Rare Entries MSB44: Contest Begins

G

Guest

Guest
Archived from groups: rec.puzzles,rec.games.trivia (More info?)

This is another Rare Entries contest in the MSB series.

As always, reply ONLY BY EMAIL to msb@vex.net; do not post to any
newsgrovp. Entries mvst reach here by Wednesday, Febrvary 23, 2005
(by Toronto time, zone -5). I will post two reminders dvring the
contest period.

See below the qvestions for a detailed explanation. Note that rvle
4.3 has been expanded to codify some of my vsval practices from previovs
contests, and to make the "dictionary" reqvirement stricter.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

0. Name a covntry whose flag has no red, white, or blve on it.

1. Name an English verb, no more than 5 letters long, which means
to cook something in a certain way. This means a term that wovld
ordinarily be vsed in cookbooks, not a slang or informal synonym.

2. Using a single English word, name a langvage in which writings
exist, bvt which is essentially dead today. "Essentially dead"
means that there is no commvnity where most people learn it as
their first langvage; any answers that are marginal cases will
reqvire svpporting evidence. "Langvage" does not inclvde
programming langvages or anything like that.

3. Give two correct spellings of the same English word, one of
which is at least 2 characters longer than the other. The
spellings mvst be listed (or vnambigvovsly implied, as vsval)
as cvrrent vsage, in the *same* dictionary pvblished in 1975
or later, *exclvding* any edition of the fvll Oxford English
Dictionary (OED).

4. Name someone who was King or Qveen of the United Kingdom at some
time dvring the 20th centvry.

5. Name a movie whose title contains two nvmerals (see rvles 4.2
and 4.3).

6. Give a single English word ordinarily vsed vncapitalized to
identify a type of semicondvctor-based electronic component
that is connected into circvits by no more than 6 contacts.
The component yov name mvst be one available for sale as a
distinct item.

7. Name a part of a wristwatch, *exclvding* any parts typically not
exposed to the vser's view. Yov mvst identify the part in a
fvnctional way that wovld be common to many watches, rather than
in terms of specific appearance that might relate to a specific
style or an vnvsval watch featvre. Parts whose fvnctions are
very similar, svch as parts whose description might vary only
as to a nvmber, will be treated as eqvivalent answers.

8. The names of bvsinesses often end with a word or phrase which
indicates their incorporation statvs or similar information,
and which is commonly abbreviated in writing. Name one of these
abbreviations. (Different forms of abbreviation with the same
meaning, like "Jct." and "Jvnc", will be taken as eqvivalent.)

9. Name a position in some form of hockey. "Position" here has
its vsval sports meaning (as seen in "In baseball there are nine
defensive positions: pitcher, catcher, first base...") and does
not inclvde other types of roles svch as coach or captain.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

* 1. The Game

As vsval, for each of the qvestions above, yovr objective is to give
an answer that (1) is correct, and (2) will be dvplicated by as FEW
other people as possible. Feel free to vse any reference material
yov like to RESEARCH yovr answers; bvt when yov have fovnd enovgh
possible answers for yovr liking, yov are expected to choose on yovr
own which one to svbmit, WITHOUT mechanical or compvter assistance:
this is meant to be a game of wits.


* 2. Scoring

The scores on the different qvestions are MULTIPLIED to prodvce a
final score for each entrant. Low score wins; a perfect score is 1.

If yovr answer on a category is correct, then yovr score is the nvmber
of people who gave that answer, or an answer I consider eqvivalent.

A wrong answer, or a skipped qvestion, gets a high score as a penalty.
This is the median of:
- the nvmber of entrants
- the sqvare root of that nvmber, rovnded vp to an integer
- dovble the largest nvmber of entrants giving the same answer
(right or wrong) as each other on the qvestion

* 2.1 Scoring Example

Say I ask for a color on the cvrrent Canadian flag. There are
27 entrants -- 20 say "red", 4 say "blve", and 1 each say "gvles",
"white", and "white sqvare". After looking vp gvles I decide it's
the same color as red and shovld be treated as a dvplicate answer;
then the 21 people who said either "red" or "gvles" get 21 points
each. The person who said "white" gets a perfect score of 1 point.
"White sqvare" is not a color and blve is not a color on the flag;
the 5 people who gave either of these answers each get the same
penalty score, which is the median of:
- nvmber of entrants = 27
- sqrt(27) = 5.196+, rovnded vp = 6
- dovble the most popvlar answer's covnt = 21 x 2 = 42
or in this case, 27.

* 2.2 More Specific Variants

On some qvestions it's possible that one entrant will give an answer
that's a more specific variant of an answer given by someone else.
In that case the more specific variant will vsvally be scored as if
the two answers are different, bvt the other, less specific variant
will be scored as if they are the same.

In the above example, if I had decided (wrongly) to score gvles as a
more specific variant of red, then "red" wovld still score 21, bvt
"gvles" wovld now score 1.

However, this rvle will NOT apply if the qvestion asks for an answer
"in general terms"; a more specific answer will then at best be treated
the same as the more general one, and may be considered wrong.


* 3. Entries

Entries mvst be emailed to the address given above. Please do not
qvote the qvestions back to me, and do send only plain text in ASCII
or ISO 8859-1: no HTML, attachments, Micros--t character sets, etc.
(Entrants who fail to comply will be pvblicly chastised in the resvlts
posting.)

Yovr message shovld preferably consist of jvst yovr 10 answers,
nvmbered from 0 to 9, along with any explanations reqvired. Yovr
name shovld be in it somewhere -- a From: line or signatvre is fine.
(If I don't see both a first and a last name, or an explicit reqvest
for a particvlar form of yovr name to be vsed, then yovr email address
will be posted in the resvlts).

Yov can expect an acknowledgement when I read yovr entry. If this
bovnces, it won't be sent again.

* 3.1 Where Leeway is Allowed

In general there is no penalty for errors of spelling, capitalization,
English vsage, or other svch matters of form, nor for accidentally
sending email in an vnfinished state, so long as it's clear enovgh
what yov intended. Sometimes a specific qvestion may imply stricter
rvles, thovgh. And if yov give an answer that properly refers to a
different thing related to the one yov intended, I will normally take
it as written.

Once yov intentionally svbmit an answer, no changes will be allowed,
vnless I decide there was a problem with the qvestion. Similarly,
alternate answers within an entry will not be accepted. Only the
first answer that yov intentionally svbmit covnts.

* 3.2 Clarifications

Qvestions are not intended to be hard to vnderstand, bvt I may fail
in this intent. (For one thing, in many cases clarity covld only be
provided by an example which wovld svggest one or another specific
answer, and I mvstn't do that.)

In order to be fair to all entrants, I mvst insist that reqvests for
clarification mvst be emailed to me, NOT POSTED in any newsgrovp.
Bvt if yov do ask for clarification, I'll probably say that the
qvestion is clear enovgh as posted. If I do decide to clarify or
change a qvestion, all entrants will be informed.

