Site Error: Unable to Load Site Preferences; No Preferences Found

Question: I've I clients website which has been working fine, today the site has gone down randomly. I was initially able to access the control panel and all seemed fine, whilst logged in the home page displayed a error 28 message which  understand means the database has run out of room. The client had checked with the host who said all was fine their end. But now the site is displaying "Site Error: Unable to Load Site Preferences; No Preferences Found" and I can't access the control panel any more?? Has anyone got any suggestions of how this could have come about or more importantly how it can be fixed. Many thanks in advance.
Comment: could you please mark Ian answer as solution for your question? Thanks!
Answer: Double check the database.php settings file. It's most likely to be some kinda of database connection issue. It may be that your host has changed the IP of it's DB server or something is blocking the connection.
See if you can log into the database directly through your hosting control panel or phpMyAdmin with the same credentials.
Comment: Thanks very much for your advice, it was down to the hosting, they fixed something at their end and the site is back up and running now. Thank you.
Answer: I had this happen once with a client's site recently. It ended up being the server. It was out of writable space in one of the cache/temp directories. But maybe you can try deleting all EE cache and see where that gets you.
We ended up switching hosts for the client and everything is back to normal.
Comment: Thanks very much for your advice, it was down to the hosting, they fixed something at their end and the site is back up and running now. Thank you.
Answer: Another thing to check is file permissions on config.php, database.php and the cache directory.
Answer: If it's intermittent... this will likely be related to max database connections. Check the max user connections setting, and compare that to the number of connections open.
Answer: Check the database.php file.
In my case, I resolved just changing hostname from localhost to 127.0.0.1.
Answer: There are two possible causes for this error. One is database connection issues. Two, in my case, the host company upgraded PHP on the server and my EE installation became incompatible with the new version of PHP. I could role back to a legacy version of PHP for my host account, and that solved the problem.


Why were the Night's Watch required to be celibate?

Question: If the Night's Watch was supposed to last thousands of years, and was given land, why not have them raise families in the Gift and send all adult males to guard the wall on a rotation?
Comment: In "The Game of Thrones" series there is actually a bit of dialog pointing out that their oath says nothing about celibacy. The oath states that they must take no wives and father no children, from which one might infer a vow of celibacy, but it doesn't technically forbid sex.
Comment: @AnthonyX Luckily the question is not tagged with the show tag. If we consider that absurd bit of Dialogue from Samwell canon, what does any vow of the NW mean then? "You can't take a wife, but you can have sex, jon", "You can be a King as long as you don't wear a crown Jon, since the vows speak only of wearing the crown".
Comment: @AnthonyX I wonder if that reflects the real-world history of the word "wife" in English, which originally meant *woman*. As GRRM is surely aware, any English text more than about five hundred years old that said "take no wife" would originally have meant "sleep with no woman," and only in the modern language would that loophole appear to exist. (Although the Oath would never have prohibited homosexuality.) *Celibacy* has evolved in the opposite direction: until recently, it merely meant that someone was voluntarily unmarried.
Comment: Celibacy: "the state of abstaining from marriage AND sexual relations".
Comment: @AnthonyX, `celibacy` = `not marrying`, `chastity` = `not having sex`
Comment: @AnthonyX it also says "I shall take no wife", which could be interpreted as "I shall have no lover".
Comment: @user28434 [chastity](https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/chastity) can mean no extramarital sex
Answer: Because love is the death of duty.
If they have families, they will lose the focus on the defense of the human realms against the Others. And when the time comes when they must choose, they will always choose their families rather than the realm. That is why they give up everything, to be completely focused on one duty.
Maester Aemon explained that part of the vow in detail in his conversation with Jon when it was suspected that Jon would desert for love of his family:

"Jon, did you ever wonder why the men of the Night's Watch take no
wives and father no children?" Maester Aemon asked.
Jon shrugged. "No." He scattered more meat. The fingers of his left
hand were slimy with blood, and his right throbbed from the weight of
the bucket.
"So they will not love," the old man answered, "for love is the bane
of honor, the death of duty."
That did not sound right to Jon, yet he said nothing. The maester was
a hundred years old, and a high officer of the Night's Watch; it was
not his place to contradict him.
The old man seemed to sense his doubts. "Tell me, Jon, if the day
should ever come when your lord father must needs choose between honor
on the one hand and those he loves on the other, what would he do?"
Jon hesitated. He wanted to say that Lord Eddard would never dishonor
himself, not even for love, yet inside a small sly voice whispered, He
fathered a bastard, where was the honor in that? And your mother, what
of his duty to her, he will not even say her name.
"He would do whatever was right," he said... ringingly, to make up for
his hesitation. "No matter what."
"Then Lord Eddard is a man in ten thousand. Most of us are not so
strong. What is honor compared to a woman's love? What is duty against
the feel of a newborn son in your arms... or the memory of a brother's
smile? Wind and words. Wind and words. We are only human, and the gods
have fashioned us for love. That is our great glory, and our great
tragedy.
The men who formed the Night's Watch knew that only their courage
shielded the realm from the darkness to the north. They knew they must
have no divided loyalties to weaken their resolve. So they vowed they
would have no wives nor children. Yet brothers they had, and sisters.
Mothers who gave them birth, fathers who gave them names. They came
from a hundred quarrelsome kingdoms, and they knew times may change,
but men do not. So they pledged as well that the Night's Watch would
take no part in the battles of the realms it guarded.
"They kept their pledge. When Aegon slew Black Harren and claimed his
kingdom, Harren's brother was Lord Commander on the Wall, with ten
thousand swords to hand. He did not march. In the days when the Seven
Kingdoms were seven kingdoms, not a generation passed that three or
four of them were not at war. The Watch took no part. When the Andals
crossed the narrow sea and swept away the kingdoms of the First Men,
the sons of the fallen kings held true to their vows and remained at
their posts. So it has always been, for years beyond counting. Such is
the price of honor.
A craven can be as brave as any man, when there is nothing to fear.
And we all do our duty, when there is no cost to it. How easy it seems
then, to walk the path of honor. Yet soon or late in every man's life
comes a day when it is not easy, a day when he must choose."AGOT - Jon VIII

This is a great passage which really explains the two most troubling vows of the Black Brothers. First, the vow of celibacy. Second, the vow of neutrality. They must remain celibate for if they have wives and children, their loyalties shall be divided between safety of their loved ones or safety of the realm. And then neutrality because once again, the Black Brothers must not feel any divided loyalties between defense of their former homes and families and defense of the realm.
Until the day of choosing comes, every man is brave and honourable, every man keeps his vows. But that one day comes, as surely as the day he was born, when he must choose. Would he choose his sons? The love of his life? Or the people of the realm? Not every man is strong enough to choose the latter. So they must eliminate the complications to make the vows relatively easier for the Black brothers.
The Gift and the new Gift have in fact been inhabited by normal folks, normal families. And they are occasionally called to defense of the Wall when need be, like Jon called Mole's Town people to Castle Black when Thenns attacked. But they are not Black Brothers. When fight seems hopeless, their first priority will be their families, and they will flee. Just like the Mole Town folks did before Battle of the Wall. Even if we ignore that, if Black Brothers were allowed to own property, start families, the Watch would become eventually a Kingdom in itself, rather than the shield and defenders of all the Kingdoms. And that will sooner or later bring them in political conflict with their neighbouring Kingdoms. Even as things stand, many mad Lord commanders tried to make the watch hereditary, imagine what would happen if there were Houses, families and clans on the Wall as well. They must stand united, all the men of the seven Kingdoms, in defense of all the Kingdoms while staying out of their internal politics.
Jon experienced the truth of Maester Aemon's words despite harbouring doubts initially. When he fell in love with Ygritte, his duty started becoming harder and harder for him. But when the day of choosing came for him at Queenscrown, Jon chose duty and abandoned Ygritte, as much as it hurt him or haunts him still. And yet he failed in some ways again, when he spotted Ygritte while defending Castle Black, his hands won't release the arrow and thus he let Ygritte slip by, simply because he loved her. Who knows how many brothers of Night's Watch Ygritte killed before someone else shot her down?
Comment: I think it's also the idea that GRRM is going for in the dynamic between Varys and Littlefinger. They are basically very similar in how they operate and think, and have similar personalities - with this one thing being the deciding factor in the difference between their goals and priorities. This difference also plays out in Robb Stark's storyline. It was basically what ruined everything for him.
Comment: On the other side, having people with family ties in a somewhat hostile territory to make them fight for them is something that has been succesfully tried by a lot of empires, from Romans to Incas.
Comment: While this is the correct answer (from GRRM's point of view, as written in the books) is not very convincent. Many men from the Night's watch were attempting to flee at the Fist of the First Men when were attacked by white walkers, and many more did later at Craster's Keep. Without any bonds to the people they're supposed to protect, it's only fear of decapitation if caught what prevents them from deserting. Give them a chance to flee, specially if they can gather together in a big group, instead of going solo, and they'll fly as soon as they can.
Comment: This is basically the choice Jon had to do at the end of the TV Show. Love or Duty ?!
Comment: @Rekesoft Well, keep in mind the Night's Watch was originally for honorable knights, not rapists and Targ loyalists
Comment: The Night's Watch with their black uniforms stand in contrast with the white uniforms of the King's Guard who also take no wives. The two groups are quite similar.
Comment: Aemon is leaving out a rather crucial aspect..having the vow makes the Night Watch a viable alternative to death for people like him...people with a legit claim to a title, but no desire or means to gain their birthright can be safely sequestered in the North, and not leave any little claimants.
Comment: Let us [continue this discussion in chat](https://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/94242/discussion-between-aegon-and-rekesoft).
Comment: I think this answer is good but I think it misses a certain aspect. It would not be a very good place to send bastards, pretenders or claimants if there was no vow and discipline around wives and children. This would narrow the recruiting list somewhat.
Comment: @AzorAhai This is mentioned in the description of the main hall where few shields remained hanging on the walls where once the hall was lined with the shields of knights and lords.
Answer: They weren't. They were required to "take no wives and father no children". Even before contraceptives, there are ways of having sex which have no possibility of pregnancy, and that doesn't even count homosexual encounters.
While celibacy is a way to ensure that, it isn't necessary. It was shown in the novels and books that the members routinely visited brothels, and that this was tolerated, if only unofficially. Maester Aemon made the comment that

If we beheaded every ranger who lay with a girl, the Wall would be manned by headless men.

