Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2006 December 8

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[edit] December 8

[edit] Naruto ressembalnce

Does this person look alot like Naruto?http://i117.photobucket.com/albums/o71/Baku-Aoki/ME0000484000_1.jpg. It's been all over the internet on forums and with stuff like forums and message boards;whats true and whats not?His nickname is Nazoto(a combination of "Nazo" meaning "mystery" and "Naruto".I've heard that they're brothers or something,cant be true can it?And who is this "Nazoto"?I wanna know the truth behind this mystery!Please and thanks —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 209.244.187.211 (talk) 00:37, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

in my opinion, he looks nothing like naruto. Well can you tell me what anime he's from then?

[edit] job in history and geography

is there a job/career that deals with history and geography together? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 74.14.39.103 (talk) 02:07, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

Well, there are definitely ways of doing history that emphasize geography. And there is a small field of the history of geography. In either case your best bet is to cling to the academy. --24.147.86.187 03:11, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
I interpret that last response to mean that teaching history would likely be the best way to combine the two. StuRat 08:58, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
There is also Historical Geography for you to look over. Clio the Muse 03:14, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

A career in the military would be greatly enhanced by sound background in those humanities. --Dweller 12:49, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Or a career in diplomatic service, international journalism, or, less glamorously, reference or textbook publishing. Marco polo 19:00, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] ragtime guitar music

To whom it may cocern ,I would like to know if there is available in either music or guitar tab form the following ragtime songs.

Memphis Rag by R.L.Watson And Josiah JOnes and a 2nd song titled ...Praying on the old campground and lonesome blues I don't know the composer or player of the 2nd song.If there is a source other than yourselves that you may direct me to I would appreciate it ... thank you for any assistance .. Don Peace —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 207.81.224.19 (talk) 02:25, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

[1]“Mississippi Delta Blues Jam in Memphis” Vol. 1 Various Artists. CD 385. CD upc: 096297038529. This also has Furry Lewis, the worlds best old time bottleneck guitar player, who recorded on the Edison label, and whom I had the priviledge to hear live. $13.89 at Overstock.com [2]. Sheetmusic? Do you think the musicians worked from sheet music? I expect they used 'head arrangements.' Edison 05:25, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] What on earth could this animal be?

A friend and I were at a playground. I thought I saw a patch of red fur, but it turned out to be leaves, but now I wonder if the creature was at that spot then hid behind a tree or bush. Then, my friend saw something that looked a bit like a fox, but bigger jump from a tree. I thought I heard a growl. Then I heard leaves rustling. Suddenly I realized that this might be a chupabraca! I told my friend to run, and when I looked back, I could have sworn I saw a rusty-furred thing were we were standing! It was about 2.5-3 feet tall, but I was about twenty feet away, so it must have been bigger up close. It had little bumps running down it's back . It's body was hyena-like but the rest of it was fox-like. If you saw this sighting on my talk page, I added a bit more detail and edited it. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Thylacine lover (talk • contribs) 04:38, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

Sounds like a Pooka. B00P 05:47, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Aren't chupacabras mythical creatures? --frothT C 07:01, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Where do you live? That would help figure it out. Sounds exciting but a little scary. Maybe it was a chupacabra or a puca. -THB 08:42, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Sounds to me like a Dhole. They live in south Asia, and are visually a cross between a red fox and a dog. They're pretty cool to watch too, I've sat at the local zoo and watched them run around and communicate with each other for quite a while. --Maelwys 12:52, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Which country has the strongest military?

Which country has the strongest military?

See Superpower or Super-Duper Power Not a total answer as many other factors than military play a part in the designation. --Justanother 05:36, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
Well, the People's Liberation Army of China is the largest...which doesn't mean strongest per se. - Zepheus <ツィフィアス> 06:29, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
Yes, America's is much stronger technologically --frothT C 07:06, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
One way to compare is by expenditure. See List of countries by military expenditure. Note that the U.S. spends about half of all the military expenditure of the whole world. A lot of that money is lent to the U.S. by other countries. -THB 08:37, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Yes the USA does have the biggest expenditure and the most technalogically advanced military but I would suggest that is NOT the strongest, in fact I strongly deny that it is, referance the cockup in Vietnam , Afghanistan and now Iraq. But lets not turn this into a political debate. I don't think we have seen China's PLA in action so I wouldn't like to say, the Russians? whats their army like? How about the British Armed Forces? Undefeted since the Hundred years war with France I believe. IDF? up untill about 6 weeks ago they had never been defeted before, but can you really call them a Military? Then there is the Swiss, always overlooked, stoped the Germans pretty quick in WWII. Which poses a question, did the Swiss military actually invent The Swiss Army Knife? AMX 19:26, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

