Hi gang, Dr Geep here.

Well, it's time for another contest ... you've waited long enough. ;=]

This one isn't going to be so easy, though.

The prize?

"UVMapper Pro"
Just possibly the world's greatest software tool for mapping all your 3D models.

All you have to do is answer the first three simple questions and ...
POST YOUR ANSWERS HERE IN THIS THREAD.

All answers must be correct to win. I am the sole judge of all answers and my decision will be final. (After all, it's my money, no?) I will not respond to ANY partially correct answers until after there is a winner.
The name of the winner will be posted here.

Ready?
Here goes.

Question #1 -
There are 360 degrees in a circle.
Why?

Question #2 -
In the United States, the standard spacing between the rails
on all major railroads is 4 feet 8 1/2 inches.
Why?

Question #3 -
I am doing this contest?
Why?

Question #4 -
What is absolutely the best website on the net for graphics artists?

Good luck to all, and ........

cheers,
dr geep
;=]

#1- any less would leave a gap, any more would overlap #2- thats the width of 2 roman horses butts #3- you already have UV Mapper Pro and the money is burning a hole in your pocket #4- Renderosity :)

Question #1: Because it would not be a circle if it were not 360 degrees! (: Just kidding, it is because the Babylonians decided that a circle should contain 360 degrees. Question#2: Major railroads are 4 feet, 8 1/2 inches because the standard width of wagon wheels, trails, and roman chariots are 4 feet, 8 1/2 inches. Question #3: RENDEROSITY, that's who! (: Genny

Ooppps, I forgot one question: WHy are you doing this contest! BECAUSE YOU CAN! LOL! And you are wonderful, generous,loving person, who likes to share and may possibly be promoting a New Product? (: Genny

1: don't know 2: don't know 3: you're feeling generous 4: Renderosity Rob

1. It comes from back when the Earth revolved around the sun and the year contained 360 days (as everyone at that time knew). One degree for each day as the sun shifts in the sky. 2. Two Roman horses butts --> Roman chariots --> Roman roads --> European roads --> wagons -- railroads. It looks like everyone's gotten that e-mail forward. 3. a. Apparently. b. Because you are an unbelievably wonderful person who wants to make Fyre-chan very happy. ::puppy eyes, wipes brown spot off nose:: 4. Renderosity, of course. : )

You know, I have to admit, that my husband, is a hobbiest too, except, he, unlike me, actually makes things, in real life, and his latest project is: Wagon Wheels. (: That is why I knew the reason they are what they are, and I just thought I should confess that to you all, as I would have NEVER known it, other then, I learned it from him. (: I really didn't cheat, but I may have had an Unfair advantage. Genny

#1 - So The Three Degrees would be 357 people short in their band and not be able to form a circle. #2 - 4ft 8 1/2 inches was the average height of the 23,647 people who built the first railroad. #3 - You know I already have uv mapper pro and am not eligible to win. #4 - I don't know. I haven't opened it yet. mac

#1 - Combine Genny and Fyrespiryt's answers and that's correct.

#2 - In the US, we did it that way because that's the way they did it in England and the reason they did it that way in England is *see everyones answer to #2 above. :)

#3 - Because you haven't received your copy of P5 yet. :p

#4 - (that's a loaded question) Hmm, can't decide between www.renderosity.com and www.uvmapper.com

:)

#1 .........it`s a nice round number #2 .........to jump from one without problem to the next #3 .........you had a good idea?! #4 .........easy to tell, renderosity!

Entry #2 #1a - Because some idiot in Ancient Egypt had 12 fingers and refused to go metric. #1b - So that people with 3rd-degree burns would feel relieved that they hadn't gotten anything worse. #2 - They were trying to economise and couldn't afford a railroad 5 feet wide? #3 - You have double-vision and are under the mistaken impression you have 2 copies of uv mapper pro. #4 - www.nekkidwomencoveredinmaplesyrup.com mac

