Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2010 May 10

Welcome to the Wikipedia Miscellaneous Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

May 10

Federal funding of medical research and the private sector

A question came up recently and no one really had a good answer:

When (if) the federal government provides funding for something such as cancer or aids research, how are the funds actually distributed? For instance in the case of something such as aids: if the government spent 50 million dollars to research a cure or treatment, how is that research used by a drug company? Is the research given to them to use to develop vaccines and treatments or is it sold to them? For that matter, who actually does the research? Is it a gov't entity or is the money given in grants to the private sector? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Fdjgerardi (talk • contribs) 01:08, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

A number of countries have federal governments that are involved in funding medical research. Which country are you talking about? -- 202.142.129.66 (talk) 02:31, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

In the US, the National Science Foundation has a budget of about 7 billion dollars, and distributes 20% of the funds for federal-supported basic research, according to our article. The funds go out as grants to researchers whose proposals look best to the NSF. A large portion of this (I think most of it) goes to researchers at colleges and universities (mostly professors and graduate students).

Academic researchers (and some researchers at private organizations) publish their work in independent scientific journals, and is effectively a matter of public record, so anyone can use it (the journals are available to anyone for an annual fee). Medicine may be different from most research; I wouldn't be surprised if most published medical research is from non-academic institutions. Paul (Stansifer) 02:59, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

The US National Institutes of Health budget is $30.5 billion, much of which goes to academic institutions and the vast majority of which is directly targeted at research leading either directly (clinical or translational research) or indirectly (basic science research) to treatment of disease. Implicit in this arrangement is the idea that the results of the research will end up published in the scientific and medical literature so that it can be of benefit to everyone. However, because the process of bringing a drug to market is so vastly different, it is usually left up to the private sector to do this (the idea being that profits == incentive to develop new drugs). There are some in academia who are becoming increasingly frustrated with the tendency of big pharma to develop "me too" drugs, and many large academic centers are developing drug discovery pipelines. One would still expect that the proceeds from such an endeavor would be returned largely to the developer of the treatments, even if the funding for basic research on the topic came from federal sources. --- Medical geneticist (talk) 12:01, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Here is a lengthy relevant recent thread at the humanities desk: Wikipedia:Reference_desk/Humanities#Government-run_drug_research.John Z (talk) 09:00, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

In the book "Gathering Blue" by lois lowry, what doese blue & "the path" mean, symbolicly?

I have to mmake some sort of t-shirt design for a school project, for the plannning sheet i need to know what blue means as a sybol, and "the path" too. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Beatlesfabfan (talk • contribs) 02:38, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Part of the purpose of these sorts of school projects is for you to read and interpret the book yourself, using your own deductive skills and imagination. The meaning of "blue" and "the path" in this book doesn't have a definative answer like "what is the square root of 169" or "explain the bohr model of the atom" or "Who was the last anglo-saxon king of England". Those sorts of questions are such that everyone should get the same answer. Part of reading and interpreting literature is YOU need to come up with YOUR OWN meaning and be able to use your skills to express that meaning. So, part of this project is being able to apply your understanding of the book into your own life, and to translate that understanding into a T-shirt design which you can also explain. Its not a measure of your ability to memorize some fact, its a measure of your ability to think critically about something you've read and to express your thoughts in a creative manner. For teachers, their goal is to get you as a student to move deeper into your thinking (see Bloom's taxonomy) and this is the sort of project that does that. There isn't a "right answer", but there is a "right way" to do this project. Think hard about it, work hard at it, and put some effort both into reading the work critically, and in putting together your project. --Jayron32 03:02, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Wikipedia has an article about the book "Gathering Blue". Hint: what does the cenral character Kira collect? Is there anything notable about the eyes of the boy Matt? After you read the book you could see whether you agree with what other readers say about it here and here, and a plot summary.Cuddlyable3 (talk) 09:53, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Wikipedia's articles about the colors ("Blue", in this case) have significant information on the cultural and symbolic "meanings" of the color. That may be of some use - but I think Cuddlyable's answer (above) it the best one. SteveBaker (talk) 01:20, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

Luck Penny

Dear Sir,

I have a big Coin, probably made of copper, which my father had brought from USA in 1952-53 while he was studying at Minnesota University. The coin carries head with head-gear of a Red Indian with inscription 'Lucky Penny' on one side and Niagara falls on the other side. It appears to be made in Tokyo. Diameter of the coin is more than 2".

I do not know its history nor I know about its value. Would you please enlighten me on this.

If you permit, I would send its photograph.

