- NEW!
Answer to:
Which poems do you prefer: those by Robert Burns or Robert Frost? Which one(s)?
I've no great love of either.
But if I had to choose and as my great-grandmother claimed we were related to him I'll go for Burns (my great grand-father was a Mr Burns from Ayrshire... so there probably will be some link.)
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Answer to:
What would God say to evolutionists?
"Oooh, you managed to work out that I set this universe up on an evolutionary system. I'm glad creatures like you came out of it, but stop killing one another, yeah?"
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Answer to:
What would God say to evolutionists?
"Oooh, you managed to work out that I set this universe up on an evolutionary system. I'm glad creatures like you came out of it, but stop killing one another, yeah?"
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Answer to:
What are 7 poems that I can write?
You could write one each for the days of the week. Or the deadly sins. Or the colours of the rainbow.
Answer to:
Why doesn't Panamarhyme with pajama?
In my accent, "Panama" is said with the stress on the first syllable: PAN-a-ma. "Pyjama" is said with the stress on the middle syllable: py-JA-ma.
So they're not strict rhymes. But I'd happilly let anyone away with it. :)
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Answer to:
Is it "poetry" to simply write disconnected words in a big circle? I saw a lesson for children that said this is poetry.
If poetry is defined as "doing interesting things with words" then yes, it is poetry.
Similarly: is it poetry to write three lines, the first with 5 syllables, the second with 7 and the last again with 7? That's just as arbitrary.
And this? http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/1133130 Arbitrary again...
But all *can* be poetry. The execution may be terrible, though.
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Answer to:
In Iraq why are the Americans still called the enemies when most the killing is now by Iraqi militants killing Iraqi civilians?
It's 50 years in the future, the balance of world power has altered. Jamaica are now the only world super power. For complicated reasons they invade the US. In the chaos that follows, Americans are fighting Americans and the Jamaicans are an occupying force.
Who are the "bad guys"?
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Answer to:
Whats your favourite word from the poem Jabberwocky?
The second: brillig.
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Answer to:
In an epic poem, is there a standard framework for each canto, or does this vary with the poem and the poem's purpose?
I'd say it varies with the poem and the poem's purpose.
Lots through the years have followed the pattern of Homer. 24 books, each starting in the middle of thae action.
But when you consider epic poems like Beowulf, Gilgamesh, the Book of Job, the Mahabharata and Ramayana, the Divine Comedy, Orlando Furioso and (much, much more recently) Derek Walcot's Omeros then...
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Answer to:
How does the title "Personal Helicon" relate to the poem by Seamus Heaney?
Here's the poem: http://www.cs.rice.edu/~ssiyer/minstrels/poems/883.html
Helicon is a mountain in Greece. It's where the Muses are said to have lived. So Heaney is saying that this childhood love of dirty wells and pumps and water is where he derives his own inspiration from.
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Answer to:
I searched for "there was a child went forth every day" by walt whitman and the last line was missing in nearly every version i saw. why?
What do you consider the last line?
I have:
"These became part of that child who went forth every day, and who now goes, and will always go forth every day."
It's the same in the two books of Whitman I've got - one from the mid-90s and one from, I suspect, the 1930s (it's undated).
The version at Project Gutenburg has the same last line.
However, this...
Answer to:
Who is your favorite poet, and why? Mine is 'surprise', by Wordsworth! it is the best poem ever that describes the painful reality of death I also like the poems of Shakesphere! Especially the Sonnets! Thank you for your answers
I don't have one favourite. But I like:
RS Thomas
George Mackay Brown
Gwyneth Lewis
Alice Oswald
Ivor Gurney
And lots more... :)
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Answer to:
What kind of rhyme scheme is: A B B C C D D A E F G E F G? I am referring to Edna Millay's "Sonnet I" ("Thou art not lovelier than lilacs,-no,...")
This is a Petrarchan sonnet - usually split into an octet (the first 8 lines) and a sestet (the last six).
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Answer to:
Most overrated poets:
Most underrated poets:
Please try to keep your lists to 10 or fewer.
There are poets I like and poets I don't like. It's not really my place to say if they're over- or under-rated or not.
Answer to:
Are red foxes dangerous?
Only if they're armed with some kind of weapon.
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Answer to:
Do you like little kids?
Yes. Especially en masse. Like this:
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Answer to:
What do you believe, but cannot prove?
Most everything.
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Answer to:
Where was the last place you took an airplane to?
Cologne.
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Answer to:
What books, if any, are you currently reading?
I'm currently reading Waterlog by Roger Deakin. The blurb says:
"Inspired by John Cheever's classic short story 'The Swimmer', Roger Deakin set out from his moat in Suffolk to swim through the British Isles. The result of his journey is a maverick work of observation and imagination, a uniquely personal view of an island race and a people with a deep, instinctive...
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Answer to:
Which inspires more poignant poetry, love or pain?
Just to be awkward, I'd say death and loss. But that may just be me looking at things from a slightly higher level.
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Answer to:
Do you have a beautifully composed picture of a flower (in color) that you could post?
I've got lots of photos of flowers in here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/deemikay/sets/72157600289038062/
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Answer to:
What kind of photographer are you?
Enthusiastic, but lacking in quite a few technical aspects.
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Answer to:
On a scale of 1-10, how good are you at photography? EDIT: Include an example or two if you can, please.
I don't want to grade myself... I'll post a few photos instead.
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Answer to:
Need poem name: about a young Jesus, talks to a young Roman about the Messiah. Roman says he would like to build His throne one day- when grown up, ends up building Jesus' cross. Free-verse, fairly long. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
What about just "Throne"? I like monosyllables. :)
Answer to:
If life began with one organism but then diversified will the circle be complete when either naturally or unnaturally there is but one again?
Did life begin with one organism?
If the chemical conditions were right (as they seem to have been) then what was to stop a billion nearly-identical organisms coming into life-lihood at the same time?
Answer to:
I have just authored three acrostic poetry books. those anyone know of a literary agent or publisher that will publish and market my books?
Poetry publishing is slightly different to other types of publishing. Due to the amount of poetry written and submitted for book publication, lots of editors and agents take the view that if they haven't heard of you, they won't read you. Harsh, but true.
So how do you get them to hear about you?
Poetry magazines and journals. Go to a good bookshop or library and find out the...
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Answer to:
Is there anybody who would like to read one of my "irrational" poems? (You're saluted by Prof. Mes/Bless!)
It's a sunday morning, I've got e-mais to type, I've a few answers to give on AB, I've got blogs posts to write, I've got a nice new "Selected Poems of Lawrence Durrell" to read, I've got a big bundle of bricks to move from one point in the garden to another, etc., etc.,
Sorry, don't have the time.
Answer to:
Hey friends: Are you afraid of "irrational" things or magnificient poems?
Your great poet-Prof. Mes,
Bless!
I most definitely am *not* afraid of magnificent poems. I generally find them in books.
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Answer to:
Where abouts in GLASGOW, SCOTLAND will i find a creative writing course suitable for someone who has a learning disability and who may require their carer to attend with them the first time the person in question is myself and I am mainstream educated
Waterstones in Sauchiehall Street run workshops. Never been, so I don't know what night.
Answer to:
Your private library: Is is sorted by subjects, authors, size, or the color of the covers?
It is sorted in several bookcases. I'll describe the one closest to me, it has 6 shelves:
Shelf one is jammed (upwards) with reference books and dictionaries,
Shelf two has folklore/mythology/some history
Shelves three, four, five and six have poetry.
I've attached a picture of the top three shelves (and a tube of toothpaste! That's where I put it...)
Other bookcases...
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Answer to:
Have you read the powers of ten?
Not all of them, I have to admit...
.
.
.
0.000001
0.00001
0.0001
0.001
0.01
0.1
1
10
100
1000
10000
100000
1000000
10000000
.
.
.
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Answer to:
How many of your books have yellow covers?
I really have absolutely no idea... and I don't think I want to count. There are quite a few of them. :)
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Answer to:
What are the *easy* steps i need to make a good *simple* rhyming poem?
Even easier than gmeades answer!
1) Choose a word.
2) Write down some rhymes for it (or use this rhyming dictionary: http://www.rhymezone.com/ )
3) Join the rhymes together with suitable words
Example:
Step one:
Rhyme
Step two:
Crime, time, slime
Step three:
I found myself knee-deep in slime
for carrying out the heinous crime
of using a dictionary to find a rhyme.
But I...
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Answer to:
What are some good love poems that gives you a wow feeling inside? something that is moving?
Here are a couple:
She tells her love while half asleep by Robert Graves
She tells her love while half asleep,
In the dark hours,
With half-words whispered low:
As Earth stirs in her winter sleep
And puts out grass and flowers
Despite the snow,
Despite the falling snow.
***********************
The Flea by John Donne
Marke but this flea, and marke in this,
How little...
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Answer to:
Is the book really better than the movie?
Depends what type of film and what type of book it is...
More great films than you'd expect have been taken from books that just vanished.
Answer to:
I'm thinking of a number between 1 and 100. What is it?
Half of what it is doubled.
Answer to:
Which century are we living in?
That would be the century of fakers...
Answer to:
Have you ever forced yourself to finish a particularly difficult/disturbing/boring book, just because you couldn't let the d@mned thing defeat you?
No. We don't owe books the responsibility of reading them, they owe us the responsibility of being of interest to us.
As such, if a book bores me, I'll not finish it.
Reading books isn't like a battle, it's like being at a party full of strangers. Some are interesting and you want to spend the evening listening to them. Others, well, you know the ones - they're...
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Answer to:
Have you read "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez? What did you think of it?
I've read it several times. And for a long, long time it was my favourite novel.
I know it's not for everyone (some people find reality magical enough and have no need for meagical realism) but I think the hypnotic nature of its episodes create an amplification of Latin America (or maybe a distillation is better?)
You could probably reconstruct the history and peoples of Latin...
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Answer to:
Do you ever answer a question with another question? (Including Real conversations)
Someone once asked me if I do that *all* the time and I said "do I?"
Answer to:
Do you know any funny graduation poems?
Congradulations, you are no more
a student in this institution
so go now do what you always swore
you'd never do: join the Revolution
of Employees, Further-Studies, of Get-a-job-now,
or maybe take some long lazy vacations
to get over the fact you've now taken a bow
on this day you've received your Congradulations.
(I'm stepping quietly out of the room in...
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Answer to:
What do you think of the song Pale Blue Eyes?
Ahhh.... makes me sigh. :)
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Answer to:
Do you prefer books or good literary criticism?
If I'm reading "good literary criticism" it's generally *in* books. Not always, but often.
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Answer to:
If you could write the perfect poem, would it be a sonnet, an ode, haiku, epic, or other?
Other. Definitely "other".
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Answer to:
What is the saddest book you've ever read?
"W or the Memory of Childhood" by Georges Perec. Less sad, more harrowing.
I first read it one very snowy day in February.
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Answer to:
What is the word for something good that comes out of something bad?
You could say "eucatastrophe" - something extraordinarily good coming out of a bad situation. Tolkien invented the term...
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Answer to:
In the second epigraph to T.S. Eliot's masterpiece "The Waste Land" he dedicates the poem to "il miglior fabbro" (the better craftsman). Who did Eliot dedicate the poem to?
To the man who actually "made" the poem, Ezra Pound.
If you ever get a chance to look at some facsimiles of the manuscript to The Waste Land you'll see that Pound was more than just the editor. From a formless mass, he gave the poem its final form.
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Answer to:
The last Great Poet from whom you've read or recite in the year 2008?
Erm... I read Seamus Heaney in bed this morning. I don't really like him that much though. (Yeah, yeah, he's got the Nobel Prize, I don't care).
I should add that I read poetry every day... not all of them GREAT POETS though.
Answer to:
"Knick knack paddywack, give a dog a bone.." Ok, what WAS this "knick knack" that this old man played?
I've always taken it to be a drum beat: "1, 1, 1-2-3".
Or maybe it was his___ oops, don't want to offend grandmothers!
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Answer to:
Why does e.e. cummings only use lowercase letters in his poetry?
Not in every poem... "Buffalo Bill's" for example has 5 capital letters in it.
And going through a couple of books of his poems I've got I see quite a few - but they hardly count as a lot. So, yes, in general he used lowercase letters (and little punctuation).
Why?
To be rebellious, perhaps? At the time he first started publishing poems in a significant way he was...
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Answer to:
I read a book years ago by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. There was no punctuation, paragraphs etc. Anyone know of it?
That's The Autumn of the Patriarch.
Difficult book to get through, not only for the lack of punctuation but also the repetitions and dreaminess of it all. Still, I liked it.
Answer to:
Do you ever write poetry? Give us a sample of your work....
Yes.
But I'd really rather not...
Answer to:
What do you think of the poem "make the pie higher"?
Clever. :)
http://www.snopes.com/politics/bush/piehigher.asp
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Answer to:
What would life be like without any religions? Would it solve fighting?
Ideal for inventing new ones.
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Answer to:
Is consciousness exclusive to human beings?
I'd say "no" but that it depends on the animal.
A fly, I would imagine, is hardly consciouss at all.
A dog is conscious enough to know its name.
Great apes are probably very conscious of their situation.
What makes us so different is that we developed a language that allows us to investigate our consciousness.
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Answer to:
Finish this limerick. There was a young lady from China, who took a trip on a liner. She fell on the deck and twisted her neck.....
"...now she thinks she's in Carolina"
Or:
"... that's what you get when your shoes are designer."
Or:
"... now she can do the Beijing Inter-twiner."
I'll stop now... :)
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Answer to:
How do you know if the poetry is good?
If you like it. Pretty much as simple as that.
I read a long poem by William Blake this morning - I quite liked it. Others hate it.
How do we tell if a painting is "good"? Some might go for technical skill, some for subject matter, some for the feelings they get when experiencing it, some for what they can read into it. Some for all, some "just because".
...
Answer to:
What do you consider a poem to be? Does something like William Carlos Williams' "This Is Just To Say" constitute a poem, or does it need to be something a little meatier, if you get my drift?
As debodun said, poetry can be about anything. Nursery rhymes are poems, as are those four lines in a Hallmark card written by someone getting paid by the word.
What do I consider a poem to be? Personally, words written in verse (free or otherwise). I think the oral nature of it (i.e. what it sounds like read aloud) is what makes it poetic.
As for "This is just to say" - of...
Answer to:
Can you read too many books?
Yes.
Because if you read all the time, you're not living or socialising, you're not experiencing culture, or going to new places, you're not looking at trees or talking to a stranger in the street, etc., etc.,
Books reflect Life, but they can never replace it.
(Written by someone who loves books and reads lots.)
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Answer to:
Once there was a "Poetry Corner" in BBC website; anybody having known it?
I remember it... it got lost in a revamp along with their Arts pages. It had some good audioclips on it as well. I think I may have a hunt around to see if it;s still there but hiding!
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Answer to:
Who was William Shakespeare referring to in his poem "Shall I Compare Thee To A Summer's Day?"? (a certain woman, friend, etc.?)
Good question... if you can find out who it was you're getting a big book deal!
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Answer to:
Excuse me...does THIS belong to you?
You said we'd never speak of this again!!
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Answer to:
Why oh why am i sitting up at 3.24am on answer flipping bag?
Good question, good question... damned if I know the answer though. :os
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Answer to:
Does anyone else resonate strongly with the lyrics from Bjork’s song ‘human behaviour’?
I haven't heard that for ages! I shall have to go and blow some dust off some CDs...
(I want Bjork to be my best friend...)
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Answer to:
Will someone please come round and do my washing up as i am sick of looking at it to be honest?
I presume you pay minimum wage? If you don't you can just play the accordion for a bit.
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Answer to:
Can you recommend a good book for learning to write poetry?
I'd perhaps take a different way about it by asking a question (not aimed at you! just in general): is it possible to write a good poem if you've never read a good poem?
So, a good book to help you to learn to write poetry would be a good anthology of poems. One I've always loved (and my English teacher at school used to raid it for lessons) is The Rattle Bag edited by Seamus...
Answer to:
What word sounds as beautiful as it looks?
"dull" is an option.
I love the sound it makes in the back of the throat... and it has a nice simplicity visually.
Also, I generally like short palindromic words:
dad, pop, pip, wow, mum, etc.
But my favourite word, in terms looks and sound, would perhaps be "moon".
Answer to:
Who here knows a good place to have poetry published?? I don't have any idea where to go or look.
Go to a good bookshop (i.e. a big one!) that sells poetry magazines, journals, reviews, etc... You could ask for some in a library as well.
Magazine publishing is the way to start when it comes to getting your poems into print. Lots of publishers won't even consider you (or read you) if you don't have some magazine publications under your belt.
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Answer to:
Do you accept Intelligent Design as an alternative to Evolution?
If so, why?
I'll second iwnit...
Intelligent design is an alternative to evolution. But it's not science.
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Answer to:
Has anyone read Sophocles' Antigone? I am doing my dissertation on it (20.000 words) and have been thinking about Antigone constantly for almost 10 months.
I've read it (Robert Fagles translation). I found it very good.
10 months of it, though, might drive me a bit loopy!
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Answer to:
Grab a book near you go to page 13 line 6. What does it say?
"On the other hand, others such as the McKinnons and the McGregors were content to claim common ancestry from the Alpin family who united the Scottish kingdom in 843."
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Answer to:
Girls (and blokes as well I suppose!) are you wooed by a man who reads you poetry?
I would hope not... Anyone can read (or memorise) a poem. It's not a particulary special thing to do.
Flowers are probably better.
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Answer to:
Why didn’t the Telegraph’s List of “110 best books. The perfect library” NOT include the Bible or the Qur'an?
Maybe for the same reason it didn't contain the Phone Book or the Yellow Pages?
All good books, but while most homes have a library (even if only containing 2 books) you wouldn't really say the phone book had a place in it. Some books are functional.
Answer to:
Over a year ago someone asked a question about e.e. cummings poetry & got just ONE response : ( Are there any e.e. cummings fans here? If so, why do you like his work? It would be great if you could post your favourite!
Not a big fan... I think he appealed to me as a teenager (hey! rebellious and look at the way those words are thrown over the page!) but now, looking past the surface, I only see the occasional phrase I like. ("With up so floating many bells down")
But there are some full poems I like. "in Just-" being a good example - it's anthologised so much for a good reason.
...
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Answer to:
What do you think of the famous quote "I think therefore I am"
Both pointlessly tautological and closer to the nature of consciousness than most folk have got.
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Answer to:
Do you believe that greater is the man who can control his anger than is the man who can attack and capture an entire city?
What makes you think that a man who can attack and capture an entire city can't control his anger?
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Answer to:
Are you an attention whore?
Hey everyone. I'M OVER HEEEEEE-RRREEE.
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Answer to:
Who here thinks that the death of Caesar is famous? If you can tell me how he died?(don't look at other peoples answers own knowledge doing survey)
Which Caesar? There were a few of them...
Answer to:
What, in a poem expresses everything you ever wanted to say?
I've got lots to say... :)
All I want to say
would take more than a minute,
more than a day,
would take longer than I know,
so, hell, what-the-hey...
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Answer to:
Why does art and poems help people live?
I's say that's not necessarily the case - I'd rather have water, food and oxygen myself.
Art and poetry are essentially useless - nice and beautiful sometimes, and I enjoy both very much.
But humans cope quite well without either.
Answer to:
I'm looking for a love poem or a birthday poem involving physics....any suggestions?
I can't think of any physics poems about love off hand - and I never did buy The Faber Book of Science Poems!!
I'll hunt through some books to see if I can find any physics poems that may be suitable...
Answer to:
What was the last good book you read, would you recommend it?
Currently reading "Chronicle of a Death Foretold" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I'm enjoying it a lot. It's a very simple story told in a simple way.
Answer to:
What's the most memorable line you've ever read out of a book [fictional]?
Three lines:
"After so many years of never lifting up my head, I forgot about the sky. And even if I had looked up, what good would it have done? The sky is so high and my eyes so clouded that I was happy just knowing where the gound was."
From Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo.
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Answer to:
According to the nursery rhyme, what is Friday's child?
Further to the Troll's answer above...
A version of the rhyme from 1849 claims that Friday's child is "full of sin" (followed by Saturday's being "pure within").
I'm a Friday's child... sin or loving/giving... which am I?!
Answer to:
What is blank verse?
Blank verse is unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter i.e. a ten syllable line made up of five iambs. (An iamb is a two syllable unit that goes da-DUM - phrases like "Shall I" or "and then" or "descent")
The ryhthm (if followed slavishly) is:
da-DUM-da-DUM-da-DUM-da-DUM-da-DUM
However most poets don't follow it slavishly as it would get quite boring and...
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Answer to:
What was the first book you read with explicit sex scenes?
Well... I remember the little copy of stories by Anaïs Nin I got in my early teens.
Yowzer.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ana%C3%AFs_Nin
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Answer to:
Do you have a blog? And how do you come up with new ideas for posts to update a blog regularly?
Yes.
I generally write a handful of posts of a sunday, and sometimes mid-week as well. They're generally about things that have happened to me during the week, about books I've been reading or things I've written.
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Answer to:
Whats your favourite short poem?
There's the old classic "Fleas":
Adam
ad 'em.
*****************
Or this by Les Murray:
Visitor
He knocks at the door
and listens to his heart approaching.
**********************
Or this, probably the most famous "Great" short poem by Ezra Pound:
In a Station of the Metro
The apparition of these faces in the crowd;
Petals on a wet,...
Answer to:
What is your favorite poem?
My favourite that I've read this week has a silly but beautiful title:
Dreambabwe by Les Murray
Steaming, a hippo surfaces
like the head of someone
lifting, with still entranced eyes,
from a lake of stanzas.
Why do I like this? I just do.
************
AS for "all-time-favourite" I don't have one. But there are poems I return to again and again.
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Answer to:
Do you know any vulgar poetry?
Erm, yes. For example: John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester - he died in 1680.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wilmot,_2nd_Earl_of_Rochester
Here's the first stanza of "Signior Dildo"
You ladies of merry England
Who have been to kiss the Duchess's hand,
Pray, did you not lately observe in the show
A noble Italian called Signior Dildo?
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Answer to:
I am not athiest, but I think heavens in clouds and pearly gates seems a bit too fantasy. If you are athiest, what do you believe happens after you die?
Nothing. You die. That's the end of you. The world continues without you. (Which also means that we know we've only got one shot at life, so lets make it a good shot...)
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Answer to:
Where it shows you how many points you have until the next level on your profile, where that little bag is, how full of color is your bag right now?
Almost there! Just one point til level 39
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Answer to:
Why did you leave your last job?
Being sacked, pretty much.
(I'd told them that I didn't enjoy the work and was considering looking for a new job - five minutes later they threw me out. This was two weeks before Christmas 2005.)
Answer to:
Using three words or less, describe your current local weather?
Outside the window.
Answer to:
Is there any cheerful traditional Scottish music (other than "The Scotsman" aka "Under the Kilt")?
Ceilidh music is traditional and cheerful (you dance better to happy music...)
Try this:
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Answer to:
Can anyone explain to me using mathematical theory and the infinacy of numbers that 1.) God is of three seperate parts in one being 2.) That God is the infinat begining and end? >> -10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Mmmm... don't quite get the question. :s
But as for the 3-in-1. I have three clouds and add them together, what do I get? One cloud.
In cloud arithmetic: 1+1+1=1
Answer to:
How would you describe the book Anna Karenina?
Long. And Russian.
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Answer to:
Do you listen to music while answer bagging? If yes, what kind?
I usually have my music on random.
Right now it's Big Star's version of Femme Fatale by The Velvet Underground (I prefer it to the original...)
Here's what else I've been listening to:
http://www.last.fm/user/deemikay
Answer to:
"They" say most people are strong in either english/reading OR math/science, but not both. Is this true for you?
No. My degree is in maths. But English was always my best subject at school and the one I loved most.
I studied maths instead of english to get an extra half-hour in bed and to avoid being made to read books I didn't want to read.
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Answer to:
This has been bothering me for ever... There's a music video from the 90's that's animated and the people are blue and a meteor crashes into the space station that they are in? Also, they were having a party when they died...
Could you mean One More Time by Daft Punk?
.
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Answer to:
How many times has a writer started out as a teenager and became famous?
The French poet Rimbaud started his writing career early and finished it at age 21. He never wrote any more poems after that and then he died aged 37.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Rimbaud
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Answer to:
R-p-o-p-h-e-s-s-a-g-r This is the title of a poem by E.E Cummings. do you know what it means or what it is about? what do you think of it?
This is a poem about a grasshopper.
Here's the text (but unfortunately AB will lose the formatting).
r-p-o-p-h-e-s-s-a-g-r
who
a)s w(e loo)k
upnowgath
PPEGORHRASS
eringint(o-
aThe):l
eA
!p:
S a
(r
rIvInG .gRrEaPsPhOs)
to
rea(be)rran(com)gi(e)ngly
,grasshopper;
If we take the formatting out (and some of the repeated grasshopper...
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Answer to:
Do you believe this?"what you don't know can't hurt you" and do you know who said this?please advise.thanks.
I don't know who said it, but I don't believe it. The people on Lake Nyos never knew - they died.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Nyos
Answer to:
What are some ideas for forms for poetry?
New forms or old forms?
Old ones:
The sonnet.
The ode.
The ballad.
The limerick.
The villanelle.
The sestina.
The ghazal.
The epic poem.
The heroic couplet.
Blank verse.
Ottava Rima.
The nursery rhyme.
I'm getting bored now... :)
New options? Well, make something up.
Five stanza lines rhyming aabba, five syllables per line:
Answerbag answer,
unlucky chancer
...
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Answer to:
Can a story without an ending be a story?
Is it possible to have a story without an ending? The words end at one point... and where the words end, that must be the ending.
I can imagine, I suppose, a circular story where the events in the story loop back around into one another. It could be written on a roll of paper which was joined together. That story wouldn't have a beginning as such, only a point where the reader started...
Answer to:
Where does the title of the Coen Brother's "No Country for Old Men" come from?
***
Answer to:
Anybody have any tips and advice for an amatuer photographer?
Here's a list I came up with ages ago:
- Use your feet!
Walk to the photograph, don't wait for the photograph to come to you.
- Don't be afraid
If people say "why are you taking a picture of that?" ignore them and take the picture.
- Don't be shy
"Can I take your photo?" can be met with a yes or a no - the first is a good result, the...
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Answer to:
How often do you visit the museum?
I was at one on Sunday. I go to galleries a bit more often than museums.
Answer to:
Who are the majority of your photographs of? (Yourself, spouse, kids, etc.)
Anything I can point a camera at.... http://www.flickr.com/photos/deemikay/collections/
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Answer to:
Is there anybody who could answer my question in any poetry form? Question: what is a question?
Shakespearian sonnet in pentameter:
Yes, your question of "what is a question?"
is one question I have an answer for.
(But first I'll ask you whether your best yin
is a questioned whisper or questioned roar?
This is best answered by another Q:
do all of your questions ask for answers?
Or do they line you in an endless queue
of question after question - fat dancers
...
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Answer to:
How do you go about finding the discipline to write a book? It's my ultimate dream but I get stuck each time.
Don't think about writing a *book*. Instead concentrate on telling a story.
Answer to:
Anyone read Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World"?
I read it when I was, oooo, 18? I quite enjoyed it but never quite believed in the future he came up with.
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Answer to:
What is plagiarism?
What is plagiarism?
(Or if it's a pastiche: "What is plagiarism?")
Ok, I'll go away now... :o|
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Answer to:
I am trying to publish a book If I ask YOU to send me a dollar would you?
No, I'm afraid not...
Answer to:
Which part of a book—beginning, middle or end—do you find the most interesting or engaging? Which do you find most pivotal for the success of a good story? Which part, when flawed, can most easily ruin an otherwise great book?
I've always preferred the openings of books more. Perhaps because I've read more of them than I have endings...
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Answer to:
Are you obsessed with buying books?
Unfortunately yes... I'm running out of space to put them. :os
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Answer to:
What is your definiton of poetry. I think poetry is music without the music.
Poetry is writing in verse (free or structured).
It can be about anything from emotions to the contents of a bin, but if it's not in verse (free or structured) then it's probably prose.
****
EDIT - I'm going to add this:
I also wouldn't say poetry is music without out music - I'd say it's language making its *own music*. The idea of non-musical poetry...
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Answer to:
Do you think you are wise beyond your years? Not wise enough? Or just right? Why?
I'm as far from wise as a worm is from speaking...
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Answer to:
What is the number 1 desert in the world?
Answering the question, I'd have to say the Atacama... :)
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Answer to:
How many of you on AnswerBag have a current passport?
Me.
And it'll need renewed in a couple of years time.
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Answer to:
What is a good book to read if you have a short attention span an get bored easy?
A book of poems...
This would perhaps be the ideal one: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Short-Sweet-Poems-Faber-Poetry/dp/0571215564
:o)
Answer to:
Yiddish means Jewish.
Yid means Jew and ish means man, “Human being, person (in contrast to God)”
What is the meaning of British?
What does brit mean?
British
Irish
Scottish
Finish
Swedish
Spanish
Polish
Danish
I'll add a couple:
Ireland is named after Eriu, a goddess.
The Scots were invaders from Ireland (ironic, huh?) and the word "scotii" means "invaders".
Answer to:
Favorite Velvet Underground album?
Depends what mood I'm in.
Their first album on sunny days and sundays.
Their second album when I want my ears to bleed (thank you John Cale, you're a legend).
Their third late at night.
Their fourth when I want a bit of classic rock.
(And VU when I want to listen to "I Can't Stand It")
Their second and third ones are in my top five albums of all time.
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Answer to:
Would it be considered social suicide for someone to publicly admit that they find Pete Doherty attractive?
I would think so.
(But apparently I'm wrong to think so...)
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Answer to:
What song is stuck in your head right now?
Sister Ray byt The Velvet Underground. And my head hurts as a result.... :os
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Answer to:
If you could solve one crime in the world, what would it be?
Not quite in the world, but I'd find out who made the Big Bang bang.
Answer to:
Why do we question?
Well, if you have to ask...
:)
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Answer to:
Whats the difference between a terrorist,insurgent,freedom fighter,and a rebel?
Perspective.
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Answer to:
What is your life story?
My life story isn't that important (and some of it is on my profile).
So instead, I will give a list of educational establishments I have been to in chronological order...
Glengarnock Nursery.
Glengarnock Primary.
Yeovil Boys School.
Bonaero Park Primary School.
Rivonia Primary School.
Bonaero Park Primary School (again).
Boglestone Primary School.
Blackwood Primary School.
...
