HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: anno4000@zrz.tu-berlin.de (Anno Siegel)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: Life Imitates AFU: Gang Member Loses Head in L.A.
Date: 7 Jan 1993 13:23:49 GMT
Organization: tu-berlin
NNTP-Posting-Host: w172zrz.zrz.tu-berlin.de

In article <1992Dec30.164634.1@indyvax.iupui.edu> harvey@indyvax.iupui.edu writes:
>From Chuck Shepherd's "News of the Weird" 12/23/1992:
>
>    In October in Los Angeles, an 18-year-old gang member who was
>    leaning out a car window (probably to position himself for a
>    drive-by shooting, police said) was killed when his driver drove
>    too close to a parked car, sending his head through the rear
>    window of the other car.

This reminds me of an UL that has been around in Germany for over 25 years:
A truck carrying a load of sheet metal goes along the Autobahn. When a
motorcyclist sets out to overtake, a sheet of metal comes loose, flies
away and cuts off the cyclists head. Truck lands in the ditch when passed
by a headless cycle driver.

Don't know if it happened though I figure it *could* have.
-- 
Anno Siegel              siegel@zrz.tu-berlin.de
c/o TU-Berlin/ZRZ        s=siegel ou=zrz p=tu-berlin a=dbp c=de 
>>> Disclaimer disclaiming to disclaim the usual disclaimer <<<
From: joltes@husc10.harvard.edu (Richard Joltes)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: Flammable Cars (Was: Re: Mother Lifts Car Off
Date: 6 Jan 93 15:32:42 GMT
Organization: Harvard University Science Center

derek@nezsdc.icl.co.nz (Derek "fizzy beverages?" Tearne) writes:
>I think you have got the usage wrong there Richard.  Everyone knows that 
>they are Park Anywhere Lights <TM>.  How often have you seen anyone 
>using these lights to indicate an accident or other road hazard - once, 
>maybe twice.  How often have you seen them used to indicate that the owner
>has just popped into the shop for a newspaper or a can of fizzy beverage.

I've never done that!  Well, okay, maybe once...this week.

>No wonder she was confused.  I propose that we officially label these 
>lights PAL's from now on to avoid confusion.
>
>Some police cars have even better versions of these in several colours -
>usually involving blue, red or both alternatively.  These are known as
>Break Any Law With Impunity Lights <TM> or BALWIL's. 

True.  A friend who used to live in Revere, Mass(achusetts) (but he's much 
better now, thanks) told me of the proclivities of the local constabulary in
that esteemed town...once he saw a police car, lights and siren in full voice,
careen into a local Dunkin Donuts shop and screech to a halt.  The two officers
got out, walked in, and calmly bought their coffee and sugar pills.

Of course, these officers were from the same force as those who broke into a
local ATM one night about 10 years ago.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dick "to protect and to serve" Joltes 			joltes@husc.harvard.edu
Hardware & Networking Manager, Computer Services 	joltes@husc.bitnet 
Harvard University Science Center

"Mind you, not as bad as the night Archie Pettigrew ate some
sheep's testicles for a bet...God, that bloody sheep kicked him..."
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: tel@adimail.uucp (Terry Monks)
Subject: Re: May you live in interesting times...
Organization: Automata Design, Inc.
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL7]
Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1993 14:44:06 GMT

: PAPAI@kcgl1.eng.ohio-state.edu (Jonathan Papai) writes:
: 
:   +I tried ROT 13, and it still made no sense.  Unusual capitalization
:   +also.
: 
You have to ROT 13 it twice - and use Wade-Giles transliteration.

Terry "Gung hei fat choi works now too" Monks
-- 
Terry Monks        Automata Design Inc    (703) 742-9400

Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: lawson@acuson.com (Drew Lawson)
Subject: Ths Old Half Cent Myth (Re: Computer theft)
Reply-To: lawson@acuson.com (Drew Lawson)
Organization: ACUSON, Mountain View, CA
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 18:11:30 GMT

In article <wingo-080193101424@wingosmac.apple.com> wingo@apple.com (Tony Wingo) writes:
>In article <1993Jan3.050838.29514@netcom.com>, bml@netcom.com (Brian
>Leibowitz) wrote:
>> 
>> I heard this story many years ago and was wondering if it really happened.
>> 
>> A programmer at a bank changed the interest calculations on accounts
>> to round down instead of rounding to the nearest penny.  All the fractions
>> of pennies were put in a dummy account and then withdrawn.  The bank did
>> not notice for a while because the amount of interest paid was still correct
>> and the books balanced.

