question
stringlengths 3
300
| answer
stringlengths 9
2.77k
| context
sequencelengths 7
7
|
|---|---|---|
I'm looking for books focused on political history (preferably books focused on the 20th century, but I'm open to anything). Any suggestions? | I can only give limited advice about *The Rise and Fall of Communism* as I just skimmed through a few pages of the book in a local Barnes and Noble but it seems to be a well-written book; however, I would also suggest you look at another book about communism that came out not too long ago called *The Red Flag: A History of Communism*, which seems to be a much more entertaining yet still enlightening book (this observation, too, is made from reading just a few pages at B & N). *Nixonland* is a good read but nothing incredibly memorable.
Here's a small list of selections from a variety of topic areas so hopefully one of these will suit your interests:
Edmund Morris's biographies of Teddy Roosevelt are excellent. If you want to continue with TR, check out Douglas Brinkley's *The Wilderness Warrior*, which details TR's campaign for environmentalism. Brinkley is by far the best writer of history I have come across in a long time, so if that book doesn't interest you I urge to look at his other books. No matter what the subject, his books are incredibly engaging.
*Private Empire* by Steve Coll: This book is written by the Pulitzer Prize winning author of *Ghost Wars* and gives a detailed, objective history of ExxonMobil. Very well written and very informative about the strength of ExxonMobil's lobbying power both within the US and throughout the world.
*One Minute to Midnight* by Michael Dobbs. Covers Cuban Missile Crisis and the book's argument is that no one really had control over what was going on. The world could have slipped into nuclear war even though no one wanted that simply because many factors were at play that could not be accounted for or stopped. Great read.
*Guests of the Ayatollah* by Mark Bowden. He's the author of *Black Hawk Down* and writed in a very readable, journalistic style similar to Steve Coll. This book is about the Iranian Hostage Crisis of 1979 an goes through the 444-day ordeal through the vantage points of the hostages, hostage-takers, and major political figures. Well-researched and maybe the most entertaining read on this list. | [
"The Century is a book about politics, philosophy and literature by Alain Badiou, first published in French by Éditions du Seuil in 2005; the English translation by Alberto Toscano was published by Polity Press in 2007. The thirteen chapters of the book are presented as lessons derived from a seminar Badiou gave at the College International de Philosophie between 1998-2001. Badiou's analysis of the 20th century is drawn from his unique encounter with 20th century poetry and theater, literary theory, totalitarianism, and the search for meaningful narratives that are neither logical nor dialectical. He warns against \"animal humanism\" and advocates \"formalized inhumanism\".\n",
"The early books he authored or edited are: \"The Galena Lead District: Federal Policy and Practices, 1824-1847\" (1966); \"The West of the American People\" (1970); The \"Politics of Populism: Dissent in Colorado\" (1974); \"The Great Plains Experience: Readings in the History of a Region\" (1978); and \"The Progressive Yankees: Republican Reformers in New Hampshire\" (1987).\n",
"Modern Times: A History of the World from the 1920s to the 1980s is a book by British journalist and writer Paul Johnson, who gives an outline of world history during the 20th century from a conservative perspective. It was cited in \"National Review\" as one of the top ten books that changed America and is described as a book that has \"influenced intellectual thinking on a profound level\". It was first published in 1983 and has since been reissued and updated.\n",
"Schattschneider's books include \"Politics, Pressures and the Tariff\" (1935), \"Party Government\" (1942), \"The Struggle for Party Government\", (1948), \"Equilibrium and Change in American Politics\" (1958), \"The Semisovereign People: A Realist's View of Democracy in America\" (1960), and \"Two Hundred Million Americans in Search of a Government\" (1969).\n",
"In 1948 he published \"The American Political Tradition and the Men Who Made It\", incisive interpretive studies of 12 major American political leaders from the 18th-20th centuries. Besides critical success, the book sold nearly a million copies at university campuses, where it was used as a history textbook; critics found it \"skeptical, fresh, revisionary, occasionally ironical, without being harsh or merely destructive.\" Each chapter title illustrated a paradox: Thomas Jefferson is \"The Aristocrat as Democrat\"; John C. Calhoun is the \"Marx of the Master Class\"; and Franklin Roosevelt is \"The Patrician as Opportunist.\" Hofstadter's writing style was so powerful and engrossing that professors kept assigning the book long after its main points had been revised or rejected by scholars.\n",
"Updike's novels about America almost always contain references to political events of the time. In this sense, they are artifacts of their historical eras, showing how national leaders shape and define their times. The lives of ordinary citizens take place against this wider background.\n",
"A version of the book titled \"The Twentieth Century\" contains only chapters 12–25 (\"The Empire and the People\" to \"The 2000 Election and the 'War on Terrorism). Although it was originally meant to be an expansion of the original book, recent editions of \"A People's History\" now contain all of the later chapters from it.\n"
] |
Why do people with chromosome abnormality/ disorder have shorter life expectancies than people without? | Defects typically worsen things and do not improve them.
Some defects have more negative effects than others. That is a matter of statistics.
In very rare cases, anomalies turn out to be no "defects" but improvements, but the statistical probability for this is very low.
So bottom line: If you introduce a random change in the genetic code of something as complex as a human, the likelihood of worsening sth. is much greater than the likelihood of improving something.
Think of it as computer code: If you change a random line of code randomly (mutation), most likely the program's performance will degrade and will crash earlier than without this change. | [
"Twin studies have estimated that approximately 20-30% the variation in human lifespan can be related to genetics, with the rest due to individual behaviors and environmental factors which can be modified. Although over 200 gene variants have been associated with longevity according to a US-Belgian-UK research database of human genetic variants, these explain only a small fraction of the heritability. A 2012 study found that even modest amounts of leisure time physical exercise can extend life expectancy by as much as 4.5 years.\n",
"Some cells, especially in older men and smokers, lack a Y chromosome. It has been found that men with a higher percentage of hematopoietic stem cells in blood lacking the Y chromosome (and perhaps a higher percentage of other cells lacking it) have a higher risk of certain cancers and have a shorter life expectancy. Men with \"loss of Y\" (which was defined as no Y in at least 18% of their hematopoietic cells) have been found to die 5.5 years earlier on average than others. This has been interpreted as a sign that the Y chromosome plays a role going beyond sex determination and reproduction (although the loss of Y may be an effect rather than a cause). Male smokers have between 1.5 and 2 times the risk of non-respiratory cancers as female smokers.\n",
"Jennifer Couzin-Frankel examined how much mortality from various causes would have to drop in order to boost life expectancy and concluded that most of the past increases in life expectancy occurred because of improved survival rates for young people. She states that it seems unlikely that life expectancy at birth will ever exceed 85 years. Michio Kaku argues that genetic engineering, nanotechnology and future breakthroughs will accelerate the rate of life expectancy increase indefinitely. Already genetic engineering has allowed the life expectancy of certain primates to be doubled, and for human skin cells in labs to divide and live indefinitely without becoming cancerous.\n",
"Chromosome 7 is one of the 23 pairs of chromosomes in the human body, and spans about 159 million base pairs and represents about 5-5.5% of the total DNA in cells. Changes to the structure of chromosome 7 can result in a number of genetic abnormalities, including Williams Syndrome which causes structural and cosmetic changes to the human body, ultimately resulting in a shorter lifespan. There are hundreds of known open reading frames (ORF) along the domain of chromosome 7, however there is not much known about the 26th reading frame, which is of considerable interest.\n",
"Predicting short- or long-term survival depends on many factors. The most important are the cancer type and the patient's age and overall health. Those who are frail with other health problems have lower survival rates than otherwise healthy people. Centenarians are unlikely to survive for five years even if treatment is successful. People who report a higher quality of life tend to survive longer. People with lower quality of life may be affected by depression and other complications and/or disease progression that both impairs quality and quantity of life. Additionally, patients with worse prognoses may be depressed or report poorer quality of life because they perceive that their condition is likely to be fatal.\n",
"Cells of affected individuals have reduced lifespan in culture, more chromosome breaks and translocations and extensive deletions. These DNA damages, chromosome aberrations and mutations may in turn cause more RecQ-independent aging phenotypes.\n",
"Humans, like all sexually reproducing species, have somatic cells that are in diploid [2N] state, meaning that N represent the number of chromosomes, and 2 the number of their copies. In humans, there are 23 chromosomes, but there are two sets of them, one from mother and one from father, totaling in 46, that are arranged according to their size, function and genes they carry. Each cell is supposed to have two of each, but sometimes due to mutations or malfunctions during cell division, mistakes are made that cause serious health problems. One such error is the cause of Distal trisomy 10q disorder.\n"
] |
You're in a stopped car with the windows closed, a horsefly is 'hovering'; Upon accelerating the car, does the fly remain in the same position in space, or does it hit the rear window? | A fly's motion is based on the objects it is in contact with, as well as the gravitational pull of the Earth. A fly would be hovering because the force exerted upwards by the air on the fly's wings is balanced out by the gravitational pull of the earth. Now, if the car were to accelerate, it would bring all of the air with it. Some of the air would be compressed towards the back of the car, which would cause the fly to go backwards a bit, but regardless, the fly should be able to hover there.
You can test this with a helium-filled balloon. Be aware of the tension force from the string (you cannot tie it down). | [
"Each side of the body must be synchronized and the two sides are also coupled. That is, the left and right wings and thus the left and right halteres always beat at the same frequency. However, the amplitude of the wingbeat does not always have to be the same on the left and right side. This is what allows the flies to turn and is accomplished using a gearbox, much like what you would find in an automobile. This gearbox can change the maximum amplitude of the wing movement and determine its speed of motion. The wings of flies even have a clutch structure at their base. The clutch moves between grooves in the gearbox, to engage and disengage the wing muscles and also modulate the wingbeat amplitude. When the amplitude of the left wing is less than the right, the fly will make a left turn. Even though haltere movement is controlled by separate muscles than the wings, because the wings are mechanically coupled with the halteres, changes in wingbeat frequency extend to the haltere-beat frequency as well, but haltere beat amplitude does not change.\n",
"During flight, it is important for a fly to maintain a level gaze; however, it is possible for a fly to rotate. The rotation is detected visually as a rotation of the environment termed optical flow. The input of the optical flow is then converted into a motor command to the fly's neck muscles so that the fly will maintain a level gaze. This reflex is diminished in a stationary fly compared to when it is flying or walking.\n",
"As the flywheel, unlike the spring of a pullback motor, is continuously rotating and not held, the motor may be \"pumped up\" by pushing the car repeatedly forward. The cars also typically work in forward and reverse. Some used a \"zip cord\" pulled from the vehicle body to accelerate the flywheel directly. Another system was the \"Turbo Tower of Power\" (TTP) in which air expelled from a hand-operated pump pushed turbine blades on the flywheel's rim.\n",
"When used in vehicles, flywheels also act as gyroscopes, since their angular momentum is typically of a similar order of magnitude as the forces acting on the moving vehicle. This property may be detrimental to the vehicle's handling characteristics while turning or driving on rough ground; driving onto the side of a sloped embankment may cause wheels to partially lift off the ground as the flywheel opposes sideways tilting forces. On the other hand, this property could be utilized to keep the car balanced so as to keep it from rolling over during sharp turns.\n",
"When flying the four wings are spread quite far apart, fore and hind wing of the same side far apart, body horizontal. Flight slow enough so that the movements of each separate wing can be seen—insect consequently moves slowly but can dodge. Mr. Barnes compared the movements of the wings to that of a windmill, but the revolving movements are lacking; I should say the effect produced by the wings is more like that of a jumping-jack with moveable arms and legs pulled by one string, rather slowly, but, of course, at regular intervals.\n",
"Simply holding the stick still, when starting with the wings near level, an aircraft will usually have a tendency to gradually veer off to one side of the straight flightpath. This is the (slightly unstable) spiral mode.\n",
"When the left wing is down, right rudder is needed to hold level flight. Rolling slowly left will require moving the rudder slowly to the right, then back to center as the wings become level in inverted flight (where of course some elevator is needed), and then to the left as the roll continues and puts the right wing down, and finally back to center and the aircraft returns to straight and level flight.\n"
] |
Does heat energy have "momentum"? | No. Heat may continue to diffuse through the object, which may cause it to appear to be increasing in heat for a short while (e.g. if you're measuring temperature at a different spot from where it's being heated) but the max temperature wouldn't rise without a heat source. | [
"The concept of energy emerged from the idea of \"vis viva\" (living force), which Leibniz defined as the product of the mass of an object and its velocity squared; he believed that total \"vis viva\" was conserved. To account for slowing due to friction, Leibniz claimed that heat consisted of the random motion of the constituent parts of matter — a view shared by Isaac Newton, although it would be more than a century until this was generally accepted.\n",
"In the kinetic theory, heat is explained in terms of the microscopic motions and interactions of constituent particles, such as electrons, atoms, and molecules. The immediate meaning of the kinetic energy of the constituent particles is not as heat. It is as a component of internal energy.\n",
"He had been motivated to think of a \"wave theory of heat\" by analogy with the wave theory of light and some experiments by James Forbes and Macedonio Melloni on radiant heat. His statement that \"... in mixed media the mean square molecular velocity is inversely proportional to the specific weight of the molecules\" has been seen as the first statement of the equipartition theorem for translational motion. Waterston grasped that, while the kinetic energy of an individual molecule with velocity \"v\" is ½\"mv\"², heat energy is proportional to temperature, \"T\". That insight led him to derive the ideal gas law:\n",
"The energy and momentum are properties of matter and radiation, and it is impossible to deduce that they form a four-vector just from the two basic postulates of special relativity by themselves, because these don't talk about matter or radiation, they only talk about space and time. The derivation therefore requires some additional physical reasoning. In his 1905 paper, Einstein used the additional principles that Newtonian mechanics should hold for slow velocities, so that there is one energy scalar and one three-vector momentum at slow velocities, and that the conservation law for energy and momentum is exactly true in relativity. Furthermore, he assumed that the energy of light is transformed by the same Doppler-shift factor as its frequency, which he had previously shown to be true based on Maxwell's equations. The first of Einstein's papers on this subject was \"Does the Inertia of a Body Depend upon its Energy Content?\" in 1905. Although Einstein's argument in this paper is nearly universally accepted by physicists as correct, even self-evident, many authors over the years have suggested that it is wrong. Other authors suggest that the argument was merely inconclusive because it relied on some implicit assumptions.\n",
"Heat transfer physics describes the kinetics of energy storage, transport, and energy transformation by principal energy carriers: phonons (lattice vibration waves), electrons, fluid particles, and photons. Heat is energy stored in temperature-dependent motion of particles including electrons, atomic nuclei, individual atoms, and molecules. Heat is transferred to and from matter by the principal energy carriers. The state of energy stored within matter, or transported by the carriers, is described by a combination of classical and quantum statistical mechanics. The energy is also transformed (converted) among various carriers.\n",
"In thermodynamics, heat is energy in transfer to or from a thermodynamic system, by mechanisms other than thermodynamic work or transfer of matter. The mechanisms include conduction, through direct contact of immobile bodies, or through a wall or barrier that is impermeable to matter; or radiation between separated bodies; or isochoric mechanical work done by the surroundings on the system of interest; or Joule heating by an electric current driven through the system of interest by an external system; or a combination of these. When there is a suitable path between two systems with different temperatures, heat transfer occurs necessarily, immediately, and spontaneously from the hotter to the colder system. Thermal conduction occurs by the stochastic (random) motion of microscopic particles (such as atoms or molecules). In contrast, thermodynamic work is defined by mechanisms that act macroscopically and directly on the system's whole-body state variables; for example, change of the system's volume through a piston's motion with externally measurable force; or change of the system's internal electric polarization through an externally measurable change in electric field. The definition of heat transfer does not require that the process be in any sense smooth. For example, a bolt of lightning may transfer heat to a body.\n",
"Further progress in kinetic theory started only in the middle of the 19th century, with the works of Rudolf Clausius, James Clerk Maxwell, and Ludwig Boltzmann. In his 1857 work \"On the nature of the motion called heat\", Clausius for the first time clearly states that heat is the average kinetic energy of molecules. This interested Maxwell, who in 1859 derived the momentum distribution later named after him. Boltzmann subsequently generalized his distribution for the case of gases in external fields.\n"
] |
why does curiosity often outweigh common sense? | I think it might have to do with our hunter gatherer ancestors. We have a need for knowledge of everything near us, so we can be aware of predators, food, and other things either beneficial or detrimental to our survival. | [
"Although the phenomenon of curiosity is widely regarded, its root causes are relatively unknown beyond theory. However, recent studies have provided some insight into the neurological mechanisms that make up what is known as the reward pathway which may impact characteristics associated with curiosity, such as learning, memory, and motivation. Due to the complex nature of curiosity, research that focuses on specific neural processes with these characteristics can help create a better understanding the phenomenon of curiosity as a whole. The following are characteristics of curiosity and their links to neural aspects that can be thought of as essential in creating exploratory behaviors:\n",
"The term \"curiosity\" can also be used to denote the behavior or emotion of being curious, in regard to the desire to gain knowledge or information. Curiosity as a behavior and emotion is attributed over millennia as the driving force behind not only human development, but developments in science, language, and industry.\n",
"These traditional ideas of curiosity have recently expanded to look at the difference between \"curiosity as the innate exploratory behavior\" that is present in all animals and \"curiosity as the desire for knowledge\" that is specifically attributed to humans.\n",
"Curiosity (from Latin \"cūriōsitās\", from \"cūriōsus\" \"careful, diligent, curious\", akin to \"cura\" \"care\") is a quality related to inquisitive thinking such as exploration, investigation, and learning, evident by observation in humans and other animals. Curiosity is heavily associated with all aspects of human development, in which derives the process of learning and desire to acquire knowledge and skill.\n",
"Curiosity can categorize as particular interest stimulated behavior and diverse curiosity encouraged the practice. The first mentioned of two displays an in-depth analysis for a single incentive because this stimulation evokes curiousness of consumer; in this situation, exploration is a reaction for a specific stimulus motivated by collative properties. However, the diverse curiosity, which can be initiated by an assortment of sources, refers to the response for boredom, meaning that it does not react to a particular stimulus.\n",
"Subsets of curiosity-drive theory differ on whether curiosity is a primary or secondary drive and if this curiosity-drive is originated due to one's need to make sense of and regulate their environment or if it is caused by an external stimulus. Causes can range from basic needs that need to be satisfied (e.g. hunger, thirst) to needs in fear induced situations. Each of these subset theories state that whether the need is primary or secondary curiosity is developed from experiences that create a sensation of uncertainty or perceived unpleasantness. Curiosity then acts as a means in which to dispel this uncertainty. By exhibiting curious and exploratory behavior, one is able to gain knowledge of the unfamiliar and thus reduce the state of uncertainty or unpleasantness. This theory, however, does not address the idea that curiosity can often be displayed even in the absence of new or unfamiliar situations. This type of exploratory behavior is common in many species. Take the example of a human toddler who, if bored in his current situation devoid of arousing stimuli, will walk about until something interesting is found. The observation of curiosity even in the absence of novel stimuli pinpoints one of the major shortcomings in the curiosity-drive model.\n",
"Curiosity can be seen as an innate quality of many different species. It is common to human beings at all ages from infancy through adulthood, and is easy to observe in many other animal species; these include apes, cats, and rodents. Early definitions cite curiosity as a motivated desire for information. This motivational desire has been said to stem from a passion or an appetite for knowledge, information, and understanding.\n"
] |
how do the machines work that the tsa use to put swabs in after they swipe your clothing? | They use a technique called "ion-mobility spectrometry". What happens is they ionize the specimen swabs and then travel through a tube with an electric field and a buffer gas that opposes the motion. The speed at which it will pass through the tube indicates what the material is made of, and it is calibrated to trigger on explosives residue.
Hopefully if someone has a bomb they would have to handle it, and the very faint residue of that handling would be detected by the device. | [
"The user clips the piece of clothing on two hooks and the item is pulled into the machine. Then a series of rollers and arms moves in all directions to straighten and fold it. The machine can fold shirts, tops, trousers and dresses, but not small pieces of clothing like underwear or large items like sheets. The folded items are returned in a stack through a window at the bottom of the machine.\n",
"The main purpose of a wash rack is to clean equipment while protecting the environment from contaminates commonly found on construction, maintenance and military vehicles or equipment. To comply with U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulations, which are intended to prevent soil-borne insects or other potentially harmful organisms from entering the United States, U.S. military vehicles and equipment must be thoroughly washed before being shipped home. As such, wash racks are commonly used by the US military to ensure vehicles are clean and safe before they are brought back into the country.\n",
"Some manufacturers have taken steps to reduce vibration emanating from their washers, by means of reducing or controlling motor speeds, using hydraulic suspensions instead of spring suspensions, and having freely moving steel balls contained inside a ring mounted on both the front and back sides of the drum in order to counter the weight of the clothes and reduce vibration.\n",
"A robot then transfers the aluminium blanks into the tandem press lines where the sheets are stamped into the various panels of the cars. The Schuler SMG hydraulic stamping press line is the largest in North America and the 6th largest in the world. The presses use up to 11,000 ton-force to form the body panels; the upper section applies 1400 tonnes of downward force and the lower section 130 tonnes. The blank aluminium sheet is stretched over the lower draw die and openings are cut with robots transferring the panels between processes. The workers then inspect each panel to ensure correct pressing. The parts are then stacked in frames and stored. The machines press one part every 6 seconds and create 5,000 parts per day.\n",
"A wheel washing system is a device for cleaning the tires of trucks when they are leaving a site, to control and eliminate the pollution of public roads. The installation can be made in or above the ground for either temporary or permanent applications. There are two types of wheel washing systems: roller and drive-through systems.\n",
"Customers purchase kits to sample one or more parts of their body, including the gut, genitals, mouth, nose, or skin. After swabbing, a participant takes a survey which is used to make correlations with microbiome data. The participant sends the kit to the company in the mail and receives data in a few weeks; he or she can compare their data with that of uBiome’s data set. In 2015 uBiome received Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) certification from the State of California. In 2016, uBiome received accreditation from the College of American Pathologists.\n",
"In a top load washing machine the agitator projects from the bottom of the wash basket and creates the wash action by rotating back and forth, rolling garments from the top of the load, down to the bottom, then back up again.\n"
] |
Why don't we have infinite entropy in the universe? | Entropy increases over time. It's a fundamental law of thermodynamics.
However, the universe in it's current state isn't infinite, it had a start at the Big Bang. At the Big Bang, the universe had an incredibly low entropy. Why this is isn't entirely known, and there's a lot of speculation on the topic. We currently exist in a time frame where the low entropy is playing out. In a VERY long time (Like 10^10^36 years) the universe will reach it's maximum state of entropy, and no trace will be left of what transpired over the lifetime of the universe.
Presumably this will carry on for an infinite amount of time, assuming time has any meaning in a maximum entropy environment. | [
"Max Planck wrote that the phrase \"entropy of the universe\" has no meaning because it admits of no accurate definition. More recently, Grandy writes: \"It is rather presumptuous to speak of the entropy of a universe about which we still understand so little, and we wonder how one might define thermodynamic entropy for a universe and its major constituents that have never been in equilibrium in their entire existence.\" According to Tisza: \"If an isolated system is not in equilibrium, we cannot associate an entropy with it.\" Buchdahl writes of \"the entirely unjustifiable assumption that the universe can be treated as a closed thermodynamic system\". According to Gallavotti: \"... there is no universally accepted notion of entropy for systems out of equilibrium, even when in a stationary state.\" Discussing the question of entropy for non-equilibrium states in general, Lieb and Yngvason express their opinion as follows: \"Despite the fact that most physicists believe in such a nonequilibrium entropy, it has so far proved impossible to define it in a clearly satisfactory way.\" In Landsberg's opinion: \"The \"third\" misconception is that thermodynamics, and in particular, the concept of entropy, can without further enquiry be applied to the whole universe. ... These questions have a certain fascination, but the answers are speculations, and lie beyond the scope of this book.\"\n",
"Since a finite universe is an isolated system, the second law of thermodynamics states that its total entropy is continually increasing. It has been speculated, since the 19th century, that the universe is fated to a heat death in which all the energy ends up as a homogeneous distribution of thermal energy so that no more work can be extracted from any source.\n",
"One position is to say that the constant increase of entropy we observe happens \"only\" because of the initial state of our universe. Other possible states of the universe (for example, a universe at heat death equilibrium) would actually result in no increase of entropy. In this view, the apparent T-asymmetry of our universe is a problem in cosmology: why did the universe start with a low entropy? This view, if it remains viable in the light of future cosmological observation, would connect this problem to one of the big open questions beyond the reach of today's physics — the question of \"initial conditions\" of the universe.\n",
"Second, the application of the concept of entropy to the entire universe is unwarranted. This association has its origin in Clausius' statement that the entropy of the World always increases. Clausius, who is credited for the formulation of the second law, did not and could not understand the molecular interpretation of entropy. Unfortunately, the application of the concept of entropy to the entire universe features in many textbooks and in popular science books. This erroneous application is discussed in great detail in Ben-Naim's recent books: \"The Briefest History of Time\", \"Entropy, the Truth the whole Truth and nothing but the Truth\", and in \"Information, Entropy, Life and the Universe\".\n",
"If the universe can be considered to have generally increasing entropy, then – as Roger Penrose has pointed out – gravity plays an important role in the increase because gravity causes dispersed matter to accumulate into stars, which collapse eventually into black holes. The entropy of a black hole is proportional to the surface area of the black hole's event horizon. Jacob Bekenstein and Stephen Hawking have shown that black holes have the maximum possible entropy of any object of equal size. This makes them likely end points of all entropy-increasing processes, if they are totally effective matter and energy traps. However, the escape of energy from black holes might be possible due to quantum activity (see Hawking radiation).\n",
"A recent analysis of entropy states, \"The entropy of a general gravitational field is still not known\", and, \"gravitational entropy is difficult to quantify\". The analysis considers several possible assumptions that would be needed for estimates and suggests that the observable universe has more entropy than previously thought. This is because the analysis concludes that supermassive black holes are the largest contributor. Lee Smolin goes further: \"It has long been known that gravity is important for keeping the universe out of thermal equilibrium. Gravitationally bound systems have negative specific heat—that is, the velocities of their components increase when energy is removed. ... Such a system does not evolve toward a homogeneous equilibrium state. Instead it becomes increasingly structured and heterogeneous as it fragments into subsystems.\"\n",
"Thus, if entropy is associated with disorder and if the entropy of the universe is headed towards maximal entropy, then many are often puzzled as to the nature of the \"ordering\" process and operation of evolution in relation to Clausius' most famous version of the second law, which states that the universe is headed towards maximal “disorder”. In the recent 2003 book \"SYNC – the Emerging Science of Spontaneous Order\" by Steven Strogatz, for example, we find “Scientists have often been baffled by the existence of spontaneous order in the universe. The laws of thermodynamics seem to dictate the opposite, that nature should inexorably degenerate toward a state of greater disorder, greater entropy. Yet all around us we see magnificent structures—galaxies, cells, ecosystems, human beings—that have all somehow managed to assemble themselves.” \n"
] |
why it’s so uncomfortable to stare into someone else’s eyes for too long? | It depends who it's for. Alot of the time it's a show of dominant behavior or even submissive depending on the person. This can lead to people being uncomfortable.
Other times for fewer people it's the start of a soul gaze, which is something most tend to avoid. | [
"Visually, a glaring person tends to have their eyes fixed and heavily focused on a subject. This can sometimes be considered synonymous to staring but, in most of the cases, staring is caused due to curiosity and lasts only for a short duration, whereas glaring is caused due to contempt and lasts for a relatively longer duration.\n",
"The eyes are often viewed as important features of facial expressions. Aspects such as blinking rate can possibly be used to indicate whether a person is nervous or whether he or she is lying. Also, eye contact is considered an important aspect of interpersonal communication. However, there are cultural differences regarding the social propriety of maintaining eye contact or not.\n",
"Some people are able to consciously uncouple their eyes, either by overfocusing closely (i.e. going cross-eyed) or unfocusing. Also, while looking at one object behind another object, the foremost object's image is doubled (for example, placing one's finger in front of one's face while reading text on a computer monitor). In this sense, double vision is neither dangerous nor harmful, and may even be enjoyable. It makes viewing stereograms possible.\n",
"Eye contact is the instance when two people look at each other's eyes at the same time; it is the primary nonverbal way of indicating engagement, interest, attention and involvement. Some studies have demonstrated that people use their eyes to indicate interest. This includes frequently recognized actions of winking and movements of the eyebrows. Disinterest is highly noticeable when little or no eye contact is made in a social setting. When an individual is interested, however, the pupils will dilate.\n",
"Eye contact and facial expressions provide important social and emotional information. People, perhaps without consciously doing so, search other's eyes and faces for positive or negative mood signs. In some contexts, the meeting of eyes arouses strong emotions.\n",
"BULLET::::- Staring - Staring is more than just eye contact, it usually involves eyes wider than normal. A lack of blinking may indicate more interest, but it also may indicate a stronger feeling than a person may intend to portray. Prolonged eye contact can be aggressive, affectionate, or deceptive.\n",
"A recent experiment at the University of California at Berkeley found that individuals with a combination of low self-esteem and low attentional control are more likely to exhibit eye-blink startle responses while viewing rejection themed images. These findings indicate that people who feel bad about themselves are especially vulnerable to rejection, but that people can also control and regulate their emotional reactions.\n"
] |
why is it acceptable for politicians to litter signs and pamphlets everywhere? | You can't stop people from mailing you stuff or leaving it at your house but most towns have regulations around those signs that they leave on people's lawns. My town has these regulations:
\- Need to get an owner's consent to put a sign on their lawn.
\- Person needs to track where they put them. Candidates are responsible for them all.
\- After an election the Candidate is responsible for removing all the signs they put around town, within a certain amount of time
Otherwise they are subject to fines. Check your local regs. Maybe they exist but no one's enforcing them. | [
"In addition, it gives the requester a placebo effect of doing something substantive, while not actually volunteering to help their candidate. Critics charge that \"lawn signs don't vote\" and dismiss their importance. Theft of lawn signs is treated like any other instance of petty theft, however, signs on the rights of way in many states are considered litter and can be picked up by anyone as a public service. On several occasions, citizens who removed lawn signs on the pretext of cleaning up the clutter and eliminating driver distraction were arrested, sparking a public controversy.\n",
"Election litter is a term used by some national and subnational governments to describe the unlawful erection of political advertising on private residences or property owned by the local government. Often, election signs may only be displayed \"on private property with permission\" for a certain time within the election, and may not exceed a certain size. When placed on public property or public rights of way without permission, or if left on private property for too long, they are often in violation of littering laws, and/or laws intended to prevent flyposting.\n",
"Badges, favours, flags, rosettes, symbols, sets of colours, advertisements, handbills, placards, posters and replica voting papers may not be carried, worn, used or displayed by any person or on any vehicle as political propaganda, although candidates may wear replicas of the symbols allotted to them for election purposes. In addition, holding election meetings and canvassing are not permitted on the day before polling day or on polling day itself. Canvassing involves trying to persuade a person to vote or not to vote in a particular way; or visiting a voter for an election-related purpose at home or at his or her workplace. It is an offence to exercise undue influence on any person at or near a polling station: for example, trying to find out the identity of any person entering a polling station; recording voters' particulars; and waiting outside or loitering within of polling stations.\n",
"Badges, favours, flags, rosettes, symbols, sets of colours, advertisements, handbills, placards, posters and replica voting papers may not be carried, worn, used or displayed by any person or on any vehicle as political propaganda, although candidates may wear replicas of the symbols allotted to them for election purposes. In addition, holding election meetings and canvassing are not permitted on the day before polling day and polling day itself. Canvassing involves trying to persuade a person to vote or not to vote in a particular way, or visiting a voter for an election-related purpose at home or at his or her workplace. It is also an offence to exercise undue influence on any person at or near a polling station, for instance, by trying to find out the identity of any person entering a polling station, recording voters' particulars, and waiting outside or loitering within of polling stations.\n",
"Election litter usually is defined as placing campaign signs on public, government-owned property, or on privately owned property (including residences) without the owner's permission. It is usually banned by local government.\n",
"Political scientist Mel Kahn states that lawn signs help build name recognition for candidates. Supposedly, each sign represents 6-10 votes for the candidate. However, veteran political organizers hate the task of handing out yard signs, because they believe that time spent on procuring and distributing yard signs could be better used on other voter registration and get out the vote operations. One randomized field trial found yard signs simply reminding people to vote were able to significantly increase overall voter turnout. A 2016 study found that lawn signs raise vote shares by slightly more than 1 percentage point and are “on par with other low-tech campaign tactics such as direct mail that generate … effects that tend to be small in magnitude.”\n",
"They are frequently distributed as part of promotional, and political campaigns; for example, in many voting districts in the U.S., stickers indicating an individual has voted are given to each voter as they leave the polling place, largely as a reminder to others to vote. Observers may clap hands, honk a horn or otherwise applaud a good sticker.\n"
] |
An object in orbit around a massive body is in a constant state of free fall, so why isn't it accelerating towards an infinite velocity? | For objects in a circular orbit, the force of gravity is always perpendicular to the direction of motion. That means that gravity does not pull the object to go faster in its current direction, but instead only changes the direction without affecting the speed of the object. | [
"In typical free-fall, the acceleration of gravity acts along the direction of an object's velocity, linearly increasing its speed as it falls toward the Earth, or slowing it down if it is moving away from the Earth. In the case of an orbiting spacecraft, which has a velocity vector largely \"perpendicular\" to the force of gravity, gravitational acceleration does not produce a net change in the object's speed, but instead acts centripetally, to constantly \"turn\" the spacecraft's velocity as it moves around the Earth. Because the acceleration vector turns along with the velocity vector, they remain perpendicular to each other. Without this change in the direction of its velocity vector, the spacecraft would move in a straight line, leaving the Earth altogether.\n",
"If the free-falling body completed a full orbit, it would begin at distance formula_2 from the point source mass formula_3, fall inward until it reached that point source, then turn around and journey back to its original position. In real systems, the point source mass isn't truly a point source and the infalling body eventually collides with some surface. Thus, it only completes half the orbit. But since the infalling part of the orbit is symmetric to the hypothetical outgoing portion of the orbit, we can simply divide the period of the full orbit by two to attain the free-fall time (the time along the infalling portion of the orbit).\n",
"A body in free fall (which by definition entails no aerodynamic forces) near the surface of the earth has an acceleration approximately equal to 9.8 m s with respect to a coordinate frame tied to the earth. If the body is in a freely falling lift and subject to no pushes or pulls from the lift or its contents, the acceleration with respect to the lift would be zero. If on the other hand, the body is subject to forces exerted by other bodies within the lift, it will have an acceleration with respect to the freely falling lift. This acceleration which is not due to gravity is called \"proper acceleration\". On this approach, weightlessness holds when proper acceleration is zero.\n",
"That is, being on the surface of the Earth is equivalent to being inside a spaceship (far from any sources of gravity) that is being accelerated by its engines. The direction or vector of acceleration equivalence on the surface of the earth is \"up\" or directly opposite the center of the planet while the vector of acceleration in a spaceship is directly opposite from the mass ejected by its thrusters. From this principle, Einstein deduced that free-fall is inertial motion. Objects in free-fall do not experience being accelerated downward (e.g. toward the earth or other massive body) but rather weightlessness and no acceleration. In an inertial frame of reference bodies (and photons, or light) obey Newton's first law, moving at constant velocity in straight lines. Analogously, in a curved spacetime the world line of an inertial particle or pulse of light is \"as straight as possible\" (in space \"and\" time). Such a world line is called a geodesic and from the point of view of the inertial frame is a straight line. This is why an accelerometer in free-fall doesn't register any acceleration; there isn't any.\n",
"Technically, an object is in free fall even when moving upwards or instantaneously at rest at the top of its motion. If gravity is the only influence acting, then the acceleration is always downward and has the same magnitude for all bodies, commonly denoted formula_1.\n",
"In 2018, Li and Liao reported 234 solutions to the unequal-mass \"free-fall\" three body problem. The free fall formulation of the three body problem starts with all three bodies at rest. Because of this, the masses in a free-fall configuration do not orbit in a closed \"loop\", but travel forwards and backwards along an open \"track\".\n",
"BULLET::::- As the object is pulled toward the massive body, it falls toward that body. However, if it has enough tangential velocity it will not fall into the body but will instead continue to follow the curved trajectory caused by that body indefinitely. The object is then said to be orbiting the body.\n"
] |
How does the electric field behave as a charged particle falls into a black hole? | > It seems to imply that to a distant observer, the field due to a charge at the event horizon of a black hole would have to be spherically symmetric around the center of the black hole (at least, assuming a spherical black hole).
Ok, when people say a black hole is only described by its mass, charge and angular momentum, there's an important caveat that this only applies if you wait a bit for things to stabilize. For example, consider this [animation of two merging black holes](_URL_0_). Immediately after they merge, the merged black hole is still wobbling and the gravitational field produced by this is dynamic, so it goes beyond just mass, charge and angular momentum. But the wobbling black hole is emitting gravitational waves, and in doing so stabilizes into a static state after some time.
Same thing if you dump electric charge into the black hole. From your point of view, you observe the charge being scrambled at the event horizon and the associated dynamic EM field. Over time, the charge will get evenly distributed over the event horizon and radiate away EM waves until everything stabilizes and you get a static electric field.
The important thing is that everything happens at the level of the event horizon from your point of view. You never get any information of what's going inside. For example, the wobbling black hole can be seen as an elastic beach ball without concern for what's inside the ball. Similarly, when you dump charge in the hole, you see the charge flowing through the beach ball's surface.
But if you wait long enough, the black hole will look like a nice sphere described only by mass, charge and angular momentum, after it has finished scrambling what you tossed inside. | [
"A charged black hole is a black hole that possesses electric charge. Since the electromagnetic repulsion in compressing an electrically charged mass is dramatically greater than the gravitational attraction (by about 40 orders of magnitude), it is not expected that black holes with a significant electric charge will be formed in nature.\n",
"Instead of analyzing the movement of an empty state in the valence band as the movement of many separate electrons, a single equivalent imaginary particle called a \"hole\" is considered. In an applied electric field, the electrons move in one direction, corresponding to the hole moving in the other. If a hole associates itself with a neutral atom, that atom loses an electron and becomes positive. Therefore, the hole is taken to have positive charge of +e, precisely the opposite of the electron charge.\n",
"If particle A enters the ergosphere of a Kerr black hole, then splits into particles B and C, then the consequence (given the assumptions that conservation of energy still holds and one of the particles is allowed to have negative energy) will be that particle B can exit the ergosphere with more energy than particle A while particle C goes into the black hole, i.e. and say , then .\n",
"In semiconductors and insulating materials, an electric field causes charged particles, electrons, to reach a specific drift velocity that is parallel to the direction of the field. This is different from the behavior of the free charged particles in a vacuum, in which a field accelerates the particle. The proportionality factor between the magnitudes of the drift velocity, formula_7, and the electric field, formula_8, is called the mobility, formula_9:\n",
"An alternative view of the process is that vacuum fluctuations cause a particle–antiparticle pair to appear close to the event horizon of a black hole. One of the pair falls into the black hole while the other escapes. In order to preserve total energy, the particle that fell into the black hole must have had a negative energy (with respect to an observer far away from the black hole). This causes the black hole to lose mass, and, to an outside observer, it would appear that the black hole has just emitted a particle. In another model, the process is a quantum tunnelling effect, whereby particle–antiparticle pairs will form from the vacuum, and one will tunnel outside the event horizon.\n",
"The maximum amount of energy gain possible for a single particle via this process is 20.7%. The process obeys the laws of black hole mechanics. A consequence of these laws is that if the process is performed repeatedly, the black hole can eventually lose all of its angular momentum, becoming non-rotating, i.e. a Schwarzschild black hole. In this case the theoretical maximum energy that can be extracted from a black hole is 29% of its original mass. Larger efficiencies are possible for charged rotating black holes.\n",
"So, the above purely classical calculation cannot be trusted. Furthermore, even classically, electric charge and angular momentum affect the properties of a black hole. To take them into account, while still ignoring quantum effects, one should use the Kerr–Newman metric. If we do, we find the angular momentum and charge of the electron are too large for a black hole of the electron's mass: a Kerr-Newman object with such a large angular momentum and charge would instead be 'super-extremal', displaying a naked singularity, meaning a singularity not shielded by an event horizon.\n"
] |
Is it colder just before dawn or somewhere in the middle between dawn and dusk? | Assuming no strong cold or warm air advection is taking place, it's normally the coldest just before sunrise. You can clearly see the diurnal temperature trends in [this hourly weather graph for Phoenix, Arizona](_URL_0_).
| [
"Daytime becomes longer as the summer solstice approaches, while nighttime gets longer as the winter solstice approaches. This can have a potential impact on the times and durations of dawn and dusk. This effect is more pronounced closer to the poles, where the Sun rises at the vernal equinox and sets at the autumn equinox, with a long period of twilight, lasting for a few weeks.\n",
"Dawn, from an Old English verb \"dagian\": \"to become day\", is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in the atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc reaches 18° below the horizon. This dawn twilight period will last until sunrise (when the Sun's upper limb breaks the horizon), as the diffused light becomes direct sunlight.\n",
"The opposite of night is day (or \"daytime\", to distinguish it from \"day\" referring to a 24-hour period). The start and end points of time for a night vary, based on factors such as season and latitude. Twilight is the period of night after sunset or before sunrise when the Sun still illuminates the sky when it is below the horizon. At any given time, one side of Earth is bathed in sunlight (the daytime) while the other side is in the shadow caused by Earth blocking the sunlight. The central part of the shadow is called the umbra.\n",
"BULLET::::- The long dawn of two months is a special and important characteristic of the North Pole. As we descend southward, the splendor and the duration of the dawn will be witnessed on a less and less magnificent scale. But the dawn occurring at the end of the long night of two, three or more months will still be unusually long, often of several days duration.\n",
"Unlike the other seasons, summer is not warmer in Scania compared to many other Swedish provinces. As in winter, the weather usually changes between periods that either are sunny and fairly hot (up to 30 degrees, even higher away from the coastlines), and periods of unstable cloudy and cooler weather. The time between sunset and sunrise during June and earliest July is less than 7 hours, and both the dawn and the dusk are rather long as well. However, there are still a few hours of real night. Further north in Sweden there is no real night, as dusk turns into dawn. (In northernmost Sweden, the sun does not set at all for around two months.)\n",
"The sun remains below the horizon during the polar night from about 26 November to 15 January, but owing to the mountains, the sun is not visible from 21 November to 21 January. The return of the sun is an occasion for celebration. However, because of the twilight, there is some daylight for a couple of hours even around midwinter, often with bluish light, allowing for normal day/night cycles during the winter. The nights shorten quickly. By 21 February the sun is above the horizon from 7:45 am to 4:10 pm, and by 1 April it is above the horizon from 5:50 am to 7:50 pm (daylight saving time). However, if one were to include astronomical twilight as \"not night\", then Tromsø only has 13 hours and 32 minutes of night on the winter solstice.\n",
"The sun remains below the horizon during the polar night from about 26 November to 15 January, but owing to the mountains, the sun is not visible from 21 November to 21 January. The return of the sun is an occasion for celebration. However, because of the twilight, there is some daylight for a couple of hours even around midwinter, often with bluish light. The nights shorten quickly. By 21 February the sun is above the horizon from 7:45 am to 4:10 pm, and by 1 April it is above the horizon from 5:50 am to 7:50 pm (daylight saving time). If we include astronomical twilight as \"not night\", then Tromso only has 14 hours of night on the winter solstice.\n"
] |
what is java? | I suppose you're here talking about computers and not the dance.
