Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2012 July 31

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July 31

Race and LGBT

Why are most LGBT people white? --108.206.7.65 (talk) 02:15, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Most straight people are white too (in the USA, anyway). ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 04:10, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

First prove that they are. (Note that they may appear to be, since many non-white cultures punish those who admit to being LGBT, resulting in more "in the closet" behavior.) StuRat (talk) 02:17, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

It's an interesting question. There might be no difference, but there also might be a difference based on differences in the level of exposure to endocrine disruptors or even epigenetic effects from this or other environmental circumstances in the past. Wnt (talk) 03:00, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

In the United States, the largest individual race is "white." (I'm going by census definitions here and ignoring ethnicity. This complicates things considerably when thinking about "lay" racial categories, but whatever, live with it.) Assuming a more or less even distribution of probability of homosexuality, there would lend to a large raw number of white LGBTs in the United States. Still, the number of non-white LGBT would be quite substantial. I haven't seen anything which suggested that the base rates of homosexuality varied by racial groups. Observed rates surely varies by cultural context so comparing internationally is not going to tell you very much. --Mr.98 (talk) 03:49, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Most LGBT people in the world are not white. As for the U.S., I totally agree with what Mr.98 said. Futurist110 (talk) 05:56, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

The IP locates to Missouri, so I assume you're talking about the US. I agree with the above two points: A) Most LGBT people are not white, and B) Most US residents are white. So you have a strong sampling bias, but there is also a strong cultural effect. Most of the non-Whites in the United States are either non-Black Hispanic or African American. Predominantly, they belong to Catholicism and Black churches, respectively (especially in the South with regard to the latter, and not so much in other places). Both of these religious groups tend to be extremely culturally conservative. So while it would not influence the rate of LGBTism, which is probably an acultural trait, I assume this conservative culture would have a profound impact on the rate of self-outing. Someguy1221 (talk) 07:40, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I'm not from Missouri, but am from the USA. Futurist110 (talk) 07:55, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Someguy said "the IP" which was in reference to the IP address of the original poster, not you. If you do not indent your comments correctly, all subsequent comments will look like they are in response to you, even when they are not. This is why you should always indent your comments to make it clear who you are responding to. --Mr.98 (talk) 16:39, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

* See Down-low (sexual slang). 69.62.243.48 (talk) 18:43, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Dracula 4 PC Game

I read on this site that the last game in the Dracula series, Dracula 4, will be for the Playstation & Xbox systems. Will it ever be available for PC? Vicky Wiley — Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.243.131.5 (talk) 03:35, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Which Foods Contain Zero or Virtually Zero Calories?

I enjoy eating a lot but want to avoid gaining extra weight, since I'm already overweight as it is. Futurist110 (talk) 06:05, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Celery. Water. Maybe cucumber. It's an urban legend that celery takes more calories to digest than it gives you by eating, but it's still pretty healthy. 81.159.248.53 (talk) 06:16, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Shirataki noodles: [1]. StuRat (talk) 06:21, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I don't think it's a good strategy to try to eat much of these zero calorie foods, though. Your body will rebel and you will then binge. A more realistic diet is more likely to work, with perhaps a bit of these thrown in. StuRat (talk) 06:25, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

My parents don't let me binge except when I go to all you can eat places. Futurist110 (talk) 07:02, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

You should definitely avoid those, then. Of course, your parents can't always be around to stop you from binging. StuRat (talk) 07:06, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I live with my parents and I plan to do so until marriage, which is probably another 10-15 years. Futurist110 (talk) 07:29, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

While I think Stu has the right idea, for myself in the think the zero and near-zero calorie foods do have a place in a diet, that being to replace any snacks you normally eat between meals. In addition to celery, I would throw in iceberg lettuce and sugar-free jello. Someguy1221 (talk) 07:43, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I'd skip the sugar-free jello, if that means artificial sugar, which seems to increase the appetite. StuRat (talk) 07:45, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Of course, any suggestion will only work if what you enjoy about eating is the physical act of putting food in your mouth, chewing and swallowing. If what you actually enjoy about eating is the taste, how it feels in your mouth or the texture of the food, you will not enjoy eating celery or cucumber and make it up by snacking on the stuff you actually like. --TammyMoet (talk) 09:41, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

