English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

1:19 AM

Yeah, 15 minutes is very little time.

I wore a severe mask indoors all day. The smoke has cleared out for now though.

@Cerberus Especially if you might not have the full 15.

Phones, external hard drives, pictures, money, two paintings if I had a car.

@Robusto Yes, if you're not sure how long you have, you might spend only 1 minutes grabbing a few things.

@tchrist Good!

The cleared smoke.

Wear a Mask Song by Disney

It's insane that we're having crazy fires in October. Winter should have already come a calling. But no, it did that back in summer and hasn't been back since.

1:22 AM

Winter in summer?

@tchrist This can't be happening because climate change is a hoax, remember?

@Cerberus Yes don't you remember that I had 7 inches of snow overnight on Labor Day?

@tchrist Move to Yekaterinburg. It's wet and dark. Light rains mixed with snowflakes. And no fires.

@tchrist When is that?

@CowperKettle That's how I left Wisconsin. Also Iowa. Also Nebraska.

1:23 AM

1 May

@CowperKettle Are there never any fires near Ekaterinenburg?

@Cerberus Right now, surely no

@Cerberus Labor Day is the first Monday in September or some such.

@CowperKettle But never?

@Cerberus There were some in the summer

1:23 AM

@tchrist: It took you two days to drive back from Wisconsin? Did you have to stay in Grand Island or something?

OK.

In Yekaterinburg, there is sometimes light snow in the first days of June.

@tchrist An odd time for snow, considered current temperatures where you live.

@Robusto "Have to" is a strong word. I kept promises I made to sleep halfway through. That was in Omaha. Well, Council Bluffs.

@Cerberus It was September 7th. It had been well into the nineties the days before that. And has been up again since.

@tchrist Makes sense.

Wear a Mask (Be Our Guest Parody)

1:25 AM

►

@tchrist Have you always had such fluctuations?

@Cerberus Well, it's been a while since I got snowed on during summer at my own house instead of up above timberline.

Hmm.

@Robusto It's like 1024 miles between Boulder and Lake Geneva.

Really? I wouldn't have thought it that far.

1:27 AM

This was the hottest summer we've ever had, with I think 78 days over 90.

Lamp beats fluoxetine in depression.

@CowperKettle I'm not wholly surprised or shocked by that.

Mind you, last winter was also the snowiest winter we've ever had. And it was followed by the hottest ever summer.

So in some regard, this is not routine.

Or it would not have broken such records.

@CowperKettle Interesting.

Placebo is probably most cost efficient.

The sun is most cost efficient. Pity the smoke cloaks it.

I suppose so.

1:30 AM

Good luck running a double blind study against the sun.

@CowperKettle Sunlight beats lamp. One reason I moved down here, so I could be out in the sun 330 days out of the year.

But many people are unable to enjoy much sunlight during the dark months.

Yup.

@Robusto SAme.

@Cerberus It takes only 11 minutes at sunrise, presuming they have one of those there.

Above the Arctic Circle, this is a problem.

Shy of that, it should not be.

To receive enough sunlight in order to combat depression?

YES!

1:32 AM

That is not much.

The lamp thing is a surprisingly short exposure.

Though some people arrive at work before dawn and leave after dusk, in mid winter.

Why do you think there's so much alcoholism in northern climes?

@Cerberus You guys are too kissass about the whole work thing.

Is Canada so very alcoholic?

1:33 AM

Not enough sun.

@tchrist Who?

@Cerberus Absolutely.

Hmm.

> Colder, darker climates increase alcohol consumption. That is, people living in cold regions of the world drink more alcohol. That’s in comparison to those who live in warmer regions.

alcoholproblemsandsolutions.org/…

> In clinical trials at our institute, with over 100 SAD patients who used a 10,000 lux system with UV-filtered light diffusion and angular tilt, for 30 minutes each day, about 3/4 showed major improvement of depressive symptoms. In another experiment, we found that 30 minutes was an unnecessarily long exposure for some patients (who responded fully at 15 minutes), while several required 1-hour exposures to show the effect.

1:35 AM

> The study examined average temperatures and fewer daylight hours. It compared them to average per capita alcohol consumption. The researchers found a strong negative correlation between lower temperatures/fewer daylight hours and alcohol consumed. Thus, as temperature and daylight drops, consumption increases.

I'll try to find some meta analyses concerning light therapy when I have time.

@Robusto It's a delta of about 2½° North–South and 17½° East–West. Everyone always thinks the N-S component greater than it is.

