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One problem I had with the test was that there was no "neutral" or "no opinion" choice. For example, if a question on abortion came up that would be my choice. Also, answering agree or strongly agree to certain questions can have dual meanings. For instance, most of my agree or strongly agree...

Here is a nice little test to find out how far left or right as well as libertarian or authoritarian you are. My results were as follows: Your political compass Economic Left/Right: -3.62 Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -2.87 I'm a somewhat left-leaning libertarian. This puts me closest to...

Speaking of spam, is the government ever going to make any meaningful legislation against it? These stupid opt-out lists are merely a way for spammers to confirm live addresses. To be sure, legislation wouldn't stop it immediately, but it would give law enforcement the tools to go after the...

Kerry will be the Democratic nominee for sure, but it's too early to predict the election results. If the economy tanks, he'll be the next President. If not, my money is on Bush. Sure, Kerry will carry my home state of New York easily, and probably California as well. That still doesn't...

Funny, I predicted 1 TB by 2005 a couple of years ago. Looks like we won't be anywhere near that. Apparently the difficulties going first to 80 GB platters and now to 100 GB platters are greater than anticipated. Anyone else here think magnetic storage is very close to reaching its areal...

A revolution every now and then is a healthy thing. -Thomas Jefferson It doesn’t matter if the cat is black or white, so long as it catches the mice -Deng Xiaoping Hey Beavis, I'm getting a stiffy, hehehehe. -Butthead Stupid fat Hobbit, you ruined it! -Gollum

I assume they're talking about averages here. Given that drives are at 300 GB maximum now (not sure of the average-maybe 100 GB?), doubling in capacity in the space of 3 years doesn't seem like that much progress. We were doing that in a year until recently. Of course, if the average drive is...

You sound like my brother. I think his exact line was there's no place in the world for me. For what it's worth, I get that way from time to time. It's normal.

More or less my sentiments as well. Never had any meaning even when I was with someone. I kind of like the idea of celebrating romantic love, only I think it should be done every day. A dozen roses or a box of chocolates once a year seems contrived and commercial. In fact, with the person I...

Maybe a portable coffee maker? Think of the marketing on that one-compute at warp speed for five minutes and then enjoy a nice hot cappuccino. Seriously, something that requires 103 watts does not fall into the category of mobile. Or at least it won't until we have miniature cold fusion power...

I can relate to nearly everything in that article. Although I don't consider myself a geek in the strictest sense of the word, I'm the one who ends up explaining all things technical to everyone I know. As of late, I've also taken to telling people who don't know basic things to pick up a...

Doesn't this kind of crap ever end? I got this today:

Same here. To me football looks like a bunch of guys standing around waiting for a signal to start steamrolling into each other, and then every time the action starts to get interesting the referee blows the whistle and everyone stands around for too long waiting for the next cue to start. In...

True, although fog is very rare in NYC, and the mercury vapor were a distinct bluish-green which causes more blinding than pure white would. IIRC they replaced a 400W mercury vapor lamp with a 250W sodium vapor one during the energy crisis in the early 1970s. Both allegedly had about the same...

That's probably a good estimate (2250 lm for the Sunshine tubes), although the place I ordered from also has 40W tubes (same specs as the 32W) getting 3600 lumens, or more than the typical 3200 to 3400 lumens of the bulk tubes you mentioned. It all depends on the phosphors used. Anyway, as the...

NYC did that a few years ago, and also replaced the walk/don't walk signs with LED ones using international symbols (don't walk is a red-orange hand, walk is a lunar white person walking). The amber lights weren't replaced (presumably because they're only on a short time). Anyway, since the...

That's actually pretty reasonable for a tube of those specs. I paid $7 + shipping for the full-spectrum tubes that I ordered (32W T-8, 2950 lumens, CCT 5000K, CRI 91), and that was by far the best price I had ever seen on those kind of tubes. Considering that the tubes last at least 20,000...

I'd like to say that's incredible that someone with as much formal education as a lawyer could not know a fact even most third-graders know, but the (albeit limited) contact I've had with people in the legal system leads me to believe this guy's story. Lawyers easily take the prize in the "how...

Speaking of noise, how come electronic noise cancellation has never been used on cars and especially airplanes? This was supposed to be the next big thing in the late 1980s. You could make a car the produces virtually no noise at all as you could cancel engine, wind, and tire noise. It would...

Let's just say the first part (about the TV blowing up) is technical ignorance, and the second part is a definite phobia of some kind. In any case this person has issues. :mrgrn:

Ah yes, punch cards. I remember one computer lab in my school still had input via punch cards. I had to input a whole BASIC program this way. :( This was in the early 1980s. Most of the rest had terminals, but I don't think there were any color terminals.

I know many people are technophobic and/or technologically ignorant, but this person my sister works with has reached a new level of ignorance. First of all, she thinks that when you change the batteries on your remote you need to do in another room because if you don't it can cause the TV to...

Interestingly, I don't have writer's block if it's something factual that I'm writing about (I could literally write a book about trains or LEDs or lighting, for example). However, fiction is another story. I tend to think that the more real life experience you have then the easier writing...

Increased LDL, uric acid, and triglyceride levels in some people, and I think it's more prone to end up as fat than excess glucose. It's also slower to metabolize than glucose, which is both a plus and minus. On the plus side, there's less insulin response. On the minus side, it can't be used...

A good point. One thing I heard about was the use of fructose instead of glucose as a sweetener. And then you have all sorts of additives and preservatives which may interact in as yet unknown ways to contribute to weight gain. Finally, most processed foods these days are far too soft. The...

