whycantigetagoodnickname

Ed Milliband - I have just seen him on Watchdog talking about how he will fight for electricity companies to freeze or lower their prices for a year or so and so save the average UK household about £50 a year. Sounds good so far. I have 2 questions about this:

Is the £50 to £100 more or less than the average household spends on the Labour parties fuel duty tax accelerator that Ed Milliband helped introduce when Gordon Brown was apparently in charge?

Second question is how long will it be before he raises taxes to claim that saving as increases in tax?

This is probably an easy question to answer and I think I know it - but just want to confirm what I am thinking.

So:

Imagina a runner, running at 4.4444 m/s (10mph) runs 1 mile, the runner weights say, 65kg, he will use some energy (the amount is not so relevant)

I have 3 scenarios to consider:

1a. The runner turns a 45 degree corner with a radius of 5m, maintaining his speed and continues to run his mile. How much additional energy will he use to turn this corner and change direction (thinking centripetal acceleration might come into effect here)

1b. The runner does another mile, everything is all even and equal except this time the radius of the corner is 10m. How much additional energy will he use to turn this corner? In both cases his total distance is 1 mile.

2. The runner now runs a straight mile but climbs 10m over the distance - how much energy does he use to gain this height (Just to confirm for me that this is mass x height gained)

Just curious

Thanks

I've just bought a house that only has electric storage heaters working off an economy 7 supply. Hot water is from immersion heaters in the hot water tank.

I would like to perhaps install a different system that will be more cost effective, and am wondering what the best options might be in the UK.

The house is a 1940's semi-detached in Glasgow (so solar power might not work, though rain power might!!), has a main fireplace downstairs and one up stairs that can be opened up (good condition, just need the metal work and wood to burn), large front and back garden. Nearest gas supply is 200m away so will cost a few thousand to install gas main plus a few thousand to install gas appliances. The house has cavity wall insulation and double glazing, loft insulation is about 100m deep (haven't had chance to check yet) and can put additional insulation in there (I want to board out the loft, insulation can also go under the tiles). I have no idea about underfloor insulation - probably none. Instant heat will have to be from electric fan heaters.

So there it is. What are the best options for me - I want to make the house warmer, have hot water and cost less over the next 5 years or so.

If you can give me an estimate of cost and potential savings that would be even better.

The answer might be to leave it as it is and have higher electricity bills but not spend thousands to reduce the power costs

I have a buggy that has front braking only and due to its design can't be retrofitted with rear wheel brakes as well.

When sitting on the buggy the weight is over the back wheels and in braking there is not enough weight over the front wheel and so at speed the braking is not efficient - the front wheel locks up. No steering or stopping power which is a problem at speed!

To get a bit more down force on the front wheel I am thinking that a pair of front wings is the solution (pair - one on each side). Adding perhaps 10kg of down force would make the buggy a touch safer.

I have done some reading round on the subject and just want a few bits confirmed if that's OK?

The basic wing dimensions I am thinking about is going to be about 400mm x 200mm on each side. I am looking at a basic flat plate design for ease of manufacture (B&Q Can cut a piece of 5mm plywood to size, I drill a couple of holes and bolt it on) or a simple shaped wing perhaps with a 25mm or more leading edge

So here are the questions:

A. A flat plate wing could be used but a shaped wing looks ot be more effective. What sort of diameter curve should I be looking at making for the leading edge?

B. For both a flat plate wing and curved wing (assuming a simple curved wing with a flat top (upside down plane wing - for down force)). What would be a typical angle of attack for a wing 400 x 200mm?

C. What is the potential down force for a wing of this size and also what sort of additional drag would it produce?

Then of course, is there anything else I might like to know? Oh typical buggy speed is about 10mph

Thanks

Hello,

I am putting together a little website and have come stuck with this:

I am trying to write some Javascript code, in separate files from the web page since the code will be used in several places. One file has the commonly used code with smaller files loaded as and where it is needed alongside this larger common file. This reduces the file sizes quite a bit, no need to load lots of info if not needed.

Anyway, I have 2 files with functions in each. File 1 has say, functionA, file 2 has FunctionB

I want FinctionB to get the output from FunctionA to process it. Easy to do if the functions are both in the same file but these are in separate files - is there a way to link the 2 separate files to that the output of FunctionA can be used by FunctionB (and without having to put FunctionB in the same file as FunctionB since this would make a very large file)

Not interested really in "Don't use that method, use another method" type of answers, just the technical way to call FunctionA within FinctionB

Cheers

Some races are described as having 'Personal Best' potential for runners, but why? What makes these courses faster than others. Obviously hills will make you slower (going up) or faster (going down) but what else might have an effect?

I am meaning here the actual route, and not the runner themselves - why do I run faster on some routes than others - what affects my speed with regards to the physical route I am running

Hello,

I have aset of about 100 data points that when plotted make a nice 'S' curve shape. It would be useful for me to be able to translate these points into a formula.

