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

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The discussion revolves around frustrations with current documentary programming, particularly criticizing the History Channel's focus on sensational topics like time travel conspiracies instead of real historical content. Participants express disappointment over National Geographic's sale to Fox, fearing a decline in quality programming. The conversation shifts to lighter topics, including humorous anecdotes about everyday life, such as a malfunctioning kitchen fan discovered to be blocked by installation instructions. There are also discussions about the challenges of understanding various dialects in Belgium, the complexities of language, and personal experiences with weather and housing in California. Members share their thoughts on food, including a peculiar dish of zucchini pancakes served with strawberry yogurt, and delve into mathematical concepts related to sandwich cutting and the properties of numbers. The thread captures a blend of serious commentary and lighthearted banter, reflecting a diverse range of interests and perspectives among participants.
  • #301
Langauge is so confusing and life so horrifying. If that was a "Nice attacker" I'd hate to meet a "Naughty" one.
 
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  • #302
Jonathan Scott said:
Langauge is so confusing and life so horrifying. If that was a "Nice attacker" I'd hate to meet a "Naughty" one.
Don't mean to get anal about the news quote you read (I understand you were being facetious) but, for others, that's why we use the capital 'N'. However, since the advent of the Internet, grammar has taken a beating, not to mention spelling. Although the capital 'N' denotes a proper noun like Nice, France, especially in this case, where it is also a word - nice, it is in opposition to or confusing a main theme of the quote. In this case, it shouldn't be used at the beginning of a sentence. That's only common sense. The headline I read yesterday said something like, "Nice truck driver plows into holiday crowd" when it should have read, " (Deranged or terrorist) truck driver plows into Nice, France holiday crowd."
Hopefully my miserable attempt at explanation didn't mangle the grammar too much.
 
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  • #303
That's the point. I'm seeing so many headlines starting with "Nice" as the first word that it's rewiring my brain in a nasty way.
 
  • #304
One could pronounce it french.
 
  • #305
And don't forget, but most professional writers know that a little 'faux' sensationalism will make one notice a headline. So they get away with what they can. It's an 'in' joke but it's not really funny.
 
  • #306
ebos said:
And don't forget, but most professional writers know that a little 'faux' sensationalism will make one notice a headline. So they get away with what they can. It's an 'in' joke but it's not really funny.
That's why I stopped reading many publications. Even the headlines of formerly serious media have become sensational nowadays. E.g. headline: scientist found life on Mars; content: some frozen water molecules are assumed under the surface and life could had been possible there or some bacterial life is still thinkable. I truly hate this and refuse to read those traps. Unfortunately the number of news I don't read for this reason is constantly increasing.
 
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  • #307
ebos said:
And don't forget, but most professional writers know that a little 'faux' sensationalism

just look at what they write about the presidential candidates. .
 
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  • #308
ebos said:
Don't mean to get anal about the news quote you read (I understand you were being facetious) but, for others, that's why we use the capital 'N'. However, since the advent of the Internet, grammar has taken a beating, not to mention spelling. Although the capital 'N' denotes a proper noun like Nice, France, especially in this case, where it is also a word - nice, it is in opposition to or confusing a main theme of the quote. In this case, it shouldn't be used at the beginning of a sentence. That's only common sense. The headline I read yesterday said something like, "Nice truck driver plows into holiday crowd" when it should have read, " (Deranged or terrorist) truck driver plows into Nice, France holiday crowd."
Hopefully my miserable attempt at explanation didn't mangle the grammar too much.
Unfortunately, many Americans have never heard of Nice (pronounced "neece"), France, so are very confused when they read it.
 
  • #310
zoobyshoe said:
There is a town in France called "Brest."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brest,_France

Immagine those potential headlines.
Yes, but other than Nice, the climate in Brest is rough and stormy. And if I remember it correctly their crêpes are made with dinkel-wheat. None of which seems suitable to associate it with breasts.
 
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  • #311
Yeah, and there's a town in Newfoundland, Canada called Dildo. But it's no excuse for bad journalism. Evo has given us another reason for not putting a word/name like Nice at the beginning of a sentence. I think we should start calling these lazy internet journalists bosses about some of the crap they write. Of course, I have read some pretty powerful stuff as well. But those were mostly by ex-newspaper columnists who are now blogging or freelance on the web.
 
  • #312
Preacher. One, truly demented show. I'm addicted.
 
  • #313
zoobyshoe said:
There is a town in France called "Brest."
Immagine those potential headlines.
Well, just imagine the potential headlines about a small Austrian village in the municipality of Tarsdorf, in the Innviertel region of western Upper Austria...

