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Common Purposes

What are the Common Purposes? I've dwelt on that question since first reading my alma mater's founding principle "for the purposes of instructing persons, who may choose to apply themselves, in the application of science to the common purposes of life". The question, more than any answer I may ever offer, has guided me through many personal and professional endeavors. And, if I have learned anything it is that I have derived my greatest joy when I, as part of a team, have made a lasting difference to improve the lives of others. Should the thoughts I share here and the ensuing discussion lead others to ask the same question, to seek their own answers and to experience the same joy as I, then I shall consider this effort of value.

Image: "The New Shoes" by Jane Bucci. This work is based on the touching photo snapped by Gerald Waller in 1946, in Austria. The little boy, who lived in an orphanage, had just been given new shoes by the American Red Cross.

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What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

Posted February 08, 2008 11:53 AM by MillMatt

Czeslaw Mrall who lives in the Bydgoszcz Area, Poland, posted a series of photos on his website from a trip he took across the United States. He took the following picture and has asked if anyone can identify what this massive item may be:

You may see the website and more photos from his travels here.

Any and all thoughts would be of interest. If you found this thing in your backyard, what would you do with it? Let's be creative!

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#1

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/08/2008 12:52 PM

I think it is a road surface tester.

The central part is lifted bu the 2 inverse cranes and then dropped to measure the impact strength of the road.

Actually it is a milk transporter / milk shake maker.

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#2

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/08/2008 2:29 PM

It's a 6 storey pod hotel on it's side ... I think a cat could sleep on it, or under it...somewhere..or at least rub up against it....I wub that thingumybob...it's mine

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#3

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/08/2008 11:56 PM

These are 6 maximum security prison cells, with the warden's quarters above.

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#4

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 12:03 AM

It appears to be a segment of a cracking unit for the petrochemical industry

joshua

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#5
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 12:54 AM

...and a cracking good segment it is, too!

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#6

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 3:33 AM

Obviously it's the world's largest executive toy (a newton's cradle). At that size it's got to be on its way to Donald Trump's office (the white truck in the background is carrying his new desk to sit it on - flatpacked).

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#7

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 7:52 AM

I looked at the link, but am having doubts about on-line translators ;

"

"ON Wyoming one can tell that often shoals pasących yourselves mustangów.

Gaberdine parked on the other side superhighways. Ciekawe what is this , that such large tax. Then again domki to Kolacin as well tremendous figure The mother of god to precinct trim Wyoming as well Nebraska.

ON samej Nebrasce dopadł me in the end snow. Prime therein year. As luck would have it not sypało consumption badly as well when stu mile displace , why not was yes wrong. "

Are they doin a re-make of Thunderbirds ?

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#12
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 1:48 PM

You are such a nit picker!! The translation makes perfectly good sense if you simply correct the spelling of "stud" in the third paragraph. Clearly, they were referring to the well known ""stud mile" rather than the arcane and nearly obsolete "stu mile."

Other than that small mistake, the translation appears spot on to me. It is a testicle to the richness and flexibility of both the English language and online translators, that the real "feel" of the Polish came through intact. (It is also a testicle to online spell checkers, that any misspellings in this post were caught before publishing.)

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#17
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/12/2008 1:20 PM

OMG, you could be right ! No, no, I don't mean your my... !! Iknow I'' translate you to Polish ;

Jesteś taki pewien gnida okazja!! Ten tłumaczenie wyroby idealnie dobry zmysł jeśli ty zwykłe poprawny ten ortografia od " spinka " w ten trzeci paragraf. Rozliczać , oni byliśmy odsyłający do dobrze wiedział "" spinka mila " raczej niż ten sekretny i prawie starzenie się stu mila " Inny niż ów mały błędnie tłumaczyć , ten tłumaczenie ukazuje się na miejscu u do mnie. To jest pewien jądro do bogactwo i elastyczność od obydwaj Anglicy język i online tłumacze , ów ten rzeczywisty " czuć " od ten Polski przybyły przez nienaruszony. ( to jest także pewien jądro wobec online przeliterować kontroler , ów wszelki robienie błędów ortograficznych w ten wysłać pocztą byliśmy chwytać przed publikowanie )

...and then back....

Are not such something of nit pick-up!! This translation wares perfectly goods sense supposing you the run of the mill correct operation this spelling ex " stud " on this third article. Clear , they were referring until goods known "" stud mile " rather than this treasurer as well businesses obsolence stu mile " Different to yonder small mistake , this translation arises spot with z to my house. To wit something of nucleus until wealth as well price elasticity ex either The English tongue as well on-line translators , yonder this tangible " perceive " ex this Polish arrivals via unaffected. ( to wit item something of nucleus vis-a-vis on-line spell comptroller , yonder resolved misspelling on this post were tackle prior publishing )

Hey I've discovered a whole new pass-time ! Next time I read STL, I'm going to double translate him to see if it makes sense. ( Sorry STL, I be pulling yer legs !). I'll do it to myself before posting sometime. How the heck did they get from 'testicle' to 'nucleus' ?!! ROFL.