>I first ran into this story around 1969-1970, and it was old then.  

I first encountered this as an example of the oldest computer crime
myth when I was taking a course on computers and the law (BEFORE
Superman w/Richard Pryor).

This tale has of the perfect setup for a UL.  It involves a system that
everyone encounters (banks) and assumes that they understand, while it
rests on something (accounting) of which most are ignorant.

The simple hole in the story is that accounting systems and practices
were developed to deal with these issues LONG before computers came
into use.  Simple put: There are NO half cents floating around.  The
story rests on the assumption that a bank paying (for example) 4% on
savings accounts expects to pay in interest 4% of its total savings
account holdings.  If the numbers match that closely, something is VERY
wierd.

This also has that immortal UL requirement:  It COULD have happened.
Early systems were mostly developed by engineers with sketchy
interaction with the "end user."  A system with these flaws could have
come into existance, but I would expect BANKERS to break out in hives
dealing with it.  If the needed reports for account verification are
available, it would take some skill (as always in embezzeling from
large organizations) to conceal the programmer's actions.


Drew "this space intentionally left blank" Lawson
-- 
Drew Lawson                      If you're not part of the solution,
lawson@acuson.com                you're part of the precipitate
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: pt@geovision.gvc.com (Paul Tomblin)
Subject: Re: Architect Suicides
Reply-To: pt@geovision.gvc.com
Organization: Not officially GeoVision Systems Inc., Ottawa, Ontario
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 12:51:48 GMT

twcaps@tennyson.lbl.gov (Terry Chan) writes:
>john@newave.newave.mn.org (John A. Weeks III) writes:
>  +
>  +The version I heard was at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.
>   [classic architect kills self after bldg built backwards UL deleted.]
>  +This same architect also designed the Sentury Insurance building in Stevens
>  +Point, Wisconsin.  The building was built in a swamp and is said to be slowly
>  +sinking into the ground.

>Wow!  This guy was a two-fer.  They don't get much better than this!
Yeah, and did he kill himself over that one, too?

>Terry "Was it due to the weight of the books too?" Chan
Paul "Two, Two, Two suicides in One!" Tomblin

-- 
Paul Tomblin, pt@compass.gvc.com
(This is not an official opinion of GeoVision Systems Inc.)
"If you can read this, you're not looking through the Hubble Space Telescope"
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban,rec.sport.baseball
From: thf2@ellis.uchicago.edu (Ted Frank)
Subject: Babe Ruth Candy Bar
Reply-To: thf2@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago
Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1993 21:20:29 GMT

Well, the columnists have surprisingly avoided mentions of the
elevator-incident in the wake of Reggie Jackson's election to the
Hall of Fame.

But that didn't stop local Chicago Tribune mediot Jerome Holtzman
from claiming that Reggie Jackson was just like Babe Ruth in that
they both had a candy bar named after them.

Now, indeed, there was the infamous Reggie bar.

But what candy bar is Holtzman thinking of wrt Ruth?  Is he thoughtlessly
assuming that the Baby Ruth bar is named for the baseball player, rather
than the daughter of the president?  Or is this one of those strange
urban legends about urban legends, and the Baby Ruth bar really *is*
named for Babe Ruth?

My vote is that Jerome Holtzman's just plain stupid.
-- 
ted frank                     | thf2@ellis.uchicago.edu 
standard disclaimers          | void where prohibited
the university of chicago law school, chicago, illinois 60637
never shout movie in a crowded firestation
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban,rec.sport.baseball
From: raxter@bnr.ca (Steve Raxter )
Subject: Re: Babe Ruth Candy Bar
Organization: Bell-Northern Research 
Distribution: rec
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1993 16:01:25 GMT

In article <C0IMup.3vL@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu>, cscdc@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu (Dan Carpenter) writes:
|> In article <1993Jan7.212029.14746@midway.uchicago.edu> thf2@midway.uchicago.edu writes:
|> >Well, the columnists have surprisingly avoided mentions of the
|> >elevator-incident in the wake of Reggie Jackson's election to the
|> >Hall of Fame.
|> >
|> >But that didn't stop local Chicago Tribune mediot Jerome Holtzman
|> >from claiming that Reggie Jackson was just like Babe Ruth in that
|> >they both had a candy bar named after them.
|> >
|> >Now, indeed, there was the infamous Reggie bar.
|> >
|> >But what candy bar is Holtzman thinking of wrt Ruth?  Is he thoughtlessly
|> >assuming that the Baby Ruth bar is named for the baseball player, rather
|> >than the daughter of the president?  Or is this one of those strange
|> >urban legends about urban legends, and the Baby Ruth bar really *is*
|> >named for Babe Ruth?
|> >
|> >My vote is that Jerome Holtzman's just plain stupid.
|> 
|> Well, Jerome Holtzman won this *one*.  The Babe Ruth candy bar *is*
|> named after Babe Ruth.
|> 
|> Sorry to burst your bubble.
|> 
|> Dan

Proof Dan give us proof!
I have been told three different stories on the subject. Each
with very little PROOF!




