English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

5:00 PM

> By December 2013, the US Office of Naval Intelligence reported that only 9 vessels had been attacked during the year by the [Somali] pirates, with zero successful hijackings.[31] Control Risks attributed this 90% decline in [Somali] pirate activity from the corresponding period in 2012 to the adoption of best management practices by vessel owners and crews, armed private security onboard ships, a significant naval presence, and the development of onshore security forces.[32]

Interesting.

Seems like the problem with Somali piracy has been solved.

meer2kat

@Cerberus that's awesome

@Cerberus Yes I subscribe to their emails too with petitions I may be interested in signing

Cerberus

Ah OK.

I usually get petitions passed on through friends or websites I frequent.

Or from Avaaz.

meer2kat

5:17 PM

that's really cool :)

maybe i shouldn't be a teacher. kids are super obnoxious

Cerberus

Haha what are they doing?

I teach kids too...

oerkelens

@meer2kat ducktape solves a lot of problems

skullpatrol

the ones in the math room are not typical (I hope)

Alraxite

@Cerberus I was wondering how old you are. Would you tell?

meer2kat

eh it's in the math room. little prick being ridiculous. my frustration with him is making me wonder if teaching kids that age is actually a smart idea or not. i'm not taking it personally, but it is irritating and i'm usually rather patient

@oerkelens silence is golden. duct tape is silver

@skullpatrol i'm not sure

oerkelens

5:20 PM

@meer2kat :D

meer2kat

@Cerberus what age group do you teach?

@oerkelens hehe!

oerkelens

There should be digital ducktape for chatrooms and the likes

Cerberus

@Alraxite 31. You?

Alraxite

@Cerberus Guess.

meer2kat

@oerkelens apparently there's an "ignore"

MετάEd

5:21 PM

Sorry to be so late.

meer2kat

@Alraxite 26!

Cerberus

@meer2kat Noo kids are far more annoying on the Internet than in real life. Like everyone.

@meer2kat 12–18.

meer2kat

@Cerberus are the 12-14 yr olds bad?

Cerberus

Though also 18+, but that's a different job.

meer2kat

@Alraxite Am I right? :)

Alraxite

5:22 PM

@meer2kat No.

Cerberus

@meer2kat I'd say 14–15 is the "worst" age. Before that, they are meeker; after that age, they are more mature.

Alraxite

:D

meer2kat

@Alraxite Am I close?

Alraxite

Define close.

meer2kat

@Cerberus Hmmmm thanks :)

Cerberus

5:22 PM

@Alraxite 12.

65.

meer2kat

@Alraxite +- 5 years

Alraxite

@meer2kat No.

oerkelens

@meer2kat Yes, buit it does not have the same nice side effects that ducktape has

meer2kat

@Alraxite 38

@oerkelens lol! true

Alraxite

I'm quite young actually.

Cerberus

5:23 PM

@meer2kat But it will depend on the local culture and the school system. I only teach kids of the highest school type, so they are presumably the most well behaved.

@Alraxite 16

No.

@Alraxite close?

That's what I'm going to do all day.

Cerberus

9.

meer2kat

5:23 PM

@Cerberus yeah that makes sense

Alraxite

@Cerberus Yes. Except twice.

meer2kat

@Alraxite 18?

Cerberus

Yay I was close!

18 is a good age.

meer2kat

@Cerberus Indeed :) Close to my age too!

Alraxite

Yeh.

Cerberus

5:24 PM

Oh, yeah?

How old are you?

16?

Hehe.

meer2kat

19, nearly 20

ew that's weird to say

Cerberus

I like the "nearly 20", makes you sound young.

aedia λ

Gaah it's an invasion of the young'uns! :P

Alraxite

@Cerberus I thought you would be in your twenties.

Cerberus

Man the barricades!

3

meer2kat

5:25 PM

@Cerberus nah, my birthday is in two weeks lol! i wouldn't say "nearly" otherwise

Cerberus

@Alraxite Do I sound so profoundly immature?

@meer2kat Sure, sure.

@Cerberus *too :P

I meant *so.

