Wednesday, April 18, 2018 Game Recap and Discussion [SPOILERS]

[MTGcollegestudent]

The last time a Jeopardy! College Championship didn't feature a junior and a senior in the finals was during Keith Williams' run, which was 15 years ago. I bet Vermonter would REALLY love to hear how this story ends with the two freshmen (Dhruv and William) and the lone sophomore (Hannah).

Considering that Alli made it through FJ! despite leading without getting a DD at all really shows determination. However, because of a FJ! category that was unfamiliar to them, I thought we were expecting a TS. Dhruv BARELY escaped to get his answer right because Rishab was about a step close to getting there in hopes that his other leaders got their FJ! responses wrong.

We got a really interesting match; the Jumbos, the Knights, and the Brown Bears. It's really gonna come down to who wants it more. I'm not sure if the sneak peek of William's $40,000+ game is showing intimidation between Hanna and Dhruv, as if he's came to play. Hannah came back from 3rd to win is an X-Factor for sure. Dhruv escaped on a sole get and was one step close to almost losing the last spot in the finals. So...there's a lot to decipher heading into the finals.

William tops the three in terms of buzzing (43.86%), Dhruv tops the three in terms of DD scoring ($12,000 in 5 DDs, $2,400 per DD), and Hannah tops the three with least wrong answers wrong overall (3). So...I'm assuming we're expecting a fun and interesting match.

[alietr]

My precall was "Agnus Dei."

The dyslexic replied, "Holy cow!"

[doriko]

Post by DBear » Wed Apr 18, 2018 9:54 pm

I would be interested in knowing if anyone was able to suss out FJ just from the Latin alone, without having heard the verse before.

Thanks to the most valuable college class I took, "Latin & Greek Elements of English," this Jewish girl was able to get to the correct response.

[Cyric29]

Put me down for finding the clue wording a bit confusing, particularly if one has only 30 seconds to ponder it. Wonder what would have happened if someone would have put down "Life, Truth & Road", since the clue says these 3 words in English and "Via" does translate to road.

[Leander]

Post by DBear » Wed Apr 18, 2018 9:54 pm

I would be interested in knowing if anyone was able to suss out FJ just from the Latin alone, without having heard the verse before.

Thanks to the most valuable college class I took, "Latin & Greek Elements of English," this Jewish girl was able to get to the correct response.

I don’t think I had heard the specific verse before and pretty much got it from the Latin, but a vague recollection of “I am the way” changed my translation of via from road to way.

[opusthepenguin]

My vacation Bible school teachers could have cost me $100,000. I remember the verse as "I am the way, the truth, and the LIGHT, and no.... Twelvefootgirl thought that also.

You may be conflating two memories from VBS. If they did an overview of the book of John, you would have encountered both the statement "I am the light of the world," and "I am the way, the truth, and the life."

[billiej]

I found this FJ clue to be awkwardly worded, as if they literally wanted a three word phrase - no more, no less.

It threw me as well, I assumed that "and" would be one of the three words in the phrase, so said "truth and life", totally whiffing on "way". If the clue had said "these three things" or something of that nature, I probably would've gotten it.

[Woof]

My vacation Bible school teachers could have cost me $100,000. I remember the verse as "I am the way, the truth, and the LIGHT, and no.... Twelvefootgirl thought that also.

You may be conflating two memories from VBS. If they did an overview of the book of John, you would have encountered both the statement "I am the light of the world," and "I am the way, the truth, and the life."

It could also be a simple mishearing of the text, along the lines of Lead on, O Kinky Turtle and Gladly, Gladly, the Cross-Eyed Bear

[twelvefootboy]

My vacation Bible school teachers could have cost me $100,000. I remember the verse as "I am the way, the truth, and the LIGHT, and no.... Twelvefootgirl thought that also.

You may be conflating two memories from VBS. If they did an overview of the book of John, you would have encountered both the statement "I am the light of the world," and "I am the way, the truth, and the life."

It could also be a simple mishearing of the text, along the lines of Lead on, O Kinky Turtle and Gladly, Gladly, the Cross-Eyed Bear

Don't forget our favorite hymn, In the Garden where "Andy walked with me" . I'm amazed to be learning of 50+ year old entrenched hearing/reading/speaking mis-comprehensions. Saturday I just used the word "trepan" (as I pronounced "tree" -pan) in reference to a garden tool to an ER doctor friend, and finally he understood I meant "treh-pan". I either read too much or hear too little all the time it seems . I know I've had to have seen the Bible passage written, but probably just processed it as a whole without resolving the words.

[TenPoundHammer]

Even my Sunday school was lacking. We only ever did banal Wee Sing songs that had six words repeated ad nauseam, or craft projects.

[earendel]

Put me down for finding the clue wording a bit confusing, particularly if one has only 30 seconds to ponder it. Wonder what would have happened if someone would have put down "Life, Truth & Road", since the clue says these 3 words in English and "Via" does translate to road.

Yes, but the clue included the words "Jesus said", and he didn't say "road".

[tiwonge]

Put me down for finding the clue wording a bit confusing, particularly if one has only 30 seconds to ponder it. Wonder what would have happened if someone would have put down "Life, Truth & Road", since the clue says these 3 words in English and "Via" does translate to road.

Yes, but the clue included the words "Jesus said", and he didn't say "road".

You're right. I suppose we were supposed to translate it from Latin into Aramaic.

(I think there was somebody upthread who said that the Greek suggests"road" more than the more poetic "way," so if we're looking for what Jesus said, "road" might be closer to it?)