So my question is, given a set of data points, how do I figure out the formula?

Links to websites would be helpful if it is too much typing for here.

Just a curious one for you all.

In a town centre are pavements classed as rights of way? In the countryside rights of way are well defined and are shown clearly on an Ordnance Survey map (In England anyway, Scotland is a bit different). However the footpaths in a city are not shown with the green dotted lines indicating a right of way.... so are they a public right of way (I am thinking here the open footpaths within the city centre, that pedestrians have free access to and have had free access to for many years, and also pedestrianised areas). I am thinking that they should be - and here is another question - where can I find this out?

So now here is why I am curious - Glasgow is being overtaken with Bland coffee chains selling Americanised litres of coffee in paper mugs (yes, I know litre isn't an american drink size), and these shops are spilling out onto the street with pavement cafes. Now in Glasgow there is maybe 2 weeks of the year where you wouldn't get hypothermia sitting outside to drink a gallon of coffee. Back to the point - these cafes are blocking parts of what I am assuming to be a public highway and right of way? Is this illegal? (there is one that has large plant pots chained together so they are definitely obstructing the path, others have advert banners round them blocking the path).

So can anyone tell me, do I have the right to walk on the whole pavement (If I wanted to could I take my own seat into these areas and eat my own picnic?), and is blocking these paths illegal, or verging on the dodgy?

Cheers

I saw this question in the running section, and I am wondering what the cyclists thoughts are (I am copying it word for word here so apologies to the original questioner):

cycling (at elite levels) is 100x more difficult than running in my opinion. i mean, TDF riders go 30+ mph CLIMBING THE FRENCH ALPS!!

people say the running:cycling ratio is approx 1:4, well in that case someone would need to run 500+miles at an extremely high speed to compare with TDF riders

i mean lance Armstrong ran the boston marathon. there is no way a a marathon runner could complete the TDF

no disrespect to runners, but cycling is so much more challenging, especially mentally

I was wondering if all you clever people could help me out here....

Over the course of my life I have signed up to various websites, forums and so on, each requiring a login name and password. Now it can be tricky to remember them all and I don't want to use the same login details for all (and I don't want the computer to 'remember me' either - shared computer and all that goes with it)

What I have done is create a simple HTML page with all these passwords and login details and a link to the login page of each site - dead easy, open up my page, 1 click later and I am where I want to be (quicker than a web search or favourites bar sometimes).

So here is the next step and where I need a little help.

I have all these login details and so on - is there a way to automatically populate the login form with these details in a simple way (perhaps simple javascript saved in the HTML page?) - so one click and I am logged in?

Any help would be good, better would be a worked example

Thanks

Here is the background to my question, and it may fuel the old rivalry between Scotland's 2 biggest cities....

I lived in Edinburgh for a year, it was good, the town centre was a pleasant place to go and the surrounding areas were well kept - I know this because the local council depot had street cleaners in and out from 6 in the morning.... however Edinburgh looked nice on first appearances with this hard work.

Now I have moved to Glasgow, and all I can think is how dirty the streets are, in fact, you have to remind yourself to stop looking at the dirt as you walk along. So my question is, does Glasgow council really want to portray the impression that Glaswegians love to live in such a dirty city? A road sweeper down each street, say once a year might not come amiss to be honest.

To help you answer here are a couple of quotes from the council websites:

Glasgow council website says:

"Although the Council provides litter bins at various points throughout the City it is up to each individual to be responsible for their own litter." - if it is dirty it is the people who live here who have to go out their way to sweep the streets

Edinburgh Council website:

"Street Cleaning services in the city operate seven days a week 24 hours a day in the city centre. If you have any complaints or enquiries please contact Services for Communities or Rapid Response." - if I see that it is dirty, a rapid response team will come and clean up!

Wonder why I got the impression that Glasgow is a dirty city!

Anyway, what is your impression, is Glasgow really a dirty city?

(I'm not suggesting that Glaswegians throw their litter in the street, however litter can get there - things falling off trucks, paper blown out of litter bins, and so on, without people dumping it)

I have had a car now for a few years, and every so often I pop into fill it up with petrol. Now I reckon that in the miles I have driven I've filled up maybe 500 times.

90% of the time when I have filled up I have had my phone in my pocket and to be honest it is a pain to turn off then on again.

So my question is based on this experience.

Assuming that a 6 pump petrol station has perhaps 250,000 customers in a year and I have never heard of one blowing up, perhaps there are 4 surrounding my house giving 1,000,000 fills a year, and assuming say, 50% of the people don't turn off their phone when filling (in reality it is more than that)

What is the risk of a phone causing an explosion - and has anyone ever heard of this happening.

All petrol stations carry a sign saying to turn off mobile phones you see

I have just seen BBC news and there was a group celebrating something outside the Palace of Westminster (I didn't say I was listening). The celebration consisted the group shouting loudly and drinking in the street.