@Cerberus haha! :)

@Cerberus No. Jovial.

meer2kat

5:26 PM

@Cerberus well damn. we were both wrong

Cerberus

Haha.

That's a nice euphemism for something hehe.

oerkelens

All those youngsters here :(

feeling old :'(

Cerberus

How old do you think the other regulars here are, then?

@oerkelens Aww you're still young as well.

Alraxite

50.

On average.

meer2kat

really?

Cerberus

5:27 PM

Naah they vary wildly.

meer2kat

most of the ones i've talked to are 20s-30s

Alraxite

Was kidding

Cerberus

From twenty-somethings to fifty-somethings.

Ah OK.

meer2kat

there's a guy who plays SHK in his 80s :)

Cerberus

SHwho?

Yoichi is 80+ I believe.

meer2kat

5:28 PM

@Cerberus stronghold kingdoms

Cerberus

Ah, again.

meer2kat

@Cerberus always :)

oerkelens

@Cerberus yeah, I am telling that to my parents as well :(

Cerberus

See?

oerkelens

That they are still young

Cerberus

5:29 PM

Oh, OK.

meer2kat

@oerkelens you are too :P

oerkelens

Doesn;t mean it's true :(

Alraxite

But once you become old, you can look down on your young ones.

Cerberus

My parents have been complaining about dementia for decades.

oerkelens

Well... they say that 40 is the new 30

meer2kat

5:30 PM

@oerkelens aren't old til you're 90

Cerberus

Do you happen to be 39?

oerkelens

@meer2kat I'm almost halfway though

@Cerberus yups

meer2kat

@oerkelens that means you're quite young then :)

Cerberus

Are you in therapy yet?

oerkelens

@Cerberus Just out, actually. Exit talk is planned for September :X

@meer2kat I'm twice your age :)

Cerberus

5:33 PM

@oerkelens Really?

meer2kat

@oerkelens That's my parents age. Young and vibrant. Loving their lives

Cerberus

I meant four-oh therapy...

oerkelens

@Cerberus Yups, sometimes I am early :)

@meer2kat And there I tried not to use the old line "I could be your father"

@Cerberus Let's say I was fast enough with my mid-life crisis to have another one when I am 70 :D

meer2kat

@oerkelens LOL my dad turns 40 this year. mom turns 39 and she's having fun making fun of my dad :) But they're having a great time. My mom is living the young-adult life she never got to enjoy cuz of me haha!

oerkelens

@meer2kat My wife never seemed to have stopped doing that :P

meer2kat

5:36 PM

@oerkelens awww that's good :)

Cerberus

@oerkelens Oh, I see. Did this crisis have something to do with a certain foreign lady?

oerkelens

@Cerberus She played a role :)

Cerberus

@meer2kat Yeah you came early!

3

@oerkelens OK OK.

meer2kat

@Cerberus Yeah haha. She shouldn't have married that navy guy. He ran away. Silly boys.

oerkelens

@Cerberus Since when do guys complain about that?

meer2kat

5:38 PM

@oerkelens about what?

Cerberus

@meer2kat Ow is that your birth father?

oerkelens

1 min ago, by Cerberus

@meer2kat Yeah you came early!

meer2kat

@Cerberus Yes. I've been adopted twice on my paternal side.

@oerkelens Ah he was young and immature.

Cerberus

@oerkelens Oh, they do. Synchronicity is for some reason the ideal.

@meer2kat Ah OK.

meer2kat

@Cerberus sings zipadeedoodah

oerkelens

5:39 PM

@Cerberus Annoying perfectionists :)

Cerberus

@meer2kat I know that song! But not its significance.

@oerkelens Yeah, well, it's more enjoyable for you before. So afterwards it becomes a bit...asymmetrical.

meer2kat

@Cerberus no significance. just a song to pass the time and like life

Cerberus

Haha OK!

meer2kat

One day I'll be able to submit downvotes wishful thinking

Cerberus

Submit?

