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June 24

Paris Syndrome

Paris Syndrome — fake? As far as I can tell, all the news of this supposed mental syndrome comes from a single academic in Japan, and it sounds to me like he's putting us all on. Comet Tuttle (talk) 16:01, 24 June 2012 (UTC)

Sounds plausible to me, although all those different syndromes are really part of the same thing, if you ask me. When people are exposed to radically different things from their normal life, whether art, holy places, or tourist sites, the excitement and/or disappointment can trigger underlying psychological problems. I suppose we will come up with many more "syndromes" at this rate (how about one for technology, like 3D movies and virtual reality ?). StuRat (talk) 13:55, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Anybody who has ordered a cup of coffee from a Parisian waiter has experienced "perceptions of being a victim of prejudice, aggression, or hostility"... 194.171.56.13 (talk) 09:57, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

WW1 Play about character with reduced mental capacity charged with desertion

I read a play about this some years ago now and can't remember the name of the character or the play (which is the same). Anyone got any ideas?? 90.17.194.234 (talk) 18:24, 24 June 2012 (UTC) Thanks! By a british playwright, and I think the main character is northern. I've looked on the list of WW1 plays on wikipedia and it's not there, and google comes up with nothing.

Possibly The Execution of Private Slovik.--Kintetsubuffalo (talk) 18:34, 24 June 2012 (UTC)

Hmm, that film has no British associations and it's set in WW II. King & Country was a WWI British film about a soldier who was shot for cowardice, but not desertion as such. I was also reminded of Paths of Glory , which is in WWI, but all the characters are French. -- ♬ Jack of Oz ♬ 20:23, 24 June 2012 (UTC)

It's not Private Peaceful is it? I know it doesn't tick all your boxes, but there is a character with learning difficulties (brother of the eponymous hero who is shot for "cowardice") and it has been adapted into a stage play as well as the forthcoming film. Karenjc 21:16, 24 June 2012 (UTC)

Thanks for your suggestions, but in fact it's Hamp by John Wilson, which was the basis of 'King and Country'. Thanks anyway :) 90.17.194.234 (talk) 11:20, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

I did mention the film version thereof. -- ♬ Jack of Oz ♬ 20:08, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

The legal act of acknowledging a "bastard"

Was it possible for a married man to acknowledge his illegitimate child in any legal form? I know royal men could to this, but their example is not of any use, since they could do as they liked: I wonder more about non-royal men.

If a married nobleman wished to acknowledge an illegitimate child, did this have any legal significance? Did it give any rights to the child? Considering the legal class system of the time, did it have any importance of the child's mother was also a noble? My question is mainly about France before the revolution (1789).

Thank you. --Aciram (talk) 21:57, 24 June 2012 (UTC)

Creating a last will and testament, acknowledging such issue born out of wedlock and granting s/he a an interest in his estate after death would be a good practical course to take. Will's tend to have precedence over set laws of inheritance. Even Romans left things to their favored slaves--Aspro (talk) 22:12, 24 June 2012 (UTC)

I corrected the spelling of "precedence" for you. I hope you don't mind.Anonymous.translator (talk) 00:57, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Bianca Maria Visconti succeeded her father as Duchess of Milan despite having been born illegitimate.--Jeanne Boleyn (talk) 06:12, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Her father was the Duchess of Milan? --Trovatore (talk) 22:29, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

No, he was the Duke of Milan. I suppose I should have said she succeeded him in the Duchy of Milan but I (wrongly) presumed people would have known what I was talking about here.--Jeanne Boleyn (talk) 06:25, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

I could be wrong, but I rather strongly suspect our friend Trovatore has heard of a person called Queen Elizabeth II, and knows she succeeded her father, who was not normally known as Queen George VI. -- ♬ Jack of Oz ♬ 19:33, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

