Being that I've been to sneak previews for critics, I can attest to their proper positioning in the theater. If looking straight forward, they're looking at the center (horizontal and vertical) of the screen. They are in the proper acoustic location (centered on all the speakers). Schmucks like you or I who happen to get in on those sneak previews are herded like cattle down into the front 3 rows, and will walk out with neck pain from trying to watch the movie.
I remember one distinctly like that. It was an ok movie. I caught it on TV a few weeks ago and was like "Oh, that's what was happening.":) It was kind of like watching TV while laying on the floor as close to the TV as possible and looking up at the screen. At least the sneak previews are free.:)
Since you're sitting at your computer if you're reading this, you can try another test. Close your eyes, and put your hands on the keyboard, on the home row. If you touch type, you can do it. It's spatial perception. You understand that the keyboard is at such a distance, and you need to reach to such a distance.
If you repeatedly cannot comprehend the distance between you and a known object, then you have other problems.:)
It's a more interesting exercise if the power goes out at night. I've been amazed how dark a house can get on a cloudy night, once there's no power. I've been able to navigate through the house to where the flashlight should be.
Hell, I can put my alarm clock on snooze without opening even one eye. Apparently I can hold conversations like that too. Well, partially. People have asked me questions, and the responses are mumbled grunts until I roll over and go back to sleep. They always ask pesky things too.. "Are you going to work today? I can't find my keys, can you help me? The house is on fire, get up." Normal things that disturb my sleep at 9am.
I was born with a cataract in one eye. It got progressively worse. By the time I was 18, my vision was 20/200 in that eye (while 20/10 in the other). I had the cataract surgically removed when I was 19, but the implant caused me to be unable to focus that eye. The lens is rather hard, so it's always a fixed focal length.
My ability to see "3d" movies was severely diminished for years. It took over 10 years, but now I can partially see the movies, if they are the polarized lens version. Two color lenses just leave me seeing two colors.
It's been rather odd, where my depth perception has been changing my whole life (getting worse to 18, and then getting better after years). I still can't do those hidden picture illusions, because I can't unfocus one eye. It's actually weird, where I can force one out of focus, and one remains the same regardless of what I do (short of pinching my eyeball, which I'm not up for).
Since the lens has been changed in that eye, I have other odd problems. I can see farther up into the UV range because the natural UV filter isn't in the implant.
Actually, a 50 BMG is a huge round with LOTS of energy behind it. Sniper rifles have well engineered recoil pads, and muzzle braking. The muzzle brake takes the force of the explosion, and pushes the barrel forward specifically so it doesn't tear off the shooters shoulder. They also aren't light weapons. I'm an average guy, and tried to hold one up as a regular rifle. I couldn't level it. There's a good reason there is a bipod on the front.
To get a hint of the energy watch this video. It's a shooter with a steel 55 gallon drum full of water as a target. The round enters one end with the expected entry hole, and exits the other end with a more dramatic exit hole. The energy pushed in actually bulges the drum out on both ends, and sucked in the sides. It doesn't even indicate how far the bullet would be damaging for, it continued beyond the target. Two pieces of steel, and 3 feet of water, and it was still carrying a lot of energy. Nope, I wouldn't want to get hit with one.
I grew up on a farm, so I spent plenty of time with.22,.357,.38, and.45 pistols;.22 and.30 rifles; and 16g and 12g shotguns. Targets were anything we could put in the way. Sheet metal, 1 gallon milk bottles, 2 liter soda bottles, watermelons, and the occasional animal for slaughter. (one head shot from a.38 does just fine for putting cattle down quick). I know that normal.45 ball ammo will go through and through on a 55 gallon steel barrel, and still dig into the dirt about 8 inches.
There was a tree that bit me back when I shot it with a 12 gauge slug. It was down range from the target. I learned not to underestimate the potential for a ricochet. It took a chunk out of the tree, and something (undetermined) hit me in the leg. It just bruised me really bad, but it was enough to know never to do that again.
Nah, it would only increase the use of force. "The tazer didn't work, so we shot him in the head."
Bullet proof vests are only good if the bullet his your chest. It doesn't help in other areas.
In reality, "bullet proof" materials are only good at spreading the energy out. They're worthless against more focused forces. It may stop a 9mm (blunt tip), but it won't stop a.223 (sharp tip), and probably won't do much against the electrodes of a tazer, or a knife. That's why they make rifle plating to go into kevlar vests. They're heavy, but they'll help protect against more serious rounds. With serious rounds (like a.50 BMG), you can't carry enough armor to help you, and even if you did, it can only displace the energy so far. If it was able to prevent the round from piercing the armor, you'd simply be crushed by the force.
Best advice for not getting killed by bullets? Don't get yourself on the wrong end of a firearm. I've managed to be safe wearing regular t-shirts as protection for over 30 years, because I've never put myself in the way of a weapon.:)
This is Slashdot you're writing on. The median group here can sustain a 2 inch penetration and barely bleed. It'll only bruise their fat.
