The Random thought thread

[rgmwa]

33 minutes ago, Jerry_Atrick said:

Re the credit card thing, it is the banks duty to ensure that, when you apply for new credit that you can afford it (they also should be doing periodical reviews on your existing revolving credit - of which a credit card is a revolving credit line). They are on the hook for your debts and if, after you going broke, the client can prove that they could not have afforded it and they disclosed all relevant information, the bank gets a fine to boot (over here, anyway)

 

Yes that makes sense and I don’t have an issue with it. I was surprised because I had to declare my full superannuation balance as part of my application but their issue was that I wasn’t drawing it as a pension and my part time income alone was not enough. Making occasional withdrawals  from super didn’t count as income. 

[willedoo]

I've just been listening to the wireless on the ABC channel and they've been talking about high tech household stuff. Stoves that cost thousands of dollars and self clean at 500 degrees celsius. People using their smart phones to turn on the air con while they're driving home. One bloke can unlock and open his gate from anywhere in the country using his phone. Robot mowers and vacuums, the list goes on.

 

With all this smart technology about, I must be in the dumb category. I still don't have a sealed driveway or running hot water.

[red750]

When I left school, I joined the Commercial Bank of Australia Limited (CBAL) in 1961. I worked for them till 1986 when they merged with the Bank of NSW to form Westpac. I continued working for Westpac until 1991, when banks started rationalising staff and introducing computers in branches. Obviously they did not require two lots of staff, as duplicated branches and departments were merged, so many staff were retrenched. I had been working in a suburban processing centre which was closed, and I was let go. But I still had 2 Westpac credit cards.

 

The other night, after 11 pm., I got a text from Westpac questioning a debit to one of the cards from Optus Prepaid of about $50. I have no business with Optus Prepaid, and certainly had not used my credit card recently. I replied to the text that I did not recognise the transaction. Next morning I got a phone call from Westpac, to clarify details. The transaction was stopped, the card was cancelled, and a replacement card was isssued.

 

Both my cards normally have zero balances or small credit balances no more than $10. I generally use them at parking stations where debit cards are not accepted, and the occasional online purchase. I have not cancelled them as I would never get another card, and it's handy to have recourse to some credit in case of emergency. I have been retired for 16 years and my superannuation has been fully drawn and spent.

[red750]

I received a reply from OneTrack. He said he used to enjoy the forums, but got sick of the personal abuse from one member in particular and has decided to leave.

[red750]

Here is the device in place.

 

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

1 hour ago, red750 said:

I received a reply from OneTrack. He said he used to enjoy the forums, but got sick of the personal abuse from one member in particular and has decided to leave.

He's thin skinned then.

 

I'm still here after all the abuse I've endured.

[old man emu]

2 hours ago, red750 said:

Here is the device in place.

 

Can you get WiFi with that? 

[red750]

1 hour ago, Grumpy Old Nasho said:

He's thin skinned then.

 

I'm still here after all the abuse I've endured.

Yeah, but you asked for it.

[Jerry_Atrick]

9 hours ago, Grumpy Old Nasho said:

He's thin skinned then.

 

I'm still here after all the abuse I've endured.

I was going to ask abut you.. Glad you're still here. 

 

@red750 - First, it's good to hear he is well.

 

Maybe you can entice him back by letting him know that the Block User feature works very well?

 

Send him our best, anyway.

[red750]

I received a welcome email from Cochlear Limited which included the following note from a user.

 

 “Don’t expect to hear speech right away. You will hear sounds. One needs to have patience because it can take a while to hear speech clearly. The learning curve is different for everyone. It depends on how much time and effort one puts into learning to hear with a cochlear implant. It’s not like a hearing aid where you will be able to hear instantly. The more you work at it, the more successful you will be.” – Cathy, who has a cochlear implant.

[facthunter]

Good advice. You are a very Lucky Man to Be able to get this Aid to Hearing. 

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

16 hours ago, red750 said:

Yeah, but you asked for it.

That's only an admission that you blokes have been abusive.

