"Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?" is insulting

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pray for elves
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"Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?" is insulting

Post by pray for elves »

Seriously, I stumbled across the program while procrastinating, and a guy just won $175,000 thanks to a combination of luck and stupidity. He thought that 25 was the answer to the following question: "What whole number is closest to the square root of 50?" The guy quit because he didn't know that plants lose water vapor (as opposed to roots or seeds) during transpiration.

Seriously, we need a parade of quiz bowlers to go on the show and win $1,000,000 every time. Make FOX pay for making such a ridiculous show.

(Of course, I'm sure they would never allow anyone on who has a chance of actually winning a million.)
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Re: "Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?" is insult

Post by Frater Taciturnus »

Guru Guru Pon-chan wrote:Seriously, I stumbled across the program while procrastinating, and a guy just won $175,000 thanks to a combination of luck and stupidity. He thought that 25 was the answer to the following question: "What whole number is closest to the square root of 50?" The guy quit because he didn't know that plants lose water vapor (as opposed to roots or seeds) during transpiration.

Seriously, we need a parade of quiz bowlers to go on the show and win $1,000,000 every time. Make FOX pay for making such a ridiculous show.

(Of course, I'm sure they would never allow anyone on who has a chance of actually winning a million.)
And don't forget how Foxworthy brags at the end that they "can't even GIVE the money away! I would definately be in for this.
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Post by AndyShootsAndyScores »

Just act dumb at tryouts. Wouldn't take much to be the dumbest human being alive, then go on the show and clean them out.
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Post by STPickrell »

I suspect that if we utter the words "academic team" or "NAQT" at tryouts, we would somehow not go on the show. I also suspect that if we lie aboot our association with said groups, we would also forfeit our money, maybe even face a lawsuit.
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Post by Frater Taciturnus »

StPickrell wrote:I suspect that if we utter the words "academic team" or "NAQT" at tryouts, we would somehow not go on the show. I also suspect that if we lie aboot our association with said groups, we would also forfeit our money, maybe even face a lawsuit.
O like anyone at Fox has ever even HEARD of NAQT
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Post by AndyShootsAndyScores »

Yeah, we could call it the Neutered and Asinine Queendom of Tachyons. They'll never know.
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Post by AKKOLADE »

This is an interesting suggestion. Tell me more.
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Post by grapesmoker »

AndyBrindlee Mountain wrote:Just act dumb at tryouts. Wouldn't take much to be the dumbest human being alive, then go on the show and clean them out.
I can just imagine the interview:

Them: So, what do you do?
Me: Hurr, studying for my physics Ph.D., durr.
Them:... get out.
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Post by Mr. Kwalter »

dsfcaptains2005 wrote:
StPickrell wrote:I suspect that if we utter the words "academic team" or "NAQT" at tryouts, we would somehow not go on the show. I also suspect that if we lie aboot our association with said groups, we would also forfeit our money, maybe even face a lawsuit.
O like anyone at Fox has ever even HEARD of NAQT
The name "NAQT" was featured on the application form distributed at my J! audition this week. Obviously that is not Fox, but nevertheless, the game show world is on to us.
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Post by Frater Taciturnus »

Kit Cloudkicker wrote:
dsfcaptains2005 wrote:
StPickrell wrote:I suspect that if we utter the words "academic team" or "NAQT" at tryouts, we would somehow not go on the show. I also suspect that if we lie aboot our association with said groups, we would also forfeit our money, maybe even face a lawsuit.
O like anyone at Fox has ever even HEARD of NAQT
The name "NAQT" was featured on the application form distributed at my J! audition this week. Obviously that is not Fox, but nevertheless, the game show world is on to us.
:kenj:
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Post by Mike Bentley »

Kit Cloudkicker wrote:
dsfcaptains2005 wrote:
StPickrell wrote:I suspect that if we utter the words "academic team" or "NAQT" at tryouts, we would somehow not go on the show. I also suspect that if we lie aboot our association with said groups, we would also forfeit our money, maybe even face a lawsuit.
O like anyone at Fox has ever even HEARD of NAQT
The name "NAQT" was featured on the application form distributed at my J! audition this week. Obviously that is not Fox, but nevertheless, the game show world is on to us.
In what context?
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Post by orangecrayon »

The application asks if you've ever been involved in quiz bowl or with NAQT and if so, when and for how long. (Eric, did you get that application at call back?)

