Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2007 June 6

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June 6

4 WIKIPEDIA

what/who is the sponsor of wikipedia (website) ? i need to know for my project> bibliography and it is due tomorrow.

See Wikipedia:Citing Wikipedia. But know that most teachers don't like people using Wikipedia in school assignments. --24.147.86.187 01:18, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Wikipedia, along with the rest of the Wikimedia Foundation is a (501c I think) nonprofit organization. See also Wikipedia:About. - AMP'd 01:26, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

If you want to cite specific facts, you could also use the sources themselves cited at the bottom of each article. Teachers rarely complain if you say "According to the NY Times/BBC/Kathmandu Post, etc.".martianlostinspace 14:51, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Middle Ages

Hi there, I got 16 questions about the Midddle Ages.

1. How effective at spreading Christianity were the laws passed by the Byzantine emperors? They were fairly effective. The succeeded for example in closing the plato academy the center of pagan intellectual thought. Many pagans as a result of laws and lack of support either coverted or left christiandom.

2. How did the Emperor Justinian bring the unity to the Byzantine Empire? He wrote

3. How did the withdrawal of Roman forces from Western Europe contribute to spread of Christianity in this area? answer: the withdrawal of roman forces from western europe contributed to the spread of cristianity in that area because with the roman forces away from western eruope emperor Justinian was able to invade said areas. The people of those areas were usually converted by force. When a christian king successfully invaded a non-Christian neighbouring teritory, the conquered people were usually required to become christians.

4. What was the significance of the crowning of Charlemagne by the pope on Christmas Day, 800? By the Justinans emperorship being dependenet on papal preogative justinain has suborbinated himself to the pope. This high profile expression of the popes authority helped stregnthen the rule that the pope was superior to christiandomes secular kings. Furthermore it helped guarteed that the pope would never become subordinate to any king. 5. Can you described the nature of education in the Early Middle Ages, including who was educated and what was studied? Education tended to be informal parents and grandparents taught their children their occupations. Their where no universities and few schools. Literacy was the exception. Virtually no peasents learned to read. Much of the aristocracy, including the most powerful kings, where also illiterate. The only class who tended to be educated was the clerical and scribe class.

6. Can you described the impact of the Vikings on Europe before 1000?

7. Although the peace movment at the beginnig of the High Middles Ages had little success in sustainingpeace, it did have some important consequences for medieval Europe. Can you describe two of the consequences?

8. What were the four changes that occurred during the Early Middle Ages and what were the four things that stayed the same?

9. Although the peace movment at the beginnig of the High Middles Ages had little success in sustainingpeace, it did have some important consequences for medieval Europe. Can you describe two of the consequences?

10. Can you describe the relationship between the Roman Catholic Church and the rulers of medieval Western European kingdoms?

11. Why were the Crusaders a military failure for the Europeans who set out to recapture the Holy Land?

12. Can you list the three factors that led to the rise of towns and cities in 12th century Europe?

13. Considering the objective of the Crusaders, how successful were the Crusades? Considering the effect of the Crusades on the development of European culture and society, how important were the Crusades in the history of Europe?

14. Can you describe two effects of the Black Death on European society and were these effects positive or negative? and Why?

15. How did peasants' revolt erupt in many parts of Europe during the last half of the 14th century?

16. Can you describe the effects of the Avignonese papacy, the Great Schism and the sale of indulgences on the Roman Catholic Church?

If you goin to refer them in the articles, please tell me article's name and tell me which sentence is which and this is not homework because these questions I made up to know about the Middle Ages.

Thank you. (Above user is User talk:76.64.129.188)

The 16 questions themselves demonstrate a level of language use (vocabulary, syntax, grammar) that is much more advanced than that shown in the explanation by the questionner. Ignoring for the moment the high degree of likelihood that these are, protestations to the contrary notwithstanding, homework questions of a review sort, if nothing else, it would take even our best historians and most fluent writers a great length of time to answer them all. May I suggest that you pick the one or two that are most interesting to you, and bring the rest back, one at a time, over time, as your interest continues to direct you? Bielle 02:36, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

(edit conflict) What an amazingly fertile mind you must have. So fertile that you use one standard of spelling for the numbered questions and a different one for your last sentence. Did you really think we'd be fooled? You need to do the basic research yourself - we have articles on Justinian, Charlemagne, the Vikings, the papacy in Avignon, and so on - and come back here for specific questions that the articles don't answer. -- JackofOz 02:40, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

