HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: jgd@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (John G Dobnick)
Subject: Re: Why does it feel better after a thunderstorm?
Originator: jgd@csd4.csd.uwm.edu
Reply-To: jgd@csd4.csd.uwm.edu
Organization: University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1992 22:22:06 GMT

From article <1992Jul30.034607.5158@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu>, by bwatson@nyx.cs.du.edu (bruce watson):
> Remember, it's the not the heat, it's the humidity. There is a nifty
> concept called the Temperature Humidity Index. I believe it's 
> T + 0.8H. With high humidity a given temperature feels hotter 
> than the same temp at a lower humidity. When the temp falls below about
> 75 degrees the humidity doesn't really matter when it comes to comfort.

I've noticed a more direct correlation between "discomfort" and dew point.
(None of this fancy-schmancy "discomfort index" stuff for me.  Keep it
to something simple, and something that the meteorologists already
report. :-) )

Anyway, with a dew point under 65 degrees F, things are quite comfortable
(for me, at least).  At a dew point of 70, things are starting to become
a little uncomfortable.  Above 70, it's Humid City!  Now, if only _all_
the local forecasts would report dew point instead of this "discomfort
index" and "heat index" malarkey.

-- 
John G Dobnick                          ATTnet: (414) 229-5727
Computing Services Division             INTERNET: jgd@uwm.edu
University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee     UUCP: uunet!uwm!jgd

"Knowing how things work is the basis for appreciation,
and is thus a source of civilized delight."  -- William Safire
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: ratner@ficus.cs.ucla.edu (David Ratner)
Subject: Re: Drinking beer through a straw
Organization: UCLA, Computer Science Department
Date: 29 Jul 92 21:46:52 GMT

kraizman@bullwinkle.tc.cornell.edu (Mike Kraizman) writes:

><dkmiller@unixg.ubc.ca (Derek K. Miller)> writes:
>=> All I know is beer tastes terrible when drunk through a straw.

>  Beer tastes terrible no matter how you drink it. The reason
>you drink it through a straw is:

>   1) To get a quick drunk and 
>   2) (this is my own) so it goes straight down my throat
>	and I don't have to taste it.

>Michael Kraizman
>s5lx@vax5.cit.cornell.edu

Someone from my Alma Mater saying that beer tastes terrible!
Many a night I spent guzzling beer (without a straw I might add!) at Dunbars...

Give my regards to Davy..

--
* *  ***  *     *    |   Dave "Van Damme" Ratner
* *  *    *    * *  / \  ratner@cs.ucla.edu
* *  *    *    ***  \ /  
***  ***  ***  * *   |   "Wham Bam, thank you Van Damme!"	
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: gmw1@cunixa.cc.columbia.edu (Gabe M Wiener)
Subject: Re: Scanned record players
Reply-To: gmw1@cunixa.cc.columbia.edu (Gabe M Wiener)
Organization: Columbia University
Date: Mon, 27 Jul 1992 04:31:49 GMT

In article <1992Jul20.130334.3762@einoed.in-berlin.de> alh@einoed.in-berlin.de (Adrian Le Hanne) writes:
>
>There was a company which produced at least a prototype of a laser scanner
>turntable for LP's in the eighties. I once read an article about this in
>some hifi magazine, so i'm pretty sure about this. Price was way over 
>$6000 dollars so it certainly never hit the market...

Finial Technology is the company you're thinking of.  They build those 
players now on a custom basis, and they sell for about $18,000 a piece.
I saw the player once at the Consumer Electronics Show, but never got a
chance to hear it.  A friend of mine did and he said he was favorably
impressed.


