Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2009 September 24

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September 24

Romani Archaeology

Has an archaeological dig ever found evidence of Romani habitation on a site? Have archaeologicalsurveys ever found potential Romani occupation sites? 138.192.33.3 (talk) 00:14, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

History of the Romani people may have some info for you, and you may be able to follow internal and external links for more info. --Jayron32 02:04, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Romanes eunt domus! err.... I mean Romani ite Domum!--Zerozal (talk) 19:38, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

German-American relations

I am writing a report on a person or event that impacted German-American relations in the last 20 years, and I would like some help brainstorming ideas. Topics include political figures, cultural figures, and historical events. Examples are Reagan, Bush, Kohl, Schröder, reunification, and 9/11, but I want to have a more unique one. Thanks! Reywas92^Talk 01:04, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

David Hasselhof is a good one for the "cultural" thing. If we stretch it back a little farther than 20 years, Kraftwerk's influence on early American hip-hop should not be underestimated, and other German music like the Scorpions. Films like Europa Europa recieved good press in America. Articles like German American may have some good ideas as well. --Jayron32 02:00, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Nena's "99 Luftballons"?  :-) Dismas|^(talk) 14:35, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

The Iraq War is probably the single most important event, and not included in your list. GW Bush and his advisors were irate that the Germans refused to get involved and criticized the US invasion. Joschka Fischer confronted Donald Rumsfeld about the lack of evidence for WMD in Iraq. Another interesting figure from this period is Herta Däubler-Gmelin. Marco polo (talk) 17:58, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

My vote will always go to Claudia Schiffer. DOR (HK) (talk) 03:49, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

Boris Becker and other German tennis players...hotclaws 15:20, 26 September 2009 (UTC)

background check

in ny state in pittsford do i need a background check to buy a rifle or shotgun? -- Preceding unsigned query was added at 06:14 on September 24, 2009 by User 74.65.3.30

According to this, you don't need a license or a registration to purchase of own a rifle/shotgun anywhere in NYS other than in NYC. Pittsford, being in Monroe county, is not accessible by a link in the page, but perhaps a query to that district would reveal more detailed information. DRosenbach ^{(Talk | Contribs)} 12:11, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

DRosenbach is an experienced editor, who I will not question. I would caution the OP that we do not give legal advice. 78.144.123.30 (talk) 15:17, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

This is not legal advice, per kainaw's rubric. Comet Tuttle (talk) 17:45, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

You could always walk into a gun shop, go to the man at the counter and say "Oy! I'd like to buy a shotgun please." I bet you'd get your answer straight away. Dismas|^(talk) 17:25, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Hispanic-American views on LGBT rights

hispanic american views on lgbt rights? -- Preceding unsigned query was added at 07:16 on September 24, 2009 by User 218.186.12.225

Your question is absurd. How could a non-cohesive, non-homogenous group united merely by their countries-of-origin/first-spoken-language have a view on the rights of those who either engage or entertain thoughts of homosexuality and the like? How about Hispanic-American views on animal rights? DRosenbach ^{(Talk | Contribs)} 12:05, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

I'd be willing to bet that Hispanics, as a group, have cultural views and values more closely associated with each other than with white Americans, as a group. How much weight is assigned to those similarities is up to the OP.--droptone (talk) 12:18, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Yeah. It's not "absurd" to ask about general demographics and political views, it's actually a standard practice in polling and sociology. --Mr.98 (talk) 19:41, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Here are the results from the GSS using the variables hispanic identification and the question "Is homosexual sex wrong?" (only those who identified as having Mexican heritage had sufficient numbers to draw conclusions from). Hispanics have slightly more intolerant views, but I'd imagine that difference would disappear (or reverse) if you controlled for education (reason for believing that to be true found here).--droptone (talk) 12:07, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Most Mexicans are Catholic, so that may have an effect on the average acceptance of LGBT rights. --Sean 12:23, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

At least in terms of white American Catholics, they tend to be more tolerant of homosexual sex. If you control for the race of the individual (white, black, other), the trend still holds (can't provide an easy image since it's a lot of data, you can run the stats yourself here, Row=RELIG, Column=HOMOSEX, Control=RACE). If you want to play with other variables of interest, MARHOMO = should homosexuals be allowed to marry and COLHOMO = should homosexuals be allowed to teach.--droptone (talk) 14:35, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Lets not forget those 'no on 8' ads run by the cast of ugly betty. They're on television, so they must be representative...82.132.139.184 (talk) 21:58, 27 September 2009 (UTC)