To be honest, cucumber tastes pretty good together with tomatoes and olive oil. Futurist110 (talk) 20:05, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

The most livable diet I've yet seen suggested is from Mark Bittman, who basically says, eat more or less vegetarian or vegan for breakfast and lunch (but don't be stupid — don't eat entire loaves of bread or anything like that), then eat whatever you want for dinner (as long as it is "real food" — skip the grease pits). Focusing on only eating a handful of foods is unlikely to work in the long run and will make you miserable. A reasonable diet paired with some regular exercise is a pretty livable approach to the issue. Just my two cents; to each their own. --Mr.98 (talk) 15:16, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I lost 20 lbs one summer by eating only mozzarella sticks and Froot Loops. But instead I recommend eating as much iceberg lettuce, eggs and tuna salad as you like. That is anecdotal, but it is supported by calorie counting and glycemic websites. Using a stair master burns the most calories, second to a rowing machine. Both are low impact. The increased sexual drive you get with exercise and sexual intercourse is self-reinforcing but it seems that may be a little advanced for you. μηδείς (talk) 19:54, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Too much of any one thing can be bad. For example, too many eggs makes your cholesterol go up, and too much tuna can cause mercury poisoning. StuRat (talk) 20:17, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

How is this not a medical question? --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 20:10, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Because a medical license is not required to give dietary advice. StuRat (talk) 20:16, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Is there a serious, clear-cut warning on mercury in tuna? Is there a set expected dose per gram (or whatever), or is it the case that certain tuna might be much worse than other? BTW, I meant the eggs tuna and iceberg lettuce commment to be tempered with other things, of course. The good thing with tuna and lettuce especially, and eggs when you get sick of them, is that you can pretty much eat your fill without exceeding your calories, and, most important, your glycemic index. I'll have to post the url of the website I use to check protein versus fat versus carbohydrates when I'm on my other computer. μηδείς (talk) 21:28, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

The FDA recommends a limit of 12 ounces of tuna a week for young children and expecting mothers, who are the most vulnerable to mercury poisoning. How much mercury your tuna actually contains can vary wildly based on where it is caught, what species it came from, and how much of the 5 oz can is actually tuna. The mercury content can vary anywhere from "harmless in any quantity you could consume" to "dangerous to eat more than one small can a week". Someguy1221 (talk) 20:33, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

You must just not like tuna as much as me. I could very easily (and expensively) eat many cans of tuna a day, if I let myself. Following the recommended maximum weekly intake of tuna (for avoiding mercury), as a woman of child-bearing age, is genuinely difficult for me, if I buy it. Yes, there is a serious, clear-cut warning on tuna, and eating "as much as you like" would violate that, if you like the stuff ;) 86.161.208.94 (talk) 22:01, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Healthy ethnic cuisine

Which ethnic cuisines are the healthiest and have the lowest number of calories? Futurist110 (talk) 20:05, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

I made this a subsection. StuRat (talk) 21:12, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

(Asian) Indian food can be healthy, especially curries and vegetarian fare. However, in general, any ethnic food can be healthy or unhealthy, depending on the dish you choose. Take soul food. There's some extremely unhealthy food there, like fatbacks, deep fried foods, chitlins, etc. However, if you stick to things like collard greens and sweet potato pie, you can have a healthy soul food meal. StuRat (talk) 21:12, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

See The 10 healthiest ethnic cuisines - CNN.com.