The question is, what kind of force can it take? I know body armor is rated for various forces. Not much is going to stop a 50cal BMG, but I'm sure it would do a good job on a.22 shot from 100 feet. Then again, a cheap leather jacket would do the same thing.:)
I think that study didn't really show the relationship to how the body is adapted to eat. It was more of "what flavor do primates like?" Just like humans, because they like the flavor doesn't mean it's better for them. If we went on that basis for eating food, most kids would eat candy bars exclusively.:)
It wasn't really a political jab, it was more of a personal one.:)
For those who have personally known me, they know I don't hold back very much. So, I may be offensive, or cause other psychological harm. That's why I do IT work. I do what needs to be done, and don't really spare anyone's hurt feelings. If you screw up, I'll tell you so. "You fucked up. Don't do that again." Which is better? To sugar coat the world, or let people know the truth. I'm not without somewhat politically and socially correct filters though. If the company is about to tank, and I already know it, but if we need to get the project done to stay in business, that's a good time to be strong and supportive of the staff. "I talked to accounting. The bank messed up. Your payroll will come through this week. Lets get the project done to make the bosses happy."
I did take liberties with the standard California warning. Hell, they put it everywhere. That's the only place I've ever been where buildings have had warning signs (see California Proposition 65). The fun part was, I'd ask building security which parts were dangerous, and they couldn't tell me. I opted to assume it means don't eat the paint nor chew on electrical wiring.:) The entire Prop 65 list (PDF) is a pretty impressive list of just about every chemical used.:)
I hear they're kinda gamy. There was another story where a couple Russians picked something a bit tastier. I could think of more entertaining things to do with her though. Looks like the guys involved could be tossed into a wood chipper, and no one would be upset in the least. I'd worry about staining the machine though. "Damn, he nicked the blade."
If you want a good example of what captivity does to animals, look at the killer whales that theme parks love to make do tricks. Their flopped over fin and lethargic movements are anything but natural.... and ya, I've been logged in all day, so I can still post as me. I can't log out without removing the cookies, and I can't click the link to read replies to my previous rants.:) It's been like that for hours. I'm tempted to send my resume over and offer to fix things.:)
Yup, because that's the only thing we've ever bred for our own gains.
Pretty much any domesticated or farm animal you see has been bred for centuries to give us what we have today. It's not limited to animals though. Fruits and vegetables are the same way. Farmers have always taken things with preferred traits, and disposed of the ones with unwanted traits. Something as simple as a tomato started out as a fruit the size of a berry. Now we have our nice large tomatoes that we recognize today as a common food, and it's even grown "naturally" to make the tree huggers all warm and fuzzy about their organic disposition. Sorry, you're eating a genetically modified (through selective breeding) food. And no, I don't just make these things up.
Some animals and plants can still survive in the wild on their own. Look at feral cats and dogs. Many survive very well. Some just can't make it and die off.
Our bodies weren't designed to eat "medium rare" meat, nor that slop that people put on perfectly good meat to "flavor" it.
Meat is to be eaten at body temperature. For the sake of hygiene, it's a good idea to seer the edges, but only just that. Not cook, not well done, just burn off the crap it may have been contaminated with.
When I go to a restaurant, I can touch the steak with the fork, and based on how squishy it is, that's how done it is. If it feels like you're touching a soft tender breast (yes, that kind, you pervs), and you can feel the warmth from just an inch away, you know you it's cooked just right. If you touch it, and it feels like you're tapping your fork on the table, then it's way too far done. I don't accept anywhere in the middle. I've refused steaks without ever cutting into it saying "not rare enough, try again." Sometimes they ask me to at least look, so I'll slice it in half and explain why it's overcooked.
If I had a choice of a McDonalds hamburger, or chasing down a cow and slicing a fresh steak off it with nothing but my good looks and sharp knife, I'd be enjoying fresh steak while the rest of the world stands in line at McD for their overcooked overprocessed crap.
IT? Not happening. Around here, it's either college kids willing to work for $7.25/hr and failing miserably, or people so desperate that they'll take paycuts to under $10/hr just to keep their jobs. For lower positions I won't be considered unless I junk most of my resume (which I've been considering). There are no higher positions to be had. Head hunters send me the occasional lead from around the country, but they're all 2-4 month contracts at like $15/hr, and they even state in the requirements that they're looking for local candidates. I had a lead on a good one, that was only 1.5 hrs from me. I have friends out there, so I made arrangements to stay with them temporarily contingent on getting the position. Nope, didn't happen. I've even talked to people who are working for *UNDER* the federal minimum wage, just so they'll make at least something.
I've been thinking I would have better luck taking what little I have, and going out to the Crater of Diamonds State Park. Hey, you never know what you'll find.:) At least that's legal. Bank robbery was another option, but it's likely to get me shot, which "dead" is not a career path or a lifestyle I plan for anytime soon.
FU. It's the economy. Until a couple years ago, I was making a very healthy 6 figures. And ya, *I* did pay that much in taxes. I knew someone who worked for the federal government, and their income lined up with what I paid in income taxes. I always joked that they were my personal federal employee. I declared (as if it mattered) that my income tax went directly to their payroll, and not to any other wasted expenses. Hey, between us it was funny. Silly me, I never called in any favors back then.
The link to the bank policy will be hard to find, since it's only verbally given to you. But here are plenty of other people complaining about it. They don't seem to maintain the fee schedule on their site. I know information was sparse in the provided paperwork when opening an account. It's pretty much word of mouth from the bank themselves, and what you can learn from how they charge fees to your account. This happened after the Wells Fargo acquisition. Before that, they were reasonable and cooperative. But hey, what can I expect from Wells.