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Answer to:
If you haven't answered this question yet (http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/89559), why not? I'm sure we'd all like to get to know you better.
I don't know if I have answered it or not... there are 146 answers to go through! Even if I have, I think I shall attempt it (possibly again).
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Answer to:
If you've made your email address visible on your public AB profile, have you ever regretted it? Why?
Not regretted it. Because no-one's ever taken advantage of it being there...
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Answer to:
What is your favorite band that you think I have never heard of?
There are plenty of great Scottish bands that lots of people haven't heard of. So I'll keep them a secret unless anyone asks... ;)
Answer to:
What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear the name Afghanistan?
Lots of inaccessible places to travel to and fantastic architecture.
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Answer to:
Have you ever got half way through answering a question then just couldn't be bothered to finish it?
Often the reason I can't be bothered finishing an answer is because I know someone will take my answer the wrong way and I'll have a potential comment war on my hands.
Rather wearisome... :os
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Answer to:
How do you feel when someone says "be creative" in their question on AB?
Mmm... I generally feel that there will lots of silly answers.
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Answer to:
I want to upload some photographs to a website but it keeps telling me my files are too big and to convert them to a smaller file type. How do I do this? (I am a techno-idiot so please explain as you would to a small and stupid child!)
If you just want something to resize photos I'd go for Irfanview - http://www.irfanview.com/
It can make all your jpeg icons look like splatted red cats as well. :)
I use it at work and at home for viewing photos - it's simple and a tiny file.
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Answer to:
Could there be anybodt greater than Franz Kafka amongst man-kind?
Yes there could. And almost certainly is.
(And neurotic, social inadequates are neurotic, social inadequates regardless of whether they are geniuses or not... and Kafka *was* a genius.)
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Answer to:
What could I do to learn how to write in cursive? I suck at it now, and always add little lines and loops here and there... Its not legible at all.
The only way to get good at anything is to practice...
Buy yourself a nice pen, a book with good quality, lined paper and just start writing. And do it v.e.r.y. slowly.
Most of the time my handwriting is bad, but if I slow down and concentrate I can write well. Well, well enough. :op
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Answer to:
What was your favorite picture story book? and when did you last read it?
I loved Asterix and Tintin books... and I still do. :)
I read Tintin and The Cigars of the Pharaohs the other night.
As for non-comic strip books - I've read lots and lots that I love (I tutor and have two 4-year old nephews). One I particularly like is a an Arabic book I got in Morocco a few years ago. I can't read Arabic, but the pictures are fantastic. It seems to be some...
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Answer to:
Hi all, could you able to suggest me some good english novels and short story books to read?
I like Bruce Chatwin's novels (part travel book and part fiction). (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Chatwin)
Also Christopher Isherwood.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Isherwood)
And while not English, Nabokov wrote lots of his stories in English.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Nabokov)
Answer to:
What university did Henry Wadsworth Longfellow teach at?
He taught at Harvard.
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Answer to:
Free Poetry Contest - The Best One?
I don't really trust any poetry competition that I haven't read about in a "respected" poetry journal or newspaper/magazine. Lots of these will charge an entry fee (to raise prize money and discourage too many entries).
The kind that offer "$10,000" on a monthly basis are generally run by small publishing companies who will publish all entries in a book and...
Answer to:
Who is your favorite poet, and why? Mine is 'surprise', by Wordsworth! it is the best poem ever that describes the painful reality of death I also like the poems of Shakesphere! Especially the Sonnets! Thank you for your answers
It changes all the time... but I've got a little group that I like more than any other little group:
George Mackay Brown
Ivor Gurney
John Clare
Norman MacCaig
Coleridge
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Answer to:
Does anybody know where to find a simple- clear easy to read map of 18 century engish coast? near london? im writing a book and could really use the map.
This site may help: http://www.old-maps.co.uk/
As may this: http://www.oldemaps.co.uk/
GoogleEarth gives an overlay map of England and Wales from 1790. This extract shows some of the detail around London.
Answer to:
Answerbag oh Answerbag, why has thee forsaken me? Why does thee refuse to load my feedback Q&A without a 5 minute load time?
Also off subject... "why dost thou" is the correct form.
:op
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Answer to:
How important (on a scale of 10), are the 2008 Oscars to you?
Well, I was curious as to whether DDL would win best actor or not. And he did. :)
Also good to see Juno win best screenplay.
So:
Curiosity scale - 4
Importance scale - 0
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Answer to:
What are some important features of poetry?
Rhythm.
Other than that, anything goes.
(If a piece of writing isn't written in any sort of metre, I'd say it's prose. Free verse is verse free of *regular* metre, not metre altogether.)
Answer to:
How do you get creative? What do you do to bring out your creative side?
I think. Then I stop thinking. Then I start creating. (Then afterwards I think again.)
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Answer to:
I am looking to buy a camera that is a starting point for taking more prof photos.I already have a Casion Exilim and Canon Powershot I am looking at the Nikon D40x and ones similar, any suggestions on which provides best for my needs? what brands are best
I'm always saying that I'm after a new camera and new lenses and new this and that. But to be honest I'm happy with my Nikon D50. It takes good pictures (some of which are on my profile if you want to see what it can do.)
Answer to:
What do you think the most famous quote from dreary poetry is?
Is all poetry dreary? Possibly...
Famous quotes from dreary poetry:
This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but a whimper.
- TS Eliot
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills
- Wordsworth
Actually, I could go on for ever... so I'll just leave it at two.
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Answer to:
What does it mean when poems are thematically similar? what are some examples of this?
They are on the same theme.
As an ultra-extreme example, this sonnet by Shakespeare is thematically similar to the song posted beneath it. They are both about love and its independence from physical attraction. (i.e. it's possible to find your true love with an "ordinary" looking person, but we all know that.)
My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;
Coral is far...
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Answer to:
What do you guys think of Philip K Dick?
I read loads of science fiction when I was a teenager, but then stopped. The only sci-fi writer from that time I'd probably want to read again is PKD... his books are too nicely-weird to ignore. :)
Answer to:
Does religion create suffering? What do we lose from believing in religion?
First things first: I am an atheist.
People cause suffering, not religions. Lots of religious people are actually actively employed in relieving suffering throughout the world - The Salvation Army being the obvious example.
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Answer to:
How can an atheist respond to "God Bless you"?
I'd say "thank you". And I am an atheist, and I have said that.
Why be impolite?
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Answer to:
Is calculus the hardest kind of math?
Calculus was my favourite when I did my degree (got my best marks in it...)
Probability on the other hand... I'd like to blame my lecturer, but I think it was just that I was being dim. (Though his habit of never finishing sentences didn't help...)
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Answer to:
Who would you say is a modern day bard?
Bard in the sense of "poet that sings"?
The only people I know of whose words are liked by poets as much as they're liked by music lovers are Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan and (to a lesser degree) Nick Cave.
There are almost certainly lots more.
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Answer to:
Do you think Edgar Allen Poe was mentally unstable?(not to say I don't admire his poetry)But he seems to be, off.What do you think?
No, he drank too much and had an over-active imagination...
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Answer to:
Do you agree with the Australian Government saying "Sorry" to the Aboriginal Stolen Generation?
Despite what Elton John said, "sorry" is the easiest thing in the world to say.
So yes, I agree. But if you are truly sorry about something you should attempt to make the situation better. Some compensation (not necessarily financial) would be nice.
Answer to:
Would you read a book twice even though you already know what happens?
Of course. Sometimes the journey is more interesting than the destination and you might want to retrace your steps. (Or do it backwards...)
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Answer to:
What is an example of a good sonnet? Please make it up yourself:)
Two sonnets I wrote about 3 or 4 years ago... they may not be good, but here they are:
****************************
The ex-Colonialist refuses to climb the ladder
"Tell them this," he said. "That I don't do heights.
I know I've wandered this far behind you
and__ wonders aside__ for five days and nights
I lost my stomach thinking of the view
you...
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Answer to:
Is space infinite or finite?
Both are scary concepts...
Let us never speak of this again. :o|
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Answer to:
Atheists: Do you ever feel slightly cheated that you won't be able to get in a last "I told ya so!" to the smug religious kooks as they fade into oblivion, and realize in their final moments that they spent a lifetime in servitude to an imaginary friend?
No, because my atheism is a personal thing. I've got better things to do with my time than be in competition with religion. (However, if they ask, I will argue my case. I would expect them to do the same.)
If someone wants to believe in something, and get comfort from that something, they can.
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Answer to:
What are some good books for bad boys?
A Clockwork Orange.
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Answer to:
How many words can you make out of the word president?
333 apparently. :)
PRESIDENT
TRENDIES
PRETENDS
NERDIEST
INSERTED
SPRINTED
RESIDENT
REPINES
REPENTS
DESTINE
RIPENED
TENDERS
REPINED
SPENDER
PRESENT
INEPTER
PRETEND
ENTRIES
PRESIDE
DENIERS
REEDITS
TINDERS
DESPITE
STIPEND
SERPENT
PRINTED
STRIPED
RESPITE
DIETERS
TEPIDER
RETIED
PRINTS
PRIDES
REEDIT
PETERS
ENTIRE
TRENDS
...
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Answer to:
Name one thing that is thouroughly proven correct in science and I swear on Ozzy Osbourne that I'll send you the computer that I'm typing on write now. Take a minute and think this one out. Thats right nothing is proven in science. I didn't say math, that
Science makes a proposition and then tests it. If the evidence from the test confirms the proposition, we say we've proved it.
Science is about testing. And proving is about testing.
You may want to check the origin of the word "prove": http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=prove&searchmode=none
Answer to:
Can evolution possible exist? Do any of you remember a exercise where you pull out bunch of alphabetical letters from a hat then match people with diffrent alphabets together to form a word? Apprently some people believe that DNA could have worked out tha
The alphabet analogy is misleading - letters are discrete units that can't interact with one another.
Molecules, on the other hand, can.
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Answer to:
What is the name of the book closest to you
"The New Poetry" - a 1966 anthology of (mainly) British poets.
Answer to:
If you could change the ending of any book ever written, which one would you pick and how would you change it?
Great Expectations by Dickens. Too, well, happy.
But apparently he had a more pessimisitc ending to it written (or at least plotted)... but didn't go with it.
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Answer to:
Is this poem competition worthy? Hollow Emptiness settled over
The room that day,
The day you went away.
An eerie silence,
Eerie shadows uneasiness.
there's more to it but no room here
i'm thinking about entering it in a competition
Enter the competition if you want... you won't be banned from entering more if the judges don't like it.
I'd maybe ask, though, how can emptiness be hollow? Yes, by definition it sort of is hollow, but it's a bit like saying "black darkness". I'm only asking because the judges of the competition might ask as well. And they may not like redundant adjectives.
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Answer to:
Best love poems?
Here are a few I like. The last is maybe not a traditional "love poem" but it's about love.
************************
When you go by Edwin Morgan
When you go,
if you go,
And I should want to die,
there's nothing I'd be saved by
more than the time
you fell asleep in my arms
in a trust so gentle
I let the darkening room
drink up the evening, till
rest,...
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Answer to:
When you close your eyes to tragedy, you close your eyes to greatness. by Stephen Vizinczey...do you agree or disagree?
The question, I suppose, is "Can tragedy be banal?"
Which reminds me of something Stalin said: a single death is a tragedy, a million deaths are just a statistic.
Mass communication has diminished what is tragic, somewhat. This is probably an unfortunate thing.
Do I agree? Probably not... some tragedies are banal, some are monstrous. If Vizinczey is talking about *quality* of...
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Answer to:
Does anyone have the right to tell someone that their beliefs are 'wrong'?
A: "I believe it is ok to sacrifice people - my religion says I can."
B: "I am a judge and I am telling you that that is wrong according to the laws of our land."
Yes, some people have the right to tell people they are wrong.
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Answer to:
Have you ever read the book 1984?
Yes, a few times. I also gave my second copy away to someone. And now I think of it, I don't know where my first copy is - which means I may not have a copy anymore!
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Answer to:
Some hae meat and canna eat, and some wad eat that want it, but we hae meat and we can eat, and sae the Lord be thankit.
Robbie Burns
I like this saying do you?
Apparently (and I didn't know this 'til now) Burns may not have written it. It was in use before he was around...
But anyway, it's quite nice. :)
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Answer to:
There're over 50 questions where nursery rhymes is the subject. The questions are scattered in many different categories: Who sang...?, Childrens songs, Kids, Childhood experiences, outside the bag, who, Toddlers... Shouldn't they be posted under Poetry?
I'd say so.
Have you asked for them to be recategorised?
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Answer to:
When you get super long answers, do you even read them? I personally don't even bother at times. Is that bad?
Well, if you ask a question you should be prepared for the answers you get.
I personally read every answer I get.
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Answer to:
Is there a McDonald's within walking distance of where you live?
No, thank goodness...
People always look at me funny when I tell them I've never eaten a McDonalds in my 31 years. I intend to keep it that way!
Answer to:
What is the most pretentious word you can think of?
I don't think words are pretentious. People are pretentious. And it's the pretentious way they use words... grrr...
My vote goes for "skewered".
A manager where I work was talking about "skewered investment figures". She meant "skewed". She was attempting to sound intelligent - *that* is pretentious.
{PS why is this in the poetry category???}
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Answer to:
Shortest empire to ever exist?
The Dubyabush Empire - 20 Jan 2001 to 20 Jan 2009.
Answer to:
What do you think about the term 'Carpe Diem' and do you exercise this concept?
Carpe Diem - Latin for "Seize the day".
Also, "live for the day", "Live for the moment", "Do what you can today, because we could be dead tomorrow".
Do I live this way? Well, no. I get paid in arrears ("I work for a month - they pay me for that month") so I have to think a bit more than a day in advance. If I plan to go travelling in 6...
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Answer to:
Did The Doors suck?
I often feel mildly ashamed in polite company when I have to confess "Actually, I don't like them..."
But the shame quickly passes when I see that my not liking The Doors annoys people. :)
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Answer to:
Do you ever wonder if one of your answers has been quoted in an essay?
No, but I do wonder about non-ABers who come to this site.
I got an e-mail last week from a guy in an English university who read an answer I gave about an old Scottish poem. Was nice of him to write to give me some more info about it. :)
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Answer to:
When was the last time you took the time to read another ABers profile?
About 5 seconds ago - I found this question there!
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Answer to:
Are there any books out there that you hate that everyone else seems to love? Would you name them for me, please?
I generally only read books that I've a fair idea that I'm going to like. As such, I like most books I read.
And most people would hate the books I like. :)
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Answer to:
How many of Shakespeare's plays can you name?
Quite a few...
Answer to:
Do high ranked folk only answer high ranked folk's questions? Do we have a caste system here?
I don't even notice who asks a question...
If a question's worth my effort to answer, then I'll put the effort in and answer it.
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Answer to:
Why is it generally assumed someone that believes in a superstition is more credible than those that don't?
Is that generally assumed?
- Mr X believes that it's unlucky to walk under ladders - does the world really find Mr X more credible than Mr Y who happily walks under ladders? Or does it just accept them?
- Mr X believes in divine intervention from a Christian god, whereas Mr Y doesn't. Is Mr X more credible in the eyes of the world?
- Mr X believes that there are little...
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Answer to:
Do I have a soul? Do you? What causes you to believe as you do?
I do not believe in the existence of souls in a religious sense i.e. one that is independent of the body.
However, I *do* believe that everyone has a conscious self/soul/sense-of-I-ness which is an emergent phenomenon and comes from our being sufficiently advanced animals.
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Answer to:
How many pages does the thickest book you own have (not counting dictionaries, telephone books or directories)? And how many the thinnest?
I have lots of children's books... some of them can be 4 pages long.
As for the longest... mmm... I have a Norton Anthology of American Literature which is just over 3000 pages. And some world history books that are about the same.
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Answer to:
What's the most enjoyable book you own?
I've got a few books I keep returning to:
1) The Oxford Book of Nursery Rhymes - a fantastic academic book with lots of info and history and variants.
2) Godel Escher Bach - a strange Pulitzer Prize winning book about maths, science, art, music, consciousness, etc. etc.
3) Life A User's Manual by George Perec - one of the most entertaining novels I know - I just pick it up...
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Answer to:
What makes some faces photogenic, while the others are not?
Faces aren't necessarilly photogenic - people and their personalities are.
I've taken pictures of lots of people, and the "good" photographs don't need to be of beautiful, attractive, visually-pleasing people.
It's a matter of how comfortable someone is in front of a camera. If someone doesn't like having their picture taken, they generally won't...
Answer to:
How should the word Celtic be pronounced: as 'Seltic' or as 'Keltic'?
With a kicking K.
Unless you're talking about the Glasgow football team... they're pronounced "Seltic".
{The word is fundamentally from the Ancient Greek word "Keltoi". It's definitely a kicking K.}
Answer to:
Who wrote the novel Trainspotting?
Irvine Welsh. And he annoys me. Grrr....
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Answer to:
Anyone know any good daily blogs about book and writing?
Here are a few I subscribe to:
http://blog.oup.com
http://thepage.name/index.htm
http://www.thevalve.org/go/valve/index/
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/books/
http://www.litkicks.com
Not all daily, but you generally get something from at least one a day. And they have recommedations for other blogs as well...
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Answer to:
To be or not to be?
Hamlet chose to be... might have been better for everyone if he'd chosen not to though.
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Answer to:
What is iambic pentameter?
For most practical purposes, it's a line of poetry with ten syllables in it (which should really be called decasyllabics). To read things in a strictly iambic fashion is rather monotonous. For example:
Shall-I com-pare thee-to a-sum mer's-day
is not how modern (or even Shakespearean) readers would read this line. Lots of people would put a pause after...
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Answer to:
What is the poem "Casabianca" about?
There are two famous poems called this. One from 1826 about an incident during the Battle of the Nile. The other is by Elizabeth Bishop and uses the 1826 poem as a starting point.
Which one are you meaning?
**EDIT**
As the 1826 poem has been posted in another answer, here's Elizabeth Bishop's one.
Love's the boy stood on the burning deck
trying to recite...
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Has anyone ever heard of a poem called I,Icarus? If you have, where can I find it?
I hadn't heard of it... but I was able to find it at Flickr of all places!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/taylorhood/144050646/
Here's the poem:
There was a time when I could fly. I swear it
Perhaps, If I think hard enough for a moment, I can even tell you the year
My room was on the ground floor at the rear of the house
My bed faced a window
Night after night I lay on my...
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Answer to:
How many words can you make from the word intelligence
105 apparently... Yeah, I admit I cheated. Though I'd prefer to call it "cutting the Gordion knot". :)
INTELLIGENCE
TELEGENIC
CLIENTELE
ELECTING
ENTICING
LENIENCE
LENIENT
LILTING
GENETIC
CEILING
INCLINE
LIGNITE
GENTEEL
NEGLECT
TELLING
GENTILE
TILLING
ENGINE
TEEING
CITING
ELICIT
LENTEN
LINTEL
IGNITE
TIEING
LENTIL
ENTICE
...
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Answer to:
What if "Jesus returns" and finds that the human species was wiped out by an asteroid like the dinosaurs?
I think he'd probably know about it...
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Answer to:
What's the first line of your current book?
"A travel book owes so little to the writers, and so much to the people they meet, that a full and fair acknowledgement on the part of the former is impossible."
Letters from Iceland by WH Auden and Louis MacNeice.
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Answer to:
Is it true that a regiment(s) of civil war soildiers in US History were muslims of African descent?
I think you're referring to the Zouaves - read about them here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zouaves#Zouaves_of_the_United_States_of_America_and_of_the_Confederate_States
Answer to:
Pope Boniface VIII took over in Italy and had Dante exiled. Is Boniface depicted as a sinner anywhere in the Inferno?
Not yet.
Dante comes across Pope Nicholas III face down in the ground with his legs waving in the air. Nicholas mistakes Dante for Boniface. It is very strongly implied that Boniface will very shortly be coming down to the third ditch of the eigth circle of Hell reserved for "simoniacs" - those involved in the "sale or fraudulent possession of ecclesiastical offices".
...
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Answer to:
What is the best book you have ever read in an English class you have taken? Why?
Most of the novels we read were quite boring (but I did like The Great Gatsby). We read lots of good poetry though - my favourites being Norman MacCaig and Jon Stallworthy.
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Answer to:
What is your favorite opening line from a book?
Biography:
"The earth teaches us more about ourselves than all the books in the world, because it is resistant to us."
(Wind, Sand and Stars by Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
Book of poetry:
For the islands I sing
and for a few friends;
not to foster means
or be midwife to ends.
(George Mackay Brown's Collected Poems)
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Answer to:
Keats said "A thing of beauty is a joy forever", do you believe this to be true, what is the beauty and the joy in your life?
Like lots of Keats (and the Romantics in general) it's such a wooly, universal phrase that it can mean anything. Keats other line about truth = beauty is the same. What is Beauty? What is Joy? What is Forever? What is Truth? People can argue about these 'til the cows come home...
If, Keats argues, "beauty is truth", then "A thing of *truth* is a joy forever" -...
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Answer to:
Would you please right a poem about bacon for me please?
What ya makin'?
I'm makin' bacon.
Makin' bacon?
It's what I'm makin'.
Yer breakin' eggs
for eggs 'n' bacon?
That's what I'm makin'
eggs 'n' bacon.
Yer not forsakin'
eggs and bacon?
No, eggs and bacon
and fat I'm takin'.
Yer veins'll be achin'
wi' the fat from the bacon!
...
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Answer to:
What is the difference between a debit and credit card?
Debit = "no more money till pay day."
Credit = "bankruptcy here I come."
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Answer to:
May I share some absolutely stunning photographs with you guys?
Lots of beautiful, beautiful pictures there!
Here's one I like of horses: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hrefna_s/1096615031/
And here's one I took (reminds me of the elephant one in the link):
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Answer to:
The English language ?? Why do we call a cup a cup, a chair a chair ect. Basically how did things get there names
Nuttsky's answer is an excellent one.
I'll just add one little bit to it about linguistic theories about the origin of language.
The Danish Linguist Otto Jespersen gathered together five theories with the following names:
1) the bow-wow theory - language started by the replication of environmental sounds (e.g. animal calls) - suggesting langauge is onomatopoeic.
2) the...
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Answer to:
What CD or song have you played over and over(include artist and title)?
You're a Big Girl Now (Dylan song) but the live version by The Go-Betweens... gorgeous!
Answer to:
Do you belong to a union?
I'm a member of Unison, which is the UK public services union.
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Answer to:
Has anyone heard of the theory that ideas are the same as viruses? You can become infected through exposure, they spread through communities and beyond. They mutate and evolve etc. Whos theory is it? Do you think it is a useful analogy?
I think your'e referring to Richard Dawkin's meme theory ("memetics") which has been extended by others since.
I personally think it's silly to compare ideas/concepts/etc to viruses because viruses are completely predictable. "Memes" as imagined by Dawkins and others do not act in any way like viruses.
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Answer to:
Domfestner by Gerhart Richter at the Köln Dom. http://flickr.com/photos/melekalikimaka/2232555611/ , has this been done before, or after?
I saw that just over a month ago. :) But I took different pictures in the Dom.
As for the question, I also don't quite get what you mean. Lots of churches have modern stained glass in them. But not many Gothic cathedrals (as far as I'm aware).
Answer to:
So all of us members of AB did not go to work today since we're online right?
Hey, I left the house at 7:20am to go to work and got home at 6:20pm.
I've done my bit today... :)
Answer to:
What a a good diamante (poem) for quadrilaterals
I've never heard of diamante poems. But after googling they seem to be an English lesson to teach types of words.
http://teams.lacoe.edu/documentation/classrooms/amy/algebra/5-6/activities/poetry/diamante.html
The link has a sample which is (surprise!) about squares (and circles).
square
symmetrical, conventional
shaping, measuring, balancing
boxes, rooms, clocks, halos
...
Answer to:
What is the best book you ever read?
I'm currently reading "Letters from Iceland" by WH Auden and Louis MacNeice. It's a travel book from the 1930s. And very entertaining.
Also, Edwin Morgan's latest collection "A Book of Lives".
Answer to:
Besides a bookmark, what is something you use to keep your place in a book?
Amongst other things:
bus ticket
train ticket
old photograph
a ripped piece of newspaper
a playing card
another book
a postcard
I hardly ever use "proper" bookmarks.
On a similar subject... I was watching a tv programme the other day and there was a priest on it showing us around his house. In a picture frame was a flat squashed mouse which he found under a box - for...
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Answer to:
What's your favorite word?
Soporific
I like the little stutter-y vowel sounds (aw aw ih ih)
:)
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Answer to:
What is the name of the book closest to you
It's a free book I got in the Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow called "See you... See Me... poems aboot territory & identity".
Here's a sample one (it's written in Glasgow dialect!)
Ma Easterhoose
from ma windae ah see ither hooses
cars cummin n goin
kids ootside playin
folk rushin tae work
Answer to:
Are nursery rhymes considered poetry?
If anyone says they're not I *will* fight them.
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Answer to:
What three ways did William Wordsworth see his poerty as different from others in the past?
I'm not a big Wordsworth fan and only have Lyrical Ballads (which I got more for Coleridge).
In Wordsworth's Preafce to the second edition he says:
"The Principle object then which I proposed to myself in these Poems was to make the incidents of common life interesting by tracing in them, truly though not ostentatiously, the primary laws of our nature: chiefly as regards...
Answer to:
Fill in the blank-"i cant believe BLANK got published!"
"you"
Not you. Just some other "you"... :)
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Answer to:
Are the Harry Potter books great literature, or just 7 long books? Or are they somewhere in between?
If you ask the people who decide what "great literature" is (the academics, the critics, the "intellectuals") then they'll say that they definitely are *not* great literature.
However, if you ask them in 100 years time they'll probably have changed their mind.
(I've read none of them... so I can't say myself).
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Answer to:
If you could have a romance with any fictional character, who would it be?
Sally Bowles from Goodbye to Berlin.
Answer to:
Who is NOT from the United States?
World population = 6.6 billion (approx)
US population = 0.3 billion (approx)
That means that about 6.3 billion people aren't from the US. (I'm one of the 6.3 billion).
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Answer to:
Can you write a condensed version of your life story in Dr. Seuss form?
I was born, yes born I was
I was born in the house because
my mother said, she said I wouldn't
come just yet to be Life's student.
A few years passed, yes passed they did
and I grew up a Scottish kid
then travelled off to sunny climes
(and witnessed a few Apartheid crimes).
Then back we came, yes we came back
to Scotland where the clouds were black
and rain was common,...
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Answer to:
What is you favorite quote from Dante alighieri's Inferno?
I don't have a particular favourite from the Inferno, but I like this one from Paradise (this translation by Mark Musa):
And I was in the sun, no more aware
of my ascent than one can be aware
of how a thought will come before it comes.
She it is, Beatrice, guides our climb
from good to better instantaneously -
her action has no measurement in time.
How brilliant in its essence...
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Answer to:
Do you have one photograph that you like best? Where did you take it? Why do you like it best?
My favourite photograph that I've taken changes all the time...
But for now I'll say this one. It was taken in some woods near my house last summer near sunset. I quite like it. :)
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Answer to:
What famous photograph impacted you the most? Please attach photo if you can.
I remember when I first saw this picture by Sebastião Salgado in the Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow. I loved the busyness of the scene and the simplicity of the composition. I was in awe of it really.
And from then I knew I wanted to learn to take photographs as well as I could. I'm still trying.
(This copy isn't very sharp and it's small... so it won't have...
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Answer to:
How can i link the theme of nature around us ie things like trees, the beach and streams, basically 'earth' to the theme of man-made bridges?
A couple of options:
1) you could make bridges from natural objects - stones, twigs/branches, sand/mud, etc. - and try to get them looking as manmade as possible.
2) take photographs of the places where a bridge touches the earth.
Answer to:
Do you take photos for fun and put them on a personal website?
I put photos on Flickr, here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/deemikay/
And yes, I do it for fun. :)
Answer to:
What's the best type of book to read on a rainy day?
These days it's been lots of Tintin books. :)
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Answer to:
When and under what circumstances did ENGLISH first become our universal language?
Very complicated question that has a thousand answers. I recommend a book called "The Histories of English" by the linguist David Crystal. You can find a review (and ultra-brief summary) here:
http://www.worldwidewords.org/reviews/re-cry1.htm
Answer to:
Have you ever been to North Africa? If not, would you like to go?
I've been to Morocco on two occasions - loved both occasions. The people are friendly and welcoming, the landscape stunning, the country wild, the history amazing.
I'd go back tomorrow.
(And stayed for five years in the country completely opposite it - South Africa.)
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Answer to:
What are some of the bands that have made the music of your homeland great? Please provide vids if possible. I am going to play some of my fave Aussie bands below.
Scotland has had some great bands over the years (though we'll all agree to forget the Bay City Rollers, yeah?)
Some of my faves are The Delgados, The Beta Band, The Vaselines, Belle & Sebastian, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Primal Scream, The Jesus & Mary Chain, Mogwai, even Ivor Cutler, etc. etc.
Well, I think our music's great. :) Here are three for a start.
Answer to:
In Scotland, if someone knocks on your door and needs to use your toilet, you are legally obliged to give them access to it. Thoughts?
As a Scot, I can say that I (and people I know) only became aware of this law a few months ago when it was in the newspapers.
And no-one's ever asked to get into my house before or since.
However, one of my friends from school did let Billy Connoly in to use his toilet when he was making a film in the village. :)
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Answer to:
Does writing poetry come easy for you?
Depends on the poem...
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Answer to:
What type of poetry is suitable for funeral service?
If you want a large selction, then I'd recommend "Do Not Go Gentle: Poems for Funerals" from Bloodaxe Books.
Here's the blurb from Bloodaxe's website: http://www.bloodaxebooks.com/titlepage.asp?isbn=1852246359
If you want some poems pasted here, feel free to ask and I'll trawl some books.
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Answer to:
What is the name of the book closest to you
Tintin and the Picaros
Answer to:
Do you own more or less than 100 books?
I've a couple of hundred poetry books to begin with... and lots of novels, reference books, history books, childrens books, textbooks, etc. It'll be closer to 2000.
So. More than 100 books.
And no, I don't have the space to keep them!
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Answer to:
I dont understand the website, asdfjkl;.com. It makes no sense. What's the point of it anyway? All it does is say thank you every single time I type it something. Someone tell me the point of that website! PLEASE?
The point is to point out that, apparently, everything on the internet has a point. That website has no point, therefore some things on the internet are pointless.
The implication being, perhaps, that most of what's on the internet is pointless.