—Wavelength (talk) 21:40, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

One problem is that, as far as the UK is concerned (and most likely the USA and also those parts of India heavily influenced by the British interpretations of Indian food), even curries that don't contain lots of cream or coconut etc., regularly contain large amounts of ghee and/or vegetable oil, making them far from a healthy choice. Our article on ghee says that it's also heavily used in Punjabi cuisine generally. --Demiurge1000 (talk) 23:01, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

Depending on the vegetable oil used, some are quite healthy, like fresh olive oil. StuRat (talk) 23:29, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

Even olive oil is unhealthy if used in excess. Anyway, it tends not to figure heavily in Indian cuisine (unlike in, say, Greek cuisine). Rapeseed is often the cheapest vegetable oil, and is only moderately healthy. --Demiurge1000 (talk) 23:31, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

Not in the case of Jeanne Calment, who doused her food in Olive Oil for 120 or so years. μηδείς (talk) 02:42, 2 August 2012 (UTC)

Calment also smoked for 96 years or so. Calment's genes were extremely unique. The odds of me and/or any of you having those genes is probably about 1% or even less. Futurist110 (talk) 07:23, 2 August 2012 (UTC)

Mud Volcano

It sayst eh largest Mud Volcano is in Indonesia since 2006, can you please check this, because according to a few websites, the largest mud volcano is in Baluchistan, Pakistan, this is a bit confusing.

Best regards

Sophia Khawar — Preceding unsigned comment added by Szaraar (talk • contribs) 06:11, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Our articles includes that both of these mud volcanoes have been claimed as the largest, but we don't have a citation for the Baluchistan volcano. Could you point to the websites that call it the largest? If they are reliable, they can be added to the article. Someguy1221 (talk) 07:56, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

If you like mud volcanoes, you'll love Ol Doinyo Lengai, the "Mountain of God" in the Maasai language. Search for it on youtube too. Quite amazing. μηδείς (talk) 21:57, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Ticket to Ride

In the song Ticket to Ride, what "ticket" are they talking about? How does the song have anything to do with tickets and rides? 117.227.61.76 (talk) 07:31, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

It's a metaphor meaning that she is the singer's girlfriend/partner/whatever. The singer loves her and she is welcome to join the singer on the "ride" that is their life together. The lyrics go on to say that she doesn't care, or in other words that she is leaving him because she feels that things would be better without the singer. Dismas|^(talk) 07:47, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I always thought they meant that his "baby" has a ticket to ride a train away from him, but she changed her mind and now doesn't care that the ticket is wasted. 203.27.72.5 (talk) 08:23, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

That doesn't jibe with the lyrics as far as my interpretation goes.

So, she's unhappy to be living with the singer ("She said that living with me/Was bringing her down"). She felt trapped OR she always made excuses to be elsewhere when the singer was available ("she would never be free when I was around"). She's "got a ticket to ride" with the singer but "she don't care". Dismas|^(talk) 08:29, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

No, I understand that the ticket to ride means that she is leaving the singer and their relationship is at an end. She's going to another town (by public transport). All this is evident from the first verse: "The girl that's driving me mad/Is going away". --TammyMoet (talk) 09:38, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

If that were so, wouldn't the lyric be "She's got a ticket to ride cause she don't care" instead of "She's got a ticket to ride but she don't care"? Dismas|^(talk) 10:51, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

It wouldn't be the only song to use "but" incorrectly - "I would do anything for love, but I won't do that" has confused plenty of people (it should be "and I won't do that", since what he's not doing is the bad things he describes earlier, which reinforces the first clause, rather than contradicts it). --Tango (talk) 11:20, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I'd dispute that, Tango. It very much contradicts it and certainly doesn't reinforce it. He's making a strong contrast with what he said before, which requires a "but". The "I'd do anything..." suggests at face value there's nothing he wouldn't do for love, with no exceptions. But there is one exception, viz. "that", whatever that is. It's no different from "I love food so much, I'd eat anything - but I refuse to touch tripe". -- ♬ Jack of Oz ♬ ^{[your turn]} 22:22, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I've never heard anything but "She's got a ticket to ride and she don't care". --TammyMoet (talk) 12:27, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