--
Gabe Wiener - Columbia Univ.     "This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings 
gmw1@cunixa.cc.columbia.edu       to be seriously considered as a means of 
N2GPZ in ham radio circles        communication. The device is inherently of
72355,1226 on CI$                 no value to us." -Western Union memo, 1877
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: grante@aquarius (Grant Edwards)
Subject: Re: SI system (Was Re: Byte me : ) (Was Re: Writing portable code))
Organization: Rosemount, Inc.
Date: Thu, 23 Jul 1992 00:37:18 GMT

dpbsmith@world.std.com (Daniel P. B. Smith) writes:
: 
: Even if you accept the validity of the argument -- or the metaargument
: that the base for numbers should have a more rational basis than the
: number of fingers -- it is about as likely as calendar reform.
:

And we all know that the Kzin have four fingers per hand, and thus use
base 8.
 
:
: BTW -- why isn't there metric time? Ten hours per day, 100 seconds per
: hour?
: 

Because that would make software that deals with dates and times way
too easy to write, and it would put thousands of people out of work
(as would calendar reform).  Imagine the terror - gangs of unemployed
programmers roaming the streets, stampeding women and children and
raping cattle.

I actually have to write software that deals with linear distances in
feet inches and sixteenths.  Heathens!

--
Grant Edwards                                 |Yow!  NANCY!!  Why is
Rosemount Inc.                                |everything RED?!
                                              |
grante@aquarius.rosemount.com                 |
From: wolgamot@milton.u.washington.edu (Greg Wolgamot)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
Subject: Re: Water and Alcohol
Date: 29 Jul 92 22:54:16 GMT
Organization: University of Washington, Seattle

The reason that an alcohol/water mixture occupies less volume than the two 
components separately is that the the intermolecular spaces of the the mixture
are less than that of the pure alcohol, due to hydrogen bonding with the water.
And, by the way, I like Full Sail. Also George Killians.

--Greg at Uw
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: peterk@public.sub.org (Peter Kittel)
Subject: Re: SI system (Was Re: Byte me : ) (Was Re: Writing portable code))
Organization: Public News & Mailserver, Commodore Germany PM UNIX, Frankfurt
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 92 05:24:54 GMT

klaus@diku.dk (Klaus Ole Kristiansen) writes:

>It has been said here that the hekto prefix is deprecated. I don't think
>so. In this country, the meteorologists have recently gone from millibar
>to hektopascal as a unit for air pressure. As 1 bar = 100000 Pascal, the
>actual unit is the same, only the name has changed.

Yes, here the same. And there is one other traditional application of
hekto in commerce: You count bigger amounts of beer in hektoliters!
(That's how they always report how much got consumed on Munich
Oktoberfest, or as a landlord orders at the brewery.)

-- 
Best regards, Dr. Peter Kittel  // E-Mail to  \\  Only my personal opinions... 
Commodore Frankfurt, Germany  \X/ {uunet|pyramid|rutgers}!cbmvax!cbmger!peterk
                                   or  peterk@public.sub.org
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Why does it feel better after a thunderstorm?
Reply-To: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU
Organization: HST Wide Field/Planetary Camera
Date: Wed, 22 Jul 1992 14:43:57 GMT

In article <1992Jul22.135155.4433@cl.cam.ac.uk>, rf@cl.cam.ac.uk (Robin Fairbairns on ely.cl.cam.ac.uk) writes:
>Now, `folk' wisdom here says that after such a thunderstorm,
>everything feels fine again: the stickiness no longer grabs you, and
>you generally feel OK.  Modern-thinking `folk' suggest that it's to do
>with the distribution of ionisation in the atmosphere (I paraphrase).
>
>Simple analysis shows:
>
>1. Before the storm, the humidity is likely to be high (>=95%), and
>   the temperature sure as hell is high.

Sound about right for thunderstorm weather.  At least, that's what it was like
in Baltimore.

>2. After the storm, the humidity is presumably 100%, in view of the
>   buckets of water that the skies have blessed us with, but the
>   temperature is certainly lower.

