Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2008 May 15

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May 15

Hand exercise games

Ok I have searched google fairly well, and here, but i can not find anything on hand exercises. I am talking about simple strange tasks like twirling a quarter around your knuckles or some other games that surgeons would do to improve their hands. Any links? Chitchin13 (talk) 02:04, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Chinese finger trap Braiding, wedging clay , Kneading, Fingerboard (skateboard) Sleight of hand and cottonball soccer

[1] [2], [3], [4] (for pay: [5])

Also check books on playing violin, piano and guitar. Hope this helps. --Lisa4edit (talk) 04:23, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Content of IV Drip

In this picture [6] of a student holding an IV drip for a buried student, what is most likely the content of the IV drip? Is the trapped student being hydrated? Acceptable (talk) 02:14, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Yes, it's most likely one of several possible intravenous drip. ···日本穣^{? · Talk to Nihonjoe} 03:01, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

The picture looks a little contrived to me. The student who is "buried" looks as though he is possibly unconscious but it is odd that no-one is maintaining his airway to ensure he can breathe properly. If he is not unconscious then one has to wonder why he is being given liquids intravenously and not orally. The insertion of the intravenous drip is also not very clear. Forgive my cynicism but sometimes it is not always a good idea to believe every photograph you see. Richard Avery (talk) 06:46, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I was listening to NPR reports reporting from the earthquake sites, and they said that IVs are a very common medical treatment in China. One nurse said, "We are running out of IVs and may have to start giving people pills." Corvus cornix_talk 18:02, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Measuring cups

What are the lines on a measuring cup called? Thank youGargx4 (talk) 02:33, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I'd suggest "gradations" --Tagishsimon (talk) 02:38, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

"Graduations" is also good: [7]. (See also the aptly-named graduated cylinder). TenOfAllTrades(talk) 03:39, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

"Graduations" is right, but not "also"; "gradations" is wrong. --Anon, 03:43 UTC, May 15, 2008.

Cartridge names

Why are 7.62x39 Russian and 7.62x51 NATO for example, not called 7.90x39 and 7.82x51 respectfully? The 7.62x39 uses a 7.90mm bullet according to wikipedia's article, so why is it called 7.62x39? And 7.62x51 uses 7.82mm bullets. 12.166.94.72 (talk) 03:37, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Bullets are typically swaged when they pass through the barrel. Cartridge names are somewhat arbitrary, but often they use the size of the bore, not the size of the bullet. Friday (talk) 04:34, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Oh, and sometimes they do use the diameter of the bullet, in fact in this very example. .308 Winchester is (almost) the same thing as 7.62 NATO, and it uses a .308 inch bullet. But, as I said, cartridge names can be tricky to decipher due to inconsistency. .38 special is a very common example- here, the .38 is (almost) the diameter of the case, rather than the bullet or the bore. Compare to .357 Magnum which uses the same bullets, but you wouldn't guess this from the name. Friday (talk) 14:56, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

A riddle

"(072461674, 850753221)"

That's all there is. I have no clue- anyone? 70.162.29.88 (talk) 04:19, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I think they're numbers. I can tell because I didn't find them in my list of letters. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.225.133.60 (talk) 07:23, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Try posting on any lateral puzzles forum like this. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.129.237.147 (talk) 07:57, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Have you tried phoning it?HS7 (talk) 17:28, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

This might be from a the cartoon Batman: in one episode, the riddler rights a series a numbers on a chalkboard similar to the ones you have here, then flips the chalkboard over; when flipped over, the numbers turned into letters, providing an address. TomStar81 (Talk) 21:53, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Wow, this isn't an obvious way to solicit answers at all! Leftylink (talk) 21:13, 19 May 2008 (UTC)

Stride

Do all Stride gum come in multipacks? Thanks!68.148.164.166 (talk) 06:43, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

For queries about packaging of manufactured goods, try contacting the manufacturer's website/toll-free consumer info number/mailing address, or those of your nearest distributor. -- Deborahjay (talk) 16:32, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Discrimination, accent and racism

If I can't stand a specific foreign accent, am I a racist? Or do I have a right not to mix up with people whose accent I can't put up with? GoingOnTracks (talk) 10:48, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I think that if you can't stand a specific foreign accent, you are indeed prejudiced, and if you refuse to associate with people from a certain country, that is a less positive character trait than if you chose to learn more about that country and its language and chose to get used to or like people from there. Whether you have a right to refuse to associate with people from a certain country depends on where you live; in the United States, where I live, yes, you have a right to choose with whom you associate, although that right comes with consequences; for example, you'll have to quit your job if you find yourself working with someone from that country, and you'll have to stop seeing your family if your sister marries someone from there. -FisherQueen (talk · contribs) 10:52, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Depending on the circumstances maybe not a complete right. If you owned a small shop and refused admittance to people from a certain country, or were an employer and refused employment then it could count as discrimination. -- Q Chris (talk) 12:00, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Do you have a right? In a legal or ethical sense? In a legal sense, it depends on your jurisdiction and the specific actions you are proposing. In an ethical sense, no. Accents are ephemeral—they have nothing to do with what type of people other people are. Would it be fair for you to be refused service because of your own accent? Does your own accent have anything to do with your worth as a person?

What kind of person do you consider yourself to be—someone who hates stupidly, without reason? Or someone who recognizes that the human brain is a fickle thing, that the things it decides to hate are not always rational at all, and works to try and overcome your baser, more primitive instincts? It is up to you, don't resign yourself to a life of ignorance. You'll miss out on a lot. --98.217.8.46 (talk) —Preceding comment was added at 12:03, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

No, racism is hating someone based solely on their race, in this example you are not doing that, you are disliking a particular characteristic of a person which is commonly associated with race, and there is a big difference. I do not believe that your beliefs cause you to be prejudiced with respect to race or culture, my understanding of the word is that if you had not heard a person speak and made the assumption that you would not like their accent based on their race then you would be prejudiced. However if you heard the person speak and then decided that you did not like the accent then this would simply be forming a personal judgment. An analogy would be with food, if you dismissed a style of food simply because of its origin you would be racist, however if you tried the food and then decided that you didn't like it you would not.

