Things you always wanted to know the answer to [Vol. 4]

[Clockwork Cupcake]

Johnspex said:

But this being,combining your body and Einstein's brain, would not be you at all. It would be Einstein. You wouldn't exist at all.

Metaphysically, yes, since the brain is the seat of personality - what makes you "you".

However, as has already been pointed out, legally (from the point of view of DNA, fingerprints, etc.) it could be that Einstein could adopt your identity since the current legal framework would not be able to distinguish otherwise.

Obviously if such a medical procedure were to become possible, then the law would have to change.

[Krikkit]

Clockwork Cupcake said:

glazbagun said:

It's probably an "it depends" amswer, but what takes more energy- a bluetooth radio signal to headphones, or an amplified signal to a pair of physically connected speakers.

One is a data stream and the other is an electrical signal. They're not really comparable.

It's like asking if a bicycle or a car takes more energy - it's not really defined what you mean.

Not sure what you mean there clockwork... A Bluetooth signal is transmitted as a series of radio pulses which needs energy. Each photon transmitted is a very very very very tiny fraction of a joule, and they pulse out from the transmitter in a sphere.

Practically, both are a microscopic amount of energy, but Bluetooth will be much less efficient.

[Clockwork Cupcake]

Krikkit said:

Not sure what you mean there clockwork... A Bluetooth signal is transmitted as a series of radio pulses which needs energy. Each photon transmitted is a very very very very tiny fraction of a joule, and they pulse out from the transmitter in a sphere.

Practically, both are a microscopic amount of energy, but Bluetooth will be much less efficient.

Perhaps. But wired speakers are an amplified analogue (electrical) signal and Bluetooth is a wireless (radiowave) digital data stream. I was just pointing out that it's not really comparing like with like.

Besides, as others have stated, it's a non-trivial question that is poorly defined and scoped.

It's one of those "how long is a piece of string?" questions.

Edited by Clockwork Cupcake on Thursday 7th June 20:02

[Roofless Toothless]

Clockwork Cupcake said:

227bhp said:

For a factual thread we aren't doing very well are we.

And that's a fact.

Facts are stupid things.

[Roofless Toothless]

Why are batteries the same sizes all over the world?

Is there some sort of governing body stipulating the sizes of AA or AAA batteries? There doesn't seem to be such standardisation of other electronic goods. Plugs are different in other countries, light bulbs, voltages vary. But why is it that batteries have remained the same sizes for year upon year, and are the same wherever you go?

[Jonnny]

The sewer system, does it run downhill to the main sewer place?

Or is there some kind of vacuum system to pull the waste towards it?

Or does the flush of a toilet do enough to get it from my upstairs bathroom, to the main pipes and down to the sewerage place?

[Einion Yrth]

Roofless Toothless said:

Why are batteries the same sizes all over the world?

Is there some sort of governing body stipulating the sizes of AA or AAA batteries? There doesn't seem to be such standardisation of other electronic goods. Plugs are different in other countries, light bulbs, voltages vary. But why is it that batteries have remained the same sizes for year upon year, and are the same wherever you go?

Might help.

[StevieBee]

Jonnny said:

The sewer system, does it run downhill to the main sewer place?

Or is there some kind of vacuum system to pull the waste towards it?

Or does the flush of a toilet do enough to get it from my upstairs bathroom, to the main pipes and down to the sewerage place?

Almost all towns and cities exist in some form of valley. The original settlements needed water, hence rivers, hence valleys. The degree of these valley varies form the obvious to the almost imperceptible.

The early original sewers thus relied upon gravity and many still do.

Bazalgette's sewers in London are regarded as the first 'modern' system and included pumping stations to maintain constant flow.

[FerdiZ28]

I think about this every morning.

Has there ever been either a documented case, or does anyone know of an incident involving an eye injury through shaving?

[V8mate]

FerdiZ28 said:

I think about this every morning.

Has there ever been either a documented case, or does anyone know of an incident involving an eye injury through shaving?

I'm sure there have been several in prisons!

[Clockwork Cupcake]

FerdiZ28 said:

I think about this every morning.

Has there ever been either a documented case, or does anyone know of an incident involving an eye injury through shaving?

Well, in the Dunny-on-the-Wold by-elections, the previous Returning Officer brutally stabbed himself in the stomach while shaving and the previous sole voter accidentally brutally cut his head off while combing his hair.

Does that help?

[GIYess]

StevieBee said:

Jonnny said:

The sewer system, does it run downhill to the main sewer place?

Or is there some kind of vacuum system to pull the waste towards it?

