Reretaken Down

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alietr
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by alietr »

What was he going to do if he succeeded?

Swedish man arrested after trying to split atoms in his kitchen; says it was only a hobby

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/eur ... story.html
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--Pete
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by --Pete »

Hi,
alietr wrote: What was he going to do if he succeeded?
Well, technically he did succeed. It takes little knowledge or effort to split atoms that have unstable nuclei and break down by fission spontaneously.

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dhkendall
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by dhkendall »

TPH's Twitter Feed wrote: If you're gonna talk to me while Jeopardy! is on, do it when it's a category I know I'm not gonna get anything right in, e.g. World History.
In other words "feel free to talk to me during Jeopardy!"

(source Twitter)
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Rex Kramer
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by Rex Kramer »

"World History"? That's pretty comprehensive. Does that mean that Astronomy and Prophecies Not Yet Fulfilled are the only categories in which TPH has a prayer?

Rex
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alietr
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by alietr »

Wait a second ... you SUBSCRIBE to TPH's Twitter feed?!?!?!?
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Volante
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by Volante »

alietr wrote:Wait a second ... you SUBSCRIBE to TPH's Twitter feed?!?!?!?
Gotta get laughs where you can. My AP news feed's just repeating Titus Andronicus over and over...

Also:
Hey, TPH! Got a minute?
SHH! It's the elusive Country Music category! Come back in...oh, round's over.
The best thing that Neil Armstrong ever did, was to let us all imagine we were him.
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by dhkendall »

alietr wrote:Wait a second ... you SUBSCRIBE to TPH's Twitter feed?!?!?!?
Heck no, I don't even technically have a Twitter feed of my own (I have one for my national anthems site, mainly used to announce updates and the like to the site, but since it's used for that purpose, I *only* subscribe to feeds that have to do with anthems (so far, only one, and even it's tenuous). Never saw a need for one of my own.

No, this came after a Google search - I'm sure you all can understand when I say a simple search can often lead to hours of reading in links clicked on getting further and further off the beaten path.
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by dhkendall »

Oprah to get an Oscar

Remind me not to tune in to the acceptance speech (she'll probably get played off anyways.)
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by barandall800 »

dhkendall wrote:Oprah to get an Oscar

Remind me not to tune in to the acceptance speech (she'll probably get played off anyways.)
She actually won't be making one...at least on the main telecast, anyways. She and the other honorary Oscar winners will be accepting their awards at a banquet in November. (Perhaps the Oscar folks talked to J! fans on the street? :) )
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Volante
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by Volante »

barandall800 wrote:
dhkendall wrote:Oprah to get an Oscar

Remind me not to tune in to the acceptance speech (she'll probably get played off anyways.)
She actually won't be making one...at least on the main telecast, anyways. She and the other honorary Oscar winners will be accepting their awards at a banquet in November. (Perhaps the Oscar folks talked to J! fans on the street? :) )
The honorary awards were always one of the high points to me. Ok, so this year we'd have to deal with Oprah? Small price to see James Earl "Mufasa Vader" Jones up there too. Last year it was freaking insulting... Eli Wallach (who's never even been nominated), Francis Ford Coppola (and the rest) they get all of five seconds of screen time and then off to commercial! Could you imagine in 2006 if Robert Altman (who died later that year, never having won a real Oscar) got a cameo appearance? Ennio Morricone the following year (his speech being translated from Italian to English through Clint Eastwood)?

And don't get me started on what they've done to the poor In Memoriam segment...they used to show clips of the work. For people like art directors or editors, we might not know who they are, but odds are we WILL recognize their work.

If it wasn't that I need to know this baloney for the show, I'd just stop watching it and pop in The Dark Knight instead as protest...
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by debramc »

alietr wrote:What was he going to do if he succeeded?

Swedish man arrested after trying to split atoms in his kitchen; says it was only a hobby

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/eur ... story.html
That headline reads like an Onion headline - actually the whole article does! It sounds like they just sent in the regular police - no mention of hazmat units or somesuch. I guess the stuff he had wasn't too horribly dangerous just to be briefly close to, but still, did they know what he had going in? Or have I just gotten accustomed to American overkill on everything...?
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by jepkid97 »

dhkendall wrote:Oprah to get an Oscar

Remind me not to tune in to the acceptance speech (she'll probably get played off anyways.)
Is it for cringe-worthy reading of Jeopardy! clues, making me want to punch my TV?
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by EugeneF »

jepkid97 wrote:
dhkendall wrote:Oprah to get an Oscar

Remind me not to tune in to the acceptance speech (she'll probably get played off anyways.)
Is it for cringe-worthy reading of Jeopardy! clues, making me want to punch my TV?
From the sacred archives....

"OPRAH OPENS SCHOOL IN SOUTH AFRICA"

Following the precepts of its founder, patroness and deity, the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy offers a curriculum based on Oprah's adaptation of the Socratic method. The instructor-known as the Oprahator-- presents profound and probing questions, and then hugs the students--breaking their ribs. Preoccupied with their pain and trying to breathe, the students can't get a word in edgewise.