Uday Mohan —Preceding unsigned comment added by Udaymohan (talk • contribs) 04:09, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Does it look like this one? Clarityfiend (talk) 04:27, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

If you already have a picture, you can Internet search for a free image upload site (there are many) and upload it there, then send us the link to it. Chevymontecarlo. 04:58, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

In any case, it would have been merely a souvenir coin, not legal tender. Kind of like the old expression, "Don't take any wooden nickels!" and of course "nickels" made of wood with an Indian on one side and an advertisement on the other side were sold as souvenirs. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 18:57, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Bugs is right, lucky pennies are a common souvenir, although their popularity has fallen off in favour of those squished imprinted pennies that come out of vending machines. Niagara is such a popular vacation/honeymoon spot that almost every US family has a Niagara souvenir or two in an attic or closet somewhere. I found a similar item that uses a real penny from 1910 which sold on eBy for less than 10 bucks: link. I think yours would be worth less than half that. Andrew Lenahan - Starblind 17:07, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

Unknown herb

My neighbour has a herb growing in a pot, that I can't identify. At first I thought it was tarragon, but the lfower colour seems wrong.

The leaves are narrow and pointed, growing in small clumps. When crushed they give off a very faint aniseed scent. The flowers spike is about 5cms and the flowers are small and orange/yellow in colour.

Can anyone help please? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Jarraby (talk • contribs) 07:25, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Sounds like fennel to me.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 08:17, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Fennel is much bigger (1 meter or more) but perhaps Dill. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 08:40, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

You could ask your neighbour and at the same time explain why you are taking samples of its leaves and crushing them. Do you have a photograph? --KägeTorä - (影虎) (TALK) 10:09, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Possibly dill. -- Jack of Oz ... speak! ... 11:05, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

How about asking your neighbor what plant is it (assuming s/he plant it). It could be a poisonous plant :P. A picture would also help in the identification. --Tyw7  (☎ Contact me! • Contributions)   Changing the world one edit at a time! 01:06, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

My neighbour is the one that crushed the leaves for me to smell and asked me what is was. LOL. Sorry, no pic, but thanks for trying. It's not dill, more like tarragon, but the flower colour is wrong.

Pronouncing "proboscis"

I've heard this word pronounced Proh boh sis and Pro boss kiss.

Is there more than one correct pronounciation?

Is this a regional thing? I live in the South of the UK. --Dweller (talk) 10:11, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure the soft c (proh-boh-sis) is the only right one; I don't think I've ever heard anyone who knows what they're talking about pronounce a hard C in the last syllable. ~ mazca ^talk 10:43, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Our article, if I read the IPA rightly, seems to agree with you, but it notes a Greek etymology that suggests to me that those who have a passing familiarity with Ancient Greek would prefer to include a hard k. Perhaps this is like the variant pronounciations for certain Latin phrases, like "veni vidi vici", where those who studied Latin in the last 20 years are likely to pronounce the vs as ws? --Dweller (talk) 10:50, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

If the teaching of Latin has changed in the last twenty years, I haven't heard about it, though admittedly it was a bit outside that window for me. I think how Latin is taught depends on what country you take it in. In the US and UK I believe it's ordinarily taught with the so-called "classical" or "Teutonic" pronunciation (roughly waynee weedee weekee), whereas if you study it in a country more closely connected with Italy or the Catholic Church, you'll get the church pronunciation ("vaynee veedee veechee").

Strolling enthusiastically off-topic, this was one of the things that struck me about The Passion of the Christ. Gibson used mainly Italian actors for the Romans, and they sounded very natural speaking Latin, but the Italianate pronunciation they used was a clear anachronism. Artistically though, I think it was a defensible choice, because they really did sound natural (in contrast, the actors speaking Aramaic might as well have been talking Klingon). --Trovatore (talk) 19:31, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Well, pardon me for not knowing what I'm talking about, Mazca, but this is the first occasion on which I have ever, ever heard it suggested the c is pronounced other than hard. Are you saying it's a rhyme for 'prognosis'? That is certainly news to me and my ignorant antipodean ilk. -- Jack of Oz ... speak! ... 11:03, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

In my experience it has the S sound of "prognosis" but doesn't rhyme with it - it's a short o sound, as in "moss". Sorry if my statement implied that people who pronounce it otherwise don't know what they're talking about - the fact I was stating that the people I've spoken to who do know what they're talking about (biologists) have in my experience always pronounced it with an S sound. Evidently other people who equally know what they're talking about do indeed pronounce it otherwise, but I haven't run into them myself. ~ mazca ^talk 14:35, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Have to agree with Jack, here in the UK I've never heard the soft c version. Mikenorton (talk) 11:51, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

I'm with you, Jack - "pruh-BO-sis" sounds frankly weird and I've certainly never heard it before, although I wouldn't presume to dismiss someone who said it that way as "not knowing what they were talking about". We in the north of England obviously have more in common with our antipodean brethren than with the hissing denizens of Mazca's native turf. Karenjc 12:03, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Dweller is correct to suggest that those with knowledge of Ancient Greek will be inclined to pronounce the c as k: -skis. This is what I have always assumed to be correct (not sure I've ever actually heard anyone say this word). Anyway, picture my surprise a minute ago when I looked up Chambers and found that the only pronunciation recognised is the one with soft 'c'. So I have to join Jack et al in the ranks of those who don't know what they're talking about. Maid Marion (talk) 12:24, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