In fact, its road signs were often stolen by souvenir hunting tourists, before the signs were made, more or less, theftprooft.. :oldwink:

You can see what I mean by looking at... unusual place names ...:olduhh:

You can find it yourself, I'm sure, but just in case... it's under contents, number three... lol
 
  • #314
SpaceX have launched a new docking adapter for the ISS and soft-landed the Falcon 9 first stage back at the launch site again. I think this is another impressive achievement, but the BBC news site doesn't even mention it at the moment.
 
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  • #315
Jonathan Scott said:
SpaceX have launched a new docking adapter for the ISS and soft-landed the Falcon 9 first stage back at the launch site again. I think this is another impressive achievement, but the BBC news site doesn't even mention it at the moment.
OK, now they have noticed that it launched: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-36823250
But they haven't yet commented on the successful soft landing.
 
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  • #316
Jonathan Scott said:
Langauge is so confusing and life so horrifying. If that was a "Nice attacker" I'd hate to meet a "Naughty" one.
True. I like this post.
 
  • #317
Nice ?
Never been there
but here's how i plan to arrive
charles-leonce-brosse-meeting-d-aviation-nice.jpg

my favorite poster from 1970's
http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Meeting-d-Aviation-Nice-Posters_i325900_.htm
 
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  • #318
Current hot debate topic : black life matters!
I am happy that my favorite movie is back on my local HBO today : Hairspray! :biggrin:
 
  • #319
I'm wondering why my doctor has referred me to a liver transplant specialist after my last blood tests came back. :cry: I don't think my results are that bad, but then I know you have to look at several results together, and I don't quite get what those are. Perhaps he's just wanting to make sure he's not missing anything. RIGHT?
 
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  • #320
Evo said:
I'm wondering why my doctor has referred me to a liver transplant specialist after my last blood tests came back. :cry: I don't think my results are that bad, but then I know you have to look at several results together, and I don't quite get what those are. Perhaps he's just wanting to make sure he's not missing anything. RIGHT?
The liver is the only organ which can recover to some degree as long as one hasn't Hep C or so or isn't a hardcore drinker. I think there are special diets for this. I once read about large amounts of yoghurts and similar milk products. However, the source wasn't really reliable. Also medicamentation can play a crucial role since they are either bad for the kidneys or the liver. In any case you should ask a professional, perhaps another one to make sure whether he comes to the same conclusion.

Edit: If I were religious I'd add the unavoidable prayers here. In any case, I wish you all the best. (My source in medical questions is currently in NM, for otherwise I would have asked her.)
 
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  • #321
Evo said:
I'm wondering why my doctor has referred me to a liver transplant specialist after my last blood tests came back. :cry: I don't think my results are that bad, but then I know you have to look at several results together, and I don't quite get what those are. Perhaps he's just wanting to make sure he's not missing anything. RIGHT?
I would expect the threshold for referral to be fairly low, because the downsides of referring unnecessarily are somewhat less catastrophic than those from failing to refer when it does matter. So I would take it as a sign of something unusual, rather than as a sign of something serious, unless and until the specialist says otherwise.

I find statistical inference comforting. I hope you do too...
 
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  • #322
fresh_42 said:
The liver is the only organ which can recover to some degree as long as one hasn't Hep C or so or isn't a hardcore drinker. I think there are special diets for this. I once read about large amounts of yoghurts and similar milk products. However, the source wasn't really reliable. Also medicamentation can play a crucial role since they are either bad for the kidneys or the liver. In any case you should ask a professional, perhaps another one to make sure whether he comes to the same conclusion.
Most of the medications I'm on are bad for my liver, and I've placed myself on a liver healthy diet, I don't have any form of hepatitis, so I'm hoping he's just sending me there to rule out serious liver damage from all of the drugs, and also having too much iron in my body, iron is very dangerous, it destroys your internal organs, you need very little and your body doesn't get rid of it like other vitamins and minerals. I've given blood to reduce iron and on an iron free (or as close as I can get) diet. Too much iron also makes you very tired, so you think you need iron. Go to the doctor and get tested before self medicating!
 
  • #323
Evo said:
Nice (pronounced "neece"
For myself this is a "TIL moment" very interesting, thanks.
( A thought on the liver test post, My wife got the same referral, after years of Ibuprofen, Acetaminophen, as well as cholesterol meds her liver enzymes were way out of range. After several months of closely monitoring the NSAID dosages and getting cholesterol under control through diet we were able to get all the readings back to acceptable levels and the story has a happy ending. I wouldn't want this to be construed as "medical advice" but fresh_42 has a good point in #320, Best wishes and I hope your story has a happy ending also.)
 
