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January 23

Immigrant spouse naturalisation in Israel

The article Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law says that Israel currently bars nationals of a few hostile countries, most significantly the Palestinian Authority, from being automatically naturalised when they marry an Israeli citizen. It doesn't say if these people can still live in Israel with another type of status, or if they can request to be naturalised with a realistic chance of success. Does anyone know the facts please? 94.12.81.251 (talk) 11:23, 23 January 2016 (UTC)

Matters of residency and temporary vs. permanent status are handled by the Ministry of the Interior (Israel)#Responsibilities (official website in Hebrew and Arabic). "Family reunification" is a consideration but no guarantee of either residency or citizenship for a non-Israeli marrying an Israeli citizen of any nationality, while Israel's Law of Return covers applications by those of Jewish ancestry. An application by an individual coming from an area designated as "hostile" would presumably provide a great deal of supportive, documented evidence that "the center of life is in Israel" and posing no security risk. The Association for Civil Rights in Israel offers this extensive article, "Denial of Citizenship," with relevant information under the headings “'Humanitarian Exceptions': The Violation of the Right to Family Life" and "Difficulties in the Formalization of Status of non-Jewish Spouses." ACRI and other local civil rights and human rights organizations in Israel would be knowledgeable about the history and present circumstances of such applications. -- Deborahjay (talk) 14:06, 25 January 2016 (UTC)

Toyota model

What model is this Toyota? I saw no inscription on the front or back. Thanks in advance. Brandmeister 16:22, 23 January 2016 (UTC)

Toyota MR2. Rgds ✦ _hugarheimur 16:29, 23 January 2016 (UTC)

Hint for future reference: Click on the thumbnail. Scroll down to the Summary section. Read the Description. ―Mandruss ☎ 14:49, 24 January 2016 (UTC)

I now see that you added that Description after receiving the answer from Torana. Never mind. ―Mandruss ☎ 15:09, 24 January 2016 (UTC)

January 24

Azad Hind

I was reading our article about Azad Hind and I wondered what was the projected territorial extension of their version(s) of Independent India. Was it to encompass all of British Raj, comprehensive of the newly created State of Burma? What about Sri Lanka/Ceylon? Were Nepal and Bhutan ever considered? Thanks! --151.41.173.96 (talk) 13:00, 24 January 2016 (UTC)

The Japanese sponsored another anti-British force in Burma called the Burma National Army, so I expect it would have caused something of a conflict if Azad Hind had tried to stake a claim there. Alansplodge (talk) 17:47, 24 January 2016 (UTC)

There is a set of Azad Hind stamps, printed in Germany during WW2. Two values feature a map of their intended state, which clearly does not include either Burma or Nepal. The lack of a land boundary, and rather ambiguous shading towards the edge of the design, makes it harder to say if Ceylon was intended to be part of the territory. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.131.178.47 (talk) 10:45, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

NYC–Tokyo flight route

According to Google Maps, the great-circle distance from New York to Tokyo is about 6,700 miles (10,800 km). This arc heads NNW out of New York and almost reaches Prudhoe Bay, skirting the Beaufort Sea. Do non-stop airliners fly this route? Has anyone reading this ever flown the route and seen the Beaufort Sea out the window? ―Mandruss ☎ 14:44, 24 January 2016 (UTC)

I don't know but as an aside, you might be interested in Polar route. Dismas| 15:09, 24 January 2016 (UTC)

http://www.flightradar24.com is a web site that displays the actual routes taken by many airline flights, if the airplane carries an ADS-B transponder. If you search for a particular flight number (say, JL 3 or JL 4) it will display a list of dates and if you select one of the dates in the past then it will show where that flight went. I tried a few dates, looking at both eastbound and westbound flights, and in every case the route was well south of the great circle. From the routes I saw, I would conjecture that they choose routes that do not pass over Russia; perhaps the Russians don't allow such overflights. --76.69.45.64 (talk) 05:37, 25 January 2016 (UTC)

Yeah, I noticed later that the arc passed right down the middle of Kamchatka, and I thought of KAL 007. Thanks for the info. ―Mandruss ☎ 07:27, 25 January 2016 (UTC)

Such flights can and do take a great circle route way up there to the north but sometimes they take a more southerly route. I suspect the jetstream makes a big difference because it's best to fly along it or across it and not against it. Flightradar is a great app and website by the way! Flights between the US west coast and Dubai often take the great circle route over the pole but sometimes go much further south. Thincat (talk) 17:21, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

January 25

Malaysia Airlines Flight 370

Is anyone still searching for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370? It's not clear to me from the article. And who is paying for the search?--Shantavira| 16:43, 25 January 2016 (UTC)

Yes, there are three ships looking for the aircraft, see here. There is information on who is paying for the search at the foot of this page. --Viennese Waltz 16:56, 25 January 2016 (UTC)

Language

I have a question and don't know where else to turn. Hopefully you can answer or direct me to someone/somewhere.

