MachOne asked: Since it's election year... WHo makes up the ELECTORAL COLLEGE and how do they get selected for that position? (posted on 10/04/00 17:08:07 EST) You answered: In each state, the electors are chosen by the parties (or independent groups) that petition to get on the ballot. Under the Constitution, they may not be people who hold a Federal office, but many of them are political leaders, etc. If an elector is elected, 'e is paid for the day's work (on December 16th) at the same rate as a state legislator, plus travel expenses to the state capitol where 'e casts 's vote for President & VP. Sometimes the electors' names are listed on the paper ballots, and it is possible to vote for some electors but not others. (I did this in 1972, crossing out some electors from one party and writing in the names of electors from another party. This was a protest vote, but if it had been a close election, the electors would have been split.) In some states, you vote for one elector from your own congressional district plus two statewide. In too many states, however, the electors are all elected "at large". Electors sometimes vote their conscience and don't go along with their party's choice. This has happened in about half of the elections in the last half century. In 1972, a Republican elector from Virginia (who had run as "uncommitted") decided not to vote for Nixon and Agnew; instead, he cast the first electoral vote for a woman -- Toni Nathan of Oregon, for Vice Presiden This was a dozen years before Geraldine Ferraro.) I know a bit about this because I have been on the ballot as an elector three times in the past (but I was never elected, since it was for a 3rd party). This year, both my son and I are both listed as electors for Harry Browne. (posted on 10/04/00 23:14:08 EST) MachOne 206 answers Comments Was rated by MachOne emilyjh asked: Just WHo is John Jakob Jingleheimer Schmitt?? and WHy is his name my name too? and WHy is everybody always shouting!? (posted on 10/06/00 18:29:10 EST) You answered: It's from a song I learned in Scout camp. As far as I know, the name is just made up to fit the meter -- and to sound silly. It was a lot of fun to sing (and for the kids to SHOUT as loud as they could, rattling the rafters of the Dining Hall), but I don't think the name or the song means any more than that. Even if it did, it wouldn't change anythng. After all, who was yankee Doodle, and why "macaroni"? (posted on 10/06/00 22:22:19 EST) emilyjh 32 answers Comments Was rated by emilyjh Tafune69 asked: WHat major crisis is taking place in Yugoslavia these days? (today's date is Oct. 6) (posted on 10/06/00 18:21:03 EST) You answered: The ruler (Miloevic) called for new elections, which were held a few days ago. He came in second, but the law says that there must be a two-person runoff unless the winner gets over 50%. The election commission ruled that nobody had over 50%, and scheduled a runoff, but the other guy says that he wants to take over without facing a runoff and there are some riots to support this (which the U.S. is sneakily supporting). I don't know why they are afraid of a runoff, but the U.S. (which already bombed the Capital and tried to oust Milosovec) is now trying to engineer a coup, without the runoff election and without anybody actually getting a clear win. It's stupid, but so was the bombing. I wish we would but out of other countries' internal affairs, and stop trying to be the world's bully. At the moment, it looks like the elected ruler, who might have been replaced by a runoff, is now in hiding and a coup may be in progress. this will keep yugolavia in turmoil for even more years. (posted on 10/06/00 22:19:19 EST) Tafune69 0 answers Comments Was rated by Tafune69 Thanx. Your smart Buh asked: How much faster is a T3 modem than a 56k modem? (posted on 10/04/00 16:32:53 EST) You answered: T3 is 44.7 Mbps. That is nearly 800 times more bandwidth than 56K. However, the performance is even more, since T3 is digital and gets close to full usage while 56K modems (really 52K-maximum) are analog and rarely do better than about 30K (plus, they have more errors and retransmissions than digital). I use an ISDN connection, which is nominally 64K for each of its two channels, but I usually get 115K with one channel and I don't have to wait for dialup. DSL and Cable modems are even faster. (posted on 10/04/00 23:19:27 EST) Buh 5 answers Comments Was rated by Buh Comments: write to Buh: Dialog with Buh: tripodics (10/04/00 23:22 EST): Correction. Strictly speaking, T3 is also analog. But, the digital 44.7 MBps service -- which is properly named DS3 -- is very often referred to simply as T3. In any case, the ratio is still nearly 800 to one, and the T3 (or DS3) service gets closer to its theroretical maximum and is also more reliable. perdita asked: Could anyone please provide a short C++ sample code for the following ? I'd really appreciate any help on this. I need to write some info into a buffer, then write the buffer into a file. The point is: 1. I have to write mixed types (intgers, strings, longs). 2. I need to control the size of the buffer/writing blocks (eg, decide that each time, I'm writing a block of 100 bytes to the file). 3. That's not a requirements, but a question: is it true that file access through the standard libaries is automatically and transparently buffered ? if so, is there any way to control the block size ? or the moment info is actually copied from the buffer to the disk ? For (1) and (2) it would be enough to provide a code that does something like: - write the integer 1111 to a buffer, then write the string "aa" to the same buffer. - copy this whole buffer (of size 4) to file "a.dat". - do the same with the integer 2222 and the string "bb". This would be of huge help... thanks in advance. (posted on 10/02/00 20:18:43 EST) You answered: I think you are looking for what is called "non-blocking" I/O, where the call to the I/O function returns immediately (and does not suspend the calling thread, but spawns another), and it is up to your program to manage the volatile area of the data buffer. (Be sure to use the type modifier "volatile" when referring to it, or the optimizer will defeat you!) (posted on 10/06/00 00:58:34 EST) perdita 3 answers Comments Was rated by perdita thanks for the tip. KimberlyDiana asked: Does it bother u WHen someone asks questions on here and makes typing or spelling misstakes? (posted on 10/04/00 23:33:39 EST) You answered: Yes, it bothers me very much when people use the wrong words (like "there" for "their" or "it's" for "its") or when they mangle the spelling of common words badly or when they invent words that do not exist (like "kernal" for "kernel"). I am appalled at how badly people spell, nowadays -- including supposedly educated people with college degrees. (one of the worst spellers I know has a PhD in Physics!) On the other hand, it does not bother me at all when the error is simple from bad (or fast) typing. That's OK in casual email, where people aren't really composing a masterpiece or a letter that will go out to clients, etc. P.S. One of the sad things is when people use spell checkers and then assume that whatever passes is OK. Spell checkers do NOT actually check spelling. They just see if the garbage you wrote is found somewhere in the dictionary, regardless of whether it is the word that you intended. (posted on 10/05/00 02:11:34 EST) KimberlyDiana 10 answers Comments Was rated by KimberlyDiana jorus asked: WHen were the first electronic (computer) games introduced? (posted on 10/04/00 10:51:53 EST) You answered: The first video game was "pong". Invented by some of my colleagues at Brookhaven National Lab, uusing techniques and technology they had developed to display crystal structures of molecules. This was in the late '60s to early '70s. (I can tell you many stories about this, since I was there at the time.) However, this was not the first computer game. There were many, many text-only games in the 1950s and 1960s. I played tic-tac-toe on a very interesting PDP-8 program, also in the late '60s but it was around for several years before that. This game used an Artificial Intelligence technique (tho it wasn't called that, then) to "learn" which moves caused a loss, and then it would never lose that way again. After about 18 games, it never lost (until you reset the tree strructre it used). it was written in assembly language, and may have come from an earlier machine. (The DECUS user group distributed it.) The gang at Bell Labs who developed Unix first had a discarded PDP-7, which they used for playing a space-invaders game (with characters, on a CRT). Many other character-based games are in Unix, including the famous "Adventure" game in the collossal cave. (BTW, that game was the first piece of "applications" software ever released for the IBM Personal Computer.) Even before there were computers, there were some games which used "electronics" -- including some fancy pinball machines, but I don' think that is what you are asking. Assuming you mean only "computer" games, then they would go back to the early 1950s or possibly the late 1940s. If I had to guess, it would probably be at the University of Pennsylvania (on Eniac) where the first actual computer game was first devised. Of course, it is also possible that one of the scientists (like von Neumann) at Los Alamos rigged up a game in his spare time, with the circuit boards that were used for developing the A-bomb during the Manhattan Project in the early-to-mid 1940s. I haven't heard any such story, but it is quite possible (and it might have been suppressed for military/political reasons). (posted on 10/04/00 14:26:12 EST) jorus 14 answers Comments Was rated by jorus Thanx a lot,..... You really helped me out!!! Jorus Mista_Ed asked: Joseph Lieberman Can someone explain and/or justify, other then to say he can by law, WHy Joseph Lieberman is still running for Senate in Conneticut (sp) WHen he is also running for VP? WHat does this say about his campaign with Al Gore? Is this right? WHat do you think? (posted on 10/05/00 18:06:14 EST) You answered: This cannot be justified at all, but the tradition was started by Lyndon Baines Johnson. When Kennedy asked the powerful Senate majority Leader to help him keep the "Solid South" (solidly Democrat since Lincoln freed their slaves), Johnson was up for election and did not want to risk it. However, he got his cronies in Austin to pass a bill allowing the same person to be on the ballot both for Senator AND for another office, and he ran. The rest is history. Disgraceful, but history -- and perfectly legal, since the Feds cannot interfere with whom the states allow to be on their Federal ballots. Now, Lieberman is following the same shameless course. i used to respect the man. Now, I'm not so sure. (posted on 10/05/00 23:24:25 EST) Mista_Ed 753 answers Comments Was rated by Mista_Ed Thanks for the background info. THat is very helpful Isolde asked: Someone wrote this in an email to me <:3 )~ <-- mouse WHat does it mean? (posted on 10/06/00 01:03:57 EST) You answered: put your left ear on your left shoilder, and you will see a little mouse with its pointy nose pointing to the left. This is just an elaborate smiley. For more about smiles, check out http://geocities.com/k2cck/smiley1.html (posted on 10/06/00 02:50:29 EST) Isolde 21 answers Comments Was rated by Isolde teddy0bear asked: In chess the fastest i can checkmate someone is in 4 moves it their any more that is faster? (posted on 10/05/00 19:07:56 EST) You answered: You can achieve checkmate in two moves if your opponent cooperates. He moves two pawns forward: He moves his Kings's Knight's pawn by two and his King's Bishop's pawn by one or two. If he does this on his first two moves, then to checkmate in two moves (or three if you are White) you must do the dfollowing three things in order: 1. Move your King's pawn forward (1 or 2), 2. move your Queen to KR5, 3. then either say "Checkmate!" or yell "checkmate, you idiot" (then duck as he flings the board at you :) (posted on 10/06/00 01:53:58 EST) teddy0bear 51 answers Comments Was rated by teddy0bear ooo thanks i know 1 similer mbotta asked: Some time ago, I heard that the capital of Tanzania is no longer Dar Es Salam. Is this correct? If so, WHat is currently the capital of Tanzania, WHen did it change and WHy? (posted on 10/04/00 10:07:16 EST) You answered: Dodoma, located in the center of Tanzania, was designated to become the new capital by the end of the decade. Now it is. Sorry, I don't know the exact reason, but this was planned for years. Dar es Salaam is very big (nearly 3 million). Dodoma is less than a tenth that size. (posted on 10/04/00 16:57:41 EST) mbotta 43 answers Comments Was rated by mbotta jim420 asked: Einstein said Time travel is not possible to a time before the first time machine is used. Can anyone provide me with more information or a website to look into this?? Or perhaps insight as to WHy? (posted on 10/04/00 11:27:47 EST) You answered: There are many, many speculations about time travel. Some of these violate Relativity and some do not. Some presume the existence of parallel universes, in infinite numbers, basically conforming to every possible choice being made for every possible event. Einstein's Relativity says there is a minimum space-time separation bvetween things, but that is within a single universe. if there is a way to pass between universes, then Relativity does not apply. (Also, it may be different in other universes.) Now, within a single universe, Relativity says that no information or matter can travel faster than the speed of light. Time slows down or "dilates" when something is moving fast (50% dilation at 86% of the speed of light), and that can produce some interesting paradoxes, but it still does not take you "back" in time. I don't know if Einstein speculated (apart from Relativity) on time machines, but it seems logical that if time machines could travel to a time before they were available then eventually somebody would bring one back to an earlier time and make them available then -- i.e. available before they became available, which is a contradiction. A contradiction can be used to prove a theorem. I don't know if he used this sort of reasoning, but he might have and it seems consistent with the sort of natural philosophy approach that he did use Sorry, I don't know of any website that addresses time travel or what Einstein said on the subject.. (posted on 10/04/00 16:02:32 EST) jim420 7 answers Comments Was rated by jim420 The best response I've received so far. Thanks!! Dialog with jim420: tripodics (10/05/00 12:43 EST): Thank you, but it is certainly not the best possible response. I tried to separate the issues: -- relativity & speed of light, on the one hand, along with the concept of space-time separation. -- unrelated issues of time travel, paradoxes, etc. -- parallel universe theories, etc. But much better sources exist that go into each of these, separately. There are many good books on Relativity, including a very readable one by Einstein himself. George Gamow is very good at explanations for the intelligent lay reader. So is Isaac Asimov. Time travel is less-well explored in the science literature, but you might be interested in some of the newer stuff on quantum computing. Many SF authors have delved into these topics, in various ways. For a very entertaining novel about parallel universes try L. Neil Smith's "The Probability Broach" (and also "The Gallitain Divergence"). Robert heinlein also wrote a good one, but I forget the title (since i read it 30 or 40 years ago). TheTim asked: WHat is the oldest established nation in the world? (posted on 10/04/00 22:44:07 EST) You answered: Oddly enuf, the United States has the longest-standing system, among major nations of the world. There may be some small islands wher the line of tribal chiefs goes back further, but very few countries have had the same political system for as long as 200+ years. The United Kingdom has existed longer, so one might say that it is older. However, there have been so many changes there that it can hardly be described as a monarchy in anything but the most formal sense, now -- whereas King George III was a powerful tyrant, back then. Tibet and other countries also have longer lineages, but I'm, discounting them because they were invaded and enslaved while their governments or rulers just continued in exile outside the land. (posted on 10/05/00 00:43:36 EST) TheTim 4 answers Comments Was rated by TheTim slothfratelli asked: Give a brief description of the difference between compilers and interpreters (in computer languages) (posted on 10/04/00 14:01:01 EST) You answered: Compiler produces instruction codes in an "object" file that (after linking and relocation) becomes an "executable" file. Afterwards, that executable file may be run at any time, many times (but the source code of the program is gone). Note that a compiler could be run on one (host) machine to produce code for a different (target) machine. Now, an interpreter also translates source code into instructions, but those instructions are immediately executed. The source code line must be retranslated each time (e.g. in a loop), so interpreters are much slower. Java uses an interesting hybrid approach: on the sever, the Java is translated into "byte codes" which use a special set of instructions that are not found on any real machine. These codes are sent to the client machine, where a "browser" (or other software) interprets them and executes the instructions by simulating their actions. (posted on 10/04/00 15:46:58 EST) slothfratelli 52 answers Comments Was rated by slothfratelli ac6789 asked: can anyone tell me the script (javascript) for making the background colour of a page or an image change acording to the time of day the user is view a page from? for example: in the morning they might see an image of the sun, or the background will be yellow, and WHen they visit again at night, there will be a moon image, with a black background. (posted on 10/04/00 20:13:18 EST) You answered: To get the hour (from 0 to 24), use the function: timeofday.gethour() Store it in a variable and test if for whatever intervals you want. When using javascript, you should always name the tags whose effects you want to mopdify, so let's assume that the BODY tag included NAME=BODYNAME and that the image you want to change had an IMG tag with NAME=MYIMG Now, to change this image to "image1.gif", and also change the background to be BEIGE, just execute Javascript that says: MYIMG.src=image1.gif BODYNAME.bgcolor=BEIGE This is very brief, so if you don't understand it send me a comment and I'll elaborate it. Of course you'll need all the SCRIPT tags and so forth -- ask if you need more detail. (posted on 10/05/00 01:21:27 EST) ac6789 69 answers Comments Was rated by ac6789 Mista_Ed asked: Al Gore: Currently there is a story in the news (not much in the major news networks, surprise, surprise.) about the Gore Campeign (sp) and how there was a Mole for them in the Bush Campeign (sp) that was e-mailing "secrets" to Gore advisors. This advisor that was getting the messages and info has been suspended for about the last 2 weeks by Gore. However, the major media has not covered it. In fact, it was to air on the news show with Peter Jennings but was pulled by the Executive Producer. WHy has this story not been covered better by the US Media especially WHen there are not challenges to dispute this claim? If the tables were turned and Bush was just acquised of this WHat do you think would have happened? (posted on 09/27/00 23:18:05 EST) You answered: I remember hearing something about this (on local radio news) but cannot add anything to it. However, it hardly matters. Gush and Bore are the anointed gladiators, chosen by the two wings if the Incumbent Party, and therefore the darlings of the media. The Presidential election was OVER last march, except to flip a coin to see whether Tweedledee or Tweedledum will sit in the White House and take this nation further and further down the road that they BOTH favor and preach about: MORE control from Washington, more Federal regulations, more money going into the Federal treasury so that Congress can send it back and curry favor with the voters from whom they stole it. Bush & Gore both want Washington to control everything local, from education to agriculture to highways to HMOs to energy. There are FOUR other candidates who were excluded from the tax-paid debates by the commission that was appointed by the incumbents in Congress. Those other candidats are on the ballot in enuf states to win, but they are not covered by the media (which is beholden to the incumbent parties) And could not ask the embarrasing questions in the debate. That's why the MAJORITY has stayed home in the last few elections! (Clinton was elected by only 19% of the eligible voters.) I wish they would come out and cast a protest vote (for 3rd party candidates, or just do a write vote saying "NO") (or F.U.). Instead, the media convinces them that Gush and Bore are the ONLY choices, and most people stay home. Yeah, I hope Gore loses -- he would be slightly worse. However, Bush doesn't deserve my vote. This year I'm voting for Harry Browne, rather than WASTING my vote on "the lesser of two evils". Sorry for the rant, but this has really got me ticked off. The dirty tricks are just par for the course. (posted on 10/05/00 00:01:28 EST) Mista_Ed 753 answers Comments Was rated by Mista_Ed Not at all. Ranting is a good thing especially when there are points to be made. spikes asked: WHat is the difference between fractional distillation and simple distillation? (posted on 10/04/00 23:37:14 EST) You answered: In fractional distillation, the temperature is elevated slowly and held for a while at the point where a certain volatile will boil off, and then the collection vessels are changed before going to the point where the next volatile boils off. In this way, you can for instance boil off all of the methanol, then boil off the ethanol into a clean container. Repeating the process also helps, but the basic idea is to remove different volatiles into separate "containers ("fractions") at different temperatures. (posted on 10/05/00 02:03:31 EST) spikes 7 answers Comments Was rated by spikes sounds good. wizeguy asked: WHat