It might depend on the specific time period and specific people involved. If you mean "before the Revolution" in a narrow sense (Valois/Bourbon dynasties), I can't help much there; but going back further into the Middle Ages, then yes, it would certainly be possible for a lesser noble (or even a non-noble, although surely not for a serf) to recognize an illegitimate child. But that could involve two separate questions. One is a religious problem, is there a way for the child to be recognized as legitimate according to the church? In that case, sure, if the church is willing to decree that the kid is legitimate. If the parents get married after the child is born, it wouldn't be too big of a problem. Donating land or goods to the church in return also wouldn't hurt. (I can think of one example from way back in the twelfth century, not in France but in Frankish Jerusalem, where the heir to the kingdom had to divorce his wife before he could become king - but the church nevertheless recognized their children as legitimate heirs. Not quite what you're asking, and they were royals, but still, there were mechanisms in place for this sort of thing). The other question is secular, i.e. can an illegitimate child inherit his or her parents' goods/property (assuming here, I suppose, that the child has not been declared legitimate by the church). I'm not sure what the laws were like in the Ancien Regime, but earlier than that there were plenty of local customs and legal codes. Sometimes local customs ultimately derived from Roman law, directly or indirectly, especially for things like inheritance laws. In some circumstances, like if the parents had no other legitimate children (or the legitimate children were dead), illegitimate children could certainly inherit. As Aspro mentioned, if the illegitimate child is recognized in a will, that could also override any other custom or law. Now that I read my answer again I see it's rather vague...it really depends on the circumstances. Adam Bishop (talk) 10:15, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Well, I was not sure that it was a good idea to specify, but since you ask: a married French nobleman in the 1730s, who has two sons with his wife, also has two sons with his acknowledged actress-mistress, and one daughter from a secret affair with an unmarried noblewoman who has runaway from her family and secretly lives on an allowance from him. The nobleman (he is a marquess) choose to recognise all three of his own free will and have them brought up on his expense.

My question is: was it possible for him to recognise them legally in some way, was there a procedure? I have read that Louis XIV had some sort of declaration made when he acknowledged his "bastards" with Montespan. And: did the acknowledgement in itself give them some sort of rights or informal social status? Was the situation of the daughter different in some way, because her mother was noble?

Perhaps this specification made it more interesting, I don't know! --Aciram (talk) 22:27, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

As far as I can tell, laws about inheritance/acknowledgment of heirs were fantastically complicated in the ancien régime, and were completely overhauled several times during the revolutionary period. It doesn't help that certain areas (Normandy, for example) were governed by slightly different customary laws than elsewhere in France. For the Louis XIV situation, the acknowledgement was (probably, although I have no source for this) accomplished via Lettre de cachet which allowed him to bypass laws completely. eldamorie (talk) 14:30, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

June 25

European reaction to end of Ming Dynasty

How did Europe and the Western world react to the fall of the Ming Dynasty in 1644? I know exploration hadn't jump started yet by that time but the Russian, Portuguese, Dutch and Spanish had already reached areas around China and some Europeans were directly trading with China in some of their ports, along with the presence of missionaries. Europeans must have found it surprising simply by the change of dress and hairstyle impose by the Manchus in the intervening decades.--Queen Elizabeth II's Little Spy (talk) 06:08, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Not too sure what you mean by saying "exploration hadn't jumpstarted yet by that time"; if you look at a ca. 1644 map, most significant land areas are filled in, other than northwestern north America, northeastern Siberia, and Australia (and of course Antarctica)... AnonMoos (talk) 11:31, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

The Jesuits were also well-established in China in 1644 and were affected by the change in dynasty. Adam Bishop (talk) 11:51, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

That was my attempt at keeping the question on topic (I see it hasn't worked). So someone doesn't simply say, they probably didn't know about it. Yeah I know about the explorers, traders, and missionaries; I stated them in my question.--Queen Elizabeth II's Little Spy (talk) 12:03, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

One would have thought that it would have affected the manufacture of silk cloth which was an important industry in France and increasingly in London with the arrival of the Huguenot weavers. Nearly all silk must have come overland from China via the Silk Road. But I've failed to find a reference that supports my theory. Alansplodge (talk) 17:23, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Silk production started in the Christian world when some itinerant monks brought some silkworms to the Emperor Justinian (or that's the story). And the whole point of sailing around the bottom of Africa (and later South America) was to cut out the middlemen. See Spitalfield Riots for what Misplaced Pages seems to have on the silk industry in England. I would tend to doubt whether much silk intended for use in Europe was being carried over central Asian land routes in 1644... AnonMoos (talk) 19:52, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

You're quite right - I've just read my own limk; "The Silk Road stopped serving as a shipping route for silk around 1400.". However, silk thread used by European weavers must surely have been imported from China (by whayever means). If not, then where was it being made? Alansplodge (talk) 00:31, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Anywhere where there were mulberry trees, a semi-reasonable climate, and people with the ability to handle silkworms. What Misplaced Pages has on this is Silk#Medieval_and_modern_Europe. I'm not sure why unprocessed silk would have made up a large percentage of the China trade -- transportation costs would have eaten into the profits for a raw-materials commodity which was also then made in Europe. If silk was still exported from China to Europe, it seems much more likely to me that it would be high-value finished textiles by highly-skilled Chinese craftsmen... AnonMoos (talk) 01:38, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

