Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2007 February 8

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February 8

Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs

This question was asked at Talk:Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. I must admit the question has made me curious, as even as a brit, I don't know the answer.

"HMRC is responsible for ...UK frontier protection..."; so this is the function of HMRC and not the Home Office? What sort of enforcement capabilities do they have, armed border guards, etc.? Thanks. Have Gun, Will Travel 18:10, 7 February 2007 (UTC)

I too am surprised to think that HRMC are responsible for protecting our "frontiers" (ports and airports, I guess) against anything more serious than tax evasion. →Ollie (talk • contribs) 00:28, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Frontier protection amounts to their responsibility for ensuring that no-one slips a trojan horse through southampton docks, or something like that. --Tagishsimon (talk)

Well, you can find some information here, but essentially, HMRC is charged with controlling imports/exports, and their main border security operations are anti-smuggling. Carom 00:40, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

I would assume this entails some sort of naval or marine enforcement capabilities. In the US, despite some misconceptions, the IRS doesn't have black helicopters. Have Gun, Will Travel 00:46, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Well, the page I linked to states "HMRC manages its own fleet of boats to patrol British waters, where it works closely with the police authorities." So.... Carom 00:48, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Key indicator 8.1/Targets says, "the government’s overall operational priority is SOCA (Serious Organised Crime Agency) led investigations. HMRC activity, in terms of intervening on drugs at the frontier, is secondary to SOCA requests for assistance in pursuit of investigations. As SOCA is new we have no means to estimate the volume and impact of such requests on HMRC resources or on our ability to meet HMRC specific numerical targets." Sounds like this new agency is the lead organization and HMRC takes a back seat to what was traditionally some of thier functions. SOCAs site says "sponsored by, but operationally independent from, the Home Office." What does that bureaucrateese mean? http://www.soca.gov.uk/aboutUs/index.html

There are two main agencies at the UK border. HMRC are the people who check your goods both inbound and outbound. Home Office have people checking that your passport/visa is in order and are the first UK agency that an entrant to the country will see unless they've been stopped at sea by either the HMRC cutter fleet or the Royal Navy. SOCA do not operate at the border, they are one of a few agencies that task agencies such as HMRC to carry out operations. MLA 10:36, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

HMRC are also one half of "Programme Cyclamen", with staff operating the detector equipment designed to prevent radiological hazards (especially "dirty bombs" and small nuclear explosives) entering the UK. The other half is the Home Office, who manage the work.Thom2002 16:34, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

There are interesting aspects of Serious Organised Crime Agency#Intelligence role and secrecy; sounds somewhat analogous to DEA in the US. To simplifing a delicate area in broad statements: in the US, FBI cannot kill anybody outside the US, and CIA cannot kill anybody inside the US. DEA however, can kill persons (US citizens or not) inside or outside the US. And another loophole is, if CIA is involved in an activity that may lead to the death of someone covertly or by a decision in the field to maintain operational security, it must be reported back to the Senate Intelligence Committee. DEA is, however, exempt from this provision. Does SOCA have any operational license or capacity externally? Have Gun, Will Travel 21:18, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

The UK law enforcement culture is different to the US, SOCA does not carry weapons or kill people and its intelligence role is not the same as the UK secret services. When SOCA was established, it was supposed to be the UK's FBI and that is still probably the closest US comparitor. 82.20.94.218 23:23, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

To update people, from April of 2009 the UK Border Agency became an executive agency of the UK Government repsonsible for border control. The UK Border Agency is a law enforcement agency and incorporates funtions from HMRC (controlling goods at the UK border), Home Offcie (immigration controls both at the broder and inland)and Forign Office (visa issuing overseas). The UK Boder Agancy has inherited both the HMRC cutters and the former immigration joint maritime unit with Kent Police. If you visit UK Border Agency you can find out more.

Andrew Ridgeley

Who left Andrew Ridgeley, his partner in the ‘80s pop duo Wham!, to go off and play by himself?

Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou aka George Michael. The information can also be found in the articles on Andrew Ridgeley and Wham! ---Sluzzelin 00:43, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

From what I read in the papers George Michael didn't 'go off and play by himself' - he was later caught in a public toilet in LA attempting to play with an under-cover policeman; and later on still, he was seen by a newspaper photographer on Hampstead Heath in London playing with another guy .

