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August 17

sci fi story where "dogs" kill all the humans on a planet?

I read a sci-fi story (probably mid-or late 1980's) once where a character mentions a planet of human colonists who adopt intelligent dog-like "animals" as pets, and then one day all the humans are found dead, with the implication the "dogs" killed them, but no evidence. It is just a story within a larger unrelated story (I suspect maybe the author was alluding to a short story he had written). Can anyone identify the fiction? Thanks. μηδείς (talk) 01:35, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

It sounds familiar. I can't place it, but I seem to recall it being cats rather than dogs. Clarityfiend (talk) 06:55, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

They were probably described as sleek carnivores. Have you read Morphodite by M. A. Foster? μηδείς (talk) 17:28, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

No. I mostly gave up on later (later to me anyway) science fiction, with a few exceptions. Clarityfiend (talk) 08:35, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

I have the impression the story was either from that book or from something by Heinlein, like Friday, although it seems somewhat against his grain. μηδείς (talk) 17:54, 19 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

The Mandarin in Iron Man 3

I'm sure that, at this point, anyone who was interested to see that movie has already done so, so my question shouldn't be much of a spoiler. But, if there's someone out there who wants to see the film and have not done so yet, don't continue reading. You have been warned!

As you remember, the movie begins with a terrorist leader, the Mandarin, who releases threatening videos in Bin Laden-style. But we find out later that this guy was not a terrorist, but just an actor (n-universe), the videos are fake and there is no Mandarin. In fact, the real terrorists who use the actor as a decoy leader keep him isolated inside a mansion, full of alcohol and drugs, so that nobody ever finds him... and worse, he's not even fully aware of the purpose of those videos, thinking that they are some type of advertisment or whatever.

And I wondered... if someone in the real world attempts a thing like that and gets captured, which would be the charges against the actor? Simple and plain terrorism, as if his character was real, or something else? Cambalachero (talk) 03:00, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

In an American court, the prosecution would likely have to prove that the accused had any way of knowing that their actions were causing any harm. Since he was kept from seeing any news broadcasts, newspapers, etc., they'd have a hard time proving that he knew what he was doing. Given the current existence and scope of terrorism today, it's not that hard to imagine that someone might make a TV series that has a Bin Laden or Mandarin character recording such videos. So the prosecution would also have a hard time proving that he "should have known" that something wasn't quite right about what he was "performing". Dismas|^(talk) 03:35, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Oh, and this might get a more informed response on the Humanities desk since it's essentially a legal question. Yeah, it's drawn from a movie but the crux of the question is legal. Dismas|^(talk) 03:39, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Mens rea is probably the likely factor at play. There's a common law precident that unless you have a mindset to commit a crime (either deliberately, or inadvertently through negligence and the like), then you didn't commit a crime. I'm guessing that the actor's lawyer would argue that because the actor thought his portrayal was fictional, he didn't have the mens rea for his acts to be criminal. (Though if it came to that point, the prosecution might argure that the actor "should have known" that something nefarious was happening.) That said, a large number of crimes these days are strict liability, which removes mens rea from consideration. -- 71.35.121.78 (talk) 21:16, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Names that make foul language in The Name Game

Should the name Daggett be included in the article about the song as one of the names that make foul language? 108.0.244.168 (talk) 05:37, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

I see no reason why we should attempt to make the list exhaustive. Dismas|^(talk) 08:00, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Is it too much to add just one more name? 108.0.244.168 (talk) 10:04, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

That one is not "foul language" in the same way that names like "Chuck" work out to be. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 10:19, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

It's a slippery slope. And before you know it we're having to trim the list to X number of items and it becomes a tennis match of editors coming along and adding and switching. It's best probably to just cut it down to 3-4 right now and leave it. I've been through this kind of thing on other pages and I've found it's best to just put in a representative sample and call it a day. Dismas|^(talk) 13:09, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

I suppose it is better to just leave it as is to keep the list at a reasonable. I know it isn't the same as "Chuck". Besides, "Maggie" is already mentioned, which has to do with the same word anyway. 108.0.244.168 (talk) 17:30, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Someone like Dick Trickle (or any Dick) would run into the "problem" straight away. I guess that may not seem to count without a transformation, but it's still a "dirty word" in the song (and gets more lyrical emphasis). InedibleHulk (talk) 17:41, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Thanos

