Wikipedia:Reference desk archive/January 2004 I

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Wikipedia:Reference Desk archive

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[edit] Romanization

Is Romanization supposed to be capitalized in titles, like Korean Romanization? If yes, why? --Jiang 08:46, 1 Jan 2004 (UTC)

Webster says both are fine. Because the word is derived from Roman, which is always capitalized. Common nouns and adjectives (Elizabethan) derived from proper nouns are often capitalized as an inheritance. Verbs are less often so (boycott). --Menchi (Talk)â 11:58, 1 Jan 2004 (UTC)


[edit] Marlon Brando

(Moved from Village_pump)

Someone told me that Marlon Brando's ethnic origin is Maltese or part Maltese. Can someone tell me if this is true or false?

Since it's impossible to prove a negative, that's a pretty hard question to answer ;) --Raul654 04:39, 2 Jan 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Help with random Graphs

Help!!


I can't find any basic detailed information on random graphs anywhere and neither can my project tutor. If you help me please email strokable@hotmail.com.

I just tried Googling for "random graphs" (in quotes). Turned up a ton of what looks like relevant stuff. Suggest you do likewise. Dpbsmith 20:06, 23 Dec 2003 (UTC)


[edit] Can anyone help?

I have a friend whose greatest hero is Errol Flynn. Although his first film was Captain Blood, my friend says there was a movie before that where Errol was just a dead body...know the name of that film? Thank you, Connie stlgal99@charter.net

http://www.imdb.org is a great source for all things cinematic. It lists no less than six screen appearances prior to Captain Blood:
    • Pirate Party on Catalina Isle (1935) (uncredited) .... Cameo appearance
    • Don't Bet on Blondes (1935) .... David Van Dusen
    • Case of the Curious Bride, The (1935) .... Gregory Moxley
    • Murder at Monte Carlo (1934) .... Dyter
    • I Adore You (1933) (uncredited) .... Bit
    • In the Wake of the Bounty (1933) .... Fletcher Christian
It doesn't say what he did in I Adore You. The others appear to be real parts. Dpbsmith 03:17, 2 Jan 2004 (UTC)
P. S. I'd suggest some caution about your "friend." Errol Flynn was a fine screen actor but not, perhaps, the best role model.

[edit] Taraful Haiducilor

For the article on the Romanian Gypsy musical ensemble Taraful Haiducilor: there is apparently a book (in Romanian) Hopa, tropa, Europa (Hop and trot around Europe) by Speranţa Rădulescu, about the group's first European tour. I don't imagine I'm going to track that down from Seattle. If anyone has a copy of the book and would like to contribute relevant material to the article, (or if anyone knows where I might get a copy) that would be greatly appreciated. -- Jmabel 20:29, 1 Jan 2004 (UTC)

I think this book is hardly easy to find even here, in Bucharest. I shall try though, but it is very unlikely that I'll see it in the widely known bookstores. Masi27185 12:37, 4 Jan 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Lord Rama

Sir/Madam, Is Lord Rama, Hindu god and avatara of vishnu, is of mobite tribe. If he is can you send me web site link or scriptures name. I really appreciate you.

Thank you

For whatever it's worth, this question, which is almost certainly on the wrong page (maybe Reference Desk [yes, now moved there - Angela]) came from an IP address (171.75.87.219) that has no other history, so it's probably a randomly assigned IP address. If you've got an answer for this person, go for it, but I doubt he/she will ever see it. Jmabel 00:47, 3 Jan 2004 (UTC)


[edit] Danish recipe calling for "250 g" of flour....What is "g"?

Hello, In a Danish recipe for "Breakfast Horn Bread" the amount of flour required is "250 g". To what does the "g" refer? It cannot be grams because this would equal only a half cup of flour or so, whereas most bread recipes call for 5 or 6 cups of flour. Thanks for your help. Steve

grams WormRunner 17:51, 3 Jan 2004 (UTC)
Just conducted an experiment in my kitchen - 250 grams of wheat flour equals 450 millilitres. I don't know what size your cups are, but that's around a US pint. Kosebamse 17:56, 3 Jan 2004 (UTC)
One uses weight measurements in order to avoid the innaccuracies like 'about'. Elde 19:52, 3 Jan 2004 (UTC)
According to cup one pint would be two cups, so a bit closer to the 5 cups expected than the originally estimated half cup. andy 21:24, 3 Jan 2004 (UTC)
It stands for gram, which is the Danish word for gram. Pronounced differently, though. Κσυπ Cyp   03:38, 4 Jan 2004 (UTC)

[edit] firehouse

does firehouse have a web site?