As for not associating with people whose accent you cannot stand, this is probably not the best idea. Really it is one aspect of their person, and if you hang around them enough you'll get used (or desensitised) to it. I didn't used to like people with high pitched voices (regardless of their race), however I gradually got used to it and now have many friends who I wouldn't have otherwise. 58.165.192.176 (talk) 12:08, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

It is not a big difference—racists centuries onward have claimed that it was not the race, per se, just a particular characteristic that happened to be usually linked to the nebulous concept of "race". And whether or not it is accent or not, it is certainly "prejudice" and ignorance in one form or another. It is not just a "personal judgment." Call it what it is.

And we are not talking about types of food. We are talking about human beings. There is a difference. There is no ethical qualm is dismissing an entire cuisine because it does not appeal to you for a superficial reason. But there is in dismissing an entire group of people for a superficial reason. --98.217.8.46 (talk) 13:57, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Here's hoping your don't get hit on the head and end up with Foreign accent syndrome. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 14:07, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I'd think accents are one of the easiest things to accept about other cultures (versus, say, never bathing and insisting on standing very close to your nose when talking to you). However, certain accents could pose a problem if you just can't understand them. People with some accents talk too quickly to understand or so slowly it's annoying. Also, always putting statements in the form of a question ("this is a Jewish thing ?") can be confusing. For example, does "This is pumpernickel ?" mean "Is this pumpernickel bread ?" or "This is not good pumpernickel bread" ? StuRat (talk) 15:39, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

In what culture do people never bath? GoingOnTracks (talk) 17:45, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Desert people would be one example. They tend to "anoint themselves with oil", as was done in Biblical times, instead of bathing. The lack of water in their own culture made it too valuable to waste on bathing. StuRat (talk) 05:35, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Let me ask my original question another way round: Imagine that I like accents from my culture, like some foreign accents (the French, the Italian) but dislike others (the German, the Mexican). Imagine also that I come well along with Mexicans and Germans that speak English perfectly. Am I bad person? GoingOnTracks (talk) 17:45, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I think a more interesting question (and sorry for hijacking the topic here, but seeing the subject heading made me think of it) is how acceptable is it for someone to discriminate based on regional accents? I find, in the U.S. in particular, that a great deal of discrimination takes place based on regional accents. For example, folks with southern accents often get labelled as "hillbillies" or "rednecks", folks with north-eastern accents (i.e., New York "Bronx"-style accents) are seen as low-brow and un-educated, etc. I'm not sure how it works in the U.K., but based on things I've read, it seems that regional accents play a huge part in how people are viewed there as well (cf. the myriad of regional U.K. accent articles on Wikipedia). So why is it that this is still viewed as an acceptable form of discrimination when other things, such as skin color, regligion, gender, and even sexual orientation (to a certain extent) are increasingly viewed as unacceptable ways of pre-judging? 12.43.92.140 (talk) 19:10, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

The intend of my question was in this direction. Why can I say that I prefer ginger/blond woman and dream about marrying one, but cannot say that I prefer woman with French/Italian/American/British accent (and not Mexican/German) and dream about marrying one.GoingOnTracks (talk) 19:28, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

There's a lot of hand-wringing going on in the responses above. Consider this: a good bit of my family is from Germany and I'm at least partially ethnic German (whatever that means). But that doesn't stop me from acknowledging that German is spat more than spoken (even if I'm doing the speaking). Frankly, you have every right to decide you don't like the sound of it; I'm not too crazy about it myself. Worrying about whether your personal likes and dislikes make you a racist is food for thought, but don't get hung up on it; if things were the other way round and you decided you really loved the sound of a Mexican accent, would you still worry about being racist because you preferred it to Cockney or something? It's like worrying about preferring blondes to brunettes or brown eyes to blue. Matt Deres (talk) 16:43, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

War

What should I do in order to join US or other army, currently invovlved in very dangerous military conflicts? PS. I live in Uzbekistan, and I think it'll be harder to me than to US-citizens. 89.236.214.174 (talk) 11:28, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

The U.S. military does allow foreign nationals to join. In fact, military service can be an accelerated route to gaining citizenship or other benefits. But you need to be a legal permanent resident first - meaning living in the U.S. with a green card.[8] Your career will also be limited in that you cannot re-enlist or become an officer as a non-citizen. You will also need a waiver if you are from a designated "hostile" country - I don't know which those are but surely Uzbekistan isn't one. Rmhermen (talk) 13:46, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I suggest you try their website - I'm sure US Army has a link to it. -mattbuck (Talk) 13:46, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Does Al-Qaeda count as an army? GoingOnTracks (talk) 22:55, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Black Suits in Australia

Hi, I've got a black suit and was thinking about using it for work (in Sydney, Australia), however I've been put off by a number of fashion articles I've been reading about black suits being used only for formal occasions and funerals. I don't really want to go and buy a new suit (I'll only be wearing it every now and then) but at the same time I don't want to appear to be deliberately weird or snobby. Is it fashionable (rather than acceptable) to wear black suits in Australia? If not, how about just black pants with no jacket, or would this still be too formal for business attire?

Also, how far should the shoulder blades hang out off the sides of the shoulders on a male?