The curriculum of West Point now includes a course on Oprah's tactics, despite their obvious violation of the Geneva Convention. Of special interest to military historians was Oprah's conquest of France. (Even the Germans are envious.) As you recall, the manager of Hermes refused to let Oprah in after the store had closed. Oprah then announced her intention to destroy France.

France immediately capitulated. Le President Chirac grovelled, "Heroic resistance to a demanding barbarian is completely out of French character. We will gladly change Hermes' store hours to collaborate with Ms. Winfrey. We did the same for Hermann Goering, who by the way wore the same dress size as Oprah."

In related atonement, the French government offered to move the Eiffel Tower to suit Oprah's feng shui. France then gave Oprah carte blanche. Complying with her demand Napoleon's Tomb was opened, so that she could give a little fellow a hug. Oprah, however, was disappointed with the accommodations of Notre Dame Cathedral. The baptism font was too small for a bath and Oprah did not like the scent of the candles.

Hoping to make amends, the Catholic Church arranged to have Jesus as a guest on Oprah's show....

Oprah: We have so much in common.
Jesus: Yes....
Oprah: I just love your Beatitudes. Let's hear them.
Jesus: Blessed are the meek....
Oprah: Thank you. I bless you, too. Have you ever tried bathing with scented candles?
Jesus: No. The candles would keep slipping into the Jordan River.
Oprah: I understand you had issues with your father. We've all been there. If you feel like crying, I'll hug you.
Jesus: Well....
Oprah: How many people heard your Sermon on the Mount?
Jesus: 300?
Oprah: Honey, I've got that twice that many TV stations. Did you like me better in "The Color Purple" or "Beloved"?
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Cautionary tale, public radio style

Post by Budphrey »

There are a number of people frequenting this board for whom Michael Larson's name is pretty familiar, as the guy who figured out a system to beat "Press Your Luck" in 1994. Recently "This American Life" did a segment on his rise and decline, including interviews with family members and people involved with the show.

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-a ... ollar-idea

I doubt it goes over more information than a lot of people here already know, but it's offered for the benefit of folks who are new to the story.
Poo-tee-weet? So it goes.
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Re: Cautionary tale, public radio style

Post by seaborgium »

Budphrey wrote:There are a number of people frequenting this board for whom Michael Larson's name is pretty familiar, as the guy who figured out a system to beat "Press Your Luck" in 1994. Recently "This American Life" did a segment on his rise and decline, including interviews with family members and people involved with the show.

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-a ... ollar-idea

I doubt it goes over more information than a lot of people here already know, but it's offered for the benefit of folks who are new to the story.
Five-time champ Darlene Lieblich (-Tipton) was working on the show when Larson played, and she's interviewed in the story.
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Re: Cautionary tale, public radio style

Post by alamble »

Budphrey wrote:There are a number of people frequenting this board for whom Michael Larson's name is pretty familiar, as the guy who figured out a system to beat "Press Your Luck" in 1994. Recently "This American Life" did a segment on his rise and decline, including interviews with family members and people involved with the show.

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-a ... ollar-idea

I doubt it goes over more information than a lot of people here already know, but it's offered for the benefit of folks who are new to the story.
You meant '84, I hope. I'm still waiting for the movie about this situation to work its way out of development hell; at one point, Bill Murray was attached to portray Larson.
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by gnash »

debramc wrote:
alietr wrote:What was he going to do if he succeeded?

Swedish man arrested after trying to split atoms in his kitchen; says it was only a hobby

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/eur ... story.html
That headline reads like an Onion headline - actually the whole article does! It sounds like they just sent in the regular police - no mention of hazmat units or somesuch. I guess the stuff he had wasn't too horribly dangerous just to be briefly close to, but still, did they know what he had going in? Or have I just gotten accustomed to American overkill on everything...?
I think you have succumbed to American paranoia. There is no reason for any extraordinary measures. BTW, you have Americium in your home and you use it. Or, if you don't, you are in violation of your local fire code. It is used in smoke detectors.
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by jepkid97 »

gnash wrote:
debramc wrote:
alietr wrote:What was he going to do if he succeeded?

Swedish man arrested after trying to split atoms in his kitchen; says it was only a hobby

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/eur ... story.html
That headline reads like an Onion headline - actually the whole article does! It sounds like they just sent in the regular police - no mention of hazmat units or somesuch. I guess the stuff he had wasn't too horribly dangerous just to be briefly close to, but still, did they know what he had going in? Or have I just gotten accustomed to American overkill on everything...?
I think you have succumbed to American paranoia. There is no reason for any extraordinary measures. BTW, you have Americium in your home and you use it. Or, if you don't, you are in violation of your local fire code. It is used in smoke detectors.
I thought it only formed in really old smoke detector batteries, which we might not all have.
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by Volante »

jepkid97 wrote:
gnash wrote: I think you have succumbed to American paranoia. There is no reason for any extraordinary measures. BTW, you have Americium in your home and you use it. Or, if you don't, you are in violation of your local fire code. It is used in smoke detectors.
I thought it only formed in really old smoke detector batteries, which we might not all have.
From the inside of my brand new smoke alarm, installed a couple months ago:

This device contains 0.9 micro curies of Americium 241
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Re: Reretaken Down

Post by Vanya »

Not all smoke alarms contain a radioactive substance (photoelectric, for example).
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