Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2006 August 5

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AUTHORITY OF US SECT.OF DEFENSE OVER SENIOR MILITARY

RE: AUTHORITY OF U.S.SECRETARY OF DEFENSE OVER SENIOR MILITARY COMMANDERS .CAN HE FIRE /REPLACE THEM HIMSELF OR IS THIS THE PEROGATIVE OF THE PRESIDENT ONLY??TO WHAT EXTENT DOES THE SECRETARY WEIGH-IN ON PROMOTIONS AND ASSIGNMENTS OF SENIOR MILITARY FLAG OFFICERS OF ALL THE SERVICES OR IS ALSO WITHIN THE AUTHORITY OF SENIOR OFFICERS AND THE PRESIDENT ONLY...THANK YOU..GEORGE SMITH (e-mail address deleted)...

YOU DON'T HAVE TO SHOUT, MR. SMITH. Neon Merlin 05:19, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

SOUNDS LIKE AN INTERESTING QUESTION, BUT I COULDN'T QUITE HEAR IT ALL, MAYBE YOU SHOULD REPEAT IT LOUDERLoomis 05:51, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The president makes such appointments, however the secretary would be in a possition to effectivly recomend people such appointments.

porn actors/actresses

I am just a wee bit confused so bear with me. Often in porn movies, the actresses will perform oral sex on the actors without condoms. Then, when there is penetration (vaginal or anal), the actor wears a condom (he performs oral sex on her, so she is "clean"). THEN, at the "climax" of the scene, the actor ejaculates onto the face or into the mouth of the actress. I don't understand the rationale of this. Any thoughts (other than the $$$ aspect of people paying bigger $$$ for the "climax")?

Some of the tortuously complex plots of pornography may be explained by Come shot. MeltBanana 02:52, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I guess condoms are used during intercourse to prevent transmission of HIV, which is unlikely to be transmitted through oral sex. Other STDs, such as gonorrhea, might be so transmitted, but are curable, and likely accepted as an occupational hazard. --TheMadBaron 03:22, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

They just need to make sure they haven't any open wounds in their mouths or on their faces. I wonder if if someone with an ulcer can get any infections (specifically HIV) if they 'swallow' (then again they rarely do in porn movies I believe). DirkvdM 08:55, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Not true. HIV can be transmitted through contact between infected semen and the eyes.--Anchoress 01:05, 6 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Tetragrammaton

I seem to recall reading in an old version of the Tetragrammaton article that not only is the Tetragrammaton ineffable, but it is also protected when written, and thus four consecutive words starting or ending with Y,H,W,H could not be omitted, changed or have words inserted between them when the text was copied or edited. Is this true? If so, it must create a huge problem on Hebrew language wikis (where observant Jewish editors would not be able to revert edits that added tetragrammata). Neon Merlin 05:12, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Your History Won't Halt. Not a word may be removed in a wiki making use of the history tag. The TTGM is just veiled. --DLL 16:47, 6 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Even if you were correct, (which I don't believe that you are) and even if Wikipedia edits were true deletions (which they aren't) and even if text on a screen is regarded in halacha as "writing" for these purposes (which it probably isn't) there would be no such problem for non-Jews anyway, as destroying THE name is not one of the seven Noachide laws that Jews believe non Jews need to keep in order to end up on the right side of the pearly gates that Jews don't believe in anyway. --Dweller 10:35, 7 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

You say that according to Judaism, this rule is not one of the Noachide laws and so wouldn't be a problem for non-Jews. I agree. But Merlin's question seems to have been focussed on Jewish, Hebrew language Wikipedians. So the question, which is an interesting one, still seems unanswered. Loomis 21:20, 7 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I just clicked on the link to Noachide laws, just to refresh my memory, but wiki redirected it to the article on proselyte. That makes entirely no sense. In fact the entire "proselyte" article doesn't make sense. I'll try to look it over to maybe figure out what's going on, but at first glance, I have to say that my impression is that there's a serious misconception in that article. I'll be back later after looking it over. Loomis 00:18, 8 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry, wasn't clear. Even for Jews, edits are probably not "destruction" and writing on a screen probably isn't "writing". --Dweller 08:47, 8 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I've fixed the Noachide redirect, pinning it to the article at Noahide Laws. The redirect to proselyte is probably a fringe POV thing. My amend may be reverted by someone with an agenda to push. --Dweller 08:50, 8 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks, Dweller. Loomis 11:53, 8 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Did David Foster Wallace rip off Douglas Hofstadter?

I'm reading David Foster Wallace's Everything and More and enjoying it, but a lot of the ideas seem stolen from Douglas Hofstadter's books (mostly Gödel, Escher, Bach). Hofstadter does not appear in Wallace's bibliography. How has Wallace gotten away with this, if indeed he has? —Keenan Pepper 08:27, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Could it be that Wallace and Hofstadter are discussing the same aspects of mathematics, and that's why there is some overlap? The subtitle of Everything and More: A Compact History of Infinity reminds me by the way of Paolo Zellini's A Brief History of Infinity, which deals with the exact same topics - from Zeno to Cantor and Gödel. It's just not a very original subject, I suppose. David Sneek 09:01, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

No, some things are way too similar to be independent. For example, the paradoxical statement "'Is, if it immediately follows its own quotation, false' is, if it immediately follows its own quotation, false." Hofstadter totally invented that; Wallace just changed the wording. —Keenan Pepper 09:37, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe he took it from Wikipedia's article on indirect self-reference. --Lambiam ^Talk 14:07, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

They both got it from Willard Van Orman Quine; see Quine's Paradox. (Hofstadter does credit Quine, by the way.) Gdr 10:25, 6 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Can seagulls be Halal?

