The Teams
Edinburgh
Parthav Easwar
Johnny Richards
Alice Leonard
Rayhana Amjad
Darwin, Cambridge
Lewis Strachan
Ruth Ni Mhuircheartaigh
Louis Cameron
Jonathan White
Are we already at the semi final stage? Sure are. Just as a
point of interest, going into the match Edinburgh were the only unbeaten team
left in the competition, the other three teams having lost either in one of the
quarter final matches or round one.
Jonathan White drew first blood, interrupting the first
starter when he recognised the Oldenburgs as the royal family of Denmark. Three
famous instances of politicians being told ‘In the name of God, go!’ brought a
full house.
The second starter was one of those long, long starters which
suddenly includes a word or name that clarifies everything. That name was
Montjuic and Johnny Richards won the buzzer race to identify Barcelona once it
was said. Plains Indian Sign Language only yielded one bonus. Louis Cameron
came in very quickly for the next starter, identifying that TS Eliot had
written about John Webster. The River Neman brought only one bonus, but had
they said Kaunas rather than Kanaus they would have had two. For the picture
starter we were shown a map of the Holy Roman Empire (which was neither holy,
Roman nor an empire) at a particular point in history. Jonathan White correctly
identified the electorate of Brandenburg. More electorates brought another single
bonus. Darwin lost five of their total for an incorrect interruption allowing
Parthav Easwar to buzz in with Bayer. Gawd knows what the hell the Physics bonuses
that followed were about but Edinburgh took one of them. This took us to ten
minutes and Darwin led 50 – 30.
Neither team knew that Fashoda, scene of an international
incident in the late 19th century, is in modern day South Sudan. Rayhana
Amjad knew various video game titles were all linked by the word Shadow. Kurt
Vonnegut’s Player Piano yielded two bonuses. Nobody knew the painter Judith
Leyster for the next starter but Darwin lost five. An ABS starter (another
bloody Science) proved ungettable for any of us. Rayhana Amjad knew Philemon
was half of the Derby and Joan type couple in Greek mythology visited by Zeus
and Hermes – Baucis being the other. Works by Maurice Ravel naming other
composers in their titles brought two bonuses and the lead. For the music
starter all of the participants were too young to recognise the work of George
McCrea. Rayhana Amjad knew the latin literary term Ubi Sunt. I remember dear
old John Browning teaching me that the first time he introduced my class to
Keats’ Ode to Autumn – “Where are the songs of Spring? Aye, where are they?” Indeed.
Apparently Ode to Autumn was one of the first times Keats used a drum machine
and other tracks which were early examples of the use of them brought one
bonus. The next ABS starter saw Darwin buzz too early again but nobody quite
got chloride. Again the buzzing hoodoo struck for Darwin on the next starter as
they lost another 5. Edinburgh didn’t know that the directors of the films
mentioned each had the given name Alice. Rayhana Amjad whose buzzing was
proving to be very effective in this match identified the Portuguese writer
Pessoa for the next starter. MBS (more bloody Science) bonuses brought nowt. Rayhana
Amjad struck again with the word superstructure for the next starter. A full
house on pomelos and their descendants boosted Edinburgh into triple figures
and they led by 115 to 30.
For the second picture starter Louis Cameron struck for
Darwin and got their score moving upwards again, with Titian.
While Titian was mixing rose madder
His model posed nude on a ladder.
Her position, to Titian
Suggested coition
So he climbed up the ladder and had ‘er.
I can only apologise. Three more works of art made for
rulers of countries other than the countries in which the artists were born brought
two bonuses. The Darwin revival continued as Louis Cameron recognised clues to
the word version. French bicycle racing terms did not help and I think captain Louis Cameron was right to
move them out of the way asap. Now, whenever I hear the phrase ‘Swiss
mathematician’ I always say Euler and it’s right more often than it’s wrong. Ruth
Ni Mhuircheartaigh said it as well and it was right this time. When I’d stopped
wheezing after my lap of honour around the Clark sofa, pairs of place names
which can be made by doubling one letter of the first to make the second had
brought Darwin a full house. Nobody knew the correct answer of Lake Chad for
the next starter and sadly Ruth Ni Mhuircheartaigh gave the answer of torsion
for the next starter while she meant torque. This allowed Alice Leonard in. Two bonuses meant that Darwin would need at
least three unanswered visits to the table, and there just didn’t seem to be
enough time left. Jonathan White took the next starter with Tsar Nicholas I, or
as my old headteacher, Nick Wheeler-Robinson told me once, Nick the Stick. Two
bonuses on writers followed, but the gap was still 35. Louis Cameron was still
straining every fibre for his team and he recognised literary characters with the
surname Moore for the next starter. Fashion houses namechecked in Sister Sledge’s
‘The Greatest Dancer’ – a philosophical work of yesteryear – brought nothing.
However, a full house for Darwin would level the scores. ‘That’s quite enough
of that!’ Rayhana Amjad may well have though t, as the next MBS starter fell
with halogenation. Nope, me neither. UNESCO world heritage sites in Mexico
brought a single bonus, but it would not affect the outcome. The gong sounded
and Edinburgh had preserved their 100% record so far, winning by 155 to 110.
A good contest. For the record there wasn’t a great
performance gap between the teams on the bonuses. Edinburgh’s BCR was 51.8% to
Darwin’s 50%. Edinburgh were slightly better on the buzzer, benefitting from
Darwin’s interruptions. Again, I’m sorry to see the last of Darwin, but thank
you for the entertainment you’ve given us during the series. Congratulations to
Edinburgh. But who will you meet in the final?
Amol Watch
Amol did mention Darwin’s incorrect interruptions in his
summing up at the end and it was nice to see him pay tribute to the tactic as
the right thing to do. He’s right. You have to try and if you’re going down,
then go down with both your guns blazing away.
Interesting Fact That I Didn’t Already Know Of
The Week
I love the Tour de France but somehow the term puncheur for
a racer capable of making short, sudden thrusts, at the start of a climb for
example, a la Peter Sagan, is one that has always passed me by before.
Baby Elephant Walk Moment
In IUPAC notation what two letters are used to classify
stereoisomers of alkenes according to whether the higher priority substituent
groups at each end of the double bond ae on opposite sides of the bond, or on
the same side of the bond? The letters in question stand for the German words
for opposite and together.
I mean, come on, you could use that one to tranquilise a
rhino and you wouldn’t need a dart gun. Dum de dumdum dum dum um dum dumdum.
No comments:
Post a Comment