Seemingly trivial things that intrigue you
Comments
-
The shops reopened in June from memory and people were going just for something to do.pblakeney said:"The number of people heading out to the shops fell for the first July in 14 years as the UK grappled with one of the wettest months on record."
Weren't we in lockdown during July 2020. Seems spurious.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-663844090 -
It would make sense that my memory is incorrect.Pross said:
The shops reopened in June from memory and people were going just for something to do.pblakeney said:"The number of people heading out to the shops fell for the first July in 14 years as the UK grappled with one of the wettest months on record."
Weren't we in lockdown during July 2020. Seems spurious.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66384409
I don't remember doing anything that July. Calendar shows one dine out.The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
I am not sure. You have no chance.Veronese68 wrote:PB is the most sensible person on here.0 -
I vaguely remember TV showing queues of people waiting for a Primark to reopen. I'm not quite sure why people were so desperate to by clothes when they were still having to spend most of their time in the house and couldn't see the point in risking catching Covid just to go shopping but then I've never understood people who seem to treat it as their major leisure activity.pblakeney said:
It would make sense that my memory is incorrect.Pross said:
The shops reopened in June from memory and people were going just for something to do.pblakeney said:"The number of people heading out to the shops fell for the first July in 14 years as the UK grappled with one of the wettest months on record."
Weren't we in lockdown during July 2020. Seems spurious.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66384409
I don't remember doing anything that July. Calendar shows one dine out.0 -
Why is there a sction of hedge on a lane I walk the dogs along that smells strongly of curry? The first time I noticed it I thought someone had dumped a leftover takeaway there but there's no rubbish and I've been smelling it now for a few weeks. I assume it is one of the plants in the hedgerow but it is over a very short sectin (no more than 5m) and the vegetation looks the same in that spot as it does along the rest of the lane.0
-
Unlikely to be wild garlic but it could be Coriandrum sativum Coriander.Pross said:Why is there a sction of hedge on a lane I walk the dogs along that smells strongly of curry? The first time I noticed it I thought someone had dumped a leftover takeaway there but there's no rubbish and I've been smelling it now for a few weeks. I assume it is one of the plants in the hedgerow but it is over a very short sectin (no more than 5m) and the vegetation looks the same in that spot as it does along the rest of the lane.
seanoconn - gruagach craic!0 -
The mega cycling world championships.
Not against it in principle but…
The commonwealth games is critically Ill largely due to the costs involved in these mega events. No UK triathlon next year due to costs and that’s a small event.
Is this creating a monster event that isn’t sustainable? I mean you definitely need a tonne of infrastructure and natural resources (e.g. DH mtb) to pull it off.
Feels like an idea that has merit but probably more practical downsides than positives.0 -
-
^ I'm not giving the Torygraph money. Scam!0
-
Without the paywall https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/katie-investigates/partner-scammed-me-dark-secret-investment-action-fraud/orraloon said:^ I'm not giving the Torygraph money. Scam!
0 -
kingstongraham said:
Without the paywall https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/katie-investigates/partner-scammed-me-dark-secret-investment-action-fraud/orraloon said:^ I'm not giving the Torygraph money. Scam!
Or just turn off Javascript.0 -
Is that AI / Muskratitis / some other sort of 2020s shite? True? Nah. BS tale? Yeah.
And not sure how to turn off javascript on an iPad. Prob best just to ignore that sort of clickbait?0 -
orraloon said:
Is that AI / Muskratitis / some other sort of 2020s shite? True? Nah. BS tale? Yeah.
And not sure how to turn off javascript on an iPad. Prob best just to ignore that sort of clickbait?
Sorry, no idea. Easy peasy on Chrome. And I do like to see what new madness the Telegraph is delving into whilst avoiding actually reporting news... it would be hard to beat Allister Heath on that front.0 -
It’s only every 4th year I believe and will presumably get hosted in places where the cycling infrastructure such has velodromes already exist. Most countries arguably have better natural facilities for the MTB events than we do and as with Scotland they can move events out a bit from the host city (MTB downhill is at Nevis Range). Needs far less infrastructure in terms of accommodation and media resources than the multi-event competitions as a lot of competitors will turn up a couple of days before their event and go home afterwards. I assume they just use hotels and maybe student campuses rather than having any kind of athlete villagesmorstar said:The mega cycling world championships.
Not against it in principle but…
The commonwealth games is critically Ill largely due to the costs involved in these mega events. No UK triathlon next year due to costs and that’s a small event.
Is this creating a monster event that isn’t sustainable? I mean you definitely need a tonne of infrastructure and natural resources (e.g. DH mtb) to pull it off.
