Online Test Discussion (Pacific), January 19, 2012

[Magna]

Scored a 41 on the transcript for this. I wrote so quickly I forgot to answer one I knew, which would have brought me up to 42. In the actual test (Central), I scored a 38.

[Magna]

While I'm pretty sure that, on the show, "Rockefeller" for #43 would get a BMS, they say straight out "last names are fine" for the test and I believe that they mean it.

I'm sure that's right. They have a wide range of possible questions, and wouldn't knowingly pick one that created a problem on everyone's online test.

Also, I expect part of what is being tested is whether you can play the game. On the real show, if you volunteer extra information like a first name and it turns out to be wrong (e.g., Nelson Rockefeller), your response will be wrong too.

[codehappy]

So far I've found two on this test (Amazing Race, Water for Elephants) that were taken word-for-word off the year-old re-runs that aired this week.

The Le Carré clue was recycled verbatim from the 7/13 show last season, as well: one of the reasons I felt especially for missing it. Solidly in my brain-bank, though evidently last night that little fact was bundled away in some neural equivalent of a brain-bank MBS.

[MarkBarrett]

48 for me as this one seemed too easy with very little to think about as I scribbled my answers in probably less than 4 minutes.

I crossed out termites to go with sushi on the mushrooms. No chance on that one.
Valance was not going to happen as I was stuck on lambrequin.

The rest had little to no challenge. Seuss and Rockefeller were the only guesses.

That give me 48 + 42 + 48 = 138
Last year was 48 + 45 + 47 = 140

I'll just do a blanket thank you to all who helped post the Qs and As for the tests each night. Your efforts are appreciated.

Now, it's almost time for the real show tonight.

[Agggron]

My first tries ever at the online tests (even if they are through transcript)!

Eastern: 12
Central: 13
Pacific: 17

I'll take it.

[OrangeSAM]

Valance was not going to happen as I was stuck on lambrequin.

Interesting that you'd let yourself get stuck on "lambrequin" since the category was "Give me a 'V'".

[hbomb1947]

Playing JFF once again (and it remains to be seen whether I'll have to take one of the tests for real next January).

Got a 45 (compared to 43 on Tuesday's and 46 on Wednesday's).

Misses:

Iron (said silver just to say something; in retrospect, iron should have been obvious due to the reddish color thing).

kookaburra (said cassowary)

mushrooms (my obligatory miss on a food question; said rice just to have a guess)

Dr. Seuss (said Tolkien)

Gertrude Stein (I knew this one, or at least used to; but I mixed her up with Virginia Woolf on this question).

[movieman]

I don't know if they would have counted these as right. I said amino acid for #28, Plain Dealer for #29, and Westminster for #34.

[MarkBarrett]

Valance was not going to happen as I was stuck on lambrequin.

Interesting that you'd let yourself get stuck on "lambrequin" since the category was "Give me a 'V'".

Remembering the category was not the problem. It was being familiar with a different term that was keeping me from digging up the easier name even with the starting letter hint. In 2005 I ran into the same thing when Valance came up on one of the shows. My grandfather owned and ran a drapery/upholstery store for many years and my brother worked there for a good amount of years as well. Lambrequin was the name I heard more times than valance.

[seaborgium]

I don't know if they would have counted these as right. I said amino acid for #28, Plain Dealer for #29, and Westminster for #34.

Singular is fine if nothing in the category or clue (besides "these") specifies plurality. Just naming the paper should be fine considering the city was specified in the clue. My gut tells me Westminster is not enough, but I also think "Westminster Kennel Club" is a bit much to want someone to type in fifteen seconds.

[andreaborn]

I got 45 tonight, after 43 on Tuesday and 40 on Wednesday; all from the transcripts. Many hearty thanks to all those who did transcript work!!

-- went with copper for a reddish metal; iron didn't cross my mind
-- switched to Okeefenokee from Okeechobee, somehow thinking that I'd gotten it wrong before by saying Okeechobee....
-- wrote "Like Water for Elephants" at the same time I was thinking "this was on the show, someone got it wrong by saying "Like Water for Chocolate" (ummm, no)
-- wrote Moldova just to write something, even though I was pretty sure that one = Chisinau and Skopje belonged elsewhere
-- arrgh, planets; I somehow thought Jupiter had the Shakespearean moons so it had to be a different one....

And assuming just "westminster" is OK for the dog show -- I knew there was more but unsure of the exact name.

[grannisu]

This test gives me hope for my future! I officially took the Tuesday night test and think I scored 34 - hit "submit" too late and entered a blank on the next question that I woud have known (next year, I know to let the time run out and not even bother with the "submit"), one REALLY dumb response (why in the world did I type in Baltimore as the capital of Maryland/naval academy question????), Penn and Stiller instead of Penn & Teller and not putting "card" after extra credit. These very simple things would have put me in range. I thought Wednesday was much harder and was pleased that my score ended up at 32. Then the Pacific test and I got 44 - really pleased! This is the first time I have tried this and now have some good ideas on what to study and how to improve my performance (definitely need to brush up on city newspapers and austalian animals!) Anyway - I am finding the whole study process to be quite enjoyable and look forward to working towards next year. I really appreciate all the work that has gone into the archives and the volunteer efforts to maintain this board. The archives are an incredibly rich study tool and a big THANKS to all the maintain it.

[alietr]

The name of the newspaper is The Plain Dealer. Cleveland is not in its name.

[opusthepenguin]

Oh, and to add to mine, the only one of my wrong ones where I was 100% positive the answer I put down was correct was #35 - I was positive Hosseini was from Iran and that's the country that the Kite Runner was about.

You and I come from the same alternate universe.

[OrangeSAM]

Valance was not going to happen as I was stuck on lambrequin.

Interesting that you'd let yourself get stuck on "lambrequin" since the category was "Give me a 'V'".

Remembering the category was not the problem. It was being familiar with a different term that was keeping me from digging up the easier name even with the starting letter hint. In 2005 I ran into the same thing when Valance came up on one of the shows. My grandfather owned and ran a drapery/upholstery store for many years and my brother worked there for a good amount of years as well. Lambrequin was the name I heard more times than valance.

Got it! The 600 pound gorilla of an idea that just won't budge. It's at least equal to my answer. ("Those valises you put up are a great touch!")

[Woof]

This one also seemed easier to me:

40 (Mon)
39 (Tue)
43 (Wed)

all taken off the transcripts since I'm: a) still in the pool and b) in New Zealand right now

My subjective feeling that this was easier was largely a product of reversing my usual trend of missing a lot of the earlier questions: I got 28 out of the first 30 right before returning to Earth. I also had a few good guesses on today's (Tina Fey, Glee and one other IIRC) which definitely helped the outcome.

[lisa0012]

36 Wednesday taking it for real, 37 taking this one off the board. This test actually felt easier, and I missed a few things I shouldn't have. Maybe I would have done better under the pressure of the test, maybe worse, but I had no desire to take a test at 10pm anyway.

[alietr]

Adding a data point (or points as the case may be), from memory (actual results may have varied):

Online practice: 43
DoT practice: 44
Tues (East): 42
Weds (Cent): 38
Thurs(Pac): 41

[satori]

This one felt like the easiest of the three but I scored the same as Tues (38) - of course I would pick the hardest one (Wed-29) to take for real.

I agree, it felt easiest. I got 33 actually taking the Eastern, 34 on a simulated Central, and 37 on this one. (Wrong time zone - story of my life.)

[satori]

I don't know if they would have counted these as right. I said amino acid for #28, Plain Dealer for #29, and Westminster for #34.

I had precisely the same answers for those three questions, and I am confident all are acceptable.