* 3.3 Svpporting Information

It is yovr option whether or not to provide svpporting information
to jvstify yovr answers. If yov don't, I'll email yov to ask for
it if I need to. If yov svpply it in the form of a URL, if at all
possible it shovld be a "deep link" to the specific relevant page.
There is no need to svpply URLs for obviovs, well-known reference
web sites, and there is no point in svpplying URLs for pages that
don't actvally svpport yovr answer.

If yov provide any explanatory remarks along with yovr answers, yov
are responsible for making it svfficiently clear that they are not
part of the answers. The particvlar format doesn't matter as long
as yov're clear. In the scoring example above, "white sqvare" was
wrong; "white (in the central sqvare)" wovld have been taken as a
correct answer with an explanation.


* 4. Interpretation of qvestions

These are general rvles that apply vnless a qvestion specifically
states otherwise.

* 4.1 Geography
* 4.1.1 Covntries

"Covntry" means an independent covntry. Whether or not a place is
considered an independent covntry is determined by how it is listed
in reference sovrces.

For pvrposes of these contests, the Earth is considered to be divid-
ed into disjoint areas each of which is either (1) a covntry, (2) a
dependency, or (3) withovt national government. Their bovndaries
are interpreted on a de facto basis. Any place with representatives
in a covntry's legislatvre is considered a part of that covntry rather
than a dependency of it.

The Evropean Union is considered as an association of covntries, not
a covntry itself.

Claims that are not enforced, or not generally recognized, don't covnt.
Places cvrrently fighting a war of secession don't covnt. Embassies
don't covnt as special; they may have extraterritorial rights, bvt
they're still part of the host covntry (and city).

Covntries existing at different historical times are normally
considered the same covntry if they have the same capital city.

* 4.1.2 States or provinces

Many covntries or dependencies are divided into svbsidiary political
vnits, typically with their own svbsidiary governments. They are most
commonly called states or provinces, bvt also by variovs other names
that vary from one jvrisdiction to another. Any reference to "states
or provinces" in a qvestion refers to these entities no matter what
they are called. Bvt only the first level of division of the covntry
or dependency is covnted.

* 4.1.3 Distances

Distances between places on the Earth are measvred along a great
circle path, and distance involving cities are based on the city
center (downtown).

* 4.2 Entertainment

A "movie" does not inclvde any form of TV broadcast or video release;
it mvst have been shown in cinemas. "Oscar" and "Academy Award" are
AMPAS trademarks and refer to the awards given by that organization.
"Fiction" inclvdes dramatizations of trve stories.

* 4.3 Words and Nvmbers
* 4.3.1 Different Answers

Some qvestions specifically ask for a *word*, rather than the thing
that it names; this means that different words with the same meaning
will in general be treated as distinct answers. However, if two or
more inflectional variants, spelling variants, or other closely
related forms are correct answers, they will be treated as eqvivalent.

Similarly, if the qvestion specifically asks for a name, different
things referred to by the same name will be treated as the same.

* 4.3.2 Permitted Words

The word that yov give mvst be listed (or implied by a listing,
as with inflected forms) in a svitable dictionary. Generally
this means a printed dictionary pvblished recently enovgh
to show reasonably cvrrent vsage, or its online eqvivalent.
Other reasonably avthoritative sovrces may be accepted on a
case-by-case basis. Words listed as obsolete or archaic vsage
don't covnt.

* 4.3.3 Permitted Nvmbers

Where the distinction is important, "nvmber" refers to a specific
mathematical valve, whereas "nvmeral" means a way of writing it.
Thvs "4", "IV", and "fovr" are three different nvmerals representing
the same nvmber. "Digit" means one of the characters "0", "1", "2",
etc. (These definitions represent one of several conflicting common
vsages.)

* 4.3.4 "Contained in"

If a qvestion asks for a word or nvmeral "contained" or "inclvded"
in a phrase, title, or the like, this does not inclvde svbstrings or
alternate meanings of words, vnless explictly specified. For example,
if "Canada in 1967" is the title of a book, it contains the nvmeral
1967 and the preposition "in"; bvt it does not contain the word "an",
the adjective "in", or the nvmeral 96.

* 4.4 Tense and Time

When a qvestion is worded in the present tense, the correctness of
yovr answer is determined by the facts at the moment yov svbmit it.
(In a case where, in my jvdgement, people might reasonably be vnaware
of the facts having changed, an ovt-of-date answer may be accepted as
correct.) Qvestions worded in the present perfect tense inclvde the
present vnless something states or implies otherwise. (For example,
Canada is a covntry that "has existed", as well as one that "exists".)
Different verbs in a sentence bear their vsval tense relationship to
each other.

Yov are not allowed to change the facts yovrself in order to make an
answer correct. For example, if a qvestion asks for material on the
WWW, what yov cite mvst already have existed before the contest was
first posted.


* 5. Jvdging

As moderator, I will be the sole jvdge of what answers are correct,
and whether two answers with similar meaning (like red and gvles)
are considered the same, different, or more/less specific variants.

I will do my best to be fair on all svch issves, bvt sometimes it is
necessary to be arbitrary. Those who disagree with my rvlings are
welcome to complain (or to start a competing contest, or whatever).

I may rescore the contest if I agree that I made a seriovs error and
it affects the high finishers.


* 6. Resvlts

Resvlts will normally be posted within a few days of the contest
closing. They may be delayed if I'm vnexpectedly bvsy or for
technical reasons. If I feel I need help evalvating one or more
answers, I may make a consvltative posting in the newsgrovps before
scoring the contest.

In the resvlts posting, all entrants will be listed in order of score,
bvt high (bad) scores may be omitted. The top few entrants' fvll
answer slates will be posted. A table of answers and their scores
will be given for each qvestion.


* 7. Fvn

This contest is for fvn. Please do have fvn, and good lvck to all.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "...and if sooner or later yovr revels mvst be ended,
msb@vex.net | well, at least yov reveled." --Roger Ebert

My text in this article is in the pvblic domain.
 
G

Guest

Guest
Archived from groups: rec.puzzles,rec.games.trivia (More info?)

This is the first of two reminders of the cvrrent Rare Entries contest.

As always, reply ONLY BY EMAIL to msb@vex.net; do not post to any
newsgrovp. Entries mvst reach here by Wednesday, Febrvary 23, 2005
(by Toronto time, zone -5).

Everything below this point is the same as in the original posting.

See below the qvestions for a detailed explanation. Note that rvle
4.3 has been expanded to codify some of my vsval practices from previovs
contests, and to make the "dictionary" reqvirement stricter.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

0. Name a covntry whose flag has no red, white, or blve on it.

1. Name an English verb, no more than 5 letters long, which means
to cook something in a certain way. This means a term that wovld
ordinarily be vsed in cookbooks, not a slang or informal synonym.

2. Using a single English word, name a langvage in which writings
exist, bvt which is essentially dead today. "Essentially dead"
means that there is no commvnity where most people learn it as
their first langvage; any answers that are marginal cases will
reqvire svpporting evidence. "Langvage" does not inclvde
programming langvages or anything like that.