From a practical standpoint, despite Aemon's poetic explanation, there's also a more practical one; children mean heirs, family, interconnections with other families in the Watch and with people from the South. And at some point, humans being humans, you'll have the equivalent of one or more Houses arising among the Night Watch, and then once that happens, what's the impetus for them to remain neutral in the politics in the South? Having connections means there's a reason to interfering with what's happening down South. If you're Lord Commander of the Watch and your daughter is married to a Mormont and the Mormonts are getting grief from the Boltons, wouldn't you be tempted to flex some muscle to sort that lot out, even just as a threat?
Without children, there's no inheritance. There's none of those interconnections.
Comment: It's all about implications, not possible loopholes. If they are not required to be celibate as long as they take no wives and father no children, then they can be Kings as well as long as they do not wear a crown, fight for personal reasons as long as they claim no glory. Taking no wife implies they shall not love and shall be celibate, fathering no children implies they shall not start a family, wearing no crown implies they shall not intervene in politics, winning no glories means they shall not fight for selfish reasons like fame or wealth but rather only in defense of the realm.
Comment: The only reason that the custom known as "digging for treasures" is tolerated is because the Watch is severely undermanned and they can no longer afford to lose men over comparatively minor breaches.
Comment: @AndresF. It literally begins along the lines of a loophole. "They can have sex technically as long as they do not marry the woman or father any children", which basically makes all their vows meaningless when we start looking for "Well technically". My comments are focused on that rather than the substance of his answer, he has my upvote and all :)
Comment: @Aegon The old quote by Feynman comes to mind: "Science is like sex: sometimes something useful comes out, but that is not the reason we are doing it."
Comment: "Even before contraceptives". You know those have been around since antiquity, right? Modern contraceptives are more available and more effective, but they certainly aren't a new invention.
Comment: @Aegon I think Keith's explanation of the practical implications is quite convincing, and not about loopholes. In fact, he seems to be agreeing with you...
Comment: This more relevant than the accepted answer. Yes the quote by the Maester is good but it is not relevant. Duty can coexist with love. When the war with the whites came everyone stood in the battlefield. It a duty to protect the ones they love and its because of love they have the duty. The practical aspect you mentioned seems reasonable
Answer: Because it generates a conflict of interest that the Watch would rather not have present.

Maester Aemon: Did you ever wonder why the men of the Night's Watch take no wives and father no children? So they will not love. Love is the death of duty."
Game of Thrones - S01E09: Baelor

You may think that having something to defend would make them better at their jobs, but think about this: What about the sons born who'd rather go south? Should they be bound to the wall for the sins of their fathers? If not, then suddenly you have a bunch of Night's Watch who are faced with the same decision that caused Jon to run away for a night. This problem is mitigated by just not letting them form families.
Comment: It would also complicate the situation of nobles being exiled to the Watch. Would a child of a noble in the Night's Watch be considered an heir? Even if they're not supposed to be it could throw a wrench into the works.

Consider Aemon, who joined the Night's Watch so as not to be used by his brother's rivals. What if Aemon had a child? Now you have a possible heir who did not give vows, or at least someone malcontents could rally around. Much simpler to say "no children allowed".
Answer: IDK if it's ever mentioned in canon, but this requirement also makes it impossible for the Night's Watch to turn into a dynasty / House, if the Lord Commander had children to pass things on to.
That could easily result in its goals shifting, and the Night's Watch becoming involved in politics.  And/or other regions not wanting to send their people.
But when the next generation of Night Watchmen come from all over the land, strangers sent to do their duty, it's more plausible for the institution to survive unchanged for many generations.
Answer: Case 1: After Night King's death Two kinds of people to join the night's watch or take the castle black. The first are the found guilty of crimes and join the night's watch for their life. Second, are who join castle black on their own. If you remember in the episode "The Iron Throne" (S08E06) Tyrion told Jon "The world will always need a home for bastards and broken men." The lives of Basterds and broken men in the Westeros is not much fun they are mocked by all. Castle Black and other castles on the wall gives a home to all of them. Also, thieves, looters, rapers etc. are sentenced to die in the Westeros and they are given a choice to restart their lives by taking the castle black. Moreover, the reason for not marrying or father sons is not mentioned in the series but one reason for this could be that thieves, looters and rapers are guilty of crimes so if they father a child or take wives, they will produce a child with same nature. Similarly, for the bastard, offsprings will not have the name of an old house and for broken, they won't be able to raise children as effectively.
Case 2: Before the Night King Apart from the reason for case 1, as maester Aemon said love is the death of duty. So, they were not allowed to take wives or father any child as this might distract them to perform their duty to watch the wall against the night king and the wildlings.
Answer: I don't think that part of the oath is just about love and duty, despite the great words from the maester. After all, the men still have families and people they love. Mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, cousins, etc. Jon himself desperately want to help his brother Robb, probably as much as he would want to help a wife and kids.
The part about not taking a wife has a more practical purpose. A Night Watchman lives at the wall permanently. That means wives and kids would either live with them in the castle, or nearby in some village. It is the same as living in on-base housing for today's military. Wives and kids have to be provided food, health care, education, etc., not to mention security. It's a financial and logistical burden that the NW cannot afford, so it makes a lot of sense to forbid it.
Comment: You also can't ignore the oath by proposing 'fixes' that would require violating it.
Comment: I disagree. If you have a large population, you can have men doing tours of service switching off every few months, allowing for families in villages in the Gift
Comment: @Antheloth It doesn't work that way. You are permanently deployed. The oath says: "I shall live and die at my post."
Comment: the question is why is the system the way it is, you cant answer me from the oath


How to make the Macbook Air's Wifi connection as fast as a VM's?

Question: This is related to question To let a Mac automatically use Wifi and Ethernet to double the connection speed?
It is very strange that, in a hotel (La Quinta Inns), the Macbook connection both Wifi or Ethernet at 95 kbyte / s.  But after I installed VirtualBox and downloaded Ubuntu and installed Ubuntu as a Virtual Machine using the "Bridged Adapter" networking option and selecting "Wifi", the Firefox inside Ubuntu can pull data at 365 kbyte / s, as reported by both SpeedTest.net and by the Macbook's Activities Monitor for Networking.
This is very strange... what might be the cause and what can be a fix for this, so that the Macbook Air itself can use 365 kbyte / s?  (If I use my iPhone 5 or iPad 3 and run SpeedTest app, then the result is similar.  Assuming it is not the possibility that since Apple's device is quite popular, the network config at the hotel whenever detecting an Apple device, will lower the bandwidth, and allow PC or non-Apple device (such as Ubuntu) to run at full speed, what might be other reasons that causes it?)
P.S. But if I unplug the Ethernet, so that the Macbook and the VM both use the Wifi, and then run SpeedTest, then the Macbook has 95 kbyte / s, and the VM has 365 kbyte / s.  I even just use curl to download a file on the Macbook, and it is 95 kbyte / s, so it is not due to the browser's USER_AGENT string indicating it is a Mac...  I then even ran the same command line inside Ubuntu, which is
curl http://download.microsoft.com/download/f/5/a/f5a3df76-d856-4a61-a6bd-722f52a5be26/PowerPointViewer.exe >| some-file-to-download

(which is just to download some file), and when done in Ubuntu, the download speed became 365 kbyte /s.  This is strange because the VM is just using the Wifi connection on the Macbook to pull data... so why will the VM be faster with 4 times the speed?
P.P.S. I called the tech support of the hotel and they told me they don't know about the VM, but they said the speed I get is normal, as they divide the bandwidth into smaller pieces... so he also gave me a "Web Proxy" to use and the speed is double as before.  And so I suspect that the VM / Ubuntu was able to somehow detect the proxy on its own and use it to gain the speed.
Answer: Create a new account on your machine, connect to the wifi on a fresh account, and let us know if the speeds are the same.
There's nothing specific on a Macbook that would purposely slow down a Wi-Fi connection. If you go to the Wi-Fi icon at the upper-right of your screen. Hold down the Option Key, and click the Wi-Fi icon, it will give you more information, such as the wireless type; b,g,n and the connection speed 2.5GHz, 5GHz,etc.
Good Luck!
Comment: I tried that, and it is still the same 95 kbyte / s. It didn't show the hotel's confirm to log in and proceed page. (no password needed). It just connected to the same Wifi automatically. By the way, it is 802.11g, but the Macbook uses it, and so does the VM


What's the best way to rebuild piano technique?