Any comic buffs here? I just finished reading Marvel: The End and after destroying time and space, Thanos realises that he has been "tricked". So he sacrifices himself and everything goes back to normal, albeit without that omnipotent pharaoh. The End was written in 2003, and set in the proper Marvel Universe (not Ultimate or any other alternate timeline...). I'd suppose such prominent characters can't stay "dead" for long, so what happened after that? How did Thanos resserruct? Cheers, ☯ Bonkers The Clown \(^_^)/ Nonsensical Babble ☯ 07:48, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Hmm. I haven't read that series; our article only says that "Thanos then uses the artifact to reverse Akhenaten's actions and also correct a flaw in the universe. Changed by the experience, Thanos advises confidant Adam Warlock he will no longer seek universal conquest." and simply cites the entire series as its reference. That kind of implies he was alive at the end. The next appearance mentioned in the text references the Thanos mini-series of 2003-2004, which I have read, and Thanos is alive and well at the beginning of it - no mention is made of him needing resurrection or recently having one. Are you sure you didn't miss a page at the end? :) Matt Deres (talk) 13:00, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Sure I haven't! :P At the end he meets Adam warlock, and agrees to restore the universe by sacrificing his power and himself. It is implied with the lines "Even the most cosmically astute are unaware of the titan 's sacrifice, his final grand gesture" that he did die. On the very last page Adam Warlock is seen paying a tribute to thanos before flying off. I hope my copy didn't have any pages chewed off... :) ☯ Bonkers The Clown \(^_^)/ Nonsensical Babble ☯ 15:29, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Actually if you read the Marvel: The End page it is mentioned that he died at the end. ☯ Bonkers The Clown \(^_^)/ Nonsensical Babble ☯ 15:29, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

The OP was saying Thanos is a major comic book character, who rarely stay dead. He's asking if he's revived since then, how. (Knowing Marvel, Thanos really won't stay dead.) --Wirbelwind(ヴィルヴェルヴィント) 00:11, 22 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

1985 Kansas City Royals players

Can anyone tell me who the players (or possibly coaches) are on the left and right of this image? They are both members of the 1985 Kansas City Royals team. I know that the guy in the middle is Dick Howser, but couldn't determine the identities of the other two. Thanks! Delaywaves • talk 23:16, 17 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

I believe the man with the glasses is Joe Beckwith. He doesn't wear glasses in many other pictures, but compare to several pictures of him Here and you'll see a strong resemblance. --Jayron32 01:00, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

The other man, the one looking at the camera, could possibly be Mike Jones, compare to [1]. --Jayron32 01:08, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you both! Delaywaves • talk 15:51, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Both of me? --Jayron32 19:51, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

August 18

Identifying a childhood cartoon

I distinctly remember a hilarious scene from a childhood cartoon that I watched around 5 years ago, but unfortunately I can't recall the name of the cartoon or anything except this one scene. Does the following ring any bells?

(Two men were paddling a canoe, and were about to hit rocks, or maybe go over a cliff)

Man 1: Quick, paddle left!

Man 2: Your left or my left?

Man 1: We're facing the same direction!

(Canoe crashes, and the men start walking on foot)

Man 1: Heh, your left or my left. WE WERE FACING THE SAME DIRECTION!!! --Bowlhover (talk) 06:54, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

The "My left or your left" joke is frequently used in numerous works.[2] Can you remember anything else? Among the examples listed in the link I just cited, the closest matches involving a canoe and a crash appear to be scenes from Avatar: The Last Airbender and Histeria!. Zzyzx11 (talk) 16:48, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

The TV Tropes page for Your Other Left identifies a couple of gags along the same lines as the one you mention, where a character remarks "we have the same left", or similar (in Megas XLR and Johnny Test). Neither of these indicate canoes are involved though. The same page also lists the Avatar and Histeria examples given by Zzyzx11, but they don't seem to be what you are looking for. The Avatar quote is little more than "you call that left?", and the Histeria sketch seems like a variation on a Who's On First style routine. AJ Cham 17:17, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Reserve teams in La Liga - could they play above their parent club?

I was just mulling over the interesting arrangement by which Spanish football clubs have their reserve teams play in the same league pyramid. Now I'm aware of the rule that forbids a reserve team from playing in the same division or cup competition as the parent club, but is there anything that says the reserve team must sit in a lower division?

