Old Dog learning New Tricks http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370 dancingfool I may be an old dog, but I'm still learning new tricks. Some miscellaneous things I learned during NaNo 20111: There truly is an enzyme that scientists are working on, to convert Type A blood and Type B blood into Type O blood. Proper pacing can make a huge difference. In life. In writing a story. A punctured cat's eye is common, not a big deal, heals easily, but makes for a large vet bill. When lightning strikes sandy soil, it creates fulgurites. It is possible to de-magnetize a magnet. so -- fellow 'old dogs'.... anyone else care to share? Tue, 06 Dec 2011 15:16:02 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_942775 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_942775 Timkford GB topped the medals list in 1908 olympics (I'd better check that - i can't believe it) The Americans refused to dip their flag to King George (still had the ex-colony chip on their shoulders i guess) We all live in a virtual reality - oh - no, i just made that up in my book - or did I? Kaiser Wilhem ii was only a schattenkaiser (nothing to do with cats) Hang on - I'm not an old dog! Tue, 06 Dec 2011 17:48:19 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_943382 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_943382 Kat Gentian Crude oils vary in color from clear to tar-black, and in viscosity from water to almost solid. Whole oil fingerprinting is done by capillary gas chromatography. About half of the oil entering the marine environment is from natural seeps. Purple is said to be refreshing and calming, may symbolize psychic ability, wisdom and independence and enhances artistic talents. On the day I looked, there were few apartments available for rent in Springfield, Virginia. :-) So my two characters ended up in the same complex! I'm not an old dog either. I'm an old Kat. Tue, 06 Dec 2011 20:39:43 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_944313 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_944313 dancingfool hmmm... I'd rather be an old dog, than a geezer. I can't be an old Kat, because - I'm not Kat. Old Fool sounds silly. old cat would be ok... except that I don't think you can teach cats -- old or young -- any tricks at all. and .. Tim... rumor has it that Mrs. Ford has been heard to say something or other about that 'old dog' of hers!!! Tue, 06 Dec 2011 21:28:59 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_944607 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_944607 dancingfool ooh.. I've always liked purple, now I know why. Tue, 06 Dec 2011 21:29:49 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_944615 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_944615 Timkford Who's Mrs Ford? You have head of Robin of Loxley, I'm Tim of ... Geezer is more American, so i'm not a geezer either. Wed, 07 Dec 2011 02:22:15 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_945762 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_945762 Timkford ooh, i know a little bit about oil, not much, but thats probably why I've been losing money invested in company trying to extract very heavy oil. Relating to colours - have you read the language of flowers - v.good Wed, 07 Dec 2011 02:28:25 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_945767 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_945767 Kat Gentian Things could get rather complex if someone tried to combine the language of flowers with the language of colours! Wed, 07 Dec 2011 09:13:15 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_946269 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_946269 Timkford maybe - maybe not. The same flowers often come in different colours - so combining the two might just add extra nuances. Wed, 07 Dec 2011 09:17:22 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_946277 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_946277 Carolf There is a new material, called ultralite metallic microlattice. A chip of it placed on top of a seeding dandelion fluff will not bend the fluff. The developers used nickel, but project that any metal could be used similarly. For right now, it's the lightest substance on earth. Scientists (through NASA) discovered what is called a "significant" supply of water on the moon. This is revolutionizing what were previously abandoned thoughts of colonizing the moon. Not something that will happen any day soon, but the possibility is increased. Moon rock is mostly silicon with aluminum and other metals. (Yes, my story takes place on the moon. How did you guess?) Wed, 07 Dec 2011 11:24:45 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_946599 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_946599 dancingfool wow... that info on the microlattice could absolutely come in handy. I'll have to file that away somewhere. (and note, everyone.. the sneaky way in which I get you to share your research tidbits) Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:43:53 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_946805 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_946805 intrikate There are no cities in the US named "Home." If you put "Home" in mapquest, it will tell you "Mapquest could not find Home." Mapquest is, aparently either lost or homeless. Also, copralite is fossilized animal dung and also sometimes jewelry. eww. Wed, 07 Dec 2011 15:37:21 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_947458 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_947458 