English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

user19161

00:00

There is a question on whether the plural of mouse is mouses or mice for the computer mouse.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

@Jasper is it raining in you area?

user19161

4

Q: Is the plural of the electronic mouse "mouses" or "mice"?

Is the plural of that device that you plug into your computer mouses or mice? Which of these is correct? I bought some wireless optical mouses for my colleagues at work. I bought some wireless optical mice for my colleagues at work. I prefer the first one though I'm not sure why. The s...

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

Both plurals are correct.

Never thought of it like that.

user19161

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū Last night it was raining, which is why when I cam back after voting, something sad happened. It usually rains when something sad happens in my case. :)

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

@Jasper ..and your smiling. I better chat as long as I can before blackout.

@Jasper you changed your avatar again?

Oh Gosh, my lamp flickered.

user19161

00:02

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū I won't correct your spellings anymore since they are probably typos.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

thanks.

user19161

And I also won't say jinx anymore to pollute the transcript. :)

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

Good choice.

user19161

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū Ya, for a reason that may not be revealed.

user19161

Your current one does not look like Sonic to me at all.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

00:04

look at it close up. :)

like, visit my page.

user19161

I guess he is hidden behind all the clothing.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

and Smooth Criminal hat.

It should be black if it is Billy Jean, but ah well...

user19161

Well, I would expect all your avatars from now to be sonic or kimchi.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

Never Kimchi.

If I exit unexpectantly, its Blackout, ok?

user19161

OK. You can feed your lamp some kimchi and it will be fine.

user19161

00:08

The yellow light in my room often goes out too.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

......

nvm....

Where do you live? Like, what state?

user19161

I should probably feed it some sashimi. Singapore, not US.

user19161

And the election results I just saw.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

facevault

user19161

The runner up lost by a narrow margin.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

00:10

What election?

user19161

Presidential. There were 4 candidates, all Tan.

user19161

Tan is their last name, that is.

user19161

So I had to look carefully before I crossed the box.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

I thought you were going to take over the world.

Hold on...

user19161

Not in this lifetime. Maybe in a few trillion ones from now.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

00:12

Holdon ...

K, you changed alot.

Jul 30

You said you didn't like kimchi,

you were a fan of MJ back then but now you don't like him,

...geeze...

user19161

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū I still don't like it. I say it because you like it.

Bogdan Lataianu

people change their minds Chaos

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

Well thanks man.

user19161

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū I don't like his music in general, just like a little one or two songs.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

I like "Who is it" the best.

user19161

00:21

So @chaos you see that I have not really changed in these areas, you just misinterpreted me as do most people. The only thing that I changed is my heart.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

@aedia yo!

user19161

@BogdanLataianu I have a feeling you starred that.

aedia λ

Heya!

I'm waiting for the hurricane. We still have power but we're getting some wind and rain now. How's it up there, @ChaosGamerel?

Bogdan Lataianu

@JasperLoy that's right I know Chaos relishes the stars

user19161

@aediaλ Sounds like you like the hurricane.

user19161

00:23

@BogdanLataianu Not me. I relish certain messages but I wouldn't purposely star them.

user19161

sips tea

aedia λ

@JasperLoy I'm a little scared but it doesn't sound like it's going to do real damage in my area so I'm kind of excited. It's a new thing. I like new experiences.

A little power outage or something now and then can be invigorating.

user19161

@aediaλ New experiences are good as long as they are not too dangerous.

Bogdan Lataianu

@JasperLoy I meant he relishes the stars he gets

user19161

@BogdanLataianu I know.

Bogdan Lataianu

00:26

@aediaλ yeah like a night without sleep

it makes you see things differently

unless a tree smashes your car...that's not fun

aedia λ

I'm trying to figure out how to know when I should go downstairs out of my (highrise) apartment if the wind gets too bad. I don't have a real way to measure it. I always know when the building's swaying in a thunderstorm when the toilet water sloshes, but that's none too scientific.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

Hey sorry, I just singing MJ.

user19161

I hang out from midnight to dawn now and then at the shopping centre with the casino. The shops are closed but you still get to hear the music and see the displays. It's very nice walking alone there at that time.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

@aedia a very big shower is here right now.

user19161

If the hurricane gets dangerous just call on kimchi power to subdue it.

aedia λ

00:30

@BogdanLataianu We've only got one car in my household and it lives in an underground garage so I'm not too worried about my own car, thankfully. More about the region at large and all my family in the northeast who have actual houses and yards and stuff.

user19161

@BogdanLataianu In two ways, by changing your mind and by tiring your eyes.

user19161

@aediaλ My friend in the US is safe. He went off to honeymoon so he did not reply to me for a while and I thought something bad happened.

aedia λ

@JasperLoy Phew, that's good!