Something weird happened to me there though. I was dizzy the whole time, even in bed. Like head spins. Not light headed. It happened as soon as I got there and is already fading here now. I must have something blocked in my middle ear.

@tchrist You might have an otolith. Check out the Epley Maneuver.

Not sick at all. Just super dizzy. Head spins in bed stone cold sober is bizarre.

Does it matter which way you position your head? Does it happen if you sit or lie down more on one side or the other?

1:44 AM

I'm not sure. I did notice just turning from lying on one side to lying on the other in bed.

Epley Maneuver: Performed on a Real Patient suffering from Vertigo

Yeah. Look into the Epley Maneuver.

I have had otoliths from time to time as I've gotten older, and those fix that.

►

Never heard of such a thing!

I didn't until I got older. And even when I would get the vertigo I didn't know why, until my doctor told me about otoliths and what to do about them.

My hunch was and is that my semicircular canals are somehow messed up, but never heard of otoliths. Word means ear-stones?

Yes. Crystals, actually.

1:47 AM

I have to go in for a flu shot in a few days. Maybe I'll remember to mention this to them then.

Sure. Or you could try to treat yourself. It's what I do now whenever I encounter one.

You really can learn it from a YouTube video.

Also diagnose it yourself. It is really obvious if you have one if you follow the diagnostic procedure.

I first learned about it one day while changing batteries in a smoke alarm, I leaned my head back and the whole world started spinning.

When I asked the doctor he told me what I've just told you.

I've been noticing it as I turn a certain corner. It's been getting worse.

It's when I turn left, not right.

It seemed much worse there.

It's still bugging me. So weird.

That's how it works. Your inner ear has three loops for balance, oriented on the three axes of motion. And if you get a crystal in one of them it irritates the very fine cilia, which makes them send out-of-balance signals to your brain.

The Epley Maneuver lets the crystal drop out of the loop.

A new organ accidentally discovered inside the head by PET scanning, confirmed in 100 patients.

Growing crystals in weird places reminds me of gout.

1:57 AM

@tchrist They're not actually crystalline. More like dead skin fragments. Why they get into your ear canals, I have no idea. But they do.

Ah.

People just call them crystals. For convenience, I suppose.

I'm annoyed enough by these weird little brown freckles on my hands. I don't have a freckly complexion.

It's just age.

Yep. And the best thing about age is it beats the alternative.

BTW, I rode 70 miles today on my 70th. I am now officially old, but not going down easy.

Well congratulations.

1:59 AM

On your 70th what?

I'm terribly worried about becoming age-disabled in the next decade.

I thought you were much younger?

No.

@Cerberus Take a guess.

I thought Rob was closer to 60, my bad.

2:00 AM

@Cerberus Sorry to disappoint you.

I didn't say it was a disappointment.

He was a teenager at the DNC in Chicago.

I'm told I look like I'm in my 50s, for what that's worth.

@tchrist Yup.

Haha.

I was a kindergartner. They didn't let me go. :)

2:01 AM

A wise decision.

The rioters still came to Lake Geneva. Took the commuter train all the way up that still ran then.

I have no patience for looters and pillagers.

My ride today.

Between 20 and 40, you don't have to do much not to deteriorate. After that, it becomes incrementally more difficult.

It's not like it's some choice. It sneaks up on you. You don't notice.

Yeah. But exercise keeps some of the old-age demons at bay.

It's nearly the only thing.

2:06 AM

When I had my accident in July, the doctor told me my heart rhythms were better than his. And he was in his late 30s.

No alcohol, no smoking, not getting fat?

@Cerberus Some of those are easier than others. And I never thought so at 40.

True.

I was far more fit at 40 than I had been at 20. Now I just waddle around like a walrus.

I wish they would make unwholesome food very expensive.

2:08 AM

A teetotaling walrus who wishes he could drink single malt with impunity like he used to be able to.

@Cerberus I seldom drink, never smoke, and keep my weight in trim. But exercise is a big contributor to those. I don't need alcohol because the exercise makes me feel better than that stuff ever did.

You have your body produce its own drugs?

Exactly.

I do drink less during Corona times.

Nothing like a natural high. It's your body's way of rewarding you for taking care of it.

2:09 AM

But of course zero is better than less.

@Robusto Yeah, I think we have talked about this: my body refuses to reward me, sadly.

If I have a drink it ruins the good feeling.

Getting enough sleep is also good.

But very hard.

Speaking of which, I am drained after today, so I am going to go get ready for bed. I've earned it.

Good.

I'm going to brush my teeth and read on the couch for a bit, before bed.