See also, the galleon trade. --Mr.98 (talk) 13:06, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

I suppose that if trade was affected, perhaps the good that was most hit was tea, though I don't know how prevalent tea consumption in Europe was when the Ming dynasty fell. Though, in the 19th century, Britain fought two wars with China, the simplified version of history goes, to be able to buy tea (and pay for it, not with silver, but opium, hence the name of the wars - the Opium Wars). V85 (talk) 22:16, 30 June 2012 (UTC)

QE2LS -- Probably the answer is that if you were someone whose colonial, mercantile, or missionary interests were directly or indirectly affected by the dynastic change (such as the Dutch who were expelled from Taiwan by Koxinga), then you welcomed or deplored the change accordingly; however, to most people in Europe without such overseas interests, China would have seemed exceedingly remote and irrelevant to their lives and daily concerns. The fad for Chinoiserie and Chinese exotica didn't really catch on in a big way until the 18th century... AnonMoos (talk) 01:52, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Tobacco auctions

Tobacco auction is unfortunately a redlink, as I recently came across this interesting youtube clip with archive footage from 1953 of an auction in progress and I'd be interested to know more about this phenomenon. Why did the auctioneers use this lightning fast, singsong tone? And when, and why, did the auctions die out? --Viennese Waltz 14:16, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

It's not just that type of auction, that "showboating" was common at other auctions, too. I imagine it's to relieve the incredible boredom of having to sell the same product over and over again. As for why they died out, it's most likely due to large conglomerates owning their own tobacco farms, or having long term contracts with those who do (however, I believe some tobacco auctions do still take place, but online bidding may replace live auctions). StuRat (talk) 14:26, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

The auctioneer's chant is a way to fill time and sustain excitement during the auction. At one time there were schools to teach auctioneering. I assume they've all died out now.

I was unaware that tobacco is mostly not auctioned anymore, although there are a few tobacco warehouses, in Kentucky and perhaps elsewhere, that still hold auctions (live auctions, I would assume, since buyers would want to be present anyway to examine the tobacco). According to this article, most farmers now have contracts with tobacco companies, and independent auction houses dwindled since the 2004 federal tobacco buyout and the loss of price supports, but there are still auctions in Danville, Lexington, Mount Sterling, and Maysville. John M Baker (talk) 15:22, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

That's pretty much the standard way of auctioning in the US. My wife and I were surprised the first time we saw a British auction and saw how sedate the auctioneer was. It's quite different. Dismas| 15:51, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

In the antiques saleroom maybe, but at British agricultural markets, the auctioneers use a similar, (though maybe not as stylised) chant. See Breeding Sheep Sale, Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, South Wales. It seems unlikely to me that this stems from American influence and more likely to be the other way about. We have an article; Auction chant which only describes US usage. Alansplodge (talk) 16:13, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

And that article links to auction school, so apparently those schools are still around. I gather that there used to be a Lucky Strike commercial, ending with the words "Sold, American," that gave a sample tobacco auction chant to people not involved in the tobacco business. There must be a version of it online somewhere, although I don't know where. However, if you listen to the 1950s song, The Auctioneer, which has an auction chant in a non-tobacco context, you'll notice that they aren't really that different. John M Baker (talk) 20:03, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

That's the commercial I linked to in the question. --Viennese Waltz 21:23, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

I'm just going to pile on here, but that form of auctioning is very much still alive, and I assume the schools that teach it are too. It's very common in agricultural auctions of any sort but even things like car auctions still do that. The only live auctions I've seen that don't sound like that are things like art auctions. Shadowjams (talk) 21:53, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

There's a current U.S. TV show called Auction Kings. If you go to 4:30 of this excerpt, you can hear how one of today's auctioneers does it. (I think that they have to tone it down a bit at auctions like this, where most of the bidders aren't professional buyers.) Deor (talk) 23:11, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Yes, the OP link is a version of the famous Lucky Strike commercial, although the radio version of the commercial is better-known. My bad, I should have checked. Note that part of the commercial's appeal is that the auction chant even then would not have been familiar to most listeners who did not live in farming areas. The Auctioneer song is available with lyrics on Youtube and seems to be a pretty accurate portrayal of agricultural auctions at the time (and perhaps even today), with the possible exception of the auctioneer becoming so successful that he had to buy his own plane. John M Baker (talk) 23:18, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Green grocers in agricultural markets in Australia (both commercial and retail) use highly stylised selling cries, and such conduct trickled towards retail fruiterers, while such small retail fruiterers existed as a predominant form of retailing fruit and vegetables (cf: Mark Mitchell (actor)'s character Con the fruiterer, let it sink it, give it a coupla days, bewdiful.). Fifelfoo (talk) 02:37, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Which European parties call for the (re)introduction of capital punishment?

