Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2012 November 14

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November 14

Australian visa

My niece moved to Australia with her mum just over a year ago. Under whatever type of visa she had she was able to do voluntary work with elders. Just recently, as her visa was expiring, she was required to return to the UK to get it renewed. She got it but the stipulation is that she can on do six month volunteer work and must spend the other six months picking fruit or something. I thought at first it was a Working Holidays in Australia visa (Working holiday visa) but I'm not sure as the article says that the extension could be applied for in Australia rather than returning to the UK. Anyone have any idea what this is? Thanks. CambridgeBayWeather (talk) 06:40, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

Is it possible that she had to return to the UK because the renewal process took longer than expected and the visa was running out before the extension came through? --PalaceGuard008 (Talk) 12:43, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

Maybe she had a different type of visa first time round? This suggests that, if she had a tourist visa at first, she might have been able to do the genuine voluntary work you describe without breaking its terms. If she has now returned on a working holiday visa, the same site says that a first application must be made from outside Australia, which would explain her return to the UK to get it. It would also explain why she cannot do paid work for more than six months with the same employer. Second applications for this kind of visa can indeed made from inside Australia by UK citizens [1]. - Karenjc 18:30, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

Thanks those are some good suggestions. CambridgeBayWeather (talk) 09:35, 15 November 2012 (UTC)

vote for police and crime commissioners tomorrow - no idea who to vote for - what does job entail?

Resolved

We have (among others):

• One guy with a solid political background as a ex councillor who has sat on police liaison comities.
• retired police Detective Inspector with an exemplary record and experience on the National Crime Squad, Homicide and major crimes.
• A woman who has worked in the probation service and rose to board level there, and wants to emphasise on crime prevention, working with victims, etc.

All of these sound like competent candidates in their areas of expertise but as I am not sure what a police and crime commissioner does I don't know which background would best suit the job. Basically is it political, police orientated or social? I have deliberately not listed political affiliations because I don't want to be told who to vote for, just given info to help me make up my mind. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Q Chris (talk • contribs)

This is the ref desk, so no-one here should be advising you with opinions. However, we can point you at some sources for information. The best one I've seen on these elections is the BBC's: [2] --Dweller (talk) 10:46, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

Thanks I don't want opinions I want information on what a police and crime commissioner does. -- Q Chris (talk)

The site has plenty of information along those lines. NB there are no elections for London as Boris holds the elected powers already. --Dweller (talk) 10:58, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

So you want to be a Police & Crime Commissioner? Another one from the BBC. Dalliance (talk) 13:13, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

On a related note, I saw a flyer for a Dorset candidate the other day on a comedy show, who's slogan was "tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime" or words to that effect... The funny element of this was the candidate's name : "Nick King"...... gazhiley 16:38, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

From your list, it sounds like the first will do as the polls indicate he should, the second will be a "law and order" candidate ("lock 'em up and throw away the key"), and the third will take a more liberal approach. So, depending on your views, you have 3 clear choices. (As for myself, I think you have to treat different crimes differently. For a murderer, lock them away for life, while, for a nonviolent drug addict, get them treatment.) StuRat (talk) 20:15, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

Those would be some of those opinions the OP said he didn't want, and we don't espouse here anyway? -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 20:37, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

.36 Cal. Colt Revolver

Pat. # 5146 Ser. #165146 What can you tell me about this gun? Thanks for your help. Ed — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.128.18.171 (talk) 16:37, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

Have you checked out the list at Category:Colt revolvers?--Shantavira|^{feed me} 17:13, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

Can I leAve flourescent tubes in my car in 0 degree celsius

Or will they get damaged. They'll be in there for like 2 hrs — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.139.14.254 (talk) 23:42, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

It's hard to see how they could be damaged by 2 hours storage at 0 Celsius. The carton I've seen that fluorescent are shipped in had no warnings against exposure to freezing temperatures in storage. They can be slow to light at low temps, but that is an entirely different issue. When any electronic device is exposed to temperature extremes, especially cycling from extremely cold to extremely hot, it can cause expansion and contraction, a process which has the capability of causing connections to break or seals to leak. I have not heard of this affecting fluorescent tubes at 0 C.Edison (talk) 04:04, 15 November 2012 (UTC)

If fluorescent bulbs broke from being left in 0C, they would be utterly useless for outdoor fixtures in Canada and many other parts of the world, and I'm sure the box would say so. Someguy1221 (talk) 04:11, 15 November 2012 (UTC)

Many tube and ballast combinations will not light or are dim or flicker at 0 C, so they are in fact useless outdoors in a cold climate. This does not address how cold they can be stored. I personally would leave them in the car. They are not baby chicks. Edison (talk) 04:18, 15 November 2012 (UTC)

I wouldn't have any problem doing it either. Though I'd let the tubes come up to room temp before turning them on. Though that shouldn't take long since they are thin glass and air for the most part. And as far as using tubes at that temp, fluorescent lights are specially made for those temps. Dismas|^(talk) 04:30, 15 November 2012 (UTC)

They can be stored at much colder temperatures and for a lot longer than a few hours. A lot of the older unheated warehouses up here have them. They work fine in the summer (24 hours daylight) but as mentioned don't in the winter. Most buildings that do use them will typically store them in a cold area. CambridgeBayWeather (talk) 09:32, 15 November 2012 (UTC)