Quite clever. I approve.
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Answer to:
Do you think everyone has evil in them?
No. I don't believe anyone has "evil" in them.
Answer to:
My full name means princess of the ocean - do you know what your first/last/full name means?
My first name ("David") is from Hebrew and means "beloved".
My second name ("McKelvie") is a Gaelic name from "Mac Giolla Bhuidhe" ("Bh" is pronounced as a "v" in Gaelic and "dh" is silent) and means "son of the yellow lad/boy" - I take this to be a reference to blonde hair and makes me think that the original...
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Answer to:
What font is used in john lennon's Imagine cover?
Short answer... I don't know.
But I got a good approximation of it by stretching "Impact" a bit. However, he dots over the i's are square (I think they're circular on the cover) and the descenders in "j" and "g" don't descend enough.
But I'd say it's quite close.
Answer to:
Can some one give me a haiku about polygons?
I can give you four about four different kinds:
Triangle - simple,
the simplest of polygons -
like one, two and three.
Square - of four, a shape
unseen in any haiku -
where oddness is all.
Octagon - the web
of spiders is strung within
when you disect it.
Irregular - worst
amongst the geometers.
They hate its weak form.
Answer to:
Can someone write a sonnet about proving triangles congruent?
One Shakesperian sonnet in iambic tetrameter.
So I suppose these shapes to be
quite equal, of a sort, the same.
And to demonstrate easily
their congruence I name
the five methods you may apply:
- where all three sides in each collude;
- two angles* and a side comply
(*those who "include" or "non-include");
- the inner angle of two sides;
- where hypotenuse...
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Answer to:
Is Cellar Door really the most beautiful combination of words in the english language? If not, what is?
That's a Tolkein opinion. In an essay he said:
"Most English-speaking people...will admit that cellar door is 'beautiful', especially if dissociated from its sense (and from its spelling). More beautiful than, say, sky, and far more beautiful than beautiful. Well then, in Welsh for me cellar doors are extraordinarily frequent, and moving to the higher dimension, the words...
Answer to:
Is anybody here an architect? If so could you tell me what you think the best university for architecture is?
I'm not. But I work with architects and my father is one...
They would all say that the Mackintosh School of Architecture (part of the Glasgow School of Art) is the best...
This is their website: http://www.gsa.ac.uk/gsa.cfm?pid=11&version=flash&detect=done
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Answer to:
Has there ever been a novel written without any characters?
I'm thinking that if there is, then it's probably French.
One that springs to mind is Georges Perec's "A Man Asleep" - it's all written in the second person ("you" do this, "you" do that) but it can't really be said to have a character *as such*.
The opening lines: "As soon as you close your eyes, the adventure of sleep begins....
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Answer to:
What is true love?
Just last week I bought a second hand copy of The Faber Book of Love Poems edited by Jon Stallworthy. In his introduction he lists some answers that poets have given over the years:
- What is Love? 'tis not hereafter.
- Love is heaven, and heaven is love.
- Love is a sickness full of woes.
- Love is a constant or full constant light.
- Love is not love which alters when its...
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Answer to:
Every art piece has an artistic message. And im given some topics for my art exam and i chose 'Water's Edge'. Can anyone tell me how i should develop a great Idea or message for my final art piece?
How many types of water's edge can you think of? (riverside, sandy beach, rocky beach, lakeside, puddleside, swimming pools, melted icerinks, baths, sinks, dry river beds when they're not dry, etc., etc.) The variety of edges of water can all be compared in some way. (And the hardest sort of water's edge - the thirsty man who can never find water - always on the edge.)
Another...
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Answer to:
How do you trip up amateur grammar Nazis?
Ahhh... the amateur grammar Nazi. My pet hate. :)
Firstly, make sure you know more than they do.
Secondly, arm yourself with some weaponry - I recommend some popular linguistic books (David Crystal is probably the foremost popular *professional* linguist.)
Thirdly, advise them that all spellings and punctuation "rules" are arbitrary parts of Standard English and aren't...
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Answer to:
I really wanted to visit Ireland. I was just wondering a ballpark figure of how much it would cost to go and stay for about a week and a half?
I don't know where you are, so can't comment on the cost of flights.
When you get there and you want cheap you could go to a hostel. This could cost anywhere between $20 and $40 dollars a night.
Answer to:
Which is the mode of travel you enjoy. Is it by Road, Rail or Air, and why?
I usually say that the quality of the travel is related to how far your feet are from the ground. So:
walking = best
car/rail/bus = middle
flying = worst
But I have a soft spot for four-seater planes - I've only been in one, and only for an hour. But that was fantastic. :)
Answer to:
Have you ever written a spoken word poem? If you have it typed up, an HTML link would be nice. Don't worry, I won't steal it.
In my opinion, all poems should be considered "spoken word" poems. Virtually all poetic effects are aural effects afterall. (Rhyme and meter don't really mean anything if read like prose...) And poetry was exclusively an oral art form until quite recently (though it remained so in lots of places).
However, "spoken word poems" are different from "book poems"...
Answer to:
What is the most awe-inspring place that you've ever been to?
Several places...
The Anti-Atlas mountains in Morocco.
The Australian Outback (and the Olgas at sunset)
Sutherland - the very north part of Scotland
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Answer to:
Wonder how did picasso got so famous , a trained chimp could paint as well or better?
A trained chimp could most certainly not paint as well as Picasso.
Lots of people don't seem to know that Picasso was a child prodigy and an expert draughtsman. His style changed radically as he grew older - I imagine he got bored being nothing more than a camera. Would you be happy if you were doing the same thing aged 68 as you were aged 18, 28, 38, etc.?
Here is a link to the...
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Answer to:
Do you have a favorite novel or other piece of literature written before (approximately) 1900?
I like Coleridge and Clare and Blake.
But also much, much older stuff as well - old Anglo-Saxon things, and Gaelic.
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Answer to:
What is your opinion of modern art and architecture?
It really depends on what you're meaning here.
If you're meaning the Modernist movement in art and architecture well, there's a lot of it I like. Modernism began in late 1800s / early 1900s and has pretty much taken over the world and was a well needed kick up the back side for aesthetics (and pretty much all other areas of our society as well).
If you're just meaning...
Answer to:
I have noticed that there is a similiarity in sound between the numbers one to seven and the days Monday through Sunday. Is this a coincidence?
Here are the etymologies of the first four days of the week and the numbers "one", "two", "three" and "four". (anything else would be overkill!). My source is the fabulous www.etymomline.com
****************************
Monday - Old English (O.E.) "monandæg", day of the moon. (Moon from Proto Indo European (PIE) *me(n)ses).
...
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Answer to:
I came across this new translation of the RUBAIYAT. What do you think of this new translation of the RUBAIYAT http://gamahucherpress.yellowgum.com/books/poetry/THE%20RUBAIYAT.pdf
I've got two versions of the Rubaiyat - the famous one by Edward Fitzgerald and another from the late 1970s by Peter Avery and John Heath-Stubbs which calims to be "near literal".
The Fitzgerald version is more of an individual poem inspired by the original.
I'll have a look at this new translation (it's very short - only 24 poems out of Khayyam's 235?!) and...
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Answer to:
Are there any uninteresting numbers?
Only the really big ones that aren't quite big enough to be interesting.
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Answer to:
If the UK were to abolish the monarchy and become a republic, what then would the country be called.
My answer would prpbably be "Great Britain" as the full name of our nation is "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland".
The constitutional problems would be incredible though... and Northern Ireland would probably wonder what happened to their bit of the name!
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Answer to:
What are your feelings about a non fiction book that is written without an index at the end of the book?
I actually do get annoyed... I like books with an index. Novels should have them as well!
My favourite novel. Life A User's Manual by Georges Perec, has an index. :)
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Answer to:
Why does levertov say it does not matter if the secret is forgotten in the poem "the secret"
I think she was meaning that secrets can be found in any lines and that they can be forgotten and then rediscovered in other lines by other poets.
Or rather, she meant that "the secret of life" is inside of people and that poems can act like skeleton keys. Therefore it doesn't matter if they are forgotten/lost/locked-away, because they can be remembered/found/unlocked with...
Answer to:
What is the secret referred to in "the secret"
Well, the second line says that it's the "secret of life". What that meant to the two girls is anyone's guess.
I wonder if the girls (are they still alive?) remember?
Answer to:
Who is your favorite poet, and why? Mine is 'surprise', by Wordsworth! it is the best poem ever that describes the painful reality of death I also like the poems of Shakesphere! Especially the Sonnets! Thank you for your answers
When asked for a favourite poem I usually say Wodwo by Ted Hughes because of the effect it had on me when I first read it (aged about 21 in a library when I should have been studying for exams).
Wodwo by Ted Hughes
What am I? Nosing here, turning leaves over
Following a faint stain on the air to the river's edge
I enter water. Who am I to split
The glassy grain of water looking...
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Answer to:
How do i explain this number patterm? 256,16,4,2?
You really should be doing your only homework... but think about square roots and square numbers.
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Answer to:
Modern written numbers were first developed by the mathematics of what?
The modern decimal number system was developed by mathematicians from India. They passed them to the Arab world and that's where we got them from (and why we call them Arabic numbers).
There's an excellent book about the history of counting (sounds boring, it isn't!) called The Universal History of Numbers by Georges Ifrah. He goes into the origin of the indian digits quite...
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Answer to:
Which books are also connected to the Trojan War (except Iliad and the Odyssey)?
Virgil's Aenied is an epic poem about Aeneus - a Trojan who leaves the city after the war and travels to Italy.
British Poet Christopher Logue has (over the past several decades) written his own version of the Iliad. Collectively, the 4 volumes are called War Music. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_Music
Several Ancient Greek playwrights used it as the background to their plays.
...
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Answer to:
What was the last poem you memorized?
I read lots (and lots) of poetry but hardly ever memorise it.
The last I read was from a book by Alice Oswald which I bought a few days ago.
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Answer to:
Have you ever had an AB Stalker? Someone that either constantly follows your answers and downrates you or snidely comments on your answers? If so, what do you do? (not that I'm having that problem)
Other than one person who keeps making new profiles to downrate one particular question by 1 point at a time, no.
Could I have one please?
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Answer to:
What is a good site where you can rate and comment on others photos? (not flickr please)
Erm... I don't know any others.
What's wrong with Flickr?
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Answer to:
Can I become "cleverer" or am I genetically stuck at a certain level of intelligence?
When I was doing my teacher training a doddery (but wonderful) English lecturer told us all:
"We are born with as much intelligence as we're ever going to have - everything after that is acquisition of knowledge."
I usually believe him.
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Answer to:
Is "asparagus" a plural?
etymonline gives this:
asparagus
late Old English sparage, from Middle Latin sparagus, from Latin asparagus, Greek asparagos, probably from PIE base *sp(h)er(e)g- "to spring up" (though perhaps from a non-Gk. source).
Respelled c.1600 to conform with Greek Sparrowgrass is 17c. folk etymology, persisting into 19c., during which time asparagus had "an air of stiffness and...
Answer to:
What are the last three songs you listened to? Which of these is most out of character for you to listen to?
Tom Waits - That Feel
The Beta Band - Push it Out
Calexico - Quattro
Answer to:
Does reading 200+ books in a year make me nerdy?
As my English teacher told me many years ago... "quality, not quantity, counts".
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Answer to:
Is there ANY good way to use the word "stubborn?" Or is "stubborn" a negative word no matter what?
Imagine a job interview -
Interviewer: "Thanks for listing your 5 million strengths - very informative. Now, do you think you have any weaknesses?"
Candidate: "Well, I suppose I'm quite stubborn."
Interviewer: "Stubborn? In what way?"
Candidate: "When I get given a hard task I have to keep at it - I won't let things defeat me...
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Why and how did the Romans fail to conquer the Whole of Scotland? Why did they not move on to conquer Ireland as well? Did they ever sail towards North or south America or the carribean?
The patriot in me suggests that we were just much much harder than they namby-pamby italians...
But realistically...
The Romans had a presence in most of the country south of the Forth of Clyde (there's a Roman Road very near my house - about two miles away - and the remains of a roman fort on a nearby hill). They penetrated quite fairly far north into the Highlands and along the...
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Answer to:
How often do you read other peoples profiles? Have you read mine?
I love reading people's profiles (reading yours at the moment!) but often there's nothing there to read!
I wish more folk would do something with them... :(
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Answer to:
What were the key reasons for the fall of the Roman Empire?
It took Edward Gibbons 6 very long volumes of "The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" to explain why it happened!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_History_of_the_Decline_and_Fall_of_the_Roman_Empire
I don't think I'd be able to do it any justice at all in a few dozen words in an AB answer. :)
But I'll say: it got too big and then split in two,...
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Answer to:
What is the opposite to utopia
Dystopia is the word used to describe the opposite of a utopia.
Another suggestion is "Somewhere" as the word Utopia literally means "nowhere" - it was invented by Thomas More in the early 1500s and comes from the greek words "ou-" meaning "not" and "-topos" meaning "place.
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Why are numbers after decimals pronounced individually?(Eg. 5.86 as five point eight six and not as five point eightysix)
Because it would require extra words that aren't really needed.
Example: in 5.86, the 8 doesn't represent "eighty" and the 6 doesn't represent "six". They are "eight tenths" and "six hundredths". To say it all out you would have to say: "five and eight tenths and six hundredths"
By the time you got to a number with 5 decimal...
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Answer to:
"H"
Is it pronounced "Haych" or "Aych"?
Depends where you're from. I pronounce it as "aitch" (which, you'll note, doesn't have an "h" sound in it).
I think most Scottish people pronounce it "aitch". But I've met lots of people who say "haitch".
Just like "z" - Americans say "zee", British folk say "zed" - neither is right or wrong.
...
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Do you read the preface in books?
Yes I do. And generally first. (In some cases it's the *only* thing I read... if the preface doesn't convince me why would the book?)
A Scottish writer called Alasdair Gray compiled (and designed/illustrated) a fantastic book called The Book of Prefaces. He gathered hundreds of them from throughout the history of English literature. Check out the "search inside" feature...
Answer to:
Does lemony snicket have a myspace page?
Not that I can find. Nor does Daniel Handler (the author of the books).
Just as a little factoid for those who may not know: Daniel Handler plays accordion. And it's him playing on this song:
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Answer to:
Is there a polite way to ask someone to chew with his/her mouth closed? At school all of the open-mouth-chewers are international students, so I'm assuming their cultures must not consider this behavior rude b/c there are so many people who do this.
There probably is some cultural aspect to this, but not one that I've ever been made aware of. Curiously, it's a British stereotype of Americans that they eat with their mouths open! (A stereotype - I'm not saying it's true!)
Here in Scotland it is also considered rude to chew with your mouth open (and in the rest of the UK).
I personally think it would be better for...
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Answer to:
I'm writing a poem about a blind hitchhiker. What's a word that rhymes with "I don't like the taste of that pickle"?
I don't like the taste of that pickle
unless it's spread on pumpernickel.
OR
I don't like the taste of that pickle
nor the way, up my wrist, it'll trickle.
Ahem. Sorry!
Other rhymes for pickle can be found here:
http://www.rhymezone.com/r/rhyme.cgi?Word=pickle&typeofrhyme=perfect&org1=syl&org2=l
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Answer to:
Have you ever read the poem "The Dash"? What does it mean to you?
I wasn't aware of it until I decided to answer this question.
The full text is here: http://www.lindaslyrics.com/thedashpoem.html
It doesn't really mean much to me. Nice sentiment (though verging into overly sentimental), nice idea, but not a wonderfully written poem.
But the quality of it as a poem doesn't really matter - it's how its audience react to it that count.
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Answer to:
Do you have any suggestions for an aspiring novelist?
Practice.
And make sure you know what your story is about (and how it will end) before you start writing it.
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Answer to:
Who wrote, " "Water, water, every where, and all the boards did shrink; water, water, every where, nor any drop to drink"?
Coleridge in The Rime of Ancient Mariner. The Mariner's ship has found itself stuck on a perfectly calm Pacific Ocean:
Down dropt the breeze, the sails dropt down,
'Twas sad as sad could be ;
And we did speak only to break
The silence of the sea !
All in a hot and copper sky,
The bloody Sun, at noon,
Right up above the mast did stand,
No bigger than the Moon.
Day after...
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Answer to:
Do you like to read classics? If yes, which one is your favorite?
Are you meaning classic novels? Not really, but I hardly read novels at all. If you also mean classic poetry and history, then yes, I do.
My favourite "old" book would probably be William Blake or Coleridge or something. I like much older things as well (Old English, Norse, Gaelic).
Answer to:
What is the origin of the following 2500+ year-old quotation? "For rarely are sons similar to their fathers: most are worse, and a few are better than their fathers."
It's from The Odyssey by Homer.
It's from Book 2. (Section 267 here: http://www.theoi.com/Text/HomerOdyssey2.html )
***
Simon Armitage's recent retelling of The Odyssey (first as a radio play, then as a book) doesn't include anything resembling the line, but I still recommend it.
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Answer to:
Do you go for long walks just to clear your head?
I often go for long walks... it's good thinking time. And with scenery like this where I stay, it's always beautiful as well.
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Answer to:
Does the number of comments you've posted outweigh the number of questions you've answered? Mine do.
My stats are:
Questions: 222
Answers: 1196
Comments: 1541
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Answer to:
What is the first thing you should do from coming back from holiday besides unpacking?
Throw your case/pack down and start telling everyone about all that you did from day 1 to day 14 in minute detail, very quickly and very confusingly.
Then stop when you realise that they all look really bored.
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Answer to:
What books, if any, are you currently reading?
I got several for Christmas that I'm stepping-stoneing through:
A book on consciousness by Douglas Hofstadter
A book of poems by Alice Oswald
A world history book
A history of the English Language book
A book of word origins
A teach yourself German book
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Answer to:
AB Writers out there:
How do you portray the sound of a shriek in writing, besides the usual "Aaahhhh!"?
I wouldn't. I'd just say they shrieked.
The reader's imagination can add the sound in for you.
Answer to:
British artist Damien Hirst has given the Tate collection four of his works, including a replica of his Turner Prize-winning cut-up cows in formaldehyde, the museum said. ITO, is this art?
Do any of the photos below show "art"?
In no particular order they show:
- a decorated pot
- a piece of stone that is claimed to be the earliest sculpture
- an El Greco
- Marcel Duchamp's vandalisation of the Mona Lisa
- a photograph of the Eagle Nebula (with composition and colours chosen by a NASA employee)
- an Andy Goldsworthy nature piece
- aboriginal rock art
-...
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Answer to:
What's your opinion regarding the Dada movement?
Quite literally not to be taken seriously. Except when you should.
***
On a more useful note - it was needed at the time and its influence is still with us. But did it produce any great, lasting art? Possibly only Duchamp's Fountain.
It's worth probably lies in being a state of mind and way of viewing the world that influenced many art movements afterwards.
A negative...
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Answer to:
What do you think of the theory that claims that entities' (objects) attributes are there when you look and not there when you don't?
It's less of a theory, more of a philosophy. And it places lots of importance on observers - do we will the world into existence?
But quantum physics has sort of encouraged the idea. Some fundamental particles behave differently when they are being looked at.
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Answer to:
Can books change your outlook on life?
Two books:
1) A collection of short stories called Labyrinths by an argentinian writer - Jorge Luis Borges http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jorge_Luis_Borges
2) A collection of poems called Crow by Ted Hughes http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crow_%28poetry%29
Both of these changed the way I read. And because that's such an important part of who I am, they changed me.
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Answer to:
Why are ABers so anal about grammar and punctuation?
points are awarded but don't mean squat?
I'm not. I believe (as do linguists the world over) that if something is understood, it's correct.
Most people who nark on about rules of grammar have no idea where the rules came from in the first place.
And it's rare for an "incorrectly" punctuated sentence to cause confusion.
So I'll repeat my statement: if a sentence/question is understood, it is...
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Answer to:
How many lines are there in a sonnet?
Interesting question because it's not always 14...
Sonnets generally (though not always) have a set number of syllables per line. Most of Shakespeare's (all but one, I think) were in "iambic pentameter" which means there are 10 syllables per line.
So imagine a poet wants to write a sonnet, and halfway though a 10 syllable line they want to split the thought or...
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Answer to:
What song is stuck in your head at this moment and is it pleasant or driving you mad. Is there a story behind it being stuck in your head?
Caribou by The Pixies...
RED HAAAAAAAAAAAAANDS! (That's what I used to think he sang... so I still sing it)
It's in my head becasue I'm playing it.... I like it. :)
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Answer to:
What do you think of the news that Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was killed in a gun and bomb attack today?
I think it's terrible news for the whole region. She was no saint (think of all the corruption charges/allegations) but her death (and the riots, fighting that will probably follow) will give the military dictatorship the opportunity to reinstate the state of emergency and perhaps conveniently forget the elections they promised in January.
Terrible news.
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Answer to:
Is it fair to insult someone by calling them 'uneducated'?
I'll answer with another question: is it "fair" to insult someone?
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Answer to:
What is your greatest desire?... ( what have u alwase dreamed of doing? )
I've only one and that's to write better...
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Answer to:
Why does it seem that people who don't believe in god are defensive about their position and agressive toward believers?
I'm neither defensive about my atheism, nor am I aggresive towards religious people. In fact, I find them very interesting and like to learn as much from them as possible.
But some people aren't as comfortable in their beliefs as I am. This may be a national thing (I'm in the UK).
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Answer to:
I come from Germany and I want to know what you think when you hear something about Germany?
I've been to Germany twice and can say that all the people I met there were wonderful and friendly and helpful - and most spoke English, which helped little ignoramus me... but I'm starting German lessons next month. :)
If anyone's interested, here are some photos I took when there: http://www.flickr.com/photos/deemikay/sets/72157601442173728/
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Answer to:
What do you think of when you think of Germany?
I think of happy memories... I visted a friend there two weeks ago and drank lots of gluhwein in the Christmas markets. :)
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Answer to:
Name the top 3 magizines that you read.
Times Literary Supplement
New Scientist
The PN Review
Answer to:
Where did the tradition of giving a lump of coal for Christmas originate?
Here in Scotland it's a New Year tradition... visitors to your house should bring a lump of coal for good luck. We have a saying as well to go with it: "Lang may yer lum reek!" (translated: "long may your chimney smoke.")
I always assumed that it goes back to old pagan fire ceremonies... in lots of places in Celtic Scotland large bonfires were lit at new year. They...
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Answer to:
If the whole world was voting for World Leader and you won what would you do?
Resign. Public opinion has resulted in some very bad leaders in the past! I'd be no different...
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Answer to:
Generally speaking, do girls prefer guys with long or short hair?
I've always liked short hair on women...
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Answer to:
What is the first thing you think of if I say lollipops?
Serge Gainsbourg unfortunately... :os
Answer to:
Do you know when (and how) to swallow your pride and walk away from an argument?
Rarely.
Answer to:
I do not care one bit if me saying anything about Christmas, God or Jesus Christ offends someone. Is that wrong of me?
Well, possibly. We are all members of a society and we need to get along (lots of nastiness and bloody noses and intolerances happen otherwise).
So it's in a society's best interest (and therefore the best interest of its members - you can't have one without the other) that people don't go around offending others.
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Answer to:
Are you aware that "alot' is wrong? "Alot" should be spelled "a lot". It's TWO separate words, not one; not a compound word either. Is this common error anyone else's pet peeve?
Well, as so many people use it as one word I'd say it'll not be too long until it's in various dictionaries.
etymonline.com says that the first written use of the word "lot" to mean, well, lots of things is only from 1812. I bet there were people then saying "'lot' doesn't mean "many things, it's wrong to do so!"
...
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Answer to:
Has Christianity outlived its usefulness
Not at all.
Lots of Christian groups (Tha Salvation Army being the first that come to mind) are currently out on the streets of lots of cities in the devloped and the devloping world helping people as I type.
I'd say they're being quite useful.
Answer to:
Am I the only person on AB who is fed up with people of THEIR OWN faith acting like jerks, or having the "holier that thou" attitude?
I've been having discussions on here recently with other atheists (I am one).
Some may consider that I've been acting "like a jerk". But only because I believe that militant atheists (the type that say: "religious people are idiots or dangerous, often both") are not a helpful force in the world. Because of that I've been getting into lots of discussions....
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Answer to:
How high is the morality level of the average Answerbagger?
I don't know about anyone else, but show me an lost wallet in the street and, well....
Ahem.
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Answer to:
What is New Year's Eve called in Scotland?
Hogmanay... and sometimes pronounced "hugmanay" by us locals as well.
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Answer to:
It is true the the name prefix 'Mc' can be an alternate form of 'Mac' as in Macdonald and McDonald...BUT is it also permissible to use 'M'Donald?? I was told by my Scottish relations that this is acceptable. Is it really?
Mc and Mac are both the same thing... MacDonald and McDonald are the same name, the same clan. In spoken language they usually sound the same, but if we want to say the difference we will emphasise "mack"/"mick" for mac/mc.
We tend to stick to whichever form is used in our family. My name is McKelvie and while some people could write it MacKelvie, I would always correct...
Answer to:
Do you feel that all riddles are word games but only some word games are riddles?
"Turn cat into dog by changing one letter at a time" isn't a riddle, but it is a word game.
cat
rat
rot
dot
dog
So, to answer your question: yes. :)
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Answer to:
Santa Claus has been nailed to a crucifix outside a suburban US home in a bizarre protest against the commercialisation of Christmas. http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=339781 Has this guy lost the plot? He has his metaphors really mixed.
Well and truly lost the plot... Hopefully someone has told him....
The "Chocolate Jesus" art installation this year was a much better protest against the commercialisation of Christmas.
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Answer to:
Have you booked your 2008 holiday...where are you going?
Good question... I haven't yet. But I've been thinking hard about where to go and not got anywhere firm yet.
2007 was the first year this century that I never left Europe, so I definitely want to go to some other continent. I like remote wilderness - any suggestions?
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Answer to:
Which writer is known as the man who saved Christmas and what did he save?
Are you meaning William Winstanley?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=503572&in_page_id=1770
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Answer to:
Shall we make a Saturday photo-corner here?
Sounds good to me.... But Saturday was 13 minutes ago for me! (Is it really 00:13?!) But as no-one has posted here for some time I'll do the honours. :)
Here's a picture I took in Germany a couple of weeks ago.
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Answer to:
Do you prefer taking landscape photos or person photos?
I don't know which I prefer... I think it's harder to take an interesting landscape photo than it is portrait. Or maybe it's the other way around? Mmm... I dunno. lol
I like taking both. But I've taken more landscapes than portraits.
Answer to:
Can we see the last picture you took with your camera?
This rather boring one that I took yesterday morning out of the back window...
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Answer to:
What is the name of the Dr. Seuss book about the little girl that had a flower growing out of her head?
It is Daisy-Head Mayzie. I haven't read this one...
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Answer to:
The Archbishop of Wales has attacked "atheistic fundamentalism" - what are your views? (News story in my first answer)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/7156783.stm
Answer to:
Could we solve the worlds energy crisis by genetically engineering the next generation of humans to be half the size? Then everything else could be made smaller and need less energy to heat and fuel. Less food would be eaten too. There would be more room.
With brains half the size they are? Is that wise? As a race we're stupid enough as is!
:)
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Answer to:
Whats with all the grouchy people on here that feel their opinion is more important than other peoples? Anyone else noticed these idiots slating everyones answers?
People are very passionate about what they say, else they wouldn't give an answer. And lots of questions are asked to get a reaction - and reacting to rections is very normal.
And the comments box doesn't help - 1000 characters only? That means people have to fit their arguments into tiny spaces. This allows people to extrapolate widely on what they think people said.
People...
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Answer to:
What is the most unusual book that you've ever read?
A "novel" called The Age of Wire and String by Ben Marcus. All very clever, I suppose... but not exactly enjoyable.
Not recommended.
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Answer to:
Do things need to be proven or disproven before one can decide whether or not to believe them?
No.
I believe that Neptune is a planet, but I've never been given any direct proof. Yes, I've seen photographs and read about it in books. But how do I know they're real? What proof is there that their proof satisfies my curiosity?
Virtually everything is a belief of some sort with no actual proof - we get most of our facts about the wider world second/third/fourth/etc...
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Answer to:
Why aren't women wooed by poetry anymore? I can write some of the best poetry ever and maybe make them shed a tear but nothing more.. or atleast I think..
Is poetry something to help you get laid? Really?
I think there are much better things to do with poetry than wooing women... and "must write poetry to woo women with" isn't perhaps high on the list for women searching for a future mate.
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Answer to:
How many of poet Emily Dickinson’s poems were published in her lifetime?
I'm a bit confused as to the right answer... I've found a few!
My small selcted poems of hers (with introduction by Ted Hughes) says that she published only 6. But my Heath Anthology of American Literature says that she published 10.
Whatever it was, it was very few... and what few were were heavily edited by publishers.
Answer to:
Have you ever written a poem you are actually proud of?
Erm, several.
The rest of the world often disagrees though. :)
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Answer to:
I have just started reading the book "the god delusion" by Richard Dawkins, and i find it fascinating. hae you read or heard of it, and what did you think?
oops...
Answer to:
Woohoo! Leon just won X-Factor! Who would like to give a big cheer to the Scot?
Now, the first I've watched this series of The X Factor is an hour of tonight's final and I have to ask: how the heck did he win?! Rhydian had a better voice, more style, more performance ability, much more of a personality. Why did people vote for Leon??
PS I am Scottish. But that doesn't mean I support people just because they're from Scotland...
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Answer to:
Have you ever read one of your own answers and realised it made you sound like a total you-know-what? Which one?
Oh, constantly.
I think virtually every answer of mine makes me sound a complete you-know-what.
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Answer to:
I have just started reading the book "the god delusion" by Richard Dawkins, and i find it fascinating. hae you read or heard of it, and what did you think?
I've not read the book but I know Dawkins' arguments well enough - he had a tv series in the uk a few years back, and I have read some of his popular books on biology.
I'm an atheist myself, but I don't particularly like him or his arguments - he is far too angry for me, too self-righteous, too fundamentalist. Far too dismissive of people with sincere faiths. He also...
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Answer to:
Why does a negative number times a negative number equal a positive number? And how can I explain it to my 11 year old daughter? (She doesn't get it.)
One way of looking at it is this:
If you multiply a positive number by a negative number the sign changes i.e. 2 x -1 = -2
So, if you multiply a negative number by a negative number, the sign *also* changes.
Does this help?
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Answer to:
Except for religious references such as the Bible, what was the last book that you read that was written before the 19th century?