I googled my question and could not find an answer. And since I am retired and the kids are gone, I don' have that resource.

And since your org deals with languages I hope you can help.

I am digitizing some love letters from my grandfather/grandmother from around the turn of the 20th century. I know some of the spelling and terms have changed but one particular word keeps coming up. They keep using the word "unte" and I believe they mean "write". Reminds me of a bank back home that used "trvst" for 'trust'.

Have you seen this abbreviation for the word 'write'?

Love your web site. tks — Preceding unsigned comment added by 162.72.150.11 (talk) 18:55, 25 January 2016‎

Could you upload a sample of that writing? It might just be a peculiar style. As an example, I've seen handwriting from that era where there was an out-of-place lower case "f", until I realized it was a fancified lower case "p". If you count the "humps" in "wri", you'll see that it could possibly look like "un", especially if they fail to dot the "i". ←Baseball Bugs carrots→ 19:09, 25 January 2016 (UTC)

• Yes, the mere fact that handwriting looks like unte when it should mean write is not surprising. The User who asked this question geolocates to Virginia, so he should try going to the local library and asking them for direct help, or, as Bugs said, for them to help him uploading an image here so we can see it. There have also got to be plenty of antiquarians who might help, so if the Original Poster lets us know what big city is closest to him we can probably tell him whose help to seek. μηδείς (talk) 22:10, 25 January 2016 (UTC)

If you look at our article about cursive handwriting then at the top there is an example of Spencerian script. The letter r is written starting high and finishing low, whereas in the other script at the time, the Palmer method, the r starts and finishes high. The more modern D'Nealian cursive seems to give yet another form for the r. Could it be something like this that makes for the appearance you are describing? Thincat (talk) 16:57, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

January 26

Law: Is there any legal system in which the dead can inherit?

For example: A boy, whose divorced parents are alive, has already died. Once one parent - having assets - dies, can the dead boy - inherit the assets - and consequently pass them on to the other parent (although the parents are divorced), in any legal system? HOTmag (talk) 10:36, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

In the literal sense, it wouldn't be logical. Let's call A the owner of the property who has died, and B is the putative heir, who has also died. In a legal system where B would be able to inherit, it must recognise the dead as being able to hold property. But if the dead can hold property, why would A's property be passed on? It would just stay with A. So you wouldn't have inheritance at all.

Or, are you asking a more nuanced question? Let's say A is the testator and B is the designated heir. A dies but B has already died (or dies after A's death but before the estate is distributed). You could ask, at that point do you transfer the property to B's estate to be distributed according to B's will or intestacy rules, or do you treat A as intestate because B is already dead? I can see how different legal systems might come up with different answers. But is that what you are asking? --PalaceGuard008 (Talk) 12:01, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

I'm asking from a practical point of view, rather than from a logical one, so I really meant the second option you've suggested. Just to make things simpler, let's assume no will has been made, so the intestacy rules only - should be applied. Now let's have a look at the following case: A boy, whose divorced parents are alive, has already died. Once one parent - having assets - dies, can the dead boy - inherit the assets - and consequently pass them on to the other parent (although the parents are divorced), in any legal system? HOTmag (talk) 13:34, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

In Swedish law, in the above situation the grandchildren of the deceased would inherit. You could take it to mean that the dead child inherits and immediately passes the assets on to his or her children, but it's not correct to say that the dead child inherits anything. Both in inheritance law and tax law the inheritance is considered to pass directly to the grandchildren. (I don't think "bequeath" is the right word here, since to me it implies a deliberate action.) If there are no grandchildren (or grand-grandchildren etc.) the inheritance goes to the parents or siblings of the deceased and so on. In the situation you describe with the divorced parents the other parent won't inherit, except by testament of the deceased. Sjö (talk) 17:07, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

In other words, the Swedish law is not the legal system I'm looking for.

