Writers' Bloc - Creative Writing Off Topic Thread

pickarooney

I'll buy the rights to the Box for 5 grand on that outline alone. Think of all the future earnings from suing movie studios for stealing that idea.

coffee_cake

:pac:
should be good once i pin down more details

ah, i ought to use a few hours of my day off for studying but i dont wana

pickarooney

Studying? You've been doing that all your life; what have you left to learn?

Das Kitty

bluewolf won't be happy until she knows all the things.

She's like a knowledge-devouring scary thing that is also really pretty.

Be very afraid.

coffee_cake

pickarooney wrote: »

Studying? You've been doing that all your life; what have you left to learn?

I'm working as an actuary, which means I need to qualify as one professional exams twice a year which are a nightmare and designed to fail ALL the people
well okay not all just half
so in september i will be re-sitting these ones:
http://www.actuaries.org.uk/research-and-resources/documents/subject-ct4-models-syllabus-2013-exams
http://www.actuaries.org.uk/research-and-resources/documents/subject-ct5-contingencies-syllabus-2013-exams

Das Kitty wrote: »

bluewolf won't be happy until she knows all the things.

She's like a knowledge-devouring scary thing that is also really pretty.

Be very afraid.

*waves german test results around*

aww

pickarooney

bluewolf wrote: »

I'm working as an actuary, which means I need to qualify as one

So it's a bit like the old driving tests on a renewed provisional?

coffee_cake

pickarooney wrote: »

So it's a bit like the old driving tests on a renewed provisional?

more like still needing an instructor - a signing actuary - with me at all times until i've finished then i can go off on my own

pickarooney

bluewolf wrote: »

more like still needing an instructor - a signing actuary - with me at all times until i've finished then i can go off on my own

I must find out what an actuary actually is some day.

coffee_cake

pickarooney wrote: »

I must find out what an actuary actually is some day.

awesome, that's what we are :cool:

there you go
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actuary

An actuary is a business professional who deals with the financial impact of risk and uncertainty. Actuaries provide expert assessments of financial security systems, with a focus on their complexity, their mathematics, and their mechanisms (Trowbridge 1989, p. 7).
Actuaries mathematically evaluate the likelihood of events and quantify the contingent outcomes in order to minimize losses, both emotional and financial, associated with uncertain undesirable events. Since many events, such as death, cannot be avoided, it is helpful to take measures to minimize their financial impact when they occur. These risks can affect both sides of the balance sheet, and require asset management, liability management, and valuation skills. Analytical skills, business knowledge and understanding of human behavior and the vagaries of information systems are required to design and manage programs that control risk (BeAnActuary 2005a).

Kinski

bluewolf wrote: »

there you go
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actuary

Wow, that's what you actuary do for a living?***

pickarooney

I've read that before, I just have no idea what it translates to in reality. It sounds like a cross between the guy from Numb3r5 and the girl from Dead Like Me.

Are you a reaper?

coffee_cake

pickarooney wrote: »

I've read that before, I just have no idea what it translates to in reality. It sounds like a cross between the guy from Numb3r5 and the girl from Dead Like Me.

Are you a reaper?

I suppose the easiest way to put it is that it's about modelling events and their likelihood
in pensions, we look at defined benefit pension schemes: how likely the members are to die before and after retirement, how much of a pension they should expect to get at retirement age but in today's terms allowing for interest rates and mortality and salary increases, and advise the trustees/employers how much they will need to contribute every month/year to cover these expected costs & expenses. there is also some basic asset matching advice involved e.g. if a lot of people are going to retire in the next 5 years they might want to switch from equities to bonds/cash, that kind of thing


in insurance i expect they would look at the rates of mortality from car accidents or likelihoods of claims, expected present values of the payouts when these events happen, and how much to charge in premiums to cover these, profit margin, and expenses

you can specialise in investments as well but i don't know much about it yet

pickarooney

Ok... did you see the global economic meltdown coming?

coffee_cake

pickarooney wrote: »

Ok... did you see the global economic meltdown coming?

was only getting started back then and far more interested in WoW than real life
The other lads did though, they were passing around books about the general boom/bust cycles and predicting disaster

Antilles

bluewolf wrote: »

was only getting started back then

Full of excuses, you are!

Antilles

I want to post something to the CW forum but every time I go to click submit I notice padraiggg's thread and realise I'll never write anything as good, so what's the point

Agent Weebley

Antilles wrote: »

I want to post something to the CW forum but every time I go to click submit I notice padraiggg's thread and realise I'll never write anything as good, so what's the point

With that logic, why would Hyundai make an Accent waiting to happen, when Aston Martin has made a Rapide-o-licious?

Answer: to snapkick them on value for money* . . hahahahaha ha

* NB: padraiggg is very efficient: he put 232 words into the tank, netting 63 replies and 5564 views (so far.) Good going, padraiggg

Hmmm, that's got me thinking . . . I need to surgically slice the crotch of his trousers and undies open with my magic sword while he is in mid snapkick, using the opportunity to carefully flick him in the left goolie, thereby bringing him to his knees . . . he needs to speak to me on my level.

Thanks, Antilles!

Antilles

I just had an idea to set all my short stories from now on within the same fictional universe. Is this as great an idea as I drunkenly thing, or am I risking ruining every future story by relating it back to other potentially very different stories?

pickarooney

A universe is pretty big. The chances of them meeting are slim.

Toasterspark

There's often loads of background info that never makes it into an actual story. Except in your case, the background info is a huge unknown (i.e: that every character has the potential to meet each other). Still very workable though!

Antilles

Good points. I think I'll do it!

On another note, what's "S.O.F.T." stand for?

pickarooney

Stay on fuсking topic

coffee_cake

we wore onions on our belts, which was the style at the time...

Antilles

pickarooney wrote: »

Stay on fuсking topic

Ffs man I was only asking a question.

pickarooney

What does FFS stand for?

[-0-]

pickarooney wrote: »

What does FFS stand for?

Forty-five sandwiches.

dogmax

Soft, is a soft white cloud that floats softly across the blue sky on a beautiful summers day.
Soft, is a soft pillow where a weary head can rest after having one of those days.
Soft, is a Body of love the Woman I stand with on the battle fields of Life.
Soft, is not, Stay on fuсking topic.

Decisions are better serve with the calmness of time, but we all have made decisions where the calmness of time was available, but ignore.

As a wise head once said "if we only new then what we know now" to which the seeker of knowledge reply "ah sure listen, there is always tomorrow, now who's fuсking round is it anyway"

dogmax

just testing :cool:

dogmax

I think its your round, but damm it that was a great song

Antilles

Just found out that my short story, "Rocket Bye Baby" (which I posted about in the Write Club forum) is going to be published in the Octocon 2013 Anthology!