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March 15[edit]

Why is it called a changeup?[edit]

I know that a changeup pitch in baseball is one designed to make the batter think it's going to be a fastball, but which actually comes much more slowly. But why is it called a changeup? The "up" would seem to me to imply faster, not slower. HiLo48 (talk) 08:04, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

A common phrase is "change [something] up" (presumably because [WAG] one is hoping for an improvement or upturn, as also in "shake things up"). Clarityfiend (talk) 08:45, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I am in agreement with Clarityfiend. I do not think "up" connotes increased speed. Instead, it connotes tossing a conventional perception up in the air, creating a moment of confusion to gain an advantage. Cullen328 (talk) 09:10, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Looking at my copy of "The Dickson Baseball Dictionary" (1989 edition), it presents an interesting history. The original term, in the 1880s, was "change of pace", which merely indicated varying the speed of delivery. It could be either an increase or a decrease. In time it came to be synonymous with a "slow ball", a pitch delivered with the same motion as a fast ball, in order to confuse the batter, as Cullen suggests. In the early 1950s, the term "change of pace" had become kind of passé, and the term "change-up" or "changeup" replaced it. It means taking some speed off a pitch, and theoretically can apply to either a fastball or curveball. What it doesn't say is exactly how the "up" part of it came to be. But as Clarity indicates, "up" is a very adaptable word. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 11:06, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
"Up" doesn't necessarily mean what it implies in English. If you turn the air conditioning "up", are you making it colder or hotter? Changing something "up" can easily mean the opposite of what some people think and exactly what other people think. 75.136.148.8 (talk) 11:10, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Yes. I've sometimes heard "slow up" when the speaker actually means "slow down". ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 11:12, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
And not surprisingly, we have an article: Changeup. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 11:12, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Yes, I'd already found that article. (I forgot to mention that. Sorry.) But it doesn't explain the "up". If you look at the Talk page, you will see I've asked the same question there. Realising an answer there was unlikely to appear quickly, I came here, with much more success. Maybe we can update the article once we figure we have the right answer here. HiLo48 (talk) 22:56, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Note the many uses of "up":[1]Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 00:56, 16 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Looking for the term in Newspapers.com, it seems to have originally been a verb, e.g. a coach telling a pitcher to "change up". And the term was used for other things, such as changing up the members of an organization or whatever. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 11:23, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

page for an actor[edit]

hello please help to upload a page for a working actor. thanks Sevenforwiki (talk) 13:41, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I'm assuming this is in regards to Raayo S. Bakhirta? You were given multiple notices indicating what was wrong with your draft: it did not indicate notability, had no citations, and read like an advertisement. That's disappointing, but creating a new article at Wikipedia is very hard (see Help:Your first article for more) and the general advice we give people is no not do that. At least at first. Start by editing and fixing other articles until you get a feel for what a decent article should look like. Some of the helpful hints provided on your talk page indicate you may have a conflict of interest with the subject. Creating an article about a friend or someone you're a fan of may seem like a good idea, but it really isn't: having an article about you on Wikipedia is not always a good thing. Matt Deres (talk) 14:19, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
thank you Sevenforwiki (talk) 14:57, 15 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

March 16[edit]

Characters in the same film looking way too similar[edit]

What examples does film history know where characters in a film looked so confusable that it was actually disturbing for the audience and/or their understanding of the plot? Three examples I know so far:

I sometimes have that problem with Forties movies, in which makeup(?) makes all women look alike. —Tamfang (talk) 19:40, 20 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Making tracks[edit]

banned user
The following discussion has been closed. Please do not modify it.

In its Getaway 2024 supplement on 1 February the Daily Mirror introduces readers to Ticket to ride, a board game played in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, described as "A cross between Risk and Monopoly" ("Risk" is not a game I've heard of before). The "aim was to build train tracks between London tube (subway) stations." How does it work, exactly? 92.0.5.230 (talk) 19:54, 16 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

See Ticket to Ride (board game). I've seen it on sale in the North-east UK, so it is not limited to Bury St Edmunds. I have not played it. -- Verbarson  talkedits 20:00, 16 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Available in Hamleys in London too, who say that it's "one of the most successful games of all time and its widespread popularity has led to the creation of several expansion sets". [2]
We also have an article on Risk (game) which says "it became one of the most popular board games in history, inspiring other popular games". Alansplodge (talk) 21:47, 16 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