happens WHen you go in a black hole? (posted on 10/03/00 23:01:07 EST) You answered: Nothing gets out of a black hole. Nothing can go faster than light, and (beyond the event horizon) the "hole" becomes so steep that to get out something would ahve to move faster than light -- so it can't. However, due to time-dilation, if you went into a black hole, time would stretch out so that you would not know it. Weired, huh? (posted on 10/04/00 02:30:07 EST) wizeguy 3 answers Comments Was rated by wizeguy Seakrits asked: Atkins Diet. You're supposed to stay away from carbohydrates for the first few weeks and I'm having a hard time finding side dishes that AREN'T carbs. I need suggestions. (posted on 10/04/00 21:46:56 EST) You answered: Nuts are very good (particularly Macadamias). Cheese also. Some vegetables are very good, but avoid those with high carb counts (like carrots -- which i love, but must limit). If you eat vegetables with a lot of moisture (like lettuce), it will both satisfy the craving and also give you the water that you must take for the Atkins diet to work. Do not let yourself get dehydrated!. Raw is better than cooked, both for nutrition and for water -- try warm or al dente, instead of soggy or steamed, etc. Onions are tasty and very low carbs (if you like them, as I do). Of course, avoid potatoes and especially grains. Regardless of whether they are "whole grains" or refined, grains and breads are simply not a NATURAL food for our species, and they cause the sugar-insulin roller-coaster to start up rapidly, in a vicious spiral. If you must have some grains and breads and carbs, take them in the morning. I love corn chips, and I've found that they have far less carbs than other junk food. Still, you should moderate them. Also, beer has fewer carbs and even a bit of protein. Still, moderation is important. Good luck. And ignore the idiots who say it's not balanced. You can get all your nutrients, and also avoid the unhealthy and unnatural excesses of carbs. The same idiots will tell you that vegetarianism is OK; it's not, and many more people get sick from it. (posted on 10/05/00 00:37:10 EST) Seakrits 65 answers Comments Was rated by Seakrits WOW! Thanks!! Comments: write to Seakrits: Dialog with Seakrits: Seakrits (10/05/00 17:21 EST): LOL!! Poor defenseless veggies. I think I should start a campaign....I could probably get gov't funding for it to. (what the h&!! are our canine teeth for if not for tearing meat and grinding up??) :) tripodics (10/05/00 17:01 EST): No, I didn't read the answers, but I did see the title line "Stay away...!". I'll check it out, now. I get a kick out of shocking people by saying that I am on a "Bacon Cheeseburger Diet" (and that I lost 25 pounds with it). That's what I often get (with Lettuce, Tomato, and raw Onion) but hold the Fries, and I eat out the inside and discard most of the bread (I usually get a hard roll, and eat off some of the top crust with the poppy seeds for taste, but peel off most of the bread as I eat the burger from inside (sorta like most people do with hot dogs). Vegetarianism does not provide the amino acids we need. Neither do breads, whole-grain or not. Whether they like it or not, we are basically carnivores who can adapt to lean times by substituting some carbs now and then. But our muscles burn fat, and we store excess carbs as fat anyway. Good luck, and don't let the veggies grind you down. They just want to kill all those poor harmless plants! Imagine how the wheat stalk feels when it feels the thresher rumbling down the next furrow?! At least we conk out our cows before slicing them up, but those veg-haters torture their poor green brethren, rip them mercilessly out of the ground, and grind their remains into past which they bake. Yecccch! Seakrits (10/05/00 16:47 EST): I assume that by your answer, you read that one person's answer about not eating meat etc..etc..etc... Thanks for actually answering my question rather then trying to persuade me otherwise, or push vegetarianism on my like I felt that last person was trying to do. :) Give me a steak any day.... bigbrother asked: WHat is the special at the film-music to hitchcocks the birds? (posted on 10/04/00 07:30:01 EST) You answered: Trick question. No music in the movie! ("Sonds of silence"? :-) (posted on 10/04/00 14:46:59 EST) bigbrother 0 answers Comments Was rated by bigbrother Romey asked: WHen astronuts go to the moon WHy can they talk to mission control right away. Is there not a 11 second delay due to the distance from the moon to the earth? (posted on 10/03/00 13:57:04 EST) You answered: There IS a delay, but it is less than 2 seconds each way. Not eleven seconds, but more like 1.25 seconds. The distance to the moon is 239,000 miles and radio waves travel at 186,000 miles (300Mm) per second. Many years ago, my ham radio club bounced signals off the moon. The delay was not even noticeable in one-channel communication, where one party talks without interruption and then says "over" before the other party starts. (It usually takes a second or so just for the other party to hear the end of the transmission and click on the microphone, since human response time is at least 1/5 of a second and big transmitters take a fraction of a second to ramp up. The 3-second delay was hardly noticeable in voice communication, and not at all noticeable with morse code which was mostly what we used to "bounce" off the moon. We also bounced off the Echo sattelite, but that's less than a thousand miles up, so it was not even detectable. When your telephone conversation goes via a geosynchronous sattelite, there is an over 44,000 mile round trip, which takes about half a second. Nobody notices that, either. Even phone calls to the Orient are routine, and there the delay can be a second or so. Now, iIf the astronauts were on Jupiter, then the delay between question and answer would be over two hours (round trip), so that would be a problem! Anywhere inside Mars' orbit, however, the delay would be only a few minutes, so that conversations would be possible. Of course, it would take years for messages to travel to the nearest star (because it is a couple of light-years away). (posted on 10/03/00 15:14:38 EST) Romey 103 answers Comments Was rated by Romey thanks mforbush asked: WHo are the Lemba? (posted on 10/03/00 19:44:04 EST) You answered: African Jews. They went from Yemen to Zimbabwe and South Africa. They follow kosher rules, observe the sabbath, practice circumcision, and are different in many ways from surrounding tribes. They have long claimed a Jewish ancestry, and recent DNA tests seem to support this. (posted on 10/03/00 23:55:16 EST) mforbush 236 answers Comments Was rated by mforbush fun_stuff asked: Are there any stay-at-home fathers out there? How long have you been doing it? Are you happy with your decision? WHat role does your wife have in the children's day? (posted on 10/03/00 14:23:47 EST) You answered: I'm not sure I qualify, but most days I do stay home and my wife is at her office. I work from my home office (doing software development, building websites, and preparing lessons for the college courses I teach). However, our kids are now in 9th and 12th grades, so that might not be the pattern you are seeking. I left my full-time, office-based job for good in February 1999. (I had done the consultant gig twice before, once for 2 years spanning the time my son was born, then again for about 9 months when both kids were in nursery school. So diaper changing between phone calls is not entirely new to me. :-) She is an independent accountant, who sets her own hours but has gone up to nearly full-time now that I can pick up the kids, take them to gym, etc. most days. One thing that is absolutely essential: cell-phones!! (which we did not have the last time we tried this). Happy? Well, it's OK but a pain sometimes. If the kids were 3 or 7 or 11, it might be intolerable. Now, I sometimes have to yell at them to do homework or lower the volume or get ready to leave (for gym, etc.), but they usually cook their own food and take care of themselves. She does whatever is necessary if I have someplace to go (visit a client, teach a class, etc.) but I try to cover the daytime pickups, etc. that she used to do mostly. That way, she can put in and bill more hours. I am paid mostly by output, so my schedule is almost entirely flexible. Usually, I try to arrange things so that we do the errands and pickups together (using her new Yukon). That way, we have much more time to talk, etc. This year, Crystal is in team gymnastics (4x/week) and Cheerleaders (2-3x/week), plus orchestra, and also doubling up on mathematics. Next year, Adam goes to college, so our routine will change somewhat. I don't know if that's the info you wanted, but it pretty well describes one lifestyle (which is very new to me, this past year+). (posted on 10/03/00 23:12:42 EST) fun_stuff 566 answers Comments Was rated by fun_stuff It is the info I was looking for and more. Thanks! mpcohen asked: The Presidential debate was somewhat disappointing but given the stakes involved the format was probably as good as could be expected.

Suppose, however, that in general, debates were restructured so that the main purpose was not to determine a winner and loser but to clarify points of agreement and disagreement. There would be a moderator to keep track and WHo might write down on a large white board each specific issue and the positions taken by the two debaters. Any time there was a disagreement each side would have to provide supporting arguments and the debaters would then determine agreement or disagreement over each argument. These arguments would in turn have to be supported and the process would continue until the arguments were about fundamental philosophic differences or unavailable information. The end product would be a paper that summarized the discussion. I know this process might not be particularly exciting but the end result might be fairly interesting.

I have two questions. Firstly, I can't believe that I am the first person to think of this. Does anyone know if a similar process has been tried? Secondly, do you think this idea has any merit? (posted on 10/04/00 11:51:13 EST) You answered: The debates were boring, largely because there were two candidates trying to outdo each other in saying more or less the same thing. Both wanted more and more involvement of the Federal government in whatever issues and problems they could think of. Neither of them trusted individuals, local governments, or states to make their own decisions without being regulated and told what to do by Washington bureaucrats. Gush & Bore both thought that it made sense to take money from people all over the country, send it to Washington, then send some of it back from there to apply to local problems but with federal mandates. This shell game, invented by the two ruling parties, will not be changed by either one of them and will continue to grow. Your suggestions are OK, but they would make very little difference, I fear. The only way for debates to become meaningful is to stiop restricting them to the two ruling parties, and allow in the other major candidates (on ballot in enuf states to win: Browne, Nader, hagelin, Buchanan, Phillips). They would ask the embarrasing questions, stir things up, and give the majority of the voters some reason to go to the polls. Until that hapens, the debates will continue to be insignificant and the MAJORITY of the electorate will elect to stay home in November. In the last two Presidential elections, an overwhelming majority of the eligible voters did not bother going out to vote. Clinton was elected by 19% of the eligible voters in 1992, and by 24% in 1996. The real WINNER was "None of These Candidates"! (I wish the stay at homes would, for once, just go out and cast a write-in vote saying "NO", so that the politicians who get elected cannot claim the public support that they do not really have. Voting for a 3rd-party candidate is nearly as good, but a write-in for "None of These Candidates" is the best protest. If everybody voted, that ticket would win (and maybe the offices would remain vacant for 4 years and we could all relax and go about our own business! :-) (posted on 10/04/00 14:07:53 EST) mpcohen 53 answers Comments Was rated by mpcohen I appreciate your answer but I would not expect my approach to be taken by politicians - there are too many dangers, one of which you pointed out - the candidates may not differ all that much. I was thinking it may work in a more academic setting. It really does get tiresome when much of the debate consists of one person saying that his program would work in a certain way and then having the other one say that it would not. Comments: write to mpcohen: Dialog with mpcohen: mpcohen (10/05/00 16:12 EST): I do not think that there would be a problem in getting a consensus as to points of agreement or disagreement. It is really just a matter of one person saying "I believe this to be true" and the other disagreeing. There will be disagreement over the supporting evidence. One person will cite one study and the other will cite another that comes to the opposite conclusion. I have no problem with this. The purpose is not to decide who is right and not to try to achieve a consensus, only to establish where the two parties agree, where they disagree and the causes for disagreement. tripodics (10/05/00 14:40 EST): Well, in your scheme, there would be a lot of subjective evaluation in such things as "determine agreement or disagreement over each argument", or evaluating how well the "arguments would in turn have to be supported", or whether the point had been reached where "the arguments were about fundamental philosophic differences or unavailable information". Also, in the "paper that summarized the discussion", each side would certainly skew it differently. Now, if an "independent", "objective" body did all this evaluation, it would undoubtedly be accused of being subjective and biassed, regardless of how fairly they did it or what principles they used. So some other group would analyze things differently and they would claim that they were more "unbiassed". This happens already, with think tanks like Brookings & Cato & Heritage, etc. I'm afraid it will always remain partisan. (I'm also sad that only a narrow range of viepoints ever get into the big national forums.) As it happens, I have a professional involvement in something similar. Some of my work is research about computer companies that leads to white papers called "comparative analysis" (or competetive analysis). Some of these are done for publication, tho help purchasers choose products. Others are commissioend privately by one of the companies being rated, to let them know how they stack up, where they are weak, etc. The two companies that I do this work for will carefully guard their own reputation for objectivity (and also confidentiality). If they appear to favor one company or even one technical approach over another, they would immediately lose all their future business. It is important to these analyst firms that all companies regard them as "objective". This doesn't happen with political parties. I guess it works in industry, and in a free market, but the model does not carry over into politics. I think that is at least partly because politics is not really about ideas, persuasion, or free choice. It is more about who can use the power of government to favor friends, to punish enemies, and to coerce people into doing things they would not freely choose to do -- not a voluntary market at all! And conrolling that power is worth lots and lots and lots of money (billions, easily) to the special interest groups and unions and corporations that want the best Senators & Representatives money can buy. [sic] Therefore I doubt if you could get universal agreement about a group that would be trusted to evaluate the results objectively. (Now, I don't mean a bi-partisan group; that would be easy, as we all saw in the debates. Both parties want the same thing, big government, then they just quibble over the details.) If you are interested, there is a very good press release about the debate -- or really about lack of debate. It is at: http://www.LP.org/press/archive.php?function=view& record=152 Of course, this piece is partisan and biassed (like everything else ;), but it still does a good job of highlighting how similar the two candidates were, and how little debate there actually was, on the spectrum of views among the public -- as opposed to the very limited spectrum of the two wings of the single Incumbent Party. slothfratelli asked: Give a brief desciption of at least 10 programming languages. ..?(?) (posted on 10/04/00 14:15:35 EST) You answered: I don't have time to describe ten of them (and that usually takes a textbook to do well), but here is a cute little table that relates several languages to automobiles. It is somewhat silly, and has some "in-jokes", but it does seem to capture the "flavor" of the popular PLs rather well. You can find it on the web at: http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Lab/9112/la nguage.html I've copied the text below, but the web version is much nicer. Enjoy! Selecting a Programming Language With such a large selection of programming languages it can be difficult to choose one for a particular project. Reading manuals to evaluate the languages is a time consuming process. on the other hand, most people have a fairly good idea of how various automobiles compare. So in order to assist those trying to choose a language, we have prepared a chart that matches programming languages with comparable automobiles. Assembler A Formula I race car. Very fast, but difficult to drive and expensive to maintain. FORTRAN II A Model T Ford. Once, it was king of the road. FORTRAN IV A Model A Ford. Fortran 77 A Six-cylinder Ford Fairlane with standard transmission and no seat belts. COBOL A delivery van. It's bulky and ugly, but it does the work. BASIC second-hand Rambler with a rebuilt engine and patched upho,stery. Your dad bought it for you to learn how to drive. You'll ditch the car as soon as you can afford a new one. PL/I A Cadillac convertible with automatic transmission, a two-tone paint job, chrome exhaust pipes, and fuzzy dice hanging in the windshield. C A black Firebird, the all-macho car. Comes with optional seat belts (lint) and optional fuzz-buster (escape to assembler). ALGOL 60 An Austin Mini. Boy, that's a small car! Pascal A Volkswagen Beetle It's small but sturdy. Was once popular with intellectuals. Modula II A Volkswagen Beetle with a trailer hitch. ALGOL 68 An Aston Martin An impressive car, but not just anyone can drive it. LISP An electric car. It's simple but slow. Seat belts are not available. PROLOG / LUCID Prototype concept-cars. Maple / MACSYMA All-terrain vehicles. FORTH A go-cart. LOGO A kiddie's replica of a Rolls Royce. Comes with a real engine and working horn. APL A double-decker bus. It takes rows and columns of passengers to the same place all at the same time. But it drives only in reverse gear, and is instrumented only in Greek. Ada An army-green Mercedes-Benz staff car. Power steering, power brakes, and automatic transmission are all standard. No other colors or options are available. (If it's good enough for the Generals, it's good enough for you.) Manufacturing delays due to difficulties reading the design specifications are starting to clear up. Comes with a real engine and working horn. Reprinted from SIGPLAN Notices. Original article was written by Daniel Saloman & David Rosenbleuth (University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada) (Yes, this decades-old piece needs updating. All contributions are welcome (especially for Fortran 90 and C++). Copyright by Bruce A. Martin/ABCD unlimited. All rights reserved! Back to home page http://Selecting a Programming Language With such a large selection of programming languages it can be difficult to choose one for a particular project. Reading manuals to evaluate the languages is a time consuming process. on the other hand, most people have a fairly good idea of how various automobiles compare. So in order to assist those trying to choose a language, we have prepared a chart that matches programming languages with comparable automobiles. Assembler A Formula I race car. Very fast, but difficult to drive and expensive to maintain. FORTRAN II A Model T Ford. Once, it was king of the road. FORTRAN IV A Model A Ford. Fortran 77 A Six-cylinder Ford Fairlane with standard transmission and no seat belts. COBOL A delivery van. It's bulky and ugly, but it does the work. BASIC second-hand Rambler with a rebuilt engine and patched upho,stery. Your dad bought it for you to learn how to drive. You'll ditch the car as soon as you can afford a new one. PL/I A Cadillac convertible with automatic transmission, a two-tone paint job, chrome exhaust pipes, and fuzzy dice hanging in the windshield. C A black Firebird, the all-macho car. Comes with optional seat belts (lint) and optional fuzz-buster (escape to assembler). ALGOL 60 An Austin Mini. Boy, that's a small car! Pascal A Volkswagen Beetle It's small but sturdy. Was once popular with intellectuals. Modula II A Volkswagen Beetle with a trailer hitch. ALGOL 68 An Aston Martin An impressive car, but not just anyone can drive it. LISP An electric car. It's simple but slow. Seat belts are not available. PROLOG / LUCID Prototype concept-cars. Maple / MACSYMA All-terrain vehicles. FORTH A go-cart. LOGO A kiddie's replica of a Rolls Royce. Comes with a real engine and working horn. APL A double-decker bus. It takes rows and columns of passengers to the same place all at the same time. But it drives only in reverse gear, and is instrumented only in Greek. Ada An army-green Mercedes-Benz staff car. Power steering, power brakes, and automatic transmission are all standard. No other colors or options are available. (If it's good enough for the Generals, it's good enough for you.) Manufacturing delays due to difficulties reading the design specifications are starting to clear up. Comes with a real engine and working horn. Reprinted from SIGPLAN Notices. Original article was written by Daniel Saloman & David Rosenbleuth (University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada) (Yes, this decades-old piece needs updating. All contributions are welcome (especially for Fortran 90 and C++). Copyright by Bruce A. Martin/ABCD unlimited. All rights reserved! Back to home page http://www.geocities.com/k2cck (posted on 10/04/00 16:41:58 EST) slothfratelli 52 answers Comments Was rated by slothfratelli Comments: write to slothfratelli: Dialog with slothfratelli: tripodics (10/04/00 16:49 EST): Sorry, the cut & paste pasted twice. Just snip it. Hope you enjoyed it, even tho it is not really a direct answer to your question. slothfratelli asked: Give a brief desciption of at least 10 programming languages. ..?