Consent

In an episode of Stargate Atlantis, a main character attended some sort of conference where a potentially-dangerous scientific experiment was performed. When the main character objected, the person hosting the conference asked if he'd signed the non-disclosure agreement, saying that this meant he had given consent. I saw the document; it was about 200 pages long. Given that by the time the document had been fully read and signed, the conference would have been over, would this really stand up in court? Or are there parts of this scenario which wouldn't happen in the real world? (For reference, the episode in question is Brain Storm.) Vimescarrot (talk) 10:28, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Nobody actually reads all the stuff they agree to (especially internet terms & conditions). --Nricardo (talk) 11:13, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

I know, but that doesn't answer my question. Vimescarrot (talk) 11:15, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

It depends. Check out standard form contract, non est factum, and Tilden Rent-A-Car Co. v. Clendenning. If you want a more specific answer, you'll have to give a jurisdiction. --Sean 12:19, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Nevada or Arizona. Vimescarrot (talk) 13:03, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Not Colorado? :P 80.123.210.172 (talk) 14:36, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

I don't know the specific episode in question but Atlantis largely took place in another galaxy. Nil Einne (talk) 14:38, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Also Unconscionability I guess Nil Einne (talk) 14:38, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Just a reminder: Stargate Atlantis is fiction. DOR (HK) (talk) 03:52, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

And it's set in a mostly-realistic America, where there is always someone who will sue you. I would. Vimescarrot (talk) 05:37, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

Er as I said above, it's set in mostly-unrealistic Atlantis. True the earth parts usually happen in mostly realistic America but that's only a tiny proportion. The question of what laws, if any, would apply to a secret international force in another galaxy is an interesting question perhaps, but not one we can answer Nil Einne (talk) 19:52, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

This episode takes place in America. Nothing to do with Atlantis. Vimescarrot (talk) 21:44, 26 September 2009 (UTC)

But you said 'it's set in a mostly-realistic America' which I (and I'm sure I'm not the only one) took to mean 'Stargate Atlantis is set in mostly realistic America' as Stargate Atlantis was what DOR (HK) mentioned (and you were replying to DOR (HK), not the episode, since DOR (HK) didn't mention the episode at all. It's good to know now that this specific episode takes places in America but that wasn't clear to me until now. Nil Einne (talk) 16:43, 27 September 2009 (UTC)

...meh. Vimescarrot (talk) 17:36, 27 September 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for the references, guys. Interesting reading. Vimescarrot (talk) 05:37, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

Moving to the country

Did any other countries move their children out to the country during WWII similar to the way that England did?

Evacuations of civilians in Britain during World War II says that some 30,000 people arrived into the UK from continental Europe, for one. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 14:38, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

I think the OP is looking for evacuation of children from the cities. Googlemeister (talk) 15:45, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Yes [1]

I believe the dutch and danish did the same, also children from leningrad.

It would probably be easier to search for "nationality children evacu.. wWii" etc83.100.251.196 (talk) 16:00, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

I remember reading some German novels (by Heinrich Böll and Siegfried Lenz) that both had children evacuated to the countryside as plot points. There are a lot of similar references in French writings and films about the occupation, but in that case, the evacuation appears to be the work of the parents, not some state-sponsored program.

Industry study

Hello clever people! You gotta help me out here. I need to:

1. Assess the damand-supply gap in an industry of my choice

2. Assess the structure of the industry and calculate the CR and H-indexn

3. Intelligently guess the direction of change in the industry structure with reasons.

I have no clue how to go about getting the required data - can you shove me in the right direction please? Oh, and I am located in India. Thanks --ReluctantPhilosopher (talk) 21:38, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