Take Atlético Madrid and Atlético Madrid B, for example. The rule keeping these two teams separate was invoked in two consecutive seasons at the end of the last century. In 98-99, the reserves finished as runners-up in the Segunda División, but could not be promoted to the same division as the senior team. The following season, the A-side were relegated from the Primera División, forcing Atlético Madrid B to be relegated into the 3rd tier.

My question is basically, what would have happened if, instead of happening a year apart, Atlético Madrid had been relegated from the Primera División in the same season as the B-team had finished in a promotion spot? Would the reserves have been allowed to be promoted above their parent club? Or would they still have been sent down to Segunda B?

As a follow-up question, if they would have been promoted, would anything prevent the club's owners from redesignating them as the new senior team, with the relegated team becoming the new B-side? AJ Cham 15:32, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

The Mask

I wonder about the origins of the comic The Mask. In the article, it says that he appeared in the publication APA-5 (I have also seen the spelling APA-Five somewhere). Can anyone tell me more about, give me a more extensive list about it, or at least verify it?
Furthermore, I found this link where it says that he appeared in something called Amplify. Is that the name of one (or more than one) real magazine? If yes, did The Mask really appear in it?
And lastly, I have found sources that say that someone called Randy Stradley helped create the comic (such as this link). Has he even ever worked with The Mask? Can anyone verify this?
Thankful for answers. Grey ghost (talk) 18:57, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Photo ID

Can any fellow baseball fans positively ID this photo as Billy Williams? I compared the subject's face with Williams', and I couldn't definitively tell whether or not it was him. However, I was wondering if Williams had any other distinctive traits (such as socks, batting gloves, etc.), that could tip anyone off as to whether or not it was him. I know this was taken during the 1973 Cubs season, but it doesn't appear to be any player except Williams. (With the possible exception of Cleo James). Thanks! Delaywaves • talk 21:53, 18 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Billy was strictly a left-handed batter, and this is clearly not a "flipped" photo, so it's not him. If it's from 1973, that at least narrows down the possibilities. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 00:00, 19 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Is this a picture you took? Is there any indication of which particular game it was? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 03:21, 19 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Could be José Cardenal, right-handed batter with a similar skin tone and haircut. See his 1975 Topps card here [3] (the photo was likely taken in spring of 1974). However, the player on the photo looks bigger than José, who was 5'10" and quite skinny. The aforementioned Cleo James and Andre Thornton also had a few games with the Cubs, but the player you have looks a lot older than Thornton (who was 23-year-old short-haired rookie that year); see Thornton's 1975 card here [4] and James's only card, from 1972 [5]. James was the right age and looks more like the player on the photo. --Xuxl (talk) 09:33, 19 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

August 19

Identification of a Soviet/Russian war song

I think it's rather a short war song.. starting 42:20 until 42:40 (After it comes the song "Katyusha") do you know it? Ben-Natan (talk) 06:49, 19 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry for the late reply -- I'm not entirely sure, but the song you mentioned sounds like "Slavyanka". 24.23.196.85 (talk) 01:02, 24 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

August 20

Bamboo - Bamboogie

What 20s/30s cartoons are featured in that song? :)

Can someone list them for me and years? :3 I also remember them being in COLOR! Amazing! were they originally in color? Oo — Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.30.205.162 (talk) 02:24, 20 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Somebody named Robert Robson has already listed the following at youtube: Techno Cracked (1933), Insultin' the Sultan (1934), Pup's Picnic (1936, in color, but also in German?), The Hound and the Rabbit (1937), Pup On A Picnic (1955), Paw's Night Out (1955, in color). Clarityfiend (talk) 03:30, 20 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Identify this tune

Can anyone identify the melody used for the song in this short? I'm sure I've heard it somewhere before. Thanks! LANTZY ^TALK 08:05, 20 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

The melody is somewhat reminiscent of the chorus of Lenka's "Trouble Is a Friend". -- Finlay McWalterჷTalk 09:26, 20 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

I'm trying to identify the song that appears in that film clip. "Trouble Is a Friend" was written several decades after the film was produced, so obviously it isn't the song I'm looking for. LANTZY ^TALK 10:57, 20 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Blastaar