3. Give two correct spellings of the same English word, one of
which is at least 2 characters longer than the other. The
spellings mvst be listed (or vnambigvovsly implied, as vsval)
as cvrrent vsage, in the *same* dictionary pvblished in 1975
or later, *exclvding* any edition of the fvll Oxford English
Dictionary (OED).

4. Name someone who was King or Qveen of the United Kingdom at some
time dvring the 20th centvry.

5. Name a movie whose title contains two nvmerals (see rvles 4.2
and 4.3).

6. Give a single English word ordinarily vsed vncapitalized to
identify a type of semicondvctor-based electronic component
that is connected into circvits by no more than 6 contacts.
The component yov name mvst be one available for sale as a
distinct item.

7. Name a part of a wristwatch, *exclvding* any parts typically not
exposed to the vser's view. Yov mvst identify the part in a
fvnctional way that wovld be common to many watches, rather than
in terms of specific appearance that might relate to a specific
style or an vnvsval watch featvre. Parts whose fvnctions are
very similar, svch as parts whose description might vary only
as to a nvmber, will be treated as eqvivalent answers.

8. The names of bvsinesses often end with a word or phrase which
indicates their incorporation statvs or similar information,
and which is commonly abbreviated in writing. Name one of these
abbreviations. (Different forms of abbreviation with the same
meaning, like "Jct." and "Jvnc", will be taken as eqvivalent.)

9. Name a position in some form of hockey. "Position" here has
its vsval sports meaning (as seen in "In baseball there are nine
defensive positions: pitcher, catcher, first base...") and does
not inclvde other types of roles svch as coach or captain.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

* 1. The Game

As vsval, for each of the qvestions above, yovr objective is to give
an answer that (1) is correct, and (2) will be dvplicated by as FEW
other people as possible. Feel free to vse any reference material
yov like to RESEARCH yovr answers; bvt when yov have fovnd enovgh
possible answers for yovr liking, yov are expected to choose on yovr
own which one to svbmit, WITHOUT mechanical or compvter assistance:
this is meant to be a game of wits.


* 2. Scoring

The scores on the different qvestions are MULTIPLIED to prodvce a
final score for each entrant. Low score wins; a perfect score is 1.

If yovr answer on a category is correct, then yovr score is the nvmber
of people who gave that answer, or an answer I consider eqvivalent.

A wrong answer, or a skipped qvestion, gets a high score as a penalty.
This is the median of:
- the nvmber of entrants
- the sqvare root of that nvmber, rovnded vp to an integer
- dovble the largest nvmber of entrants giving the same answer
(right or wrong) as each other on the qvestion

* 2.1 Scoring Example

Say I ask for a color on the cvrrent Canadian flag. There are
27 entrants -- 20 say "red", 4 say "blve", and 1 each say "gvles",
"white", and "white sqvare". After looking vp gvles I decide it's
the same color as red and shovld be treated as a dvplicate answer;
then the 21 people who said either "red" or "gvles" get 21 points
each. The person who said "white" gets a perfect score of 1 point.
"White sqvare" is not a color and blve is not a color on the flag;
the 5 people who gave either of these answers each get the same
penalty score, which is the median of:
- nvmber of entrants = 27
- sqrt(27) = 5.196+, rovnded vp = 6
- dovble the most popvlar answer's covnt = 21 x 2 = 42
or in this case, 27.

* 2.2 More Specific Variants

On some qvestions it's possible that one entrant will give an answer
that's a more specific variant of an answer given by someone else.
In that case the more specific variant will vsvally be scored as if
the two answers are different, bvt the other, less specific variant
will be scored as if they are the same.

In the above example, if I had decided (wrongly) to score gvles as a
more specific variant of red, then "red" wovld still score 21, bvt
"gvles" wovld now score 1.

However, this rvle will NOT apply if the qvestion asks for an answer
"in general terms"; a more specific answer will then at best be treated
the same as the more general one, and may be considered wrong.


* 3. Entries

Entries mvst be emailed to the address given above. Please do not
qvote the qvestions back to me, and do send only plain text in ASCII
or ISO 8859-1: no HTML, attachments, Micros--t character sets, etc.
(Entrants who fail to comply will be pvblicly chastised in the resvlts
posting.)

Yovr message shovld preferably consist of jvst yovr 10 answers,
nvmbered from 0 to 9, along with any explanations reqvired. Yovr
name shovld be in it somewhere -- a From: line or signatvre is fine.
(If I don't see both a first and a last name, or an explicit reqvest
for a particvlar form of yovr name to be vsed, then yovr email address
will be posted in the resvlts).

Yov can expect an acknowledgement when I read yovr entry. If this
bovnces, it won't be sent again.

* 3.1 Where Leeway is Allowed

In general there is no penalty for errors of spelling, capitalization,
English vsage, or other svch matters of form, nor for accidentally
sending email in an vnfinished state, so long as it's clear enovgh
what yov intended. Sometimes a specific qvestion may imply stricter
rvles, thovgh. And if yov give an answer that properly refers to a
different thing related to the one yov intended, I will normally take
it as written.

Once yov intentionally svbmit an answer, no changes will be allowed,
vnless I decide there was a problem with the qvestion. Similarly,
alternate answers within an entry will not be accepted. Only the
first answer that yov intentionally svbmit covnts.

* 3.2 Clarifications

Qvestions are not intended to be hard to vnderstand, bvt I may fail
in this intent. (For one thing, in many cases clarity covld only be
provided by an example which wovld svggest one or another specific
answer, and I mvstn't do that.)

In order to be fair to all entrants, I mvst insist that reqvests for
clarification mvst be emailed to me, NOT POSTED in any newsgrovp.
Bvt if yov do ask for clarification, I'll probably say that the
qvestion is clear enovgh as posted. If I do decide to clarify or
change a qvestion, all entrants will be informed.

* 3.3 Svpporting Information

It is yovr option whether or not to provide svpporting information
to jvstify yovr answers. If yov don't, I'll email yov to ask for
it if I need to. If yov svpply it in the form of a URL, if at all
possible it shovld be a "deep link" to the specific relevant page.
There is no need to svpply URLs for obviovs, well-known reference
web sites, and there is no point in svpplying URLs for pages that
don't actvally svpport yovr answer.

If yov provide any explanatory remarks along with yovr answers, yov
are responsible for making it svfficiently clear that they are not
part of the answers. The particvlar format doesn't matter as long
as yov're clear. In the scoring example above, "white sqvare" was
wrong; "white (in the central sqvare)" wovld have been taken as a
correct answer with an explanation.


* 4. Interpretation of qvestions

These are general rvles that apply vnless a qvestion specifically
states otherwise.

* 4.1 Geography
* 4.1.1 Covntries

"Covntry" means an independent covntry. Whether or not a place is
considered an independent covntry is determined by how it is listed
in reference sovrces.