I have a quibble with your comment about the British Armed Forces. See Second Anglo-Dutch War, American Revolutionary War, and Irish War of Independence. Also, England was defeated and driven from Calais in 1558. Marco polo 20:45, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
Offensively, the U.S. If the Commander in Chief is an idiot, it doesn't mean the army isn't the strongest, just that it's being misapplied. The U.S. has the logistics and by far the best navy and air force to attack anywhere in the world. On defense, probably the Chinese or maybe the Russians, just from sheer numbers. But the Chinese can only attack their nearest neighbors. They can't even seriously threaten Taiwan in the face of American opposition. And let's not forget the Sino-Vietnamese War - they didn't do so well there. Clarityfiend 20:58, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
"Just from sheer numbers"? The U.S. active miiltary is 40% larger than Russia. And you forgot India and North Korea which both also have larger militaries than Russia. (See also List of countries by number of active troops)
Geez, how the mighty have fallen. I don't put much stock in the Indians or North Koreans though. Their equipment must be pretty obsolescent. The North Korean army is especially suspect, since it hasn't fought a real war since 1953. Clarityfiend 02:37, 9 December 2006 (UTC)
Yes, remember that navies and air forces are extremely expensive and america is one of the only nations that actually fields a sizable navy/air force. --frothT C 21:08, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

An economics comment: Much of the money spent on the military is "recycled" back into the economy of the nation in the form of pay to soldiers, money to defense contractors, etc., so we shouldn't just view all money spent on the military as being "flushed down the toilet". There is a true economic cost, however, in that soldiers are prevented from otherwise contributing to the economy (they aren't building cars or growing corn, for example). Countries which buy their weapons abroad and/or hire mercenaries would thus have a higher "true cost" than those which spend the same amount of money domestically. To justify the economic expense of the military, this true cost would need to be compared with the costs of lacking a military entirely. StuRat 09:16, 9 December 2006 (UTC)

Back to the original question: "Which country has the strongest military?" I honestly don't think it is the USA, I would think it is either going to be China, once they have modernised their Navy and Naval airforce they will take Taiwan back and there will be no stopping them. Or "old europe" Great Britian , Russia or Switzerland...Do any of the old soviet countries (appart from russia) have a worth-while military? Ukrain? Czec republic?AMX 11:54, 10 December 2006 (UTC)

The question is which currently has the strongest military, not which could, in the future. Europe "could" have the strongest military, if they wanted to, but they lack the political will to do so. StuRat 13:27, 10 December 2006 (UTC)
Actually the question is "Which country has the strongest military?" not "which currently has the strongest military" as that makes no sense.

I said "could" not becuase I was refering to the future but becuase I do not have every fact about every military force on the planet at my finger tips and thus, like everybody else, I cannot give a definite answere.AMX 18:24, 10 December 2006 (UTC)

I would probably say either America or even China. I have read that China's military has the most members/militants, but I am not sure that it would make them the strongest. — Seadog 13:34, 10 December 2006 (UTC)
Could you please define America? Last time I checked America was a vast land mass consisting of two main continents and one sub-continent none of which have their own military.AMX 18:24, 10 December 2006 (UTC)
you dont have to be flipping albert einstein to know what hes talking about. Dont be so perdantic, its aggrovating, of course hes obviously on about the United States. P.S. I'm sorry for mocking your condition if you are actually so oblivious that you didnt realise. Philc TECI 18:29, 10 December 2006 (UTC)
I said it becuase its bloody annoying when people talk about the USA as America and vice-versa THERE ARE OTHER COUNTRIES IN AMERICA.AMX 18:38, 10 December 2006 (UTC)
Yes there are other countries in america, but who cares, the point of language is to express something to someone else, and if the context makes it completely obvious what they meant, how it was worded is irrelavent. If the point was conveyed sufficiently for you to sarcastically mock its inaccuracy it just serves to show that you have some sort of inability to work with people who make mistakes. So in response, it is more annyoing when people are perdantic and act like social retards, than when people mis-use terminology. Philc TECI 18:40, 11 December 2006 (UTC)
Oh sorry AMX, I was referring to the United States of America, I sometimes forget these things, please forgive me. — Seadog 18:39, 10 December 2006 (UTC)