(?) (posted on 10/04/00 14:15:35 EST) You answered: I don't have time to describe ten of them (and that usually takes a textbook to do well), but here is a cute little table that relates several languages to automobiles. It is somewhat silly, and has some "in-jokes", but it does seem to capture the "flavor" of the popular PLs rather well. You can find it on the web at: http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Lab/9112/la nguage.html I've copied the text below, but the web version is much nicer. Enjoy! Selecting a Programming Language With such a large selection of programming languages it can be difficult to choose one for a particular project. Reading manuals to evaluate the languages is a time consuming process. on the other hand, most people have a fairly good idea of how various automobiles compare. So in order to assist those trying to choose a language, we have prepared a chart that matches programming languages with comparable automobiles. Assembler A Formula I race car. Very fast, but difficult to drive and expensive to maintain. FORTRAN II A Model T Ford. Once, it was king of the road. FORTRAN IV A Model A Ford. Fortran 77 A Six-cylinder Ford Fairlane with standard transmission and no seat belts. COBOL A delivery van. It's bulky and ugly, but it does the work. BASIC second-hand Rambler with a rebuilt engine and patched upho,stery. Your dad bought it for you to learn how to drive. You'll ditch the car as soon as you can afford a new one. PL/I A Cadillac convertible with automatic transmission, a two-tone paint job, chrome exhaust pipes, and fuzzy dice hanging in the windshield. C A black Firebird, the all-macho car. Comes with optional seat belts (lint) and optional fuzz-buster (escape to assembler). ALGOL 60 An Austin Mini. Boy, that's a small car! Pascal A Volkswagen Beetle It's small but sturdy. Was once popular with intellectuals. Modula II A Volkswagen Beetle with a trailer hitch. ALGOL 68 An Aston Martin An impressive car, but not just anyone can drive it. LISP An electric car. It's simple but slow. Seat belts are not available. PROLOG / LUCID Prototype concept-cars. Maple / MACSYMA All-terrain vehicles. FORTH A go-cart. LOGO A kiddie's replica of a Rolls Royce. Comes with a real engine and working horn. APL A double-decker bus. It takes rows and columns of passengers to the same place all at the same time. But it drives only in reverse gear, and is instrumented only in Greek. Ada An army-green Mercedes-Benz staff car. Power steering, power brakes, and automatic transmission are all standard. No other colors or options are available. (If it's good enough for the Generals, it's good enough for you.) Manufacturing delays due to difficulties reading the design specifications are starting to clear up. Comes with a real engine and working horn. Reprinted from SIGPLAN Notices. Original article was written by Daniel Saloman & David Rosenbleuth (University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada) (Yes, this decades-old piece needs updating. All contributions are welcome (especially for Fortran 90 and C++). Copyright by Bruce A. Martin/ABCD unlimited. All rights reserved! Back to home page http://Selecting a Programming Language With such a large selection of programming languages it can be difficult to choose one for a particular project. Reading manuals to evaluate the languages is a time consuming process. on the other hand, most people have a fairly good idea of how various automobiles compare. So in order to assist those trying to choose a language, we have prepared a chart that matches programming languages with comparable automobiles. Assembler A Formula I race car. Very fast, but difficult to drive and expensive to maintain. FORTRAN II A Model T Ford. Once, it was king of the road. FORTRAN IV A Model A Ford. Fortran 77 A Six-cylinder Ford Fairlane with standard transmission and no seat belts. COBOL A delivery van. It's bulky and ugly, but it does the work. BASIC second-hand Rambler with a rebuilt engine and patched upho,stery. Your dad bought it for you to learn how to drive. You'll ditch the car as soon as you can afford a new one. PL/I A Cadillac convertible with automatic transmission, a two-tone paint job, chrome exhaust pipes, and fuzzy dice hanging in the windshield. C A black Firebird, the all-macho car. Comes with optional seat belts (lint) and optional fuzz-buster (escape to assembler). ALGOL 60 An Austin Mini. Boy, that's a small car! Pascal A Volkswagen Beetle It's small but sturdy. Was once popular with intellectuals. Modula II A Volkswagen Beetle with a trailer hitch. ALGOL 68 An Aston Martin An impressive car, but not just anyone can drive it. LISP An electric car. It's simple but slow. Seat belts are not available. PROLOG / LUCID Prototype concept-cars. Maple / MACSYMA All-terrain vehicles. FORTH A go-cart. LOGO A kiddie's replica of a Rolls Royce. Comes with a real engine and working horn. APL A double-decker bus. It takes rows and columns of passengers to the same place all at the same time. But it drives only in reverse gear, and is instrumented only in Greek. Ada An army-green Mercedes-Benz staff car. Power steering, power brakes, and automatic transmission are all standard. No other colors or options are available. (If it's good enough for the Generals, it's good enough for you.) Manufacturing delays due to difficulties reading the design specifications are starting to clear up. Comes with a real engine and working horn. Reprinted from SIGPLAN Notices. Original article was written by Daniel Saloman & David Rosenbleuth (University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada) (Yes, this decades-old piece needs updating. All contributions are welcome (especially for Fortran 90 and C++). Copyright by Bruce A. Martin/ABCD unlimited. All rights reserved! Back to home page http://www.geocities.com/k2cck (posted on 10/04/00 16:41:58 EST) slothfratelli 52 answers Comments Was rated by slothfratelli Comments: write to slothfratelli: Dialog with slothfratelli: tripodics (10/04/00 16:49 EST): Sorry, the cut & paste pasted twice. Just snip it. Hope you enjoyed it, even tho it is not really a direct answer to your question. crzycassy asked: WHat exactly is foie gras? (posted on 10/03/00 14:17:49 EST) You answered: Diseased goose liver, made into a paste. The farmer overfeeds (and force-feed) the geese until their livers become enlarged, then the animal is slaughtered and the liver is used to make a "pate`" -- sort of like the German liverwursrt. Sounds disgusting, but it's actually not bad. I like it fried or baked, but most people spread it on crackers, etc. for hors d'ourves (which sounds like horses ovaries, but that's another story :^> It's a French delicacy, in case you didn't know. (posted on 10/03/00 16:23:12 EST) crzycassy 80 answers Comments Was rated by crzycassy slothfratelli asked: Relating to high level languages, WHat do the terms imperative, declaritive (functional or logical) mean in detail? (posted on 10/04/00 14:03:04 EST) You answered: An imperative statement is a command. In English (and some others), imperatives may omit the subject, which is then understood to be the second person singular, and may consist of only a verb. Example: "Go." means the same thing as "You go." or "You shall go." or "I order you to go." A declarative statement, as it sounds, makes a declaration. It declares something to be true and/or defines a term. A common form for a declarative sentence is the "predicate-nominative" form, which connects two noun clauses by the verb "to be" (or "is", in the present tense) to say that the two things are equal. Examples: "The moon is full" or "My name is George" or "All woggles are snoggles." Programming languages and natural languages are similar in this regard, altho the forms and grammar are quite different (and the semantics of PLs must be precise). In a PL, an imperative statement (which I like to call an "action" statement) tells the computer to DO something. In many PLs, the imperative statement must begin with a verb (like READ or GO or CALL or LET). Before you can write a meaningful imperative statement, it is usually necessary to define some objects that the verb will act upon (and maybe change the state of). To be able to refer to these things, we must attach a logical name to the physical resources that we are going to refer to. Thus, a computer program usually starts with declarative statements before the imperative ones. In a PL, a declarative states the existence of something and gives a logical name that refers to that physical thing. (I suppose there is an imperative aspect, too, since it really commands the system to allocate something, such as memory -- but that doesn't really count.) Declaratives define and identify things. Imperatives cause state changes. There are also "control statements", which may test things to decide what to do next (e.g. skip over a block of imperative statements that follow it, or repeat a block of statements). These are mixed in with the imperative statements (and may even be regarded as imperative by some), but they don't usually make things happen. In "structured programming" other forms of control statements are avoided, and we only use IF tests (with optional ELSE IF and ELSE) and looping (either top-test or bottom-test, with optional premature exits). Boehm & Giaccopini proved 9in 1966) that no other control structures are necessary, from which Dijkstra argued that the it would be best to avoid the GO TO statement in higher level languages (even tho it is actually used in the machine language to simulate the control structures). (posted on 10/04/00 16:25:30 EST) slothfratelli 52 answers Comments Was rated by slothfratelli Romey asked: WHat is the procedure to Putting a algorithm into my web site that will generate hits? (posted on 09/29/00 11:12:22 EST) You answered: You need META tags. Then, register with earch engines. META tags describe content and specify keywords. The search engines index your website by these keywords, so choose anything that somebody might look for when they want your site. (Also include misspellings, similar terms, even competetive brands, etc.) The content sentences are what the searcher will see, so make it something very attractive (but don't doverdo it). Unless your site is truly international, put in some location keywords, like state and city. (Some people put in the word "free", many times; and others put in all 26 letters of the alphabet; but I don't think this helps much any more.) Next, you must register with the search engines, to get them to spider your page. This is free, but tedious, and it doesn't guarantee where you will come up in the listings. (Like number 23,672 out of 28,000 matches.) There is no "algorithm" to put into the website, and the search engines do not reveal all of their tricks, but there are several other things that will help. One is to put links from your pages to sites that are similar. The text on your webpages is also scanned by the search-engine spiders and robots -- especially the words in the first half of each page. Some search engines will downgrade you if the site appears to be going "stale" -- e.g. if nothing has changed in a few weeks. Another trick is to change the order of the keywords slightly, every 2 weeks or so. Aside from the search engines, to get hits to your website you have to "promote" it -- just the way that getting a phone number i not enuf, but you have to advertise it and list it where it can be found (e.g. the Yellow Pages). People charge lots and lots of money to do this, using everything from paying for high rankings on the search engines to buying "impressions" on portal sites. (Of course, there is also ordinary promotion, like newspaper and TV ads.) All this is quite expensive. A cheap way to increase hits is to find other people who have websites, and do a link exchange with them. For businesses, find complementary but non-competing product (like a ski-rental place if you are a ski lodge, or a gas station if you are a car wash) and trade links with the webmaster: I'll put a link to your site on my page if you put one to mine on your page. For this, you will need have to supply a "banner". There's much more, and this has become a big business. Some people sell services (like registering you with many search engines), but most of them are phonies. If you spend money prooting your site, make sure you see previous work and satisfied clients, not just promises & hype. For a non-commercial site, don't bother. Just do link exchange. (posted on 10/02/00 15:41:31 EST) Romey 103 answers Comments Was rated by Romey extremely helpful Comments: write to Romey: Dialog with Romey: Romey (10/05/00 07:32 EST): http://geocities.com/websitedevelopment/ ? Thanks. I;ll look into that. tripodics (10/05/00 02:30 EST): You mightalso be interested in some of the links on the web page that I use for teaching HTML, etc. It is at: http://geocities.com/websitedevelopment/ elderberry_crunch asked: I have a weird algebra problem. For some reason the Beatles only have 17 minutes to get to a concert. They have to cross a bridge. It is dark and one of them needs to be carrying a flashlight. John takes 10 minutes Paul takes 5 minutes George takes 1 minute and Ringo takes 2 minutes. Only two of them can cross at a time. WHen they are crossing (say John and Ringo) you count the time it takes the slowest one to cross, ( so you would count John's 10 minutes for both of them) Remember, they need to have a flashlight with them, so one of them has to go back. I do not know the answer, but if you figure it out it would help. Thank you and have a nice day. (posted on 10/02/00 11:01:26 EST) You answered: There are two solutions, each taking 17 minutes: First solution: ------------------ 1a. (2 min.) George and Ringo both cross first. 1b. (1 min.) George returns alone, (leaving Ringo in the dark on the far side -- so what else is new ;^). 2a. (10 min.) The two slowpokes, John & Paul, cross together. 2b. (2 min.) Now, Ringo goes back for George. 3a. (2 min.) Finally, George & Ringo cross together again. TOTAL= 17 min. Second solution is similar to first, except that it is Ringo who takes the flashlite back to the slowpokes. ------------------------- 1a. (2 min.) George and Ringo both cross first. 1b. (2 min.) Ringo returns alone. 2a. (10 min.) The two slowpokes, John & Paul, cross together. 2b. (1 min.) Now, George goes back for Ringo. 3a. (2 min.) Finally, George & Ringo cross together again. TOTAL= 17 min. Cute problem. Thanks. (posted on 10/02/00 15:12:45 EST) elderberry_crunch 2 answers Comments Was rated by elderberry_crunch pspdiva asked: WHo is actually going to vote this presidency?? and WHy????? I can't seem to figure out anything good about any candidates LAUGHS (posted on 10/02/00 09:14:36 EST) You answered: In recent years, the MAJORITY voted for NONE OF THE ABOVE, by staying home. For example, Clinton was elected by only 19% of the eligible voters in 1992 and less than 24% in 1996! The clear winner was "None of the Above" because nobody who was listed on the ballot gave the majority of voters a good enuf reason to go out and vote. I really wish these lazy stay-at-homes would, for once, go out to the polls and actually cast their a write-in vote -- they could just open up the write-in slot (or ask for a paper ballot, in some states) and write "NO" or "Donald Duck" or "F--- Y---". Then, at least the Tweedledum and Tweedleee candidates of the Ruling Party (with its two, back-scratching wings called D & R) would no longer be able to pretend that they have a "mandate" from the people -- who mostly want the government to leave them alone. A vote for a 3rd party candidate says more or less the same thing. This year, I am voting for Harry Browne -- rather than WASTING my vote on the lesser of two evils, among Gush & Bore. Since you, too, find nothing to vote for in the two limited choices that the news media cover, please don't let them count you as one of their satisfied supporters -- which they WILL if you stay home. Instead, vote AGAINST them both, either by picking one of the 3rd party candidates (Buchanan, Nader, Brown, Hagelin, Phillips) or by writing in a protest vote for someone else or for "None of these candidates". [Note: Some of the 3rd party candidaes did not make it onto the ballot in a few states, but there are at least two 3rd party candidates available in every state. The Libertarians are on ballot in all 50 states; Nader has about 40 states; Buchanan about 45; Hagelin and Phillips over 35. Then again, you can always write in your own name! :-) ] PLEASE vote! Don't let them count you in their mandate, when you don't really support either of them. (posted on 10/02/00 11:45:24 EST) pspdiva 17 answers Comments Was rated by pspdiva i agree, but do our votes really matter anyways? honestly will it make any bit of difference one way or another if i vote or not? that is what alot of people think and why they dont vote Comments: write to pspdiva: Dialog with pspdiva: tripodics (10/03/00 16:33 EST): Yes. If the majority stays home again, it will get the crummy government it deserves -- worse and worse, more and more -- and to add insult to injury, they will claim that it has the support of the people. The more people who vote 3rd-party or NOTA, the more pressure there will be to change the system -- it takes time: look at Mexico and the Soviet Union: 75 years, but thinkgs are different now. The U.S. is not as far gone down the road to tyranny and one-party rule, but we are heading there (while other countries are increasingly going the other way). At some point, there will be rebellion and worse, if the trend continues and people get more and more disgusted. Larger turnouts of disenchanted voters could change all that and either dump the incumbents (which happened a few elections ago) or dump the parties. Those who stay home have no right to complain. At least go out and vote NO (or 3rd party), otherwise they are part of the problem. pspdiva (10/02/00 12:01 EST): oh yeah for got to say last time i did vote for third party, i voted Ross Perot LOL tripodics (10/02/00 11:51 EST): I believe the Virgin Islands does have a Presidential ballot, even tho it does not count in the Electoral College. At least, I think it did in 1992 (when Andre Marrou ran on the Libertarian line, and did well.) Also, there is a federal case making its way to the Supreme Court, after a favorable ruling by a lower court based upon the 14th Amendment (equal protection, equal "privileges & immunities" for all citizens -- which includes those not residing in a state). Puerto Rico is counting votes this year, for possible use if there is a court ruling. Isn't VI doing the same? Beatrix_Potter asked: If you keep trying to prove Murphy's Law, will something keep going wrong? (posted on 10/01/00 19:49:17 EST) You answered: Definitely. Because Murphy's Law also applies to itself. So, sometimes it doesn't work. Which means that it works. More signifigant is Murphy's 3rd Law, which says that if several things can gop wrong, the one that will go wrong is the one that will do the most damage. However, this often fails, particularly when coupled with Yenum's corollary. (posted on 10/02/00 02:40:00 EST) Beatrix_Potter 93 answers Comments Was rated by Beatrix_Potter Very good. Thanks :-) I dont know what Yenum's Corollary is, but it sounds fairly impressive :-) Comments: write to Beatrix_Potter: Dialog with Beatrix_Potter: Beatrix_Potter (10/05/00 16:14 EST): LOL..will keep that in mind. 