______
s.raxter.
my opinions are my own, ya gets what ya pays fer.

Organization: Freshman, CIT general, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban,alt.folklore.college
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 04:02:21 -0500 
From: Joshua Eli Schachter <jsct+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Re: Architect Suicides

The Student Union building here at CMU, called Skibo, is said to have been
designed by a failed architecture student... his father donated enough
money to build the student's design. (or maybe the design was flunked,
i dunno)

However, the building is badly designed, to get from one side of the first
floor do another you have to go through the second floor...
From: phil@rahul.net (Phil Gustafson)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: Bugger it
Date: 8 Jan 93 20:49:46 GMT
Organization: Famed Parquet Floor

In article <JsV3wB1w165w@codewks.nacjack.gen.nz> system@codewks.nacjack.gen.nz (Wayne McDougall) writes:
>2. Some American then thought that his scanner wasn't currently bugged, even
>though Kibo hand't rearranged his diodes.

Kibo's job is typography. My job is diodes.  Now, I didn't volunteer for it
or anything, and still don't know why Terry drafted me, but someone has to
do it, and here I am.  

Phil "That'll be two-fifty" Gustafson

-- 
|play: phil@rahul.net
|work: (Under Construction)              | Phil Gustafson 408-286-1749      |
|         Opinions outside attributed material are mine alone.              |
|        Satirical matter is not necessarily identified as such.            |
Xref: sparky alt.folklore.urban:32523 rec.arts.startrek.misc:13227
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban,rec.arts.startrek.misc
Subject: Re: Sex, the Final Fronti
From: system@codewks.nacjack.gen.nz (Wayne McDougall)
Date: Tue, 05 Jan 93 10:54:36 NZST
Organization: The Code Works Limited, PO Box 10 155, Auckland, New Zealand

Will Steeves <goid@zooid.guild.org> writes:

> >Ted "it's not libel if it's satire" Frank
>      ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> 
> You sure got *that* right!  :-)

It is in New Zealand. Poor old Hamish Keith didn't like Beamish Teeth
being portrayed as paying exorbitant unjustifiable prices for mediocre works 
of art (paid for by the government), which he HAD done but successfully
sued for defamation over the off-hand comment "oh, but that doesn't include
my commission" ie. suggesting he also got an enormous commission personally
(it was only a large commission). Although successful, he was only awarded
costs.

So in New Zealand, all satire must be based on truth. Doesn't that make it
caricature?

ObUl: "Gremlins in the system" originated from the movie "Gremlins"



-- 
  Wayne McDougall, BCNU
  This .sig unintentionally left blank.

Hello! I'm a .SIG Virus. Copy me and spread the fun.
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: rhadden@isdres.er.usgs.gov
Subject: RE: Documented mass cannibalism?
Organization: U.S. Geological Survey
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 20:52:43 GMT

The tenets saying there were no evidences of a mass practice of cannibalism
is not necessarily true. An excellent article called "the Cannibal's Signature"
has just been printed in the Jan 2, 1993 issue of Science News, pp 12-14.
        Check it out at the nearest library.
From: phil@rahul.net (Phil Gustafson)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: Amusing street names
Date: 8 Jan 93 23:30:48 GMT
Organization: Famed Parquet Floor

In the 60's, it was said that four cities in Massachusetts were named after
the governor:  Endicott, Peabody, Marblehead, and Athol.

Phil "Well, Endicott 'Chub' Peabody was governor, and all those cities
are real, and he wasn't what one would call a mental giant" Gustafson

-- 
|play: phil@rahul.net
|work: (Under Construction)              | Phil Gustafson 408-286-1749      |
|         Opinions outside attributed material are mine alone.              |
|        Satirical matter is not necessarily identified as such.            |
From: skb92r@ecs.soton.ac.uk (Stuart Bell)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Upside-down burglar
Date: 8 Jan 93 18:08:02 GMT

In <1993Jan7.235135.11197@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu> PAPAI@kcgl1.eng.ohio-state.edu (Jonathan Papai) writes:

>ObUL: Caption below AP photo, Jan. 6,1993.
>"The police thought Frank Morales hanging upside down in a
>chimney in an Oceanside, Calif., home was hilarious and took
>pictures before arresting him on burglary charges.  Homeowner
>Margie Beavers, 62, laughed as well- after the police got
>there Monday.