There's a little story I can share about them. I moved across the country several years ago. When I got there, I opened an account with them, because my old bank was just a regional bank. Wells Fargo was close to home and work. Every week, I'd go deposit my check. I'd write out my bill checks as they came in, and would mail them in accordance to the expected balance in my account. It was a good system, because I always maintained a good floating balance.
The Friday before Christmas, the lobby was packed with people. I was already booked on a flight for Saturday morning to go back to see friends and family. Since I couldn't get into the lobby, I just went to the ATM to deposit my check. When I put the card in, it took it, and ended the session. I couldn't get my card back. Easy mistake, huh? I went inside to get my card back. 2 hours in line, and then they tell me "your account has been frozen due to fraudulent activity." What? As it turns out, my old bank had a small outstanding balance (like $100) that I wasn't aware of, and they didn't have my new contact information. Not a big deal, I'd just go and pay it off.
But it got more complicated. They froze my account. As in I couldn't take the money out. I couldn't put money in. And, all of my recent transactions were voided as fraudulent. That included my airplane ticket and rental car. I was left with the check I had in my hand, and the cash in my pocket. I had already mailed off all the bills that would come due up to a week after I came back, since there would be a sufficient balance.
I was polite at first. They're a business. I'm doing business with them. There's no reason we can't have a polite business conversation and resolve the problem. After the first hour and "wait here while I speak to my manager", I started getting louder. I was pissed. At this point, I just wanted to close my account and walk out with all of my cash. No go on that. They eventually called a security guard over while they went to "speak with my manager". I told him, "I'm not going to be violent, I only want my money out of my account." He told me, "They did the same thing to me a couple years ago. The company I work for is under contract to provide security. If I had a choice, I wouldn't be here. I hate this place." I did notice that the louder I got and the more that they said "no we won't give you your money", more people left the line without being helped. I don't get loud for effect. I get loud because I'm furious.
So, my account with thousands of dollars in it was sitting there where the checks wouldn't be honored, nor could I use it. I had to buy my plane ticket at the airport for the outrageous last minute rate. My friend that I was traveling with loaned me the money for that and the rental car. I spent Christmas living off of everyone elses good graces, rather than being myself and funding everything I could.
Meanwhile, every check I had written bounced. Beyond that, even thought the money was in the account, Wells Fargo charged me NSF fees for every one of them. We're talking several hundred dollars. Ya, no one else could get to my money, but they were free to take all they wanted.
Actually, the question was silly. Why do you "need" Mozilla to survive? As long as they have something that someone wants, then someone will use it. When they have something that no one wants, then they're just entertaining themselves.
But, the question of if Mozilla is going to die is just academic at this point. They only brought in $78.6 million dollars in 2008. Ya, only... well...
$78,600,000 (Mozilla)
-$ 30,000 (Me)
------------
$78,570,000.. a whole lot more than I did, and I think I overestimated my income for last year. Damn, it's been a shitty year.
But, if Mozilla went away, I'd use a different browser browser. If whoever stops making the OS I like, I'll find another one. If the Internet goes away, I'll find a different job. If the whole world goes away, well, I guess it won't matter much.;)
Oh, I had a premeditated one a few years before that. I caught it on my credit report, when I was making sure it was staying perfect. I'm not quite sure what they were up to, but they were buying cell phones online. I called every cell phone provider I could think of and asked if "I" had an account with them. They were usually confused about the question. "Can you look me up by name or social and see if I have an account or have attempted to make any purchases with you?" Some of them helped me right with customer service. Some forwarded me to their fraud department.
Two providers did allow purchases and delivered the phones. As soon as I told them this, they canceled service to the phones. One provider had an order for 5 phones that was approved, but their internal security caught it before shipping. One saw that I was already a customer but since "I" gave wrong information, they refused the transaction.
It's sad to think that it should be the responsibility of the individual to contact every business that has lines of credit to verify that you don't have an account with them. I've had notations put on my own credit report, and even had it locked from use. That doesn't seem to help as well as you'd think. I'd think the note "Do not allow use of this account unless verified in person with US Passport ONLY" would be a hint to ask for my passport. Nope, no one ever asked. I even opened a couple store cards without being bothered with real proof that it was me. {sigh}
The merchant rates change by the industry being serviced, the total amount of card processing, etc, etc.
If you're an online merchant selling software or service, it has to be refunded entirely on notification of chargeback (a fun little letter that comes in). The other way to handle it is to prove that the person was actually the purchaser. That means a signed receipt that was verified with a photo ID. Since it's an online merchant, they're just SOL. Refund and hopefully they can cancel the services to that customer. That's the position a company I worked for was in. It was all web based, with no physical products mailed off. But, they made good money, so the credit card companies worked with them.
If you're selling physical merchandise, you have a better chance at disputing it. For example, someone I know has a clothing store. They sell high dollar items. They take sales online and will ship immediately. They *only* ship to the verified address. Only a few times have people tried to dispute the charge. He requires a signature on delivery, so now he has their signature that they did receive the merchandise. If they want a refund, they can return the merchandise. So far he hasn't lost a dispute with the credit card companies yet. Basically, if someone who says they were you orders something with your card to your house, and you signed for it and you didn't immediately try to return it because you never ordered it, then that's a pretty good clue that you did it.:)
In a couple cases, there was a chargeback done because the purchaser never received it. There was no signature at delivery (lazy driver or whatever), so he couldn't prove that it was delivered. He refunded the money, but hit the shipping company with an insurance claim because the package was never delivered. The shipping companies don't like that very much, but if you work on it, they'll pay.