I see Mr Murdstone is getting ever more demanding! From Greece, through Rome and now into the Middle Ages. My, my; all those double-Gloucester cheeses! Clio the Muse 04:56, 6 June 2007 (UTC)\

I wonder: must the two consequences of question 7 and the two of question 9 add up to a grand total of four consequences, or can we economize by supplying the same answer to either one? To the questioner: you'll get better grades if you give the answers expected of you, which can be found in the course material you have. Thousands of changes occurred during the Early Middle Ages, and no two historians would agree on "the" four changes that occurred during the Early Middle Ages.  --Lambiam^Talk 05:57, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Any teacher would be insane to set that much homework. I guess that (given the time of year) this is more in the nature of exam preparation and the popular sport of "question spotting" from past papers. I've started Wikilinking key words in the questions, which will help provide answers for the questioner to discover for themselves. Other editors are welcome to help with this process. And Clio... restrain yourself. I can imagine you spending the next 6 months on this question! --Dweller 07:36, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

I've linked some more. But these sound like a list of possible essay questions on a final exam for a Medieval Europe survey class, from which the students will have a choice of four and will have to answer two, or some such combination. Adam Bishop 14:48, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

For perspicacity, the award surely goes to Lambiam - these are clearly questions from a book, with answers in the text. For sheer lack of perspicacity, the accolades are reserved for the questioner, who should have guessed this. However, I would credit the attempt as very enterprising all the same. In future, I think we should all remember Lambiam's answer for questions like this, since directing school students to their course notes is actually helpful advice for them. Someone has obviously just misunderstood a teacher's instructions, and needs to be guided to the right source. The Mad Echidna 07:34, 8 June 2007 (UTC)

Something tells me that even Clio wouldn't spend 6 months here to answer all of them. That said, the RD is something to be used sparingly. She can answer all of them if she wants, but personally I would doubt it! The RD ought to be used for occassional questions - even if one of them is sheer trivia, only wondering, that's alright. But we might as well say "Please write me a Detailed History of Time". As for homework, we could of course be dealing with a list of past papers, couldn't we? It doesn't have to be homework for it to be even vaguely school related.martianlostinspace 14:58, 6 June 2007 (UTC) And please sign your messages. Especially for our most ethusiastic user!martianlostinspace 15:01, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

I would like to answer number 6 - "No, I can not." --LarryMac | Talk 20:39, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

I believe they were always in contention for the old NFC Central Division title, winning several times. ObiterDicta ( pleadings • errata • appeals ) 23:17, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

However, the impact of this achievement on Europe may have been limited, since Europeans don't follow American football. ObiterDicta ( pleadings • errata • appeals ) 23:20, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

This is several bridges too far, even for Clio the Muse. The Muse will treat seriously what needs and deserves to be treated seriously. The 'scatter-gun' approach falls outwith my orbit. I feel sure, though, that Mr Murdstone will have all of the answers! Clio the Muse 22:52, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Holy Grail

I would like to know something more on the origins of the Grail quest stories. Thanks

You could start by reading our Holy Grail article. If you have more specific questions, please come back here.  --Lambiam^Talk 06:13, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

You can also read Umberto Eco's Baudolino for a somewhat different version ;) . It's a very enjoyable book to read, too. Just don't take it too seriously, or else you will have to read Foucault's Pendulum, too :) . Cheers, Dr_Dima.

See also Chretien de Troyes and Wace for actual origins and Jesse L. Weston, From Ritual to Romance, on a comparative religion explanation of the ethnography. See Joseph Campbell's infamous Hero with a Hundred Faces for an hyperbolic Jungian analysis. (Sorry, but those folks annoy me.) Utgard Loki 13:06, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

A good recent scholarly book is "The Virgin And The Grail: Origins Of A Legend", by Joseph Goering. Adam Bishop 14:42, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Bismarck

Sirs, I would be interested to know how the political right in Germany made use of the image of Bismarck in the period up to the Third Reich. My thanks E. G. A.. Husserl 08:03, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

The book you need to look for, E. G. A., is The Bismarck Myth: Weimar Germany and the Legacy of the Iron Chancellor by Robert Gerwarth. You might also try Bismarck and the Development of Germany by Otto Planze.