Thanks 58.165.192.176 (talk) 12:08, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Even with not being in Australia, or being a particularly dedicated follower of fashion rules I would still say...Wear what you feel looks nice/you are comfortable wearing. Black suits with white-shirt and black-tie will appear very formal, but a black-suit with a shirt/tie that have some colour/pin-stripes/whatever will look pretty normal as formal business attire to me. Shoulder-blades wise I find it looks nicest when the edge is only scarcely wider than the edge of your shoulder. Too tight and it looks like it's too small, too much overhang and it looks like you want to be in Michael Jackson's Thriller video...All my humble opinion though. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 194.221.133.226 (talk) 12:55, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I agree with the above and also your idea to not wear the jacket. I'd wear the jacket only when walking in to work and out, but take it off during the day. Also, short sleeve shirts are more casual, so give those a try. Also bear in mind that you may sometimes want a formal look (say when dealing with a customer who needs to be impressed by your professionalism) and sometimes casual (say when dealing with coworkers). StuRat (talk) 15:21, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

This video may provide insight into Aussie formal attire (kidding...mostly). I believe only solicitors, C.E.O.s and other very formal professions/positions in Australia would wear a suit, and most of those would be gray. Without the jacket might be more likely (a school principal, for example, might wear shirt and slacks). Black suits are generally for more formal occasions, like taking a woman to a black-tie event or something. This is advice from a very close Aussie friend, not anything authoritative.

And here's more general (though still personal) advice. Ask your prospective employer what the dress code is like. Get a feel for the environment before you plunge into it. Maybe even go check it or a similar business out and see how they dress. You'll probably want to dress a step up for a job interview or first day of work, but not too much difference. --Prestidigitator (talk) 16:44, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

My experience does not gel with your first paragaph, Prestidigitator. Black is a very common colour for suits, if not universal. People very much lower on the food chain than CEOs etc wear black suits. It seems to be more common in Melbourne than other parts, which may have something to do with the overcast grey skies they get there for months at a time during winter. Also, they match the virtually compulsory black attire that female office workers wear. Black suits seem more attractive to younger men; as they get into their 30s and beyond, different colours become the norm. When wearing a black suit, the shirt and tie are the key; a coloured tie is for the office, a black tie is for a funeral. A white or muted coloured shirt is ok anywhere; a brightly coloured shirt is for the office only. -- JackofOz (talk) 01:35, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Don't be surprised though if you turn up to work on a Friday for example and everyone's looking extremely casual (even law firms) because it's their Mufti Day or "non-uniform" gesture. I dropped off documents at a Sydney city lawfirm and wondered why the Partner was wearing a worn out golf shirt. It can be confusing. I'd ask the employer about the dress code, follow the tips given above and ask if they have a non-uniform or mufti, day and when, just in case. Julia Rossi (talk) 02:33, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Since we've wandered slightly off-topic, I used to HATE Fridays when I was an office-worker. Casual gear meant that everyone was in weekend/party mode from 8:30 am on Friday, there was a lot of loud chatter all day long, and my productivity went down the toilet. I may as well have had the day off, except that I was getting paid to turn up and not actually achieve very much. For a committed and dedicated workhorse such as I, this was extremely distressing (and I'd have to use the whole weekend for de-stressing). -- JackofOz (talk) 06:44, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Summer in Ireland

Does anyone know when or if Summer Glau will be visiting Ireland? Lop lop 7 (talk) 12:31, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I suggest looking at her official website. The answer is probably not though. (Aside: refdesk moved from avril to summer? Is that an improvement?) -mattbuck (Talk) 13:44, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I'm hoping we can get on to Alanis sooner or later. --Tagishsimon (talk) 13:55, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

It's a seasonal thing. Soon we can get onto some micro-entity whose name is June. SaundersW (talk) 15:13, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Great, then we get a month of Julio Iglesias questions, and then it's Counting Crows forever. -- Coneslayer (talk) 15:43, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Oh, delight! and then maybe August Strindberg! (One can hope) SaundersW (talk) 18:52, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Dividends, Ownership

I just want to double check something. If I own stock at the ex-dividend date I am entitled to the dividends paid at the dividend-date...If I sell the shares between ex-dividend date and the date of payment of dividends will I lose that money or am I paid it regardless because it is based on my owning the shares at the time of the ex-dividend? Sorry if bit of a simpleton question. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 194.221.133.226 (talk) 13:25, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

The answer's in Ex-dividend date. - Zain Ebrahim (talk) 14:31, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Cheers - sorry stupidly didn't check there. 194.221.133.226 (talk) 15:08, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

pornographic animated image within "penis" entry

My school district temporarily blocked the use of Wikipedia for 20,000 users a few days ago because of the "penis" entry. I am a big supporter of Wikipedia as a school library media specialist. Unfortunately, the image is most inappropriate for school use for lower age levels. It is the image of a man using his hand to masturbate and shows ejaculation. Please seriously removing this image as it borders pornography. Real immages are an important visual aid to learning, but not this on if you are serious about school use of Wikipedia. There are people here in this district that want to re-block the site. I want to support you and rally againist this happening again. Please help me. Thank you. 207.144.99.93 (talk) 14:33, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

We can't do that, Wikipedia is not censored. Hut 8.5 14:39, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

If your school has made the decisions that students should not see images of nudity, then it will have to block Wikipedia, which contains such images. However, if they are attempting to prevent students from seeing penises, this will be impossible for about half of the student body. -FisherQueen (talk · contribs) 14:53, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Complain to the school. They are the ones denying you access. Think about it this way: if Wikipedia self-censored for every possible culture, government, etc., what would be left? If the Chinese government got a say on what would be on Wikipedia, what would it say? If the beliefs of radical Islamists were used to censor pages on women's rights, would they be of any use? Should all content be designed for the lowest-common denominator? For the youngest possible readers? For the most easily offended? Wikipedia is not censored for anyone. It is up to your school to decide how it wants to deal with it. If it throws the entire site out because it contains an entry on a piece of anatomy that 50% of all human beings possess, well, that's their own idiocy. It is not Wikipedia's job. Wikipedia tries to be a source of free knowledge for all—unfortunately some people get a little too scared by free knowledge when it goes places they are uncomfortable with. Freedom of speech isn't about freedom to see things that you like to see—it's about the freedom of others to say things that you rather not hear them to say.