He also refuses online purchases that don't meet his qualifications. That's pretty much address and phone don't match what the bank has. If it looks a little weird, he'll call the card company to verify the information, and then call the card holder to verify the purchase. It does happen that the card holder has said they never made that purchase. No problem, he cancels the order, and advises the customer that their card was used for fraudulent purposes and to notify their bank immediately.
Nope, your maximum liability is whatever the bank will let you overdraw, plus fees. I had an account at a friendly bank. They sold to a large bank a couple years ago. After the change, the bank would always process charges before deposits. So, if you had $200 in the account on Thursday, and deposited $500 Friday after 3pm, and then had $500 in 5 charges over the weekend (checks, credit card, whatever) the transaction history would go like this.
I know when you read that it will look wrong. It is. The first NSF fee is because your account *MIGHT* become overdrawn. It's like a warning shot. They still charge you, but since this all happens Monday morning, you have no warning until you look at your balance and wonder where your money went. I spent an hour yelling at the bank managers to get this even somewhat corrected. They wouldn't correct all of it, but they took ONE fee off.
Something like 75% of a banks income, comes from NSF fees. They *LOVE* you to overdraw. It's basically a short term loan with unreasonable rates. Because of this, they made an extra $175, and they weren't even out the expensive of floating the money to you, since they already had the $500 from your Friday deposit, they just didn't show it on your account until Monday after the rest of the transactions were posted. My example of $175 where there should have been $0 is just a minor case. Since it happens to many accounts, it accounts for <A HREF='http://www.bankrate.com/finance/savings/changes-coming-for-bank-overdraft-fees-2.aspx'>$38 billion last year for US banks alone.</A> These aren't mistakes, they're calculated profit.
This is actually a simplified version of what they do. In reality they charge a $35 NSF fee as soon as a hold is put on the money (like, you use the credit card), and another $35 NSF fee when it's paid. It gets too complex to write out in this though.
The best solution I've found is to use a "Green Dot" credit card. They're sold in gas stations and Walmart. Walmart's are branded as the "Walmart Money Card". You can direct deposit to it, but it's not a checking account, so you can't write checks on it. From there, you can use the card, or pull cash out from ATM's (with the ATM fee, of course) and deposit it elsewhere (fire safe bolted to the floor under your bed is a better choice). I'd rather pay $3 in ATM fees, than $175 in NSF fees because the banks like to get profit anywhere they can leech it from.
A bank had sent a preapproved loan check to an old address of mine. The way it works is, you deposit or cash the check, and it opens the line of credit for that amount.
Being that they sent it to an old address, beyond the life of the USPS forwarding, I never saw it. I got a call from a collections agent about "my" $7,000 personal loan. I had absolutely no idea what they were talking about. They were belligerent at first. I told was very insistent that I had never opened a line of credit with them, and that I needed to speak with their fraud or security department. It took about 15 minutes of this before they sent me over. The fraud department was actually much better to work with. I explained that I didn't know anything about it. They told me the address that they mailed it to, and I told them that I had left the state months before that. They wanted a faxed copy of two forms of ID, for signature comparison. I provided my drivers license and passport. I asked them for a copy of the check they claimed I signed. I got it the next day.
They called me after sending the check image to tell me that the case with me was closed, and they were pursuing the real criminal.
Looking at the copy of the check I could see that whoever did it did write my name on it, but it in no way resembled my signature (since he never had it). He had gone to 3 different banks. I was vaguely familiar with the areas they were in. They were all places where English is a second language. The banks were foreign-friendly enough where their web sites were in another language with a button to show the English version, and the English version was written in pretty broken English. Two banks had stamped it, but then refused it. The third cashed it, which caused the problems for me. At the time, my credit was great, and I could buy almost anything I wanted. I had just bought a house when this one happened.
This was wiped from my credit report, because it was fraud.
For other reasons (look at the economy), my credit is shot now. I could probably fix it to some degree by finding everyone who says I owe something and pay off the ones I could afford. The way I see it now, with bad credit no one can use my information to open a loan for anything. With good credit, they'll easily open up something. I'm much safer having bad credit than checking my credit report daily (well, weekly) to see if mystery accounts have popped up. Go for it, steal my info. Any lender will laugh, insult, and then hang up. My best bet is if someone does manage to get a little something, then they'll have to live with threatening calls and letters from the other creditor.:)
I knew there's a reason I use a prepaid phone that doesn't have my name associated with it, and live where no bills are in my name. I'm pretty much off-grid.
Slashdot Mirror
At least with the tree, we had observed bullets going into it plenty of times. This round was just a little dense.
There's a funny (luckily funny, and not tragic) video on YouTube, where ... well, just watch it yourself
Being that I've been to sneak previews for critics, I can attest to their proper positioning in the theater. If looking straight forward, they're looking at the center (horizontal and vertical) of the screen. They are in the proper acoustic location (centered on all the speakers). Schmucks like you or I who happen to get in on those sneak previews are herded like cattle down into the front 3 rows, and will walk out with neck pain from trying to watch the movie.