[edit] Mortgage payment

I am a couple months late on my mortgage payment and they told me to contact the federal depart of housing and urban development. To see if you can help. Can you please advise if there is anything i can do and how i go about it. Please email me back at nfish@diygroup.com Thanks 12.96.77.126


[edit] Tulu language/dialect

Is Tulu (spoken in India) considered a dialect or a language? Chancemill 09:10, Jan 6, 2004 (UTC)

Ethnologue seems to consider it a separate language [1], and most other sources I can find agree. The government of Karnataka (where I believe it's spoken) seems to accept it as a language, and the Times of India [2] calls it a language, so I think it's probably safe to say that it is one. I could be wrong, though - a lot of it depends not on the language/dialect itself but upon how one defines the terms. - Vardion 07:01, 7 Jan 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Puppy to Malta

Dear Sir, Please can you help me to find a St. Bernard female puppy long haired. I want this puppy as a pet, but it has to be shipped to Malta. Please can you help me with some contacts? Waiting for your answers.

Thanks Marlon

A quick google search turned up Janeway Farms. They do St. Bernards exclusively and do ship internationally on several airlines. --Raul654 11:46, 6 Jan 2004 (UTC)



[edit] Naptha and Greek fire

Moved from Wikipedia:Peer review, Smack 19:34, 7 Jan 2004 (UTC)

Can someone verify the relationship between Naptha and greek fire? I've always been told they're synonomous, but I'd like someone to confirm that. Also, I cannot find the chemical make-up of Naptha anywhere. -Raul654 10:40, 7 Jan 2004 (UTC)

It's spelled naphtha. I was under the impression that the secret of Greek fire has been lost. -Smack 19:34, 7 Jan 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Question of unknown origin

My family watched the movie, The Verdict, on TNT a few years ago and really enjoyed the version that your station aired. I've checked listings from time to time trying to see if it was being aired again but haven't seen any mention of it. I know that movies are frequently aired and would like to know if this movie will be aired any time in the near future.

Thanks, Jean Mitchell jermit1@hotmail.com

The IMDb list several movies with that title, see here. Maybe you can find the one you're searching for there. While the IMDb cannot search the airing tables of TV stations, you can at least find a link to a DVD/VHS version there. Otherwise you'd better ask your local TV stations if (and when) they will reshow that movie. andy 12:58, 12 Jan 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Jamie Johnson?

Dear Johnson and Johnson, I just got through watching a film done by Jamie Johnson, and his work was wonderful. He defintly has talent in the film industries. If he has any other films could you please let me know. Jennifer Stover (extremgrrl@hotmail.com)

Born Rich is Jamie Johnson's only film so far. RickK 09:06, 10 Jan 2004 (UTC)


[edit] Janet and Friend's Photographs

Hi, I am just wanting to know about a picture i have of Janet. It's a black and white photo graph, It was sent to my great aunt from Janet in 1939. It has been hand written on and signed by Janet her self. It is in mint condition. The thing I would like to know is, would it be worth any amount of money. I also have have a black and white photo of Anna Neagle and three hand painted photographs in colour of Peire Trevor, Alice Faye and Sonja Henie. These photo's are all in mint condition and were all hand signed by the stars them selves between 1939 and 1942. I also have a hand written note from Janet Gaynor and a typed letter from Anna Neagle's secretary in 1941 with a money order for one shilling and six pence. Is it possible for you to e-mail me back and let me know what they are worth approxamently.