The only one I've been aware of so far is Germany's NPD, but I wasn't concerned with the topic yet. Are there non-extremist or probably more influential ones as well? My immediate guess would've been that you'd rather find those in the former Eastern Bloc countries, where the abolition doesn't date back that long. --Michael Fleischhacker (talk) 17:13, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

The British National Party favors reintroduction of the death penalty (from their website). There's also some small conservative Christian parties, such as the Scottish Christian Party (source) and the (Dutch) Reformed Political Party. The death penalty is still legal in Belarus, and in 2006, Polish president Lech Kaczynski called on the EU members to bring it back. - Lindert (talk) 17:41, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

The Front National (France) has also campaigned for the reintroduction of capital punishment, but I'm not sure if that's an official platform or just Le Pen's opinion.Although FN isn't exactly non-extremist... eldamorie (talk) 18:19, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

I think that there might also be a difference between what parties officially have in their programmes, and what the people who vote for those parties support. I imagine that right-wing 'tough on crime' parties who advocate harsher penalties for crime will be reluctant to call for the introduction of the capital punishment, as it isn't very PC, but that the people who vote for such parties might support the capital punishment to a larger extent than the population at large. So that while the proportion of the general population that supports the death penalty might only be 10%, of those who support such parties, might be significantly higher. However, it's not uttered aloud in polite conversation, and it would take some time for such a view to be taken seriously in public discourse. V85 (talk) 05:43, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

Both the 'mainstream' right-wing Fidesz and the neo-fascist Jobbik favor the reintroduction of the death penalty in Hungary. ()Additionally, which countries qualify in this discussion as being 'European'? Are we talking about inside the EU or continental and cultural Europe?

Sex Offender Laws

Within the United States, what states require a sex offender to have his status listed on his/her identification card/driver's license? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Whodat6209 (talk • contribs) 17:26, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

To be frank, just about all of them. 72.235.221.120 (talk) 01:26, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

To be earnest, Sex offender registration doesn't have a list, it only has discussion about court cases and such, but it might be a good starting point for the OP's research. ←Baseball Bugs carrots→ 01:37, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Is it true lawyers can fish for defamation in the UK like ambulance-chasers in the US?

I'm not in the UK and this is purely a philosophical question (doesn't affect me in the slightest). But is true that in the UK lawyers (or barristers sorry I don't know the distinction) can try to personally sue someone for defamation over comments on e.g. a small site, much the way in the US a lawyer can be said to be an "ambulance-chaser" and try to work on contingency in wrongful-accident cases?

Thanks if anyone knows anything about this! --80.99.254.208 (talk) 19:03, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

You might want to review libel tourism.--Wehwalt (talk) 19:05, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Neither libel lawyers in the UK, or medical malpractice lawyers in the US, can personally sue someone. The party that has been harmed by it has to sue them, with the lawyer representing them. You have to have legal standing in order to sue, which means you have to actually be connected to the case. The most common "no win, no fee" lawsuits in the UK are personal accident claims (it sometimes feels like every third advert on TV is asking you if you've had an accident at work in the last five years). --Tango (talk) 19:16, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

When discussing law in the UK, I think it's important to remember that the UK has three separate legal systems: English law (which applies in England and Wales), Scots law, and Northern Ireland law. It is English law that is notorious for its defamation laws. As lawyer explains, in England and Wales, "lawyer" is a broad term that covers barristers, solicitors, and others. There is a blog post here that talks about how difficult it is to estimate the number of defamation cases, but I wouldn't have guessed that they are anywhere near as common as injury claims. 81.98.43.107 (talk) 21:21, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

In England, just like in the USA, if someone defames you on a small website, you can sue them. English law allows such suits to be taken on by lawyers on a conditional fee basis. --Colapeninsula (talk) 16:36, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Synopses of pre-20th century fiction

I often download old novels (usually from Project Gutenberg) and save them in a database (Calibre) along with their book cover images and a synopsis. Finding a synopsis is frequently a major problem. I usually need to do extensive web searches. I've found only one site with a good collection of synopeses (www.fantasticfiction.co.uk) but that one is far from complete. If you know of any similar sites, I'd be most grateful for any leads. Likewise, I'd like to find some sites with extensive collections of cover images for old novels. 66.91.48.101 (talk) 23:58, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

