DON'T Stump the Guy with Average Knowledge...

[RickJay]

@twopiecesofeight

3. What is the name of the spacecraft that Luke Skywalker flies in when he attacks the Death Star?

That’s a trickier question than you might think. Everyone knows it’s an X-Wing, but the word “X-wing” is never uttered in the movie. Not once does anyone call it that; the term was used in the movie’s marketing and merchandising, of course, but not actually IN the movie - in fact, I do not believe the term “X-wing” is ever used in any of the Star Wars movies.

So, technically, someone who just watched the movies and was going by the information available in them wouldn’t know the answer to this question, or would - correctly - call it a “snub fighter.”

[RickJay]

And I don’t see much in the way of sports questions. I’m going to base my difficulty ratings on what normal people really might know:

Easy (One point)

1. What does “NBA” stand for, in major North American pro sports?

2. What sport are Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, and Arnold Palmer famous for playing?

3. How many innings are there in a standard length baseball game?

4. Name three positions in the game of football (American/Canadian football.)

5. How often are the (Summer) Olympics held?

6. Name two teams in the National Hockey League.

7. Texas Hold 'Em is a popular variety of what card game?

8. What is the world’s most popular spectactor sport?

9. Formula 1, NASCAR, and CART are all leagues in what popular type of sport?

10. What Louisville-born professional boxer called himself “The Greatest,” held the heavyweight title three separate times, and won the fight known as “The Rumble in the Jungle”?

Moderately hard if you’re not a sports fan (Two points)

1. Baseball player Barry Bonds may soon break the all-time record for the most home runs hit. Whose record would he break?

2. Wayne Gretzky, the hockey player known simply as “The Great One,” played for four different NHL teams. Name at least two of them.

3. Peyton Manning is a star quarterback for what NFL franchise?

4. What city’s professional basketball team is known as the “Raptors”?

5. In what Olympic sport did Mark Spitz win many gold medals?

Hard (3 points)

1. Right now, who holds the official world record for the men’s 100-metre dash?

2. Sure, you may have known who held the all time major league record in home runs. But who holds the all time record for doubles?

3. Who did Boris Becker defeat to win his first Winbledon title?

4. Which team lost the first Super Bowl?

5. What famed racing horse was nicknamed “Big Red”?

[cmyk]

@fachverwirrt

I’m sort of resigned at this point, but I’ll keep going anyway.
For two points each, name the Brontë sisters.
Laser is an acronym. What does it stand for? (2)
What is a black hole? (2)
Name the last ten presidents of the US. (2 points for five, 3 for all ten)
In reference to a black hole, what is an “event horizon”? (3)

1. No idea.

2. I once knew this. Are the words election, and radiation in there?

3. When a star 1000s of time more massive then that our own uses up all it’s fuel, it can no longer sustain fusion, thereby losing equilibrium… so its gravity wins, and it collapses to the point that matter and light cannot escape it’s gravitation pull. And if you got to close to one, it’ll suck your face off.

4. Dubbya, Clinton, Bush Sr., Reagan, Carter, Ford, Nixon, JFK, Johnson(?), Ike (?)… eeek.

5. It’s the point surrounding the star where most forms of matter and light cannot escape… physics as we understand starts doing a Linda Blair from the Exorcist, and we can look no further. I do know that black holes do decay or evaporate over eons, and shoot out all kinda of healthy X-Rays, Gamma rays and crap.

[cmyk]

@RickJay

And I don’t see much in the way of sports questions. I’m going to base my difficulty ratings on what normal people really might know:

Easy (One point)

1. What does “NBA” stand for, in major North American pro sports?

2. What sport are Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, and Arnold Palmer famous for playing?

3. How many innings are there in a standard length baseball game?

4. Name three positions in the game of football (American/Canadian football.)

5. How often are the (Summer) Olympics held?

6. Name two teams in the National Hockey League.

7. Texas Hold 'Em is a popular variety of what card game?

8. What is the world’s most popular spectactor sport?

9. Formula 1, NASCAR, and CART are all leagues in what popular type of sport?

10. What Louisville-born professional boxer called himself “The Greatest,” held the heavyweight title three separate times, and won the fight known as “The Rumble in the Jungle”?

Moderately hard if you’re not a sports fan (Two points)

1. Baseball player Barry Bonds may soon break the all-time record for the most home runs hit. Whose record would he break?

