Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with requirements

Why did they make me eat fish on Fridays?

tastybrains — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 07:52:42 -0800

In some religions (at the very least Catholicism), eating fish on Fridays is (or at least was) a requirement and seems to remain a bit of a tradition. I was raised by some strict Catholics, but never understood what the real rule was. Do you have to eat fish, or do you just have to not eat meat? And how exactly is "meat" defined in this situation? This question is one I've wondered for a long time, triggered by my intense dislike of all seafood. Most recently, what triggered this question was the fact that it seems that all corporate cafeterias I know of serve fish every Friday (and stank up the whole place).

As a child, on Fridays during Lent, I was given a lot of shit for refusing to eat fish like everyone else. My question was always "if we can't eat meat, why can't we just order some cheese pizza?!" Really...why? Why is fish the traditional alternative to meat, instead of *real* nonmeat foods like tofu and beans and pasta and the aforementioned cheese pizza?

I also wondered exactly how fish was not meat, but chicken was. I mean, where is the line drawn between meat-dead-animals and non-meat-dead-animals? Is it warm-blooded versus cold-blooded (if so, could I eat amphibians and reptiles on Fridays if I wanted to observe this rule? Are frog legs and alligator fair game?)? Is it land-dwelling versus water-dwelling (if so, could I eat a dolphin or a manatee?)?

What about mealworms? Could I eat those?

Where to be born for president of Palestine?

parmanparman — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:11:43 -0800

Are there steadfast constitutional rules - like birthplace - for those who seek political office in the Palestinian Territories?

Student representative needs to change a policy this year!

Khazk — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:07:34 -0800

Change the University program's final project limitations! Help! Video production course info and TL;DR details inside. (Note: the TL;DR question is in bold at the bottom of this post. Thank you!)

Our class of 11 people have elected me to a Student Advisory Committee that meets with the University program chairpeople if issues arise. Specifically, our Video Production course took a drastic turn this year involving the final year Senior Independent Project (SIP).

The SIP for the previous 4-5 years was a free-for-all project—the class members could follow through with any video-related piece they desired. A few dramas were attempted, along with more serious pieces, but different circumstances among the students led to poor quality or incomplete finals. (For instance, actors dropping out, directors/writers/actors taking on too much and burning out, lack of funding to pay for professionals, or lack of motivation or initial concept.)

Our class, now in our final year, is subject to new limitations on our final project. Namely, we are now forced to do a "documentary". In this case, we cannot produce an "information" piece (i.e. think corporate video, "behind-the-scenes", "making of", etc.) We are being told to produce a character-driven, story oriented, emotional, TV-broadcast-quality final. ("Intervention", "Jon and Kate +8", other A&E/TLC drivel).

But they didn't tell us. At least, that's how we feel.

On our first class of the new year, we were basically given the news that we were "going to do a documentary as our final project", instead of the "free final" we had been expecting from the beginning of the 3-year program. (Personally, I was blindsided by this bait-and-switch, having specifically entered the Video major with the idea that a final project was under complete creative control of the student.) Our instructor made it clear that the SIP could only be a documentary of the talking-head, interview-style, other-attributes-mentioned-above kind. However, she also suggested that if we wanted to, we could have full control over a separate, personal project without limitation. Only the documentary would be considered a final project. Of course, this leaves us with no option but to create two pieces, in addition to our option course work and normal full-time course load projects.

The class was nonplussed. Now we are 3 months into the program, and I have been approached that the class shares this concern and they would like me to address the chairs of the program this week. Out of the 11 in class, 3 people are indifferent or unaffected by the change. The other 8 feel that they would like creative over the final project and to have the documentary-only idea waived, as the change was implemented in the middle of our program without any input on our part.

Upon questioning, a few have very specific ideas as to where a personal project would go (some had worked on a plan over the summer, and have cited concerns that they only joined the program for the final project opportunity.) Two classmates have cited extreme debt and choosing this U over other PSI's due only to the final project's freedom, and now feel completely ripped off in both areas. One classmate has committed to the documentary idea only because of the limitation, and would have changed her plan (but is obviously stuck, now). A few do not have solid ideas either way. As well, a few are concerned about their own direction or story ideas and would be content to assist on projects under a classmate's direction.

On a personal and professional level, I feel that the change violates our rights as students. I have been sunk creatively and am struggling with the decision to continue on in this program. Therefore I am taking the challenge of trying to change the University program's requirements for this year's class.

My question to MeFites: How would you recommend approaching a meeting with up to 2 chairpeople, solo, to effectively change their minds to suit the needs of my classmates? What strategies should I utilize to sway them? How can I avoid coming across too passionately about this issue and perhaps ruining my classmate's chances?