Feels like an idea that has merit but probably more practical downsides than positives.0 -
Just read something pointing this out: English has an unwritten rule that multiple adjectives have to go in a specific order or it sounds weird.
opinion, size, age, shape, colour, origin, material, purpose
So, large crumpled brown leather walking shoes, not walking brown large leather crumpled shoes.
Now trying to work out why.1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
Fair, hadn’t realised its every 4 years. Makes sense to not limit potential venues.Pross said:
It’s only every 4th year I believe and will presumably get hosted in places where the cycling infrastructure such has velodromes already exist. Most countries arguably have better natural facilities for the MTB events than we do and as with Scotland they can move events out a bit from the host city (MTB downhill is at Nevis Range). Needs far less infrastructure in terms of accommodation and media resources than the multi-event competitions as a lot of competitors will turn up a couple of days before their event and go home afterwards. I assume they just use hotels and maybe student campuses rather than having any kind of athlete villagesmorstar said:The mega cycling world championships.
Not against it in principle but…
The commonwealth games is critically Ill largely due to the costs involved in these mega events. No UK triathlon next year due to costs and that’s a small event.
Is this creating a monster event that isn’t sustainable? I mean you definitely need a tonne of infrastructure and natural resources (e.g. DH mtb) to pull it off.
Feels like an idea that has merit but probably more practical downsides than positives.
It just seemed odd. I think there’s quite a move away from mega events being popular due to cost.
Everything will be in oil states soon if we’re not careful.
The blue blazer lot do seem to be feather their nests first rather than sport focussed.
I mean that regarding most governing bodies rather than cycling exclusively.0 -
My hunch would be that the ones closer to the noun are more helpful in conceptualising the specific nature of the thing, and that the hierarchy evolved by pairs of adjective types sorting themselves into importance... e.g. if you have a jug that is little and brown, the colour is more useful in narrowing down the choice of jugs... i.e. there will be lots of little jugs (if the choice is only big & little), but a much smaller number of brown ones, as there are many colours. If you've got several attributes to hold in the short-term memory, best to put the most useful close to the noun.rjsterry said:Just read something pointing this out: English has an unwritten rule that multiple adjectives have to go in a specific order or it sounds weird.
opinion, size, age, shape, colour, origin, material, purpose
So, large crumpled brown leather walking shoes, not walking brown large leather crumpled shoes.
Now trying to work out why.
Think of it like a group of children getting themselves in height order by looking at the person directly next to them and working out if they are taller or shorter, and keep repeating that until they are all in correct order. Given that all these categories of adjectives have been around for millennia, I guess that that's how it's happened: try it with any pair from your list, and the more specific one will be the one that goes next to the noun.0 -
It's called a 419 scam, I think.kingstongraham said:
Without the paywall https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/katie-investigates/partner-scammed-me-dark-secret-investment-action-fraud/orraloon said:^ I'm not giving the Torygraph money. Scam!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance-fee_scam
There is a whole forum dedicated to tricking these people back out of their money.
https://www.419eater.com/
Some of the things the posters have managed to do to the scammers is fantastic.0 -
Having just driven the length of the country, I am intrigued by the preponderance of "incomplete barrier" signs where armco is damaged.
What use is this to drivers?0 -
They know not to deliberately crash into the barrier as they might go onto the wrong side of the road of course. My favourite is the signs that display 'sign not in use'.First.Aspect said:Having just driven the length of the country, I am intrigued by the preponderance of "incomplete barrier" signs where armco is damaged.
What use is this to drivers?1 -
There's "camera not in use" as well, informing drivers they are fine to speed here.Pross said:
They know not to deliberately crash into the barrier as they might go onto the wrong side of the road of course. My favourite is the signs that display 'sign not in use'.First.Aspect said:Having just driven the length of the country, I am intrigued by the preponderance of "incomplete barrier" signs where armco is damaged.
What use is this to drivers?2 -
Yeah, another classic.0
-
Pross said:
They know not to deliberately crash into the barrier as they might go onto the wrong side of the road of course. My favourite is the signs that display 'sign not in use'.First.Aspect said:Having just driven the length of the country, I am intrigued by the preponderance of "incomplete barrier" signs where armco is damaged.
What use is this to drivers?
And sometimes in books of music, they spoil a blank page (and lie) by writing 'Blank page' in big letters on it.0 -
Hmmm. What's the deal with French adjectives come after the noun? Does the whole thing work in reverse? And some adjectives (e.g. size) still come before the noun.briantrumpet said:
My hunch would be that the ones closer to the noun are more helpful in conceptualising the specific nature of the thing, and that the hierarchy evolved by pairs of adjective types sorting themselves into importance... e.g. if you have a jug that is little and brown, the colour is more useful in narrowing down the choice of jugs... i.e. there will be lots of little jugs (if the choice is only big & little), but a much smaller number of brown ones, as there are many colours. If you've got several attributes to hold in the short-term memory, best to put the most useful close to the noun.rjsterry said:Just read something pointing this out: English has an unwritten rule that multiple adjectives have to go in a specific order or it sounds weird.
opinion, size, age, shape, colour, origin, material, purpose
So, large crumpled brown leather walking shoes, not walking brown large leather crumpled shoes.