Right, the USA, I must contest this most strongly; The USA haven't won a war on their own EVER, now I know they won the war of independance but they weren't the USA back then , battle strategies weren't exactly brilliant and you didn't need to have studied it for 6 years before you were in command , also they were fighting an enemy (the British) who were thousands of miles away before the invention or rather use of stratiegic aircraft by the military. When you look at the facts the British weren't that bothered about keeping hold of it. Ok so they were involved in both the world wars but lets consider Vietnam; the USA's military had every mod-con , satelite communication , air supperiority and naval support. They were beaten by a buch of guerrilla's with AK47s. They're having trouble in Afganistan and losing in Iraq. Also I think there are others but I cannot remember the place names right now.AMX 19:01, 10 December 2006 (UTC)

There are other countries in the Americas. Yes, some people, at least in some contexts, use the unmodified word "America" as a synonym for "the Americas", but it's not really usual anymore. I don't think you're going to be able to change it, so for the sake of your blood pressure you might as well get used to it. --Trovatore 18:43, 10 December 2006 (UTC)
Please do not SHOUT AMX, it is not good style. Also once again I am sorry it was an honest mistake, I was just waking up to do my wiki-chores and I thought I could help out here. I am sorry that I offended you, but for the sake of everyone please calm down. We are trying to help. — Seadog 18:46, 10 December 2006 (UTC)

If you don't want me to shout by using capitals then I will try not to, I'm not angry and my bloody peasure has only gone up through laughing. Oh and there is no need to appologise.AMX 19:01, 10 December 2006 (UTC)

Reminder: The reference desk is not a chat room. Please keep your answers relevant to the question asked, as stated in "How to answer a question". Friday (talk) 19:04, 10 December 2006 (UTC)

The thing is the USA in both Vietnam and now Iraq are trying to rebuild the countries after overthowing some nasty people for the citizens benifit and future, whether or not we agree is irrelivent. If they wanted them destroyed, or if a country was actually at total war with them they could nuke them, simple as. So if the UK, for example launched some of their Trident missiles at the USA - not that it'd ever happen - and they were both at war, the USA would win. If China invaided Alaska, and China and the USA were at total war, the USA would obv. win. If the USA wanted to do away with the entire country of Iraq (or Vietnam, back in the day), they could. But they don't want to, and didn't want to. Numbercattle 21:06, 10 December 2006 (UTC)

I would NOT want to be charged with the task of capturing Switzerland or Japan! Mathiemood 06:25, 11 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Hot and cold

The article on Hangover says that taking a shower and changing it back and forth from hot to cold can be unhealthy. I've experienced this before (mostly with cold draughts and warm rooms) and it produces a violent sickening sensation in the pit of my stomach. Why? --frothT C 07:00, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Perhaps because the body suddenly shifts blood from peripheral blood vessels to more central ones. See thermoregulation. -THB

I would guess that your body takes this as a sign of disease, as temperature control problems are common with infections. The nausea may be to get you to vomit, in case the pathogens are contained in the stomach. StuRat 09:06, 9 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Youngest presenter

I asked this a week ago without any result, the answer got archived, so I'll try again. Who is the youngest television presenter in the United States? And who would get that title were the question worldwide? - Mgm|(talk) 11:12, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

John Humphrys says this site. I'm not sure if that's what you're looking for, but it might help! Laurənwhisper 15:00, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
Will check that. - Mgm|(talk) 18:48, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
Not entirely what I'm looking for. It said "Aged 28, John became the BBC's first full-time television correspondent in the United States and the youngest television foreign correspondent." News correspondents are markedly different from regular presenters. - Mgm|(talk) 18:50, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Do you mean a regular presenter or a guest ? I believe I've seen kids news shows where they are the presenters. There are also segments in many kids shows, like Arthur (TV series) where a kid or group of kids presents something, like "here's my dog, Spot". Kids are also featured on shows like David Letterman's, where they each present a science experiment. I would guess that the answer would be a 1 year old, as some 1 year olds may be mature enough to "present something", like their dog. StuRat 15:12, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