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū It looks like your state (NJ, right?) is going to get it worse than my area according to National Weather Service

user19161

@BogdanLataianu And their minds change them too.

user19161

We know that thinking changes behaviour, but behaviour can also change thinking.

user19161

00:37

Ultimately the distinction between the different parts of a person become superficial as you see that they are all interconnected.

aedia λ

NYT also has some nice graphics using NWS data including a tracking map and a summary of the news so far and hurricane path - a couple of reported deaths so far :'(

simchona

Oi

user19161

@simchona Boo!

aedia λ

Hola!

user19161

@aediaλ So there are deaths after all. Well, I guess accidental deaths happen everyday anyway.

Bogdan Lataianu

00:41

@JasperLoy the routine is comforting and safer, but bounds your creativity

and is monotone

user19161

@BogdanLataianu If people did not have wild dreams, we would not have the airplane today.

user19161

@BogdanLataianu Reminds me of monotone functions.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

Rule number one! Do not interupt Chazz when he is in monotone speech!

user19161

Oh my number of edits dropped a lot. I guess I edited a lot of now deleted questions then.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

BTW, what is flag weight? number of times which you have flagged?

aedia λ

00:47

@JasperLoy Mmhmm. It's sad if some could be prevented, but one can't go around being afraid all the time either.

simchona

Could someone help me rename this question? The OP says it isn't a good title, but I want to make it broad enough that we can find/apply it in case of a dupe.

7

Q: How should I write this number quantity (three years and a half)?

The boy is 3 years and a half old. In the bolded section, is such a word order okay, or is it wrong? What would be the right way to say it?

grammaticality word-order

aedia λ

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū Flag weight helps you and mods know how effectively you are flagging. A higher flag weight means that when you do flag, mods usually agree and mark your flags "helpful".

user19161

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū If you flag wrongly your flag weight decreases. If you falg correctly it increases. It is an indication of your flagging ability. I am not sure of the details though.

simchona

Also: is this OT?

0

Q: This assignment was done correctly the first time

I need to word a bullet point on my assignments. My intent is to take 10 points off if the student has to resubmit the assignment. I would like to word it using positive tones, such as "you get 10 points just for doing it right the first time", instead of "I'll deduct 10 points if I have to reg...

grammar

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

@sim don't think so.

simchona

00:50

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū It sounds like a "write this for me"

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

As for renaming, I suggest this: Number of ways to say number quantities.

@sim well...

half and half-ish..?

simchona

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū read the OPs comments. That doesn't make it any easier to find

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

@sim well, now that I looked at the question, I guess his type of question is write this for me.

user19161

@simchona The oringinal question title certainly does not make it easier to find.

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

@sim as for num. quantity, are you trying to think of simpler name?

simchona

00:52

@JasperLoy Well we're at an impasse

As long as we can find it, it's fine to me

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

@sim you down voted that question, did you not? :)

user19161

@simchona How about Word order in fractional quantities?

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

the one Phillip asked.

simchona

@JasperLoy It's not only fractional.

user19161

@simchona True, but that would be the meat of the matter, since there isn't really confusion in the other cases.

simchona

00:58

Word order in whole and fractional quantities?

@JasperLoy Ok, sounds good then.

user19161

@simchona I'll do it for you.

simchona

@JasperLoy Done :p

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

we are out of the impasse. I repeat, we are out of the impasse. Do you read me?

I hear you 5 and 5. Over.

user19161

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū I read you because I am reading now.

simchona

Does "two hours and a half" sound fine to anyone?

It sounds horrible to me

user19161

01:01

@simchona I have heard it. I guess it is not the norm.

simchona

@JasperLoy It sounds wrong to me, but I could be weird

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

@kit yo!

aedia λ

@simchona It would sound ok in speech if there's a pause before "and a half", like the half is an afterthought. "Two hours - and a half - later, we FINALLY started moving out of the traffic jam..."

