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Today's topics:
* Calvin's Quiz #164 - 8 messages, 8 authors
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.trivia/t/dcae36a72c84030c?hl=en
* Rotating Quiz #31 - 7 messages, 7 authors
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.trivia/t/48fd56406f0bd4a5?hl=en
* QFTCI11 Game 7 Rounds 2-3: math jargon, movie/song titles - 1 messages, 1
author
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.trivia/t/486bdd2363edecfd?hl=en
* Rare Entries Contest MSB72: final reminder - 1 messages, 1 author
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.trivia/t/e1c0881c0d67dba9?hl=en
==============================================================================
TOPIC: Calvin's Quiz #164
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.trivia/t/dcae36a72c84030c?hl=en
==============================================================================
== 1 of 8 ==
Date: Sun, Sep 11 2011 10:36 pm
From: msb@vex.net (Mark Brader)
"Calvin":
> 1 Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon co-starred in which 1995 film?
Dean Man Walking?
> 2 How much does one litre of water weigh?
Rather than give a smartass answer that's actually correct, I'll say
a kilogram, because that's what you want.
> 3 Who is Kelly Preston's actor husband?
Johnson.
> 4 Budapest and Belgrade lie on which river?
Danube.
> 5 What is the name of the stone at the top of an arch?
Keystone.
> 6 Norwegian Roald Amundsen was the first man to do what?
At least two notable things. Lead an expedition to the South Pole;
lead an expedition through the Northwest Passage.
> 7 What is a kepi?
French military hat.
> 8 Of which US state was Jimmy Carter governor before becoming President?
Georgia.
> 9 Which American company was the first to advertise on a blimp?
Goodyear?
> 10 Rene Artois was the lead character in which 1980s British sitcom?
"Allo Allo".
--
Mark Brader | "UNIX are quality sectional bookcases, made of solid oak.
Toronto | Open or glass-fronted, in three sizes and three finishes,
msb@vex.net | UNIX gives unapproached flexibility."
| -- Daily Mail Ideal Home Book, 1951-52
My text in this article is in the public domain.
== 2 of 8 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 1:30 am
From: Erland Sommarskog
Calvin (calvin@phlegm.com) writes:
> 2 How much does one litre of water weigh?
1 kg. At least if the temperature is 4°C.
> 4 Budapest and Belgrade lie on which river?
Danube
> 6 Norwegian Roald Amundsen was the first man to do what?
Reach the south pole.
> 8 Of which US state was Jimmy Carter governor before becoming
> President?
Georgia
> 10 Rene Artois was the lead character in which 1980s British sitcom?
Is he a sister of Stella by chance?
--
Erland Sommarskog, Stockholm, esquel@sommarskog.se
== 3 of 8 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 1:55 am
From: "David"
> 2 How much does one litre of water weigh?
1 Kilogram
> 4 Budapest and Belgrade lie on which river?
The Danube
> 5 What is the name of the stone at the top of an arch?
Keystone
> 6 Norwegian Roald Amundsen was the first man to do what?
Travel to the south pole
> 7 What is a kepi?
A hat
> 9 Which American company was the first to advertise on a blimp?
Goodyear
> 10 Rene Artois was the lead character in which 1980s British sitcom?
'ello 'ello.
== 4 of 8 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 6:11 am
From: "Rob Parker"
"Erland Sommarskog" <esquel@sommarskog.se> wrote in message
news:Xns9F5E6AD9D9206Yazorman@127.0.0.1...
>> 10 Rene Artois was the lead character in which 1980s British sitcom?
>
> Is he a sister of Stella by chance?
Like it ;-)
[But it's not what Calvin wants]
Rob
== 5 of 8 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 8:07 am
From: Joachim Parsch
Calvin schrieb:
>
> 1 Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon co-starred in which 1995 film?
Dead Man walking.
> 2 How much does one litre of water weigh?
1kg.
> 3 Who is Kelly Preston's actor husband?
> 4 Budapest and Belgrade lie on which river?
> 5 What is the name of the stone at the top of an arch?
> 6 Norwegian Roald Amundsen was the first man to do what?