'Everything always takes longer'? Unfortunately, I think I'd have to agree with that. I'll search for the website, I find it interesting. I've just finished 'Serpent' by Clive Cussler and haven't started the Dirk Pitt series yet. Dont suppose you know what the very first one is? ROFL - rolling on the floor laughing (although, not to be taken literally :-) ), this is the product of spending far too much time online (when I should be studying or something equally worthwhile), I now know what most of the acronyms mean. tripodics (10/05/00 13:56 EST): You are more than welcome. Of course, this is all whimsical and does not desreve the term "technical" -- altho one might ould get fancy and defend it as "heuristic". Regardless, Murphy's Laws (my old list had 6 of them) do reflect experience, and serve as a good caution to eager, overoptimistic novices. My own favorite "law" (which I coined as "Bam's law") is: "Everything always takes longer." Recently, I came across Pitt's Law (from the Dirk Pitt character in Clive Cussler's novel, "Sahara"), which says: "He who follows another man's map comes up 20 kilometers short." There are zillions of them,. and I recall that there was a website somewhere. Still, I think the ultimate Murphy observation is the one I quoted (from an SF novel, "Cradle of Saturn", by Hogan), that Murphy's law sometimes applies to itself, so that sometimes it doesn't work, which means it works. (Wish I'd thought of that!) Cheers! P.S. What does the FLA stand for? (ROFL) Beatrix_Potter (10/05/00 04:40 EST): ROFL...thank you so very much :-) You have explained it with clarity and I greatly appreciate the effort. It's a refreshing change from my usual lack of understanding when faced with technical explanations :-) Thank-you, once again. tripodics (10/05/00 00:18 EST): Yenum's corrolary says, "the toast will always fall butter-side down". Many years ago I had a personal experience demonstating Yenum's Corrolary but violating Murphy's 3rd law ("if several things can go wrong, the one that WILL go wrong is the one that will do the most damage"). I had just put on a fancy suit, to go to an interview, and was finishing up a hasty breakfast that ended with some buttered toast -- which my elbow hit because I had carelessly laid it at the edge of the table. As the buttered toast tumbled thru the air, heading straight for the knee of my suit pants, I thought about Yenum's Corollary and KNEW it would land and make a horrible butter stain there, with no time to change clothes before my big interview. I was amazed to see the toast land BUTTER SIDE UP, seemingly violating Yenum's corrolary. In shock and amazement, I watched while it tottered there a moment and then resumed its descent, tumbling off my knee and then hitting the floor -- BUTTER SIDE DOWN. My suit (and interview) was saved, and the worst did not happen. Thereby proving that Yenum's Corrolary is stronger, and that Murphy's 3rd Law may on occasion be violated in order to make Yenum's Corrolary come true. If the domain of Murphy is continuous, then I guess this would be a singularity. (However, the anecdotes above also tend to reinforce the old Yiddish proverb: "for example is no proff".) Yaya15 asked: Concerning atom structure, WHy do the outer shells that how hold stuff like electrons start with the K shell, and WHy not start with A? (posted on 09/27/00 20:41:26 EST) You answered: I'm only guessing, but since the German word "Kern" means nucleus, it may be that the innermost electron shell was named K because it was closest to the nucleus. Neils Bohr was Danish, and I think the same word is used in Dutch -- so, to really go out on a limb, I'll guess that he assigned the letters K, L, M, etc. Now, I noticed the answer CiTKiD gave you was incorrect. The letters s, p, d, f are used for the subshells. The shells themselves ARE designated K, L, M, ... as you said. The K shell only has one subshell, "s", with one pair of electrons (with opposite spins).. The L shell can have subshells s and p, with 1 and 3 pairs. M may have s, p, and d with 1, 3, and 5 electron pairs. N has s, p, d, and f subshells (1, 3, 5, 7 pairs). In the next shell, O, there can be a subshell "g". I don't know for sure about where the K came from (and you've got my curiosity up, so I'll check), but I wanted to correct the other answer. K, L, M, etc. are definitely the shell letters. (posted on 09/28/00 04:57:05 EST) Yaya15 57 answers Comments Was rated by Yaya15 thanxs if u find out if ur right or not, write back, This is an extra credit thing for chem. class. Comments: write to Yaya15: Dialog with Yaya15: tripodics (10/03/00 22:56 EST): Yes, please tell me when you find out. Now I am really curious (since somebody says it is not "kern"). Check out the Brittanica URLs -- they may help you in class. BTW, I started out in particle physics (a few decades ago), but then switched to Crystallography. After I got to Brookhaven Lab, I went into the new field of control systems, which eventually became software engineering. That's what I have done for most of my career but during the '90s I went back to BNL to design and implement the control system for their new collider. So, I guess I'm still a "fan" of high-energy physics. My son (who is now a H.S. senior) is probably going into that field (but NOT because of me!). Good luck. Yaya15 (10/03/00 20:43 EST): hey thanxs for all the info, no its not the kern..i asked my teacher but hew wont tell me the real answer , when i find out ill tell you. tripodics (10/03/00 15:49 EST): Here's more: The shell model was proposed in 1949 by Hans Jensen and (independently) by Maria Goeppert Mayer. They shared half a 1963 Nobel prize for it. While it is true that the principle quantum numbers (1,2,3,4,...) came from Neils Bohr, it may be that Jensen & Goeppert-Mayer suggested the letters. Still not sure who suggested K,L,M,N,... but if it is important, you might look up the Jensen paper or a good book on it -- such as their 1955 book "Elementary Theory of Nuclear Shell Structure". tripodics (10/03/00 15:38 EST): The "shells" (or orbits) and the letters K, L, M, N, etc. correspond to the "principal quantum number" 1, 2, 3, 4, ... which was introduced by Neils Bohr. For the secondary quantum numbers (subshells or "orbitals") the letters "s, p, d, and f do have an origin. These letters were originally used to classify different series of spectra, long before the underlying electron shell structure was understood. The letters stand for "sharp", "principal", "diffuse", and "fundamental". (After that, it just goes "g", "h", etc.) Here is a good URL on that subject: http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/0/0,5716 ,58720+1+57287,00.html I still don't know where the KLMN... come from -- and "Kern" might be the origin -- but another idea is that the letters were chosen to avoid conflict with the older leters spdf... Just guessing, here. parschick asked: How many countries are there in the world and WHat constitutes a 'country'? (posted on 09/24/00 16:53:15 EST) You answered: There are over 200 entities in the world that are considered a "country" by one standard or another. Unfortunately, the issue becomes very political, since a country may grant or withhold "recognition" from another for reasons that are political or tactical or military or whatever. There are many situations that are unclear as to whether an entity is a country or not. Some examples: -- Liechtenstein may be considered an independent country, but all of its external affairs, currency, and so forth is handled by Switzerland. -- Monaco is a Principality, but it also is effectively a protectorate. -- South Africa granted independence to several "nations", including Transkei, Ciskei, Venda, and Bophutaswana. For political reasons, and to pressure the (apartheid) government there, most other countries refused recognition. -- Scotland retains much soverignty, and some consider it a separate country that is part of the United Kingdom (and has the same Queen as England, Wales, and Ulster). -- Tibet is a "captive nation", invaded and held by China. (The situation is similar to that of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, before they were allowed to break away from the USSR.) -- India has invaded and annexed two or three adjacent countries or colonies, including Goa, Sikkhim, and Bhutan. Are these no longer countries? I don't know. Depends on your definition. -- Then there is Kashmir, claimed by both India and Pakistan. Is it really a separate country? -- What about Kurdistan? Iraq controls some but not all of the Kurdish area within its borders, and Kurdistan really extends into parts of Turkey, Iran, and the former Soviet Union. -- Czeckoslovakia peacefully broke into two countries, and both were universally recognized. However, in Chechnya and Moldava, the independence movements are being suppressed by troops and i don't think that their breakaways have been recognized by any other nations. -- Then there is Kosovo and Montenegro, which are still part of the Yugoslavian federation of Republics, but some do consider them to be separate countries. -- In several African nations (or pseudo-nations), two or more governments each control different areas -- so at peace, and some with ongoing civil war. -- Nationalist China on Taiwan would seem to be an independent nation by any measure, but the U.N. and many nations do not "recognize" it as such. And the government in Taipei wants it that way! Both it and the Peoples Republic both claim to be the only legitimate government of the entire territory of "China" (including the parts controlled by the Communist government in Peking AND the parts controlled by Taipei), and each one refuses to accept recognition from any country that recognizes the other one. -- Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States, altho some describe it as a separate entity. However, the Northern Marianas have a different status which is more autonomous. Are they a country? -- The Seminole Indians (which never signed a peace traty with the U.S.) calls itself a nation. What about other Indian tribes, "nations", and reservations in the U.S. and Canada? I still say that 200 is a good approximate answer, but anything more precise would require a very precise definition. (posted on 09/25/00 00:49:58 EST) parschick 3 answers Comments Was rated by parschick Comments: write to parschick: Dialog with parschick: tripodics (10/04/00 13:46 EST): More info on this: There are 239 two-letter codes listed in the ISO 3166-1standard. Some of them are not really independent "countries" (e.g. Puerto Rico or East Timor or Falkland Islands or Greenland or Hong Kong) and some actual countries and self-governing regions have been omitted for political reasons (e.g. Transkei, Macau, Taiwan, Kurdistan, Gaza). So, I'd stil estimate the number of "countries" at a little under 200. Here are some useful URLs: http://www.din.de/gremien/nas/nabd/iso3166ma/codls tp1/en_listp1.html http://theoryx5.uwinnipeg.ca/CPAN/data/Locale-Code s/Locale/Country.html http://theoryx5.uwinnipeg.ca/mod_perl/cpan-search? modinfo=2662 Note that there are also a 3-digit codes and 3-letter codes for both countries and geographic regions. See: http://www.webopedia.com/quick_ref/countrycode.htm l http://www.un.org/Depts/unsd/methods/m49regin.htm http://www.un.org/Depts/unsd/methods/m49.htm http://www.un.org/Depts/unsd/methods/m49alpha.htm This last one uses some sneaky technique to prevent copying the text, but I have a text file of it if you want it. Also available are ISO codes for languages. See: http://www.tradoc.fr/i18n/iso639.html ZIPORI asked: DOES ANYBODY KNOW ANY SIMPLE DEVICE WHICH CAN BE PUT INTO OUTDOOR RACK WITH ELECTRONIC ITEMS IN IT, TO HAVE FULL HEATING\COOLING CONTROL .??? (IT MUST BE LITTLE & SIMPLE )??? (posted on 09/27/00 09:18:19 EST) You answered: You might try one of the X-10 devices, which send High-Frequency signals thru ordinary house wiring circuits to control other devices. You can either plug in a controller or use the cordless version, which uses FM radio signals. I don't know think they have any heating/cooling devicesper se, but they do have devices that will dim lights and change settings on another device (such as a heater or fan). Radio Shack carries a limited line of these, with more available by catalog. I get mine from a supplier called "Home Controls". Their website is www.homecontrols.com and they have a toll-free number: 800-266-8765 The modules are about the size of a pack of cigarettes, but somewhat thicker. Hand-held cordless controllers are like remote unit for a TV, but a bit wider. Hope that helps. (posted on 09/27/00 17:16:27 EST) ZIPORI 0 answers Comments Was rated by ZIPORI Lollypop asked: How do i lose weight quickly? (posted on 09/28/00 02:25:08 EST) You answered: I've had my best success with the Atkins diet, because I can stay on it since it allows most of the things I like. You can eat all the meat and protein and fat you want -- provided you keep your carbohydrate intake down below your own threshhold. I call it the "Bacon Cheeseburger diest because that is exactly what you can have on ot -- provided you eat the insides only and throw away most of the bread. It also avoids the up-and-down mood swings that come from eating starch (which turns to sugar) and overproducing isulin. (I can really feel the sugar cycle, if I goof and have too much carbs.) I lost a pound a day for 2 weeks, then slowed down and lost another ten the next 2 weeks. Maintenance is easy, too. There are probably faster diets, but this is one I can stay on. If you must have candy and junk food daily, then it is not for you; personally, I can skip the sweets and potatoes and bread -- if I can eat all the meat I want (plus salad and most vegetables). Good luck! (posted on 09/28/00 04:02:57 EST) Lollypop 0 answers Comments Was rated by Lollypop Toby asked: WHy is gin supposed to make you cry? (posted on 09/27/00 15:14:20 EST) You answered: Juniper. the smell of Juniper in Gin stings some people's eyes. (posted on 09/27/00 18:14:23 EST) Toby 122 answers Comments Was rated by Toby I'm glad I'm not one of those people! stagecrewbuddy asked: WHich president fell out of a chair as a child and broke his colarbone,
had a mother in law WHo said that he would loose to the other presidental canidate...was the only 20th century president never to attend college...had the Burlin air lift staged during his election, and was in office during the Mackenzie records? (posted on 09/25/00 20:16:36 EST) You answered: Has to be Harry S. Truman! I assume you mean the Berlin airlift, which was in 1948 and 1949. Others attended college but did not grduate; Harry never even attended. I didn't know about the collarbone incident, but most people agreed with his mother-in-law that Dewey would beat him for re-election. The New York Times was so sure of it that they rushed to press with a "scoop" headline "Dewey Beats Truman" based on early polls, where the NY Governor (and famous ex-prosecutor of gang leaders) seemed to be so far ahead in the East that he couldn't lose to the unpopular haberdasher from Missouri. (posted on 09/25/00 22:42:21 EST) stagecrewbuddy 14 answers Comments Was rated by stagecrewbuddy wow!! thanks soo much...now i can get a little extra credit for ap history! watch out for more president quetsions i'll get more of them throughout the school year Comments: write to stagecrewbuddy: Dialog with stagecrewbuddy: tripodics (10/02/00 17:15 EST): OK. Glad to oblige. I have lots of info re Presidents, and almost-Presidents. CheeRios asked: WHy should an 18 yr. old vote? I am trying to persuade some classmates to vote this election year..would greatly appreciate it if you can help me out. (posted on 09/21/00 20:50:15 EST) You answered: By not voting, you are saying that whatever OTHER people decide for you will acceptable to you, and whatever laws are passed by the Representatives THEY elect will be OK, too. Yes, that is EXACTLY what you say when you don't vote. It is not counted as a "protest" when you stay home -- it is counted as an "abstention". An "abstention" means that you go willingly along with whatever the majority chooses. Unless you agree with this, you have no choice but to go out and vote. If you don't like the two candidates of the big parties, then pick one of the third-party candidates to show your objection. Staying home is just like voting for the winner. If that is not what you want to do, the go vote for somebody else -- whether or not they can win. (It's not a horse race.) I don't think either Gush or Bore deserves to be President. If I stay home, it is the same as voting for one of them. I am voting for somebody else (Browne), even tho I know he can't win. I will not waste my vote for one of the big two. And the worst thing I could do is stay home, because I will be counted in the 51% that elects a candidate I don't support. Now, if there are no candidates on the ballot that you can support, just open up the "write-in" slot (at the top of the machine, in NY) or ask for a paper "write-in" ballot, and write in the name of somebody else (or just write "No" or "F--- You") to register your protest. Better yet, write in your own name. People give many reasons for NOT voting, but all of them are lame excuses for laziness. Over 50% of the voters stayed home the last 2 times, and that is one of the reasons the government is so bad -- and so big. The politicians LOVE it when voters stay home -- they say it means that everybody is happy with the way they are ruling us. If more people came out and REJECTED the two party's choices, it would scare the heck out of them and improve government greatly. Let others tell you about civic duty or being drafted or shaping government or whatever. I say the most important reason to vote is that by staying home you are giving approval to those who rule and ruin us. I lay the BLAME for the mess we have in Washington squarely upon the people who don't vote It is their fault when bums get into office, because the non-voters had the majority and didn't use it to stop them. . Get out and protest. If not, then you musat promise never to complain or disobey, because you have willingly given yourself into whatever slavery THEY impose and by not voting you have forfeited your right to complain later. P.S. Clinton was elected by only 19% of the voters. That's right, 19% in 1992 (and 24% in 1996). The majority stayed home. (posted on 09/25/00 01:12:36 EST) CheeRios 1 answer Comments Was rated by CheeRios cherrie asked: WHo wrote "In Memorium"? (posted on 09/24/00 18:29:14 EST) You answered: Stravinsky wrote "In Memorium, Dylan Thomas" (Do not go gently into that good night, in 12 tones), but you are probably thinking of the poems of Tennyson. (posted on 09/25/00 01:29:15 EST) cherrie 10 answers Comments Was rated by cherrie lol, yeah. good answer though! ;) Buckeye_3325 asked: WHat state flag is the only one shaped as a pennant? (posted on 09/27/00 13:36:50 EST) You answered: Your name gave it away! (But I knew it anyway.) It's Ohio. Nepal has a country flag that is also shaped like a pennant. (posted on 09/27/00 17:48:34 EST) Buckeye_3325 17 answers Comments Was rated by Buckeye_3325 AnneBonny asked: Is there a statistic that shows WHat percentage of statistics are accurate? (posted on 09/25/00 19:02:08 EST) You answered: No, but nearly half of them are below average. That's not too bad, considering that over 47% of the people in this country have below average IQs. You will have a 76.312% probability of having a nice day. :-) P.S. An excellent book to read is "How to Lie With Statistics." Altho old, it is very well written and explores many fallacies in the use of surveys. Should be required reading for all High School students, to protect them in today's world of optinion polls and "health" correlations (most of which are worthless at best and misleading at worst). (posted on 09/25/00 22:10:22 EST) AnneBonny 110 answers Comments Was rated by AnneBonny uh didnt really understand that one nicoii asked: How does the brain process memories? (posted on 09/24/00 19:35:26 EST) You answered: Memories are first recorded as experiences, and then processed into memories -- usually while we sleep. Initially, the experiences of the day (which are kept as weighting factors or settings within neural nets, but that's a whole 'nother story) are kept in very short-term storage. To build the actual memories, which are kept long-term (more or less permanently), it is necessary to process the patterns and impressions of the experience from the short-term storage and "link" or relate them to other things that are already in memory. This process is called "integration" and it usually takes place during a part of the sleep cycle known as REM (Rapid Eye Movement) which, incidentally, is when we do most of our dreaming. (Dreaming may be a very functional way of re-enacting experiences and fitting them into the framework of things already in memory.) In connection with this, it helps to understand that our memory is nothing like that of computer storage or databases, nor is it like that of a filing cabinet or encyclopedia. All thought and reasoning is in the form of patterns, and our information retrieval is done by "pattern matching". Integration organizes (and simplifies) the patterns from the short term memory and builds connections between them and similar patterns in the long term memory, often reinforcing the old ones as well as modifying them or "adding footnotes" to them. The integration process is crucial to long-term memory. Many experiments done with sleep deprivation have shown that when a person is kept from sleeping for several days, the memories are not formed and the experiences are lost. This is definitely true for severe deprivation, but it might also be somewhat true that chronic sleep shortages can impair memory formation, too. (posted on 09/25/00 01:45:12 EST) nicoii 0 answers Comments Was rated by nicoii king_o_zanyness asked: A skunk sat on a stump, the stump said the skunk stunk, the skunk said the stump stunk. WHo stunk the skunk or the stump? (posted on 09/24/00 22:22:09 EST) You answered: Both, but the since stumps can't talk, I believe the skunk and pick the stump as the stinker. I am stumped by the idea of a stump "saying" anything at all. Yes, I know skunks don't speak English, but they certainly do communicate, so I would believe a skunk who indicated that he thought the stump stunk. Now since stumps don't even have noses, they can't smell at all (altho they can be very smelly), so why would anybody believe a nosy stump that tried to say it was the skunk who stunk. Skunks certainly do smell -- especially when they are road kill. :-) (posted on 09/25/00 01:27:05 EST) king_o_zanyness 46 answers Comments Was rated by king_o_zanyness I'm confused I like that!!!! Julian asked: WHen did Marilyn Monroe die? (posted on 09/23/00 16:59:25 EST) You answered: August 4, 1962 (during the night -- possibly after midnight, August 5, 1962). Speculation abounds as to whether her death was an accidental overdose, a suicide, or even a murder. Given her prior state of depression, there is some credence to the suicide theory, but an accidental overdose of sleeping pills is equally likely. Little evidence exists for the murder theory, but it is more plausible than Elvis sightings. ;^> (posted on 09/23/00 21:54:34 EST) Julian 31 answers Comments Was rated by Julian Comments: write to Julian: Dialog with Julian: tripodics (09/23/00 22:00 EST): I forgot to mention that she was 36 when she died, and had divorced her 3rd husband, Arthur Miller, at the beginning of the previous year. The website http://www.marilynmonroe.com/ is a reasonably good source of information (as well as some hype and fan stuff). If you ponemayeshke po-russkii, then another is: http://ru.osho.com/news/zenstick/zenstk10.htm (ÅÆÅÍÅÄÅËÜÍÈÊ Zen Stick -- Còàòóñ Çíàìåíèòîñòè - Ìåðëèí Ìîíðî). blueyedgrl_6 asked: WHat is the difference between grey and gray? (posted on 09/23/00 17:40:56 EST) You answered: Same meaning to people; different meaning to BROWSERS. Most browsers accept "gray" but not "grey. as a recognized name for a color. When the browser sees a name that is not listed (like "grey"), it will dearch for the closest matching string among the color names that it has listed in its tables. The string "grey" will often match with "red". If the color name "gold" is not recognized, you will probaby get green. This used to happen under IE3 & 4when displaying my webpage http://geocities.com/websitedevelopment. Also on that page (under "colors") are links to color charts on the web. The best way to spoecify color is by number (000000 thru FFFFFF) for "RGB" values. For the browser-safe set of (216) colors, restrict the two-digit values for R and G and B to one of the following: 00 None 33 20% 66 40% 99 60% CC 80% FF 100% (full intensity of this color). 