Sports and Entertainment Marketing

Hello, I was wandering if there are any articles or anything reliable on the topic of Sports and Entertainment marketing. Thank you --(Aytakin) | Talk 01:02, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

You know, it's quite easy to do a search..just type in what you are looking for in the box located on the right said of the screen and press "go". If the page in question exists, you'll be sent directly to it. Quite an easy way to avoid some unnecessary reference desk questions that one can answer on their own.

Anyway, I've found an article under the name sports marketing, but it does need improvement. Basically the article is an unreferenced stub. I'm not sure exactly what kind of information you're looking for, but I suggest heading over to Wikia and searching for a specialized sports wiki, chances are there might be an in-depth article on sports marketing, but it's not guaranteed. Unfortunately I found no article pertaining to entertainnment marketing, but it's possible I might've missed something. --Xertz 01:26, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

I already found the sports marketing, but i'm looking more aout strategies and etc. Thanks --(Aytakin) | Talk 04:12, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Spit or swallow?

For toothpaste and mouthwash, are you supposed to spit it out, and not rinse with water? I've always been confused at this, as the instructions normally don't say. I saw one site which said it's better to not rinse out toothpaste and just spit, although I have no idea why. Wouldn't that just be injested shortly? And for mouthwash, my ex-suitemate asked me once if I rinsed it out, because his teeth looks blue when he doesn't. I would have thought you would rinse out mouthwash, because you're supposed to contact poison control if you swallow more than what's needed for normal use. And of course, you generally use mouthwash after brushing, right? So if you rinse out mouthwash, wouldn't you rinse out the toothpaste? You'd think toothpastes and mouthwash, being as common as they are, would have recommendation about what do do after spitting out the majority, but they don't. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 02:24, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Mouthwash should not be ingested, as I recall a discussion about that on this desk a while ago. Toothpaste usually says "Do not ingest more than amount normally used," which implies that it wouldn't kill you, but could be potentially harmful. I tried swallowing it once, at the behest of a camp buddy, it was gross. As for blueness, teeth usually only absorb the color of things if all the plaque on them hasn't been brushed off. What website says not to rinse after brushing? That seems to render the brushing semi-pointless, as lots of the plaque remains in your mouth if you don't rinse. Mouthwash finishes the job by killing whatever is left over after rinsing. As a sidenote (and please don't take this as medical advice, it is more like common sense), even though sulfuric acid can kill germs, you should never ever rinse with it. For great justice, read dental hygiene. V-Man737 03:48, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

This website here says "Teach them how to spit toothpaste out. It is better to spit rather than rinse the mouth." --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 05:16, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

WTF. After going through all of their sources, I can't see any reason that they would put that in there. If anyone could point out to me a reason that not rinsing is superior to rinsing, I'd be muchly grateful, as I'm terribly curious as to the reasoning of that. V-Man737 05:36, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

I'm further confused by that same page where it says:

• "Don't swallow. Swallowing the toothpaste may cause them to get too much fluoride."

followed immediately by:

• Don't rinse. Fluoride can go on protecting the teeth for some time after cleaning the teeth if the toothpaste is not rinsed out of the mouth.

So... spit forever?

Also, fluorideinformation.com says "If you rinse your mouth after brushing, use only a small amount of water as too much water will wash away the fluoride and reduce the benefits." I'm now more confused than before I asked. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 06:11, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

I've been swallowing toothpaste all my life and I've turned out okaetysododsakojrsfksadidjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj --Wooty Woot? contribs 06:43, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Ugh. I think it's a load of hokey; whatever fluoride is going to benefit your teeth will benefit you while you're brushing. To have your teeth soak in it for a while afterward might be slightly beneficial, but not enough to make a big deal out of it (say, to the point where people develop dental fluorosis and are always spitting). V-Man737 06:46, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Just get a fluoride treatment (what, no article on this ?), then you can rinse all you want and your teeth will still have plenty of fluoride. I had one as a kid, and never had any cavities. StuRat 13:03, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Fluoride therapy → (I piped your link, and no, that's not gay innuendo.) − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 13:10, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