Reach the South Pole.
> 7 What is a kepi?
> 8 Of which US state was Jimmy Carter governor before becoming President?
Georgia.
> 9 Which American company was the first to advertise on a blimp?
> 10 Rene Artois was the lead character in which 1980s British sitcom?
Joachim
== 6 of 8 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 11:14 am
From: "Peter Smyth"
"Calvin" wrote in message
news:op.v1n6h7ncyr33d7@04233-jyhzp1s.staff.ad.bond.edu.au...
>
>1 Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon co-starred in which 1995 film?
>2 How much does one litre of water weigh?
1kg
>3 Who is Kelly Preston's actor husband?
John Travolta
>4 Budapest and Belgrade lie on which river?
Volga
>5 What is the name of the stone at the top of an arch?
Keystone
>6 Norwegian Roald Amundsen was the first man to do what?
reach the South Pole
>7 What is a kepi?
>8 Of which US state was Jimmy Carter governor before becoming President?
Georgia
>9 Which American company was the first to advertise on a blimp?
Goodyear
>10 Rene Artois was the lead character in which 1980s British sitcom?
Allo Allo
Peter Smyth
== 7 of 8 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 3:06 pm
From: Calvin
On Mon, 12 Sep 2011 18:30:13 +1000, Erland Sommarskog
<esquel@sommarskog.se> wrote:
> Calvin (calvin@phlegm.com) writes:
>> 10 Rene Artois was the lead character in which 1980s British sitcom?
> Is he a sister of Stella by chance?
I sampled her delights last night :-)
--
cheers,
calvin
== 8 of 8 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 7:49 pm
From: Jeffrey Turner
On 9/11/2011 8:33 PM, Calvin wrote:
>
>
> 1 Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon co-starred in which 1995 film?
Desperately Seeking Susan
> 2 How much does one litre of water weigh?
one kilogram*
> 3 Who is Kelly Preston's actor husband?
> 4 Budapest and Belgrade lie on which river?
Rhine
> 5 What is the name of the stone at the top of an arch?
keystone
> 6 Norwegian Roald Amundsen was the first man to do what?
reach the north pole
> 7 What is a kepi?
a hat
> 8 Of which US state was Jimmy Carter governor before becoming President?
Georgia
> 9 Which American company was the first to advertise on a blimp?
Goodyear
> 10 Rene Artois was the lead character in which 1980s British sitcom?
--Jeff
==============================================================================
TOPIC: Rotating Quiz #31
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.trivia/t/48fd56406f0bd4a5?hl=en
==============================================================================
== 1 of 7 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 1:02 am
From: Joachim Parsch
Hi,
these are made-up taglines for movies (the year, in which they were
released is given). I hope it isn't too difficult.
Name the Title (1 point) *and* the director (1 point)
for the movie in question. The movies have one thing in common,
which will give a bonus point.
1. (1922) Renamed, but still scary and thirsty at night.
2. (1935) Clark Gable was there first, Marlon Brando followed later.
3. (1942) Classic tale of what happens to an old man, married to
a young woman, her lover and the ultimate crime.
4. (1948) We're looking for a vehicle to commute.
5. (1957) Death is almost stalemate, but finally wins against knight and jester.
6. (1960) Mother will always be the first woman in his life!
7. (1979) Just one part of the city of cities.
8. (1984) As weird as hell, and even...?
9. (1993) They were saved by a piece of paper with their names on it!
10.(2009) An estate in Germany at the start of the first world war, a count,
a priest, strange children and mysterious crimes, all
foreboding the second world war.
11. What do these movies have in common?
Joachim
== 2 of 7 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 5:57 am
From: Marc Dashevsky
In article <4E6DBC7E.447BC02A@bunuel.franken.de>, sm@bunuel.franken.de says...
> these are made-up taglines for movies (the year, in which they were
> released is given). I hope it isn't too difficult.
>
> Name the Title (1 point) *and* the director (1 point)
> for the movie in question. The movies have one thing in common,
> which will give a bonus point.
>
> 1. (1922) Renamed, but still scary and thirsty at night.