**ELI5 answer :** Java is a programming language which allows to create programs.
**Long answer :** Unlike other programming languages like C++, the code is interpreted by another program (called the JVM, Java Virtual Machine) which renders the result. Most programming languages doesn't work like this ; they compile code into binary data which can be directly used by the computer. Java is also a *object-oriented* programming language, but defining the *object-oriented* notion would require another ELI5. | [
"Java is a general-purpose, concurrent, class-based, object-oriented programming language that is designed to minimize implementation dependencies. It relies on a Java virtual machine to be secure and highly portable. It is bundled with an extensive library designed to provide a full abstraction of the underlying platform. Java is a statically typed object-oriented language that uses a syntax similar to (but incompatible with) C++. It includes a documentation system called Javadoc.\n",
"Java is a general-purpose programming language that is class-based, object-oriented (although not a pure object-oriented language, as it contains primitive types), and designed to have as few implementation dependencies as possible. It is intended to let application developers \"write once, run anywhere\" (WORA), meaning that compiled Java code can run on all platforms that support Java without the need for recompilation. Java applications are typically compiled to bytecode that can run on any Java virtual machine (JVM) regardless of the underlying computer architecture. The syntax of Java is similar to C and C++, but it has fewer low-level facilities than either of them. , Java was one of the most popular programming languages in use according to GitHub, \n",
"BULLET::::- Java – is a general-purpose programming language that is class-based, object-oriented(although not a \"pure\" OO language), and designed to have as few implementation dependencies as possible. It is intended to let application developers \"write once, run anywhere\" (WORA), meaning that compiled Java code can run on all platforms that support Java without the need for recompilation.\n",
"JavaScript is a scripting language that is mainly used for creating for implementing dynamic website pages and enhanced user interfaces for web browsers. Highly influenced by programming languages such as C, Java, Self, and Scheme, JavaScript supports object oriented, functional, and imperative programming styles. Even though its name has \"Java\" in it, it is an entirely different language from Java.\n",
"Java is a set of computer software and specifications developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems, which was later acquired by the Oracle Corporation, that provides a system for developing application software and deploying it in a cross-platform computing environment. Java is used in a wide variety of computing platforms from embedded devices and mobile phones to enterprise servers and supercomputers. Java applets, which are less common than standalone Java applications, were commonly run in secure, sandboxed environments to provide many features of native applications through being embedded in HTML pages. It's still possible to run Java in web browsers after most of them having dropped support for Java's VM.\n",
"JavaOS is an operating system with a Java virtual machine as a fundamental component, originally developed by Sun Microsystems. Unlike Windows, Mac OS, Unix, or Unix-like systems which are primarily written in the C programming language, JavaOS is primarily written in Java. It is now considered a legacy system.\n",
"JavaScript (), often abbreviated as JS, is a high-level, interpreted programming language that conforms to the ECMAScript specification. JavaScript has curly-bracket syntax, dynamic typing, prototype-based object-orientation, and first-class functions.\n"
] |
Why are so many followers of Islam/people in Islamic nations named after the prophet Muhammad? | Interesting, I always thought about it from the other point of view. If you consider a man to be the best human and a role model to pattern your life on, wouldn't it follow that it should be a very common name? Muslims are supposed to love the prophet Muhammad more than their parents and we know that naming children after people you love is pretty common. With that logic, I think the question should be, why aren't Jesus and Moses more common names?*
*Among Christians and Jews, respectively, of course. They're both relatively common names in the Muslim world (with the Arabic pronunciation, of course). | [
"There were Jews, such as Natan'el, who accepted this model of religious pluralism, leading them to view Muhammad as a legitimate prophet, albeit not Jewish, sent to preach to the Arabs, just as the Hebrew prophets had been sent to deliver their messages to Israel.\n",
"According to the sixth edition of \"The Columbia Encyclopedia\" (2000), \"Muhammad\" is probably the most common given name [in the world], including variations. It is estimated that more than 150 million men and boys in the world bear the name \"Muhammad\" due to its relationship to the Islamic prophet Muhammad.\n",
"The names and titles of Muhammad, names and attributes of Muhammad, Names of Muhammad (Arabic: أَسْمَاءُ ٱلْنَّبِيّ \"’Asmā’u ’n-Nabiyy\") are the names of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and used by Muslims, where 88 of them are commonly renown, but also countless names which are found mainly in the Quran and hadith literature.\n",
"As Muhammad taught of new \"Islamic prophets\" (such as Lot, and Jesus) and that his message was identical to those of Abraham and Moses, the Jews were furthermore in the position to make some Muslims doubt about his prophethood. Judaism does not list Lot, nor Jesus as Prophets in Judaism, and the Talmud (Sanhedrin 11a) states that Haggai, Zachariah, and Malachi were the last prophets, all of whom lived at the end of the 70-year Babylonian exile, and nowadays only the \"Bath Kol\" (בת קול, lit. \"daughter of a voice\", \"voice of God\") exists. The Jews, according to Watt, could argue that \"some passages in the Qur'an contradicted their ancient scriptures\". Watt also states that many of the Jews had close links with Abd-Allah ibn Ubayy, \"the potential prince of Medina\" who \"is said that but for the arrival of Muhammad, had not become\" the chief arbitrator of the community. The Jews may have hoped for greater influence if Ubayy had become a ruler. Watt writes that the Islamic response to these criticisms was:\n",
"Moreover, once the prophethood of Muhammad is testified they would obey him, no one would hesitate to follow his offspring and this would not be hard for anyone. While to follow the offspring of the corrupted families is difficult. And that is maybe why the basic characteristic of Muhammad and other prophets was their nobility. For none of them, it is said, were originated from a disgraced family. It is believed that all Muhammad's ancestors up to Adam were true Muslims. Jesus was also from a pious family, as it is mentioned in Quran that after his birth, people said to Mary: \"O sister of Aaron, your father was not a man of evil, nor was your mother unchaste.\"\n",
"Indeed such is the popularity of the name \"Muhammad\" throughout parts of Africa, Arabia, the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia, it is often represented by the abbreviation \"Md.\", \"Mohd.\", \"Muhd.\", or just \"M.\". In India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, due to its almost ubiquitous use as a first name, a person will often be referred to by their second name:\n",
"The Quran identifies a number of men as \"Prophets of Islam\" ( \"nabī\"; pl. \"anbiyāʾ\"). Muslims believe such individuals were assigned a special mission by God to guide humanity. Besides Muhammad, this includes prophets such as Abraham (\"Ibrāhīm\"), Moses (\"Mūsā\") and Jesus (\"ʿĪsā\").\n"
] |
How accurate are orbital calculations? | Here's a taste of how accurate orbital calculations are: in 1676 Romer proposed that there was a finite speed of light when he noticed that Io, a moon of Jupiter, was some times 8 minutes ahead of "schedule" (predicted location) and sometimes 8 minutes behind. 8 minutes. 350 years ago. | [
"One of the major problems in trajectory and orbital estimation is to obtain a realistic estimate of the accuracy of the trajectory and other important parameters. In the orbital case, some of the parameters which may not be solved for are geopotential constants, survey, etc. These factors will affect the total uncertainty in the orbit and, of course, ephemeris predictions. A statistical technique was developed that performs a variance-covariance propagation to obtain accuracy estimates based on random and unmodeled errors. An example of the unmodeled error propagation in the MISTRAM system was given for the Geos B satellite.\n",
"Theoretical models may calculate the constants (coefficients) corresponding to the higher powers of \"T\", but since it is impossible for a (finite) polynomial to match a periodic function over all numbers, the difference in all such approximations will grow without bound as \"T\" increases. However, greater accuracy can be obtained over a limited time span by fitting a high enough order polynomial to observation data, rather than a necessarily imperfect dynamic numerical model. So for present flight trajectory calculations of artificial satellites and spacecraft, the polynomial method gives better accuracy. In that respect, the International Astronomical Union chose the best-developed available theory. For up to a few centuries in the past and the future, all formulas do not diverge very much. For up to a few thousand years in the past and the future, most agree to some accuracy. For eras farther out, discrepancies become too large – the exact rate and period of precession may not be computed using these polynomials even for a single whole precession period.\n",
"Knowing three orbital positions of a planet's orbit – positions obtained by Sir Isaac Newton from astronomer John Flamsteed – Newton was able to produce an equation by straightforward analytical geometry, to predict a planet's motion; i.e., to give its orbital properties: position, orbital diameter, period and orbital velocity. Having done so, he and others soon discovered over the course of a few years, those equations of motion did not predict some orbits very well or even correctly. Newton realized it was because gravitational interactive forces amongst all the planets was affecting all their orbits.\n",
"Orbital uncertainty is related to several parameters used in the orbit determination process including the number of observations (measurements), the time spanned by those observations (observation arc), the quality of the observations (e.g. radar vs. optical), and the geometry of the observations. Of these parameters, the time spanned by the observations generally has the greatest effect on the orbital uncertainty.\n",
"The apparent resonance even depends on what source data and calculation methods are employed - the best fit for the given orbital \"periods\" within a 25,000 year cycle time, 44:75, is still imperfect and exhibits a final error of more than 1.5 Earth years for the final conjunction (approx 0.5%, or 2 degrees of arc). If we instead use the two bodies' respective \"semi-major axes\", i.e. their mean orbital \"radii\" as the basis for calculation, and purely Keplerian 2-body equations (ignoring interference by all other bodies), the decimal ratio returns 1.699943. This is actually close enough to 1.7 that a 10:17 resonance can be considered a credible possibility, not only with \"U\" = 2, but even in the looser reaches of a notional \"U=-1\" band, 4.4× more accurate than the usual \"U\" = 0 gold standard and about 85× more than band 2. However, appearing to be dead centre is no guarantee of accuracy when the uncertainty IS actually that great, so either of the other explanations could still be correct.\n",
"The higher-order terms are extra corrections to Newtonian mechanics, and become important at higher speeds. The Newtonian equation is only a low-speed approximation, but an extraordinarily good one. All of the calculations used in putting astronauts on the moon, for example, could have been done using Newton's equations without any of the higher-order corrections.\n",
"It is impossible to determine individually the semi-major axis \"a\" and the inclination of the orbit plane \"i\". However, the product of the semi-major axis and the sine of the inclination (i.e. \"a\" sin \"i\") may be determined directly in linear units (e.g. kilometres). If either \"a\" or \"i\" can be determined by other means, as in the case of eclipsing binaries, a complete solution for the orbit can be found.\n"
] |
Do ALL plants release pollen into the air? | Plants only produce pollen from their flowers (or cones, etc.). So if your friend would like some plants inside her house she just needs to make sure they don't flower (i.e. cut the flower buds off). Some plants flower more often or easily than others. Cacti rarely flower, in my experience.
Ferns produce no flowers but they reproduce using spores. As long as your friend is not also allergic to fern spores, that could be an option. | [
"\"Filipendula rubra\" is known for its air-borne pollen, however pollination is only effective (can create a seed) when pollen is transferred to a different plant, due to the fact that \"F. rubra\" is self-incompatible. The vast majority of pollen will be derived from inflorescences within the same clone and thus incompatible. Pollination is aided by insects such as sweat bees spreading pollen.\n",
"Wind and water pollination require the production of vast quantities of pollen because of the chancy nature of its deposition. If they are not to be reliant on the wind or water (for aquatic species), plants need pollinators to move their pollen grains from one plant to another. They particularly need pollinators to consistently choose flowers of the same species, so they have evolved different lures to encourage specific pollinators to maintain fidelity to the same species. The attractions offered are mainly nectar, pollen, fragrances and oils. The ideal pollinating insect is hairy (so that pollen adheres to it), and spends time exploring the flower so that it comes into contact with the reproductive structures.\n",
"Although pollination results from the bees visiting these flowers, this is not the primary reason they visit plants with poricidal anthers. Pollen contains a substantial amount of protein compared to nectar, the sugary liquid the majority of plants produce as a reward for their animal pollinators. Bees eat pollen as well as make a paste with it to feed their larvae. The pollen paste is then sealed into the nest to create a reserve for the young bees. Bees rely on this resource for food; therefore they are also dependent on flowers that produce substantial amounts of accessible pollen, including flowers with poricidal anthers. Bees from \"Bombus\" and \"Xylocopa\" are thought to pollinate these flowers because their adaptive behavior allows them easily extract pollen that is less available to other insects. Since bees have a source of plentiful pollen that they do not have to compete with other insects for, they are more likely to visit these flowers. This then allows the flowers to more successful reproductively because the plants maximize their pollen dispersal with each bee visit, and less pollen is lost. The relationship between buzz pollinated plants and bees benefits both groups and could be why poricidal anthers have been successful evolutionarily. Pollinator and flower relationships have been observed in \"Orphium frutescens\", a small shrub that has poricidal anthers. Bees visited these plants outside of the University of Cape Town and continued to visit the plants even when all of the pollen had been extracted. Although the bees did not know the \"O. frutescens\" would benefit from these multiple visits as the plants continue to produce pollen during the flowering season.\n",
"Pollen is released as single grains, like in most other plants, in the Apostasioideae, Cypripedioideae, and Vanilloideae. In the other subfamilies, which comprise the great majority of orchids, the anther (3) carries two pollinia.\n",
"In plants that use insects or other animals to move pollen from one flower to the next, plants have developed greatly modified flower parts to attract pollinators and to facilitate the movement of pollen from one flower to the insect and from the insect back to the next flower. Flowers of wind pollinated plants tend to lack petals and or sepals; typically large amounts of pollen are produced and pollination often occurs early in the growing season before leaves can interfere with the dispersal of the pollen. Many trees and all grasses and sedges are wind pollinated, as such they have no need for large fancy flowers.\n",
"Water-pollinated plants are aquatic and pollen is released into the water. Water currents therefore act as a pollen vector in a similar way to wind currents. Their flowers tend to be small and inconspicuous with lots of pollen grains and large, feathery stigmas to catch the pollen. However, this is relatively uncommon (only 2% of pollination is hydrophily) and most aquatic plants are insect-pollinated, with flowers that emerge into the air. \"Vallisneria\" is an example.\n",
"The flowers produce both pollen and nectar. Long- and short-tongued bees visit the plants for both nectar and pollen, syrphid flies and fire beetles (\"Pedilus lugubris\") feed on pollen, and butterflies and moths drink nectar. Out of these insects, large bees are the most effective at cross-pollination, since they most often touch the pollen-covered anthers.\n"
] |
how are well known illegal tv streaming sites able to stay up? | These sites do one of two things.
They operate in a jurisdiction where it would be difficult to shut them down.
If they are ever actually shut down, they simply create a new site and port everything over.
It's usually a game of whack-a-mole. With law enforcement trying to shut them down but the sites simply coming back up with a new domain name. | [
"There have been instances of users deliberately sharing their TV Everywhere login credentials, or having them sold without their owner's knowledge on the black market, in order to allow others to view programs without subscribing to the channel. Charter Communications CEO Tom Rutledge, and ESPN's executive vice president for affiliate sales and marketing Justin Connolly, have considered this practice equivalent to piracy. In December 2017, it was reported that television providers and program distributors have begun to implement measures in order to discourage this practice, including reducing the length of login session, reducing the number of concurrent streams allowed on a single account, and monitoring unusual usage patterns such as large numbers of concurrent streams on a single account—especially those originating from outside of the customer's region, or during major programs.\n",
"A general issue is the large number of incompatible data formats in which content is delivered, possibly restricting the devices that may be used, or making data conversion necessary. Streaming services can have several drawbacks: requiring a constant Internet connection to use content; the restriction of some content to never be stored locally; the restriction of content from being transferred to physical media; and the enabling of greater censorship at the discretion of owners of content, infrastructure, and consumer devices.\n",
"Because subscription TV providers tend not to discuss the methods by which they encrypt and decrypt their signals, mention of \"autoroll\" software and \"autorolling\" on a website usually indicates that the website's owners are engaged in illegal TV piracy. Normally such sites claim they are not legally bound to reveal customers' identities; often enough too, such sites will claim their activities are completely legal. Yet according to both U.S. and Canadian laws neither claim is true. In fact, the U.S.'s Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 compels equipment and coding providers to turn over their customers' records to subscription-service providers if the former is found to have engaged in or aided in stealing the latter's services.\n",
"Although the great majority of censored sites were pornographic, the list also includes anonymous proxy servers which circumvent web-blocking and provide access to Internet gambling sites. Pornography and gambling are specifically illegal in Thailand.\n",
"Illegal streaming sites contribute heavily to cyber crime in Indonesia. There was a major decrease in illegal sites in the music industry in 2017, after two-thirds of related sites were taken down towards the end of the year. These sites often create new websites meant to share content. Some experts suggest that taking down these sites will eventually close many of these operations down, claiming that there will be less viewers and lower revenue.\n",
"The station used live video streaming technology in a Windows format to webcast from 19:00 until midnight from Monday to Friday, with all programmes being made available to stream again shortly after the programme had aired. Due to the technology of the time, viewers could not download archived videos to their computer or portable device directly from the site, although a video podcast service of all archive videos was offered shortly before the station ceased broadcasting. \n",
"Pirate or grey-market reception also provides viewers a means to bypass local blackout restrictions on sporting events and to access hard-core pornography where some content is not otherwise available.\n"
] |
To what extent was Cannabis consumed for pleasure in the ancient world? | Not quite your question, but [this older link](_URL_0_) might nevertheless be of interest for you. | [
"The Mediterranean region contains the earliest archeological evidence of human use; the oldest known seeds date back to more than 5000 BCE in the Neolithic age with purposes such as food, anaesthetics, and ritual. Evidence from ancient Greece indicates that opium was consumed in several ways, including inhalation of vapors, suppositories, medical poultices, and as a combination with hemlock for suicide. The Sumerian, Assyrian, Egyptian, Indian, Minoan, Greek, Roman, Persian and Arab Empires all made widespread use of opium, which was the most potent form of pain relief then available, allowing ancient surgeons to perform prolonged surgical procedures. Opium is mentioned in the most important medical texts of the ancient world, including the Ebers Papyrus and the writings of Dioscorides, Galen, and Avicenna. Widespread medical use of unprocessed opium continued through the American Civil War before giving way to morphine and its successors, which could be injected at a precisely controlled dosage.\n",
"Prior to the introduction of opium to ancient India and China, these civilizations pioneered the use of cannabis incense and aconitum. c. 400 BC, the Sushruta Samhita (a text from the Indian subcontinent on ayurvedic medicine and surgery) advocates the use of wine with incense of cannabis for anesthesia. By the 8th century AD, Arab traders had brought opium to India and China.\n",
"Beginning around the 4th century, Taoist texts mentioned using cannabis in censers. Needham cited the (ca. 570 AD) Taoist encyclopedia \"Wushang Biyao\" 無上秘要 (\"Supreme Secret Essentials\") that cannabis was added into ritual incense-burners, and suggested the ancient Taoists experimented systematically with \"hallucinogenic smokes\". The \"Yuanshi shangzhen zhongxian ji\" 元始上真眾仙記 (\"Records of the Assemblies of the Perfected Immortals\"), which is attributed to Ge Hong (283-343), says:\n",
"Beginning around the 4th century, Taoist texts mentioned using cannabis in censers. Needham cited the (ca. 570 AD) Taoist encyclopedia \"Wushang Biyao\" 無上秘要 (\"Supreme Secret Essentials\") that cannabis was added into ritual incense-burners, and suggested the ancient Taoists experimented systematically with \"hallucinogenic smokes\". The \"Yuanshi shangzhen zhongxian ji\" 元始上真眾仙記 (\"Records of the Assemblies of the Perfected Immortals\"), which is attributed to Ge Hong (283-343), says:\n",
"The Sumerians are said to have cultivated and harvested the opium poppy (\"Papaver somniferum\") in lower Mesopotamia as early as 3400 BC, though this has been disputed. The most ancient testimony concerning the opium poppy found to date was inscribed in cuneiform script on a small white clay tablet at the end of the third millennium BC. This tablet was discovered in 1954 during excavations at Nippur, and is currently kept at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Deciphered by Samuel Noah Kramer and Martin Leve, it is considered to be the most ancient pharmacopoeia in existence. Some Sumerian tablets of this era have an ideogram inscribed upon them, \"hul gil\", which translates to \"plant of joy\", believed by some authors to refer to opium. The term \"gil\" is still used for opium in certain parts of the world. The Sumerian goddess Nidaba is often depicted with poppies growing out of her shoulders. About 2225 BC, the Sumerian territory became a part of the Babylonian empire. Knowledge and use of the opium poppy and its euphoric effects thus passed to the Babylonians, who expanded their empire eastwards to Persia and westwards to Egypt, thereby extending its range to these civilizations. British archaeologist and cuneiformist Reginald Campbell Thompson writes that opium was known to the Assyrians in the 7th century BC. The term \"Arat Pa Pa\" occurs in the \"Assyrian Herbal\", a collection of inscribed Assyrian tablets dated to c. 650 BC. According to Thompson, this term is the Assyrian name for the juice of the poppy and it may be the etymological origin of the Latin \"\"papaver\"\".\n",
"Cannabis was a major component in religious practices in ancient India as well as in medicinal practices. For many centuries, most parts of life in ancient India incorporated cannabis of some form. Surviving texts from ancient India confirm that cannabis' psychoactive properties were recognized, and doctors used it for treating a variety of illnesses and ailments. These included insomnia, headaches, a whole host of gastrointestinal disorders, and pain: cannabis was frequently used to relieve the pain of childbirth. One Indian philosopher expressed his views on the nature and uses of bhang (a form of cannabis), which combined religious thought with medical practices. \"A guardian lives in the bhang leaf. …To see in a dream the leaves, plant, or water of bhang is lucky. …A longing for bhang foretells happiness. It cures dysentry and sunstroke, clears phlegm, quickens digestion, sharpens appetite, makes the tongue of the lisper plain, freshens the intellect and gives alertness to the body and gaiety to the mind. Such are the useful and needful ends for which in His goodness the Almighty made bhang.\"\n",
"Certain herbs contain psychoactive properties that have been used for both religious and recreational purposes by humans since the early Holocene era, notably the leaves and extracts of the cannabis and coca plants. The leaves of the coca plant have been chewed by people in northern Peruvian societies for over 8,000 years, while the use of cannabis as a psychoactive substance dates back to the first century CE in China and northern Africa.\n"
] |
What would happen, if you create a perfect vacuum inside a stable container? | > Would the vacuum be strong enough to tear single molecules out of the container walls, or wouldn't it even be possible to create a container strong enough, or wouldn't anything cool happen at all?
This prevents you from ever actually reaching perfect vacuum. Not from "tearing apart" the walls of the vacuum chamber per se, but from *virtual leaks*.
These are a number of processes that lead to residual gases being present in the chamber even if there is no direct pathway from the outside in (a "real leak"). For example, any moisture that has been deposited on the walls of the chamber will outgas. And any air which is trapped inside of little cracks or screw holes, which will take a long time to be fully removed by the pumps. And even *permeation*, where things like helium gas literally diffuse through the walls of the chamber.
All of these kinds of processes mean that there will be some small amount of residual gas inside the chamber no matter how hard you pump. You can never reach a perfect vacuum in a laboratory. | [
"A partial vacuum may be generated by increasing the volume of a container. To continue evacuating a chamber indefinitely without requiring infinite growth, a compartment of the vacuum can be repeatedly closed off, exhausted, and expanded again. This is the principle behind a positive displacement pump, for example the manual water pump. Inside the pump, a mechanism expands a small sealed cavity to reduce its pressure below that of the atmosphere. Because of the pressure differential, some fluid from the chamber (or the well, in our example) is pushed into the pump's small cavity. The pump's cavity is then sealed from the chamber, opened to the atmosphere, and squeezed back to a minute size.\n",
"Vacuum packing reduces atmospheric oxygen, limiting the growth of aerobic bacteria or fungi, and preventing the evaporation of volatile components. It is also commonly used to store dry foods over a long period of time, such as cereals, nuts, cured meats, cheese, smoked fish, coffee, and potato chips (crisps). On a more short term basis, vacuum packing can also be used to store fresh foods, such as vegetables, meats, and liquids, because it inhibits bacterial growth.\n",
"A Vacuum Dry Box is a piece of safety equipment which can provide an inert, or controlled atmosphere for handling sensitive materials. These devices can commonly be found in the fume hoods of chemistry labs, in facilities handling deadly pathogens, in NASA Moon Rock Handling facilities and in Industrial applications. Inert atmosphere glove boxes are also used for painting and sandblasting.\n",
"A simple dry box can consist of nothing more than a sealed, airtight box containing a desiccant, such as silica gel or anhydrous calcium chloride. These can be easily built at relatively low cost. However, the humidity level in such boxes cannot be controlled or regulated, owing to the difficulty of gauging the quantity of desiccant required to achieve a certain humidity level. Repeated opening of such boxes, allowing humid ambient air to enter, can saturate the desiccant, and some desiccants can have corrosive or other harmful effects on the contents of the box if they collect enough water to dissolve.\n",
"Many have said that a vacuum does not exist, others that it does exist in spite of the repugnance of nature and with difficulty; I know of no one who has said that it exists without difficulty and without a resistance from nature. I argued thus: If there can be found a manifest cause from which the resistance can be derived which is felt if we try to make a vacuum, it seems to me foolish to try to attribute to vacuum those operations which follow evidently from some other cause; and so by making some very easy calculations, I found that the cause assigned by me (that is, the weight of the atmosphere) ought by itself alone to offer a greater resistance than it does when we try to produce a vacuum.\n",
"A vacuum chamber is a rigid enclosure from which air and other gases are removed by a vacuum pump. This results in a low-pressure environment within the chamber, commonly referred to as a vacuum. A vacuum environment allows researchers to conduct physical experiments or to test mechanical devices which must operate in outer space (for example) or for processes such as vacuum drying or vacuum coating. Chambers are typically made of metals which may or may not shield applied external magnetic fields depending on wall thickness, frequency, resistivity, and permeability of the material used. Only some materials are suitable for vacuum use.\n",
"Vacuum-packing stores food in a vacuum environment, usually in an air-tight bag or bottle. The vacuum environment strips bacteria of oxygen needed for survival. Vacuum-packing is commonly used for storing nuts to reduce loss of flavor from oxidization. A major drawback to vacuum packaging, at the consumer level, is that vacuum sealing can deform contents and rob certain foods, such as cheese, of its flavor.\n"
] |
A clarification on the date 13.0.0.0.0 in the Mayan Long Count | My understanding of how this thing got started (I'm trying to find a citation) is that the number 13 comes up repeatedly in Maya numerology because it's considered a lucky number. The ritual calendar, as you pointed out, uses 13 cycles of 20 days. Using this, the novelist Gary Jennings wrote [a fictional novel](_URL_1_) on an apocalypse based on the B'ak'tun switch. My guess is that some new age nutjob read this work of fiction and decided it was a real prophecy. People then started writing "non fiction" books making the same argument.
Aside from the fact that the idea has its origins in a work of fiction, and the Maya made no such prophecy, we also place way too much emphasis on the Long Count. I think this is because, of the Mesoamerican calendars, the Long Count is closest to our calendar in that it moves in linear progression from past to present. The other Mesoamerican calendars all move in cycles. This is really a cultural bias on our part. We assume that because it's closer to our calendar that it's 'more advanced' and thus more important than the others. The truth is that the Long Count was only used by the Maya and the Epi-Olmec cultures, and even then it was only used to keep track of dynastic records. The other calendars (like the solar and ritual calendars) had way more relevance to the daily lives of ancient Mesoamericans. And since those are cyclical not linear, they don't ever end. They just keep going.
EDIT: [Here's](_URL_0_) a really detailed breakdown of the whole thing from a reputable source, for those of you that want to learn more. | [
"Unlike the 260-day \"tzolkʼin\" still used today among the Maya, the Long Count was linear rather than cyclical, and kept time roughly in units of 20: 20 days made a \"uinal\", 18 uinals (360 days) made a \"tun\", 20 tuns made a \"kʼatun\", and 20 kʼatuns (144,000 days or roughly 394 years) made up a \"bʼakʼtun\". Thus, the Maya date of 8.3.2.10.15 represents 8 bʼakʼtuns, 3 kʼatuns, 2 tuns, 10 uinals and 15 days.\n",
"Within the logic of the Mayan Long Count, he says, an auspicious end would have to be on a day which is 13 Ahau in the tzolkin count. Since 21 December 2012 falls on 4 Ahau this is an unlikely end date. The 28 October 2011 is a 13 Ahau date.\n",
"Archaeologist J. Eric S. Thompson stated that it is erroneous to say that a Long Count date of, for example, 9.15.10.0.0 is in the “9th baktun”, analogous to describing the year 209 AD as in the “2nd century AD”. Even so, the practice is so well established among Maya epigraphers and other students of the Maya, that to change it would cause more harm than its perpetuation. The current practice of referring to the current baktun as ”baktun 13” or “thirteenth baktun” may stand, even though it is properly the fourteenth baktun. Alternatively, the first baktun could instead be referred to as the zeroeth to avoid this ambiguity.\n",
"Mayan religion often cites incredibly long time periods. Stela 1 at Coba marks the date of creation as in the Mesoamerican Long Count. According to Linda Schele, these 13s represent \"the starting point of a huge odometer of time\", with each acting as a zero and resetting to 1 as the numbers increase. Thus this inscription anticipates the current universe lasting at least 20×13×360 days, or roughly 2.687×10 years; a time span equal to 2 quintillion times the age of the universe as determined by cosmologists. Others have suggested, however, that this date marks creation as having occurred after that time span.\n",
"More recently, with the discovery in Guatemala of the San Bartolo (Maya site) stone block text (c. 300 BCE), it has been argued that this text celebrates an upcoming time period ending celebration. This time period may have been projected to end sometime between 7.3.0.0.0 and 7.5.0.0.0 — 295 and 256 BCE, respectively. Besides this being the earliest Maya hieroglyphic text so far uncovered, it would arguably be the earliest glyphic evidence to date of Long Count notation in Mesoamerica.\n",
"BULLET::::- 3114 BC – One version of the Mayan calendar, known as the Mesoamerican Long Count, uses the epoch of 11 or 13 August 3114 BC. The Maya Long Count calendar was first used approximately 236 BC (see Mesoamerican_Long_Count_calendar#Earliest_Long_Counts.\n",
"BULLET::::- Most Mayanist scholars, such as Mark Van Stone and Anthony Aveni, adhere to the \"GMT (Goodman-Martinez-Thompson) correlation\" with the Long Count, which places the start date at 11 August 3114 BC and the end date of b'ak'tun 13 at December 21, 2012. This date was also the overwhelming preference of those who believed in 2012 eschatology, arguably, Van Stone suggests, because it was a solstice, and was thus astrologically significant. Some Mayanist scholars, such as Michael D. Coe, Linda Schele and Marc Zender, adhere to the \"Lounsbury/GMT+2\" correlation, which sets the start date at August 13 and the end date at December 23. Which of these is the precise correlation has yet to be conclusively settled. Coe's initial date was \"24 December 2011.\" He revised it to \"11 January AD 2013\" in the 1980 2nd edition of his book, not settling on December 23, 2012 until the 1984 3rd edition. The correlation of b'ak'tun 13 as December 21, 2012 first appeared in Table B.2 of Robert J. Sharer's 1983 revision of the 4th edition of Sylvanus Morley's book \"The Ancient Maya\".\n"
] |
today i read the ocean will rise 4ft due to ever faster melting antarctic glaciers, if this is true how will it affect coastal cities? | The authorities who should be planning for this are fixed in "LaLaLa-can't-hear-you" mode at present, and will probably remain so until their cities are flooded monthly.
Knowing how engineers work, it will probably be large pumps and high sea walls, which are then largely ignored and eventually fail for lack of maintainence, New Orleans style. | [
"Initial press briefings focused on the increases to the estimates for potential sea level rise expected as a result of global warming, with the session led by Stefan Rahmstorf. Eric Rignot, Professor of Earth system science at the University of California, Irvine, said \"As a result of the acceleration of outlet glaciers over large regions, the ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica are already contributing more and faster to sea level rise than anticipated. If this trend continues, we are likely to witness sea level rise one metre or more by year 2100.\"\n",
"Global warming also has an enormous impact with respect to melting glaciers and ice sheets. Higher global temperatures melt glaciers such as the one in Greenland, which flow into the oceans, adding to the amount of seawater. A large rise (on the order of several feet) in global sea levels poses many threats. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “such a rise would inundate coastal wetlands and lowlands, erode beaches, increase the risk of flooding, and increase the salinity of estuaries, aquifers, and wetlands.”\n",
"In recent decades, hundreds of glaciers draining the Antarctic Peninsula (63° to 70°S) have undergone systematic and progressive change. These changes are widely attributed to rapid increases in regional surface air temperature, but it is now clear that this cannot be the sole driver. A strong correspondence has been discovered between mid-depth ocean temperatures and glacier-front changes along the approximately 1000-kilometer western coastline.\n",
"Melting of the Greenland ice sheet could contribute an additional over many thousands of years. A 2013 study estimated that there is a commitment to sea level rise for each degree of temperature rise within the next 2,000 years. More recent research, especially into Antarctica, indicates that this is probably a conservative estimate and true long-term sea level rise might be higher. Warming beyond the 2 °C (3.6 °F) target potentially lead to rates of sea-level rise dominated by ice loss from Antarctica. Continued carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel sources could cause additional tens of metres of sea level rise, over the next millennia, and the available fossil fuel on Earth is even enough to ultimately melt the entire Antarctic ice sheet, causing about of sea level rise. After 500 years, sea level rise from thermal expansion alone may have reached only half of its eventual level, which models suggest may lie within ranges of .\n",
"In the 1990s, Wingham was involved in a four-year satellite study of the Antarctic ice sheet. His conclusion then, and from later research, is that the Antarctic has contributed little to observed rising sea levels in the 20th century. However, he has also stated that \"it is possible that the consequences of global warming on sea level rise have been underestimated... Other sources of rise must be underestimated. In particular it is possible that the effect of global warming on thermal expansion [on the oceans] is larger than we thought\".\n",
"Not only are glaciers causing a rise in sea level, they are causing an increase in El Niño Southern Oscillation (ESNO) and global temperature itself. Glacier loss adds to global heat rise through a decrease in what is called ice-albedo feedback. As more ice melts, there is less solar reflectivity and less heat is reflected away from the Earth, causing more heat to be absorbed, and retained in the atmosphere and soil In addition to the El Niño events, glacial melt is contributing to the rapid turnover of sea surface temperatures and ocean salt content by diluting the ocean water and slowing the Atlantic conveyor belt's usually swift dive because of a top layer of buoyant, cold, fresh water that slows the flow of warm water to the north.\n",
"The IPCC AR5 report concluded that \"it is \"very likely\"\" that annual mean Antarctic sea ice extent increased 1.2 to 1.8% per decade, which is 0.13 to 0.20 million km per decade, during the period 1979 to 2012. IPCC AR5 also concluded that due to the lack of data it is not possible to determine the trend in total volume or mass of the sea ice. The increase in sea ice area probably has a number of causes. These are tied to changes in the southern hemispheric westerly winds, which are a combination of natural variability and forced change from greenhouse gases and the ozone hole. Another possible driver is ice-shelves melting, which increases freshwater input to the ocean; this increases the stratification of the ocean surface layer and so reduces the ability of warm subsurface water to reach the surface. A 2015 study found this effect in climate models run to simulate future climate change, resulting in an increase of sea ice in the winter months.\n"
] |
when i accellerate my car, why do i hear high-pitched noise through the aux input when nothing is plugged in? | Its noise off the generator or alternator.
Cords like that aren't shielded like other people have said. Its basically RF interference coming from that because its often not shielded.
Its usually not something noticed, and the stereo itself has filtering to block it. But when you plug something unshielded into it (your aux cord) you're creating an unfiltered path to the stereo, so you hear it. | [
"No loss occurs when the signals at ports 2 and 3 are in phase and have equal magnitude. In case of noise input to ports 2 and 3, the noise level at port 1 does not increase, half of the noise power is dissipated in the resistor.\n",
"Floating grounds can cause problems with audio equipment using RCA connectors (also called phono connectors). With these common connectors, the signal pin connects before the ground, and 2 pieces of equipment can have a greater difference between their grounds than it takes to saturate the audio input. As a result, plugging or unplugging while powered up can result in very loud noises in speakers. If the ground voltage difference is small, it tends to only cause hum and clicks.\n",
"The forward- and rearward-generated sounds of a speaker driver appear out of phase from each other because they are generated through opposite motion of the diaphragm and because they travel different paths before converging at the listener's position. A speaker driver mounted on a finite baffle will display a physical phenomenon known as interference which can result in a perceivable frequency-dependent sound attenuation. This phenomenon is particularly noticeable at low frequencies where the wavelengths are large enough that interference will affect the entire listening area.\n",
"BULLET::::- Noise 1: This is a very distinct noise that is usually much louder than the second noise that can be associated with this transmission. If the vehicle is not making any noise when trying to verify the condition, it can be induced by making several tight left hand circles with the vehicle at normal operating temperature.\n",
"To reduce radio frequency interference (RFI) produced by the spark being radiated by the wires, which may cause malfunction of sensitive electronic systems in modern vehicles or interfere with the car radio, various means in the spark plug and associated lead have been used over time to reduce the nuisance:\n",
"Back-up beepers or an observer are required by OSHA for earthmoving vehicles with an obstructed view to the rear and no one on the ground to help guide the driver. Alarms are typically loud because manufacturers do not know the ambient noise level where the machines will be used.\n",
"Due to their characteristic howling start-up noise, which is typical for three-phase AC motors with pulsed voltage control, these vehicles are occasionally also called \"circular saws\", \"hoe buoys\" or \"flying alarms\". The loud start-up and brake noise has led to many complaints.\n"
] |
can someone tell exactly what it is that obama is doing for net neutrality? | It means that Obama put his hat in the ring and took a stance. That being said he cannot compel the FCC to follow what he wants. Basically after using Net Neutrality as part of his platform in 2008, and then staying on the fence about it for a while, he's finally given an opinion. This *could* sway the FCC to fall in line, but that remains to be seen. | [
"Obama reaffirmed his commitment to net neutrality at a meeting with Google employees in November 2007, at which he said, \"once providers start to privilege some applications or web sites over others, then the smaller voices get squeezed out, and we all lose.\" At the same event, Obama pledged to appoint a Chief Technology Officer to oversee the U.S. government's management of IT resources and promote wider access to government information and decision making.\n",
"In a June 2006 podcast, Obama expressed support for telecommunications legislation to protect network neutrality on the Internet, saying: \"It is because the Internet is a neutral platform that I can put out this podcast and transmit it over the Internet without having to go through any corporate media middleman. I can say what I want without censorship or without having to pay a special charge. But the big telephone and cable companies want to change the Internet as we know it.\"\n",
"In a February 2014 official blog post titled \"We The People Response: Reaffirming the White House's Commitment to Net Neutrality\", the Obama administration, via Chief Technology Officer Todd Park, once again reaffirmed its commitment to net neutrality by stating, \"Preserving an open Internet is vital not to just to the free flow of information, but also to promoting innovation and economic productivity.TheTrump administration has repealed net neutrality https://money.cnn.com/2017/12/14/technology/fcc-net-neutrality-vote/index.html\n",
"In 2014, President Obama announced a new plan to preserve \"net neutrality\" and to prevent Internet service providers from blocking or slowing websites or creating different tiers of speed. He said-, \"No service should be stuck in a ‘slow lane’ because it does not pay a fee,\" he wrote in a statement. \"That kind of gatekeeping would undermine the level playing field essential to the Internet’s growth.\"\n",
"President Obama voiced his support for the measure as well, \"calling the FCC's decision a victory for consumers, free speech, and \"American innovation.\" President Obama will also be fulfilling a campaign promise to institute some form of Net Neutrality regulation.\n",
"In December 2010, after the Republicans gained control of the House in the 2010 midterm elections, McConnell delivered a Senate floor speech rebuking the intention of the Federal Communications Commission to instate net neutrality in its monthly commission meeting, saying the Obama administration was moving forward \"with what could be a first step in controlling how Americans use the Internet by establishing federal regulations on its use\" after having already nationalized healthcare, the auto industry, companies that could be insured, and loans for students and banks and called for the Internet to be left alone as it was \"an invaluable resource.\" McConnell pledged that the incoming 112th United States Congress would push back against additional regulations.\n",
"During these two segments, comedian John Oliver discusses the respective threats to net neutrality at the time of each segment. The first episode was about how, under the administration of President Barack Obama, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was considering two options for net neutrality in early 2014. The FCC proposed permitting fast and slow broadband lanes, which would compromise net neutrality, but was also considering reclassifying broadband as a telecommunication service, which would preserve net neutrality. After a surge of comments supporting net neutrality that were inspired by Oliver's episode, the FCC voted to reclassify broadband as a utility in 2015.\n"
] |
What factors led to (why did the emperor order) the destruction of Zheng He's fleet, end of Chinese exploration, and continuation of Ming isolation in the 1400s? | There were several reasons regarding the fleets themselves: Zheng He's fleets were expensive, the Ming were involved in wars against the Mongols and Vietnamese, the government bureaucracy was quite suspicious of how eunuchs dominated the venture, and the emperors were no longer as interested in the prestige of the voyages. | [
"Already in May 1421, during the reign of the Yongle Emperor, an order was issued for the suspension of Zheng He's maritime expeditions, apparently on account of their cost (although the order apparently did not affect the 6th voyage of Zheng He, staged around that time). Zhu Gaochi, as soon as he was enthroned as the Hongxi Emperor in September 1424, cancelled Zheng He's maritime expeditions permanently, arguably burned down the fleet or left the ships to decompose, and abolished frontier trade of tea for horses as well as missions for gold and pearls to Yunnan and Vietnam. He restored disgraced Confucian officials, such as the Yongle Emperor's minister of revenue Xia Yuanji (imprisoned since 1421), and reorganized the administration to give high ranks to his close advisors. Hanlin academicians became grand secretaries, and they dismantled his father's unpopular militaristic policies to restore civil government. The Hongxi Emperor improved finances by canceling requisitions for lumber, gold, and silver. Taxes were remitted so that vagrant farmers could return home, especially in the overburdened Yangtze River Delta. The Hongxi Emperor appointed a commission to investigate taxes. He overruled his secretaries by ordering that grain should be sent immediately to relieve disaster areas.\n",
"In 1479, the vice president of the Ministry of War burned the court records documenting Zheng He's voyages; it was one of many events signalling China's shift to an inward foreign policy. Shipbuilding laws were implemented that restricted vessels to a small size; the concurrent decline of the Ming navy allowed the growth of piracy along China's coasts. Japanese pirates—or wokou—began staging raids on Chinese ships and coastal communities, although much of the acts of piracy were carried out by native Chinese.\n",
"The blunder of the Ming navy during the 1523 Ningbo Incident highlighted the decline of Chinese naval capabilities since the cessation of the famed treasure voyages in 1433. The early Ming had a system of coastal patrols and island bases for the defence of the Chinese coast, but these were withdrawn as the Ming foreign policy turned from proactive to passive during the reign of the Zhengtong Emperor (r. 1435-49). The official reason for the withdrawal was that these forward bases in the sea were a heavy burden on the civilians who had to supply them, and that the Ming army could focus on defence after the invaders had landed. Since then, warships were no longer used to patrol the coast and remained anchored in ports, where they rotted away from neglect. As an extreme example, the Dengzhou naval garrison in Shandong had a fleet of 100 warships in its heyday, but by the beginning of the 16th century, only 3 ships remained after years of retrenchment and disrepair. By the start of the wokou crisis in the 1540s, there were only 68 government warships on the coast of Fujian, while funds allotted for ship construction were apparently embezzled. Furthermore, naval garrisons along the coast were unwilling to build and accommodate for new ships since each ship needed people and resources for its maintenance. Ships confiscated from the pirates and redistributed to the naval garrisons ended up being stolen, exchanged, or even deliberately destroyed.\n",
"By the accounts of some historians, although bred to be a successful ruler, the Zhengde Emperor thoroughly neglected his duties, beginning a dangerous trend that would plague future Ming emperors. The abandonment of official duties to pursue personal gratification would slowly lead to the rise of powerful eunuchs that would dominate and eventually ruin the Ming dynasty.\n",
"Following the collapse of the Yuan dynasty in 1368 and the formation of the Ming dynasty by the Hongwu Emperor, Imperial Chinese power was projected abroad with the 15th-century Chinese treasure fleet of Admiral Zheng He. As representatives of the Yongle Emperor, Zheng's fleet sailed throughout Southeast Asia, the Indian Ocean and to East Africa exacting tribute, granting lavish gifts to vassal states, and even invaded Sri Lanka. However, the fleet was later dismantled and the Ming emperors thereafter fostered \"Haijin\" isolationist policies that limited international trade and foreign contacts to a handful of seaports and other locations. These policies saw a gradual reversal after the arrival of European explorers such as Jorge Álvares and Rafael Perestrello and, although a war was initially fought against the Portuguese Empire, the Portuguese were granted a colonial settlement at Macau in the 16th century. Catholic Jesuit missions in China were also introduced, with Matteo Ricci being the first European allowed to enter the Forbidden City of the Ming emperors in Beijing. During the subsequent Manchu-led Qing dynasty Jesuits from Europe such as Giuseppe Castiglione gained favor at court, but the Chinese Rites controversy of the 17th and 18th centuries brought the Qing emperors into a distant diplomatic row with the papacy in Rome. \n",
"Some parts of the historical text \"History of Ming\", the authoritative history of the Ming dynasty, mentioned that one of the reasons behind why the Yongle Emperor sponsored the admiral Zheng He's treasure voyages in the early 15th century was that the emperor wanted Zheng He to help him search for the Jianwen Emperor, who was believed to have survived and fled to Southeast Asia. Other records relate that decades later, the Jianwen Emperor returned to the imperial palace and lived the rest of his life in obscure retirement.\n",
"Despite the loss of Beijing and the death of the emperor, the Ming were not yet totally destroyed. Nanjing, Fujian, Guangdong, Shanxi, and Yunnan were all strongholds of Ming resistance. However, there were several pretenders for the Ming throne, and their forces were divided. These scattered Ming remnants in southern China after 1644 were collectively designated by 19th-century historians as the Southern Ming. Each bastion of resistance was individually defeated by the Qing until 1662, when the last southern Ming Emperor died, the Yongli Emperor, Zhu Youlang. The last Ming Princes to hold out were the Prince of Ningjing Zhu Shugui and the son of Zhu Yihai, the Prince of Lu Zhu Honghuan (朱弘桓) who stayed with Koxinga's Ming loyalists in the Kingdom of Tungning (in Taiwan) until 1683. Zhu Shugui proclaimed that he acted in the name of the deceased Yongli Emperor. The Qing eventually sent the seventeen Ming princes still living in Taiwan back to mainland China where they spent the rest of their lives.\n"
] |
Looking for advice on a good optical microscope to purchase and it looks like this subject hasn't been covered here yet. What microscope do you use at home? | I don't know of too many scientists that have personal microscopes at home. That being said, the ones that my students used when I was TA'ing were $3000 each and I consider those pretty basic. My lab's microscope was in the $40,000 range, and the confocal I used cost $325,000. For under $200 it will be a cheap "toy" microscope. Not too sure how great the resolution will be on it. It really depends on what you want to use it for. Cells and tissue for $200? No way. But if you want to look at bugs and leaves up close, $200 would work. | [
"Microscopes traditionally are the core product of A. Krüss Optronic. The company offers a great variety of stereoscopic and monocular instruments, dedicated to medical, biological, and technical applications, as well as photographic and video accessories.\n",
"The optical microscope, often referred to as the light microscope, is a type of microscope that commonly uses visible light and a system of lenses to magnify images of small objects. Optical microscopes are the oldest design of microscope and were possibly invented in their present compound form in the 17th century. Basic optical microscopes can be very simple, although many complex designs aim to improve resolution and sample contrast. Often used in the classroom and at home unlike the electron microscope which is used for closer viewing.\n",
"The most common type of microscope (and the first invented) is the optical microscope. This is an optical instrument containing one or more lenses producing an enlarged image of a sample placed in the focal plane. Optical microscopes have refractive glass (occasionally plastic or quartz), to focus light on the eye or on to another light detector. Mirror-based optical microscopes operate in the same manner. Typical magnification of a light microscope, assuming visible range light, is up to 1250x with a theoretical resolution limit of around 0.250 micrometres or 250 nanometres. This limits practical magnification to ~1500x. Specialized techniques (e.g., scanning confocal microscopy, Vertico SMI) may exceed this magnification but the resolution is diffraction limited. The use of shorter wavelengths of light, such as ultraviolet, is one way to improve the spatial resolution of the optical microscope, as are devices such as the near-field scanning optical microscope.\n",
"There are two basic types of optical microscopes: simple microscopes and compound microscopes. A simple microscope is one which uses a single lens for magnification, such as a magnifying glass. A compound microscope uses several lenses to enhance the magnification of an object. The vast majority of modern research microscopes are compound microscopes while some cheaper commercial digital microscopes are simple single lens microscopes. Compound microscopes can be further divided into a variety of other types of microscopes which differ in their optical configurations, cost, and intended purposes.\n",
"The Knife-Edge Scanning Microscope (KESM) was invented and patented in the late 1990s by Bruce McCormick at Texas A&M University. The microscope is intended to produce high-resolution data sets in order to reconstruct 3D cellular structures.\n",
"Microscopes were first developed with just two lenses: an objective lens and an eyepiece. The objective lens is essentially a magnifying glass and was designed with a very small focal length while the eyepiece generally has a longer focal length. This has the effect of producing magnified images of close objects. Generally, an additional source of illumination is used since magnified images are dimmer due to the conservation of energy and the spreading of light rays over a larger surface area. Modern microscopes, known as \"compound microscopes\" have many lenses in them (typically four) to optimize the functionality and enhance image stability. A slightly different variety of microscope, the comparison microscope, looks at side-by-side images to produce a stereoscopic binocular view that appears three dimensional when used by humans.\n",
"Light microscopes are designed for placement of the specimen's polished surface on the specimen stage either upright or inverted. Each type has advantages and disadvantages. Most LOM work is done at magnifications between 50 and 1000X. However, with a good microscope, it is possible to perform examination at higher magnifications, e.g., 2000X, and even higher, as long as diffraction fringes are not present to distort the image. However, the resolution limit of the LOM will not be better than about 0.2 to 0.3 micrometers. Special methods are used at magnifications below 50X, which can be very helpful when examining the microstructure of cast specimens where greater spatial coverage in the field of view may be required to observe features such as dendrites. \n"
] |
In the "wild west" time era, when a bank robber robbed the stagecoach or a bank, who lost that money? Was it the bank or the individual who banked it? | I can reply to the bank question, but not the stagecoach one.