Yours Sincerely Terri Giles

Hello Terri. I would imagine that what you describe would have immense value to some people out there. May I suggest eBay as a more appropriate forum? There is likely to be many more treasure-hunters there than here, on Wikipedia. - Mark 07:44, 10 Jan 2004 (UTC)


[edit] LIKE TO KOW

 I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ABOUT AUDRY TOTTER THE ACTRESS.
                             THANK YOU 
                            SAMUEL SMITH
                            ANNISTON AL. 3620
                      E-MAIL SAMUALS@BELLSOUTH.NET

Try her IMDb entry at http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0869429/. RickK 19:34, 10 Jan 2004 (UTC)


[edit] what do you call?

a form of art in which lengthy,thin strips of colorful paper are wound into tight circles(?) and "molded" into things like petals which are eventually glued together to make things like paper flowers or snow flakes? my mom called it "quilling", but i can find no specific mention of this type of "quilling". probably cuzz it's called something else. let me know at

randymetscher_3@hotmail.com

if you have any insights. thanks

It's also called "paper filigree". Angela. 22:48, Jan 10, 2004 (UTC)

Quilling is the correct term. You can purchase quilling materials at many craft stores. You need a quilling needle and paper and glue. 65.28.110.120 11:44, 24 December 2005 (UTC) Beth Donovan, bhdonovan@gmail.com

[edit] Dynastic

Hello. I would like to know whether the words "dynastic", "dynast" and "dynasty" have negative (from a democratic POV) meanings in the Western Europe and North America; they do in Greece. If possible give me references to dictionaries. Thank you. with best wishes for Peace Profound, .'. Optim 01:07, 11 Jan 2004 (UTC) .'.

In US usage, "dynasty" carries a whiff of monarchism, and "dynastic succession" far more so. It certainly is intended as an insult when people say that a particular politician's claim on an office comes down to dynastic succession, but the insult may come more the "best claim" part than the "dynastic" part. Certainly, even supporters of the Kennedys or Rockefellers might refer to them as dynasties, though in the case of the Bush family it is used mainly by opponents. Maybe that's because we only had on Kennedy as president and (at least so far) no Rockefellers. In reference to families of athletes (e.g. Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr.) rather than politicians "dynasty" is not pejorative at all. -- Jmabel 07:08, 11 Jan 2004 (UTC)
thank you so much; more replies are welcomed, especially about other countries. Peace Profound Optim 21:21, 11 Jan 2004 (UTC) .'.
I imagine that each country's use of the term depends on whether dynasties exist, and if so, what they're like. I can't speak for other countries, but I think that in New Zealand, there's no particular negative meaning associated with "dynastic". This is, perhaps, simply because we don't have many. For New Zealanders, I suspect that "dynasty" would probably be used more often for history (eg, discussing the Ming dynasty in China) than for modern politics. To New Zealanders, the word would probably not be pejorative, but it might possibly sound pretentious if used by the people themselves. But I'm not a linguist, so I could be mistaken. -- Vardion 08:58, 14 Jan 2004 (UTC)
thanxx! .·..·..·. Optim 13:41, 14 Jan 2004 (UTC) .·..·..·.

[edit] 1724 - Events

Does anyone have more information on what was happening to the world during the year 1724 ? pure.dew@noos.fr

  • Using the Timetables of History (ISBN 0-671-24987-8), I beefed up the 1724). I also emailed him all of the events listed that don't quite belong in the yearly summary (art designs, books published, et al). --Raul654 12:01, 11 Jan 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Kamsko Votinsk

Is it true that Tchaikovsky's real name was Kamsko Votinsk? Optim 01:15, 12 Jan 2004 (UTC)

  • Benet's Readers Encylopedia (an encylopedia of writers and musicians) lists no such alternate name. But demonstrating that it is *not* his name is impossible. → Raul654 01:30, Jan 12, 2004 (UTC)
    • thanks!! Optim 15:03, 13 Jan 2004 (UTC)
FWIW, I don't think 'Kamsko Votinsk' sounds very Russian. The -sk suffix is used in names of cities. -Smack 19:40, 13 Jan 2004 (UTC)
What is FWIW? Optim 20:30, 13 Jan 2004 (UTC)
Think it's supposed to mean either "Floating Weasels In Water" or "For What It's Worth". Don't remember seeing an explanation, though... ∴∴∴ Κσυπ Cyp   21:10, 13 Jan 2004 (UTC) ∴∴∴
And indeed, our very own article on Tchaikovsky states (accurately as far as I know) that he was born in Kamsko-Votkinsk. --Camembert
Yes, and it is really accurate. I have also added some info about this town. but while I was doing my research for it, I came across a Trivia-page which stated that tchaikovsky's real name was Kamsko Votinsk. Optim 20:30, 13 Jan 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Copyright

