Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with monkey

My Little Monkey Head

AzraelBrown — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 13:10:00 -0800

French translation question: "little monkey head"? In "Penguin Island", Anatole France refers to unattractive body parts twice as a "little monkey head", "petite tête de singe" -- above is the original french, below is a google/babelfish translation:

"...et une petite tête de singe au-dessous du nombril."

"...and a small monkey's head below the navel."

"...et il semble qu'elle ait à chaque articulation des jambes une petite tête de singe."

"...and she seems to have at each knee a little monkey head."

I'm comparing the main english translation of this book, and the translation adds that the monkey head below the navel is a "stain", but the French has no corresponding mention of it; the knee one is extremely rearranged in the english translation to try and make sense of it. I'm guessing it's a colloquialism -- France has a lot of innuendo and language-play in the rest of the book -- but I can't find an explanation for this description, let alone using it twice to refer to two different people. Any French-speakers have any idea what France means by the little monkey head - or is it purely descriptive?

cartoon hero names A-Z suitable for monkeys

miagaille — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 06:24:25 -0800

I work in a lab with rhesus monkeys. They need names. For reasons of historical precedent and notational convenience, lab animals are usually named alphabetically, from A ("Abe") until you run out of monkeys. For reasons of awesomeness, we're naming our monkeys after spunky cartoon characters. So, please help me come up with the best comic/cartoon/superhero names for each letter of the alphabet. We currently have two monkeys: Zim and Yogi (we started from the end of the alphabet). Eight new monkeys are arriving next week, and probably more in the months and years to come. The names should be short (no more than two syllables) or have shortened forms. Both male and female names would be great. We're especially in need of the rare letters (X?); we could skip them, but that would be less awesome.

Note: no monkeys were harmed in the preparation of this AskMe, and no monkeys are maimed/killed/dissected in our lab, either. They live long, healthy lives, which is why we need good names from the start. Thanks!

Island of Dr. More-asses....

ladypants — Mon, 18 May 2009 11:31:06 -0800

How can I make a monkey with four asses? Hypothetically of course.

I'm studying for my developmental biology final and one of the study questions asks how one could conceivably create web-footed mice as designer pets. (One answer involves preventing inter-digital cell death by inhibiting bone morphogenic protein (BMP) signaling. One could do this with strategically placed beads soaked soaked in Gremlin protein.)

So the natural extension of this question is: what if I want to make designer pets with webbed feet and four asses? How could I accomplish this?

In terms of what constitutes an ass: I am less interested in anuses than buttocks. Four sets of round bilaterally symmetrical buttock muscles coated in subcutaneous fat would be the gold standard. And they can be anywhere on the organism although dorsal positioning seems more traditional than ventral.

Don't worry, I'm not actually making any little monsters. I am curious about non-limb muscle development and I'm having trouble finding information about it. So I'm interested in any ideas on how the classic four-assed-monkey could be made. Any information on the developmental regulation of musculature would be helpful as well as any info on butt-region related signaling.

Help me organize my music

mizrachi — Sat, 02 May 2009 10:57:49 -0800

My music is all over my computer. I'd like to consolidate and organize. I just downloaded Media Monkey and it tells me I have over a 1000 more songs than iTunes tells me I have, my usual player. Why? I have no idea. I don't know what steps to take. I'd like it kept as simple as possible. I'd also like it as automated as possible. While I have no real preference of music player, I am used to iTunes and I like the iTunes store. That said, if Media Monkey can do it all, I'll switch over. I'm just afraid that if I rename some of the folders or move things around I'll screw everything up. I also would like the folders organized and named after the artist and not, as many of folders are, a series of numbers.

Cruel by inevitable extinction of Excel monkeys

Anonymous — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 15:01:20 -0800

What to do about the inevitable irrelevance of my skill set? I do primarily VBA work in Excel and MS Access an Ops department for a large, publicly traded company. I also do MS Access DB development. This is pretty much all I do, not a side function of a larger job, but my title is 'analyst' -- it doesn't reflect what I do.

I also do process improvement projects, though I'm not a Six Sigma person. It's very ad hoc: meet with department staff, try to draw their disparate spreadsheets and methodologies together, come up with a solution they can all use that doesn't involve six people keeping track of X six different ways. Since there's often some kind of report manipulation or emailing such and such to so and so a hundred times, there's usually some automation, or the development of a database, etc.

