similarity between PF and PDG symbols. The conversation also touches on multitasking and the uniqueness of the number two as a prime number.
  • #6,406
How about this. I have a view of part of a bay where the low and high tides are obvious. So I say to my Thai girlfriend (in her bamboo English) Water up today. She: Have rain last night.
 
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  • #6,407
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  • #6,408
I think it might be possible that sars-ncov-2 could play guitar.

1594985769816.png

https://news.cornell.edu/stories/1997/07/worlds-smallest-silicon-mechanical-devices-are-made-cornell

SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus Produces Long Tentacles in Infected Cells
1594985614849.png

http://www.sci-news.com/medicine/sars-cov-2-coronavirus-filopodia-08584.html
 
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  • #6,409
I want to have chicken pizza at Chichen Itza
 
  • #6,410
It was an observation about the conservation of a conversation in the population.

Why don't we hear phrases like these more often?
 
  • #6,411
WWGD said:
I want to have chicken pizza at Chichen Itza
My cousin went to Chile so she could do a Shirshasana on the Altacama. She sent a photo with her Xmas letter.
(When I went to Chichen Itza the bus stopped at a restaurant that served a dish they claimed was iguana, but it tasted like chicken.)
 
  • #6,412
Keith_McClary said:
My cousin went to Chile so she could do a Shirshasana on the Altacama. She sent a photo with her Xmas letter.
(When I went to Chichen Itza the bus stopped at a restaurant that served a dish they claimed was iguana, but it tasted like chicken.)
How about having shake and bake in Sharm-El-Sheik?
 
  • #6,413
Phone was awol, barely able to do anything until I found out I had almost run out of storage. Kind of guessed that was causing the problem. Over-sensitive camera triggered for no reason taking up a few 100mb. Good to have footage of my shoes, mop and other random stuff ;). Maybe @Wrichik Basu is interested or has some input.
 
  • #6,414
Keith_McClary said:
My cousin went to Chile so she could do a Shirshasana on the Altacama. She sent a photo with her Xmas letter.
(When I went to Chichen Itza the bus stopped at a restaurant that served a dish they claimed was iguana, but it tasted like chicken.)
Do want to Iguana sandwich in the Susquehanna( pref. cooked;))?
 
  • #6,415
WWGD said:
Phone was awol, barely able to do anything until I found out I had almost run out of storage. Kind of guessed that was causing the problem. Over-sensitive camera triggered for no reason taking up a few 100mb. Good to have footage of my shoes, mop and other random stuff ;). Maybe @Wrichik Basu is interested or has some input.
Without more details about the camera app (hope your phone is Android), it would be difficult to understand why the camera is triggered automatically. In fact, it is a violation of privacy if the camera starts without your knowledge. You can start a new thread in the Technology section and provide the details there, if you are interested.
 
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  • #6,416
Does anyone know that feeling if after eight pages of calculation all depends on the contradiction 1=-1? Normally nothing to worry about, but the entire eight pages were about commutators.
 
  • #6,417
fresh_42 said:
Does anyone know that feeling if after eight pages of calculation all depends on the contradiction 1=-1? Normally nothing to worry about, but the entire eight pages were about commutators.
I have had a " cousin situation" , where I think I struck oil in a formula and I am onto something big and then when I clear things I end up with something like ' a+b=a+b'. Duh!
 
  • #6,418
WWGD said:
I have had a " cousin situation" , where I think I struck oil in a formula and I am onto something big and then when I clear things I end up with something like ' a+b=a+b'. Duh!
I know what you mean. I had several of that moments during the eight pages. It is a bit frustrating if you have to delete 2 pages of calculations only because you saw, that it could be done with a simple argument.
 
  • #6,419
It was a non existence proof, so 1=-1 was a positive result. However, I don't trust myself that I didn't make a sign error somewhere.
 
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  • #6,420
fresh_42 said:
It was a non existence proof, so 1=-1 was a positive result. However, I don't trust myself that I didn't make a sign error somewhere.
Maybe you were working in ##\mathbb Z_2## ? ;).
 
  • #6,421
WWGD said:
Maybe you were working in ##\mathbb Z_2## ? ;).
This is the first thing you exclude when you say Lie algebra. Otherwise it will be an adventure.
 
  • #6,422
I advertised a PS4 Pro with a wireless controller for collection for £200. Someone asked if they could have it for £180 and I agreed. He wanted to know first if the warranty seals were intact so it was covered by his hone insurance.

He collected it and emailed the next day to say it he couldn’t insert any discs. He said it only accepted a disc a few seconds after powering it up and asked me for advice. I accepted a return and refunded him. It was then that I realized he gave me his faulty unit and kept mine that was in good working order.

That’s why he made sure the warranty seals were intact so he could pass his off as mine. He probably swapped the serial number stickers too.
 
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  • #6,423
skyshrimp said:
I advertised a PS4 Pro with a wireless controller for collection for £200. Someone asked if they could have it for £180 and I agreed. He wanted to know first if the warranty seals were intact so it was covered by his hone insurance.

He collected it and emailed the next day to say it he couldn’t insert any discs. He said it only accepted a disc a few seconds after powering it up and asked me for advice. I accepted a return and refunded him. It was then that I realized he gave me his faulty unit and kept mine that was in good working order.

That’s why he made sure the warranty seals were intact so he could pass his off as mine. He probably swapped the serial number stickers too.
Sorry man, tough break. If you met him online and possible, give him a nasty review.
 
  • #6,424
Gary Gray is the only combo I know where the name is an anagram of the last name.
 
