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November 13

Dad in space

If all goes well, American astronaut Randolph Bresnik will become a father while in space. His wife, who is nine months pregnant, is due six days after the launch of STS-129. Would he be the first person to become a parent while in space, or has it occurred before? 94.212.31.237 (talk) 00:38, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Well, no women have given birth in space, so there's half your answer. :-) Dismas|^(talk) 00:47, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Michael Fincke in 2004 [1] so at least one already has. 75.41.110.200 (talk) 02:39, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Butterscotch extract

Should any decent sized (US) grocery store carry butterscotch extract? I've never heard of it but have a recipe for butter beer (article?) that calls for it. Dismas|^(talk) 00:41, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Many groceries may have it next to the vanilla in the baking section. Otherwise you will need a store that sells ckae and candy making supplies. Make sure you know whether you need the more dilute "flavor" (2 fl. oz. bottles) or the much more concentrated extracts (1 dram bottles) 75.41.110.200 (talk) 02:48, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Great! Thanks, Dismas|^(talk) 12:22, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Coast Guard auxiliary awards/ribbons

If a CGAUX award/ribbon/medal is not a * Federal * award, Then what would it be called. Since they belong to homeland security ? And the CG over looks what they do —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.191.151.185 (talk) 01:38, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

pricing in new zealand without nickels or pennies

new zealand appears to have removed pennies and nickels from circulation for some time. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_dollar

since this has happened do stores still display 99 cent items? it is common for resellers to make items 99 cents or 99 dollars as a marketing scheme to make the item appear much cheaper. since this coin reform, would a retailer set a once 7.99$ item to 7.90$ or to a flat 8.00$? have prices overall been rounded off to the nearest dollar, or do they still use strange prices to deceive customers? or did new zealand always have round prices like in japan (1000 yen instead of 999 yen).

can any others from penniless or nickelless countries explain this? thanks Bonusbox (talk) 02:29, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

See swedish rounding and Q&A on the removal of the 5c pieces. Nanonic (talk) 02:43, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Pennies were removes in 1967 along with pounds and all that. Then we moved to dollars, including 1c, 2c and 5c coins. 1 and 2 cent coins were removed in 1990. After this, prices were still routinely $1.99. $1.95 is/was also a common price. In 2006 the 5c coins were removed, and prices still remain $x.99 and $x.95. $x.90 is uncommon. Aaadddaaammm (talk) 05:22, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I live for the day that is done in the U.S., instead of having nuisance cents, of negligible worth. This is not 1900. Just round up/down by computerized cash register. Edison (talk) 05:27, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

You need a computerised cash register to round to the nearest 5c? :P See also Efforts to eliminate the penny in the United States. FiggyBee (talk) 05:35, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

In Australia and New Zealand, prices are rounded if you pay in cash (ie, if you buy $4.98 worth of goods you hand over $5 and don't get any change), but not if you pay by electronic means. Rounding is applied on the total when you pay, not on each item. As for Japan's "round prices", Japan, like the US, does not show tax on sticker prices, so when you go and buy your ¥100 items from Daiso, you actually have to pay ¥105. BTW, in case you're not aware, "nickel" and "penny" are not universal terms; in Australia and NZ we say "5 cent coin" and "1 cent coin" (and "10 cent coin" rather than "dime"). FiggyBee (talk) 05:35, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Actually we're just as likely to say "one cent piece" etc. Certainly never "nickel" or "penny" (or dime, quarter, sawbuck, or any of those other quaint terms), though we do talk of bucks. FWIW, some people talk of a $1 coin as a Razoo, a $5 note as an Edmund, and a $50 note as a Chief, but those terms have never really caught on, and in international trade the NZ dollar is often known as the Kiwi. As to the rounding, there's little I can add to what's already been said - if you're using electronic funding (EFTPOS, etc) or cheques, amounts are exact. If you're using cash, the last digit is rounded. Personally, I'd like to see all major world currencies revalue by a factor of 10 - the final digit in the cents column is next to useless for most currencies. FWIW, there was a time when New Zealand went one further than this - there were ½ cent, 2½ cent and 7½ cent definitive postage stamps back in the early 1970s, despite us never having had a half cent coin (they were sold in pairs, I think). Grutness...wha? 06:23, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

