HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: thf2@ellis.uchicago.edu (Ted Frank)
Subject: Re: Anglican vs C of E
Reply-To: thf2@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago Computing Organizations
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1992 22:06:34 GMT

In article <2844@israel.nysernet.org> warren@nysernet.org writes:
>In <1ds8qnINNg1j@fido.asd.sgi.com> livesey@solntze.wpd.sgi.com (Jon Livesey) writes:
>
>>And how many legs does a donkey have, if you call the tail
>>a leg?
>
>Three, just like it always did

Didn't Monty Python produce a three-sided donkey?

Ted "and did the donkey suffer from DIV?" Frank
-- 
ted frank                     | thf2@ellis.uchicago.edu 
standard disclaimers          | void where prohibited
the university of chicago law school, chicago, illinois 60637
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson)
Subject: Re: Aluminum cookware:  Recipe for disaster?
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Company, Corvallis, Oregon USA
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 1992 10:09:37 GMT

rthomas@nyx.cs.du.edu (Richard Thomas) writes:
: 
: As explained by a previous poster, people suffering from Alzheimer's
: disease have been found to have a higher than average concentration
: of aluminium in their brains. Whether the body is capable of
: assimilating aluminium  in the state it arrives from saucepans is
: inclear however. But two things are. 
: 1)There appears to be a link between aluminium and Altzheimer's

Only in regards to concentration in the brain.

: 2)You ingest rather large quantities of aluminium if you cook
:   in aluminium pots and pans.

Funny, I have been using the same pan for over 10 years. It does not
seem to be any lighter now than when I bought it. For that matter,
neither am I.

: >Yeah, cast iron - that rust is really good for you.  
: I dont think I've ever heard that rust is particularly bad for you.
: Besides, you're probably thinking of Stainless steel, which of
: course doesnt rust.

No, but it oxidizes. The oxide just happens to protect the stainless
from further oxidation. Rust is just hydrated iron oxide.

Bill
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: wvhorn@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (William VanHorne)
Subject: Re: of human or divine genius  re: AIDS
Keywords: cosmospheres,illuminati,aliens 
Organization: The Ohio State University
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1992 14:47:48 GMT

In article <9809@blue.cis.pitt.edu.UUCP> pmmst8+@pitt.edu (Paul M Mweene) writes:
>	This is really a circus. What happened between the time between the
>publishimg of the magazine and the time a investgative panel was allowed to
>reach the vials containing the vaccine? The CIA, Wister and the FBI would
>have been at work eliminating all the evidence and even installing that which
>exculpate them from all blame.

You will find all your answers in "The True Believer" by Eric Hoffer. 
Any public library.

Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson)
Subject: Re: Car Crime
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Company, Corvallis, Oregon USA
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 1992 10:38:14 GMT

rxh6@po.CWRU.Edu (Randall Holt) writes:
:  
: I don't know about confirming the existence of the rumor, but I can tell 
: you why this unlocking-device is not practical for nefarious purposes. 
: I have a similar device which (as the tech specs reveal) is based on a 
: specific sequence of 6 1-byte TTL pulses transmitted at some RF frequency 
: that is picked up by the reciever in the locking mechanism. That comes to 
: 256 to the 6th power possible combinations, or more than 2.81e14 combinations. 

All that is moot - when a person records the signal - it doesn't matter how 
many possible combinations there are. Nor do they hae to worry about the
possible variations in timing between bytes. All they then need is the right
frequency - that should be easy to obtain - the choices are limited.

: If you were transmitting in the RF range, at maybe 50 miliion bits per
: second, then you could run through maybe 1 million combinations per second,
: and the maximum time to check all combinations would be 2e8 seconds or a
: little more than 6 1/2 years. And then you still have to get the Club off
: the steering wheel, and hot-wire the ignition.

See above. Of course, it would take about 20 seconds to cut the steering
wheel - defeating the club. The ignition would take about a minute to get
past - no hot wiring needed (unless your ignition switch has very good
anti-yank armor).

: Add to this an additional security measure which exists in the unit on my 
: car, a 100 ms delay after a _wrong number_ has been transmitted at the 
: correct frequency. Now the delay time is up to greater than 90,000 years. 
:  
: By which time the natural diffusion of glass in the windows would have 
: rendered the excercise moot.
:  
: Of course, you could get lucky and find a car with the combination 0 0 0 0 0 1.