Question: I am already a pretty advanced player but I've not been able to practice seriously for a few months. What's the most efficient way to rebuild strength? Are Hanon or Czerny good for this? Would scales/chords/arpeggios suffice? I'm not looking for the pedagogical pros/cons of each, I just want my strength back. Thanks!
Comment: I'm not sure if you mean strength literally or more generally.  Do you mean that you're having trouble filling out your whole dynamic range?  Or are you talking about getting back all your technical ability?  If it's the latter, perhaps pulling back in a piece that you had just gotten really solid before your break would be helpful, since all the practice goals and steps you went through for that one would be fairly fresh in your mind.
Comment: Just play.... !
Answer: How did you build your strength in the first place? I would say do that. Also, do something that you like to do because you'll do more of it and get stronger more quickly. The exercises you mentioned are tried and true, all of them.
Answer: Watch any baby bang on a toy piano.  All motion comes from the arm and shoulder.  What do babies know that we don't? They know that the fingers are weak and designed for gripping, not playing the piano.
First, technique is all in the brain.  Do you need to practice riding a bike or walking or build strength and endurance each day to keep up your walking and balance skills?  Once the brain figures out how to use the proper muscles to balance, it is there forever - until wear and tear or entropy affects our nervous system. Strength and endurance are only needed if you use the wrong, weak and improper muscles to play. When you use the proper muscles, the body will give you what you need with zero effort.  If you use the improper muscles, the body will do its best to acclimate and make the hand submissive but, miss a few days of practice and what you built, that which you don't need, will atrophy. When you have a proper, ergonomic technique which obeys the laws of physics (a HS course which apparently has nothing to do with real life) you should be able to go several days without practicing and when you sit at the piano, it all comes flooding back.  Like walking.
Without pressing into the key bed, allow gravity to relax the fulcrum of the elbow to softly drop the arm/hand/fingers onto a chord.  Do you see how effortless that was and how you used minimal flexation of the flexor muscles in the forearm?  Where on earth does strength and endurance fit into all of this?
The foundation of all technical ability is learning to use the arm with its weight and its fulcrums and direction to place the fingers where they need to be.  If you try to play from the fingers (which have no muscles) you risk using the wrong muscles resulting in strains, muscles pulling the hand in two or more directions at the same time (force vectors), imbalance, weakness, fatigue, strain, cramps - and if you are lucky, you will only have poor technique and not injury. Other than beating the hand into submission, strength and endurance won't fix any of that.  If it does, it won't last long, you will have to maintain it and it will lead to injury eventually.
Daniel-san, without pressing, wash a window, write on a chalkboard, wax your car . . . That is the foundation of piano playing.  The fingers, hand and wrist obey the physics of the arm.  The fingers don't drag the arm behind it.  The fingers don't work independent of the arm.  Once you free the fingers of doing all the work, you can fine tune their grouping and directions giving you speed and the appearance of strength and endurance.
Some people already have all this and their problems with playing come from other incorrect movements creeping in and hindering "strength and endurance." These include twisting, pressing or abducting but also not having enough up/down, in/out, lateral arm movement to place the fingers, not using the pronator and supinator muscles to play the thumb and pinky, not aligning the elbow for crosses and direction changes . . . The arm is a machine with pulleys and levers, thus, must obey the laws of physics for optimal performance and avoidance of wear and tear.  Force it to cheat those laws and muscular anarchy will reign resulting in poor technique or injury.   Technique is knowledge, not rote.
Go fly fishing.  You don't just use brute strength to cast your fly.  It will land three feet in front of you.  Instead, you cast from the shoulder and elbow, you use equal and opposite muscles to find the weight of the fly, the weight of the pole, the flexation of the pole and when you find all that after four or five swings, you let it go and the fly catapults fifty feet.  All because you innately used physics, not Hanon or hours in the gym.
Why do some golfers throw their backs out while others play for a lifetime with no injury?  Physics.  Were you taught to lift with the knees?  Physics.  Ask any architect how he designs a building.  Physics.  Wax on, wax off?  Physics. Want to control the playground see-saw? Sit further out than your opponent.  Physics.  Want to make the keys feel lighter?  Play on their outer edge.  Physics.
I always had poor technique and struggled with many passages.  Then I found a new teacher that I addressed a problem passage with and she said "Adjust your elbow here, forward shift your thumb there" and like magic, the passage was there.  No submission, no exercise, no strength, no endurance, no hours of practice - just knowledge and physics. After doing it three times the correct way, it was mine forever.
Any teacher who prescribes practicing more or building strength and endurance should be avoided.  In time, they will cripple you. Any time there is a passage, scale or arpeggio we can't play, we don't need strength or hours of Hanon.  We need to find what law of physics is missing or which erroneous movement is getting in the way. Like the precise movement of a Swiss watch, our bodies yearn to move in ergonomic perfection.  Why do we get in its way?
Hanon and Czerny are the fake news of the music world.  If there is a scale in a song that you can't play, don't practice Hanon and Czerny, just learn to play the scale.
When I was about 13, whenever it snowed my dad would take me to the school parking lot and he'd let me do donuts and skids.  What I thought was fun was him teaching me about gravity, weight, force, direction, torque . . . how to work with physics, not challenge it.
An example of an improper muscle to use is the thumb's abductor.  We know abductors are weak muscles yet most pianists use them all the time.  Most of us are taught to use the thumb's abductor to play down.  Makes sense.  However, if you use a forward shift from the shoulder, the fulcrum of the elbow and weight of the arm, and a slight rotation from the pronator, the thumb plays effortlessly and possesses tremendous power.  The same is true for the ring and pinky fingers.  We think they are weak but what is really wrong is that we are not using their strong muscles and are trying to use the wrong ones.  Often a subtle adjustment of the elbow will give the pinky just as much coordination and power as all the other fingers.
My car mechanic would make a better teacher than most piano teachers.  Do you know why?  He knows about physics.  Every motion has an equal and opposite motion.  In order to walk up stairs, we must press down.  Walk forward, press backward.  Swing a bat, back swing.  Swat a fly, back swing.  Kick a ball, back swing.  Slap a face, back swing.  Play down on a piano?  Play up.  Let gravity do the rest. Playing down is more about controlling gravity and resting up rather than pressing. Get this into your arms and your fingers require no strength nor endurance.
Comment: Would you be interested in paring this answer down to just a paragraph or two? As it is, it's tough to see what your ultimate point is (!).


Reaction of soap with water

Question: I've seen it many times... Why does soap become foam-like when it reacts with water (moisture) or when we touch it with wet hands.. What compound actually causes this physical change? And why does this physical change occur?
Comment: So you're thinking of solid 'bar' soap?
Comment: yeah,..! Why are there any other different species in your mind.>?
Comment: Sorry, what I meant is that I guess you're in particular thinking about the physical change of the properties of solid soap when you get water on it.
Comment: Yeah man.. I mentioned the word 'physical change' in the question
Answer: The simplest kinds of soap are just a fatty acid chain with something more ionic on the end - something like the ubiquitous sodium laureth sulphate:

When it's in bar form, it behaves a bit like a solid block of plastic, because chemically speaking, those long chains of carbon are quite a lot like a common plastic such as polythene. These chains attract each other and repel and exclude water, keeping the block together. The sulphate group on the end is hydrophilic, though - it's chemically stable surrounded by water. This means that when you add water, it infiltrates and teases apart the structure of strands, getting to the ionic ends on each chain and forming a "solvation shell" of waters around each one. There's no real chemical reaction here - as you say, it's a physical process, which is why rubbing the soap helps - you're applying shear to the structure and helping to separate the strands.
Once they're separated from the bulk, the soap forms tiny bubbles called "micelles", which have the chains pointed inwards towards each other and the ionic sulphate groups meeting the water at the outside.
Answer: While this question should get a more elaborate answer, mine will at least give you leads.
Soaps act as surfactants, that is, they are amphiphilic (both hydrophobic and hydrophilic) molecules that lower the surface tension of a liquid.
By lowering the surface tension of water, soap bubbles can form, the surface becoming more "elastic" - the molecules at the interface experience less inward/normal force than they would were surfactant not present. On the contrary, adding soap to a pond would prevent water striders from gliding on the surface of the pond.
Comment: Thanks. But I didn't ask about surface tension. Its in my 10th grade syllabus. I'm asking 'why is this physical change?' Please read the question and its not necessary for ponds & surface tension
Comment: @CrazyBuddy Then your question is ambiguous. The question you ask in the main post and the one you ask in the comment are different. Consider clearing up your question.
Comment: One thing that should be made clear is the question you want to ask, and also what you mean by "solid-like".
Comment: sorry for that.. I told solid-like 'cause i thought soap as something like colloid due to its appearance
Answer: The soap dissolves in the water. Dissolution is not a chemical change because the same chemicals are present, they just interact with each other differently. Like CHM said, soaps act as surfactants and the difference in surface tension improves the survivability of bubbles, thus creating a "foam".
Comment: We're talking about physical changes and you keep going "no I mean the physical change man".
Comment: There. Is. No. Chemical. Change. We have all been trying to tell you this. We've been telling you about physical changes and you've been ignoring us.

Reaction of soap with water


Do you need Hardware skills to be a Robotic Programmer?