The US military eliminated pennies in Europe in the mid-1980s— they rounded up or down to the nearest nickel. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 06:58, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

In the US there are some businesses that round to the nearest nickel in the customer's favor. (To round the other way would bring complaints.) StuRat (talk) 13:32, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

So in a country with no 1 cent coins, anything you buy costs at least .05. Then presumably .07 rounds down to .05 and .08 rounds up to .10? If I want 2 screws at a hardware store at .07 each, I could buy them one at a time and spend .10 total, or I could by 2 of them at once and spend the same .15 (neglecting any effects of a sales tax). Edison (talk) 15:01, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I don't believe you can normally pay for a single screw, at least not in a hardware store. StuRat (talk) 16:04, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Home improvement store ("big box" store like Home Depot or Lowes), no. Hardware stores (local stores like Ace Hardware, True Value and Do It Best), yes. The decent ones, at least, have a section in the back where there's various screw, bolts, nuts, etc. They're mainly there for repair jobs - like when you've lost a screw or washer on an item and need 1-2 new ones (but not a whole box) for a replacement. -- 128.104.49.120 (talk) 16:28, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

When we eliminated 1 and 2 cent coins in Australia a few stores loudly announced that they would always round down, but I'm not aware of anywhere which still has that policy. I guess if you really wanted to, you could save money by making sure you always got rounded down when you went through the checkout, but is it worth the hassle to save 5c? FiggyBee (talk) 16:50, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

You might be surprised what people will do. I know someone who, when he puts petrol in his tank, always ensures the price is, say, $40.02. That way, he gets 2 cents worth of petrol for free. He reckons it adds up over time, which it does, but still .... -- JackofOz (talk) 19:36, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Yup, if he fills his tank 1 time a week, he would basically get a free tank of fuel after 40 years. Of course inflation would probably kill that. Googlemeister (talk) 19:40, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I live in North America, but I visited Australia and New Zealand in the 1980s when they both had 1 and 2 cent coins in circulation. I observed that prices in NZ tended to end in a random digit -- you might see things costing $1.46 or $1.52 -- but in Australia they tended to be in round numbers, so it would be $1.50 and you didn't use the small coins very much. Both practices were different from the $1.49-plus-tax that I would expect at home. Of course, in both countries, like everywhere I've been in Europe but unlike most of North America, any tax was included in the price rather than added later. --Anonymous, 19:54 UTC, Friday the 13th of November, 2009.

thanks for the answers, i was not aware that 99¢ prices are kept for electronic payment. i guess electronic payment will prevent the disappearance of the 99¢ pricing scheme. kind of a shame because i was hoping that removal of small coins would just get all prices rounded properly. i would really like to see a pricing system that includes taxes by law and simply had items priced at 230$ rather than 199.95$ for example. also like the term 'five cent piece', 'ten cent piece'. naming each coin is kind of old school now that i think of it :/ Bonusbox (talk) 20:10, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Bonus, one of us -- could be me -- is still misunderstanding part of this discussion. As I understand it, 99¢ prices at the individual item level are NOT going to go away, EVER, and electronic payment has nothing to do with it. Every place I've ever encountered this situation, the rounding to next-higher-unit is done ONCE at the end of the transaction, not on each individual item. Eliminating pennies does NOTHING to change the price of individual items. (Right?)

With regard to your tax comment, I don't think anyone has considered the following: Yes, you could have individual prices carry the total price inclusive of all taxes IN THE STORE -- but that's only one place that prices are displayed. As soon as you go to national advertising, regional advertising like the color inserts in the Sunday papers, or ANY out-of-store advertising that covers more than one store, HOW are you cover the case where the tax rates are different in two areas?

This is a very common situation in the US. Each state has its own sales tax rate (including zero for some); different states tax different items at different rates (where I live, food-not-sold-in-a-restaurant, clothing, and all services are not taxed); individual counties can levy surcharges on the sales tax to fund baseball stadiums; even cities can impose their own local tax on certain purchases. Posting pricing to include all applicable taxes is not at all the trivial problem that most people seem to think it is.

