Specific Question Discussion
Posted: Sun Apr 14, 2013 11:06 pm
Post comments about specific questions or question requests here.
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I'm sure that Raynor would be interested in hearing more about this if he hasn't already. A search through the database used to make this set for "Tryst" and "Nehru" reveal that they both only appear once and in the same bonus. Was this an issue of Raynor accidentally placing the same bonus in two separate rounds, an actual repeat clue, or a mistake made by the moderator? Although any feedback is appreciated, only concrete and specific feedback will actually help Raynor improve this set for future use.Ydiwa wrote:and a question in the first finals match had to be thrown out (something to do with the "tryst with destiny" speech), because it was repeating an earlier bonus.
Yup... you're right. Thanks a lot for noticing and pointing that out. I'll change it immediately.Ydiwa wrote:It seems as if the set quality was rather lacking. One example was the Everest question, whose first clue was "This is the only mountain with a prominence equal to its height above sea level". However, this is true for any high point of an island, because it's saying that the height of that mountain's key col is sea level.
The couple in the play is George and Martha, not George and Mary.Round 9, TU 19 wrote:A "mousy" character in this work continually drinks brandy even after throwing up, while another relates the story of a boy who asked for a bergin and a water at a bar. A History professor mistakes a member of the Biology Department for one of Math in this play, and acts in it are titled The Exorcism and (*) Walpurgisnacht. A story is invented in this play in which a non-existent son crashes into a tree to avoid hitting a porcupine. Games like Bringing Up Baby and Get the Guest are played in this play in which Nick and Honey visit the bickering couple George and Mary after a party. For 10 points, this is what play by Edward Albee?
ANSWER: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Thanks, the George and Martha mistake is annoyingly obvious.alinktothefuture wrote:The couple in the play is George and Martha, not George and Mary.
Also, it seemed like there were a lot of typos and proofreading errors, especially with italicization of titles and underlining of answers (by this I don't mean that required parts weren't underlined, but that required parts might be sometimes bolded and not underlined, making it difficult to parse in the middle of a game). Though not a huge issue, it'd probably make it easier for readers at future mirror sites if those were corrected.
Edited for clarity.
I am not affiliated with the set, but I believe it's because they are actually called the "Palm Islands," so that's a proper noun. I remember I also said "palm trees" when I played the set earlier in the year.cyclohexane wrote:I believe there was a bonus question about Machiavelli that talked about lions and foxes, but the purpose of the two was switched. The question said that the lion must recognize traps and the fox must fight off wolves. It's the other way around.
Also, was there a reason that palm trees were not accepted as an answer for the question about artificial islands in Dubai? Palms was accepted, but palm trees was not.
One more thing: This might have been our reader's error, but we were told that the postcard readymade by Duchamp was titled LHOOO, but it is in fact LHOOQ.
It said LHOOQ on the answer line when I read this question yesterday.cyclohexane wrote:One more thing: This might have been our reader's error, but we were told that the postcard readymade by Duchamp was titled LHOOO, but it is in fact LHOOQ.
Ok, it was probably reader error.The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi wrote: It said LHOOQ on the answer line when I read this question yesterday.
Fighting Bob wrote:Can I see the "voting" tossup from round 11?
EDIT: Can I see the "speed of sound" one as well? I think it was from round 6.
JAMES Round 6 wrote:For an ideal gas, this quantity equals the square root of the adiabatic index times the gas constant times temperature over molar mass, a result which can be derived from a more general formula equating it to the square root of the bulk modulus over the density. For air, this quantity varies based on humidity and temperature. An object (*) exceeding this quantity will cause the formation of a cone of condensation due to the formation of a shock wave, which is also accompanied by a loud boom. For 10 points, identify this speed equal to Mach one, the rate at which phenomena such as thunder and voices propagate through a medium.
