That's quite the greedy Spar, then - it doesn't cost them anything at all as there's already an ATM transaction anyway; and it keeps cash out of the till, so has a discouraging effect against robberies.
I do apologise - the third-party ATMs in UK slipped my mind, as they don't exist here in Belgium. I'm not sure if there's a prohibition on them or something, but they're just not here.
Again, I'm getting this from wikipedia, but movement doesn't actually *stop* at absolute zero. What the hell, I'll just post the full quote:
----- Absolute zero is the theoretical temperature at which entropy would reach its minimum value. The laws of thermodynamics state that absolute zero cannot be reached because this would require a thermodynamic system to be fully removed from the rest of the universe.
A system at absolute zero would still possess quantum mechanical zero-point energy. While molecular motion would not cease entirely at absolute zero, the system would not have enough energy for transference to other systems. It is therefore correct to say that molecular kinetic energy is minimal at absolute zero.
By international agreement, absolute zero is defined as 0K on the Kelvin scale and as −273.15°C on the Celsius scale.[1] This equates to −459.67°F on the Fahrenheit scale. Scientists have achieved temperatures very close to absolute zero, where matter exhibits quantum effects such as superconductivity and superfluidity. -----
Note "theoretical temperature", "cannot be reached" and "international agreement".
I wasn't aware previously that the -273.15 is also an agreement, and not the result of calculation, though.
That's a phenomenon that doesn't really exist in Belgium - ATMs are in the wall, and there's selfbank stations inside the banks, but nowhere in pubs or shops.
On the other hand, most shops will happily provide extra cash if you're paying with debit card - dunno if that is common in other places.
Indeed,because such is the definition. It still remains a theoretical value, though, and it is not unthinkable that it might have to be adjusted down a tiny bit, still.
The guesstimate, according to Wikipedia, started out at -240°C, then -270°C, and then mr Kelvin used an entirely different calculation, based on thermodynamics instead of measurements of specific liquids, to adjust to -273,15°C. Given that it's impossible to artificially get there (again, dixit wp) we may never get the ultimate value, but if we manage to cool something to -273,151°C we'll know to adjust the value:-)
It will still be exactly 0K, though. That's the difference between an absolute scale, and one that's relative to, say, the freezing point of water.
What is this ATM fee you speak of ?:-) Here in Europe, debit transactions are free at any ATM in your own country, and in Belgium you can even go inside and use the self-bank type ATMs of any bank, also for free - dunno if that particular one is European yet.
Internationally, you'll still get charged a fee, though, and credit card transactions on an ATM are also paying.
We complain how greedy and extortionist the banks are, but apparently it's even worse in the US.
Only because they're done horribly wrong, and that's probably because you're all untrustworthy scum or something.
I've seen American self-checkouts at a US airbase in Germany, the type where you shop, then individually scan each article and have an annoying voice tell you to drop it in the bag, and the system checks validity based on weight.
You're right: it sucks monkey balls.
The self-checkout I'm used to, you scan your member card, take the indicated hand scanner with you in the shop, and scan as you go. At the checkout, you plonk the scanner in a rack, pick a random checkout machine, and re-scan your member card. Voila, all your stuff appears on-screen, you can optionally add some coupons, add extra articles and then pay. No weighing, no shit.
Checks do happen, of course, but are semi-random. I've noticed that you're almost certain to get checked in a shop you've never been; very likely in shops where you go less than once a month; very likely if you've tried to scan two or more unknown barcodes; plus the occasional random scan. the check consists of an employee coming over, badging in to the machine and scanning a random subset of your items, probably around 10%. All in all, it goes perfectly smooth in any shop where you go on a regular basis.
Honestly, most people spend less than five minutes at the machine, and there's hardly ever a queue. That particular chain even started up a new brand of stores recently, where self-scan is the *only* way, membership optional, but with manned payment stations and a shared queue. An interesting experiment.
This is the case in Europe, too, as far as I can tell - haven't bothered to do plumbing outside of Belgium yet:-)
Plumbing things are in quarter-inches and stuff like that; but we also indicate the metric values. I'll be damned if I can remember them, though - it *is* a convenient measure for those kinds of things; and restandardizing on 'convenient' metric units would probably be a bother, which is not to say that it couldn't be done - there would even appear a flourishing adapter market, I think.
Plastic tubing, however, is already in mm for the inside/outside measurement - I recently had to get some 14/18.
Agreed in principle, but changing the actual measure of a degree - especially by that much - would make things a lot more complicated still - at least a degree C is the same as a degree K.
The point of the convenient reference points isn't that much of an issue, I think. They're just two numbers to be memorized, and in the current Farenheit scale they're not very obvious numbers, either. Here in Europe we've switched from a dozen different currencies to the Euro, too; and although the older generation is still mentally converting prices, there were no major issues in the adoption.