TL:DR: The bank, unless the robbery caused the bank to fail, in which case both.
Here's how banking works: banks take deposits from people and lend out the cash to other people. The deposits are liabilities of the bank - that is, they owe that money to the depositors. The bank has assets, which are the loans it makes and the (much smaller) amount of cash it keeps on hand. One way to understand this is to think of a gold merchant.
The gold merchant needs a secure place to store the bullion, so he builds a vault. Seeing this, other people with gold pay him a small fee to store their gold as well. Over time, the merchant notices that the gold at the back of his vault just sits there undisturbed, as people take out and deposit gold, they subtract from and add to the gold near the front. Hey, gold is gold, nobody wants "their gold". Once the gold merchant realizes this, he starts letting people borrow gold. For a fee, of course. As long as everyone doesn't demand all of their gold back at the same time, that works fine. The merchant only needs to keep enough actual gold on hand to satisfy the withdrawals. That's called "fractional reserve banking" and it is what we have today, as well as what they had in the old west.
So now along comes a robber and takes the cash on hand. It belongs to the bank, but they still need some cash to satisfy the demands for withdrawals by its depositors. But the amount kept in cash is much smaller than the amount of loans owed to the bank. So, as long as the entire town doesn't panic and demand cash, the bank can replace the cash owed to its depositors from the repayments of the loans it has made.
If, however, everybody wants their deposits back *right now*, that's called a "run on the bank". You don't need to be robbed to have a run on your bank - it happened during the Great Depression, too, which is one reason banks were more tightly regulated afterwards. If the run is serious, then the bank will be closed because the bank doesn't have enough cash to pay all the depositors back. In which case, depositors lose money as well. | [
"On October 8, 1932, the then First State Bank of Cedar Hill was robbed by Raymond Hamilton, a sidekick of bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde. After taking the money, he locked the employees in the vault and made his getaway. When Hamilton got wind of reports that some of the cash had been hidden during the first robbery, he returned to rob the bank again.\n",
"On February 13, 1866, a group of gunmen carried out one of the first daylight, peacetime, armed bank robberies in U.S. history when they held up the Clay County Savings Association in Liberty, Missouri. The outlaws stole some $60,000 in cash and bonds and killed a bystander on the street outside the bank. State authorities suspected Archie Clement of leading the raid, and promptly issued a reward for his capture. In later years, the list of suspects grew to include Jesse and Frank James, Cole Younger, John Jarrett, Oliver Shepard, Bud and Donny Pence, Frank Greg, Bill and James Wilkerson, Joab Perry, Ben Cooper, Red Mankus, and Allen Parmer (who later married Susan James, Frank and Jesse's sister).\n",
"The robbery occurred on May 30, 1899, at a watering point near Cane Springs Canyon, about 30 miles southeast of Globe. Hart had cut her hair short and dressed in men's clothing. Hart was armed with a .38 revolver while Boot had a Colt .45. One of the last stagecoach routes still operating in the territory, the run had not been robbed in several years and thus the coach did not have a shotgun messenger. The pair stopped the coach and Boot held a gun on the robbery victims while Hart took $431.20 () and two firearms from the passengers. After returning $1 to each passenger, she then took the driver's revolver. After the robbers had galloped away on their horses, the driver unhitched one of the horses and headed back to town to alert the sheriff.\n",
"The August 29, 1909 edition of \"The Rich Hill Tribune\" contained a front-page news story entitled \"Bank Robbers in Motor Car\" and according to which two robbers used a gun to rob the Valley bank of Santa Clara of $7,000. They then used a hired automobile to escape and were chased by police and a posse of citizens also in automobiles, eventually leading to their capture.\n",
"Old West historians have often written Ben Kilpatrick off as being entirely unable to commit a robbery without the help of Butch Cassidy or Kid Curry, but after his release from prison, a man named Ole Hobek and he executed a series of \"spectacular\" bank and train robberies within a short time. The robberies did not yield much gain, though, which necessitated further robberies.\n",
"The Clay County Savings Association in Liberty, Missouri, was robbed on February 13, 1866, making it one of the earliest documented daylight bank robberies. The robbers escaped with at least $60,000 () and killed a bystander outside. The robbery is believed to have been conducted by a group of former Confederate guerrillas, possibly led by Jesse James or Archie Clement, which became known as the James–Younger Gang.\n",
"Compounding the bank's problems was the April 5, 1854, robbery in which the bank's secretary Joseph Thornton was implicated because the vault had been opened at night with a bank key. Testifying against him was Joseph Charless, president of the Bank of Missouri, who had received for deposit water and mud-soaked notes from Thornton. Thornton was acquitted but was to shoot and kill Charless on the street afterwards. Thornton was nearly lynched, and later hanged following a trial.\n"
] |
why are most/all sniper rifles bolt action? why can't they use a semi-automatic mechanism like most other weapons? | I could be wrong on this, but the bolt action rifle would minimize extraneous movement that might alter the trajectory of the bullet. Remember that even small fractions of a degree might be the difference between a hit and a miss, so it's important to keep everything as still as possible. In a semi-automatic mechanism, the movement of the gun as it works to reload a bullet may very well knock your shot off far enough that it would cause a problem. Nothing moves in a bolt action mechanism until you're reloading.
Edit: the bullet has a trajectory, not the gun. Edited for the proper noun. | [
"The choice between bolt-action and semi-automatic, usually recoil operated or gas operated , is usually determined by specific requirements of the sniper's role in a particular organization, with each design having advantages and disadvantages. For a given cartridge, a bolt-action rifle is cheaper to build and maintain, more reliable, and lighter, due to fewer moving parts in the mechanism. In addition, the absence of uncontrolled automatic cartridge case ejection helps avoid revealing the shooter's position. Semi-automatic weapons can serve both as battle rifle and sniper rifle, and allow for a greater rate (and hence volume) of fire. As such rifles may be modified service rifles, an additional benefit can be commonality of operation with the issued infantry rifle. A bolt action is most commonly used in both military and police roles due to its higher accuracy and ease of maintenance. Anti-materiel applications such as mine clearing and special forces operations tend to use semi-automatics.\n",
"Historically, rifles only fired a single projectile with each squeeze of the trigger. Modern rifles are commonly classified as single shot, bolt action, semi-automatic, or automatic. Single shot, bolt action, and semi-automatic rifles are limited by their designs to fire a single shot for each trigger pull. Only automatic rifles are capable of firing more than one round per trigger squeeze; however, some automatic rifles are limited to fixed bursts of two, three, or more rounds per squeeze. \n",
"The trigger mechanism is a conventional firearm trigger, but functions only to control the release mechanism for either the bolt (submachine gun) or firing pin holding mechanism (semi-auto) since the Uzi does not incorporate an internal cocking or hammer mechanism. While the open-bolt system is mechanically simpler than a closed-bolt design (e.g. Heckler & Koch MP5), it creates a noticeable delay between when the trigger is pulled and when the gun fires.\n",
"In military use, bolt-action rifles with high-power scopes are common as sniper rifles, however by the Korean War the traditional bolt-action and semi-automatic rifles used by infantrymen had been supplemented by select-fire designs known as \"automatic rifles\".\n",
"While lever-action rifles have always been popular with hunters and sporting shooters, they have never been widely accepted by the military. One significant reason for this is that it is harder to fire from the prone position with a lever-action rifle than it is with a straight-pull or rotating-bolt bolt-action rifle. Another reason is ammunition. While lever-action rifles generally possess a greater rate of fire than bolt-action rifles, lever-action firearms are also generally fed from a tubular magazine, similar to the one used on the first bolt action rifle which limits the type of ammunition that can be used in them. Pointed centerfire \"spitzer\" bullets, for example, can cause explosions in a tubular magazine, as the point of each cartridge's projectile rests on the primer of the next cartridge in the magazine. Some modern cartridges, such as the elastomer-tipped Hornady LEVERevolution ammunition overcome this problem. The tubular magazine may also have a negative impact on the harmonics of the barrel, which limits the theoretical accuracy of the rifle. A tubular magazine under the barrel also pushes the center of gravity forward, which alters the balance of the rifle in ways that are undesirable for shooting off hand from a standing position to some shooters. There are, however, some lever-action rifles—such as the Winchester Model 1895, which saw service with the Russian Army in World War I—that use a box magazine.br\n",
"Some bolt action rifle safeties have three positions: \"fire\" which allows the gun to fire, \"safe\" which does not allow the gun to fire or the action to open, and an intermediate third position which cannot fire but allows the action to be opened to unload the rifle.\n",
"An open-bolt mechanism is a common characteristic of fully automatic firearms. With this system, pulling the trigger releases the bolt from a cocked, rearward position, pushing a cartridge from the magazine into the chamber, firing the gun. The bolt retracts to the rearward position, ready to strip the next cartridge from the magazine. The open-bolt system is often used in submachine guns and other weapons with a high rate of fire. It is rarely used in semi-automatic-only firearms, which can fire only one shot with each pull of the trigger. The closed-bolt system is generally more accurate, as the centre of gravity changes relatively little at the moment the trigger is pulled.\n"
] |
In the early 1500s pre reformation Europe what was the difference between an indulgence and a confession? | Well, Confession is having your sins absolved, that is, return to a state of grace and avoid a path leading to damnation. A reconciliation, if you will. But there is still a need to make up for the consequences of sin, most notably the offense the penitent has caused to God. Now ordinarily this is achieved after the death of the penitent in Purgatory. But this can also be done by doing pious works or actions, which are indulgenced, and commute this reparation, in whole or in part. That is an indulgence.
| [
"In Protestant Reformation history, confessionalization is the parallel processes of \"confession-building\" taking place in Europe between the Peace of Augsburg (1555) and the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). During this time prior to the Thirty Years' War, there was a nominal peace between the Protestant and Catholic confessions as both competed to establish their faith more firmly with the population of their respective area. This confession-building occurred through \"social-disciplining,\" as there was a stricter enforcement by the churches of their particular rules for all aspects of life in both Protestant and Catholic areas. This had the consequence of creating distinctive confessional identities that influenced church dogma, faith formation, liturgy, and the development of universities.\n",
"Confessionalization was supported by monarchs and rulers in general, because after the Reformation had brought control over their territories' churches into their hands, they could exercise more power over their subjects by enforcing strict religious obedience. The main tool for the enforcement of these rules were \"police-regulations\". These were behavior-codes for religious, social and economic life to which the common citizen had to oblige under threat of severe punishment.\n",
"During the Counter-Reformation of the 16th century, confession became less of a public declaration of loyalty to the Church and more of a private affair. Since the Council of Trent, compulsory annual confession was required only of those conscious of mortal sin. The confession has since taken place in the privacy of a confessional. It was a change in emphasis from reconciliation with the Church to reconciliation directly with God; and from emphasis on social sins of hostility to private sins, called the \"secret sins of the heart\". Especially in the West, the penitent may choose to confess in a specially constructed confessional, with an opaque grille separating the priest from the penitent, whose anonymity is thus preserved and physical contact is prevented. The provision of a fixed grille is required by the Code of Canon Law. The penitent may also confess face to face, and this is the tradition in some Eastern Catholic Churches.\n",
"In the course of the Lutheran Reformation numerous Imperial States had adopted the new confession, against the opposition of the ruling Catholic House of Habsburg, who recognised these conversions as a quest for increasing autonomy to the detriment of the central Imperial authority.\n",
"There has been a long dispute regarding the Augsburg Confession and what type of confession it truly is. One suggestion is that it is a political and theological confession, which established the Protestant church. A second view is that it is a catholic confession that dispensed with minor teachings such as penance. During the 16th century the tensions and relationship that existed between the Emperor, the Pope, the German Princes and the Protestants were quite complex. The confessions of the early centuries of the church were evoked by the Protestant Reformation and of the tensions that existed in the Church. The confession represented Protestant beliefs during the time of intense political and religious pressures. The Confession did discuss the basis and role of the papal authority in the Church “but it was decided not to incorporate a statement of the Lutheran position on the papacy in the confession in order to avoid upsetting Charles V and running the risk that he might simply refuse to negotiate with the Lutheran part at the Diet”.\n",
"In confession (also known as the sacrament of Penance or reconciliation), a person confesses their sins to a priest or bishop and receives God's forgiveness through absolution by the priest or bishop. This sacrament was criticised by many Protestants during the Reformation and abolished in many of the new Protestant denominations on the basis that a priest or bishop did not have power from God to forgive (or refuse to forgive) people's sins. To answer this challenge, the church enacted the following canons to punish Catholics who subscribed to these ideas.\n",
"The Reformation was a clash of two opposed schemes of salvation. The Catholic Church taught that the contrite person could cooperate with God towards their salvation by performing good works. Medieval Catholic worship was centred on the Mass, the church's offering of the sacrifice of Christ's body and blood. The Mass was also an offering of prayer by which the living could help souls in purgatory. Protestants taught that fallen humanity was helpless and under condemnation until given the grace of God through faith. They believed the Catholic emphasis on purgatory was an obstacle to true faith in God and the identification of the Mass with Christ's sacrifice a blasphemous perversion of the Eucharist. In place of the Mass, Protestant worship was centred on the Bible–to them the only road to faith in Christ–either read or presented in sermons.\n"
] |
what, biologically, causes lethargy and feelings of being "in a fog"? why do we sometimes feel this way, even with no apparent health issues? | We actually are not quite sure what fully causes the feeling of being tired or lethargic. One simple explanation that has the most proof appears to be that a chemical called adenosine builds up in our brain throughout many of our daily activities. Adenosine is the byproduct of many metabolic functions (such as ATP being broken down for energy at a cellular level) in the body, and when enough of it builds up in our brain, we get tired. Similarly, when we drink things that are caffeinated, it blocks adenosine from binding to receptors in our brain and keeps us awake. This is a very simple explanation, you could find further reading here:
_URL_0_
_URL_1_
| [
"Clouding of consciousness, also known as brain fog or mental fog, is a term used in medicine denoting an abnormality in the regulation of the overall level of consciousness that is mild and less severe than a delirium. The sufferer experiences a subjective sensation of mental clouding described as feeling \"foggy\". \n",
"Clouding of consciousness, also known as \"brain fog\" or \"mental fog\", is a global impairment in higher central nervous functioning. All aspects of cognitive functioning are affected. On mental status examination it is manifest by disorientation in time, place and person, memory difficulties caused by failure to register and recall, aphasia, and agnosia. Impaired perception functioning leads to illusions and hallucinations often in the visual sensory modality. This then causes agitation and distress and secondary delusions. The term 'confusion state' is sometimes used to mean clouding of consciousness, but should be avoided if at all possible because it is ambiguous.\n",
"Clouding of consciousness, also known as brain fog or mental fog, is a term used in medicine denoting an abnormality in the regulation of the overall level of consciousness that is mild and less severe than a delirium. It is part of an overall model where there's regulation of the \"overall level\" of the consciousness of the brain and aspects responsible for \"arousal\" or \"wakefulness\" and awareness of oneself and of the environment. \n",
"The sufferer experiences a subjective sensation of mental clouding described in the patient's own words as feeling \"foggy\". One sufferer described it as \"I thought it became like misty, in some way... the outlines were sort of fuzzy\". Others may describe a \"spaced out\" feeling. Sufferers compare their overall experience to that of a dream because as in a dream consciousness, attention, orientation to time and place, perceptions, and awareness are disturbed. Barbara Schildkrout, MD, a board-certified psychiatrist and clinical instructor in psychiatry at the Harvard Medical School described her subjective experience of clouding of consciousness, or what she also called \"mental fog\", after taking a single dose of the antihistamine chlorpheniramine for her cottonwood allergy while on a cross-country road trip. She described feeling \"out of it\" and being in a \"dreamy state\". She described a sense of not trusting her own judgment and a dulled awareness, not knowing how long time went by. Clouding of consciousness is not the same thing as \"depersonalization\" even though sufferers of both compare their experience to that of a dream. Psychometric tests produce little evidence of a relationship between clouding of consciousness and depersonalization.\n",
"Sopor is a condition of abnormally deep sleep or a stupor from which it is difficult to rouse. It involves a profound depression of consciousness, which is manifested by drowsiness, while maintaining coordinated defensive reactions to stimuli such as pain, harsh sound, and bright light, and preserving vital functions. Sopor may be caused by a drug; such drugs are deemed soporific. A stupor is more severe than a sopor. \n",
"The term \"clouding of consciousness\" has always denoted the main pathogenetic feature of delirium since physician Georg Greiner pioneered the term (\"\") in 1817. The \"Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders\" (DSM) has historically used the term in its definition of delirium. However, the DSM-III-R and the DSM-IV replaced \"clouding of consciousness\" with \"disturbance of consciousness\" to make it easier to operationalize, but it is still fundamentally the same thing. Clouding of consciousness may be less severe than delirium on a spectrum of abnormal consciousness. Clouding of consciousness may be synonymous with \"subsyndromal delirium\".\n",
"The alleviation of dysphoria theory suggests that people with severe mental illness commonly have a negative self-image, which makes them vulnerable to using psychoactive substances to alleviate these feelings. Despite the existence of a wide range of dysphoric feelings (anxiety, depression, boredom, and loneliness), the literature on self-reported reasons for use seems to lend support for the experience of these feelings being the primary motivator for drug and alcohol misuse.\n"
] |
how do people remove vocals from a song for adverts for example? | Most songs nowadays are composed using layers on a track. So all it really takes is removing the layer. It's trickier with older songs that didn't use this production method. | [
"\"SingingCoach\" utilizes a pitch recognition technology that was developed by Carlo Franzblau and engineered by his team of programmers. Its technology uses a white tracking line on screen to record and display the pitch of one’s voice in reference to the \"in tune\" bars of the song. This allows the user to understand whether or not they are singing in tune, and to adjust their voice accordingly. A score is given after completion of a song based on the percentage of time the singer was in tune.\n",
"BULLET::::- Recording studio coaching that takes place in a recording studio with a microphone and multitrack recording equipment, which is operated by an audio engineer. Singing for recordings requires different singing techniques than singing at live shows. To give one example, when a singer is performing at a small coffeehouse gig without a microphone, she does not need to worry about \"plosive\" consonants (such as the letter \"p\"); however, when singing in front of a microphone, words with the letter \"p\" can be overemphasized by the microphone, due to the nature of the way we produce these sounds.\n",
"In the fall of 2015 The Singing Machine introduced its new digital line of products, no CD-G required allowing users to create playlists on the company's branded site and chose their favorite songs, download them to a USB, giving them the freedom of mixing and matching genres, singers, and enjoying the songs they want to sing.\n",
"In some cases, when producers force singers to lip-synch on live TV broadcasts, the vocalists deliberately make it clear that they are not singing live. When Public Image Limited singer John Lydon performed on Dick Clark’s \"American Bandstand\" TV show, the \"...punk pioneer refused to mime during an appearance... and instead he sat on the floor of the [TV] studio, threw himself into the assembled audience, and stuck his nose into the camera while recordings over his own voice played\" on the air.\n",
"Several sections of the song were recorded, but aside from a group piano demo, only one variation of the chorus's backing track was overdubbed with vocals sung in elaborate musical rounds. According to \"The Smile Sessions\" compiler Mark Linett, \"When he's not singing, you can hear faint background vocal parts that no longer exist on the multitrack. They must have been in his headphones, and were picked up by the vocal mic. It could be that Brian decided he didn't need them, or that he was going to re-record them, but never did. You hear this sort of stuff throughout the tapes.\" The song was worked on between October and December 1966. After one more revisit in April 1967, the track was abandoned forever by the group.\n",
"It was one of the first rock songs to use a vocoder, developed by EMS, to distort vocals. It is also one of the few songs by the band featuring the vocals of Alan Parsons, who sings the first verse through the EMI vocoder. Actor Leonard Whiting performs the lead vocals for the remainder of the song, with Eric Woolfson and a choir as backing vocals.\n",
"The blind audition stage in Sing My Song is called \"The Recordings\". In front of each producer, there is a lyric screen and a red control bar. If a producer pushes the bar, it means he/she is recording the song and want the song in his/her original album. The lyrics screen will then move down, allowing the producer to see the contestant on stage. This part bears resemblance to the blind auditions in The Voice.\n"
] |
Who were the first prominent Southerners in government [Congress/White House/SCOTUS/Armed Forces/etc...] after the Civil War and did they face extra issues getting in? | General James Longstreet joined the Republican Party after the war and was appointed as the head of Louisiana's Reconstruction-era militia.
He was despised by many fellow Southerners, despite heroic service in the Confederate cause, especially after the 1874 Battle of Liberty Place - Longstreet, commanding black troops, ordered them to open fire on a mob of white Southerners who were attempting to remove the state's elected government by force.
Longstreet served as a federal railroad commissioner and an ambassador in his later years. He was hounded until his death by Southern critics who (ironically from a certain point of view) thought he was a traitor, and who tried to rewrite history to dismiss his sterling military record.
_URL_0_ | [
"Francis Strother Lyon (February 25, 1800 – December 31, 1882) was a prominent Alabama attorney and politician. He served two terms in the Confederate States Congress during the American Civil War after being an antebellum member of the United States Congress.\n",
"Thomas Alexander Harris (1826 - April 9, 1895) was a United States Army officer at the end of the Mexican–American War and a Missouri State Guard (Confederate) brigadier general during the early months of the American Civil War (Civil War). He then became a prominent Confederate politician, serving in the First Confederate Congress from 1861 to 1864. Among other occupations, he was a Missouri State Representative before the Civil War and a Kentucky State Representative in 1885–1886.\n",
"William Selby Harney (August 22, 1800 – May 9, 1889) was a Tennessee-born cavalry officer in the U.S. Army, who became known (and controversial) during the Indian Wars and the Mexican–American War. One of four general officers in the U.S. Army at the beginning of the Civil War, he was removed from overseeing the Department of the West due to his Confederate sympathies early in the war (although he did keep Missouri from joining the Confederacy). Under President Andrew Johnson, he served with on the Indian Peace Commission, negotiating several treaties, before spending his retirement partly in St. Louis and partly trading reminiscences with Jefferson Davis in Mississippi.\n",
"John Allen Wilcox (April 18, 1819 – February 7, 1864) was a politician from Mississippi and Texas who served in the United States House of Representatives in the early 1850s and then in the Confederate Congress during the American Civil War.\n",
"Henry Gray, Jr. (January 19, 1816 – December 11, 1892) was an American lawyer and politician who served in the state legislatures of Mississippi and then Louisiana. During the American Civil War, he was a general in the Confederate Army and subsequently served in the Confederate States Congress.\n",
"Alvan Cullem Gillem (July 29, 1830 – December 2, 1875) was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Although Southern-born, he remained loyal to the Federal government and fought in several battles in the Western Theater before commanding occupation troops in Mississippi and Arkansas during Reconstruction. He later played a prominent role in the Modoc War in 1873.\n",
"James Deering Fessenden (September 28, 1833 – November 18, 1882) was a lawyer, politician, and soldier from the state of Maine who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Primarily a staff officer and operations planner until the latter stages of the war, he commanded an infantry brigade in the Western Theater in 1864 and 1865. In 1862, he organized in South Carolina what became one of the first black regiments in the Federal army. He was a member of the powerful Fessenden family, which was prominent in national politics during the mid-19th century.\n"
] |
Pauli's Exclusion Principle - Does It State All Electrons Everywhere Must Occupy Different Energies? | No. It says that two identical fermions (like electrons) can't occupy the same energy state. For example, two spin-up electrons can't both be in the 1s orbital (the closest to the nucleus). However, in two adjacent atoms, the electrons in the 1s orbital will both have the same energy, but still not be degenerate because it's a different atom. | [
"The Pauli exclusion principle helps explain a wide variety of physical phenomena. One particularly important consequence of the principle is the elaborate electron shell structure of atoms and the way atoms share electrons, explaining the variety of chemical elements and their chemical combinations. An electrically neutral atom contains bound electrons equal in number to the protons in the nucleus. Electrons, being fermions, cannot occupy the same quantum state as other electrons, so electrons have to \"stack\" within an atom, i.e. have different spins while at the same electron orbital as described below.\n",
"The Pauli exclusion principle says that two electrons in one system cannot be in the same state. Nature leaves open the possibility, however, that two electrons can have both states \"superimposed\" over each of them. Recall that the wave functions that emerge simultaneously from the double slits arrive at the detection screen in a state of superposition. Nothing is certain until the superimposed waveforms \"collapse\". At that instant an electron shows up somewhere in accordance with the probability that is the square of the absolute value of the sum of the complex-valued amplitudes of the two superimposed waveforms. The situation there is already very abstract. A concrete way of thinking about entangled photons, photons in which two contrary states are superimposed on each of them in the same event, is as follows:\n",
"The theoretical justification for this term is more complex. The Pauli exclusion principle states that no two identical fermions can occupy exactly the same quantum state in an atom. At a given energy level, there are only finitely many quantum states available for particles. What this means in the nucleus is that as more particles are \"added\", these particles must occupy higher energy levels, increasing the total energy of the nucleus (and decreasing the binding energy). Note that this effect is not based on any of the fundamental forces (gravitational, electromagnetic, etc.), only the Pauli exclusion principle.\n",
"Electron behavior is elaborated by other principles of atomic physics, such as Hund's rule and the Pauli exclusion principle. Hund's rule asserts that if multiple orbitals of the same energy are available, electrons will occupy different orbitals singly before any are occupied doubly. If double occupation does occur, the Pauli exclusion principle requires that electrons which occupy the same orbital must have different spins (+1/2 and −1/2).\n",
"In the case of antisymmetry, solutions of the wave equation for interacting electrons result in a zero probability that each pair will occupy the same location or state. This is responsible for the Pauli exclusion principle, which precludes any two electrons from occupying the same quantum state. This principle explains many of the properties of electrons. For example, it causes groups of bound electrons to occupy different orbitals in an atom, rather than all overlapping each other in the same orbit.\n",
"Dirac's solution to this was to turn to the Pauli exclusion principle. Electrons are fermions, and obey the exclusion principle, which means that no two electrons can share a single energy state within an atom. Dirac hypothesized that what we think of as the \"vacuum\" is actually the state in which \"all\" the negative-energy states are filled, and none of the positive-energy states. Therefore, if we want to introduce a single electron we would have to put it in a positive-energy state, as all the negative-energy states are occupied. Furthermore, even if the electron loses energy by emitting photons it would be forbidden from dropping below zero energy.\n",
"The material's electrons seek to minimize the total energy in the material by settling into low energy states; however, the Pauli exclusion principle means that only one can exist in each such state. So the electrons \"fill up\" the band structure starting from the bottom. The characteristic energy level up to which the electrons have filled is called the Fermi level. The position of the Fermi level with respect to the band structure is very important for electrical conduction: Only electrons in energy levels near or above the Fermi level are free to move within the broader material structure, since the electrons can easily jump among the partially occupied states in that region. In contrast, the low energy states are completely filled with a fixed limit on the number of electrons at all times, and the high energy states are empty of electrons at all times.\n"
] |
the mafia and all its groups (camorra, la cosa nostra, sicilian, etc.) | I can't give you a run down of all the groups but I can give a general description of the Mafia.
Picture Sicily as a schoolyard playground. Everyone's playing and having a good time, but some kids start bulling other kids. When the teacher is told, they don't do anything and mostly just look the other way. A few kids get together a decided that it's up to them to stop the bullies and make sure that others don't show up. These kids start the Mafia to get ride of the bullies that the teachers won't touch and make sure that more don't show up later. As time goes on the Mafia needs to gather some money because a bully beats up some of the Mafia members. They turn to the other kids they have been protecting and tell them since they are the ones protecting them, that they need to pay for the band-aids. This turns into regular collections for the next time a bully shows up. When some kids complain that there haven't been any bullies for a long time, and refuse to pay for band-aids that aren't being bought(since there are no need for the band -aids the Mafia has been buying soda's for it's members instead). That makes the Mafia angry and they go and bully these kids into paying for the protection. That creates the protection rackets that were the base of the Mafia, eventually they add other criminal enterprises most which began as services like smuggling restricted items. As time went on the Mafia grows in size and eventually inspires other groups to do the same or have Mafia members start their own Mafia.
Hope that helps | [
"The Camorra (; ) is an Italian Mafia-type crime syndicate, or secret society, which arose in the region of Campania and its capital Naples. It is one of the oldest and largest criminal organizations in Italy, dating back to the 17th century. Unlike the pyramidal structure of the Sicilian Mafia, the Camorra's organizational structure is more horizontal than vertical. Consequently, individual Camorra clans act independently of each other, and are more prone to feuding among themselves.\n",
"The Stidda (; ) is a name for Mafia-type criminal organizations centered in the central-southern part of Sicily in Italy. Members are known as \"stiddari\" or \"stiddaroli\". It is most active in the rural parts of southern Sicily and is partially a rival to Cosa Nostra. Some members have a star tattooed on their bodies.\n",
"The Sicilian Mafia, also known as simply the Mafia and frequently referred to by its own members as Cosa Nostra (, ; \"our thing\"), is a Mafia-terrorist-type organized crime syndicate originating in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organisational structure and code of conduct. The basic group is known as a \"family\", \"clan\", or \"cosca\". Each family claims sovereignty over a territory, usually a town or village or a neighbourhood (\"borgata\") of a larger city, in which it operates its rackets. Its members call themselves \"men of honour\", although the public often refers to them as \"mafiosi\". The Mafia's core activities are protection racketeering, the arbitration of disputes between criminals, and the organizing and oversight of illegal agreements and transactions.\n",
"Crime syndicates are formed to coordinate, promote, and engage in organized crime, running common illegal businesses on a large, national, or international scale. The subunit of the syndicate is a crime family or clan, organized by blood relationships, as seen in the Italian Mafia and the Italian American Mafia crime families (the Five Families dominating New York City crime, namely, the Gambino crime family, Genovese crime family, Lucchese crime family, Bonanno crime family, and the Colombo crime family).\n",
"The Montenegrin mafia (Crnogorska mafija) refers to the various criminal organizations based in Montenegro or composed of Montenegrins. There are 700 documented organized criminals operating within Montenegro; outside of the country Montenegrin gangs are active throughout Europe-notably Serbia and Slovenia. The gangs tend to specialize in cigarette smuggling, narcotics and arms trafficking.\n",
"The Montenegrin Mafia or Montenegrin Cartel are terms used for the various criminal organizations based in Montenegro or composed of Montenegrins. There are 700 documented organized criminals operating within Montenegro; outside of the country Montenegrin gangs are active throughout Europe-notably Serbia and Slovenia. The gangs tend to specialize in cigarette smuggling, narcotics and arms trafficking.\n",
"Unlike the Sicilian Mafia, which has a clear hierarchy and a division of interests, the Camorra's activities are much less centralized. This makes the organization much more difficult to combat through crude repression. In Campania, where unemployment is high and opportunities are limited, the Camorra has become an integral part of the fabric of society. It offers a sense of community and provides the youth with jobs. Members are guided in the pursuit of criminal activities, including cigarette smuggling, drug trafficking, and theft.\n"
] |
Is it really safer to let the tap run for 30 seconds before drinking the water? | Generally, modern homes have pipes that are small and water is often in demand.
This leads to water that is moved often and never really gets a chance to sit still in one place for too long. The pipes which are made of usually copper of plastic are in themselves terrible environments for many pathogens. The fact that tap water itself is quite clean leads to no real source of contamination.
Drinking tap water is safe and if your houses plumbing is up to spec, you should be just fine. | [
"The article quoted Erik Olson, an analyst for the Natural Resources Defense Council, as saying \"This is a really big deal... If schools go over 20 parts per billion, they immediately take the water out of production.\" WASA recommended that residents let the tap run for 30 seconds to one minute before using it to reduce the risk.\n",
"Tap water remains susceptible to biological or chemical contamination. In the event of contamination deemed dangerous to public health, government officials typically issue an advisory regarding water consumption. In the case of biological contamination, residents are usually advised to boil their water before consumption or to use bottled water as an alternative. In the case of chemical contamination, residents may be advised to refrain from consuming tap water entirely until the matter is resolved.\n",
"In March 2012 there was a Health Canada advisory warning residents to \"minimize their exposure to household tap water\". This means bottled water for most residents. Boiling water does not make it safe to drink because it does not remove the THMs. Exposure to tap water has to be limited and filters only help in some cases.\n",
"Water flow through a tap can be reduced by inexpensive small plastic flow reducers. These restrict flow between 15 and 50%, aiding water conservation and reducing the burden on both water supply and treatment facilities.\n",
"It is recommended for the temperature of tap water not to exceed 38 — 45 °C to avoid discomfort and scalding. The technical implementation is complicated by the necessity to keep warm water at a temperature of 55 – 60 °C to inhibit the growth of legionella bacteria. \n",
"Using water wisely will extend the life of our existing water supplies and their delivery systems, ultimately lowering water costs and the environmental burden of water usage. As a best practice, Health Canada recommends that water used for drinking and cooking be taken from the cold-water tap after the water has been 'run' until cold.\n",
"Many low-income families avoid drinking tap water because they fear it may cause sickness. Bottled, filtered, and tap water are all for the most part safe in the United States. The Environmental Protection Agency regulations for tap water are \"actually stricter than the Food and Drug Administration regulations for bottled water.\" A study of drinking water in Cincinnati, Ohio, discovered that bacterial counts in bottled water were often higher than those in tap water and fluoride concentration was inconsistent.\n"
] |
How the hell does press & seal wrap work? | *“Glass, as well as some plastics, has a net negative charge on its surface, so a wrap that has an opposite charge is going to cling quite well to these surfaces,”* [SOURCE](_URL_0_)
Another site has a more chemical approach:
*"I found that most kitchen plastic wrap is made of low density polyethylene, also known as LDPE. This plastic makes a good barrier to water and air, but it does not stick to itself. To make it cling, they add another chemical, such as polyisobutylene or poly[ethylene-vinylacetate]. These chemicals do not mix totally with the LDPE. Instead, they act like the adhesive on tape, only not as sticky, and it only sticks to certain things."* [SOURCE
](_URL_1_)
Hope this helps. | [
"When the seal is pressed onto the printing surface, the procedure differs according to plant or silk based paste. For silk based paste, the user applies pressure, often with a specially made soft, flat surface beneath the paper. For plant based paste, the user simply applies light pressure. As lifting the seal vertically away from its imprint may rip or damage paper, the seal is usually lifted off one side at a time, as if bent off from the page. After this, the image may be blotted with a piece of paper to make it dry faster, although this may smudge it. Usually there needs to be a pile of soft felt or paper under the paper to be imprinted for a clear seal impression.\n",
"For a vertical form-fill-seal the film approaches the back of a long hollow conical tube, which is called the forming tube. When the center of the plastic is near the tube, the outer edges of the film form flaps that wrap around the conical forming tube. The film is pulled downward around the outside of the tube and a vertical heat-sealing bar clamps onto the edges of the film to create the \"fin Seal\", bonding the film by melting the seam edges together.\n",
"The seal-making device is also referred to as the seal \"matrix\" or \"die\"; the imprint it creates as the seal impression (or, more rarely, the \"sealing\"). If the impression is made purely as a relief resulting from the greater pressure on the paper where the high parts of the matrix touch, the seal is known as a \"dry seal\"; in other cases ink or another liquid or liquefied medium is used, in another color than the paper.\n",
"Advancements in plastics have led to new types of vinyl designed specifically for wrap advertising, including vinyl sheets that feature bubble-preventing air channels. Microscopic glass beads are used to prevent an adhesive from functioning until the user is ready (the beads allow the material to be repeatedly lifted and reapplied during the wrapping process, without compromising the longevity of the wrap). The vinyl is heated with a heat gun or torch for the purpose of molding the material around objects.\n",
"The sealant film is synthetic and incorporates absorbable polymers, including poly(lactide-co-glycolide). The polymeric components impart structural and adhesive properties with the sealing effect achieved by incorporation of a bioadhesive polymer. This forms a covalent bond to primary amines present on the tissue surfaces. In turn this results in the film rapidly becoming effective in providing a form of secondary wound closure.\n",
"The tape consists of a pressure-sensitive adhesive coated onto a backing material such as paper, plastic film, cloth, or metal foil. Some have a removable release liner which protects the adhesive until the liner is removed. Some have layers of adhesives, primers, release agents, filaments, printing, etc. made for specific functions.\n",
"Extended core stretch wrappers are rolls of stretch film which have their internal core extended beyond their film roll creating a handle by which film can be wrapped. \"Extended core\" wrapping is the lowest initial investment stretch wrapping system as no machinery is purchased. This system provides little control over stretch and is hard on workers' hands. Because of this, many stretch wrap users opt for low cost hand wrappers such as \"hand savers\" or \"mechanical brake\" systems.\n"
] |
In what direction do our eyes look when in complete rest? | I'm a med student.
Actually There isn't any specific direction. If i assume complete rest is a "deep sleep" . It's gonna be a REM or Non-REM sleep stages which could be any random direction and our eyes are continously moving fast (In REM) and slow (non-REM) | [
"The eyes are never completely at rest. They make fast random jittering movements even when we are fixated on one point. The reason for this random movement is related to the photoreceptors and the ganglion cells. It appears that a constant visual stimulus can make the photoreceptors or the ganglion cells become unresponsive; on the other hand a changing stimulus will not. Therefore, the random eye movement constantly changes the stimuli that fall on the photoreceptors and the ganglion cells, making the image more clear.\n",
"When a tapetum lucidum is present, its location on the eyeball varies with the placement of the eyeball in the head, such that in all cases the \"tapetum lucidum\" enhances night vision in the center of the animal's field of view.\n",
"For example, when looking out of the window at a moving train, the eyes can focus on a moving train for a short moment (by stabilizing it on the retina), until the train moves out of the field of vision. At this point, the eye is moved back to the point where it first saw the train (through a saccade).\n",
"When the individual is awake, blinking of the eyelid causes rheum to be washed away with tears via the nasolacrimal duct. The absence of this action during sleep, however, results in a small amount of dry rheum accumulating in corners of the eye, most notably in children.\n",
"Part of the pretectum, particularly the NOT and NPP, are implicated in the accommodation reflex by which the eye maintains focus. Proprioceptive information from the retina reaches the pretectum via the occulomotor nerve and the trigeminal nerve. From that point the mechanism by which the eye maintains focus through muscular contractions of the retina is similar to that of the pupillary light reflex.\n",
"\"The eyes do not focus on any outward object, and they give the impression that they will remain where they are: they see through the filter of an inner state, rather than receive immediate impressions from the outside world. It is the attitude of being suspended in a state of mind beyond specific thoughtunaware, even, of its own body...here an inner life is suggested by a new order of pictorial effects, without recourse to action or narrative.\"\n",
"The retina at the back of the eye is what perceives stimuli, allowing them to travel through the occipital tract to the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) within the thalamus. The data is then transmitted to the occipital lobe where the orientation and other recognizable factors are processed.\n"
] |
how do i shop for and buy my first car? | Look at a bunch of adverts for cars that are the price you can afford. Keep the price on the cheap side. You are only learning about cars at this stage. Pick out a few that you like. It doesn't matter why you like them for now. Make a note of the milage and age of the cars and what condition they are in, e.g. is the paint work faded or rusty, how "good" does it look.
Armed with this information go to a car dealership and ask to look at cars of the type you liked from the adverts or look in the paper/Internet for cars for sale of that type.
If you find a car of the type you like that is cheaper than your research and has the same milage and looks to be in the same or better condition you may have found your new ride.
Things to watch out for
* Cars with low milage yet the pedals are worn from use
* Cars with low milage yet the seat belt looks old/worn
* Cars with signs of repainting. Different colour inside doors, under bonnet, overspray on exaust pipe, etc
* Cars missing trim, logos, make/model on boot. Boot was replaced after a crash.
* Cars with missing documentation
If you can afford it try to do a check online or otherwise on the car to make sure no outstanding finance is owed by the previous owner. If you buy a car form a guy who owes money on it it might be repossesed even though you paid full price for it.
In general buy an old, cheap but hopefully sound car and use it to learn about cars and driving. Your next purchase will be much more informed. | [
"Carwoo was an anonymous automobile marketplace that enabled its users to purchase cars without providing personal information to dealers until after an offer was made and accepted. Once a buyer accepted an offer, their information was transferred to the dealer. Rather than buyers bidding up the price, salespeople bid the selling price lower.\n",
"A car dealership or vehicle local distribution is a business that sells new or used cars at the retail level, based on a dealership contract with an automaker or its sales subsidiary. It employs automobile salespeople to sell their automotive vehicles. It may also provide maintenance services for cars, and employ automotive technicians to stock and sell spare automobile parts and process warranty claims.\n",
"Those looking to sell a car to a dealer can ask for offers from their local area. After taking their car to the dealer to verify its condition, the owner may then sell the car to the dealer for the offered price, either as cash or trade-in value. For sellers who list a car for sale directly to a private buyer, the site offers options with various levels of service including a level where the firm's representatives handle many of the details, including writing the ad, taking photos, and pre-screening potential buyers.\n",
"The automobile salesperson is one of many sales professions. The automobile salesman is a retail salesperson, who sells new and/or used cars. Unlike traditional retail sales, car sales are sometimes negotiable. Salesmen are employed by new car dealerships or used car dealerships.\n",
"CarWoo was an online new car shopping pricing and information website that allowed consumers to buy cars by negotiating with car dealers in a semi-anonymous online reverse auction. CarWoo, whose logo also appears as CarWoo!, was a competitor to TrueCar, which was a similar but negotiation-free car buying platform. \n",
"Kesko Senukai offers for its \"Statybu duona\" customers a possibility to shop without leaving a car. Customers are able to drive into these stores, select and pay for goods without leaving their car (drive-in stores).\n",
"A car is typically a major purchase and so there are a variety of financial schemes to facilitate the purchase. These include hire purchase, company cars, trade-in and leasing. Other forms of provision which centralise the ownership as a service include rental, car sharing and vehicle hire.\n"
] |
After the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, how did Europe manage to continue business as usual so shortly after? | Business as usual in what way? Because Europe really didn't just keep trucking along. The 30 Years War more or less reworked the political landscape of Europe and the way diplomacy was run. You mention the Swedes invading Poland and I think that's a great example of how things changed. At the outset of the war, one of the biggest worries of the Hapsburgs was the army of Denmark (which turned out to be a paper tiger). The Swedish army wasn't even considered. When the Swedes intervened their army was discovered to be potent and capable, but it was "thin." Sweden's army was maintained by conscription in a very thinly populated land. That Sweden was able to invade Poland after the Thirty Years War is related to its relatively untouched landscape and the fact that everyone around Sweden had been knocked down a peg. After the war, who around Sweden was going to be able to stop them, when you consider that they had an experienced army and were probably the most densely populated single polity in their region?
Other things changed around the era, too, which reflects the general upheaval at the end of the Thirty Years War. The Roundheads in the United Kingdom finally put the finishing touches on King Charles' Cavaliers, leading to years of Cromwell's leadership and the execution of Charles I. The Fronde began in France, which crippled the French kingdom for five years and eventually led to Louis XIV refining absolutism to his nobility's detriment. Spain was financially exhausted and had no choice but to let Portugal go when it revolted. The individual German princelings and kings were allowed to conduct their own foreign policy (which would fatally fracture the Holy Roman Empire as a united entity).