#1. In 1936, a tablet was excavated some 200 miles from Babylon. Here one should make the interjection that the Sumerians were first to make one of man's greatest inventions, namely, writing; through written communication, knowledge could be passed from one person to others, and from one generation to the next and future ones. They impressed their cuneiform (wedge-shaped) script on soft clay tablets with a stylus, and the tablets were then hardened in the sun. The mentioned tablet, whose translation was partially published only in 1950, is devoted to various geometrical figures, and states that the ratio of the perimeter of a regular hexagon to the circumference of the circumscribed circle equals a number which in modern notation is given by 57/60 + 36/(60^2) (the Babylonians used the sexagesimal system, i.e., their base was 60 rather than 10). The Babylonians knew, of course, that the perimeter of a hexagon is exactly equal to six times the radius of the circumscribed circle, in fact that was evidently the reason why they chose to divide the circle into 360 degrees (and we are still burdened with that figure to this day). The tablet, therefore, gives ... Pi = 25/8 = 3.125. So that's who gave us the 360 degrees in the circle. #2. The U.S. standard railroad gauge (distance between the rails) is four feet, eight and a half inches. That's an exceedingly odd number. Why was that gauge used? Because that's the way they built them in England, and English expatriates built the U.S. railroads. Why did the English people build them like that? Because the first rail lines were built by the same people who built the prerailroad tramways, and that's the gauge they used. Why did 'they' use that gauge then? Because the people who built the tramways used the same jigs and tools that they used for building wagons, which used that wheel spacing. Why did the wagons use that odd wheel spacing? Well, if they tried to use any other spacing the wagons would break on some of the old, long-distance roads, because that's the spacing of the old wheel ruts. So who built these old rutted roads? The first long-distance roads in Europe were built by Imperial Rome for the benefit of its legions. The roads have been used ever since. And the ruts? Roman war chariots made the initial ruts, which everyone else had to match for fear of destroying their wagons. Since the chariots were made for or by Imperial Rome, they were all alike in the matter of wheel spacing. Thus, the standard U.S. railroad gauge of four feet, eight and a half inches derives from the specification for an Imperial Roman army war chariot. #3. I am doing this contest because I have used and "abused" UVMapper Classic about all I can... Need to work on something new. #4. I have to admit.. Renderosity has it hands down... I check the site almost everyday (at least 5-10 times... I know, I need a life!) -Lee

No winner yet ... - but - ... some of you are getting very, very close. BTW - You can post as many times as you want - and previous winners ARE eligible except, what are ya gonna do with a second copy? Map models in stereo??? ;=] cheers, (for now ...) dr geep ;=] P.S. Yes, I am doing this to "fill the gap" until P5 arrives. (Wed for me, I hope.) Then you probably won't hear from me for about 2-3 years. (if you're lucky ;=] )

The "Roman cart track" story has never been able to be verified (although it was researched by alt.folklore.urban a few times :-). This from... http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/railwidth.htm Where did the four-foot, eight-and-a-half-inch standard originate? Gabriel says it was from a Englishman named George Stephenson. Carts on rails had been used in mines in England for years, but the width of the rails varied from mine to mine since they didn't share tracks. Stephenson was the one who started experimenting with putting a steam engine on the carts so there would be propulsion to pull them along. He had worked with several mines with differing gauges and simply chose to make the rails for his project 4-foot, eight inches wide. He later decided that adding another six inches made things easier. He was later consulted for constructing some rails along a roadway and by the time broader plans for railroads in Great Britain were proposed, there were already 1200 miles of his rails so the "Stephenson gauge" became the standard. Interestingly, the 4-foot, eight-and-a-half inch width has not always been the standard in the U.S. According to the Encyclopedia of American Business History and Biography, at the beginning of the Civil War, there were more than 20 different gauges ranging from 3 to 6 feet, although the 4-foot, eight-and-a-half inch was the most widely used. During the war, any supplies transported by rail had to be transferred by hand whenever a car on one gauge encountered track of another gauge and more than 4,000 miles of new track was laid during the war to standardize the process. Later, Congress decreed that the 4-foot, eight-and-a-half inch standard would be used for transcontinental railway.

1. cause thats how the romans wanted it 2. cause that is the size that would allow a train to pass without clipping eachother and doesnt take up too much land 3. because you want to see what dumb answers we can come up with 4. RENDEROSITY!!!!!!!!