I'm still reading a chapter every now and then of the Orkneyinga Saga - an old Viking history of the Orkney Islands in Scotland, written around 1200AD. It's very episodic, so you can pick up and carry on very easily.
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Answer to:
Do you like to read books?
I find more and more people just aren't into reading the way they used to years ago. Do you still go to the library or book store and get books? Or do you do all your reading online and rely on TV and movies for the rest?
I read (and own) lots of books. I buy them mainly. I see lots of people reading on the train as I go to work.
But remember that we are very privileged - we can read. What percentage of the population of the Western World could read 150 years ago? We produce and read more books now than at any other point in human history.
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Answer to:
I love writing stories and I'm always coming up with great beginnings, but after a few days of pounding on the keyboard, I can't think of a good ending! It's easy for me to write beginnings but not endings! I only have 1 finished story! Ideas? Reasons?
Reasons for not being able to finish stories are perhaps because, as you say, you only come up with beginnings.
When thinking up a story think of:
a) the whole story (i.e. "the story of a man/woman who does x" and then expand it)
or b) the ending (it's better to know your destination and then work out how to get there rather than just leave the house and wander).
...
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Answer to:
In your opinion, what is "good" writing? What is "bad" writing? Why is "good" writing important?
"Good" writing is what is considered "good" writing. Considered by whom? Society and especially those in power (I'm meaning intellectuals and academics and politicians and business people and teachers etc. etc.). "Bad" writing is what they don't like.
"Good" writing is important only if you want to get ahead in an aspect of society that...
Answer to:
In one of my class i need to make a poem, and im not good with poems. can some one help me?
the subject is about winter
If you're struggling with a poem on a particular subject try to look at it differently.
You've been asked to write a poem about winter - does that necessarily mean snow and ice? What about winter in the desert? And where it's winter in the northern hemisphere, it's summer in the southern. Write about winter somewhere else (on the moon?) - you can use your imagination...
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Answer to:
What was Australian Brett Whiteley best known for?
He was a painter and visual artist. I have three memories of him:
1) Billy Connolly talking to his widow Wendy when he made a series about Australia.
2) The gigantic burned match and unburned match sculpture outside of an art gallery in central Sydney.
3) Driving several thousand kilometres through Australia in a van painted in his style - it was a "Wendy" painting and had...
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Answer to:
Can you recommend some poetry, or any particular poet? Make it your favorite! I like any kind, but I'm looking for something new.
I've put lots of poems I like on this blog here: http://frombooksofpoems.blogspot.com/2006/10/contents.html
Feel free to have a read. :)
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Answer to:
What’s the difference between a metonymy and a synecdoche?
Metonymy - "a figure of speech that consists of the use of the name of one object or concept for that of another to which it is related, or of which it is a part"
Synecdoche - "a figure of speech in which a part is used for the whole or the whole for a part"
I would say that synecdoche is particular type of metonymy. Synecdoche seems to me to require that the word...
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Answer to:
Does anybody know any amazing poems they would like to share?
I know lots. :)
I have a little online anthology of poems that I build up on an irregular basis. Generally, they are poems from books and magazines that I really like. But I am open to anyone suggesting any additions to it.
Please feel free to visit and comment here:
http://frombooksofpoems.blogspot.com/2006/10/contents.html
Answer to:
Do you agree with: you can't knock it till you try it?
No I don't agree with you... I ain't tasting no cat piss. :os
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Answer to:
Have you ever cried while reading a book?
Yes. Once in public as well...
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Answer to:
If you write poetry, do you write it for private reading or for public reading, or both? Why?
I'll steal the words of one of my favourite poets, RS Thomas.
He said: "You write a poem for yourself initially. And if anyone wants to get involved, well, there you go..."
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Answer to:
What's the first and last word of the first poem you've written?
You expect me to remember??
I wrote lots when I was at primary school in South Africa. The only one I can remember was one about Autumn. But that's only remembering that I wrote it, not remembering what I wrote. And we didn't have proper Autumns there... so it was a poem about remembering what autumn was like... :)
Answer to:
What type of a poet was William Blake?
Unique. Or pre-Romantic. Or visionary. Or mad.
All four. And he was quite a good one as well. :)
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Answer to:
Who wrote, “To see a world in a grain of sand, And a heaven in a wild flower, Hold infinity in the palm of your hand. And eternity in an hour.”?
That would be William Blake who was 250 yesterday. Oh, that's right... he's dead. :)
Answer to:
From a scientific perspective: are memes real? If so, what are they? If not, are they scientific?
And again... grrr...
Answer to:
From a scientific perspective: are memes real? If so, what are they? If not, are they scientific?
oops... should've been a comment.
Answer to:
Have you ever fallen in love with a character in a book?
Oh, yes... I fell in love with Sally Bowles in Goodbye to Berlin by Christopher Isherwood.
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Answer to:
Do you enjoy poetry, or do you find it a waste of time?
Do you mean reading it or writing it?
It's as much a waste of time as listening to music or reading a book or taking a walk in the park.
Answer to:
I'm looking for music industry info. what degrees would i need to work at virgin records or something? or be a producer or just work on a production team. i'd love to play music but it's a risky career choice sometimes.
I don't know what country you're from... Here in the UK lots of colleges do music production courses which would obviously supply all the technical details you'd need to know.
Something else you could try: find out if there's a recording studio somewhere near you (yellow pages might help). Send a letter, or telephone, explaining that it's a field you'd quite...
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Answer to:
Which is the best band from the 80's
That would be The Pixies.
Answer to:
Did Cat Stevens give up music or sell out to religion?
He had a new album out this year or last. The critics seemed to like it, but I haven't heard it.
And I'm sure he wouldn't consider coverting to Islam as "selling out".
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Answer to:
I am into any type of music however my 30 gig Ipod has a mere 600 songs :( Can you guys give me as many songs as you like from your taste, so I could get them and put them on my Ipod please?
Explore my last.fm profile (and others as well) and see what I've been listening to.
http://www.last.fm/user/deemikay/
It also gives you recommendations based on the kind of music you like. Which is nice of them. :)
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Answer to:
What is that really kinda mellow bagpipe song called? It sounds like it should be played right before a huge battle or something. Please help me!
You'll have to help us first by being a bit more specific! Did you hear it in a film? On tv? On the radio?
Was it bagpipes or some other kind of pipes?
Answer to:
What is the difference between attractive, beautiful and sexy?
Attractive means you don't mind looking.
Beautiful means you can't stop looking.
Sexy is something different and generally related to the contents of trousers.
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Answer to:
Who thinks they can take the most intresting photo of their hand?
Because my last answer wasn't really a picture of my hand here are a couple I've just taken.
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Answer to:
Who thinks they can take the most intresting photo of their hand?
My hand is in here... it's an 8 second exposure which I held my hand in front of for about 3 seconds.
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Answer to:
Which is the shortest poem you wrote?
Probaly a couple of lines.
But this reminds me of a poem written by the Frenchman Francois Le Lionnais. Here it is:
T.
(In French is would be said "tay").
He wrote about it: "I fear that the reduction of a poem to a single letter may lie on the far side of acceptable limit. But there's nothing wrong with having fun, is there? In any event the author has no...
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Answer to:
How successful are nutmeg trips? Dosage for a 16 year old - 118lb female? What sort of effects are there?
Wikipedia - the font of all knowledge - tells us:
In low doses, nutmeg produces no noticeable physiological or neurological response. Large doses of 30 g (~6 teaspoons) or more are dangerous, potentially inducing convulsions, palpitations, nausea, eventual dehydration, and generalized body pain. In amounts of 5–20 g (~1-4 teaspoons) it is a mild to medium hallucinogen, producing visual...
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Answer to:
Care to post an interesting photo of something?
According to Flickr this is what people regard as my most "interesting" photo... who am I to disagree?
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Answer to:
Any thoughts on Rilke and his work?
Not particularly as I've never read anything by him. though lots of poets I like like him. And Don Paterson (a Scottish poet) has released a "version of" his Orpheus poems this year or last.
I may pick something up by him.
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Answer to:
What's your favorite T.S. Eliot poem, stanza, line?
His mind is engaged in a rapt contemplation
Of the thought, of the thought, of the thought of his name:
His ineffable effable
Effanineffable
Deep and inscrutable singular Name.
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Answer to:
Born in Scotland, Scottish parents, lived in Greece for 10ys before coming back to Scotland for Uni. Have been here for over 3 years now. Am I officially resident here, or does it not count because I'm at Uni?
Mmm... I'd say that because you have a UK passport (I presume) and that you stay here you are both UK resident and citizen.
I'm not quite sure how it works with (lack of) tuition fees in that situation - I was lucky enough to study in the days before all that nonsense!
Answer to:
Do you think anyone is really going to buy a Answerbag t-shirt?
What's a t-shirt? :oS
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Answer to:
Is it looked down upon to ask a question that one is perfectly capable of finding out oneself (Internet, dictionary, etc)?
I would hope not.
Otherwise AB would get filled up with "conversational" questions instead of "educational" ones. (The ones in the middle are always problematic...)
I would hope AB and it's users would like to see it as, in principle, a depository of knowledge. That includes knowledge of simple facts.
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Answer to:
Apparently, the universe is 78 billion light years across. How do we know this?
Further to my previous answer - this is very interesting:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observable_universe#Misconceptions
Answer to:
Apparently, the universe is 78 billion light years across. How do we know this?
I'd imagine it comes from some number crunching based on the rate at which the galaxies are moving away from one another and how old they suppose the universe to be:
distance = speed x time
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Answer to:
Who wrote 'Anthem for doomed youth'?
Wilfred Owen:
What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?
Only the monstrous anger of the guns.
Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle
Can patter out their hasty orisons.
No mockeries for them from prayers or bells,
Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs,—
The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells;
And bugles calling for them from sad shires.
...
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Answer to:
Whose america's greatest poet?
I quite like Wallace Stevens... but my knowledge of American poets is quite slim.
(And I think of Sylvia Plath as essentially a British poet... she was part of the British scene of the time.)
Answer to:
Have you ever written any poems about peace/war or do you know some good ones? will you please post them?
A couple of years back a British poet called David Harsent published a book called Legion. The first section is full of poems about an unnamed war. Here's one of them (with Harsent reading it as well):
http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/singlePoem.do?poemId=6414
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Answer to:
What are your feelings about poetry?
Excellent question... but how to answer? I've spent quite a few years reading, writing and discussing poems. And what do I know about poetry now that I didn't when I first came to love it? Not much...
I know that most poems I read are quite mediocre. They don't really do anything to me. I can't like everything, and I wouldn't want to. But I know that when I come...
Answer to:
Do you think the world will end with a bang or a whimper? Do you agree with T.S. Elliot?
I's rather not agree with Eliot on many things...
But here we go round the prickly pear? Yes, lots of prickly pears. So whimper's probably along the right lines...
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Answer to:
Can you give a good example of an onomatopeia (a word that imitates the sound something makes)?
beep
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Answer to:
I'm in an artistic mood, but I'm feeling very uninspired. Forget quotes, I need suggestions! I want to SAY something, but I don't know what to say! I can write, make collages, anything, but I need a subject! Help?
There's one staring you right in the face.... why don't you say what you can't say? Use words to try and find out what that is. Write about being unable to write.
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Answer to:
Will you post one of your favorite poems?
The first that came to mind was this by the Scottish Poet George Mackay Brown:
A Work for Poets by George Mackay Brown
To have carved on the days of our vanity
A sun
A ship
A star
A cornstalk
Also a few marks
From an ancient forgotten time
A child may read
Then not far from the stone
A well
Might open for wayfarers
Here is a work for poets -
Carve the runes
Then be...
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Answer to:
Are you a yooz-er or a y'all-er?
As a resident of the United Kingdom I beleive the correct plural form of "you" should be "yooz" as in: "Will yooz help me, please?" and "Yooz are talking nonsense".
"Y'all" will never do!
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Answer to:
Would any of my fellow AB ers care to join in the movement to add "y'all" to the dictionary as the official plural form of you?
Never! I'd like to set up the counter-movement which wishes to make "yooz" the official plural form...
And all yooz y'all folk will just have to put up with it!
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Answer to:
Are you going to participlate in NaNoWriMo? (www.nanowrimo.org)
No I'm not - I don't write fiction. But a friend of mine insists that she is going to - though she said it last year as well!
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Answer to:
Do you think kilts are sexy?
Aren't Scots sexy full stop? :op
Answer to:
If you had a band, what would you name it? Why? What genre of music would you play?
A few options:
1) The Tin Drum
2) Gravity's Pull
3) The Curfew
4) The Stinking Blisters
etc.
But I don;t want to be in a band, so feel free to steal. :)
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Answer to:
How many music-playing devices do you have?
one acoustic guitar
one electric guitar
one bass guitar
one mandolin
one lute
one strange stringed instrument that's completely unplayable
one accordion
one zither
one pigskin drum
one set of congas
one melodica
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Answer to:
I am looking for a non-religious poem or reading for a funeral, he was deaf and i wanted to encorporate that somehow as it played such a majour role in his life. Can anyone help?
The first one that came to my mind is one by the Scots poet Norman MacCaig. It's called "Blind Horse" and while not about deafness it has a strong sense of struggling and surviving, despite the disability. It's a poem about stoicism, about battling on, despite the odds.
************************
Blind Horse - Norman MacCaig
He snuffles towards
pouches of water in...
Answer to:
What was brillig and what in heck is a slithey tove?
Humpty Dumpty has all the answers... or maybe just one? Maybe Humpty wanted to throw Alice off the cent and keep the toves all slithey for himself that brillig?
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Answer to:
What is the best explanation you have heard for the Hallow'een costume of carrying a lit Pumpkin-head/turnip-head/whatever-head ? Is their any historic/mythological/other root of it apart from people wanting some light to see by?
The theory I've heard (linked to one of Taylor's theories in another answer) is that it's a continuation of an old celtic belief in the power of the head - they used the heads of their enemies to scare folk. Obviously, once Britain became Christian the cutting off of heads for these purposes was frowned upon!
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Answer to:
What does your desktop look like? Post a picture!
It's a bit messy at the mo... must tidy it up!
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Answer to:
Would you convert for the person you love?
To quote a certain supersize singer (whom I've never really wanted to quote before now): I would do anything for love, but I won't do that...
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Answer to:
Does anyone know where I could "upload" stories or books. I write stories and I want to share them with everybody. =)
You could always start a blog and then get sociable... I use www.blogger.com
Answer to:
How would you describe your day today?( in less then three words)
Muddy. Sunny. Windy.
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Answer to:
Name something that is wrong?
The word "wrong" is obviously wrong - because it's the right word. Which makes it right, not wrong. Right?
I'm confused...
Answer to:
Do you own more Books or DVD's? Is it sad that this is near rhetorical?
I own precisely no DVDs. I have a couple of thousand books though.
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Answer to:
How do interperte sonnets?
The same way you interpret any poem...
But classically there were rules as to how a sonnet got built.
Italian sonnets were split into two sections (8 lines and 6 lines) - the second part was a resolution to the "problem" raised in the first. The ninth line marked a "volta", a turn, where the mood/point/tone of the poem changed.
Shakesperian sonnets are generally...
Answer to:
How do think art should be priced? And do you find it helps to know the process - as in how much work went into the piece - to justify the expense?
Money ruins art. So artists should get paid for time -say £5/$10 an hour - and cost of materials.
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Answer to:
What narrative technique do James Joyce and William Faulkner use in their novels?
Stream of consciousness - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stream_of_consciousness_writing
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Answer to:
If you were a work of art, who would have created you and why?
I'd have been created by some nobody in the back of beyond - I'd have stayed in their garage and when the nobody died someone would have come along, spotted it, saying: "Oh, I didn't know he did art..."
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Answer to:
What religions still do animal sacrifice?
I was in a church in southern mexico a few years ago that calls itself Catholic but has been excommunicated by the Vatican. They were killing chickens at the altar when I was there.
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Answer to:
What poem/song, usually attributed to a 19th Century Irish poet of note, was not entirely authored by that poet and makes an obscure reference to willow trees?
Could we have some more clues please?
Answer to:
What is your favourite work by Edgar Allan Poe?
I don't like his poetry, and it's been years since I read any of his stories. But I do remember liking The Masque of the Red Death an awful lot.
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Answer to:
Would you help me to collect short counting poems of children, like in Hungarian: "ekete-pekete-akata-ke-ka, abel-fabel-domine, csiszli-a-csiszli-be, abel-fabel-domine " what doesn't mean anything, only nice?
Here are some:
Inty, tinty, tethery, methery,
Bank for over, Dover, ding.
***
Vizzery, vazzery, vozzery vem,
Tizzery, tazzery, tozery tem,
Hiram, Jiram, cockrem, spirem,
Poplar, rollin, gem.
***
Hana, mana, mona, mike;
Barcelona, bona, strike;
Hare, ware, frown, venac;
Harrico, warrico, we, wo, wac.
(American from the early 1800s)
***
Ena, mena, mona, mite,
...
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Answer to:
Isn't a single, heartfelt "thank you" given by someone because you helped with an answer (specially when they have a personal issue), much more rewarding that any ammount of points you might receive? Sometimes it puts things into perspective.
It is indeed! But then, I'm a member of the Get-Rid-Of-Points club... :)
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Answer to:
First film to use sound
From Wikipedia:
"... An improved cylinder-based system, Phono-Cinéma-Théâtre, was developed by Clément-Maurice Gratioulet and Henri Lioret of France, allowing short films of theater, opera, and ballet excerpts to be presented at the Paris Exposition in 1900. These appear to be the first publicly exhibited films with projection of both image and recorded...
Answer to:
When describing the meter in poetry, how would you know if a syllable is "stressed" or "unstressed"?
Tap your finger to the beat it makes...
It's easier to hear with nursery rhymes. In this one I've capitalised the stressed syllables. (Stressed to my ear at least):
JACK and JILL went UP the HILL
to FETCH a PAIL of WA-TER
JACK fell DOWN and BROKE his CROWN
and JILL came TUMbling AF-TER.
You can see that there are four beats (stressed syllables) to the line. Think of a...
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Answer to:
What do you think is the most important literary technique or device?
Mmmm... another answer of mine to this question was downgraded. My answer was: "Putting words in the right order... ".
I stand by that answer.
To clarify: What is the most important part of creating a work of literature? It's being in total control of the words at your disposal, it's knowing when to do what, it's being able to get any effect you want. It is,...
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Answer to:
What is sentimental art?
Something that makes you go "awww..." but doesn't make you think.
Answer to:
If you're over 30 and never been married, why is that?
Because I've never met anyone I want to marry...
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Answer to:
Why are people from Scotland more prominent in UK politics?
Maybe they're better politicians?
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Answer to:
Why is it that there are more people remembered in history for mass murder and brutal actions than healing and peace?
They make good copy.
Stories about people doing nice things are generally perceived as boring... so I blame the audience.
Answer to:
What do you think is the most important literary technique or device?
Putting words in the right order...
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Answer to:
What is your nomination for the worst horror movie?
There was this one I saw years ago... about some nun in Austria and children and singing and Nazis. "Sound of Music" or something...
Didn't scare me at all!
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Answer to:
Would you consider yourself a good drawer?
I'm terrible... hence why I take photographs - it's much easier. :)
Answer to:
Have any pictures of gorgeous eyes?
Someone once said his eyes were "gorgeous" in this photo...
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Answer to:
Are there more people of color(non-white) in the world than white(white only)
What's white?
If the English are "white" then the French are "white".
If the French are "white" then the Italians are "white".
If the Italians are "white" then the Greeks are "white".
If the Greeks are "white" then the Turks are "white".
If the Turks are "white" then the Syrians are...
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Answer to:
IN Australia, tonight is a "blue moon" (the second full moon in a month. How did a "blue moon" get its name? I can see how it then became applied to something that is uncommon but where did it originate?
My dictionary of idioms says this:
"The allusion to the moon being blue goes back at least to a 1528 rhyme:
Yf they say the mone is blewe,
We must beleve that it is true."
Etymonline gives:
"Blue moon emblematic of 'very rarely' suggests something that, in fact, never happens (cf. at the Greek calends), as in this couplet from 1528:
[same as above]"...
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Answer to:
Who is going to win rugby cup?
Let's see...
1) I'm Scottish. So I hope South Africa win. (We Scots are awkward like that...)
2) I used to stay in South Africa. So I hope South Africa win.
And even if I remove those two prejudices I still think SA will win.
Answer to:
Does Bribery work to win elections?
Tell me that I might have a tax rebate in my salary and I'll consider voting for you...
Answer to:
What has NOT had a "for dummies" book written about it? (humor please)
Dummies for Dummies
(But it doesn't really work in the US - you call them pacifiers, yeah?)
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Answer to:
Has a book ever been remade, like movies and music (covers) are?
Plenty of books have been inspired by others. Some tell the story from another point of view
- see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wicked_%28novel%29 compared with The Wizard of Oz. You could almost say Wicked is a cover version of The WoOz.
Another more extreme idea of the remade book (but one that was never actually written) is in a short story by the Argentinian writer Borges:...
Answer to:
Do you take good photos?
I hope so. Judge for yourself: http://www.flickr.com/photos/deemikay/
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Answer to:
Given that you were going to spend $1000 on a piece of artwork, do you think it would be an original painting, drawing, a print, lithograph, or sculpture? What would it be of: abstract, a scene, flowers, nature, or have people as the subject matter?
I would never spend that kind of money on a piece of art. Is any art worth any money? *Should* art be worth money?
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Answer to:
What is a loaded question? Is this question loaded?
Why are you asking?
:o|
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Answer to:
Whats this for?
It's called an apostrophe... I think you dropped it from between your "what" and your "s"... :op
Joke!
Answer to:
Who wrote "Beauty is truth, truth beauty,' -- that is all Ye know on Earth, and all ye need to know"?
Keats. And he was wrong.
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Answer to:
Is there an original copy of 'The Odyssey' by Homer? If so, where is it now?
There is no evidence that Homer ever existed and it's generally believed that the Iliad and the Odyssey are examples of oral poetry created by more than one person before the 8th century BC and only written down after this.
Wikipedia gives this:
"Exactly when these poems would have taken on a fixed written form is subject to debate. The traditional solution is the...
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Answer to:
Why are you on your computer right now instead of getting some fresh air and enjoying the outdoors.
Because it's dark and wet outside...
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Answer to:
What three poems describe your life up until now?
An almost impossible question for me! It's like asking me what three meals describe my life, or three pairs of shoes, or three novels, or three films... poems are just an integral part of what I do that I can't relate just three to my life.
But if forced, I'd have to go for just one - Wodwo by Ted Hughes.
Here's the poem at an anthology site with a little piece I...
Answer to:
What is the name of the book closest to you
Two are about the same distance:
"Collins German Phrasebook" and "Collected Poems 1945 - 1990 by RS Thomas"
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Answer to:
Al Gore just won the Nobel Peace Prize, what do you think about that?
Al Gore only won half the prize - the other half went to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). I see nothing wrong with this - I've pasted a list of reasons for awards since 1997 below. Some are vague, some are specific - this year's prize could maybe be compared to Médecins Sans Frontières' win in 1999 - that doesn't mention "peace"....
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Answer to:
Who or what was the last picture that you took of?
I took several pictures of this cow... this may or may not have been the last one:
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Answer to:
How and where can I find a photographer who takes professional, decent and tasteful naked photos of people in England?
I'll volunteer. :)
But my pictures may not be what you're looking for!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/deemikay/collections/
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Answer to:
What do you do when a 17 teen year old girl plays cute with you
Depends how old "I" am... I (as in me) am 30. I'd probably tell her to stop being silly.
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Answer to:
What do you think of black and white photography?
Well, I like it.
B&W was the first ot be used for arty shots, so that's why we associate it with arty shots.
But I can only think of it in opposition to colour photography. I like both - but colour is harder to do because there are more variables (i.e. the whole spectrum!)
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Answer to:
Do you know how to operate a fully manual film SLR camera?
Yes.
Erm... that's as broad an answer I can give! :)
| 1 person likes this
Answer to:
Do you know how to operate a fully manual film SLR camera?
Duplicate answer for some reason! Please flag as nonsense...
| 1 person likes this
Answer to:
What kind of photographer are you?
Spontaneous... I like to walk and find photographs. I try to go for unusual compositions - which means I ignore the "rules" pretty much all of the time.
And I always use manual mode.
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Answer to:
When was the last time you bought a book?
Yesterday - The Orkenyinga Saga.
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Answer to:
If you could write the next Dr. Suess book, what would the title be and what would it be about?
I would call it "Erik, oh! Erick at the Extemporanium".
It would begin like this:
Erick, oh! Erick
the house is a mess
and you know you can never
step up and confess
to your mother the fault
is all of your doing -
your mother's head needs
a cooling compress.
Erick, oh! Erick
you must go on the run.
Take a weapon to defend you
(but leave home the gun)
and run...
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Answer to:
When do you tend to write poems? Is it when you are down, does it just come to you or do you think about it?
Some poems just arrive and I take them in. Others I have to go hunting for. Some are a combination of the two: they arrive and then run mad about about the house and I have to restrain them. Or I go hunting and they essentially give themselves up.
When do I write them? Anytime, anywhere. I've seen me repeating lines over and over in my head while walking to work and then desperately...
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Answer to:
How do you define 'poetic license?'
Generally, it's an excuse to write badly.
:op
Answer to:
There was no tragic transit, No catch of breath, When silent seasons inched me On to this death. . . . ..
What poet wrote this in part of his poem?
Thomas Hardy in "The Dead Man Walking":
They hail me as one living,
But don’t they know
That I have died of late years,
Untombed although ?
I am but a shape that stands here,
A pulseless mould,
A pale past picture, screening
Ashes gone cold.
Not at a minute’s warning,
Not in a loud hour,
For me ceased Time’s...
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Answer to:
Write a four line poem off the top of your head. I know it isn't a question, but stilll...
Today is National Poetry Day
it's pointless really but what the hey
they name one day a year this way
hooray, I think, for National Poetry Day.
(And it *is* National Poetry Day here in the UK...)
Answer to:
Giles: Hard G as in "Good" or soft G as in "Gentle"?
I've never heard it with a hard G. But that doesn't mean people don't...
I was surprised to hear Americans say the name "Ian" to rhyme with "lion" - in the UK it always rhymes with "me 'n" as in "me 'n' you".
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Answer to:
How do you pronounce "Anais"?
Three syllables: Ah-ny-EES
| 3 people like this
Answer to:
Describe yourself in as few words as possible.
I'm me...
| 1 person likes this
Answer to:
Are you in AB more to answer questions or to get your questions answered?
I answer more than I ask.
The questions I usually ask are usually sparsely answered. :)
Answer to:
What do you think of the French?
Oh, I remember the beautoful Véronique - I met her in Australia, we shared the same birthday. We spent half a day in the back of a camper van - we sang Disney Songs. :)
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Answer to:
Hey you guys! I just found out I won an International Award for some poetry I wrote and entered! Have you ever won something from your own writing?
Sorry to put a dampener on this, but I feel I have to answer this question.
Your profile mentions that the prize comes from The International Library of Poetry. I would ask you to read the wikipedia entry on poetry.com here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poetry.com and also the talk page to the article here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Poetry.com
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Answer to:
How can u describe the feeling of the last man on the earth when his door gets knocked
Oh, that must be the last woman come round for a visit...
Answer to:
What is your favorite thing about gravity?
It makes me feel wanted.
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Answer to:
Can matter be created? I read in "Death by Black Hole" that stars create matter. I also read that atoms (the stuff matter's made of, right?) are just slowed-down photons. What ever happened to "matter can't be CREATED or destroyed?"
Photons are photons... atoms are made up of smaller paricles (electrons, quarks, etc.)
HAve a read of this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_Model
Matter and energy are linked by Einstein's equation E=mc^2 - this means that matter can be converted into energy (and vice versa). So matter in a sense can be destroyed - it can be converted into energy.
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Answer to:
Name me all of the music genres that exist.
There are two:
a) Music I like
b) Music I don't like.
:o)
Answer to:
Is there anyone here that actually favours dance music?
What type of "dance music" are you meaning? You can dance to lots of music...
Answer to:
Who has the right to judge?
People with knowledge/experience in the thing being judged.
Or a judge. :)
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Answer to:
Do you have any unanswered question, that you still want a answer for...whats the link?
... should've been a comment, please mark as nonsense.
Answer to:
Can you make up a funny haiku for me?
A bard in the hand
is a bird with no feathers.
So just punch his bush.
Answer to:
Would you agree that we are all philosophers to an extent?
philo- "loving" + sophia "knowledge, wisdom"
Do we all love knowledge? Of course not...
Answer to:
What was the last book you read about?
It was about a shipwreck on an island inhabited by an old man and his daughter as well as several spirits and a monster (who is the slave of the old man).
The passengers on the ship all survive and include the brother of the old man and the King of Naples.
The old man goes about getting revenge on these people for banishing him there many years before.
It's written by some guy...
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Answer to:
If I said "Dante" what would be your first reaction?
The Divine Comedy.
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Answer to:
Will ye nae listen ta reason, laddie!?
We prefer "will you no' listen tae reason, son?" in Scotland... :)
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Answer to:
What are your thoughts on the band Slayer?
I sat next to a boy at school who loved them. As a result I know more about them than someone with my musical taste really should do... :)
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Answer to:
What was the last book you read and LOVED, but have never told anyone else to read?
I generally don't tell people to read books I like - I talk about books I read, but never recommend. Why should my opinion sway them? They should read whatever they want.
Answer to:
Do you have a nick name??If so what is it and how did you get it?
I had a horrible, racist nickname as a teenager in Scotland (because I'd stayed in South Africa).
But nowadays lots of people call me DMcK (my initials) which is also my name here: deemikay
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Answer to:
I consider a lie a lie. So why does everybody say it was a little white lie? isnt that still a lie?
Because there's a spectrum. Consider these statements as false:
- I think you look nice in that.
- I have three hands.
- I did not kill that man.
- I was only obeying orders.
Are they as bad as one another?
A lie is a lie, but some are more "lie-ful" than others.
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Answer to:
Do you eat horse meat? If no, why not?
It's a meat like sheep or cow, I eat meat, so why wouldn't I?
I've never been in a situation where it's been on offer though.
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Answer to:
If everyone believed that human life has the same value and does not depend on the richness, nationality, religion, ethnicity and colour of the skin, would all wars come to an end?
People would still *want*. Greed and a desire to get more would then be the main motive.
"I want what's theirs, so I'll take it."
"They can't have what's mine."
BANG - a war.