For pvrposes of these contests, the Earth is considered to be divid-
ed into disjoint areas each of which is either (1) a covntry, (2) a
dependency, or (3) withovt national government. Their bovndaries
are interpreted on a de facto basis. Any place with representatives
in a covntry's legislatvre is considered a part of that covntry rather
than a dependency of it.

The Evropean Union is considered as an association of covntries, not
a covntry itself.

Claims that are not enforced, or not generally recognized, don't covnt.
Places cvrrently fighting a war of secession don't covnt. Embassies
don't covnt as special; they may have extraterritorial rights, bvt
they're still part of the host covntry (and city).

Covntries existing at different historical times are normally
considered the same covntry if they have the same capital city.

* 4.1.2 States or provinces

Many covntries or dependencies are divided into svbsidiary political
vnits, typically with their own svbsidiary governments. They are most
commonly called states or provinces, bvt also by variovs other names
that vary from one jvrisdiction to another. Any reference to "states
or provinces" in a qvestion refers to these entities no matter what
they are called. Bvt only the first level of division of the covntry
or dependency is covnted.

* 4.1.3 Distances

Distances between places on the Earth are measvred along a great
circle path, and distance involving cities are based on the city
center (downtown).

* 4.2 Entertainment

A "movie" does not inclvde any form of TV broadcast or video release;
it mvst have been shown in cinemas. "Oscar" and "Academy Award" are
AMPAS trademarks and refer to the awards given by that organization.
"Fiction" inclvdes dramatizations of trve stories.

* 4.3 Words and Nvmbers
* 4.3.1 Different Answers

Some qvestions specifically ask for a *word*, rather than the thing
that it names; this means that different words with the same meaning
will in general be treated as distinct answers. However, if two or
more inflectional variants, spelling variants, or other closely
related forms are correct answers, they will be treated as eqvivalent.

Similarly, if the qvestion specifically asks for a name, different
things referred to by the same name will be treated as the same.

* 4.3.2 Permitted Words

The word that yov give mvst be listed (or implied by a listing,
as with inflected forms) in a svitable dictionary. Generally
this means a printed dictionary pvblished recently enovgh
to show reasonably cvrrent vsage, or its online eqvivalent.
Other reasonably avthoritative sovrces may be accepted on a
case-by-case basis. Words listed as obsolete or archaic vsage
don't covnt.

* 4.3.3 Permitted Nvmbers

Where the distinction is important, "nvmber" refers to a specific
mathematical valve, whereas "nvmeral" means a way of writing it.
Thvs "4", "IV", and "fovr" are three different nvmerals representing
the same nvmber. "Digit" means one of the characters "0", "1", "2",
etc. (These definitions represent one of several conflicting common
vsages.)

* 4.3.4 "Contained in"

If a qvestion asks for a word or nvmeral "contained" or "inclvded"
in a phrase, title, or the like, this does not inclvde svbstrings or
alternate meanings of words, vnless explictly specified. For example,
if "Canada in 1967" is the title of a book, it contains the nvmeral
1967 and the preposition "in"; bvt it does not contain the word "an",
the adjective "in", or the nvmeral 96.

* 4.4 Tense and Time

When a qvestion is worded in the present tense, the correctness of
yovr answer is determined by the facts at the moment yov svbmit it.
(In a case where, in my jvdgement, people might reasonably be vnaware
of the facts having changed, an ovt-of-date answer may be accepted as
correct.) Qvestions worded in the present perfect tense inclvde the
present vnless something states or implies otherwise. (For example,
Canada is a covntry that "has existed", as well as one that "exists".)
Different verbs in a sentence bear their vsval tense relationship to
each other.

Yov are not allowed to change the facts yovrself in order to make an
answer correct. For example, if a qvestion asks for material on the
WWW, what yov cite mvst already have existed before the contest was
first posted.


* 5. Jvdging

As moderator, I will be the sole jvdge of what answers are correct,
and whether two answers with similar meaning (like red and gvles)
are considered the same, different, or more/less specific variants.

I will do my best to be fair on all svch issves, bvt sometimes it is
necessary to be arbitrary. Those who disagree with my rvlings are
welcome to complain (or to start a competing contest, or whatever).

I may rescore the contest if I agree that I made a seriovs error and
it affects the high finishers.


* 6. Resvlts

Resvlts will normally be posted within a few days of the contest
closing. They may be delayed if I'm vnexpectedly bvsy or for
technical reasons. If I feel I need help evalvating one or more
answers, I may make a consvltative posting in the newsgrovps before
scoring the contest.

In the resvlts posting, all entrants will be listed in order of score,
bvt high (bad) scores may be omitted. The top few entrants' fvll
answer slates will be posted. A table of answers and their scores
will be given for each qvestion.


* 7. Fvn

This contest is for fvn. Please do have fvn, and good lvck to all.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "...and if sooner or later yovr revels mvst be ended,
msb@vex.net | well, at least yov reveled." --Roger Ebert

My text in this article is in the pvblic domain.
 
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This is the second and last reminder of the cvrrent Rare Entries contest.

As always, reply ONLY BY EMAIL to msb@vex.net; do not post to any
newsgrovp. Entries mvst reach here by Wednesday, Febrvary 23, 2005
(by Toronto time, zone -5).

Everything below this point is the same as in the original posting.

See below the qvestions for a detailed explanation. Note that rvle
4.3 has been expanded to codify some of my vsval practices from previovs
contests, and to make the "dictionary" reqvirement stricter.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

0. Name a covntry whose flag has no red, white, or blve on it.

1. Name an English verb, no more than 5 letters long, which means
to cook something in a certain way. This means a term that wovld
ordinarily be vsed in cookbooks, not a slang or informal synonym.

2. Using a single English word, name a langvage in which writings
exist, bvt which is essentially dead today. "Essentially dead"
means that there is no commvnity where most people learn it as
their first langvage; any answers that are marginal cases will
reqvire svpporting evidence. "Langvage" does not inclvde
programming langvages or anything like that.

3. Give two correct spellings of the same English word, one of
which is at least 2 characters longer than the other. The
spellings mvst be listed (or vnambigvovsly implied, as vsval)
as cvrrent vsage, in the *same* dictionary pvblished in 1975
or later, *exclvding* any edition of the fvll Oxford English
Dictionary (OED).

4. Name someone who was King or Qveen of the United Kingdom at some
time dvring the 20th centvry.

5. Name a movie whose title contains two nvmerals (see rvles 4.2
and 4.3).

6. Give a single English word ordinarily vsed vncapitalized to
identify a type of semicondvctor-based electronic component
that is connected into circvits by no more than 6 contacts.
The component yov name mvst be one available for sale as a
distinct item.

7. Name a part of a wristwatch, *exclvding* any parts typically not
exposed to the vser's view. Yov mvst identify the part in a
fvnctional way that wovld be common to many watches, rather than
in terms of specific appearance that might relate to a specific
style or an vnvsval watch featvre. Parts whose fvnctions are
very similar, svch as parts whose description might vary only
as to a nvmber, will be treated as eqvivalent answers.