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#18
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/12/2008 1:37 PM

Whatever it is ... It's a boy!

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#20
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/13/2008 2:31 AM

And in English-Russian-English;

Regardless of the fact that it... It is a boy! < Someone pass the Vodka ! >

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#19
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/12/2008 2:46 PM

I babelfished this from english to french and back twice.

Original:

Other than that small mistake, the translation appears spot on to me. It is a testicle to the richness and flexibility of both the English language and online translators, that the real "feel" of the Polish came through intact. (It is also a testicle to online spell checkers, that any misspellings in this post were caught before publishing.)

Improved: Other above which this small error, the translation appears spot with me. It is a testicle with the richness and the flexibility of English and the translators on the line, that the true "feeling" of the polish came by intact (it is also a testicle to be spelled in the line of the controllers, them the these all errors of epellation in this post were caught before the édition.)

The second is much better than the first. I think I may process all my posts this way. If STL did the same, his posts could go from gibberish to spot.

Them the these all things can be fun. I used to are was doing this with the early electronic calculators, their accuracy with which to check.

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#21
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/13/2008 2:37 AM

...his posts could go from gibberish to spot

ROFL.

Excel engages in a bit of runding up. I suspect this is a deliberate American plan - you've already demolished half the 'u's that we Brits like to use, now you're after our precious decimal places. I testicle on behalf of the British people !

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#22
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/13/2008 12:23 PM

We don't demolish the 'U's, we put them to good use. Here we have several ways of saying "you". In Pittsburgh, it "yuns" and you can ask the question, "Juns eat yet? and get the reply, "No, jew? (It hard to know when to use juns vs jew.)

But in Brooklyn, "u's guys" is heard all the time. That's where we most of the 'u's we take from words like "endeavour".

Your testicle will nevertheless be considered with all due concern.

The extra decimal places are used mainly by NASA in hopes that adding some places will compensate for errors like using kg when lb was intended. Unfortunately, we've found that we can miss a planet entirely whether or not we consider a kg to be 1.0 lb or 1.0000000 lb. A pint's a pound the world around. Here, the only thing that comes in kilos is drugs, which is as it should be. That way, when you hear someone talking about kilos you know they should be arrested for dealing in drugs (or for being a scientist -- which is a similar crime.)

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#23
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/13/2008 1:28 PM

I am practicing Pittsburgh as I type. Yainga bleevis... Sappenin ?! I'm saddened to hear that Tony Soprano doesn't have a thing for sheep, it gave me hours of amusement.

So the truth is out - that picture is the fiendish u-transporter ! Used by those who covert are u's and want to hang them upside down. We gain our revenge with place like Leicester and Bicester.

One day you'll all get metricated, even if NASA have to loose a few bucks. I bet there were some red faces that day.

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#24
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/13/2008 6:08 PM

Hahahahahahahahaha....!!!! Good one Kris.

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#25
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/13/2008 6:31 PM

RE: your avatar ... You taste testin, or havin a weeee in someone's Budweiser??

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#26
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/14/2008 3:38 AM

I freeze them like popsicles, except I call them tas...... !

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#8

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 9:23 AM

The ground looks like salt flats. And that texaco star on the side. Must be top secret machine to turn salt into petroleum. Or a new ornament for the Mormon temple.

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#9
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 9:28 AM

Maybe, but most definitely not a thingamabob!!! Thinga-ing one's bob, one's mother's bob, or even more than one wife's bob, is no longer legal in Utah.

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#10

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 10:25 AM

It's actually a picture of the new septic tank that I ordered. The six lower pods have weep holes to allow the effluent to gradually seep out into the ground.

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#14
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 10:43 PM

How will you, or it, keep all the solids afloat...so the tear ducts don't become...congested?

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#15
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Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/10/2008 10:43 AM

It's a brand new design Guest. Each of the lower pods has a continuously moving conveyor belt with scoops that moves the solids to a vat within the upper pod. Simple huh? Once a month the "Job Johnny" crew shows up to clear out the accumulation (still trying to overcome this little obstacle; perhaps version 1.3.6 may do it).

In this way the tear ducts, as well as the eustacian tubes remain clear.

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#11

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 1:16 PM

Dingle berries found lying around from the Jolly Green Giant.

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#13

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/09/2008 9:27 PM

I think it might be the pulsation control manifold off a six throw reciprocating compressor...

Either that or the valve assembly from a very very very large green trumpet.

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#16

Re: What's It????? It's a Thingamabob!!!! I think???

02/11/2008 9:15 AM

What ever it is, it is a male.

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