Tuesday 29 July 2014

Dash/Plus metadata markup system

Dash/Plus is a metadata markup system created for paper based notes to mark the status of action items on a todo list.

It quickly evolved to be equally well versed at marking up meeting notes for easy scanning and processing.

This is mainly designed for those who keep lists or take notes using pen or pencil and paper.

See the system at http://patrickrhone.com/2013/04/22/the-dash-plus-system/

Sunday 27 July 2014

When to take your hat off

Take off your hat (civilian, that is) whenever you are indoors, except in a synagogue and except in places which are akin to public streets: lobbies, corridors, street conveyances, crowded elevators of non-residential public buildings (department stores, office buildings). Apartment house elevators and halls are classed as indoors, and so are eating places!

See more on hats and “The Anatomy of Etiquette” at http://www.artofmanliness.com/2014/07/23/the-anatomy-of-etiquette-how-to-be-an-old-school-gentleman-from-head-to-toe/

Friday 25 July 2014

Flyback and Double chronographs

A Flyback chronograph is a complication watch, which uses a single push of the button for stopping, resetting and restarting the chronograph function of the watch.

Other names: Taylor system, Permanent zero setting

See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flyback_chronograph

 

A Double chronograph is a watch that includes two separate stopwatch mechanisms in order to estimate two separate events of different durations. It is often confused with the flyback chronograph.

Other names: Split-second chronograph, Split chronograph

See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_chronograph

 

In horology (study of clocks), complication refers to any feature in a timepiece beyond the simple display of hours and minutes. A timepiece indicating only hours and minutes is otherwise known as a simple movement.

See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complication_%28horology%29

Wednesday 23 July 2014

Deaver on sand, gravel & silt

Sand, Lincoln Rhyme reflected, is a criminalist’s delight: bits of rock, sometimes mixed with other material, ranging from .05 to 2 millimeters (larger than that is gravel, smaller is silt).

From The Coffin Dancer, by Jeffery Deaver

Monday 21 July 2014

Saturday 19 July 2014

Dangerous Hats

In the late 19th Century, the size of a civil engineer’s top hat denoted his status.

They continued to increase in size until they became a danger to the public.

This led to the passing of The Dangerous Hats Act 1887

From http://www.lancashirelife.co.uk/people/forgotten_lancashire_restoring_the_fortunes_of_the_tripe_industry_1_1779139

Thursday 17 July 2014

Strike on Lies

Strike remembered Adler: “A lie would have no sense unless the truth were felt as dangerous.”

From The Cuckoo's Calling, by Robert Galbraith

Tuesday 15 July 2014

Poker or Bridge Playing Cards

Modern playing cards are most commonly referred to as either 'poker' or 'bridge' sized. Notwithstanding these generally accepted norms, there is no formal requirement for precise adherence to these dimensions and minor variations to card lengths and widths within their respective categories are produced by various manufacturers.

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playing_card

Sunday 13 July 2014

Long and short scales

The long and short scales are two of several different large-number naming systems used throughout the world for integer powers of ten:

Long scale: Every new term greater than million is one million times larger than the previous term. Thus, billion means a million millions (10^12), trillion means a million billions (10^18), and so on.

Short scale: Every new term greater than million is one thousand times larger than the previous term. Thus, billion means a thousand millions (10^9), trillion means a thousand billions (10^12), and so on.

See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_and_short_scales

Friday 11 July 2014

Deaver on trembling hand equilibrium

I doubted we'd find much about his immediate plans; he was too smart to leave obvious evidence but even a player as conscientious as he made mistakes sometimes.

Game theory takes this into account.

In a "trembling hand equilibrium," a player can accidentally pick an unintended strategy--say, when you reach for a queen's bishop's pawn and accidentally move the knight's in error. If you release the piece, you've made the move, even if the consequences are the opposite of what you'd intended and are disastrous.

From Edge, by Jeffery Deaver

Wednesday 9 July 2014

Erdnase

S. W. Erdnase is a pseudonym used by the author of The Expert at the Card Table, a book detailing sleight of hand, cheating and legerdemain using playing cards.

Still considered essential reading for any card magician, the book, known also as either the Bible or, commonly, just Erdnase, has been in continual publication since 1902.

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S._W._Erdnase

Saturday 5 July 2014

Reduplication

The coinage of new words and phrases into English has been greatly enhanced by the pleasure we get from playing with words. There are numerous alliterative and rhyming idioms, which are a significant feature of the language. These aren't restricted to poets and Cockneys; everyone uses them. We start in the nursery with choo-choos, move on in adult life to hanky-panky and end up in the nursing home having a sing-song.

The repeating of parts of words to make new forms is called reduplication. There are various categories of this: rhyming, exact and ablaut (vowel substitution). Examples, are respectively, okey-dokey, wee-wee and zig-zag.

See full article at http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/reduplication.html

Tuesday 1 July 2014

What are antigrams?

Antigram is a new word.

It is an anagram but which renders the opposite meaning. 

Here are some examples!

silent listen
funeral real fun
violence nice love
forty-five over fifty
united untied
earliest arise late

See more at http://abceda.com/antigram.html