Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Ken Jennings Tuesday Trivia - May 18
THIS WEEK'S QUESTIONS
1. Most of the world's sand is composed of an oxide of what chemical element? silicon
2. What #1 hit of 1974 includes references to nursery rhymes like "Hey Diddle Diddle" and "Little Boy Blue" in its chorus? can I interject that it is ridiculous to get questions about lyrics for 36 year old songs. Even a #1 hit becomes obscure when it is that old. 1974, geez. Elton John, The Eagles, Earth Wind & Fire. Barbra Streisand. Paul McCartney and Wings.
3. "Submitted for Your Approval" was the name of the 1995 American Masters documentary about what TV legend? Rod Serling
4. Whose teachings, including the Four Noble Truths, are included in the so-called Pali Canon? I think Buddha had Four Noble Truths. It was not Sarah Pali(n).
5. In headline-speak, "laxers" are people who enjoy what athletic activity? lacrosse, like harriers (runners) and keglers (bowlers)
6. A leaf from what tree is depicted on the coat of arms of the city of Cannes, France? The award is called the Palm D'Or, so how about a palm tree
7. What unusual distinction is shared by all these brand names? Drano, Haagen-Dazs, Lancome, Nestle, Pokemon, and Ryka. One letter in each brand name has an accent mark of one kind or another - Lancôme, Häagen-Dazs, Rykä, Nestlé, etc.
LAST WEEK'S ANSWERS
1. The Kindness of Strangers was the name of Donald Spoto's 1985 biography of what playwright? The title is taken from Blanche's famous last line in A Streetcar Named Desire, by Thomas Lanier Williams, aka Tennessee. correct
2. Last week, which NBA team prefixed the word "Los" before its name on its jerseys as a political gesture? Los Suns de Phoenix protestaban contra las nuevas leyes de inmigracion en el estado de Arizona. esta bien
3. What is the medical specialty of the cast of TV's "Dr. 90210"? They are plastic surgeons. Apparently you can make a pretty good living doing that in L.A., who knew? correct
4. In one week of early March, what website passed Google to become the web's most-visited domain for the first time? That week, Facebook changed its status to "beating Google" for the first time ever. I figured it was Facebook, Youtube or Twitter. Maybe if I had been playing this with a team they would have directed me to the correct answer.
5. The fighting in what war began with the 1854 Siege of Sevastapol? Sevastapol is the principal port city of the Crimea peninsula, in the Ukraine. This is the Crimean War. correct
6. A king-sized bed that's 84 inches across, not the usual 80, can be named for what U.S. state? That's a California king...a real one, not a figurative king of California like "Dr. 90210." correct
7. What unusual distinction is shared only by these countries, listed in this order? The USSR, the United States, Czechoslovakia, Poland, East Germany, Bulgaria, Hungary, Vietnam, Cuba, Mongolia, Romania, France, and 26 others? This is the order in which different nationalities first went into space. It seems the early Soviet space program was more interested in Warsaw Pact "diversity" than the U.S. was in similar cherry-picking from NATO. Do you think that, say, France and Britain are still annoyed that Mongolia had a man in space before they did? well done, Kmac
1. Most of the world's sand is composed of an oxide of what chemical element? silicon
2. What #1 hit of 1974 includes references to nursery rhymes like "Hey Diddle Diddle" and "Little Boy Blue" in its chorus? can I interject that it is ridiculous to get questions about lyrics for 36 year old songs. Even a #1 hit becomes obscure when it is that old. 1974, geez. Elton John, The Eagles, Earth Wind & Fire. Barbra Streisand. Paul McCartney and Wings.
3. "Submitted for Your Approval" was the name of the 1995 American Masters documentary about what TV legend? Rod Serling
4. Whose teachings, including the Four Noble Truths, are included in the so-called Pali Canon? I think Buddha had Four Noble Truths. It was not Sarah Pali(n).
5. In headline-speak, "laxers" are people who enjoy what athletic activity? lacrosse, like harriers (runners) and keglers (bowlers)
6. A leaf from what tree is depicted on the coat of arms of the city of Cannes, France? The award is called the Palm D'Or, so how about a palm tree
7. What unusual distinction is shared by all these brand names? Drano, Haagen-Dazs, Lancome, Nestle, Pokemon, and Ryka. One letter in each brand name has an accent mark of one kind or another - Lancôme, Häagen-Dazs, Rykä, Nestlé, etc.
LAST WEEK'S ANSWERS
1. The Kindness of Strangers was the name of Donald Spoto's 1985 biography of what playwright? The title is taken from Blanche's famous last line in A Streetcar Named Desire, by Thomas Lanier Williams, aka Tennessee. correct
2. Last week, which NBA team prefixed the word "Los" before its name on its jerseys as a political gesture? Los Suns de Phoenix protestaban contra las nuevas leyes de inmigracion en el estado de Arizona. esta bien
3. What is the medical specialty of the cast of TV's "Dr. 90210"? They are plastic surgeons. Apparently you can make a pretty good living doing that in L.A., who knew? correct
4. In one week of early March, what website passed Google to become the web's most-visited domain for the first time? That week, Facebook changed its status to "beating Google" for the first time ever. I figured it was Facebook, Youtube or Twitter. Maybe if I had been playing this with a team they would have directed me to the correct answer.
5. The fighting in what war began with the 1854 Siege of Sevastapol? Sevastapol is the principal port city of the Crimea peninsula, in the Ukraine. This is the Crimean War. correct
6. A king-sized bed that's 84 inches across, not the usual 80, can be named for what U.S. state? That's a California king...a real one, not a figurative king of California like "Dr. 90210." correct
7. What unusual distinction is shared only by these countries, listed in this order? The USSR, the United States, Czechoslovakia, Poland, East Germany, Bulgaria, Hungary, Vietnam, Cuba, Mongolia, Romania, France, and 26 others? This is the order in which different nationalities first went into space. It seems the early Soviet space program was more interested in Warsaw Pact "diversity" than the U.S. was in similar cherry-picking from NATO. Do you think that, say, France and Britain are still annoyed that Mongolia had a man in space before they did? well done, Kmac
