Friday, February 10, 2012 Game Recap & Discussion [SPOILERS]

[Woppy T]

The neg on "Dr. Xavier" should not have been reversed. That response was simply wrong.

[jeff6286]

The neg on "Dr. Xavier" should not have been reversed. That response was simply wrong.

Do you have a source that confirms that he was not a doctor, or is it just that he was never called "Doctor Xavier"? Wikipedia has the following:

Charles is a genius with multiple doctorates. He is a world-renowned geneticist, an expert in mutation, possesses considerable knowledge of life sciences, and is the inventor of Cerebro.[12] He is the leading authority on genetics, mutation, and psionic powers, and possesses considerable expertise in other life sciences. He possesses a Ph.D. in genetics, biophysics, and psychology. He is highly talented in devising equipment for utilizing and enhancing psionic powers.

It all sounds pretty reasonable to me, as even if no one ever calls him Doctor, the fact that he holds multiple doctorates and/or a PhD would seem to make the response correct, although granted there are no specific sources cited for that paragraph, other than a book titled The Science of the X-Men. I'm guessing that the information could have been gathered from many different references to degrees that the Professor may hold, from among the many different iterations of the X-Men over the past 50 years, including comic books, television series, and live-action films.

Wouldn't it be cool if a show like Jeopardy had something like an official message board, and whenever they make a reversal of a ruling, or accept an alternate response on the show, they could post a message on the board from the show's producers/writers/judges/official spokesperson, explaining exactly why they accepted an unintended response, or why they reversed an initial ruling. Even in the absence of a message board, they could still post such messages on Facebook, Twitter, or even just have a section on jeopardy.com where they would list them, just like a newspaper or magazine might list corrections. They could post an internet link to whatever source they used to make their decision, or list the title of whatever book or reference material they took the information from. Maybe they called Stan Lee and asked him if Charles Xavier was a doctor, and he said yes? After all, Sony did produce the Spider-Man movies, so I'm sure they have his number on file. I would imagine you couldn't ask for a much better source than that.

[davey]

Tough break for Matt, missing that derby DD. I hesitated, because I thought for a second they wanted an actual race like Preakness/Belmont, but the bit about the hat sealed it.

.

The Derby - as others have said, usually pronounced Darby in England - IS an actual race, the Derby Stakes, run each year at Epsom Downs.

FJ: I said Constantine. I knew what Hagia Sophia is, but I assumed Justinian was addressing a contemporary or near predecessor - if I'd known J & C were some 200 years apart, I don't know if I'd have changed my mind. The only thing that gave me pause was that I remembered Constantine came up earlier in the tournament...
I too would like to know how many people had read this quote.

[debramc]

I had Ozymandias just like Matt. I thought the Justinian quote would've fit perfectly with the Ozymandias quote. And I have known what the Hagia Sofia was since, well, sometime in college, probably. (I am a little surprised it's apparently not so well-known by this crowd, though knowing it was built as a cathedral obviously doesn't mean you get the FJ correct.)

[Budphrey]

Entertaining ending to a good game. Looks like a pretty high-quality final coming up.

Wouldn't it be cool if a show like Jeopardy had something like an official message board, and whenever they make a reversal of a ruling, or accept an alternate response on the show, they could post a message on the board from the show's producers/writers/judges/official spokesperson, explaining exactly why they accepted an unintended response, or why they reversed an initial ruling. Even in the absence of a message board, they could still post such messages on Facebook, Twitter, or even just have a section on jeopardy.com where they would list them, just like a newspaper or magazine might list corrections.

I get the feeling that they'd really rather not have the rationale for every ruling on the public record. They do seem to want to stay consistent, but they never commit things like the spelling/pronunciation rules to writing, even in the contestant agreements. Rather, they explain special rules like that to the contestants during the morning orientation, but the papers that the contestants sign say things like "Contestant accepts that Judges' decisions are final." That way they can keep flexibility and minimize the risk of lawsuits or other claims in the case some contestant thinks they didn't get a benefit of a precedent.

[seaborgium]

I get an average of 305 Jeopardy! clues per week. Expecting me to remember all 305 is a bit much. I remember Boomie, but I don't remember him getting a clue about Hagia Sophia.

I don't expect you to remember every clue in a week, but then I don't expect someone who encounters 305 clues a week to honestly believe he's never previously encountered a particular tidbit that comes up in the current week.

P.S. Also, 305 clues a week is the maximum; the average is lower thanks to unrevealed clues!

[xxaaaxx]

P.S. Also, 305 clues a week is the maximum; the average is lower thanks to unrevealed clues!

Funny how they've managed to clear all these boards so far, with few (if any?) LTaM warnings. But they'll go back to leaving 2-4 clues unrevealed every other round the second the tournament ends.

*grumble grumble*

[Volante]

I get an average of 305 Jeopardy! clues per week. Expecting me to remember all 305 is a bit much. I remember Boomie, but I don't remember him getting a clue about Hagia Sophia.