See above.

Bill
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: sasbmt@jjoyce.unx.sas.com (Bruce Tindall)
Subject: Re: Texas Politics
Originator: sasbmt@jjoyce.unx.sas.com
Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1992 23:37:19 GMT
Organization: SAS Institute Inc.


In article <1992Nov14.153336.27936@ulysses.att.com>, smb@ulysses.att.com (Steven Bellovin) writes:
>It reminds me of something that happened in North Carolina a number of
>years ago, when liquor by the drink was illegal there.  

Another attempted trick in the North Carolina legislature:  One member
introduce a bill whose title was something like "AN ACT TO PROHIBIT
THE SALE OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES EXCEPT UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES."
In fact, the bill would have *loosened* the restrictions on the sale
of booze, but he wrote the title to make it sound like a tightening
of the law instead.  Somebody read the text, though, before it 
came to a vote.  Source:  _North Carolina Law Review_, early 1978,
in a (very amusing, in fact) article on germaneness of bill titles.

Bruce "An Act To Require Precise Citations Of Sources" Tindall
-- 
Bruce Tindall, Core Testing Mgr., SAS Institute Inc., Cary, N.C. 27513
From: gleason@mwk.uucp
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: Origin of Calvin & Hobbes 
Date: 20 Nov 92 08:31:07 CST
Distribution: usa
Organization: M. W. Kellogg, Houston TX

In article <1992Nov17.142419.29882@ms.uky.edu>, fehr@ms.uky.edu (Jeff Davis) writes:
> Ralph Yozzo writes:
>>Does anyone know if Calvin & Hobbes was named after the historical
>>figures "John Calvin" and "Thomas Hobbes"?
>>
> Since Calvin is solitary, nasty, brutish, and short is there really a 
> need to ask?
> -- 
> Jeff Davis <davis@keats.ca.uky.edu> My bad.     

  Wasn't it "nasty, British, and short" ?  ;-)

Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: PAPAI@kcgl1.eng.ohio-state.edu (Jonathan Papai)
Subject: Re: a first year grad student freaks out.
Organization: The Ohio State University
 <1e4f0fINN9k5@moe.ksu.ksu.edu>
Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1992 16:42:13 GMT

From: diverson@phys.ksu.edu (David Iverson)

>There is also the related case of the Chinese grad. student at Iowa State
>who, after being passed over for some prestigious award, shot and killed
>five people including at least one Secretary, The department Chair (i'm
>positive) and possibly his lead advisor.

	That would be the University of Iowa, not Iowa State.  October
or probably November 1991.

-Jon
From: twcaps@tennyson.lbl.gov (Terry Chan)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: When does FAQ get posted?
Date: 22 Nov 1992 21:59:11 GMT
Organization: Department of Redundancy Department
Reply-To: TWChan@lbl.gov (Terry Chan)
NNTP-Posting-Host: 128.3.12.117

leecr@microsoft.com (Lee Crocker) writes:

  [asks for help on FAQ list location]

So, to help 'em out, pynq@midway.uchicago.edu writes:
  
  +Look in:
  +
  +	deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu:/misc/fun/urban.legends
  +
  +As far as I know, a current copy can always be found there.
  +As well as other interesting things, such as a GIF of Craig.

Is true.  I should hasten to mention that while deja-vu is still
good, Jason has mentioned that ftp access should be directed to
"cathouse.aiss.uiuc.edu" in the same directory.  I just tried
deja-vu and it's still good though.

Terry "What did the 'T' in ftp stand for again?" Chan
--
Energy and Environment Division   | Internet:  TWChan@lbl.gov
Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory      | 
Berkeley, California  USA  94720  | Carpe Per Diem
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: fehr@ms.uky.edu (Jeff Davis)
Subject: Boldly Not Going Wherever the Heck It Was
Date: Mon, 23 Nov 1992 18:04:26 GMT
Organization: Austerlitz, Gershovitz, and Carmichael

Anent the sidewalk v. path debate:

From my window in a beautiful (if you love concrete slab)
new building on campus, for the last two years one could espy
the twin trails through the tallgrass which people took from
the parking lot to the building, since when the building
was built no money was left over for sidewalks. Now, I guess,
in the first flush of the Clinton recovery (just a whimsical
phrase, please) moneys have been found and the first etchings
of the backhoe have been made to limn the lines our future
sidewalks will take. And wondrously whimsical they are.
In both cases, officials have decided on alternate routes,
both approximately 4 feet to the side of the ones our
generations of feet have indicated are the optimum. In
one case, a tree must be felled to accommodate the new design.
In both cases, the paths are longer and are less felicitous
on the eye. Given the drainage problems in the field through
which they pass, I wouldn't bet against them also being
eventually muddier.  

