Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2007 October 4

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[edit] October 4

[edit] Stacy Arthur

I'm not really sure where to ask this as it pertains to an article but I'm also looking for references for said article so I thought the ref desk would be better... So, I'm just gonna ask... I'm trying to find a source for a bit of info that was in the article for Stacy Arthur. I removed it as it didn't have a source but I'd like to find a source. The info was that Arthur's husband was killed by a deranged fan shortly after she appeared in Playboy. So I went looking on the net and found a discussion between some fans that mentions a Entertainment Tonight report. The link to the online synopsis is dead. So after searching a bit more I found several references to a newspaper called The Cleveland Plain Dealer. But all I have is these links from the Cleveland Public Library: [1] [2] [3]. So can I use those as a source? I mean, I can piece together that her husband was killed by a fan named James Lindberg. And judging by those links, it happened in Oct/Nov 1991. So would this be a suitable source? And if not, or even if they can be, can anyone find a better source? Thanks for reading all that... Dismas|(talk) 01:27, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

The Plain Dealer is the major newspaper in Cleveland, Ohio, and some would say the entire state. Anyone with access to a library in the state should probably be able to get back copies, or worst-case, microfiche. I would feel better if someone were able to look any of these articles up in the paper, rather than using these links. --After Midnight 0001 00:15, 6 October 2007 (UTC)
Here's a link for an October 1991 article. I think it should work without a login, but let me know if you have difficulty accessing it. - EurekaLott 21:14, 8 October 2007 (UTC)
I don't really have anything more to add than what's been already said. Basically, we need someone with the ability to look up the articles in back issues of the newspaper in question to corroborate the claim, since that would be the most reliable source out there. Perhaps we can find a Wikipedian in that area who would like to take a trip down to their local library in Cleveland for some research? -- Joe Beaudoin Jr. Think out loud 00:07, 10 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Blackwater employee salaries

With all the attention Blackwater USA has been getting recently with their mercenary soldiers, I've been wondering, approximately how much does a medium-level Blackwater operative make in Iraq per year? EDIT: as well, what was Erik Prince's rank when he dropped out of the Navy? Thanks. Acceptable 01:57, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

this page tells a story of one recieveing $365,000 (about a thousand per day). It also says that provided you stay in the country for at least a year, the money is tax-free.this blog Notes the pay varies from 500 to 1000 USD per day, so somewhere wround $182,000. If you're looking for a "medium-level," let's use an arbitraty number of $750 per day, leading to a slarly of a little under $275,000. this page notes that the US government pays Blackwater security agents $1,222 per day when it needs them. For comparison purpose of all this, those sites are quoting $36,000 to $96,000 for an officer, or "$51,100 to $69,350 a year in salary, housing and other benefits" for a "top Army sergeant". --YbborTalk 02:14, 4 October 2007 (UTC)


[edit] Flywheel

Hi, i would like to have a brief, very simple description of a FLYWHEEL. This is for a High School Reasearch Assignment, and I will be very greatful for contributions. The Wikipedia and Simple English Wikipedias are too confusing. Pls help, thanks. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Erzhaosong2000 (talk • contribs) 03:43, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Please see question asked of you at Simple:Talk:Flywheel — User:ACupOfCoffee@ 06:11, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
It takes energy to get a wheel (any wheel) to rotate. If there is little friction (good bearings) then it will keep rotating a long time. When energy is needed, it can be taken from the wheel again. So it is a simple mechanical means of storing energy. The amount of energy stored is a function of the weight and the speed of rotation - making a heavier wheel rotate faster takes more energy. Another factor is the radius (size) because the further from the axis a part of the wheel is, the more energy it takes to make is rotate (can't think of a better way to say this). In the formula in the simple Wikipedia article, these are represented by M (mass), ω (angular velocity) and R (radius). Combining the two equations there gives ω2MR2/4 (those equations could do with some more explanation if this is supposed to be 'simple'). A fly-wheel is not just any wheel, but specifically designed to store energy. So it should be heavy and/or rotate fast. For example, some buses have a fly-wheel that is used for stopping and starting. When the bus stops (eg for a traffic light), the fly-wheel is connected to the wheels, so the rotational energy is transferred to it, so the bus will slow down while the fly-wheel speeds up. Then, when the bus has to start driving again, it is connected again and the energy is transferred back. Of course, you wouldn't want to lug a heavy wheel around on a bus, so it is made of a lighter material that can withstand extremely fast rotation. Did that help? If so, I (or you) could add it to the article. DirkvdM 08:50, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Brief and simple description? A flywheel is a heavy wheel that stores energy by spinning. You store the energy by spinning the wheel, and extract the energy by having the wheel spin something else. (As Dirk says, it could spin very fast instead of being heavy, but you wanted simple) Kinder Surprise used to have a range of tiny flywheel-driven cars, which were useful for understanding this. If only I still had one... 79.65.119.193 10:19, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Ah, yes, those were cool. Funny, by the way. The name is a combination of German and English, but it was an Italian product. (Called Ferrero - I wonder if they also had Ferraris :) ). DirkvdM 18:47, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Erzhoasong, once again, could you please tell if my explanation (or the anon's) helped you? I'm especially interested in this case, not just because I want to improve the article, but also because I like to reduce things to their simplest form and wonder if I succeeded. DirkvdM 06:24, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
Never mind, I added it to the article anyway. My first simple English! :) DirkvdM 06:17, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] the colors and thier meanings of Italy's flag