Question: I want to know:
Do you need hardware skills to be a robotic programmer?
Answer: Depends what programming of what robots.
When programming industrial robots, you usually need to know pretty well the ins and outs of how this specific model is constructed. Perhaps not to the level of individual nuts and bolts, but you eed to know how much load it can handle, what forces/speeds/accelereations are allowed, which positions result in lower capacity or positioning quality etc. This is rarely a problem though, because before anyone ever lets you (or your program) near a robot on factory floor, you go through manufacturer's training.
Answer: It depends on the level you program the robot on. Have all the hardware abstractions already been programmed? If not, it's a lot like embedded development and you'll need to know the strengths and limits of the hardware pretty well.
Many robots these days run embedded linux. What if a new, custom device was added to the robot? You'd have to write a driver software. So you should have a thorough understanding of how to program close to system and hardware. You don't need to be an expert on hardware, but fundamental knowledge of digital circuits and electronics is mandatory.
You should also have some knowledge of mechatronics. It's much like business software: You can't write good software if you don't know your business domain well.
Of course, if you don't develop the robots on your own but just get one from a vendor, the APIs and abstractions have already been written. Then it boils down to end-user programming, often with custom languages, and the hardware isn't that important anymore. You can then focus on the tasks the robot should carry out. This can be a broad range of tasks, from very trivial ones (easy movement sequences) to very complex ones (decision making on basis of complex data, AI).
In conclusion, you can say:

If you want to program robot systems, then yes, knowledge of the hardware is necessary.
If you want to just write applications for a given platform, then knowledge of the hardware might or might not be necessary, but it'd be an advantage to have.

Edit: btw, most robot programmers and embedded developers I know are electronics engineers.
However, all this is subject to change in the future. Programming computers has come a long, long way. In the early days of computers, you had to know your hardware pretty well. Today, this knowledge has become less and less relevant to programmers in most fields. The same will probably happen to robots one day.
Answer: I'm not in that field, so I can't say how easy it would be to get a job without knowledge of hardware skills.
Though for the programming part you can for sure do this without knowing much about hardware. I played around with the Gazebo Project once and my lack of hardware knowledge was no problem at all. There are many other robot simulators of that kind and as far as I can say, all modern robots have a very abstract interface for their functionality, that allows programming them in high languages like C++ or Python with simple commands that control their functionality.
I think the requirements for this part of programming robots are more on the line of image processing, path finding and in general search algorithms of the artificial intelligence kind that enable you to write software that lets the robot interact with a complex environment and make smart decisions.
As an example: The well known RoboCup Contest has for it's Rescue Contest a Simulation League where teams compete in the USARSim environment, so they can test their software against other teams even if they don't have robots of their own. Those tasks, exploring a simulated disaster area and finding victims need specialists in many areas. 9not sure if this league is still active, but it was for many years)


Why does Titan's atmosphere not start to burn?

Question: If Titan has a methane atmosphere and seas of methane, then why doesn't some meteoroid / chemical reaction ignite and blow the whole thing?
Comment: It is a very legitimate question, please don't misinterpret me. I have upvoted it. But that "blow the whole thing" together with the mental picture it suggests, suddenly made laugh like hell.
Comment: Maybe i have seen too many sci-fi movies.
Comment: I love sci-fi too, and have read nearly all that Philip Dick wrote. The question is ok, it's just the lack of oxigen in that atmosphere what prevents "the whole thing to blow" (I am happy I have learnt that expression, my english has improved a bit!). Having the enormous amount of $O_{2}$ we have in our Earth atmosphere is a very rare thing. It is sustained by algae and plants. Otherwise, oxygen would be combined with other things, like it happens in Mars, and you would not be able to light a match here.
Comment: If a water ice meteor colided with it, it would also bring oxygen as H2 O. Wouldn't that ignite?
Comment: @Robert You'd probably get some reaction, because CO2 bonds are stronger than H2O bonds:http://www.chemguide.co.uk/physical/energetics/bondenthalpies.html  Since it's hard to ignite gasoline under water, I expect you'd see a far slower reaction than what we usually call fire.
Answer: Titan is one of Saturn's moons. Titan has a dense atmosphere, at about 1.5 bars. It also seems to have lakes of liquid methane.
For a conventional combustion, you would need a good Methane-Oxygen mix. Every combustion is basically an oxidization. Apart from very energetic events, such as SL9 hitting Jupiter, you will need quite a bit of oxygen to get a nice, explosive fireball in Titan's atmosphere.
According to Wikipedia, you need two Oxygen molecules for every Methane molecule you want to burn.
Comment: While it is a few degrees C above Methane's ignition point, Titan's surface temperature is very cold compared to Earth, which can't help.
Comment: @GreenMatt assuming that the kinetic energy released in a large enough impact locally raises the temperature to a few thousand degrees, that seems negligible?
Answer: This question is little different from asking why, if the Sun is a ball of Hydrogen, it hasn't already exploded (or burned out). It is difficult for me to take it seriously. But I'll try.
Methane and Oxygen are gases and will react at room temperature and pressure in certain concentration ranges and when exposed to a spark (or other high energy density discharge; a flame, friction, etc.). We call these limits the LEL and UEL (abbreviations for Upper and Lower Explosion Limits) for hydrogen which change as the atmospheric concentration of Oxygen changes. A tragic example of this was the enormously stupid decision by NASA to use pure oxygen in the Apollo space capsules. During testing of Apollo 1, three astronauts burned to death in a flash fire in which the extreme oxygen concentration allowed almost all plastic materials (wire jackets, clothing, etc.) to burn intensely. An urban myth I have heard, but can neither confirm nor contradict, is that if you held a cigarette lighter under your finger in a pure O2 atmosphere, it would start to burn, and continue to burn even after the lighter was put out.
The temperature of a gas is an indication of how fast the atoms/molecules are going. As you lower the temperature, the average speed declines. For the $\mathrm{CH_4+O_2}$ reaction to proceed, you need the methane and the oxygen molecules' collision to impact hard enough to break chemical bonds. As temperature drops, this becomes increasingly unlikely. OTOH, the reaction also releases energy, so if there is enough energy both from the speed of the molecules and the energy released from the reaction products to induce more that one additional reaction, then you will have a chain reaction and the result will depend on whether the supply of both molecule types is large enough to sustain the reaction. It can self-quench, stay in a steady state (form a flame) or explode. Note that while on Earth, the most common reaction in the air is using oxygen as the oxidizer (one of the reactants), methane can react with many other gasses, for instance $\mathrm{F_2}$, fluorine or $\mathrm{Cl_2}$, Chlorine.
Since there is virtually no oxidizer present in Titan's atmosphere, methane can't burn, even if the temperature, pressure, and concentration were high enough.
Comment: Can you try to format your answer a little to make it easier to read?


Toggling between 2 bookmarks (or see a page, and load another page from bookmark) won't work with jQuery History plugin

Question: Anyone knows how to fix this jQuery History plugin?  (for ajax history and bookmark)
In http://github.com/tkyk/jquery-history-plugin/issues#issue/5
This is the details:
My app using IE 8's IE 7 Compatibility Mode as well as http://www.serpere.info/jquery-history-plugin/samples/ajax, which is using IE 8's default mode, seem to have this problem:
Create 2 bookmarks
<code>http://www.serpere.info/jquery-history-plugin/samples/ajax/#1
http://www.serpere.info/jquery-history-plugin/samples/ajax/#2
</code>
now click one bookmark, and try clicking the other, back and forth. The page content is not updated. In the current Firefox and Chrome, it works. In IE 8, it doesn't. Also true if you directly modify the hash value from #2 to #3
P.S. I am quite sure it is solvable, because if using Facebook on IE 8,
http://www.facebook.com/someusername?v=info#!/someusername?v=info
http://www.facebook.com/someusername?v=info#!/someusername?v=wall
works well if the user toggle between the 2 bookmarks.  (substitute someusername by some real user name above)
Answer: Try balupton's jQuery History plugin instead.


Is there a correct or better order to read Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates?