Ask me sometime about our new library which is being built
above a sink hole. Worth its weight in books, it will be.

-- 
Jeff Davis <davis@keats.ca.uky.edu> 
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson)
Subject: Re: Child Molestors - internationally organized?
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Company, Corvallis, Oregon USA
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1992 20:42:43 GMT

wisp@dcs.warwick.ac.uk (Wisp) writes:
: >
: >Until some real evidence, and not the hysterical ravings of some rather
: >unbalanced people, I think we will have to assume that they do not exist.
: >At least, not here in the US. I have never been able to get anyone in the
: >UK , or elsewhere in Europe, to provide me with anything more than claims
: >that such exist there.
: 
: Well, in the Uk there have been several cases/incidents that speak of 'gangs.'
: About 5-6 years ago, a large 'child pornography ring', called the Pedophile
: Information Exchange, if memory serves, was broken up and several people were
: prosecuted. Among the delights found was a handy list of customers, which
: caused the premature retirement of several senior civil servants, judges etc.
: All hearsay (or from my recollection of newspapers, which may be worse...):
: I'll try to find the legal refs over the next few days.

Thank you. I would appreciate it.

: There are also periodic scares about people (usually women) who show up on the
: doorsteps of families with young children in the deprived areas of big cities,
: claiming to be social workers. They get to examine the kid (usually <2 yrs
: old), then say it must be taken into care. No-one has actually lost a child
: this way, but several attempts at this sort of abduction have been reported in
: the Press... No prosecutions, either, so no more info available on this one.

There are some women, who would go to just about any lengths to obtain a
baby that they cannot have themselves. The rare cases, if they indeed occur,
are undoubtedly of this sort. I know the few babynapping cases here have 
been of that type.

: The latter case may well be a red herring, something out of all proportion to
: the events. The first one, though, the PIE case, will definitely be on record
: somewhere. Anyone in the UK with a legal database could help me out here:
: we haven't got one at Warwick...

No, I expect that the attempted baby-nappings are real, but very rare.

Bill
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban,sci.med
From: cmriggin@iastate.edu (Christin M Riggins)
Subject: Puff the Magic Dragon (was Calvin/Hobbes...) 
Organization: Iowa State University, Ames, IA
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1992 23:47:23 GMT

In article <amymw.721962605@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu> amymw@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu (Amy Wisotsky) writes:
>proberts@informix.com (Paul Roberts) writes:
>
>>Does anyone else out there think that "Puff the Magic Dragon" is a very
>>sad song, especially the lines "Dragons live forever, but not so little
>>boys"?
>
>This probably isn't the place to mention this at all, but as long as
>someone brought it up.....does anyone know the words to the Puff song?
>That was my favorite song as a little kid, and I never new all the
>words.  I've been looking for it on tape for years, but haven't been
>able to find it.  Any help would be appreciated.
>
>Please no flames about how this isn't a music group.
>
>							-Amy-
>							 :)
>--
>	#include ".sig"
>	#define AMY amymw@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu
>		:)

As I remember it...

Puff the magic dragon lived by the sea, 
and frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honalee.

Little Jackie Paper, loved that rascal Puff and brought him strings and
sealing wax and other fancy stuff.

Together they would travel, on a boat with billowed sail.
Jackie kept a lookout perched on Puffs gigantic tail.
Knoble kings and princes would bow when 'ere they came
and pirate ships would lower their flags when puff roared out his name

Repeat Chorus

Dragons last forever, but not so little boys.
Painted rings and Dragon wings make way for other toys.

One gray day it happened, Jackie Paper came no more, and Puff that mighty
dragon, he ceased his mighty roar.