Surely you can down-vote?

meer2kat

5:52 PM

Nope, I need 125 rep. I only have 111. If this guy would upvote and accept my answer I'd have it. Bahumbug

Alraxite

@meer2kat And then you'll lose enough rep to not downvote again.

Only one actually.

Because you'll have 126 points.

meer2kat

@Alraxite :(

Now I'm sad

oerkelens

you have 121 :)

meer2kat

Yay!

Alraxite

So, one downvote brings that to 124.

meer2kat

5:54 PM

<3

oerkelens

:)

Alraxite

Well, then you're safe.

meer2kat

sings a happy song almost there!

oerkelens

careful now, each downvote will cost you :)

meer2kat

yayyyy!!! cheers

<3 hugs

oerkelens

6:00 PM

:)

meer2kat

Thanks :)

oerkelens

Well, you said I was young :) blush

meer2kat

@oerkelens :D

Mitch

6:19 PM

@Alraxite You mean some days it's different? Well... I suppose it does change everyday, pretty consistently.

@Cerberus You mean it can be fixed?

@Cerberus natural selection... the more agitated tear each other to shreds before the high school years.

@meer2kat some kids are little bastards. Most aren't but it is the troublemakers that get all the attention.

@Cerberus They keep forgetting they told you already.

!!rimshot

KitSox

@Mitch Hey, diggy diggy

skullpatrol

Do you have any messages for me @Mitch?

Mitch

@skullpatrol I know! I'm going back through the chat record and haven't gotten to you yet.

skullpatrol

:D

I don't like reading backwards...

...in time

so I gave up

Mitch

@skullpatrol For almost all understandings of 0^0, it should equal 1. So it has a lot of meaning. What you meant to say is that it is technically undefined at 0^0.

@skullpatrol How's that?

meer2kat

6:28 PM

@Mitch true storrrry lol!

@Mitch woah

Mitch

@skullpatrol That's how I read. I want to know who killed the butler first, then I read to figure out how it got that way.

meer2kat

@Mitch miss scarlet

skullpatrol

but it's soooo anti-climatic

Mitch

@meer2kat That is life! sobs in hands

meer2kat

@Mitch lol!

Mitch

6:31 PM

@meer2kat No spoilers in chat.

meer2kat

@Mitch crap.

@skullpatrol nah i like the "how they did it" more too lol

Mitch

Ugh. Spoiler alert! — RegDwigнt ♦ 2 days ago

meer2kat

@Mitch Everyone dies. GoT spoiler.

Mitch

@skullpatrol It's very exciting when you finally wind back to the beginning and find out the very first word was...

"The"

no... "A"

@meer2kat ha ha. sobs some more

skullpatrol

@Mitch Good point.

meer2kat

6:33 PM

@Mitch but really.

Mitch

Oh I have to make a very embarassing confession. I haven't seen -any- Game of Thrones.

ashamed

meer2kat

@Mitch ....you need to....you're wrong...your life.......it's not okay

!!urban game of thrones

KitSox

@meer2kat Game of Thrones An HBO show based on George R. R. Martin's books. The show's got a great deal of politics, royal intrigues, incest, murder, warfare, violence and sex. Mediæval genre and features lots of swordplay and riding horses. And a lot of violence and sex. Did I mention the sex? And drinking and a dwarf with an obsession with whoring.

meer2kat

curiousity, sorry guys

skullpatrol

6:48 PM

How's that^ for a definition?

aedia λ

@Mitch Nor have I

MrHen

Can I get some help resolving this question? I need one of the following: (a) two more close votes (b) an answer worth upvoting or (c) one more downvote on the question itself.

0

Q: Meaning of "Unstable depth decaying modes"

Could anyone help me to understand the meaning of "unstable depth decaying modes". This one came from the sentence: To add to the uncertainties introduced by these three approximations it is noted that compressible flows in the presence of a free-surface develop unstable depth decaying modes...

7:03 PM

0

Q: What is the difference between english.stackexchange.com and ell.stackexchange.com?

What is the difference between english.stackexchange.com and ell.stackexchange.com? Why two sites are built as English Language forums?

discussion

while we're closing questions. this is a dupe

MrHen

7:20 PM

@MattЭллен Voted.

