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Sizzlechest posted:My parents' 50th is coming up in a few months. My first instinct was to chip in with my siblings to buy them a vacation to Hawaii or some other getaway location. Unfortunately, my mom will never fly and my dad isn't in the best condition to do any kind of standing, much less walking. I spoke to them about cruises, but now my mom is afraid of ships for some reason. Travel is out. It would depend on where you are, but try to find some kind of performance they could view. This might involve traveling to a major city, but look around for symphony halls, operas, plays, or concerts. Something like any of the Cirque de Soliel routines, or even Blue Man Group if your parents are that hip, could be part of a nice evening. If ten people is the crowd you'd expect to gather, you could always do an out door family cookout at a local park if there are public grills, and most every fancy restaurants will have special rooms for parties of 10-15.
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Apr 13, 2011 02:30
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Jam2 posted:Rental, college. I move out permanently in a month. What should I do until then? The area is very humid. Moisture lingers. Clean the mold off the wall and keep an eye on it. Mold isn't as scary as people make it out to be.
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Apr 13, 2011 02:37
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Can someone post a link to the original thread in GBS about how there could be no "major" nuclear problem in Japan following the Earthquake? There was like 50+ page thread and I can't find it.
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Apr 13, 2011 02:49
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Loopyface posted:Clean the mold off the wall and keep an eye on it. Mold isn't as scary as people make it out to be.
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Apr 13, 2011 02:49
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So I want to know about philosophical journals. For example, how different are they from scientific journals? If someone was so inclined, could they just sit down and write out something a priori and still have it published/ accepted as valid as long as they showed their process?
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Apr 13, 2011 02:56
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I want some obnoxiously red converse tennis shoes. Usually, I'll get the cheap knockoffs from Payless that are something like $10-20 per pair, and I'm always disappointed with them. They're not terribly comfortable, and they seem to fall apart about 3 months in. Are actual converse any better? Is there some third option for the same look, but better quality?
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Apr 13, 2011 03:07
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change my name posted:So I want to know about philosophical journals. For example, how different are they from scientific journals? If someone was so inclined, could they just sit down and write out something a priori and still have it published/ accepted as valid as long as they showed their process? Yes as long as you did not misuse common philosophical terms like a priori.
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Apr 13, 2011 03:08
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I want to make Firefox 4 not show icons in the Bookmarks bar (basically return it to the Firefox 3 behavior). What is an extension that does that? (Separate question: Why do 'updates' always break established workflows? Do software engineers really not understand how people work, and that people do not want to have to fight with their tools to get things done?)
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Apr 13, 2011 03:11
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I'm trying to write a sphere culling algorithm and I'm kind of stumped on the geometry. The problem can roughly be stated as "can any line be drawn from point P to sphere B that also intersects sphere A?" So basically "figure out if a point lies within the shaded area:"  e: intersect = Aorigin + (Borigin-Aorigin)*(Aradius/(Aradius+Bradius)) lenAI = len(Aorigin-intersect) lenRI = sqrt(lenAI^2 - Ar^2) coneMinimumDistance = lenRI^2/lenAI cutoffRadius = lenRI*Ar/lenAI coneRadiusByDistance = cutoffRadius/coneMinimumDistance Maybe? OneEightHundred fucked around with this message at 08:00 on Apr 13, 2011 |
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Apr 13, 2011 03:21
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Loopyface posted:Clean the mold off the wall and keep an eye on it. Mold isn't as scary as people make it out to be. Some mold isn't as scary as people make it out to be. Unless he's a mold expert he's not gonna know whether it's dangerous or not. They're some pretty nasty stuff out there. Either way, it's gonna get on your clothes. Keep everything away from it and call the maintenance department. They'll want to know about mold as soon as possible, since it's probably the result of a leaking toilet or roof above you and water damage is retardedly expensive to fix, and it just gets more expensive as time goes on since it rots the wood.
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Apr 13, 2011 03:24
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How do I tell the upstairs people that they need to take their children outdoors to play? I work from home, and they have a toddler and occasionally other kids over. The weather is getting nice and there's a park one block away, and it's making me insane that the child runs back and forth constantly. I don't want to just go up there and be rude, but not only is it fraying the poo poo out of my nerves, I also wonder about the health issues of not taking kids out of doors daily to have a good run around. Isn't this how you give kids asthma?