2. Wayne Gretzky, the hockey player known simply as “The Great One,” played for four different NHL teams. Name at least two of them.

3. Peyton Manning is a star quarterback for what NFL franchise?

4. What city’s professional basketball team is known as the “Raptors”?

5. In what Olympic sport did Mark Spitz win many gold medals?

Hard (3 points)

1. Right now, who holds the official world record for the men’s 100-metre dash?

2. Sure, you may have known who held the all time major league record in home runs. But who holds the all time record for doubles?

3. Who did Boris Becker defeat to win his first Winbledon title?

4. Which team lost the first Super Bowl?

5. What famed racing horse was nicknamed “Big Red”?

1. National Basketball Association?

2. Golf. I could go for a half lemonade and ice tea for some reason.

3. 9

4. Defensive Linebacker, Quarterback, Nose Tackle

5. Every four years.

6. Red Wings, Avalanche

7. Poker.

8. Baseball?

9. Racing

10. Mohammad Ali? (aka Cassius Clay)

MODERATE:

1. I wanna say McGuire?

2. Ugh. I got nothing.

3. Nope.

4. Uh uh.

5. Couldn’t tell ya.

HARD:

1. The only name that comes to mind is Jesse Owens. But that’s gotta be super old news by now.

2. I didn’t really know either… do I?

3. Got me.

4. What’s this “Super Bowl” everyone keeps talking about?

5. The only famous horse I know is Seabiscuit, and that’s only because the movie.

Hot Damn! Sorts trivia would be a blast, if I knew ANYTHING about them!

[cmyk]

@RickJay

That’s a trickier question than you might think. Everyone knows it’s an X-Wing, but the word “X-wing” is never uttered in the movie. Not once does anyone call it that; the term was used in the movie’s marketing and merchandising, of course, but not actually IN the movie - in fact, I do not believe the term “X-wing” is ever used in any of the Star Wars movies.

So, technically, someone who just watched the movies and was going by the information available in them wouldn’t know the answer to this question, or would - correctly - call it a “snub fighter.”

To be honest, I thought most of those questions were particularly easy even for people who haven’t seen the movies, but have been exposed to pop-culture in general. Well, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but these movies are 30 years old! Or am I crazy?

Was still fun tho!

[TokyoBayer]

@Least Original User Name Ever

What is a male cow called? (1)

:dubious: And we haven’t hit the Painfully Obvious rule yet?

Quibble:

@MadTheSwine

What sports contest awards the victor a green jacket?

@credit taken for answer

Yes**…The Masters**

The question was not which sport but which contest. /quibble

A range of questions to get a feel for areas of strength and weakness. It’s hard to tell how hard they are, but here goes.

1. Which elite corp guards the Vatican and the Pope? (3 pts)

2. Which is America’s first national park? (2 pts)

3. Parts of what is now the US have been claimed by various other European countries. For :
   One point. Name two.
   Two points. Name three
   Three points. Name four (of the five?)

4. Complete this line “Don’t worry, be _____” (2 pts)

5. Tiger Woods is an example of a player in a “minor” sport who has drawn a large number of people into the sport who would not have necessarily been fans otherwise. For one point, name another competitor is a different sport.

6. Back in the dark ages, people used things called floppy disks to store or transfer data. For 2 points, what was the size of the disks?

[cmyk]

@TokyoPlayer

:dubious: And we haven’t hit the Painfully Obvious rule yet?

Quibble: The question was not which sport but which contest. /quibble

A range of questions to get a feel for areas of strength and weakness. It’s hard to tell how hard they are, but here goes.

1. Which elite corp guards the Vatican and the Pope? (3 pts)

2. Which is America’s first national park? (2 pts)

3. Parts of what is now the US have been claimed by various other European countries. For :
   One point. Name two.
   Two points. Name three
   Three points. Name four (of the five?)

4. Complete this line “Don’t worry, be _____” (2 pts)

5. Tiger Woods is an example of a player in a “minor” sport who has drawn a large number of people into the sport who would not have necessarily been fans otherwise. For one point, name another competitor is a different sport.

6. Back in the dark ages, people used things called floppy disks to store or transfer data. For 2 points, what was the size of the disks?