I don't expect you to remember every clue in a week, but then I don't expect someone who encounters 305 clues a week to honestly believe he's never previously encountered a particular tidbit that comes up in the current week.

P.S. Also, 305 clues a week is the maximum; the average is lower thanks to unrevealed clues!

By my count, the maximum is 793.
(5 standard episodes + 1 Saturday repeat on same network + 7 GSN games)

[seaborgium]

I get an average of 305 Jeopardy! clues per week. Expecting me to remember all 305 is a bit much. I remember Boomie, but I don't remember him getting a clue about Hagia Sophia.

I don't expect you to remember every clue in a week, but then I don't expect someone who encounters 305 clues a week to honestly believe he's never previously encountered a particular tidbit that comes up in the current week.

P.S. Also, 305 clues a week is the maximum; the average is lower thanks to unrevealed clues!

By my count, the maximum is 793.
(5 standard episodes + 1 Saturday repeat on same network + 7 GSN games)

Yeah, but I assume from the number he gave that he's watching exactly five games a week.

[dhkendall]

I get an average of 305 Jeopardy! clues per week. Expecting me to remember all 305 is a bit much. I remember Boomie, but I don't remember him getting a clue about Hagia Sophia.

I don't expect you to remember every clue in a week, but then I don't expect someone who encounters 305 clues a week to honestly believe he's never previously encountered a particular tidbit that comes up in the current week.

P.S. Also, 305 clues a week is the maximum; the average is lower thanks to unrevealed clues!

By my count, the maximum is 793.
(5 standard episodes + 1 Saturday repeat on same network + 7 GSN games)

You're assuming TPH gets those. I personally only get the Saturday repeat (on Sunday, on CBC - KARE (my usual viewing channel) doesn't show the Sat. repeat) and the 5 regular clues, I either don't get GSN, or the Canadian GSN doesn't show it (or it's at a time I can't watch it (the cable that hooks up to the computer isn't hooked up to digital, so I can't record any shows on GSN (a digital channel)). One can go all day about how many clues one can get (I used to see daily repeats on KARE until they stopped with that a few years back), so just ocunting the 5 shows a week should be enough.

ETA: What seaborgium said.

[legendneverdies]

P.S. Also, 305 clues a week is the maximum; the average is lower thanks to unrevealed clues!

By my count, the maximum is 793.
(5 standard episodes + 1 Saturday repeat on same network + 7 GSN games)[/quote]
[/quote]

GSN airs J! Tue-Fri early AM 9AM EST Sat and Sun AM. Sat early AM GSN currently airs Dancing with the Stars, although word is $100K Pyramid is replacing Friday evening Dancing starting this coming week. So 12 times 61 =732

[John Boy]

BTW, did anyone who got FJ just flat-out recognize the quote, and not even have to figure out which king it was?

I got this FJ but never heard the quote before. It's one of those clues where I more or less figured out, based on the substance of the quote: "I built a house of worship even grander than this other house of worship," and the first (and only) thing that came to mind was Solomon.

[John Boy]

Connie confessed that she studied wagering strategy and used it until she got lazy and wagered based on "what the heck" at the crucial moment.

While the rest of your reasoning is sound, you missed one crucial detail at the very beginning. That wasn't Connie who made that post...it was Monica, who won Wednesday's semifinal with the sole get on Tintin. So unless I've overlooked a post by Connie on the board, it may be possible that she never looked at wagering strategy at all, or it never occurred to her that she would need a miss by both leaders in order to have a chance to win. While that may seem like a critical error in strategy, it would only make her similar to about 50% or so of all contestants that we see on the show in the course of any given year.

Of course, Monica didn't really make the ideal wager in her game either. As she mentioned, she just said "what the heck" and bet nearly all of her money. As it turned out, that game was a rare occasion where neither 1st or 2nd bet enough to lock out the player behind them, so if she had made a better strategic wager, she wouldn't have won on a triple stumper anyway, but by betting as much as she did, she would have won no matter what as long as she got it right. Even if Tyler or Weston had gotten Tintin, neither's wager was large enough to top Monica's nearly doubled score.

*ETA* Really, seaborgium? That post was made over 2 hours ago, and you have to beat me to the buzzer by 1 minute??? That's cold, man.

My bad. I did attribute that to the wrong contestant. Must. Read. More. Carefully. Apologies to Connie.

[earendel]

Why on earth would we think Biblical? Hagia Sophia means "Holy Wisdom", which for me compared to the Library of Alexandria, thus my guess of Alexander the Great.

Because Solomon was known as "the wise" because when God told him to ask for anything, he asked for wisdom. That little extra TOM, added to the fact that Hagia Sophia was a cathedral/temple, made it a dead giveaway for me.