Perhaps you could ask your school district to act like the Chinese government does, and block only certain pages. Block the anatomy pages. Better block the ones on birth control for good measure—don't want any parents to get upset! Perhaps you ought to block the ones that talk about how hard it is to verify that there actually was a historical figure named Jesus Christ, while you are at it. Hmm, that page on Marxism might have to go. Golly, do we really want the kids knowing about how nuclear weapons are designed?

They'd better block the Transistor article as well, because there are lots of transistors in a microchip, and microchips are in a computer, and computers are attatched to cables connecting them to printers, which can be used to make pictures of naked people, and that's totally innapropriate! :-) Ilikefood (talk) 22:34, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

It's a slippery slope. Wikipedia cannot, and should not, try to guess what its readership is going to find offensive. If the parents cannot deal with the fact that Wikipedia does not have limits, other than what its editors consider to be "encyclopedic" at a given moment, then perhaps the school needs to block it. But it's not Wikipedia's fault. Somewhere someone is probably having the same debate in Chinese and Arabic. We'd say the same thing in response that we would to a school district in South Carolina. --98.217.8.46 (talk) 14:58, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

One thing we might want to consider in the future is having a "Wikipedia Junior", which only contains a subset of articles from Wikipedia, and perhaps a kid-friendly treatment of some other articles. Yes, this would be censorship, but I think it would be justified. However, we don't want to prevent adults from getting info on sexual topics, just to protect children, so we aren't inclined to censor Wikipedia proper. StuRat (talk) 15:05, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

We already have something like that - Simple Wikipedia. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 15:27, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Simple Wikipedia is not a resource specifically filtered for the delicate sensibilities of children (or more accurately their care-providers). It is written in simplified English so it can be accessible to those who are not fluent readers of educated-adult-level English - to quote from its front page: - Simple English Wikipedia is for everyone! That includes children who are learning English and adults who are still learning English. Today's featured article on Simple Wikipedia is on LSD. I assume this would raise the hackles on many a school-board censor's neck. Valiantis (talk) 13:26, 19 May 2008 (UTC)

Shouldn't most schools keyword filters prevent students from searching for the inappropriate pages? -FisherQueen (talk · contribs) 15:21, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Would that work if they follow a link (say from the male article) or use Wikipedia or some less common search engine to do the search ? StuRat (talk) 15:24, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

At my school they used some software which stopped the page downloading as soon as it came across a bad word. I figure the title should work for that. Generally though, wikipedia should not be censored, though I do disagree with nudity right at the top of pages. -mattbuck (Talk) 15:28, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

For what it's worth, I don't particularly like that animated gif either and I'm not sure what value it adds to the article. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 15:29, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

And for similar value, neither do I. If you were to raise the suggestion of deleting it, on their talk page, I'd support that notion. It seems somewhat on the edge of notcensor. Scaller (talk) 15:34, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I believe very strongly that Wikipedia should not be censored, but some of the images in our sex articles are really not appropriate for children, and if a way can be found to block them selectively so that schools won't have to block all of Wikipedia, that would be idea. It isn't Wikipedia that can do that, though, but the school's firewall software. Just for an experiment, since I'm on a public school computer right now (and there are no kids in the room), I searched for the term Penis, and was not able to access the article. I couldn't access it through a link from the Man article, either. I think most school systems use pretty similar software to what's in use at my school. I wonder if this school really doesn't have filtering software, or if someone read the recent bit of antiwiki nonsense from Concerned Women of America and just assumed that those articles were available to school users? -FisherQueen (talk · contribs) 15:39, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

While Wikipedia is not censored, is there a way it might be able to help out in the effort to make is usable in environments where such content may not be acceptable? For example, a "Possibly not safe for work" category or something? --Prestidigitator (talk) 16:52, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Like a global setting like what Google has? Be nice to add that to Random too, cause I sometimes read random articles on campus when I'm bored (and of course, "pornography" isn't allowed, not that I know where the line is, and some students' desktops have near-nude women). And while I personally don't like the idea of that image, you can't argue that it's not educational. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 17:21, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

The eternal conundrum with this suggestion is "whose standard?" No consensus is ever likely to emerge on what articles should be so flagged even if WP concluded that it was a good idea in the first place. — Lomn 18:37, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I can agree we have to be more safer to schools. A Junior Wikipedia might be nice. Especially for elementary and middle schoolers they really don't know what to search for or what they are getting into. This is a very sensitive issue. I respect all of the above arguments. I do not agree with them mostly. But I think that in high school and college schools don't need to be as safe. We all see a penis everyday changing our underwear, I am sure some high schoolers and college students are masturbating themselves or not. This is a part of life. To ban this from high schoolers and college students is ridiculous. We will see or experience this part of life sooner or later. We need this kind of exposure.71.142.222.245 (talk) 17:51, 15 May 2008 (UTC)Cardinal Raven

I feel you are highly underestimating the intelligence and overly generalizing middle schoolers. RoyalOrleans 20:20, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Er, I have been changing my underwear every day for years, and have never yet seen a penis while doing so.  :) -FisherQueen (talk · contribs) 12:01, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

This topic is under discussion at Wikipedia:Village pump (miscellaneous) and Wikipedia talk:Image content guidelines‎. Contributions are welcome. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 20:16, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

"Wikipedia is not censored" is not a magic formula which guarantees keeping numerous vanity pictures of the willies of individual editors on the Penis page or to keep the animated picture of one spurting semen like a garden hose, or other "illustrations" which have no convincing basis that they are really encyclopedically illustrative of the subject. Edison (talk) 15:48, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Facebook novice