Nosferatu
> 2. (1935) Clark Gable was there first, Marlon Brando followed later.
> 3. (1942) Classic tale of what happens to an old man, married to
> a young woman, her lover and the ultimate crime.
> 4. (1948) We're looking for a vehicle to commute.
> 5. (1957) Death is almost stalemate, but finally wins against knight and jester.
The Seventh Seal
> 6. (1960) Mother will always be the first woman in his life!
Psycho
> 7. (1979) Just one part of the city of cities.
> 8. (1984) As weird as hell, and even...?
> 9. (1993) They were saved by a piece of paper with their names on it!
> 10.(2009) An estate in Germany at the start of the first world war, a count,
> a priest, strange children and mysterious crimes, all
> foreboding the second world war.
> 11. What do these movies have in common?
they're all good
--
Go to http://MarcDashevsky.com to send me e-mail.
== 3 of 7 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 11:16 am
From: "Peter Smyth"
"Joachim Parsch" wrote in message
news:4E6DBC7E.447BC02A@bunuel.franken.de...
>
>Hi,
>
>these are made-up taglines for movies (the year, in which they were
>released is given). I hope it isn't too difficult.
>
>Name the Title (1 point) *and* the director (1 point)
>for the movie in question. The movies have one thing in common,
>which will give a bonus point.
>
>1. (1922) Renamed, but still scary and thirsty at night.
>2. (1935) Clark Gable was there first, Marlon Brando followed later.
>3. (1942) Classic tale of what happens to an old man, married to
> a young woman, her lover and the ultimate crime.
Maltese Falcon
>4. (1948) We're looking for a vehicle to commute.
>5. (1957) Death is almost stalemate, but finally wins against knight and
>jester.
>6. (1960) Mother will always be the first woman in his life!
>7. (1979) Just one part of the city of cities.
>8. (1984) As weird as hell, and even...?
>9. (1993) They were saved by a piece of paper with their names on it!
Schindlers List - Steven Spielberg
>10.(2009) An estate in Germany at the start of the first world war, a
>count,
> a priest, strange children and mysterious crimes, all
> foreboding the second world war.
>11. What do these movies have in common?
Peter Smyth
== 4 of 7 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 11:32 am
From: msb@vex.net (Mark Brader)
Joachim Parsch:
> 1. (1922) Renamed, but still scary and thirsty at night.
"Nosferatu the Vampyre", Murnau.
> 2. (1935) Clark Gable was there first, Marlon Brando followed later.
"Mutiny on the Bounty"... Lean?
> 3. (1942) Classic tale of what happens to an old man, married to
> a young woman, her lover and the ultimate crime.
"Casablanca", Curtiz.
> 6. (1960) Mother will always be the first woman in his life!
"Psycho", Hitchcock
> 7. (1979) Just one part of the city of cities.
"Manhattan", Allen.
> 9. (1993) They were saved by a piece of paper with their names on it!
"Schindler's List", Spielberg.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "But going repeatedly back and forth in time is
msb@vex.net | cheating. Anybody can do that!" --Paul Kriha
My text in this article is in the public domain.
== 5 of 7 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 11:45 am
From: swp
On Monday, September 12, 2011 4:02:06 AM UTC-4, Joachim Parsch wrote:
> 1. (1922) Renamed, but still scary and thirsty at night.
nosferatu
> 2. (1935) Clark Gable was there first, Marlon Brando followed later.
mutiny on the bounty
> 3. (1942) Classic tale of what happens to an old man, married to
> a young woman, her lover and the ultimate crime.
casablanca
> 4. (1948) We're looking for a vehicle to commute.
all the kings men
> 5. (1957) Death is almost stalemate, but finally wins against knight and
jester.
