Things you always wanted to know the answer to [Vol. 3]

[RobinOakapple]

walm said:

Feirny said:

So it wouldn't matter if it was a bucket or a paddling pool, the answer would remain the same?

As long as the sides were vertical.
And as long as the paddling pool wasn't so enormous that it was sunny and dry at one end but raining cats and dogs at the other.

Well, at least that would give you an average of the area in question.

[walm]

RobinOakapple said:

walm said:

Feirny said:

So it wouldn't matter if it was a bucket or a paddling pool, the answer would remain the same?

As long as the sides were vertical.
And as long as the paddling pool wasn't so enormous that it was sunny and dry at one end but raining cats and dogs at the other.

Well, at least that would give you an average of the area in question.

Sure but the answer from the bucket would be different to the answer from the (enormous) paddling pool, unless the bucket was right in the middle and the weather happened to be changing in a linear fashion across the length of the pool.

I may be overthinking this.

[Feirny]

walm said:

RobinOakapple said:

walm said:

Feirny said:

So it wouldn't matter if it was a bucket or a paddling pool, the answer would remain the same?

As long as the sides were vertical.
And as long as the paddling pool wasn't so enormous that it was sunny and dry at one end but raining cats and dogs at the other.

Well, at least that would give you an average of the area in question.

Sure but the answer from the bucket would be different to the answer from the (enormous) paddling pool, unless the bucket was right in the middle and the weather happened to be changing in a linear fashion across the length of the pool.

I may be overthinking this.

You're just confusing a simple man even more

[walm]

Feirny said:

So it wouldn't matter if it was a bucket or a paddling pool, the answer would remain the same?

Yes.

(Ignore my comments above!)

[StevieBee]

Feirny said:

When people say there has been so many MM of rain fall, how is that measure exactly?
Is it over a metre squared, or what?

They use a 'Standard Rain Guage' - basically a container 20 cm in diameter. They take readings from various sites to establish a rough average over a given area. It's a vague endeavour at the best of times. In very windy conditions, it may be chucking it down but little is captured in the devices.

I believe that they are starting to use sensitive rain pads to calculate a more accurate measure, the pad effectively counting the drops of rain that hit it.

[fomb]

Why do American trucks have the driver sat behind the engine, but Euro trucks have the driver on top?

[RobinOakapple]

fomb said:

Why do American trucks have the driver sat behind the engine, but Euro trucks have the driver on top?

Some American trucks are 'cab-over'. But there's plenty of space in America, turning circles etc are not much of an issue.

[MissChief]

fomb said:

Why do American trucks have the driver sat behind the engine, but Euro trucks have the driver on top?

Trucks on britains roads also have a maximum length. It makes sense commercially to have that length with a higher percentage of trailer and cargo so the 'cab over' trucks have become far more common.

[SpeckledJim]

MissChief said:

fomb said:

Why do American trucks have the driver sat behind the engine, but Euro trucks have the driver on top?

Trucks on britains roads also have a maximum length. It makes sense commercially to have that length with a higher percentage of trailer and cargo so the 'cab over' trucks have become far more common.

The engineering required in a cab-over truck to have the whole cab tip to allow access to the engine bay is obviously worth it in length-limited europe, but not worth it in the states, where accessing the engine bay is a doddle as a result.

[Harry H]

Why doesn't our Moon have a unique name and if it does why don't we use it. We don't call the "Sun" just "Star" ?

[TheEnd]

There were a few "bullnose" trucks around in the UK, Scania made the T cab models, and these were often used as the flagship, and tended to be for heavy haulage.

The reason being is they would have to have a shorter trailer, but they'd be hitting the weight limit, not the length limit.

For example, if you are hauling a tank, the weight limit will be the main thing you are up against.
If you've got a wagon full of cotton balls, to maximise the amount carried (since you're unlikely to get near the weight limit), you'd have as long and as tall a trailer as possible.

The Coca Cola truck is a T series Scania for example.

[Swanny87]

Are lorry cabs and trailers MOTed as one 'unit' or separately?

[RizzoTheRat]

Harry H said:

Why doesn't our Moon have a unique name and if it does why don't we use it. We don't call the "Sun" just "Star" ?

Presumably it was the first one we knew about, so when we found others we used the same name. In which case the second part of your question becomes more pertinent. Why aren't other stars called suns?

[TheEnd]

I'm pretty sure the trailers have their own MOTs (or equivalent test) as they swap between tractor units all the time.

[AstonZagato]

RizzoTheRat said:

Harry H said:

Why doesn't our Moon have a unique name and if it does why don't we use it. We don't call the "Sun" just "Star" ?

Presumably it was the first one we knew about, so when we found others we used the same name. In which case the second part of your question becomes more pertinent. Why aren't other stars called suns?

We could see the stars with the naked eye, so they already had a name. When stars were named, we didn't yet understand that stars were suns and the Sun was a star. That came later.

[walm]

AstonZagato said:

We could see the stars with the naked eye, so they already had a name. When stars were named, we didn't yet understand that stars were suns and the Sun was a star. That came later.

I might be a bit rusty but I thought stars were only suns if they had planets orbiting them?
Thus all suns are by definition stars but not all stars are necessarily suns.

[AstonZagato]

Correct. Suns are at the centre of planetary systems. (IANA Astronomer).

[Johnspex]

Three totally un-associated questions-
1) I got a tickle in my nose in the middle of the night. I sneezed maybe 7 or 8 times. Where does that stuff come from? If I don't need it why don't I sneeze all the time? If I need it where did it come from?

2) Freight trains often go quite slowly (which is significant as it takes a long time between stops) what does the driver do when he needs a pee?

3) How many cars would I have to plip with my key fob before I found one apart, from mine, which it would open? It's an 02 BMW E46 if that makes any difference, would the car that responds to my plip be a BMW? I know the chip in the key would make it impossible to start. I'm not a car thief, just wondering.

[steveo3002]

2 bet he has a pee bottle , check out your nearest layby or truck park for some examples

[Jonboy_t]

On the car key question, something like that came up on the Simon Mayo show a few weeks ago. IIRC, something like 1 in every 1000 are on the same frequency, so likelihood of finding one that opens yours is very slim.