  • #6,425
Spam can be funny. Ok, with the elections ahead I get dozens of political spam, but two others are funny:

The Smithsonian writes me since years: "Betty, we want you back!" I have no idea who this Betty is and when I should have had contact to the institute except that I might have surfed on their sites.

Another one complains: "We have difficulties to deliver your parcel."
That is one I understand. Of course they have difficulties to deliver, I didn't order one.
 
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  • #6,426
fresh_42 said:
Spam can be funny. Ok, with the elections ahead I get dozens of political spam, but two others are funny:

The Smithsonian writes me since years: "Betty, we want you back!" I have no idea who this Betty is and when I should have had contact to the institute except that I might have surfed on their sites.

Another one complains: "We have difficulties to deliver your parcel."
That is one I understand. Of course they have difficulties to deliver, I didn't order one.
Careful with the parcel one. Maybe a scam or expecting you to open a link.
 
  • #6,427
I get receipts in my gmail account from places to which I never gave my email address. Maybe just google keeping yrack of too many things.
 
  • #6,428
skyshrimp said:
gave me his faulty unit and kept mine that was in good working order.
This is one of the common scams I read about recently. It put me off trying to sell.
10 eBay Scams to Be Aware Of
 
  • #6,429
Keith_McClary said:
This is one of the common scams I read about recently. It put me off trying to sell.
10 eBay Scams to Be Aware Of
I've never sold. Aren't members required to register and then may be reported if they do such things?
 
  • #6,430
I see this lady feeding the pigeons some bread. I say, lady , "Please stop, they are vermin". She says , " But they need to eat". Me: " So do rats, roaches and mice".
 
  • #6,431
Received snail mail recently saying that my automobile warranty coverage was expiring and that it was URGENT for me to call this toll-free number.
  • Straight into the trash.
  • Received another one.
  • Straight into the trash.
  • Started receiving phone calls leaving a message by a computer-generated female voice saying the same thing. (I don't answer calls from unknown callers. If it's important they can leave a message, so this was unusual. Even leaving a phone number!)
  • This continued every 3 or 4 days for about 3 weeks.
  • Then they gave up.
I entered the phone number in a web search and it came back as a scam with the number usually changing every few days.

One of the few uses of Caller-ID. And the scammers complain that no one answers the phone anymore. With anywhere from zero to 8 scam calls a day it's no wonder... and it's an unlisted number.
 
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  • #6,432
Tom.G said:
Received snail mail recently saying that my automobile warranty coverage was expiring and that it was URGENT for me to call this toll-free number.
  • Straight into the trash.
  • Received another one.
  • Straight into the trash.
  • Started receiving phone calls leaving a message by a computer-generated female voice saying the same thing. (I don't answer calls from unknown callers. If it's important they can leave a message, so this was unusual. Even leaving a phone number!)
  • This continued every 3 or 4 days for about 3 weeks.
  • Then they gave up.
I entered the phone number in a web search and it came back as a scam with the number usually changing every few days.

One of the few uses of Caller-ID. And the scammers complain that no one answers the phone anymore. With anywhere from zero to 8 scam calls a day it's no wonder... and it's an unlisted number.
Can't they spoof their number?
 
  • #6,433
I get cell phone calls all the time with recorded messages urgently warning me that my car warranty is about to expire. I drive a car that is old enough to drink and do most of my own auto repair. Not that I would likely otherwise be fooled... the call comes from my own 3 digit exchange, which for various reasons is most unlikely. Would never buy anything over the phone anyway, but still, almost humorous in its superficial bogusness. I also get a significant number of robo calls that start out with a less then melodic series of musical notes, followed by a woman speaking Chinese. (I do not understand or speak Chinese).

--diogenesNY
 
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  • #6,434
I got a notice that my warranty was expired on a three month old vehicle. Sure. 🙄
 
  • #6,435
Borg said:
I got a notice that my warranty was expired on a three month old vehicle. Sure. 🙄
At least you own one. I get the same calls and don't own one.
 
  • #6,436
I try to avoid politics at all times , specially in recent times. But it seems just-about everything has been politicized nowadays.
 
  • #6,437
WWGD said:
Can't they spoof their number?
Sure can, they can be too easily traced/caught if using their real number. They generally insert a name and number that is not in service into the Caller ID. Sometimes they pick a number that is live for some hapless soul. The hapless soul then turns in a VERY MAD hapless soul when all the potential suckers call to raise H*ll!

The technology used is a computer to auto-dial over the Internet and play a recording, often a computer-synthesized female voice. Since they are creating all the data packets, anything wanted can be inserted. At least in the developed world, most of the phone companies these days send everything over the Internet anyhow. That makes it extemely cheap and easy to set up a few computers in a poor country, out of the target legal jurisdiction, and rake in the occassional sucker.

If a person answers one of these calls, the call is forwarded to a 'Closer.' A Closer is a live sales person that is quite experienced in getting people to believe his story and send money. They really are specialists!

Cheers,
Tom
 
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  • #6,438
Speaking of cars, I sold the Prius yesterday that I bought new in 2006. It served us well over the years and we hope the same for the new owner. It was like saying goodbye to an old friend.
 
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  • #6,439
Tom.G said:
They really are specialists!
For some reason they never seem to know what vehicle they are calling about, what credit card account they are calling about or what computer they are calling about. One guy was skeptical about my claimed Commodore 64.
 
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  • #6,440
With the disappeatence of Analog clocks, wonder if generation Z( I think born around 2018 or after) will know the meaning of ' Clockwise/Counterclockwise).

And what would be the name of the generation after Z?
 
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