superstar dj

40 year old home in North East. Wood house with drywall-finished bedrooms.

Two bedrooms have baseboard heaters. When I crank them to 73F (kids' rooms) at night, the wall just above them gets so hot I can barely touch it.

There's nothing blocking them. Lots of good airflow. They're both about 2' below closed, modern windows.

Obviously the drywall is safe, but is there a risk of igniting the wood frame? I cannot find a single news story about this. (Chief risk seems to be leaving something flammable on the baseboard heater.

Obviously, replacing with space headers is not an option. Could consider an in-wall fan heater.

I'm a writer and would like to describe observed exponential growth, but distinguish it by showing that it is very fast. As I see it, the population of the U.S. is growing exponentially, because the group responsible for creating more people are the actual people that were previously created -- 2% annual growth on 300 million is still 6 million people. But this is very different than Moore's Law, where there is maybe 50% annual growth in the number of transistors on a chip.

Both are exponential, but one is very different because the doubling occurs every 18-24 months.

Does mathematics have a word or phrase that distinguishes this fast doubling -- where the underlying thing is basically unrecognizable in just 20 periods -- versus slow doubling?

I'm trying to compare premium coffee prices today with the nominal price of a typical, non-premium cup (Styrofoam) from around 1980-1985, or so.

Note -- not looking for the price of raw beans. Just a few examples of the literal, nominal price at the cash register. Thanks!

We live in Michigan but my wife's family lives in San Salvador and has remained relatively safe. However, my children and I speak English -- they are under 8, half Latino, and speak some Spanish.

We will fly there for the last week of March. If we stay with family, rent a car, and drive to beaches, etc., should I be concerned for our safety? If we were robbed, it would be one thing. I'm actually not staying awake at nights worrying about that -- it could easily happen in New York or Paris. But I am worried about kidnappings of American children and indiscriminate gun violence. Are these a risk, or is ES comparable to Detroit or whatever?

I hit big west-coast mountains about 3 days a year and always pray for POW and often hit fluffy glades. But I live and ski normally on the east coast. I need to upgrade my 2001 parabolics (Fischer 168cm; apx. 90-60-80). Should I get a typical all-mountain ski; say rocker with 110-90-100; or something more suited to powder -- say rocker with 140-110-130?

Just a range. Like 10-15 hours?

I'm 37 and switched from a sporty urban lifestyle to a car-based, stress-based, suburban-parenthood lifestyle about six years ago. Since then I have gradually gained about 15 lbs; my long-run weight graph has sloped gradually upward this entire time, though a couple of triathlons and running races have shown dips. I've always stayed in decent shape (e.g., able to run 5k in 30 min any day in the past 6 years).

In the past 7 weeks I had a persistent cough and phlegm that seemed to go away 3 weeks ago, but 2 weeks ago I caught a head cold (painful top-of-head; tired; mind racing; needles in throat), that went away after 10 days. At the start of that, I began to lose some weight -- 193 to 189 lbs. This is shocking to me as for 6 years I have always gained weight unless I seriously exercise, and I am not seriously exercising. All of my symptoms are gone, but I'm still a bit tired/sleepy. In the past 5 days I dropped to 186 lbs -- I have not been 186 lbs in 3 years. I have not changed my diet and have not exercised more (one 5k run per week, max). Possibly, with a warm spring, I have spent more time enjoying the outdoors and that has caused it. Not sure.

Should I see a doctor, or be glad?

I used to be a slight sceptic of the moon landings. One thing that still bothers me is how easily the astronauts escaped the moon's gravity. I.e., the lunar gravity is 16.7% that of Earth's, so I sort of figure they need a rocket 16.7% that of what propelled them off Earth. Instead, their entire launch vehicle, including fuel tanks, was about the size of a Volkswagen.

Other factors that cross my mind:

- I don't think the moon has a significant atmosphere; perhaps Earth-based space ships have to hold back on their velocity until the air is thinner; thus, they have to be big enough to deliver an Earth-departing fuel load above say 30,000 feet.

- Things that did not launch off the moon and that did launch off Earth, include: a) the lunar orbiter and the third astronaut; b) part of the lunar lander; c) all of the fuel required to control the lunar descent

- Perhaps I don't get the math -- perhaps there is a squared or cubed relationship between 16.7% gravity and 16.7% fuel required to escape the moon's gravity.

- Maybe the Earth's gravity counts as well -- if they launch toward Earth, does it offset the moon's?

Just making stuff up here. Would appreciate a scientist's view.

I think it begins with some hipster kids walking down to a river. There's slow motion panning. But the key element is that toward the end the plants sprout these interesting CG blooms or growths on them.

The song was a bit like Belle & Sebastian -- similar style, anyway. But a younger band. Likely 2010 or 2011.

I feel I have a swollen lymph gland on the left side of my neck. It began to hurt a week ago at a specific point in my neck (about 2 inches left of centre and slightly higher than my adam's apple). It has become worse daily; now the pain extends along a thin line up behind my ear and down to my shoulder; I feel a bit of discomfort inside my throat -- almost like a very light gag reflex.

I am exhausted from work and have not slept properly for weeks. My kids also just recovered from throat infections. I assume it is one/both of those; but hope to rule out anything more serious. Thoughts? Thanks

I have a dozen tricks I use, but I want to teach my organization (a multinational) to adopt practices that cut misuse of email and better manage inbound email. I'm looking for a great article on this: McKinsey, Harvard Business Review, or a random blog post.

Saw this on CBC or possibly Global or CTV in the mid 1990s. It was a light drama or comedy. The plot centred around a young poor married couple in the north, or in a small town. The husband was trying to make some money chopping and selling wood, and the wife the same with pies. They never have money. They were trying to get pregnant. In the climax, the husband falls through ice in a river up to his chest and cannot get out.

Would love to see this again. Only saw it once.

I usually take a trip to the rockies each year. And each year, I swear I will do more training before arriving. So, I took up mountain biking in August and have built up good strength in 3 months, including some serious hill climbs (well, 3 reps up a 300 foot ski hill during 2 hour rides).

Is cycling the best cross training? I run a lot, but gave it up for the most part to focus on cycling.

I do a short weight workout in my basement too; I feel that jumping jacks -- while they seem childish -- are good because they get my 30-something, cubicle-dwelling bones used to being thrown about.

Are there any travel agencies selling all inclusive packages to Tunisia; I only see Europe.

Must be downtown. Are there any that night? Drinking, dancing, madness?

Dancing, drinking, madness. Any options?

In my early 20's I read Great Expectations and A Tale of Two Cities; I loved the writing in both, but have always had trouble finishing long novels. (I did finish the first after a few false starts).

I'd like to enjoy Dickens again, but prefer a shorter novel of high quality. Can anyone recommend the place to start?

I plan to study for the June 2011 exam. I have a set of CFA's own books from 2006 and am casually reading the economics section, which is among the least likely sections to change year to year, I think. However, I'd like to purchase the Schweiser package to formally begin studying. Does anyone know what month it is typically released? I.e., does it come out in the fall before the June exam, or the January before the June exam?

Pieces of pink foam that were nearly weightless floated on the field about every 15 minutes, sometimes delaying the game. About the size of a jumbo pizza box. The roof was open so they likely came from a nearby condo. Cannot find any mention of it online.