1. Well, in the Hyperion series, it was the Pax. Or something. Not sure what it is in reality?

2. Yellowstone?

3. Alaska? Texas? Florida?

4. Happy.

5. John McEnroe.

6. 5.25 and the smaller 3.5

[fachverwirrt]

@cmyk

1. No idea.

2. I once knew this. Are the words election, and radiation in there?

3. When a star 1000s of time more massive then that our own uses up all it’s fuel, it can no longer sustain fusion, thereby losing equilibrium… so its gravity wins, and it collapses to the point that matter and light cannot escape it’s gravitation pull. And if you got to close to one, it’ll suck your face off.

4. Dubbya, Clinton, Bush Sr., Reagan, Carter, Ford, Nixon, JFK, Johnson(?), Ike (?)… eeek.

5. It’s the point surrounding the star where most forms of matter and light cannot escape… physics as we understand starts doing a Linda Blair from the Exorcist, and we can look no further. I do know that black holes do decay or evaporate over eons, and shoot out all kinda of healthy X-Rays, Gamma rays and crap.

1. Emily, Charlotte, Anne. I don’t know what the rule here is, but since you didn’t really attempt it, I’m gonna call it a wash.
2. Light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation.
3. Correct.
4. Correct.
5. Correct.

My score: -5 (creeping closer)

[Mtgman]

@Least Original User Name Ever

What is the proper term for a group of rhinocerous? (3)

The collective noun for a group of rhinoceros is “crash”.

Enjoy,
Steven

[Asimovian]

I really need to work my way back up. Again, starting from -12 pts.:

18. Provide the word for “thank you” in as many languages as you can. (1 pt. each, spelling counts!)

19. Clara Peller is famous for asking what question in fast-food television commercials during the 80s? (2 pts.)

20. People who use biodiesel for fuel often hungrily note that their exhaust smells like _____? (1 pt.)

21. In 1986, rap and rock truly merge when Aerosmith re-records their hit “Walk This Way” with rap group ______? (1 pt.)

22. Follow-up. Some five years later, Anthrax got together with rap group _______ to create a new version of the rap song “Bring The Noise.” (3 pts.)

[cmyk]

Working… be back soon!

-cmyk

[descamisado]

@5-4-Fighting&cmyk

1. Of Siegfreid and Roy, which one was mauled by tiger? Poor, poor Roy. Always meant to send him a card. Correct. +2

2. Who was the Hottentot Venus? Yeek. Don’t know. Saarjite Baartman was a Khosian from Southern Africa whose body was the main attraction at public spectacles in both England and France for over five years. Known as the Hottentot Venus, she was brought to Europe from Cape Town in 1810 by an English ship’s surgeon who wished to publicly exhibit the woman’s steatopygia, her enlarged buttocks. Her physique, particularly her steatopygic appendage, became the object of popular fascination when Baartman was exhibited naked in a cage at Piccadilly, England. When abolitionists mobilized to put an end Baartman’s public display, she informed them that she participated in the spectacles of her own volition. She even shared in profits with her exhibitor.
   -3

3. Which is further south, Tallahassee or the Florida Keys? The Keys. Right. +1

4. Who has the wider octave range, Mariah Carey or Alicia Keys? Carey? Right. +2

5. What color were those little pills Colgate you to give out in schools to show that you still had tartar on your teeth? Blue? Wrong, they were red (but my memory now says it was Crest). -1

6. Do chickens sleep standing or “sitting”? And this is common knowledge?! I’ll guess standing… cuz it’s just so weird. Wrong, it’s sitting. -1

7. What’s the infamous connection between the dancer Anna Pavlova and dogs? They both salivate when someone rings a bell. Wrong. Although I shouldn’t have said "infamous, it’s the last names of the researcher, Ivan Pavlov and Anna Pavlova (the feminine of the name). Pavlov is widely known for first describing the phenomenon now known as classical conditioning in his experiments with dogs. -3

Current Point Total: -9.5

Glad you liked the questions, but c’mon, cmyk, let’s get crackin’!

[cmyk]

@5-4-Fighting

Current Point Total: -9.5

Glad you liked the questions, but c’mon, cmyk, let’s get crackin’!

7. What’s the infamous connection between the dancer Anna Pavlova and dogs? They both salivate when someone rings a bell. Wrong. Although I shouldn’t have said "infamous, it’s the last names of the researcher, Ivan Pavlov and Anna Pavlova (the feminine of the name). Pavlov is widely known for first describing the phenomenon now known as classical conditioning in his experiments with dogs. -3

But there in lies my half-joke/half-correct answer! You see?! C’mon, throw us a bone (no pun intended)!