Grain-fed black-headed gulls were at one time eaten quite regularly as i understand it. Would a grain-fed gull be Halal? --84.68.197.86 10:42, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I believe carrion-eating birds are not considered Halal. If a bird it fed on grain, it does not change the fact it belongs to a carrion-eating species Lurker ^talk 11:43, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

At the risk of appearing pedantic, the correct word is gull. Ornithologists never use the word "seagull".--Shantavira 15:06, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Damn shame, Shantavira. Most people who use language are not ornithologists (worse luck). JackofOz 01:45, 6 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Funny, the word 'seagull' also exists in Dutch ('zeemeeuw'). But I have never heard of 'landgulls'. So where does the term come from? DirkvdM 08:06, 6 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I heard that yonks ago,gulls were land birds then moved out to sea and thus "seagulls"-hotclaws**==(82.138.214.1 06:21, 8 August 2006 (UTC))[reply]

Cutural factors

what cultural and social-class factors might affect the decision o buy an AIBO or a WEE BOT?--203.101.162.136 11:20, 5 August 2006 (UTC)LAILA[reply]

stfu

If you can afford one and you want one, you buy it. Youth in Asia 21:34, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Criminal Subpoena versus Civil Subpoena

In the State of Michigan, who is allowed to issue a criminal subpoena? Can a defense lawyer do it? I know a lawyer can issue a subpoena in a civil case in Michigan; but, can a defense lawyer in a criminal case in Michigan issue a subpoena without having the Judge sign it?

You are going to need a judge to issue a civil search warrent to go with that civil subpoena that lawyer issued. And my guess is you are going to have to pay a fee to a sherifs dept. to service that warrent. As for the proper question I dont know as I have practised enough law with out a license today, but good luck with that anyway. (hobgoblin)

Do you know where this particular mountain range is?

I've searched and searched, along with countless other people, and noone is yet to come across this area. I will give you the link, to where i have uploaded this image, if anyone can help me, i would greatly appreciate it!

link ==> http://img85.imageshack.us/my.php?image=6c2e1dy5.jpg

1st. guess is hole in the wall, famed hideout of butch cassidy and the sundance kid, a closer look at the trees seems to indicate the veld of south africa. But the little house(?) does look to have a western A frame shape. Maybe Utah? It has a few box valleys that I seem to recall are famous in its history. I dunno. Keep looking and good luck. (Hobgoblin)

Answers on the Miscellaneous desk. Please avoid double posting. Thanks.--Shantavira 14:56, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Magazine

According to your website a Magazine is a periodical publication containing a variety of articles, generally financed by advertising and/or purchase by readers.I want to know the origin of this term("Magazine"), in what language an what is its meaning by its original language?

The word comes ultimately from Arabic makhazin, the plural of makhzan "storehouse". That also used to be one of the meanings of the word in English, especially for an ammo storehouse. The present use is metaphorical (a "storehouse" of information). --Lambiam ^Talk 17:50, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

So what is the relationship between "magazine"(publication) and "storehouse"?

Gyms, mirrors, body-image

Has anyone ever heard of a gym or health club running into trouble over the mirrors they have fitted? I ask because I'm convinced that the mirrors in the gym in which I work out make me look fatter than I am. I'm fat, but not that fat. I don't object to this really since paranoia is a big motivation for my fitness regime, and the fatty mirrors keep tend to make me grit my teeth and keep going. But it occurred to me that for some people somewhere this could have quite a damaging effect. So has anyone ever encountered this? Have any gyms ever been sued over this? Thanks --87.194.21.177 20:13, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I've never heard of a gym using "fat mirrors". Being surrounded by lean, muscular people who workout without breaking a sweat is probably enough to motivate their customers. Thuresson 22:45, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The mirrors would have to be curved in some way for them to make you look fatter or thinner, taller, or shorter. If they are flat, the conspiracy is false. — [Mac Davis] (talk)

Even if it were true, I doubt a gym could be sued unless they made specific claims regarding for the accuracy of their mirrors. However, your suggestion is unlikely because while it's easy to make flat mirrors, it is notoriously difficult and expensive to make a curved mirror accurately, because of the problem of spherical aberration. In any case, you can test this quite easily. Stand further back from the mirror; if the mirror is not flat your image will become increasingly distorted.--Shantavira

I know exactly what you are talking about - I'm convinced that gyms have fat mirrors. I was an avid gym-goer for years and went to 4 different ones and they all had mirrors of the sort that I had never encountered anywhere else. Just letting you know you're not nuts! -Random Person

Why don't you just bring your own mirror to the gym and compare? -- noosph e re 20:26, 11 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Bonnets

According to Bonnet (headgear), a bonnet is a sort of a headgear that is tied under the chin. Is what the lady to right is wearing a bonnet? Or something else? It doesn't seem to be tied under the chin. This and this looks similar. Thuresson 22:45, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Well in English mob-cap is probably the closest name see here. MeltBanana 01:03, 6 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Actually a "mobcap" was worn by servants. Any head gear with a brim that was made to sheild the sun for a LADY is considered a bonnet, whether or not it ties in front or back. Some didnt tie at all. Ladies hats were often tiny and served no purpose at all except to match their dress and show off the wearers wealth. Bonnets however were more for the sun coverage. Bubbles13hm 19:52, 8 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Sinai and Arabian Peninsula

What is the differnce between these two peninsula's?

See Sinai Peninsula and Arabian Peninsula. The difference is that one is in Egypt and is adjacent to the Sinai canal which links the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. The Arabian is the big one between The Gulf and the Red Sea. —[Mac Davis] (talk)

The Gulf of Aqaba. StuRat 06:15, 7 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]