Last Night's "Duel"

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gsabc · #26 Post by **gsabc** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 2:54 pm

MarleysGh0st wrote:
Spoiler
Regarding the mosquito question, that's just nit-picking. One can assume that when they ask "how far" they're asking for the maximum range.

But why would anyone know the answer to that WWOQ?

Spoiler

I wouldn't be surprised to find it in the literature for the Mosquito Magnet and similar items. And it probably pops up in news stories every summer about how to avoid becoming an involuntary blood donor to the critters.

I still want another "shootout", to see if those questions are all so WGAS as the first one.

FWIW, the contestant application is still up on their website, and I filled it out for the heck of it. Hey, they could pick it up for another run. You never know.

The questions on the show seem much easier than the ones for the online game. Or maybe it was just too late at night for the little guys running around the filing cabinets in my head.

Rexer25 · #27 Post by **Rexer25** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 2:59 pm

gsabc wrote:
MarleysGh0st wrote:
Spoiler
Regarding the mosquito question, that's just nit-picking. One can assume that when they ask "how far" they're asking for the maximum range.

But why would anyone know the answer to that WWOQ?

Spoiler
I wouldn't be surprised to find it in the literature for the Mosquito Magnet and similar items. And it probably pops up in news stories every summer about how to avoid becoming an involuntary blood donor to the critters.
I still want another "shootout", to see if those questions are all so WGAS as the first one.

FWIW, the contestant application is still up on their website, and I filled it out for the heck of it. Hey, they could pick it up for another run. You never know.

The questions on the show seem much easier than the ones for the online game. Or maybe it was just too late at night for the little guys running around the filing cabinets in my head.

I couldn't find a contestant application, but I did find the "Chat Room" for the show. I wonder if our old Go bored logins are valid there...

BTW, where is the app?

MarleysGh0st · #28 Post by **MarleysGh0st** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 3:04 pm

gsabc wrote: The questions on the show seem much easier than the ones for the online game. Or maybe it was just too late at night for the little guys running around the filing cabinets in my head.

Yeah, I tried a little of the online game in solo mode last night and was getting wiped out by all the pop culture. Were you (or anyone else) trying the head-to-head challenges? Can people keep playing challenges even after they've lost one? Seeing those top scores in the hundreds of thousands of points seemed a little intimidating.

Rexer, since that's a Go website, I presume they do still have our old log-ins (used by them most recently for the Grand Giveaway contest).

gsabc · #29 Post by **gsabc** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 3:26 pm

Rexer25 wrote:
gsabc wrote:FWIW, the contestant application is still up on their website, and I filled it out for the heck of it. Hey, they could pick it up for another run. You never know.

The questions on the show seem much easier than the ones for the online game. Or maybe it was just too late at night for the little guys running around the filing cabinets in my head.
I couldn't find a contestant application, but I did find the "Chat Room" for the show. I wonder if our old Go bored logins are valid there...

BTW, where is the app?

I think the old logins are good. I tried signing in as a new person, but they said my e-mail was already registered. So I typed that in and my old password, and was in.

The application link was under the big graphic screen on the main page. It said something like (duh!) "Want to be a contestant on Duel? Click here." The middle graphic of three - the left one IIRC was the contestant photos and information. It may be just a holdover from the start of the site. One of the questions was on "availability for taping for about 2 weeks in Fall 2007".

cindy.wellman · #30 Post by **cindy.wellman** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 3:39 pm

gsabc wrote:
Rexer25 wrote:
gsabc wrote:FWIW, the contestant application is still up on their website, and I filled it out for the heck of it. Hey, they could pick it up for another run. You never know.

The questions on the show seem much easier than the ones for the online game. Or maybe it was just too late at night for the little guys running around the filing cabinets in my head.
I couldn't find a contestant application, but I did find the "Chat Room" for the show. I wonder if our old Go bored logins are valid there...