Btw, by "child" I meant a boy/girl, i.e. a very young person who has no children. Due to your response, I've replaced "child" by "boy", and "bequeath" by "pass on" (thanks). HOTmag (talk) 17:15, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

Maybe in the Philippines, where divorce is (often) not recognised, but that wouldn't be via the boy. There might be jurisdictions where the divorced partner can make a claim against the estate, but I don't know of any where the dead boy would be a factor in the claim. Dbfirs 17:33, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

Well I can think of one example. Chinese law (both People's Republic of China and Republic of China) have a concept of "inheritance by subrogation", which works in that way, i.e. if the first heir dies earlier, it is that heir's heirs, rather than the deceased's second heir, who steps into the shoes of the first heir. However, the application of the doctrine is limited. It only applies to the children of the deceased and their descendants. So if the child is already dead, I think it would be the grandchildren who inherit, rather than that child's divorced surviving parent. --PalaceGuard008 (Talk) 17:47, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

Passing the assets on to the grandchildren, whether in the Chinese Law or in the Common Law or in the Continental Law or whatever, does not prove that their dead parent really "inherits". That's why I'm talking about a "boy" rather than about a "child": As far as I know - no boy can have any children, so if the assets had been passed on to the boy's divorced surviving parent - this could have proven that the dead boy had really "inherited" (probably). HOTmag (talk) 18:16, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

Passing the assets on to the grandchildren, does not prove that their dead parent really "inherits", because they would have inherited anyways - even if no will had been made. That's why I'm talking about a "boy" rather than about a "child": As far as I know - no boy can have any children, so if the assets had been passed on to the boy's divorced surviving parent - this could have proven that the dead boy had really "inherited" (probably). HOTmag (talk) 18:59, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

I don't quite understand what you mean by "proof" that the dead child inherited. Although the Chinese law operates in the same way as continental law, in legal doctrine it works differently. In legal terms, the child's rights are subrogated to the child's heirs; the grandchildren inherit because they have been subrogated, not because they are themselves primary heirs. It so happens that in Chinese law this right of subrogation extends only to the child's children, but as a matter of law it is subrogation nonetheless - the statute says so in black and white. Had the right of subrogation extended to the heir's parents, legally speaking the mechanism would be no different. --PalaceGuard008 (Talk) 19:24, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

(EC) This seems to be getting offtopic but I guess it depends what you mean by "boy". Under many definitions a 13 or 12 year old male would be considered a child or boy and there have definitely been reports of boys that age becoming fathers. There's much more likely to be doubt over the father than the mother. so it's difficult to be certain which ones are true, but it's likely some are. (E.g. although I'm not sure if we can trust the various sources, this case claims DNA tests .) While puberty generally begins at an older age for boys, we are talking about averages here. It's possible some cases like had DNA tests to, it's just not part of the public record which is intentionally slim. In any case, if the person doesn't have children than it doesn't matter whether they are a boy or a 80 year old women based on what you seem to be asking. Nil Einne (talk) 19:34, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

Population uncertainty

The US Census Bureau, the Population Reference Bureau, and the United Nations all publish estimates of current total world population. At present, these estimates agree within about 1.3% (100 million people). That seems remarkable narrow given that the undercount in the US Census alone was previously estimated at nearly 2% , and many countries probably put less effort into demographics than the US does. In the recent past there were other population estimates that disagreed by as much as 15%. Do any of the organizations estimating total world population provide an official estimate of their uncertainty in determining the global population? If so, is it possible to say which countries contribute the most to the total uncertainty in global population? (Presumably due to a combination of large population and relatively poor accounting.) Dragons flight (talk) 15:23, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

I agree that those results are suspiciously similar. The question you should be asking yourself here is whether these agencies are in fact relying on the exact same underlying data. If they are, then you'd expect them to have the exact same answers - and now we have to explain the 1.3% discrepency. Those kinds of small differences could simply be due to the exact way they use that data - or perhaps on the date they picked it up. Suppose (for example) some countries had reported current population data and others had somehow missed the deadline when the UN picked up the numbers - then the late data arrives and the Population Reference Bureau have better numbers. Since each agency only reports annually - you could see how they could be 'off' by a percent or so. SteveBaker (talk) 20:15, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

Actually, it is not all that surprising that estimates of the world population have a lower relative uncertainty than national population estimates. If you add 100 quantities with the same Standard deviation, each quantity having a 10% uncertainty, the total will have an uncertainty of just 1%. This is because errors tend to cancel each other out statistically. - Lindert (talk) 13:20, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