The first step is to have a discussion with your professor about how to get started. As a teacher, he's supposed to help you with the basics. If you're interested in researching on your own, I'd start with Google first, of course. Just now I googled "steel industry data" and the first link is "Steel industry news and information portal". I clicked that, then clicked "NEWS & STEEL INFO", then saw a "Steel Statistics" section over on the left whose "Production Data" section has a precise report from this month discussing worldwide production of crude steel. (It turns out that China is, finally, making almost half the world's steel.) OK, we've got some production levels. Some more research of this sort should make it pretty easy for you to establish a history about the last few months. Then I googled "steel demand" and got many news stories that cite sources about where they got their data about decreased demand. In this way you could cite statistics about the decreasing demand and decreasing production, which is most of question #1. I don't know what "CR" and "H-indexn" mean; you will have to ask your professor. And then #3 will follow from #1. If you restrict your searches to India production, your paper will probably be more interesting, but the data may be harder to come by. Comet Tuttle (talk) 23:04, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Thanks, that was really helpful. The thing is I should have started on the project long ago and my teacher might not like it if she finds out that I waited until two days before the deadline to start wondering about how to do the assignment. ReluctantPhilosopher (talk) 15:09, 26 September 2009 (UTC)

Nearest agnatic relative of Emperor Charles VI

The question is simple: who was the nearest (legitimate) male agnatic relative of Emperor Charles VI that outlived him? Unfortunatly, the answer is hard to find. I know that such person would've saved the House of Habsburg and it certainly would have made the War of the Austrian Succession more interesting. He certainly existed, but who was he? I started following legitimate male lines of descent from Rudolph I of Germany, but Wikipedia does not have articles about all his agnatic descendants. Surtsicna (talk) 22:31, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

Wikipedia may not have articles on all these people, but thepeerage.com really care about this sort of thing. I believe that all the legitimate male lines died out from at least Rudolph I's father Albrecht IV on - so the nearest living male relative may be so distant that there is no record or memory of the link. Warofdreams talk 01:38, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

Who am I to blow against the wind?

Re title of question. It is a line from a Paul Simon song from the Graceland album. My question is whether it itself is a quote, or if it is the original well-known context in which this phrase first appeared, prepending "who am I?" to the concept of "blowing against the wind". Googling the exact phrase turns up nothing but the Paul Simon lyrics. --NorwegianBlue ^talk 23:46, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

G00gling "Blow against the Wind" also turns up references to a song of that title apparently by an artist called The Pedestrian, aka James Brandon Best (not the band Pedestrian), but this usage probably post-dates, and may ultimately derive from, Simon's <=1986 lyric. In the context of Simon's song ("I Know What I Know"), the line overtly (and humorously) carries a similar meaning to the traditional phrase "to blow/piss/spit into the wind", i.e. a futile defiance of inevitability or fate, and is probably a poetic variation of it. However - good poetry often being ambiguous and/or multi-levelled, and Simon being a good poet - he may well have intended also to evoke both Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind", and the lines "Everybody sees/feels the wind blow" that occur in the album's immediately preceding titular song "Graceland". 87.81.230.195 (talk) 01:06, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

Thanks, that was helpful. We have the same expression in Norwegian ("pisse i motvind"), but it was hardly suitable in the context where I'd like to use it. I wasn't aware that the idiomatic expression in English used the preposition "into" instead of "against", and hadn't thought of the other associations either. The idea I want to convey is the futility of fighting the ever increasing bureaucracy, when you are a professional who is trying to approach challenges in a rational way. --NorwegianBlue ^talk 11:42, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

Here's another variation on the image, by William Blake:

Mock on, mock on, Voltaire, Rousseau,

Mock on, mock on, 'tis all in vain:

You but throw sand against the wind,

And the wind throws it back again.

Rhinoracer (talk) 12:58, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

In the specific context of the difficulty of struggling against bureaucracy, there is of course the well-known American aphorism, "You can't fight City Hall." 87.81.230.195 (talk) 13:58, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

Thanks both! --NorwegianBlue ^talk 15:00, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

The Oxford Dictionary of English Proverbs lists: "In such a world to oppose impiety, what is it but attempting to stop a torrent, to allay a storm, to gape against an oven, to blow against the wind, to kick against the pricks?" Isaac Barrow 1677 The Theological Works of Isaac Barrow; "Piss not against the wind. Chi piscia contra il vento si bagna la commiscia, Ital. He that pisseth against the wind, wets his shirt. It is to a man's own prejudice, to strive against the stream." John Ray's A Compleat Collection of English proverbs 1670; "Puff not against the wind" William Camden Remains concerning Britain 1870; and "As if a man should spit against the wind; The filth returns in's face." John Webster The White Devil 1612.—eric

Another book of proverbs cites Alexander Barclay's Ship of Fools 1509 for "Puff not against the wind".—eric 04:19, 26 September 2009 (UTC)