Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with string

This string theory - it vibrates?

tzikeh — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 10:19:35 -0800

Help me find this famous quote (paragraph) about string theory? I think it's Michio Kaku, but I could be misremembering. It's in an early chapter of a modern lay-person's book about theoretical physics (Possibly Kaku's Hyperspace, possibly Chaos by James Gleick) and the gist of the quote (paragraph) is that string theory is ridiculous, it makes no sense, and we can't prove it, but the only thing we know for certain about string theory is that it is absolutely true.

How does YOUR garden glow?

mykescipark — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 22:26:48 -0800

I'm going camping this weekend and want to deck out my tent in style. Where in the greater Los Angeles area can I get battery-powered string lights, ready-to-use EL wire, and other such self-sustaining glowy bits?

Getting Google Spreadsheets to interpret string as formula

Akeem — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 10:53:28 -0800

I have hundreds of text strings entered through a form in a Google Spreadsheets which look like 4*3 9*2 17*3 22 37*4 52. I can easily substitute " " for "+" and concatenate a "=" in front =4*3+9*2+17*3+22+37*4+52. Now I have a text string which looks like a formula but isn't one. How can I make Google Spreadsheets interpret this string as a formula? These Excel solution don't apply because I'm not always around when someone makes a new form entry.

With =sum(split(A1,"+")) it's possible to interpret a string like 4+9+17+22 and get a correct result.

However =multiply(split(A1,"*")) does not work for 17*3 ("Wrong number of arguments", even though split should create 2 arguments here). So a combination of splits, multiply and sum also fail.

Is there another solution?

Trying to locate a picture

twistedmetal — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 00:31:58 -0800

Please help me find the most romantic equation I need help in locating a picture.

A few years ago, I read a blog post about "The Most Romantic Equation."

It was a framed rectangular picture of a physics equation that describes string theory.

Underneath the equation was an explanation (IIRC) of how this formula was the most romantic equation. The explanation read that no matter how far apart two objects are, they are always in communication and will react instantaneously to changes in each other. Basically, no amount of distance will ever keep them apart.

I believe there was a way to order the print.

I cannot find this at all.
My Google-fu has failed.

Can anyone help me locate this framed picture?

Splitting Strings in Spreadsheets?

l33tpolicywonk — Fri, 30 May 2008 18:49:20 -0800

Using OpenOffice Calc (Spreadsheets) - Is there any way to divide the strings in one column into two by the space in each cell? I've got a contact list formatted in CSV - only problem is that the whole name for each contact is connected in the one column and I want to. Is there any way to automate this?

I never Excelled in Excel

B(oYo)BIES — Tue, 13 May 2008 14:32:41 -0800

I have no clue what I am doing in Excel, so this is going to be a bit hard to explain, but hopefully somebody can help me here. I want to give Excel some text, and have it output a string. Let me explain. In A1 I type in something like

-^”some text”

In B1 I would like to see

-%5E%22some+text%22+

- stays - | ^ is changed to %5E | “ is changed to %22 | (space) is changed to +

I would continue in the same fashion down column A. The next thing I would like to do is take C1 (which is www.someaddress.com/q=) and add all the B column and then C2 (which is &something) and put the results in C3.

So C1+B1+B2+B3+B4…+C2
My output should be something like www.someaddress.com/q=-%5E%22some+text%22+-%5E%22some+other+text%22+&something

So, can anybody explain how to do this to an Excel dummy? 2007, if it matters.

Hand stitiching on paper

levijk — Fri, 02 May 2008 13:25:22 -0800

Looking for sites with embroidery on paper patterns. I've seen all the books on Amazon.com and have used several patterns I found on these three sites. Wondering if there are any more out there to continue this hobby.

Since the idea seems to have originated in Europe, maybe foreign language sites exist?

Where could I rent a cello in NYC?

paul_smatatoes — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 19:13:15 -0800

Does anyone know where to rent a high quality student cello short term in NYC? Ideally, I'd like something hand crafted and valued at 10 - 20 k, but if need be I'll go lower end. Looking for a bow, too. Thanks!