That's assuming the quantities are of similar magnitude. If China or India's population is out by 10% that won't cancel out easily. jnestorius 20:27, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

True, but even then the effect is significant. If there were just six countries the size of India with a 10% uncertainty, the total (about 7.7. Billion) would have a 4% uncertainty. I used a simple example, but of course reality is more complex. If there is systematic undercounting or overcounting instead of random errors, that will not cancel out. - Lindert (talk) 21:04, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

Cost of Living in Poland

Hello. I'm a 25 year old Indian woman who is thinking of moving to Poland. I've been doing some research on the internet regarding the cost of living in Polish cities, and it would be wonderful if someone on this reference desk could tell me what a middle-tier working woman (staying in a single-room apartment or a studio) should be prepared to spend per month for a comfortable life. I'm fresh out of college, and my requirements aren't much. I need to save up for further studies in the future. What is a reasonable monthly expenditure for such a person? Thanks in advance! (The city I'm looking at in particular is Gdansk.) 103.18.75.48 (talk) 19:42, 26 January 2016 (UTC)

Do you have family already in Poland who you would be moving to live with, or a job offer from a Polish employer willing to sponsor a work permit? I don't think you would be granted a residence permit otherwise. If you have the right to live in Poland, this forum thread gives some comments on living costs: 94.12.81.251 (talk) 10:42, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

And to be clear the type of Visa you need is for the Schengen Area, to enter Poland, see Visa policy of the Schengen Area. You may need more if you plan to stay for a long time, and even more permissions if you plan to work.--Lgriot (talk) 20:55, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

I have a job offer from a Polish employer, who will be taking care of my visa and work permit. I need to have a good idea of the cost of living to evaluate the salary I am being offered. Thanks. 103.18.75.48 (talk) 06:37, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

Until somebody who knows comes along, our List of European countries by average wage shows that the 2014 average wage in Poland was Euro 8,278.27 after tax, considerably lower than in Western Europe where it was around 35,000. That may be because it's cheaper to live there or because the average Polish worker earns a minimal wage. The truth probably lies inbetween. Alansplodge (talk) 22:42, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

Maybe this will help you somewhat. 1 Złoty (PLN) is currently worth about 16.5 Rupees. Kind regards ✦ _hugarheimur 22:55, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

January 27

Since when is a pilot called the Captain?

When did airlines adapt the lingo previously used for the shipping industry and why? The major pilot being called Captain, landing strips being called airports, etc. Joepnl (talk) 02:33, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

In the OED Online, the earliest use cited for "airport" or "air-port" is in 1902, but that one refers to a city that is served by aircraft. The next citation, however, is from the London Times in 1914 and it has the modern meaning: "every town of importance will need an air-port as it now needs a railway station."

In the OED Online, the first citation for "captain" in reference to a pilot is from an international conference in 1929: the passage refers to the "captain and crew" of an airplane.

Of course, this does not tell us to what extent other usages competed with these at different times. --76.69.45.64 (talk) 05:56, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

How many cities were served by aircraft in 1902? ←Baseball Bugs carrots→ 17:09, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

Dirigibles? Sagittarian Milky Way (talk) 17:46, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

Airships didn't really get going until after the Wright Brothers. ←Baseball Bugs carrots→ 18:54, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

True. The sentence in 1902 was clearly talking about a future time when aircraft would become practical. --76.69.45.64 (talk) 02:05, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

I will note that the captain of a ship is never called the pilot. The captain of a ship may take on a pilot in approaching or leaving a harbor or in transiting a strait. A maritime pilot is a mariner who is an expert on a particular body of water. To be sure, when the pilot is on the bridge, they are the master of the ship in the same way as the captain otherwise is. Robert McClenon (talk) 17:56, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

I wouldn't be so sure of that. I recall one case where the pilot was so incompetent that, fearing for the safety of his passengers, the captain took over. 188.220.211.30 (talk) 18:13, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

IIRC, the Captain of a ship is responsible for it, even when his first-mate (and he's off-duty, sleeping), or a harbour-pilot is at the tiller. LongHairedFop (talk) 19:07, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

EO claims the term "airport" dates to 1910. ←Baseball Bugs carrots→ 18:54, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