  • #324
I know that medis to lower blood pressure like beta blocker normally are liver relevant. They could either be changed, because there exist really many of them, or the dose might be changeable depending on the figures. But to change medis and then stress the kidneys is usually not a good idea since they are by far more sensitive and not even closely as robust as the liver is. Also paracetamol (APAP) is an absolute no-go for the liver (just saying). It should be avoided even by healthy people. I once looked up the ##LD_{50}## of it and found a case where a British girl has died of an overdose that - if I remember correctly - was a few grams. You are absolutely right. Self-medicamentation is a really bad idea. I remember an internist who said to me that he wouldn't even swallow an ASS. And I've heard of cases in which people ruined themselves by drinking herbal teas too often (because of some diet promises or other esoteric nonsense). What is always a good advice is to drink a lot of water. (However, having Ferguson in mind, this might not always be a good idea. Here it is the best monitored and controlled foodstuff of all.)
 
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  • #325
@1oldman2 & @fresh_42, my pain doctor had me taking huge amounts of ibuprofen & tylenol and other meds that destroy the liver to reduce my need for oxycodone which is not bad for the liver (I take oxycodone without acetaminophen), plus I was placed on statins which are horrible for the liver, and a number of other meds that are known to raise AST and ALT. People on these meds need close monitoring of the liver, I kept asking why I wasn't being monitored for years. I finally asked for tests. My results really aren't bad, they fall in the "moderate" range. Anyway, I have gone off random thoughts, but feel much better about going to see this doctor, thanks to you all.
 
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  • #326
To my knowledge, Ibu ruins the kidneys. It is as bad as APAP is for the liver. And as said before: the kidneys don't recover! Oxy gets you addicted. So what? Depending on where you live you should really, really try to get your hands on weed. It's by far less damaging (if at all) than the pharma companies want you to believe. And if you don't smoke, put it into meatballs, cakes or tea. No herbal tea, of course.

Edit: (Real dialogue, I promise.)
Doc: This is all that can be done from the prescription side.
Me: You could prescribe me THC. (Which he actually can't in my country.)
Doc: You may buy this on your own.
 
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  • #327
fresh_42 said:
To my knowledge, Ibu ruins the kidneys. It is as bad as APAP is for the liver. And as said before: the kidneys don't recover! Oxy gets you addicted. So what? Depending on where you live you should really, really try to get your hands on weed. It's by far less damaging (if at all) than the pharma companies wants you to believe. And if you don't smoke, put it into meatballs, cakes or tea. No herbal tea, of course.
I have so much to say on this subject, (my wife has a "card") however pf rules make this a touchy subject. I would like to see a legitimate pf sanctioned thread on the subject of legal medical use, however good peer reviewed research data is somewhat at a minimum so we will just have to see. This is a subject with a lot of "crackpot hype" so it would be a very difficult thread to moderate.
 
  • #328
Why is the live coverage of the GOP convention on Euro News two seconds more live than on CNN? That thing with the constant speed of light is a myth!
 
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  • #329
1oldman2 said:
I have so much to say on this subject, (my wife has a "card") however pf rules make this a touchy subject. I would like to see a legitimate pf sanctioned thread on the subject of legal medical use, however good peer reviewed research data is somewhat at a minimum so we will just have to see. This is a subject with a lot of "crackpot hype" so it would be a very difficult thread to moderate.
That's why I said "depending on where you live". It hasn't been meant as an appeal to break the law. The rest was basically own party experiences (although long ago).
 
  • #330
fresh_42 said:
That's why I said "depending on where you live". It hasn't been meant as an appeal to break the law. The rest was basically own party experiences (although long ago).
Concurrence indicated :wink:
 
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  • #331
Today once again North Korea attacked the ocean in an unprovoked missile attack, apparently they were able to hit their target. :smile:

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/07/18/seoul-says-north-korea-has-fired-3-missiles-into-sea1.html

Meanwhile here in Montana, US fish and wildlife is considering drone bombing of our native ferrets with peanut butter flavored vaccines. o_O

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2016...g-peanut-butter-flavored-vaccine-pellets.html
 
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  • #332
1oldman2 said:
Today once again North Korea attacked the ocean in an unprovoked missile attack, apparently they were able to hit their target. :smile:
They better hope it won't strike back!
 
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  • #333
fresh_42 said:
They better hope it won't strike back!
A tactical Tsunami maybe?
 
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  • #334
1oldman2 said:
A tactical Tsunami maybe?
Thanks for that big laugh!
 