It's tempting to describe the German heartland as a desert, but in some ways that's what it was. The power centers in Europe moved towards France, Vienna, and-- a little late-- London. Europe didn't just keep going: it was dramatically transformed. What you're really seeing is that previously "second-rate" powers taking advantage of the situation to try to transform themselves into first-rate powers. | [
"In the Wars of Religion of the 17th c, 1648, ber Oct The Peace of Westphalia, of the European settlements of 164ood the nature of t8, brought an end to the thirty years between Spain and the Dutch and the German portion of the Thirty Years War. Peace plans were formed in the towns of Munster and Osnabruck, 1648. The certain treaty signed on October 24,he 1648, understood the nature of the Holy Roman emperor France and Sweden.\n",
"In 1648, the Peace of Westphalia had ended the Thirty Years' War, during which the Swedish Empire emerged as a major European power. In the Torstenson War, a theater of the Thirty Years' War, Sweden had defeated the former Baltic great power Denmark. Sweden had been at peace with Russia since the Treaty of Stolbovo had ended the Ingrian War in 1617. Sweden had remained in a state of war with the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth since the Polish–Swedish War (1626–29), which was concluded by the repeatedly renewed truce (Altmark, Stuhmsdorf).\n",
"BULLET::::- 1648 – The Treaty of Westphalia is agreed. This treaty formally ends both the Thirty Years' War and the Eighty Years' War. Nevertheless, the imperial city of Dortmund, a signee of the treaty, was occupied for a further two years by Swedish and Imperial troops until it handed over large sums of money. Dutch troops also remained for some time on the Lower Rhine.\n",
"When in 1648 the Peace of Westphalia ended the Thirty Years' War, the parties agreed that the prince-bishoprics of Bremen and Verden were to become dominions of Sweden. The peace treaty had been prepared at a congress throughout the final years of the war.\n",
"In 1648, Anne and Mazarin successfully negotiated the Peace of Westphalia, which ended the Thirty Years' War. Its terms ensured Dutch independence from Spain, awarded some autonomy to the various German princes of the Holy Roman Empire, and granted Sweden seats on the Imperial Diet and territories to control the mouths of the Oder, Elbe, and Weser rivers. France, however, profited most from the settlement. Austria, ruled by the Habsburg Emperor Ferdinand III, ceded all Habsburg lands and claims in Alsace to France and acknowledged her \"de facto\" sovereignty over the Three Bishoprics of Metz, Verdun, and Toul. Moreover, eager to emancipate themselves from Habsburg domination, petty German states sought French protection. This anticipated the formation of the 1658 League of the Rhine, leading to the further diminution of Imperial power.\n",
"On 30 January 1648, the war ended with the Treaty of Münster between Spain and the Netherlands. In Münster on 15 May 1648, the parties exchanged ratified copies of the treaty. This treaty was part of the European-scale Peace of Westphalia that also ended the Thirty Years' War. In the treaty, the power balance in Western Europe was readjusted to the actual geopolitical reality. This meant that \"de jure\" the Dutch Republic was recognized as an independent state, and that the long-existing separation of the Netherlands (and also the Old Swiss Confederacy) from the Holy Roman Empire was finally recognized. The Republic retained control over the territories that were conquered in the later stages of the war. The now officially recognized republic still consisted of the seven provinces that in 1579 concluded the Union of Utrecht: Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Gelderland, Overijssel, Friesland, and Groningen. Each province was governed by its sovereign States, such as the States of Holland and West Friesland and States of Friesland, assisted by a stadtholder and by an executive council, variously called \"Gecommitteerde Raden\" or \"Gedeputeerde Staten\" (Delegated States). Each stadtholder was appointed by the States of the province and also subordinate to the States-General. However, the princes of Orange-Nassau, beginning with William I of Orange, became \"de facto\" hereditary stadtholders in Holland and Zeeland. In practice they usually became stadtholder of the other provinces as well (except for Friesland, where the cadet branch of Nassau-Dietz provided the stadtholders). A constant power struggle, which already had shown its precursor during the Twelve Years' Truce, emerged between the Orangists, who supported the stadtholders, and the Dutch States Party supporters.\n",
"The treaties did not entirely end conflicts arising out of the Thirty Years' War. Fighting continued between France and Spain until the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659. The Dutch-Portuguese War had begun during the Iberian Union between Spain and Portugal, as part of the Eighty Years' War, and went on until 1663. Nevertheless, the Peace of Westphalia did settle many outstanding European issues of the time.\n"
] |
why do so many large and small companies prey on the poor and less fortunate by gouging them on everyday items and needs? | People with low incomes also have the fewest options in what products they can buy. That makes them a captive consumer base and means that companies can charge them more than more affluent people with more choice in products and services.
Poor people are also much less likely to have received a good financial education and are thus easier to deceive with bad deals and fraudulent practices. | [
"Although opportunities are great, many businesses are not taking advantage of them because market conditions surrounding the poor can make doing business difficult, risky and expensive. Where poverty prevails, the foundations for functional markets are often lacking, excluding the poor from meaningful participation and deterring companies from doing business with them.\n",
"A third is that there is a \"persistent and disturbing reluctance of businesses to invest and consumers to spend\", perhaps in part because so much of the recent gains have gone to the people at the top, and they tend to save more of their money than people—ordinary working people who can't afford to do that.\n",
"A third is that there is a \"persistent and disturbing reluctance of businesses to invest and consumers to spend\", perhaps in part because so much of the recent gains have gone to the people at the top, and they tend to save more of their money than people—ordinary working people who can't afford to do that.\n",
"Critics and supporters of the organizations agree that some of the food, clothing and other goods collected for the poor is consumed by the cadre. Critics and some former members have claimed that the entities are highly inefficient—that the cadre consume much of the cash, food and clothing they purport to collect for the poor.\n",
"In theory, this means that the rich people have earlier access to highly inefficient technologies, medical treatments, and therapies (that are prototypical in nature) while the poor get access to these same products when they become more efficient and easier to manufacture several years down the road.\n",
"Social entrepreneurs in South Asia often address needs of those at the bottom of the pyramid. Poor people often aren't able to meet their basic needs, like education and health, because for three reasons: access, quality, and affordability. When targeting the poor, affordability is critical often because the poorest people have extremely low levels of capital. 469 million people in India currently earn less than $1.25 a day while 850 million people earn less than $2 a day. While they don't have high purchasing power individually, collectively they represent an aggregated purchasing power of $1 trillion. Research has even been done to show poor people can mobilize capital to purchase goods only if they are made at a price point that is affordable to them.\n",
"Small businesses can encounter several problems related to engaging in corporate social responsibility, due to characteristics inherent in their size. Owners of small businesses often participate heavily in the day-to-day operations of their companies. This results in a lack of time for the owner to coordinate socially responsible efforts, such as supporting local charities or not-for-profit activities. Additionally, a small business owner's expertise often falls outside the realm of socially responsible practices, which contributing to a lack of participation. Small businesses also face a form of peer pressure from larger forces in their respective industries, making it difficult to oppose and work against industry expectations. Furthermore, small businesses undergo stress from shareholder expectations. Because small businesses have more personal relationships with their patrons and local shareholders, they must also be prepared to withstand closer scrutiny if they want to share in the benefits of committing to socially responsible practices or not.\n"
] |
why are yellow teeth considered unattractive? | They didn't used to be. Toothpaste and dental care took off though and eventually white teeth became preferable - it equals health and indicates that you take good care of your body and self. | [
"Sometimes white or straight teeth are associated with oral hygiene, but a hygienic mouth may have stained teeth and/or crooked teeth. For appearance reasons, people may seek out teeth whitening and orthodontics.\n",
"The discoloration of teeth over time can result from exposure to substances such as tobacco, coffee, and tea. The staining occurs in the interprismatic region internally on the enamel, which causes the tooth to appear darker or more yellow overall. In a perfect state, enamel is colorless, but it does reflect underlying tooth structure with its stains since light reflection properties of the tooth are low.\n",
"The normal color of enamel varies from light yellow to grayish (bluish) white. At the edges of teeth where there is no dentin underlying the enamel, the color sometimes has a slightly blue tone. Since enamel is semitranslucent, the color of dentin and any material underneath the enamel strongly affects the appearance of a tooth. The enamel on primary teeth has a more opaque crystalline form and thus appears whiter than on permanent teeth.\n",
"The normal color of enamel varies from light yellow to grayish (bluish) white. At the edges of teeth where there is no dentin underlying the enamel, the color sometimes has a slightly blue or translucent off-white tone, easily observable on the upper incisors. Since enamel is semitranslucent, the color of dentin and any material underneath the enamel strongly affects the appearance of a tooth. The enamel on primary teeth has a more opaque crystalline form and thus appears whiter than on permanent teeth.\n",
"Dental whitening (bleaching) is contraindicated although it has been reported to lighten the color of DI teeth with some success; however, because the discoloration is caused primarily by the underlying yellow-brown dentin, this alone is unlikely to produce normal appearance in cases of significant discoloration.\n",
"The combination of intrinsic colour and the presence of extrinsic stains on the tooth surface influence the colour and thus the overall appearance of teeth. The scattering of light and absorption within enamel and dentine determine the intrinsic colour of teeth and because enamel is relatively translucent, the dentinal properties can play a major role in determining the overall tooth colour. On the other hand, extrinsic stain and colour is the result of coloured regions that have formed within the acquired pellicle on the enamel surface and can be influenced by lifestyle behaviours or habits. For example, dietary intake of tannin-rich foods, poor toothbrushing technique, tobacco products and exposure to iron salts and chlorhexidine can affect the colour of a tooth.\n",
"Discoloration of the front teeth is one of the most common reasons people seek dental care. However, many people with teeth of normal shade ask for them to be whitened. Management of tooth discoloration depends on the cause. Most discoloration is harmless and may or may not be of cosmetic concern to the individual. In other cases it may indicate underlying pathology such as pulp necrosis or rarely a systemic disorder.\n"
] |
If water can only boil (212 degrees) why do simmering liquids boil around the edges? | every molecule is not at that temperature at the same time. It is a gradient from the energy source to the furthest point.
When you put a simmering pot on the stove. The heat is transferred from the fire to the pot body which conducts heat really well.the water immediately touching the walls of the pot will get the heat first and then it diffuses inwards.
So if the temperature at the body of the pot is say 250, the. The water immediately in contact with it will get to 230 creating small bubbles wherever the water touch the pot and these will take the energy and leave the pot, so the water in the center is cooler than 212 and thus it won’t boil.
Now crank up the heat and the pot body temp rises to let’s say 400-500. Now the heat is transferred so much faster and the whole body of water is above 212 and rustling to form gas bubbles and escape, this is when you get a roaring boil | [
"Normally, boiling water does not boil over. When fats, starches, and some other substances are present in boiling water, for example by adding milk or pasta, boiling over can occur. A film forms on the surface of the boiling liquid; for example, cream can boil over as milk fat separates from the milk. The increased viscosity of the liquid causes the steam bubbles to form foam trapped under the film, pushing the film up and over the lip of the pot, boiling over. A milk watcher disrupts this process by collecting small bubbles of steam into one large bubble and releasing it in a manner which may puncture the surface film. The device also rattles when boiling occurs, alerting the cook who may then lower the heat setting of the stove.\n",
"Simmering is a food preparation technique in which foods are cooked in hot liquids kept just below the boiling point of water (which is 100 °C or 212 °F at average sea level air pressure), but higher than poaching temperature (higher than 71–82 °C or 160-180°F). To keep a pot simmering, one brings it to a boil and then reduces the heat to maintain the temperature.\n",
"\"Boiling\" is the method of cooking food in boiling water or other water-based liquids such as stock or milk. Simmering is gentle boiling, while in poaching the cooking liquid moves but scarcely bubbles.\n",
"Water and other homogeneous liquids can superheat when heated in a microwave oven in a container with a smooth surface. That is, the liquid reaches a temperature slightly above its normal boiling point without bubbles of vapour forming inside the liquid. The boiling process can start explosively when the liquid is disturbed, such as when the user takes hold of the container to remove it from the oven or while adding solid ingredients such as powdered creamer or sugar. This can result in spontaneous boiling (nucleation) which may be violent enough to eject the boiling liquid from the container and cause severe scalding.\n",
"An irregular surface of the boiling vessel (i.e., increased surface roughness) or additives to the fluid (i.e., surfactants and/or nanoparticles) facilitate nucleate boiling over a broader temperature range, while an exceptionally smooth surface, such as plastic, lends itself to superheating. Under these conditions, a heated liquid may show boiling delay and the temperature may go somewhat above the boiling point without boiling.\n",
"Liquid water's high boiling point is due to the high number of hydrogen bonds each molecule can form, relative to its low molecular mass. Owing to the difficulty of breaking these bonds, water has a very high boiling point, melting point, and viscosity compared to otherwise similar liquids not conjoined by hydrogen bonds. Water is unique because its oxygen atom has two lone pairs and two hydrogen atoms, meaning that the total number of bonds of a water molecule is up to four.\n",
"Some science suggests adding a water-soluble substance, such as salt or sugar also increases the boiling point. This is called boiling-point elevation. At palatable concentrations of salt, the effect is very small, and the boiling point elevation is difficult to notice and this is why experiments to prove this are considered inconclusive. However, while making thick sugar syrup, such as for Gulab Jamun, one will notice boiling point elevation. Due to variations in composition and pressure, the boiling point of water is almost never exactly 100 °C, but rather close enough for cooking.\n"
] |
what happens in our brains when we hold in emotions and then snap? |
Your front brain simulates consequences and chooses the best action to take. When you're emotional, this usually means stopping you from doing something like punting your co workers. Sometimes one or multiple emotions become really strong and it takes lots of effort to stop you from acting on them. Effort makes your brain tired, and either it becomes worse at modulating behavior OR the emotions become too strong for the front brain to hold back. Then you have an emotional outburst where the front brain is kinda offline. | [
"Neuroscience has shown that emotions are generated by multiple structures in the brain. The rapid, minimal, and evaluative processing of the emotional significance of the sensory data is done when the data passes through the amygdala in its travel from the sensory organs along certain neural pathways towards the limbic forebrain. Emotion caused by discrimination of stimulus features, thoughts, or memories however occurs when its information is relayed from the thalamus to the neocortex. Based on some statistical analysis, some scholars have suggested that the tendency for anger may be genetic. Distinguishing between genetic and environmental factors however requires further research and actual measurement of specific genes and environments.\n",
"How Emotions are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain by Lisa Feldman Barrett for a rigorous discussion. One’s crying is not planned, unless one is an actor, then we are able to tap into the mechanism that causes tears to flow. Otherwise it just happens outside of out awareness of causing it by thinking. The brain has patterns of neurons that once activated generate physiologic responses that happens up to 10 seconds before we are aware. (Koch, Christof. 2012. “How Physics and Neuroscience Dictate Your “Free” Will”. Scientific American: April 12.) and many others.\n",
"Goleman states that emotions \"make us pay attention right now—this is urgent—and gives us an immediate action plan without having to think twice. The emotional component evolved very early: Do I eat it, or does it eat me?\" The emotional response \"can take over the rest of the brain in a millisecond if threatened.\"\n",
"Social and emotional stimuli, particularly those related to the well-being of another person, are being more directly studied with advent of technology that can track brain activity (such as Electroencephalograms and functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging). Amygdala and insula activation occur when a person experiences emotions, such as fear and disgust respectively. Primary motor regions are also activated during sympathy. This could be caused by humans' reaction to emotional faces, reflecting the expressions on their own faces, which seems to help people better understand the other person's emotion. In addition, researchers have also suggested that the neural mechanisms that are activated when personally experiencing emotions are also activated when viewing another person experiencing the same emotions (mirror neurons). Pain seems to specifically activate a region known as the cingulate cortex, in addition to activation that is mentioned earlier. The temporal parietal junction, orbitofrontal cortex, and ventral striatum are also thought to play a role in the production of emotion.\n",
"Triggers and cues act as reminders of the trauma and can cause anxiety and other associated emotions. Often the person can be completely unaware of what these triggers are. In many cases this may lead a person suffering from traumatic disorders to engage in disruptive behaviors or self-destructive coping mechanisms, often without being fully aware of the nature or causes of their own actions. Panic attacks are an example of a psychosomatic response to such emotional triggers.\n",
"By identifying neural correlates for emotions, scientists may be able to use methods like brain scans to tell us more about the different ways of being \"happy\". Richard Davidson has conducted research to determine which parts of the brain are involved in positive emotions. He found that the left prefrontal cortex is more activated when we are happy and is also associated with greater ability to recover from negative emotions as well as enhanced ability to suppress negative emotions. Davidson found that people can train themselves to increase activation in this area of their brains. It is thought that our brain can change throughout our lives as a result of our experiences; this is known as neuroplasticity.\n",
"In humans, intense emotion activates the anterior cingulate cortex, as it relays neural signals transmitted from the amygdala (a primary processing center for emotions) to the frontal cortex, perhaps by functioning as a sort of lens to focus the complex texture of neural signal interference patterns. The ACC is also active during demanding tasks requiring judgment and discrimination, and when errors are detected by an individual. During difficult tasks, or when experiencing intense love, anger, or lust, activation of the ACC increases. In brain imaging studies, the ACC has specifically been found to be active when mothers hear infants cry, underscoring its role in affording a heightened degree of social sensitivity.\n"
] |
How did people in formerly-French regions of Canada react to the news that France was backing the independence rebellion of their neighbors to the south? | In essence, indifference.
The general sentiment was that France had abandoned New-France in favor of the French West Indies, that were much more profitable than the rather onerous North American colony. This is also a sentiment that can be found in the lesser rates of volunteerism in WWI, although at that point, it's a lot more complicated.
Concerning the overture made by the American congress to french Canadian, it was more in the hope of making sure they wouldn't attack, as the French-Indian raids were still very much in the minds of the revolutionaries. To simplify, the Americans were scared of the french colonists descending by the Champlain River to greatly undermine their effort.
The other reason is basically because the British, seeing shit was about to hit the fan passed the Quebec Act which softened, if not completely reversed, a lot of the anti-catholic/ anti-french policies the British had put in place after the Conquest, making it considerably less interesting to rebel against the authorities that basically almost restored the way of life before the Conquest.
EDIT :
After going back a little bit in some reading, the American Congress did send letters to French Canadians as early as 1774, The letter title is : Lettre adressée aux Habitans de la province de Quebec, Ci-devant le Canada".
It's in French, so you can definitely know it was addressed to the french speaking elite. That very same elite that benefited the most from the Quebec Act...
| [
"Although some Canadians took up arms in support of the rebellion, the majority remained loyal to the King. French Canadians had been satisfied by the British government's Quebec Act of 1774, which offered religious and linguistic toleration; in general, they did not sympathize with a rebellion that they saw as being led by Protestants from New England, who were their commercial rivals and hereditary enemies. Most of the English-speaking settlers had arrived following the British conquest of Canada in 1759–1760, and were unlikely to support separation from Britain. The older British colonies, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia (including what is now New Brunswick) also remained loyal and contributed military forces in support of the Crown.\n",
"At the outset of the American Revolutionary War, the American revolutionaries hoped the French Canadians in Quebec and the Colonists in Nova Scotia would join their rebellion and they were pre-approved for joining the United States in the Articles of Confederation. When Canada was invaded, thousands joined the American cause and formed regiments that fought during the war; however most remained neutral and some joined the British effort. Britain advised the French Canadians that the British Empire already enshrined their rights in the Quebec Act, which the American colonies had viewed as one of the Intolerable Acts. The American invasion was a fiasco and Britain tightened its grip on its northern possessions; in 1777, a major British invasion into New York led to the surrender of the entire British army at Saratoga, and led France to enter the war as an ally of the U.S. The French Canadians largely ignored France's appeals for solidarity. After the war Canada became a refuge for about 75,000 Loyalists who either wanted to leave the U.S., or were compelled by Patriot reprisals to do so.\n",
"In 1837 and 1838 Canadians rebelled against the oligarchic rule of the British colonial administration, first in Lower Canada, then in Upper Canada (or the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario respectively). Political reforms followed the rebellions as Canada was of vital strategic interest to the British Empire. Simply put, the British did not want to lose the rest of North America, especially given the inconclusive results of the War of 1812, and they acquiesced to what gradually evolved into full legal national sovereignty.\n",
"The United States again invaded Canada during the War of 1812, but this effort was made more difficult due to the large number of Loyalist Americans that had fled to what is now Ontario and still resisted joining the republic. The Hunter Patriots in the 1830s and the Fenian raids after the American Civil War were private attacks on Canada from the U.S. Several U.S. politicians in the 19th century also spoke in favour of annexing Canada.\n",
"With the outbreak of hostilities between France and Great Britain in 1793, part of the War of the First Coalition, the Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada (now Ontario), John Graves Simcoe, was concerned about the possibility of the United States entering British North America in support of their French allies. In particular, the location of Newark (now Niagara-on-the-Lake), the first and former capital of Upper Canada, was in danger of being attacked by the Americans from the nearby border. Additionally, US forces could easily sever British access to the upper lakes at Lake St. Clair or the Detroit River, cutting the colony off from the important trading post at Michilimackinac.\n",
"France soon became again involved in North America, this time by supporting the American revolutionary war of independence. A Franco-American alliance was formed in 1778 between Louis XVI's France and the United States, during the American Revolutionary War. France successfully contributed in expelling the British from the nascent United States. The Treaty of Paris was signed on 3 September 1783, recognizing American independence and the end of hostilities.\n",
"Following the outbreak of the first fighting between Britain and France in North America in 1754, the French leadership saw that the limited population, troops and resources available in French Canada meant it would ultimately fall to the British if the war was prolonged, and decided to try and gain an equivalent in Europe to exchange for Canada at the negotiating table.\n"
] |
Are the any sources where I can find events that happend during the last years of Nebuchadnazzer II of Babylon ? | The primary book for the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II is in French (Arnaud's *Nabuchodonosor II, roi de Babylone*). DJ Wiseman's *Nebuchadrezzar and Babylon* is useful, as is Ronald Sack's *Images of Nebuchadnezzar: The Emergence of a Legend*.
Vanderhooft's *The Neo-Babylonian Empire and Babylon in the Latter Prophets* and Cogan's *The Raging Torrent: Historical Inscriptions from Assyria and Babylonia Relating to Ancient Israel* are worth a look if you're interested in the interactions between the Neo-Babylonian empire and Judah.
The Babylonian chronicles are our main source of knowledge, which have been edited in Grayson's *Assyrian and Babylonian Chronicles*. The three volumes of *The Context of Scripture* and *The Ancient Near East: Historical Sources in Translation* edited by Mark Chavalas also contain useful translations. There is an [ORACC project](_URL_0_) editing Neo-Babylonian texts, but unfortunately they haven't gotten around to the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II yet.
| [
"It is one of two identified Chronicles referring to Nebuchadnezzar, and does not cover the whole of his reign. The ABC5 is a continuation of Babylonian Chronicle ABC4 (The Late Years of Nabopolassar), where Nebuchadnezzar is mentioned as the Crown Prince. Since the ABC 5 only provides a record through Nebuchadnezzar's eleventh year, the subsequent destruction and exile recorded in the bible to have taken place 10 years later are not covered in the chronicles or elsewhere in the archeological record.\n",
"By 572, Nebuchadnezzar was in full control of Babylonia, Chaldea, Aramea (Syria), Phonecia, Israel, Judah, Philistia, Samarra, Jordan, northern Arabia, and parts of Asia Minor. Nebuchadnezzar died of illness in 562 BCE after a one-year co-reign with his son, Amel-Marduk, who was deposed in 560 BCE after a reign of only two years.\n",
"The Nebuchadnezzar Chronicle, also known as (Jerusalem Chronicle), is one of the series of Babylonian Chronicles, and contains a description of the first eleven years of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II. The tablet details Nebuchadnezzar's military campaigns in the west and has been interpreted to refer to both the Battle of Carchemish and the Siege of Jerusalem (597 BC). The tablet is numbered ABC5 in Grayson's standard text and BM 21946 in the British Museum.\n",
"Nebuchadnezzar I (1124–1103 BC) was the most famous ruler of this dynasty. He fought and defeated the Elamites and drove them from Babylonian territory, invading Elam itself, sacking the Elamite capital Susa, and recovering the sacred statue of Marduk that had been carried off from Babylon during the fall of the Kassites. Shortly afterwards, the king of Elam was assassinated and his kingdom disintegrated into civil war. However, Nebuchadnezzar failed to extend Babylonian territory further, being defeated a number of times by Ashur-resh-ishi I (1133–1115 BC), king of the Middle Assyrian Empire, for control of formerly Hittite-controlled territories in Aram and Anatolia. The Hittite Empire of the northern and western Levant and eastern Anatolia had been largely annexed by the Middle Assyrian Empire, and its heartland finally overrun by invading Phrygians from the Balkans. In the later years of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar I devoted himself to peaceful building projects and securing Babylonia's borders against the Assyrians, Elamites and Arameans.\n",
"Nebuchadnezzar I (), in Arabic (نبوخذ نصر) r. c. 1125–1104 BC, was the fourth king of the Second Dynasty of Isin and Fourth Dynasty of Babylon. He ruled for 22 years according to the \"Babylonian King List C\", and was the most prominent monarch of this dynasty. He is best known for his victory over Elam and the recovery of the cultic idol of Marduk.\n",
"The Nabonidus Chronicle is an ancient Babylonian text, part of a larger series of Babylonian Chronicles inscribed in cuneiform script on clay tablets. It deals primarily with the reign of Nabonidus, the last king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, covers the conquest of Babylon by the Persian king Cyrus the Great, and ends with the start of the reign of Cyrus's son Cambyses, spanning a period from 556 BC to some time after 539 BC. It provides a rare contemporary account of Cyrus's rise to power and is the main source of information on this period; Amélie Kuhrt describes it as \"the most reliable and sober [ancient] account of the fall of Babylon.\"\n",
"Gelimer (original form possibly Geilamir, 480–553), King of the Vandals and Alans (530–534), was the last Germanic ruler of the North African Kingdom of the Vandals. He became ruler on 15 June 530 after deposing his first cousin twice removed, Hilderic, who had angered the Vandal nobility by converting to Chalcedonian Christianity, as most of the Vandals at this time were fiercely devoted to Arian Christianity.\n"
] |
how did specific geographic locations become good/high end parts of town and others become bad/dangerous parts of town? | I'm sure you know the three most important words in real estate: Location, location, and location. Nice areas have proximity to some desireable feature--be it parks, the waterfront, downtown, public transit, nice views, historical areas, nice looking bridges, any or all of these things. These desirable features drive up property values, which has the effect of inviting in the rich people and their amenities and pricing out the riff raff. Meanwhile, not nice features such as abandoned factories, power plants, highways, ugly bridges don't do anything good for property values. They stagnate or drop, and these parts of town become the "bad part of town." | [
"The original townsite follows a unique design. It is laid out on northeast-to-southwest and northwest-to-southeast roads. It is purported that the reason this was done was to allow sun to come into every room in the home at some point during the day. The northwest-to-southeast roads were numbered and called avenues, while the northeast-to-southwest roads were numbered and called streets. Only two central streets, the northwest-to-southeast Main Avenue and the northeast-to-southwest Shoshone Street, were named. This system created situations where one side of a street may have an entirely different address than the other, and where the corner of \"3rd and 3rd,\" for example, was in more than one location. In 2003 the numbered northeast-to-southwest streets were renamed to alleviate decades of confusion. Later city roads, such as Blue Lakes Boulevard, Addison Avenue, and Washington Street, are laid out in standard north–south and east–west orientations. Addison Avenue honors Addison T. Smith a ten-term congressman from \n",
"Residential neighbourhoods include precincts beyond the historic city centre are historically or socially noteworthy neighbourhoods – namely Lakeview and The Crescents, both of which lie directly south of downtown. Immediately to the north of the central business district is the old warehouse district, increasingly the focus of shopping, nightclubs and residential development; as in other western cities of North America, the periphery contains shopping malls and big box stores.\n",
"The city is divided into 79 neighborhoods. The divisions have no legal standing, although some neighborhood associations administer grants or hold veto power over historic-district development. Nevertheless, the social and political influence of neighborhood identity is profound. Some hold avenues of massive stone edifices built as palaces for heads of state visiting the 1904 World's Fair. Others offer tidy working-class bungalows, loft districts, or areas hard-hit by social problems and unemployment. Many of them have retained - quite consciously and deliberately - a camaraderie that is missing from many American towns today.\n",
"One major flaw in the town plan was that there was no clearly defined business district, resulting in commercial and residential buildings mixed together all over town. This eventually resulted in numerous blighted areas. Some stores did open around the town square, however, and warehouses started to appear adjacent to the town's three major river landings, Upper Landing, above the modern Demopolis Yacht Basin and Marina, Webb's Landing at the western terminus of Washington Street, and Lower Landing to the west of Riverside Cemetery and the Whitfield Canal.\n",
"Each neighborhood is able to maintain its identity due to the tribal nature of the city. Several dozen extended families living in close proximity will typically identify with one local sheikh who takes it upon himself to serve as steward of the neighborhood’s citizens and liaison to the local government. The layout of the town consists of densely packed buildings, often constructed so closely to each other that they share common load-bearing walls and supports. The city streets further physically define each neighborhood by separating it from other groups of buildings, since they cut through the town in irregular patterns.\n",
"The middle and end point of each of the street connections in the town is the marketplace, over which rises the town church, St. Marien, once surrounded by the town's cemetery. A regular plan is not to be seen in the town. However, in one way the town has something in common with many other towns founded in the Middle Ages that is only noticeable at second glance: when laying out the town's streets, the mediaeval town planner deliberately made them crooked and deliberately staggered intersections of streets and alleyways. In particular, building crooked streets was a way of giving them some aesthetic appeal, as with the \"Untergasse\". Crookedness limits the streetscape optically, and at the end of the street is a T-junction, with a view of houses opposite. In the \"Untergasse\", this was the town's former brewhouse, standing on the corner of the \"Untergasse\" (\"Lower Lane\") and the \"Entengasse\" (\"Duck Lane\"). The \"Untergasse's\" original alignment was lost as a result of town renovations. It can now only be discerned by looking at houses' positions or by looking over the town.\n",
"Hence, the early settlers who migrated from the province of Cotabato found their new haven as not unlucky or \"Di Nas\" because the mouths of all rivers emptying into the coastlines are facing East which according to their belief is a sign of good luck.\n"
] |
If the earth was to stop rotating around its axes; how cold would the dark side get ? | Planets that "have stopped rotating" are known as being tidally locked. Earth's moon is tidally locked to the Earth, and so only one side faces us at all times. If a planet is close enough to its parent star it will become tidally locked. Observation of exoplanets determined to be tidally locked indicated extreme winds between day and night sides.
HD 189733 b is a roughly Jupiter sized exoplanet which exhibits this phenomenon. A temperature range of 973 ± 33 K to 1,212 ± 11 K was discovered, indicating that the absorbed energy from the parent star is distributed fairly evenly through the planet's atmosphere. Assuming the planet is tidally locked, this suggests that powerful easterly winds moving at more than 9,600 kilometers per hour are responsible for redistributing the heat.
If something similar were to happen on Earth, we would all die very quickly. All crops and plants would quickly succumb to temperature variations of hundred of degrees Kelvin, the winds would rip out the largest trees. The entire ecosystem would most likely be destroyed. Significant quantities of water would boil into the atmosphere. If the heated atmosphere from the day side were incapable of keeping the night side warmed, theoretically the boiled off oceans could be transported to the night side where the water would be deposited and frozen.
edit: We wouldn't *all* die, the crew of the ISS would be quite comfortable until their return to Earth. | [
"Eventually, the Earth stops spinning altogether. The scorching light of day lasts for six months, while the remaining six months of the year are ice-bound darkness of night. The planetary landscape now consists of one ocean approximately 10 miles deep in the north, one in the south and a girdle of land around the equator. Most of the new continent is uninhabitable due to thin air, but the former ocean floor has a sufficient air pressure for human life.\n",
"From a vantage point above the north pole of either the Sun or Earth, Earth would appear to revolve in a counterclockwise direction around the Sun. From the same vantage point, both the Earth and the Sun would appear to rotate also in a counterclockwise direction about their respective axes.\n",
"The Earth's rotation causes the Coriolis effect, which bends currents to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere. When this bend brings the currents into more perpendicular contact with the shore, it can amplify the surge, and when it bends the current away from the shore it has the effect of lessening the surge.\n",
"The basic premise of the film, that the movement of the Earth's magnetic north and south poles to the middle latitude would cause a massive climatic shift, is only partially true. Although such an event (if it were possible) would result in dramatic effects on global weather patterns, it would not reverse the Earth's climate zones as shown in the film, since climate is governed not just by the Earth's magnetic field, but mainly by altitude and proximity to the poles via the tilt of the Earth's axis, which affords lower latitudes more direct sun rays. Furthermore, the movement of the poles, not the magnetic poles, would move both arctic and temperate regions, but would not necessarily trigger an ice age. It would not cause an ice age localized to Miami, as the film suggests.\n",
"In the Northern Hemisphere, objects moving across or above the surface of the Earth tend to turn to the right because of the coriolis effect. As a result, large-scale horizontal flows of air or water tend to form clockwise-turning gyres. These are best seen in ocean circulation patterns in the North Atlantic and North Pacific oceans.\n",
"In Philolaus' system, Earth did not rotate and its inhabited surface faced away from the Central Fire—possibly because it (the Earth) was flat. The revolution of the Earth around the Central Fire was not yearly but daily, while the Moon's revolution was monthly, and the sun's yearly. It was the Earth's speedy travel past the slower moving Sun that resulted in the appearance on Earth of the Sun rising and setting. Further from the Central Fire, the Planets' movement was slower still, and the outermost \"sky\" (i.e. stars) probably fixed.\n",
"Another theory, is that earth's true polar wander occurs over a long period of time. The tectonic plates of the earth would move relatively faster due to imbalance of continents near the poles. This was true during the Cambrian Period, but the same event also happened approximately 66 million years ago but not as severely. \n"
] |
why is snowden in trouble for whistleblowing? shouldn't whistle blowing be a good thing? | It's a great thing until someone whistle blows you. Then they're a snitch.
The government is equating it with giving classified data to the enemy like treason, espionage and the like. Really it's bullshit but that's their reason. | [
"Edward Snowden went to the press with revelations about the NSA due to the experience of previous whistleblowers, such as Thomas Andrews Drake, William Binney, J. Kirk Wiebe, Ed Loomis, and Diane Roark, who initially reported their concerns within the system and faced intense retaliation.\n",
"On the heels of the first Edward Snowden NSA disclosures in 2013, Tice was asked during an interview on \"All In with Chris Hayes\", \"What was your experience in trying to blow the whistle from inside the NSA? And does it make you understand why Snowden might have done what he did?\" Tice replied,\n",
"There is limited research on the psychological impacts of whistle blowing. However, poor experiences of whistleblowing can cause a prolonged and prominent assault upon staff well being. As workers attempt to address concerns, they are often met with a wall of silence and hostility by management. Some whistleblowers speak of overwhelming and persistent distress, drug and alcohol problems, paranoid behaviour at work, acute anxiety, nightmares, flashbacks and intrusive thoughts. Depression is often reported by whistleblowers, and suicidal thoughts may occur in up to about 10%. General deterioration in health and self care has been described. The range of symptomatology shares many of the features of posttraumatic stress disorder, though there is debate about whether the trauma experienced by whistleblowers meets diagnostic thresholds. Increased stress related physical illness has also been described in whistleblowers. The stresses involved in whistleblowing can be huge. As such, workers remain afraid to blow the whistle, in fear that they will not be believed or they have lost faith in believing that anything will happen if they do speak out. This fear may indeed be justified, because an individual who feels threatened by whistleblowing, may plan the career destruction of the ‘complainant’ by reporting fictitious errors or rumours. This technique, labelled as ‘gaslighting’ is a common, unconventional approach used by organizations to manage employees who cause difficulty by raising concerns. In extreme cases, this technique involves the organization or manager proposing that the complainant's mental health is unstable. Organizations also often attempt to ostracise and isolate whistleblowers by undermining their concerns by suggesting that these are groundless, carrying out inadequate investigations or by ignoring them altogether. Whistleblowers may also be disciplined, suspended and reported to professional bodies upon manufactured pretexts. Where whistleblowers persist in raising their concerns, they increasingly risk detriments such as dismissal. Following dismissal, whistleblowers may struggle to find further employment due to damaged reputations, poor references and blacklisting. The social impact of whistleblowing through loss of livelihood (and sometimes pension), and family strain may also impact on whistleblowers’ psychological well being. Whistleblowers may also experience immense stress as a result of litigation regarding detriments such as unfair dismissal, which they often face with imperfect support or no support at all from unions. Whistleblowers who continue to pursue their concerns may also face long battles with official bodies such as regulators and government departments. Such bodies may reproduce the \"institutional silence\" by employers, adding to whistleblowers’ stress and difficulties. In all, some whistleblowers suffer great injustice, that may never be acknowledged or rectified. Such extreme experiences of threat and loss inevitably cause severe distress and sometimes mental illness, sometimes lasting for years afterwards. This mistreatment also deters others from coming forward with concerns. Thus, poor practices remain hidden behind a wall of silence, and prevent any organization from experiencing the improvements that may be afforded by intelligent failure. Some whistleblowers who part ranks with their organizations have had their mental stability questioned, such as Adrian Schoolcraft, the NYPD veteran who alleged falsified crime statistics in his department and was forcibly committed to a mental institution. Conversely, the emotional strain of a whistleblower investigation is devastating to the accused's family.\n",
"When Edward Snowden was asked during a January 26, 2014, television interview in Moscow on what the decisive moment was or what caused him to whistle-blow, he replied: \"Sort of the breaking point was seeing the director of national intelligence, James Clapper, directly lie under oath to Congress. ... Seeing that really meant for me there was no going back.\"\n",
"This action was immediately and widely condemned as an attempt to discourage whistleblowers and intimidate the media. \"The Guardian\" reported it had received papers demanding that reporters \"hand over anything that could lead the police to identify who blew the whistle on the Dowler story and others.\" \"The Guardian\" also reported the reaction of the Dowler family according to their solicitor:\n",
"Speaking at the University of Connecticut on April 23, 2014, former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton insinuated that she found Snowden's motives suspicious. \"When he emerged and when he absconded with all that material, I was puzzled because we have all these protections for whistle-blowers. If he were concerned and wanted to be part of the American debate, he could have been,\" she said. \"But it struck me as—I just have to be honest with you—as sort of odd that he would flee to China, because Hong Kong is controlled by China, and that he would then go to Russia—two countries with which we have very difficult cyberrelationships, to put it mildly.\" Clinton added, \"I think turning over a lot of that material—intentionally or unintentionally—drained, gave all kinds of information, not only to big countries, but to networks and terrorist groups and the like. So I have a hard time thinking that somebody who is a champion of privacy and liberty has taken refuge in Russia, under Putin's authority.\"\n",
"Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2014 is an Act in the Parliament of India which provides a mechanism to investigate alleged corruption and misuse of power by public servants and also protect anyone who exposes alleged wrongdoing in government bodies, projects and offices. The wrongdoing might take the form of fraud, corruption or mismanagement. The Act will also ensure punishment for false or frivolous complaints.\n"
] |
How is uranium made into a gas for Gaseous Diffusion/Electromagnetic separation etc... | It is usually worked on as "hex," or [uranium hexafluoride](_URL_0_) | [
"The separation of uranium requires the material in a gaseous form; uranium hexafluoride (UF) is used for uranium enrichment. Upon entering the centrifuge cylinder, the UF gas is rotated at a high speed. The rotation creates a strong centrifugal force that draws more of the heavier gas molecules (containing the U-238) toward the wall of the cylinder, while the lighter gas molecules (containing the U-235) tend to collect closer to the center. The stream that is slightly enriched in U-235 is withdrawn and fed into the next higher stage, while the slightly depleted stream is recycled back into the next lower stage.\n",
"Gaseous diffusion is a technology used to produce enriched uranium by forcing gaseous uranium hexafluoride (UF) through semipermeable membranes. This produces a slight separation between the molecules containing uranium-235 (U) and uranium-238 (U). By use of a large cascade of many stages, high separations can be achieved. It was the first process to be developed that was capable of producing enriched uranium in industrially useful quantities.\n",
"Over the next three years, Libby worked on the gaseous diffusion process for uranium enrichment. An atomic bomb required fissile material, and the fissile uranium-235 made up only 0.7 percent of natural uranium. The SAM Laboratories therefore had to find a way of separating kilograms of it from the more abundant uranium-238. Gaseous diffusion worked on the principle that a lighter gas diffuses through a barrier faster than a heavier one at a rate inversely proportional to its molecular weight. But the only known gas containing uranium was the highly corrosive uranium hexafluoride, and a suitable barrier was hard to find.\n",
"Purified uranium can also be enriched into the isotope U-235. In this process, the uranium oxides are combined with fluorine to form uranium hexafluoride gas (UF). Next, the gas undergoes isotope separation through the process of gaseous diffusion, or in a gas centrifuge. This can produce low-enriched uranium containing up to 20% U-235 that is suitable for use in most large civilian electric-power reactors. With further processing, one obtains highly enriched uranium, containing 20% or more U-235, that is suitable for use in compact nuclear reactors—usually used to power naval warships and submarines. Further processing can yield weapons-grade uranium with U-235 levels usually above 90%, suitable for nuclear weapons.\n",
"Gaseous diffusion is a technology used to produce enriched uranium by forcing gaseous uranium hexafluoride (\"hex\") through semi-permeable membranes. This produces a slight separation between the molecules containing U and U. Throughout the Cold War, gaseous diffusion played a major role as a uranium enrichment technique, and as of 2008 accounted for about 33% of enriched uranium production, but in 2011 was deemed an obsolete technology that is steadily being replaced by the later generations of technology as the diffusion plants reach their ends-of-life. In 2013, the Paducah facility in the US ceased operating, it was the last commercial U gaseous diffusion plant in the world.\n",
"Gas centrifuges are used in uranium enrichment. The heavier isotope of uranium (uranium-238) in the uranium hexafluoride gas tends to concentrate at the walls of the centrifuge as it spins, while the desired uranium-235 isotope is extracted and concentrated with a scoop selectively placed inside the centrifuge. It takes many thousands of centrifugations to enrich uranium enough for use in a nuclear reactor (around 3.5% enrichment), and many thousands more to enrich it to weapons-grade (above 90% enrichment) for use in nuclear weapons.\n",
"Uranium dioxide is a black semiconducting solid. It can be made by reacting uranyl nitrate with a base (ammonia) to form a solid (ammonium uranate). It is heated (calcined) to form UO that can then be converted by heating in an argon / hydrogen mixture (700 °C) to form UO. The UO is then mixed with an organic binder and pressed into pellets, these pellets are then fired at a much higher temperature (in H/Ar) to sinter the solid. The aim is to form a dense solid which has few pores.\n"
] |
How fast are we travelling? | There is no absolute reference frame, but the closest there is is the [cosmic microwave background](_URL_0_) reference frame. That is, roughly speaking, how fast we would be moving if we never accelerated since the Big Bang. The sun is currently moving 370 km/s from that reference frame. Earth is moving 30 km/s compared to that, and someone on the equator is moving 0.47 km/s compared to that. But since they're not necessarily in the same direction, you can't just add them up. The 30 km/s ends up increasing the average speed by only a little more than 1 km/s, which gets lost in rounding. The 0.47 km/s does even less. | [
"BULLET::::- Major Joseph W. Rogers became the first person to travel faster than 1,500 miles per hour, and almost reached 2,500 kilometers per hour, breaking the world speed record at , in an F-106 Delta Dart jet fighter.\n",
"The Apollo 10 crew (Thomas Stafford, John W. Young and Eugene Cernan) achieved the highest speed relative to Earth ever attained by humans: 39,897 kilometers per hour (11.082 kilometers per second or 24,791 miles per hour, approximately 32 times the speed of sound and 0.00037% of the speed of light). The record was set 26 May 1969.\n",
"As a sample calculation, if it takes 35 seconds to travel one mile, then the average speed is 103 miles/hour. On the watch, 35 seconds gives scale value 103. Similarly, if one kilometre takes 35 seconds then the average speed would be 103 km/hour.\n",
"Speed at some instant, or assumed constant during a very short period of time, is called \"instantaneous speed\". By looking at a speedometer, one can read the instantaneous speed of a car at any instant. A car travelling at 50 km/h generally goes for less than one hour at a constant speed, but if it did go at that speed for a full hour, it would travel 50 km. If the vehicle continued at that speed for half an hour, it would cover half that distance (25 km). If it continued for only one minute, it would cover about 833 m.\n",
"BULLET::::- Craig Breedlove's jet-powered car \"Spirit of America\", set a new world record for fastest speed on land, as he became the first person to drive an automobile at more than 500 miles per hour. Racing on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, he averaged 526.26 miles per hour (almost 847 kph); the previous mark of 468.72 mph had been set only two days earlier. On his way back down the 10-mile Bonneville track, however, Breedlove deployed the parachute that was supposed to stop his car after it completed one mile, and, in his words, \"It ripped to shreds, I was going so fast.\" He coasted for two more miles and tried the second parachute, and it ripped as well. He then pushed on the disc brakes and left skid marks of long until they burned out, and was still at 350 miles an hour as he reached the end of the track; he continued three more miles, striking two telephone poles, skidded sideways into a dike, went airborne for 30 feet and landed in 18-foot deep waters— and walked away, uninjured.\n",
"10 MPH is a documentary film directed by Hunter Weeks and starring Josh Caldwell with his Segway HT, the two-wheeled electronic scooter. This film, which takes its name from the Segway's average speed, documents Caldwell's 100-day, coast to coast journey across the United States riding the \"Human Transporter\". The trip started in Seattle, Washington on August 8, 2004 and ended in Boston, Massachusetts on November 18, 2004. \"10 MPH\" has had a favorable reaction at screenings and film festivals and has won several awards.\n",
"BULLET::::- American auto racer Craig Breedlove became the first person to drive an automobile faster than 600 miles per hour, setting a new land speed record of in his \"Spirit of America\" vehicle at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.\n"
] |
Who was the first comedian? | In terms of early examples of written humour (as it's very difficult to find stand-up comedians without written record), one of the earliest examples is the satirical script of the [Instruction of Dua-Khety](_URL_0_), an Ancient Egyptian work written in the 2nd millenium BCE (Between 2000 and 1700 BCE). It describes manual labourers during the time, while also exaggerating their features to grotesque proportions (stone-workers with crocodile claws, etc.).
