Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2007 May 14

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[edit] May 14

[edit] Going through chainlink fence

Other than cutting it, what is the best, safe method of creating a hole through a chainlink fence? 74.14.73.26 00:43, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Other than cutting it? I don't know, how big a hole do you need? Dig under it perhaps? FiggyBee 01:00, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
Many methods can be safe if you are careful. Bombs, acids, rockets... If you break whatever it is that they use to connect the fence to the posts, then you may be able to unchain each piece of wire. A.Z. 01:46, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
What do you have access to? A bit of liquid nitrogen on the links would make them brittle enough to break, technically not cutting, though you'd need to get the liquid nitrogen and the safety part is up to you. Also, define "best". Do you mean quickest, most environmentally friendly, etc? "Best" is entirely too subjective for us to give you a better response. Dismas|(talk) 01:51, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
This method does involve some (minimal) cutting, but I think i ve seen it done by cutting one of the ziggy zaggy vertical wires just at the top and bottom of the fence, and then un threading it. You can then open the fence like a piar of curtains. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 88.109.45.66 (talk) 01:57, 14 May 2007 (UTC).
Best way to create a hole through a chain link fence would be to ram it with a bulldozer. very little effort and very big hole, definitely not the clandestine way and you do require access to a bulldoze, but certainly fits in my definition of best. Vespine 02:17, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
In that case, an atomic bomb would also do the job just fine. But, if you want to be realistic, you may just melt it without having to explode the city. A.Z. 02:36, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
The Bangalore torpedo is a respected way of getting through barbed wire or other entanglements. Edison 02:47, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
You can run over the fence with your car. A.Z. 03:02, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
The simple solution is to do nothing. A chain link fence has holes in it to start with! --Anonymous, May 14, 2007, 04:18 (UTC).
I don't think the questioner meant that. The title is "Going through chainlink fence". A.Z. 04:47, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
But what if the questioner is a small animal such as a mouse? Hmmmmm??? --Anon, May 14, 06:39 (UTC).
Or maybe if I go on a diet and grease up my fur, I can squeeze through. :-) StuRat 06:48, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
Keep pushing against it and wait for quantum mechanics to phase you out of existance and back into existance? 213.48.15.234 06:51, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
Quantum tunnelling? That might take a while. Clarityfiend 07:41, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Opening the gate? Mhicaoidh 08:39, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Talk nicely to the guy who owns the fence: "Please let me through your fence".
Alternatively, the fence poles could maybe be lifted out of the ground then laid flat so you can just walk over the fence. SteveBaker 11:51, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Using a new word from the Science section: be a terra-ist. Use pictures of the inside, from Google Earth, to say you've been there, and terra-ize them! --Zeizmic 12:05, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Two alternatives spring to mind:
  1. Use the CIA's ice piss, as seen in The Sum of All Fears (film). This may be real stuff.
  2. Arrange for someone to be sent back from the future, as seen in Terminator 2: Judgment Day; this is not (yet) real.
Atlant 12:45, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

If you can't go over it or around it, you have no business going through it. Vranak

Parkour –S.dedalus 19:06, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Anyone who tries to go through a chain link fence without cutting it or otherwise making an opening will get severely strained. Edison 15:22, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

On a lot of crappy chain-link fences (like the ones on construction sites and such), there are twist-tie-like metal threads that tie the mesh to the poles. These are relatively easy to untie (you can do it by hand), and causes no property damage as the ties can simply be reattached when the job is done. Alternatively, if you have access to more advanced methods, you could try freon or even a blowtorch. Sulfuric acid doesn't work as quickly as it does in movies, so don't count on that for easy passage. Or if you just wish to bend the fence over so that you could ealk on top of it, you could make a trailer-hitch rig like this:
   __          X
 _/  |___     / \
|________|   /   )
 O     O  \o/   /

Where you would affix a steel cable or such to the top of the fence, thread that cable through a ground-level ring (like the handle of a shovel in the ground, but much stronger), and then tie the cable to a trailer hitch at the back of a truck. As you drive off, the cable will pull the top of the fence down towards the ring, and this will create a flattened surface that you can simply walk over. - 2-16 12:08, 16 May 2007 (UTC)

Can you go over it? Then there are a lot of fun ways: parachutes, catapults, aeroplanes, cannons. Or you could ask someone else to cut it for you.

[edit] Mega-Catch Alpha Mosquito Trap (MCA-600)

Has anyone used it inside their home? I get a lot of mosquito bites and I'm wondering if this really works, I looked for reviews online, but I could not find any. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 76.167.136.84 (talk) 03:12, 14 May 2007 (UTC).

Look up Mosquito. Most traps are generally useless. Fans might be better, good screens even more so. --Zeizmic 00:30, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] freddie

heys am having a recording of a female voice but i dont know whose it belonging to.its so damn familiar.can sumone actually google quotes and find who exactly sed them.shes saying'i'd like to do even more,i love it'

2.are aminos steroids.the ones sold in health shops for guys to get buffed? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 212.49.77.200 (talk) 08:29, 14 May 2007 (UTC).