Bismarck is one of those great historical figures destined to be misunderstood: loved and misinterpreted by the right, hated and misinterpreted by the left. Most people are familiar with his words about 'Blood and Iron' (misquoted, incidentally) but not, perhaps quite so many with his contention that Politik ist die Kunst des Möglichkeit-Politics is the art of the possible. And for Bismarck the possible had definite limits. He used war to unify Germany, in his terms, and then used diplomacy to ensure that his settlement was preserved. It was a fine and carefully constructed balancing act, all but destroyed by his successors, who lauded the man and wilfully misunderstood his message. During his lifetime he rejected the kind of radical nationalism with which he was later associated, believing this to be a danger to the lasting peace that he considered essential for Germany's economic prosperity. Bismarck's policy after 1871 was, in essence, peace and prosperity at home, coupled with the maintenance of the balance of power abroad.

How did the political right make use of his image and legacy? During the later years of the Kaiserreich it was used to justify a policy of militant colonial expansionism, though Bismarck himself had been opposed to such adventures. It was also used to justify new forms of pan-German nationalism, in complete contrast to the policy pursued by Bismarck, which placed definite political limits on the extent of the German Imperium. Many of the memorials erected after his death in 1898 carried his words "We Germans fear God, but nothing else in the world", missing out the conclusion, which is "and it is that fear of God that makes us love and cherish peace."

After the First World War the usage of the Bismarck myth became ever more perfidious. He was the strong man, who had created and dominated Empire, and image cast against the 'weakness' of a Republic dominated by Socialists and Catholics, the 'political outsiders' in the days of the Iron Chancellor. The yearning for a strong man in the fashion of Bismarck was, of course, ruthlessly exploited by Hitler, who depicted himself as nis natural successor. But no politician could have been further from Bismarck than Hitler. The goals and ambitions set out in Mein Kampf, limitless and imprecise, were, in every degree, the opposite to those of Bismarck. Perhaps no better assessment of the Nazi misapproptiation of Bismarck was that given by General Otto Korfes, captured at Stalingrad, and who later broadcast on Radio Freies Deutschland from Moscow in January 1944, "Germany fell into the misfortune of the First World War because we deviated from Bismarck's clever and cautious policy. The gamble by which Adolf Hitler forced the German Reich into this war is an act which Bismarck would class as a crime against the nation. Every German should be aware of the gap which separates the demagogy of Adolf Hitler from the statesmanlike intelligence and thoughtfullness of Otto von Bismarck." Clio the Muse 23:53, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Thank you, Miss Clio. An excellent answer, as always. My regards E. G. A.. Husserl 05:52, 8 June 2007 (UTC)

Products becoming common names.

Is there a word for a product which is so successful that it becomes the common name for the item? Two examples that I can think of are hoover for vacuum cleaner, and recently, iPod is becoming a common name for any mp3 player. If there isn't really a word for it, i'd still love to see other examples. 213.48.15.234 08:09, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Genericized trademark. Dr_Dima

I swear I put this on the Language desk 213.48.15.234 08:30, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Linky Linky. Anchoress 08:37, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

buildings

I have been trying to find this out for a while, but haven't so I came here. I want to know what the oldest building still in use is. By this I mean a building which is still used for what it was originally intended, but not including monuments, tombs, &c. Can anyone help? HS7 11:38, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Possibly the Pantheon in Rome? It was built as a pagan temple and is now a Christian church, so it is still in use as a religious building. Marco polo 12:34, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Nice question, though I'm not sure what falls foul of the "&c." of "monuments, tombs, &c.". However, how about the following (oldest first):

• Western Wall
• Appian Way
• Verona Arena

The Western Wall is the oldest of the three. It does still fulfil its original function (a retaining wall) although this has become very much a secondary function today.

Not a bad start, but I'd guess someone can come up with something older than c.2500 years old. --Dweller 15:32, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

People still try to use Stonehenge as a place of worship, although that may not have been its intended purpose. Adam Bishop 16:08, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

I was thinking that, by "building", the querent meant an enclosed structure (with a roof). Are there any older than the Pantheon still in use? Marco polo 17:07, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

For continuous use along the same lines, perhaps Hagia Sophia (a youngster) or Church of the Nativity? Comparatively, the Forbidden City is a recent craze. Utgard Loki 17:41, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

