(Announce) New Game "The Enterprise Incidents"

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"Another thrilling day at Neil Armstrong Middle and
Elementary School," you think, with studied irony,
as you get off the bus, trying to look as cool and
bored as the other eighth graders. In truth, though,
you really are a little excited and nervous, because
today is Valentine's Day, and you have a special job
to do, delivering Enterprise Candy Grams to classes
all around the building. And best (and worst) of all,
your delivery partner will be Judy, on whom you've
had an incredible crush since before you knew what a
crush was."

You are Doug DeGrace, a lanky, thirteen-year old
eighth grade student at the only public school in
Nom de Plume, North Dakota, a town of five thousand
souls in the north central part of the United States,
which boasts of being "The Coldest French-Named Town
in the EN-tire US of A." Today's temperature does
nothing to contradict the town's unofficial slogan.

As you enter the middle school side of the building,
which is totally separate from the section for kids
younger than ten, you see a huge red poster
advertising the biggest social event of the year,
the Valentine's Day Dance. The dance is tonight,
but you're not at all sure you'll be going. After a
quick trip to your locker, you arrive at the middle
school cafeteria, where your school day starts.

Can you guide Doug to a successful delivery of
candy grams, and perhaps to a date for the dance?
(Well, yes, you can, since the puzzles are pretty
easy and the story includes hints and a
walkthrough.) Can you have some fun along the way?
(I hope you'll try the story to find out.)

"The Enterprise Experiments: a Middle School
Fantasy," is a short work of IF by Brendan Desilets,
with lots of help from beta testers Sophie Fruehling,
Jeff Nassiff, Matt Carey, and Sean Desilets. The
name of its Inform story file is
enter.z5
and it is currently available at the IF Archive, in
the zcode section of the games directory
(http://www.ifarchive.org/if-archive/games/zcode/).

You can also find the story on the Website "Teaching
and Learning With Interactive Fiction" at
http://if.home.comcast.net/a_middle_school_story.htm

Enjoy!

Peace,
Brendan

 

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Brendan Desilets <cc0155884> wrote:

> Nom de Plume, North Dakota, a town of five thousand
> souls in the north central part of the United States,
> which boasts of being "The Coldest French-Named Town
> in the EN-tire US of A."

Nitpick: what was the capital of Alaska called, again?

Richard

 

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Richard Bos wrote:
> Brendan Desilets <cc0155884> wrote:
>
>
>>Nom de Plume, North Dakota, a town of five thousand
>>souls in the north central part of the United States,
>>which boasts of being "The Coldest French-Named Town
>>in the EN-tire US of A."
>
>
> Nitpick: what was the capital of Alaska called, again?

They boast "coldest", not "farthest north". Ocean currents, elevation, and
ranges often trump latitude. Whitehorse, Yukon (north of Juneau) has
warmer winter weather than White River, Ontario (south of 49). North Dakota
and Montana have probably the coldest weather for their latitudes/altitudes
of anywhere in the world. I don't know the specifics for Juneau, but
whatever's warming Whitehorse is probably getting Juneau, too.

The nit was picked and crushed. Soon we'll have some nice nit whine.
--
David Tanguay http://www.sentex.ca/~datanguayh/
Kitchener, Ontario, Canada [43.24N 80.29W]

 

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lol.

 

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In article <410e9601.5210484@news.individual.net>,
Richard Bos <rlb@hoekstra-uitgeverij.nl> wrote:
>Brendan Desilets <cc0155884> wrote:
>
>> Nom de Plume, North Dakota, a town of five thousand
>> souls in the north central part of the United States,
>> which boasts of being "The Coldest French-Named Town
>> in the EN-tire US of A."
>
>Nitpick: what was the capital of Alaska called, again?

Juno. Oh, ok, Juneau. But the North Dakota town is probably colder;
Juneau has the moderating effect of the ocean.

 

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David Adrien Tanguay <datanguayh@sentex.cookie.can> wrote in message news:<410f54a3$1@news.sentex.net>...

> They boast "coldest", not "farthest north". Ocean currents, elevation, and
> ranges often trump latitude. Whitehorse, Yukon (north of Juneau) has
> warmer winter weather than White River, Ontario (south of 49). North Dakota
> and Montana have probably the coldest weather for their latitudes/altitudes
> of anywhere in the world. I don't know the specifics for Juneau, but
> whatever's warming Whitehorse is probably getting Juneau, too.

It's time to clear this one up.

According to http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/usa/alaska/wjuneau.htm,
Juneau's average high temperature for January is 29 degrees Fahrenheit
(I have no idea how warm or cold this actually is, but I think it's
below freezing). The state of North Dakota, according to
http://climvis.ncdc.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/cag3/hr-display3.pl, has an
average January high of just 6 degrees, which I imagine is much
colder.

> The nit was picked and crushed. Soon we'll have some nice nit whine.

Not in those climates.

A.

 

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aramael_musitello@yahoo.co.uk (Aramael Musitello) writes:

> According to http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/usa/alaska/wjuneau.htm,
> Juneau's average high temperature for January is 29 degrees Fahrenheit
> (I have no idea how warm or cold this actually is, but I think it's
> below freezing).

