Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2010 August 1

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August 1

Which way of running a car's air conditioner is more fuel efficient?

When I run the a/c in my car, will I get better fuel economy if I use a lower fan speed with colder air temperature, or if I use a warmer air temperature with a faster fan speed? Does it make a difference at all? I live in Phoenix, so I need to use my car's a/c most of the year. I have a later-model small SUV, automatic transmission. As far as SUVs go, this one is pretty fuel efficient; however, in this very warm environment, I'd like to find a way to get better gas mileage without sacrificing a great deal of comfort.

Thank you.

Momsroo (talk) 04:30, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Well domestic airconditioners are more efficient if you run them flat out. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 13:17, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Setting the thermostat to a warmer air temperature just mixes warm air with the AC compressor's output; it doesn't actually make the compressor run more efficiently. So playing with the warm/cold mix won't help your fuel efficiency. On the fan speed count, I don't think (but I'm less sure) that fan speed is connected to compressor speed, either -- I expect there's very little difference between running the AC on low and on high. — Lomn 14:09, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Does it run more efficiently if you use the Recirculate feature? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 14:35, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Not really. The only savings you get is on cars with thermostatically controlled A/C units. The airconditioner in 99% of cars is driven by the serpentine belt from the engine. There is a magnetic clutch that disconnects the A/C pump from the belt - but that's an on/off thing. So if your A/C is turned on, the pump (which is the energy-hungry part) is imposing a load on the engine no matter what. On cars with thermostats, the pump will be disconnected from the belt (and hence impose no load) whenever the thermostat decides that the interior is cool enough. SteveBaker (talk) 18:55, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Re-circulated air will naturally be cooler, though, so even without an automatic thermostat in place, there will be a benefit in that the car will cool down more quickly and the A/C may then get shut off. That's not usually how it gets worked, though; I'm guessing most people turn it on and leave it on. Matt Deres (talk) 19:52, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Slightly off topic, recurculated air will cause your windows to fog up far, far more than fresh air (usually). Air con dehumidifies the air so it's not a problem to use recirculated air with air conditioning - but remember to switch off recirculated air when you switch off air conditioning. --203.202.43.53 (talk) 02:49, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

Oh, and most efficient time to use car air conditioning: While slowing down using engine braking. --203.202.43.53 (talk) 02:50, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

Source for Clavos bedspreads

A factory in Spain that produced/designed very beautiful woven, reversible, wool bedspreads/rugs on jacquard looms. They also produced/sold doors and hardware. The factory burned/was destroyed in the late 1960's. The name of the enterprise: "Clavos." We are trying to find a source, (used or new), for the bedspreads.66.27.67.110 (talk) 05:03, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

If you know any Spanish yourself, why not ask this question on the Spanish Wikipedia? I don't know the language very well, but I think this is the equivalent of the Refdesk: es:Wikipedia:Consultas 213.122.216.120 (talk) 00:26, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

Wiki Template and Name

I want to start a website that looks and functions like Wikipedia, but that has a different purpose. Is this allowed? If so, how do I incorporate the Wiki template? Also, I'd like my domain name to include the word 'wiki'. Is this allowed? Thank you. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.66.33.228 (talk) 09:46, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

You can install your own copy of MediaWiki software and run that, or you can make use of existing capability at Wikia. Wiki the word can be used, and is probably unencumbered by trademark. But the Wikipedia logo is not available for you to use. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 13:15, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

There are several other 'Wikis' around the web, other than Wikipedia. The two I can think of is the TWiT Wiki and the Call of Duty Wiki, which are both separate sites. Chevymontecarlo - alt 17:29, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

There are a lot more than 'several'! There are thousands, possibly tens of thousands, of web sites that use Wiki technology in general or specifically the MediaWiki software. If you install MediaWiki and modify nothing from the default settings, you'll have something that looks and behaves very much like Wikipedia - but has a picture of a flower in the top-left corner instead of the jigsaw puzzle sphere. I run a couple of MediaWiki sites and one thing you need to know is that these are magnets for spammers and other idiots. Wikipedia has enough people patrolling the site to keep the consequences of this to a minimum - but (at least at first), you won't. That means that you've either got to visit your site several times a day and clear out the junk - or you've got to set the security settings much higher than Wikipedia set them. Specifically, I disallow edits by IP users - you have to have an account in order to be able to edit - secondly, I turn on the code that requires an email confirmation in order to cut down on the amount of spam.SteveBaker (talk) 18:48, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Redundancy

Would both of the following sentences be considered proper ways of redundancy, or is one more clearer than the other? Does redundancy work in any other ways?

Department of Redundancy Department, or Redundancy Department of Redundancy 64.75.158.194 (talk) 11:08, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Neither title makes answer sense to me. In the first - why use department twice? Is it really the department of a department? The second - what does the second redundancy add to the title? Maybe i'm missing something but neither of these titles make any sense - 'Redundancy Department' or 'Department of Redundancy' would both be quite clear titles for a department that deals with redundancy. ny156uk (talk) 11:21, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

See redundancy. And irony, lol. 92.29.127.162 (talk) 17:48, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

I take it that this is supposed to be an example of redundant words, and the reference to the more common sense of being made redundant from work is just a cute touch. The first one sounds like a more plausible sloppy name for a department than the second one, to me, not sure why. I think it's just because the "of" gives the author a little longer in which to forget he has already said "department". It would also work as an acronym: the DR Department. See RAS syndrome. 81.131.53.31 (talk) 12:17, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Department of Redundancy Department according to WP ;-) hydnjo (talk) 12:59, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