I remember one distinctly like that. It was an ok movie. I caught it on TV a few weeks ago and was like "Oh, that's what was happening." :) It was kind of like watching TV while laying on the floor as close to the TV as possible and looking up at the screen. At least the sneak previews are free. :)
That's because it's an invalid test.
Since you're sitting at your computer if you're reading this, you can try another test. Close your eyes, and put your hands on the keyboard, on the home row. If you touch type, you can do it. It's spatial perception. You understand that the keyboard is at such a distance, and you need to reach to such a distance.
If you repeatedly cannot comprehend the distance between you and a known object, then you have other problems. :)
It's a more interesting exercise if the power goes out at night. I've been amazed how dark a house can get on a cloudy night, once there's no power. I've been able to navigate through the house to where the flashlight should be.
Hell, I can put my alarm clock on snooze without opening even one eye. Apparently I can hold conversations like that too. Well, partially. People have asked me questions, and the responses are mumbled grunts until I roll over and go back to sleep. They always ask pesky things too.. "Are you going to work today? I can't find my keys, can you help me? The house is on fire, get up." Normal things that disturb my sleep at 9am.
I was right there with you.
I was born with a cataract in one eye. It got progressively worse. By the time I was 18, my vision was 20/200 in that eye (while 20/10 in the other). I had the cataract surgically removed when I was 19, but the implant caused me to be unable to focus that eye. The lens is rather hard, so it's always a fixed focal length.
My ability to see "3d" movies was severely diminished for years. It took over 10 years, but now I can partially see the movies, if they are the polarized lens version. Two color lenses just leave me seeing two colors.
It's been rather odd, where my depth perception has been changing my whole life (getting worse to 18, and then getting better after years). I still can't do those hidden picture illusions, because I can't unfocus one eye. It's actually weird, where I can force one out of focus, and one remains the same regardless of what I do (short of pinching my eyeball, which I'm not up for).
Since the lens has been changed in that eye, I have other odd problems. I can see farther up into the UV range because the natural UV filter isn't in the implant.
No my friend, if you were to say you also live in your mothers basement, you'd then fit the Slashdot demographic perfectly.
Welcome to the club. Well, except I'm not fat, balding, a coin nor stamp collector, nor do I live in my mothers basement.
Actually, a 50 BMG is a huge round with LOTS of energy behind it. Sniper rifles have well engineered recoil pads, and muzzle braking. The muzzle brake takes the force of the explosion, and pushes the barrel forward specifically so it doesn't tear off the shooters shoulder. They also aren't light weapons. I'm an average guy, and tried to hold one up as a regular rifle. I couldn't level it. There's a good reason there is a bipod on the front.
To get a hint of the energy watch this video. It's a shooter with a steel 55 gallon drum full of water as a target. The round enters one end with the expected entry hole, and exits the other end with a more dramatic exit hole. The energy pushed in actually bulges the drum out on both ends, and sucked in the sides. It doesn't even indicate how far the bullet would be damaging for, it continued beyond the target. Two pieces of steel, and 3 feet of water, and it was still carrying a lot of energy. Nope, I wouldn't want to get hit with one.
I want to work where you do.
I grew up on a farm, so I spent plenty of time with .22, .357, .38, and .45 pistols; .22 and .30 rifles; and 16g and 12g shotguns. Targets were anything we could put in the way. Sheet metal, 1 gallon milk bottles, 2 liter soda bottles, watermelons, and the occasional animal for slaughter. (one head shot from a .38 does just fine for putting cattle down quick). I know that normal .45 ball ammo will go through and through on a 55 gallon steel barrel, and still dig into the dirt about 8 inches.
There was a tree that bit me back when I shot it with a 12 gauge slug. It was down range from the target. I learned not to underestimate the potential for a ricochet. It took a chunk out of the tree, and something (undetermined) hit me in the leg. It just bruised me really bad, but it was enough to know never to do that again.
Nah, it would only increase the use of force. "The tazer didn't work, so we shot him in the head."
Bullet proof vests are only good if the bullet his your chest. It doesn't help in other areas.
In reality, "bullet proof" materials are only good at spreading the energy out. They're worthless against more focused forces. It may stop a 9mm (blunt tip), but it won't stop a .223 (sharp tip), and probably won't do much against the electrodes of a tazer, or a knife. That's why they make rifle plating to go into kevlar vests. They're heavy, but they'll help protect against more serious rounds. With serious rounds (like a .50 BMG), you can't carry enough armor to help you, and even if you did, it can only displace the energy so far. If it was able to prevent the round from piercing the armor, you'd simply be crushed by the force.
Best advice for not getting killed by bullets? Don't get yourself on the wrong end of a firearm. I've managed to be safe wearing regular t-shirts as protection for over 30 years, because I've never put myself in the way of a weapon. :)
This is Slashdot you're writing on. The median group here can sustain a 2 inch penetration and barely bleed. It'll only bruise their fat.
The question is, what kind of force can it take? I know body armor is rated for various forces. Not much is going to stop a 50cal BMG, but I'm sure it would do a good job on a .22 shot from 100 feet. Then again, a cheap leather jacket would do the same thing. :)
[ducking]
I'm glad you agree with me. :)
Looking back, I should have registered an account here when I started reading, rather than years later when I actually started posting.