Question: I would like to read the text written by Aristotle, Plato, Socrates and so on. Is there any reference of the best order to read them? Is the chronological order the best or correct one? Or is there a best or correct order?
Comment: There is certainly no best or correct order in general. Forming a reading strategy is hard work... In passing is there any chance I might be able to persuade you to cleanup the headline a little bit? It is unclear what "Philosopher's texts" is intended to indicate -- and after reading the question and tags it is unclear whether you just mean Ancient Greek philosophy, or philosophy in general, etc. Anyway I would encourage you to reformulate your question and headline somewhat to clarify the scope you intend to ask after here
Comment: The "best" order would depend on your goal. If your goal is to get an A in "Plato class" and you have limited time, the "best" order would be to start with Plato. If your goal is to get an idea of how these ancient philosophers' views changed over time, it might be appropriate to read Socrates, Plato, then Aristotle. Once you define your goal or purpose, we can better help you figure out what's "best". :)
Comment: I'd recommend starting with the writings of Socrates, but ought implies can…
Answer: Most philosophers are writing in a given historical background, either consciously within it or against it (Kant was reacting to Hume), so a chronological reading will tend to maintain context.
But each author has written quite a lot, so I'd advise against trying to read the totality of one author before moving on to the next one.
I'd suggest some kind of mix-up that generally follows time and influence, but putting off minor things til later.
That is, start with one or two dialogs of Plato then a chapter or two of Aristotle before trying a pre-Socratic. (note that Socrates is really only presented by Plato)
Another suggestion, if you're just starting out, is to read an historical commentary along the way. For example, Bertrand Russell's Intro to Western Philosophy is very readable and gives scope and relation between the main players (sort of a playbook to see were the trends are).
But don't feel like it is a big slog that you have to get through from start to finish. You don't have to read Descartes before Spinoza; they all have a tendency to stand on their own. If you like what people have suggested about Nietzsche, then go ahead and read something by him, you don't have to consume Aquinas first.
Answer: With many philosophers, the idea of reading their major works in chronological order is a good one;  unfortunately, there are no reliable records as to the order of composition of the works of Plato and Aristotle (and Socrates, of course, left no writings), so you're completely out of luck in that regard.
I'd suggest you begin with a topic that interests you, and work from there.  And, if you have not read them before, I'd definitely suggest using a fair bit of secondary literature to help elucidate; there are many things at play in the works of Plato and Aristotle that may not be obvious on a casual reading.
In addition, if you are new to this, I'd recommend starting with some shorter works, as the texts vary in length significantly.
Comment: If it were true that reading the work of Plato and Aristotle would benefit from a certain order, couldn't we work backwards to roughly figure out how they must have been written?
Comment: @Ceasar, You are convoluting something that is really quite easy.  Life is already difficult enough.
Answer: Yes there is an order.
First there is no distinct separation between reading Socrates or Plato since Socrates did not write any books and all his teaching is transferred to us by Plato.
Second it is impossible to read Aristotle before reading and I mean reading almost all major books of Plato.
The reason is that Aristotle presenting his theories mentions or criticises constantly Plato's teaching (Plato was Aristotle's teacher) and assumes that the reader is familiar with it.
So without being familiar with Plato's major books most of Aristotle's points and arguments are incomprehensible.
There is one additional reason for this order i.e. Socrates, Plato then Aristotle, besides that it is the only order you can make sense of what is written.
Aristotle's work is hard. It has very strict language and is like reading a formal paper in some aspects. If you start from Aristotle you may get discouraged.
Plato's books are in dialogues and actually are in a sense very poetic. Plato was one of the best writers (in a sense artist) that ever existed.
It is easy to start reading Plato due to this format and know the basic concepts.
Once you get into it, going to Aristotle, his difficulty will not be discouraging.
Answer: I would highly recommend Hutchins and Adler's guide to The Great Books of the Western World: The Great Conversation: The Substance of a Liberal Education, published by Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.  On page 93 you will find "The Contents of the Great Books..." volume-by-volume.  On pages 112-113 the editors begin with Plato, The Apology, Crito, then The Republic (Book I-II).  There are no surviving works attributed to Socrates, Plato's teacher.  We are left with Plato's memories and development of Socrates ideas in the Dialogues.  Plato is rarely critical of Socrates, although at times he seems tongue-in-cheek.  Next, the editors recommend Aristotle's Ethics (Book I), then Politics (Book I).  Each successive year in reading (there are 10-years total in the Brittanica series) has a new listing always beginning with Plato.  My dad picked up our copy of The Great Books (1990 edition) at the One-Half Price Book Store for $100.  Its leather bound.  I'm collecting the original set (the 1952 edition) at about $1.00 per volume.  It's cloth bound.  There are 54 volumes in this edition.  Our education in the Baptist Church Homeschool centers around these sets.  Thanks for your question, it's one I can answer.


Could a high limit switch cause the furnace blower to run continuously?

Question: My furnace was running fine. The I noticed that the unit was blowing cold air. Checked the furnace burners and they were off. I turned off the unit on the thermostat and the blower continued to run. Only way to turn off unit was at breaker box. A/c unit still work normally. Could this be the limit switch on the furnace?
Answer: Yes.  A bad high limit switch would cause this.  The furnace is trying to purge the heat that it thinks is there. Normally the limit switch will reset when the temperature drops. A bad switch will remain open, so the blower will run continuously.
This is typically caused by poor air flow through the furnace, which is most often due to infrequent filter changes.   The furnace continually overheats, and eventually the high limit does not reset.
Make sure to change the filter often, and insure that all registers and returns are open and free of obstructions.


Is there a "load sequence" tag?

Question: Some (La)TeX answers indicate load sequence preferences. Is there a tag for those questions?
Comment: Because the tag goes with the question, not the answer, I'm seeing another layer to the issue. The Q'or may not know of that issue. The load-order info shows up in the Answers. Thus, something current along this line may be a solution: https://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/1863/which-packages-should-be-loaded-after-hyperref-instead-of-before

Maybe a Comment with simply 'load order' will suffice so as to find those discussions readily (as if "tagged").  Is there a Community-approved preference?
Answer: That I know of, this area has not had enough questions for someone to tag questions in a useful way. Tags are 'dynamic' in the sense anyone can tag questions as they like. So there is nothing to stop people using load-order or similar.
Answer: "answers indicate" is the wrong approach. Tags belong to the question and should not be added because one of the answers discovers a problem or uses a special package.
Therefor the suggested edits

https://tex.stackexchange.com/review/suggested-edits/158144
https://tex.stackexchange.com/review/suggested-edits/158068
https://tex.stackexchange.com/review/suggested-edits/157927
https://tex.stackexchange.com/review/suggested-edits/157890

have been rightfully rejected.
Otherwise we end up with pervert situations like https://tex.stackexchange.com/posts/443821/revisions where a tag is added to a question just because one in five answers uses it.
Comment: This confirms the follow-up comment to the Q.  So, we just leave the pernicious "load order" issue as a research project for the newbies and experienced alike, or we use the comment section to render the issue a bit more findable?
Comment: Further study and discussion indicates that "load order" is more document-specific than general.  That being the case, there's no "general" tag or commenting that's going to provide much in the way of assistance.

Is there a "load sequence" tag?


Last night my website crashed and when I enter the url I get this message (see below). Any suggestions please?

Question: <code>/**
* @package Joomla.Site
* * @copyright Copyright (C) 2005 - 2015 Open Source Matters, Inc. All rights reserved.
* @license GNU General Public License version 2 or later; see LICENSE.txt
*/

if (version_compare(PHP_VERSION, '5.3.10', '<')) {
   die('Your host needs to use PHP 5.3.10 or higher to run this version of Joomla!');
}

/**
 * Constant that is checked in included files to prevent direct access.
 * define() is used in the installation folder rather than "const" to not error for PHP 5.2 and lower
 */
define('_JEXEC', 1);
if (file_exists(__DIR__ . '/defines.php')) {
    include_once __DIR__ . '/defines.php';
}

if (!defined('_JDEFINES')) {
  define('JPATH_BASE', __DIR__);
  require_once JPATH_BASE . '/includes/defines.php';
}

require_once JPATH_BASE . '/includes/framework.php';
// Mark afterLoad in the profiler.
JDEBUG ? $_PROFILER->mark('afterLoad') : null; // Instantiate the application.
$app = JFactory::getApplication('site'); // Execute the application.
$app->execute();
</code>
Comment: Updgrade your PHP version!!! There's absolutely no reason why you should be using anything under 5.6.
Comment: Your version of Joomla is saying that it requires PHP 5.3.10 or higher to run. Based on your error msg, it would seem that your host is using a PHP version less than 5.3.10.
Comment: PS I have checked with my host and they have the appropriate version etc. Also nobody has touched my website for at least 6 months so I don't know why this has suddenly occurred!
Answer: The code that is echoed here:
<code> if (version_compare(PHP_VERSION, '5.3.10', '<')) { die('Your host needs to use PHP 5.3.10 or higher to run this version of Joomla!'); }
</code>
Shows that your Joomla installation is trying to use a version of PHP lower than what it needs. If you have cPanel access you can change this yourself in the section at the bottom with the icon "PHP Version" or something similar. Otherwise contact your site support and ask them to upgrade your PHP to a newer version. Joomla supports PHP 7 and it is fast becoming the default on many hosts so that would be my recommendation.
Answer: To verify what version you are running create a new php file named phpinfo.php and include the following line of code in it:
<code><?php phpinfo();?>
</code>
Upload it to your server then to to yourdomain.com/phpinfo.php
That will show you definitively what version you are running.


Can someone explain what the "Proficiency Bonus" is in D&D 5e/Next exactly?

Question: I am reading the 5e rules, and I keep seeing how you can add proficiency bonus to attack rolls checks with weapons you are proficient in and skill checks in skills you are proficient in, but I can't find anything on what this bonus actually is. How do you determine what the numerical actual bonus you add to your roll is? And at what times is it used?
Comment: This is something the Starter Set fails to explain properly.
Answer: Proficiency bonus is noted in your character advancement table (in Character Creation file, or PHB p.15) as "Proficiency Bonus", and that is universal for your character level. For example, according to the table, a 3rd-level character gets +2 for proficiency bonus, because the table says so. For convenience of single-classed characters, you can also look up your proficiency bonus for your level in your class advancement table.
Thus, a 5th-level Fighter with Strength 18 (modifier is +4) wielding his greatsword makes attack roll with 1d20+4 (Strength modifier) + 3 (proficiency bonus at character level 5) = 1d20+7.
Comment: Attack roll, not damage roll. You don't add your proficiency bonus to damage rolls...
Comment: ... unless a feature or effect states so.
Answer: It can be found at each class' description.
The Proficiency Bonus represents your experience from a roleplaying viewpoint, and your power curve from a game design viewpoint.
You add it to skills, saves, weapon or spell attacks that you are proficient with. It is the same for each class.
Comparison with previous editions

In D&D 3e, for weapon using classes it was your base attack
bonus; together with your feat bonus, ability improvement and your
magic item it was quite progressive. You gained a level, your attack
improved by more than 1.
In D&D 4e, it was half your level for skills and attacks;
together with Enhancement bonus, Ability improvement, Feat bonus it
gave you a more or less straight line. You gained 1 level, your
attack improved by 1.
This math in editions 3 and 4 meant that the threats you ran away from on level 1 became easily trivial. By level 11 your attack bonus, and your defenses1, were about 10 higher than on level 1. (D&D 4e attack increase: 5 from level, 1 from ability, 3 from item, 2 feat)

D&D 5e bonuses are lower and calculated differently
In D&D 5e your progress is much slower: at level 11 your attack is only 5 higher (2 from prof, 2 from ability, 1 from magic), meaning you "elevate over worldly threats" much slower.
This lower bonus shows a different calculation based on level.  In D&D 5e the calculation is so complicated that the numbers are repeated at every class description (see the tables listing your class features for levels 1-20 in the PHB).
What was an easy "half your level rounded down" in D&D 4e is now a bit less catchy, but amounts to "7 plus your level, divided by 4, rounded down."