Or does the flush of a toilet do enough to get it from my upstairs bathroom, to the main pipes and down to the sewerage place?

Almost all towns and cities exist in some form of valley. The original settlements needed water, hence rivers, hence valleys. The degree of these valley varies form the obvious to the almost imperceptible.

The early original sewers thus relied upon gravity and many still do.

Bazalgette's sewers in London are regarded as the first 'modern' system and included pumping stations to maintain constant flow.

Many large sewer systems have to be pumped at some stage. There are pumping stations which keep the sewage flowing and if they stop it can create quite a major overflow. There's usually overflow tanks on site to give the water company a few hours to respond if there is a failure. In smaller towns the Water Treatment Plant can just be basically a huge septic tank and it is likely to be gravity fed.

[Frimley111R]

FerdiZ28 said:

I think about this every morning.

Has there ever been either a documented case, or does anyone know of an incident involving an eye injury through shaving?

How would this happen? The shaver wouldn't be near your eyes

[glazbagun]

Can you accidentally act out a thought? Like wheb people ask "did I say that out loud?" they obviously know that they did.

But is it possible to have a kind of tourettes or something when you think "wouldn't it be terrible if I shaved my eyeball", and then your body acts on it?

Or say you get spooked at how high up you are and involuntarily fall off?

[Wiccan of Darkness]

glazbagun said:

Can you accidentally act out a thought? Like wheb people ask "did I say that out loud?" they obviously know that they did.

But is it possible to have a kind of tourettes or something when you think "wouldn't it be terrible if I shaved my eyeball", and then your body acts on it?

Or say you get spooked at how high up you are and involuntarily fall off?

[captain_cynic]

glazbagun said:

Can you accidentally act out a thought? Like wheb people ask "did I say that out loud?" they obviously know that they did.

But is it possible to have a kind of tourettes or something when you think "wouldn't it be terrible if I shaved my eyeball", and then your body acts on it?

Or say you get spooked at how high up you are and involuntarily fall off?

People do things on autopilot all the time. However when it comes to overriding your instinctive reaction, that takes a great deal of conscious thought. Even if you deliberately tried to stick a razor in your eye, your body will instinctively recoil, that reaction is built into our psyche at the most basic level.

BTW, Tourettes is involuntary motor or phonic tics (mostly motor tics), people with Tourettes aren't acting out conscious thoughts. Coprolalia is the involuntary and repeated use of profanity (I'm pretty sure that I get this in the presence of some people)

[FiF]

Wiccan of Darkness said:

glazbagun said:

Can you accidentally act out a thought? Like wheb people ask "did I say that out loud?" they obviously know that they did.

But is it possible to have a kind of tourettes or something when you think "wouldn't it be terrible if I shaved my eyeball", and then your body acts on it?

Or say you get spooked at how high up you are and involuntarily fall off?

Have to say, a mate and I were standing on the edge of Hoover dam, looking over quite a low wall, and turned out we were both thinking "How much could it hurt?"

[V8mate]

captain_cynic said:

glazbagun said:

Can you accidentally act out a thought? Like wheb people ask "did I say that out loud?" they obviously know that they did.

But is it possible to have a kind of tourettes or something when you think "wouldn't it be terrible if I shaved my eyeball", and then your body acts on it?

Or say you get spooked at how high up you are and involuntarily fall off?

People do things on autopilot all the time. However when it comes to overriding your instinctive reaction, that takes a great deal of conscious thought. Even if you deliberately tried to stick a razor in your eye, your body will instinctively recoil, that reaction is built into our psyche at the most basic level.

The 'black cloud' - so utterly calming, as it blocks out all the noise, both in your head and around you, and lets you slide forward into exactly that involuntary action that your instinctive self would prevent.

[mattyn1]

FerdiZ28 said:

I think about this every morning.

Has there ever been either a documented case, or does anyone know of an incident involving an eye injury through shaving?

What have you done?

[glazbagun]

captain_cynic said:

glazbagun said:

Can you accidentally act out a thought? Like wheb people ask "did I say that out loud?" they obviously know that they did.

But is it possible to have a kind of tourettes or something when you think "wouldn't it be terrible if I shaved my eyeball", and then your body acts on it?

Or say you get spooked at how high up you are and involuntarily fall off?

People do things on autopilot all the time. However when it comes to overriding your instinctive reaction, that takes a great deal of conscious thought. Even if you deliberately tried to stick a razor in your eye, your body will instinctively recoil, that reaction is built into our psyche at the most basic level.

I noticed that when I was learning lead climbing. Letting yourself fall when you couldn't feel the rope was like a battle between your conscious and your nervous system. Likewise the top diving board!