33 20% In RGB, red + green makes yellow (FFFF00). Orange is one of the hardest simple colors to make. Turn the Red up fully and the Green up half way. This makes yellow with both Red and Green at half, then the extra (unmatched) Red can add red to the mix. (posted on 09/23/00 22:34:00 EST) blueyedgrl_6 52 answers Comments Was rated by blueyedgrl_6 thanx!! Comments: write to blueyedgrl_6: Dialog with blueyedgrl_6: tripodics (09/23/00 22:37 EST): In the hexadecimal RGB system, any color with the three RGB values will be gray -- from black (with them all off) and dark grays, to mdeium grays with substantial amounts of each of the three (say 666666 or 999999). As the three vakues approach maximum, the color approaches white. Technically, gray is not a "color". Neither is white or black. But that is just semantics. stankohls asked: WHo will win Sunday's election in Yugoslavia? Will Milsovic ovic give up power if he looses? (posted on 09/23/00 16:49:50 EST) You answered: 1. Milosevic. 2. No. (posted on 09/23/00 21:24:32 EST) stankohls 2087 answers Comments Was rated by stankohls Bad news. Comments: write to stankohls: Dialog with stankohls: stankohls (10/05/00 14:21 EST): You could be right, but in today's world, it's hard to say that anything is "none of our business," unfortunately. tripodics (10/05/00 04:33 EST): Oh, I don't know that the other guy is any better -- he is just as firm about Kosovo as Milosevic, and he is even more critical of the U.S. for the bombings. Also, I don't know why we are so afraid of having the runoff election, to see which of the two gets a real majority. Even tho we don't like the rulings, the race was fairly close and and a 2-man runoff it the best way to settle it. Besides, the whole thing is really none of our business, IMO. Travertine asked: WHy do we still use the Electoral College? (posted on 09/15/00 17:26:57 EST) You answered: The Electoral College was designed as a mechanism of "consensus", to select as President a person who was found to be acceptable to the largest number of citizens -- not necessarily the one who could get the biggest PLURALITY, but one with the least negatives and/or one who was acceptable (even as a compromise) to most citizens. It was (and could again be) an excellent system, far better than a winner-takes-all popular vote, but it has been distorted and rendered inneffective by three developments: 1. Winner-take-all contests, wherein whoever gets a plurality gets 100% of the electors. 2. At-large statewide slates, rather than election of electors by district.. 3. The invention of political "parties". The idea of the electoral college was to have representatives of each district meet together and negotiate to arrive at a choice that was most acceptable to those whom they represented. Even tho the voters back home in the district might have a "favorite son" as their first choice, the Elector would realize that there was not enuf statewide or nationwide support for that individual and would (perhaps after a few ballots where nobody got an absolute majority) throw his vote to the next-best candidate or someone who as closely as possible reflected the views of the citizens he was sent to represent. In many ways, the original Electoral College was very much like the national conventions held by today's political parties -- especially in earlier years, when there were several conteners at the convention and the primary elections had not whittled down the field to only one. The rise of parties in America is only one thing which distorted the Electoral College, but the worst impact was the insidious "winner-take-all" system, instituted as a way for a state to gain more leverage by voting as a bloc. That meant that the views of the minority were no longer represented in the Electoral College -- even if they were 49%, the 51% on the other side would controll 100% of that state's electors! This was not anticipated, and it has crippled the system even worse than has the party system. Originally, each district would select one Elector, and there would be two more Electors selected statewide. While states may still do that (and a couple of them still do), most states now run ALL of their electors "at-large", statewide, on a "winner-take-all" basis. One way of resorting democracy and truly, representative government in America, with protection of minority rights, would be to adopt (possibly by Constitutional Amendment) a "proportional representation" system, so that the majority (or plurality or swing vote) cannot ignore and trample the rights of the minority. Finally, the "party system distorted and corrupted not only the Electoral College but also the Congress and the state legislatures. To make matters worse, instead of having several parties to represent diverse interests, they formed coalitions that eventually coalesced into two majot parties which passed restrictive ballot access laws to keep other, smaller parties entirely off the ballot. Today, there are at least six or seven Presidential candidates running in enuf states to win a majority of the Electors. In fact, at least two of them will be on the ballot in all 50 states + DC (Harry Browne and Pat Buchanan). However, the winner-take-all system virtually assures that none of them will get ANY electoral votes, because -- even if they had a majority in several districts, they would get zero electors unless they won the entire state! Also, the two parties control the debates, so that Browne, nader, Buchanan, hagelin, and Philips will not even be heard and cannot influence the polls. For many reasons -- not just the Electoral College -- Presidential elections have become so unrepresentative and so lacking in real choices that a majority of the voters have voted against them: by staying home. That's right, in the last election, a majority of the voters VOTED that the election was not worth bothering with, and stayed home! In 1992, the President was elected by 19% of those who could have voted, because nearly half stayed home. In 1996, more than half stayed home, and the winner was elected by only 24%. This year, I fear the turnout will be even worse. With Buchanan, Nader, Browne, andf others getting a few percent each, the next President might very well take office due to the votes of only 15-20%. Sorry to have rambled on so, but this is a complex question and it brings up many related issues. Also, sorry to sound so dreary, but htere are several serious problems with the democratic process in this country, and I don't see them being fixed, or even addressed, in the forseeable future. bam P.S. In my state, due to the winner-take-all system, my vote is already meaningless. One of the big two is clearly going to win the state, and nobosy can do anything to help him or to hurth the other one, who cannot win the state. Therefore (as in 1996), I am free to vote my conscience, and cast my vote AGAINST BOTH of them, by choosing one of the 3rd-party candidates. That's much better than staying home. (posted on 09/15/00 20:53:33 EST) Travertine 156 answers Comments Was rated by Travertine Sparah asked: Is there really a cancer causing agent in red foods? And is it all kinds of red foods or is it just the ones that have been chemically processed and include a red dye? (posted on 09/18/00 19:40:06 EST) You answered: This urban legend comes from an old study which found that one of the common food dyes (Red Dy #2, I think) caused cancer in laboratory rats -- but only when it was fed to them is such massive dosages that they got too little of other nutrients. At the level of dosage that humans get the Red Dyes, there never has been any evidence of harmful effects. Anyhow, the story you are probably thinking of has to do with "Red Dye #2" (or whatever, and not all foods that are colored red. However, the color of food often CAN BE an indicator of what it contains. As a rule, it IS a good idea to eat vegetables of various colors instead of one color. A variety of colors gives you a better chance of getting all of the vitamins and amino acids you need For example, a nutrient called "lycopene" (I don't know the exact spelling) is found more often in red vegetables (such as tomatos) and rarely in other colors. Green, Yellow, and Red peppers give you different vitamins and nutrients, so a mixture is better (and also more tasty) than all on color. So (contrary to one answerer) the color of food definitely can be correlated with certain nutritional properties. Eating rainbows is probably better than a monochromatic diet. :-) A funny story: Too much of one color can also be a problem. When my son was a little baby, we worried that had jaundice because his skin was very yellow instead of his natural pink. After eliminating diseases, the pediatrician quickly found out why by asking about his diet. He loved certain kinds of baby foods, all of which were mostly carrots. After we changed his diet (adding green and yellow vegetables to the mix of baby food jars), he not only changed color but also got more healthy. (posted on 09/18/00 22:05:38 EST) Sparah 39 answers Comments Was rated by Sparah krazzy_kate00 asked: WHy are there Interstates in Hawaii (posted on 09/18/00 21:24:54 EST) You answered: Because the Interstate program was funded by the Congress, and all of the memebrs insisted on money going to their districts whether the roads were needed or not. Ostensibly, it was a Defense bill (and the highways had to have a high bridge clearance, to accomodate military vehicles and missles), but it was really just a big pork-barrel boondoggle -- taking money FROM the states as taxes and then having the politicians argue about where to send (some of) it back. Neither Alaska nor hawaii really needed the highways, and the defense excuse didn't hold any water (or ice) for states that did not connect to other states. Both Alaska and Hawaii were brand new states at the time and neither had much politcal clout. However, the Congress was controlled by the Democrats (and Ike was a lame duck), so money went to Hawaii -- whose senators and Reps were all of the majority party, but Alaska had voted for the other party and wound up getting no pork barrel from that bill. Anyhow, if decisions about where to spend money on highways were made by the people whose money it is (or, say, by investors in a corporation that would charge tolls) then the routes of the Interstates would have been VERY different. As it turned out, the roads bent and wiggled so as to go thru every district where the politician had some "pull" or "clout" and missed many better routes that would have made more economic sense. Many interstates are underused because they go places where they are not needed; many others are inadequate because not enuf roads were built wher the demand ws greatest. Well, whaddaya expect from the folks wh gave us the Post Office, The Tea Tasting Board, the Rural Electrification Agency, and the Steam Whistle memorial? At least when the states did the spending (as with the US Highways) the routes were chosen by the locals and were more sensible. (posted on 09/18/00 22:24:19 EST) krazzy_kate00 6 answers Comments Was rated by krazzy_kate00 alrighty thanks for the 3000 page book ya wrote Comments: write to krazzy_kate00: Dialog with krazzy_kate00: krazzy_kate00 (09/23/00 19:19 EST): oooo sorry tripodics (09/20/00 23:32 EST): Sorry. If you wanted to limit the detail, you should ahve said "in 25 words or less". Anyhow, I hope you found the answer you needed. AnneBonny asked: CHRISTIANS: In the Bible, it says that Jesus is the Son of God but aren't we all "children of God"? (posted on 09/18/00 19:58:44 EST) You answered: "Children of God" is a metaphor, not a paternity allegation. "Children of God" is just an expression, having no more literal meaning than "we are his flock" or "all we like sheep" -- that does not make us 4-legged barnyard animals, but merely conveys a meaning like being cared for and protected as by a farmer. Now, the other statements may or may not have been literal, and there has been incessant argument about this over the centuries. In the Gospels, Jesus never calls himself this -- he always says "Son of Man". Peter said (or guessed when asked what people think) and said "Son of God" -- but Jesus did not agree with him. The "Son of God" label was promoted mostly by Saul/Paul, and it was not generally accepted until a few hundred years later (cf. Council of Nice) when the Trinity was proposed. In any event, there is no contradiction between these views and the phrase "children of God". After all, the ancestor of all children, named Adam, was made by whom? (posted on 09/18/00 22:36:27 EST) AnneBonny 110 answers Comments Was rated by AnneBonny Not sure I agree but ok Comments: write to AnneBonny: Dialog with AnneBonny: AnneBonny (09/21/00 18:03 EST): Thanks, I'm just slow and when I read it I wasn't really paying atttention so it kind of went over my head but I re-read you answer and it makes more sense tripodics (09/20/00 23:42 EST): Oh, I'm sure we do NOT agree on theology (since I would never describe myself as a "Christian"). However, I hope you understand that the expression "children of God" is a metaphor, and is in no way contradictory with any claims that Jesus was descended from (or "proceeded from") God, nor does it conflict with the belief that Jesus was/is a "divinity". That is the main theme of my answer. The rest of it was just for fun, or to be provocative (and perhaps to stimulate thought). Simply put, the terms "Son of" and "children of" do not refer to the same thing. "Son of" is meant to be literal. "Children of" is meant to be more figurative -- much the way that the honorific "Father" or "Sister" for nuns and priests really has nothing to do with paternity or biological siblings. (Likewise for politicians and judges: the term "Honorable" is certainly not meant to be taken literally, when applied to members of Congress! ;^> attanasio asked: WHere can I find JavaScripts that turn Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.) into Roman numerals (I, II, III, IV. V, etc.)? (posted on 09/13/00 13:31:29 EST) You answered: Roman

weþpyx (posted on 09/15/00 23:32:49 EST) attanasio 12 answers Comments Was rated by attanasio Comments: write to attanasio: Dialog with attanasio: tripodics (09/18/00 19:14 EST): The routines I wrote stop at the Roman Numeral "M" for 1000. If the number is 40,001 it will return or display a string of forty letter M characters followed by an I. That's OK, but the Romans actually did have a convention for larger numbers: they put a line above a symbol to indicate that it was multiplied by 1000. (I think may they also used two lines for 1,000,000 and so on, but I'm not sure.) If you figure out what characters you want to use to represent these higher nubers (such as parentheses around the *1000 group), then extension of my routine is easy -- just make it into a loop after computing k = j % 1000. Negative numbers are also a very easy modification. However, decimal fractions are something else entirely, and I would not begin to propose a representation for them (especially since the Romans and the Greeks only had rational numbers made up from the sum of fractions all with a denominator of one). bam P.S. I deliberately varied the style of coding in the routine. The ifs and for loops work one way, but the select/case structure does the same thing a different way. Only one style should be used. Let me know by email if you have any questions about the code. Send to bam@hamptons.com rather than WHquestion-- which has become too slow (due to its use of ASP). I am planning to use this Javascript example for my class. Thanks for the idea. Simba_4_Nala asked: wheres the best place on the net for java script things? (posted on 09/15/00 16:32:03 EST) You answered: Well, you might check out some of the stuff that I use in teaching my classes. Here are some URLs: http://geocities.com/CollegePark/Classroom/1944/ja vastuf.html http://suffolk.li/webdevel/ http://suffolk.li/webdevel/javascript'>http://suffolk.li/webdevel/javascript/ Note that, in the directory ( http://suffolk.li/webdevel/javascript/ ), some of the examples appear twice -- once as an html file and once as a txt file. (Actually the same file, but with two unix links to it.) Since some of the Javascript is pre-processed by the browser, you cannot see the original source by clicking view/page-source. Look at the "txt" file to see the actual Javascript source. The class page (with these links and others) is at: http://geocities/websitedevelopment/ I hope you like it. (posted on 09/15/00 23:55:55 EST) Simba_4_Nala 34 answers Comments Was rated by Simba_4_Nala THANKS!!! robertjere asked: Remember the "Read My Lips....." statement? WHat makes you think George W. Bush can be trusted? After all, he has learned the 'family' business from his father. (posted on 09/14/00 19:09:07 EST) You answered: Senator Gore voted for the spending and tax increases that President Bush finally caved in and agreed to. Bush did not propose them, and his son wants to roll them back -- plus cutting the low-income tax rate down from 15% to 10% and dropping many more low-wage earners off the tax rolls entirely. Gore wants to keep the huge tax hikes that he and Clinton pushed thru the Congress. He alsofavors those expensive and deadly foreign adventures in places like Somalia, Bosnia, Kosovo, Columbia, Iraq, Korea, Syria, and on and on -- places where U.S. troops have no business being involved! I can't vote for either of them, however, because they both want to keep all that money going to Washington for Federal bureacrats to decide how much to send back to the states and people that the money came from. That's ridiculous. The people can decide how to improve education, roads, farms, etc. a lot better than the bureaucrats on the Potomac. I'm voting for Harry Browne, because neither Bush nor Gore is worthy of the office and they both support tax-and-spend policies, all those foreign military adventures, and the insane "war" on drugs, However, I hope Gore loses because he will mess things up even more than Bush. If Harry Browne (and Ralph Nader) got into the debates, and asked Gush and Bore the embarrasing questions that they both don't want to face, the polls would change very dramatically and the election would become a real horse race -- like the one in Minnesota where Jesse Ventura beat both the Dem and the Rep. Otherwise, it makes little difference, because there is hardly a dime's worth of difference between those two sons of politicians. (posted on 09/15/00 17:03:35 EST) robertjere 54 answers Comments Was rated by robertjere Sadly, on the tax issue, the tax burden would fall to the MIDDLE class who would struggle as they did before under the long rule of the Republicans because the rich would get their tax reliefs and the poor as you said. As for foreign ventures, we should keep our money here and make other countries do more for world peace, but when oil is involved and our gas prices go up, who panics? robertjere asked: WHy do people believe that just because someone was President of the United States, their children are competent and capable enough to hold government office? Specifically, George W. Bush and Jeb Bush. Did they obtain special skills the rest have not? Or does money truly buy power? (posted on 09/14/00 19:17:44 EST) You answered: AlGore's father was a U.S. Senator, who used his influence to get his son a safe, cushy reporter's job during the Viet Nam era, then again to get him a House seat, and eventually to inherit his father's Senate seat. Al Gore never held any serious jobs other than working for the U.S. government -- where his father was a long-term big-shot. Yes, Bush's father was a President, but he doesn't list that as a qualification for office. He is Governor or Texas, but he also worked for a living and was a successful businessman in private industry, before becoming Governor. Personally, I don't think either of them would make a good President (tho Gore would be far worse). They both favor more and more spending directed by Washington using money taken from the people who should be allowed to make their own decisions. Both want the Federal government to get bigger and bigger, with more and more regulations. I'm voting for Harry Browne, who wants to give government back to the people! He is already running 4-5% in some states. If they let into the debates, he would ask Gush and Bore some very embarrasing questions, and would soar in the polls -- just like Jesse Ventura did when he finally got into the media. That is why the big two parties are afraid of him (and Nader and Hagelin) and are working hard to keep him out of their debates. Yes, "money buys power" but not in the sense you mean it. Hollywood money bought power for Clinton and Gore, in the last election and this one. Same for the trial lawyers, who don't want tort reform legislation to kill their golden goose. Corporate money and union money buys both Democrat and Republican votes because they get back more than their investment thru new spending programs and laws that hurt their competitors. So long as the Federal government exercises so much power over businesses, it will always be up for sale to the highest bidder. Libertarians want to stop government from controlling the econmomy and re-establish the free market. Then, there would be no reason to buy Senators like the Gores (or Bush's grandfather, Prescott). (posted on 09/15/00 16:45:45 EST) robertjere 54 answers Comments Was rated by robertjere Screamin_Eagle asked: In MS Word, WHen I wanted to change the font to Fixedsys, WHy is it not a True-Type font and WHy doesn't it print in Fixedsys?It prints other than Fixedsys. WHy is that? (posted on 09/15/00 23:12:56 EST) You answered: FixedSys is not a "proportional-spacing" font. That means that the letter "W" and the letter "i" have the same width. Monospaced fonts are not usually "scalable", like TrueType, which can be any point-size. FixedSys is usually used for system messages and for text that looks like it came from a computer. (posted on 09/16/00 02:35:47 EST) Screamin_Eagle 3 answers Comments Was rated by