Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion [SPOILERS]

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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by econgator »

ChemTeacher wrote:(Ahem) I'm going to come up with a quick mnemonic for that number...
Okay, here I am imagining Curly from The Three Stooges. He is hitting me over the head with
The Hitchhiker's Guide, and he is saying to me, "Hey Mo!"
Okay, I got that picture in my brain now, and I'll never forget it.
Brilliant! Back on your side, now. :)
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by alietr »

ChemTeacher wrote: Sorry I didn't give a plug to Jboard or the Archive during my Alex interview. :oops:
Well, uh, gee, if you're gonna apologize and all, I guess we can letcha stay. Good retro-luck tonight!
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by ElendilPickle »

ChemTeacher wrote:
econgator wrote:Oh yeah ... 30+13? Really, Michael?

Not rooting for you any more .... ;)
When studying for J! I had discovered that there were TONS of books for which I could only know two facts: title and author. Simply no time to read them all. I'm sure I looked at plot summaries for some of them. Anyway, The Hitchhiker's Guide was one of those books. So when the Adams clue popped up, I knew it was a random number in the 40s. A prime number popped into my head.

(Ahem) I'm going to come up with a quick mnemonic for that number...
Okay, here I am imagining Curly from The Three Stooges. He is hitting me over the head with
The Hitchhiker's Guide, and he is saying to me, "Hey Mo!"
Okay, I got that picture in my brain now, and I'll never forget it.

Do I need to explain this mnemonic to any non-chemists?

Remember how Bob Harris talked about his memory tricks? I still have a picture in my head of Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr lying on the beach with waves of IODINE SOLUTION crashing over them. That scene in my head helped me toward my goal of memorizing Oscar winning films by year. I also imagine that the HMS Bounty was in search of BROMINE, not breadfruit trees. :)
Non-chemist here who would appreciate an explanation, please.

For FJ, all I could come up with was Arthur C. Clarke. I have no idea if he was European, but I thought he died fairly recently, and figured sci-fi fans would also be early e-book users. Once Alex started discussing the clue, I knew the right answer. ChemTeacher, your answer made me feel a little better about mine, so thanks. :)
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by ComingUpMilhouse »

Non-chemist here who would appreciate an explanation, please.
Haven't had chemistry for several years, but I think Mo is the symbol for Molybdenum, which is atomic number 42.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by Turd Ferguson »

ChemTeacher wrote:Sorry I didn't give a plug to Jboard or the Archive during my Alex interview. :oops:
I hope you will have an opportunity to atone for that by mentioning JBoard to Alex sometime in the not-too-distant future!
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by alietr »

So basically his thought process is that it's easier to remember the atomic number of Molybdenum than it is to know the answer to THE ULTIMATE QUESTION OF LIFE, THE UNIVERSE, AND EVERYTHING?!?!?
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by debramc »

alietr wrote:So basically his thought process is that it's easier to remember the atomic number of Molybdenum than it is to know the answer to THE ULTIMATE QUESTION OF LIFE, THE UNIVERSE, AND EVERYTHING?!?!?
Well he is a chemistry teacher after all. Probably thinks about the periodic table in the bathroom even... ;) But ChemTeacher, how did it fail to work on stage? Did you just forget the image? Or did you think the "Hey" stood for hydrogen and added 1 to 42? (I'm pretty sure you didn't think 42 - 30 = 13)
Dave - I guess The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was indeed the first ebook I ever saw. Strangely though, to me its funniest incarnation was the transcripts of the original BBC Radio shows. Pretty low tech indeed. Nonetheless it's otherwise not a bad guess, other than he was dead a bit earlier than 2004.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by TenPoundHammer »

Mnemonics never work for me at all. All they do is make you memorize 10 times as much crap as necessary to get to a point, and it's incredibly easy to forget all the extraneous details. "My Very Educated… um… crap, what was the next word? Marsupial? Mississippi? Marzipan Mascarpone Meringue Madness?"

I just know 42 as the life, universe, everything number because I do. No more.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by Turd Ferguson »

econgator wrote:
dhkendall wrote:I briefly considered Adams (was unsure of nationality (though I suspected American)
100% British.
For some reason, I read "European" to be "non-British European", and my knowledge of recent literature is so limited that there's only one name that came quickly to mind to fit that criteria.

In retrospect, is it possibly a decent assumption that a British writer would just be identified in a J! clue as being British (or English/etc.) as opposed to being called European? Aside from the UK having an odd relationship with "the continent", referring to someone as a "British author" narrows down the list of possibilities, without doing so in an extreme way, so I think that would be the more "natural" way to guide contestants in a certain direction.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by debramc »

Turd Ferguson wrote:
econgator wrote:
dhkendall wrote:I briefly considered Adams (was unsure of nationality (though I suspected American)
100% British.
For some reason, I read "European" to be "non-British European", and my knowledge of recent literature is so limited that there's only one name that came quickly to mind to fit that criteria.