Be well, everyone. See you later.

2:12 AM

And you.

4:15 AM

Driving in the passing lane is (word or phrase).

Passing in the driving lane is (word or phrase).

Driving in the passing lane is slowing people down.

Passing in the driving lane is going too fast.

Driving in the passing lane is passing driving cars.

The passing lane was meant for passing drivers.

To pass, or not to pass; that is the question.

Passing in the driving lane will incur wrath on the Autobahn and is illegal but common in the US. “Driving lane” is not idiomatic in American English, where the term is “traveling lane.”

Joe Walsh - Life in the Fast Lane

4:31 AM

No.

Fast lane as in "life in the fast lane" vs. Slow lane.

►

That^ is as American as English gets.

Which lane do you live your life?

The passing lane is often referred to as the fast lane, but that is wrong, wrong wrong! However if you want to travel in the fasr lane, you should have a little suitcase with an inflatable doll, because the traveling in the fast lane often requires two people.

Yeah, that's the H.O.V. lane.

Vehicle, I would think.

4:47 AM

Yes.

So, @tchrist, anything further?

Nobody uses "traveling lane."

No, we don’t, except in legislation. Mostly we use right lane and left lane.

Sure, right, left; fast, slow all are clear to me.

Truck drivers like to abuse the conventions.

...where “passing on the right” is illegal, dangerous, and common.

4:57 AM

whatever, that's their choice...

Passing on the right and passing in the night are different.

Two ships passing in the night.

7:24 AM

@Mitch I see.

9:05 AM

@Mitch yeah, back in my day anyway. No idea what they do these days, but I would guess the school system is slow to change, so it's probably the same.

9:24 AM

Is that like a fraternity/sorority house?

not really

oh

frats/sors seem to be run by students and acceptance into one is decided by the group. A pupil's house designation is arbitrarily assigned by the administration of the school

usually classes are split into houses. so, say, PE for Slytherine first years

although that only applied for the first three years, then GCSE took over, so you weren't split by house

because or maybe you were.

man it's been so long

certainly at A levels houses ceased being a thing, because there were many fewer students

although technically I still had a house

Is this done to encourage group study?

M.A.R.

@Cerberus oddly enough, in an older age, the optimal BMI shifts to higher values a bit for some reason. Elderly folks with a little fat tend to fare better than absolutely lean folks. Of course there's not many of those I guess. In an older age, you either get obese or you exercise and stay lean, the middle ground would be pretty difficult to maintain

9:37 AM

> [the] House systems also link to a number of other goals of [redacted] School to enable our young people to:

Enjoy school
Make a positive contribution
Instil a sense of belonging
Improve communication, reliability, working as a team, confidence and resilience
Set goals and challenges
Take on leadership roles
Take others’ thoughts into account

that's what my old school website says about it

as far as I remember it was to encourage obedience. do something bad? house points are deducted. do something good? house points are won

truly, just like Hogwarts in that sense. at the end of each year one house is declared the winner

interesting

I think coV is gonna change that

maybe so

I think the big part of the house system was sports day, where most of the points were won. There might have been inter-house football and rugby too (and other sports?), through out the year.

> Each Tutor Group has a mixture of students from the 4 Houses within them.

this is a change. when I was there tutor groups were split by house

right

:shrug: I guess 20 years changes a lot of things

Thanks for all the info

9:48 AM

no worries :D it was a trip down memory lane

:D

Færd

10:17 AM

What's the word for riding behind someone on a horse, bike, etc?

10:38 AM

Word of the day: tripod fish

2

It stands on the floor using three legs

@Færd pillion

although usually only used for pedal and motor bikes, it used to also refer to people on horseback

> Following its retreat from the Battle of Dunkirk (where it is reputed that enough equipment was left behind to equip about eight to ten divisions), the British Army introduced a requirement that all officers up to the rank of colonel should be proficient in the use of the motorcycle, and all officers holding the rank of brigadier were required to be able to ride pillion.

There's also the term postillion for the guy seating on the leading horse in a team

> And when I think upon a pot of beer --
But I won't weep! -- and so drive on, postilions!
As the smart boys spurr'd fast in their career,
Juan admired these highways of free millions;
A country in all senses the most dear
To foreigner or native, save some silly ones,
Who "kick against the pricks" just at this juncture,
And for their pains get only a fresh puncture.

Q: What do you call the person sitting behind the driver on a bike?

11:34 AM

5

I know pillion is a seat behind the rider of a horse or motorbike etc. I would like to know the word for the person sitting on pillion.