BTW, where is the app?
I think the old logins are good. I tried signing in as a new person, but they said my e-mail was already registered. So I typed that in and my old password, and was in.

The application link was under the big graphic screen on the main page. It said something like (duh!) "Want to be a contestant on Duel? Click here." The middle graphic of three - the left one IIRC was the contestant photos and information. It may be just a holdover from the start of the site. One of the questions was on "availability for taping for about 2 weeks in Fall 2007".

Has anyone tried posting there? I noticed that under the person's name it has "member since" LOL Plus, I wonder if things are still tied to espn? I have an avatar up on espn, and wouldn't necessarily want to have the same one on the Duel msg board. OK, I'm a big chicken. LOL

OOH, I know! Can you delete your message after you post it? That way I can see how I show up.

Marley- I'm definitely telling DH that you said he was nitpicking. This is a wonderful thing because as per him, "I'm" the designated nitpicker in the house! YAY!

tanstaafl2 · #31 Post by **tanstaafl2** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 5:15 pm

They do really like the Gastonia type questions, like the mosquito one. Most people, including good trivia players, are not likely to know with certainty. Hell, I doubt most entomologists know! You can make an educated SWAG but given that it is one miss and you're out you are often forced to hedge your bets. On that one I was pretty sure 1 mile (I think it was) was not right but the other three were a a complete guess. 10' seemed as likely as 100' to me.

Seemed like there were more of that type last night than the first night but maybe not.

Glad I have Tivo. Don't have to pay attention to the repetitive cast member descriptions, histrionics of the "good TV" cast members like Monica or any of the other chit chat nonesense.

Over all it makes for a solid action packed 30 minute show...

TheConfessor · #32 Post by **TheConfessor** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 9:16 pm

Spoiler

Are they just making up the rules as they go along? When the used car dealer was going for his fourth win, they told him that if he won, he would automatically qualify for the final four. As far as I know, that was the first time anyone mentioned 4 wins as being the goal. I guess at that point, they were pretty sure that no more than four people would get four wins. If five people each got four wins, that would have been problematic.

15QuestionsAway · #33 Post by **15QuestionsAway** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 1:48 am

TheConfessor wrote:Are they just making up the rules as they go along? When the used car dealer was going for his fourth win, they told him that if he won, he would automatically qualify for the final four. As far as I know, that was the first time anyone mentioned 4 wins as being the goal. I guess at that point, they were pretty sure that no more than four people would get four wins. If five people each got four wins, that would have been problematic.

Since the show's aired everywhere, I pulled your query out of the spoiler quotes.

The answer is that should the used car salesman have won 4 Duels, it would have taken at least 16 more Duels to displace him from the top 4. The total number of preliminary Duels is limited to 23 since there's 24 contestants. Since more than 7 Duels have been played already, there's fewer than 16 possible Duels left.

Realistically, time is a factor at this point - there's only 2 hours of preliminaries left.

One thing I haven't been able to figure out is how the final four are ranked when there's a tie. There must be some super secret obscure formula like the NFL playoff tiebreakers.

TheConfessor · #34 Post by **TheConfessor** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 2:50 am

15QuestionsAway wrote:The answer is that should the used car salesman have won 4 Duels, it would have taken at least 16 more Duels to displace him from the top 4. The total number of preliminary Duels is limited to 23 since there's 24 contestants. Since more than 7 Duels have been played already, there's fewer than 16 possible Duels left.

Right, so since at that point it was mathematically impossible for more than 4 people to win 4 games, it was safe to make that the new rule at that point. But if that had been the rule from the start, it would have been theoretically possible for more than 4 people to win 4 games. So did that rule exist before the first contestant played, or did they just make it up on the spot? It seems like your strategy might be slightly different if you knew about that rule, versus not knowing about that rule. If that rule did not exist, I could easily see a Ken Jennings type contestant running the table and being alone on the leader board. I'm sure they wouldn't want that to happen.

