The Teams
Sheffield
Rhys Lewis
Abdelrahman Elsisi
Jacob Price (Capt)
Isobel Dobbie
Warwick
Josh Howarth
Antoni Kluzowski
Chris Levesley (Capt)
Lucy Dennett
Welcome back UC! How nice to see Quizzy Mondays return in
July rather than halfway through August. So let’s get cracking, then.
The first starter took a moment or two to get to the point
but as soon as it mentioned the Russian Empire suppressing literature in a specific
language I took a flyer with Ukrainian. Josh Howarth came in too early, allowing
Sheffield the full question. Jacob Price gave the correct answer. I didn’t think
I knew that much about David Lynch but I took a full house on his acting roles,
while Sheffield missed out on Harry Dean Stanton. Both Jacob Price and I
guessed that the term from Jamaican cuisine being called for to answer the next
starter was jerk. When Amol said that the bonuses concerned some of the world’s
longest continually occupied cities I guessed Damascus (kills all known germs) would
be one. In fact we both took a full house. 8 correct answers on the bounce became
9 when Amol mentioned ‘artist’ and Nuremburg which was enough to give both me
and Jacob Price Albrecht Durer. That was as far as my run went, as I didn’t know
Polish novelist Tokarczuk. A bit of bad luck deprived Sheffield of a full house,
but that’s the way it goes. In life, things aren’t clear cut – there’s probably
a lot more grey than black or white. But this isn’t life, this is quizzing, and
an answer is either right or wrong. (Discuss). For the first picture starter we were shown
the distribution of seats in a recent general election. The name of the
majority party was missing. For me, seeing Inkhata told me it must be South
Africa so we were missing the ANC. Josh Howarth was the first to work it out.
Good shout. For the bonuses I knew the New Popular Front in France and the BJP in
India, but didn’t get Morena which Warwick did for a timely full house. The
next one was one of those starters that seem unfathomable – I like butterflies
and moths but I have never heard of the Bogong Moth – which suddenly becomes
crystal when one key thing is mentioned. In this case it was Mount Kosciusko.
Both Jacob Price and I knew it had to be Australia where it’s found. The mathematical groups bonuses that followed
proved as impenetrable to me as you would expect. Sheffield took a couple and
as we approached the 10 minute mark they were very comfortably in the driving
seat, leading 85-20.
I’ll be honest, I always thought that Narbacular Drop was a
move which resulted one wrestler inflicting damage to the genitalia of his
opponent, but apparently according to Josh Howarth it was also the precursor to
the video game Portal. Climate change and the Caribbean region provided us both
with 2 bonuses. For the next starter ‘ballet’ and ‘ritualistic’ suggested
Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring (which we all know was really about dinosaurs) which
was also Jacob Price’s answer. This earned Sheffield a set of bonuses on stadia
with a capacity over 100,000. We both answered just the one correctly. ‘Novel’
and 1870s often makes me think of Middlemarch, and when Amol mentioned the
heroine Dorothea, Isobel Dobbie came in with just that answer. Sheffield took a
full house on people named after ants – sort of. So to the music starter. With classical
music starters I occasionally recognise the composer but hardly ever the
specific piece of music. -Allo- thought I – this sounds like Mozart’s Requiem-.
Bloomin was, too. Rhys Lewis also recognised it. Bonuses on other pieces written
late in their respective composers’ lives brought one bonus. I like flags so I
knew that the one Amol mentioned in the next starter belonged to the Marshall
Islands. Neither team knew it but Sheffield lost five. Abdelrahman Elsisi knew
Unicode to take back those five and more besides for the next starter. Le
Corbusier – so often name checked in UC – brought 2 bonuses. Antoni Kluzowski
recognised various authors of works containing the word Meditations to get
Warwick moving again. Bonuses on the Clark (no relation) Medal for Natural
Sciences brought us both a single bonus. At least Warwick were moving again.
For the Shakespeare starter that followed Abdelrahman Elsisi provided the right
play – Othello – but the question required the name of the heroine – Desdemona.
I’m sure Lucy Dennett knew it anyway, but she was gratefully in to snap that
one up. Looking back this was a pivotal moment in the contest, since Warwick
took a full house on beds in Mythology. So instead of increasing their lead,
Sheffield actually saw it reduced by 30. At the 20 minute mark the score stood
at 150 – 80.
Warwick were still long odds underdogs, though those odds
shortened a little when Antoni Kluzowski recogised the work of Degas for the
second picture starter. Bonuses on other paintings recently exhibited as the
centrepiece of exhibitions in the National Gallery brought one bonus. Lucy
Dennett realised that a teacher brought to England by Catherine of Aragon was
surely intended for the future Mary I. Warwick’s odds contracted again.
Characters from the Lord of the Rings with names beginning with G again yielded
a single bonus. However, even though Warwick were only taking bite sized chunks
out of the lead, it was now down to forty. Jacob Price extended the lead again,
knowing the Kepler space telescope. 2 bonuses were taken on probability. Chris
Levesley knew Mickey Mouse’s predecessor – Oswald the lucky rabbit for the next
starter. Castles and the kings in whose reigns they were built brought just one
bonus. Lucy Dennett knew works with ‘and its discontents’ in their titles. This
time they took two bouses and the gap was down to one full set. Chris Levesley
came in first to identify plasma in blood. Gap down to fifteen points. Words
that can also mean to move effortlessly brought two bonuses, and at this point
it was anybody’s game – although all of the momentum was with Warwick. Valley
of the Shadow of Death, thinking of Tennyson, had to be the Crimea War. Antoni
Kluzowski thought so and it gave Warwick the lead for the first time in the
contest. Bicycle brakes brought 2 bonuses. Sheffield desperately needed the
next starter, but it was Lucy Dennett who took it with sprites. Don’t ask. A
full house on Japanese islands meant that Sheffield needed snookers. But it was
too late anyway. With the finest comeback since Lazarus, Warwick had won by 210
to 170.
Many commiserations to Sheffield. A BCR of 66 is not to be
sniffed at, but once Warwick built some momentum they just couldn’t win the
buzzer races. Warwick themselves had a BCR of 63, but it was their buzzing in
the last third which won the game. I think Amol is probably right saying that
there’s a good chance we’ll see Sheffield again in the repechage. All in all a
fine show to begin the new series.
Amol Watch
Amol’s a seasoned veteran now with a couple of good seasons
under his belt. Last season I applauded his not accepting answers which others
might have felt were close enough and this continued with The Book of Jacob
being given as wrong when the answer required was the Books of Jacob. It seems
harsh, but it is the only fair way, in my opinion.
It’s aways interesting to note if and when Amol will offer
his plenty of time encouragement to one of the teams. He issued it his time on
almost exactly fifteen minutes, when Warwick were 100 points behind and in danger
of being overwhelmed. Good shout.
Interesting Fact That I Didn’t Already Know Of
The Week
The largest capacity stadium in the USA belongs to the
University of Michigan
Baby Elephant Walk Moment
Your bonuses are three questions on the mathematics of
groups. A mathematical group must contain what sort of element which does not
produce a change when used in the group’s operation? A square matrix with this
name features number ones on the main diagonal and zeroes elsewhere. Umm –
would that be dum de dumdum dum dum dum dum dumdum?
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