StringJunky

Yes, that's true - a continuum - but that's just my human need to compartmentalise everything; we draw mental lines around things and say "This is this and that is that".

Probably, a definition needs to start with acknowledgement of it''s origins from certain unconfigured molecules i'e non-living, and life emerges from them as they become more complex and, ultimately, discretely autonomous.

I think I said somewhere earlier: the fact that the progression from the non-living to the living is a continuum, renders a nice, tidy definition unlikely.

Thanks imatfaal, that's very useful info and I will take it on board. A chain stretch gauge is sailing its way from China to me. I am buying a new chain this week, so will monitor it with the gauge. My test: I lubed my chain with silicone, let it dry, then halved it. I immersed in water for five minutes, then ran it under the tap for a minute to simulate the mother-of-all downpours. Compared to the unsoaked chain it was clear some had come off on the outside but it was still nice and smooth after being left to dry; no metal-to-metal grinding. I have since read up on silicone and it's not recommended by the manufacturers for loaded metal-to-metal situations as it doesn't have the required load-bearing properties; only a third of normal oils apparently. It's not wasted, I'll use it for lubricating/waterproofing inside the freewheel as the lube has no necessary function in drive mode; only freewheel spinning backwards, which has no load. Also, suspension arms. So, it's back to the Muc-Off Dry.

Life is a journey, deal with it when/if it arrives. If we worried about every possible if, we might as well be dead.

Molecular constitution and structure. DNA is DNA. Feels like your trying to wiggle out of this.

But wrt to the definition Strange is right; it's plausible: DNA is not necessarily an all-encompassing feature of every possible life-form. To be pedantic: viruses are RNA.

That was interesting. Thanks. It seems that it should do the job but might have to find one with a higher viscosity if this is too thin.

When you open a book, you see two pages side-by-side; that's a double page. Ignore the first page and last page because they are not double pages.

With oneself? Journals are usually written for the person writing them.

If one can carry a virus for many years and the body doesn’t recognise it, how come when we administer synthetic interferons, which the body already has, the virus can be eliminated? What puzzles me is: how does adding extra interferon improve the recognition abilities of the immune system towards that virus, when it has been languishing for decades in its host, untouched by the effects of the signalling of the host's own natural interferons on his/her immune system? What does it do to the, I’m guessing here, ‘killer’ cells that gives them that ability to recognise the virus? I’m thinking of the hep c virus in particular since interferon-alfa works quite well against it.

Interesting. So, there's psychosomatic effect from writing.

The one I got is by the 3-In-One company. It was in Halfords at £5.99 http://www.halfords.com/motoring/engine-oils-fluids/lubricating-penetrating-oil/3-in-one-professional-silicone-spray-lubricant-400ml I've cleaned the chain up and put it on. I'll see how it holds up. I check my bike every week or so; if it lasts a week exposed to one or two bouts of rain that'll be good enough for me. Is silicone, silicone, wherever you get it from; assuming there's no other functional additives?

I think iNow's answer is probably the most accurate, with a nod to evolution as well.

I did think of that one but wasn't sure. Would this one from WD40 be worth a go? http://wd40specialist.com/products/silicone-lubricant/ I've just bought this one to test: 3-in-1 Silicone Lubricant . Just got to get my chain spotless before I put it on. Will report back

Even with only 20 entries, that's the trend I expected, as it is now.

Yeah, that was a very clever bit of re-writing. Dogs, for the guitar work and atmosphere, is high on my favourites list.

I'm looking for a lubricant for my bike chain that will dry out but can resist rain for longer than the ones usually available for bikes. Wet bike chain lubes that do resist rain attract dust in dry weather and soon get clogged up and dirty to handle. Normal chain oils are just a nightmare for attracting dirt in any conditions; specialist bike chain wet lubes aren't quite as wet as normal oils. I'm just wondering if anyone knows of a lube, maybe used in some other discipline, that may meet my requirements. For clarity: A 'wet' lube is for wet weather because it resists rain. It is slightly sticky, but not wet itself. A 'dry' lube is for dry weather and is not sticky to the touch and hence keeps clean in dry weather; comes off with rain though.

What a cheerful title! I don't think it should be dismissed, the common sentiment that a child has lost more potential than an adult. You're 19 and just starting out. Your life is precious to you and you are seeing your life from the perspective of a young person; you have little history as an adult. When you've lived another couple of decades, or three, you'll have a different perspective and will empathise more with that common sentiment.

I meant it loosely; it sounded good in my mind.

I think this just shows that spacetime is not real; it's a model. Spacetime will go the way of phlogiston.

What is a physical thing to a physicist?

It's a model with measurable parameters; the parameters are the 'real' bits. Those parameters can be reassembled to create new relationships and make another model should the earlier one fail in some area. So, I suppose, one could say the data is real but the concepts that are made from them are just human artifacts.

I think is quite straight forward but it would have been, perhaps, clearer to say: Is spacetime real or is it just a model? Or, getting down to the nitty-gritty: what does real mean?