Chatroom
 

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Go Back   Bad Astronomy and Universe Today Forum > General > Off-Topic Babbling
Register FAQ Members List Calendar Mark Forums Read

   

Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
  #31 (permalink)  
Old 17-February-2008, 09:15 PM
Torsten Torsten is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: British Columbia
Posts: 951
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tucson_Tim View Post
It's Mr. 69. If you look closely at his avatar, and if you have seen some of the clever things he has done with names, you should be able to see why he chose that user ID.
That's in hex. But in more familiar decimal, it's 105.

parallaxicality, if you turn your Windows calculator on in scientific mode, you can easily make the conversions.
Reply With Quote
  #32 (permalink)  
Old 17-February-2008, 09:30 PM
Gillianren's Avatar
Gillianren Gillianren is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Olympia, WA
Posts: 12,824
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Moose View Post
The longer answer is that it's actually trivial to verify from a Christianity and Judaism standpoint. Simply read Revelations. No explicit year for the end of the world is mentioned. Like most predictions/prophesies, the only hints offered are vague and highly subject to interpretation.
And, of course, current Biblical scholarship leans toward its being an allegory for current events anyway. Which means it doesn't actually predict much of anything. There's sort of a prediction of the fall of Rome, but not anything specific, more just a sort of "those who oppress us will stop oppressing us and pay for what they've done" kind of thing.

Incidentally, if you know what to look for, a lot of stuff on the History Channel is actually worth watching. I'm currently watching The States, which isn't sensational at all. What you kind of have to watch for is whether they're trying to increase their viewership with it or just trying to make its regular viewers happy.
__________________
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!"
Reply With Quote
  #33 (permalink)  
Old 17-February-2008, 09:47 PM
Abaddon Abaddon is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Ireland
Posts: 193
Default

01101001

I like it.

Given I spend most of my time these days programming, it has a certain geeky appeal to me.
Reply With Quote
  #34 (permalink)  
Old 17-February-2008, 09:49 PM
Centaur's Avatar
Centaur Centaur is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Chicago
Posts: 284
Wink

As with all media outlets, The History Channel needs to make a buck. In order to fund some of their serious efforts, they produce nonsense that they know will be eaten up by the same credulous multitude that picks up copies of The National Enquirer at the supermarket. UFO silliness has brought THC a lot of viewers lately, as have disaster predictions. Viewers of THC need to be especially alert so they are prepared to separate the wheat from the chaff. There is some very good stuff on THC, but you need to know how to discriminate, and not everyone does.

People who “want” to believe in something tend to welcome and accept uncritically any pronouncements from supposedly authoritative sources such as THC who lend validity to otherwise irrational notions. There will always be individuals hoping to make money by taking advantage of those gullible people and feeding them what they want to hear. The hucksters will then warn their disciples that unbelievers are either closed minded or part of a conspiracy to suppress evidence.

As others have noted, these “end of the world” predictions have been unending throughout recorded history. Every time that the fateful date has passed quietly, new predictions have arisen. This 2012 nuttiness is only the latest of a long series. Even evangelists are using it to enhance the fear that they use to keep their customers coming. I suppose if I were really smart, I would write a bestseller assuring the masses that the 2012 conjectures are really really true.
__________________
Curt Renz - "Centaur"
For monthly astronomical calendar visit:
www.CurtRenz.com/astronomical.html
Reply With Quote
  #35 (permalink)  
Old 17-February-2008, 10:48 PM
Tucson_Tim Tucson_Tim is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 2,825
Default

Since 01101001 has put this 2012 stuff to sleep (again) with his Master URL List, here's a simple puzzler for anyone out there that is bored:

The following is a sequence of numbers. What does this sequence of numbers represent?

111111111
1001
100
21
14
13
12
11
10
9
9
9
9
.
.
.
9
Reply With Quote
  #36 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 12:16 AM
Moose's Avatar
Moose Moose is online now
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: The Maritimes
Posts: 7,632
Send a message via MSN to Moose
Default

Pretty easy. (Written in white so as not to spoil it for others. Highlight to read.)

It's 9 written from base 1 to base (inf-1)
__________________
In Fallout 3, 'happiness' is a warm junkyard dog and a loaded gun. It's mostly the loaded gun.
- Moose's one-line review.

"your going to regret that one. You are now a colonoscope...
- Chrissy, corrupting PraedSt's wish.
Reply With Quote
  #37 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 12:20 AM
Tucson_Tim Tucson_Tim is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 2,825
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Moose View Post
Pretty easy. (Written in white so as not to spoil it for others. Highlight to read.)
Very good Moose. I saw that sequence maybe 30 years ago and it stumped me at the time. It was one sequence in a larger list of sequences.
Reply With Quote
  #38 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 12:29 AM
Moose's Avatar
Moose Moose is online now
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: The Maritimes
Posts: 7,632
Send a message via MSN to Moose
Default

Being a prog helps. I don't do bitwise transformations all that often, but I've done enough that it's slightly ingrained to always be just a little suspicious of the numbers I encounter.
__________________
In Fallout 3, 'happiness' is a warm junkyard dog and a loaded gun. It's mostly the loaded gun.
- Moose's one-line review.