Matt Эллен

yay! 2 votes away

cornbread ninja 麵包忍者

@Robusto yes. I reached the tipping point yesterday.

I had listened to it a couple times before, but it has gelled in my cells as an album now.

@KitSox and wieners, wieners wieners.

southparkstudios.com/clips/qcgud7/a-chorus-of-wieners

meer2kat

@skull desolation comes upon the sky....

tchrist

So many updates:

47

A: Recent feature changes to Stack Exchange

April 2014 2014-04-22: The 10k flag queue has been removed from all sites. 2014-04-17: Moderator record tools for annotations and moderator messages were revamped. 2014-04-16: Meta Stack Overflow and Meta Stack Exchange have officially split off from each other. 2014-04-14: The last activity ...

Mitch

@aediaλ I have watched Orphan Black. Does that count?

@meer2kat I sounds like the LotR that the cool people would enjoy.

tchrist

7:34 PM

15

A: Auto-protect questions that get more than N answers from new users in a 24-hour period

This has been implemented pretty much as described in the question and is now deployed across the network. Default threshold is 5 answers in 24 hours (by new users i.e. users who earned less than 10 reputation on the site, excluding any association bonuses), at the point of which the question ge...

18

A: What can cause an answer to get deleted without information about who actually deleted it?

The Low Quality review queue is to "blame": http://stackoverflow.com/review/low-quality-posts/2322114. As of April 5th, 2014, all future deletions by low-rep users from review will create a special post history entry that includes a link to the review task that resulted in the deletion: Unlik...

40

A: Stop using community wiki as a reputation denial mechanism

Community wiki isn't a tool for reputation denial. We originally had all these automatic triggers mostly to leverage existing systems to handle abuse situations. While it can be said that it "worked", it also very largely didn't work, and a lot of pain was had by people who had legitimate contrib...

74

A: Fuzzy the number of questions in the close review queue, a dopamine for the shutterers

This is now implemented (build rev 2014.2.27.1403 on sites) as lined out in Shog's answer. We now have a per-site configurable close vote threshold for questions to be enqueued in the close vote review queue. Review tasks with fewer close votes and no do not close review results will be gradually...

4

A: Answers deleted via Recommend Deletion votes in review should not be undeletable by the answerer

Jarrod has implemented animuson's suggestion: Now that we have that new "disputed low quality review" flag, can we use it for this purpose? The OP undeleting their answer is like disputing the reviewers, so whenever this happens, why not raise an auto-flag so that a moderator can take a peek ...

Wait, is this correct?

> 2014-04-14: The last activity information on the front page now includes verbs: asked, answered, or modified (that covers edits, bounties, and the like.)

Surely those are actually passive past participles used adjectivally?

How may questions were asked? Number of questions answered? Number of questions modified by edits, bounties, and the like.

I wouldn’t have automatically called them verbs, but ok. I still think they’re acting adjectivally.

Aug 13 '13 at 12:37, by tchrist

This particularly rapid unintelligible patter isn’t generally heard and if iTIS it doesn’t matter.

Cerberus

@Mitch That must be it x2!

aedia λ

7:56 PM

@Mitch Uhh I've never heard of it. Is it good?

Matt Эллен

@aediaλ yes

although the first series ends weirdly

I think I missed an episode or something

it's a BBC / BBC America collaboration

I think you guys are already seeing the second series

I have to wait for a while

It's about cloning

I don't think that's a spoiler

it's a thriller

aedia λ

Ooh sounds interesting

Mitch

8:16 PM

@MattЭллен They all die at the end!

MετάEd

@Mitch Who doesn't.

Mitch

@aediaλ first season is finding out that the main character is a clone

second season: I don't know yet! (you're welcome Matt!)

@MετάEd What? Nooo!

Matt Эллен

@Mitch yay! oh boo! I can't remember who I'm rooting for

I think I'm rooting for Felix as he seems to take everything in his stride.

Mitch

He's one of the few that doesn't die. In the big shoot out scene. He walks out of the smoky aftermath with someone's arm in his teeth.