1) true in 4e, but in 3.x your AC hardly increased
Comment: @MartinvonWittich both can be (and are) correct at the same time. Check it, it is basic math.
Comment: @András thanks, you're right. I must've done something wrong when I originally tried your formula because I was getting results that were different from the table in the basic rules. I tried it again and you're right, both formulas give exactly the same result :)
Comment: The first paragraph is really the only info relevant to OP's question. The rest could've been omitted without weakening your answer.
Comment: "7 plus your level, divided by 4, rounded down." - is this really correct? [This answer](https://rpg.stackexchange.com/a/77495/62423) says it's actually level/4 + 1, round up, and that seems to fit the table that I'm seeing in the basic rules.
Answer: Proficiency is explained in the Basic Rules, free from the Wizards of the Coast web site and in the Player's Handbook.  (The way Proficiency works is described the same way in both sources.)  The Proficiency Bonus reflects via game mechanics how much better a character is at some things (attacks, saving throws, spell effects) due to the level of experience, and also how much better a character is at certain skills either due to choice, experience, background, class, and/or race.

the numerical value of the bonus is shown as a value from +2 to +6 depending upon your character's level of experience. (PHB, p. 15; Basic Rules, p. 10)

When to apply the proficiency bonus is in Chapter 1 (PHB, p. 12; Basic Rules p. 7)

• Attack rolls using weapons you're proficient with
• Attack rolls with spells you cast
• Ability checks using skills you're proficient in
• Ability checks using tools you're proficient with
• Saving throws you're proficient in
• Saving throw DCs for spells you cast (explained in each spellcasting class)

For the example from the merged question (from user @A.Ban) of an Elf's proficiency in Perception:
When you roll the die to make a Perception check while playing, you
will add the Proficiency bonus (for a first level character that is
a +2) to whatever you roll on the 20-sided die.  If your die roll
was 11, your result is a 13 (if you have no other bonuses to the
roll).

On your character sheet, if you are a first level character simply
fill in s +2 in the space for "Proficiency Bonus."  Then check the
"Perception" skill and put +2 in the space next to it, to remind you
to add that bonus when you make rolls for Perception.  Do the same
for any saving throw that your class has proficiency in.  (I'd use pencil, since your proficiency bonus will go up to +3 when you reach 5th level).

For Saving Throws, the bonus will only be applied to saving throws that you are proficient in, which will be governed by the Class you have chosen to play.
Example: a Cleric has Save Proficiency in Charisma and Wisdom, so I'd put +2 next to both of those in the Saving Throw box if I were playing a Cleric (PHB, p.57; Basic Rules, p. 21; Proficiencies {Cleric}).

Example in Combat: We will stay with the level 1 Cleric, who has proficiency in Simple Weapons.

If he is using a Mace (Simple Weapon, p. 46 Basic Rules, Weapons Table) he would add +2 to an attack roll with the Mace.  Roll a 12, result is a 14.
If he tries to use a Flail (Martial Weapon, p. 46, Weapons Table) he is not Proficient with Martial Weapons so he does not add +2 to his attack roll. Roll a 12, result is a 12.
Answer: Here is how you calculate and use your proficiency bonus from the Basic Edition rules:

Proficiency Bonus
The table that appears in your class description shows
  your proficiency bonus, which is +2 for a 1st-level
  character. Your proficiency bonus applies to many of the
  numbers you'll be recording on your character sheet:
  • Attack rolls using weapons you're proficient with
  • Attack rolls with spells you cast
  • Ability checks using skills you're proficient in
  • Ability checks using tools you're proficient with
  • Saving throws you're proficient in
  • Saving throw DCs for spells you cast (explained in
  each spellcasting class)
  Your class determines your weapon proficiencies,
  your saving throw proficiencies, and some of your skill
  and tool proficiencies. (Skills are described in chapter
  7, tools in chapter 5.) Your background gives you
  additional skill and tool proficiencies, and some races
  give you more proficiencies. Be sure to note all of these
  proficiencies, as well as your proficiency bonus, on your
  character sheet.
  Your proficiency bonus can't be added to a single die
  roll or other number more than once. Occasionally, your
  proficiency bonus might be modified (doubled or halved,
  for example) before you apply it. If a circumstance
  suggests that your proficiency bonus applies more than
  once to the same roll or that it should be multiplied
  more than once, you nevertheless add it only once,
  multiply it only once, and halve it only once.

To find out your proficiency bonus, you need to look at the chart at the beginning of your class description in the PHB (regular or basic edition).  Currently, they are the same for all classes (and in fact are class-independent), so your proficiency bonus scales like this:

1st +2
  2nd +2
  3rd +2
  4th +2
  5th +3
  6th +3
  7th +3
  8th +3
  9th +4
  10th +4
  11th +4
  12th +4
  13th +5
  14th +5
  15th +5
  16th +5
  17th +6
  18th +6
  19th +6
  20th +6

To answer your specific question:
When you have 'proficiency' in a skill, you add your proficiency bonus to that skill.  In your example, for perception you take your Wisdom modifier, and you add to that the proficiency bonus in the above table.  The bonus is calculated based on your character level, not class level, so it's the same whether or not you multi-class.
If you were a 3rd level Elf with a Wisdom of 16(+3), your final perception score would be:
Wisdom Mod (+3) + Proficiency Bonus (+2) = +5 Perception
In Combat
You add your proficiency bonus to attack rolls with weapons you are proficient in.  This is determined by your class, and will be outlined in the class description in the PHB.
Answer: The proficiency bonus formula is:
ProfBonus = \$2 + \left(\frac{1}{4} \times (\text{level} - 1)\right)\$ rounded down.
As mentioned, it's found on the class leveling table.
The proficiency bonus is applied to any ability check, saving throw, or attack roll the player is proficient in. A player's class will determine what attacks and saving throws for which they have proficiency and the player chooses from a number of skills to have proficiency. They should have all this on their character sheet.
Comment: Welcome to RPG.SE! Take the [tour] if you haven't already and see the [help] or ask us here in the comments (use @ to ping someone) if you need more guidance. Good Luck and Happy Gaming!


What is the meaning of 'being drawn to someone'

Question: I think 'drawn' means  'showing the wearing effects of overwork, care or suffering', but I can't understand what 'you are drawn to her' will be meaning right here.
Comment: In this case, *drawn* is not an adjective, but the past participle of the verb *[to draw](http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/draw)*, here probably meaning *Gently pull or guide (someone) in a specified direction*. This question, incidentally, may be more suitable for our sister site for [English Language Learners](http://ell.stackexchange.com/).
Comment: You should provide SOME context.  But in the usual use of the phrase "drawn to X", "drawn" means "attracted".
Comment: being drawn to someone most likely means in love with someone.
Comment: (A) I agree with the first part of choster's comment. (B) You say you don't understand what it means 'right here'.  Right where? You haven't given us the context.
Answer: In this context, "to be drawn to a person" means "to be attracted to a person". This does not necessarily mean sexually or romantically, but it is often used that way.
You may be thinking of "drawn" in the artistic sense, as in making a sketch, but that would be phrased as "you are drawn by her". It is also possible to use "drawn" in the sense of "attracted" with "by", as in the sentence, "He was drawn by her passionate denunciation of the political corruption."
EDIT - Per Catija's comment, if the adjectival form of drawn was intended, it would probably be in the form of "You looked (or appeared) drawn to her." The past tense would be used, since the speaker would presumably be passing on the results of a conversation with "her", since there would be no other way to know how she interpreted your appearance.
Comment: I don't think the OP thinks it means the artistic sense... I think he's guessing at [this definition](http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/drawn_2) instead of [definition six](http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/draw_1).
Answer: to be drawn is simply the passive form of to draw meaning to pull or to attract.
Active: John drew the phone towards him.
Passive: The phone was drawn towards John (by John).
Active: John was so good-looking that he drew all the women towards him as if by magnetism.  (John attracted the women)
Passive: John was so good-looking that all the women were drawn towards him as if by magnetism. (the women were attracted by John)
If you are drawn to someone, it means they have a quality that draws (pulls/attracts) you to them.
Answer: Being drawn to someone means you are  attracted to them but it doesn't have to be sexual it can but also it can mean their good behavior attracts you.
Answer: In this sense it means to attract, however, that is not necessarily a romantic or sexual feeling. In this context the word drawn means to get the viewer's attention in such a way that they focus on the subject more than just simply noticing them, in addition, this is saying that the person that is being drawn has greater interest in the subject.


How should I structure a design document?