Hope this helps! | [
"The Comedians was a British television show of the 1970s (later reprised in the mid-1980s and early 1990s) produced by Johnnie Hamp of Granada Television. The show gave a stage to nightclub and working men's club comedians of the era, including Russ Abbot, Lennie Bennett, Stan Boardman, Jim Bowen, Jimmy Bright, Duggie Brown, Mike Burton, Jimmy Jones, Dave Butler, Brian Carroll, Frank Carson, Mike Coyne, Jimmy Cricket, Colin Crompton, Pauline Daniels, Charlie Daze, Vince Earl, Steve Faye, Eddie Flanagan, Stu Francis, Ken Goodwin, Jackie Hamilton, Jerry Harris, George King, Bobby Knutt, Bernard Manning, Mike McCabe, Paul Melba, Mick Miller, Hal Nolan, Tom O'Connor, Tom Pepper, Bryn Phillips, Mike Reid, George Roper, Harry Scott, Sammy Thomas, Johnny Wager, Roy Walker, Charlie Williams, Lee Wilson and Lenny Windsor.\n",
"Charles Farrar Browne (April 26, 1834 – March 6, 1867) was an American humor writer, better known under his \"nom de plume\", Artemus Ward. He is considered to be America's first stand-up comedian. His birth name was Brown but he added the \"e\" after he became famous.\n",
"One of the most popular forms of modern-day comedy is stand-up comedy. Stand-up comedy is a comic monologue performed by one or more people standing on a stage. Bob Hope was the most popular stand-up comedian of the 20th century, and also starred in numerous comedy films over a five-decade span. Other noted stand-up comedians include Billy Connolly, George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Jerry Seinfeld, Dylan Moran, Lee Evans, Patton Oswalt and Jo Brand.\n",
"Antonio Griffo Focas Flavio Angelo Ducas Comneno Porfirogenito Gagliardi De Curtis di Bisanzio (15 February 1898 – 15 April 1967), best known by his stage name Totò () or simply as Antonio De Curtis, and nicknamed \"il Principe della risata\" (\"the Prince of laughter\"), is commonly referred to as the most popular Italian comedian of all time. He was a film and stage actor as well as a writer, singer and songwriter. He is best known for his funny and sometimes cynical character as a comedian in theatre and then in many successful films shot from the 1940s to the 1960s, all regularly still on TV, but he also worked with many iconic Italian film directors in dramatic/poetic roles.\n",
"The Comedian is a 1957 live television drama written by Rod Serling from a novella by Ernest Lehman, directed by John Frankenheimer, and starring Mickey Rooney, Edmond O'Brien, Mel Tormé and Kim Hunter.\n",
"Stand-up comedy in the United States got its start from the stump-speech monologues of minstrel shows in the early 19th century. It also has roots in various traditions of popular entertainment of the late 19th century, including vaudeville, English music hall, burlesque or early variety shows, humorist monologues by personalities such as Mark Twain, and circus clown antics. With the turn of the century and ubiquitousness of urban and industrial living, the structure, pacing and timing, and material of American humor began to change. Comedians of this era often depended on fast-paced joke delivery, slapstick, outrageous or lewd innuendo, and donned an ethnic persona—African, Scottish, German, Jewish—and built a routine based on popular stereotypes. Jokes were generally broad and material was widely shared, or in some cases, stolen. Industrialized American audiences sought entertainment as a way to escape and confront city living.\n",
"In early 19th century England, pantomime acquired its present form which includes slapstick comedy and featured the first mainstream clown Joseph Grimaldi, while comedy routines also featured heavily in British music hall theatre which became popular in the 1850s. British comedians who honed their skills at pantomime and music hall sketches include Charlie Chaplin, Stan Laurel, George Formby and Dan Leno. The influential English music hall comedian and theatre impresario Fred Karno developed a form of sketch comedy without dialogue in the 1890s, and Chaplin and Laurel were among the young comedians who worked for him as part of \"Fred Karno's Army\".\n"
] |
What would happen to a person if they slept ~24 hours each day? | I think they already invented it: [coma](_URL_0_) | [
"Randy Gardner holds the scientifically documented record for the longest period of time a human being has intentionally gone without sleep not using stimulants of any kind. Gardner stayed awake for 264 hours (11 days), breaking the previous record of 260 hours held by Tom Rounds of Honolulu. LCDR John J. Ross of the U.S. Navy Medical Neuropsychiatric Research Unit later published an account of this event, which became well-known among sleep-deprivation researchers.\n",
"The total time asleep per 24 hours is normal for the person's age. The disorder is serious—an invisible disability. It can create social, familial, and work problems, making it hard for a person to maintain relationships and responsibilities, and may make a person home-bound and isolated.\n",
"In his 1992 study \"In short photoperiods, human sleep is biphasic\", Thomas Wehr had eight healthy men confined to a room for fourteen hours of darkness daily for a month. At first the participants slept for about eleven hours, presumably making up for their sleep debt. After this the subjects began to sleep much as people in pre-industrial times were claimed to have done. They would sleep for about four hours, wake up for two to three hours, then go back to bed for another four hours. They also took about two hours to fall asleep.\n",
"A survey of 1.1 million residents in the United States found that those that reported sleeping about 7 hours per night had the lowest rates of mortality, whereas those that slept for fewer than 6 hours or more than 8 hours had higher mortality rates. Getting 8.5 or more hours of sleep per night was associated with a 15% higher mortality rate. Severe insomnia – sleeping less than 3.5 hours in women and 4.5 hours in men – is associated with a 15% increase in mortality.\n",
"Sleep hollow is a possible medical disease in humans causing them to sleep for days or weeks at a time. This disease has only been reported in a remote village of Kalachi in Kazakhstan. It was first reported in March, 2013 and to date it has claimed 152 lives. The disease is probably non-communicable. The disease disappeared for some time but has re-emerged in mid 2015. The disease affects all age groups.\n",
"Affected people often report that while they do not get to sleep until the early morning, they do fall asleep around the same time every day. Unless they have another sleep disorder such as sleep apnea in addition to DSPD, patients can sleep well and have a normal need for sleep. However, they find it very difficult to wake up in time for a typical school or work day. If they are allowed to follow their own schedules, e.g. sleeping from 4:00 am to 1:00 pm, their sleep is improved and they may not experience excessive daytime sleepiness. Attempting to force oneself onto daytime society's schedule with DSPD has been compared to constantly living with jet lag; DSPD has, in fact, been referred to as \"social jet lag\".\n",
"The amount of sleep has an impact on mortality. People who live the longest report sleeping for six to seven hours each night. Lack of sleep (<5 hours) more than doubles the risk of death from cardiovascular disease, but too much sleep (9 hours) is associated with a doubling of the risk of death, though not primarily from cardiovascular disease. Sleeping more than 7 to 8 hours per day has been consistently associated with increased mortality, though the cause is probably other factors such as depression and socioeconomic status, which would correlate statistically. Sleep monitoring of hunter-gatherer tribes from Africa and from South America has shown similar sleep patterns across continents: their average sleeping duration is 6.4 hours (with a summer/winter difference of 1 hour), afternoon naps (siestas) are uncommon, and insomnia is very rare (tenfold less than in industrial societies).\n"
] |
Has an American ever been arrested/tried for War Crimes or Crimes Against Humanity? | Apologies to the moderators, as I'm reasonably certain that I am breaking the 20 year rule here. Depends on how you count it. The *acts* described took place in the mid-90's up until 2003. The trial was in 2006-08, with the appeal continuing to 2010 and post-conviction proceedings well into 2012.
***
Charles Taylor was the President of Liberia from 1997-2003. Before that he ran a rebel group that fought for decades in Liberia. But he's not really the star of the story here. In 1977, while attending college at Bentley University in Boston, he fathered a son, colloquially known as "Chuckie Taylor." Born as Charles McArthur Emmanuel, and changed his name legally to Roy Belfast, Jr. I mention this because he is an American citizen by birth.
In 2008, he was convicted of the crime of "torture" under United States laws (18 USC § 2340A) among other crimes, and sentenced to 97 years in prison. The substance of his conviction was running the Anti-Terrorist Unit or ATU of the Liberian state security apparatus, which ran several prison and forced labor camps, as well as, to put it lightly, death camps in which people were tortured, questioned, and publicly executed.
My sources come from the publicly available documents and pleadings, which can be found at *United States v. Belfast*, 06-cr-20758 (S.D. Fla. 2006). There is also the publicly available appeals court decision here: [*United States v. Belfast*, 611 F.3d 783 (11th Cir. 2010)](_URL_0_), which begins with the rather memorable recitation of facts: "The facts of this case are riddled with extraordinary cruelty and evil." | [
"He was one of arguably only two Canadians in history to have faced prosecution for war crimes (the second being Omar Khadr, who in 2010 pleaded guilty to what the Guantanamo military commission termed war crimes committed in Afghanistan, though that conviction is under appeal).\n",
"After the war, survivors Glenn McDole and Doug Bogue helped the US War Crimes Branch identify former guards and officers detained in Sugamo Prison, and interrogated in Tokyo's Dai-Ichi Building. Of the 33 charged with war crimes, 16 were put on trial, and 6 were acquitted. Those found guilty on 8 November 1948, included Lt. Gen. Seiichi Terada, sentenced to a life term, Master Sergeant Taichi Deguchi, sentenced to be hanged but later commuted to a 30-year sentence by Gen. Douglas MacArthur, Superior Private Tomisaburo Sawa, sentence to 5 years, head cook Manichi Nishitani, sentenced to 5 years, Lt. Gen. Kizo Mikama, sentenced to 12 years, Lt. Col. Mamoru Fushimi, sentenced to 10 years, while the remaining four were sentenced to 2–5 years. However, in 1958, all were freed under a general amnesty for all Japanese war crimes prisoners.\n",
"These three Native American leaders were the first to be tried, for raids (Warren Wagon Train Raid) and murder, in a United States civil court instead of a military court. This would deny them any vestige of rights as prisoners of war by being tried as any common criminal in the Court of the Thirteenth Judicial District of Texas in Jacksboro, Texas near Fort Richardson.\n",
"After weeks of investigation, Jaworski decided to charge 43 soldiers with rioting; all the suspects were African American and charged with a crime with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. Three of the men – Luther Larkin (1921–1948), Arthur Hurks (1921–1991) and William Jones (1924–1992) – were also charged with first-degree murder. They faced a possible death sentence. This was the largest number of defendants in a single United States Army trial during World War II.\n",
"By the middle of 1984, forty cases had been filed by OSI against alleged war criminals then living in America. Through following years, OSI successfully prosecuted over 130 other cases involving persons complicit in Nazi war crimes but later living quietly in America. Three such cases seeking expulsion reached the Supreme Court. Most cases involved camp guards who had beaten or executed prisoners or had led them to places of execution. Juozas Kungys, for example, was prosecuted because OSI determined he had \"rounded up and transported thousands of Jews to an execution site, distributed firearms and ammunition to an execution squad, forced the victims into a mass grave, shot some of them, and exhorted the execution squad to do the same.\n",
"During the patriotic fervor of World War I and the First Red Scare, the Espionage Act of 1917 imposed a maximum sentence of twenty years for anyone who caused or attempted to cause \"insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny, or refusal of duty in the military or naval forces of the United States\". Specifically, the Espionage Act of 1917 states that if anyone allows any enemies to enter or fly over the United States and obtain information from a place connected with the national defense, they will be punished. Hundreds of prosecutions followed. In 1919, the Supreme Court heard four appeals resulting from these cases: \"Schenck v. United States\", \"Debs v. United States\", \"Frohwerk v. United States\", and \"Abrams v. United States\".\n",
"Later that day, German law enforcement took into custody two US Army soldiers and were seeking a third for questioning. Investigators eventually questioned as many as 20 persons, both American and German nationals, for information about the crime spree. Private First Class Zachary Watson and Specialist Samuel Bell were arrested by German authorities in connection to the crimes which totalled more than €1.5 million in damage. The soldiers were handed over to US officials. Watson was sentenced to 15 years in prison at court-martial. In a separate court-martial proceeding, Bell was sentenced to seven years in prison, dishonourable discharge, demotion to private and forfeiture of all pay and allowances.\n"
] |
what would happen if a country launched a nuclear missile on the us? | The Emergency Alert System (EAS) would be activated over radio & TV informing people to seek shelter.
Depending on the launch, it may even be destroyed as soon as it went up. The US invests heavily in Ballistic Missile Defense, using a network of satellites, land- and [sea- based radar](_URL_1_) and [AEGIS-equipped ships](_URL_0_). The best time to take out a nuke is on the way up, before the missile's independent warheads split off, so you're only shooting at the one target. More than likely, that country would have at least one warhead screaming down on it very shortly.
If they don't get it, they'll have a pretty good idea of where it will be headed because they'll be tracking the shit out of it. Even then, they don't have until it reaches the ground because airbursts cause greater damage. | [
"If the United States launched a nuclear attack against Russia (or China), the targeted country would be left with only a tiny surviving arsenal, if any at all. At that point, even a relatively modest or inefficient missile defense system might well be enough to protect against any retaliatory strikes.\n",
"BULLET::::- A group of 15 American Jupiter missiles, with nuclear warheads, became operational at the Izmir U.S. Air Force Base at Çiğli, within range to strike the Soviet Union 1,000 miles away. The presence of American nuclear missiles in a nation bordering the U.S.S.R. would become an issue during the Cuban Missile Crisis, when Soviet nuclear missiles were brought to Cuba, within striking distance of the United States. The missiles were withdrawn from both Turkey and Cuba following the crisis.\n",
"The United States operated a command missile system known as the Emergency Rocket Communications System (ERCS). In the event of a nuclear first strike against the continental United States, centrally located LGM-30 Minuteman missiles would be launched, each of which carried a payload that would electronically trigger a nuclear retaliation.\n",
"After a nuclear strike the US would adopt a kind of hostage mentality. The assumption would be that there would be more than one device. A rogue nation or terrorist group could make demands and if the US did not comply they would begin detonating nuclear devices in other cities. The US Government would not know for certain if such devices existed or where they are located.\n",
"Keeping weapons systems at a prompt-launch status allows a nation-state to launch on warning, thereby increasing the likelihood it could successfully retaliate against an attack, or initiate a nuclear first strike without alerting an enemy. Even for states that have proscribed launch on warning or first strike, prompt launch may help guarantee that nuclear-armed missiles which themselves have survived a first strike could actually be fired in a timely manner before being destroyed in follow-on, \"mop-up\" attacks.\n",
"BULLET::::- The U.S. had another failure in its Operation Dominic series of nuclear tests, when a Thor missile exploded on the launch pad at Johnston Island. Although the 100 kiloton warhead was destroyed without a nuclear blast, the area was contaminated with plutonium, ending plans to routinely launch nuclear powered space probes.\n",
"The latest round of missile launches were timed for the United States' Independence Day as a show of military might and came on the heels of UNSC Resolution 1874. Sanctions and penalties were declared in the wake of the May 25 underground test of a nuclear explosive device by Pyongyang, and what the DPRK insist was an attempt to peacefully place a satellite in orbit but what the United States, Japan and South Korea see as cover for the development of a long-range ballistic missile.\n"
] |
the system for numbering interstate highways. | Primary routes have two digits. Odd numbered highways run north and south, with lower numbers in the west and higher numbers in the east. Even numbered routes go east-west, with the lower numbers in the south and higher numbers in the north.
Three digit routes starting with an even number are loops within or around a city. Three digit routes with an odd number are spurs into a city. For such three digit routes, the last two digits indicate the primary route they are based on. | [
"There are 70 primary Interstate Highways in the Interstate Highway System, a network of controlled-access freeways in the United States. They are assigned one- or two-digit route numbers, whereas their associated \"auxiliary\" Interstate Highways receive three-digit route numbers. Typically, odd-numbered Interstates run south-north, with lower numbers in the west and higher numbers in the east; even-numbered Interstates run west-east, with lower numbers in the south and higher numbers in the north. Highways whose route numbers are divisible by \"5\" usually represent major coast-to-coast or border-to-border routes (ex. I-10 travels from Santa Monica, California, to Jacksonville, Florida, traveling from the Pacific to Atlantic oceans). Additionally, auxiliary highways have their numbering system where a different number prefixes the number of its parent highway.\n",
"The numbering scheme for the Interstate Highway System was developed in 1957 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). The association's present numbering policy dates back to August 10, 1973. Within the continental United States, primary Interstates—also called main line Interstates or two-digit Interstates—are assigned numbers less than 100.\n",
"The Interstate Highway System, indicated by a red and blue shield with white numbers, is a system of entirely freeways (unlike the U.S. Highway System, which is mostly undivided surface roads). The Interstate System is also based on a grid, with east–west routes bearing even numbers and north–south routes bearing odd numbers. In order to prevent confusion with the earlier U.S. Highway System, however, the Interstates are numbered in the opposite direction, such that the lowest routes numbers are in the south and west, and the highest numbers in the north and east. Major routes end in either a \"0\" or a \"5\"; for example Interstate 10 spans the country from Jacksonville, Florida, to Santa Monica, California, while Interstate 35 goes from the Mexican border to the Great Lakes. Like with U.S. Highways, subsidiary routes are numbered by adding a hundreds digit to the parent route. Because of the large number of these routes, three-digit numbers may be repeated within the system, but unique to each state. Additionally, the parity of the hundreds digit tells the nature of the spur route: odd hundreds digits like Interstate 393 only connect to the system at one end (forming \"spurs\"), while an even hundreds digit like Interstate 440 indicates that the highway connects to another Interstate at both ends (forming loops).\n",
"The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these highways were coordinated among the states, they are sometimes called Federal Highways, but the roadways were built and have always been maintained by state or local governments since their initial designation in 1926.\n",
"The U.S. Highway System, indicated by a white shield with black numbers, is based on a numbering grid, with odd routes running generally north–south and even routes running east–west. Primary routes have a one- or two-digit number, and are supplemented by spur routes that add a hundreds digit to their parent route. Routes increase from east-to-west and north-to-south, such that U.S. Route 1 follows the Atlantic Seaboard fall line, while U.S. Route 101 does the same at the Pacific Ocean Coast. Likewise U.S. Route 2 runs near the Canadian border, while U.S. Route 98 follows the Gulf Coast. Major cross-country routes end in either a \"1\" or a \"0\". For example, U.S. Route 20 is a route that runs over from Boston, Massachusetts, to Newport, Oregon, while U.S. Route 41 spans the country from Miami, Florida, to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Routes like U.S. Route 141 and U.S. Route 441 branch off U.S. Route 41. The now defunct U.S. Route 66, known as the \"Mother Road\", was a cultural touchstone that inspired literature, songs, and other media.\n",
"While numerous exceptions do exist, there is a general scheme for numbering Interstates. Primary Interstates are assigned one- or two-digit numbers, while shorter routes (such as spurs, loops, and short connecting roads) are assigned three-digit numbers where the last two digits match the parent route (thus, I-294 is a loop that connects at both ends to I-94, while I-787 is a short spur route attached to I-87). In the numbering scheme for the primary routes, east–west highways are assigned even numbers and north–south highways are assigned odd numbers. Odd route numbers increase from west to east, and even-numbered routes increase from south to north (to avoid confusion with the U.S. Highways, which increase from east to west and north to south). This numbering system usually holds true even if the local direction of the route does not match the compass directions. Numbers divisible by five are intended to be major arteries among the primary routes, carrying traffic long distances. Primary north–south Interstates increase in number from I-5 between Canada and Mexico along the West Coast to I‑95 between Canada and Miami, Florida along the East Coast. Major west–east arterial Interstates increase in number from I-10 between Santa Monica, California, and Jacksonville, Florida, to I-90 between Seattle, Washington, and Boston, Massachusetts, with two exceptions. There are no I-50 and I-60, as routes with those numbers would likely pass through states that currently have U.S. Highways with the same numbers, which is generally disallowed under highway administration guidelines.\n",
"The proposed numbering of the highway does not fit within the usual conventions of the existing Interstate Highway grid, where primary north-south highways are assigned odd numbers, and such odd route numbers increase from west to east. Under the normal Interstate Highway grid, I-3 should instead be located on the West Coast between the Pacific Ocean and I-5.\n"
] |
if jehovah's witnesses believe there are such a limited amount of seats reserved in heaven, why do they push so hard to get more converts? | Because they believe converting people will get them into heaven. Really, it is just a pyramid scheme. | [
"Despite this position by Islamic religious leaders, Muslims are oftentimes uncertain about whether or not Islamic tradition considers organ donation to be forbidden. This uncertainty stems from ambiguity caused by conflicting opinions among some Islamic leaders regarding this issue. Moreover, a lack of support along with a generally negative attitude toward organ donation and transplantation has been reflected in surveys of diverse Islamic populations. This overall negativity towards organ donation has resulted in low rates of participation in organ donation by practicing Muslims even in cases where donation would be considered permissible by religious leaders.\n",
"Many non-traditional denominations frequently complained that they were unable to obtain venues for worship. Because they are small and often newly established, they often lacked the necessary resources to buy or rent facilities on the open market and must rely on government assistance. Because they are nontraditional, they frequently met opposition from the traditional communities and often were unable to find government officials who were willing to assist them in renting state-owned property. There were multiple reports of religious organizations who were not allowed to renew leases on public and private buildings. Increased competition for space in a growing economy and increasing real estate prices led many owners (public and private) to lease property to higher-paying clients, and in some cases, religious groups were refused outright at any price.\n",
"All major religions accept organ donation in at least some form on either utilitarian grounds (\"i.e.\", because of its life-saving capabilities) or deontological grounds (\"e.g.\", the right of an individual believer to make his or her own decision). Most religions, among them the Roman Catholic Church, support organ donation on the grounds that it constitutes an act of charity and provides a means of saving a life. One religious group, The Jesus Christians, became known as \"The Kidney Cult\" because more than half its members had donated their kidneys altruistically. Jesus Christians claim altruistic kidney donation is a great way to \"Do unto others what they would want you to do unto them.\" Some religions impose certain restrictions on the types of organs that may be donated and/or on the means by which organs may be harvested and/or transplanted. For example, Jehovah's Witnesses require that organs be drained of any blood due to their interpretation of the Hebrew Bible/Christian Old Testament as prohibiting blood transfusion, and Muslims require that the donor have provided written consent in advance. A few groups disfavor organ transplantation or donation; notably, these include Shinto and those who follow the customs of the Gypsies.\n",
"However, Sarah Mullally, the fourth woman chosen to become a bishop in the Church of England, insisted in June 2015 that declining numbers at services should not necessarily be a cause of despair for churches because people will still \"encounter God\" without ever taking their place in a pew, saying that people might hear the Christian message through social media sites such as Facebook or in a café run as a community project. Additionally, the church's own statistics reveal that 9.7 million people visit at least one of its churches every year and 1 million students are educated at Church of England schools (which number 4,700).\n",
"The church attendance eventually grew to the point that six worship services plus a youth service were not enough to accommodate the people or meet their needs. With a sanctuary capacity of 7,000, over 8,000 active members attempted to fill the church each week. While everybody was welcomed, the church was required to comply with legal Fire Marshall codes. Unfortunately, hundreds of people each week were turned away, due to lack of parking or seating space in the sanctuary and overflow rooms provided with televised feed.\n",
"A prayer space for people of all religions was announced on April 18, 1949. Until then, the UN had avoided the subject of a prayer room, because it had been difficult, if not impossible, to create a prayer room that could accommodate the various religions. Two days after this announcement, workers erected the first steel beam for the Secretariat Building, to little official fanfare. The consortium working on the Secretariat Building announced that 13,000 tons of steel would eventually be used in the building, and that the steelwork would consist of a strong wind bracing system because the structure was so narrow. The flag of the United Nations was raised above the first beam as a demonstration for the many spectators who witnessed the first beam's erection. The Secretariat Building was to be completed no later than January 1, 1951, and if the consortium of Fuller, Turner, Slattery, and Walsh exceeded that deadline, they had to pay a minimum penalty of $2,500 per day to the UN. To reduce construction costs, the complex's planners downsized the Secretariat Building from 42 stories to 39 stories.\n",
"Jehovah's Witnesses believe that heaven is the dwelling place of Jehovah and his spirit creatures. They believe that only 144,000 chosen faithful followers (\"The Anointed\") will be resurrected to heaven to rule with Christ over the majority of mankind who will live on Earth.\n"
] |
Is it possible that Hernán Cortés wrote The Conquest of New Spain? | The authorship of the *La Historia Verdadera* is something that has been debated a bit more than the author of this article lets on, although I don't know of any other scholar off the top of my head that has made the assertion that Cortes himself wrote the piece. Historians have pointed to the fact that there is very little record of Bernal Diaz having participated in the Conquest beyond the text - which is unusual give the centrality he often grants himself in events. Large portions of the text have also been clearly borrowed from Gomara's version of Cortes' campaign.
There are, however, a number of factors which made a dismissal of the work's authenticity difficult. While the work is often fantastical, this was not out of the ordinary for medieval works - particularly pieces like this which were intended to be petitions to the Spanish Crown for financial support. Bernal Diaz, if he was the author, was writing during a period when the Conquest was coming under heavy scrutiny in Spain. Given is advanced age, financial troubles, and this large political context many Historians do not find the incongruities of the work wholly surprising.
I cannot comment on the accuracy of Durverger's work given that I have not read it but I will say that many elements of *La Historia Verdadera* would not serve Cortes' interests very well. The author was often very critical of Cortes' leadership and intents as well as the overall Conquest. Many of Cortes' fabrications are best exposed by contrasting his *Cartas de Relación* with *La Historia Verdadera*. I personally do not believe Cortes to be the author but I would not say that such an idea is an impossibility. | [
"The author of the document is unknown, and is referred to as a Companion of Hernán Cortés (or simply \"The Anonymous Conqueror\" or \"Gentleman of Cortés\"). The account, firstly published in Italian in 1556 by Giovan Battista Ramuso as part of his work \"Delle Navigationi et Viaggi\", has been translated to English in Patricia de Fuente's 1993 University of Oklahoma Press publication, \"The Conquistadors: First-person Accounts of the Conquest of Mexico.\"\n",
"In the sources recorded by Franciscan Bernardino de Sahagún and Dominican Diego Durán in the mid to late sixteenth century, there are accounts of events that were interpreted as supernatural omens of the conquest. These two accounts are full-blown narratives from the viewpoint of the Spanish opponents. Most first-hand accounts about the conquest of the Aztec Empire were written by Spaniards: Hernán Cortés' letters to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and the first-person narrative of Bernal Díaz del Castillo, \"The True History of the Conquest of New Spain\". The primary sources from the native people affected as a result of the conquest are seldom used, because they tend to reflect the views of a particular native group, such as the Tlaxcalans. Indigenous accounts were written in pictographs as early as 1525. Later accounts were written in the native tongue of the Aztec and other native peoples of central Mexico, Nahuatl.\n",
"Late in his long life, in his early 80s, his fellow Dominicans urged him to write an account of the Aztec conquest drawing from his experiences. This account, known as \"Relación breve de la conquista de la Nueva España\" (\"Brief Record [Account] of the Conquest of New Spain\"), went unpublished in his lifetime, however a manuscript copy of it was preserved at the royal library of El Escorial outside of Madrid, Spain. It was first published in 1900 by the Mexican historian and archivist, Francisco del Paso y Troncoso. A modern English translation of Aguilar's chronicle is published in \"The Conquistadors: First-Person Accounts of the Conquest of Mexico,\"\n",
"Since the sixteenth century, it has been widely held that the Aztec Emperor Moctezuma II initially believed the landing of Hernán Cortés in 1519 to be Quetzalcoatl's return. This view has been questioned by ethno-historians who argue that the Quetzalcoatl-Cortés connection is not found in any document that was created independently of post-Conquest Spanish influence, and that there is little proof of a pre-Hispanic belief in Quetzalcoatl's return. Most documents expounding this theory are of entirely Spanish origin, such as Cortés's letters to Charles V of Spain, in which Cortés goes to great pains to present the naive gullibility of the Aztecs in general as a great aid in his conquest of Mexico.\n",
"In Fray Bernardino de Sahagún's 1585 revision of the conquest narrative first codified as Book XII of the Florentine Codex, there are laudatory references to Cortés that do not appear in the earlier text from the indigenous perspective. Whereas Book XII of the Florentine Codex concludes with an account of Spaniards' search for gold, in Sahagún's 1585 revised account, he ends with praise of Cortés for requesting the Franciscans be sent to Mexico to convert the Indians.\n",
"The first Spanish account of the conquest was written by lead conqueror Hernán Cortés, who sent a series of letters to the Spanish monarch Charles V, giving a contemporary account of the conquest from his point of view, in which he justified his actions. These were almost immediately published in Spain and later in other parts of Europe. Much later, Spanish conqueror Bernal Díaz del Castillo, a well-seasoned participant in the conquest of Central Mexico, wrote what he called \"The True History of the Conquest of New Spain\", countering the account by Cortés's official biographer, Francisco López de Gómara. Bernal Díaz's account had begun as a \"benemérito\" petition for rewards but he expanded it to encompass a full history of his earlier expeditions in the Caribbean and Tierra Firme and the conquest of the Aztec. A number of lower rank Spanish conquerors wrote \"benemérito\" petitions to the Spanish Crown, requesting rewards for their services in the conquest, including Juan Díaz, Andrés de Tapia, García del Pilar, and Fray Francisco de Aguilar. Cortés's right-hand man, Pedro de Alvarado did not write at any length about his actions in the New World, and died as a man of action in the Mixtón War in 1542. Two letters to Cortés about Alvarado's campaigns in Guatemala are published in \"The Conquistadors\".\n",
"In the second volume the reader is introduced to the \"conquistador\" Hernán Cortés (Ferdinand Kortes) and his exploration and conquest of Mexico. The explorations of the Central American mainland are followed by encounters with Native tribes, some of which become Cortés’ allies in his later conquest of the Aztec empire. After the death of the Aztec emperor Montezuma and the takeover of the empire's capital Tenochtitlan, the narrative gives a summary of the following subjugation of the rest of Mexico and of Cortés’ troubles with people envious of him.\n"
] |
Why did no outside force intervene in the Soviet invasions of Czechoslovakia in 1968 or Hungary in 1956? | Same reason no one interfered with US invasion of Dominican Republic. It was our sphere of influence. Just like Eastern Europe was USSR's. No one was willing to risk global war. During the Cold War it was the countries more distant (Vietnam, Angola, etc) that were really up for grabs and fought over. The Truman Doctrine basically stated this. We wouldn't try to rollback Communism in Eastern Europe, but we would fight to prevent it in the 3rd World. | [
"In 1968, the Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact allies invaded Czechoslovakia to halt the Prague Spring reforms. In the aftermath, Brezhnev justified the invasion along with the earlier invasions of Eastern European states by introducing the Brezhnev Doctrine, which claimed the right of the Soviet Union to violate the sovereignty of any country that attempted to replace Marxism–Leninism with capitalism.\n",
"After World War II, when Communist Party of Czechoslovakia took over the control of the country through a Soviet-backed 1948 Czechoslovak coup d'état, Czechoslovakia became part of the Eastern Bloc through Warsaw Pact with Soviet Union and eastern and central European socialist countries. On August 21, 1968 following the Prague Spring pro-democracy reforms of the Czech government, the Soviet-led invasion re-established the Communist regime by force. 108 Czechs and Slovaks died and approximately 500 were wounded as a direct result of the invasion. The invasion stopped the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from making democratic and liberal reforms, and politicians loyal to Moscow gained control again. This damaged relations between the two countries.\n",
"In August 1968, the Soviet Union invaded Czechoslovakia to crush the liberalising reforms of Alexander Dubček's government during what was known as the Prague Spring. Prague-born Palach decided to sacrifice himself in protest of the invasion and set himself on fire, in Wenceslas Square, on 16 January 1969. According to a letter he sent to several public figures, an entire clandestine resistance organization had been established with the purpose of practicing self-immolation until their demands were met; however, it seems that such a group never existed. The demands declared in the letter were the abolition of censorship and a halt to the distribution of \"Zprávy\", the official newspaper of the Soviet occupying forces. In addition, the letter called for the Czech and the Slovak peoples to go on a general strike in support of these demands. An earlier draft of the letter that Palach wrote also called for the resignation of a number of pro-Soviet politicians, but that demand did not make it into the final version, which included the remark that \"our demands are not extreme, on the contrary\". Palach died from his burns several days after his act, at the hospital. On his deathbed, he was visited by a female acquaintance from his college and by a student leader, to whom he had addressed one of the copies of his letter. It was reported that he had pleaded for others not to do what he had done but instead to continue the struggle by other means, although it has been doubted whether he really said that.\n",
"The country was invaded by the Warsaw Pact forces (People’s Republic of Bulgaria, People’s Republic of Hungary, People’s Republic of Poland, Socialist Republic of Romania, and Soviet Union, with the exception of Socialist Republic of Romania and People's Socialist Republic of Albania) in 1968, ending a period of liberalisation under the leadership of Alexander Dubček. 137 Czechoslovakian civilians were killed and 500 seriously wounded during the occupation. In 1969 Czechoslovakia became a federation of the Czech Socialist Republic and the Slovak Socialist Republic. Czechoslovakia became a puppet state of the Soviet Union. Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was never part of the Soviet Union and remained independent to a degree.\n",
"The Soviet Union made substantial use of deception while preparing for their military intervention of Czechoslovakia in 1968. The historian Mark Lloyd called the effect on the Prague Spring \"devastating\". When the Kremlin had failed to reverse the Czechoslovak leader Alexander Dubcek's liberal reforms with threats, it decided to use force, masked by deception. The measures taken included transferring fuel and ammunition out of Czechoslovakia on a supposed logistics exercise; and confining most of their soldiers to barracks across the northern Warsaw Pact area. The Czechoslovak authorities thus did not suspect anything when two Aeroflot airliners made unscheduled landings at night, full of \"fit young men\". The men cleared customs and travelled to the Soviet Embassy in the centre of Prague. There they picked up weapons and returned to the airport, taking over the main buildings. They at once allowed further aircraft to land uniformed Spetsnaz and airborne troops, who took over key buildings across Prague before dawn. Reinforcements were then brought in by road, in complete radio silence, leaving NATO Electronic Warfare units \"confused and frustrated\".\n",
"The Dubček regime took no steps to forestall a potential invasion, despite ominous troop movements by the Warsaw Pact. The Czechoslovak leadership believed that the Soviet Union and its allies would not invade, having believed that the summit at Čierna nad Tisou had smoothed out the differences between the two sides. They also believed that any invasion would be too costly, both because of domestic support for the reforms and because the international political outcry would be too significant, especially with the World Communist Conference coming up in November of that year. Czechoslovakia could have raised the costs of such an invasion by drumming up international support or making military preparations such as blocking roads and ramping up security of their airports, but they decided not to, paving the way for the invasion.\n",
"The Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 was a pivotal event in Czechoslovakia's political development. The August intervention by forces from the Soviet Union, the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), Poland, Bulgaria, and Hungary marked the beginning of the end of the Prague Spring and the reformist policies introduced by the Alexander Dubček regime. It also set the stage for the reemergence in Czechoslovakia of a pro-Soviet regime and a politically orthodox environment under the leadership of Gustáv Husák and Miloš Jakeš, which lasted until 1989, even during perestroika in the Soviet Union.\n"
] |
how did diabetics check their blood sugars before personal glucometers? | Glucose monitors have been around for over 35 years. They were just bigger and slower.
Before then it was controlled through highly restrictive diets and insulin and oral medicines and everyone kinda hoped for the best. Bloodwork was limited to labs and hospitals. | [
"A history of blood sugar level results is especially useful for the diabetic to present to their doctor or physician in the monitoring and control of the disease. Failure to maintain a strict regimen of testing can accelerate symptoms of the condition, and it is therefore imperative that any diabetic patient strictly monitor their glucose levels regularly.\n",
"The test was based on the previous work in 1913 by A. T. B. Jacobson in determining that carbohydrate ingestion results in blood glucose fluctuations, and the premise (named the Staub-Traugott Phenomenon after its first observers H. Staub in 1921 and K. Traugott in 1922) that a normal patient fed glucose will rapidly return to normal levels of blood glucose after an initial spike, and will see improved reaction to subsequent glucose feedings.\n",
"Glucose-elevating agents are medications used to treat hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) by raising blood glucose. In diabetics, hypoglycemia can occur as a result of too much insulin or antidiabetic medication, insufficient food intake, or sudden increase in physical activity or exercise. The most common glucose-elevating agents used to treat diabetic hypoglycemia are glucose (in the form of tablets or liquid) and glucagon injections when severe hypoglycemia occurs. Diazoxide, which is used to counter hypoglycemia in disease states such insulinoma (a tumor producing insulin) or congenital hyperinsulinism, increases blood glucose and decreases insulin secretion and glucagon accelerates breakdown of glycogen in the liver (glycogenolysis) to release glucose into the bloodstream.\n",
"A postprandial glucose test is a blood glucose test that determines the amount of a type of sugar, called glucose, in the blood after a meal. Glucose is mainly made from carbohydrate foods. It is the main source of energy used by the body.\n",
"The market introduction of noninvasive blood glucose measurement by spectroscopic measurement methods, in the field of near-infrared (NIR), by extracorporal measuring devices, has not been successful because the devices measure tissue sugar in body tissues and not the blood sugar in blood fluid. To determine blood glucose, the measuring beam of infrared light, for example, has to penetrate the tissue for measurement of blood glucose.\n",
"Wollaston's attempt to demonstrate the presence of glucose in the blood serum of diabetics was unsuccessful due to the limited means of detection available to him. His 1811 paper \"On the non-existence of sugar in the blood of persons labouring under diabetes mellitus\" concluded that sugar must travel via lymphatic channels from the stomach directly to the kidneys, without entering the bloodstream. Wollaston supported this theory by referring to the thesis of a young medical student at Edinburgh, Charles Darwin (1758–1778), \"Experiments establishing a criterion between mucaginous and purulent matter. And an account of the retrograde motions of the absorbent vessels of animal bodies in some diseases.\" This Charles Darwin was the eldest son of Erasmus Darwin and not his more famous nephew, Charles Robert Darwin.\n",
"A. T. B. Jacobson determined in 1913 that carbohydrate ingestion results in blood glucose fluctuations. Hamman and Hirschman first reported improvement of carbohydrate tolerance following repeated glucose administration in 1919. H. Staub in 1921 and K. Traugott in 1922 subsequently confirmed the improved reaction in healthy subjects and the phenomenon was named for them. As this effect does not occur in diabetic subjects, it became the basis for the Glucose Tolerance Test.\n"
] |
How does our skin know when it’s time to produce more melanin? | I believe it does so in response to cellular damage caused by UV light—hence why tanning beds cause you to get darker. If the cell notices an increase in UV damage, it creates more melanin.
Not a very scientific answer as I don’t know the exact mechanism, but I hope that helps a little! | [
"Both the amount and type of melanin produced is controlled by a number of genes that operate under incomplete dominance. One copy of each of the various genes is inherited from each parent. Each gene can come in several alleles, resulting in the great variety of human skin tones. Melanin controls the amount of ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun that penetrates the skin by absorption. While UV radiation can assist in the production of vitamin D, excessive exposure to UV can damage health.\n",
"Melanin itself is the product of a specialized cell, the melanocyte, which is found in each hair follicle, from which the hair grows. As hair grows, the melanocyte injects melanin into the hair cells, which contain the protein keratin and which makes up our hair, skin, and nails. As long as the melanocytes continue injecting melanin into the hair cells, the hair retains its original color. At a certain age, however, which varies from person to person, the amount of melanin injected is reduced and eventually stops. The hair, without pigment, turns grey and eventually white. The reason for this decline of production of melanocytes is uncertain. In the February 2005 issue of \"Science\", a team of Harvard scientists suggested that the cause was the failure of the melanocyte stem cells to maintain the production of the essential pigments, due to age or genetic factors, after a certain period of time. For some people, the breakdown comes in their twenties; for others, many years later. According to the site of the magazine \"Scientific American\", \"Generally speaking, among Caucasians 50 percent are 50 percent grey by age 50.\" Adult male gorillas also develop silver hair but only on their backs, see Physical characteristics of gorillas.\n",
"In the second process, triggered primarily by UVB, there is an increase in production of melanin (melanogenesis), which is the body's reaction to direct DNA photodamage (formation of pyrimidine dimers) from UV radiation. Melanogenesis leads to delayed tanning, and typically becomes visible two or three days after exposure. The tan that is created by increased melanogenesis typically lasts for a few weeks or months, much longer than the tan that is caused by oxidation of existing melanin, and is also actually protective against UV skin damage and sunburn, rather than simply cosmetic. Typically, it can provide a modest Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of 3, meaning that tanned skin would tolerate up to 3 times the UV exposure as pale skin. However, in order to cause true melanogenesis-tanning by means of UV exposure, some direct DNA photodamage must first be produced, and this requires UVB exposure (as present in natural sunlight, or sunlamps that produce UVB). \n",
"The genes for making melanin turn on or off over the course a person's lifetime. If this happens in the cells at the bottom of the hair follicles, a change color is likely. Many different factors can turn hair pigment genes on and off. These factors are not even completely understood by scientists. The amounts of mutagens found in Bosco by the Livermore study, reckoned in parts per billion, have been so small that they could be detected only by extremely sensitive techniques. When purified, however, they proved very potent in bacterial tests, and the study on human subjects was discontinued, except for one family who never got the letter because their mail is delivered into a wicker basket on their porch, and the mail sometimes blows away.\n",
"There are two different mechanisms involved. Firstly, the UVA-radiation creates oxidative stress, which in turn oxidizes existing melanin and leads to rapid darkening of the melanin, also known as IPD (immediate pigment darkening). Secondly, there is an increase in production of melanin known as melanogenesis. Melanogenesis leads to delayed tanning and first becomes visible about 72 hours after exposure. The tan that is created by an increased melanogenesis lasts much longer than the one that is caused by oxidation of existing melanin. Tanning involves not just the increased melanin production in response to UV radiation but the thickening of the top layer of the epidermis, the stratum corneum.\n",
"Melanin is the main substance responsible for the color of the skin. Melanin in synthesized in melanosomes which are organelles produced in melanocytes, cells dedicated to this function that are present in the skin, hair follicles, and other structures of the body. The synthesis of melanin, also called \"melanogenesis\" and \"melanization\", involves a chain of enzyme-catalyzed chemical reactions and non-enzyme-catalyzed reactions. The main precursor to melanin is -tyrosine. The first step of melanogenesis is the conversion of -tyrosine to -DOPA; this is the first and rate-limiting step and is catalyzed by the enzyme tyrosinase (TYR). Other enzymes involved in the synthesis include tyrosinase-related protein 1 (TRP1) and tyrosinase-related protein 2 (TRP2), also known as \"dopachrome tautomerase\" (DCT). -tyrosine is taken by the melanocytes from the intercellular medium, then transported to the melanosomes. -tyrosine is also synthesized within the melanocytes from -phenylalanine by the enzyme phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH).\n",
"In humans, melanin is the primary determinant of skin color. It is also found in hair, the pigmented tissue underlying the iris of the eye, and the stria vascularis of the inner ear. In the brain, tissues with melanin include the medulla and pigment-bearing neurons within areas of the brainstem, such as the locus coeruleus and the substantia nigra. It also occurs in the zona reticularis of the adrenal gland.\n"
] |
Would people living in Europe during the Middle Ages have called their time period the Modern Age, or something else? | Medieval authors tended to divide history into six ages, which were mapped to the first six days of Creation in Genesis (and sometimes to the different stages of human life). Although variants existed, the most common schema came out of Augustine who situated the first age as from Adam to the Flood, the second from Noah to Abraham, the third from Abraham to David, the fourth from David to the Babylonian Captivity, the fifth from there to Christ, and the sixth age which began with the Incarnation and would continue until the end of time when Christ's return would inaugurate the seventh and eternal day. Thus, medieval thinkers, were they to speak of living in a historical period, would likely say that they were living in the sixth age of history.
There were other historical periodizations floating around as well, most famously Joachim of Fiore's division of history into three ages, of the Father from Creation to Christ, of the Son from Christ until 1260, and of the Spirit which was sort of eschatological culmination of history prior to the final judgment. As you might imagine, this view was popular in the years leading up to and immediately after 1260, but fell out of favor after Joachim was condemned alongside heretical groups who followed his teachings, and it became obvious that his prophecies weren't accurate. | [
"The European Early Middle Ages are generally taken to run from the end of the Roman Empire, around 400 AD, to around 1000 AD. During this period, Christianity made a significant impact on European culture.\n",
"The history of Europe covers the peoples inhabiting Europe from prehistory to the present. During the Neolithic era and the time of the Indo-European migrations Europe saw human inflows from east and southeast and subsequent important cultural and material exchange. The period known as classical antiquity began with the emergence of the city-states of ancient Greece. Later, the Roman Empire came to dominate the entire Mediterranean basin. The fall of the Roman Empire in AD 476 traditionally marks the start of the Middle Ages. Beginning in the 14th century a Renaissance of knowledge challenged traditional doctrines in science and theology. Simultaneously, the Protestant Reformation set up Protestant churches primarily in Germany, Scandinavia and England. After 1800, the Industrial Revolution brought prosperity to Britain and Western Europe. The main powers set up colonies in most of the Americas and Africa, and parts of Asia. In the 20th century, World War I and World War II resulted in massive numbers of deaths. The Cold War dominated European geo-politics from 1947 to 1989.\n",
"Any period before the European Middle Ages (which dates from around 476 with the collapse of Rome to 1492 with the discovery of the new world), but still within Western civilization-based history, including:\n",
"The Middle Ages witnessed the first sustained urbanization of northern and western Europe. Many modern European states owe their origins to events unfolding in the Middle Ages; present European political boundaries are, in many regards, the result of military and dynastic events during this tumultuous period. The Middle Ages lasted until the beginning of the Early modern period in the 16th century, marked by the rise of nation states, the division of Western Christianity in the Reformation, the rise of humanism in the Italian Renaissance, and the beginnings of European overseas expansion which allowed for the Columbian Exchange.\n",
"Historiography tends to believe that the Middle Ages end in 1453 with the emergence of the printing press in Mainz; thus, beginning the early modern age of Germany, and more broadly the early modern European age.\n",
"In the culture of Europe, several features surfaced soon after 1000 that mark the end of the Early Middle Ages: the rise of the medieval communes, the reawakening of city life, and the appearance of the burgher class, the founding of the first universities, the rediscovery of Roman law, and the beginnings of vernacular literature.\n",
"The \"modern era\" is generally understood to refer to period that coincides with the rise of consumer culture in seventeenth and eighteenth century Europe. As standards of living improved in the 17th century, consumers from a broad range of social backgrounds began to purchase goods that were in excess of basic necessities. An emergent middle class or bourgeosie stimulated demand for luxury goods and the act of shopping came to be seen as a pleasurable pass-time or form of entertainment.\n"
] |
Do objects get hotter as they move? | You may be confusing external, bulk, translational motion with internal, microscopic, random motion. They are independent. In a vacuum, an object's temperature will remain the same no matter how fast it is moving linearly through space. It must according to Relativity. Depending on what reference frame you choose, the object is moving a different speed. If speed were related to temperature, the object would have different temperatures as measured in different reference frames, which makes no sense.
