| msb@vex.net (Mark Brader): Sep 19 11:25PM -0500 These questions were written to be asked in Toronto on 2007-03-12, and should be interpreted accordingly. All questions were written by members of the Usual Suspects, but have been reformatted and may have been retyped and/or edited by me. I will reveal the correct answers in about 3 days. For further information, including an explanation of the """ notation that may appear in these rounds, see my 2020-06-23 companion posting on "Reposted Questions from the Canadian Inquisition (RQFTCI*)". In this game Round 7 was the Canadiana round and was on *defunct* Toronto cinemas. It was a pretty hard round even for people who live here. As it happens, the online copy of the map handout was corrupted, so instead of scanning a printed copy, I've decided to let everyone off easy and skip that round, posting Rounds 8-10 in one set instead. Therefore for this game you will again be scored on your best 5 out of the 7 rounds. By the way, I wrote that horrible Round 7; and in this set I wrote two pairs in the challenge round and one of the other two rounds. ** Game 8, Round 8 - Miscellaneous - Other Voices, Other Words You may not be a polyglot, but probably you've taken a first-year language course, or travelled, or at least eaten at restaurants where some of the menu is not in English. In this round, we will give you some basic words in other languages, and you tell us what they mean in English. As a general clue, all of these words are nouns. We'll have more specific clues along the way. 1. "Tamago" ["tah-mah-guh", without emphasis on any syllable]. This word is in Japanese, and you might encounter it in a restaurant. It is also related to "Tamagotchi", the so-called digital pet that was all the rage """a few""" years ago. 2. "Cuore" ["KWOR-ay"]. This is an Italian word, and we hope that if you get to use it, it's because your love life is improving and not because you're in hospital. 3. "Letto" [LET-to]. Another Italian word, and, once again, it's one that could be useful if you have a new lover -- or if you end up in hospital. 4. "Arbeit" ["AR-bite"]. We hope trivia is more enjoyable than what this German word refers to. 5. "Hermano" ["air-MAHN-oh"]. This Spanish word may refer to one of your relatives. 6. "Vannaya" ["VAN-eye-uh"]. In this case the word is Russian, but if you're travelling, it's one of the first words you should learn in any language. 7. "Zimmer" ["TSIM-mer"]. You might use this word in a German hotel. 8. "Chyelovyek" ["chyell-oh-VYEK", with ch as in "chin" and y as in "yell"]. This Russian word inspired a term in the slang that Anthony Burgess created for "A Clockwork Orange". 9. "Mozo" ["MO-so"]. To help you with this Spanish word, we'll give you two other words with the same meaning: "mesero" ["may-SAIR-oh"] and "camarero" ["cam-uh-RAIR-oh"]. 10. "Kodomo" ["kuh-duh-muh", without emphasis on any syllable]. No, this Japanese word does not mean dragon, though if you have some of these at home, you may think they are monsters. ** Game 8, Round 9 - Science - The Solar System Answers in this round may repeat and may appear in later questions without being edited out. 1. This planet is only a few percent smaller than the Earth in both mass and diameter, but its surface is ferociously hot. Its atmosphere is extremely dense and consists mostly of carbon dioxide, with clouds of sulfuric acid, yet. Name the planet. 2. Only one planet has a ring system bright enough to be seen in a small telescope. Name the planet. 3. <answer 2> is one of four planets that are large in diameter but almost all of their volume consists of gas, or to put it another way, it's atmosphere all the way down. The other three are also now known to have ring systems. Name *any two* of the other three. 4. This planet is significantly smaller than the Earth, but its day is about the same length. It has a thin atmosphere consisting mostly of carbon dioxide. Name it. 5. This planet's year is 88 days long (that is 88 Earth days), and it's in a tidal resonance so that it rotates exactly 1½ times during that period. Because it was so hard to observe visually, astronomers thought until 1965 that it rotated exactly once during its year, thus always keeping one face toward the Sun. Name it. 6. Name the *man* who was the first to discover that the Sun's face has spots on it, and that Jupiter has moons. He was also the first to observe the motion of the planet Neptune from day to day, but he didn't realize it; he just thought it was a star whose position he'd gotten wrong the first time. 7. Neptune was actually discovered over 230 years later, after astronomers trying to work out the orbit of another planet couldn't get it right. They finally figured out that an unknown planet's gravity must be affecting it, and worked out where to look for what we now call Neptune. When someone actually tried doing that, they needed only half an hour to find it. What was the *other* planet, the one whose orbit was problematic? 