I think that study didn't really show the relationship to how the body is adapted to eat. It was more of "what flavor do primates like?" Just like humans, because they like the flavor doesn't mean it's better for them. If we went on that basis for eating food, most kids would eat candy bars exclusively. :)
It wasn't really a political jab, it was more of a personal one. :)
For those who have personally known me, they know I don't hold back very much. So, I may be offensive, or cause other psychological harm. That's why I do IT work. I do what needs to be done, and don't really spare anyone's hurt feelings. If you screw up, I'll tell you so. "You fucked up. Don't do that again." Which is better? To sugar coat the world, or let people know the truth. I'm not without somewhat politically and socially correct filters though. If the company is about to tank, and I already know it, but if we need to get the project done to stay in business, that's a good time to be strong and supportive of the staff. "I talked to accounting. The bank messed up. Your payroll will come through this week. Lets get the project done to make the bosses happy."
I did take liberties with the standard California warning. Hell, they put it everywhere. That's the only place I've ever been where buildings have had warning signs (see California Proposition 65). The fun part was, I'd ask building security which parts were dangerous, and they couldn't tell me. I opted to assume it means don't eat the paint nor chew on electrical wiring. :) The entire Prop 65 list (PDF) is a pretty impressive list of just about every chemical used. :)
I hear they're kinda gamy. There was another story where a couple Russians picked something a bit tastier. I could think of more entertaining things to do with her though. Looks like the guys involved could be tossed into a wood chipper, and no one would be upset in the least. I'd worry about staining the machine though. "Damn, he nicked the blade."
If you want a good example of what captivity does to animals, look at the killer whales that theme parks love to make do tricks. Their flopped over fin and lethargic movements are anything but natural. ... and ya, I've been logged in all day, so I can still post as me. I can't log out without removing the cookies, and I can't click the link to read replies to my previous rants. :) It's been like that for hours. I'm tempted to send my resume over and offer to fix things. :)
Yup, because that's the only thing we've ever bred for our own gains.
Pretty much any domesticated or farm animal you see has been bred for centuries to give us what we have today. It's not limited to animals though. Fruits and vegetables are the same way. Farmers have always taken things with preferred traits, and disposed of the ones with unwanted traits. Something as simple as a tomato started out as a fruit the size of a berry. Now we have our nice large tomatoes that we recognize today as a common food, and it's even grown "naturally" to make the tree huggers all warm and fuzzy about their organic disposition. Sorry, you're eating a genetically modified (through selective breeding) food. And no, I don't just make these things up.
Some animals and plants can still survive in the wild on their own. Look at feral cats and dogs. Many survive very well. Some just can't make it and die off.
Our bodies weren't designed to eat "medium rare" meat, nor that slop that people put on perfectly good meat to "flavor" it.
Meat is to be eaten at body temperature. For the sake of hygiene, it's a good idea to seer the edges, but only just that. Not cook, not well done, just burn off the crap it may have been contaminated with.
When I go to a restaurant, I can touch the steak with the fork, and based on how squishy it is, that's how done it is. If it feels like you're touching a soft tender breast (yes, that kind, you pervs), and you can feel the warmth from just an inch away, you know you it's cooked just right. If you touch it, and it feels like you're tapping your fork on the table, then it's way too far done. I don't accept anywhere in the middle. I've refused steaks without ever cutting into it saying "not rare enough, try again." Sometimes they ask me to at least look, so I'll slice it in half and explain why it's overcooked.
If I had a choice of a McDonalds hamburger, or chasing down a cow and slicing a fresh steak off it with nothing but my good looks and sharp knife, I'd be enjoying fresh steak while the rest of the world stands in line at McD for their overcooked overprocessed crap.
The right answer is "shush up newbie."
Trust me, I'm looking.
IT? Not happening. Around here, it's either college kids willing to work for $7.25/hr and failing miserably, or people so desperate that they'll take paycuts to under $10/hr just to keep their jobs. For lower positions I won't be considered unless I junk most of my resume (which I've been considering). There are no higher positions to be had. Head hunters send me the occasional lead from around the country, but they're all 2-4 month contracts at like $15/hr, and they even state in the requirements that they're looking for local candidates. I had a lead on a good one, that was only 1.5 hrs from me. I have friends out there, so I made arrangements to stay with them temporarily contingent on getting the position. Nope, didn't happen. I've even talked to people who are working for *UNDER* the federal minimum wage, just so they'll make at least something.
I've been thinking I would have better luck taking what little I have, and going out to the Crater of Diamonds State Park. Hey, you never know what you'll find. :) At least that's legal. Bank robbery was another option, but it's likely to get me shot, which "dead" is not a career path or a lifestyle I plan for anytime soon.
FU. It's the economy. Until a couple years ago, I was making a very healthy 6 figures. And ya, *I* did pay that much in taxes. I knew someone who worked for the federal government, and their income lined up with what I paid in income taxes. I always joked that they were my personal federal employee. I declared (as if it mattered) that my income tax went directly to their payroll, and not to any other wasted expenses. Hey, between us it was funny. Silly me, I never called in any favors back then.
The link to the bank policy will be hard to find, since it's only verbally given to you. But here are plenty of other people complaining about it. They don't seem to maintain the fee schedule on their site. I know information was sparse in the provided paperwork when opening an account. It's pretty much word of mouth from the bank themselves, and what you can learn from how they charge fees to your account. This happened after the Wells Fargo acquisition. Before that, they were reasonable and cooperative. But hey, what can I expect from Wells.