ANSWER: speed of sound (accept Mach one before mentioned)
JAMES Round 11 wrote:When performing this action fails the independence of clones criterion, the spoiler effect may occur. The Borda count is a method of performing this action. Non-dictatorship and Pareto efficiency are among three criteria that cannot all be met in any method for performing this action according to an (*) impossibility theorem named after Kenneth Arrow. Condorcet names a method for performing it, and an unfair advantage in the process of this action can be given by gerrymandering. After using the plurality method for this action, an instant runoff may be necessary. For 10 points, name this method by which people may elect officeholders from among candidates.
ANSWER: voting (accept word forms; accept "electing" along with word forms and any specific office before "elect" is read)
Einhard wrote:Could I see the tossups on "Abraham Lincoln's assassination" in Round 3, "Rhapsody in Blue" in Round 2, and Thebes in Round 5?
JAMES Round 2 wrote:A Cuban clave rhythm and rubato are used within this work that calls for an accordion and banjo in an orchestration by the composer of the Grand Canyon Suite. Ferde Grofé orchestrated this piece and Paul Whiteman commissioned this piece to be played at a concert entitled An (*) Experiment in Modern Music. It accompanies a segment in Fantasia 2000 depicting a construction site and ice skaters in Depression-era New York. This piece by the composer of An American in Paris and Porgy and Bess opens with a trill and 17-note clarinet glissando. For 10 points, name this "jazz concerto" composed by George Gershwin.
ANSWER: Rhapsody in Blue
JAMES Round 3 wrote:Following this event, David Herold surrendered to federal troops while hiding in Richard Garnett's barn. The perpetrator of this event, who was not stopped by Major Henry Rathbone, was shot by Thomas Corbett. Herold, George Atzerodt, Lewis Powell and Mary Surratt were hanged as co-conspirators in this event. The phrase "his name is (*) Mudd" refers to the doctor who treated the perpetrator of this event. Before committing this action, that man interrupted the play Our American Cousin at Ford's Theatre before yelling "Sic semper tyrannis!". For 10 points, what event occurred when John Wilkes Booth shot the 16th president of America?
ANSWER: the assassination of Abraham Lincoln [accept obvious equivalents]
JAMES Round 5 wrote:One member of this city kidnapped Chrysippus while teaching him chariot driving, and this city's walls were built by playing music to enchant stones. This city's king Pentheus was ripped to shreds by his mother Agave in a Bacchic frenzy. Its founder was told to stop where a cow laid down; that founder was (*) Cadmus. A notable Seven made war against this city, and one king of this city killed his father Laius at a crossroads. That king's wife stabbed out her own eyes after discovering she had married her son. That king answered "man" to a riddle to defeat the Sphinx which had terrified this city. For 10 points, name this ancient Greek city which Oedipus ruled.
ANSWER: Thebes
It may just be the work that I've done with voting models, but spoiler effect seemed like a first-clue giveaway with the current and historical prevalence of "spoiler candidates". Also, I feel as though the Borda count is more widely known (since it is much simpler and used more often) than Condorcet voting.JAMES Round 11 wrote:When performing this action fails the independence of clones criterion, the spoiler effect may occur. The Borda count is a method of performing this action. Non-dictatorship and Pareto efficiency are among three criteria that cannot all be met in any method for performing this action according to an (*) impossibility theorem named after Kenneth Arrow. Condorcet names a method for performing it, and an unfair advantage in the process of this action can be given by gerrymandering. After using the plurality method for this action, an instant runoff may be necessary. For 10 points, name this method by which people may elect officeholders from among candidates.
ANSWER: voting (accept word forms; accept "electing" along with word forms and any specific office before "elect" is read)
Our science player was pretty irate after being negged on this one, but I think he just missed "adiabatic index" when buzzing in right at the end of the first clue with "root mean square velocity", which is not fault of the writer.JAMES Round 6 wrote:For an ideal gas, this quantity equals the square root of the adiabatic index times the gas constant times temperature over molar mass, a result which can be derived from a more general formula equating it to the square root of the bulk modulus over the density. For air, this quantity varies based on humidity and temperature. An object (*) exceeding this quantity will cause the formation of a cone of condensation due to the formation of a shock wave, which is also accompanied by a loud boom. For 10 points, identify this speed equal to Mach one, the rate at which phenomena such as thunder and voices propagate through a medium.