I'm not a computer science major; I was a humanities major. I'm reasonably good at this, having done it to for more or less ten years. The past five years as an Ops person, the first five years as part of a solutions development team for end users. Then I used VB5 or VB6. My current company won't allow my area to use VB (IT is technically elsewhere -- I'm not in IT.) I learned VBA after VB.

My career is stalled somewhat (I took a few years off to go to grad school for a useless English degree. I have an MFA) and I don't have the roots or visibility at my current job to advance much there, other than the way that everyone else seems to advance at that company, which is by sticking around long enough that somebody promotes you. This is an old, tired, very non-progressive company and they will not give me .net or update my title. This is a terrible job market, where I live, and there aren't tons of big companies who need the sort of thing I'm describing above.

So I'd like your thoughts on the following:

1. I don't think I do a very good job of saying 'this is what I can do and this is how I can help you' in my resume or my cover letter. A lot of HR people don't know what VBA is, or see how it could fit into a non-IT department. Also, they think process improvement is parsley--you do it as a garnish.How can I present my current skill set in a way that resonates that companies who are not looking specifically for those skills, so they don't see VBA and toss my resume?

2. I don't really believe desktop-driven computing of the Excel variety has a future beyond the next five to ten years. I think Excel will gradually be replaced by web-based applications, and that Microsoft isn't agile enough to be part of it. I think data manipulation technologies will get more user friendly, and there will be less need for report manipulation after the reports have been generated, which is a significant amount of what I automate for people now.

3. Given the above, should I be throwing myself at .Net in my off hours? How can I create a context for that that doesn't feel like homework? (I'm reasonably comfortable with web concepts, have taken a spin in PhP/MySQL, a little HTML, used Wordpress...and CSS stuff appeals to me because I like it's 'place for everything, everything in its place' value system. I've used some scripting elements with the lightest of touches and while I'm not fluent, having devoted very little time to it, I'm not afraid of it and think I'd be good at web-specific stuff. Also: tell me about .Net--what does it do best?

I'm interested in cold, hard business advice ('you need to start managing people if you want to advance') and what skills I should be looking at developing so I don't become totally irrelevant.

To be clear: I like the work and I'm good at it (when it's really going good, I can work on the same technical or interface question or problem for hours and hours, completely happily. I find it very engaging.) but it isn't the meaning of my life--I'd prefer to make more money at it then less, because I'm going to be doing it regardless.

Throwaway email: askmevba@gmail.com

I am so sorry this got so long.

Does my Flickr photo infringe on a trademark? Do I have to remove it?

bryanjbusch — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 05:38:26 -0800

Does my Flickr photo infringe on a trademark? Do I have to remove it? Here is the photo I took of a sign in the cafeteria where I work. It's goofy and funny, and my friends felt the same way about it.

The most recent comment from effectivegrantsolutions states:

This is a registered trademark. You must remove the photo and comments at once or face prosecution. Your page will be checked within 48 hours to insure removal or you will be prosecuted.

Am I in the wrong? Is this a weird hoax? I searched for "effective grant solutions" but literally nothing shows up for that phrase (when put in quotes).

What do you think would happen if I merely restricted that photo to my Flickr contacts?

Is Curious George really a monkey?

mausburger — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 17:25:00 -0800

So, is Curious George really a monkey? Can you identify what species of monkey or ape he might be? After being seriously over-exposed to Curious George and the admonitions to "Be a good little monkey," I am starting to think that he probably isn't a monkey. For starters, he doesn't have a tail. Isn't that the key distinction between apes and monkeys? Also, isn't he rather large for a monkey? I think he might be a chimpanzee, but in the illustrations and TV show, he's brown, not black.

So, is Curious George really a monkey? Can you identify what species of monkey or ape he might be?

I have a child who is nearly 3 and I clearly have been getting too much George on TV, books, and the computer.

Phantom Foot Thumb

Lownotes — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 12:03:12 -0800

Does anyone else ever feel the presence of a phantom thumb jutting out of the side of their foot? Since I was a kid, I've been able to create a phantom thumb sensation along the side of my foot at will. It feels like my foot takes on the appearance of a monkey foot, and I can distinctly feel the opposable toe/thumb.

Whenever I tell this to my friends, they also can feel it. Sometimes they have to hold out their hand and compare the layout of their foot to their hand before it kicks in. For most, this is disturbing.

Anyone else? Are there any references to this phenomenon in the science literature? Is this some strange vestigial evolutionary quirk? Is it some sort of body-mapping malfunction?