For a school project I need to know the meanings of the colors of the Italian flag(ie) red is for , white is for, and greens is for??????????? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.217.55.183 (talk) 04:29, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

See Flag of Italy. 75.121.168.218 04:47, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
The short version of which is "<shrug> nobody knows". SteveBaker 20:56, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Tomatoes, cheese and spinach? DuncanHill 21:13, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
We don't need such flippant answers. The green is obviously pesto. —Nricardo 23:17, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
For pizza Margherita it's Tomatoes, Mozzarella and Basil, but that's from the flag to the pizza, instead of the other way around. -- 72.33.121.200 19:18, 5 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] electric locomotives,traction,signalling-the working principles

header 1 header 2 header 3
row 1, cell 1 row 1, cell 2 row 1, cell 3
row 2, cell 1 row 2, cell 2 row 2, cell 3
Is this the most enigmatic "question" ever? -- JackofOz 04:50, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
And did you deliberately add to the confusion by not indenting your post? It now looks like you asked the 'question'. Are you aiming for an aura of enigmaticism? DirkvdM 08:54, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
No. Yes, I guess it does (now fixed). No, my existing aura is more than adequate for that purpose. -- JackofOz 10:08, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Somebody fill out the table, for crying out loud. --Ouro (blah blah) 11:37, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Perhaps electric locomotive, traction, and railway signal will be of aid. — Lomn 12:53, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Possibly the answers were supposed to go it the table provided?87.102.94.194 15:21, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Oh! It's a table! I thought it was a map of a really small prison. SteveBaker 18:59, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
With, nevertheless, three prison guards? DirkvdM 06:29, 6 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] co-operation agreement

Does Jahangir Nagar university have co-operation areement with the university of oslo in Norway? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.189.224.2 (talk) 05:56, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Dunno, I couldn't find anything like that - but they have a seriously awful website. Their webmaster clearly doesn't know the difference between local filepaths and URL's - so the page probably looks great from his computer - but nobody else on the planet can see it! [4] ! SteveBaker 19:23, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Wikipedia equivalent of "set"

Out of pure, banal interest, I was wondering what the Wikipedia equivalent of "set" is. In other words, in the OED, the word "set" has the most different definitions of any word. What Wikipedia disambiguation has the most pages pointing away from it? Batmanand | Talk 09:23, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Single letter disambiguation pages, such as A (disambiguation), are very long; Do the links have to point the a page with the same name as the disambiguation page, or just any link in general? --antilivedT | C | G 10:40, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
I was thinking, as with dictionaries, that they have to be pointing to the same word or phrase. Batmanand | Talk 13:14, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Then I give you ... John Smith. --Tagishsimon (talk) 13:26, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
  • The answer is "Greatest Hits", with 299 articles. The first legit one (different meanings, rather than just being a glorified category) is "Big Brother", with 89. For the hell of it, I downloaded all the titles from Special:Allpages and counted which titles were most commonly disambiguated with parentheses. Here are the ones with 30 or more: User:TotoBaggins/Articles with 30 or more disambiguators. --Sean 17:25, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
    Most of the "Big Brother" entries are just versions of the reality TV series in different countries, though. I'd say the highest legit one in your list is probably "Angel", although the count for that does include several songs, films and fictional characters. And just what the heck is it with Romanian rivers named "Valea Mare", anyway? (Answer to self: apparently Râul Valea Mare means "Big Valley River" in Romanian, and also apparently Romanians aren't the most creative of people when it comes to naming rivers. Also, it seems a user has been going around creating stubs on every river in Romania here.) —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 23:54, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
I think that would be the List of albums titled Greatest Hits page. -- JackofOz 23:59, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Cycle ball in America