What are we? Chopped liver? Clarityfiend (talk) 00:36, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Misplaced Pages has plenty of articles on novels which describe some main characteristics of the book without giving much plot synopsis as such (I've written several such articles). AnonMoos (talk) 01:43, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

It's sad that any serious user should have to contend with responses like that of Clarityfiend: uninformative and discourteous. AnonMoos, on the other hand, was helpful. Although I have long used Misplaced Pages and have found many useful synopses, I've still failed to find many I needed. I'm looking to add to my collection of sites to search. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.91.48.101 (talk) 02:21, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Ironically, both comments are really the same answer and the same level of usefulness - just stated differently. ←Baseball Bugs carrots→ 08:02, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Are you just browsing for synopses, or are you looking for synopses on specific titles? abebooks.com might help you, and perhaps even amazon, if you're particularly looking for the synopses of specific titles. 69.62.243.48 (talk) 03:54, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

69.62.243.48: My database Calibre is set to automatically search Amazon, Fantastic Fiction, and Google, and can be set for 5 others. This is done when I add new ebooks. I find that Amazon is generally more helpful than Abebooks. Thanks for your ideas. 66.91.48.101 (talk) 04:49, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

If you can read French, Bibliopoche is worth checking out. --Xuxl (talk) 09:12, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

June 26

Sculptor Bernard Spinetti and his vain Saint Brigita

I am trying to find information on 18th century painter/sculptor Bernard Spinetti. He was one of the main artisians that helped create St. George's Basillica in the Prague Castle. (As well as several other statues throughout the Czech Republic.) The Castle's web site mentions him often, but there are very few details. I am particularly interested in his sculpture of St. Brigita a.k.a. Vanitus or Vanity. They attribute the name Vanitus to a fable. However, I can't find any fable that this statue might represent. Why would they name a statue of a dead/decaying SAINT as vanity? It seems rather odd, and probably has a very scandalous origin. Is there a written version of the fable/folktale?

http://www.free-prague-guide.com/prague-walking-tours/prague-castle/from-vikarka-to-golden-lane-and-the-old-castle-steps

http://www.hrad.cz/en/prague-castle/photogallery/prague-castle/12.shtml

107.4.74.219 (talk) 08:41, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

I'm not sure why it would be connected to St. Brigitta, but vanitas was a common theme in art, a memento mori, a reminder that everyone is going to die. Even the most powerful, the most proud, the most vain, would end up like that image. Adam Bishop (talk) 10:08, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

You know, it´s called only Brigita in Czech as a nickname with no connection to St. Brigitta...

Odd-shaped bit of the English/Welsh border

Just east of Breidden Hill, there's an odd bit of the English-Welsh border (map). I've looked at the articles for Breidden Hill, and Wales, but I can't find anything that helps me understand how that bit of the border ended up the shape it is. Can anyone tell me how to find out? --HughCharlesParker (talk - contribs) 16:57, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Perhaps so that the owner(s) of that bit of land north of Bulthy wouldn't have part of their property in Shropshire and another part in Powys? Deor (talk) 17:15, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Oops, I foolisly didn't look at your map and thought you were referring specifically to this little excursion of the border. But in your case I assume that it's a similar effort to keep Pecknall and Shotten farms wholly within Wales. Deor (talk) 17:50, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Boarders in Europe usually preserve the old original parish boundaries (Northern Island and Eire especially. If you look to the right hand side of the Google Image, the boarder also follows a river which are natural feature often used as boundary lines. So look up up some of the old tithe maps and see it this is part of an ancient parish. Back when the parishes where being established, much of this land could have been unclaimed forest and wast-land. This was long before the 1500's when the boarder was ratified to stop the dragons ravishing English virgins (or was it vice versa - I forget). --Aspro (talk) 17:49, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

This book might tell you more:http://www.amazon.com/History-parish-Llandrinio-Richard-Thomas/dp/B0008CPT8S The Old maps website show the rivers of Llandrinio quite clearly . So the boundaries appear to follow obvious natural features of the landscape. By the way, the article on Llandrinio could do with the addition of a guide to pronunciation, so that foreign readers of WP don't pronounce it as Llandrinio. --Aspro (talk) 18:27, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Oh. Here where are: Llan (placename element); "an enclosed piece of land", but it later evolved to mean the parish surrounding a church. Therefore, It is probably the old parish boundary of Llandrinio.--Aspro (talk) 18:35, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Misplaced Pages hase an article about Wales–England border and that too states that the border was not ratified until 1535/6 --Aspro (talk) 18:40, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