I thought there might be some Hindu temples older than the Pantheon, but I can't seem to find out when any of them were built. Adam Bishop 18:02, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Actually, I researched Hindu temples before my last trip to India. Before the Buddhists started building stone stupas in the 3rd century BCE, the Hindus built their temples of wood. None of these have survived. The oldest stupa, Dhamek Stupa, dates to the 3rd century BCE, but it is in effect a tomb and a monument. No Hindu (or Buddhist) temples per se survive from the period of Buddhist ascendancy (circa 4th century BCE to 6th century CE). The oldest surviving Hindu temple is Aihole, whose earliest portions date to the 6th century, four centuries after the Pantheon. Marco polo 19:45, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Many Roman structures are still used the way they were intended to be, e.g., Acueducto de los Milagros or the amphitheatre in Merida, Spain. The Servian Wall is just that: a city wall. When reading our article about Church of Kish today, I discovered that "the cultic site found beneath the altar of the church dates to about 3000 B.C". You'll find a raft of unsubstantiated claims along these lines. Fwiw, Arkaim is still used as a sanctuary by neo-pagans, although its original purpose is not clear. --Ghirla^-трёп- 10:05, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

I guess the pyramids of Egypt. A.Z. 02:28, 10 June 2007 (UTC)

Scroll up: tombs and monuments are excluded from the query. --Ghirla^-трёп- 10:00, 10 June 2007 (UTC)

Day that July 1, 1967 fell on

Can anyone tell me what day July 1, 1967 fell on? Tks.Rhapsody55 14:49, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

It was a Saturday. Adam Bishop 14:51, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Thank you Adam. I'm not sure how to reply to anyone who answers my question.Rhapsody55 14:59, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Click on Adam Bishop (it should be blue) it should take you to his user page, click on the discussion tab at the top, click on the plus sign(+) and leave your thanks Perry-mankster 15:37, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Or I can just read it here! :) Adam Bishop 16:03, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

If you want a full calendar for any year, type it (e.g. "1967") in the search box and hit GO. Then click the "full calendar" link near the top of the page.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 17:04, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Happy 100th birthday, Canada! Anchoress 10:10, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

100?

Yep. Canada turned 100 years old on July 1, 1967. --Charlene 11:15, 8 June 2007 (UTC)

The day of the Centennial Baby :) Aecis^Brievenbus 11:24, 10 June 2007 (UTC)

If you have access to Unix tools, use the command cal 7 1967. —Tamfang 22:55, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Zeller's algorithm also serves to calculate the day of the week for any date. Hammer Raccoon 15:54, 8 June 2007 (UTC)

Any theories of an early global religion?

Moved here from the Science desk. 83.79.167.221 15:19, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Looking through a book recently I saw that Native Americans had built big religious sites similar to the non-stone precursor of Stonehenge in the UK, plus they had made very large images of a bear etc. on the surface of the earth, similar to corresponding images of people or horses in stone-age britain (I forget the name for these), and the even larger images discovered in a desert in central america somewhere. Bearing in mind that an image of the Buddha was discovered among viking artefacts in Denmark some years ago, has anyone every conjectured that thousands of years there was a global religion with perhaps very limited communication between different continents? 80.2.212.97 12:49, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

People have conjectured most things :) A lot of people seem to have come up with ideas similar to this, there may even be something about it on wikipedia :) Or maybe they weer right and all of them were inspired separately by the same god(s) :] HS7 13:05, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

You could check out the "Historicity" section of the Tower of Babel article. ◄Zahakiel► 13:22, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

In fact, what you're wondering about occupied a great many people for quite a while. This is called Deism. In general, Deism has two flavors, if you will. One is the idea that there is a true religion that all societies corrupt to their own ends, and therefore what we must do is take that which is found in all religions and start with that as the basic truth that God has imprinted on all hearts. The other is the belief that there is a natural religion, a single religion that is basic and that all persons will go to without any instruction. This natural religion would have existed before the corrupting influence of (take your pick: priests, Rome, empire, money, slavery). Those deists of the second stripe did indeed try to figure out how American Indian religion was the same as native Celtic religion, etc.

The dooms to such projects are immediately apparent, I think. First, the whole project relies upon thinking of peoples of the past, equipped with the same brains as us, as "primitive" and "innocent." Second, it assumes that the function of society and reason is always "corrupting." Third, it requires prior peoples to have lumpen and homogeneous religious and cultural states. Fourth, it needs there to be no other adequate explanation for such similarities except native expressions of a common impulse. Fifth, it requires the native impulse to be true and emanent of a transcendent truth.