Well, I may be wrong about everything, other than the railroad thing, but I am absolutely, POSSITIVELY sure, that this is why, it is the way it is. Like I said before, my husband is building a set of wagon wheels, per specs that are made from original wagon wheels of the past, so.............I don't know where anyone else got their information, but, when you can see the end result, IN REAL LIFE, then there can be no Doubts. (: genny

1. 360 degrees in a circle? and when was this agreed on? i was under the impression it was 116 ((and the record player i built has a habit of throwing off every vinyl i put on it)) ::sits pondering how many degrees are in a c1rcle before stalking Rob with a thermometer:: 2)4 feet 8 1/2 inches because thats how tall my friend Dave is ((Note: i have no friends called dave, any Daves reading feel free to contact me about aforementioned friendship...Height irrelevant...Name irrelevant)) 3) because you have a "Dave" friend and its all part of an elaborate scheme to humiliate me over my lack of "Dave" friends.....ok you win...but we'll see who has the last laugh when my army of Daves contact me. 4) WWW.DaveFixation.com? aka R'osity :) and now a formal apology for blurring the issue with my daveness....it's only funny if you're me...or my wife...or name everything dave for no apparent reason :D Ever

Daves not here...

Dang, LeeEvans stole my answer for #1, so why bother? But I have a friend named Dave. Really. He's a great guy, too.

1.Navigators on ships used Degrees to of course Navigate 2.Weight distrubution 3.Because you can...And it is a great sales pitch 4.Renderosity with uvmapper second

'Where did the four-foot, eight-and-a-half-inch standard originate? Gabriel says it was from a Englishman named George Stephenson' I hate to be picky, cooler (actually, I'm a liar...I lOVE being picky), but Stephenson was a Scotsman....he invented the steam engine. Along with a few other Scottish inventions....like television, telephones, tarmac (hottop), and bicycles, toi name but a few. LOL mac

Nobody has it yet!

[but this thread sure is fun to read, don't cha think?]

I don't know 'bout you guys, but I sure are gettin' an edacation! ;=]

Hmmmmm?????????????

Seems like we're kinda stuck on #1.

So, I'm gonna give ya a clue...

The answer lies not in the AD but in the BC.
I'm sure that helps alot, but that's all you're gonna get.
... for now ... anyway ...

cheers,
dr geep
;=]

BTW - Kendra had the correct answer to #3. ;=] Way to go !!!

1. "The ancient Babylonians, in around 700BC, started this trend. They measured things with the mathematical base of 6, hence the 60..." -- from sciencenet.org.uk 2. Thats the standard width of the chariots wheels -- from this thread :) 3. Because you dont have Poser 5 yet -- this thread again... 4. RENDEROSITY!!! -- just ask anybody ;)

1. because Cicle has starred in fewer movies than Kevin Bacon and so it's harder to link a random movie star to him. 2) because any larger and it becomes too hard for villans to tie the heroines of silent movies to. 3) why not?

oops that should read "Circle has stared"

#1 - 360 degrees came from the ancient Egyptian calendar, which in turn was based on astronomy calculation. #2 - std. rail gauge came over from horse-carriage trail ruts in, which came from british carriage ruts (since carriages on both sides of the Atlantic were about the same dimensions. The carriages were made to match ruts laid by Roman chariots in the old stone roads in Britain (carriages were built to match the Roman ruts so as to save wear and tear on the axles.) The Roman chariots were sized appropriately based on the width of two horses' arses, which fit into the fixed side-yokes. #3 - err, what Kendra said ;) #4 - http://www.faeriewylde.com, if you enjoy the presence of the wee folk (:p) . Otherwise, for all-around 3d goodness, the answer is Renderosity.

clarification on #1 - there were 360 days in the Egyptian year. /P

1 the circle, I believe is 360 due to measuring the movement of the stars. In making a sort of "star dial" the cirlce is related to how long it takes for the stars to do a full revolution. If you are familiar with astrolgy you will note that each sign, denoted by a group of stars, begins at a slightly different time each year, sometimes a different day. this has to do with the wobble of the earth in it's rotation. If you look at charts you will see some that leave this in and you have unequal houses, others have been standardized with 30 degrees per house. This equalizing has to do with mathmaticians at the time messing with nature, 2. The width of the rails does have to do withI think an isosolese( ok, I can't spell) triangle and balance. A certain ratio between the base width and sholder hight of the animal pulling the cart and average height of a man plays into it. Made for the sturdiest, non tipping wagon or chariot. When it was realised that to connect all the railways and the need for a standard, they went back to the wagon standard. 3. as geep says, he is waiting for p5.