The U.S. National Institutes of Health discusses fluoride toothpaste poisoning at [1]. Ingesting a large amount of fluoride toothpaste could harm or kill you. Edison 16:10, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Well, I know ingesting a lot of fluoride can kill you, but what about from normal brushing? Fluoride has a short half-life, but there's theories that it builds up in the bones or some such. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 18:07, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Stop sweating yourself over this, just be grateful that you have enjoyed the benefits of fluoride through your life, us oldies suffered dental damage through lack of it and now have to wear dentures.--88.109.196.151 21:24, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Right now there are two tubes of toothpaste in my house, different brands. One tube has an instruction in small print, "Do not swallow." The other one doesn't. --Anonymous, February 9, 2007, 23:30 (UTC).

I'm guessing that your question heading is a joke; see oral sex. -- Sturgeonman 22:19, 13 February 2007 (UTC)

Hold me in your arms

What is the official title and artist of the following song?:

Lyrics snipped. They're available from the link below. --Tagishsimon (talk)

It's got a techno beat. Ive heard conflicting sources say that its by either Lasgo or Sylver. Thanks. Jamesino 02:35, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

According to sing365 it is called Hold Me In Your Arms, and is credited to Lasgo. However, as far as I can make out, it is called "Something" by Lasgo, and not Hold Me In Your Arms. Go figure. I advise this sort of google search for future such queries. --Tagishsimon (talk)

(EC) It seems to be Lasgo on the first search, but then Sylver on the second search. I can't seem to find any authoritative sources that indicate the originator of the lyrics, or even who sang them first. I love that song though. V-Man737 03:56, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

allmusic indicates that "Something" was Lasgo's debut single and lists two Lasgo members as the composers. There is also an audio sample there if you want to check whether it is the correct track. --Lph 14:36, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

date of publishment

When was the wikipedia website published?

Wikipedia was formally launched on January 15, 2001, according to the Wikipedia article. --Tagishsimon (talk)

But please note that the content on Wikipedia is literally changing every second. If you need information on how to cite Wikipedia, have a look at the Wikipedia:Citing Wikipedia page. - Akamad 06:14, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

And the time and date of the latest version of each article is shown right at the bottom of each page.--Shantavira 09:13, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Whilst that's true - it's not as useful as you might think since the last change might have been to revert vandalism or to make an entirely trivial spelling correction. To know when changes to a particular article took place, you've really got to look at the 'history' tab. But for Wikipedia as a whole, Jan 15th 2001 is the 'official' data. However, we have (for example) articles taken verbatim from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica (which is now out of copyright) that pre-date the existance of computers...so there isn't really one clear date. SteveBaker 18:19, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

Pilot talk

Hi. Could you point to sources with examples of the kind of talk and codes British WWII pilots (spitfires, typhoons,...) would use while in flight? I'm looking for particular expressions used, for example, to indicate approaching ennemy aircraft, to signal various targets, the kind of jokes they would make, etc. Do you know of any recording of such radio chat? Thank you. Keria 04:37, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Here's your basic vocabulary. Oops, I appear to have pranged the cabbage crate owing to being blotto at angels 18 over Dover en route to Blighty. Tally ho! That sort of thing. --Tagishsimon (talk) 05:02, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

It's perfectly ordinary banter, Keria. Tagishsimon pranged his kite right in the how's yer father ... hairy blighter, dicky-birdied, feathered back on his Sammy, took a waspy, flipped over on his Betty Harper's and caught his can in the Bertie. (from Monty Python's "RAF Banter") ---Sluzzelin 05:08, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Yeah, but Monty Python was making a parady of the actual language. None of the MP terms were in actual use.90.4.247.236 15:32, 8 February 2007 (UTC)petitmichel

I don't understand why the RAF need slang for Betelgeux; it's not like they fly there often! Laïka 17:39, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

• Oh there were Foo Fighters and gremlins even then.hotclaws**== 09:39, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

This is great but does anyone know of logs and transcriptions of actual conversations pilots have had flying their planes on missions? Keria 13:32, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

About salary obtained there and its savings part

I have an offer to work at Nigeria, came to know that we have spend 70% of the salary received there and can only sent 30 % of the salary as saving, is that true????