[Elijah Baley]

Put me down for finding the clue wording a bit confusing, particularly if one has only 30 seconds to ponder it. Wonder what would have happened if someone would have put down "Life, Truth & Road", since the clue says these 3 words in English and "Via" does translate to road.

Yes, but the clue included the words "Jesus said", and he didn't say "road".

You're right. I suppose we were supposed to translate it from Latin into Aramaic.

(I think there was somebody upthread who said that the Greek suggests"road" more than the more poetic "way," so if we're looking for what Jesus said, "road" might be closer to it?)

It was a poorly thought out clue. I have to think that they wouldn't accept "road" because the word isn't in isolation but part of a Bible verse. It would have made for a very unsatisfying ending though, had it come up and been meaningful to the result.

[opusthepenguin]

It was a poorly thought out clue. I have to think that they wouldn't accept "road" because the word isn't in isolation but part of a Bible verse. It would have made for a very unsatisfying ending though, had it come up and been meaningful to the result.

The Message Bible translation uses road rather than way. It's definitely unusual, but not innacurate. I think they'd take it.

[alietr]

The Message Bible translation uses road rather than way. It's definitely unusual, but not innacurate. I think they'd take it.

It may not be, but I can think of something that is.

[John Boy]

I found this FJ clue to be awkwardly worded, as if they literally wanted a three word phrase - no more, no less. And again, if the writers were trying for equally difficult FJ for each of the three semi-finals, this one seemed much more difficult. Yesterday, it's basically a Kids' Week clue and today's was something more appropriate for the Finals.

Respectfully disagree. The clue wanted three words, but it would have been perfectly all right if they wrote the leading "the" all three times and/or added "and" between "truth" and "life." No way in the world they would have negged "the way, the truth, and the life" or any of several permutations.

This was not a difficult clue if you've ever spent any time in church (where this passage is proclaimed regularly) or if you had a smattering of Latin I vocabulary.

I was frankly shocked two of them missed it. And shocked even more that Dhruv's wager left him open to being overtaken by Rishab in 3rd place. If he doesn't wager better than that in the finals, it may cost him.

[John Boy]

My claim to fame in this game: three consecutive Lach Trash clues: Kaiser, Regina, waffle. A quick 4 grand from the 4th podium. But alas that was my only LT of the night as these guys mopped up nicely.

[davey]

I found this FJ clue to be awkwardly worded, as if they literally wanted a three word phrase - no more, no less. And again, if the writers were trying for equally difficult FJ for each of the three semi-finals, this one seemed much more difficult. Yesterday, it's basically a Kids' Week clue and today's was something more appropriate for the Finals.

Respectfully disagree. The clue wanted three words, but it would have been perfectly all right if they wrote the leading "the" all three times and/or added "and" between "truth" and "life." No way in the world they would have negged "the way, the truth, and the life" or any of several permutations.

I don't think we know that. The quotation may allow some ambiguity, but the clue phrasing "3 words" does not. That's why I said earlier it would have been better to ask for the familiar 7-word phrase. To those to whom it is familiar, at least, that would have offered a better mnemonic than asking for 3 words. But I guess that would have made it less possible to get just from knowing the Latin, which would have made Alex's preface more apt, maybe.
Or the best course might have been to throw it out...

[Volante]

I found this FJ clue to be awkwardly worded, as if they literally wanted a three word phrase - no more, no less. And again, if the writers were trying for equally difficult FJ for each of the three semi-finals, this one seemed much more difficult. Yesterday, it's basically a Kids' Week clue and today's was something more appropriate for the Finals.

Respectfully disagree. The clue wanted three words, but it would have been perfectly all right if they wrote the leading "the" all three times and/or added "and" between "truth" and "life." No way in the world they would have negged "the way, the truth, and the life" or any of several permutations.

I don't think we know that. The quotation may allow some ambiguity, but the clue phrasing "3 words" does not. That's why I said earlier it would have been better to ask for the familiar 7-word phrase. To those to whom it is familiar, at least, that would have offered a better mnemonic than asking for 3 words. But I guess that would have made it less possible to get just from knowing the Latin, which would have made Alex's preface more apt, maybe.
Or the best course might have been to throw it out...

Instead of "three words" it should've been along the lines of "three aspects" or "three qualities"

[plasticene]

I found this FJ clue to be awkwardly worded, as if they literally wanted a three word phrase - no more, no less. And again, if the writers were trying for equally difficult FJ for each of the three semi-finals, this one seemed much more difficult. Yesterday, it's basically a Kids' Week clue and today's was something more appropriate for the Finals.

Respectfully disagree. The clue wanted three words, but it would have been perfectly all right if they wrote the leading "the" all three times and/or added "and" between "truth" and "life." No way in the world they would have negged "the way, the truth, and the life" or any of several permutations.

I don't think we know that. The quotation may allow some ambiguity, but the clue phrasing "3 words" does not. That's why I said earlier it would have been better to ask for the familiar 7-word phrase. To those to whom it is familiar, at least, that would have offered a better mnemonic than asking for 3 words. But I guess that would have made it less possible to get just from knowing the Latin, which would have made Alex's preface more apt, maybe.
Or the best course might have been to throw it out...

Instead of "three words" it should've been along the lines of "three aspects" or "three qualities"

Or just "three things", as billiej suggested above. I'm very familiar with the quote and don't have trouble translating simple Latin like this, but I initially was wondering how I was going to come up with a three-word phrase.

Years ago I was in a church choir that sang an anthem in German based on this verse: Ich bin der Weg, die Wahrheit und das Leben. I thought it was cool that all three grammatical genders were represented: masculine, feminine, and neuter.