But, bulk linear motion can be converted to internal random motion if the object collides with other objects. For instance, an object traveling through air collides with the air. In the process, some of its forward motion is converted to internal random motion and the object heat up. The faster an object travels and the denser the material it travels through, the harder it collides with the material and the more its loses kinetic energy to heat. As an extreme example, throwing an egg against a brick wall converts all of its kinetic energy into heat. | [
"An object's or space's temperature increases when heat energy moves into it, increasing the average kinetic energy of its atoms, e.g., of things and air in a room. Heat energy leaving an object or space lowers its temperature. Heat flows from one place to another (always from a higher temperature to a lower one) by one or more of three processes: conduction, convection and radiation. In conduction, energy is passed from one atom to another by direct contact. In convection, heat energy moves by conduction into some movable fluid (such as air or water) and the fluid moves from one place to another, carrying the heat with it. At some point the heat energy in the fluid is usually transferred to some other object by means conduction again. The movement of the fluid can be driven by negative-buoyancy, as when cooler (and therefore denser) air drops and thus upwardly displaces warmer (less-dense) air (natural convection), or by fans or pumps (forced convection). In radiation, the heated atoms make electromagnetic emissions absorbed by remote other atoms, whether nearby or at astronomical distance. For example, the Sun radiates heat as both invisible and visible electromagnetic energy. What we know as \"light\" is but a narrow region of the electromagnetic spectrum.\n",
"An object at a different temperature from its surroundings will ultimately come to a common temperature with its surroundings. A relatively hot object cools as it warms its surroundings; a cool object is warmed by its surroundings. When considering how quickly (or slowly) something cools, we speak of its \"rate\" of cooling - how many degrees' change in temperature per unit of time.\n",
"BULLET::::- Heat is lost more rapidly if the temperature difference between a hot object and its environment is larger. Heat loss is predominantly governed by the thermal gradient between the collector surface and the ambient temperatures. Conduction, convection and radiation all occur more rapidly over large thermal gradients (the delta-\"t\" effect).\n",
"At high speeds through the air, the object's kinetic energy is converted to heat through compression and friction. At lower speed, the object will lose heat to the air through which it is passing, if the air is cooler. The combined temperature effect of heat from the air and from passage through it is called the stagnation temperature; the actual temperature is called the recovery temperature. These viscous dissipative effects to neighboring sub-layers make the boundary layer slow down via a non-isentropic process. Heat then conducts into the surface material from the higher temperature air. The result is an increase in the temperature of the material and a loss of energy from the flow. The forced convection ensures that other material replenishes the gases that have cooled to continue the process.\n",
"According to the laws of thermodynamics, all particles of matter are in constant random motion as long as the temperature is above absolute zero. Thus the molecules and atoms which make up the human body are vibrating, colliding, and moving. This motion can be detected as temperature; higher temperatures, which represent greater kinetic energy in the particles, feel warm to humans who sense the thermal energy transferring from the object being touched to their nerves. Similarly, when lower temperature objects are touched, the senses perceive the transfer of heat away from the body as feeling cold.\n",
"In all cases, the air has to be cooler than the object or surface from which it is expected to remove heat. This is due to the second law of thermodynamics, which states that heat will only move spontaneously from a hot reservoir (the heat sink) to a cold reservoir (the air).\n",
"BULLET::::- Any hot object ultimately returns to thermal equilibrium with its environment, due to heat loss from conduction, convection and radiation. Efficiency (the proportion of heat energy retained for a predefined time period) is directly related to heat loss from the collector surface. Convection and radiation are the most important sources of heat loss. Thermal insulation is used to slow heat loss from a hot object. This follows the Second law of thermodynamics (the 'equilibrium effect').\n"
] |
is there a relative speed maximum, which is equal to 2*speed of light? | Yes, there is a relative speed maximum. It's, paradoxically, *c*.
There exists a [velocity-addition formula](_URL_0_) that is a consequence of the special theory of relativity. You can calculate for yourself how fast the planets would measure each other. For example, if both went at half the speed of light, the other planet would seem to approach at four fifths the speed of light (or 0.8*c*).
As an aside, objects with mass cannot reach the speed of light, since they'd get so dense the energy needed to push them to *c* approaches infinity. | [
"In special relativity, there is an unreachable speed, the speed of light. We can add speeds without end, but they will always be less than the speed of light. The sums of all speeds are limited by the speed of light. Additionally, the composition of two velocities is inferior to the sum of those two speeds.\n",
"BULLET::::- A speed of 1 Planck length per Planck time is the speed of light in a vacuum, the maximum possible physical speed in special relativity; 1 nano-(Planck length per Planck time) is about 1.079 km/h.\n",
"When the relative velocity is zero, formula_33 is simply equal to 1, and the relativistic mass is reduced to the rest mass as one can see in the next two equations below. As the velocity increases toward the speed of light \"c\", the denominator of the right side approaches zero, and consequently formula_33 approaches infinity.\n",
"BULLET::::- October 21 – At the 17th General Conference on Weights and Measures, the metre is defined in terms of the speed of light as the distance light travels in a vacuum in 1/299,792,458 of a second.\n",
"A series of one-way measurements were undertaken, all of them confirming the isotropy of the speed of light. However, only the two-way speed of light (from A to B back to A) can unambiguously be measured, since the one-way speed depends on the definition of simultaneity and therefore on the method of synchronization. The Poincaré-Einstein synchronization convention makes the one-way speed equal to the two-way speed. However, there are many models having isotropic two-way speed of light, in which the one-way speed is anisotropic by choosing different synchronization schemes. They are experimentally equivalent to special relativity because all of these models include effects like time dilation of moving clocks, that compensate any measurable anisotropy. However, of all models having isotropic two-way speed, only special relativity is acceptable for the overwhelming majority of physicists since all other synchronizations are much more complicated, and those other models (such as Lorentz ether theory) are based on extreme and implausible assumptions concerning some dynamical effects, which are aimed at hiding the \"preferred frame\" from observation.\n",
"where the speed of light is set to unity so that formula_69 and formula_70 agree. It this expression, formula_71 and formula_72 are velocities of two objects in any one given frame. The quantity formula_73 is the speed of one or the other object \"relative\" to the other object as seen \"in the given frame\". The expression is Lorentz invariant, i.e. independent of which frame is the given frame, but the quantity it calculates is \"not\". For instance, if the given frame is the rest frame of object one, then formula_74.\n",
"In the case where the velocity is close to the speed of light \"c\" (generally within 95%), another scheme of relative velocity called rapidity, that depends on the ratio of V to c, is used in special relativity.\n"
] |
at what point did the first cells decide that it was okay to eat each other? and why? couldn’t they have kept dividing just as the first living cell did? did they divide to survive or just to eat each other? or both? what mechanism even decided those? | They didn't "decide". That's a conscious motive that you're applying to the simplest organisms.
The simple answer is that you need more stuff to make more cells. Just like building a house, you need to get more lumber, bricks, drywall...etc to build more houses. The easiest way to get the biological molecules an organism needs to make more of itself is to consume them from another organism that already has them. | [
"Some cells divide asymmetrically by budding, for example \"Saccharomyces cerevisiae\", the yeast species used in baking and brewing. This process results in a 'mother' cell and a smaller 'daughter' cell. Cryo-electron tomography recently revealed that mitochondria in cells divide by budding.\n",
"In 1847 Theodore Schwann expanded upon the theory that all living organisms are composed of cells when he added to it that discrete cells are the basis of life. Schwann observed that in certain cells the walls and cavities of the cells coalesce together. It was this observation that provided the first hint that cells fuse.\n",
"Cells emerged at least 3.5 billion years ago. The current belief is that these cells were heterotrophs. The early cell membranes were probably more simple and permeable than modern ones, with only a single fatty acid chain per lipid. Lipids are known to spontaneously form bilayered vesicles in water, and could have preceded RNA, but the first cell membranes could also have been produced by catalytic RNA, or even have required structural proteins before they could form.\n",
"Around this time, the first proto-mitochondrion was formed. A bacterial cell related to today's \"Rickettsia\", which had evolved to metabolize oxygen, entered a larger prokaryotic cell, which lacked that capability. Perhaps the large cell attempted to digest the smaller one but failed (possibly due to the evolution of prey defenses). The smaller cell may have tried to parasitize the larger one. In any case, the smaller cell survived inside the larger cell. Using oxygen, it metabolized the larger cell's waste products and derived more energy. Part of this excess energy was returned to the host. The smaller cell replicated inside the larger one. Soon, a stable symbiosis developed between the large cell and the smaller cells inside it. Over time, the host cell acquired some genes from the smaller cells, and the two kinds became dependent on each other: the larger cell could not survive without the energy produced by the smaller ones, and these, in turn, could not survive without the raw materials provided by the larger cell. The whole cell is now considered a single organism, and the smaller cells are classified as organelles called mitochondria.\n",
" \"The First Cell arose in the previously pre-biotic world with the coming together of several entities that gave a single vesicle the unique chance to carry out three essential and quite different life processes. These were: (a) to copy informational macromolecules, (b) to carry out specific catalytic functions, and (c) to couple energy from the environment into usable chemical forms. These would foster subsequent cellular evolution and metabolism. Each of these three essential processes probably originated and was lost many times prior to The First Cell, but only when these three occurred together was life jump-started and Darwinian evolution of organisms began.\" (Koch and Silver, 2005) \n",
"When cells are ready to divide, because cell size is big enough or because they receive the appropriate stimulus, they activate the mechanism to enter into the cell cycle, and they duplicate most organelles during S (synthesis) phase, including their centrosome. Therefore, when the cell division process will end, each daughter cell will receive a complete set of organelles. At the same time, during S phase all cells must duplicate their DNA very precisely, a process termed DNA replication. Once DNA replication has finished, in eukaryotes the DNA molecule is compacted and condensed, to form the mitotic chromosomes, each one constituted by two sister chromatids, which stay held together by the establishment of cohesion between them; each chromatid is a complete DNA molecule, attached via microtubules to one of the two centrosomes of the dividing cell, located at opposed poles of the cell. The structure formed by the centrosomes and the microtubules is named mitotic spindle, due to its characteristic shape, holding the chromosomes between the two centrosomes. Both sister chromatids stay together until anaphase; at this moment they separate from each other and they travel towards the centrosome to which they are attached. In this way, when the two daughter cells separate at the end of the division process, each one will receive a complete set of chromatids. The mechanism responsible for the correct distribution of sister chromatids during cell division is named chromosome segregation.\n",
"However, the idea that all cells come from pre-existing cells had in fact already been proposed by Robert Remak; it has been suggested that Virchow plagiarized Remak and did not give him credit. Remak published observations in 1852 on cell division, claiming Schleiden and Schawnn were incorrect about generation schemes. He instead said that binary fission, which was first introduced by Dumortier, was how reproduction of new animal cells were made. Once this tenet was added, the classical cell theory was complete.\n"
] |
how can people steer their bikes when they don't have their hands on the handles? | They lean.
When you lean on a bike your center of mass isn't over the wheels anymore. That puts a torque on you and the bike. If your bike weren't moving that would mean you would just fall over. Since the bike is moving and you have a lot of angular momentum, it turns the direction that you are moving.
NOTE BECAUSE THERE IS A LOT OF MISS INFORMATION ABOUT THIS: my answer didn't have anything to do with the wheels rotating. it would work just as well if you were sliding on an ice skate machine as with wheels.
It anyone would like the math worked out as proof I can do that. | [
"A curved fork and angled vertical tubing provides stable, non-twitchy steering, enabling the rider to ride with one hand, while freeing the other hand for signalling or to secure a load on the rear rack. Europeans commonly use the free hand to hold an umbrella or cell phone, or to hold the shoulder of a child riding their own bike, to train the child for positioning on the road. A coaster brake further enables such one-handed riding, because the one hand on the handlebar only has to steer, not also brake.\n",
"Foot pedals can be raised, relocated (for instance swapped to be used by the opposite leg) or replaced with hand-controlled devices. The common form of hand controls consists of a push-pull handle mounted below and projecting to the side of the steering wheel housing. The bar connects by levers to the accelerator and brake pedals, and is typically pivoted so that pushing applies the accelerator while pulling applies the brake. As there is no facility to work a clutch pedal, hand controls must generally be used in cars with automatic transmissions. With one hand continuously engaged working the hand controls, the steering wheel will generally also be fitted with a steering knob to allow one-handed use. More complex fittings may also connect into the electronic circuitry of the vehicle to place indicator and other switches in easy reach of the driver without requiring them to release the hand controls or steering knob. A guard plate may be fitted to prevent inadvertent contact between the driver's feet and the pedals. Extension levers or adapted grips may also be fitted to the parking brake to allow it to be applied by a driver with limited hand or arm strength.\n",
"Both hands, pulling backwards and used together, act as a restraining aid. Depending on the amount of restraint the rider uses, this may ask the horse to halt, perform a downward transition, reinback, or bring his hind legs further under his body, increasing impulsion or collection. As a restraining aid, the hands should be used in conjunction with the legs. If the rider slows \"all in the hands\" (without any use of leg) he creates an unbalanced transition, with the horse on the forehand. This balance of leg and hand is something that must be learned by the rider, and most beginners will halt simply by pulling backwards on the reins.\n",
"To ride a turn on the forehand, the rider should encourage a square halt by moving the horse leg-to-hand with proper riding aids, creating energy with the legs and containing the energy with the hands. When asking for the turn on the forehand, the inside and outside aids switch in relation to the new direction of the bend. \n",
"For the rider, the turn on the haunches can teach coordination of aids, as the rider must balance both the driving and restraining aids, as well as maintain the correct bend using the inside leg pushing into the outside aids.\n",
"Motorcycles must be leaned in order to make turns. This lean is induced by the method known as countersteering, in which the rider momentarily steers the handlebars in the direction opposite of the desired turn. This practice is counterintuitive and therefore often confusing to novices and even many experienced motorcyclists.\n",
"Because of theoretical benefits, such as a tighter turning radius at low speed, attempts have been made to construct motorcycles with two-wheel steering. One working prototype by Ian Drysdale in Australia is reported to \"work very well.\" Issues in the design include whether to provide active control of the rear wheel or let it swing freely. In the case of active control, the control algorithm needs to decide between steering with or in the opposite direction of the front wheel, when, and how much. One implementation of two-wheel steering, the Sideways bike, lets the rider control the steering of both wheels directly. Another, the Swing Bike, had the second steering axis in front of the seat so that it could also be controlled by the handlebars.\n"
] |
why do you cry when someone asks you “are you ok?” when you are trying not to cry | because sometimes its the fact that someone is showing you that they care makes it easier for you to let it out | [
"According to John, \"Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?\" is the first thing Jesus says upon his resurrection. The first part \"Why are you crying?\" repeats the statement made by the angels in . Jesus adds \"Who is it you are looking for?\" This question, which Jesus has asked others previously in the Gospel, is often read as a wider question of what people are seeking in their lives. That Jesus quickly understands why Mary is weeping is also said to show his greater understanding of humanity and human feelings than the angels.\n",
"\"Cry No More\" is about a woman in an unhealthy relationship. Her man cheats on her and she always cries. In the song, she sings that she can't cry anymore because she is over and through with her ex-boyfriend. Because she has a lot on her mind, she has no time to cry over him.\n",
"Crying is the shedding of tears (or welling of tears in the eyes) in response to an emotional state, pain or a physical irritation of the eye. Emotions that can lead to crying include anger, happiness, or sadness. The act of crying has been defined as \"a complex secretomotor phenomenon characterized by the shedding of tears from the lacrimal apparatus, without any irritation of the ocular structures\", instead, giving a relief which protects from conjunctivitis. A related medical term is lacrimation, which also refers to non-emotional shedding of tears. Various forms of crying are known as \"sobbing\", \"weeping\", \"wailing\", \"whimpering\", \"bawling\", and \"blubbering\".\n",
"Neeson explained that \"Cry Out\" is an attempt to \"capture the spirit of youth, that kinda feeling when you're young\". The song's lyrics reference \"Troublegum\" and \"Take the Power Back\", by Therapy? and Rage Against the Machine, respectively, two bands favoured by Neeson in his youth. \"Why'd You Change Your Mind\" relates to Neeson's efforts to comprehend why a friend of his chose to commit suicide. Neeson explains: \"In the chorus of the song I'm just trying to understand what goes through a person's mind and why they should take their own life.\"\n",
"Infants cry as a form of basic instinctive communication. A crying infant may be trying to express a variety of feelings including hunger, discomfort, overstimulation, boredom, wanting something, or loneliness.\n",
"Recent psychological theories of crying emphasize the relationship of crying to the experience of perceived helplessness. From this perspective, an underlying experience of helplessness can usually explain why people cry. For example, a person may cry after receiving surprisingly happy news, ostensibly because the person feels powerless or unable to influence what is happening.\n",
"Crying is a normal and natural part of grieving. It has also been found, however, that crying and talking about the loss is not the only healthy response and, if forced or excessive, can be harmful. Responses or actions in the affected person, called \"coping ugly\" by researcher George Bonanno, may seem counter-intuitive or even appear dysfunctional, e.g., celebratory responses, laughter, or self-serving bias in interpreting events. Lack of crying is also a natural, healthy reaction, potentially protective of the individual, and may also be seen as a sign of resilience. Science has found that some healthy people who are grieving do not spontaneously talk about the loss. Pressing people to cry or retell the experience of a loss can be damaging. Genuine laughter is healthy.\n"
] |
what exactly constitutes the 'art-pop' genre in music? | There was a time, like in the 70's, when the distinction actually meant something. The radio stations were mainly playing "pop" (am stations) and "rock" or "disco" and "r & b" (fm stations)
The stuff people were listening to that didn't get play on the radio (outside of college stations) was more "artsy." Think The Velvet Underground or Big Star or Captian Beefheart.
Today, this term means very little as most of the new ideas and "artistic" approaches to music have been absorbed into mainstream pop culture.
I suppose one could argue that things that are today called "art-pop" are *more* descendant from the art-pop of old, and less descendant of traditional western pop music. However, this is no longer a real separate category, it's a spectrum to be used in a descriptive manner (ie this music it more "arty" than that music) | [
"Art pop (also typeset as art-pop or artpop) is a loosely defined style of pop music influenced by pop art's integration of high and low culture, and which emphasizes the manipulation of signs, style, and gesture over personal expression. Art pop artists may be inspired by postmodern approaches or art theories as well as other forms of art, such as fashion, fine art, cinema, and avant-garde literature. They may deviate from traditional pop audiences and rock music conventions, instead exploring ideas such as pop's status as commercial art, notions of artifice and the self, and questions of historical authenticity.\n",
"Art pop draws on postmodernism's breakdown of the high/low cultural boundary, with art pop artists trouble issues of sociological interpretation and historical authenticity, and instead exploring concepts of artifice and commerce. The style emphasizes the manipulation of signs over personal expression, drawing on an aesthetic of the everyday and the disposable, in distinction to the Romantic and autonomous tradition embodied by art rock or progressive rock. Sociomusicologist Simon Frith has distinguished the appropriation of art into pop music as having a particular concern with style, gesture, and the ironic use of historical eras and genres. Central to particular purveyors of the style were notions of the self as a work of construction and artifice, as well as a preoccupation with the invention of terms, imagery, process, and affect. \"The Independent\"s Nick Coleman wrote: \"Art-pop is partly about attitude and style; but it's essentially about art. It is, if you like, a way of making pure formalism socially acceptable in a pop context. \n",
"Cultural theorist Mark Fisher wrote that the development of art pop evolved out of the triangulation of pop, art, and fashion. Frith states that it was \"more or less\" directly inspired by Pop art. According to critic Stephen Holden, art pop often refers to any pop style which deliberately aspires to the formal values of classical music and poetry, though these works are often marketed by commercial interests rather than respected cultural institutions. Writers for \"The Independent\" and the \"Financial Times\" have noted the attempts of art pop music to distance its audiences from the public at large. Robert Christgau wrote in \"The Village Voice\" in 1987 that \"art-pop is like the dB's and XTC, when a fascination with craft spirals up and in until it turns into an aestheticist obsession.\"\n",
"\"Pop culture is an ever growing organism. Artwork after artwork and mash up after mash up, it is being transformed from one medium to another. Bernardo’s work proves that pop culture can be placed alongside classical art without incident. The artist’s attention to detail is also one of the factors that make his ‘Mag + Art’ series a big hit. The palette and brush strokes make the magazine covers feel at home in the canvas and paint-ridden classical art world.\"\n",
"Pop art is an art movement that emerged in the United Kingdom and the United States during the mid- to late-1950s. The movement presented a challenge to traditions of fine art by including imagery from popular and mass culture, such as advertising, comic books and mundane cultural objects. One of its aims is to use images of \"popular\" (as opposed to elitist) culture in art, emphasizing the banal or kitschy elements of any culture, most often through the use of irony. It is also associated with the artists' use of mechanical means of reproduction or rendering techniques. In pop art, material is sometimes visually removed from its known context, isolated, or combined with unrelated material.\n",
"There have been continual attempts throughout the history of popular music to make a claim for itself as art rather than as popular culture, and a number of music styles that were previously understood as \"popular music\" have since been categorized in the art or classical category. According to the academic Tim Wall, the most significant example of the struggle between Tin Pan Alley, African-American, vernacular, and art discourses was in jazz. As early as the 1930s, artists attempted to cultivate ideas of \"symphonic jazz\", taking it away from its perceived vernacular and black American roots. Following these developments, histories of popular music tend to marginalize jazz, partly because the reformulation of jazz in the art discourse has been so successful that many (as of 2013) would not consider it a form of popular music.\n",
"Among the early artists that shaped the pop art movement were Eduardo Paolozzi and Richard Hamilton in Britain, and Larry Rivers, Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns among others in the United States. Pop art is widely interpreted as a reaction to the then-dominant ideas of abstract expressionism, as well as an expansion of those ideas. Due to its utilization of found objects and images, it is similar to Dada. Pop art and minimalism are considered to be art movements that precede postmodern art, or are some of the earliest examples of postmodern art themselves.\n"
] |
how are fruit juice concentrates made? if juice comes from the fruits themselves how is it put into concentrated form? | Juice contains water so you just boil it until that water is gone to make a more concentrated juice | [
"The process of extracting juice from fruits and vegetables can take a number of forms. Simple crushing of most fruits will provide a significant amount of liquid, though a more intense pressure can be applied to get the maximum amount of juice from the fruit. Both crushing and pressing are processes used in the production of wine.\n",
"Juice is prepared by mechanically squeezing or macerating (sometimes referred to as cold pressed) fruit or vegetable flesh without the application of heat or solvents. For example, orange juice is the liquid extract of the fruit of the orange tree, and tomato juice is the liquid that results from pressing the fruit of the tomato plant. Juice may be prepared in the home from fresh fruit and vegetables using a variety of hand or electric juicers. Many commercial juices are filtered to remove fiber or pulp, but high-pulp fresh orange juice is a popular beverage. Additives are put in some juices, such as sugar and artificial flavours (in some fruit juice-based beverages); savoury seasonings (e.g., in Clamato or Caesar tomato juice drinks). Common methods for preservation and processing of fruit juices include canning, pasteurization, concentrating, freezing, evaporation and spray drying.\n",
"Juice vesicles hold a lot of juice than can be recovered through various extraction processes. The pulp is usually removed from the juice by filtering it out. The juiciness of the pulp depends on the species, variety, season, and the tree on which it grew. Close to 90% of the citrus fruit juice solids are recovered with extractors. Pectic enzymes can sometimes be added to lessen the thickness of these solids. The juice along with these solids can be combined to increase primary juice yields or sold as bases for fruit beverages. The juice solids become opaque from the pulp washing process, resulting in a less expensive source of fruit solids for food labeling in comparison to regular juice. The juice solids can also be pasteurized, dried, and sold, but appear dark brown in color if they have not been washed properly before drying. The solids can also be stored frozen or sold to beverage manufacturers. They provide fruit beverages that are sold with a higher appeal to a consumer and improved texture in the juice. These opaque juice solids are known as cloud.\n",
"In this process, the peel and seeds are removed, and the pulped fruit is made into a fruit concentrate or puree. Additional juice may be extracted from the remaining pulp by hot water. The juice is homogenized, slightly acidified to prevent gelling and improve the flavor, then treated with pectinase or other enzymes to break down the pectin. Most of the off-flavor agents are then removed with ion-exchange resins, such as sulfonated polystyrene-divinylbenzene copolymer or polyacrylic acid. Alternatively, the off-flavors can be adsorbed by agents like charcoal or bentonite, which are removed by filtration; or precipitated with gelatin or other gelling agents. Most of the remaining sulfurous volatiles are then removed by low-pressure evaporation. The juice is then pasteurized to inactivate remaining natural enzymes and kill micro-organisms. The process is claimed to preserve a substantial fraction of the mogrosides present in the fruit.\n",
"Fruit juices are condensed by evaporation for storage, transport and commercial use. If fruit juices are exposed to heat, the nutrient content such as vitamin C may be affected. Furthermore, these nutrients are easily oxidized at high temperature. The evaporator can overcome this constraint as it operates at high feed flow rate and small temperature difference. In addition, the change in color and texture of the juices can be prevented via the operation of this evaporator type.\n",
"Apple juice is a fruit juice made by the maceration and pressing of an apple. The resulting expelled juice may be further treated by enzymatic and centrifugal clarification to remove the starch and pectin, which holds fine particulate in suspension, and then pasteurized for packaging in glass, metal or aseptic processing system containers, or further treated by dehydration processes to a concentrate. \n",
"After the fruits are picked and washed, the juice is extracted by one of two automated methods. In the first method, two metal cups with sharp metal tubes on the bottom cup come together, removing the peel and forcing the flesh of the fruit through the metal tube. The juice of the fruit, then escapes through small holes in the tube. The peels can then be used further, and are washed to remove oils, which are reclaimed later for usage. The second method requires the fruits to be cut in half before being subjected to reamers, which extract the juice.\n"
] |
How are cannabinoids metabolized? | _URL_1_
> After smoking, the initial metabolism of THC takes place in the lungs, followed by more extensive metabolism by liver enzymes which transform THC to a number of metabolites. The most rapidly produced metabolite is 9-carboxy-THC (or THC-COOH) which is detectable in blood within minutes of smoking cannabis. It is not psychoactive. Another major metabolite of THC is 11-hydroxy-THC, which is approximately 20 per cent more potent than THC, and which penetrates the blood-brain barrier more rapidly than THC.
Not sure about what it "binds to" in the blood, if that's even necessary.
> THC and its metabolites are highly fat soluble and may remain for long periods of time in the fatty tissues of the body, from which they are slowly released back into the bloodstream. This phenomenon slows the elimination of cannabinoids from the body.
From [the wiki article](_URL_0_), this seems to be fairly correct. | [
"Cannabinoid production starts when an enzyme causes geranyl pyrophosphate and olivetolic acid to combine and form CBGA. Next, CBGA is independently converted to either CBG, THCA, CBDA or CBCA by four separate synthase, FAD-dependent dehydrogenase enzymes. There is no evidence for enzymatic conversion of CBDA or CBD to THCA or THC. For the propyl homologues (THCVA, CBDVA and CBCVA), there is an analogous pathway that is based on CBGVA from divarinolic acid instead of olivetolic acid.\n",
"Most synthetic cannabinoids are agonists of the cannabinoid receptors. They have been designed to be similar to THC, the natural cannabinoid with the strongest binding affinity to the CB receptor, which is linked to the psychoactive effects or \"high\" of marijuana. These synthetic analogs often have greater binding affinity and greater potency to the CB receptors. There are several synthetic cannabinoid families (e.g. CP-xxx, WIN-xxx, JWH-xxx, UR-xxx, and PB-xx) classified based on the base structure.\n",
"Cannabinoids can be administered by smoking, vaporizing, oral ingestion, transdermal patch, intravenous injection, sublingual absorption, or rectal suppository. Once in the body, most cannabinoids are metabolized in the liver, especially by cytochrome P450 mixed-function oxidases, mainly CYP 2C9. Thus supplementing with CYP 2C9 inhibitors leads to extended intoxication.\n",
"A cannabinoid receptor antagonist, also known simply as a cannabinoid antagonist or as an anticannabinoid, is a type of cannabinoidergic drug that binds to cannabinoid receptors (CBR) and prevents their activation by endocannabinoids. They include antagonists, inverse agonists, and antibodies of CBRs. The discovery of the endocannabinoid system led to the development of CB receptor antagonists. The first CBR antagonist, rimonabant, was described in 1994. Rimonabant blocks the CB receptor selectively and has been shown to decrease food intake and regulate body-weight gain. The prevalence of obesity worldwide is increasing dramatically and has a great impact on public health. The lack of efficient and well-tolerated drugs to cure obesity has led to an increased interest in research and development of CBR antagonists. Cannabidiol (CBD), a naturally occurring cannabinoid, is a non-competitive CB/CB receptor antagonist. And Δ-tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), a naturally occurring cannabinoid, modulate the effects of THC via direct blockade of cannabinoid CB receptors, thus behaving like first-generation CB receptor inverse agonists, such as rimonabant. CBD is a very low-affinity CB ligand, that can nevertheless affect CB receptor activity \"in vivo\" in an indirect manner, while THCV is a high-affinity CB receptor ligand and potent antagonist \"in vitro\" and yet only occasionally produces effects \"in vivo\" resulting from CB receptor antagonism. THCV has also high affinity for CB receptors and signals as a partial agonist, differing from both CBD and rimonabant.\n",
"There exist two primary CNS cannabinoid receptors, on which marijuana and the cannabinoids act. Both the CB1 receptor and CB2 receptor are found in the brain. The CB2 receptor is also found in the immune system. CB is expressed at high densities in the basal ganglia, cerebellum, hippocampus, and cerebral cortex. Receptor activation can inhibit cAMP formation, inhibit voltage-sensitive calcium ion channels, and activate potassium ion channels. Many CB receptors are located on axon terminals, where they act to inhibit the release of various neurotransmitters. In combination, these chemical actions work to alter various functions of the central nervous system including the motor system, memory, and various cognitive processes.\n",
"AB-CHMINACA is an indazole-based synthetic cannabinoid. It is a potent agonist of the CB receptor (\"K\" = 0.78 nM) and CB receptor (\"K\" = 0.45 nM) and fully substitutes for Δ-THC in rat discrimination studies, while being 16x more potent. Continuing the trend seen in other cannabinoids of this generation, it contains a valine amino acid amide residue as part of its structure, where older cannabinoids contained a naphthyl or adamantane residue.\n",
"Synthetic cannabinoids are typically not identified by the standard marijuana drug tests including the immunoassay test (EMIT), GC-MS screening, and multi-target screening by LC-GC/MS because those tests only detect the presence of THC and its metabolites. Although most synthetic cannabinoids are analogs of THC, they are structurally different enough that, for example, the specific antibodies in the EMIT for marijuana do not bind to them. Also, due to their high potency, a very small dose of synthetic cannabinoids is used; moreover, synthetic cannabinoids are highly metabolized by the body, so the window to detect the parent drug (the synthetic cannabinoid itself) in blood and oral fluid is very small.\n"
] |
how do remote controlled cars work? | A radio sends commands to a controller in the car. That in turn sends electrical signals to the various motors and solenoids that operate the mechanical parts of the car.
This can be super basic in a battery powered car with simple steering, or increasingly complex as you approach full sized gasoline powered vehicles.
| [
"A remote control vehicle is defined as any vehicle that is teleoperated by a means that does not restrict its motion with an origin external to the device. This is often a radio control device, cable between control and vehicle, or an infrared controller. A remote control vehicle or RCV differs from a robot in that the RCV is always controlled by a human and takes no positive action autonomously.\n",
"Remote control vehicles are used in law enforcement and military engagements for some of the same reasons. The exposure to hazards are mitigated to the person who operates the vehicle from a location of relative safety. Remote controlled vehicles are used by many police department bomb-squads to defuse or detonate explosives. See Dragon Runner, Military robot.\n",
"Remote vehicle disabling systems provide users at remote locations the ability to prevent an engine from starting, prevent movement of a vehicle, and to stop or slow an operating vehicle. Remote disabling allows a dispatcher or other authorized personnel to gradually decelerate a vehicle by downshifting, limiting the throttle capability, or bleeding air from the braking system from a remote location. Some of these systems provide advance notification to the driver that the vehicle disabling is about to occur. After stopping a vehicle, some systems will lock the vehicle's brakes or will not allow the vehicle's engine to be restarted within a certain time-frame.\n",
"A remote controlled weapon station (RCWS), or remote weapon station (RWS), also known as a remote weapon system, (RWS) is a remotely operated weaponized system often equipped with fire-control system for light and medium-caliber weapons which can be installed on ground combat vehicle or sea- and air-based combat platforms. Such equipment is used on modern military vehicles, as it allows a gunner to remain in the relative protection of the vehicle. It may also be retrofitted onto existing vehicles, for example, the CROWS system is being fitted to American Humvees and the Thales SWARM for Bushmaster IMVs of the Royal Netherlands Army.\n",
"A remote starter is a radio controlled device, which is installed in a vehicle by the factory or an aftermarket installer to preheat or cool the vehicle before the owner gets into it. Once activated, by pushing a button on a special key chain remote, it starts the vehicle automatically for a predetermined time. Different models have keyless entry as well. Most newer vehicles need some kind of bypass module to bypass the factory anti-theft system, so the vehicle can be started without the ignition key in the ignition, this is bypassed only to start the vehicle, which after it is running returns to its original state. For cars with manual transmission additional safety features may need to be added to prevent the car from starting while it's parked in gear. Having a remote starter installed in a vehicle will usually not void the factory warranty when installed properly.\n",
"A remote control is an electronic device used to operate any machine, such as a television, remotely. Many of these remotes communicate to their respective devices through infrared signals and radio control. In Madison Square Garden, at the Electrical Exhibition, Nikola Tesla gave the first demonstration of a boat propelling in water, controlled by his remote control which he designed using radio signals. Tesla received a patent for his invention in 1898.\n",
"A remote-operated UGV is a vehicle that is controlled by a human operator via interface. All actions are determined by the operator based upon either direct visual observation or remote use of sensors such as digital video cameras. A basic example of the principles of remote operation would be a remote controlled toy car.\n"
] |
what's the difference between thermionic emission and thermoelectric effect? | Thermionic emission is the ability of some materials to emit electrons more readily when heated. Electronic vacuum tubes (valves) use heated cathodes to take advantage of the effect.
The thermoelectric effect happens when two different metals are joined. Temperature difference can be converted to electric current and vice versa. | [
"The electrocaloric effect is a phenomenon in which a material shows a reversible temperature change under an applied electric field. It is often considered to be the physical inverse of the pyroelectric effect. It should not be confused with the Thermoelectric effect (specifically, the Peltier effect), in which a temperature difference occurs when a current is driven through an electric junction with two dissimilar conductors.\n",
"Besides the direct excitation of free electrons, a photovoltaic effect can also arise simply due to the heating caused by absorption of the light. The heating leads to increased temperature of the semiconductor material, which is accompanied by temperature gradients. These thermal gradients in turn may generate a voltage through the Seebeck effect. Whether direct excitation or thermal effects dominate the photovoltaic effect will depend on many material parameters.\n",
"The thermoelectric effect is the direct conversion of temperature differences to electric voltage and vice versa via a thermocouple. A thermoelectric device creates voltage when there is a different temperature on each side. Conversely, when a voltage is applied to it, heat is transferred from one side to the other, creating a temperature difference. At the atomic scale, an applied temperature gradient causes charge carriers in the material to diffuse from the hot side to the cold side.\n",
"The term \"thermionic emission\" is now also used to refer to any thermally-excited charge emission process, even when the charge is emitted from one solid-state region into another. This process is crucially important in the operation of a variety of electronic devices and can be used for electricity generation (such as thermionic converters and electrodynamic tethers) or cooling. The magnitude of the charge flow increases dramatically with increasing temperature.\n",
"The \"thermoelectric effect\" refers to phenomena by which either a temperature difference creates an electric potential or an electric potential creates a temperature difference. These phenomena are known more specifically as the Seebeck effect (converting temperature to current), Peltier effect (converting current to temperature), and Thomson effect (conductor heating/cooling). While all materials have a nonzero thermoelectric effect, in most materials it is too small to be useful. However, low-cost materials that have a sufficiently strong thermoelectric effect (and other required properties) could be used in applications including power generation and refrigeration. A commonly used thermoelectric material in such applications is bismuth telluride ().\n",
"For the thermoelectric effect, now, consider the case of uniform voltage (uniform chemical potential) with a temperature gradient. In this case, at the hotter side of the material there is more variation in the energies of the charge carriers, compared to the colder side. This means that high energy levels have a higher carrier occupation per state on the hotter side, but also the hotter side has a \"lower\" occupation per state at lower energy levels. As before, the high-energy carriers diffuse away from the hot end, and produce entropy by drifting towards the cold end of the device. However, there is a competing process: at the same time low-energy carriers are drawn back towards the hot end of the device. Though these processes both generate entropy, they work against each other in terms of charge current, and so a net current only occurs if one of these drifts is stronger than the other. The net current is given by formula_25, where (as shown below) the thermoelectric coefficient formula_26 depends literally on how conductive high-energy carriers are, compared to low-energy carriers. The distinction may be due to a difference in rate of scattering, a difference in speeds, a difference in density of states, or a combination of these effects.\n",
"The pyroelectric effect converts a temperature change into electric current or voltage. It is analogous to the piezoelectric effect, which is another type of ferroelectric behavior. Pyroelectricity requires time-varying inputs and suffers from small power outputs in energy harvesting applications due to its low operating frequencies. However, one key advantage of pyroelectrics over thermoelectrics is that many pyroelectric materials are stable up to 1200 ⁰C or higher, enabling energy harvesting from high temperature sources and thus increasing thermodynamic efficiency.\n"
] |
even with the advances in sciences, why is meteorology so inexact? | Because the climate is complicated and modeling it is hard and expensive. Being sort of right is good enough and spending the money to be right slightly more often (meteorologists aren't actually that bad at predicting the weather) isn't worthwhile for, say, a news station. | [
"\"Why did modern science, the mathematization of hypotheses about Nature, with all its implications for advanced technology, take its meteoric rise only in the West at the time of Galileo [but] had not developed in Chinese civilisation or Indian civilisation?\"\n",
"Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 17th century. The 19th century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries. After the development of the computer in the latter half of the 20th century, breakthroughs in weather forecasting were achieved.\n",
"Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences which includes atmospheric chemistry and atmospheric physics, with a major focus on weather forecasting. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw modest progress in the field after weather observation networks were formed across broad regions. Prior attempts at prediction of weather depended on historical data. It was not until after the elucidation of the laws of physics and more particularly, the development of the computer, allowing for the automated solution of a great many equations that model the weather, in the latter half of the 20th century that significant breakthroughs in weather forecasting were achieved. An important domain of weather forecasting is marine weather forecasting as it relates to maritime and coastal safety, in which weather effects also include atmospheric interactions with large bodies of water. \n",
"In the course of the 19th century, meteorology was no longer solely an observational and descriptive science. On the basis of classical physics, especially particle and continuum mechanics and mechanical thermodynamics, it was developed into a science of measurement and calculation, to a physics of the atmosphere. The basics of atmospheric thermodynamics were already worked out in the 1880s, but the description of the dynamics was through simple approaches such as Buys Ballot's Law.\n",
"As advances and specialization have made new scientific research inaccessible to most audiences, the \"literary\" nature of science writing has become less pronounced over the last two centuries. Now, science appears mostly in journals. Scientific works of Aristotle, Copernicus, and Newton still exhibit great value, but since the science in them has largely become outdated, they no longer serve for scientific instruction. Yet, they remain too technical to sit well in most programs of literary study. Outside of \"history of science\" programs, students rarely read such works.\n",
"BULLET::::- Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere that focuses on weather processes and short term forecasting (in contrast with climatology). Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the eighteenth century. Meteorological phenomena are observable weather events which illuminate and are explained by the science of meteorology.\n",
"The book is critical of political efforts to address climate change and argues that extreme environmental changes are inevitable and unavoidable. Meteorologists have a huge amount to gain from climate change research, the book claims, and they have narrowed the climate change debate to the atmosphere, whereas the truth is more complex. Money would be better directed to dealing with problems as they occur rather than making expensive and futile attempts to prevent climate change.\n"
] |
Why did the Western borders of Tang China jut out? | That extension to the Northwest is the modern Gansu Corridor and some areas along the Tarim Basin. These areas were strategically important because they controlled key overland trade routes with India, Central Asia, and the Middle East -- the proverbial Silk Road. This area was important for commerce, but also strategically because it helped encircle and contain the Tibetan Empire which at that time controlled nearly the entirely of what is today Qinghai Province.
The actual amount of functional control that the central government in Chang'an was able to exert over their border territorries varied considerably over time, especially in the later Tang when the area was repeatedly menaced by both Tibetan and Muslim military incursions, and an unstable central government devolved ever-greater powers on their regional military governors. Which is one of the reasons that contemporary historical atlases vary so much on their depiction of Tang-Chinese "ownership" of this area. | [
"Because Chinese Tang forces in the \"Western Territories\" were negligible, to resist the restoration of the Türkic Kaganate, the Tang government had to accede to the rise of Turgesh, a nation descendent from Abars and Mukri, under the leadership of an \"Uchjile\". In effect, the territory captured by Tang by 659 was divided between the Chinese, the Türkic Kaganate, and Türgeshes, a people who did not belong to the Tiele, Chuy, or Türkut group, but are first known as one of the five Dulu tribes. The Türgeshes numbered 5–700,000, and although this represented a large state for the time, they were under pressure from Arabs from the south. Given the complexity of the situation, Tang diplomacy succeeded in drawing the Basmyls into an anti-Türkic alliance that already included the Kidans, Tatabs, and a 300,000 strong Tang expeditionary army. This involved the Basmyls into one of the most exciting events of the century, and bestowed on them a place in the most celebrated Türkic compositions of the 8th century.\n",
"For half a century, the Tang retained control of Central Asia and Mongolia and parts of Inner Asia. Both sides of the Great Wall came under Tang rule. During this period, the Tang expanded Chinese control into the Oxus Valley. At the same time, their allies, the Uyghurs, conquered much of western and northern Mongolia until, by the middle of the 8th century, the Uyghur seminomadic empire extended from Lake Balkash to Lake Baykal.\n",
"Frontier policy under the Tang dynasty reversed the wall-building activities of most previous dynasties that had occupied northern China since the third century BC, and no extensive wall building took place for the next several hundred years.\n",
"Tang rule over Xinjiang and Central Asia was threatened by Tibetan expansion into the Southern Tarim. After defeating the Tang in 670, the Tang retreated eastwards \"and was in full flight from its empire in Central Asia.\" The Tibetans subjugated Kashgar in 676-678 and retained possession until 693, when China regained control of southern Xinjiang, and retained it for the next fifty years, though under constant threat from Tibetan and Turkic forces. The Tang were not able to intervere beyond the Pamir Mountains, where Arab forces were moving into Bactria, Ferghana and Soghdiana in the early 8th century, and had no direct influence on the fights bteween Turks, Tibetans and Arabs for control over Central Asia. Tang outposts were repeatedly attacked by Tibetans and the Türgesh, and in 736 Tibet conquered the Pamir regio. In 744 the Tang defeated the Türgesh, and drove the Tibetans out of Pamir. A few years later, war between Ferghana and Tashkent, with the Han supporting Fergahna, resulted in Arab intervention, and in the Battle of Talas (751) the Tang lost to the Abbasid Caliphate, which did not proceed to Xinjiang further into Xinjiang.\n",
"After the Tang dynasty ended in 907, the northern frontier area remained out of Han Chinese hands until the establishment of the Ming dynasty in 1368. During this period, non-Han \"conquest dynasties\" ruled the north: the Khitan Liao dynasty (9071125) and the succeeding Jurchen Jin dynasty (11151234) in the east and the Tangut Western Xia (10381227) in the west, all of which had built walls against the north.\n",
"The areas controlled by Tang China came under the dynasty's cultural influences and the Turkic influence of the ethnically Turkic Tang soldiers stationed in the region. Indo-European prevalence in Central Asia declined as the expeditions accelerated Turkic migration into what is now Xinjiang. By the end of the 657 campaign, the Tang had reached its largest extent. The Turks, Tibetans, Muslim Arabs and the Tang competed for control over Central Asia until the collapse of the Tang in the 10th century.\n",
"At its maximum extent, Tang expansion brought China into direct contact with the rising Umayyad Caliphate. China's western borders reached the eastern frontier of the Caliphate. Following the Arab defeat of Sassanid Persia in 651, the Caliphate began its expansion into Central Asia, competing with the Tang's sphere of influence in the region. Chinese and Islamic troops finally clashed at the Battle of Aksu in 717 and the Battle of Talas in 751. Though victorious in 717, the Chinese lost against the Arabs, now under Abbasid rule, and the Arab army captured Chinese papermaking craftsmen. An Arabic record of the conflict claims that the battle led to the introduction of papermaking to the Islamic world.\n"
] |
Pandemics and Quarantine History - Megathread | This current pandemic is falling on a presidential election year in the United States. How did the 1918-1920 flu pandemic affect the 1920 presidential election? | [
"As the pandemic intensifies it gains many names, \"Captain Trips\" and the superflu being the most used. A multi-faceted narrative—told partly from the perspective of primary characters—outlines the total breakdown and destruction of society through widespread violence; the failure of martial law to contain the outbreak; the military's increasingly violent efforts to censor information; the rapid collapse of society; the deliberate exposure of the virus in the Soviet Union and China to guarantee their destruction as well and, finally, the near-extinction of humanity. The emotional toll is also dealt with, as the few survivors must care for their families and friends, dealing with confusion and grief as virtually everyone they know succumbs to the disease.\n",
"Pandemic is a 2014 science fiction thriller novel by Scott Sigler and the final novel in the \"Infected\" trilogy. The book was released in hardback, e-book, and audiobook on January 21, 2014 through Crown Publishing and is set several years after the events in \"Contagious\".\n",
"The pandemic has resulted in the near-extinction of humanity. Some of the survivors were fully resistant to the pandemic and have remained human, called Oldfolk or Urfolk, and some were partially resistant have become Werfolk having some of the madness, drumming, dancing, and shape shifting of the pandemic. Over the past 30 years Cameron Spires has perfected a longevity treatment, created a dolphin-human hybrid species called the Merfolk, kept the islands strictly isolated from the Werfolk, prevented further research into the pandemic and maintained himself as the unquestioned 'founder-ruler'. This has driven all of the major characters, except Simon Lingham, back to the mainland in search of answers. Simon Lingham, leaves for the same reasons soon after the story begins.\n",
"Numerous historical examples of pandemics had a devastating effect on a large number of people. The present, unprecedented scale and speed of human movement make it more difficult than ever to contain an epidemic through local quarantines, and other sources of uncertainty and the evolving nature of the risk means natural pandemics may pose a realistic threat to human civilization.\n",
"Third Pandemic is the designation of a major bubonic plague pandemic that began in Yunnan province in China in 1855. This episode of bubonic plague spread to all inhabited continents, and ultimately more than 12 million people died in India and China, with about 10 million killed in India alone. According to the World Health Organization, the pandemic was considered active until 1960, when worldwide casualties dropped to 200 per year.\n",
"Finally, the last step in S-OIV history was in 2009, when the virus H1N2 co-infected a human host at the same time as the Euroasiatic H1N1 swine strain. This led to the emergence of a new human H1N1 strain, which caused the 2009 pandemic.\n",
"The Toba catastrophe theory, which postulates a population bottleneck for \"H. sapiens\" about 70,000 years ago, was controversial from its first proposal in the 1990s and by the 2010s had very little support. Distinctive human genetic variability has arisen as the result of the founder effect, by archaic admixture and by recent evolutionary pressures.\n"
] |
when a restaurant runs out of something, why is it "86ed"? | As you'll see in [this article](_URL_0_) there are a number of theories, none of which are confirmed and all of which have problems.