This is going to depend heavily on what you buy, what size housing and other luxries you consider nessicery -- feb^talk 07:59, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Dear Friend

U have misunderstood my question, see suppose an a resident of Australia working in Nigeria, if suppose my salay is 1000USD dollar can i sepnd the entire 1000 usd to my home country or not. that is my doubt User:125.17.25.8

We're having trouble understanding your question. Are you asking if people working in Nigeria are restricted from sending money overseas? --Dweller 11:57, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

That's how I interpret the question, yes. StuRat 12:34, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Yes thats excatly what am asking about, can a person working in Nigeria sent all the money he earns across to his home country (eg .India ...) Or only a percentage should be sent.

Ya perfect that is my doubt. can they send their salary to some other country (eg.India) iand if they can is there any percentage in that

I don't know anything about the banking system in Nigeria, but I would have thought that once it gets paid into your bank account, it's your money and you can do what you like with it. That's not to say that the process of transferring money to your home country would be entirely straightforward, though, especially given the prevalence of advance fee fraud in Nigeria. See wire transfer. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 13:33, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

I get from his question that there is a law in Nigeria that only 30% of income can be sent out-of-country. This might be a visa requirement for "guest workers". I see no reason why such a law could not exist. Can anyone verify if it does? That is what I take his question to mean. --Justanother 14:08, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Also see Remittances. Apparently Nigeria is a big receiver of remittances but I am not really finding anything about the other. --Justanother 18:29, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Maybe that is why I get so many emails from people in Nigeria asking for my bank code so they can send me money to be transferred out of the country with a nice finders fee for me. Edison 16:03, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

• With the fraud originating from the place, I'd think twice before ever considering working there. Are you even sure the company is legit? - Mgm|^(talk) 12:42, 9 February 2007 (UTC)
  • That was my first thought. I've had several friends offered jobs in Nigeria, very legit-sounding (to them anyway - set off warning bells for me), and they all turned out to be scams. Googling the names/email addresses of the offers and even the text if it's an ad or an email can prove enlightening. Anchoress 00:37, 10 February 2007 (UTC)

Brazil online store item purchase/shipping to USA

There is an item I want to order from a Brazilian online store. However, I live in the US and my bank account is US as well. The store is not set up to deal with this kind of situation, rather, it only really works for Brazilian residents. Is there any kind of service that could purchase the item for me and ship it to the US, so that I could pay them instead of the online store? Thank you! Gladstone88 11:19, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

You could have a look through Category:Wikipedians in Brazil, see if there's anyone there who shares your interests, and send them a nice email asking if they would be prepared to order it for you. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 11:31, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

I would be really surprised if they would not take a VISA or MasterCard credit card. A check written against a US bank account would certainly not be acceptable - but credit cards work nearly everywhere. SteveBaker 13:40, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Funny thing. I live in Brazil and can't buy stuff from USA because I can't have an international credit card. Silly world, this is. — Kieff | Talk 23:49, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

I get this in Canada all the time. :( Basically, if a company has no experience with international orders, you have no hope. --Zeizmic 21:16, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

OK so they're an online store, but they aren't set up to deal with non-Brazilians? That seems odd to me. The whole point of going online is to 'shop the world'. Do they take PayPal? Added: In the good old days, when people wanted to order something from a foreign country, they bought a money order or wired it using Western Union or some other wire transfer method. What about that? Anchoress 00:01, 10 February 2007 (UTC)

Constellations

Since there are so many stars in the sky, How does one know that a star belongs to an constellation? And how do you draw the lines which connect one star to another? 124.125.216.89 11:40, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Well, it's really all in your head. Every star could potentially be part of a constellation. Check out this image, showing that you can draw outside the lines! − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 12:06, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Most constellations contain at least a few really bright stars. That makes them easier to find. StuRat 12:32, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

From constellation: "The International Astronomical Union (IAU) divides the sky into 88 official constellations with precise boundaries, so that every direction or place in the sky belongs within one constellation."--Shantavira 13:20, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Bubblewrap and it being soooo good

