Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2010 September 14

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September 14

Marina Rzhannikova

What detailes of this woman who is one of the most famous living ballerinas can be found?174.126.221.197 (talk) 00:01, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

I am afraid that the English Wikipedia does not have an article about Marina Rzhannikova. Have you tried searching in Google? The other option is that the Wikipedia in another language, like her native language (Russian?) may have more information if you are fluent in that language. --Jayron32 01:46, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

There seems to be very little information about her in English, but I have found this. If you want to search in Russian, use "Марина Ржанникова". Ghmyrtle (talk) 07:19, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Contacting writers of a wikipedia article

How do I contact the writer or writers of the entry on Wordsworth’s Immortality ode, (at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ode:_Intimations_of_Immortality). Would it be possible to put a question to the person or persons who wrote the article on Wordsworth’s Immortality ode, (at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ode:_Intimations_of_Immortality). In the section on the Victorian response to this Ode there is an important paragraph concerning Ruskin’s evaluation of the Ode, in which there is a reference to a series of essays on Nature and Literature and Nature by John Ruskin, collected in “Art and Life, a Ruskin anthology”, (compiled by William Sloane Kennedy, New York, John Alden, 1886 I have failed to come across this work in the Library Edition of Ruskin’s Works, (the reference edition for Ruskin Scholars and serious amateurs and students of) Did I not look carefully enough or is this a work that escaped the notice of the editors of the Library Edition, Cook and Wedderburn? Many thanks Yours truly Alan Benbow Or Alanbenbow (talk) 08:11, 14 September 2010 (UTC)?

Access the History tag on the article (here); see who created the article or made the major contributions; and then either click through to their User talk page and leave a message, or see if there is an "Email this user" entry in the Toolbox in the left hand column of their User page, and email them. Ghmyrtle (talk) 08:21, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

The original 1886 anthology can be purchased relatively cheaply at abebooks.com. --Saddhiyama (talk) 08:56, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

The article's wording, "in his 'Nature and Literature' essays collected in Art and Life: A Ruskin Anthology" (emphasis mine), is rather confusing. Art and Life is a collection of snippets on various topics gathered by the editor from Ruskin's writings, one section in which is called "Nature and Literature". A look at the relevant snippet shows that it's an extract from Ruskin's "Fiction, Fair and Foul", under which title you should be able to locate the passage in the "On the Old Road" section of volume 34 of the Library Edition. Deor (talk) 14:06, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

In fact you can find the whole thing online here. Looie496 (talk) 23:28, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Laziness

How does one overcome laziness and procrastination?Please help me find answers? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 117.206.14.133 (talk) 12:46, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

One suggestion would be to write down a list of things that you'd like to get done. Then cross them off. Create a new list for each week. The reason for crossing them off is so that you can see the progress you've made. If it is electronic, don't simply delete the completed items because it gives a bit less of a sense of accomplishment. Dismas|^(talk) 15:29, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

The answer might not be simple and may involve a searching look at your motivations, fears, life-long habits, etc. You might also be helped by such practical tips as: if it takes less than 5 minutes, do it right away; choose the hardest thing on the list first; set yourself to work for 20 minutes and take a 5 minute break (repeat); identify and remove sources of distractions; eat well, get some sunshine, and exercise, develop healthy relationships; do what works for you and not just because someone else does it; etc. 198.161.238.19 (talk) 17:49, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

My Google search for overcoming laziness and procrastination reported 121,000 results, with the first one listed being

http://simple-fix.blogspot.com/2008/10/overcoming-laziness-and-procrastination.html.

—Wavelength (talk) 17:55, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

[Like many web pages, that one contains many grammatical errors, so please do not rely on it as an example for correct grammar.

—Wavelength (talk) 18:28, 14 September 2010 (UTC)]

Laziness and productivity are not necessarily at cross-purposes. Sleep, as an obvious example, is necessary for productivity. The important thing is how you waste your time. Do you waste your time productively? Or do you merely fritter away your precious hours on the multitude of diversions available in a consumer society? In my own personal assessment, if I break new ground, I am being "productive." If I have never milked a cow and I have located someone with cows, and they agree to let me experience the milking of a cow, have I used my time productively? I may never milk a cow again. I think it matters if you take initiative, not so much whether you are productive or not. It can be considered procrastination. But a person is allowed to procrastinate if they are procrastinating from doing more important things by breaking new ground and not partaking of the multitude of ways of wasting time that a consumer society offers. Bus stop (talk) 19:05, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Bus stop, your message reminded me of a story about Carl Friedrich Gauss.