When we go off and find "Indians" with structures that look like Viking roundhouses, we needn't assume that they met Vikings, in other words, because "Indians" is a group of hundreds of culturally distinct peoples, and a round house is a round house. Similarly, an Etowah mound and a Saxon ship burial both make hills, but not necessarily for any common cause. Utgard Loki 16:57, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

There are some notable similarities between Chinese and Maya cosmologies [1], as well as some parallels between Meso-American and Middle Eastern religious traditions [2]. Of course, this need not mean that there ever was one global religion, but it could point towards shared origins (which should be altogether unsurprising, as humanity did not evolve independently in several places, but spread itself out over the continents). Alternatively, these shared mythological/religious elements could have arisen independently in each of the regions - a convincing argument could be made that, as people have similar experiences and thoughts and seek the answer to similar questions, it should be no wonder that different answers - i.e. different religions - are similar as well.

In all likelihood, it's somewhere in between the two: humanity started off with one 'religion' (or a number of similar ones), and as people migrated and got isolated from others, 'evolved' a number of beliefs that, while different, nevertheless have a number of similarities on account of their common ancestor as well as the common 'human experience'.Random Nonsense 21:09, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Further to the Buddha reference: it has been claimed that Buddhists travelled to Central America in pre-Columbian times, and even that the name of Guatemala was derived from the name Gautama Buddha. But most people don't believe this. -- JackofOz 02:03, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

If you want to trace all human religious practices to a single origin, it's worth comparing the effort to argue that all human languages are likewise affiliated. This has been the claim of Joseph Greenberg's work (NYT article). Wareh 15:59, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

When I was 17 the idea occurred to me that all religions and mythology could be traced back to a single source with an underlying Chomskyan hard-wired "deep-structure". At the time I thought it was a terribly clever and advanced idea but I have long since learned that many versions of the same theme have been offered over the centuries. Read Middlemarch for a description of the sad end of a scholarly cleric who made it his unfinishable life obsession. Note however the difference between an early common source for all languages/religions and the concept of a once-global language or religion. The first is plausible; the second is not, as no single language or religion could have ever been maintained around the globe. alteripse 16:21, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

APY & APR

Are APY and APR mathematically identical, but APY is used when you are the creditor, and APR when you are the debtor, so it's only a matter of context? Thanks. - MSTCrow 17:43, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

You're asking for the difference between annual percentage rate and annual percentage yield? They're not identical (unless interest is compounded annually), so the one quoted is the one that sounds more advantageous, as perhaps you've perceived. The rate is what's specified in the contract, usually n% per year. Assume it's compounded monthly: each month an interest of (n/12)% is added to the principal. Since next month's principal includes last month's interest, the total interest accumulated during a year is more than n% of the principal at the beginning of the year, and this is the yield. —Tamfang 23:02, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Bagman and Cigarette Lighter Economy

In a recent question on Vladimir Putin Clio the Muse mentioned the 'bagman' and 'cigarette lighter' economy that emerged in Russia after the Revolution of 1917. I've been trying to uncover some more information on this with no success. It obviously refer to some form of 'poverty economy, but what precisely was it? Gordon Nash 17:58, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Maybe post a question on her Talk page? Llamabr 20:49, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

A fair suggestion, but it has generally been agreed here (I think) that many others enjoy reading Clio's answers (I come to the ref. desk mainly for this purpose). My own theory at one time was that Clio was actually a bunch of people, all of them well educated, but hmmm... nowadays I'm not so sure. The Mad Echidna 08:45, 8 June 2007 (UTC)

Hi, Gordon. Picture, if you will, an economy in an almost total state of collapse; one where the transport system has almost ceased to function; where money has little or no value; one where the country has almost ceased trading with the towns. Picture still further millions of hungry townspeople; working and hungry, or unemployed and hungry. What then happens is the emergence of economies below the economy; a world with people on the move; of barter and bargaining, of exchange of goods without the medium of money. Welcome to the post-apocalyptic world of the bagman!