OK, got off on a rant there... sorry.. --DaHorsesMouth (talk) 01:11, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Where does the tax get paid for mail orders? It doesn't seem practical for the company to pay the taxes to each city a customer orders from. Surely the tax is determined by the company's location, so there is no problem with advertising it. --Tango (talk) 01:24, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

What they're supposed to do, and what they actually do, are frequently two different things :-). More and more such companies, in my experience (OR alert) collect only the base rate for the buyer's state. My other recollection is that an attempt to charge based on the company's state, didn't last very long, for obvious reasons. -- DaHorsesMouth (talk) 03:10, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

And to add to the confusion... There are organisations in the UK (the ones I know of are industrial suppliers) that price things to 0.1p (£0.001), though often you might buy a pack of 10, and it all gets calculated and the final total gets adjusted to something actually payable. See http://uk.rs-online.com/web/search/searchBrowseAction.html?method=getProduct&R=6626976 for example. -- SGBailey (talk) 18:47, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

In countries which stopped issuing 1 cent coins, and where prices are rounded down or up: what happened if a customer presented old cents thereafter? Did the merchant say "That is no longer money" or "I have no drawer in my cash register for cents" or did they simply accept the cents? Edison (talk) 03:55, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

According to the Royal Australian Mint [2], 1 and 2 cent coins are still legal tender for transactions up to 20c, and indeed pre-decimal coins are still legal tender at a rate of one shilling = 10c. New Zealand, on the other hand, has gone down completely the opposite route; the pre-2006 coins have been demonetised and are no longer legal tender. FiggyBee (talk) 08:30, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Of course, being legal tender has nothing to do with whether or not they are accepted in shops. Legal tender has to do with the payment of debts; when you buy something in a shop the exchange of money and goods happens simultaneously so there is no debt. A shop can decide for itself what to accept or not accept in payment (subject to local discrimination laws, etc.). --Tango (talk) 08:39, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

When the 1 and 2c coins were phased out, shopkeepers stopped giving them in change and there was no reason for customers to carry them, so they disappeared from circulation fairly quickly. They were certainly still accepted for a while after the change, and they're still readily bankable as far as I know, so whether they would be accepted now... who knows? Most shopkeepers have probably not seen them for several years, so they may accept them just for the novelty. FiggyBee (talk) 12:32, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Our smallest coin in South Africa is the 5c and our prices are advertised VAT inclusive. Goods are still advertised as Rx.99 but all the stores with computerised cash registers round DOWN the final price to the nearest 5c, regardless of whether you're paying cash or credit card, however it might not be rounded down if you are buying on your store account (i.e. with a "store credit card"). You could score 4c at a time by buying all your R x.99 items individually, but really, why bother? Zunaid·FOREVER 13:43, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

People have already mentioned electronic transactions but perhaps an additional important thing to mention is that both NZ and Australia (thanks to EFTPOS and also credit cards to some extent) a very high percentage of transactions are electronic. I'm lazy to search but I believe the rate is something like 80%. In terms of the elimination of .x9 and .x5 prices as others have said this isn't going to happen even without electronic transactions. Beyond what has already been said, the key issue is that these are use because of the perceived psychological advantage which doesn't disappear. Also in terms of anonymous's observation, this isn't the case in NZ nowadays from my experience. Most prices are either .x9, .x5 or .x0 with .x9 being the most common (.99 being the most common for those especially for higher value items obviously). I don't know what it's like in the US but this doesn't tend happen at the higher price range either. For example you may have a price of $99.99 but you're far less likely to have $999.99 (instead $999). The funny thing was that during the elimination of the 5 cent coin, there was some complaints about prices likely to be going up because of it (I believe there were similar complaints with the 1 and 2 cent coin and it's a common argument in other countries when similar moves are proposed) which was obviously patent nonsense, most retailers were still keeping the .x9 prices which the occasional .x5 without the 1 and 2 cent coin, this was clearly not going to change (if it did, it would likely often be downwards, e.g. if an item was 1.99 they would have made it 1.90 rather then 2.00) Nil Einne (talk) 09:20, 16 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Are there any movements to abolish the small eurocent coins? --84.61.166.115 (talk) 07:50, 17 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Searching for Coat of Arms