• Gauss's Day of Reckoning » American Scientist

—Wavelength (talk) 19:19, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Yes, as a high school teacher of Mathematics I tell my students that mathematicians are lazy. They are always looking for easier ways to do things. I guess the key is that they at least want to do things. HiLo48 (talk) 21:59, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Ha! I tell mine exactly the same thing! Truly the universal language :P 86.164.78.91 (talk) 11:52, 16 September 2010 (UTC)

I have intended to write a definitive book on this subject for decades, but somehow there is always some obstacle to completion or other duties which have higher priority. Never fear; I will get around to it very soon. Edison (talk) 04:50, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

HiLo48, when you say that "mathematicians are lazy", do you mean that "some mathematicians are lazy", or do you mean that "all mathematicians are lazy"? (Incidentally, my Google search for lazy mathematicians reported 1,440,000 results.)

—Wavelength (talk) 14:38, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

See also Larry Wall#Virtues of a programmer (Laziness, Impatience, & Hubris). -- ToE^T 14:25, 16 September 2010 (UTC)

Thanks a lot! That was most illuminating! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 117.206.8.3 (talk) 10:47, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

Another recommendation: Overcoming Procrastination by Albert Ellis, Ph.D. and William J. Knaus, Ed.D. (1977) in which the authors outline Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy particularly in the context of procrastination. -- Deborahjay (talk) 14:00, 17 September 2010 (UTC)

National Building Trades - Council of America

I have a plaque that was removed from the AOH Hall 26 Trumbull St. Worcester, Ma. when the building was torn down in the late 1960s. The plaque states that the building was Union Built in 1901 and is registered as Number 1.

My question is; Was this the 1st. building built by all union workers in the United States or just in Worcester, Ma.? Gerald V. Degnan —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.104.10.237 (talk) 13:26, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

I have reformatted your question slightly and redacted your personal contact information. Matt Deres (talk) 13:38, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

A solid ground dwelling plant that is the size and shape of an adult human heart

I was in the woods next to a small stream in Garrett County Md. and discovered a plant I have never seen. It is as described above and grew right out of the ground on a very short stem the size of a little finger and seemed to taper down into the ground as it became the root. The plant is completely covered in small florets (100+) that are a dark green (Olive?) and is strikingly beautiful. I am 62 yrs old and have roamed these mountains all my life and was surprised to find something new like this. Needless to say, I'd love to find out waht it is. Thanks, Rick —Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.103.135.52 (talk) 14:17, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Not liverwort, by any chance? --Tagishsimon (talk) 16:57, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Hi, I googled 'liverwort' and checked wiki - none of the images were even close to what I found.

I would add a picture to this inquiry, but don't know how. Thanks, Rick —Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.103.135.160 (talk) 15:16, 16 September 2010 (UTC)

If you took the picture yourself, you can upload it to our sister website. You will need to make an account first, however. This is free, and the account can be used on all of the Wikimedia Foundation's websites, including this English Wikipedia. Alternatively, if you are able to upload a picture elsewhere (for example, a photo-sharing website like Flickr), you can leave the link here. --Kateshortforbob _talk 18:58, 16 September 2010 (UTC) I made a minor change to the preceding comment for readability purposes - I hope you don't mind

Hi, I think I managed to upload a picture to the Wiki commons. It is titled "The Emerald Heart Plant.jpg. The only way I can find the picture is searching my user name (Sangrunner)contributions See what you think. Thanks, Rick

Greco-Roman architecture

Why were ancient Greek and Roman buildings always white/gray? Didn't that get extremely boring? --J4\/4 <talk> 15:40, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

From what I've heard, they might have been various colours, but the paint has long since worn off. JIP | Talk 15:45, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Thats right. See for example this and this. --Saddhiyama (talk) 16:06, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

(Edit Conflict) Marble and other building stone such as you are thinking of does not necessarily need paint (etc), but it does come naturally in many subtle colours and textures, providing plenty of variety. Until recent centuries, the primary purpose of exterior paint (or similar treatments) on buildings was to protect their materials from the weather, etc; decoration for its own sake was usually secondary. Indeed most of the bright colours seen today in clothes and manufactured items have only been achievable since round 1800 or later - people from earlier times, such as the Ancient Romans and Greeks, would probably find the modern world frighteningly garish.