I search clubs for Cycle ball in America. I play this sport in Germany, but there must exist some clubs in America. In this List I found two player from USA (Berry Charles / Yarbrough Kavin) but I don´t know where the are come from. Many thanks for every information. -- sk 12:30, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

I think that this sport is virtually unknown in the United States. After some web searching, I could find only a few mentions of the sport as something strange that is played outside of the United States. In fact, I don't think that the sport has an established name in the English language. In the web, I saw it called "cycle ball", but also "bike ball" and "bicycle soccer". If it ever became popular in the United States, it would probably be known at first as "bicycle soccer". If there are American players, my guess is that they learned the sport in Europe and played on European teams. Marco polo 17:03, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Not quite the same, but since Marco responded, it's now completely on topic: Bicycle Polo. jeffjon 18:41, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Now that you mention it, I'd completely forgotten about that sport where you knock Marco around a field with a bent stick. :-) SteveBaker 18:52, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Unfortunately, they haven't forgotten that sport at my workplace. :-) Marco polo 16:07, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
Cycle polo and Cycle ball are different sports! I only search clubs for Cycle ball. -- sk 08:27, 5 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Gold tooth

What is the procedure for putting in a gold tooth? And how does it hold in there? I couldn't find an article on it. Keria 15:27, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Are we talking crowns or 'grills' here? You could have a peek at the article on both, they both cover methods of installation. Lanfear's Bane 15:32, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
See also Dental implant Rmhermen 15:46, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] B.Sc.