Unfortunately, at this point I can't remember the rest of the words but I think
it was something along the lines of "Green scales fell like rain."  If you're
really interested in it, the song was recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary.  I'm 
not sure if you can find it on tape any more, but if you go to a music store
you might be able to find a Peter, Paul and Mary song book.

C. Marie Riggins
Iowa State University
cmriggin@iastate.edu



Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson)
Subject: Re: Soldiers breaking step across bridge
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Company, Corvallis, Oregon USA
Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1992 21:14:53 GMT

sgs@grebyn.com (Stephen G. Smith) writes:
: 
: The way I heard it, the bridges that collapsed were early to mid 19th
: century cast-iron bridges.  Engineers knew all about static strength
: calculation, but they weren't up on metal fatigue.  Most of these
: bridges fell down for one reason or the other.

In history, there is one bridge that was reputed to have collapsed
when soldiers were crossing on it. Add what was known about the vibration
of objects when subjected to repeticious impulse loads, and  you have
the birth of an UL.

Bill
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban,rec.nude
From: pace@usace.mil (Joe Pace)
Subject: Re: Driving without shoes
Organization: US Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 92 19:45:36 GMT

>This is a reason to keep your shoes (and other like-sized loose objects)
>away from the driver's side of the vehicle.  I recall a newspaper story
>long ago wherein a man took a corner too fast and rolled his truck down a
>hillside, nearly killing himself, when one of his pet turtles crawled
>directly under the brake pedal.  The story ran in one of those "weird news"
>columns, and so may be a UL --  anybody heard it?.

I knew someone in New Jersey who's pet turtle did the same sort of thing,
sending her car into a telephone pole.  She didn't want to crush the 
turtle with the pedal.

Joe

-- 
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Joe Pace                                              UNIX/Networking Analyst
US Army Corps of Engineers                                     pace@usace.mil
Sacramento District                                     JPPACE@UCDAVIS.BITNET
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: srheault@alfred.carleton.ca (Steven Rheault Kihara)
Subject: Re: Snuff film UL broken?
Organization: Carleton University
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1992 22:27:17 GMT

In <mjenkins.721944270@cunews> mjenkins@alfred.carleton.ca (Michael Jenkinson) writes:

>A local DJ here in Ottawa was arrested for peddling obscene videos out
>of his house. 

>According to one report I read, police siezed a number of tapes,
>"including at least one snuff film."

>Hmmm....

The one report was Frank magazine, a gossip rag not known for its
veracity.
This hardly qualifies as news I'm afraid.

Steve Rheault Kihara
A man who knows a little about tapdancing, but isn't telling the rumor-mongers.
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: michaet@hubcap.clemson.edu (michael dale townsend)
Subject: Re: Soldiers breaking wind (Was Re: Soldiers breaking step across bridge)
Organization: Clemson University
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1992 12:46:58 GMT

billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson) writes:
>The trouble with marching in step is that it would NOT create the
>oscillations. It would create an impulse load, but not induce oscillations.
>Now, if the step was rippled - for example, the first line steps, then the
>second line .... then the last line - that could set up an oscillation that
>would build up.
>Bill

You've probably never seen our band march, then.   :->|-  (diode
smiley!)

Anyway, however you explain it, the bridge was shaking.
Michael Townsend
From: dhartung@chinet.chi.il.us (Dan Hartung)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: Tomorrow's Conspiracy Theory, brought to you today.
Date: 16 Nov 92 23:15:07 GMT
Organization: Chinet - Public Access UNIX

lasner@watsun.cc.columbia.edu (Charles Lasner) writes:
>dpm1960@tm0006.lerc.nasa.gov (snopes) writes:
>>>has no "clear mandate" from the people, most of whom voted against him.
           ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>>
>>When an incumbent president receives less than 40% of the popular vote, I'd
>>say that's a pretty clear mandate that the people sure as hell don't want the
                      ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>>guy, or anybody like him, in office again.
>>
>> - snopes
>
>I didn't say that Bush got a clear mandate either, so that's irrelevant.
                              ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>
>If anything, the high vote for Perot is a clear mandate that many people
                                           ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>didn't want either of them, since normally third-party candidates get
>only incidental vote percentages.

Let's stop misusing "clear mandate"!  I do agree with you that Perot's
supporters made a strong point in this election, but frankly, only the
winner can have a mandate, since only he has the office and thus the
power to do anything with it.

