Sermil and the Banter of Randomness: Random Banter #228

[Jasdoif]

Americans can American their measurements as much as they like...but I can't abide by measuring dry ingredients by volume (at least when they're more than a tablespoon).

Put them in oz. if you must, but what on Earth is a cup of flour!?

About 236 cubic centimeters.

So since I ended up making popovers today...the cup of all-purpose flour was 138 grams.

...which I guess reiterates the importance of labeling units.

[Peelee]

So since I ended up making popovers today...the cup of all-purpose flour was 138 grams.

...which I guess reiterates the importance of labeling units.

It also sounds like I'd much rather just scoop it up in a small ladle than dump some on a scale and add or remove a smaller amount a number of times until the number matches up.

Also, you should specialize your flour!

[DataNinja]

Oh boy, is it that time already? Where we argue about measurement systems until the cows come home?

[Tvtyrant]

Oh boy, is it that time already? Where we argue about measurement systems until the cows come home?

Cows coming home is an inaccurate time assessment system, as it does not tell us the cows time zone or home coming preferences. As the Rooster crows at least tells us sunup, while still not illuminating which sunup.

[Jasdoif]

It also sounds like I'd much rather just scoop it up in a small ladle than dump some on a scale and add or remove a smaller amount a number of times until the number matches up.

I just zero-ed the scale on the empty one-cup measuring cup, and weighed it after filling and leveling it. (Added bonus of using the same measuring cup for the milk, catches any flour still clinging to the cup!)

Also, you should specialize your flour!

That's for special occasions; like if my little sister and I are tag-teaming a culinary project, or an interesting-looking variety ends up at Grocery Outlet, or it's on sale, or something. Only the first of those has ever actually happened that I can recall.

[Anonymouswizard]

It also sounds like I'd much rather just scoop it up in a small ladle than dump some on a scale and add or remove a smaller amount a number of times until the number matches up.

On the other hand to me I can't imagine doing it via scoop, because it's so much easier to just poor it onto the scales and then adjust to the right cricket ground.

Oh boy, is it that time already? Where we argue about measurement systems until the cows come home?

Is that an Imperial bovine or a metric bovine'?

[Aotrs Commander]

Unfun fact: my elenthnar (who have five fingers plus one thumb) are split harder in this; about half of them use base 10 and half use base 12 and pretty much the biggest proponents of each base actively HATE each other and have for centuries. (One of the base-12 lot is, like, literally Alien NOD.) And that has been the cause of some famous historical tragedies when the twain were mixed. (Though by the current time, the two systems don't use the same numerals and most computers have, like, a toggle to switch between - but the elenthnat are a good couple of centuries past humans. But just absolutely as bad as humans in every respect, right down to them being ludicrous factional and believing they are the one standard that all species are measured against. (E.g. humans, by elenthnar!D&D, would get stat modifiers, because they are not the baseline.)

[Peelee]

On the other hand to me I can't imagine doing it via scoop, because it's so much easier to just poor it onto the scales and then adhust to the right cricket ground.

Reason #2000 (roughly) of why I love the British: I have no idea whether or not "cricket ground" is a legit phrase.

[SZbNAhL]

Reason #2000 (roughly) of why I love the British: I have no idea whether or not "cricket ground" is a legit phrase.

It is, but almost certainly not the one Anonymouswizard intended to use.

[Anonymouswizard]

It is, but almost certainly not the one Anonymouswizard intended to use.

Nah, was intentionally using it wrong. Like baking with a Dalek.

[Bartmanhomer]

I've toned down my hyperactivity tremendously but I'm still autistic. There's no toning down for that.

[Wizard_Lizard]

It didn't get destroyed because some people worked in US Customary and some in metric. It got destroyed because that information was not conveyed. It was a communication issue more than anything. While I normally am all about changing the US over to metric, and it wouldn't have happened to start with if they had all used metric, communication is still important and it wasn't happening there, so I would prefer things like that get exposed in non-manned, non-essential missions than potentially more important or manned missions.

Point noted, but a universal unit of measurement is less likely to introduce communications errors.

[Peelee]

Point noted, but a universal unit of measurement is less likely to introduce communications errors.

Oh totally. But communication is always key, and that is something embarrassing enough that it's highly likely they will err on the side of caution in communication from here on out, regardless of whether they unify or not. Which I count as a plus.

A horrifically expensive plus, but hey, silver lining.

[Bartmanhomer]

So anyway tonight was another great solo session. My team faces 4 Lemures and it was a very easy fight. Han managed to Sneak Attack damage one Lemure with his Light Crossbow. Sariel used a True Strike spell then K'yorl uses a Bless Spell to buff everybody attack power then Darrak finishes to kill one Lemure off. Hagar finally kills the second Lemure with a critical hit by his Light Crossbow. The two remaining Lemures missed the attack. Then Hagar damaged the third Lemure with his Light Crossbow. Han finished the third Lemure off with his Light Crossbow in the additional of Sneak Attack Damage. Sariel used her Light Crossbow with only one point of damage then Darrak finish the final Lemure off with his Dwarven Waraxe. And everybody earns 240 XP.

[Peelee]

Finished putting Flashforge V2 back together with fancy all-metal hot end and 0.3mm nozzle. Test print started, approx. 1 hour print time. I am very excited, but it's going to be a late night tonight.

I also have a fire extinguisher on standby just in case I borked everything up.

ETA: Filament loaded fine, test print failed almost immediately. I'm calling this a "tomorrow" problem.