Just before handing out his final, one of my profs tried to talk me into trying out for the Fox abomination on the grounds that it'd be a lot less work than J!. Somehow I don't think I'd get past the initial tryout without berating the show's representatives...
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Post by Frater Taciturnus »

orangecrayon wrote:The application asks if you've ever been involved in quiz bowl or with NAQT and if so, when and for how long. (Eric, did you get that application at call back?)

Just before handing out his final, one of my profs tried to talk me into trying out for the Fox abomination on the grounds that it'd be a lot less work than J!. Somehow I don't think I'd get past the initial tryout without berating the show's representatives...
I work with people who ask how much our product is, and then ask if its free or not. i think i could handle it.
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Post by STPickrell »

So we've established that the game show world is on to us, but have we established that a lawsuit or forfeiture of prize would result if we played dumb?
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Post by AndyShootsAndyScores »

StPickrell wrote:So we've established that the game show world is on to us, but have we established that a lawsuit or forfeiture of prize would result if we played dumb?
People lie on applications for other things. If they don't take further research into the quiz bowl community to find out if we are a part of it, then no.
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Post by Mr. Kwalter »

orangecrayon wrote:The application asks if you've ever been involved in quiz bowl or with NAQT and if so, when and for how long. (Eric, did you get that application at call back?)
If by "call back" you mean "I passed the test and they told me to show up at a hotel so they can see if I'm awesome enough for TV," then yes. I asked the guy afterward why the question was on the app, he said that the legal dept gets really bored so they always come up with some new random question for each set of applications in an effort to mix it up. I told him there was a legend that mentioning qb is a good way to not get on and he said that was nonsense, they just wanted to see if you had any other buzzer experience.
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Post by Jeremy Gibbs Paradox »

AndyBrindlee Mountain wrote:
StPickrell wrote:So we've established that the game show world is on to us, but have we established that a lawsuit or forfeiture of prize would result if we played dumb?
People lie on applications for other things. If they don't take further research into the quiz bowl community to find out if we are a part of it, then no.
I don't know what grounds one would have to sue, unless of course you fraudulently misrepresented yourself in the application process and they actually shoot the episode only to not air it. Then you would probably have to reimburse them for the production costs. But all that is probably in the contract you sign to be on the show. Also just because other people lie on applications all the time, doesn't mean that if you lied about your involvement in quizbowl, NAQT, general level of intelligence (I'm guessing if you can correctly find your ass from a hole in the ground, FOX won't let you on.) and they catch you, you can be forced to give up the winnings. Look at that guy in England who got caught cheating with his wife at Millionaire. Game show contracts are a bit like casinos in that they will not pay you if they think you're trying to take them for all they got (i.e. Michael Larsen http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_La ... _aftermath) .
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Post by the return of AHAN »

Not a regular viewer of the Foxworthy show, but I happened on to it last night, when the $500,000 question was "In 1776, what American wrote the pamphlet "Common Sense" to help urge Americans to revolt against British rule?"
Contestant got that one right, so for the 1st time in the show's history, they asked the million dollar question...
"What was the name of the first satellite put into orbit by the United States?" (For my money, that might be worthy of $64,000 on WWTBAM)

I'll give the guy some credit for being somewhat informed for coming up with "Mercury", but geez, is there a regular on these boards that wouldn't be a million richer today if they were in his place????
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Post by Frater Taciturnus »

BarringtonJP wrote:Not a regular viewer of the Foxworthy show, but I happened on to it last night, when the $500,000 question was "In 1776, what American wrote the pamphlet "Common Sense" to help urge Americans to revolt against British rule?"
Contestant got that one right, so for the 1st time in the show's history, they asked the million dollar question...
"What was the name of the first satellite put into orbit by the United States?" (For my money, that might be worthy of $64,000 on WWTBAM)

I'll give the guy some credit for being somewhat informed for coming up with "Mercury", but geez, is there a regular on these boards that wouldn't be a million richer today if they were in his place????
Nah, I'd only be $500,00 richer, because i do not know that Explorer I, launched in 1958, was the first US satellite.
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