Don't misunderstand me - I am not against drinking and do enjoy a drink - however I believe that Westminster council area is 90% no drinking on the streets. The penalty for this is £500 fine plus having the drink poured down the drain.

What I don't like is inequality in society - everything should be even and fair - and if I was wandering round that palace, shouting and swigging from an open bottle of wine, then I am sure one of the many policemen there (or women - fair and equal) would have a word with me and confiscate the drink.

So should these people be prosecuted based on the TV film evidence and should the BBC be done for encouraging them (I am sure if there was no camera the bottle wouldn't have been opened then)?

Just wondering what your thoughts are.

Hello,

Just out of curiosity...

I have a 3D drawing of an machine that I would like a model off.... does anyone out there know how much 'Rapid Prototyping' or 3D printing would cost (in the UK) for say, a piece 12" long, 3" wide and 4" high. I'm not at the stage with the drawing and process to get real quotes - just after a budget price for now (or a rough guess!)

This is a thing that has interested me for about a year now and I haven't quite plucked up the courage to try it.

For those that don't know - and there will be many I guess who don't - Barefoot running is becoming a bit more advanced and where Zola Budd ran in the olympic without any shoes, the newer thought is to have a very lightweight shoe, basically just enough to hold a sole to your feet. This sole is just to stop the tarmac ripping your feet to shreds, with no cushioning (I mention this before people out there give me answers to questions I am not looking for).

If you read any articles (like the one in this months Runners World) everyone says it is either brilliant, or there is nothing wrong with it, and these all sound like sales pitches eventually

So my question is, have any of you tried it? how did you get on? Has it caused any problems? (that is the one I want to know, has anyone picked up any injuries with barefoot running). What are you experiences with Barefoot running?

(This is before I spend £80 on a pair of shoes.... don't want to find I am wasting my money!)

Hello,

I am looking for some advice and pointers.

I an engineer and thinking about going it alone as a consultant to smaller contracting firms to provide advice, designs and paperwork - and that side of things I can do OK, I think there is a demand for this. The big consulting firms have the large projects sewn up but not the small projects that still need the quality advice.

So bearing this in mind I will be needing to set up a business and this is where I need a bit of advice.

To start with this will be a sideline (that doesn't conflict with current employment of course) until it is up and running.

The idea is I get the contract, do the work and get paid. The cheque goes into my bank - but I need to sort out things like taxes and expenses and this is the bit I need some advice from people who have done this. What do I need to do?

I am assuming I need to work out tax - and what I can claim as business expenses, insurances, employing people on an ad-hoc basis and that type of thing.

OK I expect a few answers saying "Talk to the tax office" - which I will do, same with insurances and so on, but I would appreciate it if any has any tips from actually having done this.

One last part of this - regarding tax - how does this work if you have 'full time' employment and another source of income?

Thanks

Hello,

I am looking for some advice and pointers.

I an engineer and thinking about going it alone as a consultant to smaller contracting firms to provide advice, designs and paperwork - and that side of things I can do OK, I think there is a demand for this. The big consulting firms have the large projects sewn up but not the small projects that still need the quality advice.

So bearing this in mind I will be needing to set up a business and this is where I need a bit of advice.

To start with this will be a sideline (that doesn't conflict with current employment of course) until it is up and running.

The idea is I get the contract, do the work and get paid. The cheque goes into my bank - but I need to sort out things like taxes and expenses and this is the bit I need some advice from people who have done this. What do I need to do?

I am assuming I need to work out tax - and what I can claim as business expenses, insurances, employing people on an ad-hoc basis and that type of thing.

OK I expect a few answers saying "Talk to the tax office" - which I will do, same with insurances and so on, but I would appreciate it if any has any tips from actually having done this.

One last part of this - regarding tax - how does this work if you have 'full time' employment and another source of income?

Thanks

Hello.

I have recently installed the ETAP power calculation software (Electrical calculation software).

This is software that I haven't used before and I am keen to learn about it so my question is - Do any of the Yahoo Answers community have a simple users guide to the software, or a link to an online guide (I have had a quick look on the etap website - there are demonstrations but no users guide that I can see)?

If I can be a bit cheeky - do any of you have a sample project made up in there that you could email me ad I can figure it out from there? That would be very useful.

Thanks for your advice in advance

Hello,

I am going to do the Great Winter Run, a 5km race or fun run around Arthurs seat in Edinburgh. Half of the run is up hill and half is down hill.

Generally in ra ace there are rules regarding things like in line skates, cycles etc.. however nothing about sledging. Now for all of you not in Edinburgh this week, it is quite snowy. So what might the rules be for running up the hill and then sledging down the hill for the rest of the course?

I am prepared of course to use a plastic bag instead of the sledge

What are your thoughts - cheating or just making a fun run more fun?