That he needs to tease out with a toothpick.

You know, like a tasty bit of tough bacon.

Matt Эллен

lol

MrHen

8:30 PM

@tchrist Hm, that's clever.

Matt Эллен

0

Q: Add parentheses when using alternative content?

Would you add parentheses in the first place when you write alternative content? Example: "This car has a(n) (optional) navigation system." or "This car has a (optional) navigation system." ? Remark: I am not an native English speaker, so please be gentle.

parentheses

dupe

aedia λ

@MattЭллен If it is, the Wikipedia summary already spoilered it for me before I read what you wrote :)

Matt Эллен

8:46 PM

phew!

MrHen

An amusing statistic: As of Monday, there were 92 questions on the Unanswered list that I personally had answered but the questions are still on the list due to not satisfying the criteria for being "Answered".

Matt Эллен

that sounds more like a hint than an amusing statistic :D

MrHen

The Unanswered queue currently has 166 in it. So... more or less, I've answered over half of the Unanswered questions. :)

@MattЭллен You can take it as a hint; I won't mind. :)

The greater point, however, is to remind people to vote on questions and answers more frequently.

Robusto

@cornbreadninja麵包忍者 One of his best, definitely.

MrHen

But at least my todo lists are accurate now. 30 + 32 + 92 = 154 is close. And I explicitly ignore questions that are a week young in order to focus on the old stuff.

Robusto

8:54 PM

@MrHen Are you running for office or something?

Matt Эллен

Your campaign writes itself for your second term: MrHen needs your votes again!

MrHen

Well, to be clear, I'm not actually fishing for votes. I've made peace with the Unanswered queue and found a way to filter out questions I've already answered. :)

Mitch

@MattЭллен searches catalog for self-writing campaign

They are not cheap!

MrHen

@Mitch Time to invest in a self-writing catalog for self-writing campaigns!

Matt Эллен

do we have a master "possessive vs attributive noun" question?

is that even possible?

Mitch

9:07 PM

@MrHen using a self-printing 3-d printer.

@MattЭллен I don't think this precludes possibility but I don't understand all those words together.

Matt Эллен

0

Q: The honest human heart or The honest human's heart?

Which form is correct? "This is how the honest human heart look" or "This is how the honest human's heart look", and why?

possessive noun-adjuncts

@Mitch I want a dupe of that, essentially

Johan Larsson

every chat is busy looking for things to close tonight

Matt Эллен

must be that time of the year

Johan Larsson

yes

Matt Эллен

all the single people bitter about spring

or am I revealing too much?

Johan Larsson

9:11 PM

np :)

Mitch

@JohanLarsson I love that Hall and Oates song! 70's rock Rocks!

Johan Larsson

which one?

Mitch

@MattЭллен I don't know. Maybe you're saying you know way too many single people's inner thoughts.

Matt Эллен

@Mitch It's an affliction.

Mitch

Or you're British, where Spring really is only different from Winter by 3 letters. And Summer is different because the sun came out one day (that was summer, that's it)

Matt Эллен

9:19 PM

yeah, the thunderstorm this morning flooded all the roads. I wonder if any bunnies died?

Mitch

@MattЭллен I know. "They" all think that other single people are having a great time while not including the thinker. And in spring you can see them all out in the open having that great time. grumbles, annoyed at other people acting like hypocrites acting like they're having fun

@MattЭллен OMG, why did you put that thought in my head? I just thought see the dying worms flushed out on the side walk was tragic. You've just increased the horror that much more.

Matt Эллен

because it's spring

MrHen

Tags associated with other tags

Matt Эллен

The rotting corpse of a muntjac cut in half by traffic was smelling really bad.

The smell probably subsided a bit thanks to the rain

No, in case you're wondering, I don't know what's wrong with me.

aedia λ

TIL "muntjac" is a thing

Matt Эллен

9:27 PM

yay!

aedia λ

I was a bit hesitant to look it up because from your context I thought it might be some word meaning only a dead deer, and then I find out it's just the weirdest looking deer I've ever seen