March 17[edit]

Are there Sith Jedi?[edit]

I mean Force adepts like the Jedi Order, but on the Dark side, and not counting the two Sith lords at the top. I saw the first few movies but am not versed in this stuff. Thanks. 2601:644:8501:AAF0:DC2F:54F8:9B31:AE51 (talk) 02:20, 17 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Yes: by definition, Sith and Jedi both use the same 'Force', but broadly Sith use it for good evil and Jedi for evil good. Some may change sides. See the article Sith for details. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 51.198.186.221 (talk) 05:25, 17 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks, that helps some. It says there was historically a Sith order, but Darth Bane instituted the rule of having just two Sith at a time. So I guess my question really is whether the Sith lords have any other Force adepts working for them, or just "muggles" (regular folks like Moff Tarkin, without Force abilities). If yes, any idea how many? It's ok if the other adepts aren't officially called Sith as long as they are Dark and serve the Sith Lords. That would include e.g. doing special ops for the Empire by the time Darth Sidious is running it. Thanks again. 2601:644:8501:AAF0:DC2F:54F8:9B31:AE51 (talk) 06:31, 17 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Jedi are good, Sith are evil, not the other way round (unless you're a MAGA Republican). Clarityfiend (talk) 07:40, 17 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
D'oh! Corrected. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 90.213.188.170 (talk) 04:27, 18 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
According to the section Sith § Timeline, "At an unknown point in time, numerous Jedi become disillusioned with the Jedi Order and exile themselves, forming the Sith Order." In the non-canonical Tales of the Jedi the break-away faction are called "Dark Jedi" and exiled by force. "Sith" was originally a name for the native species of the planet they settled on; after subjugating them, the head-honcho Dark Jedi proclaimed himself "Dark Lord of the Sith". Again, this is not canon.  --Lambiam 23:50, 17 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks, I'm mostly interested in the timeframe of the movies, let's say during the lifespan of Anakin Skywalker aka Darth Vader. In that era there were two Sith lords at any given moment. Of course the Sith lords had various underlings piloting their spaceships or whatever. I'm trying to find out if any of those underlings were Force adepts, maybe to counterbalance the Jedi, so it's not 2 against N. Any idea? 174.160.238.145 (talk) 03:29, 18 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
The Star Wars franchise is extensive – very extensive; you would need to read, listen and watch through the relevent canonical print books, audio books, radio adaptations, comics, and films to find out. Perhaps someone reading this thread has and will respond, or perhaps you can adopt this as a hobby for the next couple of years. {The poster formerly known nas 87.81.230.195} 90.213.188.170 (talk) 04:37, 18 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Well I thought maybe it would be an important matter in the saga, ion which case someone would know about it. Oh well. I see in Count Dooku's biography that he had several Sith apprentices, maybe before becoming Darth Tyranus, the junior Sith lord. So that sounds roughly parallel to the Jedi order. That helps. 174.160.238.145 (talk) 05:57, 18 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Wookieepedia is likely to be a more comprehensive encyclopedia than Wikipedia on this kind of thing. For example, it has an article on the Imperial Guard, which states that some of them were "Force sensitive". AlmostReadytoFly (talk) 13:10, 19 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Yes the Sith Lords do have "other Force adepts working for them". Asajj Ventress is an example. Staecker (talk) 19:16, 23 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Yes, there are force adepts working for the Sith. The inquisitors are good examples. Industrial Insect (talk) 18:36, 27 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

March 21[edit]

Celebrities posting a picture knowing it would be used as an online meme?[edit]

Hi, I am looking for cases where celebrities posted a picture of themselves knowing that it would be used as an online meme – maybe when they were holding up a white piece of paper, maybe even asking people to edit it to make it read all sorts of weird stuff? 2001:9E8:688F:3800:914F:4887:D96D:54FE (talk) 07:53, 21 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I think Stephen Colbert used to have a thing called "On Notice" where you could insert your own list of items. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 16:42, 21 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

March 22[edit]

When the narrator addresses the character[edit]

I've been listening to South African radio recordings of The Avengers and some times the narrator says something to the character, such as "You should have seen that coming Steed!" . Is there a special name for this theatrical technique? TrogWoolley (talk) 03:19, 22 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

