flyfisher

All those BCers with a mattress full of £50s should check them carefully because the 'Houblon' fifty is being withdrawn at the end of April. I was just looking for official advice about forgeries and came across that news in a Bank of England FAQ here: http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/pages/about/faqs.aspx A further search revealed that this was all over the news last month, though I didn't notice it at the time. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-25758063

Yep, legal tender, but still raises suspicion. Fortunately, the chap in our village shop was very enlightened and when I handed him a Scottish note he'd just ask me how I got on during my salmon fishing trip.

Difficult one. If you can prove the £50 came from the pub then you could confront them because, even unknowingly, they have not fulfilled their part of your contract, i.e. they've only actually paid you £150. If they just deny it - and they're hardly likely to admit a criminal offence are they - then I can't see what you can do other than Big_Stu's suggestion about telling them you're going to the police about it. I'm a bit surprised they took it in the first place though. On the very few occasions that I've tried to spend a £50 note anywhere, I've been viewed with great suspicion and all manner of UV lamps and special pens have been deployed to verify its authenticity before accepting it - and even then only begrudgingly. They are almost as bad as Scottish notes!

I love this particular version . . . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKprKZHYfl0

[quote name='ChaosAD' timestamp='1393116684' post='2376462'] flyfisher - Thanks doc [/quote] Not a doc, but do have some personal experience of such injuries (not myself, thankfully). Seriously, if you ever find yourself in the midst of a bike accident, don't hold on to the handlebars as that's how your arm may be wrenched so hard that the nerves in the brachial plexus can be damaged - easier said than done when reflexes kick in of course. Extreme neck movement can do the same thing, hence the susceptibility for bikers.

Poor girl. Sounds like a Brachial Plexus Lesion injury - a not uncommon motorcycle accident. Is she particularly drawn to the bass? I'm just wondering if piano/keyboards might not be more suitable?

Much as I like Lynyrd Skynyrd, I can't let that suggestion go without mention of the more laid back approach of the original master behind the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aCOMU6qpJI

Possibly the weirdest pair of posts ever?

I woke up this morning . . . With a twist http://youtu.be/SZ89xtmyqT4

You sat in front of that tv for 46 years ? I've been fortunate to see the great man a few times. Last time was quite a few years now and he had to sit for most of the performance, but there was nothing wrong with his playing and I see from his website that he's still gigging regularly.

[quote name='steve-bbb' timestamp='1392903674' post='2373966'] isnt it just! out of sheer desperation (and possibly a sign of old age) i now tune to radio 4 during the daytime [/quote] Desperation? Old Age? Shame on you! I'll have you know that R4 is the dogs doo-dahs of intelligent broadcasting. Where else can you hear programmes about the lives of contemporary scientists (The Life Scientific), sociological issues (Thinking Allowed), ruminations on the nature of statistics (More Or Less ), environmental issues (Costing The Earth), arts and culture reviews (Front Row, ), moral issues (The Moral Maze), all manner of history (In Our Time), as well as the usual plays and comedy, news and in-depth analysis. And that's without all the regular music programmes. One about 12-bar Blues already this week and an hour-long appreciation of the life and music of Pete Seger tomorrow at 9pm. I may be old, but there's no desperation about my wall-to-wall R4 around the house. Give it a fair try and you may never buy a television licence ever again.

Just read on the BBC website that Bowie won best male artist. I have no particular problem with that but it must say something about the state of our young talent at the moment. Guess he's not too popular in Scotland right now though.

Outright lies will, of course, be an offence under Trades Descriptions legislation (though I'm sure it still happens) whereas 'non-meaningful' parameters are fair game for the marketing department. Thing is, we buy stuff based on specification and bigger is usually best, even if we don't actually need what's actually being specified. The 0-60mph time for cars has always made me laugh, especially when you see how it is achieved in practice! Anyone driving like that on the roads would need their head examined yet it's a key specification for every car on the road. I suppose such things can be helpful for comparison purposes, but its easy to get carried away in the "spec wars" and lose sight of what we actually need from the product in the first place. Funny old world.