Resolved

Hi. I don't know why, but for the past hour I've been delaying my sleep to find this coat of arms. I can remember some things about it, but they're mostly visual. I don't think it's a coat of arms of a modern country, but it may be of a country that is no longer existent. Or I may be wrong and it's from some small little town in the middle of nowhere! The coat of arms is definitely from Europe, and I want to find it because it's big. It's been divided many times, which is why it's so interesting to me (no I'm not talking about the coat of arms of the Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville family; it's not as large as that). I also believe that it's from somewhere small, which was ironic owing to its size. This coat of arms has a lot of extra flare, I guess you could say; hanging chains with religious symbols. I am also sure that it has the Medici coat of arms somewhere in it. The quality of the image of the coat of arms isn't that great, too. Lastly, I found a web page specifically about this coat of arms that explained all the different parts of it. It's definitely somewhere on Wikipedia, I just don't know where. If you could think of anything to help me find it, I've been searching here, Wikimedia, and google for it for too long. Any indulgence of my curiosity-turned-OCD would be wonderful! Helixer (talk) 05:11, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

That's a lot of quarterings. Is it the one you want? It is the coat of arms of Richard Temple-Grenville, Marquess of Chandos. --Tango (talk) 06:59, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I think that's the one the OP specifically said they didn't want, Tango? FiggyBee (talk) 03:49, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

You mean I have to read the whole question before I answer? That's ridiculous! --Tango (talk) 08:42, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Many coats of arms carry many quarterings and the kinds of symbol you described, so you haven't really narrowed it down too far. See (for example) Seize Quartiers. What I would suggest (unless you obsessively scrub your tracks) is pulling up the "history" for the browser you were using when you ran across that web site. With a little tweaking you might be able to find the Wikipedia/Wikimedia page you were viewing, or at least find the path you took. And since you remember it as being on Wikipedia, as well as the rough dates of your search, you should be able to exclude many irrelevant pages from other sites. Also look through the many links and categories at Portal:Heraldry and Vexillology. If you were just going by the vague details you gave above, I might not offer much hope, but the path you took through Wikipedia and the web makes things a lot easier. Good luck. —— Shakescene (talk) 07:16, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I've taken the liberty of removing (by commenting) the image, since it's the one the OP didn't want. The coat of arms of Medici are here, to check. "Hanging chains with religious symbols" sound like the tassels of a galero, if so this helps track the arms down. Something like this, this, this or this perhaps? - Jarry1250 ^{[Humorous? Discuss.]} 13:31, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Try this link at WikiCommons: Category:Ecclesiastical_heraldry, which has over 600 images. Some have many quarterings and some have the many tassels of a cardinal's hat in the crest, but I didn't see one that had both. But you should also press the plus sign [+] to the left of "Ecclesiastical heraldry" in the little box above "Subcategories" to see other pages. —— Shakescene (talk) 09:25, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Oh thank you so much! It's the Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies! It wasn't as big as I remembered, I guess... sorry. Thanks for all your help! Helixer (talk) 01:48, 20 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

No calls for JOB ?

what is the next best thing to do in order to fetch a job or even recieve a call fom any consultant after having made an impressive resume and posting them to all the major job portals in india? is there anything am missing?any good advices please —Preceding unsigned comment added by 115.117.129.17 (talk) 10:25, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I'd say the personal touch is missing. Send notes to the companies you are interested in, explaining how you admire their company and would like to work for them. StuRat (talk) 13:09, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

You can also contact established professionals through social networking sites like LinkedIn. Mr.K. (talk) 13:21, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

It is sad and rather dis-heartening that many recruitment consultants don't have the good manners to call (or email) you back if your application is unsuccessful. Astronaut (talk) 00:20, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

What makes you think your resume is impressive? As a reality check, ask the opinions of several people who are not specially friendly or related to you. Cuddlyable3 (talk) 12:33, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

In my experience 'posting to the job portals' is a very ineffective way of finding a job. Almost all companies get hundreds of applications for every job they advertise - searching job portals for likely candidates is simply not worth their while. Recruitment consultants likewise.