Question: Should the design document be a continuous line of text, with real sentences, more like a description of the entire game, or should I structure it in simple points? What are the benefits, and are there more ways of structuring it?
Comment: Not that I disagree with Josh's answer at all, but 35 minutes in with just 1 answer is a bit early to be marking a question as answered, surely?
Comment: Yeah, I agree. You *can* always change it later, but that's always very disappointing to the person whose answer you are changing away from. And more to the point, sometimes having an answer selected discourages others from answering on their own, and that could cause you to miss out on a much better answer than mine.
Comment: OK, welp, unmarked the answer. But, I will probably mark it again tomorrow, I found it really useful! Unless, of course, someone gets me something even more useful ;). Thanks for this hint though, I didn't think about that!
Comment: @Josh your score is the intimidation - who's gonna try to beat you on an  answer ;)
Comment: @TimHolt that was 6 years ago lmao
Comment: You can also check this article for more information on the structure of your GDD. It's a really great source: http://active.tutsplus.com/articles/game-design/effectively-organize-your-games-development-with-a-game-design-document/
Answer: There are no rules or industry standards; structure the document in the way that will be most useful to the people who will consume that document, keeping in mind what the purpose of your document is.
Personally I would expect there to be portions of the document that are better suited to using "real sentences" to convey your idea, as well as portions that are better suited to being written as a bullet-point list of features.
Who is your audience? If it's just you, if this is just supposed to help you focus your thoughts, do whatever works for you. If you are working with others, ask them how they'd prefer to see the document broken down and how they would expect to use it.
I would expect to see a prose description of the salient points of the game: it's main concept, style and feeling. I would then expect to see a section for each major feature of the game.
Do not go overboard with detail and statistics, remember that a design document is typically something that will evolve over the lifetime of the game as you build and iterate. It's impractical to think that you'll write it once, up front, and it will be perfect, so focus on what you need the document to convey now and how you can best convey that to the specific consumers of that document.
It doesn't matter what other people do, you want to do what works best for your team.
Comment: a design document is at its core an outline of the game. the same way you write an outline for a book the only things that truly matter is what "you need" in order to understand your idea, and to make it. though I would like to reinforce the point of intended audience, and that even every subsection could have a different audience a project plan is for the team/manager, use cases/ERDs are for the programmers, and entity descriptions are for the artists. its one of the few times that you can write something that doesn't seem to fit together besides being about the same general topic.
Answer: In addition to what Josh has said in his answer, several people have shared their idea of what should go in a game design doc, which may help you decide what aspects are going to be useful in your own docs. Remember that these are professional designers, and what worked for them in the context of the traditional games industry is not necessarily right for you, so it's useful to try and work out why they use certain approaches and pick the ones that will help you the most.

Damion Schubert's "How To Write Great Design Documents" (Powerpoint slides) (this is my favourite approach)
Brenda Brathwaite's "Creating a Game Design Document"
Mike Birkhead's "How I Document A Game"
And finally... Erin Robinson's "5 Alternatives to a Game Design Doc"
Comment: I have looked around for game design documentation and how to do it. Your first link was great. Works really well with 'scoping'. Setting up the basic scope of the project and with rough words explain what is inside and outside the scope of the game.
Answer: There is one piece of information that I'd like to add: when documenting the actual design of the game (ie: the rules), provide clear explanations for why you're making a particular rule design choice.
One of the things you're more likely to forget when you go about implementing something is the exact reason why you added a particular rule. Also, one of the things you're very likely to do is to add rules and game elements just because other games have them, not because your game needs them.
By adding a section on exactly why a game element exists, it forces you to justify the use of that element in terms of the overall game design. And later on, it allows you to effectively evaluate whether a particular element is actually serving the needs you intended it to. If it's not, then you can remove it and replace it with something else that does serve those needs.
Even better, if you find the game isn't working out, and you want to replace multiple elements to make the game more fun, you can look back at your design document and understand why you choose those elements and what new elements need to accomplish. If the needs of your game design change, then you can update your list of what the game elements are supposed to do.
Answer: I like the way Level Up author uses to write his game design documents with drawing many cute shapes, characters and etc.
I highly recommend you take a look at this book
Level Up!: The Guide to Great Video Game Design
With adding little drawings to your documents the others will pay attention to you more and you can be sure they will read your design documents
Answer: The structure of your game design document is completely up to you, but one I create tends to include (note that this works better for RPGs or other story-driven games):
Table of Contents - Very important, as once you have more complex games you will need to include an organization method
Description of the Game - A brief description of the game, giving some descriptions of game-play, along with platform and other important details
Story overview - Give an overview of your plot
Controls - List the controls you will be using in your game
Tech requirements - You can go into more detail about platform here
Game Flowchart - Show how your game's screens connect
Presentation - Give details about camera type, HUD, and other info the player will see
Player Character - Give information about your player, such as what they look like, backstory, and tools/weapons they may use
Combat - Describe how combat works (if applicable)
Game Levels - Give some examples of levels
Enemies - Give details about your enemies (attacks, looks)
Bosses - Information about specific bosses
NPCs - Describe AIs that don't attack your character
Music/SFX - What music and SFX need to be produced
Appendices - Place long lists here along with scripts and any other information
You may also want to create a more concise version of your game design document which is about one page, containing the following things:
Title and Concept Overview - Give a brief overview of what the game is like and what players will do
Platform - List the platform the game will be published on
Main Points - Give the very basic info about your game, such as it being an FPS, an MMO, and having a single-player mode
Summary - Summarize your plot, if any
Characters - Give some info about your characters


13.04 Will not boot on custom PC

Question: I put in the DVD I just burnt of 13.04 in my disc drive and when I go to the boot menu, I click on UEFI and it says "Secure Boot not enabled." Then it loads up to a black screen with the text underscore thing. My computer is an Asrock Z77 Pro4 with an Intel i5-3570K. I have a Seagate HDD and 8 Gigs of Corsair RAM. I am currently running Windows 8 x64. I did download the x64 file too.
Comment: Have you looked at this post http://askubuntu.com/questions/221835/installing-ubuntu-on-a-pre-installed-uefi-supported-windows-8-system?
Answer: The Ubuntu community wiki has a page detailing how to install Ubuntu on a (U)EFI machine:
UEFI - Community Ubuntu Documentation
As far as your Secure Boot issue is concerned, check your SETUP feature in the UEFI. Ubuntu 13.04 should support Secure Boot, but at its current stage, there may be bugs. If Ubuntu doesn't boot with Secure Boot, you may wish to file a bug against a package called shim. However, Ubuntu 13.04 should work if you at most disable UEFI mode altogether (and use legacy mode instead). However, you must install with UEFI mode enabled if Ubuntu is going to be installed alongside an operating system that requires UEFI to be enabled or is installed in UEFI mode (such as Windows 8 pre-installed machines).

13.04 Will not boot on custom PC


Servlets: setAttribute in HttpServletRequest vs setAttribute in HttpSession

Question: What is the difference between method setAttribute() of HttpServletRequest class and setAttribute() of HttpSession class?
Under what circumstances are they used?
Answer: The one sets an attribute in the request scope and the other sets an attribute in the session scope. The major difference is in the lifetime of the scope. The request scope ends when the associated response is finished. The session scope ends when the session has been timed out by the client or server. When a scope ends, then all of its attributes will be trashed and they aren't available in a different request or session.
You use the request scope to store data which should be specific to the HTTP request (for example, the database results based on a specific request, the success/error messages, etc). You use the session scope to store data which should be specific to the HTTP session (for example, the logged-in user, user settings, etc). All requests by the same client share the same session (thus, all different browser tabs/windows within the same client session will share the same server session).
See also:

Servlet instantiation and session variables
Answer: if you use httpServletRequest.setAttribute(); then attribute will be binded to that request object ,
while in httpServletSession.setAttribute(); will bind attr. in session.
so if you want the scope of that data to session use session or if you need the scope of that data for just request use request
For Example:
UserName of logged in user should be shared across session so keep it in session
while, error message you are giving to user while consider authentication failure case, its needed for this request only after that we don't need so keep it in request
Answer: When you set an attribute on the Request object, the variable is available only on the scope of the request. That variable can be accessed by other jsp/resources which you forward as part of this request.
While setting an attribute on session scope will be available to all the requests in the user session (unless you remove it from session).
So the major difference it boils down is the scope/life of the attribute.
Always try to use request scope variables unless you need to use it across the user session ex: like user roles. Keeping more data on the session with more concurrent users may lead to out of memory issues. Also if you are using the session sharing backed by a database (like you can do in websphere), it will lead to performance issues.


How has Linux geek culture reacted to Esperanto over the years?

Question: In this question there is an answer that comments "There was for a long time resistance in some parts of the Linux world to Esperanto, so it seems it was only this year that the Esperanto localization was made official in the libc, the basic library in Linux, although some distributions such as Debian and Ubuntu had Esperanto for a long time." What level of resistance was there, and how has it been resolved?
Comment: What is "Linux geek culture" even supposed to mean? Seems to me like the maintainers of libc saw no need to add it by default. Its also pointed out that some distributions patch in a "eo" locale by default, and that users can patch their own in if required. blaming "Linux geek culture" just seems like silly name calling.
Comment: I am not unhappy being called a Linux geek :)  Unfortunately this was not so simple a matter.  One can patch anything if one is an expert, the point is that not including eo on the libc level made it for all practical purposes unavailable.  About a year ago i tried installing eo locale on my Fedora laptop.  It took me a while to figure out how locales on libc worked and fortunately I had a debian system nearby to copy from.  There is very scant documentation on this.  A couple of months later I had to reinstall the laptop, and Esperanto was one of the reasons I just switched to debian.
Answer: Well the resistance is/was similar as resistance to Esperanto in any other segment of society.  In this case, see for example https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=711#c2 or https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=14943 for some of the history.  This particular issue has been fixed: https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=16190.
With libc now (since only this august) including eo locale in the distribution, the main sticking point in terms of basic out of the box language support is resolved.
The problem with libc was the fact that the maintainers were actively opposed to including Esperanto locale, refusing to even consider changes done by other people for inclusion.
Though note that Debian, and hence Ubuntu, included EO support for quite a while now.
I remember long time ago (15 years) when I first considered learning Esperanto and I was working on GNOME at the time, I did hear some disparaging comments about EO.  Linux was, and especially the companies around Linux were, trying to be professional, and EO was not perceived that way.
Although I have been mostly out of the active free software community for a while, so I am not sure what is the prevailing view nowadays.  But note that the free software community is a very wide ranging far flung community with people of all sorts of different views.  It is not a homogeneous bunch at all.  But a lot of the core people around Linux and related projects work for Linux companies rather than being volunteers, and this does change the way a purely grassroots movement such as Esperanto is going to be received.


