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

[collinsmark]

You meant "Déjà fou" or "Déjà folle"?

Those are fine choices too, I suppose.

I was thinking of "foo," an intentionally meaningless placeholder word. But I suppose they all work.

 

[Rive]

"Déjà foo"?

That's actually quite fitting

It was just a sudden impression (and a panicky impulse to recall and salvage it) of a so ill-logical and badly fitting memory that I'm sure I've never actually had anything like that, ever - gone

Frustration!

Sure it is

 

[Astronuc]

Interesting perspectives on life, evolution, intelligence and technology; history and future.

 

[dlgoff]

My Pilot daughter is working on her CFI Certificate.

From: https://www.sweetaviation.com/fligh...,proficiency, and perform insurance checkouts.

A certified flight instructor (CFI/CFII) certificate allows a commercial pilot to be an educator in aviation. A CFI and/or CFII certificate certifies you to teach other pilot certificate applicants, as well as conduct flight reviews, assess aircraft proficiency, and perform insurance checkouts.

 

[WWGD]

Guess I learnt my lesson so I didn't point my QR reader to this lady's pants:

 

[Charles Link]

Interesting calculation of the other day: Using $r^3/T^2=GM/(4 \pi^2)$, I computed $T$ for the earth's orbit around the sun. For $r$, the light takes 500 seconds to reach the earth from the sun, since 93,000,000/186,000=500, so that $r=(500)(3.0E+8)m$. Meanwhile $M_{sun}=2.0E+30$, an easy number to remember, and $G=6.67E-11$ (MKS). The answer of 3.2 E+7 seconds agreed with $T=(365)(24)(3600)$ seconds. For more precision, a google gives $T=3.16 E+7$, (for the circular orbit), so that the distance of the diameter of the orbit is traveled in about 1.0 E+7 seconds. Meanwhile light takes 1000 seconds to travel the diameter of the orbit, so that the earth moves around the sun at a speed very close to one ten-thousandth the speed of light. A google showed this to be 18.5 miles/second, rather than 18.6=186,000/10,000, but the number one ten-thousandth is accurate to better than one part in a hundred. In any case, a couple of fun calculations. :)

 

[WWGD]

Wonder what this is about : Why is Spanish so popular in ( Edit: in Europe).

 

[DrGreg]

Wonder what this is about : Why is Spanish so popular in Spain?
View attachment 325900

Did you really mean to say that? Or did you mean to say "Why is Spanish so popular in Europe?"

I can think of two possible reasons.

1. Maybe in many schools Spanish isn't taught as much as other languages
2. Spain and Spanish islands are popular holiday destinations.

 

[WWGD]

Did you really mean to say that? Or did you mean to say "Why is Spanish so popular in Europe?"

I can think of two possible reasons.

1. Maybe in many schools Spanish isn't taught as much as other languages
2. Spain and Spanish islands are popular holiday destinations.

Indeed, I meant why Spanish is popular in Europe. I would have thought those in the tourist trade would be able to speak English fluently( given most tourists do as well).

 

[fresh_42]

Indeed, I meant why Spanish is popular in Europe. I would have thought those in the tourist trade would be able to speak English fluently( given most tourists do as well).

This survey was among ordinary people, not among those in the tourism industry. It has been asked which additional language would they like to speak. Since basically everybody between 15 and 30 already speaks English - more or less - plus their own language, the only reasonable languages in Europe are the three that have been listed. And Spanish is the logical choice because there are so many countries that speak Spanish. The few German ones either want to read Kant and Goethe in their original version or want to work in Germany although there are many reasons to visit Germany as a tourist. The Dutch know this.

 

[Borg]

This week, I discovered that my car posts inspection messages that can theoretically only be cleared by the dealer when you take it there to have it 'inspected'. A simple 20K check of fluids, etc. is over $400 and some inspections run in excess of $1000! I've been to dealers for repairs before and they use every opportunity to go on fishing expeditions to see how much they can scare you in order to have you do unnecessary repairs.

It took a bit of research but I found that cars in the U.S. are required to follow an On Board Display (OBD) standard for diagnostic tools which led me to this little device for $70 which will clear the "Inspection Due" messages and allow me to take it where I choose.

UPDATE:
I got the scanner today and used it to reset the service interval. Worked like a charm and it even told me about the last trick that the manufacturer had up its sleeve - the service reset can't be done unless the hood is open.

 

[dlgoff]

I watched a PBS program today about the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster.

Which reminded me about an interview and job offer as a non-destructive test engineer from Morton Thiokol, Inc. I had before the disaster. I ended up taking a job from a different employer. Thank goodness.

 

[nuuskur]

Wonder what this is about : Why is Spanish so popular in ( Edit: in Europe).
View attachment 325900

I would like to learn Spanish as well. Mainly because it's almost another lingua franca. In some parts of the world it definitely is. Just as Mandarin in many SEA countries.

 

[fresh_42]

This is going to be a tough weekend. Whenever I zap through an English channel I hear or read a word that sounds like a nasty disease or an overpriced beer. Then I realize it's even worse and I wish it was Monday.

 

[fresh_42]

I just read the headline: "ChatGPT for better teaching"

Then I read the little statement to figure out who it said - a university president.

Oops! Then I searched from which department this obviously dull professor came.

Physicist and biologist.

Double oops! What a disappointment.

 

[WWGD]

I understood the weird look I received recently. I meant to tell someone I was doing a Spring Cleaning on Steroids. Instead, I said I'm doing a Spring cleaning on ...Hemorrhoids.

 

[WWGD]

Wonder if it would make sense to include the links to free books put out by Springer?

 

[Tom.G]

https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=springer+free+books

(maybe Google should be promoted to one of your "Best Friends")

 

[WWGD]

https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=springer+free+books

(maybe Google should be promoted to one of your "Best Friends")

I did look, though I remember seeing Math books at some point, but not in their current webpage.

 

[Tom.G]

Checking the Google search results found a site with a list sorted by subject:
https://hnarayanan.github.io/springer-books/

 

[WWGD]

Checking the Google search results found a site with a list sorted by subject:
https://hnarayanan.github.io/springer-books/

Thanks for the link, but these are not free, but discounted:

 

[fresh_42]

If it looks like a duck,
walks like a duck,
and quacks like a duck,

then it is definitely a **** AI if you had to ask.

 

[nsaspook]

the dead zone where all sense of time and space seems to disappear ....

 

[fresh_42]

Back in my days it was more like this:

We didn't know sleep and the fridge was empty anyway.

 

[Grelbr42]

We didn't know sleep and the fridge was empty anyway.

The first ever webcam was pointed at the coffee pot so that people didn't need to walk all the way there to find the pot empty.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trojan_Room_coffee_pot

I wonder what people did when it was empty?

 

[nsaspook]

The first ever webcam was pointed at the coffee pot so that people didn't need to walk all the way there to find the pot empty.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trojan_Room_coffee_pot

I wonder what people did when it was empty?

 

[WWGD]

Not too confident about an organization called the " Feil" organization.

 

[Borg]

The first ever webcam was pointed at the coffee pot so that people didn't need to walk all the way there to find the pot empty.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trojan_Room_coffee_pot

I wonder what people did when it was empty?

Don't forget its HTTP Coffee Pot protocol 418 - I'm a teapot.

 

[pinball1970]

Random book. Totally forgot I had this, I have Griffiths but got bogged down quick. I will try again but was wondering if you guys had come across it.

 

[fresh_42]

I am basically satisfied with Google, but one thing sucks as hell. If I searched for something, then they fill both of my caches, the German and the English one. But if I clean up one cache, the other one remains untouched.