12 angry men
> 6. (1960) Mother will always be the first woman in his life!
psycho
> 7. (1979) Just one part of the city of cities.
a bronx tale
> 8. (1984) As weird as hell, and even...?
places in the heart
> 9. (1993) They were saved by a piece of paper with their names on it!
schindler's list
> 10.(2009) An estate in Germany at the start of the first world war, a count,
> a priest, strange children and mysterious crimes, all
> foreboding the second world war.
the kings speech
> 11. What do these movies have in common?
academy award winners and nominees
swp
== 6 of 7 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 4:27 pm
From: Calvin
On Mon, 12 Sep 2011 18:02:06 +1000, Joachim Parsch <sm@bunuel.franken.de>
wrote:
> these are made-up taglines for movies (the year, in which they were
> released is given). I hope it isn't too difficult.
>
> Name the Title (1 point) *and* the director (1 point)
> for the movie in question. The movies have one thing in common,
> which will give a bonus point.
>
> 1. (1922) Renamed, but still scary and thirsty at night.
Dracula
> 2. (1935) Clark Gable was there first, Marlon Brando followed later.
Mutiny on the Bounty
> 3. (1942) Classic tale of what happens to an old man, married to
> a young woman, her lover and the ultimate crime.
Double Indemnity, Hitchcock
> 4. (1948) We're looking for a vehicle to commute.
The African Queen
> 5. (1957) Death is almost stalemate, but finally wins against knight and
> jester.
Sleuth?
> 6. (1960) Mother will always be the first woman in his life!
Psycho, Hitchcock
> 7. (1979) Just one part of the city of cities.
> 8. (1984) As weird as hell, and even...?
Amadeus?, Forman
> 9. (1993) They were saved by a piece of paper with their names on it!
> 10.(2009) An estate in Germany at the start of the first world war, a
> count, a priest, strange children and mysterious crimes, all
> foreboding the second world war.
The Sound of Music :-)
> 11. What do these movies have in common?
Re-makes of earlier films or vice versa?
Great quiz thanks!
--
cheers,
calvin
== 7 of 7 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 7:51 pm
From: Jeffrey Turner
On 9/12/2011 4:02 AM, Joachim Parsch wrote:
> Hi,
>
> these are made-up taglines for movies (the year, in which they were
> released is given). I hope it isn't too difficult.
>
> Name the Title (1 point) *and* the director (1 point)
> for the movie in question. The movies have one thing in common,
> which will give a bonus point.
>
> 1. (1922) Renamed, but still scary and thirsty at night.
> 2. (1935) Clark Gable was there first, Marlon Brando followed later.
> 3. (1942) Classic tale of what happens to an old man, married to
> a young woman, her lover and the ultimate crime.
> 4. (1948) We're looking for a vehicle to commute.
> 5. (1957) Death is almost stalemate, but finally wins against knight and jester.
> 6. (1960) Mother will always be the first woman in his life!
Psycho, Hitchcock
> 7. (1979) Just one part of the city of cities.
> 8. (1984) As weird as hell, and even...?
> 9. (1993) They were saved by a piece of paper with their names on it!
> 10.(2009) An estate in Germany at the start of the first world war, a count,
> a priest, strange children and mysterious crimes, all
> foreboding the second world war.
> 11. What do these movies have in common?
>
> Joachim
==============================================================================
TOPIC: QFTCI11 Game 7 Rounds 2-3: math jargon, movie/song titles
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.trivia/t/486bdd2363edecfd?hl=en
==============================================================================
== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 12:00 pm
From: swp
On Saturday, September 10, 2011 6:43:00 PM UTC-4, Mark Brader wrote:
> I wrote one of these rounds.
and hid this set of questions pretty well too
> * Game 7, Round 2 - Math Jargon
>
> 1. What is the term for taking the set of elements that
> are in common between two or more other sets? For example,
> if set A contains "Harvey", "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington",
> "The Philadelphia Story", and "It's a Wonderful Life"; and
> set B contains "Mark", "Cy", "Rodney", "Miles", "David",
> and "Harvey"; then the result of doing this operation on
> sets A and B would be a set that just contains "Harvey".