That's the only way it sounds ok to me, I think.

user19161

@simchona voted as OT

simchona

@aediaλ The OP is all, "I hear native speakers say it all the time"

starting to annoy me

Read if you have time:english.stackexchange.com/questions/39612/…

aedia λ

01:05

@simchona Yeah, they probably don't, but I've totally thought I remembered hearing utterances that turn out to not be common at all, or only common in specific contexts.

And sometimes common utterances really aren't documented. I have the worst blinking time coming up with evidence any time I want to assert that an AAVE utterance is real.

None of you would believe me if I was like, "but I hear people on my bus ride say this every day! It's normal!"

simchona

@aediaλ Yeah! And the OP is all, "why did you change the question title? ZOMG nobody will find it nao"

user19161

@simchona I am not sure if anyone would find it now, but I'm quite sure they wouldn't find it originally.

simchona

Either way, I flagged the thread to have the comments deleted. They're not helpful

user19161

Yay Matt can now close questions!

brilliant

@simchona I didn't say "Why did you change the title question?" I don't mind it to be changed.

user19161

01:13

@brilliant Hello! So what is the problem to be solved now?

brilliant

@JasperLoy Hi Jasper!!! Well, no serious problems really. It's just that I got confused by "2 hours and a half" when I wanted to say "2 years old and a half"

simchona

12 mins ago, by aedia λ

@simchona It would sound ok in speech if there's a pause before "and a half", like the half is an afterthought. "Two hours - and a half - later, we FINALLY started moving out of the traffic jam..."

12 mins ago, by aedia λ

That's the only way it sounds ok to me, I think.

user19161

@brilliant I would say that two and a half years old is the most standard. The rest may be acceptable variations, but that is just my opinion. In any case, the standard one is definitely right.

brilliant

@JasperLoy Yep. simchona has already answered that in my question thread. By the way, what is AAVE and ZOMG?

user19161

@brilliant I have no idea myself, I am not a fan of these things.

aedia λ

01:18

71

Q: What is the origin of ZOMG?

I have looked in a number of places, with contradicting results. The Urban Dictionary provides a whopping 73 "explanations", of which I will quote just a few. (Original spelling and punctuation preserved.) ZOMG is a varient of the all-too-popular acronym "OMG", meaning "Oh My God". ZOMG...

etymology slang internet

simchona

@brilliant: Just a note on why I made it more general--not every situation needs its own question

While English is not the most rule-bound language, there are enough generalizations that can be made

For example, in writing quantities of things

brilliant

@simchona Okay, thank you simchona, I got it.

simchona

the only way I've heard "hour and a half" is in that phrasing

aedia λ

15

Q: List of common abbreviations (NOAD, ESL, PIE...)

Abbreviations are always a potential source of confusion. Some people might happen to know what OED stands for, and can figure out what NOAD must mean, but others may not be so lucky. Googling for PIE is rather useless even for native speakers, and completely perplexing to non-native ones. Thus,...

discussion faq

simchona

1.5 hours, but never 2.5, 3.5

aedia λ

01:19

(AAVE = African American Vernacular English)

user19161

@aediaλ Thank you for enlightening us!

ChaosGamer ΕΛ-Υ ēel-ū

gotta go. Have an excellent question to anwer to in chritianity that I am a pro at.

Chaos Control

aedia λ

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū Have fun!

user19161

@ChaosGamerΕΛΥēelū Enjoy kimchi!

simchona

I think using "two hours and a half" is possibly an overapplication of the word order in "hour and a half"

brilliant

01:21

What's the difference between "on the site and its author" and "about the site and its author"?

user19161

@brilliant More context is needed.

brilliant

You know, sometimes on a web site you would have a section titled "about the site and its author". However, if it's a whole book or a chapter in a book, then you would have "on the site and its author". What's difference?

simchona

@brilliant So you mean when the chapter is called "on X"?

brilliant

@simchona yes

simchona

@brilliant I've only seen it in books

The chapter is "on" a topic

It sounds a little outdated to me

brilliant

01:26

@simchona I see. Thank you.

aedia λ

I think we have a question related to this but I can't find it...

