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.

  • #10,021
berkeman said:
We love ladybugs here! They eat all the bad bugs in our garden. :smile:
1200x675?v=1606494755.jpg
 
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  • #10,022
20221005_215304.jpg
 
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  • #10,023
WWGD said:
Wow, intense message from a Fortune cookie: " Fear is the room where negatives develop". Whatever happened to the likes of " Happiness is having a full stomach"?

I believe the fortune is a type of "idiom," or "kenning," or something along those lines. Although it's a bit dated. I'm not sure if youngins will understand that one, right off the bat.

Back in the day, photographs didn't come from phones or digital sensors. Rather they came from a camera with physical emulsion film that was based on chemistry. After exposure, the film was taken into what's called a darkroom where "negatives" were developed by placing the film in various chemical baths. After that, the process is repeated with coherent light source (called an "enlarger") forming a print, which is a negative of a negative, thus being a positive print. Anyway, the term "darkroom" is what is key here.

The fortune cookie is saying that "Fear is dark." I believe it is implying that if you investigate the unknown that is troubling you, the corresponding fear vanishes.
 
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  • #10,024
 
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  • #10,025
This guy is wicked good at pool shots:

 
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  • #10,028
berkeman said:
Interesting. Are they worried that they won't get paid by the startup?
I believe the concern relates to a 'niche' market that won't recover the R&D cost. Apparently US airlines United Airlines and American Airlines have placed tentative orders with Boom, but the engine manufacturers have backed out on development. I would imagine they need something like the A-12/SR-71 propulsion systems developed by Lockheed.

  • American Airlines has ordered 20 of Boom Supersonic's Overture planes, with an option for 40 more.
  • Overture is estimated to fly up to 80 passengers in an all-business class cabin at a top speed of Mach 1.7.
https://www.businessinsider.com/mee...onic-aircraft-that-united-just-ordered-2021-6

In June 2021, it partnered with United Airlines, which ordered 15 of Boom's $200 million aircraft, Overture, with an option for 35 more. The deal is worth $3 billion.
So, the original orders for 20+15 = 35, with each aircraft using would mean 140 engines baesd on 4 engines per aircraft. I've seen 4 engines, and designs with 2 nacelles (2 engines each?).

There are options for 40+35, but they need engines to prove the concept.

Normally, engines are purchased by the airlines separately from the aircraft.

Edit/update: If one looks at the A-12, SR-71 system, the engine sits in a nacelle with an aeronautical 'spike' at the inlet. The spike controls the shock waves in from the compressor fan. Is the spike part of the engine, or part of the aircraft? Who is responsible for that subsystem?

I think back to ramjets and their application.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marquardt_Corporation
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marquardt_RJ43-MA-9_Ramjet_Engine_-_sectioned.jpg
 
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  • #10,029
My friend telling me how he cuts off major discussions with his girlfriend. By giving absurd retorts.
Her: " You're not a real man".
Him:" Neither are you!".
 
  • #10,030
WWGD said:
My friend telling me how he cuts of major discussions with his girlfriend. By giving absurd retorts.
Her: " You're not a real man".
Him:" Neither are you!".
Will he be prepared for the rest of the dialogue?

...
Her: "At least, I was. You never have been!"
 
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  • #10,031
I read yesterday that a flat earther spent $20,000 to prove flatness and has proven round.

Which Foucault pendulum would be so expensive?
 
  • #10,032
So they were actually talking about/referring to some guy 'Matt' when they said, or at least I heard: "Fermat"
( for Matt). Makes sense now.
 
  • #10,033
@berkeman Sorry, but you can't expect to win with man coverage and all your defenders are always two steps behind.
 
  • #10,034
fresh_42 said:
@berkeman Sorry, but you can't expect to win with man coverage and all your defenders are always two steps behind.
Yeah, not a good afternoon, especially in the 2nd half. Sigh.
 
  • #10,035
berkeman said:
Yeah, not a good afternoon, especially in the 2nd half. Sigh.
I would like to know what happened during halftime. Both left the field with a major fail, the stupidest interception of the day versus a missed FG that was doable.
 
  • #10,036
A clear case of contradiction. I downloaded a step tracker app. And I walked to McD's to complete my goal of total steps. Interesting too, somehow the Steptracker app ended up right next to the McD's app.
 
  • #10,037
Just saw a twist of the old " My enemy's enemy is my friend": " My enemy's friends are my enemies ".
 
  • #10,038
One of my favorites is this:
If you understand, things are just as they are.
If you don't understand, things are just as they are.
 
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  • #10,041
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  • #10,042
fresh_42 said:
No closure x, no close button, and not even a damn backward arrow in the browser.
There is an x, but it's not visible. It's toward the upper right, and one has to move the cursor around the area.

Best to scroll down without clicking on a state in the map.
 
  • #10,043
Astronuc said:
There is an x, but it's not visible.
I think I want to talk to the programmer ...
 
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  • #10,044
20221027_175803.jpg
 
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  • #10,045
I'm taking lots of books to the charity shop. Mostly pop Science.
 
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  • #10,046
Awkward moment of the day, Halloween.
Me: " Ha ha man, great costume"
Reply: " What costume?"
...
 
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  • #10,047
Weeding an overgrown cacti in an undersized pot gives new dimensions to preeminent practice to handle high voltages. Pliers, tweezers, thick gloves, meticulous planning of next moves...

I wonder if this could be incorporated into lab safety training somehow o0)
 
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  • #10,048
This guy,

Claims if y=y(x), then dy/dx is the slope of the graph. Fine. But then he additionally claims that
dx/dy is the slope of x=x(y). Problem is x, may not be a function of y. Guy wrote 17 videos on Covariant Differentioation for free, so I don't want to disagree with him.
 
  • #10,049
Three days working on a bug in some code I was trying to implement. Finally resolved it by removing a single asterisk. ?:)
 
  • #10,050
Borg said:
Three days working on a bug in some code I was trying to implement. Finally resolved it by removing a single asterisk. ?:)
I see it as your pc/program being your autistic friend. 99.999% right, yet a comma or asterisk missing? Impossible to understand.
 

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