How do I price tag on my booty?

lou — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:45:08 -0800

Who sets how much old and collectible video games are worth? How do they know? (examples with Monkey Island inside) I wonder if the answer is somewhere along the lines of "they charge whatever people are willing to pay for it" but sellers don't act in a vacuum. There's got to be some feedback for whether a game is worth $50, or $100, or they wouldn't know what to put on the price tag.

I'm wondering, because I noticed that my Monkey Island games are worth a whole lot more than what I paid for them-- on Amazon, anyway. f you look at the listings for Monkey Island Madness even the *CD itself* is "worth" just over $50. But is this just a case of sellers trying to gouge unsuspecting buyers, or a case of three clueless sellers following the lead of one unscrupulous one, or are people actually paying that much?? If I look on eBay, there's only one completed listing for this game and it didn't sell (granted they tried to sell it for $60)-- but the lack of postings don't look like there's really a huge market for them.

Similarly: why is the original Curse of Monkey Island just under $30 while the re-release is nearly $100? I thought originals were worth more than re-release copies? (I have the original one.) Again, are people actually paying $100 for this?

...and Monkey Island 2 for $85? I also have this! And the price, like all the rest, looks too good to be true!

Which all brings me to the generic question, for future reference: Is there a kind of "blue book" or price guide somewhere for old computer games/video games? Realistically, what is the best way to put a price tag on what my old games are really worth?

Well, I hope we're not too messianic, Or a trifle too satanic

FlyingMonkey — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 12:52:54 -0800

Ms Monkey and I are getting married in the fall. Current plan is to walk down the aisle together. What are some songs about monkeys we can walk to? We're interested in almost all kinds of music, including bluegrass, blues, country, folk, punk, rock. (See last.fm somewhat recently-played list.)

(We're also broadly interested in music about monkeys (& mammals in general), so if you've got something that probably wouldn't work for the wedding (or wouldn't be appropriate to play for our 5-year-old cousins and 80-year-old grandparents) but which we oughta hear anyway, let us know about that, too.)

(I think maybe I use too many parentheses.)

We already thought of The Monkees theme song, but we hate that song. I suppose it would be a bit too much for the Animals to have done a song about monkeys. . . .

Everyone knows the monkey, but the monkey knows no one.

Anything — Sat, 03 Nov 2007 14:26:27 -0800

Proverb origins? Everyone knows the monkey, but the monkey knows no one. It's used in Finnish (Kaikki tuntevat apinan, mutta apina ei tunne ketään). Some claim it originates here, but I have my doubts. I've tried googling various forms in English, but I get few results. Some of those seem to be from Baltic or Russian people. I think I also saw a Swede there. Have you heard it in these or any other languages? How frequently? Do you have knowledge or good guesses of its origins?

Arcade game about a monkey

convex — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 13:57:20 -0800

Identify this old arcade game. When I was a kid I remember an arcade game called "JoJo", the story is in a jungle, about a man who was turned into a chimp, and he walks around shooting balls of fire from his mouth. I just can't find anything about this game, when I search for JoJo something totally different comes up. Help me find this game, or any info about it, it is driving me crazy!

Injured rubbery-faced monkey puppet needs help

mediareport — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 15:41:17 -0800

Please help me repair my rubbery-faced monkey puppet. I really really like this monkey puppet, which a friend bought for me for 25 cents at a Seattle thrift store years ago. The rubbery material that makes up his face is torn (I have no idea what the material is, but it's rubbery plastic or something) and the rips are growing with each use, especially at the corners of the mouth. Small holes are appearing elsewhere as well (two more pics at top of this page). What's the best way to repair this so I get many more years of enjoyment out of this wonderful monkey puppet? Silicon? Electrical tape inside? What?

Help me find an image of a Native-American themed monkey symbol

fermezporte — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 13:52:46 -0800

Help me find a picture of a Kokopelli-esq monkey I'm looking for a picture of a monkey drawn in the style of Kokopelli, and I can't think of the right keywords to plug into google image. I've seen this monkey drawing before:
as a part of a collection of shiny rocks engraved with "Native American" symbols
on a jar of pineapple (?) salsa
as a stencil for a temporary tattoo at an amusement park

What bird is this?

[insert clever name here] — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 14:14:55 -0800

What is this bird? We have a monkey toy at work that makes this sound:
Bird Call
I thought it was a peacock, but searching reveals they sound different. But I can't place what this is, even though I know I've heard it before (enough that I was able to find this jungle bird wav.)