The almost complete collapse of consumer production during the war, coupled with rapid price inflation, meant that the Russian peasantry were no longer willing to dispense with their produce for worthless paper currency. Even when they did there was simply nothing to buy, or goods available were far too expensive. History then began to slip into reverse gear, as the cities returned to the country, and the country returned to forms of economic self-sufficiency not seen since the Middle Ages. Large cities like Petrograd and Moscow lost as much as half to three-quarters of their pre-war population, as people took whatever tansport they could to return to the land, a process illustrated in Boris Pasternak's novel, Doctor Zhivago. It was even said at the time that the Bolshevik party was becoming the "vanguard of a non-existent class."

Those who did not leave the cities altogether took to petty trade to keep themselves alive, 'bagging', as it was called. By 1918 the provinces of Tambov, Kursk, Kazan, Simbirsk and Saratov saw the descent of approximately 100,000 urban 'bagmen' every month. In their bags they brought tools, fuel, scrap-iron, anything, basically, that could be traded for food. Some made goods, using materials stolen from their place of work, that could be used in barter. A whole variety of things were manufactured, from pen-knives to ploughs; but one of the most common barter goods was the cigarette lighter, which gave the name of 'cigarette-lighterism' (zazhigolochnichestvo) to the whole phenomenon. It only really came to an end when things began to stabilise after the introduction of the New Economic Policy, and the return to a settled system of monetary exchange. Bagmanism was truly desperate period in Russian history, which, to some degree, made a reapperance in the 1990s. Clio the Muse 00:57, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Sorry Clio, i think i'm being a bit stupid, i take it the reason the lighters where in high demand would be due to the fact it was an easy way to get a fire (for cooking, warmth etc) started, rather than to light cigarettes? Perry-mankster 08:24, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Hi, Perry. I suspect that they were used for a whole variety of purposes, not just lighting cigarettes. They were plentiful, however, because they were easily made and just as easily transported. The supply was certainly high. I am not quite sure, though, how high the demand was. Think in terms of Third World markets of the present day, where you will find lots of people selling the same objects. Clio the Muse 22:18, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Not all readers may be aware of the British English meaning of bagman as referring to an itinerant vendor. -- Lambiam^Talk 11:16, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Thank you,  Lambiam^Talk . Indeed, in North America, a "bagman" is a slang term for a political fundraiser, and contains some overtones of impropriety. Bielle 15:01, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Yes, indeed, thanks, Lambian. I did not realise that the use of this word had the potential to cause confusion on the other side of the pond!. My apologies for any misunderstanding. So, what would be the North American equivalent? Clio the Muse 22:50, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

You can use peddler, drummer or hawker, although I'm not sure the connotations are quite the same. Especially hawker evokes the idea of a pushy person. And the last two also have different meanings, as in marching to a different drummer.  --Lambiam^Talk 11:09, 8 June 2007 (UTC)

A "bagman" in US slang can be the political strong-arming agent, but it's also any hoodlum who "holds the bag." The bag in question can be the one that goes over a victim's head (bagman = thug) or, more commonly, the bag of loot (bagman = accessory to robbery). I think it went to politics from the underworld, but it may well have gone the other way. Anyone with an online access to the OED or the full American Heritage (not one's desk copy)? Utgard Loki 18:02, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Duties of the Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General of the U.S.

Hello,

I'm putting out a request to anyone who might have information on the duties of the Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General of the United States. I have been unable to find any information on the Department of Justice website or the U.S. Government Manual.

thank you.

Sorry but there's very limited information on this office on Wikipedia. However, here are some people who occupied that office: Paul McNulty, William Moschella, William W. Mercer. 82.152.219.170 10:04, 7 June 2007 (UTC) converted to wikilink syntax by Tamfang 23:06, 7 June 2007 (UTC))

The following is basically a guess. The United States Deputy Attorney General advises and assists the Attorney General. There are several Associates supporting the Deputy Attorney General, each of which has a portfolio devoted to some aspects of law and justice. One of these Associates is the Principal Associate. Start of guess. Next to having a portfolio (like the others), the Principal Associate also supervises the other Associates on a daily basis. End of guess. For a more definitive answer, you can try sending an e-mail inquiry to: AskDOJ@usdoj.gov.  --Lambiam^Talk 11:40, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

clay pottery with glass

Is it possible for clay pottery to be decorated with glass pieces or glass shards?