There's a little story I can share about them. I moved across the country several years ago. When I got there, I opened an account with them, because my old bank was just a regional bank. Wells Fargo was close to home and work. Every week, I'd go deposit my check. I'd write out my bill checks as they came in, and would mail them in accordance to the expected balance in my account. It was a good system, because I always maintained a good floating balance.
The Friday before Christmas, the lobby was packed with people. I was already booked on a flight for Saturday morning to go back to see friends and family. Since I couldn't get into the lobby, I just went to the ATM to deposit my check. When I put the card in, it took it, and ended the session. I couldn't get my card back. Easy mistake, huh? I went inside to get my card back. 2 hours in line, and then they tell me "your account has been frozen due to fraudulent activity." What? As it turns out, my old bank had a small outstanding balance (like $100) that I wasn't aware of, and they didn't have my new contact information. Not a big deal, I'd just go and pay it off.
But it got more complicated. They froze my account. As in I couldn't take the money out. I couldn't put money in. And, all of my recent transactions were voided as fraudulent. That included my airplane ticket and rental car. I was left with the check I had in my hand, and the cash in my pocket. I had already mailed off all the bills that would come due up to a week after I came back, since there would be a sufficient balance.
I was polite at first. They're a business. I'm doing business with them. There's no reason we can't have a polite business conversation and resolve the problem. After the first hour and "wait here while I speak to my manager", I started getting louder. I was pissed. At this point, I just wanted to close my account and walk out with all of my cash. No go on that. They eventually called a security guard over while they went to "speak with my manager". I told him, "I'm not going to be violent, I only want my money out of my account." He told me, "They did the same thing to me a couple years ago. The company I work for is under contract to provide security. If I had a choice, I wouldn't be here. I hate this place." I did notice that the louder I got and the more that they said "no we won't give you your money", more people left the line without being helped. I don't get loud for effect. I get loud because I'm furious.
So, my account with thousands of dollars in it was sitting there where the checks wouldn't be honored, nor could I use it. I had to buy my plane ticket at the airport for the outrageous last minute rate. My friend that I was traveling with loaned me the money for that and the rental car. I spent Christmas living off of everyone elses good graces, rather than being myself and funding everything I could.
Meanwhile, every check I had written bounced. Beyond that, even thought the money was in the account, Wells Fargo charged me NSF fees for every one of them. We're talking several hundred dollars. Ya, no one else could get to my money, but they were free to take all they wanted.
I
There is an ABP extension for Chrome too. :)
Actually, the question was silly. Why do you "need" Mozilla to survive? As long as they have something that someone wants, then someone will use it. When they have something that no one wants, then they're just entertaining themselves.
But, the question of if Mozilla is going to die is just academic at this point. They only brought in $78.6 million dollars in 2008. Ya, only ... well ...
$78,600,000 (Mozilla) .. a whole lot more than I did, and I think I overestimated my income for last year. Damn, it's been a shitty year.
-$ 30,000 (Me)
------------
$78,570,000
But, if Mozilla went away, I'd use a different browser browser. If whoever stops making the OS I like, I'll find another one. If the Internet goes away, I'll find a different job. If the whole world goes away, well, I guess it won't matter much. ;)
Oh, I had a premeditated one a few years before that. I caught it on my credit report, when I was making sure it was staying perfect. I'm not quite sure what they were up to, but they were buying cell phones online. I called every cell phone provider I could think of and asked if "I" had an account with them. They were usually confused about the question. "Can you look me up by name or social and see if I have an account or have attempted to make any purchases with you?" Some of them helped me right with customer service. Some forwarded me to their fraud department.
Two providers did allow purchases and delivered the phones. As soon as I told them this, they canceled service to the phones. One provider had an order for 5 phones that was approved, but their internal security caught it before shipping. One saw that I was already a customer but since "I" gave wrong information, they refused the transaction.
It's sad to think that it should be the responsibility of the individual to contact every business that has lines of credit to verify that you don't have an account with them. I've had notations put on my own credit report, and even had it locked from use. That doesn't seem to help as well as you'd think. I'd think the note "Do not allow use of this account unless verified in person with US Passport ONLY" would be a hint to ask for my passport. Nope, no one ever asked. I even opened a couple store cards without being bothered with real proof that it was me. {sigh}
The merchant rates change by the industry being serviced, the total amount of card processing, etc, etc.
If you're an online merchant selling software or service, it has to be refunded entirely on notification of chargeback (a fun little letter that comes in). The other way to handle it is to prove that the person was actually the purchaser. That means a signed receipt that was verified with a photo ID. Since it's an online merchant, they're just SOL. Refund and hopefully they can cancel the services to that customer. That's the position a company I worked for was in. It was all web based, with no physical products mailed off. But, they made good money, so the credit card companies worked with them.
If you're selling physical merchandise, you have a better chance at disputing it. For example, someone I know has a clothing store. They sell high dollar items. They take sales online and will ship immediately. They *only* ship to the verified address. Only a few times have people tried to dispute the charge. He requires a signature on delivery, so now he has their signature that they did receive the merchandise. If they want a refund, they can return the merchandise. So far he hasn't lost a dispute with the credit card companies yet. Basically, if someone who says they were you orders something with your card to your house, and you signed for it and you didn't immediately try to return it because you never ordered it, then that's a pretty good clue that you did it. :)
In a couple cases, there was a chargeback done because the purchaser never received it. There was no signature at delivery (lazy driver or whatever), so he couldn't prove that it was delivered. He refunded the money, but hit the shipping company with an insurance claim because the package was never delivered. The shipping companies don't like that very much, but if you work on it, they'll pay.
