11/12 but not being a USian I can't be expected to know the answer to Do you happen to know the name of the current majority leader of the U.S. Senate?. The correct answer apparently in my case is no I don't happen to know.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 4:06 AM on July 19, 2008

I had a friend who would frequently mention that since the advent of effective birth control and family planning, the adverse genetic consequences of incest could generally be avoided. With the proper precautions, the taboo on incest is outmoded.

Is it though? The Wikipedia page suggests that the taboo did not arise as is commonly thought due to birth defects in children who were the result of incest, but instead was due to other reasons.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 8:42 AM on July 15, 2008

It's a good interface but it ain't quite there yet I think. Browsing books on Amazon is a nightmare, which is why I don't do it, and Zoomii goes someway to solving that. Luckily I live somewhere which has a number of excellent bookshops where I can browse to my heart's content so I'm not sure if I'll use Zoomii.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 9:17 AM on June 20, 2008

I don't think that the "Star Wars" as seen in X reality is all played out. I agree that it has been done by far too many people but it's not been done to death if this video is any indicator as I thought it stood out above the crowd.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 6:21 AM on June 18, 2008

Yeah unless this is one of those irony doesn't get expressed well via the internet things CitrusFreak12. This is quite possibly one of the least vague posts on the blue in recent weeks and regardless of the vagueness or not of the description that last link really is the best of the web.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 5:04 PM on June 9, 2008

I'm with btkuhn if I were a millionaire with a large sum to invest I'd put it in the Renaissance Technologies Medallion Fund. Its consistently high returns over the last couple of decades is the reason why fund manager Jim Simons earned 2.8 billion dollars in 2007.

In general though I think hedge funds are the bane of the economy and I'm hoping that Warren Buffet is proven correct.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 4:31 PM on June 9, 2008

I love the Snowman one.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 10:03 AM on June 4, 2008

My parents I always did know human were. Myself think I alien was.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 1:20 PM on May 20, 2008

I find it pretty annoying that all bills are the same size, and I'm not blind.

I agree, although as I'm not even American perhaps my opinion doesn't count much. But the very occasional times I've had to deal with US currency it's annoyed me.

I recall there was a similar discussion here recently about coins and someone pointed out that the various denominations of British coinage were easily discernable even by touch because... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 10:05 AM on May 20, 2008

Lars and the Real Girl was great. A sad, tender, moving exploration of mental illness and the nature of family.
I agree. I thought it was a wonderful touching movie.

This, in contrast, is yet another weak-assed performance artist in search of a gimmick.
Again I'm in agreement.

The doll is a sex object. Surely it's not unreasonable to treat a sex object as a sex object?... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 6:41 AM on May 1, 2008

A fascist New Candy Order kind of dystopia

Ruled over no doubt by Doctor Who villain The Kandy Man.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 7:45 AM on April 22, 2008

Thanks for that link Justinian it has almost made it worth me having watched the awful Jimmy Kimmel thing now.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 11:33 AM on February 26, 2008

Just doing a quick calculation in my head the answer of 43 tonnes or 110 tonnes for a lava Balrog seems off by an order of magnitude.

Assuming Earth-like conditions the Balrog is roughly 3 times taller than Gandalf giving a volume of 27 times that of Gandalf's and lets round that up to 30. Now lets assume that Gandalf has a mass of 100 kilograms (probably less but it's a nice round number so stick with 100).

If Balrog is of similar density then... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 3:48 AM on February 16, 2008

I agree encryption is the way to go and I believe it would be in the ISPs interests to encourage their customers to use anonymising proxy servers as that way they wouldn't be forced into the position of having to lose that customer for life by cutting off their internet.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 11:26 AM on February 12, 2008

Oh man. Thank you very much for posting these, I just cannot wait until season 5 starts.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 8:20 AM on December 5, 2007

From the information provided can you figure out where each person sat, his or her full name, the location he or she had just returned from, and the type of movie each had shot?

The answer is no. I believe there are four different possible seating plans given the information they've provided. Same as kisch mokusch's solutions but the surname of Smith can be swapped between Glory and Robert to give two more solutions.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 8:05 AM on November 23, 2007

To clarify my previous comment the location of Ireland would also swap vice versa with the surname Smith to give the two additional solutions that satisfy the clues given.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 8:09 AM on November 23, 2007

I think not scottreynen. They wrote the same about the Einstein fish puzzle and there really was enough information on that page to solve the puzzle.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 10:00 AM on November 23, 2007

In my ongoing mission to teach young children good swearwords I shouted the phrase 'fucking hell' in front of two young boys yesterday. Unfortunately I may have been drowned out by the awfully fucking loud fire alarm I had just accidentally set off in my apartment building.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 11:29 AM on October 23, 2007

It's infuriating as hell even after having played it enough to get the knack of it, but boy is it addictive.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 9:20 AM on October 20, 2007

Got 86% and I think I should have done better given that I'm an engineering graduate albeit electrical rather than mechanical. Got all the electrical questions correct thankfully or else I would have had to hung my head in shame.

Got tripped up by badly worded questions like the fan one.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 3:38 AM on October 19, 2007

The last prank in the elevator is my favourite the reactions of the unsuspecting victims is the best especially the old woman and then the last couple.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 3:02 AM on October 17, 2007

Is this Prince Harry the Not-quite-so-brave-as-Sir-Lancelot or Prince Harry the Nazi?
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 6:06 AM on October 11, 2007

For eurasian and anyone else seeking context for this FPP.