To me it makes perfect sense, that the woman has a "ticket to ride", i.e. she "has it made" if she stays with the man, but she's leaving anyway. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 12:22, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

There is some discussion here of the apparent possible meanings of the song (taken from discussions with the Beatles or people who knew them), but it seems ambiguous. The phrase "a ticket to ride" is apparently one of Lennon's contrivances, apparently, so all bets are off as to what he was thinking. Some further discussion here. --Mr.98 (talk) 15:13, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I always took it to mean she had a "reserved seat" with the singer. I.e., she was always welcome. I am surprised to learn this is Lennon's coinage. Is there a dictionary of metaphors to look this up in? μηδείς (talk) 19:40, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Our article on Ryde, a seaside resort on the Isle of Wight, says:

John Lennon and Paul McCartney - the title of the song "Ticket to Ride" was inspired by a trip they took to Ryde in the 1960s supposedly visiting Paul’s cousin who worked in the Bow Bars public house in Union Street. McCartney also mentions the Isle of Wight in the song "When I'm Sixty-Four".

The reference is to a website called Songfacts. BrainyBabe (talk) 16:28, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

Ticket_to_Ride#Meaning_of_.22ticket_to_ride.22 has referenced information about the songwriter's own meanings behind the phrase. --Jayron32 19:16, 2 August 2012 (UTC)

SCUBA diving rules

In the TV series Sea Hunt, the protagonist regularly pilots a boat out to his dive site alone, then dives, leaving the boat untended (presumably anchored). I've got to think that this violates every diving safety rule out there. Did it at the time (the 1960's, in US waters) ? StuRat (talk) 09:55, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Here's a 1955 issue of Popular Mechanics with basic safety rules including "Never dive alone" (p68). This 1968 article says the same (p119). --Colapeninsula (talk) 14:22, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Thanks. We have a new candidate for most unrealistic TV show. I'd also like to know about leaving the boat untended with a dive team below. StuRat (talk) 18:50, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I don't see that "violates safety rules" in any way confers "most unrealistic" status. I regularly see people in cars without seat belts; in addition to violating basic safety, it's generally a legal violation. That doesn't make it (or fictional depictions of the same) unrealistic. — Lomn 04:00, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

The main character (Mike Nelson) is portrayed as a safety expert and often works closely with the US Coast Guard. It's laughable to think that someone who so flagrantly violates basic safety rules would be portrayed in that way, like Homer Simpson as the Safety Engineer of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. StuRat (talk) 04:04, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

It makes for more dramatic TV. You want to talk unrealistic? How about shows where they break down your body into atoms and magically reassemble them elsewhere with no ill effects? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 12:35, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

That may actually be possible, at some point in the future. We are close to being able to do this systematically with DNA, for example (breaking down to molecules and reassembling them). StuRat (talk) 21:08, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

We're more than close to it. But there's a huge gulf between dealing with individual DNA strands and dealing with an entire organism. Most anything is theoretically possible. Although how that human body would be reanimated is a significant question. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 10:32, 2 August 2012 (UTC)

Can 999 emergency calls be traced?

I have always assumed 999 calls could be traced. However this story is going around today which seems to suggest the police are unable to trace emergency calls. Is this really the case, or are there just certain circumstances (mobile phone calls perhaps?) which means they are unable to do it? --Iae (talk) 15:30, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Land line calls can be traced but I believe it was made from a mobile phone so I suspect they can only trace it to the cell it was in when they called. The size of the cell can vary from very small to very large depending on the area. MilborneOne (talk) 15:38, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

The story explains that the system does not give them the number of a cell phone that is roaming when it makes a 999 call. That seems like a rather glaring flaw, but there it is. Looie496 (talk) 16:59, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

It's perhaps worth remembering that a mobile doesn't normally need a number to make an emergency call. In most countries and with most networks (and with phones with removable SIMs), removing the SIM from the phone will still allow emergency calls to be made. The phone network which routes the call should I think record the IMEI (i.e. serial number) of the phone (although I'm not entirely sure when this is provided), but that's about all. Tracking a phone by IMEI or linking it to a person may or may not be easy depending on a variety of things like local laws and whether the phone is regularly used (perhaps with a SIM). (Even linking a phone number to a specific person may not always be easy.) And besides, you can generally hack the IMEI. So there is a possible area of abuse, but one that I think is generally considered counterbalanced about ensuring people have access to the emergency services.