[enderlord99]

Finished putting Flashforge V2 back together with fancy all-metal hot end and 0.3mm nozzle. Test print started, approx. 1 hour print time. I am very excited, but it's going to be a late night tonight.

I also have a fire extinguisher on standby just in case I borked everything up.

ETA: Filament loaded fine, test print failed almost immediately. I'm calling this a "tomorrow" problem.

How exactly did you get the name "Peelee" from that?

[Peelee]

How exactly did you get the name "Peelee" from that?

By posting in the wrong thread and moving it to the correct thread.

ETA: Test print now succeeding!

He says with optimism in his heart.

[factotum]

Meanwhile, in the converse situation I'd be like "Flour is supposed to warrant getting out a scale now?"

Most of the time, if you're weighing out flour, you're presumably going to be baking, and you have to weigh out other ingredients anyway, so it's not really a hardship? Especially if you have a scale with a mixing bowl on top that you can zero out after adding each ingredient.

[Peelee]

Most of the time, if you're weighing out flour, you're presumably going to be baking, and you have to weigh out other ingredients anyway

In America, flip it around; if you're going be baking you have to volume out other ingredients anyway...


Look, there's no good single verb for "find the volume of," ok?

ETA:

Spoiler: GREAT SUCCESS

Show

[Jasdoif]

In America, flip it around; if you're going be baking you have to volume out other ingredients anyway...

Indeed. I was baking, after all, and no part of "4 eggs, 2 cups milk, 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt" calls for weighing.

Though honestly, now I'm much more curious where the delineation between "usually measured in terms of liters" and "usually measured in terms of grams" is for culinary ingredients. And, well, if it's actually specific to metric usage or a more general "volume vs mass/weight" thing.

[Fyraltari]

Honestly, the discovery, a couple weeks ago (I am doing an internship in a press company and we translate magazines from english to French), that in the US and UK, teaspoons and tablespoons and stuff are not rough measurment like they are this side of the channel but actually precisely defined units blew my mind. Like are all your spoons standardized? And how do you measure 1/8 of a teaspoon anyway? Nevermind why you would need to be that precise when cooking anyway.

EDIT:

Indeed. I was baking, after all, and no part of "4 eggs, 2 cups milk, 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt" calls for weighing.

Though honestly, now I'm much more curious where the delineation between "usually measured in terms of liters" and "usually measured in terms of grams" is for culinary ingredients. And, well, if it's actually specific to metric usage or a more general "volume vs mass/weight" thing.

Over here, when cooking, liquids ar emeasured in volume and solids are weighted.

Though butter bricks (is that the right word?) often have helpful lines printed on the inside of the package so you can cut fifty or one hundred grams without breaking out a scale.

[Rater202]

We have specifically defined measuring spoons.

Though an actual eating teaspoon or tablespoon is close enough for government work, just make sure to level it off unless the recipe calls for a "heaping" spoon or cup.

[Aotrs Commander]

ETA:

Spoiler: GREAT SUCCESS

Show

Woohoo!

Good news.

[Fyraltari]

We have specifically defined measuring spoons.

Though an actual eating teaspoon or tablespoon is close enough for government work, just make sure to level it off unless the recipe calls for a "heaping" spoon or cup.

Ah yes, that makes sense.

[Jasdoif]

And how do you measure 1/8 of a teaspoon anyway? Nevermind why you would need to be that precise when cooking anyway.

If the situation really came up, you'd use a measuring spoon with 1/8 tsp capacity. At one point we had a set of measuring spoons that included 1/8 tsp . While I'm pretty sure we never used it, the presence of such a measuring spoon in a general set makes me believe there's some sort of demand for it....

Though butter bricks (is that the right word?) often have helpful lines printed on the inside of the package so you can cut fifty or one hundred grams without breaking out a scale.

Ah; our butter sticks have similar for marking tablespoons.

[Tarmor]

Cows coming home is an inaccurate time assessment system, as it does not tell us the cows time zone or home coming preferences. As the Rooster crows at least tells us sunup, while still not illuminating which sunup.

I've had roosters... if they crow to register sunup, then they have a time/spacial-sense that registers sunup in multiple locations throughout the day. As remarkable as that sounds, there's only so long you (or your neighbors) are prepared to consider its remarkableness.

[Cazero]

I've had roosters... if they crow to register sunup, then they have a time/spacial-sense that registers sunup in multiple locations throughout the day. As remarkable as that sounds, there's only so long you (or your neighbors) are prepared to consider its remarkableness.

Common relativity error. Try slowing down your rooster significantly below the speed of light. It might require slowing down your local galaxy.

[Aotrs Commander]

HA. HA. HAAAAAAA.

Hey, Peelee?

Spoiler

Show

Frackin' A, am I right?



And, even better, my 128gb USB flash stick that we bought not long ago eplictly for the purposes of another layer of back-up? Files are vanishing past the top folder level (space is used, no files on the disk). So all the time I spent this morning backing up my files? Wasted. Got to do it again, on the much smaller 32gb where I can't fit everything!

Yaaay.

[Wizard_Lizard]

Just restarted a campaign with the same players. Had a session zero today, that was fun. The last campaign sort of dissolved into a cluttered mess, so hopefully my slightly more experienced and organised approach works out better.

[Aotrs Commander]

Oh goody. And now I just discovered, while trying to see if I had the second part of a two-parter series, that the author, whose books were a jor part of your childhood died 13 years ago in a horrible traffic accident, merely a day after finishing what would be final trilogy.

That's cheerful, innt?