I recently tried Facebook for the first time. Since then I've received friend invitations from names I don't immediately recognize. Which of course leaves me wondering if they are old acquaintances I've forgotten or if these are just spam invites. Are spam invites common? ike9898 (talk) 17:46, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Yes, spam invites are very common. Corvus cornix_talk 18:04, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Can't say I've ever got one. -mattbuck (Talk) 20:49, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

They've been known to happen, but they're not nearly as common as are on MySpace. I'd suggest sending the person a message and asking how you know them. It's mildly awkward, but it's better than deciding blind. --Masamage ♫ 20:53, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Do you have a picture up? Are you affiliated with a university, school, or town? Do you have a common name? There are thousands of people searching for old pals on Facebook every day; if you don't have anything that will let them determine that you are or are not your old pal, a lot of people might be trying to "friend" you by accident. I recommend putting up a decent photo and see if that cuts down on them. --Captain Ref Desk (talk) 15:47, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Maximum temperature

What is the maximum temperature the human body can survive for an prolonged period of time? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Node of nothing (talk • contribs) 18:10, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

The maximum survivable internal body temperature is around 40°C according to the hyperthermia article. The maximum survivable ambient temperature will depend on other things like the humidity, whether you're in direct sunlight, and how hydrated you are. -- BenRG (talk) 18:57, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Chairs tipping

My teacher says not to tip back on the chair as many many people have died doing that. Approximately how many people since 1987 have died as a result of tipping back on their chairs? School of pizza eating (talk) 18:12, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Anecdotally speaking, while I've never known of someone dying, I did have a student in one of my classes slip backward and strike his head on the desk behind, opening his scalp up so much that he required stitches and bleeding all over my nice clean classroom. It was very disruptive to education. -FisherQueen (talk · contribs) 18:19, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I'm sure it was. Did the kid live?

Wait, stupid me you just said he did. *smacks self on head* —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.75.198.178 (talk) 18:24, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I wouldn't worry at all about tipping back chairs and whatnot. Why doesn't your teacher tell you never to ride or drive a car? One is much, much more likely to die in a car accident. I suppose we shouldn't eat because we might choke, eh? I've fallen out of a chair I've tipped back dozens of times, the only injuries sustained were to my self-esteem. I highly doubt that "many" people have died by doing it, the teacher just doesn't want to liable. 206.252.74.48 (talk) 19:31, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Other concerns your teacher may have (but that she probably thinks you will be less receptive to) may be that you will damage the chair and/or distract the rest of the class. Both are not very respectful things to do as a student. Consider doing as she asks, since she is there to work very hard at helping you and other students become better people with little enough other reward for the job. (Sorry for the gender assumption in my answer; what I wouldn't give for a gender-neutral third-person pronoun acceptable for people.) --Prestidigitator (talk) 21:12, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

A (somewhat eccentric) teacher at my school used to encourage chair-tipping. He assigned varying numbers of points to the different configurations - I believe leaning forwards, balanced on a single front leg was the maximum, worth ten points. He was though, frankly, nuts. And also fell off a chair himself while demonstrating. 81.187.153.189 (talk) 22:32, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

My year 7 math teacher told us that he once had a student that leaned back on his chair and the plastic leg broke and stabbed him in the kidney. --Candy-Panda (talk) 01:27, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

wow - that was bad luck on the teacher!! Richard Avery (talk) 07:40, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Bad luck on the teacher?! What about the student? He (or she) had a plastic leg in their kidney! :-) Ilikefood (talk) 18:55, 19 May 2008 (UTC)

I had a school friend who always said that he wanted to be a Hollywood stuntman. He used to enliven boring lessons by tipping his backwards on his chair. He perfected that so that he could continue rolling back so that the chair would end up on top of him and the desk behind would be pushed onto the lap of the person sitting behind him. This really freaked out new teachers. Last I heard of him he was head of canned produce distribution in a large UK Supermarket chain, so the Hollywood role never came about. -- Q Chris (talk) 08:13, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

With over 6 billion people on this earth you'd be hard put to find a cause of death that does not have a high mortality rate in absolute numbers. This is a common mistake. What really counts is the death toll over a life time (say 70 years) divided by the total population. That gives you the chance an 'average person' has to die because of this. Also relevant is the average age at which people die from that cause. In that respect, cars outnumber any other case of death by a very wide margin. Amrad (talk) 14:32, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

A Rovin' I Will Go

In the Irish song "A Rovin' I Will Go", does the lyric "from Dublin across to Boston, And back if I be wanting" mean the singer will go back to Ireland when he feels the need for sex? Or does this have some other meaning? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.75.198.178 (talk) 18:14, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Thats a strange interpretation to take from it. No, it just means he can go back if he wishes. He's free to do what he wants while he's "roving". We Irish are always Roving in songs for some reason :-) Fribbler (talk) 20:12, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

And if it's an Irish song, it's probably referring to the original Boston. Algebraist 21:30, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

That's not the original Boston; Boston MA is named after Boston, Lincolnshire, while the County Clare one seems to have been somewhat jokingly called that after Boston MA. --jpgordon^∇∆∇∆ 23:13, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I would agree; Boston, Lincolnshire was always my idea of the original Boston. Though we (the paddys) have the original Baltimore, Dundalk etc. Still think the song would refer to Boston in america, though. Considering Irish emmigration and the connection with the city.Fribbler (talk) 00:15, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Drinkable tap water

In countries that have tap water, what percentage of them have drinkable tap water? In what countries should you not drink the tap water? Odd helop mangoon (talk) Odd helop mangoon (talk) 18:16, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I expect virtually all places with tap water have potable tap water -- to a degree. Potability boils down (if you'll pardon the lame joke) to the drinker's tolerance for the peculiarities of the water, and as such, no one answer exists. Also of note is that in many places, it's not sufficient to say that the water of [country X] is or is not potable, as it may vary from place to place. The good news is that travel guides almost invariably have the information you're looking for, tailored to the traveler's approximate origin. — Lomn 18:34, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Worms