Have any studies been made on the topic of bubblewrap and therapeutical effects it might have...? 81.93.102.43 16:12, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

A Google. Note that there are a number of sites where you can pop "virtual bubblewrap". --Justanother 18:19, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Anecdotal evidence involving stress-relieving effects is in abundance, but I suspect this is mostly just pop psychology. Google scholar shows many hits but I don't easily see any which are relevant to the question. Friday (talk) 18:24, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

• Tension sheets (red painted bubble wrap) appeared on an episode of Red Dwarf.hotclaws**== 09:41, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

Urine Infection

What is the best medicine to take to get rid of a urine infection?

• The one your doctor prescribes or recommends. --jpgordon^∇∆∇∆ 15:45, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

<removed medical advice --Justanother 18:16, 8 February 2007 (UTC)>

You may find the article urinary tract infection useful, particularly the treatment section. Natgoo 20:29, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

drink lots of cranberry juice

And lots of water helps too. --Candy-Panda 05:16, 10 February 2007 (UTC)

Light Bulbs

Can a light bulb burn out or be damaged by the way you flip the switch?16:09, 8 February 2007 (UTC)24.237.139.6Mint

The simple answer is no. Of course it might, depend on the integrity with which the light switch was wired. − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 16:31, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Maybe I should elaborate. Suppose the light switch was set up so that when it is half way up (pointing perpendicular to the wall), the light is given normal wattage/voltage (I'm not sure which would do the damage). But suppose it is also set up so that when it is fully switched on, more than enough wattage/voltage is given, and the bulb is overloaded. Sort of related is Light switch#Internal operation but this has more to do with damaging the internals of the switch, not the bulb. − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 16:46, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

If it was given more than enough voltage/wattage, then yes, it would potentially damage the ligh bulb, but why would some one wire it so that it would blow? unless by accident, electrics in england are much like plumbing in poland, shite!

That was my point. No electrician would do that, except for the sake of showing it can be done. So in normal situations, it's not going to damage the light bulb. As long as your bulb can handle the wattage/voltage given by the switch. − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 17:02, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

For a conventional light bulb in a conventionally-wired house, it's simply impossible for a switch (that is, anything which could reasonably be called a "switch") to deliver "too much" voltage, let alone too much wattage.

A conventional light bulb is designed to operate at some voltage V. All the wires in a conventionally-wired house are (for our purposes) held at some voltage V. The value of V may of course be different depending on where you live, but (equally of course) the light bulbs you can buy where you live are going to match the conventional voltage in the wires where you live.

Now, a conventional light bulb can be modeled as a resistor, having some resistance R, and obeying Ohm's law. When you apply a constant voltage V to it, an amount of current flows equal to V/R. That current flowing at that voltage develops an amount of power ("wattage") equal to V×I (or, if you do a little math, V²/R). The current and the power are solely a function of the voltage and the resistance; there's nothing the switch can do to change either of these. (The switch could conceivably (a) lower the voltage or (b) limit the current flowing through it, but (c) that would only increase the life of the light bulb, not decrease it, and (d) such a device would not be called a "switch". Maybe a "dimmer".)

There is one way that a malfunctioning switch could decrease the life of a light bulb, which Justanother has given us just below. —Steve Summit (talk) 03:19, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

I would think that if you "hover" at the point where the contacts in the switch are just barely making contact that you will stress the bulb much more than is needed. The most wearing thing on the filament is the rapid temperature change that goes with turning it on. --Justanother 18:23, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

You are more likely to damage the switch contacts from arcing by keeping in half on half off.--DarkFuture 18:26, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

I'm thinking that it is so destructive that you can't get those good switches anymore, where you could 'quiver' at the arc state and make all sorts of weird sounds! Now they all have a 'mousetrap' spring that is either firmly on or off. --Zeizmic 02:55, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

Doing that used to scare the crap out of me. I thought the ouse would explode or burst into flames or something. V-Man737 02:57, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