This even made the UK ITV (ie. not the BBC) News a few days back. No doubt
we saw the same photos. It was claimed that he intended to steal the piano.
In terms of "hassle-to-gain-ratio" this seems unlikely.

ObUL: Various parts of the piano are much-prized in the criminal underworld.

Stuart "first post!" Bell
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: tomj@monster.apd.saic.com (Tom Johnson)
Subject: Re: Phone Calls at 2/3 the Speed of Light
Keywords: phone, telephone, speed
Organization: SAIC, Reston, VA
Distribution: alt
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 12:40:58 GMT

krajnatg@infonode.ingr.com (Tom G. Krajna) writes:

>While watching the traditional wintertime pigskin fest today, I noticed
>an AT&T commercial that showed three red sports cars and listed their
>speeds in miles-per-hour.  Next came a red phone (cute, eh?) and listed
>its speed: 440,000,000 mph (if I remember correctly).

>Doing the ol' 186,282 * 3600, though, I get more like 670,615,200.  So
>what gives?  Is AT&T using slow lines?  Is my math bad?  More importantly,
>will Sprint or MCI run ads touting a 50% speed increase over AT&T?

>I suppose they could be trying to account for some switching time...but
>assuming a typical one or two second delay between end-of-dialing and
>beginning-of-ringing causes calling speed to drop way down (to only a few
>million miles-per-hour).

>Oh, I guess we need an urban legend-based explanation.  How about this
>one: super-sophisticated voice-recognition software monitors all phone
>calls and provides a report of every questionable conversation to a
>super-secret government agency, but causes a slight-but-measurable
>reduction in phone call transmission speeds.

When I took a data communications class, they said that the speed of
a signal through most media is roughly 2/3 c.  Remember, the
speed of light is usually advertised as speed in a vacuum, and 
communications signals don't operate in anything like a vacuum. 

Except Usenet signals, of course.

Xref: sparky alt.folklore.urban:33091 rec.sport.baseball:37343
From: popec@unkaphaed.gbdata.com (William C. Barwell)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban,rec.sport.baseball
Subject: Re: Babe Ruth Candy Bar
Date: Sun, 10 Jan 93 03:08:30 GMT
Organization: Unka Phaed's UUCP Thingy, Houston, TX

stame@emunix.emich.edu (Stewart Tame) writes:

> In article <C0IMup.3vL@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu> cscdc@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu (Dan Carpenter)
> >
> >Well, Jerome Holtzman won this *one*.  The Babe Ruth candy bar *is*
> >named after Babe Ruth.
> >
> >Sorry to burst your bubble.
> >
> 
> Now wait a minute.  I'm sure I've read in a couple of different places that
> the bar was named for someone else, some president's daughter Ruth or
> something like that.  I've got my sources at home but it'll take be a bit
> to track down specific titles.  Does anyone have a source at hand to
> quote from?
> 
> 		-- Stewart "time to hit the books . . . if only I cared
> 				about my schoolwork even half this
> 					much . . . " Tame
> 
> ****************************************************************************
>  I understand it's obligatory to mention Kibo somewhere in one's postings.
> ****************************************************************************
> 		Email:  stame@emunix.emich.edu
> ****************************************************************************
> Disclaimer:  Not only do my opinions represent those of Eastern Michigan
> University, but also those of Dan Quayle, Richard Nixon, Frank Zappa,
> Pee-wee Herman, Bart Simpson, Tipper Gore, Murphy Brown, Maggie Thatcher,
> and the Easter Bunny.


Somebody write the candybar company fer christ's sake.  Do they have an 
Internet Address?

--
popec@unkaphaed.gbdata.com (William C. Barwell)
Unka Phaed's UUCP Thingy, Houston, TX, (713) 481-3763
1200/2400/9600/14400 v.32bis/v.42bis
From: rotheroe@convex.com (Dave Rotheroe)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: Bugger it
Date: 6 Jan 93 22:30:11 GMT
Organization: Engineering, CONVEX Computer Corp., Richardson, Tx., USA
X-Disclaimer: This message was written by a user at CONVEX Computer
              Corp. The opinions expressed are those of the user and
              not necessarily those of CONVEX.

>[Hi Roger.] Also, the US and British Govts record all transatlantic telephone 
>conversations for reasons I can only speculate on.   