> What is the name of this operation?
intersection
> 2. Another operation on two or more sets makes a set out of
> all the elements that appear in either (or any) one. In the
> same example, doing this on sets A and B would produce the
> set containing "Harvey", "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington",
> "The Philadelphia Story", "It's a Wonderful Life", "Mark",
> "Cy", "Rodney", "Miles", and "David". What's the name of
> this operation on sets?
union
> 3. The "natural numbers" are 1, 2, 3, etc. and perhaps also 0,
> depending on which mathematician is talking. But if, as well
> as 0, you include both the positive and negative versions of
> the natural numbers, what set of numbers do you get? That is,
> 0, 1, 2, 3, etc. and also -1, -2, -3, etc.: what is the name
> for those numbers? Note: we don't want "whole numbers",
> a term more often used similarly to "natural numbers".
integers?
> 4. What is the name of the set of numbers that includes not
> only all of the <answer 3>, but also all possible numbers
> in between them, such as fractions, decimals, the square
> root of 2, and the number pi?
reals?
> 5. What is the term for an expression that is a sum of multiples
> of different powers of a single variable? For example,
> 5x + 1 or x^4 + 6x� - 2x� + x + 30 (where ^4 represents a
> superscript 4).
polynomial
> 6. If you have a list of numbers, sort them in order, and take
> the middle one, what is that number called? For example,
> if there are 9 numbers and you take the 5th-largest one,
> it is what?
mean ; mode
> 7. If two numbers multiply together to equal 1, what are
> they called? For example, 1/6 and 6 are a pair of what?
reciprocals
> 8. 7 + 6 equals 6 + 7, or in general A + B equals B + A for any
> numbers A and B. In other words, addition is an operation
> that has what property? Name the property.
associative
> 9. In a right-angled triangle, the longest side is always
> the one opposite the right angle, and it has a special name.
> What is that?
hypotenuse
> 10. If you have a geometrical figure and you perform an operation
> that divides it exactly into two equal halves -- such as
> drawing a diagonal of a square -- what have you done to
> the figure? No, "halved it" is not acceptable.
bifurcated
> * Game 7, Round 3 - You Can't Copyright a Title
>
> 1. 1973 horror movie with Edward Woodward and Christopher Lee;
> 2000 song from Iron Maiden.
the wicker man
> 2. 1948 crime drama with Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall;
> 1981 song from Bertie Higgins.
key largo
> 3. 1945 comedy-Western with Gary Cooper and Loretta Young;
> 1959 song from The Coasters.
grrrr ... I should know this. I like gary cooper movies. grrrr
> 4. 1981 crime drama with Burt Lancaster and Susan Sarandon;
> 1982 song from Bruce Springsteen.
atlantic city ?? (I only know the springsteen song of that name which is about the right time period and sounds like something that could be a movie title)
> 5. 1961 romantic comedy-drama with Audrey Hepburn; 1995 song
> from Deep Blue Something.
breakfast at tiffany's
> 6. 1954 crime drama / suspense movie with Frank Sinatra and
> Sterling Hayden; 1984 song from Billy Ocean.
three coins in the fountain?
> 7. 1962 drama with Jennifer Jones and Jason Robards; 1983 song
> from Jackson Browne.
tender is the night
> 8. 1981 drama with Ron Perlman and Rae Dawn Chong; 1983 song
> from Iron Maiden.
quest for fire
> 9. 1959 comedy with Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis; 1985 song from
> The Power Station with Robert Palmer.
some like it hot
> 10. 1931 horror movie with Boris Karloff and Colin Clive;
> 1973 song from Edgar Winter.
frankenstein
swp
==============================================================================
TOPIC: Rare Entries Contest MSB72: final reminder
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.trivia/t/e1c0881c0d67dba9?hl=en
==============================================================================
== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Mon, Sep 12 2011 10:10 pm
From: msb@vex.net (Mark Brader)
This is a final reminder of the current Rare Entries contest.
If the level of participation is not satisfactory, it will also be
the final contest in the MSB series. Please consider entering even
if you don't think you have good answers for all the questions.
As always, reply ONLY BY EMAIL to msb@vex.net; do not post to
any newsgroup. Entries must reach here by Saturday, September
17, 2011 (by Toronto time, zone -4). At the time of posting,
you have a bit less than 5 days to enter.
Everything below this point is the same as in the original contest
announcement. See below the questions for a detailed explanation,
which is unchanged from last time.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
0. Name something or someone that Google has commemorated
with a "Google Doodle" or "Google Holiday Logo" in 2011.
