Acronyms and other memory prickers

[bonneyman]

Let's start a thread for all the interesting and ingenious phrases and tricks we use to prompt our memories of important facts. Perhaps if we get enough helpful ones we can make a stickie?

For instance, how do I recall the angles to use in trigonometric calculations? I learned  "Same old horse came a hopping through our alley". Sine is the opposite angle over the hypotenuse, Cosine is the adjacent over the hypotenuse, and Tangent is the opposite over the adjacent.

Watching a video on caves, I recalled how I remember the difference between stalagmites and stalactites.
Stalagmites (with a G) Grow upwards from the Ground. Stalactites (with a C) Cling to the Ceiling.

I'll post more as they come to me.

[wantedabiggergarage]

Tites were at the top of the cave and mites were in the muck was how I learned.

[goodfellow]

Here's one for the welders to remember Straight or Reverse polarity (with regard to electrodes and ground) using both houses of congress as a memory jogger

Senate = SEN = Straight Polarity Electrode Negative

House of Representatives = REP = Reverse Polarity Electrode Positive

Hence TIG welding is usually SEN, while stick welding is usually REP   -- MIG can be both depending on what wire you use.

[coolmercury]

Rightie tightie lefty loosey!  My wife is a lefty and over time I have to tighten all the knobs on the kitchen cabinets.

[Rural53]

Tites were at the top of the cave and mites were in the muck was how I learned.

I simplify it even more, StalacTite. T as in "from the top of the cave".

[stokester]

I'll add some more from my military days but now one from my Boy Scout days comes to mind.

"Leaves of three, let it be" as the warning about poison ivy.

[goodfellow]

Remembering the order of significance in solving equations.

Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally

translates to ......... Parenthesis, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, and Subtraction

ALSO

remembering Pi out to the 8th value using the phrase --  "May I have a large container of coffee?". Just count the letters in each word, and don't forget to put a decimal after counting May, which = 3

Hence Pi to the eighth value = 3.1415926

...and the one we all drilled in Algebra/Trig class in high school for remembering sine, cosine, tangent

SOH-CAH-TOA  pronounced “soak a toe-uh”   -  Sine = Opp/Hyp, Cosine = Adj/Hyp, Tangent = Opp/Adj

[wantedabiggergarage]

Tites were at the top of the cave and mites were in the muck was how I learned.

I simplify it even more, StalacTite. T as in "from the top of the cave".

Just as I said.

What about our old friend?
Roy G Biv....

Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.

Red touches black, friend of jack, red touches yellow, dead fellow.

[Rural53]

Remembering the order of significance in solving equations.

Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally

translates to ......... Parenthesis, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, and Subtraction

ALSO

remembering Pi out to the 8th value using the phrase --  "May I have a large container of coffee?". Just count the letters in each word, and don't forget to put a decimal after counting May, which = 3

Hence Pi to the eighth value = 3.1415926

...and the one we all drilled in Algebra/Trig class in high school for remembering sine, cosine, tangent

SOH-CAH-TOA  pronounced “soak a toe-uh”   -  Sine = Opp/Hyp, Cosine = Adj/Hyp, Tangent = Opp/Adj

I remember the order of operations without a nonmonic. I haven't heard the one for remembering Pi before, I'll try and remember that one. SOH-CAH-TOA is imprinted in my brain and still gets used occasionally. I even used good old Pythagoras' 3-4-5 triangle to set out some right angles recently when all I had was a 50 metre tape measure.

[wantedabiggergarage]

And of course where would we be without Private Snafu, and how FUBAR things are?

[stokester]

Neat subject...

From my early electronics training ->  "ELI the ICE man"

voltage (E) leads current (I) in an inductive circuit (L)
current leads  voltage in a capacitive (C) circuit

and there was the phrase to remember the resistor color code that I'm quite sure is not taught today 

[goodfellow]

Neat subject...

.....and there was the phrase to remember the resistor color code that I'm quite sure is not taught today 

-- Having served in WWII and Korea many old HAM guys I know relied on some very raunchy catch phrases to remember certain procedures and/or formulas. Definitely NOT for family oriented reading -- LOL

[goodfellow]

This one is not that common anymore, but the color "Gray" can also be spelled "Grey". Both spellings are acceptable these days, but they represent a difference between traditionally English and American English.

GrAy = American

GrEy = England and Commonwealth

[muddy]

Tites were at the top of the cave and mites were in the muck was how I learned.

I simplify it even more, StalacTite. T as in "from the top of the cave".

I've known it as Slagtites, hang tite to the ceiling. Stalagmites grow mighty from the ground.

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[Midnitemack]

When I worked in the US driving truck , our logbook pages had the letters GOAL in pale writing imposed into the background of where we wrote all the info for our day  , it stood for “ get out and look” if you weren’t sure of anything, still stays with me to today over 20 years later ….


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[goodfellow]

You motorcycle guys might remember the following acronyms when taking the class M license exam.

SIPDE -- Scan Identify Predict Decide Execute

FINE-C  -- Fuel, Ignition, Neutral, Engine (kill switch off), Clutch  (or on older bikes also include Choke)

[muddy]

Suck Squeeze Bang Blow.... Four stroke engine.