I'm not one to just run around calling people names. My father is about 100 pounds overweight. My mother and I have explained to him numerous times why it would be good for him to lose weight, especially in light of the fact that he had a heart attack in 1989, and is essentially being kept...

4 ) Sedentary lifestyle because of office jobs, automobiles, TV, and computers. 5 ) Ingesting growth hormones in the foods we eat. 6 ) General acceptance of "fat" as just another body type (in essence this amounts to throwing in the towel on weight loss). 7 ) Easy availability and low cost of...

I'm aware of it, and I don't see how it can possibly be good for you in the long term even if it does cause you to lose weight faster. An all-meat diet is no good (unless you're a cat or dog), too much fat is no good. The Atkins diet basically combines these two things while getting rid of...

I almost peed myself reading the final outcome of your troubles with Sony but I certainly sympathize. I think I'll stay away from Sony products just based on your experiences.

And it'll probably happen sooner than we think. In the event that it doesn't, I've already tasted "veggie" hamburgers, meat balls, ribs, chopped meat, and a few other things. In most cases it was as good as the real thing. The only drawback is that it costs as much or more, so most people...

That's just part of the e-mail address for Bluelight, which is my ISP. You pick a user name, and then your e-mail address is yourusername@mybluelight.com. Only $9.99 per month for unlimited access. :) The only restriction is an automatic timeout after four hours, but then you can just log...

And how lousy this is making the food taste. Store bought tomatoes are completely disgusting which is why I grow my own. Most other foods are getting increasingly bland and "processed" tasting as well. I mentioned in another thread how I'm enjoying most foods less and less. Especially all...

I ended up getting that Seasonic Super Tornado 300w Active PFC Silent Power Supply. Unfortunately, it didn't arrive until yesterday. Very nice supply. I can barely hear it at the power level my PC uses. Total power draw is about 90 watts according to my homemade wattmeter versus 100 or so...

I've had one person whom I really cared about. I understand perfectly where you're coming from, Mercutio. Given my personality (I find it hard to initiate new friendships), the fact that I just don't meet many new people, and my general selectiveness (I'm really specific in the types that I...

It probably won't bother me either, but my reasoning is a bit more involved than yours. First of all, I'm not expecting anything from Social Security. I know what shape the system is in, and I've also alluded to the fact that it is likely the US may fall like the USSR before I'm old enough to...

Sorry, Merc. I know that subject hits a bit too close to home for you. Still, I'm curious if any candidate has even brought up this issue. Maybe some R&D might bring about some miracle cure for the chronically obese. I know the sedentary American lifestyle and calorie-laden foods are a big...

They raised it again? Ugh. :( I think there's a grain of truth to what I said about never collecting. :cry:

For some purposes 55 is the cutoff, but it's usually based on the age at which you are eligible for full Social Security benefits (this is 65 for my mom's generation). Many so-called senior citizen discounts (like half-fare on mass transit) start at age 65. I'm sure the definition will remain...

I think every candidate for public office gives at least lip service to improving education, but in the end they all make little difference. Right now New York's Mayor Bloomberg is fighting the unions tooth and nail to try to get rid of stupid union work rules that make firing bad teachers next...

As strange as it seems, both my parents are now senior citizens (my Dad turned 65 on October 2, 1999). For what it's worth, they generally don't look the part, although my Dad is about 100 pounds overweight. If I'm still posting here in 24 years, you'll all know when I become a senior...

I'm too young to be personally familiar with Ike but from those who were alive during the time it was frequently regarded as one of the high points of the 20th Century. WWII was over, people enjoyed unheard of prosperity, courts and public services really worked, crime was very low, there was...

I finally saw the first two parts on cable when I had the flu. In fact, I probably watched them about five times each. I think I might break my self-imposed cinema boycott (last movie I saw was in 1997) and see Return of the King. BTW, Gollum is by far my favorite character. I've even...

Exactly what I said about designing on the bleeding edge, only in this case I would say the accountants were more responsible than the engineers. After all, if you get rid of one $0.40 cap and make 100,000 boards you save $40,000. I'm sure the engineers weren't thrilled to go along, but they...

I know what you mean about money. Mercutio. I'm in the same boat as you are because I don't yet feel comfortable managing my money in stocks or even mutual funds (well, at least two of my IRAs are in mutual funds). However, nothing is stopping me from learning, even though I'll admit I hear...

I'm under the impression if you're really destitute Medicaid takes care of you. If not, what is New York State spending $40 billion per year on it for? To pay for the health care of the rich? My biggest problem isn't that I'm against this (or public education) in principle. The problem is...

If any of the other choices had really great environmental plans that I thought they would follow through on, I might vote against Bush even if I didn't much care for the rest of their platform. However, when the shit hits the fan, no candidate from either party will really stand up to the oil...

Clark is about the only one of the pack that I would find palatable. Generals usually make good Presidents. They have a can do attitude and an excellent sense of organization. One of the candidates (I think it was Clark) came out for getting rid of income taxes on everyone making under...

That's not a marking. That's a pressure relief "valve". They purposely weaken the top of the cap so that if it overheats the gasses will force the cap open at the weak point before pressure gets so dangerously high as to make a violent explosion. At least that's the way it works in thoery...

A higher internal resistance at a given ripple current means more heat in this case. Remember V=IR and P=IV? At least that's what I learned. You're thinking of a resistor across a fixed voltage, and here you are correct. I'm talking about filter caps whose purpose is to smooth the ripple...

Looks to me like they're using capacitors with too high an internal series resistance. At the high currents observed when filtering the microprocessor power supply (this could be tens of amps), the capacitors get too hot, and eventually fail. I also wonder if the fact that many boards just...