I don't know; I'd rather assume that the average reader knows what a pound is and can, by context, work out that it isn't much. Adding the conversion would be necessary for currencies where the main currency is of extremely different value than in the US--yen, I believe, and certainly the peso when I was a kid (I don't know about now). But "a few pounds" doesn't sound like much to an ear that knows that the pound is the British unit of currency, even though I don't know the exact exchange rate.

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Gillian

"Now everyone was giving her that kind of look UFOlogists get when they suddenly say, 'Hey, if you shade your eyes you can see it is just a flock of geese after all.'"

"You can't erase icing."

"I can't believe it doesn't work! I found it on the internet, man!"

On "Three Sheets", Zane asked how much a bottle of whatever was (I think they were in . . . Singapore? Can't recall the exact episode).

Anyway, the point is, the guy's answer was 1.200.000 whatever the currency was. Without Zane saying, "Ah, so about $2,000 USD", the first statement would have meant nothing.

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I'm like one of those idiot savants...well, except for the savant part.
"In order to increase awareness of the homeless, security have been given binoculars."

Especially; since "pounds" was easy. It took me longer to deduce what a "jumble sale" was. (I assume it is something like a flea market)

Let me add Lira to that list of "when I was a kid".

But; even saying dollars isn't good. That's how a lot of scams sell tokens (Er, I mean commercial mints selling commemerative coins). They just use Samoan dollars or something and say "face value".

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

ah, but a few pounds is a few dollars, give or take.

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Todd (Bowie, MD, US, North America, Earth, Sol System, Vega region, Local Bubble, Orion arm, Milky Way Galaxy, Local Group, Virgo A Cluster, Virgo supercluster, the universe in which spock is clean shaven)

Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.

personal page: http://blog.astrosketches.info

Rummage sale, by my understanding.

Oh, yes. In Roman Holiday, Gregory Peck gives Audrey Hepburn something like a thousand lira and tells her what the value was in US dollars. I don't remember what it was, but it wasn't much.

Well. I think most Americans forget that other countries besides the US use "dollar" as their form of currency. (Though I'm pretty sure American Samoa uses, you know, the American dollar.)

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Gillian

"Now everyone was giving her that kind of look UFOlogists get when they suddenly say, 'Hey, if you shade your eyes you can see it is just a flock of geese after all.'"

"You can't erase icing."

"I can't believe it doesn't work! I found it on the internet, man!"

As it appears on the home page...


Being a Kent alumni, I was thinking. Gee, I don't remember 1909 being on the shield. I think there's some splainin to do.*

And did you see in the article what was planned? A 400 person dinner. Oh, come now, there's got to be more than that. It's a big school.

*My guess is the year of the first graduating class.

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

You are several graduates of Kent State? Good trick!

Perhaps you are conjoined twins?

(Sorry, I just hate seeing a Latin plural used as a singular. I suspect you are either an alumnus or an alumna of KSU. Incidentally, my brother is married to one of the latter.)

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Relight the Firefly!

"It is quite clear that Occam's razor does not sharpen in your pyramid." (Nicolas)

"Still, a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest." (Paul Simon)

Well, I was thinking, they are planning a 100-year-long celebration. Party school!!!

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Todd (Bowie, MD, US, North America, Earth, Sol System, Vega region, Local Bubble, Orion arm, Milky Way Galaxy, Local Group, Virgo A Cluster, Virgo supercluster, the universe in which spock is clean shaven)

Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.

personal page: http://blog.astrosketches.info

Yeah, I was going to ask if dinner was going to meet at 7:00, Hotel California's Banquet Hall A or B?

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I'm like one of those idiot savants...well, except for the savant part.
"In order to increase awareness of the homeless, security have been given binoculars."

Actually; a few close family members are, or are trying to be. But, yes, that's one of the latin words I have trouble with.

edit:
Ok; so today they unveiled a new statue to commemorate the anniversary...
KSU Black Squirrels Immortalized In Dark Bronze
Of course the reporter says nothing about the centennial. Probably didn't know why they unveiled it today.
Here's the KSU site with picture (fixed). Think it's newsworthy by itself?

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

"... for everyone but our newspaper photographer."

I don't see a picture on that second link.

Edit: Ahh, both links go to the same place.

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I'm not evil.
An evil person would do the things I think up.

Here's another currency one, from the BBC website, talking about the prize-pool in cricket's inaugural Champions League -

"A prize fund of £3.7m is at stake, with US$1.5m going to the winners."

Why change units halfway through the sentence?