The best way to find a job is to use any personal contacts you have at companies in your line of work. That can be tough if you are young or new to the field and don't have the contacts, but do it if you have any. After that, go and find companies you might like to work for, or who are advertising jobs you might apply for, and send them a resume directly. DJ Clayworth (talk) 20:30, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Applicants from India (and other places) are often encouraged to send the same resume and cover letter to absolutely anyone who might possibly be interested in them. In Western eyes this can sometimes be considered a sign of desperation and not something that recommends the applicant to a job. It is considered better to have a specifically tailored resume and cover letter for each employer you contact. The specific tailoring addresses the company's own specialities and how the applicant fits the position, with reference to specifics. For example, something like "I will be a benefit to Company because I have Skill, which is a skill Company values according to WebsiteReference." It implies that an applicant has taken time to research the company and has chosen it above others.

It is still not a good thing that companies are not acknowledging their applicants' applications - an e-mail or letter is appropriate here, rather than a phone call, which would be to arrange an interview. When there are hundreds, or perhaps thousands of applicants, this is inconvenient, but is easy to do with form letters. Steewi (talk) 02:59, 16 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Oops. Upon rereading, you're applying for jobs in India, not in the Anglosphere. The advice still holds, I believe. Steewi (talk) 03:03, 16 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Even if your aim is to get your resume to anyone who might be interested, I believe it is going to be a lot more effective to send it to many people than post it on a website and wait for people to look for it. With hundreds of resumes in their inbox, nobody is going to actively go out and look for more. DJ Clayworth (talk) 22:25, 16 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Identify a painting

Does anyone know the name of the artist for "A (or "The") girl with a Mink" or "A Lady with a mink" please.--88.109.19.101 (talk) 10:54, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

If you mean Lady with an Ermine, it is by Leonardo da Vinci. Gandalf61 (talk) 11:39, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I did mean that, brilliant quick response, many thanks.--88.109.19.101 (talk) 13:05, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Am I becoming paranoid?

I had to call a certain company about my subscription to their service and was routed to their call centre in South Africa. During the call the handler and I discussed the World Cup next year (which is being held in S.A.). And then out of the blue he told me he supported Liverpool in the UK - so far OK with me. But a few days later I had to re-call the company and again was routed to their call centre in South Africa whereupon the different call handler told me he was an avid supporter of..........Liverpool. Why am I paranoid perhaps? Well, I never told either of them where I was from or which football team I might support, but as it happens, I am from North Yorkshire in England and have a fairly "thick" accent that is made very adenoidal by my early-life adenoids being removed, which often results in me being wrongly identified as a Liverpudlian (coming from Liverpool). Question, can I be forgiven for thinking that the call-handlers in question were somehow analysing my accent, perhaps mechanically, during the call to strike up a warm chummy loyalty-inspiring side-conversation that mistakenly identified my accent as coming from Liverpool? Or am I becoming paranoid? 92.20.97.190 (talk) 12:51, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Salesmen do actually do things like that, so it's certainly quite possible. It's amazing what you can tell from a voice: "I was just talking with an obese, middle-aged black woman smoker who recently immigrated from Jamaica, and she must have accidentally transferred me to you, can you please transfer me back ?". StuRat (talk) 13:05, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

If the averred Liverpool allegiances were not genuine - which they may well have been - I think it's more likely that it has nothing to do with your accent, and the call centre has merely identified "Liverpool" as being a broadly acceptable team, neither obscure nor inflammatory. I'd be very surprised if you'd been tagged by a mk1 auto-scouse-detector. FiggyBee (talk) 17:04, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not an expert on Commonwealth relationships, but I don't think that (average, probably uneducated) South Africans can tell apart regional dialects from England. Rimush (talk) 17:45, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

What the FUCK??? I'm sorry, would you care to retract that highly condescending remark ~~you piece of (insert nationality here) scum~~ ? Can you tell apart a Cape Town accent from a Durban, Port Elizabeth or Joburg accent? How "uneducated" do you presume South Africans to be? Zunaid·FOREVER 13:22, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Calm down. This was probably an honest mistake, and I'm sure that the average citizen of most nations could be referred to as uneducated. No need to start shouting at him right away. —Akrabbim^talk 13:44, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry, I'll use <sarcasm> tags next time. To be clear, I was using extreme hyperbole to illustrate the ridiculousness of the poster's assumptions. BTW, why on earth would he (and you) assume that the "average, uneducated person" would land a job in the call centre industry? Zunaid·FOREVER 14:13, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