Thank you for your patience, everyone who's made it this far. :)

You really don't want a cover letter? Really?

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 09:27:53 -0800

Has this job advertisement just been worded strangely, or do they really NOT want a cover letter for a specialized job opening? I'm about to apply to a specialized library position in a well-known museum's research center. It's a position that has a number of specific requirements, etc.

However! And this is the first time I've run into this in my field - they do NOT ask for a cover letter in the body of the advertisement for the job. The first sentence of the advertisement says "If interested, please follow the instructions found in the body of the posting." And then the end of the description notes, "To apply, send resume along with salary history and requirements to: [..address of institution..]"

In your experience, is a cover letter assumed to be required, as if it was part of the salary history and requirements? Or am I over-thinking this, and should send what they specifically ask for, and hope for the best?

Thanks in advance!

Permission needed to film in NYC government housing?

curiositykilledthelemur — Sat, 30 May 2009 09:20:45 -0800

Filming sports doc in/around Harlem government housing - permission/payoffs needed? There are some amazing kids that a friend of mine who just moved to NYC wants to film for a documentary about sports. They live and practice in government housing (aka projects) in Harlem.

If he has their permission and the permission of their guardians, it legal to occasionally film them in and around their government housing, or does he need to get permission from/pay the owners/managers, etc.?

If, in a stroke of luck, my friend sells the rights to this documentary, will he be able to pay the kids/guardians without getting them kicked out of their low-income housing because of this one-time bump in yearly income?

What does writing a sponsor letter for someone to visit the US entail?

Anonymous — Thu, 28 May 2009 20:27:34 -0800

What does writing a sponsor letter for someone to visit the US entail? I have a friend in Nepal who wants to come to the US for a few months and is asking for a sponsor letter. I imagine this letter is much more that just a "hey Unca Sam, he's a heck of a guy, let him in" kind of thing.

As sponsor letter writer, what would I be responsible for? Food, lodging, health care, etc? Are there certain amounts—does money need to be put in a trust or something? Do I have to go through an interview process?

As a side-note, my friend has travelled to France in the past, so this would not be his first trip abroad, although it would be his first to the US. Also, he has a wife and child in Nepal, so I'm thinking the border people would be less inclined to think he was going to drop off the radar or something and stay here forever. My friend is about 30 years old.

If I am unable to meet the requirements (cash or whatever), are there groups out there that help match potential visitors with people who'd like to sponsor them? (or perhaps if groups like these existed, they would quickly be overwhelmed with requests)

I'll keep an eye on this thread, but you can also contact me via anonyaskmefi@gmail.com

Video Card for AVCHD editing

Eiwalker — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 06:16:32 -0800

Would a video/graphics card allow me to be able to edit my avchd (.mts) files from my new Canon HF100 camcorder? When I try to play my files, a lot of frames get skipped. They play at about 2 frames per second, skipping all the rest. Nor can I edit.

Worse: the Canon ImageMaker 3 software that came with the camera has the option of burning straight from the camera to a DVD, but when I try this option the application goes into "not responding" mode.

My rig is Pentium 4 3.0 Ghz, 4GB ram, no video card. But the ImageMaker 3 software says you can burn to a DVD with a Pentium 4 1.49 Ghz, 512GB ram, and sound card compatible with DirectSound. So maybe I just need a cheap sound card to be able to do that.

To play or edit, you need at least a Pentium D 3.0 Ghz cpu or an Intel Core 2 Duo 2.13 Ghz cpu, and a sound card compatible with DirectSound. A cheap sound card would meet the sound standard. But what about my having a Pentium 4 instead of a Pentium D? Do I need a better cpu, or can I make up for the deficiency by getting the right video card? I'm poor. Might this $26 card do the trick?

Here are the specs:
Model
Brand GIGABYTE
Model GV-R435OC-512I
Form Factor Low Profile
Interface
Interface PCI Express 2.0 x16
Chipset
Chipset Manufacturer ATI
GPU Radeon HD 4350
Core clock 650MHz
Stream Processors 80 Stream Processing Units
Memory
Memory Clock 800MHz
Memory Size 512MB
Memory Interface 64-bit
Memory Type GDDR2
3D API
DirectX DirectX 10.1
OpenGL OpenGL 2.0
Ports
HDMI 1
D-SUB 1
DVI 1
General
RAMDAC 400 MHz
Max Resolution 2560 x 1600
Cooler With Fan
Dual-Link DVI Supported Yes
HDCP Ready Yes
Packaging
Package Contents GV-R435OC-512I
Driver Disk
User's Manual
L-P Bracket

Drive to Mexico with just a drivers license?

eas98 — Fri, 09 May 2008 08:24:48 -0800

Can I drive in and out of Mexico with just my drivers license? I'm visiting a friend in California and we thought we might drive down to Mexico for the day. However, I have heard that the entry/exit rules have changed this year and you can no longer make the trip with just your drivers license. Is this true? Has anyone tried this in the last month or so? Are they adamant about this or is it strongly suggested but not required? If I manage to get into Mexico with only my DL will I be able to get back out?