(See rule 4.4.)
1. Name a moon (natural satellite) of Mars.
2. Name a language whose English name obviously refers to
a specific country now existing, and which is the primary
language used in a different country. *NOTE*: For this and
the following question, the usual rule 4.1.1 does *not* apply,
so that "country" is not limited to independent countries
but may be used with any sensible meaning. (However, the
two countries must not share any part of their territory.)
3. Give a name (formal or informal, but not a nickname or
abbreviation) that is regularly used in English to identify
a present-day country whose largest city (metropolitan area)
is London. Again, rule 4.1.1 does not apply.
For example, if I had said "New York" instead of "London",
correct answers would include "United States" and "America",
but not "Stateside" or "USA".
4. Name a word that is a preposition and is 2 letters long.
Both letters must occur in the English alphabet.
5. Name a unit of pressure. You must be able, if asked, to cite
3 unrelated web pages where this unit of pressure is actually
used (rather than defined -- for example, they might be giving
a measurement, estimate, specification, or forecast).
6. Name a person who was President of the US and made at least
some attempt to run for an additional term of office that
would not have been allowed if the 22nd Amendment had been
part of the Constitution from the outset. In effect this
means he was president for 6 years or more and made at least
some attempt to run for an additional 4-year term.
7. Name a country existing in 1926, that in 1906 either did not
exist or was smaller in area (not counting dependencies).
That is, between those two years it was either created,
re-created, or enlarged. This time rule 4.1.1 *does* apply,
both in regard to what is a country and to whether two
countries existing at different times are the same country.
8. Name a medium in which a version of "The Hitchhiker's Guide
to the Galaxy" (written originally by Douglas Adams) has been
produced and commercially distributed.
9. In some sports completing a specific task scores, all at once,
a certain number of points that is given specifically in the
rules of the sport. Give such a number that occurs in the
scoring of some sport. *NOTE*: You must also name the sport,
but it will *not* be taken as part of the answer.
For example, if darts was considered a sport, then you might
answer "25 (darts)", in reference to the score for hitting
the outer ring of the bullseye; but this would be counted
equivalently to a correct answer of 25 in conjunction with
any other sport. But even if duplicate bridge was considered
a sport, the 22 matchpoints that you might score (in North
American scoring) by beating the pairs at 22 other tables
would still not make "22 (duplicate bridge)" a correct answer,
because the 22 is merely a count of pairs beaten, and not a
number specified in the rules.
For purposes of this question "sport" does not include
competitions based only on mental skill and/or dexterity with
the hands and arms, such as card games, pool games, or darts.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* 1. The Game
As usual, for each of the questions above, your objective is to give
an answer that (1) is correct, and (2) will be duplicated by as FEW
other people as possible. Feel free to use any reference material
you like to RESEARCH your answers; but when you have found enough
possible answers for your liking, you are expected to choose on your
own which one to submit, WITHOUT mechanical or computer assistance:
this is meant to be a game of wits.
* 2. Scoring
The scores on the different questions are MULTIPLIED to produce a
final score for each entrant. Low score wins; a perfect score is 1.
If your answer on a category is correct, then your score is the number
of people who gave that answer, or an answer I consider equivalent.
A wrong answer, or a skipped question, gets a high score as a penalty.
This is the median of:
- the number of entrants
- the square root of that number, rounded up to an integer
- double the highest score that anyone would have on this
question if all answers were deemed correct
* 2.1 Scoring Example
Say I ask for a color on the current Canadian flag. There are
26 entrants -- 20 say "red", 4 say "blue", and 1 each say "gules",
"white", and "blue square". After looking up gules I decide it's
the same color as red and should be treated as a duplicate answer;
then the 21 people who said either "red" or "gules" get 21 points
each. The person who said "white" gets a perfect score of 1 point.
"Blue square" is not a color and blue is not a color on the flag;
the 5 people who gave either of these answers each get the same
penalty score, which is the median of:
- number of entrants = 27
- sqrt(27) = 5.196+, rounded up = 6
- double the highest score = 21 x 2 = 42
or in this case, 27.