15 is too young 36 too old 24 just right...... inline 6 firing order

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[bonneyman]

I use this one alot these days.

Red sky at morning - sailors take warning.
Red sky at night - sailors delight.

[TexasT]

We have those stickers on mirrors and top corner of the windshield on many of our trucks. Never hurts to follow that. You can be safe for yrs and all it takes is one incident and you aren't safe any more.

[skfarmer]

When I worked in the US driving truck , our logbook pages had the letters GOAL in pale writing imposed into the background of where we wrote all the info for our day  , it stood for “ get out and look” if you weren’t sure of anything, still stays with me to today over 20 years later ….


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great advice. i operate a lot of equipment that is large with poor visibility or plain old, obstructed views. i wish i could count the times i have gotten out for a look around once twice or more times. as i get older, reaction time, vision. night vison and sore joints all compound my fears. i don't mind fixing things that break but i hate fixing things i needlessly broke or damaged.

[wantedabiggergarage]

I use this one alot these days.

Red sky at morning - sailors take warning.
Red sky at night - sailors delight.

I seem to remember hearing that one, but I no longer remember what is referenced?

[bonneyman]

I use this one alot these days.

Red sky at morning - sailors take warning.
Red sky at night - sailors delight.

I seem to remember hearing that one, but I no longer remember what is referenced?

It's what seamen used to forecast the days weather. A bright red sunset meant the next day would be calm, but a bright red sunrise meant stormy weather. I think.   

[bonneyman]

A quick way to calculate the temp in Fahrenheit if you're given the Celsius figure: Times two, minus 10%, add 32. Helped immensely in chem class.

Convert 100 deg C: Times 2 (makes 200), minus 10% (which is 20, making 180) then add 32 (makes 212).

Now I just need to learn a little diddy going the other way. When visiting Europe people found out I was from Arizona, and they asked how hot it got. I said 105 wasn't unusual. They gasped. Then I realized they thought I meant 105 deg C. 

[bonneyman]

Every time I fire up a liquid fuel Coleman stove or lantern I always forget how to adjust the lighter stem. (That pesky little L-shaped wire on top of the tank). You start the stove with it in one position, then rotate it slowly 180 deg to the other position for operation). Finally came up with a little diddy to remember:

"Start up to run down"

Happy camping!

[bonneyman]

Was watching a marine special on TV, and they talked about "port" and "starboard". I wondered out loud what they meant, and the Mrs. said she always remembered "turning to port" as "meaning turning left", as both "port" and "left" had 4 letters. I learned something new!   

[Midnitemack]

Was watching a marine special on TV, and they talked about "port" and "starboard". I wondered out loud what they meant, and the Mrs. said she always remembered "turning to port" as "meaning turning left", as both "port" and "left" had 4 letters. I learned something new!   

I’ve always remembered that the same way , didn’t know whether it was a “thing” or was just  me .


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[geneg]

Learned trig functions as Oscar Had A Heap Of Apples

sine        Opposite Hypotenuse
cosine     Ajacent  Hypotenuse
tangent   Opposite Ajacent



GMC / Chevy  straight 6 firing order:  153624

15 is too young
36 is too old
24 is just right       
actually, just the rhythm of the numbers stuck in my head forever, but someone once told me the other amusing reminder


Metric volume conversion (from my first new car)  Buick V6

231 cubic inches
3.8 liters

also equals 1 gallon

[bonneyman]

Kinda silly, but I come across alot of young folks who don't know military time when watching war movies.

Up to 1200, just read it as it's written. That's the AM time.
Above 1200, subtract twelve from the first two whole digits, and that's the PM time.
With a little practice it becomes almost second nature. (Admission: I served in the military, and rarely used military time!)

Zero hour is midnite, 1200 is noon. 
0930 is 9:30 AM, 1145 is 11:45 AM.
1630 is 4:30 PM, 2020 is 8:20 PM.

If anyone has a simpler way, post it up.

[bonneyman]

Metric volume conversion (from my first new car)  Buick V6

231 cubic inches
3.8 liters

also equals 1 gallon

Good one! I still hate modern engines designation in "liters". Just can't dislodge the cubic inches nomenclature from my memory.

My dad had a 1961 Harley panhead, and I remember him always describing it to people he talked to as owning a 74. I finally asked him - you didn't casually bother my dad with dumb questions - why he said his motorcycle was a 74 when I knew it was a 1961. He said 74 was the engine capacity, not the year. So, motorcycles were measured in cc's, cars were cubic inches. Until this liter thing took over.
My van is a 4.3L V6. Supposed to be a Chevy 350 V-8 with the front two cylinders lopped off. So I figured 350 divided by 8 was 43.75 CI per cylinder. Subtract two of those off of the V-8 leaves 262.5 cubes. So now I don't think of the van engine size in liters unless I'm ordering stupid parts, as the counter help won't get 262 CI.

[bonneyman]

OK, just discovered this over at Wiki. For those who have ALOT of time!   