"your going to regret that one. You are now a colonoscope...
- Chrissy, corrupting PraedSt's wish.
Reply With Quote
  #39 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 01:20 AM
01101001's Avatar
01101001 01101001 is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 11,471
Default

What does Tim look like upside-down?

not-2012-again-but-i-cant-help-timsketch.gif
__________________
0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 ...
Reply With Quote
  #40 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 01:48 AM
Tucson_Tim Tucson_Tim is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 2,825
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by 01101001 View Post
What does Tim look like upside-down?
That's great! I already passed along (to my wife) the one you made several month's ago of "Diana" - she loved it.
Reply With Quote
  #41 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 11:36 AM
Stuart van Onselen Stuart van Onselen is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 479
Default

I hate it when number sequences come up in "intelligence" tests. I know I'm intelligent, darn it. Yet were there a test consisting solely of number sequences, my IQ would come out slightly below that of pond scum. :-(

Erm, what was the thread topic again?
Reply With Quote
  #42 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 11:48 AM
Neverfly's Avatar
Neverfly Neverfly is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Verginia Crater
Posts: 11,909
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Stuart van Onselen View Post

Erm, what was the thread topic again?
Something with numbers in it.
Reply With Quote
  #43 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 04:19 PM
SeanF's Avatar
SeanF SeanF is online now
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Sioux Falls, SD
Posts: 5,381
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Gillianren View Post
And, of course, current Biblical scholarship leans toward its being an allegory for current events anyway.
Isn't there a law against using the word "current" twice in one sentence to refer to two different time periods?
__________________
SeanF

"Ask to understand, but don't challenge unless you have the knowledge."--NEOWatcher

The contents of this post are ©2008 by SeanF and may not be copied or retransmitted in any form without the express written consent of SeanF
Reply With Quote
  #44 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 04:26 PM
Moose's Avatar
Moose Moose is online now
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: The Maritimes
Posts: 7,632
Send a message via MSN to Moose
Default

*mfffff* "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means".
__________________
In Fallout 3, 'happiness' is a warm junkyard dog and a loaded gun. It's mostly the loaded gun.
- Moose's one-line review.

"your going to regret that one. You are now a colonoscope...
- Chrissy, corrupting PraedSt's wish.
Reply With Quote
  #45 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 05:05 PM
Trantor Trantor is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 363
Default

I wonder just how big Binary Man's Post of Doom thread will be on the actual date of doom? I think it's a fair bet that when we get to 2011, the predictions of doom will probably accelerate. This site will probably see a flood of new posters, eager to warn us about the coming disaster. Binary Man may have to hire some addition help to keep track of all the end of the world threads.
Reply With Quote
  #46 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 05:17 PM
weatherc's Avatar
weatherc weatherc is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: 40° 56.646' N, 74° 40.008' W, New Jersey, USA, Earth
Posts: 809
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Trantor View Post
I wonder just how big Binary Man's Post of Doom thread will be on the actual date of doom? I think it's a fair bet that when we get to 2011, the predictions of doom will probably accelerate. This site will probably see a flood of new posters, eager to warn us about the coming disaster. Binary Man may have to hire some addition help to keep track of all the end of the world threads.
Or, all of these "end of the world" threads should get dumped into a "THE END IS NIGH" section of BAUT, and be locked, maybe with a quick note from a moderator explaining how the subject has already been mentioned over and over again.
__________________
Yes, they laughed at Einstein, but only because of his silly hairstyle; no one was actually laughing at his science.
Reply With Quote
  #47 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 06:41 PM
01101001's Avatar
01101001 01101001 is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 11,471
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by weatherc View Post
Or, all of these "end of the world" threads should get dumped into a "THE END IS NIGH" section of BAUT, and be locked, maybe with a quick note from a moderator explaining how the subject has already been mentioned over and over again.
Yes, I have faith that the community, as well as the powers that be, will devise some method to keep the misguided year-2012 interest, as 2012 closely approaches, from disrupting the normal pleasant and useful operation of the BAUT Forum.

They handled Planet X. They will handle 2012. They're smart. They're able.
__________________
0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 ...
Reply With Quote
  #48 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 06:46 PM
Swift's Avatar
Swift Swift is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: The beautiful north coast (Ohio)
Posts: 11,898
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Trantor View Post
I wonder just how big Binary Man's Post of Doom thread will be on the actual date of doom? I think it's a fair bet that when we get to 2011, the predictions of doom will probably accelerate. This site will probably see a flood of new posters, eager to warn us about the coming disaster. Binary Man may have to hire some addition help to keep track of all the end of the world threads.
See that's the real disaster. By December of 2012, his post with all the links will become so large and desnse with information that it will create an informational black hole that will suck the entire Earth in. And the Mayans predicted the entire thing.
__________________
At night the stars put on a show for free (Carole King)

One Earth, One Sky - IYA 2009
Reply With Quote
  #49 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 06:55 PM
farmerjumperdon farmerjumperdon is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Wisconsin USA
Posts: 3,943
Default

One almost sure sign of psuedo-documentary fluff (or outright nonsense) is how much repeat they have of the same material over and over and over. Some of those shows that go for an hour, which means about 40 minutes of non-commercial program, have maybe 20 minutes of material. If you are watching a show and they recap the entire show after every commercial break - it's probably fluff, or outright garbage.

It seems THC has incrementally more of that kind of junk every year, to the point where probably 75% of their programming is now jetsam and flotsam.
__________________
Don of Borg - Cool, Calm, Collective.

"Within the next generation I believe that the world's leaders will discover that infant conditioning and narco-hypnosis are more efficient, as instruments of government, than clubs and prisons, and that the lust for power can be just as completely satisfied by suggesting people into loving their servitude as by flogging them and kicking them into obedience." -- Aldous Huxley
Reply With Quote
  #50 (permalink)  
Old 18-February-2008, 08:22 PM
parallaxicality's Avatar
parallaxicality parallaxicality is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2004
Posts: 2,249
Default

THC: It gets you stoned.
__________________
Wikipedia: A MMORPG for self-denialists.

It's gotten to the point where careful investigation is needed just to tell parody from reality. I think that means reality is broken.- Noclevername.
Reply With Quote