That's when Bader Field, outside Atlantic City, New Jersey, opened, but it wasn't called an airport until 1919. Dbfirs 19:02, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

And indeed that's the date that that source gives for "airport". The OED's 1914 beats it. --76.69.45.64 (talk) 02:05, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

Following up from the London Times citation mentioned above, I wonder why aviation followed the nautical terminology ("airport" cf. "seaport") instead of adapting from land travel ("aeroplane station" cf. "railway station")?    → Michael J Ⓣ Ⓒ Ⓜ 04:03, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

Not an answer, but navies have naval air stations, which to me sound quite cool and sci-fi. --PalaceGuard008 (Talk) 09:52, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

In the UK, there was an early distinction between an airfield and and airport. The latter being set up for international flights. In that context, on an island - the use of "Port" rather than "Station" makes sense because it's a 'portal' into the country, just like a sea port. In the UK (before the channel tunnel) there was no way for a train or a car to travel internationally other than by air or sea - and in both cases, you'd use a "port". I don't think the US usage of the terms match up in quite the same way - and things are getting blurred by the passage of time.

On an aircraft, the distinction between "pilot" and "captain" is that there can be two people who 'pilot' the aircraft - but only one of them is in ultimate command (the 'captain') - so all captains are pilots - but only some pilots are captains. SteveBaker (talk) 14:37, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

The official aviation terms are "pilot in command" and "pilot flying" (or "handling pilot"). I don't think "captain" has any official meaning in aviation (as opposed to being a useful term to reassure airline passengers), but I may be wrong. Tevildo (talk) 20:33, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

Sadly, the word aerodrome fell out of favour in the UK after the Second World War, but was widely used instead of airport before that. See Croydon Aerodrome. Alansplodge (talk) 22:32, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

The term is still in use for the smaller airfields - Sywell, Fenland, and Goodwood are a few quick examples. Tevildo (talk) 22:42, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

Lowest temperature of Dubai

Hi!
What's the lowest temperature ever measured in Dubai?
Calviin 19 (talk) 16:59, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

According to our article on Dubai#Climate, it's 6.1°C (43°F). Warofdreams talk 17:14, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

It's here. But is it the record?--Skyscraper1996 (talk) 17:52, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

Am I being scammed?

Soul Mates

Trying to find if Rachel Hunter was in Soul Mates as it shows in her Misplaced Pages or is it Rachel House? Under Soul Mates it shows Rachel Hunter.

Kmcclain77 — Preceding unsigned comment added by Kmcclain77 (talk • contribs) 21:32, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

IMDb says Rachel Hunter, and the picture on the cover they have for the movie looks, to me, just like Hunter. -- Finlay McWalterᚠTalk 21:36, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

There two different "Soul Mates" 2014. See and . Rachel House (actress) plays "Mum" in the Australian ABC TV series. Dbfirs 21:53, 27 January 2016 (UTC)

January 28

American equivalent of British Council

Does the US government has an equivalent of British Council? --IEditEncyclopedia (talk) 07:35, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

Probably the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs is the closest equivalent. Tevildo (talk) 10:50, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

See United States Information Agency which was shut down in 1998. Alansplodge (talk) 13:30, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

I believe its successor is the Broadcasting Board of Governors. --Jayron32 18:09, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

I saw that, but thought it might be barking up the wrong tree; please correct me if I'm wrong. The British equivalent of that is probably the BBC World Service. The part of the agency which ran the overseas libraries seems to have been done away with (we seem to have lost a contribution to this thread which talked about British and US libraries in Lisbon). Alansplodge (talk) 19:11, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

The Bureau of International Information Programs is responsible for "American Spaces" in "embassies, schools, libraries, and other partner institutions", so they might be another candidate. Tevildo (talk) 22:48, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

Mr._Irrelevant

I just discovered this concept, which is quite fun. Mr._Irrelevant#Notable_.22winners.22 has some interesting information about people who went on to do well, like play in a Super Bowl, but that might be an average or below average player benefiting from being part of a great team. Has any Mr Irrelevant ever played in a Pro Bowl, which I presume is based on a perception of their individual performances? --Dweller (talk) 17:01, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

Jacque MacKinnon (1961 NFL Mr. Irrelevant) played in two AFL All-Star Games, the AFL equivalent of the Pro Bowl. As the NFL considers the AFL to be a full major league, and incorporates all AFL records into the NFL record books, that should qualify. --Jayron32 18:07, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

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