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Things you've always wondered about but couldn't be bothered to find out


Mr Romanov Saviour of HMFC

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4 hours ago, Vlad Magic said:

To further muddy the waters.

 

Deer is plural in the same was as fish is plural. In other words you don’t say deers.

 

Take the species of deer. Fallow, Red etc.

 

I have a couple of Muntjacs in the larder I shot the other day. I have a couple of Reds as well.

 

You pluralise the species even though Deer is plural.

 

Not with fish.

 

So confused.

 

 

I'd say "Muntjac" rather than "Muntjacs"

Great meat all the same, my favourite venison.

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23 hours ago, Vlad Magic said:

To further muddy the waters.

 

Deer is plural in the same was as fish is plural. In other words you don’t say deers.

 

Take the species of deer. Fallow, Red etc.

 

I have a couple of Muntjacs in the larder I shot the other day. I have a couple of Reds as well.

 

You pluralise the species even though Deer is plural.

 

Not with fish.

 

So confused.

 

 

 

And to muddy the waters even further ...

 

Why are garments worn below the waist referred to in the plural ... pants, trousers, jeans, slacks, etc ... whereas garments worn above the waist ... sweater, shirt, jersey, vest, etc ... are always referred to in the singular?

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45 minutes ago, Maple Leaf said:

 

And to muddy the waters even further ...

 

Why are garments worn below the waist referred to in the plural ... pants, trousers, jeans, slacks, etc ... whereas garments worn above the waist ... sweater, shirt, jersey, vest, etc ... are always referred to in the singular?

The first forms of leg coverings resembling trousers came in two parts, one for each leg, so you would put on a pair. Not so for upper garments.

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On 13/11/2020 at 14:39, Vlad Magic said:


This is why I’m confused.

 

No one has managed to convince me with a definitive answer.

I was told that if you have different species of fish, then you use 'fishes'. Whereas if the group is all the same species then it's 'fish'. 

 

A bucket of salmon would be a bucket of fish

 

A bucket of cod and haddock, would be a bucket of fishes

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A Boy Named Crow

In newspapers,  there's a weird inconsistency to how they write numbers.  Often within the same sentence different numbers will be given as a word or a numeral.  

For example,  I just read 'nine times of of 10". This is almost always the way it would be structured, but why isn't it "nine times out of ten,  or "9 times out of 10"?

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On 14/11/2020 at 21:30, A Boy Named Crow said:

In newspapers,  there's a weird inconsistency to how they write numbers.  Often within the same sentence different numbers will be given as a word or a numeral.  

For example,  I just read 'nine times of of 10". This is almost always the way it would be structured, but why isn't it "nine times out of ten,  or "9 times out of 10"?

 

 

I don't think it's just newspapers, I was told (presumably at school, but I can't remember) one to nine are written as words 10 and above are written as numbers.

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A Boy Named Crow
1 hour ago, Alex said:

 

 

I don't think it's just newspapers, I was told (presumably at school, but I can't remember) one to nine are written as words 10 and above are written as numbers.

I ran this by my brother yesterday (he's a TEFL teacher), he gave this answer too. 

 

Now I'm on the lookout too for instances that don't fit this rule. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I need a hobby!

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8 hours ago, Alex said:

 

 

I don't think it's just newspapers, I was told (presumably at school, but I can't remember) one to nine are written as words 10 and above are written as numbers.

I'm sure there is another rule with it as well as the one you've posted. I can't remember what it is though. 

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been here before
19 minutes ago, milky_26 said:

I'm sure there is another rule with it as well as the one you've posted. I can't remember what it is though. 

 

Isnt there something about the first time you use a number you spell it then each time after that you use the character. Or vice versa.

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7 hours ago, A Boy Named Crow said:

I ran this by my brother yesterday (he's a TEFL teacher), he gave this answer too. 

 

Now I'm on the lookout too for instances that don't fit this rule. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I need a hobby!


🤔

8 Out of 10 Cats - Wikipedia

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11 hours ago, Alex said:

 

 

I don't think it's just newspapers, I was told (presumably at school, but I can't remember) one to nine are written as words 10 and above are written as numbers.

 

Might make sense in some situations to avoid doubt. 0-9 are single numbers, 12 could be the single number twelve or 2 single numbers 1 and 2. Typing twelve takes away any doubt 

Edited by graygo
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6 hours ago, been here before said:

 

Isnt there something about the first time you use a number you spell it then each time after that you use the character. Or vice versa.

 

Are you thinking of acronyms? Below is what I was taught in my first job.

 

Bla bla bla bla Heart of Midlothian Football Club (HMFC). Bla bla bla HMFC.