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Answer to:
Do you have any unanswered question, that you still want a answer for...whats the link?
Lots! People don't like my questions:
http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/408351
http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/408350
http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/408348
http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/408344
http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/379495
http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/364593
http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/346506
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Answer to:
Are men and women equal? The fastest man in the world for a 100 meter dash is Asafa Powell (9.74 secs) and the fastest woman in the world is Florence Griffith Joyner (10.49 secs)
Anyways if we're really equal why don't we compete in the same event
Physically, men are - on average - stronger than women. So in physical activies, men will - on average -perform better. (My chances of beating the womens 100m champion, however, are very very slim.)
In terms of thinking rather than doing, though:
Women, in general, can multi-task better than men. Would anyone disagree with that?
Men's spatial awareness is different to...
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Answer to:
Has anyone read the poetry book "LASSOED WITH A DECORATIVE TONGUE" if not go get it!
Is this possibly an advertisement?
(Would we like McDonalds creating an AB profile and saying "Has anyone tried the new Big Mac with cranberry and cheesy-peas? if not, go get it!" I think we'd maybe object...)
Answer to:
About how many poems total did Emily Dickinson write?
Too many for an attractive lady in the bookshop one day. She struggled to reach-up on tiptoes to get the big bulky book back on the shelf. Chivalry insisted I help... ;)
"Proof she wrote too many poems?" I said.
She was polite enough to laugh...
Answer to:
Have you ever visited a real life castle?
Yes. Lots.
And I stay about 4 miles from this one:
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Answer to:
Which three books would you recommend for intellectual enrichment?
Ok, further to a negative rating to my previous answer....
What books would I recommend for intellectual enrichment? I could list books here to make me appear intelligent and intellectual, but that strikes me as rather pretentious.
So, rather than a list I'll say: read the books you want to read, go to a bookshop/library and study the shelves to find books that speak to you. If you...
Answer to:
I recently heard a comedy writer say,"you can write the punchline and work backwards." Can anyone give me examples please?
Mmm... let me write my first joke ever.
First line: How did Sir Lancelot get to Camelot from France?
Punchline: He rode (rowed) his horse over.
Yeah, yeah, it's a terrible "joke", but I wrote it backwards. :)
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Answer to:
Which three books would you recommend for intellectual enrichment?
Why would I want to be intellectually enriched?
Edit: To the downraters - seriously, what's the benefit in being "intellectually enriched"?
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Answer to:
Have you ever read anything by Salman Rushdie? If so, what and did you like it?
I've read Midnight's Children and it was really good. I've also read some of his essays.
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Answer to:
Wut's the best Aphex Twin vid?
They're all scary... :os
If I had to choose I'd go for Windowlicker for the horrible, scary sleaziness...
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Answer to:
Have you heard the new PJ Harvey single "When Under Ether" yet? What did you think? What do you think the new album will be like?
Yes, I've heard it. And I like it (if "like" is a good word for a depressing song about abortion). It's also a very strange choice for a single, but that's the glorious Peej for you.
I'm looking forward to the album. I've read a few mixed reviews of it so far. But I'm a big fan, so I *have* to get it.
For those who don't know her, here's a...
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Answer to:
What fantasy novel[s] do you reccomend?
100 Years of Solitude by Garcia Marquez.
Labyrinths by JL Borges.
Cosmicomics by Italo Calvino (plus others by him).
Gaudete by Ted Hughes.
The Master and Margarita by Bulgakov.
Pretty much anything by Kafka.
Rabelais.
The Tin Drum and Dog Years by Gunter Grass.
etc. etc. etc.
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Answer to:
Who do you think wrote the plays credited to William Shakespeare?
Shakespeare.
I've yet to read anything that goes even part of the way to proving that he may not have.
And isn't it much, much more likely that the person who is credited with writing them at the time actually did so? The conspiracy theories only started much much later (and usually by academics who can't believe that someone so "common" could have created Hamlet.)
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Answer to:
In a movie, up against a firing squad. What would be your last words?
I die for the Republic. I die for the People. Yes, you may kill me. But they shall live... FOREVER! (bang)
Hey, so I've a revolutionary streak... :)
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Answer to:
Would you rather take pictures or be in pictures?
Does my avatar look like someone who looks like they like having their picture taken?
Answer to:
Why did the ancient mariner shoot the albatross in the poem "rime of the ancient mariner"?
Good question.
I'll give two opinions (both my own).
1) He killed the bird because he wished to prove to his fellow crewmen that it wasn't responsible for the ice breaking. He wished them to stop being superstitious. This, obviously, backfires on him... Coleridge needs someone to rebel against the supernatural so that they can live to tell the supernatural tale.
2) He killed...
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Answer to:
Are you poetic?
Poetic? As in: "like a poem"?
A poem is made of words... However, human beings are made *by* words, they are how we understand and relate to the world. Our thoughts, other than animal instincts, are grounded in our language.
People aren't poetic by nature, but human nature can create poetic things.
Am I poetic? Am I like a poem? I hope not... I want to be in charge of...
Answer to:
I have read everything by King and everything by Koontz and i am looking for a new author. Who would you suggest?
Jane Austen?
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Answer to:
My parents and teachers always say I have great talent in writing. Should I take advantage of this and write story?
You don't have to write a story - good writing isn't limited to fiction. You could write an essay or journalism, reviews, your autobiography, etc.
Fiction's good but good writers write other things as well.
Now get those typing fingers or pen/paper out and start writing!
Answer to:
What interesting non-fiction book(s) are you reading or have just read? I'm reading "the world without you" and "Krakatoa:the day the world exploded" august 27,1883".
I've just finished reading Wind, Sand and Stars by Antoine de Saint-Exupery - it's a biography of sorts about his life as a pilot in North Africa and South America during the 20s/30s .
I'm currently reading The Emperor by Ryszard Kapuscinski - it's about Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethipia (then Abyssinia). After the emperors's downfall Kapuscinski interviewed several...
Answer to:
If you wanted to take a short vacation somewhere but nobody else wanted to go, would you go by yourself or not at all?
Since a terrible holiday with two friends 7 years ago I've always gone on holiday/travelled on my own. You meet more people that way...
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Answer to:
Sydney or Madrid?
I've only been to Sydney - so I can only answer that. But if I ever got to Madrid it'll take a lot to beat Granada in my estimation...
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Answer to:
Can you speak your native language?
By definition, everyone can.
But if you mean, can you speak the main language(s) of your country of origin, then yes I can.
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Answer to:
What's the shortest book you think you have ever read?
Some books I read to my nephews have only got 4 pages in them...
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Answer to:
How long did it take you to finninsh reading all four lord of the rings books? it has taken me about 5 years and im still going, can you beat that?
5 years?!
To me, that would be proof I didn't actually like a book...
I read The Hobbit when I was about 12 in a couple of weeks. I read LotR a few years later and it took a couple of months.
I consider myself quite a slow reader, but I'm a proper speed reader compared to you!
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Answer to:
If the Earth's atmoshere was replaced by another atmosphere consisting of the same gases, and the cloud cover remained consistant would your eyes function the same.
Mmm... are you asking "if everything stayed the same, would your eyes function the same?"
I don't understand your question...
Answer to:
Are you a good swimmer?
Well, I can not drown... which is good enough for me.
Answer to:
What is the meaning and significance behind the poem ''Purple Cow'' by Gelett Burgess?
The poem:
The Purple Cow
The Purple Cow's Projected Feast:
Reflections on a Mythic Beast,
Who's Quite Remarkable, at Least.
I never saw a purple cow,
I never hope to see one;
But I can tell you, anyhow,
I'd rather see than be one.
The meaning, to me, is quite obvious. You *could* make this work on other levels, but I don't think it's worth...
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Answer to:
Have you ever photographed lightning?
We hardly ever get lightning where we are... once a year if we're lucky, And the last thing I think of doing is photographing it - because there's usually a massive storm whacking away on the garden at the time.
Have you?
Answer to:
Does it irritate you to see an utter disregard of proper punctuation, spelling and grammar, too?
No - I'm not bothered about it at all.
And is your question punctuated incorrectly? What's the comma doing after "grammar"? In my part of the world it's not correct. But maybe it is in yours. Which means that there may be two different types of "proper"...
Also, some people would argue that there should have been a comma after "spelling".
...
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Answer to:
If you could go anywhere in the world right this second, where would you go and for how long?
I'd have to toss a coin... it'd be either the south of Morocco or Cologne (Germany).
Answer to:
Is there anyone that you think is ugly, but everyone else seems to think they are just fabulous?
Oh shucks... myself.
:op
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Answer to:
Intelligent..Knowledgeable..Educated. Do you use these words interchangeably or do they mean distinct and separate things to you?
My understanding of them is this:
I = you can understand things
K = you know things
E = you've been to school
I is the most useful; K is over-rated; E is probably useless.
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Answer to:
For Book Readers: About how many books do you read a month?
My english teacher at school said: quality not quantity.
I don't read novels much. But I read lots from within lots of different books (non-fiction and poetry mainly). So with me it's not a matter of how many books I read, but how much I read.
How much do I read a month? mmm... lots. :)
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Answer to:
Would you wear a kilt?
Well, I have done. Several times.
But read about kilts here.... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_kilt
(In particular the bit about the revival in the 18th/19th century)
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Answer to:
Do you agree with the quote "Teenage fiction is for teenagers and clever adults"?
No, I disagree.
But certain children's fiction can have a lot to offer adults. (Like Le Petit Prince which I'm reading at the moment...)
Answer to:
What does your desktop look like? Post a picture!
This photograph that I took in Cordoba a few months back:
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Answer to:
Is it appropriate to wear a shirt with an American Flag on it in a foreign country?
Depends what the US has done to that country...
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Answer to:
How long does it take to write a novel
Stendahl took 53 days to write The Charterhouse of Parma - it's over 500 pages.
Voltaire is rumoured to have written Candide in about 3 days... probably not true.
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Answer to:
If someone shows you a poem or something else they've written that is clearly very personal, but is also really quite bad, and they ask your opinion, how should you respond?
I would refuse to read it.
I would say that its worth as a poem is unimportant when compared to the emotion that went into it - my opinion of it is therefore also unimportant.
And I truly would refuse to read it.
I'm very harsh when it comes to reading poems... you have to be because there are plenty of terrible ones being written and you can't say *everything* is good...
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Answer to:
I'm in the mood to download some obscure music that I've never heard before. Can anyone recommend anything good? (the less vocals the better)
What about some Appendix Out?
http://www.alasdairroberts.com/
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Answer to:
What is your favorite type of wood?
Cedar. I love the smell.
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Answer to:
Can literature "tell the truth" better than other Arts or Areas of Knowledge?
Good question...
Literature is quite a wide field (poetry, essays, fiction, biography, journalism, drama, screenplays, etc.) and it speaks - obviously, because it's made of words.
The other arts (music, painting, sculpture, photography, etc.) don't use words in the same way - the individual has to find their own words to describe the work. Can a person always have the right...
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Answer to:
Can you tell me a poem you wrote?
I wrote this in Granada in the shadow of the Garcia Lorca museum (which I never got in to as it was fully booked for school visits!)
Lorca and me
Sitting, sun strong
he would think
of long walks
and the roses
and the calm of the age
before the war
of motorways.
He would nod
at joggers, ignore
them and the old men
with beautiful daughters
- raised on a trickle
of...
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Answer to:
Which do you like better, typing ,writing, or both?
I find typing on a computer more creative because of the possibilities to rearrange and redraft quickly and with ease.
Writing with pen or pencil is like drawing, typing on a PC is like sculpting with clay.
I never could draw...
Answer to:
Is there any one line in a book that you apply to your life?
Actually it's two lines and also more of a warning of what not to do:
"And left unsaid some things he should have spoken
about the heart, where it hurt exactly, and how often."
It's from To His Lost Lover by Simon Armitage.
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Answer to:
Where can i find a free translation of macbeth
Translated into what language?
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Answer to:
How old are you?
Actually, I *am* 30 - for 1 year only.
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Answer to:
What does this poem mean to you: the waves are running in verses this fine morning,please come flying.? Anyone have thoughts on the meaning of this poem?It is written by Elizabeth Bishop.
It's from a long poem by her called 'An Invitation to Miss Marianne Moore'
Given the title, it's quite obvious what the "please come flying" refers to... an invitation to Miss MM to come and visit EB.
The first part is quite special, I think. The waves, which always beat on the surface of the sea, ocean, river are being poetry this morning - life and the...
Answer to:
What are your thoughts on urban planning?
It's an important thing to get right... unfortunately it's often "got wrong". Hence why I work in urban regneration - with urban planners.
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Answer to:
What's your favorite music video of the week? (Please post video or links if possible)
Funny Little Frog by Belle & Sebastian - it makes sunny days sunnier (until you listen to the words):
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Answer to:
Can you write a *serious* limerick? (i.e. no humour or silliness, and it doesn't need to be good!)
Here's my attempt:
Looking out the bus window at sunset
The sun on the field - the rest in darkness
of cloudshadow, the landscape a harness
on my eyes as I travel.
Look: I take the trouble
to see - while those others are heartless.
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Answer to:
Have you read the Divine Comedy by Dante? did you like it? and did you read an original, translated or re-written version?
I have read it. I liked it - but it gets less visual and interesting as Dante moves from Hell to Purgatory to heaven.
I have a nice little 3 volume translation by Mark Musa (published by Penguin in the UK). It's done in unrhymed decasyllabic lines which zip along quite nicely. The notes are excellent as well.
Another excellent addition to it is the sequence of essays Dante in Jorge...
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Answer to:
My classmate in Poetry 101 insists that J E S U S does not rhyme with P E N I S, but I beg to differ. What do you think?
I'd say it's a struggle, but a happy one.
Scottish people pronounce Jesus with an "s" at the end rather than a more-voiced "z".
The stresses are the same to us as well - JEE-sus and PEE-nis.
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Answer to:
Does anyone have any cool pictures, either ones that you found online, or you took yourself?(See my answer for an example)
Here's a sequence of a flamenco dancer's feet that I took in Cordoba a few months ago.
I'm quite pleased with it. :)
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Answer to:
Where do you by your books? Small independent bookshop or large book emporium?
Several places:
Borders
Waterstones
Charity shops
and a special mention for Caledonian Books on Great Western Road in Glasgow (my favourite book shop in the world!)
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Answer to:
Who are the top 10 living artists who have sold an original piece of art for over 1 million dollars?
Damien Hirst finds it hard to sell for less that £1million (that's over $2million) :)
28 of his paintings recently went for £25million. (which is less than a million, but I think we should forgive him)
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article2347529.ece
As for the other 9... I don't know.
Answer to:
Any ABers not like each other?
I think there are a few who dislike me... :o(
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Answer to:
For those of you who think that Evolution is a tautology (That which will survive, survives), what does this mean to you? Does it make you think Evolution is somehow an invalid or meaningless theory, or does it mean Evolution is exceptionally simple, etc?
Here's a tautology: 1=1
Still true, ain't it?
Definitions:
1. needless repetition of an idea, esp. in words other than those of the immediate context, without imparting additional force or clearness, as in “widow woman.”
2. an instance of such repetition.
3. Logic. a. a compound propositional form all of whose instances are true, as “A or not A.”...
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Answer to:
For those of you who think that Evolution is a tautology (That which will survive, survives), what does this mean to you? Does it make you think Evolution is somehow an invalid or meaningless theory, or does it mean Evolution is exceptionally simple, etc?
Here's a tautology: 1=1
Still true, ain't it?
Definitions:
1. needless repetition of an idea, esp. in words other than those of the immediate context, without imparting additional force or clearness, as in “widow woman.”
2. an instance of such repetition.
3. Logic. a. a compound propositional form all of whose instances are true, as “A or not A.”...
Answer to:
What did the poor ancient Romans sleep on?
Beds. As this mural from Pompeii shows...
But if you mean the poor peasantry. I'd imagine they had beds as well. But with a bit more straw in them.
Answer to:
Who invented and/or discovered math? (i posted this question before but instead of math put it. cool huh?)
Early man started to count. That's about it really.
From counting it moved on to more complicated things. The Egyptians and Babylonians had quite a good knowledge of mathematics. The Greeks brought a lot of good thinking in geometry.
India in the first millenium AD was home to an extraordinary school of mathematics - we owe to them them our number system (the West was still using...
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Answer to:
How many ways can 6 different books be arranged on a shelf
You have 6 choices for first position, then five for second position, then 4 for etc...
So the answer is 6 x 5 x 4 x 3 x 2 x 1 = 720
(This also written 6! and said as "6 factorial")
Answer to:
Where do people who speak Yukaghir come from?
My Dictionary of Languages (a hefty big book) says that Yukagir (sic) is one of the Paleosiberian languages.
"Yukagir has only 300 speakers with two main dialects. The Tundra Yukagir lead a nomadic life in the valleys of the Chuokch'ya and the Alazeya; the Kolyma Yukagir hunt and fish in the banks of the Yasachnaya and Korkodon."
These are in the far east of Russia.
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Answer to:
How many continents have you visited?
Europe, North America, Asia, Africa and Australasia. (Just Antartica and South America to go!)
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Answer to:
Could someone ask me a totally incomprehensible question so I can give you a completely indecipherable answer?
Here are a few from the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda's Book of Questions:
Whom does the magnolia fool with its fragrance of lemons?
Why did we both not die when my childhood ended?
Why in the darkest ages do they write with invisible ink?
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Answer to:
Why am i suddenly seeing loads of illiterate questions/answers?
What do you mean and can you give examples?
Answer to:
Which poet wrote these words Good men the last wave by crying how bright Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay, rage rage against the dying of the light. Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight and learn to late they grieved?
It's Dyan Thomas and probably his most famous poem (most anthologised at least...): "Do not go gentle into that good night".
It's also the most famous example of a villanelle - an old french form. It has only two rhymes. The first and third lines form refrains through the poem and they come together to form the last two lines. It's made up of five 3-line stanzas and...
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Answer to:
Which books would Answerbag users recommend?
Some suggestions that haven't been suggested in the other answers:
Georges Perec
Italo Calvino
Milan Kundera
Gunter Grass
Jorges Luis Borges
Julio Cortazar
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Christopher Isherwood
Bruce Chatwin
Beowulf
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
George Mackay Brown
Alasdair Gray
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Answer to:
Who in your opinion was the best science fiction writer?
I read very, very little sci-fi since I was a teenager. But in principle I'd say Philip K Dick. I'd maybe even re-read him. Maybe.
Answer to:
Does it seem to anyone else that the English language is morphing into something else?
...
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Answer to:
I read at the rate of at least 1 book a week, more often 2 or 3. If you read a lot like me, what is it about reading that you like so much?
Well, my English teacher at school told me "Quality not quantity counts" - he was talking about the quality of writing I was doing, but the same applies to reading books.
I read slowly. I rarely read novels. But I read lots of poetry and it doesn't really make sense to talk about how many books-worth of poetry I read in a week. And I read non-fiction which I can dip in and out...
Answer to:
Can other people easily read your writing?
Not my place to say. What do you think:
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Answer to:
Why is the word "evitable" used so rarely but inevitable is common? In fact my spell checker doesn't like evitable even though it's a real word.
"Inevitable" comes from the Latin word "inevitabilis" - in (not) + evitabilis (avoidable).
"Evitable" never really made it as a regular word in the language. However, I'd say you can use it without any sort of confusion - it's obviously the opposite of "inevitable".
A similar unused word is the opposite of "ruthless" - what...
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Answer to:
Does it seem to anyone else that the English language is morphing into something else?
...
Answer to:
Did snakes evolve from lizards or did lizards evolve from snakes?
The common ancestor of lizards and snakes probably looked an awful lot more like a lizard. One branch evolved with legs, the other gradually lost them.
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Answer to:
Is it morally wrong to physically and sexually abuse the English language for your own financial gain?
No, it is morally right and proper to do that. We should be in charge of language, not it in charge of us.
Without the "abuse" of a language it will never change. If it never changes, it dies. If it dies, no-one cares if it's abused or not because no-one will speak it.
Financial gain? You have to earn a living somehow... and how many people earn a living through words? More...
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Answer to:
Any thoughts on The Zombies?
I love the zombies...
But they looked odd - like scary bank clerks.
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Answer to:
What has been the greatest vacation you have ever been on?
I spent 10 days travelling through the mountains/desert of southern Morocco in a 4wd a few years back... can I go back now please? :)
Answer to:
Why do people find it so hard to believe that I didn't drink until I was 21?
I'm 30 and I had my first drink when I was about 24ish. It was also my last for a few years. I can probably count the alcoholic drinks I've had using both hands.
But some people see it as an essential part of being human. In Scotland alcohol is virtually a religion... I'm atheistic that way. ;o)
Answer to:
Is there anyone here i could have a banterful conversation about rock music with?
What type of rock music do you mean? You may have to be a bit more specific if you want people to talk to you. It's a rather broad subject! e.g. Lynard Skynard, My Bloody Valentine, The Killers, etc.
Answer to:
Where whould you suggest a road trip to?
Australia - Darwin to Melbourne via Alice Springs. Or Darwin to Cairns.
Answer to:
What is your best Travel tip, any tip you have regarding travel.
The best travel tip I can give is this: accept serendipity as the noblest part of travel.
The second best is: go beyond the normal boundaries. Yes, everyone may stick to the same place - why should you?
The third: if a situation/person arises and invites you somewhere you won't have thought of on your own, follow it i.e. plans should be a straitjack in the same way a straitjacket was...
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Non-fiction books, any subject: What's your all-time favorite? What's the best one you've recently read?
Non-fiction and poetry.
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What's the worst noise that's prevented you from going to sleep when you were exhausted?
A man snoring.
I was in a hostel in Fort William. I was sick. I was hallucinating. And a man from Hong Kong was the only other person in the dorm. And he snored SO LOUDLY.
When I left (still sick) the next day he decided to follow me to Skye. Then he followed me to my next hostel. Then he was put in the same dorm room as me!! I begged the hostel owner to give me another room......
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Answer to:
What type of books do you have more of on your bookshelves?
Pretty equal mixture of fiction, non-fiction and poetry.
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Answer to:
What is the largest number you can think of that is not infinity? (and not infinity-1 if u know wat I mean)
This'll do for now: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ordinals
Answer to:
In your life have you ever hitched a ride?
Lots of times.
Once, in Australia, an old man with no nose gave us a lift.
All other times have been in Scotland - generally in rural areas. People are much more trusting in the islands and up in the highlands. Oftentimes they just stop and offer you a ride.
Answer to:
Adding the numbers from 1 to 10 you get 1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9+10 = 55. Can you find the result of adding all the numbers from 1 to 1,000? (In your head)
0 + 1000 = 1000
1 + 999 = 1000
2 + 998 = 1000
3 + 997 = 1000
.
.
.
497 + 503 = 1000
498 + 502 = 1000
499 + 501 =1000
there are 1001 numbers between 0 and 1000, you can make the 500 pairs above and there's an extra 500 left which doesn't have anything to pair up with.
So the answer is: 500 x 1000 + 500 = 500,500
Tada.
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Answer to:
Do you take the road less traveled by?
Forget paths and roads and just go cross country....
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Answer to:
Why are you IN a movie, but ON TV?
You can put things on a tv, you can't put them on top of a cinema screen.
You can be pulled into the mass of the screen before you when watching a movie, this is harder in a 20inch tv screen.
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Answer to:
"No intelligent idea can gain general acceptance unless some stupidity is mixed in with it." (Fernando Pessoa, The Book of Disquiet) Do you agree or disagree with this quote?
Why is this at -5?! (Well, not any longer.. I just +3d it)
I'd disagree - there are plenty of intelligent ideas that are generally accepted and that don't have an ounce of stupidity in them. Examples: "It is wrong to kill", "Be nice to people and they may be nice to you", etc. etc. Lots of "popular wisdom" like that...
However, I'd also agree....
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What are the requirements for one to be a Mullah?
I have no idea why this has been downrated so much. I also have no idea what the requirements are to become a mullah.
Anyone have an answer?
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Answer to:
I need the name of a man who "back in the day" tried to simplify spelling by trying to knock out stuff like silent gh and 'f' ph
Lots of people have advocated an overhaul of english spelling. The most famous is probably George Bernard Shaw. He came up with the word "ghoti" to show how ridiculous the written language was.
Ghoti can be pronounced "fish" - "gh" as in "rough", "o" as in "women" and "ti" as in "nation".
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Answer to:
Have you ever reversed bablefished something? Pick a phrase (any phrase will do), go to babelfish.altavista.com, translate the phrase to another language and back. Can be quite entertaining.
It's also entertaining to put poems through it and back a few times... you get some unusual "things" that aren't quite what they should be...
The first line of a Shakespeare sonnet can become:
"Am I to compare you with the day of a summer?" (into German and back)
"Me it will be extensive at summer day and it compares it does at description...
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What does Ditzy mean? I'm english, and as far as i know we don't use that word.....
etymonline.com gives:
"stupid, scatterbrained" (esp. of women), late 1970s U.S. slang, of unknown origin, perhaps related to earlier slang dicty (1926) "conceited, snobbish," also of unknown origin.
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Answer to:
Where did the expression, "botch a job" originate?
From 1382. Originally "bocchen" meaning "to repair," and later "to spoil by unskillful work" (1530). Origin of bocchen is unknown.
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Where did the expression "from the horse's mouth" originate?
From a Dictionary of Idioms:
"It alludes to the fact that a horse's age can be discovered just by inspecting its teeth. A horsedealer may twist the truth but the evidence in the horse's mouth is absolutely reliable."
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Answer to:
If you HAD to move out of the United States, which country would you move to?
I've never been to the US. So I can't move out. But if I had to move out of Scotland I'd move to Morocco.
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Answer to:
Any1 got any good picture of anything? If so show me! Please!
It's a cow. Looking.
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Answer to:
Et Tu, Brute?
The Plot by Jorge Luis Borges (trans. by Boyer / Morland)
To make his horror complete, Caesar, pressed to the foot of a statue by the impatient daggers of his friends, discovers among the blades and faces the face of Marcus Junius Brutus, his protégé, perhaps his son, and ceasing to defend himself he exclaims: "You too, my son!" Shakespeare and Quevedo revive the...
Answer to:
If I were to say Asia is the land of Religions, Alphabets and Languages, how would you react to this statement?
I would react by pointing out that there are almost 9000km between Istanbul and Tokyo.
Your point is?
Answer to:
What song can you listen to every single day?
Catle and Cane by The Go-Betweens...
Answer to:
How many possible moves are there in chess?
According to an article on the BBC website there are a billion billion billion billion billion possible positions.
Article (about draughts/checkers) is here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6907018.stm
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Answer to:
Why do we write "women" but pronunce "weemen"? where does the pronunciation of the letter "o" vanish?
I would imagine that, common with lots of English spellings, it was pronounced differently and that's why it's spelled that way.
In Chaucer's day "Knight" was pronounced "ki-nig-it". "Women" was possibly prounouced "Woo-men".
But language changes much faster than spelling does- "women" is now the standard way of writing a...
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Answer to:
How does poetry differ from prose in their presentation?
Good question. Tricky answer.
While we can usually tell the difference between the two quite simply, there are strong overlaps. Isn't it common to call a piece of joined-up sentences "poetic"? Isn't it common to say "that's not a poem, that's just prose with interesting line breaks"? The overlaps are called different things depending what direction you...
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Answer to:
Do you have a favorite poetic verse? Please include a sample here...
Ben Johnson:
To the reader -
Pray thee, take care, that tak'st my booke in hand,
To reade it well: that is, to understand.
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Answer to:
What was the last thing that you cried over?
Absolutely nothing at all... my left eye has been watering for the past two days and I can't stop it! Anyone want to offer a diagnosis? No pain, no irritation, only water...
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Answer to:
Do you care about grammar or not?
Grammar is the way that sentences are constructed. That's all.
I care about grammar, because without it we wouldn't have any way of constructing sentences i.e. there'd be no difference between "mat the the on sat cat" and "the cat sat on the mat".
However, I don't care at all about made-up rules about double negatives, split infinitives, not...
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Answer to:
Does it seem to anyone else that the English language is morphing into something else?
Language is always changing.
This is Old English: "Hwæt! We Gardena in geardagum, / þeodcyninga, þrym gefrunon" .
This is Middle English: "Whan that Aprill, with his shoures soote / The droghte of March hath perced to the roote / And bathed every veyne in swich licour, / Of which vertu engendred is the flour..."
This is ealy 17th Century English:...
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Answer to:
How do you know when to use swam or swum in a sentence?
This is one of the differences between the UK and the US.
Not many people in the UK would ever say "swum".
But neither is correct and neither is incorrect. Say what it is normal to say in your neck of the woods.
If the whole population of one area of the English-speaking world said "swimded" ("I swimded across the river") then that would be...
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Answer to:
Do you know any different dialects for different words such as pop is only called soda in different places?
I know lots... I'm in Scotland. We have lots of words that are different to other english speakers.
One example: in the west of Scotland it is very common to say "ginger" instead of "pop" or "soda". No idea why...
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Answer to:
Gandhi said, "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." Do you agree?
Depends whose Christians he was talking about...
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Answer to:
How did you choose your Answerbag name (assuming its not actually your name, that is!)?
It's my initials said out loud: DMcK.
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Answer to:
Are the letters of the Indus Civilization still indistinct?
As far as I'm aware the Indus Valley script is still to be deciphered. Personally, I'm quite pessimistic and don't think it ever will be...
Wikipedia article here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus_script
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Answer to:
Why are Hungarian and Finnish so similar? Was there a Magyar migration to Scandinavia?
Hungarian and Finnish are part of the Uralic family of languages. These also include Estonian, Sami and some Russian languages.
They originate from the Ural Mountains region in Russia. The migration happened from east to west (not north to south).
Answer to:
Is there anything positive about a film with sub-titles?
You get to hear the actors' real voices and not be put off by bad lip-synching.
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Answer to:
Have you ever had to put out a fire?
I "helped" some firemen put out a bushfire when I was 8. How much I helped though....
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Answer to:
What is the inverse of infinity?
Infinity is more of a concept...
However, the inverse of an infinitely large quantity is a infinitesimally small quantity - it's 1 dvided into an infinite number of bits.
Incidentally, that's what the dx and dy in calculus are supposed to be. Read about infinitesimals here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infinitesimals
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Answer to:
What is another word for an image in a peom which forms a LINK between two ideas?
Erm, a parallelism? That would do...
Could you give an example of what you mean? It's a bit vague otherwise.
Answer to:
What does snot smell like?
Have a deep sniff and find out...