Thanks for that stream of consciousness and I was glad to see the question mark at the end. Answer to 1: only if notable. Answer to 2 will have to wait for someone with expertise in that area, if you have the time. Mhicaoidh 08:45, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
The answer to #2 is no, "aminos" used by bodybuilders are supplements containing amino acids, and are completely different from anabolic steroids. FiggyBee 09:05, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
  1. 1 comes up with zero results when I searched on Google for "i'd like to do even more, i love it". Someone saying that they'd like to do even more of something is so common of a phrase though. Can you tell us more about the recording? Is it a song? Help us help you. Dismas|[[User

talk:Dismas|(talk)]] 10:36, 14 May 2007 (UTC) the only clue i have is that the quote is found on freddie bells solid gold updates.its a website on all the oldies music and has great celeb gossip.but its such a large website i cant narrow it down,

[edit] GCSE help

ok the most important thing is that im capable of getting a C grade or higher.

ahh crap so the GCSE's are coming up but one crucial gsce i need to get is english but the problem is since YR 10 i was doomed in this really horrible class (mixed ability set) and at the start of our first lesson some of kids who were in that class were moved into another (higher set) and these were the kids that i was in YR 9 with in english and we were in express stream (with is basically higher set) and i got a good grade from YR 9 ( 6c ) and the other kids got same too and that really hacked me off that i wasn't moved and it was because i had a bad attendance (it is not my fault i got bullied and harassed all the time about where i came from i mean GAWD what the hell is so wrong with having a little lebanese + french heritage and being half american grrrr ignorant racist little c****) so in YR10 and 11 i have worked my socks off hoping that i would be moved but it never happened (maybe i was too optimistic and ignorant?) and i've got really amazing grades from my coursework at the moment.......

SO will i be able to get a C or above? DOES anyone know what will happen in the exam? WHAT more preparation can i do? HOW can i make sure i get a high grade?

this is really important to me any advice or good websites you recommend i would really seriously appreciate it :D —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 80.42.42.14 (talk) 09:25, 14 May 2007 (UTC).

You will improve your chance of getting a good grade by utilizing Punctuation and Sentences. If I can decipher this,it seems that in year 9 you were in the express set(higher stream).In year 10 some of the kids in your class were kept in a higher set,whilst you were moved into the mixed ability set. Did you speak to anyone about being able to move up-it does seem a little late now.

If you have 'amazing' grades from your coursework then that's a super start(I'm assuming they're amazingly good and not amazingly bad.You don't specify the grade,but A or B should be enough to get you through the exam. Try some past exam papers,make sure you know the texts thoroughly,read the question carefully and make sure you answer what it asks you.Good luck! Lemon martini 11:13, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Hello. This ([1]) website looks pretty good. There are also plenty of good revision guides for sale in bookshops. If GCSE is anything like O Level was, then for the literature paper/s, a few versatile quotes up your sleeve are very useful. I put a list in the toilet and learned one every time I went to the loo. After a few days, I'd learned a whole bunch and felt as if it'd been without even trying. Good luck. --Dweller 13:17, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Translation for Americans: He put the list in the bathroom (it would get rather wet and nasty if he actually put it in the toilet, wouldn't it ?). Also, don't take "up your sleeve" literally, as test proctors tend to frown on that. StuRat 19:24, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
Americans also don't use revision to mean study. —Tamfang 22:58, 15 May 2007 (UTC)
It's a bit late for this, but surely you've had parents' evenings since GCSEs started? What reasons did the teachers give for putting you in the mixed set? If it makes you feel any better, it isn't just your academic performance that determines what set you get put in. Teachers really do put a lot of thought into this, and discuss it frequently. Chances are, your teachers will have thought you will do best in the set you are in. Perhaps they think that, with your frequent absences, the higher set would have moved too fast, without giving you time to pick up things that were covered while you were away. Perhaps they thought you would benefit from the typically greater support found in lower sets. Perhaps they thought you would work your socks off to prove them wrong :-) Or perhaps they thought you would benefit from being of higher ability than most of the other people in your class, for whatever reason. So don't let it get you down. Anyway....
How you will be able to do depends, among other things, on which exam you are put in for. I assume you're being put in for the higher tier, but you don't say. If you are doing the higher tier paper, and you have good (A*-B) coursework results, and you work hard to prepare for the exam, you have every chance of getting C or higher. If you didn't, your teachers would not put you in for the higher paper. Skittle 14:41, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
Oh, and BBC Bitesize is generally regarded as pretty good for revision. Get very familiar with your set texts, make notes in them if you have been told you are allowed to, including writing a quick guide in the front as to where to find important bits. Revise the tips you have been given for answering typical questions. Do practice papers. Those are the main things. Skittle 14:46, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

(General Certificate of Secondary Education) for those who may be wondering what on Earth these people are talking about. dr.ef.tymac 15:27, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Making a new wikipedia page?

