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October 4

Light flickers when turned off

Our restrooms now have light switches thet glow when turned off. I noticed that if I turn off the light and shut the door so it is dark, the light flickers just enough to see it slightly faster than once a second. I assume that with the light switch off, the light has no power. Is it that the glowing light switches periodically send electricity to the light or is it a sign that the switch is broken. Note, all of the bathroom lights on these switches flicker. In the back office where they don't have a glowing switch, it doesn't flicker. So, I am certain it is something to do with the fancy glowing switch. For clarity, by "glow" I mean that the rectangle of plastic around the switch is like a little orange light that turns on when you turn the switch off. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 15:25, 4 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe a motion sensor? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 23:04, 4 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

A light switch has two contacts that can be "closed" (bridged) to close an electric circuit that includes the electric lights. While the circuit is open (switch is "off") there is a voltage difference between these two contacts. This can be used to power a sentinel light, and also an electronic circuit that produces pulses that periodically close the circuit briefly. --Lambiam 06:03, 5 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Why would the same style lights blink ever so slightly when on a glowing switch but not blink at all on a regular switch? (If that is what you answered, I'm sorry that I simply don't understand your answer.) I've been searching and what I've seen claims that there is a capacitor in the bulb that causes a slight flicker depending what else is on the circuit, but again, that is the bulb. If the bulb flickers, the bulb flickers. In this case, the bulbs only flicker when using the new switches that glow when turned off. Searching, this looks exactly like the kind of switch we have, but I can't claim it is that specific model. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 12:25, 5 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

First off don't trust me one bit on wiring, if you aren't comfortable enough to have already pulled the switch to see what's happening probably best to get someone to fix the problem for you. These are LED lamps that are flickering correct? Incandescent bulbs can run off alternating current, they are just heating up and glowing, light-emitting diodes need direct current to work. The driver circuit will convert household AC to DC, and you can see a photo of the circuit on that page. That looks like a capacitor to me in the very center, and here is someone disassembling a $1 LED lamp to look at the circuit, which looks to me to have a bog-standard rectifier and Capacitor input filter.

What's probably happening is stray voltage is charging that capacitor which will eventually reach a high enough voltage to power the rest of the circuit which will then discharge the capacitor. So not 'flickering' but 'flashing' at your regular interval of slightly faster of 1/sec.

Another possibility is that you might have a dead-end switch where the wiring first goes to the fixture and then to the switch. I think this might cause this problem with a lighted switch and LED lamp but not all all sure. Another possibility is that you have older wiring which does not have a ground wire or the ground to this circuit could be faulty. Without popping the switch and testing things the simplest way to solve the problem would be to replace at least one of the bulbs which are on the switch with an incandescent. You might try a different make of LED bulb and it might solve the problem or at least give a different flashing rate for variation. fiveby(zero) 22:51, 5 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The OP is talking about multiple lights in "our restrooms", so presumably at his/her place of employment. I doubt that he/she is in a position to start taking the light fixtures and switches apart or replacing the bulbs. The best practical option would be to ask for an explanation of this (probably normal) phenomenon from the establishment's Facilities Maintenance Department*.

(*That's what it would be called in the UK, where I used to work in that sector; doubtless it will be something different in the US. I'm talking about qualified electrical (& mechanical) engineers, not janitors who can change a light bulb.) {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 94.6.86.81 (talk) 00:23, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

You are correct. I am referring to public restrooms in a library, which have new light switches installed. Before the change, I never noticed the faint blinking of the lights and the same type of lights are not flashing on the old switches that do not illuminate. I believe the answer is that the circuitry inside the switch that makes it glow also causes the circuitry inside the light bulb to periodically charge up and flash the bulb. This isn't really a problem as anyone who enters the restroom will likely turn the light on right away and never notice the flashing. It was just a curiousity. I would bring it up with maintenance, but they are located at the main library, not our remote branch, so I rarely see them. I'm not really certain when they came in and swapped out the switches. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 17:54, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