Do worms have brains? I've looked but I can't find anything. Hot JJ (talk) —Preceding comment was added at 19:40, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

According to worm they do not. Algebraist 21:28, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

So if we were to AGF, we'd have to deduce that you're not that bright, right? Zain Ebrahim (talk) 21:31, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Another possibility is that the questioner simply missed this detail. However, the article states only that earthworms lack brains (though they have ganglia that perform some of the same functions). On the other hand, flatworms apparently have ganglia that may be considered primitive brains. Marco polo (talk) 01:06, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Hailey Williams

Does Hailey Williams dye her hair or is it naturally that color? This is a picture [9] LLOTAAMI (talk) 19:46, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Look at the variety of hair colors in a Google Image search. I would guess that's not her natural hair color.--droptone (talk) 23:51, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

captain picard's bald head

when captain picard was assimilated he was already bald. did the portrayal of the borg as being bald start here, or did the writers always intend the borg to be skinheads? CP JLP (talk) 19:55, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

The first episode with the Borg was Q Who?; if I remember correctly, they were bald from the start. · AndonicO ^Engage. 20:00, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I thought the first episode with borg was The Neutral Zone (Star Trek: The Next Generation) Hot JJ (talk) 20:13, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

From a Star Trek Universe point of view, they met the Borg in an Enterprise episode, long before Picard was born. The Borg had crash-landed in the Arctic long before then. Sandman30s (talk) 10:39, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Well, technically Lily saw them in 2063 on the Enterprise-E after it had travelled back in time with the Borg (who subsequently crashed in the Arctic and were found 100 years later). Anyway. the Borg were not intended to be "skinheads", but I suppose it was easier for the makeup and special effects crews if they had no hair. (Remember, Star Trek isn't real and everything can be explained in terms of a budget.) Adam Bishop (talk) 16:27, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Zebras

What is the molecular mechanism for stripes in zebras? Retlon chick (talk) 20:09, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Take the text of your question, put it into the google search bar and click on "I'm feeling lucky". Zain Ebrahim (talk) 21:37, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Answers like this really get my goat. The questioner was not asking how to use Google--presumably, as an internet user, she has Googled something before and does not to be reminded how to do so again. Instead, she wishes to avail herself of the wonderful people at Wikipedia's reference desk, who, oftentimes, are more engaging, responsive and interesting than Google search results. Shame on you.--The Fat Man Who Never Came Back (talk) 23:31, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Did you actually check what you get if you follow Zain's advice? The answer looks excellent to me. In what way do you find it deficient? -- Coneslayer (talk) 15:42, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

A similar question was recently asked at the science desk. Still don't know about Zebras, I'm more at home with cats, but they come in stripes too. For the molecular basis see Melanin, Hydroquinone. For further reading Gene expression, Cat coat genetics, Melanocyte, Melanocortin, Pigment (biology) might be useful. --Lisa4edit (talk) 05:14, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Well, as you know, Fatman who never, as per policy box above, ops are encouraged to search around in google or the 'pedia first, though there's the bonus of asking directly at the desks. I saw a baby zebra without stripes on google and guess what the base colour was? White. Here[10]. Zain's answer is the best tip to have for google research, so that's a bonus too. Julia Rossi (talk) 12:05, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

I gave this user (who is one of the many socks of the Avril troll) a curt response because he copied various questions from other online Q&A sites and pasted them here. This particular sock was even chastised by one of the other socks for being disruptive at the Avril Reference Desk (I know it's a bit freaky but if it keeps him away from us then I'm for it). Zain Ebrahim (talk) 19:45, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Fish patterns

Is the variety of color patterns seen in fish a result of evolution? For example, some fish have complete circles of black near their tails while others have circular shapes on their bodies. Why don't any of these species have interrupted patterns, like triangles? And why are the color patterns of many species and phenotypes so identical? I understand that inbreeding can produce very similar phenotypes, but how does that explain the complete round patterns of so many different species of fish? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.75.198.178 (talk) 20:10, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I'm no expert. So all I can offer are some ideas of where to look for answers. Eukariotes develop by Mitosis (cell division}. Even if you'd envision cells to be more or less dice shaped, you'd move towards more and more round shapes the more cells you'd add. (Remember geometry? A hexagon has detectable corners a Heptadecagon is almost round). So round pattern are easier to arrive at. A phenotype is a genetic variation. Chromatophores are what make fish color. The basis is genetic (except for pigment translocation}. So depending on where in the genetic code of the fish the color is to be found and what trade offs a mutation will have, a different patterned phenotype becomes more or less likely. (Or will get eaten before a scientist finds it :-) Hope this helps. Lisa4edit (talk) 05:53, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Tip-of-the-tongue

When someone has something on the “tip-of-their-tongue”, but is unable to pull it from memory despite belief that it is there. How is this phenomenon be explained?