How do you create a new wikipedia page?

Sorry for the n00bishness

Nebuchandezzar 15:25, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

What would you like to call your article? Reply here, putting the name of the article in square brackets like this. When you save your reply, the article name will be red. Click the "redlink" and... away you go. Good luck! --Dweller 15:49, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

(edit conflict) no need to apologize; we are glad to help. Read Help:Starting a new page. Jon513 15:50, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] submitting an article

Is there a step by step guide for Registered users on how to submit an article? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Protectme (talk • contribs) 19:22, 14 May 2007 (UTC).

See Help:Starting a new page. It's pretty simple. Type a name into into the search bar. If it doesn't exist there will be a red link that says "create this page" or something similar. Click it and then start writing, after you're done hit the save button. —Mitaphane ?|! 22:51, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] what exercise should i do for my tummy?

what's the best way to keep your tummy slim?

im not fat, really, only my tummy is starting to get big coz i happen to eat more these past few days.. thanks Carlrichard 19:23, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Stomach Crunches are very good exercises for achieving flat stomachs - better than regular sit ups.

Hope everything goes well! Aiyda 19:41, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Stomach crunches and sit-ups will develop muscle in your abdomen, but won't make you lose any more fat than any other equivalent exercise. Losing any fat requires fewer calories and more exercise. You can't target a particular area to lose fat from, short of liposuction. Skittle 21:04, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
As seen here. A.Z. 21:13, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
You could do an exercise I like to call the "incidental jaw clench" ... it consists of keeping your mouth tightly shut when you are in a situation that requires using it to eat food. dr.ef.tymac 03:42, 16 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Clay Pipes

We all know that a dozen is 12 of something and a Baker's dozen is 13.

I recently read that a "clay pipe dozen" was 14, because of the fragile nature of the pipes.

Is this correct and where did it originate?

Thanks,

Eddie Boyle

A Google search for that exact term resulted in: Your search - "clay pipe dozen" - did not match any documents. --LarryMac | Talk 20:03, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
The extra 13th item in a 'Bakers dozen' is supposed to have come about because bakers in the 1600's made some kind of small loaves of bread that were supposed to weigh 1/12 of a pound each. The law came down hard on bakers who short-changed their customers by selling them 12 slightly underweight loaves that would not add up to a pound - so the custom came about to toss in a 13th loaf to be absolutely certain that the law would be obeyed. If that origin for "Bakers Dozen" is true (and I believe it is) - then I could well understand that a clay pipe maker might package pipes in 14's in order to ensure that there were 12 good ones in each package. But like User:LarryMac, I can't find any kind of reference to that usage. Where did you read that? SteveBaker 23:03, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] The way everything is written.

Why is everything written all weird? Eric Hartley--12.18.90.44 21:02, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Why does the cursor disappear when you get to a certain spot?Eric Hartley--12.18.90.44 21:02, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Eric, I think you need to be more specific. Where is this "everything" that seems to be "written all weird", and what do you mean by "written all weird". Tugbug 22:40, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

It sounds like you may mean the fonts are different and the cursor is missing. These are problems I see in Firefox when it's running low on memory. When this happens there's nothing I can do to fix it but reboot. If my interpretation of your question is correct, I'd say this would have been an excellent Q for the Computer Ref Desk. StuRat 23:06, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

I don't think so. Both things are happening to me as well, and they never happened before. There are also other weird stuff from time to time, such as grey boxes covering part of the screen. It's been like that for one or two days now. Then again, it may be just a weird coincidence that they are happening to me now and this question was asked here at the same time. I use Firefox. Here is a print screen. Here is a print screen with one of the grey boxes. A.Z. 03:58, 15 May 2007 (UTC)
That's odd - why does your copy of Firefox have a windows logo in the top-left corner? It's supposed to be the curled-up orange fox logo?!? I suspect you have a screwed up Firefox install. What revision are you running? SteveBaker 20:08, 15 May 2007 (UTC)
I don't know my revision. I'll see it when I get home. I hope I don't have a screwed up copy! What would it mean if I did?A.Z. 20:12, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Time of creation of Wikipedia

Anyone know the exact time Wikipedia went online? — Sam 22:24, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

History of Wikipedia says "The first edits ever made on Wikipedia are believed to be test edits by Wales.[citation needed] However, the oldest article still preserved is the article UuU, created on 16 January 2001, at 21:08 UTC.[2]". The very earliest edits were lost in software mishaps. The oldest remaining edit by founder Jimbo Wales is to the Thomas Edison article [2]. Edison 22:29, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
Wikipedia:Wikipedia's oldest articles has more detail, but not the time they flipped the switch on. - BanyanTree 08:55, 15 May 2007 (UTC)
Wikipedia's English edition was launched on January 15, 2001. Jon513 11:22, 17 May 2007 (UTC)