At the American community college where I work, "Maintenance" are the people who are qualified to work on the switches while "Facilities Management" are the janitors. --User:Khajidha (talk) (contributions) 13:15, 9 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The last UK Facilities Maintenance company I worked for (at a client's large manufacturing and administration site) either directly performed, or sub-contracted and controlled, services including catering (the site had a large canteen), grounds maintenance, civil engineering (i.e buildings repairs, maintenance and refurbishment projects), electrical and mechanical maintenance and repairs (of everything except the client's specialist manufacturing machinery), HVAC maintenance and repairs, running the on-site power plant, porterage, internal and external postal distribution, cleaning (i.e. janitorial services), pest control, organising visits of external inspectors (for example of of lifting equipment, water systems and and cooling towers), manufacturing effluent disposal, and a great deal of entering data concerning all the above into the client's work records system. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 94.6.86.81 (talk) 04:35, 10 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

October 7

Wavy noodles

Our article suggests that wavy noodles are always instant, but why is this, if that is the case? (Bearing in mind WP:NOTSOURCE.) Surely air-dried, egg, and other non-instant noodles could be made into wavy noodles, too? SerialNumber54129 19:23, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

To disprove the claim, all it takes in one example of wavy noodles that are not instant noodles. That is easy. Yoshio Murata invented a machine to improve the method of creating wavy noodles in 1953. Momofuku Ando invented instant noodles in 1958. It is impossible for all of the wavy noodles from 1953 to be instant if instant noodles were not invented yet. So, this comes down to a semantic argument. What exactly does "wavy noodles" mean and what exactly does "instant noodles" mean? If by wavy noodle you are referring to any noodle with waves in it, such as wavy lasagna pasta sheets, you have a clear example of a noodle that is wavy and not instant. If by instant noodle you are referring to any noodle that is dried and later cooked in boiling water, you are limiting the selection of non-instant to noodles to only fresh non-dried noodles. I have assumed that by wavy noodle, you are reffering to packed ramen noodles, which are wavy so you can pack more into a bag without them breaking as easy and by instant you are again referring to ramen noodles that soften quickly when in boiling water. Even that is a dubious claim in my opinion. I boil ramen for two minutes. I boil angel hair pasta for four minutes. The two minute difference isn't really much to say one is instant and the other is not. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 19:39, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

It's only Americans that call pasta, noodles, yet what you have with your bolognese is different to what you have with lo or chow mein. The mystery thickens. (Due to added corn starch?!) SerialNumber54129 19:56, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Here is an article about MRI imaging that states, "Loud noises are produced while obtaining images". This is not meant to imply that all loud noises are produced by MRI imaging. Likewise, "Wavy noodles are made in a slow-paced conveyor belt" in a passage about making instant noodles does not imply that all wavy noodles are the result of the instant noodle-making process. --Lambiam 21:13, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

What article are you talking about? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 22:22, 7 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

[Deleted text from banned user] Card Zero (talk) 14:34, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

per WP:SHOWN, if replies have been made, "they should be struck instead of removed, along with a short explanation following the stricken text or at the bottom of the thread. SerialNumber54129 17:51, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

On the other hand, WP:RPA. Perhaps I should have used (Personal attack removed). Card Zero (talk) 19:30, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Yeah, Baseball bugs me too :)

Thanks Lambiam I could really do some noodles right now. You know of a brand that is both wavy and not instant? ...Notwithstanding WP:PROMO of course! :) SerialNumber54129 12:38, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

You probably prefer Soccer to Baseball. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 17:32, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

You have to define what you mean by instant. Fresh ramen that has never been dried can't be wavy because the noodles are soft and don't hold a shape. When you dry the noodles, they take on a shape, which may be wavy or curvy or spiral or whatever. Once you dry it, you have to put it in boiling water to soften it again. Dry noodles are commonly called instant noodles, but it is possible that you are claiming a subcategory of dried noodles are instant and the rest of the dried noodles are not instant. 12.116.29.106 (talk) 15:43, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