Higher? To the place where blind men see?

tmcw — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 22:51:35 -0800

So I play guitar (fairly well) and ukulele (passably). I'm thinking about getting a baritone or tenor ukulele, but also strongly considering a guitalele. Where can I get one in America (in VA, DC, or NJ?) The specific guitalele that I've been looking at is the Yamaha GL1, and there have been reports of special-ordering it from CA, but I'm not sure? I'd like to figure out

Whether getting a guitalele is a terrible idea. I've taken lessons from Tom Barth and loved his A-tuned guitars, but I'm wondering if there's a catch (tuning problems?) with smaller-scale, higher-tuned guitars.

How much would this be? It seems like they're incredibly cheap (enough that I might make it an acoustic/electric with a Mi-Si pickup for less than a comparable classical guitar.
What to do!?

All right, thanks for any help. I'm going to stick with my current instrument count for now (is 4 unacceptable?), but my next 'thing' will almost certainly be a non-guitar.

How to count the number of times a string appears in a database field.

Wild_Eep — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 10:30:03 -0800

SQL Filter: What query can I use to count the number of times a word appears in a text field? I've got this table with ~500 records. The records have a specific text field that I'm interested in. Before I start a fairly involved find-and-replace project, I want to know:

a. how many records will need to have the find-and-replace function performed (I think I've got this one, using the 'LIKE' operator)

and

b. for a given record, how many instances of the find-and-replace operation will need to happen?

For example, if I were changing the word 'cat' to the word 'dog', I'd want to know how many times the word 'cat' appeared in a given field for each record.

I know I could query the db and parse the results with PHP, but I was looking for a solution I could run from the mysql 'command line'.

A Novel Method of Escape

Tube — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 21:45:04 -0800

Has anyone ever escaped from jail or prison using this novel method, either in fiction or in real life? As a child I remember hearing about an escape by a prisoner using string and an abrasive to saw through the steel bars of his cell. I believe the story involved the string being coated with soap, which was used to adhere powdered mortar or concrete. The improvised "saw" was then pulled back and forth against the metal bar until it cut through.

I honestly can't remember where I came across this idea, whether I was told it as historical fact by my father, or if I read about it or perhaps saw it on TV as a work of fiction.

Has anyone else heard of this? I'm not so much interested in speculating whether it is really possible or not, rather if anyone can provide any specific examples.

Strings for a cello tuned BEAD

Plug Dub In — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 14:35:23 -0800

Recommend strings for a cello tuned BEAD (low to high). I recently picked up a decent-lookin' cello on the cheap, and it was tuned to about BEAD in the store. I, a bass-o-guitar'r, quite enjoy this, and plan to keep it this way to avoid relearning a bunch of hand shapes. I'm having enough trouble with this whole "bowing" concept. What a crazy thing to do to a string.

I assume it's just got regular cello strings on it, in regular cello gauges. The tensions feel relatively consistent string-to-string (I probably couldn't tell if they weren't at this point), but if there's a more proper setup, I'd like to hear about it.

Excel String-Counting Help!

Alterscape — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 19:22:16 -0800

ExcelFilter: Help me count rows where one string appears in one column and a second string appears in a second! I have an Excel worksheet with the following setup:

Column A's contains a number of descriptions that include either string1, string2, or string3 -- a typical column A entry might be "(string1) some other text."

Column B's rows contain either StringA, StringB or StringC.

I want to write a formula that will count the number of rows where a cell in column A contains "string1" and the adjoining cell in column B contains "StringA."

The following code (from an excel help site) would work, except String1 never appears by itself in columnA, it's always part of a larger string.

=SUMPRODUCT(--(A16:A20="string1"),--(B16:B20="stringA"))

I've tried adding wildcards, as in:

=SUMPRODUCT(--(A16:A20="*string1*"),--(B16:B20="stringA"))

but no joy.

Help?

In NYC, where can I get a violin CHEAPLY looked over and serviced?

allterrainbrain — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 15:00:33 -0800

In NYC, where can I get a violin CHEAPLY looked over and serviced? Anywhere in the five boroughs. Not looking for the "best" shop -- I can't afford it. Probably looking for the friendly repairperson with the little basement office in your outer-borough neighborhood.

This is a student-quality violin I just got (used / very cheap). It seems fine structurally and it sounds surprisingly good, but its tuning pegs need attention because they're all either sticking or slipping, and I bet it needs a general checkup. I'm not a violin student looking to play seriously, just a composer who wanted a string instrument on hand to experiment with techniques & effects.