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Answer to:
Do you think it's possible to read every book in the Great Books of The Western World collection?
Sure it's possible... but I'd rather not. Wading through Newton's Principia or Archimedes or any of Milton isn't really my idea of a good time. Great though they probably are, boring they'll also probably be.
In general I'd say: read what *you* want to read - not what the literati insist you should.
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Answer to:
Seriously, I don't want controversey. I just want to know how evolution can explain speech. Shouldn't it be getting more complex?
Languages simplify and get more complex all the time - they are constantly changing. Words are added, words fall away. Certain sounds come about, others are removed. Grammars change.
Why should language get more complex? And who says it hasn't? Over the past 100,000 years we have have gone from no languages to 6000+ languages. That's some change in the level of complexity!
From...
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Answer to:
Atheists: Instead of being your usual contentious, fault-finding role, can you list an positive things the Bible teaches? (Hint for the really slow atheists: what do you atheists consider the good teachings of the Bible):
To wee atheistic me: the Bible teaches me that you can have some damn fine poetry in it and that it might be worth emulating some of the language.
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Answer to:
Is truth subjective?
Possibly better to ask "is truth objective?"... the answer to that is: "In some cases, yes. In most cases, no".
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Answer to:
Can you post some images of beautiful sunsets to share with everyone?
I'm not a big fan of sunsets (it's just a matter of pointing a camera in the general direction of the sunset in question...) but here's one:
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Answer to:
In your opinion, what is the best photo you've ever taken?
Mmm... tricky choice!
Here are a few I'm very proud of...
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Answer to:
When was the last time you took a picture with a camara?
On Thurday night. I was giving a friend some lessons and she asked me to show her how I would take a picture.
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Answer to:
Do you use a digital or film camera? Why do you choose that one?
I have both a film SLT and a digital SLR. I use the digital one nearly all the time.
Why?
Despite the fact that I get identical results with both, I prefer to have more than 36 shots in a row, I prefer the speed with which I can see the image, I get rid of the need to scan prints in, I cut down on the cost of developing (i.e. I develop what I want to see only), I get instant feedback, I...
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Answer to:
When did you start believing in the evolutionary theory?
About the same time as I started "believing" in the theory of gravity, quantum theory, relativity theory, chaos theory and other mathematical ones, various theories in electronics and engineering, etc.
Hope this helps you. (If quantum theory doesn't... well, your PC/Mac may stop working.)
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Answer to:
I have a cherry stem in my mouth, please explain how I move my tongue around it to tie it in a knot?
Erm... don't you pre-prepare one and hide it in your cheek, then later on get an untied stem and put it in your mouth, swap them, etc. etc.
Or just practice tongue exercises....
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Answer to:
Do you use this site to help people, or to just give funny answers?
I use this site to:
a) supply what I hope are helpful answers to questions,
b) pose questions that are intended to cause a bit of discussion - often the conversation never happens though :o(
and
c) pass the time.
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Answer to:
I have a picture that my friend made in to a negative but i want to know how can i reverse that effect on photobucket or is there anything i can do? Because we no longer have the original? help anyone
Lots of photoediting software has a Negative feature. A very good (and more importantly *free*) options is GIMP but there are others.
http://www.gimp.org/
Answer to:
What was the most expensive book you've ever bought?
Other than textbooks for Uni (which are always expensive) I always think twice about spending more than £20 (about $40) on a book.
I did spend just over £20 on a second hand copy of Cave Birds by Ted Hughes. Only 60 pages long. Only got writing on half the pages...
It's a beautiful book though. :)
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Answer to:
Are liberal people open to any idea except those that they disagree with?
"Liberalism: a political or social philosophy advocating the freedom of the individual, parliamentary systems of government, nonviolent modification of political, social, or economic institutions to assure unrestricted development in all spheres of human endeavor, and governmental guarantees of individual rights and civil liberties."
Liberals are in favour of the above, they...
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Answer to:
How do I develop writing skills?
Are you meaning creative writing skills or penmanship?
I'll assume the first: read lots of books and practice.
(Practicing includes writing and observing and living and thinking.)
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Answer to:
What's the most inspiring poem you've ever read?
Inspiring in what way?
Mmm... the one that inspired me to devote a sizeable amount of my time (and money - poetry books can be expensive) was Wodwo by Ted Hughes. I think the return on the onvestment has been more than worth it. :)
Answer to:
How do I join poetry reading events?
Go to your local library and ask if they have any details of events in the area.
Also, ask the staff in independent bookshops (or even some big ones) if they know about anything that's happening. If you're feeling very confident - ask people looking at the poetry shelves!
As a bigger alternative - start your own! Advertise in libraries and bookshops, music shops, on trains and...
Answer to:
What is your personal interpretation of this sentence of Noam Chomsky : "Colorless green ideas sleep furiously"?
It is a well-formed sentence, but is completely meaningless. That, I suppose, was Chomsky's point.
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Answer to:
What do you think of when you think of Scotland?
Me!!
Because I'm sitting here in my office in Glasgow looking out over Trongate and wondering why so many people seem to think that Scotland is only kilts, lochs and mountains.
Here's the street I work on: http://www.glasgowguide.co.uk/GG-ORG/Glasgow%20at%20Night/Trongate.jpg
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Answer to:
What, in your opinion, is the one band that is responsible for the creation if indie rock?
The Velvet Underground. I'd say.
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Answer to:
Why are you so sexy?
You've never seen me, have you...?
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Answer to:
Why do atheists use the excuse of "I've never felt God working in my life, why should I believe in Him?" when YOU have to ASK Him to work in your life?
I've never made any "excuse" for not believing in a god.
I don't believe there is a god. End of story.
But you appear to have heard this from someone - the way it's worded makes me think that it's a joke that you may not have got.
(The classic is "I'm an angry atheist - angry with God for not exisiting.")
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Answer to:
Have you ever really gotten angry at someone here on AB with what they said? What bothered you about it?
I've got "angry" (more very, very annoyed) with two people who claimed I didn't know what I was talking about on a certain subject, in fact that I was unequivocally wrong. They're also the only two times in which I've challenged people to tell me what they know on a certain subject by telling them my background in the field.
What bothered me? The fact that they...
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Answer to:
In what industry do you work?
Urban Regeneration i.e. making not nice places nice again.
Answer to:
Will you share a serious poem on Answerbag that you've written?
I've written lots and lots. I wrote one yesterday. However, I think it's probably better to read poems than to write them... does the world need any more?
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Answer to:
Will you teach me a word in a language besides English? : )
Some Scots words:
numptie - stupid person
gallumph - stupid person
baw heid - stupid person
mickle/muckle - big thing /small thing ("many a mickle mak a muckle" = "lots of small things make a big thing")
wee - small
bairn - child
ben - inside ("ben the hoose" - "inside the house")
gallus - cocky, daring
glaikit - stupid
high...
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Answer to:
What is your longest overdue for a library book?
I still have a book that I got out the library when I was 6 - it was called The Good Tiger.
I'm 30 now. :os
My excuse is that I left the country shortly after (with my parents obviously!)
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Answer to:
Which song contains the most recorded swear words?
Super Furry Animal's "The Man Don't Give a Fuck" has got lots - but probably nowhere near as many as some posted here. But it did get to No 22 in the charts. :)
Here's live version (do i need to give a warning about swearing? No! Because it's been censored!)
{Update - uncensored version here: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=P8xmOm4pejs )
Answer to:
Who uses the Project Gutenberg website (and this is not a spam, I really think it's an underused resource)?
I use it to download some old poetry that you can't normally find in shops (and some untranslated texts as well - you can get all of Sir Gawayne and the Green Knighte in the original dialect...)
Also, some text book types - folk lore, anthropology, etc.
Really intersting and useful site..
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Answer to:
I have just finished listening to Leonard Cohen's "Songs of love and hate" any suggestions as to what might be a good follow up?
"Let's sing another song boys. This one has grown old and bitter..."
I like that album! Even if Lenny does sound a bit odd on Diamonds in the Mine.
What next? Mmm...
Something a wee bit happier may be in order. I'm listening to Big Star myself, do you know them?
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Answer to:
Would you like to upload a photograph here for us to comment/critique?
I'll add two of my own... just because. :)
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Answer to:
Have you ever not tipped a server in a restaurant?
"Server" as in "waiter"?
I always tip, at least 10%.
Except a couple of times when I was paying with plastic and then discovered I had no money. :os
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Answer to:
Can you please post a bigger version of your avatar, so we can actually see it?
It's me... with my camera in my face:
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Answer to:
What do you look like?
I hate having my picture taken... so I've not got many pictures of me at all. I'd much rather take pictures *of other people*. But here's me three years ago... my hair has changed. It's a big bushy mess now...
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Answer to:
Is modesty a thing of the past?
Except when pushed by stupidity, I'm modest to a fault. It's not a good thing to be.
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Answer to:
Give me one song to download that you think should be on everyones playlist
Mmm... which to choose?
Just because I've been listening to him a lot over the past few days I'll say the glorious "Anywhere I lay my head" by Tom Waits.
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Answer to:
What is something that people are often surprised to hear about you? ( For example, that you love dresses even though you're a tomboy.)
That I read lots and lots of poetry and write a bit of it as well.
("But David, you're a mathematician!" they say. "I only studied maths," I reply,"because I didn't have to write essays and got an extra half-hour in bed...")
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Answer to:
Have the Chinese ever grown limes on a large scale?
Odd question...
This diagram:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a7/2005lemon_and_lime.PNG
shows that china produces 542,034 tonnes of limes annually. Nowhere near the biggest producer of limes in the world, though. Mexico is the largest producer.
But if we take an average weight of a lime as 50g (I made that number up! Possibly an exaggeration...) that makes around 10-11...
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Answer to:
AC/DC vs Guns 'N' Roses? (AC/DC for me!!)
Neither?
I'm not a fan of that kind of music...
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Answer to:
Youu somehow got urself into a crazy position, of people thinking you are a famous "art interperter" What would you say about a picture with a large lake with a duck on it? now remember people think u are a professional.
Well, I would look at the picture. I can't, so I'll have to imagine one...
We have a large lake. With a duck. Nothing unusual in the scene. It happens in how many thousands of lakes in how many dozens of countries every day of every year? This is a monumentally banal image. It is normal to a ridiculous degree.
What makes this duck and this large lake special?
Two...
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Answer to:
What is the strangest word you know how to spell perfectly? Mine would have to be "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious".
Queue - it's a bizarre word, no?
I can spell it perfectly.
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Answer to:
People who have read the book or have read the scanned copy:Who dies in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? [And please don't do the whole "can't reveal, read it yourself" blah blah blah, I'm going to read it I just want to know who dies before I read]
Go to wikipedia and look up Harry Potter 7
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Answer to:
HARRY POTTER DIES! DUMBLEDORE IS STILL ALIVE! SNAPE IS STILL HERE!!!
This isn't a question...
Answer to:
Is anyone glad Harry Potter and Hermoine die in an embrace in the the last of the series?
Oh, don't be cruel...
Answer to:
How to make hotchocolate?
Get chocolate, heat it... ;o)
Alternatively, read the label.
Answer to:
What is your favorite Fantasy book?
Who is your favorite Fantasy character?
What is your favorite Fantasy Occupation? (warrior, mage etc.)
What is your favorite Fantasy Race?
My favourite fantasy book is Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo... it's not quite what you mean though.
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Answer to:
This is a question for all the British people here: Do you find yourself using americanisms in your speech when you are on AB (or on-line generally)? Does it help you? I do it all the time....why is that do you think?
No, I type the way I do to anyone. I don't alter the way I communicate on here.
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Answer to:
How exactly does John Cale justify the simile "as helpless as a deck of cards"?
He probably doesn't...
But isn't a deck of cards quite helpless in itself anyway? It just lies there doing nothing until used.
Could he be meaning Tarot cards? i.e. Tarot cards are useless - you cannot tell the future, you're as useless as they are.
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Answer to:
What are some of the reasons you don't support PETA?
Bit of a leading question, no? You're assuming I don't support PETA.
Well, "ethical treatment of animals". Yes, I agree with that. Animals should not be made to suffer unnecessarily. I'm against hunting for sport. I'm against battery farming. I'm against fur as fashion.
However, I'm for hunting for food in certain situations. Are PETA really asking...
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Answer to:
Is Answerbag 100% legit'?
What are you doubting?
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Answer to:
What's your favourite old photograph? {Doesn't need to be a famous one...} Upload, so we can see!
I'll go first... witha few. The first is a fantastic landscape by Ansel Adams. The second a classic by Cartier Bresson. The third, an amazing self portrait by Mapplethorpe. The last, a picture taken by my grandmother in a Scottish hospital in the 50s.
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Answer to:
When was the last time you bought flowers for someone? What was the occassion?
I don't think I've ever bought flowers for anyone... I make origami ones instead.
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Answer to:
If you were the last person left on Earth, what would you do?
Pretty much anything I wanted. Who'd stop me?
Answer to:
What was your favorite disco tune?
From the 70s - Le Freak by Chic
and from the 90s - Music sounds better with you by Stardust
Answer to:
The M&Ms quiz site used the word wheelbarrel. Talim pointed out that the correct word is wheelbarrow. Where/how did the word wheelbarrow originate?
The wheel part is quite obvious.
As for barrow:
"vehicle for carrying a load," around 1300AD , "barewe", probably from an unrecorded Old English *bearwe "basket, barrow," from beran "to bear, to carry."
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Answer to:
Fun wants to know how you can tell people "You Suck". (Without saying the obvious)
"What you're lacking in immediate knowledge you're making up for with enthusiasm."
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Answer to:
What's your IQ... according to this site: www.iqtest.com (Your IQ will be emailed to you; you don't have to pay anything!)
I got 130. But I got bored, so I may have lucked-out on some of them towards the end.
This is quite a flawed test - they're only true/false questions! All written as well, no diagrams.
And then they want your money! Don't be tempted to pay, people.
{I don't like IQ tests... they're only guides to how good you are at IQ tests. I'm not very good at them. That...
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Answer to:
What is the hardest topic to write about? I bet you I can write about it!
What about writing about not being able to write about something and not writing it in the process?
Answer to:
Who was the male that Shakespeare addressed most of his sonnets to?
The names of the people alluded to in the sonnets are unknown (as are most details of Shakespeare's life).
Any suggestions as to true identities are pure supposition.
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Answer to:
Who did Shakespeare address most of his sonnets to?
Most to a young man.
A few to a woman, a mistress.
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Answer to:
What is the name of the song that goes like this... "and Oz didn't give nothing to the Tinman that he didn't, didn't already have.
Apparently by the band America:
http://www.guntheranderson.com/v/data/tinman.htm
and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America_(band)
Answer to:
So alot of us is at work on AnswerBag(including myself)...so what type of job you do that you can be on AB and work at the same time?
I work in Urban Regeneration - I work in an office. In between doing things I get a chance to go online.
But it's almost 11pm here, so obviously I'm not at work. I'm doing *much* more important things while getting distracted by AB. :)
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Answer to:
Isn't it better to be a hopeful romantic than to be a hopeless romantic?
Romanticism comes from the whole hopeless thing...
"Depressed under cloudy skies while contemplating the mysteries of an uncaring world - the object of your desire just a shadow on the wall and you can never reach that shadowcaster, nor the wall, nor the light - what hope is there for Love when Love is beyond hope?"
Or something like that... :op
So, hopeless Romantic all the...
Answer to:
Ship of Theseus, Heraclitus's river, Locke's socks, Grandfather's old axe, always the same thing?
I'd say no. Or maybe yes.
No, if viewed in terms of physical elements.
Yes, if viewed as one continuous object along the stream of time. Four dimensional, if you rather.
***
And an extra example - Am I the same person I was 25 years ago? How many of the cells that were in my body then are still in me now? Not many, if any. But I'm still me, somehow.
And there are...
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Answer to:
Why do some girls fancy such Uggos? I mean, Gordon Ramsay? Eminem? Come on now.
Contrary to popular belief, some women don't care about looks - some care about talent, money, arrogance, strength, etc.
Which is a shame on all counts for me - I'm ugly, talentless, poor *and* weak.
Shucks.
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Do you know what this song is called www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOhXhp3XbIE it's from the latest specsavers advert and i really want to know what the song is called .. the one with the man juggling along the wire
Specsavers official says:
Hi,
"Thanks for all your interest in this Specsavers advert.
The music track on this advert was specially composed for Specsavers by a musician called Paul Sumpter. We hope to be able to provide a downloadable version soon through our website."
Answer to:
Do you ever read the newspaper?
I read three every day.
One of them is free on the train though...
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Answer to:
Do you wait to be asked for your opinion/advice or do you offer it up as you deem necessary?
I generally wait until I'm asked.
In real life I stay quiet and listen a lot.
But here, people are asking questions - so they're asking for opinions!
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Ok so heres the thing i know that the (E) in E=mc2 is Energy and the (M) is Mass and the (C) is the speed of light thats obviously squared but why squared makes no sense to square it ?????? i also want to know what Einstein applied this theory to?
Wikipedia says:
In the formula, c² is the conversion factor required to convert from units of mass to units of energy, i.e., the energy density.
From this article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass-energy_equivalence
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Answer to:
Which of your questions or answers that has received no votes or comments do you like best?
I've posted lots of questions that I'd love people to answer but that haven't been answered.
Such as: http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/348298
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Answer to:
We all know what it's like to be the recipient of negative overreaction..but have you ever been the recipient of positive overreaction to something you said or did?
I write a wee bit. Someone once said something was like "genius, like Shakespeare" and kept going on about it.
It really wasn't that good. And this isn't modesty.
{I'm not very good with praise at all... I usually think that people are just saying things to be nice.}
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What answer have you received the most points for? Links please!
I got 40 points for this: http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/188253
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Answer to:
Are middle-easterners still hated?and is it getting better or worse?
This is in "Religions". In the Middle East there are lots of religions - Islam, Christianity, Judaism, there are still a few Zoroastrians in Iran. If India is classed as Middle Eastern (I wouldn't, some do) then you've got millions upon millions of Hindus and Buddhists and Sikhs.
So, what do you mean by your question. Could you be more specific abotu what you mean by...
Answer to:
What is your carbon footprint? See link http://www.carbonfootprint.com/
Mine is 10,066. Below average.
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Answer to:
How can I make money with my calligraphic handwriting? Please help!
Good question... what's the answer?
Sell directly online? It's an option. But you'd need to advertise.
Sell
Another option is to approach picture framers - if you have highly decorative pieces an independent framer may take some from you on sale-or-return (with a bit of commission for them).
Alternatively, you can frame them yourself and try to sell directly on the...
Answer to:
How do you link text boxes together in word. I have 6 text boxes with text in them, and I want to move all of them together, but I don't want to move each box seperately. How do I do this?
If you hold down Shift and click each in turn you can select multiple objects (pictures, lines, arrows, text boxes, shapes, etc.)
You can then move them all together.
This also works in Exel, PowerPoint, etc.
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Answer to:
In the Bible, what does it mean when it refers to the moon as “A faithful witness”?
Taking it purely as a metaphor, I'd say it means that the moon is a constant witness (it's up in the sky, and will remain there) and that it won't lie about you.
Interestingly Shakespeare said "The moon's an arrant thief, / And her pale fire she snatches from the sun"
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Answer to:
Have you ever seen a shooting star?
I've seen a few.
Answer to:
What books, if any, are you currently reading?
I'm re-reading The Tin Drum by Gunter Grass.
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Answer to:
What has made this country so weak(United States)?
Arrogance?
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Answer to:
How many people do you know that the same first name as you?
I'm David.
In my class there were two other Davids.
In my current job - David G sits opposite me, David F is our immediate boss, David H is one of the directors. There's a David McL in a team beside us as well.
Several Davids in my life...
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Maths: I have two lines, one is twice the length of the other. How many more points are there on the longer one than the shorter one?
oops...
Answer to:
Can anyone identify these images?
http://img.auctiva.com/imgdata/2/8/8/7/9/5/webimg/52256937_o.jpg
http://img.auctiva.com/imgdata/2/8/8/7/9/5/webimg/30409209_o.jpg
They are on some belt buckles I have, but I don't know what to say about them.
They're Mayan hieroglyphs. The second of the images has some Mayan numerals on it.
Read a bit more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maya_script
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Answer to:
Maths: I have two lines, one is twice the length of the other. How many more points are there on the longer one than the shorter one?
Here's the proof that the lines have the same amount of points. It's quite counterintuitive - like lots of maths that talks about infinities.
(You'll probably have to click to see it)
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Answer to:
Do you appreciate abstract art?
Depends what you mean by appreciate and also on what you mean by abstract.
Abstract art includes lots of indiginous art, patterns, some 20th century mainstream art. Some old cave drawings verge on abstract. This is abstract as well: http://www.tribal-explorer.com/site_images/images00/tribalx0-0363.jpg
If by "appreciate" you mean, "see worth in" then, yes, I do.
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Answer to:
Is there really an AB4Adults whats the diffrence?
Scroll to the very bottom of the screen and look at the second last option.
Then prepare to be bored silly... *yawn*
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Answer to:
If you had to re-invent the entire English Language, what would you leave out, and what new words would you create? (Definitions of the new words are appreciated!)
But if you "re-invent" it, it wouldn;t be english any more...
I think it's fine as is. Let's just leave it alone.
Or as I'm now going to say: let's cubumble it.
(To cubumble = to leave in a position first found with the intention of watching what it does)
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Answer to:
How were the different languages created? How is it that we speak English and Spanish is spoken in Mexico?
Here's an answer I gave to a question about the origin of language:
The Danish Linguist Otto Jespersen gathered together five theories of the origin of language with the following names:
the bow-wow theory - language started by the replication of environmental sounds (e.g. animal calls) - suggesting langauge is onomatopoeic.
the pooh-pooh theory - language started from...
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Answer to:
What was the last non-fiction book that you have read?
How Language Works by David Crystal
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Answer to:
The theory goes that a million monkeys typing at a million typewriters will produce the entire works of Shakespeare. Thoughts?
The actual theory is that one monkey with a typewriter given an *infinite period of time* will produce the works of Shakespeare and the Bible and the Encyclopedia Brittanica, etc.
That infinite period is the important thing.
A similar idea can be found in Jorge Luis Borges' story The Library of Babel. Though the story contains no monkeys. :)
Answer to:
The theory goes that a million monkeys typing at a million typewriters will produce the entire works of Shakespeare. Thoughts?
The actual theory is that one monkey with a typewriter given an *infinite period of time* will produce the works of Shakespeare and the Bible and the Encyclopedia Brittanica, etc.
That infinite period is the important thing.
A similar idea can be found in Jorge Luis Borges' story The Library of Babel. Though the story contains no monkeys. :)
Answer to:
What are your feelings about Modern Art?
I think people get worked up about "Modern" Art (modernism goes back 100 years, y'know...) because they don't recognise the difference between Art and Decoration.
If you stop defining art as sculpture, painting, drawing, etc and instead define it as what happens when you're in front of a piece you may start to see it as something different.
Yes, lots of modern art...
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Answer to:
Do you prefer black and white or color photographs?
I have np preference - it's the image that counts. The colour or lack of can add to it, yes, but without the image to begin with...
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Answer to:
How many books do you have that are written by the same author? Who is the author and what is your favorite book?
I have all of Bruce Chatwin's books - but he only published 6. My favourite is Utz.
I have lots of Gabriel Garcia Marquz as well (into double figures) - My favorite being 100 Years of Solitude.
I have 10 by Italo Calvino - favourite: Invisible Cities.
I have lots by lots of others. I won't bore you any more!
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I just found out my fiance had a guy at work (who is metro) approach her and want to shake hands and pinky swear regarding casual dress wear. Is this guy flirting with her, or is this just his 'personality'?
I'd answer the question, but I've absolutely no idea what "pinky swear regarding casual dress wear" means...
:os
Answer to:
What is your favorite morbid poem?
Not my favourite (I don't really *favour* poems about death) but here's one by one of my favourite poets
Moments by Ivor Gurney
I think the loathed minutes one by one
That tear and then go past are little worth
Save nearer to the blindness to the sun
They bring me, and the farewell to all earth
Save to that six-foot-length I must lie in
Sodden with mud and not to grieve...
Answer to:
What is the most idiotic thing anyone has ever said to you?
"You *can* do it on your own, David..."
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Answer to:
How many numbers of Pi do you know? (3.14 dont count)
Why would I want to memorise it beyond 3.1416? (rounded, obviously)
At university we just used the symbol - that's got all the digits you need in it!
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Answer to:
Do you think placebo drugs work and Is there any evidence to support this?
That's the point isn't it? The placebo effect does work, that's why they have to account for it when testing new drugs.
This gives details of some research suggesting otherwise though:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo
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A group of Pygmy musicians - attending the Festival of Pan-African Music - have been housed in a zoo in the Congo by organisers who feel it is closer to their natural environment. Are they right to feel humiliated by this?
The story is here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/6898241.stm
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When you think of Hitler, Stalin, Marx, Trotsky, Mussolini and bin Laden how do you feel?
When I read your list I wonder why Marx is there... What exactly did he do that was "bad"? He was a political philosopher, that's all.
And Trotsky isn't quite in the same legue as the others.
Also, I wonder why Bin Laden is there. He's not is the same category as the others at all (they were all defined by their politics, not their religion.)
And your list is...
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Answer to:
Why weren't the two planes that hit the World Trade Centre directed towards the Pentagon, instead? Wouldn't that have done more damage to the American government?
Sadly, that wouldn't have looked as "good" on tv... it was all about image.
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Answer to:
Headline on BBC webiste: "Butterfly shows evolution at work " What do you think? (I'll link to story in first answer.)
Here's the story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6896753.stm
Answer to:
What is a Tokeloshe?
Woah! Been years since I heard that word...
From what I remember from my childhood in South Africa, it's a Zulu bogeyman/trickster character. But I think there's much more to it than that.
At my school, we put on a show - and I took the role of the Tockalosh! (that's how we spelled it.)
Any other info anyone has would be much appreciated.
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Answer to:
Is the "Witching Hour" an actual hour, or a certain period of the night?
I've always thought it was the hour from midnight onwards.
No proof! Just what I was told as a child.
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Answer to:
For what reason was Salman Rushdie knighted by the Queen?
For services to literature...
Which is odd given that common concensus is that he's only written one truly great book - Midnight's Children. It is good and I recommend it. But that was published 26 years ago.
Since then he's generally been under, under, under achieving at a steadily increasing rate. (Haorun and the Sea of Stories possibly excepted.)
Answer to:
What authors have been criminally overlooked for the Nobel Prize for Literature?
Plenty were overlooked - and then they died. Examples: Borges, RS Thomas (Seamus Heaney got it the year RS was nominated... I mean, Seamus Heaney... *shakes head*), Chinua Achebe, R.K. Narayan, Graeme Greene, Italo Calvino, James Joyce, Milan Kundera, etc. etc. And don't forget that they could have given the very first one to Tolstoy, but they didn't.
Of living writers the one that...
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Answer to:
What's the strangest/funniest place name you have ever been to?
I stay a few miles from a place called Deadwaters.
I once *didn't* go to a place called Bing Bong - but we almost did.
I've slept in a town called Tata.
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Answer to:
What are the fundamental differences between men and women?
Well, if you have to ask...
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Answer to:
What is the word for "hello" in any other language than English?
Lots of Scots say "awright?"
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Answer to:
Do you live in the city or in the sticks? In a town or in the suburbs? Tell me what makes where you live special.
I stay in the countryside - 20 miles south of Glasgow, the biggest city in Scotland.
What makes where I live special? The scenery:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/deemikay/sets/72157600278340413/
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Answer to:
Darwin's lord mayor has been found guilty of using stolen council funds to buy a fridge, underwear and a Darth Vader voice distorter. If you were to give in to temptation just once, what would you buy on the company credit card?
Probably nothing for the following reasons:
a) realisation that if I got found out I'd have to pay it back anyway
and
b) I'm not that prone to falling for temptation - Oscar W may have been able to resist anything but it, but it has little effect one me. Which makes me strongwilled or supid. Probably stupid.
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Answer to:
What's the furthest you've traveled from home?
All the way around the world to Australia (I'm in Scotland.)
The furthest I've gone in Scotlan without getting in a plane is up to Cape Wrath - the most North-westerly point in the UK and one of the remotest places as well.
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Answer to:
What are your thoughts on Pascal's Wager?
On a flippant level it's this: believe in God to win the bet.
To which I'd say: surely that's not the point of being religious.
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Answer to:
How often do you change your AB Nickname?
Never. Why would I want to?
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Answer to:
When is the grammactical rule when using who & whom in a sentence?
I'll say (contrversially?) that if it's understood it's grammatically correct.
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Answer to:
Is their any reliable, independent evidence for the existence of Jesus of the new testament as a historical figure?
I'm an atheist, but I firmly believe that Jesus was a real person.
Have a look at this wikipedia page for some contemporary-ish sources for his existence as well as other discussions:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historicity_of_Jesus
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Answer to:
Why do you think members ask questions then don't give points for any of the answers? ( I know it's personal opinion but some answers seem very good.)
I don't award points, nor do I look for them. I comment when people have answered questions I've asked.
I don't like the points system at all, so ignore it. The point is to answer people's questions, not gain points.
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Answer to:
Is the King James version the only acceptable Bible and why or why not?
Of course not. It's just one of many translations (and interpretations). And what about German, Spanish, Chinese speakers, etc.... if the KJ were the only acceptable version, they'd never have a bible to read!
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Answer to:
Why do a lot of ABers scream trolling just because they got down rated? I get being upset, but trolling is when someone sweeps through and down rates a lot of your stuff, or likeminded answers they disagree with. Points are part of the game, aren't they?
I thought the game was answering questions?
Points are pointless...
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Answer to:
You have a deck of cards what is the probability you draw the sequence of cards without returning each card to the deck after it's drawn: Ace, Jack, 5, and a 7? What is the probability of the 5th card being an odd number? There are two QUESTIONS here...
a) (4/52)x(4/51)x(4/50)x(4/49)
There are 4 chances of getting each of them and the deck reduces by one each time.
b) For the fifth card you need to know how many of the 48 remaining are odd - there are 40 number cards, half are odd, half even. Three odds have been removed. Therefore there are 17 odd cards.
So, the prob is (4/52)x(4/51)x(4/50)x(4/49)x(17/48)
I'm now going to...
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Answer to:
You pick up a deck of cards. What is the probably the next card you pick is an Ace? What is the probability of it being a red ace?