To me, the distinction between instant noodles and regular dried noodles/pasta is pretty clear. You add boiling water to instant noodles usually in a disposable foam bowl, and there is no further cooking. You wait three minutes and the meal is done and you can eat it from the container you bought it in, and the water you added creates the sauce. It's a single serving product. With regular dried noodles or pasta, you bring water to a boil in a pot, and then add the noodles/pasta to the pot, and then actively simmer. The thinner the product, the quicker it cooks. Angel hair takes three to four minutes. Egg noodles take five to eight minutes. Penne takes 10 to 13 minutes. Then, you need to drain and add sauce. You can make enough for multiple people. Cullen328 (talk) 21:47, 8 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Not always in a disposable foam bowl. Sometimes you have to supply your own bowl. HiLo48 (talk) 03:12, 13 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

That is why I said "usually". Cullen328 (talk) 07:35, 15 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The cooking time for dry pasta is longer than for fresh pasta (pasta fresca) because it includes time needed to soak the dry pasta. Soaking takes less time for thin dry pasta, which is α main reason the cooking time is less. You can in fact reduce the cooking time for dry pasta by minutes by soaking it in cold water until it is pliable likes before it was dried (but not longer or it will be mushy). Like fresh pasta, pre-soaked dry pasta still needs to be cooked at a temperature high enough to denature the proteins. Instant pasta is pre-cooked and only needs to be soaked and made hot. --Lambiam 06:26, 9 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I like that distinction for this conversation. Instant noodles are pre-cooked. If they are not pre-cooked, they are not instant. So, the question is: Are there noodles that are dried and wavy, but not pre-cooked? As stated in the original answer: There must be because the wavy machine was invented before the pre-cooking machine. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 14:27, 9 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Where did the OP define what article he's talking about? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 00:36, 10 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

In the question, he linked to instant noodles which includes, "... the characteristic wavy form also differentiates instant noodles from other common noodles, such as udon or flat noodles." It is possible read that to imply that wavy=instant. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 11:58, 10 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

October 10

Kathy Andrade

Was the Kathy Andrade who was a friend of the victim Murder of Reyna Marroquín the same woman as Kathy Andrade, the Salvadoran-American union activist? I can't find any reliable sources. TSventon (talk) 20:33, 10 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Andrade was on Forensic Files in 2000, described as a union activist and a friend of Marroquin. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 01:16, 11 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

This is the Forensic Files episode with Kathy Andrade in it. She appears about 15 minutes into it. 68.187.174.155 (talk) 16:48, 11 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you, it looks like the same woman, does the programme describe her as a union activist? TSventon (talk) 17:15, 11 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I notice that "The uploader has not made this video available in [my] country [the UK]": are you in the same position? {The poster formerly known nas 87.81.230.195} 94.6.86.81 (talk) 19:59, 11 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

There is also a copy on Dailymotion. TSventon (talk) 20:32, 11 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The Forensic Files episode "A Voice from Beyond" only identifies Kathy Andrade as a friend of Marroquín, but all details fit. The episode reveals that Marroquin took lessons at the High School of Fashion Industries and attended Andrade's English class. Andrade is shown, talking about her frjend Angélica Marroquín, saying, "her dream was to become an American citizen". Our article on Kathy Andrade states that she was Education Director for Local 23-25 of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union and organized various educational programs for union members, supporting their paths to citizenship. Also, we see a page of Marroquín's address book with Andrade's address, "311 W 24 ST", which is in the Penn South housing development where our article on Andrade states that she lived. While this is very strong but circumstantial evidence, the person seen speaking in this episode is clearly the same as shown in a photograph in Andrade's obit in The New York Yimes, captioned, "Kathy Andrade at a rally in Manhattan in 2006 on behalf of immigrants' rights".^[1] Kathy Andrade's biography at IMDb – not a "reliable source" – also makes the identification: "Was a leading union activist for garment workers in New York City for over 50 years. Assisting many Latin American workers, she became friends with a fellow Salvadoran worker by the name of Reyna Marroquin."^[2] --Lambiam 07:45, 12 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