3

Q: "Article on" vs "article about"

Which one is correct: an excellent article on ant behaviour or an excellent article about ant behaviour? If both are correct, is there a difference in their meaning and usage?

word-choice prepositions

This is the only one I can find

user19161

@brilliant You mean the book talks about the website?

brilliant

@JasperLoy Yes

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@simchona People use "on some topic" when a person is speaking about something. Like, you might have "simchona, on kittens", which would be an article expressing simchona's viewpoint about kittens

simchona

> On would be a preference in many contexts. On is probably more common in spoken and written language, but I believe about might be a little more common in spoken language than it might be in written language.

brilliant

01:27

@aediaλ Thank for this link.

aedia λ

I thought there was a more thorough question, but I'm probably mistaken.

simchona

4

Q: When should I use "a discussion of" vs. "a discussion on" vs. "a discussion about"?

“A discussion of”, “a discussion on”, and “a discussion about”: When is each phrase used in preference to the other? If context is important, I want to use it as a subheading on a piece of non-fiction.

word-choice prepositions

0

Q: "Any news for" vs. "any news on" vs. "any news about"

It seems all three are widely used on the Internet according to Google, but "any news on" seems to take the lead. Are all three correct? If not under what situation, or what subject behind it should we use one of the three?

word-choice grammaticality prepositions

aedia λ

@brilliant You're welcome!

@simchona Aha! How'd you do that? I couldn't find 'em.

simchona

@MrShinyandNew安宇 Good point

@aediaλ searched "on vs about"

no quotes

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@simchona It seems to me that there's probably a linguistics paper, or maybe a Language Log post, needed to explain this whole on/about thing.

brilliant

01:29

Very interesting! Thank you all!!!

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

none of the accepted answers for those questions really fully address it.

user19161

Only Mr Shiny can give the final answer. :)

aedia λ

@simchona Huh, the "vs" really does make them come up closer to the top. I searched something like "on about". Blargh. Sometimes I really hate our site search.

user19161

And its called super ninja search.

aedia λ

@MrShinyandNew安宇 What are you on about now? I heard "possible blog entry."

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

01:31

@JasperLoy I wish I had the answer. All I have is a vague uneasiness.

user19161

@MrShinyandNew安宇 The thing about language is it is based on what we hear, so we have a lot of subconscious rules which we may not be consciously aware of.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@aediaλ You mean the ELU blog? Believe me, if I had the expertise to answer the on vs about question, I'd bang out that post ASAP.

@JasperLoy exactly.

user19161

I like to watch ninja warrior.

user19161

Sasuke (TV series)

Sasuke is a Japanese sports entertainment television special in which 100 competitors attempt to complete a four stage obstacle course. An edited version, renamed Ninja Warrior, is screened in at least 18 other countries. Shot on location at Midoriyama, Aoba-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan, it airs on the Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS) between Japanese television drama seasons. Each 3-hour special covers an entire competition; there are normally 100 participants. There have been 26 specials, approximately one new special per season (twice per year). The show is produced by Monster9 and...

user19161

That is a real ninja, not our super ninja search.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

01:35

Actually, does anyone have a suggestion for me to write about in the blog?

simchona

@MrShinyandNew安宇 on vs. about

aedia λ

@MrShinyandNew安宇 I mostly wanted an excuse to use "on about." Maybe we can ~~coerce~~ encourage someone who has the right knowledge to write that entry.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@simchona I'm not sure I'm qualified. But I suppose I could look into it.

Bogdan Lataianu

@MrShinyandNew安宇 expression vs phrase vs idiom

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@aediaλ Yeah, actually I only noticed that after I re-read your message once I saw it was starred.

aedia λ

01:38

@MrShinyandNew安宇 I haven't gotten thwacked in a while. Either I've gotten punnier or @Kit is delinquent.

user19161

@aediaλ Thwack!

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@aediaλ Just make sure you set up your safe word first.

aedia λ

@JasperLoy Hey, no one turned over the riding crop to you, did they?

user19161

By the way, noone has blogged yet.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

There appear to be a couple drafts now.

@aediaλ Hey, can I borrow your phrase for the title of the post?

aedia λ

01:47

@MrShinyandNew安宇 mmfhmmfhhm struggles with gag

user19161

@MrShinyandNew安宇 I usually say couple of myself, but I noticed people here omit the of.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@JasperLoy typo

user19161

@MrShinyandNew安宇 really? I thought it was a variation.

aedia λ

Mistlethwaite! I said mistlethwaite!

user19161

It happens too frequently everywhere.

aedia λ

01:49

@MrShinyandNew安宇 Por supuesto.

user19161

@mrshiny Not that it's important, but just to let you know, since you talked about those "JLo conversations", although you may get half of it, you really don't know about the other half I think. :)

user19161

It's disappointing if you write a reasonable good answer and it is not accepted, or the OP himself doesn't upvote you at least.