As a native Floridian with a science (though not biology) background, I've only ever heard it pronounced proh-boss-kiss, and I grew up watching a crapload of the Discovery Channel! 74.115.162.10 (talk) 12:42, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Seems like both pronunciations are used, although that doesn't mean they are both right. -sis -kis, -sis. So I think it is not worth getting your nose out of joint over it. meltBanana 13:13, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Indeed, it does look to be so. Apologies again for those who took my "knowing what they're talking about" statement as more derisory than I meant it! ~ mazca ^talk 14:35, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

In Adaptation I'm pretty sure it's pronounced prah-boss-kis. Vranak (talk) 16:37, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Having lived in 5 different US states (California, New York, Rhode Island, Illinois, and Massachusetts), I can report that I've only ever heard "proboskis". I wasn't aware of the other pronunciation. Marco polo (talk) 19:22, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

My Webster's gives the preferred as pruh-BAH-suhs and the secondary as pruh-BAHS-kuhs. I've never heard it any other way than the first way, but it's not a term you hear all that often anyway, since "nose" will do. Especially as the primary definition refers to elephants and other animals with flexible snouts. W.C. Fields used that term in the film Mississippi when describing someone else: "He had a rather prominent pruh-BAH-suhs ... after the fashion of all eminent men..." (Fields himself included, of course). An "sc" combination followed by "e" or "i" would typically be pronounced like an "s" in English. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 19:37, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Fascinating, Chambers 20th Century Dictionary gives a soft "c", but I've never actually heard it said thus. They give the first vowel as a schwa or as a long "o", and the second as a short "o". My usage would be hard "c" and first vowel as a schwa. DuncanHill (talk) 19:40, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

This question's rather caught my interest - I've been asking all sorts of people today how they pronounce it, and it seems to vary widely with no discernable pattern with ages, places of origin, or level of education.. I'm in the south of the UK, and I've probably found about 50/50 between hard-c and soft-c, with a healthy minority who really weren't sure as they didn't think they'd ever actually heard the word said out loud ever. The prevailing use among people who actually use it occasionally in an academic context seems to be a hard C, but it's again far from universal. It seems it's a sufficiently well-known-but-obscure word that most people have an established pronunciation of it, but haven't used it enough to arrive at a standard. Rather interesting. On a related note, about 50% of people will look at you funny when you ask how they pronounce proboscis. ~ mazca ^talk 20:33, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

OED has both, but suggests that the hard "c" is American. Nevertheless, here in northern England, I've heard the hard "c" more often than the soft. Dbfirs 20:33, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Another UK view - proboskiss. Kittybrewster ☎ 17:56, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

That especially works if they're eskimoes, yes? :) ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 18:56, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

BEND TEST

PLS. CLARIFY 0T,1T 2T BEND TEST. NEED OF THIS TEST. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rakeshknit (talk • contribs) 10:31, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

You are more likely to get an answer if you give some sort of context for your question: for example, what field of activity or study you are talking about. I for one have no idea whatever what your question relates to. --ColinFine (talk) 23:24, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

A quick Google search on "0T,1T 2T BEND TEST -wikipedia" lead to this clear explanation. 152.16.59.102 (talk) 02:44, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

What is this font?

What is the font used for the word 'Prospex' in this picture? [[1]]

Thanks, --118.210.243.102 (talk) 12:51, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Looks like a varient of Handel Gothic or perhaps the one used for the ESPN logo. It may not be a proper "font" or "typeface" but rather the specific design of the letters may have been created just for that logo. Sometimes logos will incorporate an existing typeface, but just as often, a graphic designer will just create a fanciful set of letters just for the use in a specific logo. --Jayron32 16:04, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

I used the WhatTheFont website and it didn't come up with anything close; the closest it got was Proxima Nova Black, which isn't close. Comet Tuttle (talk) 17:07, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

The horizontal cuts remind me of the Blade Runner logo, but that's not quite it. APL (talk) 19:58, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

I didn't get any hits as well. More tools at http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2008/12/7-free-tools-to-identify-a-font/ ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 02:21, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

sex

how to fuck a girl? --Doaslopm (talk) 13:46, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

See sexual intercourse. --Jayron32 13:55, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

There used to be a "Getting a girl" Wikibook but it got deleted. The Hero of This Nation (talk) 16:31, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

how to fuck a troll? Rimush (talk) 19:38, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

By ignoring it. Too late for that, though. :( There's this point, though. It reminds me of the question "How to be a millionaire?" and the answer is, "First, get a million dollars." ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 20:51, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