@Lambiam: thank you for the detailed reply. I found "Kathy Andrade" on a list of orphaned articles and added a wikilink to the existing mention at "Murder of Reyna Marroquín" after a brief investigation. I had checked the IMDB, but know that is user generated. I think your answer is sufficient to convince me that the link was correct. It would be nice to have an online news source which joins the dots but not vital. I calculated that the 30 days after I added the link got 27 times as many views as the 30 days before, which shows how popular murder is on the internet. TSventon (talk) 16:52, 12 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

October 13

Slowing down time

What are some ways I can slow down time (or relax) without using drugs or marijuana (since I hope to God I don't try any)? TWOrantula^TM (enter the web) 02:45, 13 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Unfortunately I don't have a copy near me right now to check the details, but memory tells me that a character in Catch-22 by Joseph Heller chose to deliberately watch and involve himself in boring activities so that it would feel like he was living longer in a time and place where dying was highly likely. I welcome clarification from those with better memories or an actual copy of the book. HiLo48 (talk) 03:08, 13 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

If Tom Lehrer's inference is to be believed, you could try listening to Das Lied von der Erde on repeat. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 03:28, 13 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Meditation.^[3][4] Some recommend mindfulness,^[5][6] which can be seen as a specific meditation technique.^[7] --Lambiam 08:14, 13 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

For various reasons, I have lately been sleeping in two bouts of about 4 hours in 24, rather than one of about 8. A side effect I have noticed is that time seems to pass more slowly, perhaps because almost every time I wake up it's still the same day. This does of course require one not to need to interact with others on a more normal schedule very much. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 94.6.86.81 (talk) 09:32, 13 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I tend to find that waiting at a bus stop achieves this very well. Shantavira|^{feed me} 18:57, 13 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Depending on your phobic predipositions you may take a few moments following the second hand of the stopwatch. Alternatively or not, do it while listening to some recorded works after Franz Tunder. Without a stopwatch it will require enough free space for pacing back and forth for a few steps. --Askedonty (talk) 19:00, 13 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

There's always the proverbial "watching grass grow" or "watching paint dry". Or, you could get one of your namesakes to keep as a pet in a terrarium, and watch it all day, because they just sit there doing nothing most of the time. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 22:52, 14 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Occasionally wildly dancing a tarantella when nobody's watching. Clarityfiend (talk) 00:33, 15 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

October 14

Questions on environmental sustainability and whitewashing definition

Electric toothbrush#Environmental concerns

In this article what do they mean by "A plastic manual replaceable head toothbrush was probably the best, according to the study."

2020s in fashion#Barbiecore, McBling, and gyaru

And in this article what do they mean by "whitewashing" in this context? 58.104.108.223 (talk) 05:23, 14 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

That term does not appear in the cited sources, but might have to do with white Barbie-doll types being the fashion standard. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 07:44, 14 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

As to the first question, they meant a toothbrush that was fashioned from plastic (and not from bamboo), with the brushing action effected manually, by the user by moving their hand (and not with an electric motor), and with a head that was not fixed, but could be replaced on the toothbrush's handle when it was worn out, instead of the user discarding the whole assembly, not only the head but also the handle. --Lambiam 09:54, 14 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I found the following in source 354 (https://www.teenvogue.com/story/the-y2k-style-trend-isnt-fatphobic-our-attitudes-about-it-are): Ads and runways showcasing the trends also sent another message. In an article called The Fatphobic & Racist Origins of Y2K Fashion Trends, Aishwarya Jagani cites Sabrina Strings in Fearing the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fat Phobia, in which she explains how “Y2K fashion’s emphasis on thinness…erased the creative contributions of the Black community, attributing styles popularized by people of color to the white celebrities of the time.” The popular image of the day was of thin, white women, further limiting what society saw as beautiful.

I believe this is what is being referred to as "whitewashing". --User:Khajidha (talk) (contributions) 11:16, 14 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I don't see the "thorough" criticism (or any criticism) of McBling, though. --Lambiam 16:08, 14 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

October 16