Now trying to work out why.
Think of it like a group of children getting themselves in height order by looking at the person directly next to them and working out if they are taller or shorter, and keep repeating that until they are all in correct order. Given that all these categories of adjectives have been around for millennia, I guess that that's how it's happened: try it with any pair from your list, and the more specific one will be the one that goes next to the noun.1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
A lot of these types on scam used to come out of Ukraine. By all accounts they have turned their attention on Russian soldiers instead.shirley_basso said:
It's called a 419 scam, I think.kingstongraham said:
Without the paywall https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/katie-investigates/partner-scammed-me-dark-secret-investment-action-fraud/orraloon said:^ I'm not giving the Torygraph money. Scam!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance-fee_scam
There is a whole forum dedicated to tricking these people back out of their money.
https://www.419eater.com/
Some of the things the posters have managed to do to the scammers is fantastic.0 -
rjsterry said:
Hmmm. What's the deal with French adjectives come after the noun? Does the whole thing work in reverse? And some adjectives (e.g. size) still come before the noun.briantrumpet said:
My hunch would be that the ones closer to the noun are more helpful in conceptualising the specific nature of the thing, and that the hierarchy evolved by pairs of adjective types sorting themselves into importance... e.g. if you have a jug that is little and brown, the colour is more useful in narrowing down the choice of jugs... i.e. there will be lots of little jugs (if the choice is only big & little), but a much smaller number of brown ones, as there are many colours. If you've got several attributes to hold in the short-term memory, best to put the most useful close to the noun.rjsterry said:Just read something pointing this out: English has an unwritten rule that multiple adjectives have to go in a specific order or it sounds weird.
opinion, size, age, shape, colour, origin, material, purpose
So, large crumpled brown leather walking shoes, not walking brown large leather crumpled shoes.
Now trying to work out why.
Think of it like a group of children getting themselves in height order by looking at the person directly next to them and working out if they are taller or shorter, and keep repeating that until they are all in correct order. Given that all these categories of adjectives have been around for millennia, I guess that that's how it's happened: try it with any pair from your list, and the more specific one will be the one that goes next to the noun.
That's a whole other jeux de boules... it's a good question, but not one I'm not even going to try to answer, sorry.0 -
I need to read this properly
french.stackexchange.com/questions/22786/is-there-a-rule-for-adjective-order-with0 -
(waits patiently)
😈1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
Well, here's an agreement with my idea of 'concepts' from the linkrjsterry said:(waits patiently)
😈The seriation of adjectives is very similar from one language to another, not in terms of absolute order, but rather in terms of distance from the noun. This seriation is not absolutely rigid, but appears as a tendency that is linked to the propensity that humans have to create Concepts. The adjective closest to the noun is the one that most naturally allows us to build a Concept with the noun. [...]
The nesting of adjectives in seriation corresponds to the nesting of Concepts, of classes that we form: the more natural the class, the more immediately the adjective is combined with the noun. When the tendency for seriation is very strong, like Provenance which is closer to the noun than Size, my analysis says it's because it's more natural for the human cognitive system to form the class Provenance + Noun than the class Size + Noun. It remains to be seen whether there really is such a hierarchy in terms of the naturalness of Concepts, and on what basis it is based. But that's beyond the scope of a study in linguistics.
And earlier in the article
the adjective whose semantics best lend themselves to a direct modification of the noun tends to be found closer to the latter. The basic question is therefore to determine in what sense an adjective modifies the noun more directly than another adjective.0 -
And from the source paper for that quotationIn French, there is a preferred order for adjectives when they are on the same side of the Noun within the noun phrase. These adjectives are interpreted in an interlocking fashion: the adjective immediately juxtaposed to the noun modifies that noun, the adjective juxtaposed to this group modifies it, and so on. The seriations depend on the meaning of the adjectives and the context in which they are used: the adjective that is most likely to form a concept with the noun depending on the situation in which it is used is the one that combines immediately with the noun, which is the most embedded. The seriations only represent preferences, not rigid constraints, and it is almost always possible to switch the order of the adjectives. The resulting combinations are not syntactic deviations, but rather less expected semantic combinations: the expressions are acceptable if the adjacent noun and adjective construct a provisional concept that is appropriate in context.
Lazy translation from DeepL, BTW.0 -
If you can read academic-ish French, the full text would be worth a read, as he references the differences between English and French, it seems... I might do so, when I've made a dent in the pile of books yet to be read.
https://journals.openedition.org/rlv/pdf/13830