The easy conversion (add 40, multiply by 5/9, subtract 40) gives
(40+29)*5/9-40=-(1+2/3) degrees Celsius, barely below freezing.

> The state of North Dakota, according to
> http://climvis.ncdc.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/cag3/hr-display3.pl, has an
> average January high of just 6 degrees, which I imagine is much
> colder.

(40+6)*5/9-40=-(14+4/9) degrees Celsius.

--
Esa Peuha
student of mathematics at the University of Helsinki
http://www.helsinki.fi/~peuha/

 

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On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 12:19:09 +0300, Esa A E Peuha wrote:

> aramael_musitello@yahoo.co.uk (Aramael Musitello) writes:
>
> The easy conversion (add 40, multiply by 5/9, subtract 40) gives
> (40+29)*5/9-40=-(1+2/3) degrees Celsius, barely below freezing.

That is a very interesting version of the formula. Much easier to
remember!

I have always used the approximation of "double it and add 30" (from a Bob
and Doug McKenzie routine) to do quick C to F conversions in my head. It
works for "normalish" temperatures and gets more and more off as the
numbers get very high or very low. The reverse for this situation would
be "subtract 30 and halve it."

Rick

 

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Rick Reynolds wrote:
>>The easy conversion (add 40, multiply by 5/9, subtract 40) gives
>>(40+29)*5/9-40=-(1+2/3) degrees Celsius, barely below freezing.
>
> That is a very interesting version of the formula. Much easier to
> remember!

How's that easier than the standard formula "subtract 32, multiply by 5/9"?
--
David Tanguay http://www.sentex.ca/~datanguayh/
Kitchener, Ontario, Canada [43.24N 80.29W]

 

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In article <pan.2004.08.04.15.04.27.31694@_UNNEEDED_rickandviv.net>,
Rick Reynolds <rick@_UNNEEDED_rickandviv.net> wrote:
>On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 12:19:09 +0300, Esa A E Peuha wrote:
>
>> aramael_musitello@yahoo.co.uk (Aramael Musitello) writes:
>>
>> The easy conversion (add 40, multiply by 5/9, subtract 40) gives
>> (40+29)*5/9-40=-(1+2/3) degrees Celsius, barely below freezing.
>
>That is a very interesting version of the formula. Much easier to
>remember!

Than subtract 32 and multiply by 5/9?

 

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David Adrien Tanguay <datanguayh@sentex.cookie.can> wrote:

>Rick Reynolds wrote:
>>>The easy conversion (add 40, multiply by 5/9, subtract 40) gives
>>>(40+29)*5/9-40=-(1+2/3) degrees Celsius, barely below freezing.
>>
>> That is a very interesting version of the formula. Much easier to
>> remember!
>
>How's that easier than the standard formula "subtract 32, multiply by 5/9"?

Because of the other conversion formula. They make an attractive
pair:

F to C: add 40, multiply by 5/9, subtract 40.
C to F: add 40, multiply by 9/5, subtract 40.

Sincerely,

Gene Wirchenko

Computerese Irregular Verb Conjugation:
I have preferences.
You have biases.
He/She has prejudices.

 

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Here, David Adrien Tanguay <datanguayh@sentex.cookie.can> wrote:
> Rick Reynolds wrote:
> >>The easy conversion (add 40, multiply by 5/9, subtract 40) gives
> >>(40+29)*5/9-40=-(1+2/3) degrees Celsius, barely below freezing.
> >
> > That is a very interesting version of the formula. Much easier to
> > remember!
>
> How's that easier than the standard formula "subtract 32, multiply by 5/9"?

I long ago memorized that -40 was a fixed point, and this formula uses
that as a mnemonic.

--Z

"And Aholibamah bare Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah: these were the borogoves..."
*
* Make your vote count. Get your vote counted.

 

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Andrew Plotkin wrote:
>>How's that easier than the standard formula "subtract 32, multiply by 5/9"?
>
> I long ago memorized that -40 was a fixed point, and this formula uses
> that as a mnemonic.

32 is the freezing point, so it's also mnemonic. Are people more likely to
know the fixed point over the freezing point?
--
David Tanguay http://www.sentex.ca/~datanguayh/
Kitchener, Ontario, Canada [43.24N 80.29W]

 

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On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 13:01:35 -0500, Matthew Russotto wrote:

> In article <pan.2004.08.04.15.04.27.31694@_UNNEEDED_rickandviv.net>,
> Rick Reynolds <rick@_UNNEEDED_rickandviv.net> wrote:

>>That is a very interesting version of the formula. Much easier to
>>remember!
>
> Than subtract 32 and multiply by 5/9?

Boy, I'm regretting this slip of the tongue (fingers)!

I meant that it is easier to do head calculations with. I then talked
about my "double it and add 30" rule which was another easy calc -- but it
is only an estimate.