* 2.2 More Specific Variants
On some questions it's possible that one entrant will give an answer
that's a more specific variant of an answer given by someone else.
In that case the more specific variant will usually be scored as if
the two answers are different, but the other, less specific variant
will be scored as if they are the same.
In the above example, if I had decided (wrongly) to score gules as
a more specific variant of red, then "red" would still score 21,
but "gules" would now score 1.
If a wrong answer is clearly associated with a specific right
answer, I will score the right answer as if the wrong answer was a
more specific variant of it. In the above example, if there were
3 additional entrants who said "white square", then "white square"
would be scored as wrong, but the score for "white" would be 4, not 1.
"More specific" scoring will NOT apply if the question asks for an
answer "in general terms"; a more specific answer will then at best be
treated the same as the more general one, and may be considered wrong.
* 3. Entries
Entries must be emailed to the address given above. Please do not
quote the questions back to me, and do send only plain text in ASCII
or ISO 8859-1: no HTML, attachments, Micros--t character sets, etc.,
and no Unicode, please. (Entrants who fail to comply will be publicly
chastised in the results posting.)
Your message should preferably consist of just your 10 answers,
numbered from 0 to 9, along with any explanations required. Your
name should be in it somewhere -- a From: line or signature is fine.
(If I don't see both a first and a last name, or an explicit request
for a particular form of your name to be used, then your email address
will be posted in the results).
You can expect an acknowledgement when I read your entry. If this
bounces, it won't be sent again.
* 3.1 Where Leeway is Allowed
In general there is no penalty for errors of spelling, capitalization,
English usage, or other such matters of form, nor for accidentally
sending email in an unfinished state, so long as it's clear enough
what you intended. Sometimes a specific question may imply stricter
rules, though. And if you give an answer that properly refers to a
different thing related to the one you intended, I will normally take
it as written.
Once you intentionally submit an answer, no changes will be allowed,
unless I decide there was a problem with the question. Similarly,
alternate answers within an entry will not be accepted. Only the
first answer that you intentionally submit counts.
* 3.2 Clarifications
Questions are not intended to be hard to understand, but I may fail
in this intent. (For one thing, in many cases clarity could only be
provided by an example which would suggest one or another specific
answer, and I mustn't do that.)
In order to be fair to all entrants, I must insist that requests for
clarification must be emailed to me, NOT POSTED in any newsgroup.
But if you do ask for clarification, I'll probably say that the
question is clear enough as posted. If I do decide to clarify or
change a question, all entrants will be informed.
* 3.3 Supporting Information
It is your option whether or not to provide supporting information
to justify your answers. If you don't, I'll email you to ask for
it if I need to. If you supply it in the form of a URL, if at all
possible it should be a "deep link" to the specific relevant page.
There is no need to supply URLs for obvious, well-known reference
web sites, and there is no point in supplying URLs for pages that
don't actually support your answer.
If you provide any explanatory remarks along with your answers, you
are responsible for making it sufficiently clear that they are not
part of the answers. The particular format doesn't matter as long
as you're clear. In the scoring example above, "white square" was
wrong; "white (in the central square)" would have been taken as a
correct answer with an explanation.
* 4. Interpretation of questions
These are general rules that apply unless a question specifically
states otherwise.
* 4.1 Geography
* 4.1.1 Countries
"Country" means an independent country. Whether or not a place is
considered an independent country is determined by how it is listed
in reference sources.
For purposes of these contests, the Earth is considered to be divid-
ed into disjoint areas each of which is either (1) a country, (2) a
dependency, or (3) without national government. Their boundaries
are interpreted on a de facto basis. Any place with representatives
in a country's legislature is considered a part of that country rather
than a dependency of it.
The European Union is considered as an association of countries, not
a country itself.
Claims that are not enforced, or not generally recognized, don't count.
Places currently fighting a war of secession don't count. Embassies
don't count as special; they may have extraterritorial rights, but
they're still part of the host country (and city).
Countries existing at different historical times are normally
considered the same country if they have the same capital city.