Hello. Recently I wanted to publish some important speeches of a Greek prime minister (given in America in 1950's) in WikiSource and some parts of them in a relevant Wikipedia article too in order to show the influence of the Greek language on the English language. I sent an email to the webmaster of the site I found the speeches asking for copyright information etc. He replied to me by saying that he has no idea about the copyright of the speeches, but they are very common and widespread on the Internet and published on numerous websites so his personal opinion is that there is not any "hard" (meaning enforceable) copyright covering these speeches. This adds to my suspicion that those speeches (from 1950's) are in the public domain since I have also seen them published in printed magazines etc. Do you think I can proceed and add them in Wikisource and Wikipedia, or need to do something else in order to be sure about their copyright status? Also, since the speeches were given in USA, the copyright (if they have any) is based on American law or the Greek law? Thank you. .'. Optim 13:50, 12 Jan 2004 (UTC) .'.

I'd be very surprised if there is a problem. In general, public speeches by political figures are offered only very limited copyright protection, mainly amounting to protection against outright plagiarism, in which someone falsely claims to be the author of the words. But I'm not a lawyer, and this comes with the usual disclaimer. I'd just go do it. -- Jmabel 05:57, 13 Jan 2004 (UTC)
thanks! Optim 15:03, 13 Jan 2004 (UTC)

[edit] I need a record deal

My band is looking for a record deal...we have been saerching for the past 3 days and we wanted to know if u have open spots for new bands what kind of deals are you offering...please reply back asap

Thank you (anon)

I don't know much about the subject, but it seems to me that reading "The Problem With Music" before signing anything would be a good idea. There's also books that detail the pitfalls of a musical career. Good luck, and be careful. Salsa Shark 03:08, 13 Jan 2004 (UTC)


[edit] English Channel Depth Chart

I am involved in a foolish argument/discussion with my neighbour. She claims that, under certain conditions, one can walk from Cornwall to Mont St. Michel on a sandbar. Of course this is balderdash, however, I would like some hard data to lay my case to rest. Can someone direct me to a website where I can print out a depth chart of the Channel? Thank you.

Chinanose

This is just a case of confusion between Mont St. Michel and St. Michael's Mount. The latter can indeed be walked to when the tide is out (I've done it myself). --Zundark 21:17, 13 Jan 2004 (UTC)


[edit] How do I show I have copyright permission

I understand photo's have to have release under GFDL. If I secure permission under GFDL how do I show that I got the permission when I upload the photo? Kd4ttc 23:30, 13 Jan 2004 (UTC)

I can't give you legally sound answer (I'm not a lawyer), but I can say that if you are verbose and well-intentioned in your notice, this will go a long way. Is this material actually yours, or did you ask someone else to release it under the GFDL? I think that if you say exactly who you got the photos from, how, and when and how you got permission to use them everything should be fine. --snoyes 00:03, 14 Jan 2004 (UTC)
Thanks, see below Kd4ttc
After you've uploaded the image, go to its associated information page and add details of where you got it and what permission you have. If you've already added the image to an article, you can get to the information page by going to the article and clicking on the image; otherwise, the information page is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:{imagename} - e.g. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Burmese_cat.jpg ([[:Image:Burmese cat.jpg]]). —Paul A 01:35, 14 Jan 2004 (UTC)
Above noted. I appreciate the pointers. My plan is to have the copyright holder agree to the GFDL license. One is from Paramount, one is from Gene Trindl (if I get them :-)). But what I was getting at is do I need to upload a photocopy of the letter, exchange emails with some sort of proof, etc. If I get a written letter, where do I deposit the letter to keep the record? I could scan the letter and post it as a pic only referenced in the image info page. Lastly, while it is clear from the FAQ's that I need to cite the release, the details of acceptable evidence and archival of that evidence are were not that clear in the FAQ's. Where can I post about these nitty bits to help others in the process? Thx Kd4ttc 03:50, 14 Jan 2004 (UTC)