 

 

 

 

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1 hour ago, Alex said:

 

Are you thinking of acronyms? Below is what I was taught in my first job.

 

Bla bla bla bla Heart of Midlothian Football Club (HMFC). Bla bla bla HMFC.

 

 

 

 

Sorry to be that guy buy HMFC is an initialism not an acronym 💩 

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2 hours ago, cheetah said:

Sorry to be that guy buy HMFC is an initialism not an acronym 💩 

 

Grrr, I was going to Google it as well. I bet you're not really sorry though.....

 

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On 14/11/2020 at 14:31, jamboj said:

I was told that if you have different species of fish, then you use 'fishes'. Whereas if the group is all the same species then it's 'fish'. 

 

A bucket of salmon would be a bucket of fish

 

A bucket of cod and haddock, would be a bucket of fishes

 

19 hours ago, Alex said:

 

 

I don't think it's just newspapers, I was told (presumably at school, but I can't remember) one to nine are written as words 10 and above are written as numbers.

 

3 hours ago, cheetah said:

Sorry to be that guy but HMFC is an initialism not an acronym 💩 

 

Good stuff.  Every day is a school day on JKB.  :clap:

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Just now, Boof said:

Why do some dogs' eyes reflect yellow and some red?

Just how you're looking at them?

The reflection of predetors eyes, foxes, cats, coyotes, wolves etc reflect with an silvery orange/yellow/red tinge, prey species, deer, rabbits, hares, sheep ect reflect with a silvery  green/blueish tinge.

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7 minutes ago, Dawnrazor said:

Just how you're looking at them?

The reflection of predetors eyes, foxes, cats, coyotes, wolves etc reflect with an silvery orange/yellow/red tinge, prey species, deer, rabbits, hares, sheep ect reflect with a silvery  green/blueish tinge.

 

I'll check next time I'm out with our 2 lurchers. Only 'prey' I'd see around here is sheep (rabbits too fast-moving!) - I'd say they look just the same yellow as the dug but would need to see them side by side...which ain't gonna happen!

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1 minute ago, Boof said:

 

I'll check next time I'm out with our 2 lurchers. Only 'prey' I'd see around here is sheep (rabbits too fast-moving!) - I'd say they look just the same yellow as the dug but would need to see them side by side...which ain't gonna happen!

It can be quite subtle and often depends of the angle the light hits the eye, I've seen hundreds of things in the lamp at night, we do deer counts on forestry re-stock and new plant areas, we use thermals now but used to use lamps, you can pretty much tell at a glance with practice.

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Why some channels on Sky ar effected by weather more than others?

I really like the Smithsonian Channel but if a cloud comes over our house it starts cutting out, but other channels don't get effected????

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On 16/11/2020 at 23:37, Dawnrazor said:

It can be quite subtle and often depends of the angle the light hits the eye, I've seen hundreds of things in the lamp at night, we do deer counts on forestry re-stock and new plant areas, we use thermals now but used to use lamps, you can pretty much tell at a glance with practice.

 

Our he dog has one eye that is brown and blue. Just wondered if there was a difference in the pigmentation that caused the red reflection - like those old flash photos before camera technology improved. The bitch has two dark brown eyes and her eyes reflect that yellowy-green you'd expect.

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6 minutes ago, Boof said:

 

Our he dog has one eye that is brown and blue. Just wondered if there was a difference in the pigmentation that caused the red reflection - like those old flash photos before camera technology improved. The bitch has two dark brown eyes and her eyes reflect that yellowy-green you'd expect.

Maybe it's your eyes that's the problem😆😆

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48 minutes ago, Dawnrazor said:

Maybe it's your eyes that's the problem😆😆

 

I am short-sighted as **** but no probs with colours :lol: 

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14 hours ago, Dawnrazor said:

Why some channels on Sky ar effected by weather more than others?

I really like the Smithsonian Channel but if a cloud comes over our house it starts cutting out, but other channels don't get effected????

 

Each channel will be broadcast from a different transponder meaning that 10% interference from weather may not impact the majority of channels but if the smithsonian channel is only just getting a strong enough signal to display in perfect conditions then that's why that'll cut off but others that are going from 100% down to 90% will still be fine.

 

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John Gentleman
On 17/11/2020 at 09:49, Boof said:

Why do some dogs' eyes reflect yellow and some red?

It depends on what sort of light wave is beamed at them (torch, glowlamp, other).

The scientific answer is that they all have a 'night vision' coating at the back of their retinas, which aided in hunting in the dark. Domestic dogs have simply inherited it from their wolfy ancestors. 

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John Gentleman

When you order something online, why is that vendors always refer to it as a 'shipment' when ships are rarely, if ever, involved?