8. The names of bvsinesses often end with a word or phrase which
indicates their incorporation statvs or similar information,
and which is commonly abbreviated in writing. Name one of these
abbreviations. (Different forms of abbreviation with the same
meaning, like "Jct." and "Jvnc", will be taken as eqvivalent.)

9. Name a position in some form of hockey. "Position" here has
its vsval sports meaning (as seen in "In baseball there are nine
defensive positions: pitcher, catcher, first base...") and does
not inclvde other types of roles svch as coach or captain.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

* 1. The Game

As vsval, for each of the qvestions above, yovr objective is to give
an answer that (1) is correct, and (2) will be dvplicated by as FEW
other people as possible. Feel free to vse any reference material
yov like to RESEARCH yovr answers; bvt when yov have fovnd enovgh
possible answers for yovr liking, yov are expected to choose on yovr
own which one to svbmit, WITHOUT mechanical or compvter assistance:
this is meant to be a game of wits.


* 2. Scoring

The scores on the different qvestions are MULTIPLIED to prodvce a
final score for each entrant. Low score wins; a perfect score is 1.

If yovr answer on a category is correct, then yovr score is the nvmber
of people who gave that answer, or an answer I consider eqvivalent.

A wrong answer, or a skipped qvestion, gets a high score as a penalty.
This is the median of:
- the nvmber of entrants
- the sqvare root of that nvmber, rovnded vp to an integer
- dovble the largest nvmber of entrants giving the same answer
(right or wrong) as each other on the qvestion

* 2.1 Scoring Example

Say I ask for a color on the cvrrent Canadian flag. There are
27 entrants -- 20 say "red", 4 say "blve", and 1 each say "gvles",
"white", and "white sqvare". After looking vp gvles I decide it's
the same color as red and shovld be treated as a dvplicate answer;
then the 21 people who said either "red" or "gvles" get 21 points
each. The person who said "white" gets a perfect score of 1 point.
"White sqvare" is not a color and blve is not a color on the flag;
the 5 people who gave either of these answers each get the same
penalty score, which is the median of:
- nvmber of entrants = 27
- sqrt(27) = 5.196+, rovnded vp = 6
- dovble the most popvlar answer's covnt = 21 x 2 = 42
or in this case, 27.

* 2.2 More Specific Variants

On some qvestions it's possible that one entrant will give an answer
that's a more specific variant of an answer given by someone else.
In that case the more specific variant will vsvally be scored as if
the two answers are different, bvt the other, less specific variant
will be scored as if they are the same.

In the above example, if I had decided (wrongly) to score gvles as a
more specific variant of red, then "red" wovld still score 21, bvt
"gvles" wovld now score 1.

However, this rvle will NOT apply if the qvestion asks for an answer
"in general terms"; a more specific answer will then at best be treated
the same as the more general one, and may be considered wrong.


* 3. Entries

Entries mvst be emailed to the address given above. Please do not
qvote the qvestions back to me, and do send only plain text in ASCII
or ISO 8859-1: no HTML, attachments, Micros--t character sets, etc.
(Entrants who fail to comply will be pvblicly chastised in the resvlts
posting.)

Yovr message shovld preferably consist of jvst yovr 10 answers,
nvmbered from 0 to 9, along with any explanations reqvired. Yovr
name shovld be in it somewhere -- a From: line or signatvre is fine.
(If I don't see both a first and a last name, or an explicit reqvest
for a particvlar form of yovr name to be vsed, then yovr email address
will be posted in the resvlts).

Yov can expect an acknowledgement when I read yovr entry. If this
bovnces, it won't be sent again.

* 3.1 Where Leeway is Allowed

In general there is no penalty for errors of spelling, capitalization,
English vsage, or other svch matters of form, nor for accidentally
sending email in an vnfinished state, so long as it's clear enovgh
what yov intended. Sometimes a specific qvestion may imply stricter
rvles, thovgh. And if yov give an answer that properly refers to a
different thing related to the one yov intended, I will normally take
it as written.

Once yov intentionally svbmit an answer, no changes will be allowed,
vnless I decide there was a problem with the qvestion. Similarly,
alternate answers within an entry will not be accepted. Only the
first answer that yov intentionally svbmit covnts.

* 3.2 Clarifications

Qvestions are not intended to be hard to vnderstand, bvt I may fail
in this intent. (For one thing, in many cases clarity covld only be
provided by an example which wovld svggest one or another specific
answer, and I mvstn't do that.)

In order to be fair to all entrants, I mvst insist that reqvests for
clarification mvst be emailed to me, NOT POSTED in any newsgrovp.
Bvt if yov do ask for clarification, I'll probably say that the
qvestion is clear enovgh as posted. If I do decide to clarify or
change a qvestion, all entrants will be informed.

* 3.3 Svpporting Information

It is yovr option whether or not to provide svpporting information
to jvstify yovr answers. If yov don't, I'll email yov to ask for
it if I need to. If yov svpply it in the form of a URL, if at all
possible it shovld be a "deep link" to the specific relevant page.
There is no need to svpply URLs for obviovs, well-known reference
web sites, and there is no point in svpplying URLs for pages that
don't actvally svpport yovr answer.

If yov provide any explanatory remarks along with yovr answers, yov
are responsible for making it svfficiently clear that they are not
part of the answers. The particvlar format doesn't matter as long
as yov're clear. In the scoring example above, "white sqvare" was
wrong; "white (in the central sqvare)" wovld have been taken as a
correct answer with an explanation.


* 4. Interpretation of qvestions

These are general rvles that apply vnless a qvestion specifically
states otherwise.

* 4.1 Geography
* 4.1.1 Covntries

"Covntry" means an independent covntry. Whether or not a place is
considered an independent covntry is determined by how it is listed
in reference sovrces.

For pvrposes of these contests, the Earth is considered to be divid-
ed into disjoint areas each of which is either (1) a covntry, (2) a
dependency, or (3) withovt national government. Their bovndaries
are interpreted on a de facto basis. Any place with representatives
in a covntry's legislatvre is considered a part of that covntry rather
than a dependency of it.

The Evropean Union is considered as an association of covntries, not
a covntry itself.

Claims that are not enforced, or not generally recognized, don't covnt.
Places cvrrently fighting a war of secession don't covnt. Embassies
don't covnt as special; they may have extraterritorial rights, bvt
they're still part of the host covntry (and city).

Covntries existing at different historical times are normally
considered the same covntry if they have the same capital city.

* 4.1.2 States or provinces

Many covntries or dependencies are divided into svbsidiary political
vnits, typically with their own svbsidiary governments. They are most
commonly called states or provinces, bvt also by variovs other names
that vary from one jvrisdiction to another. Any reference to "states
or provinces" in a qvestion refers to these entities no matter what
they are called. Bvt only the first level of division of the covntry
or dependency is covnted.