You may be interested in our article on tip of the tongue or the results of google searches like 'tip of the tongue' research. — Lomn 21:14, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Turn signal lights on pick-up trucks

What was the first year that turn signal lights were offered on American pick-up trucks?198.208.251.22 (talk) 20:12, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Per our article on turn signals, the modern signals were broadly introduced in 1939. This site suggests that Chevy trucks adopted them in 1940 (note that questions about '39-'46 trucks are lumped together save "should a '39 have turn signals?"). Depending on your criteria, though, an earlier answer may be appropriate. — Lomn 21:22, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Globe

What ratio is a standard sized globe to the actual size of the earth? Retlon chick (talk) 20:55, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Depends upon what the "standard size" of a globe is. I'm not sure there is such a thing. If we assume the globe had a diameter of 1.5 feet, and the earth as a mean diameter of 20,902,231 feet, then the answer would appear to be roughly 1:13,934,821 --Tagishsimon (talk) 21:01, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Also depends on what you mean by size. Zain Ebrahim (talk) 21:09, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

The standard size (see Borges and J. Rossi) is the same size as the planet Earth and is an identical copy containing all organisms of the original. As to which of the two the real one is, there are two schools of thinking. --Cookatoo.ergo.ZooM (talk) 21:46, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Is it worth answering this one?[11] Julia Rossi (talk) 09:59, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Dissing in Country Music

Is there such thing as dissing iin country music Ericthebrainiac (talk) 21:24, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Just on the spot the guy in "You picked a fine time to leave me Lucille" was rather unhappy with his new acquaintance's actions. For the most part I think it's just expressed in a little more polite language. (Now probably hundreds of people are going to come up with bad language in country songs.) --Lisa4edit (talk) 06:00, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

"Dissing" doesn't mean using impolite language, it means attacking other singers in a song. Rap music does it a lot. Corvus cornix_talk 17:27, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

It's not quite "country" but Sweet Home Alabama attacks/"disses" Neil Young. Fribbler (talk) 18:44, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

There's no article in wikipedia for "dissing" only a soft link to Wiktionary which is different. Both answers make a stub – any takers? Julia Rossi (talk) 09:45, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

It will depend on the sub-genre. In bluegrass, you will probably have trouble finding any dissing. But in country rock or country rap I would be surprised if you didn't find any. Surely there must be something related to the Dixie Chicks? Rmhermen (talk) 14:04, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

I'm not an expert, by far, but I don't recall having ever heard of any. Corvus cornix_talk 23:55, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Hand dryers or paper towels

Are hand dryers or paper towels more common in public restrooms? LLOTAAMI (talk) 21:43, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

I would guess paper towels. Useight (talk) 06:54, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

And I'd counter with hand dryers are much more common than paper towels in Ireland. It likely varies from place to place. Fribbler (talk) 17:14, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

This is unscientific, I'm sure, but from what I notice around where I live, there was a time when hand dryers were more common, but now it seems like paper towels are more common, including ones with (infarad?) sensors to dispense paper towels. But there are obviously advantages and disadvantages. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 20:09, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Dryers are still more common in Australia, but now and again there's a surprise paper dispenser – usually in upmarket places like the Opera House restrooms and posh department stores. I'm still wiping my air dried hands on my jeans but maybe that will change soon I hope, Julia Rossi (talk) 09:40, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Neural network

What is a neural network and how does its operation differ from that of a digital computer? (In other words, is the brain like a computer?) Terror toad (talk) 21:44, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Have you read our articles on neural networks and artificial neural networks? — Lomn 21:53, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Sit dog, good boy

Animals learn from their parents, such as hunting skills etc. Why doesn't the knowledge of being able to sit in dogs get passed on? Jellojolts (talk) 21:52, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

One straightforward explanation is that sitting on command (a trick for humans) is an entirely different sort of skill than hunting (a survival skill with untold years of evolution behind it), and that there's no reason to expect the transmission of one to imply the transmission of the other. — Lomn 21:56, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Yup. Without the reward-from-human stimulus, there's no particular reason for a dog to sit just because a human says "sit". --jpgordon^∇∆∇∆ 22:57, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Dogs learn to sit because they are taught to sit. Does a parent dog teach a puppy how to sit on command from a human? No. Why would they? How would they? --98.217.8.46 (talk) 00:34, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

The first dog that says "sit" like a human will get a prize. :-)Lisa4edit (talk) 06:02, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

I guess if dogs were selectively bred over however many generations to strengthen the 'sit on command' behavioural tendency it would be possible to have a breed that would readily sit on command - maybe we could call them 'sitters'. At present dogs are bred for certain behavioural traits such as retrieving shot game, pointing at game or chasing a dummy rabbit. The dogs require some training but take to the task much more easily than most other breeds. Btw I can't go along with the idea that the canine parents teach their offspring to hunt. If you've ever owned a Jack Russell terrier from a young puppy you would know that you spend half your life trying to stop the thing 'hunting', a skill it definitely did not learn from its parents. Richard Avery (talk) 07:33, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

A friend of mine tells me that it is actually much quicker to train puppies if they are living with an already trained dog, because they will see the other obeying correctly. I have not been in both situations so I can't verify this. -- Q Chris (talk) 07:39, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

On a tangent: Why are human babies not born with the ability to speak fluently? Ignoring the tricky bit - which language? - this would be quite an evolutionary advantage. --Cookatoo.ergo.ZooM (talk) 23:13, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

They are. They just don't have much to say except to complain, and we don't understand them a lot of the time. --Milkbreath (talk) 12:12, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Driving licenses

What hair color do they put on bald peoples drivers licenses? Youlipo (talk) 22:03, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

• Whatever the applicant says, in my experience. --jpgordon^∇∆∇∆ 22:58, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

In cases other than Alopecia, people will have an existing hair colour (of exising hair :-)) and that is what's listed. Though I've seen "none" listed where the identification of the person (which is what it's all about) would render the hair colour irrelevent. Fribbler (talk) 01:00, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Haha. Thank you Youlipo because now, not only does wikipedia have an article on almost everything, we have questions on just about everything, with Fribbler and jpgordon to catch it. Su-perb,  : ) Julia Rossi (talk) 11:54, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Color of eyebrows, perhaps, being facial hair apparent on males and females of all ages. -- Deborahjay (talk) 16:24, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

And, if that does not suffice, your pubes will be inspected. Wearing a merkin whilst driving is therefore discouraged by authorities. --Cookatoo.ergo.ZooM (talk) 23:05, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Does that mean, if you're feeling cocky you might wear it on your head? ; ) Julia Rossi (talk) 09:37, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Drinking