There are 52 cards. There are 4 aces. You have a 4 in 52 chance of picking an ace (i.e. 1 in 13)
There are 2 red aces, so the odds of picking one of them are 2 in 52 (i.e. 1 in 26).
(Though you say "the next card"... have you already picked one meaning you have 51 cards to choose from? If so, replace 52 with 51 above)
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Answer to:
Veteran human rights activist Judith Todd has revealed she was raped on the orders of Robert Mugabe's government. Why is rape an accepted political tool?
One regime authorising an act doesn't make it an "accepted political tool" - it makes it an accepted political tool *within that regime*.
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Answer to:
If you woke up tomorrow and found another set of eyes on the back of your head, what would you do?
Get my hair cut.
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Answer to:
What language is generally recognised as being the most difficult to learn?
You can't really grade languages on "difficulty of learning" - after all children learn them all the time with ease.
But you can say that languages with more differences to your native tongue (or the languages you happen to speak) *could* be more difficult.
For example, the tone systems in many languages (the Chinese ones being the biggest examples) may be hard for you to...
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Answer to:
How is snow made?
Erm... is there more to this than I can see? This is in the sociology section for a start...
Chemical answer: ice crystals.
If there's some other sociological use of the word, please let me know.
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Answer to:
How long has it been since you sat outside, alone, with no phone, no music, no distractions, and just took the world in; meditated so to speak?
This afternoon... I went to the woods and, when the rain started, I sheltered under a tree watching some buzzards. I then took this photograph:
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Answer to:
Do you think nudists have pin-ups of people with clothes on?
No
Answer to:
If we are all made up from atoms and the same matter, why is it that we can't walk through walls and the like?
It depends on how tightly the atoms are packed and how joined-toegther they are.
Atoms in the air are lightly packed and not joined-together - so we can walk through them.
Atoms in walls are tightly packed and joined-together - we can't walk through them.
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Answer to:
From what literary work was the old saying, "For the want of a nail, the kingdom was lost."?
My Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes says this about it:
"The full grown version of this rhyme, now bringing wisdom to nursery warriors, appears to be comparitively recent. The first three lines, however, may be seen in the 17th Century and The Oxford Dictionary of English Proverbs compares them with a sentiment in John Gower's Confessio Amantis (c.1390)."
It then traces...
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Answer to:
What is a positive obsession that you have?(example: swimming)
Reading poetry.
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Answer to:
What is 1/15 of 57/72? No calculators and answer must be in a fraction.
1/15 = 1/15 (you can't simplify it any further... you could make it 2/30, or 3/45. But that would be silly...)
57/72 = 19/24
***
Ooops.... edited answer. Just saw what the question actually is! 1/15 x 57/75. Silly me! It's (top lines multiplied) over (bottom lines multiplied) i.e. (1 x 57) over (15 x 72) = 57/1080. Top and bottom are multiples of 3, so answer is 19/360.
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Answer to:
Did language evolve because of our need to be able to gossip?
I think you can only gossip if you have language abilities in the first place... No language => no gossip. (With the arrow intentionally pointing that way.)
The Danish Linguist Otto Jespersen gathered together five theories of the origin of language with the following names:
the bow-wow theory - language started by the replication of environmental sounds (e.g. animal calls) -...
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Answer to:
What is the feminine equivalent of the word 'phallic'?
It's yonic.
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Answer to:
Where are vacationing this summer (and is this place new to you or have you traveled there previously)?
I was in Andalucia for 2 weeks in May- I'd never been before.
Next month I'm going to Cologne (never been there before) to visit a friend for the weekend and when I return to Scotland I'll probably go to the Isle of Arran for a few days. Been there before. :)
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Answer to:
What did someone else do today that made you smile?
Getting a cheap book of Elliott Erwitt photographs and then have a little chuckle at lots of them:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elliott_Erwitt
and here:
http://www.elliotterwitt.com/
Answer to:
What is the etymology of the word "bunt"?
From etymonline.com:
bunt
1825, "to strike with the head or horns," perhaps an alteration of butt (as a goat), or from Middle English bounten "to return." Baseball term is from 1889.
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Answer to:
Does acceptance of a Creator hinder scientific progress?
I really don't see why it should - unless the belief in that Creator hinders scientific progress. (If you see what I mean...)
The Islamic world has historically contributed an awful lot to our scientific progress - and they believed in a Creator.
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Answer to:
What does the phrase "intrinsically dynamic" mean?
I'd take it to mean that something has the built-in tendency to move (but out of context it's a bit tricky...)
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Answer to:
Did you have a nickname in High School? what was it?
Mine was offensive, ingenious and racist. I spent a good few years of my childhood in South Africa. When I returned to Scotland one boy called me "White South African N**ger Hunter" and variations like "hunter" and "gee gee".
Not pleasant.
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Answer to:
What is the name of the video where an English (I think) singer walks through a city andeverything bad turns goods, ex. cigarette butt turns into candy? I don't know the name of the artist or song
Smile by Lily Allen?
Answer to:
What book made you change your outlook on everything?
One short story by Jorge Luis Borges... when I got to the end my life literally changed. And I'm not joking.
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Answer to:
What would the world look like if there were no shadows?
Two options:
a) there would be no light to cast the shadows
b) light would come from all directions
If a) it would be very dark. If b) it would be very bright.
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Answer to:
I feel like a change. Would anyone care to escape to some place wonderful with me? All answerers will be seriously considered.
How about the mountains of southern Morocco? I want to go back...
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Answer to:
For a first time published writer of a semi autobiographical novel which publishing houses should i avoid and which should i shamelessly harrass?
Who publishes books like the one you've written? If you don't know, go into a bookshop and find out. Harass them.
Answer to:
How many syllables does your name have?
Entertainment? Why entertainment?
Last time I counted "David" had two syllables...
Answer to:
How do you say "cheers" in different languages?
In Scots and Irish Gaelic you say "slainte" (pronounced slanj).
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Answer to:
If I came to your city, what is 1 (one) thing I should see before I leave? In which city/town do you live?
I'm from Scotland. We're best known for being Scottish.
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Answer to:
What about the nature of truth: do you believe in the sacredness of truth or is a lie ok?
It's perfectly ok to lie. Children do it instinctively. Lying is a normal part of any society and helps them function smoothly and correctly. (Think of how much hassle there would be with constant truth telling...)
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Answer to:
What country in Africa would you like to be given as a gift?
I would like none of them... Africa has had too much foreign interference that has wrecked much of the continent.
Leave it be; don't gift it. If only because it's no-one's to gift.
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Answer to:
What would Princess Diana be doing today if she was still alive?
Probably annoying me as much as she did when she was alive...
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Answer to:
Doesn't it just prove that there is a God because of all the people asking questions and are curious about God even though they may or may not believe in him?
Just being curious about something doesn't make it real. There are plenty of questions on AB about Harry Potter - he isn't real.
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Answer to:
What is communism's main flaw?
While I support its principles it unfortunately always puts the interests of the State above the interests of the Individual. Slightly compromising Art and Creativity in the process.
Answer to:
Which five works of literature have most molded you into the person you are today? How?
1) Tlon Uqbar Orbis Tertius by Jorge Luis Borges - for showing me that imagination and intelluctualism can go hand in hand.
2) Crow by Ted Hughes - for showing how far you can really go.
3) The A-Z of Monsters - a childrens book I had as a child. It made me imagine.
4) The Collected Poems of George Mackay Brown - 500 pages of beauty that I attain to (but will never reach).
5) The Oxford...
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Answer to:
Is there anything that science cannot explain or prove?
Well, I know science has given us computers and trains and planes and electricity and the ability to land tiny little machines on the surface of moons surrounding other planets. Science lets us see the very tiny and look out into the massively huge.
Who cares about answers and explanations when you can get results?
If you want answers go to philosophy.
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Answer to:
What was the worst music ever invented?
Heino!
*shudder*
Answer to:
What was the worst music ever invented?
Heino!
Shudder...
Answer to:
Are all black holes black?
A black hole is black in the sense that it emits no light because no light can escape from its gravity.
However, the "atmosphere" that it has round about it (dust, bits of ripped up planet/star) can heat up and radiate light/radiation before it goes "into" the black hole. So the hole itself is "black", but the stuff directly round about it need not be.
Answer to:
My friend wrote this. Do you think its good?
"All those unknown to me are black, their minds stay in the darkness, haunting me, hurting me. i shall never be free from the dark, come into the light and let yourself be known to me."
All those unknown to me are black,
their minds stay in the darkness,
haunting me, hurting me.
i shall never be free from the dark,
come into the light
and let yourself be known to me.
Mildly depressing mumblings from someone who (in the first three lines) appears to have a messiah complex and in the last three contradicts themself(intentionally?) by saying "I am the light, but...
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Answer to:
What truths do you believe are Absolute?
*posted in error*
Answer to:
What truths do you believe are Absolute?
Generally just mathematical ones (1+1 = 2, a square has 4 sides, the sum of the parts is equal to the whole, etc.)
But even those aren't as "true" as they seem...
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Answer to:
Please, Define the terminology of "true atheism" and specifically what it means to be a "true atheist"? Apparently we have been having some disagreements and arguements that beg to be clarified. Your assistance is greatly appreciated
You either believe in god or you don't.
- Atheists are against the concept of a god.
- Agnostics don't believe that knowledge of a god is available.
I split atheism into two sorts as well - those for whom it is a scientific fact and those for whom it is a conviction.
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Answer to:
When you read something, anything- do you REALLY read it? Do you think about every word and what the information is trying to tell you, or do you just skim over it and assume that your response pretty well covers it? (Seriously.)
When I read a poem I think it's important to read every word in relation to all the others. Can be very hard to do though...
Answer to:
Does every woman adore a Fascist?
Is this a Sylvia Plath thing? If not, I'd love to know the poetry connection.
I'm not a woman, so I can;t answer for them... But I'd hope it's not true.
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Answer to:
Do you know what a WOMBAT is?
Yes I do.. and it's not a mammal.
Answer to:
Who is your unsung hero?
Heroes are dangerous things... best not to have them. They always let us down in the end.
Answer to:
What famous story or Nursery rhyme that you remember reading, you have the most cherished memory of?
Most of the books on this page:
http://www.stellabooks.com/informationsource/ladybird/series606d.php
I loved them all.
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Answer to:
Have you ever wrote anything that its worth to be read?
I hope so...
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Answer to:
New concept: Draw a picture in MS Paint & upload it for ABers to rate! (he who draws wins)
Ok, it's not done in MS Paint. But hey, this "question" ain't a question. ;op
| 2 people like this
Answer to:
If you were invited to attend a bull fight in Spain, would you go?
I'm just back from Spain and this is the closest I got to the inside of a bull ring i.e. outside it.
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Answer to:
Write me a poem? :) Sad, Happy, Funny etc..
Scapa Flow
Children watch, accepting,
amazing at the view –
the ships stranded one-by-one
rear-up then fall
into a mercury flow of men.
Hans Friedrich swims,
minimal panic pasted
on atlantic face
as he fixes an eye
first on land, then the head
he thinks belongs to Johannes.
Children watch, amazing,
accepting the view.
Why shouldn’t the ships
descend and spew...
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Answer to:
SO I'm getting interested in photography, what are some tips for taking good pics or some advice for an ehthusiastic novice?
My 10 tips for taking good photos:
1) Use your feet! Walk to the photograph, don't wait for the photograph to come to you.
2) Don't be afraid - if people say "why are you taking a picture of *that*?" ignore them and take the picture.
3) Don't take landscape photos on an overcast day. [Edit from the comments below: I mean when there is no sun, and the clouds are...
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Answer to:
What was the original meaning of jerk? Jerk as in someon who is a jerk? Or jerk as in masturbation?
From Etymonline.com:
jerk (n.)
1935, "tedious and ineffectual person," Amer.Eng. carnival slang, perhaps from jerkwater town (1878), where a steam locomotive crew had to take on boiler water from a trough or a creek because there was no water tank. This led 1890s to an adj. use of jerk as "inferior, insignificant." Probably also infl. by verb jerk off, slang for...
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Answer to:
How do you feel about breastfeeding in public?
I really don't understand why people have a problem with it. It's completely natural and has been going on for millenia.
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Answer to:
Just read about a dog in New Jersey that won the "ugliest Dog" contest. That is very mean, I think. How would the owners of that dog like to be entered in an "ugliest Owners" contest? What do you think about that?
We need ugliness to help define what beauty is... and I don't necessarily think that "ugliness" is a negative attribute.
Answer to:
Do you ask religious questions only to voice your opposition?
I'm not opposed to or in favour of any religion - but I do occasionally ask questions to get into discussion (not very often at all, though).
I like discussion threads on questions as it gives insights into other's thoughts. Lots of people don;t like taking part in them though, which is fair enough I suppose.
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Answer to:
Where did the phrase "Pray Tell" originate from? example What in pray tell are you doing!
"Pray" originally meant "ask" or "beg"- so by saying "I pray, tell" you are begging for information.
Answer to:
Is Bill Gates the smartest man in the world and is he a genius?
"No" and "well, maybe..."
Answer to:
Who do you feel for most, Tom or Jerry?
Tom - as he's just doing what cats do, it's hjis nature. and he's obviously employed by his owner to catch mice. Jerry is just a cruel, sadistic good-for-nothing. Karma'll get him!
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Answer to:
Evolution or Creation? (i'm pro creation)
I'm with Creation - the way the universe erupted from nothing in a big bang creating myriad stars, galaxies. And then the formation of planets, one of which was Earth - slowly life started on Earth and changed and developed millions of species of plants of animals. And we're one of those animals.
Now *that* is what I call jaw-droppingly amazing Creation.
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Answer to:
Why do people answer questions but they don't give points for the question? If its worth answering then its worth points.
When the points system was revised I said I'd never award points anymore because it was a nonsense and didn't mean anything. And I haven't done so.
In fact, I think the points system should be abandoned altogether.
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Answer to:
When you do a commission for someone, do you give them the original or a print of the picture?
Depending on what's been commisioned, I would hope you'd give them the original. If it's a painting, definitely.
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Answer to:
How would the world be different if no one had the ability to lie?
Then we wouldn't be able to fuunction. Lying is an important part of human interaction and a world without it would be impossible. I'd imagine lying came about at the almost exactly the same time as language did - if not before.
Answer to:
Do you think most of the older music is better than the music today?
No. There is always good music being produced. And it is *always* swamped by the bad music.
Just a matter of digging in that swamp for the good stuff - the passage of time is good for washing away the crap, I find. But sometimes it's nice to get mucky. :)
Answer to:
If you ever had a daughter would you ever let her date a handicapped?
What a horribly worded question...
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Answer to:
What is the last book you' ve read to completion? Did you learn something from reading it?
A book called "A Short History of Myth" which emphasizes the ritualistic aspect of myth and how in modern times (Renaissance onwards, but precursors as well) society has failed to distinguish between myth and story. Hence literal interpretations of the Bible.
It made a very convincing case that myths were never seen as being true by the holders of them - they served as exemplars of...
| 1 person likes this
Answer to:
Has anyone read anything by Kafka and what did you think of it?
I like Kafka. Read quite a bit by him.
He's one of the few 20th century writers who is completely unique (and therefore copied).
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Answer to:
What is the name of the book closest to you
Selected Poems of Frederico Garcia Lorca (it's on my lap)
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Answer to:
Would you eat Haggis? (sheep's 'pluck' (heart, liver and lungs), minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock, and traditionally boiled in the animal's stomach for approximately an hour.)
It's just a big round sausage... there are worse things in "proper" suasages.
HAving said that I don't eat it very often. (And I am Scottish... my local butcher makes award winning haggises)
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Answer to:
Does anybody watch star trek in french or german?
The french and germans I'd imagine...
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Answer to:
Do you think Jesus Christ was God or the Son of God, or another religious leader like Mohammed or Buddha?
Just to set the record straight: neither Mohammed or Buddha claimed to be God or the Son of God - Mohammed was a prophet, while Buddha was a philosopher who founded an atheistic (or non-theistic) religion.
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Answer to:
What poem affects you the most? by who?
I remember a few years back, when I started reading lots of poetry seriously, I came across a small, obscure little poem from Gaudete by Ted Hughes which ends
Your hardly-used beauty
Of lifting yourself
From yourself
And weeping with the ache of the effort
I found that quite moving - and the fact that it was a library book and someone had crushed a fly in the page.
Also,...
Answer to:
What is your favourite poem by John Keats?
I don't have one... never really been drawn to Keats (even though I have his collected poems). Perhaps I'll go and take it off the shelf.
Also, Keats fact - he was only 5ft 1 tall....
Answer to:
I write alot of poetry and songs, is it healthy to write 1 a day? Or should i stop?
I was leafing through a book of Philip Larkin's prose today - in a review of Sylvia Plath's Collected Poems he worked out (why?) that she averaged 32 poems a year.
The Welsh poet RS Thomas often wrote one a day, though. (And his wife burned a big bag of them after he died - she didn't think they were that good.)
But then again: TS Eliot's Collected Poems is tiny and he...
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Answer to:
Can you write a 5-7-5 haiku in which the second line is "Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan"?
I choose not to write,
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan,
a haiku for you.
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Answer to:
On balance, do you think there are more good, or more evil people in the world?
Were I a religious fundamentalist I would claim that 99.9% (if not more) of the world were jaw-gnashingly evil and condemned to the fires of Hell.
However, as I'm not, I believe that people are generally good wherever you are. But the ones who aren't are more newsworthy.
Answer to:
What is your all time favorite Mark Twain quote?
"I never let my schooling get in the way of my education."
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Answer to:
Edgar Allen Poe or Emily Dickinson?
Emily Dickinson without a doubt... she had a grasp of a further reality and such indiosyncratic use of language. Even if 99% of her poems can be sung to The Yellow Rose of Texas.
Edgar Allen Poe just wrote a few good stories (I don't really rate his poems at all...)
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Answer to:
Dr Seuss or Roald Dahl?
Oh, don't ask impossible questions! I'll never choose between them...
What I like about each:
Dr Seuss - fantastic wordplay and illustrations.
Roald Dahl - grotesquely funny.
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Answer to:
Any thoughts on Allen Ginsberg?
He bores me silly... if only because I don't really like poets whose personality engulfs their poems.
For me the poem is more important than the poet. (But paradoxically a particular poet can be a good indication of where to find a good poem...)
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Answer to:
If you could eliminate only one race from this Earth which one would it be?
ooops... comment gone wrong.
Answer to:
How do you, personally, handle frustration?
I get frustrated at it...
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Answer to:
What's the mark of a great journalist?
Not actually realising that you've read something by them... if you know what I mean.
A good journalistic style should be clean, concise and draw attention to the story, *not* the journalist.
Answer to:
What desert would you most recommend
I've only been to the Morrocan Sahara. And it's bleak and beautiful.
This pic was taken near Zagora on the edge of the desert:
Answer to:
Do the dead sea scrolls actually exist and are they legitimate or a fraud?
Yes, they exist and I ccould pop into the bookshop across the road and get the Penguin edition of the translation in a few minutes if I wanted to...
Answer to:
Do the dead sea scrolls actually exist and are they legitimate or a fraud?
Yes, they exist and I ccould pop into the bookshop across the road and get the Penguin edition of the translation in a few minutes if I wanted to...
Answer to:
What do you see when you are blind. White or Black? Will we ever know?
The Argentinian writer Borges went blind in middle age - in an essay on blindness he talks about what blind people see and says that he personally sees red all the time.
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Answer to:
How many of you will probably leave AB because of this new, unrealistic point system?
I won't leave, but I won't rate. (Nor expect any in return.)
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Answer to:
Is the new AB point system reasonable or extreme?
I think it confirms what a pointless (ha. ha.) thing it is. It would be much better to just remove points/levels altogether.
(But I'm off to wander around Spain for two weeks tomorrow, so I be sure that I won't lose any sleep over it. :) )
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Answer to:
Would it be a good idea if we were able to rate comments as well as the questions and answers?
I think we should take away the rating system and judge questions and answers by the amount of discussion/argument/traffic they create. Sort of a "What's causing a stir" basis...
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Answer to:
What are you writing about?
Right now?
Well, I'm writing about this person, let's call him "I". I is on a website which asks contributors to ask and answer questions. I answers more than he asks. The question I is answering at the moment is "what are you writing about?" I doesn't know You, so he's assuming that the question means himself i.e. I. I decides to answer it as...
Answer to:
Why is the word why spelled with more than one letter?
I don't know about other countires, but we Scots aspirate words that begin with "wh". Instead of saying "wi" we say "hwi".
Answer to:
I'm looking for a poem where the theme is death, but the general theme is the value and joyfulness of life rather than the sadness of death. Can anyone help?
Here's the one that automatically jumps into my head:
And Death Shall Have No Dominion - Dylan Thomas
And death shall have no dominion.
Dead men naked they shall be one
With the man in the wind and the west moon;
When their bones are picked clean and the clean bones gone,
They shall have stars at elbow and foot;
Though they go mad they shall be sane,
Though they sink through...
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Answer to:
Are there any language experts who would call the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures accurate?
{ooops.... I answered when I should have commented.... sorry!}
Answer to:
What is the best guitar solo ever?
Joey Santiago's outro to Debaser by the Pixies. Great guitar solos *don't* have to be about virtuosity.
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Answer to:
Who is the most beautiful actress of all time? In your opinion.
Audrey Hepburn or Jean Simmons.
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Answer to:
What is your favorite anti-hero character in literature?(Please no villains from the comics :)
Steerpike from the first two Gormenghast books...
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Answer to:
Do you think Jesus death could have been avoided? and why?
As non-christian reading it as a story - isn't it the point that Jesus *had* to die in the manner he did?
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Answer to:
Why are you smiling right now?
Because I'm listening to a cheesily good song.
Answer to:
Are you an "in the ballpark" kind of person or do you prefer to do things in a precise, logical manner?
I studied maths at university, so you'd think I was quite logical and methodical.
But I prefer to guess and to allow order to come out of chaotic systems - it's much more fun and requires less effort.
:)
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Answer to:
Do you have any good limericks to do with Answerbag. Here is my effort: There once was a site known as Answerbag. Which I was say was'nt half so bad. I put in my question. And waited with tension. For all your replies which would make me glad.
I thought hard for an Answerbag question,
looked around for the smallest suggestion.
But no thoughts coincided
so then I decided
that none are as guid as yer best yin!
A wee bit of Scots patter for you at the end there with typical Scots cynicism ;o)
Answer to:
When you go to a book store what is the category of books that draw your attention?
Generally I go to the poetry, history or linguistic sections.
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Answer to:
Who sang "theres a place for us"
Are you meaning the song 'Somewhere' from West Side Story? If so: Richard Beymer acted it in the film, but Jimmy Bryant dubbed his singing voice.
Tom Waits sang it as well on his Blue valentines album.
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Answer to:
Are there any negative slang terms for people, like myself, of Scottish descent? I've never heard one, but maybe because we're the most adored people on the planet.
I am Scottish, I stay in Scotland.
The English call us Jocks, they accuse us of meanness and being drunks. We get ridiculed for occasionally wearing kilts, for our accent, for being losers (in sport generally). We get ridiculed for not being English, essentially.
But the Scots are a arrogant breed. We have an old phrase: "Wha's like us? Damn few, an' they're aw...
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Answer to:
Can i get a list of all of the buddhist fundamental beliefs?
Buddha's Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path are pretty much all you need to know. Wikipedia can help you out with these.
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Answer to:
If you were in another country, who would you trust more: the people of that country or another traveler?
Depends on the country, depends where I am in that country, depends who that person is.
If I'm in, say, in the middle of Mexico City I may not necessarily trust the random man who comes up and asks me if I'm ok.
But if I'm in the middle of nowhere, literally, in Morocco I'd trust the man walking past.
As for my own country - I'd trust people in the...
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Answer to:
I'm looking for a book to read - can anyone name any good classical literature, histories, or philosophies?
I'll take you at your words and make three random suggestions.
Good classical literature? Go very far back and read The Golden Ass by Apuleius - it's a Roman novel, funny, mystical and you can get a very readable translation of it by Robert Graves.
Good history? Well, I like Marco Polo's travels - it's a flawed travelogue. But gives a good insight into completely alien...
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Answer to:
Is book burning intrinsically wrong?
Some of the books I've read... mmm... I wouldn't be sorry to see them in flames.
I've actually rescued books from abook burning before. I love books, I collect them, they are an important part of my life. But books are only pieces of paper and they don't automatically contain "truth" or "quality".
Two questions I'd ask in return:
a)is...
Answer to:
Why is Abbreviation such a long word?
Because it hasn't been abbreviated yet...
Answer to:
What other works by Tolkien have you read? Did you like them?
I read lots when I was a teenager (then I grew up... :os )
The only ones I'd ever be tempted to go back and read now would be Leaf by Niggle, Farmer Giles of Ham, Smith of Wooten Major. I quite liked the Tree and Leaf collection.
But these days I can't really cope with his prose style.
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Answer to:
Have you ever given a girl a pearl necklace, if so did she like it?
Tsk, tsk. :o|
lol
Answer to:
What inanimate object would you throw at an attacker in order to defend yourself?
I'd throw the world. :)
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Answer to:
Philosophically speaking... Is this a question?
A Question went to the park and sat under a tree. "Well," it asked itself, "what am I? Do I have any purpose in the world?"
A passing Answer overhead it and said "You're a question. What else could you be?"
The Question smiled and asked if the Answer was a rhetorical question itself...
Answer to:
Does anyone here have siblings in the military?
My brother is a soldier in 19th Regiment Royal Artillary - the Highland Gunners. He spent 6 months in Iraq last year (for which he got a commendation) and has also served in Ireland, Bosnia and Kosovo.
Answer to:
Are there any language experts who would call the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures accurate?
"Traduttore, traditore." Apparently.
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Answer to:
WHAT IS THE BIGGEST NUMBER IN THE WORLD?
I'll double whatever you say!
But when it comes to infinity, there are lots and lots of them. Well, infinitely many different ones in fact. But Aleph Null is the smallest of them. :)
Answer to:
Is 1.9999999 forever equal to 2.0?
Yes, here's the proof:
Let x = 1.999999.....
Then 10x = 19.999999....
10x - x = 18
therefore 9x = 18
i.e. x = 2
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Answer to:
Do you think its possible to be 100% faithful to one person for the rest of your life?
Yes.
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Answer to:
What's the best holiday destination you have been on and why?
I spent 10 days in the Anti-Atlas mountains of Morocco... best 10 days of my life. Highly recommended.
Answer to:
Do you do mostly comment, ask,or answer?
I've asked 67 questions
Given 446 answers (this'll be 447)
Made 363 comments
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Answer to:
A friend wants to know what opium or shrooms look like?
Fly Agaric (highly poisonous as well as hallucinogenic) looks like this:
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Answer to:
Where did the term sideburns come from?
From Etymol Online:
A variation of "Burnsides"
burnsides
style of facial hair consisting of side whiskers and a mustache (but clean-shaven chin), 1875, from U.S. Army Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside (1824-81) who wore them.
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Answer to:
Where did the term "petticoat" come from?
From Etymol Online:
petticoat
1412, pety coote, lit. "a small coat," from petty + coat. Originally a padded coat worn by men under armor, applied 1464 to a garment worn by women and young children. By 1593, the typical feminine garment, hence a symbol of female sex or character.
"Men declare that the petticoatless female has unsexed herself and has left her modesty...
Answer to:
If you could have the world's largest collection of ONE thing, what would you choose?
The one thing I'd want the largest collection of would be "things".
wagga wagga...
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Answer to:
Who would you like to wash your back in the shower?
As it's all complete fantasy... let's say Audrey Hepburn.
| 2 people like this
Answer to:
Do you prefer fiction or non-fiction books?
Depends what type of mood I'm in - and some non-fiction can be like fiction anyway.
But at the moment I'm in a non-fiction mood.
Answer to:
What book are you reading right now and why?
I'm reading The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes. It's an academic study of all sorts of nursery rhymes -their origins, meanings, variants. It's very interesting.
Answer to:
What are runes?
Runes were simply the alphabet used by Germanic and Nordic peoples prior to the adoption of the Latin alphabet we use today. Nothing mystical about them.
In the same way that we say "alphabet" (alpha, beta). the runic system was called the futhark from its first 6 letters: f, u, th, a, r, k
Answer to:
What are the main differences / similarities between the "creative process" and "scientific method"?
*bump*
Answer to:
A plate of persian origin shows two crowned (?), long haired, long bearded men. One of them - maybe a genius - has 4 wings. Each hold a dagger in his hand and they hold the same big ring or diadem in their other hands. Who are they?
If you know the answer, please let us know...
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Answer to:
Do you think 'Monty Python's Flying Circus' has held up well over the years? Or does it seem dated and stale?
I think the TV series has dated an awful lot... Spike Milligan did it all first and better anyway.
The films, on the other hand, are still quite fresh.
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Answer to:
If only Noah's family survived a global flood, where did the other races of people come from?
PP: some fundamentalist Christians believe the world was created around 4000BC. This isn;t the view of the majority of Chrisitians around the world and I wouldn't trust their arguments. They think everything that disagrees with them, but others see as "true", as tests of their faith.
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Answer to:
What is the best place, thing or anything about your hometown?
Well, it's a village more than a town. And it's surrounded by beautiful countryside.
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Answer to:
What is the origin of the term "club soda"?
From Etymol Online:
club
1205, from O.N. klubba "cudgel," from P.Gmc. *klumbon; the sense "to associate" is first attested 1670, apparently for "form a mass like the thick end of a club." Specific sense of "bat used in games" is from c.1450. The club at cards (1563) is the right name for the suit (It. bastone), even though the pattern adopted is the...
| 1 person likes this
Answer to:
What's your IQ and do you care?
I honestly don't know, I honestly don't care. I am fairly intelligent, it's all I need to know.
IQ tests are:
a) indicators of how good people are at IQ tests and nothing more;
b) so indebted to an academic interpretation of "intelligence" that they are pretty much useless when it comes to other fields (literally so - is a farmer more intelligent than an office...
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Answer to:
Will you be willing to donate half of your money to the community sevices
It's more a question of "can you afford to...?"
Answer to:
Do you believe in evolution? Or do you believe God made the earth? Which one is more believable? Big Bang Theory or God creating man out of dust?
Neither really... both seem far-fetched. But there's more evidence for the Big Bang.
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Answer to:
Why are the road traffic Ssgns in Wales first of al l in English and then in Welsh? Surely a nation that has its own unique language should use their own language first.
For the same reason that roadsigns in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland are English first then Gaelic. Gaelic is a minority language, the majority of road users will speak English as their first language.