At least in the states where I am, a call center worker is not usually a high-paying job requiring any kind of higher education, so I guess it is kind of Americo-centric (or UK-centric as well, maybe, I don't know where Rimush is posting from) to assume that the job has the same standing in other countries. I guess why there are so many of that type of job outsourced to places like India. —Akrabbim^talk 22:36, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

While it's true a call centre probably isn't a high paying job, it doesn't follow that they won't be able to tell accents apart. For starters, I'm pretty sure it's quite common they are at a minimum taught to understand difference accents. This training may go as far as to teach them where they come from. Just because someone doesn't know something doesn't mean they can't learn Nil Einne (talk) 08:49, 16 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Zunaid-FOREVER apologised and should have left it at that. I have struck out "you piece of (insert nationality here) scum" because it is personal abuse that is already preceded by "I'm sorry", it is a gratuitous insult that is not part of the question, and it can not be excused as hyperbole. Cuddlyable3 (talk) 17:41, 18 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Many service industries and call centers have scripts that employees are supposed to follow and it wouldn't surprise me at all if this call center gave your location based on the number you called from and gave the operator a list of appropriate topics and answers to talk about. Most call center software also lets employees take notes on customers. Yours may say "Supports Liverpool in World Cup" 206.131.39.6 (talk) 18:46, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I think they've identified "Liverpool" as a football team which is acceptable to support, as opposed to Manchester United which is a football team which completely polarises opinion in England. --TammyMoet (talk) 20:44, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

It could well be that they break it down regionally. They tell people from the north of England that they like Liverpool, people from the south of England that they like Arsenal or something, and people from Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland that they like a team from that person's country. Marco polo (talk) 21:09, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

My guess is that the salesmen's screens showed the caller's telephone number and city code (via caller identification), although that wouldn't distinguish supporters of Everton from those of Liverpool. —— Shakescene (talk) 23:33, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

In know in some Indian call centres they can watch the latest Eastenders episodes or suchlike so they can empathise better with customers. Dmcq (talk) 12:37, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

You'd also have to factor in the worldwide appeal of the Premier League and it's teams. Games are shown in SA on Super Sport (TV channel) and South Africa also has it's own Liverpool supporters club. Nanonic (talk) 15:01, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

What you need to realise is that South Africa has a HUGE, ENORMOUS, MASSIVE (can I possibly emphasise this enough?) English Premiership following, with widespread coverage both on Super Sport and in our newspapers. Heck, the Cape Argus even has a pull-out supplement every week dedicated exclusively to European (mainly English) football. The two clubs with the most vocal, polarised and opinionated supporter bases are Man United and Liverpool, as clearly evidenced by the way the Argus's SMS column gets flooded with pro- this club and anti- that club SMSes after every weekend's round of games. (The Liverpool beachball goal fiasco set off a particularly amusing barrage of SMSes between the supporters and haters.) I'm not at all surprised that a conversation about the World Cup next year with an Englishman would have prompted both salesmen to reveal their club allegiance. Your chances of having gotten 2 Liverpool (or Man United, Chelsea or Arsenal) supporters on the line would be extremely high. I doubt it has anything to do with your ACTUAL location or favourite club. Zunaid·FOREVER 13:14, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I would not be surprised if many call centres have a note on a customer's entry where information on previous entries have been written, so that patter can be added while information is being looked up. Nothing particularly personal, but a favourite football team, or hobby that's mentioned and brought back gives the feeling of being special (and stalked...). It's also true, by rumour at least, that call centre employees are required to be up to date on things like local football, popular TV shows, weather and news. Some people call this sort of localisation a form of deception, because it can give the impression that the call centre is in the same country. It's very impressive from a marketing perspective. Steewi (talk) 03:08, 16 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

...or the call handler may have skill at Cold reading. Cuddlyable3 (talk) 17:19, 18 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Moka coffee sort of brown instead of sort of black