8. In the early 20th century, Percival Lowell attempted a similar computation based on the orbit of Neptune, and proposed an outer planet that he called Planet X. Then he died. His facts were eventually realized to be wrong, but by that time a search had already been conducted, resulting in Clyde Tombaugh's 1930 discovery of what? 9. This body, discovered on 1801-01-01, was considered to be a planet at first. After it was realized to be just the biggest of many, it was eventually redesignated as a minor planet or asteroid, and """lately""" a dwarf planet like Pluto. Name it. 10. Choose any planet or dwarf planet, other than the Earth, that has one or more named moons, and name it *and its largest moon*. ** Game 8, Round 10 - Challenge Round * A. Chinese Philosophers (Writing, not Eating) For these you must give their full names. A1. This philosopher, possibly a contemporary of Confucius, wrote the Tao Te Ching, the definitive Taoist text. A2. The 6th century BC text "The Art of War" has in recent decades become beloved of corporate executives and other go-getters. Name the author. * B. European Union B1. The European Union may be viewed as a successor or a renaming of the European Economic Community, sometimes called the Common Market. Name either the year that the EEC was founded or the number of founding countries, within 1 in either case. B2. The EU added two new members """this year""", which are adjacent countries. *Either* say how many countries are """now""" members, within 2, or else name *either* of the new members in 2007. *Note*: if you give the number of countries you must say which year you are answering for. * C. Iraqi Cities C1. What """is""" the largest city that (depending on whose definition you use) is either in or just outside the ethnic and cultural area known as Kurdistan? C2. What """is""" the second-largest city in Iraq and the country's main port? * D. Names of Chemical Elements D1. Four elements, all in the group called rare earths or lanthanides, """are""" named after the same village in Sweden. Name any one of them. D2. By a generous count """five elements are""" named directly after the present-day names of countries, and """one present-day country is""" named directly after an element. Give *any one* of these """six""" names (i.e. the """one""" country or one of the """five""" elements). * E. Part-Time Canadians at the "New Yorker" E1. He was born in the UK but raised in Elmira, Ontario, and """has""" a degree from the U of T. He's been a staff writer for the "New Yorker" since 1996. He """is""" perhaps best known for two bestselling books: one concerning so-called "social epidemics", the other a study of instinctive thinking. Who """is""" he? E2. This writer, born in Philadelphia but raised in Montreal, """has written""" for the "New Yorker" since 1986. During the late 1990s he wrote the "Paris Journals" for the magazine, later collected and published as "Paris to the Moon". He """has also written""" a children's novel and a book of essays about his children growing up in New York, titled "Through the Children's Gate". Name him. * F. Peter Greenaway movies F1. Peter Greenaway's """most mainstream""" film starred Helen Mirren and Michael Gambon in two of the four title roles. Give the title -- exactly. Be careful. F2. Which Greenaway film was an adaptation of "The Tempest" and starred John Gielgud? |
| msb@vex.net (Mark Brader): Sep 19 11:20PM -0500 Mark Brader: > see my 2020-06-23 companion posting on "Reposted Questions from > the Canadian Inquisition (RQFTCI*)". > I wrote one of these rounds. That was the elections round. > http://www.eskimo.com/~scs/msb/8/nhl.pdf > We name an NHL team and you pick the letter that corresponds to > its """current""" home arena. Update notes refer to the pre-pandemic era. > 1. Toronto Maple Leafs. M (Air Canada Centre -- still true, but now called the Scotiabank Arena). 4 for Joshua. 3 for Dan Blum. > 2. New York Rangers. E (Madison Square Garden -- still true). 4 for Joshua and Pete. > 3. Pittsburgh Penguins. K (Mellon Arena -- now called the Civic Arena, but the team now plays at the PPG Paints Arena). 4 for Pete. 2 for Dan Blum. > 4. Vancouver Canucks. X (General Motors Place -- still true, but now called the Rogers Arena). 4 for Joshua. > 5. Calgary Flames. C (Pengrowth Saddledome -- still true, but now called the Scotiabank Saddledome). 4 for Joshua and Pete. > 6. Detroit Red Wings. U (Joe Louis Arena -- now being demolished. The team now plays at the Little Caesars Arena). 4 for Joshua and Pete. > 7. San Jose Sharks. I (HP Pavilion -- still true, but now called the SAP Center). > 8. Phoenix Coyotes. V (Jobing.com Arena -- still true, but now called the Gila River Arena). 3 for Joshua and Dan Blum. 2 for Pete. > 9. Buffalo Sabres. R (HSBC Arena -- still true, but now called the KeyBank Center). 4 for Joshua. > 10. Ottawa Senators. J (Scotiabank Place -- still true, but now called the Canadian Tire Centre). > So there were 14 decoys. If you want to show off for fun, > but for no points, then decode the rot13 and name the *team* > """currently""" playing home games at each arena. Nobody tried these. > On page 1: > 11. Arena A. Washington Capitals (MCI Center -- still true, but now called the Capital One Arena). > 12. Arena B. Dallas Stars (American Airlines Center -- still true). > 13. Arena D. Los Angeles Kings (Staples Center -- still true). > 14. Arena F. Florida Panthers (BankAtlantic Center -- still true, but now called the BB&T Center). > 15. Arena G. Philadelphia Flyers (Wachovia Center -- still true, but now called the Wells Fargo Center). > 16. Arena H. New York Islanders (Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum -- now true again, but the arena's name is prefixed with NYCB Live). > 17. Arena L. Montreal