I'm a bit confused about the story. I don't know much about how things work in the UK but I was under the impression most networks are nationwide with no concept of domestic roaming. One possibily is, since coverage can vary, if you are in an area with no coverage for whatever network you are using and no domestic roaming, you phone may go in to emergency call mode where it connects to a network which doesn't provide any service besides the ability to make emergency calls. I believe this is not that dissimilar from when no SIM is present although I presume that the network you connect to normally records the IMSI and home network in addition to IMEI. (Although I'm not sure whether the network is identified by the IMSI or some other method. If it's some other method, perhaps your phone first identifies the network it's looking for and if the network you connect to says 'sorry can't help you' because there's no roaming agreement with that network, your phone doesn't bother to provide the IMSI.) This would be the similar to you having an international SIM in your phone but connect to a network your provider doesn't have a roaming agreement with, or when your network doesn't allow roaming for you. (Except with international roaming, it's probably even more difficult for the police, since it may be difficult for them to get the cooperation of the foreign provider to try and identify you. Whereas if it's another domestic provider they may get some help. Of course in the later case when roaming is denied, you must have provided your IMSI.)

Even if you are successfully roaming, I'm not sure the network you connect to actually normally 'knows' your phone number (i.e. MSISDN) since it isn't relevent from the networks perspective, except perhaps for caller ID reasons. (Note that even your phone doesn't necessarily know its own number unless it was set up in some way, as there's no standard requirement to store it. And besides as our article mentions technically it can change at any time e.g. due to number portability without your phone being 'told'. It only matters to the network so it knows what calls to route to you.) Remember when you're roaming, all calls to your mobile number still go to the network you're a subscriber of who then forward it on to the network you're connected to (our article mentions via a temporary number). This is discussed in the roaming article and has also been mentioned on the RD before.

P.S. Nimur or someone could probably provide clarification one some of the points I was unsure of like whether the IMEI and IMSI are normally provided to the network you connect to even when ordinary service isn't possible.

Nil Einne (talk) 17:32, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure that a UK phone with no signal will connect through another network if it can, I can't immediately find a source, though. I have found this saying Ofcom wanted to make it possible in 2009 - I can't prove that they actually did it, but I think they did. --Tango (talk) 20:29, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Thanks for the information. I should say that the link I posted was originally completely different, and didn't have any details whatsoever regarding the source of the call. --Iae (talk) 22:04, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

I'm somewhat confused by the link. As I mentioned, as far as I know in most countries, at least with GSM networks, there's nothing stopping the phone connecting to any available network (that they are capable of connecting to) to make emergency calls only. The issue as I mentioned is one of the phone set-up. I think some (/many?) phones don't bother to connect to networks which provide emergency calls only when they have a SIM installed (as I mentioned most should do so without a SIM), possibly because it may take them longer to hand-over in to their proper network. Also AFAIK, roaming usually means when some level of service is provided based on roaming agreements and authentication, not simply providing emergency calls without any authentication so allowing a phone to connect for emergency calls only wouldn't generally be called roaming. It's possible they want or have set up things in the UK differently. Rather then presenting it self as providing emergency calls only, a network may present itself as providing roaming, but if you try to make non emergency calls you get a message saying you can't make such calls. So if you've set up your phone to roam, it will automatically connect to other networks if necessary. (Perhaps this is combined with some degree of cooperation to improve handovers to your desired network, although I think with roaming phones phones are already generally okay at handing over to the desired network.) Alternatively perhaps they just don't or didn't do something most? of the world was already doing and allowed emergency calls from any network without authentication (and having confusingly decided to call it roaming), these non RS [2] [3] seems to suggest this later suggestion may in fact be the case. P.S. I realised earlier my comment above on IMEIs was silly. As I understand it, IMEIs in some way function like a MAC address and are what are supposed to uniquely identify every device connected to a network, so of course they are provided to the network when you connect. Simultaneous dual SIM phones always have 2 IMEIs. Nil Einne (talk) 07:57, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