The temperature DOES drop.  Have you, however, actually taken a hygrometer and
mesaured the relative humidity before and after the storm?  Remember, the water
coming down in buckets was chilly.  It's likely to take a while before it warms
enough to evaporate in sufficient quantities to get the humidity back up to
where it was before the storm.

>3. There's certainly a lot of electricity involved, dancing about the
>   sky in really beautiful patterns.
>
>Questions:
>
>1. Do human bodies feel happier in 100% humidity at 23\degrees C than
>   in 95% at (say) 30\degrees C?

Possibly, but do measure the relative humidities to see if your assumption
about the humidity is correct.

>2. Is there a significant effect from ionisation patterns?

I doubt it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: bwatson@nyx.cs.du.edu (bruce watson)
Subject: Re: French Repulican Calendar (Was SI system (Was Re: Byte me : ) (Was Re: Writing portable code))
X-Disclaimer: Nyx is a public access Unix system run by the University
	of Denver for the Denver community.  The University has neither
	control over nor responsibility for the opinions of users.
Organization: Nyx, Public Access Unix at U. of Denver Math/CS dept.
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 92 03:36:59 GMT

In article <1992Jul24.110632.3247@cl.cam.ac.uk> rf@cl.cam.ac.uk (Robin Fairbairns) writes:
>In article <1992Jul23.003718.4324@rosevax.rosemount.com>
>grante@aquarius (Grant Edwards) writes (the first time I've spotted
>this in this thread, which I haven't followed terribly carefully):
>>dpbsmith@world.std.com (Daniel P. B. Smith) writes:
>>:
>>: BTW -- why isn't there metric time? Ten hours per day, 100 seconds per
>>: hour?
>>: 
>
>There was an experiment with metric time in revolutionary France,
>(which is where the rest of the metric system comes from).  As well as
>poetic-sounding names for the months (which I forget), there certainly
>a decimal-based time system.
>
1. Vendemaire = vintage
2. Brumaire = mist
3. Frimaire = frost
4. Nivose = snow
5. Pluvious = rain
6. Ventose = wind
7. Germinal = seed-time
8. Foreal = blossom
9. Prairial = meadow
10. Messidor = harvest
11. Thermidor = heat
12. Fructidor = fruits

It was started in 1793 and ended in 1805 when the French returned to
the Gregorian calendar. It would be fun to make a FRC for this and following
years. Just as fun as a print version to write a 'cal' routine for unix or 
DOS.

I've also thought that a north american version might be fun, especially.
for the west which is unlike France in climate. Native Americans had
names for the months but they were names of the full moons--they had
a lunar calendar, not solar.



--
 ___________________________________________________________________________ 
|wats@nyx.cs.du.edu |   "To the extent that it doesn't use mathematics;     |
|   Bruce Watson    |                 it is no science."                    |
From: Bill.Hartwell@f99.n121.z1.FidoNet.Org (Bill Hartwell)
Sender: FredGate@p0.f99.n121.z1.FidoNet.Org
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
Subject: Ice 9
Date: 22 Jul 92  17:48:28 EST

 -=> Quoting Larry Jones to All <=-
 
 LJ> In article <1992Jul16.165549.19493@muddcs.claremont.edu>,
 LJ> shampton@jarthur.claremont.edu (Scott M Hampton) writes: > According  
to
 LJ> my handy dancy CE text, there are several 'types' of ice. Common  
> ice
 LJ> is called Ice 1, then there are several amusing crystalline variants  
>
 LJ> that exist very near to zero (Centigrade) but at wierd pressures,  
and
 LJ> then > there are the pre-solid groupings of quasi-crystalline  
water that exist as
 > water loses heat but before actually freezing. For exact pressure  
and
 > temperature regimes I would have to find the damn book.
 LJ>
 LJ> Yes indeed.  Anybody made any ice 9 lately? ;-)
 
I certainly hope not!
 


....blasted Bokononists!.....