That said, and as JIP suggests, colour was used to paint specific decorative items like statues and friezes. Many Greek and Roman statues were originally painted in lifelike colours which over the centuries has disappeared (not realising this, more modern artists imitating classical styles leave their stone bare) and the Parthenon Marbles still have a few very faint traces of colour (despite 20th-century cleaning efforts by curators not realising this). 87.81.230.195 (talk) 16:08, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

As the links above shows, it was not just friezes and sculptures that were often brightly coloured (suggesting a more widespread use of bright colouring of clothes than your post suggests), but also most of the architectural surfaces and details. Marble surfaces also shows signs of having been painted. --Saddhiyama (talk) 16:12, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Slightly off-topic: The same is also true of Ancient Egyptian architecture which was "...covered with hieroglyphic and pictorial frescoes and carvings painted in brilliant colors". In my experience, the colours have often worn away, but where they have survived the colours on walls and ceilings can be quite vivid. Astronaut (talk) 23:23, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is a neo-classical building, complete with sculptures in the pediments and hooks up on the sides to hang war trophies from — and the sculptures are polychromed in imitation of ancient Greek practice. If you live near Philadelphia, go see it to understand what the effect looks like. Floozybackloves (talk) 15:29, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

Payout of envy

If the payout of envy is practically null, or even negative, why do people do things to provoke envy?--Quest09 (talk) 16:45, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Who says the payout of envy is null or negative? Perhaps it is for the person feeling envy (though arguments can be made against this), but surely there's a class of people who "do things to provoke envy" who get a kick out of the perception that other people envy them? And then there's the besides the point external locus of control question about whether people can do things that provoke envy; is not envy mostly in the eye of the beholder? --Tagishsimon (talk) 16:55, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

You may want to take a look at Positional good, Quest09. Deor (talk) 17:39, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Holiday rooms

i'm going on a holiday before booking the hotel rooms is it possible to view the rooms online?59.95.24.28 (talk) 17:01, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

It depends - some do, some don't. If you indicate where you are going or thinking of going, it might help. Ghmyrtle (talk) 17:03, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Better still, try http://www.tripadvisor.com for unbiased reviews.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 17:25, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

... though take the odd bad review with a pinch of salt because some tripadvisor "reviewers" have been sued for libel. Dbfirs 17:56, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Take the good reviews with a pinch of salt too. I have no citation, but having formerly worked in an industry where I dealt with a lot of hotels worldwide... their marketing departments are extremely active on sites like tripadvisor. → ROUX ₪ 06:11, 16 September 2010 (UTC)

Some hotel websites have 'virtual tours' or at least photos. I'd be very surprised if they didn't have photos of the room. Chevymontecarlo 17:47, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Beware though. Many hotel websites only carry photos of their best rooms and taken from advantageous angle. The reality can be different when they stuff you in a room which seems tiny compared to the photos, overlooks the restaurant roof and is right next to the elevator shaft. Astronaut (talk) 23:09, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Astronaut's point is very true. Chevymontecarlo 14:56, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

I have nothing original to add to the above responses - merely ratification that some Holiday Reviews have been "inspired" by the competition. We travelled to San Diego a couple of years ago and more recently to Havana, and in both cases, our designated hotels were rubbished on Trip Advisor - but not by Trip Advisor itself I must emphasise. But when we arrived, both hotels, their rooms, services, food, location, and staff, etc., etc., were far above our best expectations. So as someone else noted above, read as many reviews as you can find, and a pattern will very quickly emerge. I will never forget meeting a fellow Englishman in Spain who complained to me, as though I was interested, that he didn't like the way the Spanish drove on the "wrong" side of the road; he didn't like the heat, he didn't like the food, and most particularly he didn't like the way they all spoke in a "foreign language". And he was emphatic that he was never going to return to Spain; he was most definitely going to complain to his Travel Agency, and he was going to post the most damning review possible on a Holidays Uncovered type of online site as soon as he got home. We just laughed at him and walked away. And that is what you should do when you read some of the most unreasonable and hyper-critical reviews on these sites. If you do book a hotel or whatever, and it turns out to be rubbish, deal with it there and then and don't leave it until you get home. 92.30.155.86 (talk) 19:58, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