[quote name='leftybassman392' timestamp='1392797856' post='2372753'] How's the Mackie? [/quote] Still going strong!

Never look back . . .

I listened to that yesterday and very interesting too. I knew Chris barber was right at the forefront of the 'British Blues' boom but I didn't realise quite how pivotal he'd actually been.

I'd say cabling only becomes a problem if it isn't thought out and planned for beforehand. I don't mean before every gig, but planned as a stage area layout. yes, active cabs need mains power, so make up the appropriate cables. We buy or make up instruments leads, speaker leads, XLR leads so why not pay the same attention to mains leads? I like to have enough cables/adapters to bring all the power back to a single point behind the stage. We then only need one cable to a suitable mains socket, via an extension lead if necessary. Simple. If we're putting together a full-on set up with a remote desk then I use a 16/4 x 30m snake from behind the stage/band area to the desk. To save having mic, monitor and DI leads from the front of the stage/band area trailing across the stage I use an additional shorter 12/4 snake box at the front of the stage and around it to connect into the main snake box behind the stage. A single sheet of paper with a simple diagram of what goes to which channel makes it pretty quick and easy to set up.

Thanks for the update - it's frustrating when topics like this are left hanging. Should be a simple fix for them to replace the jack socket. Hopefully they'll also fit new batteries as well!

[quote name='White Cloud' timestamp='1392730247' post='2372019'] The unconscious mind is generally in control and benevolent...but is open to influence in a way that is staggering. [/quote] There has been some intruiging research in this area that suggests we don't have free will. Basically, monitoring the brain when someone is asked to do something like move a finger and the activity involved in moving the hand has been measured to happen BEFORE the subject DECIDES to move it. It's a controversial area, but quite fascinating. http://io9.com/5975778/scientific-evidence-that-you-probably-dont-have-free-will (and other stuff if you search for it)

Just do whatever [u]you [/u]feel most comfortable with and don't worry about what anyone else would do. There are no rules.

I'll go with that - I certainly found it engaging. The Parkinson's segment was interesting for me as I was once peripherally involved in schizophrenia research many years ago, investigating the role of dopamine - which seems to crop up in many areas of brain research.

[quote name='Beedster' timestamp='1392678100' post='2371628'] Agreed re controls, but in our lab work we use multiple baseline repeated measures designs that take many months to conduct, Horizon had one day to shoot a story about it. The email trail between me "we must do proper science" and them "we must make a programme that gets the message across" is, shall we say, lengthy. In fat, I applaud their patience. All things considered, they were right. Horizon isn't for scientists, it's about engaging people who aren't always able to grasp the niceties of control conditions, statistical significance, type-II error etc, but to whom the subject matter is of relevance even importance (hence Horizon's reliance on a personal case study as opposed to a population level approach). If I'd been the producer it would have been very different programme, but nothing like as useful to the average BBC2 viewer! [/quote] Yes, it must be a difficult line to tread but as you rightly say it has to be entertaining.

Interesting programme. Obviously they only get a few minutes to dramatise a whole lot of research but one point that struck me during the cycling trial as shown was that there was no real control, or not one that was explained. The programme made a point of including the cyclists saying they would not normally race twice in one day so presumably there was no reference for what their second performance would have been without any pills - placebo or not. We might intuitively think they would all be slower because of tiredness, but that's not quite the same thing as a rigorous scientific trial. Against that background, was the result that about half of the riders performed better during their second race really statistically significant? I'd guess it was, otherwise why make the programme segment, but it wasn't entirely clear - to me at least. A very interesting line of research though - especially the fully disclosed placebo trials. That really is weird!

Next up - Ps or Js ?

[quote name='lojo' timestamp='1392635790' post='2370807'] found it .. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhemzPTYdJE[/media] [/quote] Great playing but I just can't get Dury's vocals out of my head when listening to it and it's hard to imagine them being improved upon.