So I have a big Moka coffeemaker and sometimes when I pour its coffee in a glass it has like a diluted brownish color. When it has that color it tastes somewhat bad. Why's that? --Belchman (talk) 13:15, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I'd guess that it's the water you put into it. This could especially be a problem if the coffee is made first thing in the morning when the water has been sitting in the pipes all night. Look at it in a glass and see if it's clear or cloudy white. If white, it might have lots of calcium or some other mineral in it, which ruins the taste of your coffee. You can try running the water a bit before you fill the coffee maker. If that doesn't work, you need to use a water filter, either the faucet type or the pitcher type. StuRat (talk) 14:05, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

"calcium or some other mineral", Stu? Cloudy tap water is usually just air bubbles; let it sit for a few minutes and see if it clears. FiggyBee (talk) 16:55, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, but if it was air bubbles they wouldn't affect the taste and also would bubble out during the coffee prep, so wouldn't affect the color, either. StuRat (talk) 18:39, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

In case none of you noticed, coffee is brown. If you prefer it stronger and a darkerbrown, put more coffee in your coffeemaker. Astronaut (talk) 23:56, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

There's a reason they call coffee with no milk or sugar "black". (It's either black or maybe very dark brown, but never light brown.) StuRat (talk) 04:55, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

How old is the coffee you're using? Stale grounds (or stale beans freshly ground) will give you that result. --NellieBly (talk) 07:11, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Just changed the beans and got black coffee again. Sounds like you were right, NellieBly :) --Belchman (talk) 20:56, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Simple suggestion: is the water hot enough? Sometimes, cooler than usual water won't brew well, leaving a muddy color. DOR (HK) (talk) 04:31, 16 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

African Empires

Were there any African empires or states that existed before and/or during 70 A.D.? B-Machine (talk) 17:16, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Egypt Aaronite (talk) 18:17, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

What else? B-Machine (talk) 18:20, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

We have a list of African empires. Note that, as much of Africa was unknown to the western world in 70 AD, the list is likely incomplete. — Lomn 19:22, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Right. It's not so much that Africa didn't have empires, as those empires didn't leave a written history that survived. --M @r ē ino 20:59, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

There was the Axumite Empire, the Kingdom of Kush, and the Nok culture, which was probably associated with a state for which we have no historical record. Marco polo (talk) 21:02, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Carthage was based in North Africa, though culturally it was Phoenician. The Kingdom of Kerma existed in Nubia during the 2nd and 3rd millenia BC. There was also the Land of Punt, whose location is somewhat a mystery.Jayron32 21:21, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

There was also one or more kingdoms of the Garamantes in North Africa, the Tichit-Oualata culture in Mauritania, while the Dʿmt kingdom had already disappeared. Warofdreams talk 23:22, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Thinking about it, Periplus of the Erythraean Sea was written around this date. If you want historical, if rather vague, information on civilisation in East Africa around 70AD, that would be a great place to start. Warofdreams talk 01:38, 16 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Convicnce yourself of an untruth...

Is their some way you can convince yourself you are physically attracted to someone when your not?? Like hypnosis? It is necessary so please none of the "Why would you want to do that? That's stupid." answers or the like. Thanks in advance for any help. 86.138.158.223 (talk) 23:08, 13 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

This sounds like a Savage Love question, and I will therefore channel Dan Savage: It's not possible, and the relationship is therefore totally doomed. Do not try this. You need to take a step back and question why it is "necessary", and find some other way out of your problem, whatever it is. Comet Tuttle (talk) 00:11, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

It is certainly possible to make yourself believe a lie to be true (even to the point you forget it was a lie), often presented as the only true way of getting round lie detectors. But as for this particular "untruth"... I doubt it. - Jarry1250 ^{[Humorous? Discuss.]} 13:10, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry to state the obvious, but people in loving relationships often find that they grow increasingly physically attracted to each other. This takes a long time, though. Staecker (talk) 14:09, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for the help. I was finding I seemed not attracted to someone who I have been intensely physically attracted to for some while. This bugged me until a few moments ago when I decided to look at a picture of someone else I am attracted to and found I wasn't attracted to them. So its not really bad at all, it's just a temporary period of asexuality which should go back to noraml (soon hopefully). It's not actually a loving relationship, as such, more obsessive love. Thanks very much. :D 86.138.158.223 (talk) 14:31, 14 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Beer goggles? --Sean 22:03, 15 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]