If you recommend anybody, opinions would be great (e.g., "I've used this place and highly recommended it" / "I heard this place is good but I haven't been there" / etc.). In case it matters, I won't need this done til mid-July.

Thanks!

Where can I find drawstring/gymsack bags with team logos?

hcastro — Mon, 09 Apr 2007 17:08:19 -0800

Where can I find drawstring/gymsack bags with team logos? I'm looking for some drawstring backpacks with team logos. Any team logo would suffice (NFL, NBA, MLB, FIFA). I'm not even completely sure what people refer to them as. The first time I saw one, the label that came to mind was 'drawstring.' Apparently Nike refers to them as 'gymsacks.' Whatever they're called, it is significantly hard to find them with team logos.

How to get silly string overseas

Smedleyman — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 13:29:36 -0800

Anyone know any way to send cans of Silly String overseas? The post office won't touch it (obviously) and neither will any package carrier - since it's aerosol. It's possible to send it on the ground to the coast perhaps, but I haven't found any private carriers willing to fly into, or near, a war zone. Anyone know of any outfits that might be able to pull this off?

Help change my acoustic guitar strings!

Lockeownzj00 — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 18:12:10 -0800

GuitarStrings filter: I'm a noob. Forgive me. Why can't I change these acoustic strings? (picture inside) Like musical daddy long legs!

I've been playing guitar for quite some time now, but I've always had other people do my strings for me. Time to graduate.

I've been wanting to change my acoustic's for a while, but I can't seem to get the damn pegs out. I unwidn the string, and then...well, you can see the picture.

Do I need to friggin' pry 'em out? What's up with this? I don't wanna break my geetar. All the things I've read are vague and unhelpful.

Thanks in advance!

Formatting strings

Lokheed — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 05:36:53 -0800

String manipulation in C#: I know that the String.Format method can format numeric data so that {0:#,###} transforms 1234 into the string "1,234". There are lots of standard formatters like {0:C} for currency, and endless ways to format DateTime objects. But is there a similar shorthand to format a string or to apply a mask to it? I have a db table that contains ISBN values (look at the bar code on any book and you will see the value I am talking about). It is stored in the db as a char(10), since by definition an ISBN-10 is always 10 characters. But the formatting of an isbn is always n-nnn-nnnnn-n. The final character is sometimes a letter, so just using {0:#-###-#####-#} to format the display will not work. I know I can parse it out by using substrings ("{0}-{1}-{2}-{3}", value.Substring(0,1), value.Substring(1,3), etc.), but that seems awfully verbose. Is there a shorthand method that I am missing?

When it falls off, your wish will come true

nekton — Sun, 25 Jun 2006 18:26:09 -0800

I recently decided to re-visit one of my favorite summer activities: making friendship bracelets. I am looking to a) remember some of the techniques I used to know b) learn new and interesting bracelet patterns. I know the basics. I can make a flat band with diagonal stripes (knotting along a row of strings) and of course the tube-shaped striped pattern made by knotting around the entire bundle of strings. I once knew how to make designs in the band (like chevrons or fish). I also used to be able to do something involving loops over the fingers.

What interesting things to do with string can you teach me? (I have 12 skeins of embroidery thread ready to go...)

How do I replace my guitar strings?

punishinglemur — Thu, 01 Dec 2005 15:21:53 -0800

Someone bought me an electric guitar two years ago. Maybe one. I never played it. When I hauled it out of the closet yesterday and took it out of the bag, I discovered that one of the strings was off; it is no longer attached at either end. How unfortunate. Especially for someone who has no idea what to do. How do I fix the guitar?

Is there a way to specify that part of an XML file should be treated as a string even though it looks like XML?

callmejay — Wed, 22 Sep 2004 10:24:30 -0800

Is there a way to specify that part of an XML file should be treated as a string even though it looks like XML? [more inside] Example:
<Data>
<1></1>
</Data>

I'd like the validator or reader to read "<1></1>" as a string rather than two tags.

Do I just have to use lt; and gt;?

Acoustic guitar - my B string keeps breaking.

inksyndicate — Mon, 29 Mar 2004 18:00:40 -0800

Acoustic guitar question: I wonder if anyone is familiar with this problem. I have an old steel-string guitar, where the B-string breaks every time I tune it to the right pitch. Every other string is fine. Has anyone ever encountered this problem? Is it fixable?