 * Origin: NineJackNine / 608-256-5697 / Madison WI / (1:121/99.0)

Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: Jon Rossie <jrossie@leopard.cs.indiana.edu>
Subject: Re: Why does it feel better after a thunderstorm?
Keywords: (Mythical) air ionisation?
Organization: Indiana University, Bloomington
Date: Tue, 28 Jul 1992 14:56:58 -0500

I don't know about the ionization where you are, but in Indiana I have
noticed a distinct lack of that feeling of relief after thunderstorms.
The storms here seem to leave us feeling nothing other than wetter.
My wife and I often wax nostalgic after those good old east-coast
thunderstorms of our youth.

jrossie@cs.indiana.edu
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: jimf@centerline.com (Jim Frost)
Subject: Re: Drinking beer through a straw
Organization: CenterLine Software, Inc.
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1992 15:37:55 GMT

kraizman@bullwinkle.tc.cornell.edu (Mike Kraizman) writes:
><dkmiller@unixg.ubc.ca (Derek K. Miller)> writes:
>=> All I know is beer tastes terrible when drunk through a straw.

>  Beer tastes terrible no matter how you drink it.

I beg to differ.  Perhaps you're not drinking the right beer.

jim frost
jimf@centerline.com
From: klaus@diku.dk (Klaus Ole Kristiansen)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
Subject: Re: SI system (Was Re: Byte me : ) (Was Re: Writing portable code))
Date: 28 Jul 92 08:56:57 GMT
Organization: Department of Computer Science, U of Copenhagen


It has been said here that the hekto prefix is deprecated. I don't think
so. In this country, the meteorologists have recently gone from millibar
to hektopascal as a unit for air pressure. As 1 bar = 100000 Pascal, the
actual unit is the same, only the name has changed.

Klaus O K
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: slagle@lmsc.lockheed.com (Mark Slagle)
Subject: Re: Why does it feel better after a thunderstorm?
Reply-To: slagle@lmsc.lockheed.com
In-reply-to: rf@cl.cam.ac.uk's message of 22 Jul 92 13:51:55 GMT
Organization: Lockheed Missiles and Space Co., Sunnyvale, Ca.
Date: Thu, 23 Jul 92 04:03:22 GMT

In article <1992Jul22.135155.4433@cl.cam.ac.uk>, rf@cl.cam.ac.uk (Robin Fairbairns on ely.cl.cam.ac.uk) writes:

> 1. Do human bodies feel happier in 100% humidity at 23\degrees C than
> in 95% at (say) 30\degrees C?
> 2. Is there a significant effect from ionisation patterns?

1. Yes
2. Probably not.
3. You forgot to account for the "cleansing" effect of
a good storm.  A lot of the crud in the air is removed,
if not by the rain itself at least by the accompanying
winds.  And the air is full of the smells we commonly
associate with spring and rebirth.  There is the smell
of damp earth, and all the great aromas given off by
the leaves of the various flora.  The sense of smell
has powerful and wonderful effects.
--
----
Mark E. Slagle                                 PO Box 61059
slagle@lmsc.lockheed.com                       Sunnyvale, CA   94088
408-756-0895                                   USA
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: bwatson@nyx.cs.du.edu (bruce watson)
Subject: Re: Why does it feel better after a thunderstorm.
X-Disclaimer: Nyx is a public access Unix system run by the University
	of Denver for the Denver community.  The University has neither
	control over nor responsibility for the opinions of users.
Organization: Nyx, Public Access Unix at U. of Denver Math/CS dept.
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 92 03:51:27 GMT