I really hate it when the 'ouse' explodes. As for arcing, it was a goal even in the 1890's to have switches with a snap action so the contacts broke the arc quickly. Both the push button switches and the rotary switches in the late 19th century had this spring-loaded snap action to reduce arcing. The arcing would present a much lower than normal voltage to the bulb and would be unlikely to destroy the filament, if you contrived to manipulate a switch so that it was just making or breaking the circuit and arcing a bit. The switch contacts would be harmed by the arcing more than the bulb would be. Edison 05:34, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

That's funny. It certainly used to be a goal to have switches that, through their snap action couldn't be teased, but modern-day "quiet" switches seem ever-more susceptible to that, and I'm always amazed that more houses don't burn down as a result of switches igniting things. Recycling issues aside, I though the pinnacle of wall switch technology was the mercury switch, although modern-day dimmers are pretty good too. We'll be back at a high point when sine wave dimmers finally take over the world.

Atlant 14:21, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

LOL! I meant to type "mouse." (Or was it "grouse?") V-Man737 05:46, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

An ordinary light bulb does not follow Ohm's law. The hot resistance increases compared to the cold resistance; the hotter the filament, the higher the resistance. Lightbulbs are sometimes used as regulating elements in oscillator circuits for this reason. Inside a "quiet" light switch, the arc from slowly parting contacts could certainly cause the metal contacts to become pitted and burned, resulting in local heating (the voltage drop in the high resistance switch times the current in the circuit it controls). I have not heard of fires started by this particular situation, but in cases where aluminum wiring had oxidized back when it was used in building wiring, there were fires due to the fire initiation in the wiring insulation. In the U,S the voltage is 120, so it is less able to support an arcing fire, but there have been fires in which an extension cord burned up from the distal to the proximal end in a continuing arc which set the structure on fire. With most of the world using 240 volts, there would be far greater chance of a sustained arc. An arcing fault can thus burn down a structure, but the fault current is not sufficient to blow the 15 or 20 amp fuse or trip the circuit breaker until it is too late. Edison 16:47, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

Trucking Companies

How many trucking companies are in each state, how many trucks do they run? I am also trying to find out statistics on how many jobs are available in this industry. Are there also any lists available for trucking industry journals/publications? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Try (http://www.nadras.com/) - that's the truck drivers association website. They have a forum that might be able to help you more (presumably the forum members are knowledgeable truck drivers/in the business). Also check the wikipedia articles on freight, container shipping and logistics. I have read a book about the rise of Container Shipping (The Box (book) that runs through the history of containerization and the impact it has on freight/cost of shipping/the world economy. Hope this helps ny156uk 21:20, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

The totals for the U.S. are easier to find: 677,249 active interstate truck and bus companies with between 2.9 and 10.4 million drivers and 7.9 million large trucks which travelled 216 million miles a year[2] Rmhermen 02:31, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

Whats the best website 4 free stuff?

I'm a cheapo and I like getting free stuff but I've had a hard time finding websites that give no strings attached freebies. Are there any freebie websites that are frequently updated and feature free items being mailed to your home without shipping and handling, or filling out polls or any other strings? Are there any frequently updated freebie websiotes? Any freebie sites that feature real items physically mailed to your home and not just online free stuff? --Howcomeido 20:10, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

I dont think such a thing exists. --ChesterMarcol 20:50, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

YES IT EXISTS. http://www.fatwallet.com/c/22 128.54.78.123 21:05, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Can I make a plea please; fatwallet is fine, but only if you live in the States, so can that qualification be noted on any referral in future, it helps us Brits not to waste time looking!--88.109.196.151 21:18, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Try www.craigslist.com. International, each version i've seen has a "free" section, which is fairly active. -- feb^talk 21:28, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Also check out The Freecycle Network.--Shantavira 08:03, 9 February 2007 (UTC)

can't find info anywhere!!!!

please help i have looked all over for this information for a school project and cant seem to find the right stuff

what goods does sudan import and export?

i think it would help ALOT if you added this to your site about all countries because it is frequently required for projects and is VERY hard to find

thank you

Check out the CIA Factbook on Sudan. − Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 22:58, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Economy of Sudan-- feb^talk 23:05, 8 February 2007 (UTC)