* 4.1.2 States or provinces
Many countries or dependencies are divided into subsidiary political
entities, typically with their own subsidiary governments. At the
first level of division, these entities are most commonly called
states or provinces, but various other names are used; sometimes
varying even within the same country (e.g. to indicate unequal
political status).
Any reference to "states or provinces" in a question refers to
these entities at the first level of division, no matter what they
are called.
* 4.1.3 Distances
Distances between places on the Earth are measured along a great
circle path, and distance involving cities are based on the city
center (downtown).
* 4.2 Entertainment
A "movie" does not include any form of TV broadcast or video release;
it must have been shown in cinemas. "Oscar" and "Academy Award" are
AMPAS trademarks and refer to the awards given by that organization.
"Fiction" includes dramatizations of true stories.
* 4.3 Words and Numbers
* 4.3.1 Different Answers
Some questions specifically ask for a *word*, rather than the thing
that it names; this means that different words with the same meaning
will in general be treated as distinct answers. However, if two or
more inflectional variants, spelling variants, or other closely
related forms are correct answers, they will be treated as equivalent.
Similarly, if the question specifically asks for a name, different
things referred to by the same name will be treated as the same.
* 4.3.2 Permitted Words
The word that you give must be listed (or implied by a listing,
as with inflected forms) in a suitable dictionary. Generally
this means a printed dictionary published recently enough
to show reasonably current usage, or its online equivalent.
Other reasonably authoritative sources may be accepted on a
case-by-case basis. Words listed as obsolete or archaic usage
don't count, and sources that would list those words without
distinguishing them are not acceptable as dictionaries.
* 4.3.3 Permitted Numbers
Where the distinction is important, "number" refers to a specific
mathematical value, whereas "numeral" means a way of writing it.
Thus "4", "IV", and "four" are three different numerals representing
the same number. "Digit" means one of the characters "0", "1", "2",
etc. (These definitions represent one of several conflicting common
usages.)
* 4.3.4 "Contained in"
If a question asks for a word or numeral "contained" or "included"
in a phrase, title, or the like, this does not include substrings or
alternate meanings of words, unless explictly specified. For example,
if "Canada in 1967" is the title of a book, it contains the numeral
1967 and the preposition "in"; but it does not contain the word "an",
the adjective "in", or the numeral 96.
* 4.4 Tense and Time
When a question is worded in the present tense, the correctness of
your answer is determined by the facts at the moment you submit it.
(In a case where, in my judgement, people might reasonably be unaware
of the facts having changed, an out-of-date answer may be accepted as
correct.) Questions worded in the present perfect tense include the
present unless something states or implies otherwise. (For example,
Canada is a country that "has existed", as well as one that "exists".)
Different verbs in a sentence bear their usual tense relationship to
each other.
You are not allowed to change the facts yourself in order to make an
answer correct. For example, if a question asks for material on the
WWW, what you cite must already have existed before the contest was
first posted.
* 5. Judging
As moderator, I will be the sole judge of what answers are correct,
and whether two answers with similar meaning (like red and gules)
are considered the same, different, or more/less specific variants.
I will do my best to be fair on all such issues, but sometimes it is
necessary to be arbitrary. Those who disagree with my rulings are
welcome to complain (or to start a competing contest, or whatever).
I may rescore the contest if I agree that I made a serious error and
it affects the high finishers.
* 6. Results
Results will normally be posted within a few days of the contest
closing. They may be delayed if I'm unexpectedly busy or for
technical reasons. If I feel I need help evaluating one or more
answers, I may make a consultative posting in the newsgroups before
scoring the contest.
In the results posting, all entrants will be listed in order of score,
but high (bad) scores may be omitted. The top few entrants' full
answer slates will be posted. A table of answers and their scores
will be given for each question.
* 7. Fun
This contest is for fun. Please do have fun, and good luck to all.
--
Mark Brader | "If you're incompetent, you can't know you're incompetent...
Toronto | the skills you need to produce a right answer are exactly
msb@vex.net | the skills you need to recognize what a right answer is."
--David Dunning
My text in this article is in the public domain.
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