John Simpson is the BBC's world affairs editor, a veteran journalist who has covered most of the most significant world conflicts of the last 20 years. His report on the friendly fire incident mentioned by Tim Robbins.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 5:59 PM on October 9, 2007

That's wonderful! I've been ploughing through their vids on Youtube and they are all fantastic. Even the Flash animation on their website isn't too obtrusive. I now love these guys.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 12:21 PM on October 9, 2007

I have wasted a large chunk of my day playing this. Thanks robcorr. I'm finding the user-generated ones to be more difficult than the standard levels. For Pete's Sake has me well and truly stuck after 25 minutes of trying to solve it.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 11:23 AM on October 9, 2007

As long as the residents are only filming activities on public streets then I don't think they are breaking any data protection or privacy laws. I don't see there's any difference between that and the CCTV cameras that they'd been promised would be installed but never were.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 2:33 PM on October 5, 2007

To answer fandango_matt yeah I would mind if someone followed me around all day and videotaped everything I did while I was out in public, but as I live in a city centre in the UK the country with highest number of CCTV cameras per capita that pretty much happens everytime I step out my front door. And I mind it a helluva lot.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 4:04 PM on October 6, 2007

Geez you Americans and your crazy ass Government Agencies in what sane world does the agency that sets standards for and regulates the technical aspects of how the radio spectrum is used also regulates the content of what is broadcast using that spectrum?
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 3:56 PM on October 6, 2007

Like furiousxgeorge this immediately made me think of the torture droid from Star Wars. Until Christopher Conte can make his Lethal Injection Attack Droid hover through the air like Geroge Lucas' then I'm not buying what he's selling.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 3:41 PM on October 6, 2007

Meades may well be correct about Britain being the most censored country in the developed world, but other than pornography because of the Obscene Publications Act this is not government censorship that is occuring.

He might not have been able to broadcast his views on the BBC due to their concerns about offending people but he was still able to publish those same views.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 3:29 PM on October 6, 2007

Queenan's article seems to be just an obvious piece of contrarianism. He may genuinely dislike the movie Knocked Up, but his contention that this represents a dominating new paradigm of romantic comedy is bogus.

Apatow and his company of players are enjoying a good run at the box office and with critics but they are not the only game in town. I have to say I did find Superbad hilarious though much more so than Knocked up.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 3:22 PM on October 6, 2007

Yes. But I suspect that eschewing torture would actually decrease our chances of premature death. After all, people would most likely, you know, loathe and despise us less. Eh?

I couldn't agree more. As to whether there will be a reckoning at any point I would severely doubt it.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 2:24 PM on October 4, 2007

I'm right there with you too and definitely in a Bonobo sort of way.

Everything I read or see about Bonobos just makes me more fascinated by them, it is a terrible tragedy that they are endangered.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 1:39 PM on October 4, 2007

It's been used before but it is appropriate What is an awesome post?

I never could understand why Jeopardy was not more popular in the UK.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 1:27 PM on October 4, 2007

That's a clever and funny spoof and perhaps a good piece of viral marketing for his show.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 9:40 AM on October 4, 2007

Great I'm glad that's been explained to me. Now

How's that damn three seashell thing work?
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 3:08 AM on October 3, 2007

I watched that whole thing because I thought that for sure at the end he'd turn to face the camera and reveal that he was actually THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, half of his hideously-scarred face covered by a white mask.

Alas.

Alas indeed, that's exactly what I had been expecting. I should know by now that if the FPP consists of only a Youtube link then it really ain't worth clicking, and it goes double for links that include the words 'totally amazing'.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 4:16 AM on October 2, 2007

By Fox and House, I of course mean Fox and Hound. Dur.

Now you've got me wondering XQUZYPHYR how your Fox and House concept would work narratively. I think that's a traumatizing animated movie for kids right there.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 5:55 AM on October 1, 2007

This brings back memories and yet in retrospect I can't believe I would have found them much fun. Perhaps on a rainy day when I wasn't allowed out to ride my BMX.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 2:48 PM on September 30, 2007

Hmm, whom am I kidding it wasn't a BMX it was a Raleigh Bomber.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 2:52 PM on September 30, 2007

forallmankind am I mad or did they used to give these away free with Shreddies?

I believe you could be right unless we are suffering from the same false memory syndrome. Of all the cereals I remember from my childhood Shreddies always had the best, but also cheap and shoddy, free stuff in the box.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 5:48 AM on October 1, 2007

re: the think/thing controversy I don't think either one makes any sense if you analyse them so the whole thing over which is the correct one becomes a moot point, and if you think it does matter then you've got another thing coming.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 10:59 AM on September 30, 2007

Oh and 0.9 recurring does so equal 1.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 11:00 AM on September 30, 2007

Not the damn airplane on a conveyor belt problem again!

I've ploughed through this thread hoping to find the point at which paulsc has his eureka moment and is able to understand that the problem is far simpler than he believes it is and that of course the belt has little to no effect on the motion of the plane through the air.

Still it's only been about half as frustrating as when I tried the problem out on a couple of writer friends of mine... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 10:19 AM on September 30, 2007

Amusing little film, but I think flarbuse's comment was better.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 7:13 AM on August 9, 2007

Damn daveleck got there first. Fortunately my boss spends his workday doing the same.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 6:16 AM on August 9, 2007

Gimme Friction Baby is driving me nuts as it seems such a simple game that scoring highly should be trivial and yet 13 is the best I've managed.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 2:50 AM on July 22, 2007

Scored the same as antifuse 4467, though my worst is a paltry 85 metres. Ha! Beat that antifuse. ;)
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 5:00 AM on April 13, 2007

Well cedar key if you were a clerk of a District Court would you deny a law suit to someone that claimed to have godly powers?

It's like Pascal's Wager, just on the off chance that he isn't a nutjob I'd allow it.
posted to MetaFilter by electricinca at 1:05 PM on February 27, 2007