Re: [Paddlewise] One bright thing pre Y2K (tides)

> From: Alex Ferguson <a.ferguson_at_chem.canterbury.ac.nz>

> At 05:41 pm Bob Myers 16/12/99 -0800, you wrote:

> >Consider the question: why are there 2 lunar tidal bulges,
> >one on each side of the Earth?  If it's just simple matter of the 
> >Moon "pulling" on one side, why the bulge on the opposite side?
> >Tides are usually every 12 hours, not every 24. 
> 
> Except the places where there is one tide every 24 hours. 

I think that's why Bob wrote "usually."

<snip>

> >And please take your spurious earthquake prediction speculations
> >to some place where it is on topic.  This is not the right
> >forum to discuss this, even if there was the slightest merit
> >to your uninformed suggestions.
> 
> Very good series on TV at the moment, "The Planets", you should see what
> gravitational effects do to some of the moons around planets in the solar
> system!!!

Bob's objection was the announcement of a catastrophic event predicted to
take place on or about a particular day without real knowledge or understanding of physics but using some general knowledge to promote that prediction which 
is not supported by scientists in the field.  Such predictions can and have 
cost societies in big ways.

A good site on this subject is: http://www.users.bigpond.net.au/peterb/y2k.htm
One example: the prediciton by astrologers of the rise of the Thames in 1524 
to such a height that it would wash away ten thousand houses, all due to 
a certain alignment of the planets.  This bad call caused quite a stir
and needless expense.

Cheers,

Jackie
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