[alietr]

Hmmm ... and I don't think anyone has pointed out yet that "Hagia Sophia" means "Holy Wisdom". Sophia I knew, Hagia I don't think knew meant "holy". Another piece to put in the puzzle that fits in with Solomon. I still wasn't getting this one in 30 seconds regardless.

[Woppy T]

The neg on "Dr. Xavier" should not have been reversed. That response was simply wrong.

Do you have a source that confirms that he was not a doctor, or is it just that he was never called "Doctor Xavier"? Wikipedia has the following:

Charles is a genius with multiple doctorates. He is a world-renowned geneticist, an expert in mutation, possesses considerable knowledge of life sciences, and is the inventor of Cerebro.[12] He is the leading authority on genetics, mutation, and psionic powers, and possesses considerable expertise in other life sciences. He possesses a Ph.D. in genetics, biophysics, and psychology. He is highly talented in devising equipment for utilizing and enhancing psionic powers.

It all sounds pretty reasonable to me, as even if no one ever calls him Doctor, the fact that he holds multiple doctorates and/or a PhD would seem to make the response correct, although granted there are no specific sources cited for that paragraph, other than a book titled The Science of the X-Men. I'm guessing that the information could have been gathered from many different references to degrees that the Professor may hold, from among the many different iterations of the X-Men over the past 50 years, including comic books, television series, and live-action films.

Wouldn't it be cool if a show like Jeopardy had something like an official message board, and whenever they make a reversal of a ruling, or accept an alternate response on the show, they could post a message on the board from the show's producers/writers/judges/official spokesperson, explaining exactly why they accepted an unintended response, or why they reversed an initial ruling. Even in the absence of a message board, they could still post such messages on Facebook, Twitter, or even just have a section on jeopardy.com where they would list them, just like a newspaper or magazine might list corrections. They could post an internet link to whatever source they used to make their decision, or list the title of whatever book or reference material they took the information from. Maybe they called Stan Lee and asked him if Charles Xavier was a doctor, and he said yes? After all, Sony did produce the Spider-Man movies, so I'm sure they have his number on file. I would imagine you couldn't ask for a much better source than that.

I have no doubt that Prof. Xavier is a "doctor," in that he holds doctorates and/or PhDs. My objection is that the question asked for the character's name, and I do not believe he was ever called "Dr. Xavier" in the comics. (If he ever was, I concede the point. I have not read an X-Men comic in over 20 years). I just don't think the fact that he holds a degree is enough to warrant "doctor" as a correct response.

If the question asked for Daredevil's secret identity, whould "Dr. Murdock" be correct, since he holds a law degree? Maybe a better example: if the question asked you to name the 7 castaways on Gilligan's Island, and you said "the Doctor" was one of them, I would hope the judges would rule this incorrect.

[bpmod]

if the question asked you to name the 7 castaways on Gilligan's Island, and you said "the Doctor" was one of them, I would hope the judges would rule this incorrect.

If you said Dr. Roy Hinkley, or just Dr. Himkley, you'd probably be ruled correct. And she didn't say "The Doctor"; she gave his name.

Brian

[Volante]

If the question asked for Daredevil's secret identity, whould "Dr. Murdock" be correct, since he holds a law degree? Maybe a better example: if the question asked you to name the 7 castaways on Gilligan's Island, and you said "the Doctor" was one of them, I would hope the judges would rule this incorrect.

Oh I do not want to imagine what would happen to the TARDIS if Gilligan got even close to it. (What would a police box made out of coconuts look like?...)

[Magna]

If the question asked for Daredevil's secret identity, whould "Dr. Murdock" be correct, since he holds a law degree? )

Not addressing the rest of your post, but by custom lawyers aren't addressed as "Dr." merely because they have a J.D. The main exception would be if they have an LL.D. and are in academia.

Maybe a better example: if the question asked you to name the 7 castaways on Gilligan's Island, and you said "the Doctor" was one of them, I would hope the judges would rule this incorrect. :

In this case putting "the" in front of "Doctor" means it's not a title anymore; you would be identifying his job.

[Woppy T]

If the question asked for Daredevil's secret identity, whould "Dr. Murdock" be correct, since he holds a law degree? )

Not addressing the rest of your post, but by custom lawyers aren't addressed as "Dr." merely because they have a J.D. The main exception would be if they have an LL.D. and are in academia.

My point exactly. Attorney Smith with a JD isn't called "Dr. Smith," and Professor X with a PhD isn't called "Dr. X."

Maybe a better example: if the question asked you to name the 7 castaways on Gilligan's Island, and you said "the Doctor" was one of them, I would hope the judges would rule this incorrect. :

In this case putting "the" in front of "Doctor" means it's not a title anymore; you would be identifying his job.

Not really; for the purpose of my example, "the Professor" is neither his title nor his job (although it is admittedly both), but rather the character's name (but not his proper name, as bpmod noted).

Anyway, I didn't mean to make a mountain out of a molehill. Just think I'd be less lenient than the judges if I had a vote.