This happens in Our Town, a play by Thornton Wilder. Our article describes it as part of Metatheatre. HiLo48 (talk) 04:05, 22 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
It may be insufficiently common to have been given a recognized name. It is in a sense the mirror image of breaking the fourth wall: the message is communicated from the real world into the fictional universe, instead of characters in the fictional universe addressing an audience in the real world. The latter is much more dramatic, though, because it absurdly implies that the fictional character knows there is another universe "out there", with sentient observers. The narrator talking to the character merely suggests that they are so absorbed by the narrative that they forget it is not really happening.  --Lambiam 11:28, 22 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Breaking the fourth wall is usually a communication from the characters to the audience - communication that actually gets through, and therefore does 'break' the wall. In this (Avengers) case, although the narrator addresses the character, I assume that there is no evidence that the character hears anything, so I would still see it as just commentary.
I could be wrong, not having heard or seen the performance in question. I'm sure I have come across a narrator successfully communicating with a character (ie warning or instructing them) but I think it would have been in an animated cartoon or film. Perhaps Fantasia (1940 film) does this when the narrator talks to the sound track. -- Verbarson  talkedits 15:46, 22 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Not the narrator (nor a play), a character talking to another character in a film within a film in Woody Allen's The Purple Rose of Cairo. Clarityfiend (talk) 03:08, 23 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
A good example of a narrator who interacts with the characters in a story is Isambard Sinclair in the British animated series Danger Mouse. Both Sinclair and Danger Mouse were voiced by David Jason. Turner Street (talk) 10:40, 28 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
It happens fairly often in classic Warner and Hanna-Barbera cartoons. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 19:48, 28 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Has a buzzer beater ever been decided by a single frame?[edit]

It should be harder now with cameras of 60, 120 and more frames per second becoming increasingly available. What would they do if they can't tell? Would they ask everyone in the stadium for photos and video that might have frame(s) with unlit backboards and no ball contact? If the basket counting would be a 3 that wins by 2 they couldn't just say screw this, let's just give full or half credit whichever makes overtime the winner chooser instead of us. Sagittarian Milky Way (talk) 13:32, 22 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Not likely they would appeal to fans. As with any other replay situation, they would check to see if there's incontrovertible evidence that the call on the floor was incorrect, i.e. whether the ball left the shooter's hand before the backboard lit up. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 16:11, 22 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
A 2 foot shot released 2 feet below the rim is best done at about 10 miles per hour (4.5 meters per second) and a close 3 pointer released 2 feet below the rim is best done at about 8 to 9 meters per second so if there are enough 30 or 60 hertz buzzer beaters there should be one where the hand is clearly touching one frame, clearly not the next and clearly lit for the first time the frame after that. So it could be unambiguous at closer than 1/30th or 1/60th of a second with any given 30 or 60 hertz video having one frame of proof at most. Sagittarian Milky Way (talk) 05:25, 23 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Judging when the ball left the hand can be easier said than done. Depends on the camera angle(s), for example. And in the current tournaments, they've had lengthy reviews of out-of-bounds balls in which it's hard to tell, even at close range, who last touched it. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 13:48, 23 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
True, the official cameras might have bad angles. They should add official angles everywhere, regular and many frames per second many pixels. They have new 50 megapixel cameras for a few thousand or less and 960 frames per second for a few thousand or less but both at once for 2 hours with more than a few thousand frames not deleted at any given time isn't easy. At least I'll probably live long enough to see something like that if they can't do it yet. They have cameras now that show the hand tissues recoil from barehanded cricket catches. Cause a cricketer can be out or not by millimeters and milliseconds and then he can't play for 3 days. This is impressive cause a cricket field can be up to 0.11 miles wide (Australia's largest Test cricket field is about 0.1 miles wide in both directions). Sagittarian Milky Way (talk) 15:21, 23 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
The organization would first have to be convinced of the need for the extra expense, given how seldom your described situation arises. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 16:48, 23 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Rachael Blackmore and Gigginstown Cheltenham Festival winners[edit]

How many of Rachael Blackmore's 16 Cheltenham Festival winners were owned by Gigginstown? I know that Honeysuckle and A Plus Tard were not owned by Gigginstown. (78.19.48.239 (talk) 15:16, 22 March 2024 (UTC))[reply]

