Miscellaneous desk
< March 5	<< Feb \| March \| Apr >>	March 7 >

Welcome to the Wikipedia Miscellaneous Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

March 6[edit]

Wind direction[edit]

Eurus = zero-niner-zero, Boreas = three-six-zero, Zephyrus = two-seven-zero, Africus = two-two-five, Afer Ventus = ??? 24.23.196.85 (talk) 03:42, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Wow. I spent twelve years working at Australia's Bureau of Meteorology, and you've lost me. I can see the degrees for east, north, west and south-west there, but never seen those names. HiLo48 (talk) 03:55, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

The names refer to the Roman names for the Anemoi wind gods. Eurus=East, Boreas=North, Zephyrus=West, and Africus=Southwest, which makes sense, given the degrees. Since Afer Ventus (African wind) is the same as Africus so I'd say it should also be two-two-five. Not that I used any special knowledge to figure this out beyond the Wikipedia search bar. --Daniel (talk) 04:48, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks, Daniel! I was trying to translate the Latin names into degrees, in order to see how each of these five (actually four, as it turned out) winds would affect a takeoff from Miami International Airport -- looks like all but one (three-six-zero, which would require a takeoff from Runway 30) call for a takeoff from any of the three east-west runways. 24.23.196.85 (talk) 05:13, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Actually, the classical-winds situation is rather more complicated than your degree equivalencies suggest (particularly with regard to Eurus). See the table at Classical compass winds#Comparative table of classical winds and the historical matter and diagrams preceding it. Deor (talk) 16:46, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Moon Cricket[edit]

If people played cricket on the moon, other than it being hard for the players to run about because of low gravity, will there be any difficulties? For example, will the trajectory of the ball be affected? Is the horizontal motion of the ball affected in any way due to low gravity? 37.228.107.78 (talk) 05:31, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, the ball might bounce farther, since there is less friction with the ground, as a result of the lower gravity. The dust might also be a problem, getting kicked up and staying up longer. The ball might also disappear into a small crater filled with dust. StuRat (talk) 05:34, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Swing bowling would be impossible due to the absence of air. HiLo48 (talk) 05:43, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

And it would be harder for spin bowlers to get movement off the pitch. --Viennese Waltz 07:25, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Just as HiLo48 and Viennese Waltz said. The dusty wicket might appear to favour spinners, but my guess is that would not be so, as the ball would not have much turn on dust, and may simply stop dead or roll slowly across the lunar surface. Similar to beach cricket, the only feasible delivery might have to be a "full toss". As with many aspects of the game there is a "gentleman's' agreement" that deliberately bowling fast full tosses is "not cricket", so it would appear that the bowler's repertoire would be reduced to little more than gentle medium pace.

The batsmen would face other challenges, not the least of them the outsized protective gear. Helmets, gloves, thigh-pads and forearm guards would need to be able to fit over space suits. In particular, the batsman's pads would be very large cumbersome, and the batsman would be even more limited in movement that a field hockey goal keeper.

The logistics would, as they say be "a logistical nightmare", even just considering the personnel required. As the last manned landing on the moon was in the early 1970s, there would be the problem of availability of astronauts to act as advisers in preparation of the pitch and the rest of the playing surface. International and first class cricket schedules are very busy, and are planned for years in advance and it would be unlikely that the International Cricket Council would permit even a one off match to disrupt it. Even if umpires from the ICC's elite panel were released for a match, there may be criticism over the lack of third umpire and decision review equipment, which is very much part of modern cricket.

Then again, if the BCCI decided to get behind it (and I hope they do), there may well be a lunar IPL franchise in the not so far off future.--Shirt58 (talk) 07:43, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

How strong are those faceplates? Sudden death, meet cricket. Clarityfiend (talk) 07:49, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

On further thought I think I may have solved a number of those problems. Providing, that is, we can teach enough of these wee eight-legged beasties how to play cricket.--Shirt58 (talk) 08:09, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

As I guess most people who follow cricket may know, due to security concerns particularly with the attack on the Sri Lankan team, no one wants to play in Pakistan. So Pakistan generally uses stadiums/grounds in the United Arab Emirates like Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, DSC Cricket Stadium and Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium for their 'home' series. They evidently once considered China [1] but may be we have another options here? Nil Einne (talk) 16:14, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Would Kevin Pietersen be able to hit the ball so hard that it went into orbit around the moon? --TammyMoet (talk) 12:43, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

So what can that tardigrade do into space? Pee, spit, fly? Richard Avery (talk) 14:37, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Don't think so. Escape velocity on the moon is 2.4 km/s, which is about a quarter that of Earth. That equates to seven times the speed of sound in dry air at room temperature. Hut 8.5 17:19, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Time for the obligatory xkcd reference. Phobos, yes, the Moon, no. Tevildo (talk) 23:04, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

When Alan Shepard hit a golf ball on the moon, he had to swing one-handed because the bulkiness of his spacesuit hindered a proper swing. Lunar batsmen would undoubtedly face a similar problem. → Michael J Ⓣ Ⓒ Ⓜ 00:43, 7 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe that's a good thing - you wouldn't want too many sixes. You should be able to manage a forward defensive stroke though. Alansplodge (talk) 00:29, 8 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

On the other hand, they're developing space activity suits which have much less bulk than "traditional" space suits (relying on elastic compression rather than encased pressurization). So it's possible that by the time Earth can send cricket players into space, we may have more mobile gear for them. -- 205.175.124.30 (talk) 00:55, 7 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Elevator code[edit]

I am trying to find a code ( ASME A117.1) so I can read and understand how it relates to the elevators in our building. I have failed to find this code , can you please help?70.192.202.81 (talk) 17:17, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

I'm guessing from your question that you're based somewhere in the United States and are looking for information on a building or safety code. Googling ASME A117.1 gives a result for ASME A17.1 which is a safety code for Elevators. A handbook for this can be bought from the ASME website. Copies of the standard themselves are quite expensive (even for the PDF version) and can be bought here. Nanonic (talk) 18:38, 6 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]