I would say that Clinton has a "mandate" (no qualifier) to "change" in
the sense at the very least of "pay more attention to us!"  He doesn't
have a firm plan that the people voted him in to execute; he is a 
self-professed "New Democrat" and most peopel don't really understand
what that is yet.  I hope, as a supporter, that he will be highly
effective in implementing the original ideas he has talked about for
years.  If not, then the voters will indeed choose someone else in '96.

Not to get into a political discussion.  I just want to nail down this
"mandate" business.

>I would like some other election figures, if possible:
>
>There was a record turnout of voters.  What is the percentage of voters
>who previously elected Bush who stuck with him?  In other words, if you
>strip out all voters who for whatever reason failed to vote 4 years ago, 
>count them this time around (possibly adjusting for Perot either way, I'm
>not sure how to apply that factor), what is the percentage that "switched
>sides" in this election?

As I recall, approximately 33% of those who voted for Bush in '88 said
they would "absolutely not" vote for him this time around.  He picked up
support in other areas, but not enough to maked the difference.
-- 
"I wouldn't want to ruin such a        | Dan Hartung               |  Ask me
lovely recession...er, reception."     | dhartung@chinet.chi.il.us |  about
    -- George Bush                     | Birch Grove Software      | Rotaract!
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban,rec.nude
From: ldoering@engin.umich.edu (Laurence Doering)
Subject: Re: Driving without shoes
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 92 15:30:06 EST
Organization: University of Michigan Engineering, Ann Arbor

In article <cording.722356418@sorokin> cording@sorokin.anu.edu.au (Dean Cording) writes:
>The reason for wearing shoes when driving is that there is a nerve running
>along the bottom of your foot.  This nerve protects your foot from stepping
>on dangerous things by causing a reflex action to lift your foot up.
>When driving this reflex action can occur when you stamp your foot of the
>brakes in an emergency - as a result you in-voluntarily lift you foot
>off the brake at the time you would least want to.

Hmm.  Interesting rationale.  So how does this nerve distinguish between
the pressure of a bare foot on the brake pedal and the pressure of a bare
foot on the inside sole of your shoe?  (Or the inside of your sock,
or whatever?)

>Driving without shoes is dangerous and the laws exist to protect you as well
>as all other road users you may have the misfortune to run into.

I'd think if it really was true that an anti-foot damage reflex tended to
make people lift their foot off the brake when they needed it most, foot
brakes would be outlawed in favor of hand brakes.

Larry "Me, I just switch off the ignition and leave the car in gear" Doering
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
From: dhartung@chinet.chi.il.us (Dan Hartung)
Subject: Re: Soldiers breaking step across bridge
Organization: Chinet - Public Access UNIX
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 1992 04:58:42 GMT

denebeim@brtph254.bnr.ca (Jay Denebeim P025) writes:
>arielle@NeoSoft.com (Stephanie da Silva) writes:
>>And the second poster is right -- it had a lot to do with building code
>>violations and stuff, so that the walkways weren't strong enough to hold
>>the weight of the people who were unfortunate enough to be on it at the time.
>
>Close, it was Kansas City.  My cousin's ex-pseudo-spouse got rich out
>of it. She was at the 'tea dance' (not christmas, it was in the fall)
>with two of her friends.  She went to the bar to buy the next round of
>drinks and her two friends got smashed.
>
>By the way, this is not the only time a Marriot structure that was
>pushing the limits of current structural design has fallen down.  (it
>was up to code, it just pushed the limit of the state of the art.)
>There was a ramp-like structure in one in Texas, I believe, which fell
>down, didn't kill anyone though.

I don't know if it met code.  Basically it was an untested design.
The city engineers had approved a version of the supports where a
single vertical pole supported both the 2nd floor and 3rd floor bridges,
with properly welded/etc. flanges at the appropriate points.  During
construction, though, it was changed to TWO vertical poles, one of
which actually HUNG FROM the upper balcony.  This design somehow was
never properly inspected or approved.  Consequently there was 
weight placed on the connection at the upper span that was never
intended.


-- 
"I wouldn't want to ruin such a        | Dan Hartung               |  Ask me
lovely recession...er, reception."     | dhartung@chinet.chi.il.us |  about
    -- George Bush                     | Birch Grove Software      | Rotaract!