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  • #335
Evo said:
I'm wondering why my doctor has referred me to a liver transplant specialist after my last blood tests came back. :cry: I don't think my results are that bad, but then I know you have to look at several results together, and I don't quite get what those are. Perhaps he's just wanting to make sure he's not missing anything. RIGHT?
Sorry to hear that. But I'm sure it won't be so bad. Look, if you really needed a transplant you would know it even if the doctor didn't tell you, right? :wink:
As fresh said, liver is great at recovering. I know a person who had a serious liver damage from medication. The liver almost stopped working. He spend a week or two in hospital and I think he couldn't eat at all or only some soups, I'm not sure now. He had to take pills after returning home and now his liver is totally fine and doesn't need any liver medication.
You're probably not as bad as he was so your treatment will be easier! :rainbow:
I know that doctors often don't tell you anything. You have to ask and then they act like you are bothering them so much. Like, why would you even want to know what's wrong with you? Just take the pills he gives you and you'll be better. ?:)
 
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  • #336
Evo said:
Perhaps he's just wanting to make sure he's not missing anything. RIGHT?

Ohhh Best Wishes Evo

I'm a believer in our ability to heal

eat well
i hope you have a garden or Farmer's market nearby
Missouri peaches are great right now

old jim
 
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  • #337
We seem to have got someone else's weather by accident. They are calling it a "Spanish Plume" where hot air from Spain is reaching the UK. My back garden (which is a bit of a sun trap) is currently 92F (33.3C) in the shade and even on the north side of the house the temperature in the shade is about 84F.

Weather this warm is so rare in the UK that few homes have any sort of air conditioning. I opened up all windows and doors first thing in the morning to try to cool the house off from yesterday, then once it began to warm up I closed everything off. I've had the living room on the north side of the house closed up all morning with curtains shut and it's still only about 74F in there, but even with blinds down and windows closed most of the house, including my study, is well over 80F.

Fortunately today seems to be a one-off, in that the maximum tomorrow is expected to be back down to about 79F (26C) then from Thursday it's back to around 70F (21C) or so, which is quite enough for me.
 
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  • #338
That's really too much! Hope you've got some cold beer or lemonade to cool you down :-)

Here, we've got quite cold weather for this time of the year, only 21-22C, which is totally fine for me :-D. But they say the temp will rise at the end of the week.
 
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  • #339
It's in weather like this that I look at the south-facing slope of my ridge roof and start thinking it can't be that hard to convert it into a primitive solar chimney...
 
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  • #340
UK TV channel "Dave" has commented on the weather situation on its Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/davewittybanter/
 
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  • #341
  • #342
Jonathan Scott said:
UK TV channel "Dave" has commented on the weather situation on its Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/davewittybanter/
That page has final proof that the moon landings were faked. If we've been to the moon, why doesn't it have a TripAdvisor review? Answer that one, Plait.
 
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  • #343
Ibix said:
That page has final proof that the moon landings were faked. If we've been to the moon, why doesn't it have a TripAdvisor review? Answer that one, Plait.
Oh yes, it has! Fetch your towel and look out for Vogons:

A1HGWCA36hL.jpg
 
  • #344
fresh_42 said:
Oh yes, it has! Fetch your towel and look out for Vogons
DON'T PANIC!

I like the books and the radio and TV versions. I didn't think the film version was great in general. But it has a (totally unremarked, IIRC) Darwinian explanation for Vogon bureaucratic unimaginativeness, which is superb.
 
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  • #345
"Leonard McCoy: The bureaucratic mentality is the only constant in the universe."
 
  • #346
This can of 9 Lives cat food boasts: "With Real Ocean Whitefish".

I'm so happy and relieved I didn't end up with any of that counterfeit ocean whitefish that's out there.
 
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  • #347
zoobyshoe said:
This can of 9 Lives cat food boasts: "With Real Ocean Whitefish".

I'm so happy and relieved I didn't end up with any of that counterfeit ocean whitefish that's out there.
Maybe you could be fooled, but your cat would know immediately it was false.
Some 30-40 years ago, before I was born, allegedly my grandma used to test caned food (for humans) on cats. If they ate it, it was safe for the family.
 
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  • #348
Sophia said:
Some 30-40 years ago, before I was born, allegedly my grandma used to test caned food (for humans) on cats. If they are it, it was safe for the family.
Makes sense, I guess. On the other hand, I wouldn't eat "Real Ocean Whitefish" on my cat's recommendation.
 
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  • #349
:-)
BTW how many cats have you got?
 
  • #350
Sophia said:
:-)
BTW how many cats have you got?
I don't actually have a cat. There's a feral cat I feed.
 

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