There's no evidence she rides for the stud (I don't know if she rides for any of the trainers they place their horses with). Shows how little I know about racing - I never heard of the outfit till now. Anyway, her winners are at Rachael Blackmore#Cheltenham Festival winners (16). For the stud's Cheltenham record see [3] and [4]. For the ownership of Rachael's rides see [5] then enter name of mount. Long story short - the answer to the question is "none". 2A02:C7B:210:BA00:31A4:5438:18D8:D093 (talk) 13:56, 23 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

March 25[edit]

Game from Sleuth[edit]

In the main ground-floor room where much of the action takes place, there's a game or puzzle set out on a table. It's a large board, divided into 3 x 10 = 30 squares and populated with two colours of differently-shaped pieces. Wyke says it's an "intensely complicated 4th Dynasty blocking game called Surmount" At least, I think that's what he says, but searching game surmount and puzzle surmount give nothing helpful. Searching is proving difficult as there are games called Sleuth, which naturally overwhelms the results. Searching for sleuth puzzle brings up the pure white jigsaw puzzle that is also prominently displayed in the film. Does anyone know what the game is? Here's a screen grab I made: link, but it's not very clear. Matt Deres (talk) 01:18, 25 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Senet. 41.23.55.195 (talk) 05:48, 25 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Great - thank you! Matt Deres (talk) 20:04, 25 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

March 26[edit]

Average NBA score each year[edit]

Is there a free way to see the mean or median score each year without checking every game? Regular season or all non-exhibition games? It's very easy to find this as points per game or 2XX,XXX points, 1,XXX games but not 1XX-1XX (average score of the game winner 120.1 or whatever, average score of the game loser 109.8 or whatever) Sagittarian Milky Way (talk) 20:29, 26 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The average total score per game should be relatively easy to find. Now if you can find the average margin of victory, you can calculate the average score. Clarityfiend (talk) 23:25, 26 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I wasn't sure if the average margin of victory can't be one of those average paradoxes. Sagittarian Milky Way (talk) 05:14, 27 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

March 28[edit]

Alphanumeric code in Marvel comics[edit]

I was reading some old Marvel comics, and I noticed that the page after the cover always had a small alphanumeric code. For example, this page from Fantastic Four #1 has the code "V-372" (located to the right, just above the last panel on the page). What were these codes for, and why are they there? Lizardcreator (talk) 01:04, 28 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Pretty sure those are story assignment codes to make sure that the artists got paid properly. --User:Khajidha (talk) (contributions) 11:59, 28 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
See also signature mark. Shantavira|feed me 09:12, 29 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

March 29[edit]

Top Gun: Maverick plot line inspired by Bob Hoover?[edit]

Shortly after the release of Top Gun: Maverick, former project script writer Zack Stentz reported on Twitter that David Ellison had asked him (and Ashley Edward Miller) to "to shape the third act of Top Gun 2 around a real incident that happened to Bob Hoover during WW2". In concrete terms, Maverick stealing the enemy F-14 was inspired by Hoover stealing a German Focke-Wulf Fw 190 as a prisoner of war and escaping into allied-held territory with it. Stentz' admission has been reported by a German film website and adopted into the German Wikipedia article on the film. As far as I have seen, no English media have taken up that confession at all. Though some sources noted the similarity and assumed a connection, Stentz' revelation was unknown to them: "So far, nobody has come out and directly said the Bob Hoover story inspired Maverick’s return to the silver screen". Is there a reason not to believe Stentz, or why was he ignored? --KnightMove (talk) 11:51, 29 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

If nobody else has said it but the scriptwriter, is that a sufficient citation? ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 12:45, 29 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I would say so, yes, at worst with the explicit qualification "according to Zack Stentz". Jerry Bruckheimer's claim that Ridley Scott "was laudatory in his praise for the film and the kind of care that Tom took to honor Tony throughout the movie..." persists in the article, and for a long time without qualification, although Bruckheimer is the exact opposite of a neutral source here. In this specific case, Zack Stentz should know what he is talking about, and no motivation is obvious why he should make that up (several witnesses could expose this as a falsehood). --KnightMove (talk) 13:17, 29 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]