He also refuses online purchases that don't meet his qualifications. That's pretty much address and phone don't match what the bank has. If it looks a little weird, he'll call the card company to verify the information, and then call the card holder to verify the purchase. It does happen that the card holder has said they never made that purchase. No problem, he cancels the order, and advises the customer that their card was used for fraudulent purposes and to notify their bank immediately.
Nope, your maximum liability is whatever the bank will let you overdraw, plus fees. I had an account at a friendly bank. They sold to a large bank a couple years ago. After the change, the bank would always process charges before deposits. So, if you had $200 in the account on Thursday, and deposited $500 Friday after 3pm, and then had $500 in 5 charges over the weekend (checks, credit card, whatever) the transaction history would go like this.
Date Charge Balance
Thursday $200
Monday -$100 $100
Monday -$35 NSF Fee $65
Monday -$100 -$35
Monday -$35 NSF Fee -$70
Monday -$100 -$170
Monday -$35 NSF Fee -$205
Monday -$100 -$305
Monday -$35 NSF Fee -$340
Monday -$100 -$440
Monday -$35 NSF Fee -$475
Monday +500 Deposit $25
I know when you read that it will look wrong. It is. The first NSF fee is because your account *MIGHT* become overdrawn. It's like a warning shot. They still charge you, but since this all happens Monday morning, you have no warning until you look at your balance and wonder where your money went. I spent an hour yelling at the bank managers to get this even somewhat corrected. They wouldn't correct all of it, but they took ONE fee off.
Something like 75% of a banks income, comes from NSF fees. They *LOVE* you to overdraw. It's basically a short term loan with unreasonable rates. Because of this, they made an extra $175, and they weren't even out the expensive of floating the money to you, since they already had the $500 from your Friday deposit, they just didn't show it on your account until Monday after the rest of the transactions were posted. My example of $175 where there should have been $0 is just a minor case. Since it happens to many accounts, it accounts for <A HREF='http://www.bankrate.com/finance/savings/changes-coming-for-bank-overdraft-fees-2.aspx'>$38 billion last year for US banks alone.</A> These aren't mistakes, they're calculated profit.
This is actually a simplified version of what they do. In reality they charge a $35 NSF fee as soon as a hold is put on the money (like, you use the credit card), and another $35 NSF fee when it's paid. It gets too complex to write out in this though.
The best solution I've found is to use a "Green Dot" credit card. They're sold in gas stations and Walmart. Walmart's are branded as the "Walmart Money Card". You can direct deposit to it, but it's not a checking account, so you can't write checks on it. From there, you can use the card, or pull cash out from ATM's (with the ATM fee, of course) and deposit it elsewhere (fire safe bolted to the floor under your bed is a better choice). I'd rather pay $3 in ATM fees, than $175 in NSF fees because the banks like to get profit anywhere they can leech it from.
I went through an interesting one on this.
A bank had sent a preapproved loan check to an old address of mine. The way it works is, you deposit or cash the check, and it opens the line of credit for that amount.
Being that they sent it to an old address, beyond the life of the USPS forwarding, I never saw it. I got a call from a collections agent about "my" $7,000 personal loan. I had absolutely no idea what they were talking about. They were belligerent at first. I told was very insistent that I had never opened a line of credit with them, and that I needed to speak with their fraud or security department. It took about 15 minutes of this before they sent me over. The fraud department was actually much better to work with. I explained that I didn't know anything about it. They told me the address that they mailed it to, and I told them that I had left the state months before that. They wanted a faxed copy of two forms of ID, for signature comparison. I provided my drivers license and passport. I asked them for a copy of the check they claimed I signed. I got it the next day.
They called me after sending the check image to tell me that the case with me was closed, and they were pursuing the real criminal.
Looking at the copy of the check I could see that whoever did it did write my name on it, but it in no way resembled my signature (since he never had it). He had gone to 3 different banks. I was vaguely familiar with the areas they were in. They were all places where English is a second language. The banks were foreign-friendly enough where their web sites were in another language with a button to show the English version, and the English version was written in pretty broken English. Two banks had stamped it, but then refused it. The third cashed it, which caused the problems for me. At the time, my credit was great, and I could buy almost anything I wanted. I had just bought a house when this one happened.
This was wiped from my credit report, because it was fraud.
For other reasons (look at the economy), my credit is shot now. I could probably fix it to some degree by finding everyone who says I owe something and pay off the ones I could afford. The way I see it now, with bad credit no one can use my information to open a loan for anything. With good credit, they'll easily open up something. I'm much safer having bad credit than checking my credit report daily (well, weekly) to see if mystery accounts have popped up. Go for it, steal my info. Any lender will laugh, insult, and then hang up. My best bet is if someone does manage to get a little something, then they'll have to live with threatening calls and letters from the other creditor. :)
I knew there's a reason I use a prepaid phone that doesn't have my name associated with it, and live where no bills are in my name. I'm pretty much off-grid.