tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5401280171563686515.post6598299582799850893..comments2024-03-12T12:54:32.926-07:00Comments on Life After Mastermind: Mastermind - First Round - Heat 24Londiniushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07871325359167581176noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5401280171563686515.post-28790344373814385512012-03-28T05:40:57.710-07:002012-03-28T05:40:57.710-07:00Thanks Dave
- I actually offered all three; then ...Thanks Dave<br /> - I actually offered all three; then on the day of the recording, they told me the questions were just on 1908 and 1948...Qhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13616069175360459103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5401280171563686515.post-2128888067226574962012-03-27T15:12:23.375-07:002012-03-27T15:12:23.375-07:00Hi Quentin
- and welcome to LAM. Thanks for your ...Hi Quentin<br /><br />- and welcome to LAM. Thanks for your kind comments about the blog, and many congratulations on a highly impressive performance. I certainly look forward to your future observations. As I said I thoroughly enjoyed your round. Did you offer just one of those two Olympics, and find yourself bidded up by the production team, or was it your choice ? Good choice, anyway !<br /><br />Best of retrospective luck in your semi<br /><br />DaveLondiniushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07871325359167581176noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5401280171563686515.post-28887797025077838502012-03-26T04:27:31.880-07:002012-03-26T04:27:31.880-07:00Hello -Quentin here. Thanks very much for the rep...Hello -Quentin here. Thanks very much for the report David. First of all, just to say how much I appreciate your quizzing reports. From Aberavon Rugby Club to the big Quiz Finals, your blog is unmissable. <br /><br />I have now watched my heat and as you mention, it does raise the interesting question of the relative number of questions in MM Specialist Subject Rounds. Fortunately, I was able to make up the difference but several friends and relations were quite surprised by the discrepancy. Having said that, I could have gone a bit quicker (switching between 1908 and 1948 was tricky sometimes) and Julie did superbly to answer what she was given. I have some other observations on the show which I will save for a later date...Qhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13616069175360459103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5401280171563686515.post-18111100976821469502012-03-24T18:53:58.111-07:002012-03-24T18:53:58.111-07:00Final comment.
Regardless of the cause, it's ...Final comment.<br /><br />Regardless of the cause, it's definitely something to watch, and if there are large discrepancies in tempo, hopefully to improve.<br /><br />I'm sure the team would make some efforts to improve it if it is a genuine problem.<br /><br />ok - i enjoyed reading your write-ups about all these quizzes. I'll have to sign off now though, since otherwise i'm likely to get addicted to posting here (have a weakness for forums of any kind, and like a reformed alcoholic, the only cure is total abstinence!) <br /><br />So all the best, and thanks for your feedback.AaronWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10092351779984137119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5401280171563686515.post-55531347762011982732012-03-24T18:39:48.689-07:002012-03-24T18:39:48.689-07:00I can really imagine Magnus practising a standard ...I can really imagine Magnus practising a standard reading speed at home - such as 9 syllables per second. You could get a precise sense of speed if you did it often enough, on plenty of text samples; and could absorb - inwardly - a standard tempo, ensuring consistency within and between shows and series.<br /><br />For some reason I can't imagine John H. doing this so assiduously - either because he is less personally invested in the show, or because he is a otherwise a radio presenter, rather than an academic. I don't know but he seems generally more lackadaisical and casual somehow. (Good to put people at ease in some ways, i have no problem with that).<br /><br />My S.O. made an interesting suggestion. It could be that 'back in the day' the filming was more leisurely, meaning more time for relaxing between shows. Now if shows are filmed in bulk it could become fatiguing to rattle off so many questions in a single day. Even the questionmaster may start to mentally flag. <br /><br />Another possibility is the Celebrity spin-off, which is by its nature more relaxed and informal, has created a more laissez-faire ambience amongst the presumably common set of producers and question setters. Academic formality is less of a priority to a team focused as much on chatty, glamorous celebs dropping in (and requiring some pampering). <br /><br />Maybe no one's counting the number of questions anymore...Britain is too cool to worry about such things...we're just all having too much fun to notice...aren't we?!AaronWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10092351779984137119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5401280171563686515.post-16710243460112519302012-03-24T18:06:30.817-07:002012-03-24T18:06:30.817-07:00I like John Humphreys but i can't help feeling...I like John Humphreys but i can't help feeling his pace of delivery of the questions is too variable. I thought it as soon as i heard about Jesse Honey's 23 score, and listened to the round. Humphreys was speaking fast then. Other times he seems more nonchalent, and surprisingly often, repeats or expands on an answer when it is given correctly. The variation between 15 and 23 is obviously not purely due to the contestants. If both contestants have answered all questions right...there is no way even a few pauses of a second or two could make a full 8 questions difference. I'm assuming the time controls were the same in the two cases.<br /><br />It must be very easy for the question setters to ensure that batches of, say, 4 questions at a time, contain almost the same number of syllables, and i would expect John H. to be able to practise timed recitations to ensure some maximum allowable amout of variation (+/- a few seconds). <br /><br />Musicians, actors, sportsmen, and orators all know how to keep to a fairly precise time...it should be the same here.<br /><br />Granted that a perfectly fair contest is impossible, due to answering on different topics and different sets of general knowledge questions, but i don't like the idea that the delivery of the questions can become as variable as it seems to be at times, skewing the comptetition in a rather arbitrary way...perhaps even becoming the dominant source of unfairness between competitors!<br /><br />ok, it's just a bit of fun, but as a prestigious competition into which many of the challengers put a great deal of work to do their best on the day, every effort should be made to make it fair. <br /><br />I don't know if it is something that has been allowed to drift over time, or has always been there to some extent. It was much better in the Magnus era though, watching some old episodes, one can usually count no fewer than 19 and no more than 21 questions being asked.<br /><br />I like John Humphreys as i said, but would hope the production team is alert to this problem as it detracts from the competition. <br /><br />Variation between 18 and 22 at an absolute maximum. 15 and 23 (or even 16 and 22) is far too much. I reckon someone really needs to point this out before it slips any further. It might be time to write a Dear Points Of View letter lol.AaronWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10092351779984137119noreply@blogger.com