ANSWER: speed of sound (accept Mach one before mentioned)
cyclohexane wrote:Could I see the tossup on O'Keefe in the first round and the tossup on Caravaggio in round 4?
JAMES Round 7 wrote:One painting by this artist depicts the artist himself holding a lantern, along with a figure fleeing from soldiers. Another work by this man depicts two figures playing cards, though one figure has a hidden dagger behind his back. Peaches, grapes, and apples in are depicted in his Boy With a Basket of Fruit. One work by this artist of (*) Cardsharps shows the newly resurrected Jesus reveals himself during the title meal, while another shows Jesus pointing to the title figure, who is surrounded by tax-collectors. For 10 points, name this Baroque Italian artist of Supper at Emmaus and The Calling of St. Matthew.
ANSWER: Michaelangelo Merisi de Caravaggio (or Michaelangelo Merisi; do not accept only "Michaelangelo")
JAMES Round 5 wrote:One set of works by this artist shows yellow disks surrounded with orange and red stripes above darker stripes of green and blue, depicting the evening star. In another work, a large chunk of the title building is not visible, due to a painted effect imitating camera glare. In addition to Shelton with Sunspots, this artist painted the Radiator Building and other New York scenes. This artist depicted Ranchos Church and numerous (*) cow skulls during her time in New Mexico. She is better known for her paintings of Jack-in-the-pulpits, poppies, and cannas. For 10 points, name this American painter of colorful magnified flowers.
ANSWER: Georgia Totto O'Keeffe
relaxationutopia wrote:Could I see the specific heat tossup in Round 4?
Thanks!
JAMES Round 4 wrote:10. One form of this quantity is equal to n times R over gamma minus one. One scientist modeled solid particles as phonons to find this value proportional to temperature cubed. Beside that Debye [duh-"BYE"] model, the molar value of this quantity for crystals is 3 times R or the ideal gas constant by the (*) Dulong-Petit Law. Its general value is Q divided by dT and can be found by using bomb and coffee cup versions of an instrument. Its high value for water is 4.184 Joules, or one calorie, per gram, and can be found with calorimeters. For 10 points, name this quantity representing the amount of heat needed to raise a substance's temperature by a given amount.
ANSWER: heat capacity (accept specific heat)
I am not sure what the exact answer line was since the reader paused for a while and accepted "burning yourself". I don't think it was a bonus part. It was in round 7, 8, or 9.UlyssesInvictus wrote:I can't find this question. Are you sure it was a tossup, or do you remember any other details about the question?
JAMES ROUND 7 wrote:12. This period attempted to implement "socialism with a human face." For 10 points each:
[10] Name this period in which Alexander Dubček's "Action Programme" promised the liberalization of Czechoslovakia.
ANSWER: Prague Spring
[10] During the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, Jan Palach committed this act of protest. This act has been committed by Mohammed Bouazizi in Tunisia and numerous monks in Tibet.
ANSWER: self-immolation [accept equivalents like setting oneself on fire]
[10] The Soviets ousted Dubček and made this man first secretary. He reversed the reforms in a period of "normalization."
ANSWER: Gustáv Husák
It would still apply to the tallest mountain in the Americas and Australia, which are both certainly over 2000 ft in elevation.KnicksRule wrote:I have a comment about the Everest Geo question earlier discussed. A mountain has to have a higher elevation than 2,000 ft. Thus, this may be a legitimate clue.
3 mountains that I have hiked that contradict this:KnicksRule wrote: A mountain has to have a higher elevation than 2,000 ft.