 

Too bad Onetrack didn't stay on, I could have told him about the latest developments with Veterans medical treatment which has been broadened and somewhat fast tracked. It's still a bit woeful and uncaring, but getting better after all the work that Veterans Associations have been putting in. 

[facthunter]

GON will not be Happy, IF everything is going OK. He would have to change his forum name as well..  Nev

[old man emu]

3 hours ago, red750 said:

“Don’t expect to hear speech right away. You will hear sounds.

I wonder if the experioince would be like an infant learning to speak. First they hear sound, but soon learn the meaning behind those sounds. Perhaps a person could start listening to a language that was not their naive one and learn to speak that language.

 

Has your speech been affected? I mean, can your spoken words still be understood as they were before yoiur hearing failed?

[old man emu]

I've forgotten how to use my whizz-wheel to calculate Density Altitude, so could someone answer my this, please?

 

A few weeks ago, a deep High Pressure system moved across South Ausralia and Victoria. I saw a pressure reading of something like 1040 hecto-thingies. If that was the airpressure, and the OAT was, say 15C, ignoring Moorabbin's height of 50 ft AMSL, what would the density height be with those meteorological conditions? 

[facthunter]

There's a Formula for density Altitude that all aviators should Know. It compares what the conditions are Compared to the Standard ICAO Definition. (It Used to be ICAN), It's 15 C and 1013.2 at sea Level, I think each degree is +/minus 120ft and each Millibar  something like 30 ft, If I look it up Now I might Lose this Post. Nev

Edited 22 hours ago by facthunter
typo

[old man emu]

I was expecting you, Nev, to have your whizz wheel close by to enable you to give me an answer. Maybe you'll have it by tomorrow morning. I'm going to bed now. Goog Night

[rgmwa]

I had to look it up and these figures are a bit approximate:

Adjustment for pressure based on standard temp of 1013 HPa is about (1013-1040) x 27 feet/HPa giving PA = -729 feet (negative).

Temp rises as you go lower at about 2deg per 1000 ft so temp at -729 feet temp is 15- 729/1000x2 = 16.4 deg approx.

which from DA = PA + 120 (ISA -OAT) = -729 + 120(15 - 16.4) = -897 feet. 

You're flying 847 feet below sea level allowing for the 50 ft at Moorabbin. 

 

I would have failed the exam today but hopefully would have passed it once upon a time. 

 

 

 

 

[willedoo]

It's a bit ironic when you have to bend down to pick up your pick up tool that you dropped.

[rgmwa]

1 minute ago, willedoo said:

It's a bit ironic when you have to bend down to pick up your pick up tool that you dropped.

Just shows you didn’t really need it. 

[old man emu]

12 hours ago, rgmwa said:

Temp rises as you go lower

I should have stated that the temperature to use was 15C, and to ignore temperature differences due to altitude since that would not come into the calculation in this example. The DA in this case would only be affected by air pressure. I wonder how operations were conducted when an altimeter was not really useful. I doubt if an altimeter sub-scale would go to 1040.

[facthunter]

It's called the Kollsmann Scale and it has a wide range. You MUST include temperature in your DENSITY Altitude considerations. You work on the  difference between actual and the standard ICAO  figure at the Level you are at. A BARO Altimeter is only a Barometer with a different Face.  Various forms of those would be on ships to  help with weather predictions and tidal HEIGHTS. long before Planes flew. Nev

[old man emu]

2 hours ago, facthunter said:

You MUST include temperature in your DENSITY Altitude considerations.

I fully agree that temperature affects DP from sea level upwards, but in my question I was only considering air pressure at a stated temperature. Obviously the 2 degree/1000 ft cannot apply to an altitude below AMSL, unless you are doing a water landing on the Dead Sea. 

 

The upper value of the Kollsman scale on an altimeter is 31 inches of mercury is equal to about 1,050 millibars.

[facthunter]

It applies to any Pressure altitude, below sea level included  It's adiabatic. P1 V1/ T1 = P2 V2/ T2 =s K Universal Gas equation. Nev

[facthunter]

 IF any Place is close to sea level, A  baro above 1013.2   by much will push it to below AMSL  pressure height. Nev