In retrospect, is it possibly a decent assumption that a British writer would just be identified in a J! clue as being British (or English/etc.) as opposed to being called European? Aside from the UK having an odd relationship with "the continent", referring to someone as a "British author" narrows down the list of possibilities, without doing so in an extreme way, so I think that would be the more "natural" way to guide contestants in a certain direction.
I think it would depend on how easy/difficult the writers were aiming for.
Drifting off topic here, but I wonder how many Kindle users are from the US/Canada, and how many from elsewhere. (I'm assuming there aren't format issues like with DVDs)
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by tmwaters89 »

Bamaman wrote:No chance on FJ. When he said it was a trilogy, I thought toilken, but didn't remmeber him dying that recently. Had no idea that guy had the Kindle record or that he was dead.
While watching the show, I knew that the question should be gettable, as books and authors categories always tend to be among my strong points; unfortunately I came up with nothing. What's frustrating is that I knew that Larssen had died, and I've even read THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO within the past year. I simply didn't make the connection between the knowledge I had with the information the clue had provided. That said, I probably would have missed it even had I thought of the author, as I didn't realize he held the record for number of e-books sold.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by ChemTeacher »

debramc wrote:But ChemTeacher, how did it fail to work on stage? Did you just forget the image?
When I was playing Jeopardy! I knew that it was a "40-something number."
A prime number just popped into my head.
I just created that "Hey Mo" mnemonic for the number "42" today.
So I'll remember it from now on, if I need it again.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by econgator »

ChemTeacher wrote:
debramc wrote:But ChemTeacher, how did it fail to work on stage? Did you just forget the image?
When I was playing Jeopardy! I knew that it was a "40-something number."
A prime number just popped into my head.
I just created that "Hey Mo" mnemonic for the number "42" today.
So I'll remember it from now on, if I need it again.

But what we really want to know is if it will haunt you FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!!?!?!?!?!?
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by BADuBois »

As a fellow mystery author and a fan of Amazon Kindle and such, the FJ this was *such* an Instaget for me....

Er, no.

Embarrassed that I flat-out had no answer to this FJ. Ick.

Time to turn in my double top-secret mystery and thriller writer decoder ring... obviously I'm not keeping up with the field.

Jeez.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by Johnblue »

Never bothered with kindle or nook which was a factor in my blank on the question. I've read the series but thought he died more recently.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by davey »

Turd Ferguson wrote: For some reason, I read "European" to be "non-British European", and my knowledge of recent literature is so limited that there's only one name that came quickly to mind to fit that criteria.

In retrospect, is it possibly a decent assumption that a British writer would just be identified in a J! clue as being British (or English/etc.) as opposed to being called European? Aside from the UK having an odd relationship with "the continent", referring to someone as a "British author" narrows down the list of possibilities, without doing so in an extreme way, so I think that would be the more "natural" way to guide contestants in a certain direction.
Yes, I think "European" strongly implies "foreign-language." I spent most of the think music trying to think of a recently deceased and sufficiently famous foreign-language author. I forgot about the one who's been so popular recently. All I could think of was the Nobel-winning author of Blindness whose name, Jose Saramago, I couldn't recall. I knew it was unlikely, anyway, so I finally thought of Arthur C. Clarke, despite what I said about foreign-language...

All this though I am aware of Larsson's story and...I am currently about halfway through The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. In my defense, I haven't picked it up in a couple of weeks, and, well, the movies...Swedish AND American...are more exciting. The book reminds you on every page you're reading a translation.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by BobF »

EDIT: SOMEBODY is awfully touchy.
Last edited by BobF on Mon Nov 26, 2012 3:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by ElendilPickle »

ComingUpMilhouse wrote:
Non-chemist here who would appreciate an explanation, please.
Haven't had chemistry for several years, but I think Mo is the symbol for Molybdenum, which is atomic number 42.
The light dawns! Thanks for the explanation.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by ComingUpMilhouse »

No problem! At least whatever chemistry knowledge I still have is good for something.
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Re: Monday, November 19, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by opusthepenguin »

Turd Ferguson wrote:In retrospect, is it possibly a decent assumption that a British writer would just be identified in a J! clue as being British (or English/etc.) as opposed to being called European?
In Jeopardy!, the words "Europe" and "European" most definitely include Britain. Here are a few examples:

EUROPEAN LITERATURE $1200: This author's "Vanity Fair" has been subtitled "Pen And Pencil Sketches Of English Society"
EUROPEAN GEOGRAPHY $400: We're counting on your knowing that the Firth of Forth is an estuary in this country
EUROPEAN HOLIDAYS $1600: To celebrate St. David's day, the Welsh wear this onion relative in their caps or as a corsage
HARPS & HARPERS $1200: The harp is a national symbol of this European country & also the name of a popular beer from that country
EUROPEAN TRAVEL & TOURISM (FJ): Visited by 15 million people a year, this spot in Britain honors an 1805 battle fought elsewhere
AFRICA (FJ): Very different places, the first 2 African nations to gain independence from a European power were Egypt & this one

England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Britain, United Kingdom. All European. I couldn't find any for Northern Ireland, but it obviously can't be ruled out either.

There have also been two clues requesting "Europe's largest island".
Spoiler
Great Britain
So you can probably rule out Greenland if the clue specifies "Europe" or "European". Unless they're inconsistent or they're talking about culture or government or something. However, Greenland has never been the correct response for a clue specifying "Europe" or "European", and it has never had those labels applied to it as part of any clue.

Iceland, on the other hand, will be referred to with both those terms. It's "Europe's second largest island", for example. So don't rule out Iceland when such clues come up.
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