It's not Llandrinio - it's Alberbury (see below). Map of boundaries here. Ghmyrtle (talk) 20:45, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

The parish here is Alberbury. But what is interesting - and I don't yet understand the reason - is that the ancient parish of Alberbury was divided between two separate hundreds - part in the hundred of Ford, in Shropshire, and part in the hundreds of Cawrse and Deythur, in Montgomeryshire - here and here. The reasons may, as Deor suggested, have something to do with land ownership, but we are probably talking about the 16th century at the latest. I haven't checked to see whether the county boundary changed between then and now - it may well have done - but the fact that it is now a national boundary between England and Wales is incidental - at the time the county boundaries were drawn in this area, under Henry VIII, both sides of the border would have been treated as part of the single unified Kingdom of England. The fact that the main road seems to cut off part of the area is also coincidental - roads were largely incidental to parish boundaries, and in this case the road could be a turnpike dating from the 18th or 19th centuries. This link should give you the boundaries of the hundred of Cawrse, which looks odd in itself. There's no accounting for British administrative geography, I'm afraid. Ghmyrtle (talk) 18:03, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Lets run this by you. As another example – Hanwell held ( not owned) land in West Twyford. Forget about land ownership for the moment, because the monarch owned all the land and an influential family only had possession by his Grace (well almost). A parish is was a self-contained unit. The vicar lorded over spiritual matters and the Lord of the manor kept the law with very little outside interference. To be self-contained, they need woods to let the pigs root in (the Doomsday book even gives the size of wood by the number of pigs they will support)– pastures to grass cattle, arable land to plough, common land for the peasants to gather and hunt in. Plus other things like access to reed beds for thatch etc, etc. Non of this land could encroach on the Royal forest which was for sole use of the monarch. The land was their only resource. No supermarkets, no juggernauts to bring stuff in from outside. National trade was restricted to only what people could carry on their backs. Thus, a parish needed enough of the right type of land to provided all their needs –( hence the origin for the word hundreds). The parish of Alberbury could have been fragment just so that they had access to the range of natural resources that would provide them with all their needs. --Aspro (talk) 22:19, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

That's true of almost anywhere in England. The Alberbury parish boundary is not particularly strange - many similarly shaped, or more strangely shaped, parishes occur all over the place, but this one stands out simply because of its chance location on what is now a national boundary. Ghmyrtle (talk) 22:28, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

It seems it may be due to the re-drawing of the boundaries of the dioceses of St Asaph and Hereford in the 1280s: . Warofdreams talk 15:45, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

Great source - thank you! "Alberbury has a history of surpassing interest to those who would study the principles and the workings of the feudal system" (p.67) Ghmyrtle (talk) 09:28, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

member of the Ford administration staff

What is the name of the other man? --Eingangskontrolle (talk) 17:10, 26 June 2012 (UTC)

Wow, he looks very familiar, but I can't place him. Not Ron Nessen or Jerry ter Horst. The picture is in various places on the internet and they all say "with another member..." There's a website for the Gerald Ford Presidential Library, and maybe someone there could tell you, if you send them the picture.

Looks a little bit like Chevy Chase... -- AnonMoos (talk) 12:39, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

Does Category:Ford Administration personnel help anyone? Dru of Id (talk) 03:39, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

Not really. After browsing through all of them, he seems not to be in the category. 217.7.150.122 (talk) 12:43, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

Hrm. Maybe mentioned in one of them? Dru of Id (talk) 16:38, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

I have asked the Ford Library, but got no answer sofar. --Eingangskontrolle (talk) 17:24, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

I tried searching out photos of the staff members in the category who lack photos in their Misplaced Pages articles. I could not find a photo of Carlyle E. Maw, (but the pictured man seems way younger than Maw would have been). None of the others in the category resemble the individual in the photo. There are probably many staffers not listed in the category. Edison (talk) 18:09, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

british politics

June 27

Ehler, Iowa

There are several buildings on our farm from an old railroad town that was located roughly halfway between Ryan and Coggon, Iowa called Ehler. However, I'm having trouble finding anything out about its history - when it started - how big the site was - when, and why it disbanded, etc? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.18.141.34 (talk) 15:28, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

You might have luck talking to someone in the county's records department. The reference desk at your local library might also be more helpful than this one because it is a pretty specific and local question. 209.131.76.183 (talk) 16:06, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

Here's a bit from History of Delaware County, Iowa, and Its People (1914), p. 294:

The Village of Ehler was laid out on the southwest part of section 26 , and is a small station on the Illinois Central Railroad. General stores are supported by a good trade from the rich country surrounding it. The place was named in honor of Henry Ehlers, who located near by in the spring of 1855. A postoffice was established August 9, 1888, and F. P. Ryan commissioned postmaster on the same date. His successors were: James Henderson, March 20, 1891; Alexander McDonald. May 21, 1902; William H. Ehlers, September 7, 1906; N. F. Patton, October 4, 1907.