Ok, just found out about this character yesterday while reading a copy of Marvel Masterworks. Does anyone know how Blastaar manage to resurrect/revive after supposedly getting destroyed by a wave of Professor X's stored power? ☯ Bonkers The Clown \(^_^)/ Nonsensical Babble ☯ 13:43, 20 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Diplomacy (game)

I am playing France and own gas and spa. Italy owns pie. Mar is vacant. If I move gas-mar and spa-mar and Italy supports gas-mar, will Gas succeed and prevent my building there? The alternative is spa-por and gas-spa the risk being that Italy moves pie-mar. What would you do? Kittybrewster ☎ 14:30, 20 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Do you trust Italy? If Italy supports gas-mar (or does nothing), then yes, that move will succeed and you won't be able to build in mar. If Italy tries to move there then everything bounces and the space will be open for building, which would be great, but are they going to do that? This is assuming next turn is a building turn and spa is a new acquisition for you so you have a build coming? I might lean towards your alternative, it is a riskier move, but would pay off nicely if Italy does not move to mar - and even if they do, that would still be a net +1 build for you as long as you make sure one of your other building spots is open - Italy would also get a +1, so be prepared for that, but getting the extra piece on the board is probably worth it. If your other building spots are blocked then I'd play it more conservative. Kmusser (talk) 17:56, 20 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you. No I don't trust Italy (what is he doing, moving to pie?) and yes it is a Fall move. The only gain I have is spa. Par is empty. Kittybrewster ☎ 20:21, 20 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

August 21

Fantasy football- insider betting

So I realize that insider sports betting for people who can influence the outcome of a game they bet on is illegal. Does the same carry over to fantasy sports leagues with entry fees (and thus, prizes)? For example, if an american football coach decides to sit all of his players but one so that he'd win his fantasy championship game (let's assume there's no real life issues at stake), could he be fined and/or suspended? Buggie111 (talk) 00:57, 21 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

This will vary according to the sport and precise rules. In major league baseball, for example, the behavior would not violate the flat ban on betting on baseball games in Major League Rule 21(d), but it would violate Major League Rule 21(a) because the coach would not be giving his best effort to winning. See the rules here (this is a little out of date, I don't know if there has been any change in the rules since 2008). If the activity were egregious enough, it might also subject the coach to prosecution, probably for wire fraud. John M Baker (talk) 14:27, 22 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Betting on baseball is forbidden in organized baseball. I doubt betting on one's sport would be tolerated within any other sport, either, as it opens the door to big trouble. There's really nothing to stop a participant of one sport from betting on a sport he has no connection with, although it's not usually greeted with joy by the folks who run the sports. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 06:38, 23 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Airplane Repo

Hi, There is a new show called Airplane Repo on the Discovery channel. I cannot find anything about it on the website.

Thank you,

Phillip Stalnaker — Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.177.116.190 (talk) 19:31, 21 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Wikipedia doesn't have an article Airplane Repo, although it is namechecked as a red link in several articles. This is because nobody has written about it here yet. If you don't fancy creating an account and tackling the task yourself, you can list it at Wikipedia:Requested articles, although it's unlikely to happen quickly. You can also put together a draft, with sources, and post your material at Wikipedia:Articles for creation as the raw material for an article. Failing that, you must resign yourself to waiting until the subject inspires somebody to start writing. I fixed the indent on your question above so it displayed correctly. - Ka renjc 21:33, 21 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

August 22

Debussy

First of all, happy birthday Debussy!

There is something which has always interested me. Why does Debussy's music have so many slurs in the sheets? They look quite crazy, especially when they go from one staff to the other one. Was he simply very precise at notating phrasing or how had music changed during his era?--95.116.221.34 (talk) 05:04, 22 August 2013 (UTC)[reply]

August 23

@@ Line 67: / Line 67: @@
 = August 23 =
-== Michael Moore and DSC Wings ==
-Did [[Michael Moore|this filthy America-hating bastard]] ''really'' have a hand in the production of [[Wings (Discovery Channel TV series)|one of my favorite documentary TV shows]]?  I'd hate to think this was the case!  Anyone know for sure? [[Special:Contributions/24.23.196.85|24.23.196.85]] ([[User talk:24.23.196.85|talk]]) 06:43, 23 August 2013 (UTC)