I was wondering how the national debt got so high.  It's all those tape recorders
and the tons of tape to go on them (and the personal to record (and then listen),
and the buildings to store all this stuff in and.....)

==================================================================8--<
Dave Rotheroe                rotheroe@convex.com              DoD#0045
CONVEX Computer Corporation, Richardson, TX 75083-3851, (214) 497-4512
Death is a reward for being responsible.
A day without sunshine is like...   night
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: reid@tsd.arlut.utexas.edu (Robert Reid)
Subject: Re: A twist on the "Eskimos have 100 words for snow" UL
Organization: Applied Research Labs, University of Texas at Austin
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 15:23:11 GMT

styri@balder.nta.no (YuNoHoo) writes:

>BibleTidbit: When the Lord divided the sea so Moses and his people
>             could cross, the sea was only 2 feet deep to begin with.
>             (It's a claim made by some researchers. What puzzles me
>              is that the Egyptian troops following after managed to
>              drown.)

Well you know that people used to be smaller.

>---
>YuNoHoo  "however, there was a company making shoes to walk on water"


Robert
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: alewis@gibbs.oit.unc.edu (Andrew Lewis)
Subject: Re: Amusing street names
Organization: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1993 11:05:21 GMT

In Wooster, Ohio (interesting name in itself, students at the College of
Wooster (COW -- an unacceptable acronym since it is a "slow-moving,
unintelligent bovine," according to administration, to the great delight
of students (but preferred to Wooster College (= WC, bad for rich kids
visiting Europe who want to show off their tee-shirts))), since alumni
have to deny that they went to college in Massachusetts), two of the major
streets are "Bever" (pronounced like the animal) and "Beall" (pronounced
like the big bronze thingy that tolls for thee).  According to student
legend, sometime in the distant past their predecessors played a prank,
moving the "a" from the animal to the musical instrument, and the names
have remained thus ever since (alas, it isn't true, of course).

Andrew Lewis
All-time (king-hell) champion of parenthetical remarks.
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: styri@hal.nta.no (YuNoHoo)
Subject: Re: Amusing Street Names
Reply-To: styri@nta.no
Organization: Bohemians and Globetrotters, Unlimited
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 93 12:36:34 GMT

In article <XHRaXB1w165w@codewks.nacjack.gen.nz>, system@codewks.nacjack.gen.nz (Wayne McDougall) writes:
|> derek@nezsdc.icl.co.nz (Derek Tearne) writes:
|> 
|> > ObUL: I wonder how many people post to AFU after having subscribed for less
|> >       than the suggested month?
|> 
|> ObAnswer: At least one.
|> 
|> ObParadox: You need to have subscribed for at least one month to read the FAQ
|> [which suggests you don't post until having subscribed for one month.]

Of course some systems do not have a measly 1-2 days expiration on AFU.
I keep AFU posts a fortnight (this _is_ AFU). Today that's almost 800
articles using about 1.6 MB disk.

|> ObUl: No one posts to any newsgroup without first reading that groups FAQ.
|> 
|> ObUlCorollary1: All newsgroups have a FAQ.
|> ObUlCorollary2: All new users know what a FAQ is.

ObUL: The second post made by most users contains the question: "What's a FAQ?"

---
YuNoHoo   "What's a fortnight?"
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: pt@geovision.gvc.com (Paul Tomblin)
Subject: Re: Man pays for college with pinball
Reply-To: pt@geovision.gvc.com
Organization: Not officially GeoVision Systems Inc., Ottawa, Ontario
Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1993 23:47:40 GMT

kutcha@eos.acm.rpi.edu (Phillip Rzewski) writes:

>FOAF was in college when pinball cost $0.10 to play. The game he played gave
>away free games every so often. It also turns out that the place where he
>played had the following policy: if, when they closed, you had credits
>built up on a pinball machine, they would give you a dime per credit (since
>they had to kick you off).

Pinball machines of this era (ie. mechanical scoreboards) almost univerally
maxed out at 15 free games (if I remember correctly - could be 10).  I find
it hard to believe this guy could live off of $1.50 a day.  Even if the
machines went up to 100 free games, that's only $10/day.  And I find it hard
to believe that the ``place'' would pay off that much more than a few times
without changing the policy.

Paul "Sometimes a reality check doesn't hurt" Tomblin

-- 
Paul Tomblin, pt@compass.gvc.com (Not an official spokesman, blah, blah...)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Engineers aren't as smart as they like to be told they are." - told to me
 by Heather Killam the co-op.  (It sounded funnier after a lot of beer!)