If we assume the usual meaning of redundancy the attribute of being superfluous and unneeded, the repetitions of that word in both examples are redundant. However if "Redundant" is a name, such as the name of a town, then the second example make sense. Incidentally, "more clearer" is a redundant expression of the alternate comparatives "more clear" and "clearer". Cuddlyable3 (talk) 14:00, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

The OP is asking us to "clarify" this decades-old joke. What part of the joke does he not understand? Or is the question also a joke? :) ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 14:34, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Thanks, that question made me laugh. --Dweller (talk) 17:38, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Why not have an organisation that has both - the Department of Redundancy Department and the Redundancy Department of Redundancy? Although the first one is better. 92.29.127.162 (talk) 17:51, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Some of the best examples of redundancy are when names have been reduced to acronyms. A common one is to talk about "ATM machines" when "ATM" stands for "Automatic Teller Machine". You often hear people talking about "The GPS system". There are lots of them in common speech and in news reports. SteveBaker (talk) 18:37, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

See Redundancy (linguistics) and RAS syndrome for more examples. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 20:05, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Someone actually mentioned RAS syndrome earlier. Dilbert's TTP project is almost in that category. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 20:07, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Surely, WP editor Department of Redundancy Department (talk · contribs) has an insight into this question? --220.101 (talk) ^\Contribs 04:02, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

Having just received a message about this discussion, I though I'd just weigh in with one additional link about the subject which is in addition to the links above. —DoRD (talk) 13:27, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

Really, I always thought it should be "Department of the Department of Redundancy", but... --Ludwigs2 00:19, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

Or it could be the Redundant Redundancy Department of the Department of Redundancy and Redundancy Related Departments That Are Redundant And Constantly Repeat Themselves Everytime In A Comedic Or Possibly Poetic Manner And Are Organized In Redundant Departments... Lol wut? XD Anyway... apparantly more people think that the first option makes more sense. Reminds me of the internet meme (adjective)(noun) is (same adjective), such as "obvious troll is obvious". 64.75.158.194 (talk) 11:18, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

Simple design for a wooden chair

Due to often leaning back on its back legs, the metal frame of my office chair seems destined to soon snap like a flexed paperclip. Is there any freely available design for a chair that I can make out of wood, that a) only requires simple sawing and drilling, b) has arms, and c) if possible will stand up to be leaning back on it? Thanks 92.29.127.162 (talk) 17:59, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Links to various chair plans. Cuddlyable3 (talk) 22:21, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Please explain what the point of giving that link is, since none of them fulfil condition a)? 92.28.249.190 (talk) 22:32, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

The point was that you may find any of the free plans helpful. One of the chair plans is described as "easy to build" and was reportedly[1] built by a 4 year old. Cuddlyable3 (talk) 15:00, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

The simplest style of chair that I can imagine is this: [2] - sadly, it fails your requirement for arms. SteveBaker (talk) 02:05, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

. . but it wouldn't take much to add a pair of swing down arms that engage with the upright part. Richard Avery (talk) 07:44, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

I guess I will have to design it myself. Something like two "A" frames that support a seat and a back between them, and arms too. I omitted to add that I was thinking of 2x1s rather than big planks. 92.24.185.100 (talk) 18:13, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

Surgeons infected by blood borne pathogens from patients

How often, if at all, do licensed surgeons in licensed hospitals become infected by blood borne diseases (HIV, Hepatitis, etc...) from operating on infected patients? Obviously, I would imagine that the surgeon would have to cut him/herself while operating on the patient right? Is this common? Are there procedures for screening infected patients that come through emergency?

Thanks Acceptable (talk) 22:52, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

I can't answer your exact question, but I can tell you that my sister, who recently qualified as a doctor, had to have loads of vaccinations before starting med school. If they bother getting med students to have lots of vaccinations, the risk of infection much be significant. --Tango (talk) 23:01, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Yikes. I didn't think it happened often enough to necessitate vaccinations before even starting med school. Although with certain diseases (HIV for example), vaccination might not be much help, right? 24.189.87.160 (talk) 00:42, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

The biggest risk is from needle sticks, which are especially likely while suturing. A review published in 2000 found that over 10% of surgeons had infection probably acquired in this way, the great majority involving hepatitis B, smaller numbers involving HIV and hepatitis C. So it's a significant risk. Looie496 (talk) 00:59, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

The article on Dr Norman Bethune might be of interest, if only for the fact that he died of septicaemia. DOR (HK) (talk) 03:35, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

There has never been a documented case of a dentist contracting a blood-born illness from an infected patient -- and that would include oral surgeons and GPR residents in hospital settings. DRosenbach ^{(Talk | Contribs)} 23:24, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

I distinctly remember the inverse occurring, a dentist infecting a patient. I don't know the specifics, but it was a well reported case in the U.S. Shadowjams (talk) 07:14, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

You might be thinking of this case, involving dentist David J. Acer. Our own article is quite scant, but the CDC reports we link to in the references are rather more thorough. TenOfAllTrades(talk) 13:38, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

The illness and death of his patient Kimberly Bergalis received much more publicity. -- 119.31.126.91 (talk) 13:44, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

In the 19th and early 20th century, it was all too easy for a doctor to get infected with tuberculosis and other deadly diseases while doing autopsies. [3]. Rubber gloves were not common circa 1900, and surgeons picked up infections during surgery and autopsy [4]. One surgeon in 1899 died of plague contracted during autopsy [5]. A given surgeon might be infected numerous times during surgery in the late 19th century [6]. This was also a problem for morticians. Edison (talk) 03:04, 3 August 2010 (UTC)