Screamin_Eagle Comments: write to Screamin_Eagle: Dialog with Screamin_Eagle: Screamin_Eagle (09/16/00 10:50 EST): Wow. Ok. I still use Fixedsys a lot because I am a computer geek (ha). I use it for Instant Messaging and other stuff. Thank you. deep_thinker asked: can anybody tell me about the stp protocal? WHat does it do that http can't? (posted on 08/21/00 07:38:48 EST) You answered: I think you mean the FTP protocol. Letter F stands for File; letter P stands for "Protocol" (not protocal). This is the "File Transfer Protocol", which was one of the two principal uses of the Internet for decades -- until the World Wide Web came along ten years ago. For over 25 years I've been using FTP to transfer files from one computer to another, and now I use it to upload HTML for my my web pages and gif & jpegs for my images. It is the best way to get your stuff onto a server. That's FTP. STP is what I put in my car. :-) bam (posted on 08/21/00 14:25:36 EST) deep_thinker 137 answers Comments Was rated by deep_thinker RJames asked: I have been toying with the idea of a representative-less US government (no congress and no senate) for a while. In this day and age WHere communication around the world is simply a matter of going to the next room, or the school gymnasium (that's WHere a lot of voting is done.. :) down the street, I don't see WHy ANY laws are still being created and voted on solely by representatives that are voted (and often bought) into office. I was under the impression that this system was devised simply because 200+ years ago, people could not take the time to travel all over the country to vote on every issue, hence the representatives that are supposed to vote in your best interests. But now, we have the technology to vote on any topic from the comfort of our homes.. WHy aren't we doing this? (Yes, I realise that not everyone has a degree in law, and therefore cannot know the intricacies of any given issue, but therein lies the problem. Law is too complicated and too obfuscated. It should be within the reach of the common man, after all, it is he/she that the burden of the law falls on. Also, everyone has an opinion, WHy not allow people to exercise theirs instaed of giving greedy politicians the continued opportunity to sell their votes.) (posted on 09/07/00 10:30:30 EST) You answered: Representative government does has several advantages over popular vote on every issue -- which can lead to some very bad results on occasion. There are many bills which could recieve a majority vote individually but which would not work when all taken together. For example: End all taxes, give government grants of $1000 to everybody, double the budget of the the departments of education and agriculture, and raise the minimum wage to $100 per hour. It is possible that different majorities might be achieved in an instant-voting scheme; elect6ed representatives would have to consider all of these legislative proposals together - not separately - and work to put together a complete package that would function as a whole, rather than out-of-context votes on separate one-shot issues. Representatives talk to each other, negotiate, compromise, and consider the whole picture; casual voters don't usually examine the details and the trade-offs, but give a pass-or-fail rating to the result and kick out a representative whom they feel has not represented them. As another example, one direct vote might achieve a majority for cutting back the Department of Defense but another vote (with different people constituting most of the majority) could go in favor of declaring war on Iraq. That is because "swing vote" blocks could exercise very great leverage on individual issues, without necessarily having their whole agenda favored by the majority. A demogogic tyrant could use a strictly popular vote to come to power and abolish the Constitutional limitations on that power. Too often, voters (and representatives, unfortunately) are willing to go along with seemingly-harmless giveaways and pork-barrel spending bills, so long as they get a few of their own spending items passed. There is too much of that already in the present system, and it would get worse with direct, disconnected voting on every bill. I think the only political reform that has any chance of working is to limit and reduce the power of government, so that it cannot be used to give away benefits to special interests. So long as the government has the power to favor one business over another or to pass laws that hut a competitor or give grants to special interest groups, there will always be high-stakes bidding to buy elections. The only way to stop this, at the Federal level at tleast, is to enforce Article I Section 8 of the Constitution, which begins "Congress shall have the power to ....". Only seventeen powers are listed. Everything else that the Federal government does is unauthorized. The Libertarian candidates (for President and Congress) want to roll back the other, unauthorized powers which Congress has usurped, and give them back to the states and the people (as also required by the Tenth Amendment). A side-effect of this would be to eliminate the need for any Federal income tax (16th Amdt.) and also to retire the huge national debt (and the annual interest on it) by selling Federal assets that are not needed (such as 97% of the land of certain states and the huge "reserves" of grain, butter, oil, helium, and other commodities that inflate consumer prices.) Now THAT would be real "reform"! It would certainly make it no longer worthwhle for a special interest group to spend millions of dollars to buy Senators and Representatives, since they would no longer have the power to vote enormous "paybacks" from the Treasury. Incidentally, a Science Fiction book describes a system somewhat like yours, where any voter in any state can give 's vote to a Representative in Congress (instantly, using computer terminals) and each of the Representatives has a weighted vote based on the number of citizens who "sign up" for them to represent. [[[ The book is "The Probability Broach," by L. Neil Smith.]]]] You might want to consider a system such as this as an alternative (with the added proviso that they lose their seat in Congress if the nuber of citizens they represent drops below a certain threshhold, and new Reps can come in if they rise above a certain threshhold). (posted on 09/08/00 10:39:20 EST) RJames 139 answers Comments Was rated by RJames skankifer asked: Is anyone out there sensitive to MSG? I believe that I am and I'm looking for any available resources...any help would be appreciated! (posted on 09/07/00 00:20:31 EST) You answered: Many people are sensitive to MSG. My brother is very sensitive to it, and gets sharp pains at the back of his neck as well as sweating, itching, and even some rash from it. My wife is slightly sensitive: she gets mild headaches from it, as well as some tension. I usually don't notice MSG at all, but can detect a slight skin sensitivity sometimes. Sorry, I don't know the precise medical explanation, but there is some sort of a chemical mechanism, wherein some people's blood chemistry reacts to Monosodium Glutamate. MSG is an ancient spice, used to enhance flavor of food. One commercial brand of it is named "Accent". Even for people who hate and avoid MSG (like my brother), the symptoms are rather mild and it has no lasting effect. (posted on 09/07/00 01:04:08 EST) skankifer 259 answers Comments Was rated by skankifer thanks for the info Comments: write to skankifer: Dialog with skankifer: skankifer (09/08/00 13:44 EST): i am not allergic to anything else, except im mildly allergic to cat dander. this has been going on for some time, but it wasnt until i sat down and analyzed each incident, that my family helped lead me to the MSG thing. I hope to get some lab tests to see if i am truly sensitive, or maybe it is something else - but i have been warned that some lab companies are owned by the same people that put MSG in food! and they will show a negative result even if it is not so :( so i have to search out a good one. thanks for the advice about steak...i didnt know that :) tripodics (09/08/00 09:51 EST): Hmmm. That is the worst I've heard of!!!!! Sorry, I don't have any further medical information. I wish I knew just what the chemical reaction was. I am curious if you have similar reactions to anything else or any similar allergies. My brother grumbles and complains if the Chinese food has any, but it's nothing like that. My wife gets a mild hypertensive response. My son I don't notice it at all; but my daughter says she can tell if MSG is there but has no bad reaction. We had Chnese take-out last nite, and my wife remined me to write "No MSG" on the sheet, as usual. This works fine, except for some pre-made items Some restaurants say "No MSG" on their signs and menus, and that applies to everything. Incidentally, MSG (or "Accent") is sometimes used by chefs on other items such as steak. Therefore you probably should get in the habit of saying "No MSG" at restaurants and/or checking asking the waiter or manager to check with the kitchen about this. Good luck. skankifer (09/07/00 01:07 EST): i dont think my symptoms are mild :( but they dont last for more than er, 5 or 6 hours...but i get really bad headaches and vomit ALOT...its awful! jazza25 asked: if there was a magnet the size of the moon on the moon facing earth. would it be able to pull things metalic towards it. (posted on 09/06/00 23:56:20 EST) You answered: Yes, it would exert a pull on iron and other ferromagnetic objects (including much of the earth's material, since Iron is one of the most common elements), but being so far away (239,000 miles) the force would not be very great compared to the gravitational force -- which comes from all of the mass of the earth and moon. I don't know what the magnetic attraction is between the two bodies, but I think it is quite small since magnetism really comes from very small dipoles within each atom. Also, there would be repulsion, probably in equal amounts, so I doubt this has any effect on the Earth or moon. However, there IS a rather strong interaction between the two magnetic fields, which causes them to tend to line up with each other. (posted on 09/07/00 00:56:11 EST) jazza25 1 answer Comments Was rated by jazza25 muffyman asked: Should Northern Ireland and Scotland join together in one independent republic? (posted on 09/06/00 09:42:13 EST) You answered: Not being either Scottish or Irish, it is certainly none of MY business! Why should anyone else tell them what to do?! I is up to them, isn't it? The six counties of Northern Ireland voted not to join Southern Ireland, and their wishes should be respected. Perhaps they should vote again and become a separate country, but it is wrong for terrorists to try to force tham to join the Catholic South. Scotland is a very different country and culture (despite some historical ties), and they have little in common today with Ulster. Scotland might become a separate nation someday, but I doubt if a union with Nothern ireland would be in the interest of either group. Anyhow, it is really none of my business -- or yours, unless you live there. (posted on 09/07/00 00:49:39 EST) muffyman 36 answers Comments Was rated by muffyman Good answer, seeing as your not from either of the two countries. Valdin asked: WHat motivations would there be to move to a single world currency and WHat currency would that be? (posted on 09/07/00 00:40:32 EST) You answered: It would stop governments from manipulating the economy for political reasons and from spending what they don't have in the treasury -- (and expecting our grandchildren to pay the interest on the debt incurred for their pork-barrel projects! It would be wonderful to have a single, stable world currency with fixed value that could not be changed politically. However, it would be a disaster to have a currency whose value was controlled by governments or by groups of governments, like the United Nations. What is needed is "honest" money, to serve as a medium of exchange and a store of value. To do that well requires money based on something that actually has intrinsic which doesn't change very much over time, and which cannot be devalued or overvalued by politicians or rulers or tyrants. The best and most stable commodity for this purpose has been GOLD. In effect, gold already is a universal, world-wide currency -- (except in some countries where the government outlaws its use or confiscates it from citizens (which the United States used to do, from about 1935 to 1985). (posted on 09/07/00 01:17:02 EST) Valdin 17 answers Comments Was rated by Valdin Deeq asked: How large is the Internet? WHat is the rate of expansion on it? (posted on 08/28/00 06:26:55 EST) You answered: Over 2 billion (2,000,000,000) web pages is a good guess. There is no precise way of counting, and defitions vary (e.g. do we count intranets, extranets, passworded sites, virtual pages generated by CGI?) Over 2 years ago, I did an experiment to estimate the number of pages by using search engines to find the word "the". Of course, this misses non-text pages and many foreign pages, and it also double-counts some, but all I wanted was an order-of-magnitude estimate. The result was over 600 million hits (600,000,000 = 6E8). A few months ago, I repeated this and the result was ove 2 billion (2E9). What is more impressive that the specific number is the rate of growth: more than tripling in two years. While the growth curve is flattening out for number of websites, the number of pages per site is increasing and so is the total numbe of pages. Does anybody have a more precise measure of this? Also, does anyone have a measure of internet nodes (i.e. wired and ISP, not temporary dialups)? (posted on 08/28/00 19:11:25 EST) Deeq 21 answers Comments Was rated by Deeq Very good quality on this answer. Comments: write to Deeq: Dialog with Deeq: tripodics (09/11/00 12:50 EST): Thank you for the kind words. You may also be interested in the following URL: http://geocites.com/websitedevelopment/ tripodics (08/28/00 18:55 EST): The number is MUCH, MUCH, MUCH larger!!! Over two years ago, one estimate was 600 million, and last year that estimate had tripled to over two billion (2,000,000,000). snow--girly asked: is starting college fun (posted on 08/27/00 09:03:56 EST) You answered: That depends strongly upon how you define "fun". -- Some find problem-solving a chore and a pain; others thrive on it. -- Some people find pressure and challenges fun. Some find no-stress situations relaxing activities fun. -- Some people require easily achievable goals to vlaidate their identity; others feel unsatisfied without difficult obstacles (and occasional failures). Also depends on the college. There are different ones to cater to different tastes. And there are many, many reasons to go to college. A strong component of "fun" is important and valid, but different individuals have different definitions. -- To an MIT nerd, the most fun is hoisting a police car atop the dome. -- To a Poly Sci major, the most fun might be starting an illegal newspaper. -- To an Animal House member, fun is Spring Break in Lauderdale. -- To a Dartmouth jock, fun might be spraying green paint on the statue of John Harvard. Choose carefully. Visit; don't just take the tour! Talk to students, read between the lines, and try to find out what campus life will really be like. Good luck! (posted on 08/28/00 16:17:09 EST) snow--girly 1 answer Comments Was rated by snow--girly hera asked: how was the circumference of the earth measured? (posted on 08/27/00 09:18:15 EST) You answered: One of the earliest methods, used by someone in ancient Greece, was to measure the distance (East to West) between two wells, then measure how long it took from the time that the sun shined directly (or maximally) down the first well until the tim the sun shined directly down the second well. Synchronization was achieved by signal flags. Time measurement was somewhat crude, but there were devices that could reliably indicate what fraction of a full day had elapsed. Then, simply multiply the measured distance by the inverse of the fraction of the day that was measured. They came fairly close to the correct answer! bam (posted on 08/27/00 17:25:48 EST) hera 25 answers Comments Was rated by hera best answer I recieved, simple and clear Comments: write to hera: Dialog with hera: hera (09/11/00 14:22 EST): Actually, I feel really bad about this, but I already knew everything that you told me(except about the origin of the meter- very interesting!), though you explained it better than my teacher. I asked this question because that was how they hooked me on the site-told me to ask a question and I would recieve an answer. So I asked something I already knew to see what happened. Thanks for your answers, though! :-) tripodics (09/11/00 13:32 EST): Thank you for the kind words. |^> There were a few other methods used in ancient times -- some involving shadows at different hours, some using the horizon vs. distances over sea or lowland. One can devise other methods, too. It is a mistake to believe that intelligent ancients believed the world to be flat. It's shadow on the moon at lunar eclipse (which occurs twice a year) is dramatic evidence of the shape (not size) of the planet. Incidentally, the "meter" (in the "metric" system) is based on an estimated value for the eart's circumfrence. It was to be one ten-millionth of the distance from the pole to the equator. I'm not sure how far it was off, but if one uses that figure -- and assumes the Earth is spherical (or at least symmetrical) -- then it is exactly 40,000,000 meters or 40,000 Km. [[ Actually, there is not only an equatorial bulge of about 20 miles (making Kilamanjaro taller than Everest), but the planet is also slightly pear-shaped, with the southern hemisphere being slightly larger than the northern. Not that anybody would notice from land or space, since the difference is less than a quarter of a tenth of a percent. ]] tripodics (08/27/00 17:28 EST): Newton's law of gravitation would only work if you knew the mass of the earth. LOSERKID1342069 asked: WHY IS THE GRASS GREEN (posted on 08/26/00 21:24:38 EST) You answered: Chlorophyll. This green substance is a catalyst, which allows the plant to produce its own food (starch) from Carbon Dioxide (and water) in the atmosphere. The chemical reaction consumes sunlight for energy, but the chlorophyll is not destroyed. (That's what "catalyst" means.) When making carbohydrates from the CO2 (breathed out by animals), the plant also produces a waste product: Oxygen, which we animals breathe in A nice trade: we breathe oxygen and make CO2, plants take CO2 to make starch and also put out Oxygen. (posted on 08/27/00 00:40:35 EST) LOSERKID1342069 0 answers Comments Was rated by LOSERKID1342069 redkat asked: How many persons does it take to screw in a lightbulb? (posted on 08/24/00 13:42:16 EST) You answered: None. The market will take care of it. (posted on 08/27/00 01:11:03 EST) redkat 77 answers Comments Was rated by redkat maxes99 asked: WHat is the S.A.T score that you need to get into NYU? (posted on 08/25/00 01:01:34 EST) You answered: Average SAT scores for NYU were 664 verbal & 660 math. However, this does not mean that any particular SAT score will guarantee admission or rejection, and they do not say what the minimums were. Also, much depends on what major you want -- high verbal with low math might be OK for lit majors but not for engineers, etc. Many other factors come into the picture, too, including GPA (3.6 was the average among those accepted) and class rank (61% were in the top 10%, and all 100% were in the top 50%). 