EmploymentFilter: Tired of rat race, how do I create my own job?

jmnugent — Sun, 04 Mar 2007 15:27:34 -0800

I'm looking for advice from people who have escaped the traditional 9-5 rat race, and/or created their own job/position. So here's the deal:

(bunnycup's post from earlier today about "working/conforming to "The MAN" got me thinking about this----Thanks Bunnycup :)...

I'm 33 (will be 34 this june)... for the past 15 to 20 years, I've been working the traditional 9-5, rat race, middle class, paycheck to paycheck type jobs. During and after high school I worked in a restaurant (started as dishwasher, worked every position in between and ended as the head chef / manager). In 1996 I followed some of my geek friends advice and started doing tech support, which I've done with some success until about 4 months ago when my 10year "career" with the same company came to an end. (long story we dont have time for now, but basically they farked me over.)

In any event----I'm tired of being a "wage-slave". I'm tired of sitting in a cube. I'm tired of "TPS Reports" :)... I'm tired of throwing all my energy into jobs/projects that give nothing back to ME.

I'm a very hard working and creative/resourceful person. I'm the type of person who throws everything they've got into a job because I'm a perfectionist.. and I want to be excellent. (this often times puts me at odds with other co-workers who just "punch the clock"... AND .. management who are typically clueless and out of touch.) My friends often describe me as a "renaissance man" full of ideas.. but I'm finding it hard to "connect" with the right type of nurturing enviroment. ( IE--I havent found a job yet that will give back to me as much as I put into the job. Please tell me those exist SOMEWHERE)

So MeFi'tes... I'm having a mild crisis of faith trying to figure out how I go about finding (or creating) the job of my dreams. (I'm currently self-employed (took over a PC Support business from a friend) which is great, but not very dependable as far as $$$ goes.) I've contemplated the notion that the city I live in is to "traditional" and I'd be best served to move somewhere a little more "modern" (chicago, san fran, nyc,etc)... but to be quite honest, I've got no money (in fact am about 20k in debt at the moment).

Sorry for being "Tolstoy"... I'll stop now and you can ask me questions as we go along.

Where can I find music inspired by Hanuman or Ganesha?

Mr. Gunn — Thu, 10 Aug 2006 11:00:13 -0800

Where can I find music inspired by Hanuman or Ganesha for a yoga class that will be fairly vigorous?

Where can I hold a baby monkey or ape?

tastybrains — Thu, 27 Jul 2006 12:35:00 -0800

I've always wanted to hold a baby monkey or ape - actually, particularly a baby ape. Are there any places in New England where I can make this dream happen? I've tried Googling and looking on local zoo websites, but I can't find anything.

continuity monkey

pepcorn — Thu, 12 Jan 2006 13:36:42 -0800

Broadcast industry humor. Specifically, the continuity monkey. Can any mefis help me locate it? Here's what I remember....years ago I saw a spoof piece about an editor working late on a project with a terrible client. The client demanded an outrageous revision, editor says no problem, give me a minute. Then there's a montage of him working...then he calls the client back in for review. They watch the spot and there is an animated monkey dancing across the screen. Anyone seen it or know if the internets got it?

The Hartlepool Monkey

PinkStainlessTail — Thu, 30 Jun 2005 09:39:32 -0800

I'm looking for audio of songs, comedy routines, movie soundtracks, speeches, etc. that make reference to the Hartlepool monkey. Can you help? So far I've got Mark Steel's lecture on the French Revolution and an episode of the 99p Challenge.

Trillian monkey emoticon sound?

MsVader — Mon, 12 Jan 2004 10:27:28 -0800

To all Trillian users: Does anyone else remember that the monkey emoticon used to make a sound? [more inside] It was about Mid-July of last year that I noticed that the monkey didn't make a sound anymore. I got into a big arguement with a friend about this because he insisted that it never made a sound. I can't be making it up. I remember using it often, if only to hear the goofy monkey sound.

So I did some research. I checked the Trillian forums to see if anyone else noticed it, and came up empty. All I found were people asking for a monkey sound to be added, or people saying that you could get a sound in different skins. I never had a different skin (always used the basic one), so that can't be how I've heard it.

I tried googling it and came up with a table that listed emoticons and sounds that the various IM programs use. It listed Trillian Pro as having the monkey noise, but I don't use that version.

Am I insane? Or did the monkey sound disappear? (And yes, I realize that by asking a question about a disappearing monkey sound that I could be viewed as insane.)