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Apr 13, 2011 03:31
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Jam2 posted:Rental, college. I move out permanently in a month. What should I do until then? The area is very humid. Moisture lingers. I would get some bleach, dilute it reasonably, and spray the poo poo out of your entire closet. Wash all the clothes that are in there, spray all the hangers. Then spray everything again. MAYBE put your clothes back. Egh. I hate mold. I honestly am not even sure bleach would be the best thing, but it's a good place to start. And yeah, tell maintenance. change my name posted:So I want to know about philosophical journals. For example, how different are they from scientific journals? If someone was so inclined, could they just sit down and write out something a priori and still have it published/ accepted as valid as long as they showed their process? I'm assuming you mean academic philosophy journals. Humanities journals are still peer-reviewed, like science ones. I don't think they're going to just publish your ideas on existence or whatever; rather, it'd be analyses & arguments about particular areas of philosophy and philosophers. They'd expect knowledge of the field, references, etc. Eggplant Wizard fucked around with this message at 03:44 on Apr 13, 2011 |
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Apr 13, 2011 03:42
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Pile of Kittens posted:How do I tell the upstairs people that they need to take their children outdoors to play? I work from home, and they have a toddler and occasionally other kids over. The weather is getting nice and there's a park one block away, and it's making me insane that the child runs back and forth constantly. I don't want to just go up there and be rude, but not only is it fraying the poo poo out of my nerves, I also wonder about the health issues of not taking kids out of doors daily to have a good run around. Isn't this how you give kids asthma? I wonder if the mom is in some parenting thread saying, "How do I tell the creeper downstairs that he needs to get a real office?" Fake edit: The neighborly thing to do would be to introduce yourself and let her know you work from home. Give her a chance to recognize that and be considerate of her own volition. But if she doesn't, there isn't much you can do.
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Apr 13, 2011 03:44
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Golbez posted:Final edit: Would using a neti pot help with such things? Everybody I know who has used a neti pot raves and raves about how wonderful they are. They tend to be the people who have had horrendous sinus trouble for years and years, and then suddenly neti pots come out and their ENT guy says to try it and it works and it's like a whole new world, and you ask them, "Eh, what's up with neti pots?" and their eyes light up with religious fervor and they start preaching. That's the extent of my knowledge. Never tried them myself.
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Apr 13, 2011 04:18
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This is a serious question and I'd appreciate not getting W&Wed all over. Is there a site out there (or maybe someone with experience) that has serious, helpful reviews of weight loss programs such as Jenny Craig and Weight Watchers that aren't just satisfied customers or people who couldn't stick to the programs? Something like a Consumer Reports for all the various weight loss programs and such.
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Apr 13, 2011 04:22
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Gravity Pike posted:I want some obnoxiously red converse tennis shoes. Usually, I'll get the cheap knockoffs from Payless that are something like $10-20 per pair, and I'm always disappointed with them. They're not terribly comfortable, and they seem to fall apart about 3 months in. Are actual converse any better? Is there some third option for the same look, but better quality? By converse, do you mean chuck taylor all-stars, specifically? Unless they changed the design(I haven't worn real ones in 15 years), they were very uncomfortable compared to modern shoe design.
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Apr 13, 2011 05:44
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PlasticPaddy posted:Does anyone know of a site where I can make customizable non-digital cards? In this case for a wedding. My friend is getting hitched and I want to make him a card that has a really idiotic picture to show how disappointed I am in his decision.
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Apr 13, 2011 06:11
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Eggplant Wizard posted:I would get some bleach, dilute it reasonably, and spray the poo poo out of your entire closet. Wash all the clothes that are in there, spray all the hangers. Then spray everything again. MAYBE put your clothes back. My whole apartment is "moist" all the time. I feel like I'm living in a loving petri dish. I'm not sure whether I should open up a door lest I introduce the swamp bugs to my home. I can't tell whether it's more humid indoors or outdoors either. I cannot wait to get out of here
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Apr 13, 2011 06:22
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Gravity Pike posted:I want some obnoxiously red converse tennis shoes. Usually, I'll get the cheap knockoffs from Payless that are something like $10-20 per pair, and I'm always disappointed with them. They're not terribly comfortable, and they seem to fall apart about 3 months in. Are actual converse any better? Is there some third option for the same look, but better quality? Depending on budget and how specific you want to be about the style, you could always design your own shoes. This site is a portal to a heap of other sites that let you change colors, styles, and even put on your own artwork.