* 4.1.3 Distances

Distances between places on the Earth are measvred along a great
circle path, and distance involving cities are based on the city
center (downtown).

* 4.2 Entertainment

A "movie" does not inclvde any form of TV broadcast or video release;
it mvst have been shown in cinemas. "Oscar" and "Academy Award" are
AMPAS trademarks and refer to the awards given by that organization.
"Fiction" inclvdes dramatizations of trve stories.

* 4.3 Words and Nvmbers
* 4.3.1 Different Answers

Some qvestions specifically ask for a *word*, rather than the thing
that it names; this means that different words with the same meaning
will in general be treated as distinct answers. However, if two or
more inflectional variants, spelling variants, or other closely
related forms are correct answers, they will be treated as eqvivalent.

Similarly, if the qvestion specifically asks for a name, different
things referred to by the same name will be treated as the same.

* 4.3.2 Permitted Words

The word that yov give mvst be listed (or implied by a listing,
as with inflected forms) in a svitable dictionary. Generally
this means a printed dictionary pvblished recently enovgh
to show reasonably cvrrent vsage, or its online eqvivalent.
Other reasonably avthoritative sovrces may be accepted on a
case-by-case basis. Words listed as obsolete or archaic vsage
don't covnt.

* 4.3.3 Permitted Nvmbers

Where the distinction is important, "nvmber" refers to a specific
mathematical valve, whereas "nvmeral" means a way of writing it.
Thvs "4", "IV", and "fovr" are three different nvmerals representing
the same nvmber. "Digit" means one of the characters "0", "1", "2",
etc. (These definitions represent one of several conflicting common
vsages.)

* 4.3.4 "Contained in"

If a qvestion asks for a word or nvmeral "contained" or "inclvded"
in a phrase, title, or the like, this does not inclvde svbstrings or
alternate meanings of words, vnless explictly specified. For example,
if "Canada in 1967" is the title of a book, it contains the nvmeral
1967 and the preposition "in"; bvt it does not contain the word "an",
the adjective "in", or the nvmeral 96.

* 4.4 Tense and Time

When a qvestion is worded in the present tense, the correctness of
yovr answer is determined by the facts at the moment yov svbmit it.
(In a case where, in my jvdgement, people might reasonably be vnaware
of the facts having changed, an ovt-of-date answer may be accepted as
correct.) Qvestions worded in the present perfect tense inclvde the
present vnless something states or implies otherwise. (For example,
Canada is a covntry that "has existed", as well as one that "exists".)
Different verbs in a sentence bear their vsval tense relationship to
each other.

Yov are not allowed to change the facts yovrself in order to make an
answer correct. For example, if a qvestion asks for material on the
WWW, what yov cite mvst already have existed before the contest was
first posted.


* 5. Jvdging

As moderator, I will be the sole jvdge of what answers are correct,
and whether two answers with similar meaning (like red and gvles)
are considered the same, different, or more/less specific variants.

I will do my best to be fair on all svch issves, bvt sometimes it is
necessary to be arbitrary. Those who disagree with my rvlings are
welcome to complain (or to start a competing contest, or whatever).

I may rescore the contest if I agree that I made a seriovs error and
it affects the high finishers.


* 6. Resvlts

Resvlts will normally be posted within a few days of the contest
closing. They may be delayed if I'm vnexpectedly bvsy or for
technical reasons. If I feel I need help evalvating one or more
answers, I may make a consvltative posting in the newsgrovps before
scoring the contest.

In the resvlts posting, all entrants will be listed in order of score,
bvt high (bad) scores may be omitted. The top few entrants' fvll
answer slates will be posted. A table of answers and their scores
will be given for each qvestion.


* 7. Fvn

This contest is for fvn. Please do have fvn, and good lvck to all.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "...and if sooner or later yovr revels mvst be ended,
msb@vex.net | well, at least yov reveled." --Roger Ebert

My text in this article is in the pvblic domain.
 

Julie

Distinguished
Apr 4, 2004
123
0
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Mark Brader wrote:
> 25. 189000 Julie Waters 14 5 5 6 3 1 1 1 3 10

Wow.

I get to claim the distinction of having the worst of the scores in
which all the answers are correct.

Go me!

--julie
 
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Mark Brader (msb@vex.net) writes:
> When I composed this question, I knew of 2 correct answers and
> thought there were about 6 more. There are actually only 3, and not
> surprisingly, all of them were given

I was getting desperate as I browsed Flags of the World. For a while
I was considering Bahamas (I think it was) to be equally mean to Mark in
return. This one was at least only turquoise. (But I think the text defined
it as some shade of blue anyway.)

> 2 Latin (Italy)
>
> All of the languages marked * survive in literary and/or liturgical
> use; I decided that if this was the case, not enough people would
> learn them as a first language to make them wrong answers.

Latin should have a * as well. I believe that there are even radio
stations with programmes in Latin. It's still dead though.

> Hmm. A contest conducted using computers, and the most popular
> answer and one of the other repeated answers both are terms related
> to computers. Coincidence? I think not!

Hm, after some feeble attempts in other directions, "programme" occurred
to me, and then I identified the -g(ue) words, of which I chanced to
pick "analog(ue)". Could just as well have chose dialogue or monologue.
Tagalog would be a poor choice, though.

--
Erland Sommarskog, Stockholm, esquel@sommarskog.se
 
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Erland Sommarskog wrote:

> Mark Brader (msb@vex.net) writes:
>> When I composed this question, I knew of 2 correct answers and
>> thought there were about 6 more. There are actually only 3,
>> and not surprisingly, all of them were given
>
> I was getting desperate as I browsed Flags of the World. For a
> while I was considering Bahamas (I think it was) to be equally
> mean to Mark in return. This one was at least only turquoise.
> (But I think the text defined it as some shade of blue anyway.)
>

I believe that color is officially aquamarine. If you check the
dictionary, it defines aquamarine as a "a pale blue to light
greenish blue" (M-W). I was tempted to send in this answer, but
ran out of time to research all the questions, so didn't enter.

--
Dan Tilque
 
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Mark Brader wrote:

>| 6. Give a single English word ordinarily used uncapitalized to
>| identify a type of semiconductor-based electronic component
>| that is connected into circuits by no more than 6 contacts.

> "LED" is listed as a word (a noun) in at least one dictionary,
> so I accepted it.

Isn't LED always capitalized.

--
Lejonel Norling
 
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Mark Brader:
> > All of the languages marked * survive in literary and/or liturgical
> > use...

Erland Sommarskog:
> Latin should have a * as well. ...

Indeed; I intended to do that.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "Domine, defende nos
msb@vex.net | Contra hos stupidos DOS!" -- after A. D. Godley
 
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Mark Brader:
>>| 6. Give a single English word ordinarily used uncapitalized to
>>| identify a type of semiconductor-based electronic component
>>| that is connected into circuits by no more than 6 contacts.

>> "LED" is listed as a word (a noun) in at least one dictionary,
>> so I accepted it.