Ritterskoop · #35 Post by **Ritterskoop** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 3:40 am

TheConfessor wrote:
15QuestionsAway wrote:The answer is that should the used car salesman have won 4 Duels, it would have taken at least 16 more Duels to displace him from the top 4. The total number of preliminary Duels is limited to 23 since there's 24 contestants. Since more than 7 Duels have been played already, there's fewer than 16 possible Duels left.
Right, so since at that point it was mathematically impossible for more than 4 people to win 4 games, it was safe to make that the new rule at that point. But if that had been the rule from the start, it would have been theoretically possible for more than 4 people to win 4 games. So did that rule exist before the first contestant played, or did they just make it up on the spot?

I don't think it is so much a rule as a statement of the way things are. I'm sure the players know they have to consider how much time remains, or at least the good game-players know.

TheConfessor · #36 Post by **TheConfessor** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 3:43 am

Ritterskoop wrote:
TheConfessor wrote:
15QuestionsAway wrote:The answer is that should the used car salesman have won 4 Duels, it would have taken at least 16 more Duels to displace him from the top 4. The total number of preliminary Duels is limited to 23 since there's 24 contestants. Since more than 7 Duels have been played already, there's fewer than 16 possible Duels left.
Right, so since at that point it was mathematically impossible for more than 4 people to win 4 games, it was safe to make that the new rule at that point. But if that had been the rule from the start, it would have been theoretically possible for more than 4 people to win 4 games. So did that rule exist before the first contestant played, or did they just make it up on the spot?
I don't think it is so much a rule as a statement of the way things are. I'm sure the players know they have to consider how much time remains, or at least the good game-players know.

The host told the used car salesman that if he won his fourth game, he would retire undefeated and be guaranteed a spot as one of the four finalists. Sounds like a "rule" to me.

Edit: I just went back and reviewed what the host said. Three different times, he told the used car salesman that if he won his fourth game, he will be assured of a spot in the finals on Sunday (as if that were the objective). He did not say that he would retire after his fourth win, but he said it with an air of finality that implied that his work here will be done until the finals. At least that's the way I interpreted it, but I may have misunderstood. Maybe the car salesman would have kept on playing if he won his fourth game. At this point, I don't think any viewer can say for sure, based on what we've seen.

earendel · #37 Post by **earendel** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 6:16 am

I may get to catch up on "Duel" after all. I got home from church last night and checked my DVR, only to find that the 90-minute first episode had been rebroadcast at 1:30AM and was duly recorded. I still don't have Tuesday's, but I do have last night's. So I may try to get caught up this weekend.

MarleysGh0st · #38 Post by **MarleysGh0st** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 8:05 am

TheConfessor wrote: The host told the used car salesman that if he won his fourth game, he would retire undefeated and be guaranteed a spot as one of the four finalists. Sounds like a "rule" to me.

Did he actually say that? Not just that he'd be guaranteed a spot in the final four? If the latter, it was an unnecessary observation that sounded too much like a surprise rule. If it was a surprise rule, it seems to go contrary to the dueling atmosphere of the game. If someone can run through the entire competition, let them do it!

And, sadly, it still looks like the strongest competitors will be left sitting on the benches.

And as for the used car salesman:

Spoiler

I guess having a photographic memory and appying that knowledge are two different things.

peacock2121 · #39 Post by **peacock2121** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 8:44 am

I just watched last night's show. He did not say he would be retired undefeated - he just said he would be in the final duel.

I am surprised that someone who would try out for a trivia game show would know how many states have 2 words in their names or how many states border the oceans or what is the northern and southern most spot in the 48 states.

Seems to me that they are 'basic trivia' questions.

MarleysGh0st · #40 Post by **MarleysGh0st** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 8:49 am

peacock2121 wrote: I am surprised that someone who would try out for a trivia game show would [not] know how many states have 2 words in their names or how many states border the oceans or what is the northern and southern most spot in the 48 states.