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"Rules are for the guidance of wise men and the obedience of fools" - D. Bader

Ooops, fixed above.

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

D’oh! Marge Simpson on cover of Playboy

I read this, and thought it was a strange enough comment about a cartoon character:
But; it was the comment of the CEO that made me wonder...
Ok; I will give credit that a cartoon character might help the image of a magazine get a bit more youthful.

But; Playboy? I don't this guy thinks quite like Hugh.

Sorry; But I don't see 20 year old males looking to Playboy for thier cartoon images.
We all know they are attracted to the articles.

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

Scott Flanders? SRSLY?

Ned's kid is running Playboy now?

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Relight the Firefly!

"It is quite clear that Occam's razor does not sharpen in your pyramid." (Nicolas)

"Still, a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest." (Paul Simon)

Wow, How did I miss that one?

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

Yeah; I don't quite understand that one either. "Hmm, what do young males want? Less naked women, more 'implied" naked cartoon women! Genius!"

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I'm like one of those idiot savants...well, except for the savant part.
"In order to increase awareness of the homeless, security have been given binoculars."

'Eres one 'bout dem dere scor'pee'uns (sorry, felt like talking like the rest of the locals here for a minute)

Ick. I don't like creepy crawlies. Not a fan of spiders; and scorpions always just seemed like spiders with armor and better weapons. Super spiders, if you will.

Anyway, the article goes along fine until these very last few lines:
Another reason for the invasion is that some of the scorpions are pregnant? As opposed to the "non-invasion" years, when they don't reproduce? I think they could have just left that last bit out, and not missed out on anything. Must have had a word-count quota to fill.

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I'm like one of those idiot savants...well, except for the savant part.
"In order to increase awareness of the homeless, security have been given binoculars."

How can you resist putting in the phrase "clumped together like a huge black glob". A reporter is obligated to put gory stuff in an article when it's available. No?

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

and his name is Flanders too...oh didly boy!

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Todd (Bowie, MD, US, North America, Earth, Sol System, Vega region, Local Bubble, Orion arm, Milky Way Galaxy, Local Group, Virgo A Cluster, Virgo supercluster, the universe in which spock is clean shaven)

Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.

personal page: http://blog.astrosketches.info

There's a story about a guy from Texas who's visiting Great Britain and playing poker with some locals.

On the first hand, he hears bets of five pounds and ten pounds and declares "I don't know your money system all that well, but I'll bet a ton!"

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Later . . .

There's a Reuters story on Yahoo (Mission finds bright ribbon at solar system border) that has the following quote (astronomy related, to boot!):

The researchers say the findings can tell them about the interstellar cloud through which our Milky Way galaxy is moving and which the galaxy will leave in about 10,000 years.

My impression is that it should read, "through which our solar system is moving..."

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As above, so below

My, my, you are rather impressionable, aren't you.

Actually; Osterman should be ostracized.

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

Police: Man who appeared drunk fell onto tracks just before train barreled over him; he's OK
What about the hangover?

Anyway, this had me wondering:
That's either a very short train, or a very tall man.

They could have worded it much better.

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

It doesn't square with "he's OK." Now, had the rain squished him severely, his remains might well be spread out over track-footage the length of a train. Eccch!

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Later . . .

or one of Gumbi's relatives?

I read this one today and thought "duh".
Sperm donor passed on deadly heart defect
Is it a surprise that undetected genetic conditions are going to be passed along?

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

it's a surprise it's documented--if they can test for it...perhaps they should have rejected the donor.

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Todd (Bowie, MD, US, North America, Earth, Sol System, Vega region, Local Bubble, Orion arm, Milky Way Galaxy, Local Group, Virgo A Cluster, Virgo supercluster, the universe in which spock is clean shaven)

Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.

personal page: http://blog.astrosketches.info

I'm just guessing, but probably they found that the fetus had a defect, and then tested the donor, and found he had the same defect.

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As above, so below

I'm guessing neither of you read the article.
Anyway, in other news... Some things just seem like they shouldn't have to be said:
Ohio deputies alarmed when man brings sheriff's office pipe bomb he found in the woods
It's nice that they gave a short explaination of the events, but it would have been nicer to ask why he thought it was safe to bring in.

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Numbers are not case sensitive. (me)

At a guess, because he wasn't that bright.

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Gillian

"Now everyone was giving her that kind of look UFOlogists get when they suddenly say, 'Hey, if you shade your eyes you can see it is just a flock of geese after all.'"

"You can't erase icing."

"I can't believe it doesn't work! I found it on the internet, man!"