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Answer to:
Why did they call them grapefruits, when they tastes nothing like grapes?
From Etymolonline:
"Grapefruit" first recorded 1693 in Hans Sloane's catalogue of Jamaican plants; presumably it originated there from chance hybrids between other cultivated citrus. So called because it grows in clusters.
Answer to:
Did time begin five minutes ago? Is it possible to prove that time did not begin five minutes ago?All memories and other traces of "prior events" could have been created as a private joke on the Creator's part. How can one disprove this?
Very good question. And one I can't, at the moment, disprove.
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Answer to:
Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 18, and find line 4, What does it say?
"The broken promise that you gave"
Norman MacCaig's Collected Poems.
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Answer to:
How come when you think of someone french it always involves them wearing a stripey black and white top, burret and carrying french bread? =/
I think of two people: Georges Perec, the French author, and Véro - the gorgeous french woman I met in Australia.
Neither wore a stripy top or beret.
Now stop stereotyping.
Answer to:
What does 'yarg' as in Cornish yarg mean
A news story on Yarg (http://www.bbc.co.uk/cornwall/attractions/stories/yarg.shtml) gives this explanation:
"The farm and dairy go back as far as 1905," explains Emma Johnson, Marketing Manager at Lynher Dairies.
The farm owners stumbled across the recipe for Yarg when they met the Grays.
"Cornish Yarg came to us from Allan and Jenny Gray," says Emma.
...
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Answer to:
What is the origin of the words Ku Klux Klan?
From EtymolOnline:
"1867, Amer.Eng., Kuklux Klan, a made-up name, supposedly from Gk. kyklos "circle" + Eng. clan. Originally an organization of former Confederate officers and soldiers, it was put down by the U.S. military, 1870s. Revived 1915 as a national racist Protestant fraternal organization, it grew to prominence but fractured in the 1930s. It had a smaller national...
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Answer to:
What does 440cubic inches equal in litres? (Engine capacity, for example)
440 cubic inches = 7.21030816 litres
Answer to:
Do you ever feel like Sisyphus?
Constantly.
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Answer to:
What is the etymology of the word imperturbable?
imperturbable
c.1450, from L.L. imperturbabilis "that cannot be disturbed" (St Augustine), from in- "not" + *perturbabilis, from L. perturbare "to confuse, disturb"
Answer to:
What is the etymology of the word perpetuity?
It comes from "perpetual". Etymology of which is:
perpetual
c.1340, from O.Fr. perpetuel (12c.), from L. perpetualis "universal," in M.L. "permanent," from perpetuus "continuous, universal," from perpetis, gen. of Old L. perpes "lasting," probably from per- "through" + root of petere "to seek, go to, aim at" (see...
Answer to:
What do you think should be done to improve living condition in cities?
That's actually what my job involves. I work in the Regeneration Team for the biggest Housing Association in the UK. Our job is to try and find a way of improving 8 of the most run-down areas of Glasgow. I'd be very interested to hear people's answers to this.
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Answer to:
Is there such a thing, as a Wiccan fundamentalist?
Aren't they all...?
JOKE!
But you can fundamentalists in every field. So I'd say yes.
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Answer to:
For my Art GCSE, I was wondering if anyone knows a good artist to research on, for the topic "Structures"?
It makes me think of sculpture - so something about figurative sculpture as structures in a landscape perhaps?
Get some ideas by roaming around the Yorkshire Sculpture Park website http://www.ysp.co.uk/
Hopefully you'll find some inspiration there!
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Answer to:
What is the only 15 letter word in English that can be spelled without repeating any letter?
The longest I've found is "uncopyrightable".
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Answer to:
How effective are Powerpoint presentations?
Ha! Hopefully they are... I spent all of last week preparing 7 of them for one of my managers. (Thursday I started at 8:30am and left the office at 8:20pm. With no lunch!)
The presentations happened all day Friday - I took today off. So I'll find out how effective they were tomorrow.
But in general they can be very effective. As long as you keep them simple and don't use too...
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Answer to:
What was the last thing you took a photograph of?
My unmade bed this morning... but deleted it. Last photograph I chose to keep was this:
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Answer to:
All of you have heard the phrase nothings imposible, if nothings imposible then is it possible for man to survive on the sun?
A further question - is it possible for Genghis Khan to come and strum my guitar at some point in the next week?
(The phrase "nothing is impossible" annoys me and is, fundamentally, quite childish.)
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Answer to:
When Jesus returns, will he be believed, or is our world so jaded his coming will be perceived as just another bit of hocus pocus?
More importantly - will you believe someone who comes to you and says they are Jesus?
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Answer to:
Have you ever had a "disciplinary" at work - if so for what?
Yes and no. Nothing official. But I was sacked and marched off the work premises. Why? Because I told two of my managers that I didn't particularly like the job and was looking for another one. So they told me to leave immediately! Which was ilegal of course.
I got a job three days later so it all worked out ok. :)
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Answer to:
Sometimes, people will try to win a debate by making many claims at once, all of which would take a long time to refute. What would be a good word to call that activity?
Sensible arguing on their point. You should take the time to go through their points one-byone and, if possible, refute them.
If you want to win an argument time shouldn't be an issue.
Answer to:
How many numbers can be multiplied by themselves or added to themselves, both getting the same result?
You're asking for solutions to x^2 = 2x
i.e x^2-2x = x(x-2) = 0
Real solutions are: x = 0 and x = 2
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Answer to:
What is your favourite Beatles song?
Norwegian Wood
or
You've got to hide your love away
or
Blackbird
or
Paperback Writer
or
Cry, Baby, Cry
One of them.
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Answer to:
Why are the stories of ancient religions considered "myths" while those of christianity and judaism are given credibility?
Dead (or effectively dead) religions -> "myth".
Living religions -> "truth".
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Answer to:
How many questions do you rate down out of ten?
I've just downrated my first question in ages - so not very many. As always - I down rate due to factual inaccuracy or intolerance. (The one I've just downrated qualifies on both.)
Answer to:
I dont want to join the army but everytime i see the 9/11 video i just get pissed off and just want to kick some iraqi a** but i play sports and i wanna be in the nba...what should i do?
Let me spell this out quite clearly: Iraq and Saddam Hussain had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks. NOTHING AT ALL.
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Answer to:
Could anyone recommend a new nickname for me?
Some anagrams of your current nick name:
Gather plastic crayfish
Haply sarcastic fighter
searchlight if cat's pray
Aphasic Crystal Figther
etc. :)
Answer to:
Is reading a lower-quality book better than reading no book at all?
Reading books (much as I love doing it) does not make you a better person.
Remember that for most of human history - when all the *really* innovative and important things were done - people couldn't read at all.
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Answer to:
What was your favorite book as a child?
I had a book called "The A-Z of Monsters" and it was just that - mosnters from books, myth, film, tv. I still have it. It's got my name written in yellow highlighter on the inside cover. :)
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Answer to:
Do you like Simon & Garfunkel? I love their music. Name a favourite song if you have one :)
My two special favourites are America (from the Bookends album) and The Only Living Boy in New York (from BoTW).
If I want to smile I'll put on At the Zoo. :)
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Answer to:
Is that a pipe?
This is not a pipe.
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Answer to:
What can i put in a time capsule
Time :op
Answer to:
Is it necessary to BATH everdayday?
No, it's a modern obsession. And probably created by soap and deoderant manufacturers...
Answer to:
With the firing of Don Imus how many of you think Black people can be bigoted too?
*Every* group can be bigoted.
Answer to:
Do you find yourself giving points to answers of former ABers, even though they might not "need" them anymore?
I hardly ever register who's asked the question. So, no - I don't.
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Answer to:
Is it a good idea to write a novel or story to help reveal yourself in some way?
Personally I would think that the desire to tell a story should be its own incentive. Storytelling is probably a much nobler undertaking that self-revelation.
Answer to:
How do you know if you are a good writer or not?
It's down to the rest of the world. As a writer you can only write to the best of your ability. A reader, on the other hand, can choose to read masterpieces only.
Your audience (which can be one person or a million) will let you know. But that audience shouldn't include friends / family. They always lie. :)
Answer to:
Whats your life story in 3 words?
I grew up.
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Answer to:
What is on your left hand right now?
My chin.
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Answer to:
What makes some pieces of art so valuable?
"The stupidity of the rich" if you mean valuble in terms of money.
Answer to:
What is the best gift you ever gave, why?
I made a friend a book of poems about our journey to Cuba last year.
Answer to:
Do you miss the good old days?
In the good old days I'd have died younger, been colder, been poorer, not had the opportunities I have now to see the world, etc., etc.
No, give me now.
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Answer to:
What are the average IQs for A B users
Average, I'd say. And I'm not being facetious...
Answer to:
Does Donald Trump have an email or snail mail address?
donald.trump@trumpinternational.com
Answer to:
What was the last song you heard? Were you actually listening to it?
Horses by Bonnie 'Prince' Billy. It was on in the background.
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Answer to:
Does cropping a picture with a high megapixel camera equal out having a lower optical zoom?
Megapixels are really a guide to two things:
1) how big you want to print a picture (my 6 megapixel SLR gives me very good A3 prints)
2) how much you can crop an image by before the quality of the image deteriorates - but this depends on the quality of the lens as well.
If you're just going to view images on screen then cropping is a perfect way to zoom in. But if you want to...
Answer to:
Has a poem ever had an effect on you? For good or bad?
I read poems every day. Some are good, some are bad. Over the last few days I've read some by Wallace Stevens which excited me - they're so dense and intelligent and surprising.
Answer to:
What famous author was held captive for five years by Barbary pirates?
Cervantes, author of Don Quixote.
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Answer to:
Whats your favourite photo ever?
I have a few favourite photographs. Here are just three of them.
The first is by Edward Weston - I find it *very* erotic. Eroticism doesn't require nudity.
The second is a self portrait by Robert Mapplethorpe.
The third is a cheeky one by Elliott Erwitt.
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Answer to:
Why do you keep saying that your foot is better than mine?
Because mine has a glorious 6 toes - yours a measly 5.
Answer to:
"What is a good and cheap (preferably free) way to spread a message to the masses?"
Unfortunately, blowing yourself up seems to work.
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Answer to:
Didn’t you get the memo?
Eh, sure. It's around here somewhere. Mmm, I'll find it later.
What was it about again?
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Answer to:
Would it bother you if the word "Rainbow" was filtered, so that new questions containing the word were automatically hidden from the home page?
What a strange question...
If it were filtered out, how would I know?
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Answer to:
If I came to your city, what is 1 (one) thing I should see before I leave? In which city/town do you live?
I don't stay in a city/town, I stay in a village. However, I work in Glasgow.
Things to do in Glasgow?
1) Go to museums - Kelvingrove, St Mungo's, the Burrell Collection, etc.
2) Admire the architecture - Glasgow has the finest examples of Victorian architecture in the UK. And we've got Charles Rennie Macintosh as well.
3) Listen to the banter - Glasgwegians are very...
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Answer to:
Flashlight or Torch?
Being British, I say torch.
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Answer to:
Why dont prospective employers like gaps in your resume, and whats the best way to explain one?
They may think you've been in prison.
And I usually say I've been travelling. But not between my cell and the mess hall... :op
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Answer to:
You've won a competition to name the next Space Shuttle . What do you name it?
Jeoffrey.
Seems a perfect name to me. :)
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Answer to:
Are you a good poetry writter if you are write a poem using the word cow?
Wordsworth's Daffodils ("I wandered lonely as a cloud / That floats on high o'er vales and hills...") apparently began life as "I wandered lonely as a cow". His sister, Dorothy, advised him against it.
The rather odd (but good) Irish poet Paul Muldoon has a poem called Cows (from The Annals of Chile, 1994). It's not really about cows, but kind of is.
Answer to:
What books, if any, are you currently reading?
Harmonium by Wallace Stevens
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Answer to:
What do you think about authors' posthumously (and sometimes unfinished)published works? Do you think it was fair that they were published without the authors' consent?
We wouldn't know Kafka or Emily Dickinson if they had remained unpublished (K was published a tiny bit before he died, D wasn't published at all).
So, I think - given these two of many cases - it's justified.
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Answer to:
How far is the nearest tree?
There are about 7 in my garden. My garden is just outside the window.
Answer to:
Cognito Ergo Sum - Do you agree?
Well, I don't agree with *cogito* ergo sum. :p
You can't be without thinking because what would be thinking about its being? So it's a tautology. As useful as saying 2=2.
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Answer to:
What do you do with a child who constantly screams because he cant get his own way?
I take it from the question that the screaming stops when they do eventually get their own way? They constantly scream because they know it's a sure fire way to get the attention they want.
Perseverance and patience are the key. Let them scream. And llet them see that it's not going to get them what they want.
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Answer to:
Do you intend to grow old disgracefully?
Oh, completely. And inspiration coming from these badly behaved OAPs:
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Answer to:
Are you actively investing for retirement?
I'm paying 5% of my wages into the company pension scheme... does that count?
Answer to:
I'm buying a book along the lines of '1000 things to see/do before you die'. There are a lot of these types of books for sale, which one would you recommend?
The french writer Georges Perec gave a reading on French radio called "Some of the things I really must do before I die."
I think it's very inpsirational in that it's a completely *normal* list and unique to Perec. Don't rely on someone elses "1000 things". Make your own list!
Here's what Perec said:
****
First of all there are things very...
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Answer to:
Find the book closest to you, how many pages is it?
The Complete Poems of William Blake is 1071 pages long (but the poems only start on pg22 and the notes/index/etc begins on pg867)
Answer to:
Find the book closest to you, how many pages is it?
The Complete Poems of William Blake is 1071 pages long (but the poems only start on pg22 and the notes/index/etc begins on pg867)
Answer to:
When you downrate are you showing disagreement or intolerance?
I downrate when the answer is factually incorrect or intolerant itself.
Answer to:
What is your favorite rock duet?
How about Thom Yorke and PJ Harvey "This mess we're in"?
I like it. :)
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Answer to:
It is commonplace to shorten the name of a country to descibe a native, as in Aussie, Scot, Brit, Swede etc so why is Paki deemed offensive? Isn't it just a shorterned version like all the others?
It's not what's said. It is *how* it is said.
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Answer to:
Would a bottle be easier to break if it was empty or full of jam? (if it fell on the floor)
Yes I *do* know the laws of gravity. Acceleration due to gravity is a constant 10ish meters per second per second. What would slow the jar down would be air drag. As the jar is the same shape regardless of whether it is full or empty it would fall at the same rate. Galilleo worked this out quite some time ago.
Answer to:
Would a bottle be easier to break if it was empty or full of jam? (if it fell on the floor)
A full bottle (or jar) would be heavier and would therefore hit the ground with more force. I'd imagine it would be break more easily when full.
Answer to:
Has anyone understood relativity to the point that they felt every emotion at once and hence cried? or was it just the other you?
I don't understand the question.... could you clarify please?
Answer to:
This is a legit question: Would you be offended by an artistic sculpture of Jesus made of household garbage items (banana peels, cigarette butts, diapers, etc.)?
Not at all.
The open minded atheist's view:
As a symbol it would show that Jesus is an amalgam of all things in life. Jesus was a man who cared for the so-called rubbish of society (the poor, the beggars, the lepers, etc.) what better way to represent what he stood for than by showing him made of a different sort of rubbish. NOT as an insult, but as a compliment to what he stood...
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Answer to:
Christian Members: Don't you find strange that only one of the four Gospels tell the story that Jesus rose to heaven? If the other three were telling the story of his life, how could they have missed something like that?
I find it strange that this question was downrated.... I am not a Christian, I'm an atheist.
Each of the Gospels were written for different audiences (though Matthew is partially plagiarised from Mark and Luke - only about a third is unique. See online articles on the "synoptic problem" for more details.)
The thing to do is not see them as historical documents - they were...
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Answer to:
Some 30 percent of Americans cannot say in what year the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks against New York's World Trade Center and the Pentagon in Washington took place. Do you think that the sense of history has been lost in Western society?
Hey, don't tar the rest of us westerners with that brush... it's 30% of Americans who don't know.
It's probably only 15% of Scots. :op
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Answer to:
Do you think your 1 vote in an election is going to make a difference?
There was a story a few years back about a british politician who, just before an election, was very rude to some waiters in a restauraunt (let's say 5 of them, I can't remember the number). They decided not to vote for him because of his attitude. He lost the vote by 3.
Their votes made a big difference. :)
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Answer to:
What in your life is Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious?
My taste in music and books. :)
Answer to:
Where can I find a map of Le Cateau-Cambresis, where Matisse was born?
Google maps are great :)
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?ie=UTF8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&q=Le+Cateau-Cambresis&z=13&ll=50.102524,3.542576&spn=0.043602,0.11158&om=1
It doesn't say it, but that's the link to a map of Le Cateau-Cambresis.
Answer to:
How important is it that a work of art be *original* or *new* or *groundbreaking*?
*bump*
Answer to:
Point your finger in your 5 o'clock direction. What are you pointing at?
A box of books, a zither and a bass guitar.
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Answer to:
Does the word pi mean the same thing in all languages on the earth?
Well, the symbol pi when used in a mathemtaical context means the same as far as I'm aware. Whether it's always pronounced that way I don't know.
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Answer to:
Is there an absolute word that is completely true and means the same in all languages of the earth?
If you say "mama" in most languages people will know that you're meaning "mother". It's one of the first sounds that babies master.
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Answer to:
What will never cease to amaze you?
Human stupidity.
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Answer to:
Did something come from nothing or is nothing just a part of something?
Mathematically, you can generate all numbers from nothing.
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Answer to:
If you could become any superhero, who would you want to be? Would you use an already made up character, or create your own? What powers would you have? Any weaknesses?
I would, with no doubts, be Bananaman.
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Answer to:
Why is the number "13" considered an "unlucky" number?
When people ask for my "lucky" number I add the digits my year of birth together and then do the same with the result.
76: 7+6 = 13
13: 1+3 = 4
My lucky number is 4.
So as 13 is a step I have to go through to get to my lucky number, I suppose it's lucky itself.
As Black Francis once said: "If man is 5, then the devil is 6. And if the devil is 6, then god is...
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Answer to:
He's a God, He's a Man, He's a Ghost, He's a Guru - Who is he?
I dunno, but he's got a red right hand... I love this song. :)
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Answer to:
Have you ever read a book that made you laugh out loud, and if so, what was it?
Just this week I've been reading a book called Lost Worlds by Michael Bywater.
I read on the (crowded) train going into work in the morning and people were looking at me funny as I tried to stifle a chuckle at:
"Safe sex? As absurd as the tabloid's "sex romps". Has anyone ever had a "sex romp" - presumably where everyone bounces on the bed a lot, and...
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Answer to:
How many lumps does a llama have?
Count them here:
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Answer to:
What is the sickest book you have ever read
Perhap because I read it in my mid-teens (may not have the same effect now!) but Naked Lunch by William Burroughs was a bit, well, full on...
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Answer to:
Find a dictionary, what is the last word in the F section?
Which dictionary?
Here are some from a few lying within two feet of me:
1) Fylch - to steal (Dictionary of the Underworld)
2) Fulani - language of West Africa (Dictionary of Languages)
3) Fungus (Dictionary of Biology)
4) Fylfot - a mystic sign or emblem known also as the swastika and gammadion and in heraldry as the cross cramponeé (Dictionary of Phrase and Fable)
5) Furze,...
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Answer to:
What's your favorite example of alliteration (in either verse, lyrics or prose)?
Dr Seuss: "Oscar's only ostrich oiled an orange owl today."
:)
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Answer to:
Does anyone know what this symbol represents on a British OS map? (Pasted as answer.)
This is the symbol I'm curious about... right in the middle of the picture. I've never seen it before!
Answer to:
What hospital were you born at?
I wasn't born in hospital - I was born in our house.
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Answer to:
Do you like viewing images of fractals?
Yes, I do actaully... one of the reasons I studied maths was to find out what was going on in them.
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Answer to:
What is your worst experience while traveling?
Saying yes to an offer of food in a hostel on Mull. "We've never cooked before!" they told me. I was polite and ate their combination of bacon, bean sprouts and vinegar (!). Two days later I was hallucinating and passing out in public and was sick for the next 4 weeks...
Be careful what you say "yes" to!
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Answer to:
Where is the coolest place you've visited?
In my own country? On my way to the very north of Scotland we stopped at the Kylescu bridge for a picnic... most beautiful picnic spot I know (picture below).
As for other countries, I've seen too many spectacular things to choose just one - but if forced I'd say the Anti-Atlas Mountains in south of Morocco.
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Answer to:
What book had the biggest impact on you?
Two books that literally changed my life: Crow by Ted Hughes and Labyrinths by Jorge Luis Borges.
My basis as a writer (however bad I am) was founded on these two.
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Answer to:
What are the weirdest questions asked about the Carnegie Library?
"Did the Carnegie Library ever fornicate with the Mitchell Library to create lots of little baby-libraries for the developing world's use?"
Mmm... well, I just asked it now. So I don't think it counts... :s
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Answer to:
What do you think of the Ku Klux Klan?
I think they are a *wonderful* organisation and a credit to humanity.
I would be so happy to have any of them round to my house for a nice cup of tea and a biscuit so that we could talk about their progressive views on race relations and how to make the world a better place - which I would undoubtedly agree with.
"What, Mr KKK? You believe that white people are a pure race and that...
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Answer to:
Whats ur favorite word to say?--( i like saying jah!) :)
These days I've been saying "swimmingly" a lot...
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Answer to:
What do you say when you answer the phone?
At work: "Regeneration Team, David speaking, how can I help?"
At home: "Hello?"
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Answer to:
What is your favourite The Smiths song?
I love "There is a light that never goes out".
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Answer to:
Where did the phrase "called to task" come from? (Maybe it's better to phrase it "taken to task".)
Brewer's Dictionary says: "To rebuke them; to call them to account. The idea is of challenging them to a task that one could have taken upon oneself."
Answer to:
What is the female equivalent of 'phallic symbol?'
a yonic symbol...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoni
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Answer to:
Do u know how any magicians do ANY tricks? please tell!
What you should know about most card tricks is that the magician keeps the chosen card on the top or the bottom of the pack. Quite an easy thing to learn how to do, actually.
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Answer to:
Drawing upon the current phonics of the English language, 'fish' can be spelt 'ghoti'. Can you think of any other good examples of quasi-plausible alternative spellings for different words?
I stole these ones:
one.
If gh is pronounced /p/ in Hiccough...
If ough is pronounced /o/ in Dough...
If phth is pronounced /t/ in Phthisis...
If eigh is pronounced /eɪ/ in Neighbour...
If tte is pronounced /t/ in Gazette...
If eau is pronounced /o/ in Plateau...
...then it should be possible to spell potato as ghoughphtheightteeau.
two.
'Ship'
If ti is...
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Answer to:
What was the first English word?
The earliest english poem I've got is The Genesis Poem, said to be written by Caedmon in Whitby, Northumbria. It's from about 675AD and begins like this:
Us is riht micel thaet we rodera weard
wereda wuldorcining, wordum herigen
modum lufien! He is maegna sped,
heafod earla heahgesceafta
frea aelmihtig.
In modern English:
We are mighty right that to the sky-warden...
Answer to:
Why do u call a round thing a ball?
Etymology of the word "ball":
"round object," O.E., from O.N. bollr "ball," from P.Gmc. *balluz (cf. O.H.G. ballo, Ger. Ball), from PIE base *bhel- "to swell" (see bole). The verb meaning "copulate" is first recorded 1940s in jazz slang. To be on the ball is 1912, from sports. Ball-point pen first recorded 1947. Ball of fire when first...
Answer to:
Where would the world be without rhetorical questions?
Who knows...?
Answer to:
What will your famous last words be?
"Perhaps you *should* have turned it the other way..."
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Answer to:
Who said "April is the cruelest month"?
TS Eliot in the opening lines of The Waste Land (1922):
April is the cruelest month, breeding
lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
memory and desire, stirring
dull roots with spring rain.
Compare it to the opening of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (1380s-1390s):
When April with his showers so sweet
Has pierced the drought of March to the root,
And bathed every vein in that...
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Answer to:
Make up your own word. What is it and what does it mean?
abuhkuhduh - verb. to speak plainly to people in a patronising tone of voice. Usage: "Would you like me to abuhkuhduh that for you?" OR "Looks like he needs it abuhkuhduhed..."
Answer to:
Make up your own word. What is it and what does it mean?
abuhkuhduh - verb. to speak plainly to people in a patronising tone of voice. Usage: "Would you like me to abuhkuhduh that for you?" OR "Looks like he needs it abuhkuhduhed..."
Answer to:
The Scottish poet WS Graham asked "What is Language using us for?" What do you think?
*bump*
Answer to:
If a word is spelled wrong in the dictionary, how would you know?
Oh, just type it into Word. If there's no red squiggly it *must* be right. :)
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Answer to:
Drawing upon the current phonics of the English language, 'fish' can be spelt 'ghoti'. Can you think of any other good examples of quasi-plausible alternative spellings for different words?
On a similar theme:
Fit can be written ghopt
foot can be written ghupt
(pt as in pterodactyl...)
This is quite interesting... I'm going away to think up some more. :)
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Answer to:
Is there a proper way to pronounce language letters? And if so/not, are accents in effect correct/incorrect way to speak a proper language?
There is no "proper" way to pronounce any langauge. "Standard" varieties of a language generally arise out of who is the richest, strongest, most envied, most cultured, etc.
A quote from the book "Languge Myths", this section by linguist Dennis Preston:
"Professional linguists are happy with the idea that some varieties of a language are more standard...
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Answer to:
YOU ARRIVE AT THE GATES OF HEAVEN AND PETER WON'T LET YOU IN.WHERE DO YOU GO?
I go nowhere.
I ask Peter for a breakdown of the reasons why he won't let me through, He, of course, refuses stating:"I'm only carrying out the list, that's all. I don't make the list, you know."
I ask to speak to his line manager.
"They," he claims, "are not available."
When will they be available?
"I can't say - I...
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Answer to:
Male /Female BEAUTY/HANDSOME CONTEST, post your picture and let us choose? Have you got the courage to post your picture? AB members could choose, marks out of ten and 1st/2nd/3rd place winners! (Just for fun)
It's me, completely sober and unimpressed that someone put that hat on me. (Or maybe not... the picture won't upload! It's that hideous... Or perhaps an AB glitch, I'll try and sort it late on.)
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Answer to:
"The first soft snow!/Enough to bend the leaves/ Of the jonquil low." "In the cicada's cry/No sign can foretell How soon it must die." Can you write haiku?
If you can count to 17, you can write english-style haiku. However, if the question was "Can you write Japanese haiku?" the answer is no, I can't.
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Answer to:
Are we in the end, a sum of our experiences?
Not even that... we're the sum of the experiences we remember. :os
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Answer to:
What differentiates Christianity from a New Age fad?
Two thousand years.
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Answer to:
Does anybody know any good SHORT novels?
Going by the copies I have:
The Great Gatsby (F Scott Fitzgerald) - 184 pages
Pedro Paramo (Juan Rulfo) - 122 pages
Utz (Bruce Chatwin) - 127 pages
Cat and Mouse (Gunter Grass) - 137 pages
Prater Violet (Christopher Isherwood) - 127 pages
Heart of Darkness (Joseph Conrad) - 111 pages
Things (Georges Perec) - 105 pages
No One Writes to the Colonel (Garcia Marquez) - 69 pages
Just a...
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Answer to:
Do any of you know the Telugu language?
Telugu is a language of India and is one of the Dravidian languages. It has around 45 million speakers. It is spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh.
I don't speak it. :S
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Answer to:
Is everything art?
No, because then the word and concept of "art" would be pointless. It would signify nothing.
To paraphrase someone much more intelligent than me: "To say everything is art would merely enrich the language with a superfluous synonym for the word 'world'".
Answer to:
An 8000 member tribe in India is protesting the mining of the Niyamgiri hills, because they worship an Earth Goddess and revere the hills as their protector Niyam Raja. Do you agree with their stand or does the greater good of India overrule?
I agree with them. In the same way as I'd agree with the Church of Scotland objecting to a mining company wanting to pull down St Mungo's Cathedral in Glasgow.
The question of whether it would benefit the local community has to be answered though. Yes, it would bring money and jobs to the area. However, there is no guarantee that those jobs would go to locals. (And how many mining...
Answer to:
If you took out 1 letter from your name (wichever letter) what would be your name?
Avid. Which is nice.... :)
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Answer to:
Palestinians have tried to enter the Eurovision song contest. Should they be allowed?
If Israel next door can, why can't Palestine? But I can't see it ever happening....
{I know Israel are there for broadcasting industry reasons as opposed to geographical ones!)
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Answer to:
Where did you go on your first airplane ride?
To Johannesburg in South Africa when I had just turned 6.
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Answer to:
Why do some black people say "arks" instead of "ask"?
In linguistics this is called metathesis and is common to all languages.
Some examples:
Going from Old English to Modern English:
brid became bird;
hros became horse.
In some Spanish dialects:
probe became pobre;
sequina became esquina.
Another common sound change, very common in the UK, is "ah" becoming "ar" so "half" becomes "arf" (it...
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Answer to:
Have you ever thought of writing a book? (about anything)
I have done. I've printed and bound my own to give away for presents...
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Answer to:
Who said, "The only good indian is a dead indian?"
General Sheridan (as said in the other answers).
Here are some other quotes on a similar subject by other notable Americans (I got the quotes from 'The Rise and Fall of the Third Chimpanzee' by Jared Diamond).
"The immediate objectives are the total destruction and devastation of their settlements. It will be essential to ruin their crops to the ground and prevent their...
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Answer to:
What is the connection between Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and William Blake's The Tyger?
Most of the lines in The Tyger are heptasyllabic (some are octosyllabic). All of the lines in Twinkle, Twinkle are heptasyllabic.
And as they share the same metre, The Tyger can be pretty much sung to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle.
Whether there's some other connection, I don't know.
(A little fact while I'm here and on a similar theme - nearly all of Emily...
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Answer to:
Since minds have properties natural objects lack, how can minds be a part of nature?
The main attribute a mind has is self-awareness. How do we know that a stone, tree, star, universe (i.e. nature) isn't also self-aware?
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Answer to:
R.E.M. or U2? Why?
Oh, REM. No question. (But mainly for their first five albums...) Also, Michael Stipe is nowhere near being the hypocrite that Bono is.
(Though having said that, the Edge is better than Peter Buck.... mmmm...)
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Answer to:
How long does a 'moment' last? Does the answer vary depending on whether or not you believe in the duality of body and soul?
*bump*
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