Of course, multiplying or dividing by 5/9 isn't too easy in your head
(for common folks like me) but it's pretty close to 1/2 (or 2 for the
inverse). I guess I just liked that it used a nice round number like 40
(which is easier to play with in my head than 32) and it gave dead-on
results (overlooking the 5/9 <-> 1/2 thing).

 

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In article <edbe31d6.0408040046.ca11de1@posting.google.com>,
Aramael Musitello <aramael_musitello@yahoo.co.uk> wrote:
>Juneau's average high temperature for January is 29 degrees Fahrenheit
[...]
>The state of North Dakota, according to
>http://climvis.ncdc.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/cag3/hr-display3.pl, has an
>average January high of just 6 degrees, which I imagine is much
>colder.

OK. The next question is, are there no French-named towns in the
*interior* of Alaska?

Adam

 

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In article <pan.2004.08.04.19.46.46.848579@_UNNEEDED_rickandviv.net>,
Rick Reynolds <rick@_UNNEEDED_rickandviv.net> wrote:

[ Re: add 40, multiply by 5/9, subtract 40 ]

> I meant that it is easier to do head calculations with. [...]
>
> Of course, multiplying or dividing by 5/9 isn't too easy in your head
> (for common folks like me) but it's pretty close to 1/2 (or 2 for the
> inverse). I guess I just liked that it used a nice round number like 40
> (which is easier to play with in my head than 32) and it gave dead-on
> results (overlooking the 5/9 <-> 1/2 thing).

For C->F conversion, you can "simplify" the division by 5/9 by
performing it as multiply-by-two, then subtract 10%. People tend
to find this much easier to do mentally. (e.g., converting 150 C
would be 150 -> 300 -> 270 -> 302 F with the usual formula.)

One point about the mentioned formula which I haven't seen anyone
else point out yet is that each direction of conversion "looks the
same". That is, they _both_ are: add 40, multiply by something,
subtract 40. Whereas with the standard versions, the 32 is added
in one and subtracted in the other, and this is done after the
multiplication in the first version and before it in the second.

Considering the number of times I just used known points to
rederive the formula in my head to get that previous sentence
around the right way, I much prefer the version using 40.

(I should add: I hadn't seen that version before; thanks!)

Cheers,
Geoff.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Geoff Bailey (Fred the Wonder Worm) | Programmer by trade --
ftww@maths.usyd.edu.au | Gameplayer by vocation.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

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Il Wed, 04 Aug 2004 15:48:23 -0400, Rick Reynolds ha scritto:

> I guess I just liked that it used a nice round number like 40
> (which is easier to play with in my head than 32)

I think that after some years (or months?) of programming, powers of two
end written in stone inside mind.

And 32 is a power of two (2^5)

just my 2^1 (euro)cents.

Best regards from Italy,
Dott. Piergiorgio.

 

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adam@fsf.net (Adam Thornton) wrote in message news:<cerklo$gdp$1@news.fsf.net>...

> OK. The next question is, are there no French-named towns in the
> *interior* of Alaska?

My research [1] indicates no, however I'm sure no one would mind if
you pronounced Alaskan town names in a French accent (but in today's
geopolitical climate, who can say?).

What I did notice was that Alaska contains an awful lot of towns that
start with the letter A.

A.

[1] 30 seconds on google

 

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On 2004-08-04, David Adrien Tanguay <datanguayh@sentex.cookie.can> wrote:
> Andrew Plotkin wrote:
>>>How's that easier than the standard formula "subtract 32, multiply by 5/9"?
>>
>> I long ago memorized that -40 was a fixed point, and this formula uses
>> that as a mnemonic.
>
> 32 is the freezing point, so it's also mnemonic. Are people more likely to
> know the fixed point over the freezing point?

People who come at it from the C side are. Not to mention it's easier
to add and subtract 40 - only one digit. It's still the 5/9 that's the
problem.

Joe

 

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Joe Mason wrote:

>
> People who come at it from the C side are. Not to mention it's easier
> to add and subtract 40 - only one digit. It's still the 5/9 that's the
> problem.
>
> Joe

Here's an easy way to do 5/9 in your head:

First you realize that 5/9 = 0.55555....which is the same as
0.5 + 0.05 + 0.005 + ...

So you just multiply by half and then add to that the same result but shifted
one place etc.

For instance a good appros of 5/9 * 28 = 14 + 1.4 = 15.4. If
want more accuracy, add 0.14 to get 15.54 and another 0.014 to get 15.554, etc.

 

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Paul Drallos wrote:
>
> Here's an easy way to do 5/9 in your head:
>
> First you realize that 5/9 = 0.55555....which is the same as 0.5 + 0.05
> + 0.005 + ...
>
> So you just multiply by half and then add to that the same result but
> shifted one place etc.
> For instance a good appros of 5/9 * 28 = 14 + 1.4 = 15.4. If want more
> accuracy, add 0.14 to get 15.54 and another 0.014 to get 15.554, etc.
>
>
You can also use the same trick with 9/5 = 1.8 = (2 - 0.2) so
9/5 * 28 = 56 - 5.6 = 50.4 exactly.