—Deor (talk) 18:45, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

And that the railroad station is marked on this 1954 map of land ownership (zoom in on the lower right area) suggests that it still existed at that time. It doesn't look as though there was much of a setllement, if any at all, associated with the station then, though. Deor (talk) 20:29, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

Bengali hindu surnames based on varna

In Bengali culture, I learned that Bannerjee, Chatterjee, and Mukherjee are brahmins. so, which surnames are kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.29.33.82 (talk) 15:59, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

Misplaced Pages doesn't seem to have categorized Bengali names or communities that way, but while waiting for a better answer you can explore the category Bengali-language surnames. 174.88.8.197 (talk) 21:14, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

Misplaced Pages will never have such articles, due to the inflammatory nature of caste and social group, due to the poor reliable reporting of caste and social group, and due to the massive BLP problems involved in subsuming people's caste under their surname. Misplaced Pages may eventually have a limited pool of surnames of India, which use scholarly reliable sources to link surnames to caste or group tendency, but this is unlikely to happen quickly given the fact that many editors use caste or group to disrupt the encyclopaedic project and to attempt to heap abuse on others. This is a warning to users of the reference desk that this topic is covered under general discretionary sanctions made by the community covering all discussion of caste and group broadly construed in relation to India and related societies. Fifelfoo (talk) 01:46, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

And who are you? Our Big Brother? --Eingangskontrolle (talk) 18:40, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

We have things like Template:Gotras of Jats... -- AnonMoos (talk) 12:43, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

Chattra Union in Bangladesh

Hi,

I can find almost no information on the Chattra Union; is it the student wing of a major political party, or a distinct political party?

Thanks. Apokrif (talk) 17:32, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

Is it the same as the Revolutionary Students Unity of Bangladesh? Google directs me to the spelling Chhatra, so you might try searching for that. Rojomoke (talk) 21:59, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

June 28

Ernestine duchies

How did the Ernestine duchies and other German states administered tiny territorial enclaves in other people's territory that are not part of the main territory?--Queen Elizabeth II's Little Spy (talk) 07:36, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

If you were an Imperial Knight, your little landed estate (possibly discontinuous) could be considered just as independent as any duchy or electorate within the empire, so the whole thing was quite convoluted and fragmentary in many areas... AnonMoos (talk) 12:35, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

The tiny districts often formed an Amt with an Amtmann doing the routine adminstration tasks. --Pp.paul.4 (talk) 18:59, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

NEWSPAPERS

WHICH NEWSPAPER IS ASSOCIATED WITH SWAMI VIVEKANANDA?Arkshanar01 (talk) 15:21, 28 June 2012 (UTC) IT IS MY HOME WORK AND I THIINK ANSWER SHOULD BE ANANDA PATRIKA. PLEASE VERIFY IT.

I googled swami vivekananda "newspaper" and got many results. Do you mean during his lifetime, or today? (Our article Swami Vivekananda is silent on the matter.) Comet Tuttle (talk) 17:08, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

"swami vivekananda" newspaper would be better —Tamfang (talk) 20:51, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

Introductory book on logic

Could someone recommend good beginner's books on logic? There are so many of them, I don't know what to pick. Please keep in mind that I know next to nothing about the subject. --BorgQueen (talk) 15:57, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

That may depend on what you're looking to follow on from the logic. The basics of logic are used in electrical engineering, computer science, artificial intelligence, mathematics, linguistics, law, and philosophy. They all (kinda) start at the same place, but it's common for different textbooks aimed at different audiences to emphasise what's appropriate for that curriculum. -- Finlay McWalterჷTalk 16:38, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

I think I am leaning toward AI and computer science in general. --BorgQueen (talk) 18:21, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

The obvious answer is to work it out logically. If you don't have enough skills with the use of logic, I'd suggest consulting a good book on the subject.  :) -- ♬ Jack of Oz ♬ 01:45, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

Wouldn't that be a Catch-10110? Clarityfiend (talk) 04:41, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

Go to the top of the class. -- ♬ Jack of Oz ♬ 09:00, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