32% of applicants were accepted. (posted on 08/27/00 01:01:25 EST) maxes99 1 answer Comments Was rated by maxes99 Very well worded, thanks! Idlewild82 asked: Does your chewing gum lose it's flavor if left on the bedpost overnight? (posted on 08/26/00 20:01:13 EST) You answered: If you put it on the left side, will it wind up on the right? If you scratch your back in the morning, will it itch again at nite? Here comes the bride. The groom is at her side. Straight to the altar. Her steps do not falter. As steady as Gibralter. The groom has the ring. It's such a pretty thing. And as he places it on her finger, the choir begins to sing..... und so weider. "^> (posted on 08/27/00 01:06:26 EST) Idlewild82 158 answers Comments Was rated by Idlewild82 Comments: write to Idlewild82: Dialog with Idlewild82: tripodics (08/27/00 17:13 EST): Those are SOME of the lyrics that I learned in Boy Scout camp, many years ago. Thanks for the comment. (If you're a glutton for punishment, I could probably remember and send you another verse or two. :-) Idlewild82 (08/27/00 17:06 EST): hahahahahah grin asked: The America Presidential parties are sponsored by businessmen /'interest groups'. WHat do you think they get back if the candidate they suported wins? (posted on 08/21/00 10:53:15 EST) You answered: Mainly, they get "access" -- which means that when they call up the elected politician, they get thru and somebody listens. Usually, it buys the donor "favors", including access and influence with other government agencies -- for instance, a phone call to an agency head (whose budget might come up soon, or whose name might need approval for his next appointment) gets returned faster when it comes from from a member of Congress than from a mere citizen. With so many agencies and so many laws on the books, most businesses have to treat government regulation as a major cost factor. In many cases, the real decisions have been delegated by Congress to bureaucrats in thousands of agencies, and those decisions may make or break a company. It becomes important to get in touch with the various agencies, at a decision-making level, to fight for "fair" treatment and to convince some official of the facts in your favor before he decdes to put you out of business or to give some advantage to your competitor. However, it is very hard to get thru, sometimes. That's where the so-called "constituent service" come in. These are tax-funded staff and offices that do favors for people who live in the legislator's district and companies that do business there. While they claim to treat everyone equally, guess whose call gets returned faster (or at all)? The caller who also happens to be a big contributor? Or the voter who is registered in a different party? [You'd better believe, that they have big databases and fast computers.] -------- Contrary to popular belief, donations do not usually have much influence on the way a legislator votes. Usually, the companies and unions and special interest groups that want them to vote a certain way will give lots of money to those with the same beliefs so that they can get elected and vote the way they both want (i.e. the politician and the special interest). The group that wants the opposite vote will not donate to a politician who votes the other way, so they won't have much effect (except to get the guy defeated next time). Of course, things have been different recently, in the White House. There, $100,000 would buy a night's stay in the Lincoln Bedroom, and a few million in the right places could get rocket plans or most-favored nation status. (posted on 08/21/00 14:45:48 EST) grin 1 answer Comments Was rated by grin halochild asked: How do you think unlocking the code for the human genome will effect the future of mankind? (posted on 08/20/00 17:22:56 EST) You answered: Probably the first and most obvious benefits will be the prevention and/or cure for a number of terrible diseases and the ability to grow new vital organs for transplanting, as well as genetic engineering to not only create wonderful new foods but also to make hunger obsolete (except in those countries where warlords and governments continue to use hunger as a weapon). For the longer term, the genomes (human and other) will lead to a better understanding of the miracle of life, the way in which proteins can be constructed, and the ways in which biological mechanisms can fail or go astray (e.g. cancer). Perhaps, also a leg-up on xenobiology - the many other ways in which life might develop elsewhere in the universe. These and a few other results are quite obvious (and probably inevitable). However, as with most basic research, the real benefits (and problems) are usually in areas that were totally unanticipated when the research was begun. The one and only prediction that can ever be made about basic research (such as discovering new forces, finding out how things work, detecting new particles, or locating new galaxies, etc.) is that the fruits of these basic discoveries will include things that are totally unpredictable and probably unimaginable. Thus, I will predict that the ultimate benefits of recent decoding of the human genome (in which I will immodestly admit that some of my own work played a very minor role, several years back) will lie in new discoveries, devices, and methods in areas which we cannot image today. That is what usually happens with such breakthroughs. BTW, that's the real reason why true scientists keep expanding our knowledge, despite the temptation to apply their genius to other more lucrative careers. ---- The other side of the coin is the statist politicians and other Luddites, to whom any new knowledge is a threat to their power base. You can expect them to try to suppress any and all scientific progress by pressuring governments to pass more and more laws and regulations, and to create new crimes to keep new forms of knowledge, wealth, and opportunity out of the free market and place more and more government bureaucrats in the role of deciding what is "best" for you and me and all the rest of the populace (i.e. the unelected, who cannot be trusted to pursue their own hapiness without benefit of the Nanny State). bam (posted on 08/20/00 20:40:39 EST) halochild 31 answers Comments Was rated by halochild Some rather cynical views, not that i don't think most are true. BTW i commen all scientists for what they do, it is invaluable i think to every human. ronnie asked: WHy is the student body in America so politically passive? (posted on 07/26/00 04:07:17 EST) You answered: Because they are bored and frustrated and disgusted with lack of any meaningful choice, which is why more than half of the voters stay home on election day. The ruling parties (Dems & Reps, along with their "Green" and "Reform" clones), are so much alike, while the media networks black out all coverage of alternative parties (e.g. Libertarian, Natural Law, Constitution) and truly independent candidates (such as Harry Browne or John Hagelin or Howard Philips). (posted on 08/20/00 19:15:10 EST) ronnie 20 answers Comments Was rated by ronnie Thanks. Assaf asked: Do you believe that language affects the thinking. e.g. Germans think differently from Americans because they have to listen until the sentence is over to know WHat verb is involved. (posted on 08/21/00 03:50:24 EST) You answered: Absolutely! Language affects thought -- mostly by restricting and channeling, insome cases making it impossible to express certain concepts. (Remember the novel 1984? That was the point of "Newspeak".) Not only is this true with natural languages (like English, Hungarian, Hebrew, Mandarin, etc.), it is also the case with Programming Languages. When I taught courses in Programming Language Concepts (several years ago, at Polytechnic U. and also at Suffolk Community), I had some lecture notes about this very subject, both as relates to natural languages AND to PLs, as well as technology and language influencing one another in a recursive cascade., (e.g. Fortran was initially influenced by a particular machine architecture, but then it strongly influenced the design of many new computers. CPU design affected PLs in many ways, as did the characteristics of peripherals; but now I/O devices and even IC chip design can be subtly affected by the semantics and even the syntax of PLs. many more examples abound). I'm about to travel, but if you remind me via email after Labor Day, I shall (try to) dig up the notes, and will either send them or maybe post them on a website and send you the URL. Great question. Wish I had more time, now, to respond in detail. bam@acm.org http://suffolk.li/bam/ (posted on 08/21/00 18:10:10 EST) Assaf 85 answers Comments Was rated by Assaf Thank you very much for your efforts. I will "reserve the right" to nag you again after Labor day. Comments: write to Assaf: Dialog with Assaf: tripodics (08/28/00 16:20 EST): OK. MNL_1221 asked: WHo, if he or she were running for office, would make you consider crossing over and voting for the other party? For me it might be Colin Powell or Elizabeth Dole. (posted on 08/21/00 17:58:35 EST) You answered: Ron Paul Harry Browne, Jr. Plus many others, who reject BOTH the Replicrat Party and the Demoblicans and refuse to join either wing. Also, there is a very small number of incumbents, elected by the Dem. or Rep. parties, whom I would consider voting for -- if they left those parties. However, votes for a D or R only strengthen the hand of the ruling parties and those who control them, which is why there is not "a dime's worth of difference" between them! Dems & Reps are really just two wings of the ONE-PARTY system, i.e. the INCUMBENCY party -- which I totally reject. (posted on 08/21/00 18:35:55 EST) MNL_1221 236 answers Comments Was rated by MNL_1221 Okay, good points. Have you heard Bill Maher of Politically Incorrect (ABC-TV) describe Gore and Bush as Bore and Gush? ruffian asked: Gore and Bush are running neck-and-neck in the polls. How might that change WHen they start to debate each other mano a mano? (posted on 08/21/00 01:07:14 EST) You answered: If debates are limited to only those TWO candidates, then I expect that most viewers will remain exactly where they were, with their previous impressions and prejudiced reinforced by hearing the same old buzzwords from their favorite candidate. Most Bush supporters will believe that he creamed the zombie, whilemost Algore rhythms will claim that their man clobbered the "W" man. Yeah, I expect Gore to make more and more mistakes and drop as the election approaches, and I'd expect George W. to do slightly better in debates, but I don't think restricted debates, with only those two, will have much effect on the election at all. If Bore & Gush are the only two candidates allowed to debate nationally, then when November rolls around, voters will have very little reason to care, and a majority will stay home -- as they've increasingly done, for the past several elections. HOWEVER, if truly independent candidates are allowed to challenge the two handpicked by the ruling-party picks, then BOTH of them will be greatly embarrased. And the voters will have more reason to go to the polls, too. I'd particularly like to see Harry Browne force the two standard bearers of the ruling parties squirm as they attempt to defent their spending and taxing policies, their petty tyrannies and regulations of once-free American citizens, and their bloody wars and military interventions abroad. Nader and Bucahanan would add more heat thn light, more fire than substance, but they certainly should be in the debates, too. Even Hagelin deserves to be heard. At least these six will be on the ballot in enuf states to have a theoretical chance of winning the electoral college, and the commission that runs the tax-funded debates has no right to exclude them! They are trying to cut out candidates with less than 15% in the opinion polls, but that is ridiculous: without being in the debates, they will never show up in the polls. If they get on ballot, then they should be in the debates -- and that will also bring them up in the polls. Not the other way around! All six of the national candidates would raise some interesting points and questions that neither Bore & Gush want to hear (and their handlers are afraid to have asked in public). Also, the Congress is up for grabs, and that can be greatly influenced by the Presidential campaigns. Isn't it strange that the Demoblicans and Replicrats are leaving many of the Congressional districts (and some of the Senate races, such as Massachussets) go unchallenged or with only token opposition. This is typical: the party bosses pick the few contests where they really do battle, and concede most of the seats to each other. However, this year the third parties are actually running several candidates in these races. And one party (Harry Browne's Libertarians) are running candidates for enough seats in the House to actually have a chance of organizing the House and choosing a speaker! (This is the first time that has happened in eighty years!) If the debates are openned up to 3rd-party and independent candidates (i.e. those on the ballot in most of the states), then that could have a very BIG effect upon the election. With just Gush and Bore, the debates will be a waste of everyone's time, and the voters will be bored by hearing the same-old, same-old lines gushing from Tweedledum & Tweedledummer. Yawwwwwn! (posted on 08/21/00 14:20:25 EST) ruffian 74 answers Comments Was rated by ruffian If you ever want a peek at what our elections would be like if we gave equal weight to multiple parties, even when the minority parties barely have enough followers to fill the Rose Bowl, there's Italy for your perusal. Mama Mia! E peccato! Comments: write to ruffian: Dialog with ruffian: ruffian (08/22/00 14:17 EST): Thanks for taking the time to explain your point of view. It's obvious that you have done a great deal of thinking on this subject. tripodics (08/21/00 19:16 EST): No, I wouldn't expect ours to be anything like Italy's. Partly because theirs is a parliamentary system, which falls immediately whenever a coalition breaks down. (Our government didn't fall when Southern Dems backed Reagan's policies, nor when Clinton was impeached!) Also partly because our culture is very different from that of Italy. And ours has always been a very diverse society, while Italy's is nearly homogeneous. Italy has chaotic governments, few of which last more than a year, but the reason has little to do with having multiple parties. No, I think a better example would be Israel. They have dozens of parties, but falling governments are rather rare, even tho it is a parliamentary system. Many other countries have more than two parties, including Canada, England, Germany, Russia, Japan, etc, as well as the United States in the previous century. ---- Aside from speculation on what would actually happen with multiple parties, there are many laws and practices in place which strengthen the stranglehold of the two ruling parties and keep the competition out, so that they can make their little deals and divide up the pie between them. Among these are: -- ballot access laws which keep others off the ballot (and out of the news). [e.g. I had to get 1500 signatures to get on ballot for State Assembly, while only 92 were necessary for a party already on ballot.] -- Winner-take-all systems, where whoever gets a plurality takes all the delegates. (i.e. Disproportionate Representation.) -- Corruption of the Electoral College system: instead each CD electing a Presidential Elector, in nearly all states all of the electors run "at large". -- Lobbyists and special interests generally give money to BOTH parties, keeping them in sole power and hedging their bets. -- D & R party leaders make deals to leave most races uncontested, leaving only a few real contests. -- The press seems to prefer the two-party lock-in. Gladiators sell more papers than ideas. --------------------------- If you ever want to take a peek at what our elections would be like if all candidates and parties had equal freedom of access, look at the United States during the Industrial Revolution, or read L. Neil Smith's book, "The Probability Broach". Yours, in Liberty, bam P.S. The remaining Amendment passed as part of the Bill of Rights (but not yet ratified by the states) limits the size of a Congressional District to something like one eight of the present population. While this would mean many more "Representatives" voting and conducting the business of Congress, it might actually reduce its size from the over 25,000 employees who work there now. (With more members, tasks could be delegated to those elected by voters instead of to appointees, and there would be no excuse to provide a large, separate staff to each representative of the much smaller districts. Something to consider. bam AllysonM asked: I just bought 2 domain names for a new corporation, now I need a web hoster/name server. Heard of any really good ones? Business is in Orlando, FL and will go with either a local or national company as long as their a good, reliable company. (posted on 08/21/00 11:26:09 EST) You answered: I like NetNation. They have a huge pipe (OC3 155MHz) which is why my connections have always been VERY fast. They allow both telnet & FTP access, as well as CGI scripts. And their customer service has been excellent. They are in Vancouver, BC, Canada, but that's not a problem at all. (In fact, it means that most of their Pacific Rim customers are asleep when I'm active and vise versa. ;-) P.S. If you're interested, I can get you a resold account real cheap. bam@acm.org (posted on 08/21/00 20:24:33 EST) AllysonM 17 answers Comments Was rated by AllysonM i may take you up on that...thanks -------------------------------------------------------- kahn asked: Please explain to me the the once a year tax fre gift. (posted on 10/07/00 18:57:04 EST) You answered: Anybody can give anybody else a gift of after-tax money (or value), but if the amount from any one person to another person exceeds $10,000 then the IRS will try to tax it AGAIN. (Even tho you paid tax on the money already, if you give over $10K to anybody they will double-tax it.) A typica scenario is, let's say you are married and your parents want to give you $40,000. If your Dad give it all to you, then $30K will be taxable (a second time -- that is: he already paid inclome taxes on what he earned, but they will also tax you as if it was additional income!) However, he can give you $10K and also give your wife $10, then your mother can give you and your wife $10K each -- for a total of $40,000 but there is no gift tax because no one person gave any other one person more than $10,000. Of course, Bill Gates would have a problem if he wanted to give his kid one hundredth of a percent of his net worth!! :-) The IRS just sticks it to anybody who gives away more than $10,000 to any one person. If you gave $9999 each to a thousand different people, there would be no additional tax. (You paid tax when you earned it, but they would not have to pay any further tax). And if you got a million people to give you gifts of $1000 each, there would also be no tax on the Billion dollars (since each of them paid tax on it already). It doesn't have to be "one-time" thing. The gifts can be spread out over the year. The timing makes no difference. (posted on 10/08/00 02:54:48 EST) kahn 0 answers Comments This answer has not been rated yet Noam asked: Would you give me a brownie for a frownie? (posted on 10/07/00 20:51:01 EST) You answered: Frowning emotives, like this one :-( are nevertheless properly called "smileys" (-: or syelims if they read the other way around. For further information, check out the following three-part essay: http://geocities.com/k2cck/smiley1.html http://geocities.com/k2cck/smiley2.html http://geocities.com/k2cck/smiley3.html (posted on 10/08/00 03:18:30 EST) Noam 16 answers Comments This answer has not been rated yet smrtass asked: Should a limit be set on a ceo's pay. should we deal with an absolute dollar limit or a multiple of WHat the lowest paid worker earns. and WHo should set these limits??? (posted on 10/07/00 23:43:27 EST) You answered: Yes, it should be set by the stockholders, but it's nobody else's business! If you think that you have the right to use the governments's force and guns to tell the people who invest in or run a company what they should or should not spend to get the top talent that they think they need, or if you think the elected politicians and their appointed bureaucrats are better able to decide what investors do with their own money, then I suggest that you are in the wrong country. (Or maybe you want to abolish the Constitution and also refute the Declaration of Independence -- which said that governments are established ONLY to protect the rights of the people, including such inalienable rights as life, liberty, and property. I quote the motto that was on one of the first coins ever struck by this nation: "Mind Your Own Business". It is none of the government's business what an employee is paid by a private company, nor what investors decide to do with their money. The Soviet Union had the opposite idea. Not only did it ruin the economy, but it also murdered 4 or 5 times as many millions as Hitler did, and wrecked the environment as well. There is your example of what happens when politicians take control of industry. Why does it bug you that a CEO who makes billions, billions of dollars that go directly to people who voluntarily invest their life savings in a private company, gets a tiny fraction of that profit as his personal reward? (posted on 10/08/00 03:14:17 EST) smrtass 0 answers Comments This answer has not been rated yet Comments: If you want to clarify or comment, write to smrtass: Idlewild82 asked : WHat were Nader's reasons for not running for the presidency in 1976? (posted on 10/12/00 18:10:31 EST) You answered: 1976? Do you mean 1996? He was on ballot (by "draft") but said he wouldn't campaign. In both 1992 and 1996, Nader is more of a symbolic figurehead (to try to make the Green Party into a significant political force for the future) than an actual "candidate" seeking the Presidency. He never talks about what he would do in office, but uses the leverage of his so-called "candidacy" to raise questions, issues, and challenges to the annointed ones from the ruling parties, Gush & Bore. Besides Nader, there are some real alternative candidates on the ballot. The Libertarians and the Reform Party are on ballot in all 50 states. (Nader isn't.) Howard Phillips and John Hagelin are on in most states. There are at least seven or eight candidates for President who could win the election, and most votesr were so fed up with the lack of choices in 1992 and 1996 that they stayed home! (Clinton was elected by only 19% of the people who could have voted. The MAJORITY selected "none of the above".) This year, Nader is making more noises like a candidate, but he still is not really "running for office". If he did, he would get creamed on specifics by other candidates, including Harry Browne and Pat Buchanan -- who have pointed out the many areas where he is dead wrong and where he has no viable solutions to the problems he complains about. However, the bipartisan debate commission (chosen by the biparies) has decreed that only two of the seven candidates for President shall be allowed into the debates that were subsidized with money from the U.S. Treasury by vote of the biparty that now controls the old Congress & White House. Why are they so afraid of Nader? And Browne? And Hagelin? And Phillips? And Buchanan? -------- As to 1976, I don't think anybody proposed Nader and he certainly was not on ballot in enuf states to win. In 1976, besides Ford and Carter, the leading candidate was Roger MacBride (producer of Little House on the Prarie). He got more votes than all of the other "third parties" put together. (I think one of the others was Lester Maddox, then there were Prohibitionists, Socialists, Communists, and a few others, plus "joke" candidates like comedian Pat Paulsen.) Roger MacBride got more votes than all the others, but did not win any of the electoral college. In 1972, Libertarian candidates John Hospers & Toni Nathan did get one electoral vote each (for Pres. & VP), but of course they came in only third. However, Toni Nathan of Oregon was the first woman (and also the first Jew) in united States history ever to get an electoral vote. (A dozen years later, Geraldine Ferraro got a dozen more electoral vottes than Toni Nathan, but she was not the first woman. This year, Lieberman will undoubtedly get some electoral votes, but he also won't be first.) Again, I don't think Nader was even mentioned in 1976, but I could be wrong. Anyhow, he was not in the race then. (posted on 10/14/00 00:45:55 EST) Idlewild82 175 answers Comments This answer has not been rated yet Jessica_5379 asked : My computer keeps hanging on shutdown, i