Mana

This is rotating, not transforming.

(apparently)

I can't see it at all and my brain feels like it's going to die trying to understand what I'm looking at

user19161

@Mana Very cool mana. Have you seen the spinning girl illusion?

Mana

@JasperLoy No.

user19161

01:54

The Spinning Dancer

The Spinning Dancer, also known as the silhouette illusion, is a kinetic, bistable optical illusion resembling a pirouetting female dancer. The illusion, created by web designer Nobuyuki Kayahara, involves the apparent direction of motion of the figure. Some observers initially see the figure as spinning clockwise and some counterclockwise. The illusion derives from the lack of visual cues for depth. For instance, her arms could be swinging either closer to the viewer and to the left or farther from the viewer and to the left, and hence with her circling clockwise or counter-clockwise on ...

aedia λ

@Mana Whoa, me too. It's like it's eating itself repeatedly

The shape, not my brain. I think

user19161

The first picture if you click the link the girl can be going clockwise or anticlockwise. I took a few minutes to see both.

Mana

@JASPER Oh my god. She was just spinning counterclockwise a few minutes ago. Now she's spinning clockwise.

aedia λ

I first saw the spinning dancer in some stupid quiz that said you were dumb if you couldn't see it a certain way. So of course I had to try to see it both. It always takes me a while to reverse, whichever way I'm seeing it.

Also, I was such a geek that I took it apart and looked at the frames myself just to prove what it was.

user19161

@Mana Mana's brain is pretty good then. Not many can see both. I invite you to my greatness chambers for a celebration then.

aedia λ

01:58

I'm glad Wikipedia has the whole analysis with the frames.

Mana

So she is actually spinning clockwise?

user19161

@Mana Could be either, as seen by yourself. Or are you saying that it really should be only one? That I do not know.

Mana

Oh, I see. I was interpreting the frame-by-frame in a dumb way.

aedia λ

Do those versions with the additional visual cue work for you guys?

They don't help for me.

user19161

I realised that I felt differently when I saw the different directions. Maybe sth to do with brain waves you never know. But I can't put a finger on what the difference in feeling is though.

aedia λ

02:01

I see both spinning the same way, and the one that has the line in the "wrong" place for whichever way I currently see her spinning just looks like a clipping issue, which my brain happily tolerates after so many videogames.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@JasperLoy I've only read a portion of the transcript. The rest I inferred. Then I started making stuff up. Or things. Never can be sure.

aedia λ

Ah for one moment I got them spinning opposite! AHHH my brain!

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

Gotta run, see you all later. Thanks for the blog ideas.

aedia λ

@MrShinyandNew安宇 G'night!

user19161

@aediaλ You play videogames often?

aedia λ

02:04

@JasperLoy If I have time. Probably more than I watch tv.

user19161

@aediaλ I watch almost zero TV now. More things to watch on the internet.

aedia λ

I like board games as well, but I don't always have a crowd of people to hang out with in person (and most of the awesomest board games take more than two people).

user19161

@aediaλ You can always play computer chess yourself.

Mana

argh, the moment where it switches from one direction to the other is so confusing because I switch back and forth between the two for a few seconds.

aedia λ

@JasperLoy Oh man, I'm bad at chess. I tried to get better but I just don't have the patience.

user19161

02:06

@Mana Then you have reached the highest level I must say! Beware of the force in you!

aedia λ

I like strategy games that haven't been as well-analyzed, too. Then I don't have the feeling like I should memorize opening moves or anything.

user19161

@aediaλ Oh woman, I used to take part in some competitions, but that was more than 15 years ago. I suck now.

Cerberus

Hi!

user19161

I hate bridge. Never learnt. Looked at page 1 and got bored.

Cerberus

@aediaλ I agree!!

But Bridge is fun!

user19161

02:08

@Cerberus Boo!

Cerberus

Best physical game eva!

aedia λ

@Cerberus Hi!!

I haven't learnt Bridge yet.

Cerberus

@JasperLoy By the way, that dancer is incredible!

aedia λ

I think we might have talked about that?

Cerberus

Probably!