I think as the article states at the end that the most likely answer is that it rhymes with "nix," meaning eliminate or negate. Wouldn't shock me to learn that a bit of rhyming slang just caught on and became popular somewhere, and then ended up in a book/movie and so became popular everywhere.
| [
"In British English, the term \"restaurant\" almost always means an eating establishment with table service, so the \"sit down\" qualification is not usually necessary. Fast food and takeaway (take-out) outlets with counter service are not normally referred to as restaurants. Outside North America, the terms fast casual dining restaurants, family style, and casual dining are not used and distinctions among different kinds of restaurants are often not the same. In France, for example, some restaurants are called \"bistros\" to indicate a level of casualness or trendiness, though some \"bistros\" are quite formal in the kind of food they serve and clientele they attract. Others are called \"brasseries\", a term which indicates hours of service. \"Brasseries\" may serve food round the clock, whereas \"restaurants\" usually only serve at set intervals during the day. In Sweden, restaurants of many kinds are called \"restauranger\", but restaurants attached to bars or cafes are sometimes called \"kök\", literally \"kitchens\", and sometimes a bar-restaurant combination is called a \"krog\", in English a \"tavern\".\n",
"This is a list of defunct fast-food chains. A restaurant chain is a set of related restaurants with the same name in many different locations that are either under shared corporate ownership (e.g., McDonald's in the U.S.) or franchising agreements. Typically, the restaurants within a chain are built to a standard format through architectural prototype development and offer a standard menu and/or services.\n",
"The term is part of restaurant slang, heard among restaurant workers in the 1930s, where 86 meant \"we're all out of it.\" Walter Winchell published examples of similar restaurant slang in his newspaper column in 1933, which he presented as part of a \"glossary of soda-fountain lingo\".\n",
"According to Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, \"86\" is a slang term that is used in the American popular culture as a transitive verb in the food service industry as a term to describe an item no longer being available on the menu. The dictionary suggests the term may be associated with the word \"nix\" (\"no\" or a more general prohibition). \"Nix\" is related to the word \"Niks\", which means \"nothing\" in the Dutch language.\n",
"All listed restaurants, regardless of their star or status, also receive a \"fork and spoon\" designation, as a subjective reflection of the overall comfort and quality of the restaurant. Rankings range from one to five: one fork and spoon represents a \"comfortable restaurant\" and five signifies a \"luxurious restaurant\". Forks and spoons colored red designate a restaurant that is considered \"pleasant\" as well.\n",
"Many restaurants set the table with a bread plate and water glass at each seat before patrons arrive. The bread plate goes to the left of the plate, and the beverage to the right. To avoid drinking from the wrong glass or taking a bite of your neighbor's bread, use the following trick if you forget which is yours:Touch both your index fingers to your thumbs. On your left, you will see a lowercase \"b\", which stands for the bread plate. On your right is a lowercase \"d\" for Drinks. Dining in North America is widely viewed as a social occasion, rather than simply an opportunity to eat. As such, it is important to show the people dining with you that you respect them and their time enough to put your cell phone away. According to a study done by the Pew Research Center, 38% percent of people think it is acceptable to use cell phones in restaurants, and that number gets even smaller depending on the occasion. 12% of people think it is OK to use cell phones at family dinners, and only 5% think it is appropriate during meetings.\n",
"Some chain restaurants are not considered formula restaurants because the chain does not maintain a formulaic or monolithic character at different locations, or has few enough locations that they are substantially dissimilar to what is commonly considered to be a formula restaurant. In addition, the term \"chain restaurants\" generically describes a business arrangement, whereas formula restaurants describe the aesthetic characteristics and customer experience.\n"
] |
why do we sneeze and why would our body cease all other functions to favor one thing? | We sneeze to clear irritants out of our noses. As a multistep process to keep whatever it is out of our lungs.
Our bodies are fallible though, sometimes it overreacts. Like seeing pollen as a dangerous intruder. | [
"There is much debate about the true cause and mechanism of the sneezing fits brought about by the photic sneeze reflex. Sneezing occurs in response to irritation in the nasal cavity, which results in an afferent nerve fiber signal propagating through the ophthalmic and maxillary branches of the trigeminal nerve to the trigeminal nerve nuclei in the brainstem. The signal is interpreted in the trigeminal nerve nuclei, and an efferent nerve fiber signal goes to different parts of the body, such as mucous glands and the thoracic diaphragm, thus producing a sneeze. The most obvious difference between a normal sneeze and a photic sneeze is the stimulus: normal sneezes occur due to irritation in the nasal cavity, while the photic sneeze can result from a wide variety of stimuli. Some theories are below. There is also a genetic factor that increases the probability of photic sneeze reflex. The C allele on the rs10427255 SNP is particularly implicated in this although the mechanism is unknown by which this gene increases the probability of this response.\n",
"Sneezing typically occurs when foreign particles or sufficient external stimulants pass through the nasal hairs to reach the nasal mucosa. This triggers the release of histamines, which irritate the nerve cells in the nose, resulting in signals being sent to the brain to initiate the sneeze through the trigeminal nerve network. The brain then relates this initial signal, activates the pharyngeal and tracheal muscles and creates a large opening of the nasal and oral cavities, resulting in a powerful release of air and bioparticles. The powerful nature of a sneeze is attributed to its involvement of numerous organs of the upper body – it is a reflexive response involving the face, throat, and chest muscles.\n",
"The photic sneeze reflex manifests itself in the form of uncontrollable sneezing in response to a stimulus which would not produce a sneeze in people without the trait. The sneezes generally occur in bursts of 1 to 10 sneezes, followed by a refractory period that can be as long as 24 hours.\n",
"In Persian culture, sneezing sometimes is called \"sabr =صبر,\" meaning \"to wait or be patient.\" And when trying to do something or go somewhere and suddenly sneezing, one should stop or sit for a few minutes and then restart. By this act the \"bad thing\" passes and one will be saved.\n",
"Some people may sneeze during the initial phases of sexual arousal. Doctors suspect that the phenomenon might arise from a case of crossed wires in the autonomic nervous system, which regulates a number of functions in the body, including \"waking up\" the genitals during sexual arousal. The nose, like the genitals, contains erectile tissue. This phenomenon may prepare the vomeronasal organ for increased detection of pheromones.\n",
"In some cultures, sneezing is seen as a sign of good fortune or God's beneficence. As such, alternative responses to sneezing are the French phrase \"à vos souhaits\" (meaning \"to your wishes\"), the German word \"Gesundheit\" (meaning \"health\") sometimes adopted by English speakers, the Irish word \"sláinte\" (meaning \"good health\"), the Italian \"salute\" (also meaning \"health\"), the Spanish \"salud\" (also meaning \"health\"), the Hebrew \"laBri'ut\" (colloquial) or \"liVriut\" (classic) (both spelled: \"לבריאות\") (meaning \"to health\"), the Arabic \"saha\" (spelled \"صحة\", also meaning \"health\").\n",
"The function of sneezing is to expel mucus containing foreign particles or irritants and cleanse the nasal cavity. During a sneeze, the soft palate and palatine uvula depress while the back of the tongue elevates to partially close the passage to the mouth so that air ejected from the lungs may be expelled through the nose. Because the closing of the mouth is partial, a considerable amount of this air is usually also expelled from the mouth. The force and extent of the expulsion of the air through the nose varies.\n"
] |
If the mechanisms of nerve impulses is always exactly the same, how does the brain differentiate between different signals/messages and carry out different functions? | In the same way that when your doorbell rings you go to the front door, and when you phone rings, you pick up the phone, even though both of them use electricity to make the ringing happen.
Which is to say that even though the physiological mechanisms are the same, their pathways in the nervous system are not the same (so the brain can know where the signals came from) and their connections to various parts of the brain are not the same (so the brain can process them differently).
Edit: typo | [
"At the most basic level, the function of the nervous system is to send signals from one cell to others, or from one part of the body to others. There are multiple ways that a cell can send signals to other cells. One is by releasing chemicals called hormones into the internal circulation, so that they can diffuse to distant sites. In contrast to this \"broadcast\" mode of signaling, the nervous system provides \"point-to-point\" signals—neurons project their axons to specific target areas and make synaptic connections with specific target cells. Thus, neural signaling is capable of a much higher level of specificity than hormonal signaling. It is also much faster: the fastest nerve signals travel at speeds that exceed 100 meters per second.\n",
"A nerve conveys information in the form of electrochemical impulses (as nerve impulses known as action potentials) carried by the individual neurons that make up the nerve. These impulses are extremely fast, with some myelinated neurons conducting at speeds up to 120 m/s. The impulses travel from one neuron to another by crossing a synapse, the message is converted from electrical to chemical and then back to electrical.\n",
"BULLET::::- Many neurons connect to the brain on one end, with the other end connected to another neuron, with the outside (the brain) junction located within the spinal column. Other neurons bundles which are labeled cranial nerves, connect to the brain on one end, and to locations outside the brain on the other, without having a junction inside the spinal column. Cranial nerves are actually huge collections of vast numbers of individual neurons that have found common routes though the body. They branch several times into smaller bundles which eventually reach many endpoints. With one exception, the optic nerve, they are all considered part of the peripheral nervous system.\n",
"Most neurons receive signals via the dendrites and soma and send out signals down the axon. At the majority of synapses, signals cross from the axon of one neuron to a dendrite of another. However, synapses can connect an axon to another axon or a dendrite to another dendrite.\n",
"The nervous system is defined by the presence of a special type of cell—the neuron (sometimes called \"neurone\" or \"nerve cell\"). Neurons can be distinguished from other cells in a number of ways, but their most fundamental property is that they communicate with other cells via synapses, which are membrane-to-membrane junctions containing molecular machinery that allows rapid transmission of signals, either electrical or chemical. Many types of neuron possess an axon, a protoplasmic protrusion that can extend to distant parts of the body and make thousands of synaptic contacts; axons typically extend throughout the body in bundles called nerves.\n",
"The basic route of nerve signals within the efferent somatic nervous system involves a sequence that begins in the upper cell bodies of motor neurons (upper motor neurons) within the precentral gyrus (which approximates the primary motor cortex). Stimuli from the precentral gyrus are transmitted from upper motor neurons and down the corticospinal tract, via axons to control skeletal (voluntary) muscles. These stimuli are conveyed from upper motor neurons through the ventral horn of the spinal cord, and across synapses to be received by the sensory receptors of alpha motor neurons (large lower motor neurons) of the brainstem and spinal cord.\n",
"In some areas of the brain, such as the hippocampus, neurons are arranged in such a way that they all receive synaptic inputs in the same area. Because these neurons are in the same orientation, the extracellular signals from the generation of action potentials don't cancel out, but rather add up to give a signal that can easily be recorded with a field electrode.\n"
] |
Do you and I see the same colors? | [Is it possible that you and I see the same colors differently?](_URL_0_) | [
"BULLET::::2. Colors that cannot be seen directly from any combination of retina signal output from one place in one eye, but can be generated in the brain's visual cortex by mixing color signals from the two eyes, or from more than one part of the same eye. Examples of these colors are yellowish-blue and reddish-green. Those colors that appear to be similar to, for example, both red and green, or to both yellow and blue. (This does not mean the result of mixing paints of those two colors in painting, or the result of mixing lights of those two colors on a screen.)\n",
"The characteristic colors are, from long to short wavelengths (and, correspondingly, from low to high frequency), red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet. Sufficient differences in wavelength cause a difference in the perceived hue; the just-noticeable difference in wavelength varies from about 1 nm in the blue-green and yellow wavelengths, to 10 nm and more in the longer red and shorter blue wavelengths. Although the human eye can distinguish up to a few hundred hues, when those pure spectral colors are mixed together or diluted with white light, the number of distinguishable chromaticities can be quite high.\n",
"Usually, colors with the same hue are distinguished with adjectives referring to their lightness or colorfulness, such as with \"light blue\", \"pastel blue\", \"vivid blue\". Exceptions include brown, which is a dark orange.\n",
"Analogous colors are groups of three colors that are next to each other on the color wheel, sharing a common color, with one being the dominant color, which tends to be a primary or secondary color, and a tertiary. Red, orange, and red-orange are examples.\n",
"or monochrome printing). Any natural scene or color photograph can be optically and physiologically dissected into three primary colors, red, green and blue, roughly equal amounts of which give rise to the perception of white, and different proportions of which give rise to the visual sensations of all other colors. The additive combination of any two primary colors in roughly equal proportion gives rise to the perception of a secondary color. For example, red and green yields yellow, red and blue yields magenta (a purple hue), and green and blue yield cyan (a turquoise hue). Only yellow is counter-intuitive.\n",
"Young proposed that color vision is based on three primary colors: red, green, and blue. Maxwell demonstrated that any color can be matched by a mixture of three primary colors. This was interpreted by Helmholtz as proof that humans perceive colors through three types of receptors, while white and black would reflect the amount of light.\n",
"Since the human eye has three types of color sensors that respond to different ranges of wavelengths, a full plot of all visible colors is a three-dimensional figure. However, the concept of color can be divided into two parts: brightness and chromaticity. For example, the color white is a bright color, while the color grey is considered to be a less bright version of that same white. In other words, the chromaticity of white and grey are the same while their brightness differs.\n"
] |
if liquids in containers above 100ml in size can be dangerous (for various reasons), why does airport security dump the contents of said bottle into a bin (with who knows what else) not that far from people amassed in long lines? | Honestly, you're going to have a hard time finding logic in most of the TSA's guidelines. It's more about security theater than actual security.
_URL_0_
Basically, the thought is that if people -feel- safe and secure, they'll act safe and secure. And if people -think- security is high, they won't try to bypass it. It's not completely useless, but it's also not based in, you know. Facts. | [
"As of 26 September 2006, the Transportation Security Administration adjusted the ban on liquids, aerosols and gels. Travellers are permitted to carry liquids through security checkpoints in containers of 3.4 ounces (100 mL) or less that fit comfortably in one quart-size clear plastic zip-top bag. This procedure came to be known as \"3-1-1 for carry-ons\" (3.4 ounce containers in a 1 quart bag, 1 bag per passenger). Items purchased in the airside zone after clearing security could be brought on board without restriction. Other exemptions to this restriction include medications and breast milk.\n",
"Each shipping container is designed to maintain its integrity under normal transportation conditions and during hypothetical accident conditions. They must protect their contents against damage from the outside world, such as impact or fire. They must also contain their contents from leakage, both for physical leakage and for radiological shielding.\n",
"Containers have been used to smuggle contraband. The vast majority of containers are never subjected to scrutiny due to the large number of containers in use. In recent years there have been increased concerns that containers might be used to transport terrorists or terrorist materials into a country undetected. The US government has advanced the Container Security Initiative (CSI), intended to ensure that high-risk cargo is examined or scanned, preferably at the port of departure.\n",
"Improved cargo security is also an important benefit of containerization. Once the cargo is loaded into a container, it isn't touched again until it reaches its destination. The cargo is not visible to the casual viewer and thus is less likely to be stolen; the doors of the containers are usually sealed so that tampering is more evident. Some containers are fitted with electronic monitoring devices and can be remotely monitored for changes in air pressure, which happens when the doors are opened. This reduced the thefts that had long plagued the shipping industry. Recent developments have focused on the use of intelligent logistics optimization to further enhance security.\n",
"BULLET::::- A cylindrical style container with a separate, translucent or opaque plastic lid which can seal tightly to resist leaks. The container may or may not taper somewhat towards the bottom. Both overall size and the ratio of height to diameter can vary greatly. Such containers usually hold soups and stews; however, smaller varieties are often used to hold sauces and condiments.\n",
"Since most liquids can spill, evaporate, or seep through even the smallest opening, special consideration must be made for their safe and secure handling. This usually involves building a bunding, or containment dike, around the tank, so that any leakage may be safely contained.\n",
"The problem with the containers was the crimped or soldered seams, which easily split during transportation, especially over the rocky desert terrain in North Africa. Containers were stacked on top of each other during shipping, and the upper layers crushed those below, resulting in fuel flowing freely in the bilges, with the resulting poisoning and fire risks.\n"
] |
why do bytes use metric prefixes (giga, mega, etc) if they don't follow metric standards? | Computers like powers of 2, and people decided that 2^10 = 1024 was close enough to 1000 to use the kilo- prefix.
But then some marketers came along, and decided they could make hard drives look bigger if they used 1000 for kilo instead of 1024. So things got confusing.
There are some alternate prefices, kibi-, mibi-, and gibi-, that have been proposed use with powers of 1024, keeping kilo-, mega- and giga- for powers of 1000, but they are not commonly used. | [
"BULLET::::- Prefixes for bytes are now used in strictly decimal meaning (as opposed to their binary meaning) when describing disk space, such that an indicated file size of 1 MB corresponds to 1 million bytes, as commonly used by hard disk manufacturers.\n",
"A metric prefix is a unit prefix that precedes a basic unit of measure to indicate a multiple or fraction of the unit. While all metric prefixes in common use today are decadic, historically there have been a number of binary metric prefixes as well. Each prefix has a unique symbol that is prepended to the unit symbol. The prefix \"kilo-\", for example, may be added to \"gram\" to indicate \"multiplication\" by one thousand: one kilogram is equal to one thousand grams. The prefix \"milli-\", likewise, may be added to \"metre\" to indicate \"division\" by one thousand; one millimetre is equal to one thousandth of a metre.\n",
"The use of \"gigabyte\" (GB) to refer to bytes in some contexts and to bytes in others, sometimes in reference to the same device, has led to claims of confusion, controversies, and lawsuits. The IEC created the binary prefixes (kibi, mebi, gibi, etc.) in an attempt to reduce such confusion. They are increasingly used in technical literature and open-source software, and are a component of the International System of Quantities.\n",
"Metric prefixes are widely used outside the system of metric units. Common examples include the megabyte and the decibel. Metric prefixes rarely appear with imperial or US units except in some special cases (e.g., microinch, kilofoot, kilopound or 'kip'). They are also used with other specialized units used in particular fields (e.g., megaelectronvolt, gigaparsec, millibarn). They are also occasionally used with currency units (e.g., gigadollar), mainly by people who are familiar with the prefixes from scientific usage. In geology and paleontology, the year, with symbol a (from the Latin \"annus\"), is commonly used with metric prefixes: ka, Ma, and Ga.\n",
"The names of the units of measure used in the metric system consist of two parts: a unit name (for example \"metre\", \"gram\", \"litre\") and an associated multiplier prefix (for example \"milli-\" meaning , \"kilo-\" meaning 1000). The result is that there are a variety of different named units available to measure the same quantity (for example 10 millimetres = 1 centimetre, 100 centimetres = 1 metre, 1000 metres = 1 kilometre). Each unit and each prefix has a standard symbol (not abbreviation) associated with it.\n",
"The binary interpretation of metric prefixes is still prominently used by the Microsoft Windows operating system, but is deprecated or obsolete in other operating systems. Metric prefixes are also used for random-access memory capacity, such as main memory and CPU cache size, due to the prevalent binary addressing of memory.\n",
"Despite standardization efforts, ambiguity still exists in the meanings of the SI (or metric) prefixes used with the unit byte, especially concerning the prefixes \"kilo\" (k or K), \"mega\" (M), and \"giga\" (G). Computer memory has a binary architecture in which multiples are expressed in powers of 2. In some fields of the software and computer hardware industries a binary prefix is used for bytes and bits, while producers of computer storage devices practice adherence to decimal SI multiples. For example, a computer disk drive capacity of 100 gigabytes is specified when the disk contains 100 billion bytes (93 gibibytes) of storage space.\n"
] |
Was there a moral justification given in ancient India for the practice of slavery? | Slavery as in West (west of Indus) never existed in India until Muslim conquests into India(Legally). There were no Historical stories which mention about slavery, other than few anecdotes.
Due to high population and economical/social segregation of Varna system, Slavery as seen in west was observed in the west although , Dasee(women who are dedicated to temple or queens) are not uncommon.
Traditionally slavery was never justified by religion in Indian sub continent . | [
"There are some very notable differences between the way ancient punishment was to be administered and how modern punishment is administered in Hindu societies. If a criminal were to confess to a crime, he would received half of the prescribed punishment in ancient India; however in modern India, confessing does not mitigate one's punishment. In ancient India, one's caste would affect the punishment that he would receive. In modern India, caste does not play a role, which furthers the idea of equality among men. Modern law, in India, dictates that only laws that have been conceived and that are written down may be punished. In ancient Indian law, a person could be prosecuted for a crime that has not been written down if a Sishta, a Brahmin who had studied the Veda, declares the act to be a crime. One other punishment that could be incurred in ancient India was the confiscation of a Shudra's wife if he had an affair with a woman of a higher caste, which would be inconceivable in modern India.\n",
"Slavery in India was an established institution in ancient India by the start of the common era, or likely earlier. However, its study in ancient times is problematic and contested because it depends on the translations of terms such as \"dasa\" and \"dasyu\".\n",
"According to Scott Levi, slavery was an established institution in ancient India by the start of the common era based on texts such as the \"Arthashastra\", the \"Manusmriti\" and the \"Mahabharata\". Slavery was \"likely widespread by the lifetime of the Buddha\" and it \"likely existed in the Vedic period\" if the term \"dasas\" is interpreted as slaves, but states Levi, this association is problematic. The term \"dāsa\" and \"dāsyu\" in Vedic and other ancient Indian literature has been interpreted as \"slave\", but others contest it.\n",
"Slavery as a predominant social institution emerged from the 8th century onwards in India, particularly after the 11th century, as part of systematic plunder and enslavement of infidels, along with the use of slaves in armies for conquest.\n",
"In ancient times, moral principles based on religious beliefs were common, as several major religions, such as Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism, and Taoism condemn corrupt conduct in their respective religious texts. The described legal and moral stances were exclusively addressing bribery but were not concerned with other aspects that are considered corruption in the 21st century. Embezzlement, cronyism, nepotism, and other strategies of gaining public assets by office holders were not yet constructed as unlawfully or immoral, as positions of power were regarded a personal possession rather than an entrusted function. With the popularization of the concept of public interest and the development of a professional bureaucracy in the 19th century offices became perceived as trusteeships instead of property of the office holder, leading to legislation against and a negative perception of those additional forms of corruption. Especially in diplomacy and for international trad purposes, corruption remained a generally accepted phenomenon of the political and economic life throughout the 19th and big parts of the 20th century.\n",
"The fact that the enslaved girls and women were exploited in prostitution without misery nor protection by the law was also used as an argument for the abolitionism, the social movement to abolish slavery in the 19th century. The Lei do Ventre Livre (\"Law of the free belly\"), according to which children of slaves were no longer slaves themselves, also decided that slaves were allowed to save money, which their master could not arbitrarily take away from them, and with which they could free themselves. As a result, it became more interesting for slave girls to become prostitute, because this way they had a chance to earn a tip for themselves. The inhibition to prostitute themselves was usually low for the female slaves, because they had learned since childhood that they had no sexual self-determination and were accustomed to be raped. However, the custody and administration of the savings of a slave was the responsibility of the owner, and he could try to manipulate the savings and list cost and penalties like tricky pimps do. There have been even processes of female slaves against their masters, where the women often had to prove with the help of clients that they had been \"industrious\" and diligent and had numerous customers, much more as listed in the wrong accounting of the master.\n",
"Slavery in India escalated during the Muslim domination of northern India after the 11th-century, after Muslim rulers re-introduced slavery to the Indian subcontinent. It became a predominant social institution with the enslavement of non-Muslims, along with the use of slaves in armies for conquest, long since a vital tradition in all Muslim kingdoms. According to Muslim historians of the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughal Empire era, after the invasions of non-Muslim kingdoms, Indians were taken slaves with many exported to Central Asia and West Asia. Many slaves from the Horn of Africa were also imported into the Indian subcontinent to serve in the households of the powerful or the Muslim armies of the Deccan Sultanates and the Mughal Empire.\n"
] |
what prevents us from just arranging protrons, electrons and neutrons together in any way we like to create any elements we want and make anything we want out of nothing? | It takes a *lot* of energy to attach and rearrange those pieces. Think about burning a log: you're rearranging the *chemicals* by changing the bonds between different atoms, so that you turn cellulose into carbon dioxide and water (and some other byproducts). Doing so requires you to add energy to the system (a match) and produces excess energy. Or electrolysis, which is using electricity to turn water (H20) into hydrogen (H2) and oxygen (O2), which requires even more energy in and you get less energy out of it than you put into it.
The bonds between protons and neutrons is *much* stronger. How much stronger? [Here are some atoms being rearranged violently to form different chemicals](_URL_0_), and [here's some protons and neutrons being rearranged violently to form different atoms](_URL_1_). There is a *lot* more energy involved in making different elements compared to chemical changes. The technology to produce that energy and, more importantly, to control it simply doesn't exist at the moment.
EDIT: That said, this is pretty much exactly what particle accelerators do. That's how we "discover" more elements: we smash smaller elements together to form bigger elements. We just do that at a very very small scale (a few atoms at a time). But we use larger elements, which require less energy to get to fuse. We could conceivably get smaller elements to fuse, but it wouldn't be economical at all to do so. | [
"The RIS process can be used to ionize all elements on the periodic table, except helium and neon, using available lasers. In fact, it is possible to ionize most elements with a single laser set-up, thus enabling rapid switching from one element to another. In the early days, optical schemes from RIMS have been used to study over 70 elements and over 39 elements can be ionized with a single laser combination using a rapid computer-modulated framework that switches elements within seconds.\n",
"If the actinides are incorporated into a uranium-metal or uranium-oxide matrix, then the neutron capture of U-238 is likely to generate new plutonium-239. An advantage of mixing the actinides with uranium and plutonium is that the large fission cross sections of U-235 and Pu-239 for the less energetic delayed-neutrons could make the reaction stable enough to be carried out in a critical fast reactor, which is likely to be both cheaper and simpler than an accelerator driven system.\n",
"Hence, it is quite important to be able to separate the zirconium from the hafnium in their naturally occurring alloy. This can only be done inexpensively by using modern chemical ion-exchange resins. Similar resins are also used in reprocessing nuclear fuel rods, when it is necessary to separate uranium and plutonium, and sometimes thorium.\n",
"It is also possible to create a matrix made from a mix of the above-mentioned materials. This is most commonly done in fast reactors where one may wish to keep the breeding ratio of new fuel high enough to keep powering the reactor, but still low enough that the generated actinides can be safely destroyed without transporting them to another site. One way to do this is to use fuel where actinides and uranium is mixed with inert zirconium, producing fuel elements with the desired properties.\n",
"For instance, plutonium can be reprocessed into MOX fuels and transmuted in standard reactors. The heavier elements could be transmuted in fast reactors, but probably more effectively in a subcritical reactor which is sometimes known as an energy amplifier and which was devised by Carlo Rubbia. Fusion neutron sources have also been proposed as well suited.\n",
"The mere fact that an assembly is supercritical does not guarantee that it contains any free neutrons at all. At least one neutron is required to \"strike\" a chain reaction, and if the spontaneous fission rate is sufficiently low it may take a long time (in U reactors, as long as many minutes) before a chance neutron encounter starts a chain reaction even if the reactor is supercritical. Most nuclear reactors include a \"starter\" neutron source that ensures there are always a few free neutrons in the reactor core, so that a chain reaction will begin immediately when the core is made critical. A common type of startup neutron source is a mixture of an alpha particle emitter such as Am (americium-241) with a lightweight isotope such as Be (beryllium-9).\n",
"Since it is a relatively slow method of assembly, plutonium cannot be used unless it is purely the 239 isotope. Production of impurity-free plutonium is very difficult and is impractical. The required amount of uranium is relatively large, and thus the overall efficiency is relatively low.\n"
] |
what was the reason to split programs into interpreters and compilers? | Compilers came first, they took your code and brought it down to machine code ahead of time so it can run directly on the processor quickly when you needed it to.
Compiling is/was a reasonably slow process and was done on slow equipment so it was good to do it in advance. You could optimize the code during the process as well, reorder some instructions for better hardware usage, and overall just make things run faster
An interpreted language runs on an interpreter, basically a precompiled program that takes what you've written, compiles and executes each line in order using precompiled function calls. There is little to no optimization being done because the code is read in at run time so if you access your array in a non-ideal fashion you're going to pay the price but a compiler would generally rearrange things so you end up accessing it in an ideal fashion
An interpreted language is going to be slower, you're running code on top of code and missing out on lots of optimization, but doesn't require precompiling in advance and porting the executable to the target hardware | [
"Compilers are not the only language processor used to transform source programs. An interpreter is computer software that transforms and then executes the indicated operations. The translation process influences the design of computer languages which leads to a preference of compilation or interpretation. In practice, an interpreter can be implemented for compiled languages and compilers can be implemented for interpreted languages.\n",
"If no compiler exists for the language to be interpreted, creating a self-interpreter requires the implementation of the language in a host language (which may be another programming language or assembler). By having a first interpreter such as this, the system is bootstrapped and new versions of the interpreter can be developed in the language itself. It was in this way that Donald Knuth developed the TANGLE interpreter for the language WEB of the industrial standard TeX typesetting system.\n",
"Further, compilers can contain interpreters for optimization reasons. For example, where an expression can be executed during compilation and the results inserted into the output program, then it prevents it having to be recalculated each time the program runs, which can greatly speed up the final program. Modern trends toward just-in-time compilation and bytecode interpretation at times blur the traditional categorizations of compilers and interpreters even further.\n",
"Thus, both compilers and interpreters generally turn source code (text files) into tokens, both may (or may not) generate a parse tree, and both may generate immediate instructions (for a stack machine, quadruple code, or by other means). The basic difference is that a compiler system, including a (built in or separate) linker, generates a stand-alone \"machine code\" program, while an interpreter system instead \"performs\" the actions described by the high level program.\n",
"Interpreters are used to execute source code from a programming language line-by-line. The interpreter decodes each statement and performs its behavior. One advantage of interpreters is that they can easily be extended to an interactive session. The programmer is presented with a prompt, and individual lines of code are typed in and performed immediately.\n",
"Most modern compilers have a lexer and parser that produce an intermediate representation of the program. The intermediate representation is a simple sequence of operations which can be used by an optimizer and a code generator which produces instructions in the machine language of the target processor. Because the code generator uses an intermediate representation, the same code generator can be used for many different high level languages.\n",
"However, there are many different types of compilers. If the compiled program can run on a computer whose CPU or operating system is different from the one on which the compiler runs, the compiler is a cross-compiler. A bootstrap compiler is written in the language that it intends to compile. A program that translates from a low-level language to a higher level one is a decompiler. A program that translates between high-level languages is usually called a source-to-source compiler or transpiler. A language rewriter is usually a program that translates the form of expressions without a change of language. The term compiler-compiler refers to tools used to create parsers that perform syntax analysis.\n"
] |
how do some studies (referenced) come to the conclusion that smoking marijuana is not harmful to the human body? | Smoking might induce the body to produce more blood than otherwise, but so would doing something like donating blood. Unless we are to accept that the Red Cross is harming donors it wouldn't be reasonable to consider the minor monoxide poisoning to qualify as a harm on such a report. | [
"Exposure to marijuana may have biologically-based physical, mental, behavioral and social health consequences and is \"associated with diseases of the liver (particularly with co-existing hepatitis C), lungs, heart, eyesight and vasculature\" according to a 2013 literature review by Gordon and colleagues. The association with these diseases has only been reported in cases where people have smoked cannabis. The authors cautioned that \"evidence is needed, and further research should be considered, to prove causal associations of marijuana with many physical health conditions\".\n",
"A 2013 literature review found that exposure to marijuana had biologically-based physical, mental, behavioral and social health consequences and was \"associated with diseases of the liver (particularly with co-existing hepatitis C), lungs, heart, and vasculature\".\n",
"A 2013 literature review said that exposure to cannabis was \"associated with diseases of the liver (particularly with co-existing hepatitis C), lungs, heart, and vasculature\". The authors cautioned that \"evidence is needed, and further research should be considered, to prove causal associations of marijuana with many physical health conditions\".\n",
"With Lambros Comitas, she directed a study of marijuana smoking in Jamaica, for the National Institute of Mental Health. They found no significant effect, apart from a slight reduction in the efficacy of oxygen delivery, possibly due to concomitant use of tobacco.\n",
"A 2013 literature review said that exposure to cannabis had biologically-based physical, mental, behavioral and social health consequences and was \"associated with diseases of the liver (particularly with co-existing hepatitis C), lungs, heart, and vasculature\". The authors cautioned that \"evidence is needed, and further research should be considered, to prove causal associations of marijuana with many physical health conditions\".\n",
"Both sides claimed that the IOM report supported their position. The DEA publication \"Exposing the Myth of Smoked Medical Marijuana\" interpreted the IOM's statement, \"While we see a future in the development of chemically defined cannabinoid drugs, we see little future in smoked marijuana as a medicine,\" as meaning that smoking cannabis is not recommended for the treatment of any disease condition. Cannabis advocates pointed out that the IOM did not study vaporizers, devices which, by heating cannabis to 185 °C, release therapeutic cannabinoids while reducing or eliminating ingestion of various carcinogens.\n",
"In 1985, Gabriel G. Nahas published \"Keep Off the Grass\", which stated that \"[the] biochemical changes induced by marijuana in the brain result in drug-seeking, drug taking behavior, which in many instances will lead the user to experiment with other pleasurable substances. The risk of progression from marijuana to cocaine to heroin is now well documented.\"\n"
] |
what makes white wines "dry"? | There is a spectrum of wines! Both red and white have it.
They range from dry to sweet. That's how you get semi-sweet, etc.
It's determined by how much natural sugar from the grapes is left in the wine. You can stop the fermentation process early to make a sweeter wine (or add sugar afterwards). If they ferment until there's no sugar left, it's dry.
That's how you get dry wine.
| [
"The dry white wine is a wine without sugar (the sugar ratio is generally less than 4 grams per litre). It is a wine very difficult to develop because the balance of the wine is based on only two parameters: acidity and alcohol. This is the wine that the consumer refers to when he speaks of white wine without giving further details.\n",
"White wines are often used as an \"apéritif\" before a meal, with dessert, or as a refreshing drink between meals. White wines are often considered more refreshing, and lighter in both style and taste than the majority of their red wine counterparts. In addition, due to their acidity, aroma, and ability to soften meat and deglaze cooking juices, white wines are often used in cooking.\n",
"The wide variety of white wines comes from the large number of varieties, methods of winemaking, and ratios of residual sugar. White wine is mainly from \"white\" grapes, which are green or yellow in colour, such as the Chardonnay, Sauvignon, and Riesling. Some white wine is also made from grapes with coloured skin, provided that the obtained wort is not stained. Pinot noir, for example, is commonly used to produce champagne.\n",
"Dry (non-sweet) white wine is the most common, derived from the complete fermentation of the wort. Sweet wines are produced when the fermentation is interrupted before all the grape sugars are converted into alcohol. Sparkling wines, which are mostly white wines, are produced by not allowing carbon dioxide from the fermentation to escape during fermentation, which takes place in the bottle rather than in the barrel.\n",
"Because of its shorter maceration, white wine contains very little tannin and therefore little antioxidants that make red wine so interesting medically speaking. However, a team of researchers from Montpellier has developed a white wine enriched with polyphenols.\n",
"Among the many types of white wine, dry white wine is the most common. More or less aromatic and tangy, it is derived from the complete fermentation of the wort. Sweet wines, on the other hand, are produced by interrupting the fermentation before all the grape sugars are converted into alcohol; this is called \"Mutage\" or fortification. The methods of enriching wort with sugar are multiple: on-ripening on the vine, \"passerillage\" (straining), or the use of \"noble rot\". Sparkling wines, which are mostly white, are wines where the carbon dioxide from the fermentation is kept dissolved in the wine and becomes gas when the bottle is opened.\n",
"The acidity of dry white wine is reduced by slightly salty or sweet dishes while the wine accentuates the salty side of food and tempers heavy fatty foods. Sweet wine goes well with sweet and savoury dishes to mitigate the heavy sugar and stimulate the fruitiness.\n"
] |
A question about intelligent life. | With the exception of some very very exotic and speculative reproductive technologies, no.