For the first time in my life, I have an academic degree. I am a Bachelor of Sciences. What can I actually do with this degree? I have absolutely no interest in pursuing an academic career, I want to work in software development in privately- or state-owned companies. JIP | Talk 17:17, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Basically you can get a job that requires a B.S., that's pretty much the point of it --frotht 18:20, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Yep - there are lots of non-academic jobs that require a BSc before they'll even glance at your resume...especially in the field of software development where it's very tough indeed to get a job without having a degree. Is there any specific field within Software dev that takes your fancy? (I used to develop software for flight simulation - and nowadays I work in computer games - perhaps I can offer you some needed advice or answer questions about the practicalities of these kinds of careers.) SteveBaker 18:48, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
I have got three jobs in software development without any academic degree. The first two by posting a Usenet message asking for a job. For the first, I got one reply, for the second, I got two. The third was by actually asking the company, which I got to know through a former co-worker who also works there. From what I've learned, in software development (particularly in the down-to-the-dirt coding I'm interested in) experience is much more valuable than official degrees or qualifications. At least in the private sector, I have never worked in the public sector. JIP | Talk 19:09, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Ah, so that's what the last bit of your question was about. I was already wondering what third option there might be. Btw, I'll refrain from making jokes about the abbreviation, because I'm sure they've all been done already. :) DirkvdM 06:34, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
To a point, you're right. In terms of what is actually valuable to a company, experience is critical - being a good programmer is all about having a million little snippets of code in your head that you can drop down onto the page without thinking about it. You can't teach more than a few hundred of those snippets - the rest is all down to experience. However - in terms of getting a job - you've got to get your resume seen and get yourself at an actual interview before your experience can really show through - and when 50 people apply for a job and the human resources people have to cull it down to 5 to come for an interview, they cull pretty brutally - and people with no degree get culled out soonest. You can sometimes get a job by happening to know someone or by being in the right place at the right time - but that's not a reliable way to find work. I honestly don't think that jobs where you program on the bare metal are any different. The work is certainly a heck of a lot easier than fighting with a gigantic pile of middleware and operating system (trust me, I've done both) - but even so, I think most employers work the same. It's not about the engineering - it's about the human resources people. Personally - as a programmer who has been a team leader - I'd settle for experience over a degree anytime (assuming programming is the only skill required - of course that's not often the case). SteveBaker 12:00, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
For the fear of being misunderstood, when I say "down-to-the-dirt" I don't mean "close to the metal", i.e. writing device drivers or something. I mean, when you have a great idea for a program, just go ahead and implement it, and don't speculate on how it might interest the scientific community. Specific CPU register operations are too low-level for me, and research on life's great mathematical problems is too high-level. What I want to worry myself about is what data structures and inheritance hierarchies I should use in which code. JIP | Talk 20:03, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
I'm thinking steve was using "close to the metal" to mean the opposite of fighting with a pile of middleware and APIs, not necessarily computer engineering type work --frotht 19:25, 6 October 2007 (UTC)
Yeah "close to the metal" means talking directly to hardware - the sort of thing you do when working on little microcontrollers without an operating system. I kinda assumed that's what was being talked about because those little one-off, small projects are very do-able by one self-taugh programmer.
Well, as to "when you have a great idea for a program, just go ahead and implement it" - er - YIKES!. That can be a very dangerous way to work. For anything beyond the very simplest programs, most companies are not going to be happy with you just jumping in and writing code without some kind of justification for the time and money spent on the work. Probable gains versus probable investment. Also, you're much more likely to be working in a team on some larger project and the various pieces have to dovetail together. Just diving in and implementing is rarely appreciated! In my last job, we had half a dozen programmers cooperating on a single program of about half a million lines of code - gradually assembled over several years. It's well beyond the ability of any single programmer to do that - and to do any part of it without extensive discussion and planning would certainly be the mark of an amateur! In my present job (I'm a video game programmer), we have around 2.4 million lines of software (about 2 million lines of C++ and 400,000 lines in various scripting languages) - we use the same basic code for a wide variety of games with half a dozen teams with a dozen programmers on each - and we have to be quite careful to keep things planned and under control or you'd get a very ugly mess in short order! There aren't many jobs out there where just getting an idea and throwing together a short solution is going to be required. That kind of thing happens (I do this for putting together a quick one-off tool) - but it's not likely to be a major part of a decently paying job. SteveBaker 04:05, 7 October 2007 (UTC)
I didn't mean to just go straight to implementation without planning. What I meant was to skip all that research on whether this would be truly something worthy of note by the scientific community, and noting what bits relate to which scientific work where. Many of my ideas for an academic thesis have been returned by saying "good project, but the scientific community wouldn't be interested". The planning-implementation-testing cycle in production software development is what I like better. JIP | Talk 05:09, 7 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Machine guns

How do belt fed machine guns get rounds into the chamber? After the first round is fired after you place the round on the belt has always confused ForeverDEAD 17:37, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Belt (firearm) has some info and an illustration. Not sure whether you're asking about the belt specifically, or autoloading guns in general. See also Semi-automatic firearm. Friday (talk) 17:40, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Belt-fed machine guns include a mechanism to move the belt along, bringing the next round in the belt into place to be loaded in the chamber. They use the energy of the recoil from the first round to open the chamber, eject the round, and feed the next one in. - Eron Talk 17:49, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Thank you, I knew how normal box fed worked just belt confused me ForeverDEAD 18:28, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Did Sir Roger Casement have a sister who became (or already was) a Catholic Nun?

I was brought up and educated in the North East of Yorkshire in England some 60 years ago, and have always believed, though I know not from what source, that one of my teachers in my Primary School (York Street Infants' School) who was a Nun who lived in a local Convent belonging to The Sisters of Mercy there, was the sister (sibling) of the renowned and executed-for-treason Irish Freedom Fighter (during the Irish Easter Uprising), Sir Roger Casement (the Knighthood being subsequently withdrawn by the then British Government). I have researched many online web pages about Sir Roger, but can find no mention of the Sister. Any info. would be most gratefully received. Thanks for any help forthcoming. 81.145.241.198 19:24, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Correction - I have just been informed it was not Sir Roger Casement - it was instead James Connolly,another Irish Easter Uprising martyr, whose sister Elizabeth subsequently went on to become a teaching Nun in my Primary School. Thanks anyway. 81.145.240.116 23:14, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Jolly Ranchers and Windows

Ok.. so me and a few friends went rolling and one of my friends decided to stick the jolly ranchers onto a few windows by licking them and placing them onto the windows.

