What is the newest installment of 'Random Thoughts' on Physics Forums?

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Discussion Overview

The thread discusses various random thoughts and observations, touching on topics such as media programming, personal anecdotes, language use, and mathematical curiosities. The scope includes informal commentary, humor, and reflections on everyday experiences.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express frustration with the quality of documentaries on channels like the History Channel and National Geographic, suggesting a decline in factual programming.
  • There is a humorous anecdote about discovering a polythene bag obstructing a kitchen extractor fan, leading to a discussion about the clarity of installation manuals.
  • Participants share thoughts on the nature of prime numbers, particularly regarding the status of the number 2 and its implications for mathematical proofs.
  • There are reflections on language use and the reactions to grammatical errors made by native speakers, with some participants sharing their personal responses to such situations.
  • One participant humorously suggests that if 2 were not considered prime, it would complicate the understanding of prime factors in even numbers.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

The discussion contains multiple competing views, particularly regarding the status of the number 2 as a prime and the quality of media programming. No consensus is reached on these topics.

Contextual Notes

Participants express varying degrees of skepticism and humor, with some comments reflecting personal experiences and subjective opinions rather than objective analysis.

Who May Find This Useful

Readers interested in informal discussions about media, language, and mathematics may find this thread engaging.

  • #8,701
BillTre said:
Best playoff game ever.
One of the best games I've ever seen.
 
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  • #8,702
BillTre said:
Best playoff game ever.
If none of the other teams will improve tremendously, then we've seen the Superbowl winner tonight. Although KC will have to work on its defense. There have been at least three passes into or near the end zone I remember from the last quarter alone where the receiver was completely uncovered.
 
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  • #8,703
These were probably the best two teams in the playoffs.
Too bad it wasn't the SB.
 
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  • #8,704
BillTre said:
These were probably the best two teams in the playoffs.
Too bad it wasn't the SB.
It was a battle of QB with little defensive disturbances.
 
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  • #8,705
fresh_42 said:
If none of the other teams will improve tremendously, then we've seen the Superbowl winner tonight.
😍😍😍
 
  • #8,706
I realized I have been using the expression ' like a Jekyll and Hyde..' without ever knowing which one is the good one.
 
  • #8,707
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. The doc is the outwardly pleasant man and Mr Hyde is his hidden (Hyde/hide) dark side.
 
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  • #8,708
Ibix said:
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. The doc is the outwardly pleasant man and Mr Hyde is his hidden (Hyde/hide) dark side.
And the rumors that he is buried at Hyde Park Corner have to be considered fake news.
 
  • #8,709
"The young people think the old people are fools -- but the old people know the young people are fools"
— Agatha Christie
 
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  • #8,710
A nice little snippet from a physicist delivering a talk earlier: "research physics is figuring out how to live on the knife edge between triviality and intractability". :oldeyes:
 
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  • #8,711
In the East, people practice martial arts like Tai Chi. In the West it's all Judo Christian practices.
 
  • #8,712
I took my first Covid test today and should get the results in 3 days. Based on the symptoms that I've had this week, I think that it was a regular cold. But it's best to check. :olduhh:
 
  • #8,713
Borg said:
I took my first Covid test today and should get the results in 3 days. Based on the symptoms that I've had this week, I think that it was a regular cold. But it's best to check. :olduhh:
My results were confusing: " You are NOT the father" ? ;).
 
  • #8,714
WWGD said:
My results were confusing: " You are NOT the father" ? ;).
It's only important that it is "negative" these days.
 
  • #8,715
fresh_42 said:
It's only important that it is "negative" these days.
A negative DNA test is something to hope for.
 
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  • #8,716
WWGD said:
A negative DNA test is something to hope for.
Everyone needs their DNA!
 
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  • #8,717
Gah! Chose sausages made of pork and chicken again unknowingly. Will be eating rubber-like sausages for a while.
 
  • #8,718
WWGD said:
Gah! Chose sausages made of pork and chicken again unknowingly. Will be eating rubber-like sausages for a while.
You have to buy your sausages here:

Screen-Shot-2019-02-28-at-15.03.14.png
 
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  • #8,719
fresh_42 said:
You have to buy your sausages here:

View attachment 296108
Or maybe at the store " The Best of the Wurst". Which should open at this intersection. Edit: Is that a Photoshop or are they real names?
 
  • #8,720
WWGD said:
Or maybe at the store " The Best of the Wurst". Which should open at this intersection. Edit: Is that a Photoshop or are they real names?
I have no idea. It was among the signs I posted in Lame Jokes, where I think e.g. "Parking here will be fine" was photoshopped, the accident with the car probably not.
 
  • #8,721
Got to play with a Michelson interferometer. :oldsmile:

1643311726167.png
 
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  • #8,722
ergospherical said:
Got to play with a Michelson interferometer. :oldsmile:

View attachment 296112
The Cavendish doesn't have lifts. The Blackett Lab does. In the latter, the Michelson interferometer was best used for detecting when the lift was in motion.
 
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  • #8,723
Ibix said:
The Cavendish doesn't have lifts. The Blackett Lab does. In the latter, the Michelson interferometer was best used for detecting when the lift was in motion.
I noticed this was the only piece of kit in the whole room bolted to the floor, so I'd venture to guess that the pattern would rapidly (and randomly) expand and collapse as the lift vibrated the apparatus? [university funds put to good use. :oldwink:]
 
  • #8,724
The pattern disappeared entirely, actually, but probably because your 'rapid' is a slight understatement and we just couldn't see the changes happening.

Properly isolated optical kit is bolted to very heavy tables which stand on pneumatic supports that isolate them from vibration in the floor. But the one in the student lab was not well isolated and in a lab adjacent to the lift shaft - probably so research kit wasn't there, honestly.

Pro tip: aluminium beer kegs with partially inflated motorcycle inner tubes on top do almost as good a job of isolating your optical table from the floor as bought gear, and are a few grand cheaper. And you can drink the beer.
 
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  • #8,725
Ibix said:
Pro tip: aluminium beer kegs with partially inflated motorcycle inner tubes on top do almost as good a job of isolating your optical table from the floor as bought gear, and are a few grand cheaper.
Yeah, I'm sure that explanation'll totally convince my demonstrator. :oldeyes:
 
  • #8,726
fresh_42 said:
I have no idea. It was among the signs I posted in Lame Jokes, where I think e.g. "Parking here will be fine" was photoshopped, the accident with the car probably not.
I saw a similarly -confusing one: " Fine for littering".
 
  • #8,727
WWGD said:
Is that a Photoshop or are they real names?
See the sixth photo here.
 
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  • #8,728
Keith_McClary said:
See the sixth photo here.
Good find. It doesn't seem to be an actual street sign - it's a hot dog vending cart.

Google Maps does find a Hot Dog Street in Fayetteville, North Carolina, but it doesn't cross a Sausages Avenue. The nearest match is a Sausage Lane in South Carolina.
 
  • #8,730
It’s funny watching certain people at the gym. A guy just came in fully kitted-out with protein-shakes et al, did about 15 lat pull-downs, then spent another 15 minutes on his phone, then did about another 5 lat pull-downs, drank the shake and left. :oldruck:
 
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