I don't find it funny. --BorgQueen (talk) 09:16, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

This is an excellent introductory work both accesible and rigorous: http://www.amazon.com/Art-Reasoning-Third-David-Kelley/dp/0393972135 μηδείς (talk) 04:48, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

Thank you! --BorgQueen (talk) 09:16, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

French cities with Dutch population

So far, I know that Dunkerque is a french city with Dutch population. Which other French cities that has a Dutch name because of its Dutch/Flemish speaking population or due to the fact they are next to the Belgian border? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.29.32.196 (talk) 18:49, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

See our article on French Flemish. --Pp.paul.4 (talk) 19:03, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

In Picardy, there are some areas of Flemish-speakers, but whether they consider themselves to be "Dutch" is another question.... AnonMoos (talk) 20:50, 28 June 2012 (UTC)

June 29

Is there actually an unreleased movie called "45 Minutes from Denver"?

I just read this from an SAT practice test that says it has "a budget of over 150 million" and "four hours and forty-five minutes" long. When I googled it I can't find any reports, so I am curious if such movie exists. ps: is it very common for SAT to have essays about made-up things? --113.105.70.226 (talk) 01:16, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

It could be totally invented. The point of that part of the test is reading and comprehension. The closest thing I can think of is the Cohan play and song, "45 Minutes from Broadway". ←Baseball Bugs carrots→ 02:39, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

No, it doesn't exist. A movie with that large a budget would attract some media attention. Also, a "student filmmaker" doesn't get handed that much dough. It's not even close to being the "longest feature film". Clarityfiend (talk) 04:38, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

Is it totally made up or there is some similar things in reality(for example, similar styled movie with similar cost and length)?--113.105.70.226 (talk) 05:29, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

Doubtful these days. Audiences don't like to sit that long, and the theaters want to show films as often as possible to make $$$. James Cameron would probably have no trouble getting financing, maybe a few others with great track records, but that's about it. There have been earlier ambitious directors, for example Abel Gance, who made Napoléon (1927 film) (the Released versions section lists wildly varying times ranging up to over nine hours). You might enjoy perusing List of longest films by running time. Clarityfiend (talk) 07:39, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

Some films are suicide-inducingly lengthy, and seem to go far longer than their chronological length would appear to indicate. I nominate The Great Gatsby (1974 film) and Heaven's Gate in this category. There are others you want never to end, but they end all too quickly. -- ♬ Jack of Oz ♬ 08:57, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

I wouldn't be surprised if many texts used for comprehension on many exams, including the SATs, are made up. (Or, if they do base themselves on previously published texts, they edit them. The reasons for this, is, obviously, to get a text that fits the needs of the test. In this circumstance the text has to have a certain length, and it needs to include an ambiguous metaphor (the Titanic) etc. Another advantage of making it all up, is that you don't advantage/disadvantage any of the students based on what they already know. Some students might be able to understand the questions more quickly, if they already knew about the film, or, on the other hand, they might be responding to the questions due to what they knew of the film already, without reference to the text itself, which is the point of that exercise. V85 (talk) 09:03, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

French cuisine of France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Monaco

What are the main dishes of France, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg and Monaco like appetizers, main courses for lunch, breakfast, dinner, and desserts? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.95.106.121 (talk) 02:12, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

See French cuisine, Belgian cuisine, Luxembourg cuisine, Swiss cuisine, and Monégasque cuisine. Well, maybe not that last. --jpgordon 03:57, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

chase vehicle

I'm well aware of the US Airways Flight 1549 Official Support Vehicle. But I didn't know about the Official Chase Vehicle. I saw some videos of it on YouTube. What brand of car is the US Airways Flight 1549 Official Chase Vehicle? Are there any pictures of it? And why is it called a "chase vehicle"?24.90.195.33 (talk) 02:39, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

Here's an article about it, along with a picture and an explanation. "Official" is apparently a bit tongue in cheek. Clarityfiend (talk) 04:29, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

The article doesn't say what brand of car the chase vehicle is. Anyone know?24.90.195.33 (talk) 04:57, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

That's a Buick Regal, known outside the US as the Opel/Vauxhall Insignia. - Cucumber Mike (talk) 07:07, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

Child sexual abuse

I wonder about how much of the damage of child sexual abuse is inherent in the act and how much of it is because we tell the child it should fuck him up. Do you think civilisations where it was normal were just traumatized on a global level or it just didn't effect them as much because they found it normal?Bastard Soap (talk) 11:48, 29 June 2012 (UTC)

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