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6 minutes ago, John Gentleman said:

When you order something online, why is that vendors always refer to it as a 'shipment' when ships are rarely, if ever, involved?

 

My go-to online etymological dictionary says that the word was first seen in the expanded sense (railroad etc) in the US in 1857. My take is that by then the verb "ship" was extremely common, and it was the relationship between shipment and the verb ship, rather than the noun ship, that meant the former made the leap. It is interesting though - I'd never thought of it before, JG.

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A Boy Named Crow
12 minutes ago, John Gentleman said:

It depends on what sort of light wave is beamed at them (torch, glowlamp, other).

The scientific answer is that they all have a 'night vision' coating at the back of their retinas, which aided in hunting in the dark. Domestic dogs have simply inherited it from their wolfy ancestors. 

So when I sneak into the kitchen in the middle of the night, the dug is watching me, even if I leave the light off?

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30 minutes ago, A Boy Named Crow said:

So when I sneak into the kitchen in the middle of the night, the dug is watching me, even if I leave the light off?

The trick is to go in naked*, covered in mud. They can't see you then, I saw it in some film.

 

*Naked is optional.

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On 19/11/2020 at 12:27, A Boy Named Crow said:

So when I sneak into the kitchen in the middle of the night, the dug is watching me, even if I leave the light off?

 

I read recently that cats only need a sixth of the light we need to see. Don't know about dogs.

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21 hours ago, Greedy Jambo said:

From looking at it, what's the difference between mist and fog. 

 

When the fog goes away it isnae mist by anybody. :wink:

 

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22 hours ago, Greedy Jambo said:

From looking at it, what's the difference between mist and fog. 

I don't have the foggiest, it's a total mistery.

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On 21/11/2020 at 01:43, Greedy Jambo said:

From looking at it, what's the difference between mist and fog. 

 

Both are basically the same (water droplets in the air) Fog means visibility is less than 1km, Mist is more than 1km

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1 hour ago, Ribble said:

 

Both are basically the same (water droplets in the air) Fog means visibility is less than 1km, Mist is more than 1km

According to the Met Office that's the classification for aviation purposes, for general weather forecasts it's fog if visibility is less than 180m.

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Riddley Walker
4 hours ago, Greedy Jambo said:

What happens after you die? 

 

Nothing, you just decompose beneath the ground or are burned to ashes. That's the end of ya.

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11 minutes ago, Riddley Walker said:

 

Nothing, you just decompose beneath the ground or are burned to ashes. That's the end of ya.

And in two generations you'll be pretty much forgotten apparently, sad really.

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Riddley Walker
4 minutes ago, Dawnrazor said:

And in two generations you'll be pretty much forgotten apparently, sad really.

 

Yeah it's best not to think about it tbh.

 

Have a great Monday, everybody.

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On 21/11/2020 at 01:43, Greedy Jambo said:

From looking at it, what's the difference between mist and fog. 

 

Fog and mist differ by how far you can see through them. Fog is when you can see less than 1,000 meters away, and if you can see further than 1,000 metres, we call it mist.

 

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/learn-about/weather/types-of-weather/fog/difference-mist-and-fog

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2 hours ago, Dawnrazor said:

And in two generations you'll be pretty much forgotten apparently, sad really.

 

That's certainly been the case in the past but now we have photos and videos available it might last a bit longer.

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2 hours ago, Dawnrazor said:

And in two generations you'll be pretty much forgotten apparently, sad really.

When I die, I plan to have it in my will that I am to be stuffed (behave) and positioned on the couch in front of the TV and to be included in things that are handed down

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2 hours ago, milky_26 said:

When I die, I plan to have it in my will that I am to be stuffed (behave) and positioned on the couch in front of the TV and to be included in things that are handed down

One of your more enterprising family members would maybe rent you out to lonely people.  For your sake, hopefully not too lonely. 

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3 hours ago, milky_26 said:

When I die, I plan to have it in my will that I am to be stuffed (behave) and positioned on the couch in front of the TV and to be included in things that are handed down

 

Make sure you get a good taxidermist.

 

84158451.jpg

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Why is it the case now that when you get an Indian/Chinese delivered it comes in a plastic tupperware container rather than the old silver foil things. It made it really easy to heat up next again day (although you can't beat a cold Indian for breakfast on a Sunday morning).

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A Boy Named Crow
4 hours ago, JWL said:

Why is it the case now that when you get an Indian/Chinese delivered it comes in a plastic tupperware container rather than the old silver foil things. It made it really easy to heat up next again day (although you can't beat a cold Indian for breakfast on a Sunday morning).

I suppose it depends how you get it up.  Shoving one of those foil boxes in the microwave wouldn't end well. 

 

My guess though is the plastic boxes are cheaper. 

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