No, the one thing that I'd say is a bit of a bother with Kelvin, is the exact location of absolute zero - I think -273.15°C is still the *theoretical* value, no ? Would be rather inconvenient to have to shift your scale:-) *reads wikipedia* Alright, we've gone down to 100 picoKelvin, apparently, so the scale is unlikely to be adjusted by enough to be a bother.
Another plus I've got for the Kelvin scale, though, is the psychological value of zero as an endpoint. In both Celsius and Farenheit, temperatures drop below zero, and there's no obvious reason (to a non-educated person) why you wouldn't be able to go down as far as you can go up. Kelvin goes down to zero, and lacking any example of negative values, it's an instinctive place to stop counting.
All of this is moot, however, because I don't see that much political common sense-based cooperation happening anytime in the next decades:-)
Quite agreed. I'm very fond of the metric system, and honestly can't understand why half a continent (and a bit of island on our side) clings to archaic and complex scales; but the one thing I'd change is to not only get rid of Farenheit but also of Celcius. It may be defined in human measurements (freezing and boiling water), but Kelvin is an absolute scale, and the rest is just two other numbers to remember (0 and 100 vs 273 and 373).
The workers get paid on the *company's* payroll, not off the CEO's income. None of the money that goes into Ballmer's bank account returns to his employees.
3% ? You're gonna have to offer some backing up to that claim, I'm afraid. Ridiculously low as the figure sounds, I've gone through the extreme trouble of checking Wikipedia, where you find interesting graphs in the following link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics#United_States
Gun ownership is undeniably on the decline, but at up to 50% it's still a pretty far stretch from your 3%.
Slashdot Mirror
That's quite the greedy Spar, then - it doesn't cost them anything at all as there's already an ATM transaction anyway; and it keeps cash out of the till, so has a discouraging effect against robberies.
I do apologise - the third-party ATMs in UK slipped my mind, as they don't exist here in Belgium. I'm not sure if there's a prohibition on them or something, but they're just not here.
That's not a meteor, that's a monolith. Kubrick got the scale wrong, apparently.
Again, I'm getting this from wikipedia, but movement doesn't actually *stop* at absolute zero. What the hell, I'll just post the full quote:
-----
Absolute zero is the theoretical temperature at which entropy would reach its minimum value. The laws of thermodynamics state that absolute zero cannot be reached because this would require a thermodynamic system to be fully removed from the rest of the universe.
A system at absolute zero would still possess quantum mechanical zero-point energy. While molecular motion would not cease entirely at absolute zero, the system would not have enough energy for transference to other systems. It is therefore correct to say that molecular kinetic energy is minimal at absolute zero.
By international agreement, absolute zero is defined as 0K on the Kelvin scale and as −273.15°C on the Celsius scale.[1] This equates to −459.67°F on the Fahrenheit scale. Scientists have achieved temperatures very close to absolute zero, where matter exhibits quantum effects such as superconductivity and superfluidity.
-----
Note "theoretical temperature", "cannot be reached" and "international agreement".
I wasn't aware previously that the -273.15 is also an agreement, and not the result of calculation, though.
That's a phenomenon that doesn't really exist in Belgium - ATMs are in the wall, and there's selfbank stations inside the banks, but nowhere in pubs or shops.
On the other hand, most shops will happily provide extra cash if you're paying with debit card - dunno if that is common in other places.
Indeed,because such is the definition. It still remains a theoretical value, though, and it is not unthinkable that it might have to be adjusted down a tiny bit, still.
:-)
The guesstimate, according to Wikipedia, started out at -240°C, then -270°C, and then mr Kelvin used an entirely different calculation, based on thermodynamics instead of measurements of specific liquids, to adjust to -273,15°C. Given that it's impossible to artificially get there (again, dixit wp) we may never get the ultimate value, but if we manage to cool something to -273,151°C we'll know to adjust the value
It will still be exactly 0K, though. That's the difference between an absolute scale, and one that's relative to, say, the freezing point of water.
Hmm. maybe I should check my bank statements, you could well be right.
No, I saw the RSS title, and simple knew, before clicking, that it was a) about the number of horns, and b) samzenpus.
That man must give some seriously good blowjobs, for Taco to keep him on.
What is this ATM fee you speak of ? :-) Here in Europe, debit transactions are free at any ATM in your own country, and in Belgium you can even go inside and use the self-bank type ATMs of any bank, also for free - dunno if that particular one is European yet.
Internationally, you'll still get charged a fee, though, and credit card transactions on an ATM are also paying.