Seems to me that they are 'basic trivia' questions.

Hey, Kazoo! When did you kidnap Pea's avatar?

peacock2121 · #41 Post by **peacock2121** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 8:55 am

Hey marley!

Bite me.

MarleysGh0st · #42 Post by **MarleysGh0st** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 8:59 am

No, really!

That's just so much like what Kazoo would say (or, I'll admit, what I would think) and so much not like what you'd say. Either you've been kidnapped and impersonated or we've entered Bizarro Land for the holidays.

Nothing wrong with the latter, of course, if there's a Phone Game somewhere around here.

PlacentiaSoccerMom · #43 Post by **PlacentiaSoccerMom** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 9:03 am

I learned the song called, Fifty Nifty, when I was in 5th grade.

I forgot most of it, but I remember the state part and it's helped me a lot doing trivia.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_HeLofy7IE

mrkelley23 · #44 Post by **mrkelley23** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 9:04 am

peacock2121 wrote:I just watched last night's show. He did not say he would be retired undefeated - he just said he would be in the final duel.

I am surprised that someone who would try out for a trivia game show would know how many states have 2 words in their names or how many states border the oceans or what is the northern and southern most spot in the 48 states.

Seems to me that they are 'basic trivia' questions.

1. For some folks, geography info doesn't "stick." Ask me about some schmaltzy song from the 70s, the lyrics and who sang it, and I can tell you, without even really thinking about it. I don't even have to have liked the song, or hated it. And yet I would've had to cover multiple numbers on the questions you refer to in last night's game. I've heard all of them before, but the info doesn't stick. I'd like to think that geography is what I would've been studying before going to this thing, but who knows?

2. People from the middle of the country are less likely to be knowledgeable about the coasts. People from the coasts are less likely to be knowledgeable about the middle of the country, as we've seen demonstrated time and again on quiz shows. Call it the New Yorker map effect.

peacock2121 · #45 Post by **peacock2121** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 9:10 am

I didn't say people should 'know' it. I said that it seems to me that they should have memorized it - like it's basic trivia. It gets asked in all the trivia games.

I don't think they are stoopid because they don't know.

15QuestionsAway · #46 Post by **15QuestionsAway** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 2:00 pm

TheConfessor wrote:
Ritterskoop wrote:
TheConfessor wrote: Right, so since at that point it was mathematically impossible for more than 4 people to win 4 games, it was safe to make that the new rule at that point. But if that had been the rule from the start, it would have been theoretically possible for more than 4 people to win 4 games. So did that rule exist before the first contestant played, or did they just make it up on the spot?
I don't think it is so much a rule as a statement of the way things are. I'm sure the players know they have to consider how much time remains, or at least the good game-players know.
The host told the used car salesman that if he won his fourth game, he would retire undefeated and be guaranteed a spot as one of the four finalists. Sounds like a "rule" to me.

Skoop's right - I was stating how things were at the time.

However, I imagine there could be an undisclosed rule (to viewers) that limits a contestant's Duel victories to the number that guarantees them a spot in the final 4. At the start of the tournament, that number would have been 6. It could only decline from there.

I could see some benefits to such a rule. It guarantees that more contestants would get a chance to play. Also, some of the contestants that the Duel champions have been avoiding might be mixed in as the next randomly selected player.

TheConfessor · #47 Post by **TheConfessor** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 2:40 pm

I just went back and reviewed what the host said. Three different times, he told the used car salesman that if he won his fourth game, he will be assured of a spot in the finals on Sunday (as if that were the objective). He did not say that he would retire after his fourth win, but he said it with an air of finality that implied that his work here will be done until the finals. At least that's the way I interpreted it, but I may have misunderstood. Maybe the car salesman would have kept on playing if he won his fourth game. At this point, I don't think any viewer can say for sure, based on what we've seen.

The host did not state whether four wins would guarantee a spot in the finals because that was the rule, or because it was a mathematical certainty.