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Apr 13, 2011 14:59
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Jam2 posted:My whole apartment is "moist" all the time. I feel like I'm living in a loving petri dish. I'm not sure whether I should open up a door lest I introduce the swamp bugs to my home. I can't tell whether it's more humid indoors or outdoors either.  That is gross. If you were going to be there more than another month I'd suggest getting a dehumidifier, but it's probably not worth it.
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Apr 13, 2011 15:04
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WHEEZY HIDE A EGG posted:This is a serious question and I'd appreciate not getting W&Wed all over. Consumer Reports has actually done a couple of them in the past IIRC, but they aren't online, you'll have to go down to your local public library and consult the Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature (ask the Reference Librarian for help) and then sit there and read magazines.
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Apr 13, 2011 15:05
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OneEightHundred posted:I'm trying to write a sphere culling algorithm and I'm kind of stumped on the geometry. The problem can roughly be stated as "can any line be drawn from point P to sphere B that also intersects sphere A?" What do you mean by algorithm? If you're only dealing with 2 spheres at a time, it semes like you're looking for a closed form solution involving the center points of the two spheres and their radii. I can't figure it out off the top of my head, but I'm pretty sure (if you look on the plane that contains the centers of both spheres) that there's an easy way to build a tangent line from one circle to the "other" side of the second circle. Once you have that tangent line, sweep it about the tangent contact circle and you'll have your cone.
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Apr 13, 2011 17:15
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Fig Newton posted:Consumer Reports has actually done a couple of them in the past IIRC, but they aren't online, you'll have to go down to your local public library and consult the Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature (ask the Reference Librarian for help) and then sit there and read magazines. Consumer Reports does have information online, but they have it behind a paywall. I can get access through my local library's website, so WHEEZY HIDE A EGG (I love your seasonal name changes, BTW) may want to check there. The only thing I could find though was a comparison of Jenny Craig to Nutrisystem from January 2011. CR is really good about keeping track of when they last rated something though. The back of the December issue has it, and the annual buyers guide (the little Readers Digest-sized thing) does as well. I would check there first.
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Apr 13, 2011 17:41
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WHEEZY HIDE A EGG posted:This is a serious question and I'd appreciate not getting W&Wed all over. Like Fig Newton mentioned, you can find some reviews, but the problem is that they're hardly scientific. Even if Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig did have reliable data, they're sure as poo poo not sharing any of it with you unless it can be spun positively. There are a lot of studies done to compare types of diets. One of the better (although not perfect) studies was done by Stanford University. They compared four different diets: Atkins, Zone, Ornish, and LEARN. The result was that the Atkins diet (low carb and high fat) was the best at losing weight, keeping it off, and improving cholesterol profiles. Adherence to the diets was tracked; on average, people deviated from the requirements after a few months, but there was still a statistically significant advantage for the Atkins dieters. The JAMA paper is here: http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/297/9/969.full Here's a video that explains it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eREuZEdMAVo I don't agree with all of what's said, but it's a good watch anyway. EDIT: I speul gud! Sizzlechest fucked around with this message at 20:30 on Apr 13, 2011 |
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Apr 13, 2011 17:42
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Jam2 posted:Rental, college. I move out permanently in a month. What should I do until then? The area is very humid. Moisture lingers. Since you're moving out so soon I'd maybe just tape plastic wrap over it or something? Or if it's way too much you can just scrub it down. If you're that scared of it you can get a facemask. Or since you're renting, call the maintenance people. Pile of Kittens posted:How do I tell the upstairs people that they need to take their children outdoors to play? I wouldn't even tell a friend how to take care of their children, much less a stranger. If you want to be passive-aggressive, play loud music or something. Or get some headphones.