Evolution is just long-term adaptation to our environment. If, say, our brains start getting smaller because we can offload thinking to technology, then that *is* the process of evolution in action. If the main standard for mate selection becomes having a great OKCupid profile, then there will be an evolutionary pressure for good writing skills. | [
"Design that favors the development of intelligent life, argues Behe, is not only demanded by \"the most recent findings concerning biological complexity\", but also by discoveries in the fields of chemistry (he uses the example of the peculiar, life-supporting structure of water), and of cosmology (referring to the anthropic principle).\n",
"Additionally, the scientific community considers intelligent design, a neo-creationist offshoot, to be unscientific, pseudoscience, or junk science. The U.S. National Academy of Sciences has stated that intelligent design \"and other claims of supernatural intervention in the origin of life\" are not science because they cannot be tested by experiment, do not generate any predictions, and propose no new hypotheses of their own. In September 2005, 38 Nobel laureates issued a statement saying \"Intelligent design is fundamentally unscientific; it cannot be tested as scientific theory because its central conclusion is based on belief in the intervention of a supernatural agent.\" In October 2005, a coalition representing more than 70,000 Australian scientists and science teachers issued a statement saying \"intelligent design is not science\" and calling on \"all schools not to teach Intelligent Design (ID) as science, because it fails to qualify on every count as a scientific theory\".\n",
"Many members of the scientific community and philosophy of science communities think that science can provide the relevant context, and set of parameters necessary for dealing with topics related to the meaning of life. In their view, science can offer a wide range of insights on topics ranging from the science of happiness to death anxiety. Scientific inquiry facilitates this through nomological investigation into various aspects of life and reality, such as the Big Bang, the origin of life, and evolution, and by studying the objective factors which correlate with the subjective experience of meaning and happiness.\n",
"Since intelligent life might be discovered at any time via the radio telescope research presently under way, and since the consequences of such a discovery are presently unpredictable because of our limited knowledge of behavior under even an approximation of such dramatic circumstances, two research areas can be recommended:\n",
"It has been pointed out that it is not at all clear that \"WMCF\" establishes that the claim \"intelligent alien life would have mathematical ability\" is a myth. To do this, it would be required to show that intelligence and mathematical ability are separable, and this has not been done. On Earth, intelligence and mathematical ability seem to go hand in hand in all life-forms, as pointed out by Keith Devlin among others. The authors of \"WMCF\" have not explained how this situation would (or even could) be different anywhere else.\n",
"The teleological argument assumes that one can infer the existence of intelligent design merely by examination, and because life is reminiscent of something a human might design, it too must have been designed. However, considering \"snowflakes and crystals of certain salts\", \"[i]n no case do we find intelligence\". \"There are other ways that order and design can come about\" such as by \"purely physical forces\".\n",
"Intelligent design is the argument that an intelligent cause is responsible for the complexity of life and that one can detect that cause empirically. Dembski postulated that probability theory can be used to prove irreducible complexity (IC), or what he called \"specified complexity.\" The scientific community sees intelligent design—and Dembski's concept of specified complexity—as a form of creationism attempting to portray itself as science.\n"
] |
If I have two quantuam entangled particles at large distance, can I change the state of the far-away particle by changing the state of my near-by particle? | No. Entanglement is nothing more than a correlation between the outcomes of measurements. If you measure the state of the first particle, then you will be able to predict with certainty the outcome of a similar measurement on the second particle. It has nothing to do with controlling the second particle with the first. | [
"Now, if the initial state is very localized in position, it will be very spread out in momentum, and thus we expect that the wave function will rapidly spread out, and the connection with the classical trajectories will be lost. When Planck's constant is small, however, it is possible to have a state that is well localized in \"both\" position and momentum. The small uncertainty in momentum ensures that the particle \"remains\" well localized in position for a long time, so that expected position and momentum continue to closely track the classical trajectories for a long time.\n",
"The difficulty captured by the EPR thought experiment was that by perturbing the angular momentum state of either of the two particles in a spatially distributed singlet state, the quantum state of the remaining particle appears to be \"instantaneously\" altered, even if the two particles have over time become separated by light years of distance. A critical insight made decades later by John Stewart Bell, who was a strong advocate of Einstein's locality-first perspective, showed that his Bell's theorem could be used to assess the existence or non-existence of singlet entanglement experimentally. The irony was that instead of disproving entanglement, which was Bell's hope, subsequent experiments instead established the reality of entanglement. In fact, there now exist commercial quantum encryption devices whose operation depends fundamentally on the existence and behavior of spatially extended singlets.\n",
"The theory of quantum entanglement predicts that separated particles can briefly share common properties and respond to certain types of measurement as if they were a single particle. In particular, a measurement on one particle in one place can alter the probability distribution for the outcomes of a measurement on the other particle at a different location. If a measurement setting in one location instantaneously modifies the probability distribution that applies at a distant location, then local hidden variables are ruled out. For an expanded description, see Bell's theorem.\n",
"The point of this example is that it illustrates that the pairwise entanglement of the GHZ state is more subtle than it first appears: a judicious measurement along an orthogonal direction, along with the application of a quantum transform depending on the measurement outcome, can leave behind a maximally entangled state.\n",
"It is important to realize that particles in singlet states need not be locally bound to each other. For example, when the spin states of two electrons are correlated by their emission from a single quantum event that conserves angular momentum, the resulting electrons remain in a shared singlet state even as their separation in space increases indefinitely over time, provided only that their angular momentum states remain unperturbed. In Dirac notation this distance-indifferent singlet state is usually represented as:\n",
"In this description, the particles are distinguishable. If the position and momentum of two particles are exchanged, the new state will be represented by a different point in phase space. In this case a single point will represent a microstate. If a subset of \"M\" particles are indistinguishable from each other, then the \"M!\" possible permutations or possible exchanges of these particles will be counted as part of a single microstate. The set of possible microstates are also reflected in the constraints upon the thermodynamic system.\n",
"In 1993, Bennett \"et al\" proposed that a quantum state of a particle could be teleported to another distant particle, but the two particles do not move at all. This is called state teleportation. There are a lot of following theoretical and experimental papers published. Researchers believe that quantum teleportation is the foundation of quantum calculation and quantum communication.\n"
] |
What's the deal with the pyramids in bosnia? | You'll be interested in my response [here](_URL_0_), as well as the discussion elsewhere in the thread. I and the others definitely welcome follow-up questions. It's a claim backed by a few people with monetary investments (read: tourism) in the site, based on results that have not been replicated by any one else. I'm also going to sacrifice my integrity and vouch for the quality of the details in the Wiki article. | [
"The 'Bosnian Pyramid' project is alleged to have done considerable damage to the archaeological heritage of the area, which contains ruins of a medieval capital, Roman observation post, and earlier remains. Anthony Harding, Professor of Archaeology at Exeter University and then-president of the European Association of Archeologists, said that, \"Osmanagić is conducting a pseudo-archaeological project that, disgracefully, threatens to destroy parts of Bosnia's real heritage.\"\n",
"Colin Woodard, writing for the \"Smithsonian Magazine\" in December 2009, has suggested that the 'Bosnian pyramid' phenomenon may be a societal reaction to the widespread destruction and horrors of the Bosnian War which ended in 1995. He notes that Bosnian leaders, including one prime minister and two presidents, and many Bosnian news outlets have welcomed the theory. It appears to flatter a large and receptive domestic audience with an idea that their homeland was once the seat of a great ancient civilization, and holds out a kind of promise of a bright economic future. Conversely, Woodard notes, those in Bosnia who have attempted to expose the project as a nationalist hoax \"have been shouted down and called anti-Bosnian\".\n",
"Scientific investigations of the site show there is no pyramid. Additionally, scientists have criticised the Bosnian authorities for supporting the pyramid claim saying, \"This scheme is a cruel hoax on an unsuspecting public and has no place in the world of genuine science.\"\n",
"The 'Bosnian pyramid complex' is a pseudoarchaeological notion to explain the formation of a cluster of natural hills in central Bosnia and Herzegovina. Since 2005, Semir Osmanagić, also known as Sam Osmanagich, a Bosnian businessman now based in Houston, Texas, has claimed that these hills are the largest human-made ancient pyramids on Earth. His claims have been overwhelmingly refuted by scientists but he has proceeded to promote the area as a tourist attraction.\n",
"The pyramid's importance has led to a number of measures taken to protect it. The archaeological zone is patrolled by a police equestrian unit from the municipality of San Ándres. This to keep motor vehicles from damaging the site. Access to parts of the site is restricted during events such as the Quetzalcoatl Ritual. Certain large fireworks have been banned by the city and the Catholic Church because they cause serious vibrations in the pyramid's tunnels. Some of the land around the pyramid has been bought by authorities and made into soccer fields, and sown with flowers to create a buffer between the construction of homes and the pyramid.\n",
"Alexander Golod is a Ukrainian former defense contractor and current scientist and alternative healer, focusing on pyramid research. He has theorized that pyramid structures have energy forces that bring several benefits, for both man and the environment. He has constructed seventeen fiberglass pyramids throughout Russia, the tallest at a height of 132 feet.\n",
"Local authorities have funded his excavations, and authorized visits to the 'pyramids' by school children, with guides telling them the hills are part of their Bosnian heritage. The site has become a tourist destination.\n"
] |
Is beauty a human invention, or do animals differentiate in a similar way? | This is typically called [sexual selection](_URL_0_) and yes, it occurs in many species of animals (humans included). One good example is the tail of a male peacock. The color, size, luster etc, of the plumage works to attract the females of the species (peahens). This makes for a pretty good example because we too can appreciate the beauty of a peacock's tail. | [
"In evolutionary aesthetics theory, there is evidence that perceptions of beauty are determined by natural selection and therefore Darwinian; that things, aspects of people and landscapes considered beautiful are typically found in situations likely to give enhanced survival of the perceiving human's genes.\n",
"Beauty is the ascription of a property or characteristic to an animal, idea, object, person or place that provides a perceptual experience of pleasure or satisfaction. Beauty is studied as part of aesthetics, culture, social psychology, philosophy and sociology. An \"ideal beauty\" is an entity which is admired, or possesses features widely attributed to beauty in a particular culture, for perfection. Ugliness is the opposite of beauty.\n",
"One form of the argument from beauty is that the elegance of the laws of physics, which have been empirically discovered, or the elegant laws of mathematics, which are abstract but which have empirically proven to be useful, is evidence of a creator deity who has arranged these things to be beautiful and not ugly.\n",
"Beauty is a perceived characteristic of an animal, idea, object, person or place that provides a perceptual experience of pleasure or satisfaction. Many people define beauty as something that is subjective, being that it is in the \"eye of the beholder\" to see what he or she thinks is actually beautiful. This \"eye\" is seen in many different cultures with each having a different preference. This subjective can be seen throughout history, especially in the African-American community. With the presence of oppression in the past, African-American cultural beauty has bend mended and redefined in many ways.\n",
"Beauty in nature has historically been a prevalent theme in art and books, filling large sections of libraries and bookstores. That nature has been depicted and celebrated by so much art, photography, poetry, and other literature shows the strength with which many people associate nature and beauty. Reasons why this association exists, and what the association consists of, are studied by the branch of philosophy called aesthetics. Beyond certain basic characteristics that many philosophers agree about to explain what is seen as beautiful, the opinions are virtually endless. Nature and wildness have been important subjects in various eras of world history. An early tradition of landscape art began in China during the Tang Dynasty (618–907). The tradition of representing nature \"as it is\" became one of the aims of Chinese painting and was a significant influence in Asian art.\n",
"Living things like orchids, hummingbirds, and the peacock's tail have abstract designs with a beauty of form, pattern and colour that artists struggle to match. The beauty that people perceive in nature has causes at different levels, notably in the mathematics that governs what patterns can physically form, and among living things in the effects of natural selection, that govern how patterns evolve.\n",
"The relationship between humans and animals has long been of interest to anthropologists as one pathway to an understanding the evolution of human behavior. Similarities between the behavior of humans and animals have sometimes been used in an attempt to understand the evolutionary significance of particular behaviors. Differences in the treatment of animals have been said to reflect a society's understanding of human nature and the place of humans and animals in the scheme of things. Domestication has been of particular interest. For example, it has been argued that, as animals became domesticated, humans treated them as property and began to see them as inferior or fundamentally different from humans.\n"
] |
how the mpaa can decide what i get to watch? | Because all the major movie producers agree to listen to what the MPAA says. There's nothing stopping some rogue producer from ignoring them, but you'd have a hard time finding that producer's movies. | [
"The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) film rating system is used in the United States and its territories to rate a film's suitability for certain audiences based on its content. The MPAA rating system is a voluntary scheme that is not enforced by law; films can be exhibited without a rating, although certain theaters refuse to exhibit non-rated or NC-17 rated films. Non-members of MPAA may also submit films for rating. Other media, such as television programs, music and video games, are rated by other entities such as the TV Parental Guidelines, the RIAA and the ESRB, respectively.\n",
"In 2013, the MPAA ratings were visually redesigned, with the rating displayed on a left panel and the name of the rating shown above it. A larger panel on the right provides a more detailed description of the film's content and an explanation of the rating level is placed on a horizontal bar at the bottom of the rating.\n",
"The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) is an American trade association representing the five major film studios of the United States, as well as the video streaming service Netflix. Founded in 1922 as the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (MPPDA), its original goal was to ensure the viability of the American film industry. In addition, the MPAA established guidelines for film content which resulted in the creation of the Production Code in 1930. This code, also known as the Hays Code, was replaced by a voluntary film rating system in 1968, which is managed by the Classification and Rating Administration (CARA).\n",
"The film course teaches techniques such as lighting, storyboarding, and using Adobe Premiere Pro as an editing tool. Films with an MPAA rating of G or PG are viewed and analysed throughout the school year; films shown have included \"Sunset Boulevard\" (1950), \"Vertigo\" (1958), \"\" (1968), \"Rocky\" (1976), and \"Star Wars\" (1977).\n",
"The American Cinema Editors Award for Best Edited One Hour Series for Commercial Television, or the ACE Eddie Award, is an award presented by the American Cinema Editors to the best edited episodes of a one-hour series featured on broadcast or basic cable television. It is presented annually. The years denote when each episode first aired. The current eligibility period is the calendar year. The winners are highlighted.\n",
"More recently, the MPAA has advocated for the motion picture and television industry, with the goals of promoting effective copyright protection, reducing piracy, and expanding market access. It has long worked to curb copyright infringement, including recent attempts to limit the sharing of copyrighted works via peer-to-peer file-sharing networks and by streaming from pirate sites. Former United States Ambassador to France Charles Rivkin serves as chairman and CEO.\n",
"Registered users can rate movies, find recommended films based on their personal ratings, create any kind of movie lists and — in the Spanish version — write reviews. The site also includes information about contents of the main streaming services, such as Netflix, HBO, Movistar+, Filmin and Rakuten TV. This feature is currently limited to Netflix in the English version.\n"
] |
Please join us in /r/HistoryNetwork for an Historical IAmA in 190 with Prime Minister Winston Churchill shortly after the Battle of Dunkirk | Might just have to have a look at that... | [
"On 31 May 1940, Churchill flew again to Paris for a meeting of the SWC, this time with Clement Attlee and Generals John Dill and Hastings Ismay. Discussions were held at the French Ministry of War on the deteriorating military situation with a French delegation consisting of Reynaud, Philippe Pétain and Maxime Weygand. Also present was Churchill's personal representative to the French Prime Minister, General Sir Edward Spears. Three main points were considered: Narvik, the Dunkirk evacuation and the prospect of an Italian invasion of France. Reynaud complained that at the evacuation, Operation Dynamo, more British troops had been taken off than French. Churchill promised to do everything to redress the balance. During discussions after the meeting, a group formed around Churchill, Pétain and Spears. One of the French officials mentioned the possibility of a separate surrender. Speaking to Pétain, Spears pointed out that such an event would provoke a blockade of France by Britain and the bombardment of all French ports in German hands. Churchill declared that Britain would fight on whatever happened.\n",
"On 31 May 1940, Churchill flew to Paris with Clement Attlee and Generals John Dill (Chief of the Imperial General Staff) and \"Pug\" Ismay for a meeting of the Anglo French Supreme War Council to discuss the deteriorating military situation with a French delegation consisting of Reynaud, Pétain and Weygand. Three main points were considered: Narvik, the Dunkirk evacuation and the prospect of an Italian invasion of France. Spears did not take part in the discussions but was present 'taking voluminous notes'. It was agreed that British and French forces at Narvik be evacuated without delay – France urgently needed the manpower. Spears was impressed with the way that Churchill dominated the meeting. Dunkirk was the main topic, the French pointing out that 'out of 200,000 British 150,000 had been evacuated, whereas out of 200,000 Frenchmen only 15,000 had been taken off'. Churchill promised that now British and French soldiers would leave together 'bras dessus, bras dessous' – arm in arm. Italian entry into the war seemed imminent, with Churchill urging the bombing of the industrial north by British aircraft based in southern France while at the same time trying to gauge whether the French feared retaliation. Spears guessed that he was trying to assess the French will to fight. With the agenda completed, Churchill spoke passionately about the need for the two countries to fight on, or 'they would be reduced to the status of slaves for ever'. Spears was moved 'by the emotion that surged from Winston Churchill in great torrents'.\n",
"Churchill flew to Paris on 16 May. He immediately recognised the gravity of the situation when he observed that the French government was already burning its archives and was preparing for an evacuation of the capital. In a sombre meeting with the French commanders, Churchill asked General Gamelin, \"\"Où est la masse de manoeuvre\"?\" [\"Where is the strategic reserve?\"] that had saved Paris in the First World War. \"\"Aucune\"\" [\"There is none\"] Gamelin replied. After the war, Gamelin claimed his response was \"There is no longer any.\" Churchill later described hearing this as the single most shocking moment in his life. Churchill asked Gamelin where and when the general proposed to launch a counterattack against the flanks of the German bulge. Gamelin simply replied \"inferiority of numbers, inferiority of equipment, inferiority of methods\".\n",
"Churchill opened the meeting by briefing his colleagues on the Saturday night defence committee meeting and informing them of Reynaud's visit later on Sunday. He explained that, because of communication difficulties, the French high command had not known of Gort's decision that the BEF must retreat to Dunkirk and await evacuation. Churchill said that General Weygand was now aware and had accepted the situation. Weygand had instructed Blanchard to use his own discretion in supporting the retreat and evacuation as there was no longer any possibility of making a counter-attack to the south, especially as the French First Army had lost all its heavy guns and armoured vehicles. Churchill anticipated the total collapse of France and feared that Reynaud was coming to London to confirm it. As a result, evacuation of the BEF was now the government's first priority and, hence, the conclusions reached on Saturday night and transmitted to Gort.\n",
"With Churchill's fortunes restored, the narrative jumps forward to September 1939, with the declaration of war against Germany at the start of World War II, and the announcement that Churchill will be taking over command of the Royal Navy again as First Lord of the Admiralty. An impatient Churchill bids farewell to the staff at the country house, and travels to London. Arriving in the middle of the night at the Admiralty, Churchill is met by a Royal Marine corporal who informs him the fleet have already been signalled that \"\"Winston is Back\"\", to which Churchill triumphantly replies, \"\"And so he bloody well is!\"\"\n",
"When he resumed office in 1939, Churchill fully intended to write a history of the war then beginning. He said several times: \"I will leave judgements on this matter to history—but I will be one of the historians.\" To circumvent the rules against the use of official documents, he took the precaution throughout the war of having a weekly summary of correspondence, minutes, memoranda and other documents printed in galleys and headed \"Prime Minister's personal minutes\". As well, Churchill actually wrote or dictated a number of letters and memoranda with the specific intention of placing his views on the record for later use as a historian.\n",
"Churchill flew to Paris on May 16. He immediately recognized the gravity of the situation when he observed that the French government was already burning its archives and preparing for an evacuation of the capital. In a sombre meeting with the French commanders, Churchill asked General Gamelin, \"Where is the strategic reserve?\" which had saved Paris in the First World War. \"There is none\", Gamelin replied. Later, Churchill described hearing this as the single most shocking moment in his life. Churchill asked Gamelin when and where the general proposed to launch a counterattack against the flanks of the German bulge. Gamelin simply replied \"inferiority of numbers, inferiority of equipment, inferiority of methods\".\n"
] |
how did samsung not notice note 7s exploding in the testing | There are 35 worldwide reports of explosions or fires from Note 7s, 2.5 million were sold. That's 0.14% that have had a problem. Its very possible that its just bad luck none of the phones they tested had the issue. | [
"In the wake of the recall, Samsung, as well as UL LLC, Exponent, and TÜV Rheinland performed internal testing and analysis to determine the exact causes of the defects. Samsung released its official findings on 23 January 2017. Concurrently, the company announced that all of its future battery-operated products would become subject to an \"enhanced\" eight-point inspection and testing protocol, including stricter visual inspections, as well as charge and discharge tests, Total Volatile Organic Compound tests, and accelerated usage tests. An advisory board of academics was also formed.\n",
"On 18 October 2016, McCuneWright LLP sued Samsung and filed a proposed class-action lawsuit over its handling of the recall, stating that the company had \"failed to reimburse consumers for monthly costs associated with owning an unusable Note 7\". Samsung was also criticized by customers affected by the exploding phones, who alleged that the company was refusing to compensate them for property damage caused by the explosions.\n",
"On 31 August 2016, it was reported that Samsung was delaying shipments of the Galaxy Note 7 in some regions to perform \"additional tests being conducted for product quality\"; this came alongside user reports of batteries exploding while charging. On 1 September 2016, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported that Samsung was preparing to recall the device worldwide due to these battery issues. On 2 September 2016, Samsung suspended sales of the Galaxy Note 7 and announced an informal recall, after it was found that a manufacturing defect in the phones' batteries had caused some of them to generate excessive heat, resulting in fires and explosions. A formal U.S. recall was announced on 15 September 2016. Samsung exchanged the affected phones for a new revision, which utilized batteries sourced from a different supplier. However, after reports emerged of incidents where these replacement phones also caught fire, Samsung recalled the Galaxy Note 7 worldwide on 10 October 2016, and permanently ceased production of the device on 11 October. Due to the recalls, Samsung has issued software updates in some markets that are intended to \"eliminate their ability to work as mobile devices\", including restricting battery capacity, and blocking their ability to connect to wireless networks.\n",
"BULLET::::- In October 2013, an email which looked like it was from the Swedish company Fingerprint Cards was sent to a news agency, saying that Samsung offered to purchase the company. The news spread and the stock exchange rate surged by 50%. It was later discovered the email was a fake.\n",
"\"The Verge\" criticized Samsung's overall handling of the battery faults and recall, arguing that the company had initially delivered unclear messaging over whether the devices were still safe to use, as well as its slow communication with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, which had the capacity to issue an official recall in the U.S. The arguments were based on data released on 13 September 2016 by the research firm Apteligent, which stated that Galaxy Note 7 usage had been \"almost exactly the same\" since the announcement of the exchange program. \"The Verge\" also noted that the U.S. government's ban on taking Galaxy Note 7 phones aboard airline flights was \"perhaps unprecedented\", acknowledging that only the ban of hoverboards by individual airlines for similar reasons—an entire class of products (albeit one that was \"admittedly fire-prone because of cheap materials\")—came close to a legal ban for a single consumer product in terms of overall magnitude. Kyle Weins of \"Wired.com\" felt that Samsung switched to non-removable batteries in order to imitate the industrial design of Apple, after having used removable batteries on many of its past models (such as the Galaxy Note 4). He argued that this design decision exacerbated the battery faults of the Note 7, by requiring users to replace the entire phone as opposed to just the battery. He suggested that in the future, Samsung could \"lead the pack\" by switching back to removable batteries, as with other \"responsible\" OEMs such as HP Inc. and LG Electronics.\n",
"Studies and reports released decades after Samsung's entry into semiconductor fabrication showed that the company has a long history of questionable health and safety practices. It was discovered that Samsung semiconductor workers' exposure to radiation was significantly beyond the acceptable levels recognized by US regulators. Moreover, it was found that Samsung neglected to actually check the chemical composition of substances used in its semiconductor fabrication process, and that the company failed to conduct exposure assessments for 71% of chemicals utilized in production. Other investigations suggested the company continued to use harmful substances even after stating it would no longer use them. For example, internal documents showed that Samsung was using TCE, a known toxic substance, as recently as 2010 despite the company publicly stating it had not been a part of the fabrication process since 1995. \n",
"Battery defects (and some user error) caused many Note 7 units to overheat and combust or explode. On 10 October 2016, Samsung permanently discontinued the Galaxy Note 7 due to these repeated incidents.\n"
] |
Can you tell me what this is that fell from the sky? | Really great video that should put bugs above in perspective. (Starts slow for first minute but get super interesting) _URL_0_ (1:27 for your answer) | [
"The original stone is believed to have been approximately the size of an automobile traveling towards the Earth at more than 10 miles per second. The fall occurred in the early morning hours of February 8, 1969. At 01:05 a huge, brilliant fireball approached from the southwest and lit the sky and ground for hundreds of miles. It exploded and broke up to produce thousands of fusion crusted pieces. This is typical of falls of large stones through the atmosphere and is due to the sudden braking effect of air resistance. The fall took place in northern Mexico, near the village of Pueblito de Allende in the state of Chihuahua. Allende stones became one of the most widely distributed meteorites and provided a large amount of material to study, far more than all of the previously known carbonaceous chondrite falls combined.\n",
"The stone fell at around 3 o'clock, on 13 December 1795, landing within a few yards of ploughman John Shipley. It created a crater approximately across, and embedded itself in the underlying chalk rock to a depth of , passing through of topsoil. The fall was observed by several people, who described a dark body passing through the air. As discovered at its landing point, the stone was warm and smoking; several people reported sounds of explosions as it fell. The owner of the land was Major Edward Topham, a well-known public figure, an ex-soldier, playwright and newspaper proprietor; he publicised the find and exhibited the meteorite publicly at Piccadilly in London.\n",
"At 7:15 a.m. on 30 June 1908 the Tunguska Event felled millions of trees near the Podkamennaya Tunguska (Stony Tunguska) River in central Siberia. Most scientists believe this resulted from the air burst of a meteor or a comet. Even though no crater has ever been found, the landscape in the (sparsely inhabited) area still bears the scars of this event.\n",
"The fall occurred on January 30, 1868 at 7:00 pm near the town of Pułtusk, about northeast of Warsaw. Thousands of people witnessed a large fireball followed by detonations and a very large shower of small fragments falling on ice, land and houses within an area of about 127 sq km (appx. 78 sq. miles). The estimated number of fragments was 68780.\n",
"The fall was preceded by a bright bolide seen throughout what was then western Czechoslovakia. The light extended to . At an altitude of about , the meteor broke up. One loud and several quieter explosions were heard. The meteorite was found to have penetrated ploughed land to a depth of , bounced, and fallen further on.\n",
"The eyewitnesses saw the bright bolide flying through clouds from southwest to northeast. The falling was accompanied by a bright, blinding flare brighter than solar illumination and a noise similar to rolling thunder. The illumination embraced the area of ca. . The fall of individual pieces was accompanied by a whistling and drone, resembling that produced by a jet aircraft or missile. The examination of chemical and physical properties of the meteorite was led by Azeri researcher Mirali Qashqai. The meteorite features a sizeable Widmanstätten pattern and an anomalously low amount of tritium. Similar tritium anomalies were detected previously in other iron meteorites.\n",
"Regarding pilot reports of \"bright objects\" falling to the ground and \"leaving a bright trail\", American sceptic author Brian Dunning observes that September 19, the day of the incident, was the height of two annual meteorite showers, the Gamma Piscids and the Southern Piscids and the tail of the Eta Draconids shower, so observation of falling objects or odd lights would not have been unusual. At the site where the falling light supposedly crashed, a beeping transponder from a C-141 aircraft was found according to investigating Col. Mooy.\n"
] |
network ports and its exact purpose | No, no. Ports are used so the **device**, identified by it's IP address on the network, knows which application should handle the data, *not* so that the network knows where to send the data.
It's essentially the same as a ship harbour - the IP address is the coordinates of the harbour, and the Port is the... well, the port the ship should dock at.
You shouldn't get multiple applications sending or listening on the same respective ports, however a single application can send or receive on many ports at the same time.
A practical example is the internet. Most HTTP websites are served via port 80, and most HTTPS websites are served via port 443. Other websites, for whatever reason, might be served on another port, a common alternate to port 80 is port 8080. In your web browser you would navigate to _URL_0_ in order to access that resource (note the colon).
There is a sort of 'good practice' when it comes to assigning ports to applications, but it is not mandatory, and hence the server administrator can select any free port they like to serve data on. | [
"The port numbers in the range from 0 to 1023 (0 to 2 − 1) are the \"well-known ports\" or \"system ports\". They are used by system processes that provide widely used types of network services. On Unix-like operating systems, a process must execute with superuser privileges to be able to bind a network socket to an IP address using one of the well-known ports.\n",
"In computer networking, a port is an endpoint of communication. Physical as well as wireless connections are terminated at ports of hardware devices. At the software level, within an operating system, a port is a logical construct that identifies a specific process or a type of network service. Ports are identified for each protocol and address combination by 16-bit unsigned numbers, commonly known as the port number. The most common protocols that use port numbers, are the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and the User Datagram Protocol (UDP).\n",
"Port numbers are categorized into three basic categories: well-known, registered, and dynamic/private. The well-known ports are assigned by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) and are typically used by system-level or root processes. Well-known applications running as servers and passively listening for connections typically use these ports. Some examples include: FTP (20 and 21), SSH (22), TELNET (23), SMTP (25), HTTP over SSL/TLS (443), and HTTP (80). Registered ports are typically used by end user applications as ephemeral source ports when contacting servers, but they can also identify named services that have been registered by a third party. Dynamic/private ports can also be used by end user applications, but are less commonly so. Dynamic/private ports do not contain any meaning outside of any particular TCP connection.\n",
"Ports are an integral part of the Internet's communication model — they are the channel through which applications on the client computer can reach the software on the server. Services, such as web pages or FTP, require their respective ports to be \"open\" on the server in order to be publicly reachable.\n",
"In electrical circuit theory, a port is a pair of terminals connecting an electrical network or circuit to an external circuit, a point of entry or exit for electrical energy. A port consists of two nodes (terminals) connected to an outside circuit, that meets the \"port condition\"; the currents flowing into the two nodes must be equal and opposite. \n",
"A port number is always associated with an IP address of a host and the protocol type of the communication. It completes the destination or origination network address of a message. Specific port numbers are commonly reserved to identify specific services, so that an arriving packet can be easily forwarded to a running application. For this purpose, the lowest numbered 1024 port numbers identify the historically most commonly used services, and are called the well-known port numbers. Higher-numbered ports are available for general use by applications and are known as ephemeral ports.\n",
"In the 21st century, as ports merge with big data, artificial intelligence and IoT, the port is beginning to be seen as a interconnected smart environment bringing together different port sectors and even other ports. The whole supply chain is integrated while making autonomous, intelligent choices.\n"
] |
israel-palestine war. which country started and why? | well, this could be a brief answer to your question _URL_0_ | [
"The 1947–1949 Palestine war, known in Israel as the War of Independence (, \"Milkhemet Ha'Atzma'ut\") and in Arabic as The Nakba (\"lit. Catastrophie,\" , \"al-Nakba\"), was fought in the territory of Palestine under the British Mandate. It is the first war of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and the broader Arab–Israeli conflict. During this war, the British Empire had withdrawn from Palestine, which they occupied since 1917. The war culminated the establishment of the State of Israel by the Jews, and saw the complete demographic transformation of the of Palestine, with the displacement of around 700,000 Palestinian Arabs and the complete destruction of their villages, towns and cities. The Palestinian Arabs ended up stateless, with 700,000 of them displaced of their homes, either to the Palestinian territories captured by Egypt and Jordan, or to the surrounding Arab states, many of whom, as well as their descendants, remain stateless and in refugee camps. The territory, which was under British administration before the war was now divided between the State of Israel, which captured about 78% of the entire territory, the Kingdom of Jordan (then known as Transjordan) which captured and later annexed the area which would become the West Bank, and Egypt, which captured the Gaza Strip, a coastal territory on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, in which it established the All-Palestine Government. \n",
"Following the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel on 14 May 1948, the Arab League decided to intervene on behalf of Palestinian Arabs, marching their forces into former British Palestine, beginning the main phase of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. The overall fighting, leading to around 15,000 casualties, resulted in cease fire and armistice agreements of 1949, with Israel holding much of the former Mandate territory, Jordan occupying and later annexing the West Bank and Egypt taking over the Gaza Strip, where the All-Palestine Government was declared by the Arab League on 22 September 1948.\n",
"Israel declared its independence on 14 May 1948. The next day, the British Mandate officially expired and, in , the seven-member Arab League, including Lebanon, publicly proclaimed their aim of creating a democratic \"United State of Palestine\" in place of the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine. The League soon entered the conflict on the side of the Palestinian Arabs, thus beginning the international phase of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Transjordan, and Iraq declared war on the new state of Israel. They expected an easy and quick victory in what came to be called the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. The Lebanese army joined the other Arab armies in the invasion. It crossed into the northern Galilee. By the end of the conflict, however, it had been repulsed by Israeli forces, which occupied South Lebanon. Israel signed armistice agreements with each of its invading neighbors. The armistice with Lebanon was signed on 23 March 1949. As part of the agreement with Lebanon, Israeli forces withdrew to the international border.\n",
"In the course of the Six-Day War in June 1967, Israel captured the rest of Mandate Palestine from Jordan and Egypt, and began a policy of establishing Jewish settlements in those territories. From 1987 to 1993, the First Palestinian Intifada against Israel took place, which included the Declaration of the State of Palestine in 1988 and ended with the 1993 Oslo Peace Accords and the creation of the Palestinian National Authority.\n",
"On May 14, 1948, one day before the end of the British Mandate of Palestine, the leaders of the Jewish community in Palestine led by prime minister David Ben-Gurion, made a declaration of independence, and the state of Israel was established. Contingents of Egyptian, Syrian, Jordanian, and Iraqi armies invaded Israel, thus starting the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. The nascent Israeli Defense Force repulsed the Arab nations from part of the occupied territories, thus extending its borders beyond the original UNSCOP partition. By December 1948, Israel controlled most of the portion of Mandate Palestine west of the Jordan River. The remainder of the Mandate consisted of Jordan, the area that came to be called the West Bank (occupied by Jordan), and the Gaza Strip (occupied by Egypt). Prior to and during this conflict, 700,000 Palestinians Arabs fled their original lands to become Palestinian refugees, in part, due to a promise from Arab leaders that they would be able to return when the war is won.\n",
"The 1948 Arab–Israeli War (1948–49), known as the \"War of Independence\" by Israelis and al-Nakba (\"the Catastrophe\") by Palestinians, began after the UN Partition Plan and the subsequent 1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine in November 1947. The plan proposed the establishment of Arab and Jewish states in Palestine. The Arabs had rejected the plan while the Jews had accepted it. For four months, under continuous Arab provocation and attack, the Yishuv was usually on the defensive while occasionally retaliating. By March 1948 however, the United States was actively seeking a temporary UN approved trusteeship rather than immediate partition, known as the Truman trusteeship proposal. The Jewish leadership rejected this. By now, both Jewish and Arab militias had begun campaigns to control territory inside and outside the designated borders, and an open war between the two populations emerged.\n",
"BULLET::::- Israeli war of independence (November 1947 – July 1949) – Started as 6 months of civil war between Jewish and Arab militias when the mandate period in Palestine was ending and turned into a regular war after the establishment of Israel and the intervention of several Arab armies. In its conclusion, a set of agreements were signed between Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria, called the 1949 Armistice Agreements, which established the armistice lines between Israel and its neighbours, also known as the \"Green Line\".\n"
] |
how do payday loans pay so fast? | Many Australian banks will offer loan money to customers as soon as they're approved (at least for personal loans, mortgages can be more complex). Transfers between accounts within a bank are also usually instant.
What often takes a long time is transfers between banks. [This is complicated](_URL_0_).
Payday loan companies can bypass this issue by having agreements/accounts with the banks so any transfers they make to customers are within the same bank network. | [
"Payday loans originated in the United States and have been growing quickly in the UK market over the last five years. They offer a relatively small amount of capital (usually up to £500) for a short term, often under two weeks on average (or until \"payday\").\n",
"A payday loan (also called a payday advance, salary loan, payroll loan, small dollar loan, short term, or cash advance loan) is a small, short-term unsecured loan, \"regardless of whether repayment of loans is linked to a borrower's payday.\" The loans are also sometimes referred to as \"cash advances,\" though that term can also refer to cash provided against a prearranged line of credit such as a credit card. Payday advance loans rely on the consumer having previous payroll and employment records. Legislation regarding payday loans varies widely between different countries and, within the United States, between different states.\n",
"A payday loan (also called a payday advance, salary loan, payroll loan, small dollar loan, short term, or cash advance loan) is a small, short-term unsecured loan, \"regardless of whether repayment of loans is linked to a borrower's payday.\" The loans are also sometimes referred to as \"cash advances,\" though that term can also refer to cash provided against a prearranged line of credit such as a credit card. Payday advance loans rely on the consumer having previous payroll and employment records. Legislation regarding payday loans varies widely between different countries, and in federal systems, between different states or provinces.\n",
"Payday loans in the United Kingdom are typically loans of up to £1000 to be repaid over a short terma short term, or until \"payday\". Until the sector was more closely regulated by the FCA, interest rates were unregulated, with a typical loan costing as much as £25 for every £100 borrowed per month.\n",
"A typical payday loan in the United Kingdom costs as much as £25 for every £100 borrowed per month, meaning a £300 loan would cost £375 to repay after one month. The UK imposes no legal limit on rolling-over loans, and there are no restrictions on the interest rates payday loan companies can charge: one UK payday lender charges a \"typical APR\" of 1,355%, another lender advertises an APR of 2,225%. Most companies charge 25% for an advance repayable at the end of the month, a few charge 30%, which is equivalent to an APR of over 2000%. Failure to repay a payday loan leads to spiraling APR. According to Consumer Focus, \"the cost of obtaining a loan online (often £25-£30 [per month] per £100) exceeds the costs of obtaining a loan on the High Street (often £13-£18 per £100)\" because the lenders reject fewer applicants and face higher rates of fraud and default. The providers charge a fee for the loan usually expressed as a flat fee per £100 borrowed for the stated short period, usually around £25.\n",
"The payday loan industry takes advantage of the fact that most borrowers do not know how to calculate their loan's APR and do not realize that they are being charged rates up to 390% interest annually. Critics of payday lending cite the possibility that transactions with in the payday market may reflect a market failure that is due to asymmetric information or the borrowers' cognitive biases or limitations.\n",
"Although borrowers typically have payday loan debt for much longer than the loan's advertised two-week period, averaging about 200 days of debt, most borrowers have an accurate idea of when they will have paid off their loans. About 60% of borrowers pay off their loans within two weeks of the days they predict.\n"
] |
Why are certain people always prone to the virus that causes warts? | Viral infections such as those caused by [HPV](_URL_0_) often exhibit latent, asymptomatic phases. The virus may remain in the host for many years, cycling through periods of heightened activity before being suppressed [but not cleared entirely] by the immune system.
So, to answer your question: it's not that they are necessarily predisposed to re-infection, they simply never cleared the infection to begin with. | [
"Warts are caused by infection with a type of human papillomavirus (HPV). Factors that increase the risk include use of public showers, working with meat, eczema and a weak immune system. The virus is believed to enter the body through skin that has been damaged slightly. A number of types exist, including \"common warts\", plantar warts, \"filiform warts\", and genital warts. Genital warts are often sexually transmitted.\n",
"Warts are caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV). There are about 130 known types of human papilloma viruses. HPV infects the squamous epithelium, usually of the skin or genitals, but each HPV type is typically only able to infect a few specific areas on the body. Many HPV types can produce a benign growth, often called a \"wart\" or \"papilloma\", in the area they infect. Many of the more common HPV and wart types are listed below.\n",
"Warts are very common, with most people being infected at some point in their lives. The estimated current rate of non-genital warts among the general population is 1–13%. They are more common among young people. The estimated rate of genital warts in sexually active women is 12%. Warts have been described at least as far back as 400 BC by Hippocrates.\n",
"Genital warts are a sexually transmitted infection caused by certain types of human papillomavirus (HPV). They are generally pink in color and project out from the surface of the skin. Usually they cause few symptoms, but can occasionally be painful. Typically they appear one to eight months following exposure. Warts are the most easily recognized symptom of genital HPV infection.\n",
"In most cases, there are no symptoms of HPV infection other than the warts themselves. Sometimes warts may cause itching, redness, or discomfort, especially when they occur around the anus. Although they are usually without other physical symptoms, an outbreak of genital warts may cause psychological distress, such as anxiety, in some people.\n",
"When an infected person sneezes or coughs, more than half a million virus particles can be spread to those close by. The close quarters and massive troop movements of World War I hastened the pandemic, and probably both increased transmission and augmented mutation; the war may also have increased the lethality of the virus. Some speculate the soldiers' immune systems were weakened by malnourishment, as well as the stresses of combat and chemical attacks, increasing their susceptibility.\n",
"The primary determinant of infection for any virus is its ability to enter a cell and produce additional infectious particles. The presence of CD155 is thought to define the animals and tissues that can be infected by poliovirus. CD155 is found (outside of laboratories) only on the cells of humans, higher primates, and Old World monkeys. Poliovirus is, however, strictly a human pathogen, and does not naturally infect any other species (although chimpanzees and Old World monkeys can be experimentally infected).\n"
] |
why hasn't the united states adopted a propotional representative congress? | It has to do with the federal nature of our government. One of the core goals of our Constitution was to give all regions of the country a voice in the government. The way that that was done was to create a bunch of separate, winner-take-all districts. | [
"Representation in the United States Congress is \"geographically based\". Moreover, the Founders explicitly designed the House of Representatives to be an institution that reflects local and regional concerns. These inescapable facts, and the actual history and actions of Congress itself, led many prominent historians, political scientists and geographers to attempt to investigate congressional elections, roll call voting, and other characteristics and behavior in their spatial context. Two of the greatest hindrances to this type of research were the unavailability of historical congressional district boundary maps and historical congressional election maps. To fill this gap in American historical information, the National Endowment for the Humanities, in the late 1970s and 1980s, supported research which became two of the most important and award-winning reference books in American political history. These books provided researchers, teachers and students with an additional critical dimension for examining and understanding the American experience.\n",
"Representation in the United States Congress is \"geographically based\". The Founders explicitly designed the House of Representatives to be an institution that reflects local and regional concerns. These inescapable facts, and the actual history and actions of Congress itself, led many prominent historians, political scientists and geographers to attempt to investigate congressional elections, roll call voting, and other characteristics and behavior in their spatial context. Two of the greatest hindrances to this type of research were the unavailability of historical congressional district boundary maps and historical congressional election maps. To fill this gap in American historical information, the National Endowment for the Humanities, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, supported research to produce \"The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts: 1789-1983\".\n",
"In 2008, the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008, signed into law by President George W. Bush, replaced the position of resident representative with a nonvoting delegate to the House of Representatives. The other United States insular areas, Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico, as well as the District of Columbia, already had nonvoting delegates to Congress. The new position received the power to serve in congressional committees, to introduce bills, and to vote on proposed legislation in committee, but still had limited powers on the House floor, lacking the right to vote on legislation on the House floor.\n",
"A secondary criticism of a legislative remedy is that any law granting representation to the District could be undone in the future. Additionally, recent legislative proposals deal with granting representation in the House of Representatives only, which would still leave the issue of Senate representation for District residents unresolved. Thus far, no bill granting the District voting representation has passed both houses of Congress. A summary of legislation proposed since 2003 is provided below.\n",
"PlaceAVote.com advocates criticize the current political system's tendency to only represent the organized voice of special interests, arguing that the current system is an example of the minority ruling the majority via well-funded special interests. The current delegation system assumes that representatives are experts or are given access to experts on pending legislation. However the truth is that most of the representatives in congress are actually not experts in all the issues but come from a law background. PlaceAVote instead creates a system where experts of differing opinions can come together and publicly debate the merits and weaknesses of upcoming legislation. Though mechanisms within the software that allow for the development of peer to peer coalitions around issues, legislation will be created based on need and public benefit rather than political payback.\n",
"Several bills have been introduced in Congress to grant the District of Columbia voting representation in one or both houses of Congress. The primary issue with all legislative proposals is whether the Congress has the constitutional authority to grant the District voting representation. Members of Congress in support of the bills claim that constitutional concerns should not prohibit the legislation's passage, but rather should be left to the courts. A secondary criticism of a legislative remedy is that any law granting representation to the District could be undone in the future. Additionally, recent legislative proposals deal with granting representation in the House of Representatives only, which would still leave the issue of Senate representation for District residents unresolved. Thus far, no bill granting the District voting representation has successfully passed both houses of Congress. If a bill were to pass, the law would not grant the District any additional authority over its local affairs.\n",
"A call for bipartisanship is often made by presidents who \"can't get their way in Congress,\" according to one view. Military policies of the Cold War and actions like the Iraq War were promoted and supported, through the mass media, as bipartisan acts.\n"
] |
modern art...i just don't get it. | You know how everyone in your class always tries to colour in the lines? Because pictures always look better when you colour in the lines, right? And the sky should be blue and the grass should be green and if you follow all those rules your pictures will always be pretty. ...And they'll all kind of look like everyone else's.
Well, modern art is that kid that said, "Meh. I'm drawing however I want. I don't care about your stupid rules. And my pictures are still going to be pretty!"
Postmodern art is the kid who saw that and said, "What? There's no rules? Cool! I'm going to pee on my desk!"
| [
"Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophy of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the traditions of the past have been thrown aside in a spirit of experimentation. Modern artists experimented with new ways of seeing and with fresh ideas about the nature of materials and functions of art. A tendency away from the narrative, which was characteristic for the traditional arts, toward abstraction is characteristic of much modern art. More recent artistic production is often called contemporary art or postmodern art.\n",
"Contemporary-Traditional Art refers to an art produced at the present period of time that reflects the current culture by utilizing classical techniques in drawing, painting, and sculpting. Practicing artists are mainly concerned with the preservation of time-honored skills in creating works of figurative and representational forms of fine art as a means to express human emotions and experiences. Subjects are based on the aesthetics of balancing external reality with the intuitive, internal conscience driven by emotion, philosophical thought, or the spirit. The term is used broadly to encompass all styles and practices of representational art, such as Classicism, Impressionism, Realism, and Plein Air (En plein air) painting. Technical skills are founded in the teachings of the Renaissance, Academic Art, and American Impressionism.\n",
"\"Art and Aesthetics\" deals with several issues of modern art and of artistic existence, especially: the use of the old to create the new; why the peak of Western music has come and gone; why architecture is the only art form that will always be well and dynamic; the lack of coherent artistic movements through social fragmentation; the academic-scientific approach to literature and how science cannot understand the artistic in any meaningful way; the meaning of \"ab homine\", as opposed to \"ad hominem\"; the triumph of \"interactive-analytical\" over \"authoritarian-memorative\" education, while a balance between the two is claimed to be preferable; the history of perspectivism and its triumph over any objective truth. These ideas are discussed in a partially autobiographical way, and raised through aesthetic experiences and encounters with people and places in several countries. \"The lyrical music on the CD extends his voyage from the philosophically aesthetic into the pure aesthetic.\"\n",
"The classification of \"contemporary art\" as a special type of art, rather than a general adjectival phrase, goes back to the beginnings of Modernism in the English-speaking world. In London, the Contemporary Art Society was founded in 1910 by the critic Roger Fry and others, as a private society for buying works of art to place in public museums. A number of other institutions using the term were founded in the 1930s, such as in 1938 the Contemporary Art Society of Adelaide, Australia, and an increasing number after 1945. Many, like the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston changed their names from ones using \"Modern art\" in this period, as Modernism became defined as a historical art movement, and much \"modern\" art ceased to be \"contemporary\". The definition of what is contemporary is naturally always on the move, anchored in the present with a start date that moves forward, and the works the Contemporary Art Society bought in 1910 could no longer be described as contemporary.\n",
"The World of Art is an educational program introduced in 1997. It was developed out of a need for theoretical and practical education in the field of contemporary visual art and which (still) no university program in Slovenia offered. Formal education in art history has included neither contemporary production nor the art theory of the 20th and 21st Century and the young experts have mainly turned towards past periods due to their lack of knowledge and apparatuses for decoding contemporary tendencies in art. In the nineties, art production in Slovenia formed an important agent in cultural and social processes and was also integrated into international scene, while the theoretical and curatorial apparatuses lagged behind. In response, the World of Art program brought a series of public lectures, which shed some light upon the artistic practices and art theories significant for the understanding of contemporary arts. A one-year-long course for curators of contemporary art, enabled participants to gain knowledge necessary to perform the work of a contemporary art curator. The program had a significant impact on the local contemporary art scene and a number of participants become curators in state and regional institutions, art centers and galleries, whilst others are working as writers and critics for contemporary art. In recent years the role of curator has shifted towards critical and theoretic reflection of contemporary art, stimulating the program to organize a one-year-long seminar from 2005.\n",
"Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic combination of materials, methods, concepts, and subjects that continue the challenging of boundaries that was already well underway in the 20th century. Diverse and eclectic, contemporary art as a whole is distinguished by the very lack of a uniform, organising principle, ideology, or \"-ism\". Contemporary art is part of a cultural dialogue that concerns larger contextual frameworks such as personal and cultural identity, family, community, and nationality.\n",
"Art for art is an international contemporary art movement. Akin to the 19th-century slogan Art for art's sake, or \"l'art pour l'art,\" the work of art is seen as a self-sufficient product independent from the personality of its creator.\n"
] |
How do printers pick out one piece of paper if they are all stacked up? | Rubber rollers with a lot of friction, spread across the sheet. This is really easy for thin sheets. (text weight paper)
Sometimes on the bigger industrial printers they are air-fed. A blast of air separates the top sheet and guides it foreword to a rubber roller.
I work with these printers. | [
"Single-sided printers can print both sides of the paper by manually removing and turning over a stack of sheets after one side is printed; however, the user has to manually turn the print job over and re-initialize the printing of the document, with care to ensure that the order and orientation is correct.\n",
"Most continuous form paper is punched longitudinally along both edges with regularly spaced engagement holes that engage with sprocket wheels or toothed belts on the \"tractor\" which move the paper through the printer. It is usually perforated transversely with a line of closely spaced holes or slits which form a tear edge that allows it to be torn neatly into separate pages after printing; when fed through the printer the paper is simply a continuous sheet.\n",
"The paper is then fed onto reels if it is to be used on web printing presses, or cut into sheets for other printing processes or other purposes. The fibres in the paper basically run in the machine direction. Sheets are usually cut \"long-grain\", i.e. with the grain parallel to the longer dimension of the sheet. Continuous form paper (or continuous stationery) is cut to width with holes punched at the edges, and folded into stacks.\n",
"After printing the separated sheets can be held in binders by using the sprocket holes when simply required as a record. Alternatively some types of continuous form paper also have longitudinal perforations along each edge inside the engagement holes, allowing the strips with sprocket holes to be torn off the printed page.\n",
"In word processors and spreadsheets, the process of dividing a document into parts which each occupy one pages of paper when printed is called pagination. Printing a large page on multiple small pages of paper is sometimes called tiling.\n",
"The folder starts were the printed webs come together. The Folder can produce ribbons and combine these ribbons in such a way that the pages are sorted ontop of each other. The folding process starts in the so called super structure and ends in the main folding units at the end of the press process. The ribbons are cut in such a way that the pages of the newspaper are separated from each other and the folder lays down the newspaper copies onto the delivery belt.\n",
"The sizes listed above are for paper sold loose in reams. There are many sizes of tablets of paper, that is, sheets of paper bound at one edge, usually by a strip of plastic or hardened PVA adhesive. Often there is a pad of cardboard (also known as chipboard or greyboard) at the bottom of the stack. Such a tablet serves as a portable writing surface, and the sheets often have lines printed on them, usually in non-repro blue, to make writing in a line easier. An older means of binding is to have the sheets stapled to the cardboard along the top of the tablet; there is a line of perforated holes across every page just below the top edge from which any page may be torn off. Lastly, a pad of sheets each weakly stuck with adhesive to the sheet below, trademarked as \"Post-It\" or \"Stick-Em\" and available in various sizes, serve as a sort of tablet.\n"
] |
what keeps mail delivery people from taking your packages? | Aside from the fact the packages are tracked and logged, it is unlikely an individual would want to risk there income for a £10 loot crate | [
"There is a small amount of storage fee (1-2 Thai Baht) when picking up the mail or parcel. Keep in mind that the recipient must track the delivery status by themself via Tracking number provided. So it is recommended to deliver using Registered mail or EMS. Since regular mail delivery service does not provide a tracking number.\n",
"Carriers who walk generally also drive postal vehicles to their routes, park at a specified location, and carry one \"loop\" of mail, up one side of the street and back down the other side, until they are back to their vehicle. This method of delivery is referred to as \"park and loop\". Letter carriers may also accommodate alternate delivery points in cases where \"extreme physical hardship\" is confirmed.\n",
"Package delivery or parcel delivery is the delivery of shipping containers, parcels, or high value mail as single shipments. The service is provided by most postal systems, express mail, private courier companies, and less than truckload shipping carriers.\n",
"Some customers choose to use post office boxes for an additional fee, for privacy or convenience. This provides a locked box at the post office to which mail is addressed and delivered (usually earlier in the day than home delivery). Customers in less densely populated areas where there is no city delivery and who do not qualify for rural delivery may receive mail only through post office boxes. High-volume business customers can also arrange for special pick-up.\n",
"In many jurisdictions, mail boxes and post office boxes have long been in widespread use for drop-off and pickup (respectively) of mail and small packages outside post offices or when offices are closed. Deutsche Post introduced the Pack-Station for package delivery (both drop-off and pickup) in 2001. In the 2000s, the United States Postal Service began to install Automated Postal Centers (APCs) in many locations both in post offices (for when they are closed or busy) and in retail locations. APCs can print postage and accept mail and small packages.\n",
"To identify the location of the mail, two methods have been used. One approach involves reporting the arrival or departure of the package and recording the identity of the package, the location, the time, and the status. This approach has been used for package tracking provided by the delivery companies, such as Deutsche Post, United Parcel Service, AirRoad, or FedEx. Another approach is to use a GPS-based vehicle tracking system and nowadays Beacons to locate the vehicle that contains the package and record it in a real-time database.\n",
"Poste restante (, \"remainder post\") or general delivery is a service where the post office holds the mail until the recipient calls for it. It is a common destination for mail for people who are visiting a particular location and have no need, or no way, of having mail delivered directly to their place of residence at that time.\n"
] |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.