I am always trying to sell it.

user19161

02:09

@Cerberus Ya I first saw it on TV.

Cerberus

I have seen her move in either direction several times; but I can't switch when I want to. It just happens.

Cool.

@Mana Really! I don't have that at all!

Mana

Okay, I figured out how to switch back and forth.

user19161

I posted the dancer here once but thought it would be good to post it again.

Mana

I close my eyes until they're barely open, and they basically flicker open and shut

aedia λ

I remember having a much harder time switching the first time I saw her, but that could have been because I wanted to switch on command. It's hard to make yourself switch. For me it works best if I squint and visualize her going the other way. Or something.

Mana

02:11

then I go like that for about three seconds and it switches

aedia λ

Yeah, that.

Cerberus

@Mana OK going to try that.

I can't do it!

aedia λ

Stay relaxed.

Cerberus

It doesn't switch when I want it to.

aedia λ

If you get at all stressed you get stuck. At least I do.

Like freaking Magic Eye.

user19161

02:13

@sim So you flying back to PA soon?

Cerberus

Haha what is that?

I still can't do it on command.

user19161

@Cerberus You need to do a sudo change direction.

Cerberus

She refuses to listen! I think she even sticks out her tongue.

user19161

@Cerberus Then just stick out your three.

Cerberus

I have been seeing her going counter-clockwise for a while now, she doesn't switch any more, not even when I look away etc.

aedia λ

02:15

@Cerberus Try the "additional visual cue" ones under en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spinning_Dancer#Bistable_perception

you have to expand the section

user19161

Oh man I didn't expect you people to get so excited about this.

aedia λ

They only sort of work for me... I guess they help somewhat, but I tend to see both going the same way.

@JasperLoy I love brain things!

user19161

@aediaλ Well I consider it pure entertainment from the enduser perspective.

aedia λ

Magic Eye

Magic Eye is a series of books published by N.E. Thing Enterprises (renamed in 1996 to Magic Eye Inc.). The books feature autostereograms (precisely, random dot autostereogram), which allow people to see 3D images by focusing on 2D patterns. The viewer must diverge his or her eyes in order to see a hidden three-dimensional image within the pattern. "Magic Eye" has become something of a genericized trademark, often used to refer to autostereograms of any origin. The autostereogram predates the Magic Eye series by several years. Christopher Tyler created the first autostereograms in 1979....

user19161

I remember I looked at those Where's Wally too and tried to find him.

user19161

02:19

finishes last drop of tea

Cerberus

@aediaλ Trying...

aedia λ

They were popular here. I'm not sure there are any that work onscreen, though. We had printed books and posters. Some people just see them better than others and so it's always a joke that hard to see things are like Magic Eye.

Cerberus

@aediaλ Oh I can do those, they are easy!

I always overlap pictures when you have one of those puzzles where you need to spot differences. Makes them very easy.

aedia λ

@Cerberus I adore them; they were good if you were patient enough to bring your head away from the page slowly.

@Cerberus You know, I never, ever, thought of that.

It's kind of cheating.

You must have been a devious little child.

Cerberus

And adult!

It is slightly less unfun that actually doing the spotting the way it is supposed to be done!

@aediaλ Those work very well for me.

Thanks.

aedia λ

02:23

@JasperLoy I had those too. And a beautiful book with a bit of a similar looking character hiding, but lots of other stuff to find as well. Animalia by Graeme Base, I think?

Hurricane less than 200 miles away now and we're getting strong rain and gusts of wind.

I guess only a couple hours now till we're within the circle o' tropical storm force winds.

I feel like I should be doing something else to prepare, like making something to appease it with.

What do you feed a hurricane?

Cerberus

02:41

Babies?

Jews?

Hot girls?

aedia λ

We only have two of those things!

Although... I suppose there's a way to make the third.

I hear it's rather labor-intensive, though. I'm not sure the project will be completed in time.

shivers my lights just flickered. I was more upbeat about this hurricane and its possible associated power outages when I hadn't realized it was going to get here so long before dawn.

If I stop answering, just assume the gremlins have gotten to the power lines.

Cerberus

02:57

Haha.

Aww.

It sounds very inconvenient!

What does the hurricane do, break the poles that the lines are on with gusts of wind? Or is it lightning?

aedia λ

I don't think there's any lightning.

Cerberus

Oh.

But it can damage power lines?

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