[descamisado]

@cmyk

But there in lies my half-joke/half-correct answer! You see?! C’mon, throw us a bone (no pun intended)!

It did give me paws.

[fachverwirrt]

1. Who wrote Moby Dick? (1)
2. Who was the main character? (1)
3. To what animal class do ticks belong? (2)
4. After whom is the Hubble telescope named? (Yes, it’s Hubble. What’s the first name?) (2)
5. How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood? (2)
6. According to T.H. White’s The Once and Future King, what is Lancelot’s first name? (3)

[cmyk]

@Asimovian

I really need to work my way back up. Again, starting from -12 pts.:

18. Provide the word for “thank you” in as many languages as you can. (1 pt. each, spelling counts!)

19. Clara Peller is famous for asking what question in fast-food television commercials during the 80s? (2 pts.)

20. People who use biodiesel for fuel often hungrily note that their exhaust smells like _____? (1 pt.)

21. In 1986, rap and rock truly merge when Aerosmith re-records their hit “Walk This Way” with rap group ______? (1 pt.)

22. Follow-up. Some five years later, Anthrax got together with rap group _______ to create a new version of the rap song “Bring The Noise.” (3 pts.)

18. DO we REALLY need to be correct on spelling? Cuz I can barely get it right in English. Danka; Mercie; Grazie; Why the hell can’t I get spanish?! That should be the easiest!

19. Where’s the Beef?!

20. Corn?

21. Run DMC

22. Beasty Boys? (Shows what I know about Rap).

[cmyk]

@fachverwirrt

1. Who wrote Moby Dick? (1)
2. Who was the main character? (1)
3. To what animal class do ticks belong? (2)
4. After whom is the Hubble telescope named? (Yes, it’s Hubble. What’s the first name?) (2)
5. How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood? (2)
6. According to T.H. White’s The Once and Future King, what is Lancelot’s first name? (3)

1. Herman Melville

2. (Call me) Ishmale

3. Charles?

4. The Master Speaks.

5. Henry? That’s a nice, british name.

[cmyk]

[QUOTE=fachverwirrt]
3. To what animal class do ticks belong? (2)
/QUOTE]

Whoops, missed this one.

3. Insects?

[Asimovian]

@cmyk

18. DO we REALLY need to be correct on spelling? Cuz I can barely get it right in English. Danka; Mercie; Grazie; Why the hell can’t I get spanish?! That should be the easiest!

19. Where’s the Beef?!

20. Corn?

21. Run DMC

22. Beasty Boys? (Shows what I know about Rap).

I had to insist on correct spelling to be fair. Otherwise, there would be no risk to me in losing points.

18. +1 point for “grazie”, -2 points for Danka (should be “danke”) and Mercie (should be “merci”).

19. Yes.

20. French fries

21. Yes.

22. Public Enemy, but nice guess.

Down to -14 now. Of course, it’s YOUR game and YOUR rules, so if you really feel so strongly that I should get the points for your “thank you” answers, I won’t fight you too hard. (It’s “gracias” in Spanish, by the way.)

I really should give up, but oh, the temptation…

[Knorf]

Starting late, and I think a lot of people have been cheating, but I feel like jumping into the fun, so here goes!
Arts

1. Concerning Beethoven: Which of his symphonies starts with da-da-da-duuuuum? (1 pt)

2. Pointillism in painting refers to what technique? (2 pts)

3. Who was the author of A Tale of Two Cities? (1 pt)

4. What are the two cities referred to? (3 pts)

Geography

5. What is the most populated city between Seattle and Minneapolis? (2 pts)

6. Which city is further west, Reno, NV or Los Angeles, CA? (2 pts)

7. Which city is further north, Portland, ME or Portland, OR? (2 pts)

8. What countries make up the United Kingdom? (1 pt)

9. Which state is larger in size: California or Montana? (2 pts)

Sports

10. Which bowl game traditionally pitted the football champion from the Pac-10 with the champion from the Big-10? (1 pt)

11. The Tour de France is what kind of a race? (1 pt)

12. What man holds the record for the most gold medals in swimming events in the Olympic games? (2 pts)

13. Which NBA team has won the most NBA tournament championships? (3 pts)

Science

14. The big red spot on Jupiter is in fact what? (2 pts)

15. Before our sun dies, it will be a white dwarf. What will it become between now and then, sometime far in the future? (3 pts)
    That’s enough for now!!