In article <1992Jul30.122605.19312@chv.dsir.govt.nz> srcriro@chv.dsir.govt.nz writes:
>Jon Rossie <jrossie@leopard.cs.indiana.edu> complains that the thunderstorms in
>Indiana dont carry the sense of relief and well-being of those on the East
>Coast. I have noticed a similar effect here in Canterbury, South Is, New
>Zealand when we get showers from the North West. Thunderstorms are very rare
>here, perhaps 5 a year max, and then usually brief, but we do get the sense of
>well-being following a Southerly squall. 
> 
>Our Nor-wester is a dreaded Fohn or Falling wind and can be a real bitch,
>especially to susceptible people. It is usually warm, especially in the summer,
>often accompanied with a leaden overcast sky and low humidity. On the odd
>occasion that rain is blown over from the Southern Alps, about 50-60km west of
>Christchurch, the sense of well-being is absent afterward. 
> 
>Are the "dead" thunderstorms of Indiana carried on the Fohn wind off the
>Rockies? (Pardon if my geography is a bit off.)

The foehn winds of the Rockies (called the Chinook by those who were here
first) don't make it as far as Indiana. Their weather is influenced by
the Canadian fronts and air masses and the thunderstorms arise from
the ground heating during the hot summer days.
> 
>srcriro@chv.dsir.govt.nz  aka Ian Orchard on my better days.


--
 ___________________________________________________________________________ 
|wats@nyx.cs.du.edu |   "To the extent that it doesn't use mathematics;     |
|   Bruce Watson    |                 it is no science."                    |
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
From: dkmiller@unixg.ubc.ca (Derek K. Miller)
Subject: Re: Drinking beer through a straw
Organization: University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C., Canada
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1992 19:19:55 GMT

In article <jimf.712510675@centerline.com> jimf@centerline.com (Jim Frost) writes:
>kraizman@bullwinkle.tc.cornell.edu (Mike Kraizman) writes:
>><dkmiller@unixg.ubc.ca (Derek K. Miller)> writes:
>>=> All I know is beer tastes terrible when drunk through a straw.
>
>>  Beer tastes terrible no matter how you drink it.
>
>I beg to differ.  Perhaps you're not drinking the right beer.
>
>jim frost
>jimf@centerline.com

(Quote attribution city.)

Perhaps Mike is drinking Miller Lite or Bud Light. Those might taste even worse
through a straw.

      :=:=> Derek K. Miller                 dkmiller@unixg.ubc.ca
From: lsh1@Ra.MsState.Edu (Shane Hebert)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
Subject: Re: Drinking beer through a straw
Date: 29 Jul 92 20:44:01 GMT
Organization: Mississippi State University

kraizman@bullwinkle.tc.cornell.edu (Mike Kraizman) writes:

><dkmiller@unixg.ubc.ca (Derek K. Miller)> writes:
>=> All I know is beer tastes terrible when drunk through a straw.

>  Beer tastes terrible no matter how you drink it. The reason

I like beer.  My favorite brand is Miller Lite.
Then Bud (either Light or regular).



+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|                   |    Shane Hebert                      | Disclaimer:      |
|    This space     |    hebert@erc.msstate.edu            |    My opinions   |
|     for rent!     |    hebert@ee.msstate.edu             |    are my own.   |
|                   |    lsh1@ra.msstate.edu               |                  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: gfowler@javelin.sim.es.com (Gary Fowler)
Subject: Re: catching bullets with the teeth
Organization: Evans & Sutherland Computer Corporation
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1992 14:28:57 GMT

bls@sector7g.Eng.Sun.COM (Brian Scearce) writes:

>In article 2741@crd.ge.com, salantel@dssv01.crd.ge.com (E. L. Salant) writes:
>> I heard from coworkers, that on tv they showed a man who could catch a
>> bullet fired from a gun with his teeth.

>I hate to give away magicians' secrets, but would you rather:

>(a) learn how to palm a slug so that it looked like you fished it out
>    of your mouth, and (optionally) build some prop that would look
>    like a bullet passed through it, or:

>(b) have someone fire a gun at your head.