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Apr 13, 2011 20:25
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Schnozzberry posted:Can someone post a link to the original thread in GBS about how there could be no "major" nuclear problem in Japan following the Earthquake? There was like 50+ page thread and I can't find it. Sort by number of replies and look for the locked thread. But since the thread title changed, here it is.
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Apr 13, 2011 21:24
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Eggplant Wizard posted:I would get some bleach, dilute it reasonably, and spray the poo poo out of your entire closet. Wash all the clothes that are in there, spray all the hangers. Then spray everything again. MAYBE put your clothes back. I've been watching a ton of "Holmes on Homes" and they recommend a nice solution of warm water and soap to clean up household mold. Bleach apparently doesn't kill it as effectively and can mess with the wall coloration. Clean up the existing mold, run fans and heat to warm and dry the area and that should clear the existing mold. Thing is, why is there mold at all? Tackling that problem is tougher. It's easy to get mold in the back of closets and such in humid areas, especially ones with dramatic temperature changes. Keep your clothes away from the back walls, run a fan for a few days to help circulate the air and hopefully reduce the amount of moisture sitting on the walls.
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Apr 13, 2011 21:49
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I want to get a small gift (like a candle) for a professor at my college that has helped me out greatly. However, she is a very by the books person and I am afraid that she might not accept a gift (because it can be portrayed as bribery if someone saw it). Is there any creative ways that you guys can think of that show your appreciation without breaking any rules?
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Apr 13, 2011 23:44
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CheerGrrl92 posted:I want to get a small gift (like a candle) for a professor at my college that has helped me out greatly. However, she is a very by the books person and I am afraid that she might not accept a gift (because it can be portrayed as bribery if someone saw it). Can't say I know how to keep from breaking a rule, but as a former teacher I'd like to say: no candles. Or coffee mugs.
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Apr 14, 2011 00:27
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CheerGrrl92 posted:Is there any creative ways that you guys can think of that show your appreciation without breaking any rules? Give something with no monetary value. I'm sure something personal would be appreciated just as much or more than anything you'd feel comfortable buying. Write her a nice thankyou card or if you do crafts make some nice little crafty thing for her.
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Apr 14, 2011 00:29
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If you get it after the class has ended, there shouldn't be any problem. Worst case scenario, get a candle with a scent that you like so that if she refuses it (and accepts your feelings), then you can just use it yourself.
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Apr 14, 2011 00:29
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Melicious posted:Can't say I know how to keep from breaking a rule, but as a former teacher I'd like to say: no candles. Or coffee mugs. Do teachers get these all the time? or better yet: What kind of gift is candle anyway? Do you people live in areas with common power outages? For the original asker, you should write a letter (not an e-mail) to the head of the professor's department, and a separate letter to the dean of the school, and a separate letter to the head of the university praising specifically what the professor did to help. You will be giving the teacher/professor a gift of great value, which cannot be refused. Anything else is silly, and of no value to a professor. LasterTrain fucked around with this message at 02:32 on Apr 14, 2011 |
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Apr 14, 2011 02:28
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LasterTrain posted:Do teachers get these all the time? Professor's being human, as I understand they all are, would also benefit from a gift of physical value and a candle which gives of smells (which I assume the person was thinking of) would be a constant reminder of the reward of a job well done.
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Apr 14, 2011 02:35
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LasterTrain posted:What kind of gift is candle anyway? Do you people live in areas with common power outages? Depending on the professor's gender/age... it could be appreciated. My mother collects big, scented candles and probably has a hundred or so in the house that she rotates through depending on what she wants to smell. LasterTrain posted:For the original asker, you should write a letter (not an e-mail) to the head of the professor's department, and a separate letter to the dean of the school, and a separate letter to the head of the university praising specifically what the professor did to help. You will be giving the teacher/professor a gift of great value, which cannot be refused. Anything else is silly, and of no value to a professor. Speaking as a teacher, I value the things my students give me and appreciate the feelings behind them. It's something to remember them by when I look at them/use it. I've gotten tons of hand towels, pencils, and pictures, but that doesn't make them any less useful or nice to have. You sound really jaded and cranky.