Yes, you just bake it in. - MSTCrow 18:27, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Beware, however, that some types of glass soften or even melt at the temperatures at which some ceramics are fired. For example, pottery states that earthenwares are normally fired at temperatures in the range of about 1000 to 1200 degrees C, and soda-lime glass specifies its melting point as "about 1000°C". Soda-lime glass. according to the same article, is the most prevalent type of glass [...and] is used for windowpanes and bottles. --mglg_(talk) 19:26, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Does (Do?) Cloisonné count? --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 01:39, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Question about musical instruments around the world

I'm wondering whether there is a resource for identifying ALL the musical instruments around the world, and their number, as well as ideally also photographs or drawings of the musical instruments. I've googled variations of this question and key words, and not come up with anything comprehensive. There is a big list here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_musical_instruments However, I don't think it's intended (yet) as a full list - or is it? I would be greateful to receive either a referral to a resource or a suggestion on how I might look for it, or perhaps the answer to how many musical instruments there are. Thanks!

You are correct, the list is not complete; for example, the albogue and ney are not listed. Making a truly comprehensive list so that you could count the number is nearly impossible. One problem is that that are many regional variations to "essentially" the same folk instrument, but as time went by and the local versions evolved in different ways, did they remain just variations, or become different kinds of instruments? For the same reason, it is impossible to say how many languages there are. Also, many objects that were not intended as an instrument can be used as such: pairs of wooden spoons, washboards, turntables, wine glasses, bottles, ... There are maybe not as many types as instruments as there are languages, but it is safe to say the number is in the thousands. You may be interested in the following books, but I doubt any of them is comprehensive:

• The Diagram Group (1997). Musical instruments of the world: an illustrated encyclopedia. New York: Sterling Pub. Co. ISBN 978-0806998473.
• Max Wade-Matthews (2000). The World Encyclopedia of Musical Instruments. London: Lorenz Books. ISBN 978-0754805700.
• Meryl Doney (2002). Musical Instruments Around the World. Discover Other Cultures. Franklin Watts. ISBN 978-0749645434.
• Musical Instruments Of the World. Carson Dellosa. 2003. ISBN 978-1580372527.

 --Lambiam^Talk 22:16, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

I suggest posting your query or otherwise contacting the good folks at the recently formed Musical Instruments WikiProject. (They may not patrol the Reference Desk so might have missed it here.) -- Deborahjay 01:43, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

philosophy textbook

Hello,

I'm looking for a "philosophy textbook", in french or english, i mean a (very) big book that would be ok to read for beginners and that would cover all philosophy, not very deep of course, but with quite a lot of details (much more than an introduction book to philosophy).

It would have to be a book that's pleasant to read in a row, with a time continuity i guess... Much like the 1'000 pages science textbooks, with a lot of pictures, history links, exemples, and so on.

Is it an utopy?

Thanks in advance.

It may not be utopian, but it is certainly ambitious. You are not going to find an awful lot of philosophy books with pictures, to be quite frank: ideas are not photogenic or pictorial, by their very nature. But on the assumption that you are a complete beginner, and are looking for a broad introduction to philosophical concepts, I would recommend Philosophy: the Basics by Nigel Warburton (224 pages) or Think: A Compelling Introduction to Philosophy by Simon Blackburn (320 pages). Moving up the weighty scale there is An Introduction to Western Philosophy: Ideas and Arguments from Plato to Popper by Anthony Flew (511 pages). None of these reach your 'weighty', tome-like standards. I would say, though, that it is best not to be too ambitious: think big but start small. Clio the Muse 01:55, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Maybe it would be helpful to learn what philosophical problems most immediately interest you -- what would compel someone to read a thousand pages of philosophy? For a broad to the history of problems, I agree with the Blackburn text. But philosophy is a broad discipline. Maybe first narrow down your interests? Llamabr 04:15, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

Read Sophie's World. It explains the basics of the history of philosophy in a few hundred pages disguised as a children's novel. And it was a bestseller in Europe. - MelancholyDanish

Sophies' World is great, OK, great lite, but it will explain a little about a lot and then you can dive deeper into the ideas that interest you--Eudaiomonia 12:06, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

'the tao of pooh' for caffeine free great lite :) Perry-mankster 12:39, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

I would recommend one of the histories of philosophy. These, in the guise of a genetic or teleological tracking of "thought," will also give you an introduction to each new big idea and its native location in history. Utgard Loki 12:58, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

And on that note how about Bertrand Russell's History of Western Philosophy (Russell). It's a bit old (1946) but it's a very accessible work and a great read. Lisiate 01:32, 8 June 2007 (UTC)