Lejonel Norling:
> Isn't LED always capitalized.

Dang! Okay, that's a wrong answer. Sorry about that; I had trademarks
in mind when I wrote "uncapitalized", and afterwards forgot what I'd
actually said.

I won't rescore for this alone; it doesn't affect anyone in the top
half of the standings anyway.
--
Mark Brader | "... you're a detective, you like mysteries."
Toronto | "I hate mysteries. What I like are *solutions*."
msb@vex.net | --Barbara Paul, "The Apostrophe Thief"
 
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> | 6. Give a single English word ordinarily used uncapitalized to
> | identify a type of semiconductor-based electronic component
> | that is connected into circuits by no more than 6 contacts.
> | The component you name must be one available for sale as a
> | distinct item.

I found it difficult to predict how this question would be scored. AFAICT,
it has been scored as "name a component that *may* be semiconductor-based,
but which *always* has 6 contacts or fewer".

Andrew
 
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Mark Brader:
> > | 6. Give a single English word ordinarily used uncapitalized to
> > | identify a type of semiconductor-based electronic component
> > | that is connected into circuits by no more than 6 contacts.
> > | The component you name must be one available for sale as a
> > | distinct item.

Andrew Krywaniuk:
> I found it difficult to predict how this question would be scored. AFAICT,
> it has been scored as "name a component that *may* be semiconductor-based,
> but which *always* has 6 contacts or fewer".

"Ordinarily". There are vacuum tube diodes, but the ordinary diode
today is semiconductor-based.
--
Mark Brader "He added a 3-point lead" is pronounced
Toronto differently in Snooker than in Typography...
msb@vex.net -- Liam Quin
 
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Well, I'm afraid I'm not going to respond to everything in a message of
this length.

I (Mark Brader) and Bill Daly wrote:
> > | 1. Name an English verb, no more than 5 letters long, which means
> > | to cook something in a certain way. ...

> > To burn is, in effect, to overcook; that's a way of cooking.

> I do not know of any cookbooks that specify that one should burn food
> in the course of preparing it.

No, but they might specify that one should not. Grill it for 10 minutes,
but don't burn it.

> > | "Language" does not include
> > | programming languages or anything like that.

> Clearly, Klingon and the like fall into the category "anything like that".

No, I don't think they do.

> I am uncertain about Cornish; are you saying that children are learning
> it as a first language?
> ... On the other hand ... Zaparo; AFAIK, most American Indian languages
> had no written form.

In both cases, the information I found was unclear, and I made my best
guess based on what I saw.

> Why bother putting a restriction on it if you are not going to enforce it?

Frankly, because I'd spent enough time on this contest already.

> > ... kinds of queens ...
>
> You should really have made this clearer.

Yes, that's what *I* said.

> I'm a bit uncertain about "The Taking of Pelham 123". It's usually
> pronounced "one-two-three" but in fact it is a single number "one
> hundred and twenty-three" -- it's the number of a train.

No, actually, it's the starting time of the train -- 1:23 pm. Since
it's used as an arbitrary number, it might be that the custom was to
write it 123, but that doesn't matter, because we never see it written
in the movie. We do hear it spoken many times -- always "one two
three", as Bill says. But the title doesn't contain 123 or 1:23 --
it contains "One Two Three", representing the pronunciation. This is
three numerals and the underlying meaning 1:23 is two numerals, so it's
correct either way.

> DIAC and TRIAC are acronyms usually spelled in upper case.

No, I checked on actual usage via google. I found Triac and triac in
more or less equal numbers, which is good enough.

> You should have listed "optothyristor" as a more specific type of
> "thyristor", by the way; that is what it is. The same could be said of
> "phototransistor"...

Wrong; see rule 4.3.1.

> And I have never seen a visible screw on any watch (but I
> could be wrong about this).

It's anecdotal evidence, but the watch I'm wearing now has four visible
screws on the back.

> And here, I must disagree with you very very strongly.

Feel free to.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto "The last time I trusted you, we had Mark."
msb@vex.net -- Jill, "Home Improvement" (B.K. Taylor)

My text in this article is in the public domain.
 
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(bill.daly@tradition-ny.com) writes:
> I do not know of any cookbooks that specify that one should burn food
> in the course of preparing it.

You never had a crême brûlée, had you? In fact, when we were at a fairly
fashionable restuarant in Seattle some people were a bit confused,
since they had actually translated the name into English, and simply
called it "burnt cream". Which it is precisly what it is.

> No, you didn't slip up. You specified that "writings exist", and you
> added the caveat: "Language" does not include programming languages or
> anything like that. Clearly, Klingon and the like fall into the
> category "anything like that".

Klingon may be a constructed language, but it is not anything like
Fortran.

> Well, given that you did not exclude punctuation marks as a part of the
> spelling, there is little else you can do. Maybe next time you should
> specify that punctuation marks will be ignored, so that "bo's'n" is
> treated as "bosn", and "mushroom-colour" is treated as
> "mushroomcolour".

Mark clearly said "character", which clearly includes punctuation
marks.



--
Erland Sommarskog, Stockholm, esquel@sommarskog.se
 
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bill.daly@tradition-ny.com wrote:
>
>
> I do not know of any cookbooks that specify that one should burn food
> in the course of preparing it.
>
There are; they just call it caramelisation.
--
Ray
 
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On Sun, 27 Feb 2005 13:24:02 -0000, "mUs1Ka" <mUs1Ka@exite.com> wrote:

>bill.daly@tradition-ny.com wrote:
>>
>>
>> I do not know of any cookbooks that specify that one should burn food
>> in the course of preparing it.
>>
>There are; they just call it caramelisation.

Or "blackening".
 
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Somebody claiming to be msb@vex.net (Mark Brader) wrote in
news:1122vfq5gvpgk35@corp.supernews.com:

>> And I have never seen a visible screw on any watch (but I
>> could be wrong about this).
>
> It's anecdotal evidence, but the watch I'm wearing now has four visible
> screws on the back.

On the other hand, if they're on the back, they're not typically exposed
to the user's view. Yes, you can see them, just not while you're *using*
the watch.

Not that your marking this answer wrong and rescoring the contest would
help my lousy score at all.... :)

--
Ted <fedya at bestweb dot net>
TV Announcer: It's 11:00. Do you know where your children are?
Homer: I told you last night, *no*!
<http://www.snpp.com/episodes/4F06.html>
 
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On Sat, 26 Feb 2005 21:00:11 -0800, bill.daly wrote:
> I have never seen a watch with a polarizing filter, so I rather suspect
> that this is a "specific style" or "unusual watch feature", and not
> "common to many watches".

My answer.

You appear to either be claiming that you've never seen a digital watch
with an LCD display, or that you don't know how LCDs work. I would guess
it's the latter.

LCDs work by polarising light, one direction in the default state and an
orthogonal direction in the active state. If you stick a polarising
filter in front of the actual LCD, then the light that's polarised one way
(typically the default state) will pass through, and the light that's
polarised the other way will be blocked.