The passenger?

possibly

It's a blizzard here. Too bad the snow will melt.

1:07 PM

@skillpatrol One chooses one's fraternity/sorority. As far as I know, one does not choose houses. At least one didn't in my school.

@skillpatrol I mentioned the main reason above. To encourage (meaningless) competition.

All part of the Great British Vision. Or something.

@MattE.Эллен Yes, to encourage people to do as they are told too. That's a good point.

Actually, teaching people to do as they are told is a major point of schools, anyway. Possibly the main point.

That's what I've come to believe, too

I remember when I was a child I wasn't very good at getting to school at time. And I often got there past the 8.30 am starting bell. It didn't help that my mother never had much of a sense of time either. And the school authorities would go completely ballistic. They would be so threatening, it was like I had committed some dire crime. Raped a classmate, perhaps. But nobody seems to be at all concerned whether I was (a) happy there (b) learning anything. That's called priorities.

But my school didn't have the point system described by Rowling. Though I don't suppose she invented that, either.

yeah! here they (the schools) fine parents who take their children out of school during term time.

@MattE.Эллен Out of school, meaning to go to the doctor, or something?

no, more like go on holiday

essential stuff is usually ok, although I have heard horror stories

1:14 PM

@MattE.Эллен Oh. Hmm. Term time is arguably not the best time to go on holiday. Though fining is weird.

This is in the UK, right?

Actually, Chomsky made similar comments about schools and obedience in "Understanding Power". I could quote verbatim if anyone cares.

@FaheemMitha That's the thing, capitalistically, term time is the best time to go on holiday.

@FaheemMitha yes

Actually, collega and grad school is rather like that too. Grad school more so, if anything. It combines the worst parts of being a student and being an employee. The worst of both worlds.

flights and hotel costs go up astronomically during school holidays

@MattE.Эллен Capitalistically?

@FaheemMitha in terms of capitalism

I made that up

1:17 PM

@MattE.Эллен Oh. Yes, I see. But wouldn't the kids be missing school? Though I suppose it would only mean something if the school was any good.

I spent much of my later school years (from like 14 to 18) mostly wishing I was dead, so I kind of doubt I learned much of anything. Day prison. No fun.

I think the UK has the most private schools also?

@FaheemMitha yeah. that's main argument against it. they will have a lot of work to catch up on

@skullpatrol Define private schools.

pay to get in

@skullpatrol there are many private schools.

1:19 PM

I remember when I finally left that school. Sort of blinking in the sunlight, like after a long prison sentence. I was so confused. I didn't know what to do.

@skullpatrol Those are common everywhere. In India, the paying options are the only non-terrible options.

that's why the JEE started

They have free schools, but you don't want to go there. On the other hand, the free UK and US schools are reasonable. Some of them, anyway.

Though the US has that weird thing where property taxes pay for schools. I don't know if that is universal, though.

@skullpatrol The JEE?

Joint Entrance Examination – Main

Joint Entrance Examination – Main (JEE-Main), formerly All India Engineering Entrance Examination (AIEEE), is an examination organised by the National Testing Agency (NTA) in India. Introduced in the year 2002 and renamed in April 2013, this national level competitive test is for admission to various undergraduate engineering and architecture courses in institutes accepting the JEE-Main score, mainly National Institutes of Technology (NITs), Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs) and Government Funded Technical Institutes (GFTIs). Until 2018, JEE-Main was on the first week of April...

I think UK state schools (which I think is what they call the free ones) used to be quite good. At least some of them. I don't know about now. State educational systems everywhere seem to be constantly under attack.

@skullpatrol Oh yes, the IIT JEEs. I thought you might be referring to those. But how do you know about those? Are you Indian?

@Xanne Not a fair comparison. On the Autobahn you don't block traffic in the left lane, you get the eff over to the right if someone comes up behind you. But in America, people commonly drive below the speed limit in the left lane, oblivious to anyone behind them.

1:28 PM

9 hours ago, by skillpatrol

Which lane do you live your life?

I commonly keep right except to pass. Sometimes I pass on the right to circumvent the aforementioned idiots.

Mitch

2:54 PM

@MattE.Эллен I just realized that my (Boston area) kids' (public as in state run) high school is organized this way, but it seems its only significance is administrative (instead of their being administration for each year, there's administration for each 'house' so that as a student you have the same admin staff dealing with grades and absences and filling out forms and stuff for all four years of high school. So it is very unmeaningful to the students (I'm pretty sure).

And I assume that the local high schools are similar and have this structure because of history associated in the Boston area with Harvard.