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Apr 14, 2011 02:39
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My jaw cracks when I chew, I have noticed that my dads does the same. I hate the sound of it and feel a little self conscious about it when other people are around, is there anything that I can do or should I just buy earplugs and eat alone?
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Apr 14, 2011 02:47
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I'm looking for a website that I only have vague memories of, and considering the subject matter it's proving very difficult to try to find via google searches. The basic premise of the site was people would send letters to generic addresses and the site would post them. An example of something they might post would be "Dear Science, why is the Earth round?" and the letter might get sent to a local Astronomy chapter or something. Sometimes they would get responses and they would also post those. It was a pretty rad website but my memory is failing me and my googlefu proves weak. Help??
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Apr 14, 2011 02:49
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Edit: nvm, wrong thread, sorry.
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Apr 14, 2011 03:02
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Bojanglesworth posted:My jaw cracks when I chew, I have noticed that my dads does the same. I hate the sound of it and feel a little self conscious about it when other people are around, is there anything that I can do or should I just buy earplugs and eat alone? Your jaw is pretty much connected directly to your ear canal; are you sure that anyone else can hear it? Or that they mind? Also, earplugs will only make it worse.
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Apr 14, 2011 03:07
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LasterTrain posted:Do teachers get these all the time? Yes. I have a whole cabinet full of them. The other thing about anything scented is that many smells which some enjoy, others find repulsive. I hate anything remotely floral-smelling, but lots of other women love that stuff and therefore assume I will. Instead I just end up with a really stinky cabinet. Coffee mugs too, yeah, I'm in a constant state of paring them down because I get one as a gift but have no space for it in my kitchen cupboard. Of course any gift is nice to receive, but some are more useful than others. As much as I love when somebody wants to show their appreciation, I'd rather not continue to stockpile a bunch of stuff I have no use for. I've seen plenty of other teachers chuck that type of thing straight in the trash once the student leaves. Something handmade or with more personal meaning is excellent. What about a donation someplace in their name to an organization that has to do with their subject? I taught an introductory reading class for awhile and one of the parents bought and donated a bunch of books to a charity in my name. It was a really nice idea without burdening me with things I didn't want!
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Apr 14, 2011 03:09
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tarepanda posted:You sound really jaded and cranky. No just impatient with ineffectual lazy people who claim to be appreciative, but cannot be bothered to actually make a difference. The teacher made the effort; the supposedly appreciative student should to. The teacher did not scent the room with candles, she worked hard and put years of effort to arrive at the point where she made a difference to the student, and the student's response is to go to the store and buy a candle? It takes far more work to find out the name and address of the department head, the name and address of the school dean, and the name and address of the president, and then write them all letters of specific praise. Going to the store to buy a candle, or to buy a card containing some card writer's words is trifling, vapid and incommensurate to the work a professor/lecturer/teacher put into becoming a professor, and the time and effort she became to become good at it, and the ongoing effort of preparing lesson plans and delivering them. Making sure the professor's chain of command, the people responsible for hiring her, and continuing to employ her, and the people determining whether she makes tenure, are aware of her impact as a teacher is important, and keeps her from being shuttled off to annual hire lecturer status like so many women in academia are, or worse yet, from not having her contract renewed for next year, because of budget cuts. Buying her a candle is denigrating what she did to get where she is in general, and it is rather specifically denigrating in an unintentionally sexist way. Male professor don't get candles, they get letters of praise that benefit their careers. Moreover, 'girly' presents are completely missing the point. If the teacher matters to a student, the student should do what she can to make sure that teacher has the opportunity to continue to make a difference. Buying a candle is trifling, might get the teacher in trouble, and might get tossed out the minute the silly nit who gives it leaves the room (so says the teacher above me). Writing letters of specific praise to the people in charge of staffing the classrooms makes a difference to the specific instructor, and to later students who are more likely to also benefit from that specific teacher's skill and effort. Teachers will treasure letters of praise for the rest of their lives, especially if those letters of praise get their annual lecturer's contracts renewed, or contribute to earning tenure through teaching excellence.
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Apr 14, 2011 04:03
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