We complain how greedy and extortionist the banks are, but apparently it's even worse in the US.
Only because they're done horribly wrong, and that's probably because you're all untrustworthy scum or something.
I've seen American self-checkouts at a US airbase in Germany, the type where you shop, then individually scan each article and have an annoying voice tell you to drop it in the bag, and the system checks validity based on weight.
You're right: it sucks monkey balls.
The self-checkout I'm used to, you scan your member card, take the indicated hand scanner with you in the shop, and scan as you go. At the checkout, you plonk the scanner in a rack, pick a random checkout machine, and re-scan your member card. Voila, all your stuff appears on-screen, you can optionally add some coupons, add extra articles and then pay. No weighing, no shit.
Checks do happen, of course, but are semi-random. I've noticed that you're almost certain to get checked in a shop you've never been; very likely in shops where you go less than once a month; very likely if you've tried to scan two or more unknown barcodes; plus the occasional random scan. the check consists of an employee coming over, badging in to the machine and scanning a random subset of your items, probably around 10%. All in all, it goes perfectly smooth in any shop where you go on a regular basis.
Honestly, most people spend less than five minutes at the machine, and there's hardly ever a queue. That particular chain even started up a new brand of stores recently, where self-scan is the *only* way, membership optional, but with manned payment stations and a shared queue. An interesting experiment.
> let me ruminate in peace
I suspect grass may be at the basis of this book, yes.
This is the case in Europe, too, as far as I can tell - haven't bothered to do plumbing outside of Belgium yet :-)
Plumbing things are in quarter-inches and stuff like that; but we also indicate the metric values. I'll be damned if I can remember them, though - it *is* a convenient measure for those kinds of things; and restandardizing on 'convenient' metric units would probably be a bother, which is not to say that it couldn't be done - there would even appear a flourishing adapter market, I think.
Plastic tubing, however, is already in mm for the inside/outside measurement - I recently had to get some 14/18.
Agreed in principle, but changing the actual measure of a degree - especially by that much - would make things a lot more complicated still - at least a degree C is the same as a degree K.
:-)
:-)
The point of the convenient reference points isn't that much of an issue, I think. They're just two numbers to be memorized, and in the current Farenheit scale they're not very obvious numbers, either. Here in Europe we've switched from a dozen different currencies to the Euro, too; and although the older generation is still mentally converting prices, there were no major issues in the adoption.
No, the one thing that I'd say is a bit of a bother with Kelvin, is the exact location of absolute zero - I think -273.15°C is still the *theoretical* value, no ? Would be rather inconvenient to have to shift your scale
*reads wikipedia*
Alright, we've gone down to 100 picoKelvin, apparently, so the scale is unlikely to be adjusted by enough to be a bother.
Another plus I've got for the Kelvin scale, though, is the psychological value of zero as an endpoint. In both Celsius and Farenheit, temperatures drop below zero, and there's no obvious reason (to a non-educated person) why you wouldn't be able to go down as far as you can go up. Kelvin goes down to zero, and lacking any example of negative values, it's an instinctive place to stop counting.
All of this is moot, however, because I don't see that much political common sense-based cooperation happening anytime in the next decades
Quite agreed. I'm very fond of the metric system, and honestly can't understand why half a continent (and a bit of island on our side) clings to archaic and complex scales; but the one thing I'd change is to not only get rid of Farenheit but also of Celcius. It may be defined in human measurements (freezing and boiling water), but Kelvin is an absolute scale, and the rest is just two other numbers to remember (0 and 100 vs 273 and 373).
Those don't work across browser shutdowns, so don't remember your language permanently.
That wouldn't be evil, so copyright isn't stopping you from doing that right now.
Yeah, but this one is probably less fat.
Yesterday's slashticle already specified that they put a 2.6.32 kernel in. Nothing to see here, move along.
The workers get paid on the *company's* payroll, not off the CEO's income. None of the money that goes into Ballmer's bank account returns to his employees.
The hidden webcams I've mounted everywhere in their houses, of course.
"refrain from social media altogether until the problem is resolved"
I've been doing exactly that, and intend on keeping to do that until the problem of Twitter has been resolved.
You're just annoyed that you don't get to shoot any.
3% ? You're gonna have to offer some backing up to that claim, I'm afraid. Ridiculously low as the figure sounds, I've gone through the extreme trouble of checking Wikipedia, where you find interesting graphs in the following link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics#United_States
Gun ownership is undeniably on the decline, but at up to 50% it's still a pretty far stretch from your 3%.
Well, strictly speaking, he is right: The Turner Diaries do not define US gun culture. They appear to accurately *describe* it, though.
Basically, this is a tablet that has a printer queue running ? Impressive. *cough*