Canadiens (Bell Centre -- still true). > On page 2: > 18. Arena N. Anaheim Ducks (Honda Center -- still true). > 19. Arena O. Atlanta Thrashers (Philips Arena -- now the State Farm Arena, but the team has moved to become the Winnipeg Jets, and plays at Bell MTS Place). > 20. Arena P. St. Louis Blues (Scottrade Center -- still true, but now called the Enterprise Center). > 21. Arena Q. Edmonton Oilers (Rexall Place -- now called the Northlands Coliseum, but the team now plays at Rogers Place). > 22. Arena S. Colorado Avalanche (Pepsi Center -- still true). > 23. Arena T. Minnesota Wild (Xcel Energy Center -- still true). > 24. Arena W. Chicago Blackhawks (United Center -- still true). > 1. This round is about election methods, and we will start with > Canada. Within one election, which was the first year that > party names were shown on federal election ballots? 1972 (accepting 1968-74). > Pacific time zone would still close last, but just 30 minutes > after the Eastern, Central, and Mountain time zones. Or rather, > that was the plan -- but what went wrong that year? Parliament forgot that *daylight saving time isn't used in one province*, namely Saskatchewan, which is still true. (With a June election, polls there closed an hour later than intended -- 30 minutes *after* Pacific Time ridings. I accepted "some provinces were on Daylight Saving Time". 4 for Dan Blum. Yes, they corrected the rules after the election. > president and vice-president are cast by what has come to be > called the Electoral College. When its members meet to cast > their votes, where do they meet? Separately in each state (capital). 4 for Joshua, Dan Tilque, and Bruce. > subsequently amended to make the electoral college votes work > as they do today. In the original system, how did the electoral > college vote determine the vice-president? The person with the second-most votes for the presidency became VP. 4 for everyone -- Joshua, Dan Tilque, Bruce, Dan Blum, and Pete. (Detail about the deadlock, in case it's of interest: The writers of the Constitution did not envision political parties that would run teams of two candidates, and simply specified that each elector would vote for two candidates for president. Aaron Burr and Thomas Jefferson, representing the same party, not surprisingly tied for the greatest number of electoral votes. Now the Constitution said the House of Representatives was to break the tie, but with each state delegation having only one vote. There were only 16 states then, and a majority of states, i.e. 9, was needed to win. Both Jefferson and Burr now decided they wanted the presidency and asked the House to vote for them. Through 35 ballots the house Jefferson led 8-6-2, where the third number indicates state delegations that were themselves tied and so did not vote, before Jefferson won them over and took the next ballot 10-4-0.) > 5. In Canada, subject to restrictions such as age and citizenship, > voting """is""" seen as a right. How """does""" the situation > in Australia differ most importantly from this? Voting is an obligation/duty. (More precisely, without a valid excuse, it is compulsory to report to the polling station. All still true.) 4 for Joshua, Dan Tilque, Bruce, and Dan Blum. > 6. In most Canadian elections, you """vote""" for the *one person* > you hope to win the office. In Australia, how """is""" this > different? You must rank all the candidates in order of preference (transferable or instant-runoff voting -- anything giving the idea was okay). Still true. 4 for Joshua, Dan Tilque, and Dan Blum. > 7. Following a referendum in 1992, New Zealand became the first > English-speaking country, that we know of, to adopt what > electoral system for its national legislature? (Mixed-member) proportional representation. > 8. In Britain before a reform in 1867, what was a "rotten borough"? An electoral district whose population had greatly declined, but retained its representation in Parliament -- so, among other problems, a rich person could bribe the whole electorate. 4 for Joshua, Dan Tilque, and Dan Blum. > the final total showed a much closer finish: Lastman had about > 52% of the vote to Hall's 46%. Why were the early returns so > misleading that year? As the amalgamated Toronto "megacity" would not exist until 1998-01-01, the election was conducted by the old member municipalities of Metro Toronto. Of these, only North York used machine-counted ballots (optical mark recognition), so its results were available much faster to add into the totals -- and North York was Lastman's home territory. > handed in a tile or potsherd -- an "ostrakon" -- with someone's > name written on it. What happened to the person with the > most votes? Don't give the word for it; describe it. He was exiled (or expelled, etc.) from the city for some years. (The word is "ostracized".) 4 for Dan Tilque, Bruce, and Dan Blum. Scores, if there are no errors: GAME 8 ROUNDS-> 2 3 4 6 TOTALS TOPICS-> His L+E Spo Mis Joshua Kreitzer 40 40 27 20 127 Dan Blum 36 36 8 24 104 Dan Tilque 24 12 0 24 60 Pete Gayde 32 4 18 4 58 Bruce Bowler 17 16 0 16 49 Erland Sommarskog 24 8 -- -- 32 -- Mark Brader | "In fact, that's not a bad epitaph. Toronto | Dennis Ritchie: he did one job, and he did it well." msb@vex.net | --Steve Summit My text in this article is in the public domain. |
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