Aspiring Business Analyst

jasondigitized — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 07:24:00 -0800

Help me become a great business analyst. I am slowly taking on more responsibilities as a business analyst and I am completely winging it. Does anyone out there gather requirements and do business modeling? Is that what a business analyst really does? I would like to here more about what makes a good business analyst. Can anyone recommend some good books, websites, techniques, and tools for jedi BA's? Should I learn more about UML? Interviewing techniques? Sharpen my general business understanding? Buy a fancy Monte Blanc pen? Is this job more about relationships than technology? Real life anecdotes appreciated.

I shortchanged myself in education

Tuwa — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 07:55:20 -0800

How do you get the education you should have gotten in high school and college? I'm just now coming out of a 20-year depression in which I typically ignored most of the world and did the least amount possible to fulfill various obligations, including education. I shortchanged myself in a lot of ways, don't have the education my degrees represent, and want to correct that somehow. I don't know where or how to start.

I have a number of questions related to wanting to get the education I should already have.

Is there a list somewhere of U.S. states' educational requirements for a high school degree? Most stringent? Least stringent? Most common (the things every high school graduate should know, regardless of field)? What is the most efficient and least costly way to go about learning all of that--I imagine the library will play a part here, but which books would give the most bang for the buck, so to speak? Low-cost or free programs to serve as a refresher course? Most of what I learned in high school is long forgotten, sometimes as soon as the test was turned in.

What about college requirements? As a former English major, I'm shamefully ignorant of Shakespeare, but there are also broader areas I missed or skimped on: history, religion, politics, science....

What are the things that every college graduate should know? Is there a list somewhere, maybe resulting from a study, or some general overview from one commission or another addressing minimum expectations and best-case scenarios?

And again, short of returning to college, what would be the most efficient way to gain this knowledge? I've thought of test preps, but those typically cover English, math, and sometimes logic. Those would be a good start, but what other resources are available, and which are the best investment for time spent?

Any suggestions or guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Web server hardware requirements

RedMosquito — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 07:03:30 -0800

How to calculate hardware requirements for a load balanced web server cluster? The web servers will be running Windows 2003 with a back end DB server, I want to support about 1000 simultaneous connections per server. The web application is fairly AJAX intensive. Not sure how I go about determining what sort of hardware I need for the servers, any ideas or suggestions?

"You start coding, I'll ask what they want."

rosemere — Fri, 12 May 2006 10:40:28 -0800

Looking for this old IT cartoon: a manager walking away from one or more programmers while saying, "You start coding, I'll ask what they want." My husband and I have found many references to the cartoon, but not the cartoon itself.

Open source alternative to TestDirector or other testing/defect tracking software?

nj_subgenius — Sat, 05 Feb 2005 10:10:07 -0800

Open source requirements, testing and defect tracking software: any of you have good/bad/middling experience with web-based tools that offer a good alternative to ($$$) TestDirector or its ilk? Preferred platform would be Windows.

Readings on how to communicate requirements to our developers?

GrumpyMonkey — Mon, 13 Dec 2004 08:46:54 -0800

ChangingRolesAtWorkFilter: I am moving from a pure development role into more of an integration/product manager role. I need advice on things to read that will help me learn to write requirements documents. [more (requirements?) inside...] We, as a company, have done a very poor job doing this in the past. Generally passing requirements to the dev staff consists of a short email from sales or client services with “We need a new X to do something important and we would like it yesterday” so dev builds X and it does something important and much more but when the client sees it we find that really it needed to do a small thing that is either completely different or could have been added to the product with a few small tweaks.

I know that this is typical for many technology companies and it was fine for the first few years here since we were a start-up but now it is a hindrance and it is time for us to grow up. My job will in part be changing the way we do things to make sure that we do not spend so much time spinning our wheels due to poor specs. We are an ASP and not a thick client app if that makes a difference.

It is going to be an interesting time because I am basically going to be trying to change the way that people work here and force them to actually plan things and think about what they really need and how important it really is and I am sure that there will be a lot of resistance at first.

With that said, I would love to hear about anything that you have read that will help me to create a requirements gathering process and then write coherent documents that clearly communicate the need to the dev team.