We were told by someone else that all it would do was cement itself to the window but after awhile it would just slowly fade away with a lot of water.

So I was wondering if jolly ranchers really do any harm to windows. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.245.76.224 (talk) 20:53, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

From what I know, no. It's just sugar (etc.) and the window is made of glass, so no harm done, other than annoying the person who owns the window :) --PolarWolf ( grrr... ) 21:28, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
It sounds weirdly pretty, if one was deliberate about color choice. --Masamage ♫ 21:32, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Well... The girl who's window we put jolly ranchers on was really mad about it. Like really. (she didn't know it was us who did it.. long story. lol) and a few of her friends and her were saying that the saliva was acidic and could break the windows (haha) and one even said that putting saliva onto open wounds could cause you to get infected or die (which he said he saw on some educational show). yeah.. I have REALLY smart classmates let me tell you. lol.
But the girl's mom is upset about it and I think it might be because it left behind some of the coloring on the windows because i know they got the jolly ranchers off. But I don't know.
It might be a nice idea to offer to clean their windows as a way of apologising. DuncanHill 22:47, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Well, saliva is not really acidic to any degree that can affect glass (I don't know its ph off hand but it can't be very high or you'd know it if it, say, got on your hands, etc.). Perhaps her friends were mistaking the fact that saliva contains enzymes which can break down food with the fact that it is acidic. In any case, it's probably a mess to clean up, but I don't think it can permanently damage the glass. Some soap and hot water should take it off with a bit of friction. --24.147.86.187 23:06, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
The average pH of human saliva is around 6.5. That's considerably less acidic than rainwater. FiggyBee 01:24, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
Thought experiment: What to they make laboratory flasks and test tubes out of? Glass maybe? So how resistant to acid do you think glass is? No, there is no conceivable ingredient in candy that's going to eat away at a window. It's going to go away as soon as there is enough water around because most of whats in the candy dissolves in water. The only possible way it could harm the window would be some kind of bizarre thermal thing where maybe the glass wants to expand or contract and the candy doesn't or something - which could just maybe crack the glass - but I really seriously doubt that. SteveBaker 12:06, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
That actually sounds like a very legitimate concern, but I'm sure modern glass is well-treated to avoid thermal expansion --frotht 19:29, 6 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Creating pages in a different way

Is it possible to create the same page but in a different light?

Remember, what looks good to me, is also looking good to you. Ericthebrainiac 22:04, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

I'm not sure what you mean (or why you are linking so many words), but if you are asking, can there be two versions of a page on the same subject in Wikipedia, portraying it in different ways?, the answer is "no, that isn't supposed to be allowed," but as Wikipedia is large and decentralized you can sometimes get things of that nature, and there is always going to be case that articles will have different slants depending on the specificity of the subject matter (an article on IQ differences among races is going to spend a lot more time presuming IQ differences of some sort than an article about the social construction of race would; in theory these are not at all incompatible but in practice the articles get edited by different editors, people with different agendas come along, and even a well-disciplined, good-faith effort towards NPOV will lead to two apparently contradictory articles). But in general Wikipedia's organizational policies subscribe to something of a nested-but-atomic theory of knowledge, whereby any given thing should be represented once specifically but be part of a series of nested articles of greater and lesser specificity and/or greater and lesser divergence from topic. If that makes any sense. Very short answer: don't make duplicate articles with difference slants. --24.147.86.187 23:03, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
The one case I am aware of that takes different approaches to the same topic is General relativity vs. Introduction to general relativity. Unless you're dealing with something as complex as space-time however, this probably isn't necessary. --YbborTalk 01:41, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
About that second line, browsers are not wysiwyg, so no. DirkvdM 06:37, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
You make be interested in WP:POVFORK --frotht 19:07, 6 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Hydromorphone abuse?