Is there a canonical resource for the classification of Judo mat techniques?

Question: For throws, I use Toshiro Daigo's book Kodokan Judo Throwing Techniques published by Kodanasha International, Tokyo 2005. It specifically addresses some of the arcane points of Kodokan classification that distinguish what is considered one throw versus another. This book is mostly up to date. Is there a similar canonical resource that covers mat (pins, chokes, armlocks) techniques? For example, I was just informed that ude garami can be done against a straight arm. I previously would have called that an ude hishigi ude gatame.
Answer: Of the materials published by the Kodokan, the two which describe the classification of Katame-waza in most detail are:

Kodokan Judo: The Essential Guide to Judo by Its Founder Jigoro Kano (1997)
Kodokan Judo Katame Waza: Various techniques and their names (1994) (video)

Both works demonstrate and list the points of distinction of each technique and their common variations. The video series demonstrates the straight arm variant of ude-garami. While Kano's book includes examples of three variations of ude-garami, it unfortunately does not include the straight arm variant.
Note however that Kano doesn't claim that the examples in this text are exhaustive, making the following caveat:

The katame waza introduced here are the ones most frequently used in randori and competition.

History of Kodokan Katame-waza classification:
01/02/1985: Adds classifications for
     • Sode-guruma-jime, Kata-te-jime, Ryo-te-jime, Tsukkomi-jime, Sankaku-jime
     • Ude-hishigi-ashi-gatame, Ude-hishigi-te-gatame, Ude-hishigi-sankaku-gatame
01/04/1997: Renames hon-kesa-gatame to kesa-gatame
01/04/2017: Adds classifications Ushiro-kesa-gatame, Uki-gatame, Ura-gatame
Comment: *Canon of Judo* is a good example of the messiness of technique identification. The technique called body armlock (*ude-hisihigi-tai-gatame*) on page 151 is currently called *ude-hisihigi-waki-gatame* in most places. I do not expect resources to agree always.
Comment: More frustration on the classification of ude garami versus ude gatame: Techniques of Judo by Shinzo Takagaki and Harold (Hal) Sharp shows the ude garami arm configuration against a straight arm as ude gatame, not ude garami. Also amusing is that Hal Sharp appears to have posted the YouTube Kodokan Katame Waza video.
Comment: @mattm even Neil Adams refers to armbar *ude-garami* as an *ude-gatame*: [Grand Prix Zagreb 2017 | 78kg | Hamada vs. Camara](https://youtu.be/OpNbN5ko52I&t=2920)


How hard is the East Buttress route on El Capitan

Question: I am relatively new to climbing, and so far I have only done bouldering climbing. The hardest route I have climbed is a V5, and I am a solid V4 climber. My question was, to anyone who has climbed East Bustress, how hard is it? From the ratings I saw, It converts to a V0 in bouldering scale, with the hardest parts being a V1. Is this accurate?
Comment: Bouldering and 9 pitches are way different
Comment: It just doesn't translate. This is a good example of the idiomatic comparision between apples and oranges.
Comment: this question would be better asked as: "Can I compare a bouldering grade to a multipitch trad climbing grade?"
Comment: Yosemite mountaineering school has some good lessons including one on crack climbing. https://www.travelyosemite.com/things-to-do/rock-climbing/ In fact, it wouldn't hurt to take all of their lessons before attempting El Cap.
Answer: First, the difficulty of a V1 is not consistent everywhere, especially for climbers with limited experience. A V1 crack is a very different animal from a V1 slab. Yosemite climbs and boulder problems, especially in the V1 and 5.10 range are typically very stiff for the rating. These do not compare to gym routes or ratings.
The East Buttress starts with a chimney. If you have never climbed a Yosemite chimney, or any chimney, your day is over at this point even if you boulder V10. It doesn't matter if you lead or second this, making upward progress in the chimney is difficult.
The next pitch has crux which is a couple of moves on a thin granite face. A solid V4 climber who is not freaked out will dance this. The crack after the crux is not a cake walk if you don't know how to climb cracks. If you are leading, finding good pro is non trivial. If you make it to the second belay and are not leading, you should be fine unless the exposure gets to you. If you are leading, the next 200 ft (60m) or so has some run out sections.
While I don't generally think equating multipitch trad routes with bouldering is a good idea, the crux of the East Buttress on El Cap is a lot like a boulder problem. If it was on the ground, I think a V1 grade would be reasonable. The crack climbing is generally easy with an occasionally harder (i.e., 5.9) move. There of course is the additional difficulty of being a traditional climb that is long and exposed and sometimes run out.
Answer: Climbing technique wise, I am certain you are fine or need minor brushing up ,  most folks who get to a certain level of climbing and can boulder honest V5 would have enough in their tool belt and muscle control to tackle any given pitch or problem on a classic moderate trad route like east buttress.
However, Endurance and trade skills are something else. As a commenter says, it's apples and oranges.
Much energy is wasted by spending an extra 30/60 minutes per belay hanging around and being drained of energy in the sun, slow transitions, uncomfortable stances, slow and unsure leader, unfamiliar placements, slow rigging all combine for epic days where you spend 10+ climbing hours getting whomped  on routes other mortals cruise in 2/3. As your energy gets drained you slow down even more, less efficient movements, just more plain suffering .
In my opinion , You would be best off cutting out any hard bouldering , which is counter productive for this endeavor, and switching to low intensity endurance training:  traverses, doing laps of 5.8/5.9/5.10a and cracks , or alternatively 4 by 4s of V0/V1 in the gym or local crag  until you puke
Keep in mind it's really easy to "french free" and pass a hard part by using gear as a hold, so being bad at any given style is less of an issue, but the sustained vertical endurance can't be cheated.
Success in most "moderate " multi trad is about efficient movement and transitions, high yield simple moves and techniques (stems, jams) , not really about that much advanced technique or fancy moves. Remember the OGs climbed this stuff with hemp ropes and hiking boots.
Your best bet is to go with someone very experienced so you can focus just on the climbing, in that scenario I have seen folks in your exact situation be succesfull.
Answer: The off width pitch would mean that a bouldering grade is just not applicable.
The difficulty of a multipitch free climb should  not be assessed in just the difficulty of the climbing but also in the difficulty to place protection, the length and the level of sustained difficulty.
No you cannot climb this in any case as you as a boulder you do not know how to belay a leader, rappel, route find, lead climb, clean gear, palce gear, ascend a line, escape the belay.... the list goes on.
I have climbed east butress free.  I have no idea why you are using bouldering grades as they do not apply to a multi pitch climb. The climb is rated 5.10b and includes a 5.9 off width pitch.
Its 11 quite long pitches and must be descended by rappelling the east ledges. A novice climber would be lacking so many required skills that the outing would be extremely dangerous and would probably end in rescue or worse.
All that said, its actually quite an easy 5.10 by Yosemite standards.


words for snail

Question: I have seen かたつむり and でんでんむし and ででむし listed as "snail." What are the differences between these words?
Answer: They are dialectal forms, but it could be said that three synonymous forms かたつむり, でんでんむし, and まいまい have gained more or less nation-wide recognition today. The situation is somehow similar to that "soda/pop/coke" tripartition in USA.
The name of snail has been a signature of Japanese dialectology since the pioneering work 『蝸牛考』 written in 1930 by Kunio Yanagida. The summary of this book is that dialectal forms distribute in concentric circles from Kyoto, so that the remotest place maintains the oldest form.

(newer/nearer to Kyoto → older/farther)
  デデムシ > マイマイ > カタツムリ > ツブリ > ナメクジ (source)

A very detailed survey on word forms of "snail" conducted by 国立国語研究所 was compiled into three atlas (No. 1, 2, 3) if you seek further understanding. (Tons of local forms recorded.)
I (and most people living in Tokyo) would use かたつむり most often.
Comment: I think I just understood why my wife calls me a "コタツムリ"...
Comment: the same sort of reasoning is widely used in dialectology worldwide, and it has been used to argue that [Kyoto-type pitch accent is actually newer than Tokyo-type](http://www.jstor.org/stable/132278), not older as commonly claimed (so-called "Kantō-type" is also present west of Kansai, spreading outwardly in concentric circles, going as far as Kyūshū and Tōhoku; even certain isolated mountain villages within Kyoto use it).
Comment: broccoli forest: >dialectal forms distribute in a concentric circle from Kyoto, so that the remotest place maintains the oldest form.--Very interesting and clever method to infer the fact by going back in time just like one in search of what was just after the Big Bang.

words for snail