The problem with the question is that it is ambiguous. It is unclear if the OP is asking "How do I find a girl that I could fuck?" OR if he is asking "I have a girl right here. How do I fuck her?" The question could be interpreted to mean either. --Jayron32 01:52, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

As a followup question, he'll be asking how to pour water out of a boot if there's no instructions on the heel. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 18:55, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

This is a pretty distasteful question, D. Vranak (talk) 03:25, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

It's trolling, and everyone beyond the first two responders took the bait. But it was worth it. >:) ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 03:29, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

Cost of these Reed & Barton Forks

These forks are used the prestigious University Club of New York in their formal tableware set up:

File:UClubNYCForks.jpg

The forks are made by the high-end silversmith, Reed & Barton. I looked on their website, but was unable to find this specific model.

Would anyone happen to know the approximate retail cost of these forks assuming they were in mint conditions? From examining them, I'm pretty sure they are solid sterling silver.

Thanks, Acceptable (talk) 21:02, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

If I was buying them I would want to know better than "I'm pretty sure" that they were solid sterling silver. If they are then they will almost certainly have some sort of visible hallmark which will indicate the silver content and date of marking. Perhaps this [2] is a good place to go once you've found your hallmark. Richard Avery (talk) 21:27, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

According to the Reed & Barton website, ugly sterling silver forks tend to be about $128 a pop. Does the University Club of New York really put out $800 of cutlery per person? Sterling silver is normally hallmarked in some way, and I see no hallmark in your image. Silver plate does not have hallmarks, costs around the $150 mark or less. Stainless steel - which R&B also do - seems a far more likely a prospect for a catering environment, at around $50 a place setting. The club seems to have in excess of 2400 members ... far to many to trust with silverware, I think. --Tagishsimon (talk) 23:36, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

I also can't see a hallmark, which means one of three things: 1) They aren't solid silver. 2) They are extremely old and pre-date hallmarks (seems unlikely since Reed & Barton were only formed in 1824). 3) Something illegal is going on. I think the first is the most likely. --Tango (talk) 11:08, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

Hallmarks on silver are not a legal requirement in the United States. Some silver flatware will be marked "STERLING" or "925", but some (like R&B's) just has a maker's mark. FiggyBee (talk) 11:23, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

Yeah, I may be mistaken, but from all the forks I've seen on their website, I don't think any of them has any numerical/letter markings aside from the company logo. Acceptable (talk) 13:56, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

King's pattern. Heavy weight silver-plate. //shop.ebay.com/sis.html?_kw=3+Reed+%26+Barton+KINGS+Pattern+Silver+Forks%2C+Silverplate Not silver. Kittybrewster ☎ 17:39, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

Smelly Garbage Disposal

Our garbage disposal (or sink drain?!) really stinks! We've tried several things to get rid of the smell: using entire packages of plink-o cleaners, foam cleaning pouches, flushing several gallons of hot water at once, grinding ice, flushing with bleach, etc. The ice and/or hot water worked for maybe a week. We do keep our house clean, cleaning out the sink daily and turning on the disposal ANY time we use the kitchen sink. I tried taking off the trap under the disposal, but didn't find any blockages. So I guess I have two questions: 1) Do you have any other ideas on how to get rid of the smell? 2) The disposal is only a year old and is still under warranty through Sears. Would this be something covered by the warranty? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.178.160.89 (talk) 21:55, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Do you have a metal "strainer basket", like this one, or is it rubber? My rubber one got smelly until I pulled the stucker out and scrubbed its underside with harsh stuff. Comet Tuttle (talk) 22:09, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Right. I think there must be some part of the mechanism that captures bits of food and provides a medium for the growth of bacteria and fungi that produce an unpleasant odor. Inspect your sink drain and disposal when it gets smelly and try to find where the food is trapped. Were you living in this place before the year-old disposal was installed? Did the problem begin only after it was installed? If so, then I would suspect the disposal or its attachment to your drain is the problem. Otherwise, it might be some other part of the drain. Once you find the place where food is getting trapped, you can devise a solution, such as somehow sealing up the area where food gets trapped (after cleaning it with disinfectants and antifungals) or replacing the offending part. Marco polo (talk) 14:30, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

Here's the solution: get a little bucket with a lid for next to the sink. Put all of the food you would normally put down the grinder into the bucket and compost it. Let the bacteria and such eat all the stuff that's currently in the grinder until the smell goes away. Never put food in it again. If you must, occasionally grind your citrus peels in the disposal to make it smell nice. --Sean 19:35, 11 May 2010 (UTC)

Pour baking soda down the drain, then follow it with white vinegar. Let it foam for a while, then flush with water. You may need to do it a couple of times. Everard Proudfoot (talk) 22:48, 11 May 2010 (UTC)