have been through all the basic troubleshooting, and found the solution. It will shut down if IRQ steering is disabled. Can somebody explain the purpose of IRQ steering on a Windows 98 system too me, and tell me how it will effect my system if I leave it disabled? (posted on 10/13/00 19:49:10 EST) You answered: You won't like my answer, but the basic problem is that you are using a single-user "operating system" which incapable of managing resources properly or preventing one process from affecting another. The solution, of course, is to use a reliable operating system -- like unix (or the linux work-alike). However, the software that you use is probably not portable and therefore will not run under the POSIX API. So, unless you switch to software applications that run under non-proprietary systems (like Windows), you will have to put up with the crashes, conflicts (like IRQs), and general unreliablity and instability of the clunky systems that Microsoft has foisted upon an unwitting and gullible public. Sure, i use Microsoft systems. (I'm using NT at the moment, and I teach classes at colleges that use NT, 98, 3,1, and MSDOS), but for any really important work, I get onto a Unix platform (even if I have to telnet from a PC). For storing important files I can't afford to use, I FTP to a unix system. And for web servers, there is nothing under NT that even approaches the soundness of Apache. As to IRQs, they are a "kludge" that is supposed to allow multiple devices to share the same interrupt vector, from the very limited set that the Intel 80x86 architecture provides. (The fact that Windows only works on this lousy Intel architecture is part of the problem too, but that is another tirade from which I'll spare you). Different vendors grab interrupts and IRQs willy-nilly (or give you installation sequences to pick them with), and there is no good solution for IRQ management under Microsoft Windows. With certain combinations of devices, you are just stuck. With luck, you can find a good technician to hack the IRQ settings and, mostly by trial and error, avoid the conflict that is hanging your system. On the other hand, you can also wind up paying some MCSE "expert" nearly $100 per hour portal-to-portal with no guarantee of actually solving the problem. Be wary. If possible, get a guarantee of results rther than just buying time. Sorry I cannot offer you a magic bullet, but I hope I've given you some useful ideas and -- especially -- some wary cautions. Good luck! P.S. Ahhhh. It's questions like this that remind me how much better life is under unix. (posted on 10/14/00 00:01:20 EST) Jessica_5379 24 answers delsoto asked : WHat is the chemical formula for propane (posted on 10/13/00 19:42:39 EST) You answered: CH3 CH2 CH3 H H H | | | H -- C -- C -- C -- H | | | H H H While it is true that there are 3 C atoms and 8 H atoms, a formula like "C3 H8" tells little oabout the stereochemical structure (and might possibly be the same as the formula for another compound). When an organic compound name ends in "-ane", it consist of a string of (singly-bonded) carbons with the two remaining bonds of each intermediate carbon (and the three remaining bonds of the ones on each end) bonding to hydrogens. Thus, an "-ane" always begins and end with CH3. In the middle are as many CH2 as necessary. The prefixes "eth, pro, but, pent, hex, hept, oct, ... indicate how many carbons there are (2,3,4,5,6,7,8,...). Just double that and add two to get the number of Hydrogens. An exception is Methane. Its single carbon atom is both the beginning and the end, and each of its four bonds goes to a Hydrogen. So it is CH4, or: H | H -- C -- H | H (posted on 10/14/00 00:57:48 EST) Boogamachoo asked : How would you start off a paper about WHat all happened on your birthday... (posted on 10/13/00 20:50:52 EST) You answered: The first of many exciting things that happened on my birthdays was that I was born. Kicking and squirming, I entered the world with a yell. Later, my birthdays brought many new experiences, but none so [PICK ONE: traumatic/weird/exciting/raucus/unique/seminal/... ] as the experience of my first -- or rather my zeroeth -- birthday. On my [umpteenth] birthday, however, a new [whatever/life/adventure/whatever] was launched. That birthday was when I [blah blah blah blah] .. YOU FILL IN THE BLANKS & WRITE THE REST! I hope I gave you a good start. (posted on 10/14/00 01:28:19 EST) FHgoalieJK asked : can anyone name the occupations of ten former presidents before they were president? (posted on 10/13/00 17:20:53 EST) You answered: 1. Washington: Farmer, military commander (French & India Wars, Revolution). 3. Jefferson: Farmer/planter, inventor. Later he was a diplomat, but I assume you want occupations before entering government, so I'll leave those out. 7. Jackson: Military. (General who won the Battle of New Orleans, but after the war had ended!) 9. Harrison: Also military (as well as a territorial governor, soldier under Washington, grandfather of a President, died a month after inauguration). 16. Lincoln: lawyer. 18. Grant: Military career. (Victorious General in Civil War. Impoverished after Presidency.) 24. McKinley: (May have been a banker? I'm not sure.) 25. T.Roosevelt: Military 26. Taft: Judge. (Later a judge again, after Pres.) 27. Wilson: College President (Princeton), College Prof. (in Virginia). 28. Harding: (I don't know.) (Gov. of Ohio, befor nomination.) 29. Coolidge: Police Chief, then Mayor. (I don't know what he did before that.) 30. Hoover: Engineer. (The only engineer Pres.) 31: FDR: (Wealthy. I think he was always in politics. NY Gov.) 33. Truman: Merchant - owned haberdashery store in KC. (Later Senator.) 34. Eisenhower. Military. (Lt. Col, promoted to commanding General by FDR.) 35. Kennedy: "Writer". (He wrote one book, "Profiles in Courage". Rich boy, didn't do much else after WW2..) 36. Johnson: ?? I think he was always in politics, since military. Owned a farm and a radia station. 37. Nixon: Lawyer. (After military hitch.) Also an author ("Six Crises" -- good book.) 38. Ford/King: (As far as I know, he was always in govt.) (King was his birth name.) 39: Carter: Peanut Farmer. Navy officer. (Georgia Gov.) 40: Reagan: Sportscaster, movie actor, TV host. (Later Gov. of California) 41: Bush: Government service, mostly (+ some oil business). Congress, Ambassador to China, CIA head. Well, you said ten. Hope that's enuf. (Any good book will list occupations. This was from memory, only.) Now, if you had asked about Vice Presidents who never became Pres., THAT would be a tough one! (posted on 10/14/00 01:22:32 EST) FHgoalieJK 0 answers Comments This answer has not been rated yet Comments: If you want to clarify or comment, write to FHgoalieJK: DragonAZN asked : If someone had a dual citizenship at birth,say american and another because of one American parent,or was born in america to two non-american parents,then would they be considered a natural-born american in either of these cases and therefore be able to run for president? Anyone that knows about government,immigration,government-whatever,should answer. (posted on 10/13/00 20:57:58 EST) You answered: Part of this is determined by the Constitution, and part by case law (judicial decisions and pecedents). The issue is eligibility for President, as defined by Article II Section 1. First of all, it does not matter at all whether the person has "dual citizenship" or not -- that is partly up to the other country(s). The only issue is whether the person's U.S. citizenship is considered "natural born" as opposied to "naturalized". In some cases, the person has an opportunit to elect which of two (or more) citizenships to adopt upon reaching legal age, and that choice might invalidate one of the possible statuses 'e could elect. Other than that, dual citizenship has no bearing upon Constitutional eligibility. Also, for the purposes of the following, I will ignore the provision regarding persons who were residents at the time the Constitution was adopted (since they are all long dead), the loss of citizenship by certain actions (like serving in foreign military), and the denial of of eligibility to those "in rebellion" when the Confederacy seceeded (as well as the peculiar staus of Jefferson Davis). Now, the only real issue is the status of a person born outside of the territory of the United States but at least one of whose parents was at the time an American citizen (naturalized or not). Altho the Constitution does not specify, the precise definition of "natural born' was left somewhat to the Congress and to the courts. The well-established legal interpretation is that such a person IS considered natural born, regardless of whether the baby was delivered on an airplane, in an embassy, or even in a foreign country while the parents were travelling. For babies of parents whose residence is in the united States (including its territories), there is no question. If one parent is an American citizen and over 21, then the baby is "natural born", even if the hospital was abroad. If both parents are U.S. citizens at the time of birth, and their legal residence is in the U.S., then the baby is deemed a "natural born" citizen of the U.S. regardless of where the birth occurred. Even with one parent, the baby is usually OK. There are some peculiar situations, however. For parents under 21, there are some problems. A 19-year-old male soldier stationed in Germany, who marries (or impregnates) a native German girl, the legal situatuion is unclear, but some opinion has it that the baby is NOT "a natural born American (altho election of U.S. citizenship at 18 is still available). For an 18-year-old female soldier, the situatuion actually is a bit different, but here too there are some gray areas. For a parent under 18, it gets even more complicated. Earlier in the last century, there was an even more unusual and asymmetric problem. The rule differed for male parents and female parents until the 1920s. A baby born abroad with an American mother but a father who was neither a U.S. citizen nor resident might have a problem running for President. This is true, regardless of subsequent laws, since they were not in effect at the time of birth and despite later laws the eligibility could be challenged on Constitutional grounds. The issue is virtually moot, unless somebody now over 75 runs for President or VP. In short, the simple cases are quite clear. Don't worry about your child losing the ability to become President, just because its parents happened to be travelling abroad. There are residency requirements (14 years for Pres.), but those apply regardless of birthplace or citizenship. An interesting question arose when Barry Goldwater was nominated for president. He was not born in on of the states of the union. Arizona was not a state but a territory (until 1912). The Justice Department sought and obtained a ruling to set the question to rest, and it was clearly decided that, since the Arizona territory was a part of the country and under U.S. jurisdiction at the time of his birth, he was indeed a natural born citizen. That would apply equally well to someone born in, say, Puerto Rico. It would also seem to apply to someone born in the part of Panama that was the U.S. owned Canal Zone at the time of 's birth. As a (probably unintended) consequence of the 14th Amendment (which took away from the states the power to define citizenship). if a mother swims ashore and give birth, the baby is not only an instant citizen but can run for President. Citizenship rules differ by country, and most nations have some ancestry conditions. The United Kingdom is now going thru a controversy regarding the term "Brittish". As a colleague of mine likes to point out that, unlike most nations of the world, the U.S. is a country whose identity is defined by "locus" (a mathematical term meaning location). (posted on 10/14/00 02:05:39 EST) DragonAZN 11 answers DragonAZN asked : This is philosophers corner--speak your knowledge to me--the more controversial the better.It doesnt matter WHat its about--just go crazy with the idea. (posted on 10/13/00 21:11:19 EST) You answered: No. You don't exist. Only I, the Solipsist exist. The universe is me. Therefore, you question is entirely moot, and i am only entertaining myself by writing this. Click. (posted on 10/14/00 02:09:41 EST) COMMENT: Never mind! My answer no longer exists, either. (Nor does this comment.) QED. yewu66 asked : WHo won the nobel literature prize for this year and for WHat work? (posted on 10/13/00 18:57:32 EST) You answered: Just this week, it was announced that a Chinese writer was awarded this year's prize in literature. He is the first Chinese laureate in literature. but not the first oriental one. Sorry, I forgot his name -- but it is in the news (and I 'm sure it will be repeated in the Sunday paper). (posted on 10/13/00 23:43:39 EST) Joymarie asked : WHy are elephant's said to have a really good memory? Is this true? If not, WHere did the myth originate and WHy? (posted on 10/13/00 19:31:11 EST) You answered: Elephants are very, very intelligent. More so than dogs, porpoises, and so forth. Less active than chipanzees, and far more docile (partly due to their herbivorous nature) but they probably come closer to ape intelligence than most people imagine. And they get along remarkably well with humans. In fact, the attitude of a huge elephand toward a tiny, little human seems similar to that of a shepherd dog to a little lamb. Elephants exhibit a kindness to humans that can only be called affection -- and it's not just toward their master or feeder, but to all humans. They also have very good sensory equipment, including smell and taste. An elephant can identify each individual human uniquely, probably more by smell and taste than by sight. Putting this all together, we have a kind, affectionate animal who likes people and can tell one from another quite well, and who has a big enuf brain to record the identifications of many individuals. Now, elephants also live quite long -- longer than dogs, cats, horses, cows, goats, camels, etc. And elephants are indigenous only to certain (seemingly exotic) areas, namely Africa and India. So, thruout history, there have been many incidents where a particular explorer or traveller encountered a particular elephant and perhaps built up a bit of a relationship (perhaps only feeding a certain fruit or scratching a certain part or doing a trick on spoken signal). Then, the traveller left, and did not return for several years. Other animals (like dogs and cats and horses, or even chimps) had long since died, but the long-living elephant was still around. Upon returning, the traveller was recognized by the elephant, who may have done something to show this. The traveller, having completely (forgotten about the elephant from many years ago) was astounded and bestowed the elephant with legendary memory. Plausible? Yeah, they're smart and they have good memory. But, unlike many others, they are long-lived (unlike dogs, cats, horses, cows). And they get along with humans (unlike camels, goats). Part of it, too, is that the elephant is very unusual and very impressive. If a crow or a spider or a frog recognized you after a long absence, that would not be as noteworthy and you would be less likely to go home and tell everybody about it (and thereby start a legend or rumor). The fact that they seem to like humans, helps too. As does the fact that people admire the big pachyderms. (posted on 10/14/00 00:24:05 EST) Joymarie 321 answers FHgoalieJK asked : can anybody name ten national parks and the states that they are found in? (posted on 10/13/00 17:58:12 EST) You answered: That's too easy. Ten in one state might be a challenge to some. Ten in ten states would be an effort. Here are just a few oif the ones I have visited: WYOMING/MONTANA/IDAHO: Yellowstone (the first!). MONTANA: Glacier National Park Waterton/Glacier International Park IDAHO: Craters of the Moon WYOMING: Grand Teton COLORADO: Rocky Mountain National Park Black Canyon of the Gunnison Mesa Verde Aztec Colorado National Mon. Dinosaur National Mon. Great Sand Dunes (? -- something like that) UTAH: Canyonlands Bryce Zion Natural Bridge Capitol Reef NEW MEXICO: White Sands Almogordo (A-bomb test site -- not sure if National or not) Chaco Canyon Carlsbad Caverns ARIZONA: Grand Canyon Pertified Forest painted Desert Wupatki Walnut Canyon NEVADA/CALIFORNIA: Death Valley Nat. Mon. Lake Tahoe CALIFORNIA: Yosemite Mt. Lassen Muir Woods OREGON; Crater Lake WASHINGTON: Olympic Mt Rainier North Cascades Mt. St. Helens (Nat Mon?) ALASKA: Inland Waterways (I forget the exact name of this, but there is a large park) Denali NC/TN: Great Smokies FLA: Everglades NY: Fire Island Gateway NY/PA/NJ: Delaware River OK, yeah, some of these are actually classified as National Monuments; you can delete those if you wish. But that is merely an administrative thing. Every one of them is a park run by the Feds. CANADIAN NATIONAL PARKS: ALTA/BC: Banff Jasper Yoho (BC) Kootenay Waterton International (posted on 10/14/00 02:30:27 EST) FHgoalieJK 0 answers DragonAZN asked : if multiple atomic blasts went of simultaneously,would it ignite the flammable gasses in the air and cause the total destruction of earth? (posted on 10/13/00 18:46:22 EST) You answered: No. You don't need atomic blasts. A tank car filled with propane would be more likely to ignite flammable gasses in the air. In fact, an atomic bomb would vaporize many of the volatiles rather than causing them to oxidize (i.e. burn). Fossil fuel plants put many flammable and toxic gasses into the atmosphere (e.g. SO2, SO3, SO4, NO2, CO). In fact, fossil fuel plants (especially coal) put out radioactive gasses in great quantities. (posted on 10/13/00 23:40:23 EST) DragonAZN 11 answers dbell asked : Could you suggest software to control an end device relay(s) (X-10) used in in the "smart home" program. (posted on 10/08/00 15:55:35 EST) You answered: I get mine from a company called "Home Controls". Toll free number is 1-800-266-8765 Website is homecontrols.com They have a nice big catalog (free) with stuff i can't find elsewhere. I've ordered several units from them. Their prices are good but, please tell them that I sent you there and maybe they'll give me a discount. :-) (posted on 10/14/00 02:45:21 EST) laine asked : how does the moon affect the tides (posted on 10/13/00 22:18:51 EST) You answered: Gravity. Any two masses attract each other with a force that is proportional to the masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. The moon is about 240,000 miles away, but since the Earth is about 8,000 miles thick the water on the side closest to the moon experiences a stronger pull than the water elsewhere. So the water is pulled up on the near side. (The water on the side away from the moon is also pulled (or pushed) upward, but let's not go into that here.) As theEarth spins, different parts of the surface come under the moon's pull and the high tide marches around the globe. The sun also has a tidal effect. (Smaller since it is so far away.) When both sun and moon pull in the same direction, or in opposite directions, the high tides are higher and the low tides lower. (This occurs at full moon and new moon.) When the moon and sun are at right angles to the Earth (at the two half-moon phases), tides are weaker. (posted on 10/14/00 02:57:22 EST) laine 0 answers FHgoalieJK asked : does anybody know the names of ten famous novels that were made into ten famous movies? (posted on 10/13/00 17:54:37 EST) You answered: Gone With The Wind, by Margaret Mitchell The Fountainhead, by Ayn Rand Le Miserables, by Victor Hugo Great Expectations, Chas. Dickens The Old Man & The Sea, by Ernest Hemingway Of Mice & Men, John Steinbeck The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck The Agony & The Ecstasy To Kill a Mockingbird South Pacific (musical based on James Michner's "Tales of the South Pacific") Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley Dracula, by Bram Stoker The First Deadly Sin, by Lawrence Sanders Murder on the Orient Express, Agatha Christie The Martian Chronicles; The Illustrated Man, both by Ray Bradbury Lord of the Flies, Wm. Golding Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkein 13 novels by Ian Fleming, including Dr. No, From Russia wWith Love, Thunderball, Goldfinger, Moonraker, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, You Only Live Twice, The Spy Who Loved Me, (posted on 10/14/00 03:11:35 EST) Brasileiro asked : Is it possible to neutralize or eliminate radiation from nuclear waste? Have you read anything about it lately? (posted on 10/13/00 21:55:31 EST) You answered: Radiation comes from decaying into a more-stable state. You can sometimes accelerate most decay by bombarding the waste with other radiation. One easy way to do this is to feed the waste into another nuclear reactor. That's much better than burning fossil fuels, emitting sulphates and nitrates into the air which kill thousands of people. Bad as the radiation is in concentrated form, it is much more easily contained (and eliminated) that the output of burning fossil fuels. Ideally, nuclear fusion will be the cleanest fuel of all. It's output will be things like helium and hydrogen (which can be burned to get energy, but its output is only water). However, we have a ways to go before fusion is practical and cheap. We have plenty of gas and oil (and too much coal) to get to a time when fusion is practical, but energy from unranium is actually cleaner until then. (posted on 10/14/00 02:40:34 EST) Brasileiro Home WHquest About us How it works FAQ Cellular Contact tripodics sign out godess4 asked : How do they get the ships in the bottle? (posted on 10/13/00 21:36:13 EST) You answered: Folding masts are the main trick. Also, make the sides slide slightly, so that the widest part of the starboard side does not line up with the par on one side of the port side; then slide them back into place after passing thru the mouth of the bottle. There are other tricks, mostly with hinges and latches. Everything is assembles outside the bottle. There is no construction inside it -- only unfolding. Some cheap items are made with a seam in the bottle, but that's cheating. Nobody blows the bottle around the ship (unless the ship is made of glass). (posted on 10/14/00 03:18:00 EST) 218 answers