Josh Groban

I am sorry if I am not asking in the right place. I looked and this seemed the best place. I have seen several articles stating Josh Groban is an atheist. Now where have I seen him quoted that he is an atheist or giving sign of it. Is he an atheist and what is the proof? Froglong (talk) 16:07, 31 July 2012 (UTC)froglongFroglong (talk) 16:07, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

The Entertainment desk would be a better place for this question, but as far as I can see the answer is that Josh Groban has carefully avoided stating in public what his religious beliefs are, beyond saying that he is "spiritual", whatever that means. Looie496 (talk) 16:53, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

public records

Theres a old cabin on my prop. Im wanting to know when & who built it. how do I go about that? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.131.92.149 (talk) 16:11, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Saying that you're from Mississippi rather, than, say, Pudsea, probably has a bearing on whether & how easily the question will be answered. --Tagishsimon (talk) 16:14, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

There's no way of answering that question systematically. Start by asking the old folks, and look for any possible historical records, and follow up any leads you get. Looie496 (talk) 16:56, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

You could also determine the approximate age by the construction. Does it have electricity ? Indoor plumbing ? Is it made out of machine-cut boards, hand-hewn boards, or logs ? StuRat (talk) 18:56, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Do you have the deeds for the property? If the cabin is shown on the deeds, then you know it is older than the date on the deeds. If you have deeds at various dates, you may be able to narrow down a range of dates between which it was built. --Tango (talk) 20:34, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

This is apropos. --Tagishsimon (talk) 21:43, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Track Names

I've gotten hold of a bunch of Chopin's Nocturnes and all of them are simply labelled track 001 or track 002 and so on. How do I get the names for those pieces? I remember that Winamp had a built in plugin sort of thing that automatically detected the track playing and showed the names, once connected to the internet, but that has either stopped working on my version, or it's got to be reinstalled separately or something. Can anyone please help me? 117.226.226.249 (talk) 20:03, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

My daughter uses a free phone app called SoundHound, which claims to be able to identify pieces from a recording or even when hummed or sung. There's a more established piece of software called Shazam, although I don't think it does the humming thing. Both apparently have more difficulty with classical pieces, but I googled and found reports of success, including with a Chopin nocturne, oddly enough. I have no personal experience of using such apps, but there's some information at Query by humming and Shazam (service). - Karenjc 21:21, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

IPs not talking about identifying it based off the music itself (although that could work maybe), but rather off of the individual track characteristics. In the simplest version it just looks at all the track lengths on an album and from that it can narrow down which album it is pretty quickly.

The underlying service is usually either Gracenote, Freedb.org, or Gnudb.org. You might check their websites to see if you can find supported programs. Shadowjams (talk) 22:46, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

For further info, see a section in the language desk, about "pirates". ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 23:00, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

Or you could find someone with perfect pitch and get the keys, which is how they're identified anyway (though some have better known names, i.e., "Raindrops") 24.92.74.238 (talk) 02:47, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

That would get you a part of the way, but the keys are not all unique. There are 2 nocturnes in E♭ major, 2 in F♯ minor, 2 in G minor, and 3 in B major. Better to find someone who plays or is very familiar with them, who can identify each one immediately from the opening bar. I'd happily do it for you if you could somehow give me access to the recordings. Or, if you can read music or know someone who does, you can use the incipits at Nocturnes (Chopin). -- ♬ Jack of Oz ♬ ^{[your turn]} 03:00, 1 August 2012 (UTC)

If you've ... obtained a whole CD, then picard has a fair chance of working. Henry^Flower 13:52, 2 August 2012 (UTC)