I feel I should balance my previous comment by saying I have also stayed in hotels that have far exceed my expectations and been vastly better then the reviews on Trip Advisor or elsewhere would suggest. There are people who will never be happy with the best of 5-star service and there are those who will write glowing reviews of the crappiest shit-hole you will ever stay in. While it is telling to read the very best and very worst reviews, please take all reviews, good or bad, with a huge pinch of salt. Astronaut (talk) 23:05, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

Finding out who called me

I was called today by someone who didn't give me their number, and there have been a few calls afterwards, so I can't do callback. I'm in the UK - does anyone know how I can find out their number? Skinny87 (talk) 17:23, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

If it's a mobile phone, the number should be stored in the call log. If it's a landline, probably not.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 17:27, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Calling 1471 in the UK will usually report the number of the last caller only unfortunately Think you will have to wait for them to call again and get yourself a recording device for the future.--85.211.239.64 (talk) 19:16, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

If the calls are a nuisance or malicious, call your phone company. However a lot of calls these days are automated - a machine dials out and if you pick up, it tries to connect you to an available agent. If no agent is available, the machine just hangs up giving the appearance of a nuisance call. Joining the telephone preference service will help. Exxolon (talk) 19:24, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

BT provide a service that records the numbers of all calls, answered or not, but a cheaper alternative is to buy an answering machine that automatically dials 1471 after every call, whether a message is left or not. If the caller's number is withheld, then there is no way to find out the number, and some calls from abroad do not have a caller's number attached. On payment of a fee, BT will allow you to block such calls. Dbfirs 20:45, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

And do not be fooled into thinking that the above mentioned telephone preference service will be completely helpful. It was when it was first launched, but since then, and taking account of the recent financial crises that have made business survival so much more perilous, many of these cold callers that used to respect the callers' registered preference NOT to be cold-called, are ignoring the warning that shoots up on their screens, and are calling anyway. What do I do? Hang up if I catch the call in time. And if not, forget it. If you lose a call that might have been important, the caller will surely call you back. If not, it wasn't important. 92.30.155.86 (talk) 19:36, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

I agree that the telephone preference service is not as effective as it used to be, because many foreign call centres ignore the requirement to check the list. BT claim that they cannot do anything about this! I usually give the caller a lecture (politely if they are polite and more forcibly if they are less so). It probably doesn't make any difference. I've always wanted to link my phone to a computer with number recognition, and respond to these calls with a recorded announcement, but BT will charge me for telling my computer the calling number. Dbfirs 21:36, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

If you've a BT line (not LLU'ed), then caller display is free as part of "BT Privacy at Home". See [1], click on "Home phone security features" and then "BT Privacy at Home". Of course you need to buy a callerID compatible phone or display unit, but they are fairly cheap now. CS Miller (talk) 08:55, 16 September 2010 (UTC)

Thanks - a useful link! I wonder why they make it so difficult to find? Last time I enquired, it was a chargeable extra! Dbfirs 08:49, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

Linking

I have read a lot of really great articles from this site that contain wonderful information that I would love to share with the world on my favorite socialnetworking site, Facebook. So many other sites contain a "share" button for fast, easy sharing. It would be nice to see the same here. x♥x♥x —Preceding unsigned comment added by Audrey.B.XXX7 (talk • contribs) 19:30, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

While there isn't a 'share' button, you can easily share a link on your wall using the Attach-->Link dialog option there. Exxolon (talk) 19:57, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

You're not the only one; see here. Matt Deres (talk) 21:53, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

So how would a "share" button on every Wikipedia page be faster/easier then simply copying the URL from your browser into Facebook? I just don't see the point of the OP's request, unless they want Wikipedia top start carrying subtle adverts for Facebook. Astronaut (talk) 23:03, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

One of Us! Gooble Gobble! schyler (talk) 01:46, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

Well, clearly at least one person didn't know how to do it that way until just now. (Still a bad idea, though.) APL (talk) 07:02, 15 September 2010 (UTC)