I specified television presenter, and I should've said I wasn't looking for segments in fictional shows. The kids on David Letterman would qualify if they were recurring. Thanks for trying to help anyway. Other suggestions are still welcome. - Mgm|(talk) 18:48, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
To clarify, Arthur (TV series) has a segment in the middle where real kids (not cartoons) present something. StuRat 19:31, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
Must be an American thing then, because the few times I watched it on the BBC out of boredom, I didn't notice any real kids. - Mgm|(talk) 01:05, 9 December 2006 (UTC)
I've noticed it's very common in the US for cartoon shows to have added segments, some with real kids. One reason for this is that many kid's shows are shown on PBS, which lacks ads, so they need to "pad for time" relative to commercial broadcasts. Thus, a brief live action spot with kids is a good, inexpensive way to add the needed minutes. I've also seen such time-padding in foreign-made cartoons shown on PBS, such as "meet the author" segments on Redwall and "meet the grandparents" segments on Jakers!. StuRat 08:46, 9 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Old western hanging scene

hi all,

I remember watching a film were the cowboy his set to be hung so he swallows a steel tube to re-enforce his windpipe so he won't die when hung. can someone please tell me the name of the film this scene belongs too.

thanks

217.33.203.18 12:56, 8 December 2006 (UTC) Eoghan

Don't know, but that method wouldn't work, as hanging is designed to break the neck. There is a form of hanging (without the "drop"), meant to be more horrific, where the person slowly suffocates, but that's not what was typically used in the US. StuRat 14:53, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
This is bizarre. Even if it did work, and that he could somehow keep this tube in place without choking on it or swallowing it completely, what did he think would happen next? First thing they would do after hanging him is check he is dead.--Shantavira 15:16, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
I had the thought about the neck too but it would not be the first time a movie got it all wrong (laff) so I do not doubt that there is such a film but I was not able to find it. --Justanother 15:27, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
Not necessarily so. There is a pub on the Grassmarket (there are actually very many), but the one I refer to here is called, "Maggie Dickson's". In the days of yore and public hangings, poor and single Maggie had the temerity to hide from the City fathers the fact that she was pregnant (a local bye-law had earlier been enacted to prevent the many infanticides and abortions carried out by single women and prostitutes). The punishment (following the safe arrival and despatch of the alive child into the poorhouse), was the public hanging of the mother. Maggie was duly hanged "by the neck until ye be dead - and may God (certainly not the guid folk of Edinburgh), have mercy on your soul". But she was from a neighbouring town called Musselburgh. And it fell to that latter town to inter her remains. So the carters who cut her down and put her in a box and took her to Musselburgh to be buried in unconsecrated ground there, stopped for a thirst-quenching drink at a pub on the way, "The Sheep's Heid", still standing in Duddingston village. And when they emerged, Maggie was sitting up in the open topped box rubbing her sore neck. You see, in those days, the "drop" was not as scientifically prepared as in latter executions, in fact, most condemned people simply choked to death. In Maggie's case, the long journey over the cobbled roads of the time had revived her. And she couldn't be re-tried or re-hanged as she had already been pronounced dead. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 81.145.240.169 (talk) 19:10, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

[edit] Eric Moussambani Contact

Hi There... I am trying to get in touch with Eric 'The Eel' Moussambani. He is from Equatorial Guinea and swam in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Australia. Any information to help me get a hold of him would be much appreciated, I would like to write his story.

Many thanks Rita Litamb 13:24, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Why not go through the Equatorial Guinea Olympic Committee?
Eric Moussambani
Equatorial Guinea National Olympic Committee
Comite National Olympique Equato-Guineen
National Olympic Committees, Athletic Associations/Organizations
Ministerio de Educacion y Deportes MALABO , EQUATORIAL QUINEA:
Tel.: +240 93326
Fax: +240 93313
E-mail: coge@intnet.gq
-THB 14:35, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Thank you so much THB.. brilliant idea, great help! much appreciated!

[edit] Graphs using ARCHIM

Can someone please tell me how to draw the graph of a parabola?? i am using a software called ARCHIM (www.stochastic-lab.com for free download). every time I use the standard equation some innovative error comes up. Please hlp —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 221.135.177.214 (talk) 14:29, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

(Someone please move to Computing IT or Math Desk, I'm not sure which is more appropriate. Thanks -THB 14:38, 8 December 2006 (UTC))

I would go with the Computer Desk. Can you tell us which equation you entered and what errors you got ? StuRat 14:46, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] mercats

could someone please assist me> in the show mercats, what happened to shakesphere? was he ever seen again? why was one of the females forced out of the den?

any help would be appreciated...thank-you —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 204.138.85.6 (talk) 14:37, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