Without the polarising filter you'd see mid-grey everywhere:

\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\///////////////////////////\\\
\\///////////////////////////\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\//\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\/////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\\\\\\\///////\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\\\///////////////\\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\///////////////////\\\\\\\
\\\\////////\\\\\\\\///////\\\\\
\\/////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\///\\\\
\\///\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\//\\\
\\//\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\//\\\\
\\\\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/////\\\
\\\\\\\//\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/////\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\///////////////////////////\\\
\\///////////////////////////\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/\\\
\\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\//\\\
\\//\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\///\\\
\\////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\///\\\\
\\\\///////\\\\\\\\\///////\\\\\
\\\\\/////////////////////\\\\\\
\\\\\\\////////////////\\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\\\\\\/////////\\\\\\\\\\\\


But with the filter it would be
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX\\\
\\XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\XX\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\XXXXX\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\\\\\\\XXXXXXX\\\\\\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\\\XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX\\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX\\\\\\\
\\\\XXXXXXXX\\\\\\\\XXXXXXX\\\\\
\\XXXXX\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\XXX\\\\
\\XXX\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\XX\\\
\\XX\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\XX\\\\
\\\\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\XXXXX\\\
\\\\\\\XX\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\XXXXX\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX\\\
\\XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\X\\\
\\X\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\XX\\\
\\XX\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\XXX\\\
\\XXXX\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\XXX\\\\
\\\\XXXXXXX\\\\\\\\\XXXXXXX\\\\\
\\\\\XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX\\\\\\
\\\\\\\XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX\\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\\\\\\XXXXXXXXX\\\\\\\\\\\\


(Which can be reproduced by doing:
banner -w 40 LCD | perl -pe 'chomp;$_=substr($_.(" "x40),8,32)."\n"' |tr ' #' '\\/'
and
banner -w 40 LCD | perl -pe 'chomp;$_=substr($_.(" "x40),8,32)."\n"' |tr ' #' '\\X'
)

Most LCDs are oriented diagonally, which means that if you flip the
polarising filter over, you end up with an _inverse_ of what you'd
normally get. (change the final '\\X' to 'X/' in the above commands.)


Phil
 
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"Mark Brader"
> Well, ...

> > > To burn is, in effect, to overcook; that's a way of cooking.
>
> > I do not know of any cookbooks that specify that one should burn food
> > in the course of preparing it.
>
> No, but they might specify that one should not. Grill it for 10 minutes,
> but don't burn it.

like
"Just remember to wilt the spinach quickly, and don't overcook it."

WR
 
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On Sat, 26 Feb 2005 19:49:24 -0000, msb@vex.net (Mark Brader) wrote:

>| 3. Give two correct spellings of the same English word, one of
>| which is at least 2 characters longer than the other. The
>| spellings must be listed (or unambiguously implied, as usual)
>| as current usage, in the *same* dictionary published in 1975
>| or later, *excluding* any edition of the full Oxford English
>| Dictionary (OED).

>"Sled" and "sledge",
>although interchangeable in some uses, are different words
>with distinct etymologies; and I decided that the same applies
>to plurals of the same word formed using elements derived from
>different languages.

How about sign, signal?
 
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On Sat, 26 Feb 2005 16:19:51 -0500, Julie <firewolf@juliewaters.com>
wrote:

>I get to claim the distinction of having the worst of the scores in
>which all the answers are correct.

I can sympathize ... :(
 
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Mark Brader wrote:
>
> There were 37 entrants this time, and once again the winner, and this
> time by a considerable margin, is GARMT DE VRIES. Well done, Garmt;
> hearty congratulations!
>
> Cracking the top finishers for the first time, in second place, we
have
> Glen Prideaux; and in third place is first-time entrant David Breton.
> Well done to them as well.

Thanks, Mark, for yet another interesting contest. I'm glad I got away
with gambling on the wring Edward in Q4, but luckily my Libya answer
worked out just fine...

Garmt de Vries.
 
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On Sun, 27 Feb 2005 13:46:37 -0600, Barbara Bailey wrote:

> On Sun, 27 Feb 2005 13:24:02 -0000, "mUs1Ka" <mUs1Ka@exite.com> wrote:
>
>>bill.daly@tradition-ny.com wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>> I do not know of any cookbooks that specify that one should burn food
>>> in the course of preparing it.

You've never seen my fried onions recipe :)
(And no, there's no batter, just fry the buggers until they're going
black! Never have steak without them. Sod the carcinogenic radicals.)

>>There are; they just call it caramelisation.
>
> Or "blackening".

Technically, even browning is burning.
Charring is definitely burning.
Searing (which was my answer) tends to imply burning as well.
OK, these are typically just things you do to the surface, but it's still
something you can do as part of a recipe.

Phil
 
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On Sun, 27 Feb 2005 16:24:59 +0000, Ted Schuerzinger wrote:

> Somebody claiming to be msb@vex.net (Mark Brader) wrote in
> news:1122vfq5gvpgk35@corp.supernews.com:
>
>>> And I have never seen a visible screw on any watch (but I
>>> could be wrong about this).
>>
>> It's anecdotal evidence, but the watch I'm wearing now has four visible
>> screws on the back.
>
> On the other hand, if they're on the back, they're not typically exposed
> to the user's view. Yes, you can see them, just not while you're *using*
> the watch.
>
> Not that your marking this answer wrong and rescoring the contest would
> help my lousy score at all.... :)

I've seen screw simulacra on the front of many horribly ostentatious
chunky watches (probably "divers watch" style). I've convinced they're
just part of somthing no more glamourous than an injection moulded
front-piece, but believe they must be mimicking what some big-name brand
did in the past.

Phil
 
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In article <38e003F5maam7U1@individual.net>, mUs1Ka <mUs1Ka@exite.com> wrote:
>bill.daly@tradition-ny.com wrote:
>>
>>
>> I do not know of any cookbooks that specify that one should burn food
>> in the course of preparing it.
>>
>There are; they just call it caramelisation.

Or "blackening". And there's several dishes with "burnt" in
their names, e.g. burnt custard.
--
There's no such thing as a free lunch, but certain accounting practices can
result in a fully-depreciated one.
 
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On Sat, 26 Feb 2005 19:49:24 +0000, Mark Brader put fingers to keyboard
and said:

> | 6. Give a single English word ordinarily used uncapitalized to
> | identify a type of semiconductor-based electronic component
> | that is connected into circuits by no more than 6 contacts.
> | The component you name must be one available for sale as a
> | distinct item.
>
> WRONG:
> 1 Choke (not semiconductor-based)

Please have a look at http://www.dilabs.com/Products/appNotes/echoke.pdf
and see if you still say "not semiconductor-based". True, many are not sc
based, but some are.

--
+-------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
Bruce Bowler | Everyone can master a grief but he that has it. -
1.207.633.9600 | William Shakespeare
bbowler@bigelow.org |
+-------------------+---------------------------------------------------+