Does anyone remember the scene in Davey Crocket when he "catches" a bullet in
teeth.  Mike Fink and Davey are having a shooting contest in a tavern.  Mike
shoots a mug of ale off someones head by aiming the gun backwards and looking
in a mirror.  Davey then out does him by aiming his gun backwards, looking in
a mirror, ricocheting his shot off several objects, and catching the slug in
his teeth.  He fooled them by telling them he had never done it before, so
while they were all ducking for cover, he slipped a slug in his mouth.  So
is it a case of art immitating a life or life immitating art.

Gary "Now that's real folklore." Fowler

Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: heathh@cco.caltech.edu (Heath Ian Hunnicutt)
Subject: Re: Vacation Time!
Keywords: Ditch Day, vanishing room
Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena
Date: Tue, 28 Jul 1992 04:21:29 GMT

In article <1992Jul23.153526.5013@news.iastate.edu> glitto@iastate.edu (Scott M Klabacha) writes:
> (Art Nicolaysen) writes:
>>There is an annual "Ditch Day" held in late May, but the object is for
>>the frosh to solve elaborate puzzles left for them by the upper
>>classes.  These puzzles/obstacles/degrading feats are known as "stacks", 
>>after the ***old*** practice of stacking furniture against the door to 
>>keep the frosh out of one's room during Ditch Day.
>>
	In 1990, the year before my freshman year at Caltech, the
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette of Fort Wayne, IN ran a wire story about
Ditch Day.  It was approc 8 column inches, and a pretty bland 
description, to be sure.  As I recall, it was an AP story.

See ya,
Heath

-- 
On Saturday, April 18, 1992, this .sig became self-aware.

Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: mikkelson@breakr.enet.dec.com (snopes)
Subject: Re: Sanity
Organization: Salivation Army
Date: 23 JUL 92 08:42:46    


In article <BrtHI4.7z8@cs.psu.edu>, 
  antunes@astro.psu.edu (Sandy Antunes) writes...

>Given that all it takes is a doctor's signature to complete the "hearing",
>and it is therefore a judgement call by one person as to whether you are a 
>danger, I'd say it's still too easy to get locked up.

 That's not so.  The patient has a right to demand a more rigorous hearing
 before a board, rather than one whose outcome is decided by a single doctor.

 - snopes

+--------------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
|                                |                                            |
| David P. Mikkelson             |  Just when my ant farm started showing a   |
| Digital Equipment Corporation  |  profit, an ant bank foreclosed on it.     |
| Culver City, CA  USA           |                                            |
|                                |                                            |
+--------------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
From: huggins@dss1.austin.ibm.com (Jim Huggins         (8-8305))
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: Mis-applied physics in advertising
Date: 22 Jul 92 14:08:21 GMT
Organization: IBM, Austin

In article <Brp0CE.CD8@helios.physics.utoronto.ca> neufeld@helios.physics.utoronto.ca (Christopher Neufeld) writes:
>In article <govender.711623420@shannon> govender@shannon.ee.wits.ac.za (Govender) writes:
>>apparently researchers have claimed that women who are married to smokers
>>have a 30% higher probability of getting cancer than women who are married
>>to non- smokers.the facts (quoted in the local press from some british 
>>medical rag) is that 6 of 100,000 women married to non smokers will get 
>>cancer as opposed to 8 of 100,000 women married to smokers.
>>
>   Putting the odds of a woman contracting cancer somewhere around her
>odds of being struck by lightning? Haven't we seen figures recently that
>one in ten women can expect to contract breast cancer? I thought that
>cancer deaths accounted for 10+% of deaths in the industrialized world.

I think Govender is referring to cancer deaths attributable to second-hand
smoke.  I don't know exactly what the figures are for breast cancer.
It used to be the number one type of cancer among Western women, until the 
women's liberation movement of the 60s told women that they could do anything
that men could, including smoke in public.  Not surprisingly, the rates
of lung cancer among women have skyrocketed since then and now lung cancer
kills more women than breast cancer.

But this is probably getting too factual for a.f.u...

Jim Huggins