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mnemonics

[geneg]

Read thru parts of the linked site-   Forgot all about the every good boy does fine from 4th grade music.

I too, do not like to think of engines in liters.  Mini bikes  & go carts were in cc's.  Cars & trucks are cubic inches!

[bonneyman]

Read thru parts of the linked site-   Forgot all about the every good boy does fine from 4th grade music.

I too, do not like to think of engines in liters.  Mini bikes  & go carts were in cc's.  Cars & trucks are cubic inches!

 

I remember my dad picked up a 1964 El Camino with a 283 V-8 in it that burned oil. I think he paid $400 for it. But he knew someone with a 327 V-8 that had been modified into more of a racing engine, and he got that for $100. One weekend I helped him swap the engines. When we took it for it's first test run, my dad had forgotten to install the hood hold down. So when we hit 40MPH, the hood flipped up and covered the windshield! Made for a fantastic memory.   

[bonneyman]

When painting I used to have trouble remembering what type of brush to use with certain paints/finishes. Water-based products need synthetic brush bristles, whereas natural bristled brushes are best for oil-based products. The reasoning is natural bristles seem to "soak up" latex products and they get thick and clumpy. that's a no-no. Plus the solvents used to clean oil brushes might affect the plastic synthetic bristles. So those need natural fibers.

I've adopted the "opposites attract" rule. Water is "natural", so I use an artificial (synthetic) bristle. Oil (paints) are man-made, so I used natural bristles.

[hickory n Steel]

Remembering the order of significance in solving equations.

Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally

translates to ......... Parenthesis, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, and Subtraction

ALSO

remembering Pi out to the 8th value using the phrase --  "May I have a large container of coffee?". Just count the letters in each word, and don't forget to put a decimal after counting May, which = 3

Hence Pi to the eighth value = 3.1415926

...and the one we all drilled in Algebra/Trig class in high school for remembering sine, cosine, tangent

SOH-CAH-TOA  pronounced “soak a toe-uh”   -  Sine = Opp/Hyp, Cosine = Adj/Hyp, Tangent = Opp/Adj

I completely forgot that I had learned that pandas thing.
Even if I had remembered it I'd have no clue what it meant, but reading your comment I actually remember the day I learned it.
I haven't used it since though because I'm an idiot who sucks at anything beyond basic math and can probably count on both hands the number of times I actually did my homework from 1st grade through 8th.

Our educational system is pretty damn screwed up if I can do my homework so little and never flunk a single grade
I did have to take algebra 1 probably 3 times and I don't think I ever even got to algebra 2, but otherwise the school system kind of failed by letting me get away with not doing my homework.

[bonneyman]

Was watching a power tool repair guy on the Tube, and he taught me the correct parts of an electric motor.

The stator (stays put) is the outside electrified ring/cylinder (also known as a "field").
The rotor (rotating part) is the inner coil that turns the shaft and drives the tool (also known as the "armature").

[gtermini]

When I worked in the US driving truck , our logbook pages had the letters GOAL in pale writing imposed into the background of where we wrote all the info for our day  , it stood for “ get out and look” if you weren’t sure of anything, still stays with me to today over 20 years later ….


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

great advice. i operate a lot of equipment that is large with poor visibility or plain old, obstructed views. i wish i could count the times i have gotten out for a look around once twice or more times. as i get older, reaction time, vision. night vison and sore joints all compound my fears. i don't mind fixing things that break but i hate fixing things i needlessly broke or damaged.

They paint it in giant letters on the side of a certain carrier's trucks to remind their bonehead drivers when they look in the mirror as they sideswipe light poles, small cars, and dock rails...

S wing
W ide
I t's a
F ukin
T railer

Never Saddle A Dead Horse to remind me which way to put a clamp on a wire rope

[slip knot]

I always thought Swift was

Sure
Wish
I'd
Finished
Training

[bonneyman]

Just figured a way to be able to keep stock market terms straight. A bull versus a bear market.

Bears go down underground to hibernate - bulls don't. So, a "bear market" means a downturn of some kind, and a "bull market" means an upturn. A "bullish" investor expects prices to rise, whereas a "bearish" investor expects them to fall. And they buy or sell accordingly.

Apparently the term "bear' originated with an old proverb "you don't sell the bearskin before you've caught the bear". Over time it came to mean selling a borrowed stock only to repurchase it later at a cheaper price (because you expected prices to fall). Today it's called "short selling". Not very wise. "Bulls" came up as an opposite of "bears".
https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/investing/bullish-vs-bearish

Now when I hear the terms on the evening news I understand them a little better.   

[bonneyman]

Been watching more cooking shows lately, and the question of choosing the right wine keeps coming up. I don't drink much wine, but thought you just picked a wine you liked to go with your meal.

Obviously not! There's all sorts of rules, flavor mixing considerations, and types of wine that one has to sift through to make the right choice. Finally read where a commentator made it simple: red wine for red meat, white white for white meat.

I'm sure the purists out there are going to go ballistic - but the next time someone invites the Mrs and I over for dinner I'm following this advice to bring some wine with us.