intrikate Also, just today, in looking for the FB group, I learned there is actually a pen that looks like a cigarette and is apparently a product to help people stop smoking. Smoking Pen. heh. Wed, 07 Dec 2011 17:38:03 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_948049 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_948049 NoVaSheDragon A personality disorder is simply a long-lasting pattern of relating to the world that doesn't work very well. Most people with Multiple Personality Disorder had some kind of sever trauma in their childhood. Most people with Narcissistic Personality Disorder are unable to empathize with others. In past wars soldiers would be given "breaks" away from war zones to recover mentally and emotionally. Current practice is to give soldiers antidepressants, anti-anxiety medications and sleep aids, and send them back to battle. Autistics, manic-depressives and schizophrenics can think musically. Wed, 07 Dec 2011 17:53:43 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_948135 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_948135 Kat Gentian Mapquest homeless! LOL I have long used coprolite as a swear word, as in 'that's a load of coprolites.' Wed, 07 Dec 2011 20:05:01 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_948796 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_948796 intrikate [quote=NoVaSheDragon] Autistics, manic-depressives and schizophrenics can think musically. [/quote] Uh oh. Wed, 07 Dec 2011 23:18:23 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_949971 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_949971 Dixiegirl Gee... I feel stupid. I didn't do any research... I made it all up. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 13:06:28 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_951596 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_951596 dancingfool Not to worry, Dixie... I've got you covered, bc I did LOTS! So -- submitted on behalf of Dixie (and I've got enough to cover others of you, as well!) Lightning has either a negative, or positive, polarity. Negatively charged lightning is more common, but carries a lesser charge. Venus, Mars and the Moon have no magnetic field. Most other planets, and many moons do have a magnetic field. Cats (like people) have blood types A, B , and AB. Dogs have 27 different blood types. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 15:33:15 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_952203 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_952203 Carolf [quote=dancingfool] Not to worry, Dixie... I've got you covered, bc I did LOTS! So -- submitted on behalf of Dixie (and I've got enough to cover others of you, as well!) Lightning has either a negative, or positive, polarity. Negatively charged lightning is more common, but carries a lesser charge. Venus, Mars and the Moon have no magnetic field. Most other planets, and many moons do have a magnetic field. Cats (like people) have blood types A, B , and AB. Dogs have 27 different blood types. [/quote] Thanks for the moon bit. As you may have noticed from my post, I'm interested in all things moon right now. I wonder how I can use this. Do you have a source? (link?) Fri, 09 Dec 2011 09:57:06 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_955320 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_955320 dancingfool I actually found that info in several sources, so didn't bother keeping the data on the original (a library book, I think)... but this is one source I'd used http://lasp.colorado.edu/~bagenal/1010/SESSIONS/12a.ans.html Fri, 09 Dec 2011 10:59:54 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_955514 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_955514 Mother Goose To use Twitter in a story for publication you must always capitalize it, and use Tweets (also capitalized) for their messages. If you create a fictional Twitter account, you must first register it yourself to make sure you're not using a name already in use. My book started out with twelve fictional Twitter accounts. I'm now down to three. Cyber bullying can range from saying mean things on personal walls and pages to stealing identifying information and deliberately feeding it to predators. Some of the things I found out about ways kids (and some adults) are deliberately tormenting, threatening, and destroying each other were horrific. Male teens commit suicide at a rate five times higher than females. Females, however, attempt suicide at an astounding three times more often than males. Why are the boys more successful? Because they mostly use guns, which are 89-100% effective, immediately. Girls tend to choose sleeping pills, or poison which not only gives them time to change their minds or be found, are far less effective than lead projectiles. There are eleven times more attempted suicides than successful ones. LGBT youth commit suicide at more than twice the rate of straight youth. Suicide rates skyrocket in males of 85 years of age, or older. Overall, very depressing stats. Fri, 09 Dec 2011 11:02:06 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_955521 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_955521 Carolf Thanks, Dancingfool! Fri, 09 Dec 2011 14:19:00 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_956121 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_956121 intrikate wow Fri, 09 Dec 2011 20:32:53 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_957446 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_957446 treefrog5700 