I hope this isn't a medical question. After surgery of a broken foot, doctors prescribed me some pills Hydromorphone painkillers. Seeing as the name contains part of the word "morphine", I became curious. What is the difference between hydromorphone and morphine that inclines doctors to prescribe to me hydromorphone instead of morphine? Per mass, how does hydromorphone compare with pure morphine in terms of potency? Thanks. Acceptable 22:54, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Of course it's a medical question. You mean you hope it won't get deleted. DirkvdM 06:41, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
It's a medical question, but it's not a medical advice question - it's not describing symptoms or asking for a diagnosis or course of action. It's just asking for information that could be found in a pharmacy reference book. Anyway, our article on hydromorphone seems to contain most of the answers. Gandalf61 09:50, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
I know, I was just teasing. DirkvdM 06:30, 6 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Polystyrene foam

My laying hens love eating styrene foam.Is it harmful to them and can it be harmful to humans by eating the eggs or flesh of the poultry? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 202.61.206.171 (talk) 23:07, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

You may want to read the relevant section of our Polystyrene article (but note that it's uncited, so take it with a grain of salt). That said, since it is commonly used to package food, I doubt it'll release anything acutely poisonous. As for what it does to the chickens, I'd recommend asking a veterinarian. I wouldn't really expect it to be good for their health, though. —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 00:08, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
Original research warning!! I have had chickens for a couple years now. In the last house I lived in they pecked away at the foam insulation that skirted the house. They didn't seem to be affected by it and neither were the eggs. They stopped doing it when we moved. We also had to replace those panels before we got hosed on our security deposit... but it was cheaper to replace the panels. Dismas|(talk) 03:50, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
Some foam peanuts are actually cornstarch even though they look like polystyrene, so they are edible (but rather bland).--Shantavira|feed me 10:14, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
Polystyrene is not in any way biodegradable - which means that the chickens can't digest it. This is both good news and bad news. It means that you aren't going to suffer from eating eggs or flesh from these chickens. However it's also not good news for the chicken because it can't digest the plastic. There was a piece on NPR the other day about some kind of seabirds off on some remote island whom researchers were concerned about (I don't recall the details - sorry) - they discovered that the young birds had their stomachs partially filled with plastic which just sat there because they couldn't digest it and it didn't pass out of their gut naturally. This reduced the volume of the bird's stomach and prevented them from getting adequate nutrition. So I think you should keep the plastic away from the chickens if you want them to remain fat and juicy and to lay decent eggs - but I don't think you have to worry for your own safety. SteveBaker 12:16, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
  • They were talking about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. As for the chickens, maybe you should give them a supply of small stones, which I believe they like to eat as a kind of digestif. Presumably the instinct to do so is what's got them eating your styrofoam. --Sean 13:03, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
Chickens will naturally seek out those "stones" from the ground if they aren't kept in cages and have access to dirt. For those kept in cages, they need some form of poultry grit (we probably don't have a link to that since it would be a dict def at most) in order to help digest grain. Grain and grit are mixed together in the chicken's gizzard. The grit helps break down the grain into more digestible pieces since chickens don't have teeth to chew their food. Dismas|(talk) 13:54, 5 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] value of a book

what is the value of the book called the rosary by Florence L. Barclay first edittion purple hard cover. excellent condition 1911 printed by G.P.Putnam's sons New York and London the nickerbocker press and it has been signed on the inside cover using old ink well ink and feather in fancy style writting and it reads as to Mrs Margaret Higgins from George april 22/11 thank you hurmit2003 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.69.233.123 (talk) 23:44, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Is this it?
Is this it?
I don't think there is any way for anyone here to find a good answer for this question. I would take the book to a specialist at book valuation. The book isn't signed by the author - so I doubt it has any special value in that regard. Some people collect first editions though - so that might add to its value. But since the book was published in 1909 - and yours is dated 1911 - it's hard to see how it could be a first edition?!? We have an article about Florence L. Barclay and about the book The Rosary - which was a best seller in 1910. This page has much more information about printing runs and publishers. You need an expert to value it though - perhaps it's worth emailing the address at the bottom of that website? SteveBaker 12:26, 5 October 2007 (UTC)

everything that describes this book in the 20th century american best sellers research matches the book I have. it has a linnen cloth sticthed over the book to protect the purple book. yes the picture you asked if it was the book I have. it is the same book but my book is in better condition it is not all warn out.and the dates on it is the same it was published in 1909 but the writting sighned in the front cover to mrs margaret higgins from george has 1911. you have to see it to belive it. thank you hurmit2003 the only difference I see is my Book has embroided floral design made like a frame around the tital and author on the front cover.

Yeah - so the copy you have was published in 1909 - but signed two years later. That makes sense. Well, maybe it's worth something - it's hard to know. You need a book expert. SteveBaker 03:49, 7 October 2007 (UTC)