Meerkat Manor, the Meerkat soap opera, has this:
Shakespeare, Zaphod's courageous son. He survived two bites of a puff adder, but is now presumed dead after successfully saving Flower's pups from an attack by Big Cy of the Lazuli group. Shakespeare's death and/or disappearance at the end of the first series, with no closure, has been a matter of dispute among viewers.
Sorry. Doesn't sound good. -THB 14:42, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
Both Tosca and Mozart were kicked out for having pups, and in Tosca's case, also for trying to take over. Mozart was let back in, but Tosca is out for good. Clarityfiend 20:28, 8 December 2006 (UTC)


thank-you every one, your information was very much appreciated. jm

[edit] Churchill

I was recently told a quote by Churchill,...The Years of the Locust... To what was he refering? sorry if this question is badly laid out —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 81.144.161.223 (talk) 16:00, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

It's not badly laid out at all. Here's the link to the text of that particular speech. Why don't you read it while waiting for one of the Churchill experts to explain? -THB 16:35, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
I have nothing to add in response to the question - but I have to say, as an Englishman who loves his country and its history, how very grateful I am to Wikipedia as the medium, and to THB, the luminary above, who so knowlegeably and timeously in response to the question, not only drew on an obviously immense fund of Churchillian history and (his) speeches, but also pointed me to yet another fount of my country's history, of which I was previously entirely ignorant and unaware. Thankyou both. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 81.145.240.169 (talk) 18:50, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you (Joel 2:25). I believe Churchill was refering to the years in which Nazi Germany rearmed, and England slept.EricR 19:03, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Even before they were over, people started calling the 1930s "the locust years," Sir Thomas Inskip, Britain's minister for coordination of defense at the time and a man who knew his Bible, first used the phrase, borrowing it from the Old Testament prophet Joel, who described a hard and ugly era as "The years that the locust hath eaten." Winston Churchill picked the phrase up for The Gathering Storm, his book on the prelude to World War II. For Churchill, it described the years 1931 to 1935, when in the great English statesman's memorable words, "the entire situation on the continent of Europe was reversed" for the worse. It was a "dismal period" when "horrors and miseries ... beyond comparison in human experience" became inevitable, Churchill wrote. Goode, Stephen (April 2003). "Great Powers Paid Price for 'Peace'". Insight on the News 19. 

EricR 19:38, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] xbox flight stick list

there is a place that i can see a list of xbox flight sticks, i am planning to buy one??? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 201.78.236.139 (talk) 17:25, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

[edit] what does god look like

who come know one can describe god? who created god? is there another universe? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 204.138.85.6 (talk) 18:36, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

(1) See god. (2) Gods are not created. (3) No but see multiverse and parallel universe.--Shantavira 18:42, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
  • That is because according to the Bible God was the first to exist and create everything. We haven't proven He exists scientifically, so all your questions are unanswerable. - Mgm|(talk) 18:44, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
See metaphysics. Questions about god are metaphysical questions and not addressed by natural science. A religion, any religion, could be termed as a locus of agreements about metaphysical issues. Many of them describe god. Some do not. Scientology, for instance, does not deal with that level of truth and states that one must come to his own understanding of god. I am sure other religions take the same tack. Basically you pick the one or none or many or whatever you like. Everything else is just opinion. I like my steak medium rare. --Justanother 18:54, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

I believe there are some religions where gods create other gods, possibly in a finite or infinite loop. This just reminds me of "it's turtles all the way down", however. StuRat 19:12, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Greek gods are described in detail (zeus being manly and strong, aphrodite being sexy and seductive) but most gods nowadays are described as spirit, without physical form. --frothT C 21:04, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

Look in the mirror because man is created in God image. What you will get is a pretty lousy image of God. 220.239.110.225 02:01, 9 December 2006 (UTC)

Don't forget that man also made the mirror -- so any distortions will be of his own doing.
Also, I'm with Froth -- the Greeks knew what a god looked like -- wise, sexy, and fit ss fuck. Mathiemood 06:28, 11 December 2006 (UTC)


thanks everybody for responding to my question.remember, someone had to create in order to begin. hence, god must have had a point of origin in order to create the heaven and the earth. where did the basis of his ideation come from otherwise?

[edit] Movie

What Kind of a movie is "Don't let your Meat Loaf"? made in 1995 —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 65.77.41.100 (talk) 18:52, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

Apparently it is a comedy following 3 black comics trying to raise enough money to open a comedy club...see this link (http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/dont_let_your_meat_loaf/about.php) for more details. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Ny156uk (talk • contribs) 18:57, 8 December 2006 (UTC).

[edit] Traditional song

My mother remembers a song about a woman lamenting her own life, and the different colours of what she wore throughout: Red to attract a man White for her wedding Black for his funeral, etc Can anyone help? --Bearbear 23:04, 8 December 2006 (UTC)