When in the company of others, what is the etiquette for drinking beer out of the bottle? Should it be poured into a glass? Youlipo (talk) 22:05, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

It depends upon who the other are & how much you care about prevailing mores. --Tagishsimon (talk) 22:24, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Yup, depends too much on the situation. In some kinds of bars it would be unfashionable and a little odd to ask for a glass for one's beer (usually pseudo-exotic "world" lager) whereas in most restaurants it would be a bit uncouth to drink straight from the bottle. I don't think that either would be a terminal faux-pas in most places, though, so don't worry too much. 81.187.153.189 (talk) 22:38, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Except, of course, in the unlikely event that your beer is bottle-conditioned. Repeatedly tipping that up and back will just stir up the yeast, so a single pour into a glass is the way forward. 81.187.153.189 (talk) 22:40, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

It also depends on whether the bottle is full-size bottle or a stubbie. Full-size: always pour into a glass unless you want to be seen as a hobo (particularly if it's wrapped in paper). Stubbie: it depends, but in Australia drinking straight from the stubbie is ok in casual situations; in restaurants you'll usually be given a glass and the waiter will pour most of the beer into the glass, leave the stubbie on the table, and let you make your own decision about how you want to guzzle the remainder. Only a very prim and proper person would object if you raised the stubbie to your lips. But if you're meeting a prospective employer, you might want to err on the side of caution. -- JackofOz (talk) 01:23, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

That's funny. Not only do those two categories not really exist in the US (I've never considered the size of the bottle to matter at all), but the etiquette is quite different (it's all or nothing here). --98.217.8.46 (talk) 04:24, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Note that in some cuisine it seems quite common to drink from the bottle in the US. I have rarely been served a glass to drink beer from in either Mexican or Chinese restaurants, even if they were rather up-scale. When in doubt, as with most matters of etiquette, copy those around you. --98.217.8.46 (talk) 04:24, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Maybe "full sized" meant "a pitcher of" which is a serving size in the US that would definitely require glasses. Also consider whether you trust their dishwasher or maybe wiping the "mouth" of the bottle is more hygienic. Lisa4edit (talk) 06:09, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

An example of a 40

I think "full sized" means a larger bottle, like a "40" seen in the picture, which do exist in the US. And as far as I know, "full-size" are also common in Japan, where you would pour it into a glass because you share that bottle with whoever you're drinking with. Let me find a source. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 20:15, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

For example, see here and here. On a sidenote, for me in the US, I pour it into a glass if they give me one, else I have no problems drinking from the bottle. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 20:18, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Finally, in the case of draught / draft beer, drinking from the keg requires some skill and muscular strength if any sort of elegance in the dainty handling of the barrel is to be displayed. In some of the upmarket restaurants, even suckling directly from the tap behind the counter is marginally frowned upon. See our article on Mr Creosote for a concise treatise on suitable table manners in explosive situations. --Cookatoo.ergo.ZooM (talk) 21:36, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

PS: As part of my studies have been financed via a short career in the old Kent Brewery on Sydney´s Broadway, opposite my alma mater, the UTS / University of Technology, Sydney, I am somewhat of an expert in this, having spent many a night shift in the cellar in the proximity of beer kegs in various stages of emptiness. You may assume that this explains many of my idiosyncrasies. --Cookatoo.ergo.ZooM (talk) 21:49, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

That took gUTS, Cookatoo! Hmm no-one mentioned the name "long neck" which (as with on tap) in public is best poured into a glass and sometimes shared that way. In Oz, a table service restaurant usually provides glasses; more casually, in counter service and BYO a stubby is its own little measure and most people I've noticed drink from the small bottle. Julia Rossi (talk) 09:32, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

How many wood chips to use

I just purchased a bbq with a side fire box. I tried to smoke a 2 lb roast for 3 hrs at 240 degrees, but I had no clue on how many wood chips to add, and when I was done the meet tasted like an old barn just burned down. How many am I suppose to use? Jellojolts (talk) 22:27, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

• Was it the first time you heated the bbq? I had to run mine real hot for a couple hours before the nasty stink all went away. --jpgordon^∇∆∇∆ 22:39, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Seasonal Question

I am a bit slow. I get confused easily by seasons and times. I am not a seasons and times kinda guy. I am a its kinda hot grabs shorts kinda guy. So this has never crossed my mind before. Until now. When it is the winter in the UK is it summer in Texas? Btw, I read the article about seasons already. As I said before I am slow about seasons. Thank You

Always

Cardinal Raven

Cardinal Raven (talk) 22:59, 15 May 2008 (UTC)Cardinal Raven

No. Algebraist 23:01, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Scientifically, seasons are determined by the solstices, equinoxes, and the equator. Climatically, though, not all places experience a summer/autumn/winter/spring cycle. Areas with monsoon seasons would be a good example of this. — Lomn 23:09, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

For the most part, seasons are determined by the Earth's axial tilt. From March to September the sun shines more directly on the Northern hemisphere and so these months tend to be hotter, while the Southern hemisphere is colder. Texas is well north the Southern hemisphereand experiences summer and winter at the same time as the UK. -- Mad031683 (talk) 23:21, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Right. Texas and the UK are both in the Northern Hemisphere, so they both experience summer and winter at the same times. (Though, due to the difference between their climates, winter on the Gulf Coast of Texas may feel a bit like summer in some parts of the UK, such as Scotland.) When it is winter in Argentina or Australia, however, it is summer in Texas, because those countries are on the other side of the Equator. Marco polo (talk) 00:30, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Thank you for the clarification.71.142.222.245 (talk) 01:12, 16 May 2008 (UTC)Cardinal Raven

It is relevant that Texas is 25-36 while London is 51 degrees North of the Equator. MilkFloat 12:12, 16 May 2008 (UTC)