1. this division of the circle is very ancient, and appears to have been originally applied to the circle of the Zodiac, a degree being the space or distance travelled by the sun each day according to ancient Babylonian and Egyptian computation, just as a sign represented the space passed through in a month 2. Because the people who built the tramways used the same jigs and tools that they used for building wagons, which used that wheel spacing. Since the chariots were made for (or by) Imperial Rome, they were all alike in the matter of wheel spacing. The United States standard railroad gauge of 4 feet, 8.5 inches derives from the original specification for an Imperial Roman war chariot. 3. because it's a great program and you want to share it with some lucky person :o) 4. renderosity

Question1:The division of the circumference of the circle into 360 parts originated in Babylonian astronomy of the centuries BC. Question2: Same as I said before Question3: Like Kendra said, plus you are a nice guy. Question4: Renderosity, that answer will never change. (: Genny

you all have it wrong #1-#3 can be answered with the same answer: The answer is that some woman wanted it to be this way and to dodge a year's worth of nagging, her husband let said "ok". #4 my site of course! brycetech.com :P BT

Question #1 - There are 360 degrees in a circle because that's how many there are. Question #2 - In the United States, the standard spacing between the rails on all major railroads is 4 feet 8 1/2 inches because that's how wide the wheels are on the railroad cars. Question #3 - I am doing this contest? Because you're geep. Question #4 - What is absolutely the best website on the net for graphics artists? Whatever site geep hangs out on, and where I can get good stuff for free.

didn't see the fourth question

1. why the unofficial bikermice fan club of course.

Penguinisto:
"... there were 360 days in the Egyptian year."

Why?

;=]

lol I LOVE wulf's answer to the railroad question...I laughed out loud lol BT

Special to: wyrwulf

Although not correct, I liked your answers very much, especially #2. ;=]

#1 Cuz' some horses A** said so!!! #2 Cuz' of two horses A**s #3 Cuz' you're a......ah don't have p5 yet? #4 I a'int answerin' cuz you said just answer the first three!!!

Ah, almost forgot: 12 months of 30 days each are in the old Egyptian year - and those were based on the rotation of the star Sirius, if memory serves (they used it to time the year), and was based on the legends of Osiris and Thoth. (err, my minor was in martial history (ie hopology), as opposed to general history, so I may have just blew it entirely. :) ) /P

Oh yeah - Sirius makes a complete circle in a year (almost forgot that part :) /P

Who ELSE made a complete cycle in 1 year? ;=]

Sirius' position next to the rising sun foretold the flooding of the Nile, the calendar itself was credited to Thoth, so it's either him, the Nile, or the earth around the sun :? They eventually had to correct the thing, making it 365 days, pretty much like what we have now, minus the leap years :) /P

heh - at least you got rid of the 'birds' :p Mail sent as requested - 'tis 10:30pm here, so I'm goin' ta bed... :) /P

is that you geep? you're cute :) while you're in a generous mood, any chance of getting your skin free? lol i like the mustache and goatee :) nice edumekationul thread here :)

And that's why we call them the dog days of summer. Siriusly folks. Sorry I missed this. I could use the pro-mapper. I guess that makes the Egyptians or before them the Chinese the first ray tracers. Congratulations Penguinisto. Use it well. Q

The earth's orbit WAS 360 days and Mar's orbit WAS 720 days prior to 701 BC.

All major civilization's calendars were based on a 360 day year but in 701 BC, the two orbits almost coincided exactly and the near fly by threw both planets into the orbits we are in today.

But, don't take my word for it. Find the book "Catastrophism." and judge for yourself. ;=]

Thus, we have 360 degrees in a circle because 1 degree was the rotational distance that the Earth moved in 1 day. They really knew (well, some of them did) that the Earth revolved around the Sun and they, also, thought that the Earth's orbit was a circle with the Sun at the center.

cheers,
dr geep
;=]

TTFN

That is NOT my picture. (I wish I looked THAT good!) ;=] That is Mr. /P (Penguinisto), the winner. cheers, dr geep ;=] BTW - TTFN = Ta Ta For Now!

but that guy looks nothing like tux!!! hey... now who do i go to for a penguin skin?!? ;) congrats on the uvmapper pro peng.

Wow, Peng. Didn't know you were such a hottie. :) Congrats. :)

Attached Link: http://www.faeriewylde.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=598