If you ever perform a Tollen's test, dispose of the reagent immediately after use (wash it out with acid and get rid of it) because it might explode later. The test is for determining if something is an aldehyde (a silver mirror forms in your test tube if it is), and if you don't dispose of it properly, it can form silver nitride, which is highly explosive, and can detonate from the slightest contact. I never expect to use this in real life. As for being an old dog, I'm always up for learning new tricks but I don't know if I count as old. Most dogs acknowledge me as the alpha dog. I have no idea why. I'm really not a canine. Sat, 10 Dec 2011 12:45:05 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_959241 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_959241 treefrog5700 I've always been partial to purple too. I just figured it was because I'm olive skinned and it's the nicest looking color for people complected like me. I appreciate all those meanings. Sat, 10 Dec 2011 12:48:27 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_959249 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_959249 Kat Gentian Doing some research for my current short story, I learned that asbestos can be spun and woven into a fine cloth. In ancient Greece and later Rome, napkins and other household items were woven from it. Soiled napkins were thrown into the fire; food residues burned away and the cloth often came out whiter than it went in! As cool as that would be (imagine host(ess) accuses guest of being such a slob, grabs napkin and tosses it into the fire), I don't like to think about the health consequences for the spinners and weavers. Sat, 10 Dec 2011 14:14:20 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_959472 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_959472 Kat Gentian Yes, very depressing stats. The world is moving more toward acceptance, but not fast enough and not widely enough. I encountered some of this in college when a good friend ran into some issues (not my story to share). Up until then I was really clueless about the struggles LGBT folks face. Ever since I've done what little I can to help adjust people's attitudes. Sat, 10 Dec 2011 14:24:10 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_959500 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_959500 Fiona W Fulgurites are very cool: they happen when lightning hits just plain sand, too, like on a beach. They're basically sculptures that electricity makes out of glass. Sat, 10 Dec 2011 21:19:37 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_960810 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_960810 Fiona W The viscosity of crude oil is a very big deal, economically, because (obviously) the less viscous the oil, the easier it is to pump out of the ground. When I was a teenager, I worked as a lab assistant in a laboratory devoted to the study of which surfactants (soaps) are best to pump into a well, to decrease the viscosity of the oil. That was way back in 1973. Sat, 10 Dec 2011 21:25:58 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_960836 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_960836 intrikate Thank you for being a strong ally. :) Sun, 11 Dec 2011 15:52:19 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_962971 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_962971 Vinxman Most of these are not tricks, just facts. Anyone for actual tricks or skills? My father is learning Kendo (Japanese sword). He's going to be 80 in a month. I just started learning European fencing (foil so far). I'm also working on contact juggling. Mon, 02 Jan 2012 14:20:01 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1022083 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1022083 treefrog5700 What is contact juggling? Learning new tricks is something that tends to drop out of our lives at some point. When I took up Taekwondo at 41, I realized it had been years since I'd done anything which didn't draw upon something I already knew. After getting laid off last summer, I went back to my previous career as a professional craftsperson. I was an enamelist in the pre-internet era. This time, I'm only online. So while it's not nearly as exciting as fencing and juggling, learning about Search Engine Optimization is my new experience. Tue, 03 Jan 2012 10:20:11 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1025752 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1025752 Vinxman [quote=treefrog5700] What is contact juggling? Learning new tricks is something that tends to drop out of our lives at some point. When I took up Taekwondo at 41, I realized it had been years since I'd done anything which didn't draw upon something I already knew. After getting laid off last summer, I went back to my previous career as a professional craftsperson. I was an enamelist in the pre-internet era. This time, I'm only online. So while it's not nearly as exciting as fencing and juggling, learning about Search Engine Optimization is my new experience. [/quote] Congrats on learning and doing new things. Sorry you got laid off. I hope things are going well, though. Contact juggling is rolling a ball over one's hands and arms without it falling. If you saw Labyrinth, David Bowie (well, his hand double) did it with crystal ball. Tue, 03 Jan 2012 22:32:47 -0600 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1028140 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/age-group-50/threads/47370?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1028140