Trivia Knights finish third in unusual tiebreaker

[earendel]

Saturday the Trivia Knights competed in a trivia contest. Our final score was 94, but that was only good enough for a tie for third place, with two teams scoring 96 each. Since no one knew what the prizes were (or even if there would be any) we were prepared to leave when the organizers called the two teams tied for first place together for a tiebreaker. The teams were seated at tables and given one minute to respond to the question - list the 13 original American colonies. Both teams submitted their answers and both had named all 13, so there was a second tiebreaker. This time the organizer said that it was a "first right answer" question - the team that gave him the right answer first would win. The question? Convert 1980 to Roman numerals. There was a definite winner.

Then the organizer called the two teams tied for third. It took a minute or two to gather everyone because, as I said, we weren't expecting this. So we sat down and got ready. The organizer said that our question would be "first right answer", so we were all primed to get our answer quickly. The organizer then read the question, which went something like this:

"If the moon is, on average, 238,857 miles away from the earth, what is the distance in centimeters?"

I don't know whether he said anything about not using calculators, but I didn't wait for further information. I grabbed a blank sheet of paper and started furiously scribbling down my math, trying to block out any distractions. The other members of the team watched (TheSearchIsOn did start making some calculations, I believe) while the other team huddled together trying to figure out how to approach it. I had no idea what the other team was doing, although at one point I think I heard one of them suggest that both teams give up and ask for a different question, to which elwing said, "Wait, wait, my husband is going to get this any second."

Because of the way I started on the paper (in the middle rather than the top) I had to finagle my calculations around. I was afraid that I might misalign columns or misadd, but after what seemed like an eternity (but elwing says took only about 3 minutes), I came up with an answer, which I wrote on the paper and TSIO took it to the organizer. It was the right answer, so we won the 3rd place prize, which was $50. Believe it or not, it seemed harder to divide that among the 7 team mebers than it did for me to get the right answer to the question. There were people from other teams gathered around watching, and most of them were amazed at the speed at which I worked and that I got the right answer. As for the other team, they were a younger bunch and (a) may not have known the conversions or (b) couldn't do "long multiplication".

in case you want to know, the answer is

38,440,417,980.80 centimeters

here's how I came up with the answer

1 inch = 2.54 centimeters, so multiply 2.54 X 12 X 5280 to get the number of centimeters in a mile, then multiply that times 238,857 to get the answer

After it was all over and elwing and I were on the way home, I realized that there was another method that might have worked.

here's the alternate method and why it might not have worked

1 mile = 1.609 kilometers, so multiply 238,857 X 1.609 and then convert the result to centimeters. However since the conversion isn't completely accurate (the actual number is 1.6093440), the final result would have been off (though if the answer were rounded to significant digits it would not be). Doing it this way, the answer is 38,432,091,300.

[TheSearchIsOn]

I think the number we started with was 238,857 miles. At any rate, you are correct that I was initially trying to do the math but you were so much quicker than me (and I'm no slouch in the math department), that I switched from doing the math to double-checking your work. As your end result proved though, you had no need of my double-checking as all of your calculations were quite correct.

[earendel]

I think the number we started with was 238,857 miles. At any rate, you are correct that I was initially trying to do the math but you were so much quicker than me (and I'm no slouch in the math department), that I switched from doing the math to double-checking your work. As your end result proved though, you had no need of my double-checking as all of your calculations were quite correct.

Yes, it was 238,857. I've edited my post.

[earendel]

Just in case people wanted to see the questions from the contest, here they are. As always, the phrasing is mine, based on the scribbled notes I made at the time and my memory.

Round 1: Pop Culture/Current Events
1. On what day of the week did 2012 begin?
2. Apple Corporation is suing a doll maker over its plans to create an action figure of what person?
3. From what state is Miss America 2012?
4. Whole Foods had to recall its Rip Roar'N Crab Soup because it forgot to list what ingredient on its label?
5. What fast food company recently announced that it would institute delivery service in limited areas?
6. The Cadillac hearse that carried the body of which ex-president sold for over $160,000 at auction?
7. Paula Deen was recently diagnosed with what ailment?
8. What film and camera company just filed for bankrupcy?
9. Which singer was criticized for his or her singing of the National Anthem?
10. What two teams will play in this year's Super Bowl?

Answers to Round 1

1. Sunday
2. Steve Jobs
3. Wisconsin
4. crab
5. Burger King
6. JFK
7. Type II diabetes
8. Kodak
9. Steven Tyler
10. Giants and Patriots

Round 2: Louisville
1. Louisville is named for which French king?
2. What former University of Louisville basketball player was drafted by the Utah Jazz and was known as "Dr. Dunkenstein"?
3. What was the original name of the hotel that Harlan Sanders opened near KFC headquarters?
4. Hillerich and Bradby is known for making what?
5. In 1974 Louisville suffered from a "super outbreak" of what?
6. When the Belknap building was imploded, film from the event was used in what movie?
7. What former University of Louisville basketball player was drafted #1 in 1989 by the Sacramento Kings?
8. What does TARC stand for?
9. In what two years did the University of Louisville win its Division I NCAA basketball championships?
10. How many counties (in Kentucky and Indiana) border Jefferson County?

Answers to Round 2

1. Louis XVI
2. Darrell Griffith
3. The Colonel Sanders Inn
4. baseball bats (Louisville Sluggers)
5. tornadoes
6. Demolition Man
7. Purvis Ellison
8. Transit Authority of River City
9. 1980 and 1986
10. 8

Round 3: This or That (each answer will begin with either "this" or "that")
1. What movie marked Tom Hanks' directorial debut?
2. What was the name of Michael Jackson's 2009 documentary?
3. What Buddy Holly song was inspired by a line spoken by John Wayne in "The Searchers"?
4. What PBS show has been hosted by Bob Vila, Steve Thomas and Kevin O'Connor?
5. What was the name of Rob Reiner's mock rock documentary?
6. What 1997 movie remake featured Christina Ricci and Doug E. Doug?
7. What Woody Guthrie song was an answer to "America the Beautiful" and featured the lyrics "from California to the New York island"?
8. What Sunday School song encouraged its singers to "let it shine"?
9. What children's game features "went to market" and "stayed home"?
10. What Michael Scott line is used after such phrases as "you already did me"?

Answers to Round 3

1. That Thing You Do
2. This Is It
3. That'll Be the Day
4. This Old House
5. This is Spinal Tap
6. That Darn Cat
7. This Land is Your Land
8. This Little Light of Mine
9. This Little Piggy
10. "That's what she said"

Round 4: Listen Carefully
1. Miley Cyrus sang that it's not about "how fast I get there" or "what's waiting on the other side" - what is it about?
2. Where is the location of Heartbreak Hotel?
3. In the Fleetwood Mac song, "Thunder only happens when it's raining/players only love you when they're playing" - what do women do?
4. How old is the baby that breaks the looking glass in Stevie Wonder's song "Superstition"?
5. Shirley Manson of Garbage is only happy in what weather?
6. What car is mentioned in the Beach Boys' song "Fun, Fun, Fun"?
7. Where do the three coins go in the Frank Sinatra song?
8. The Steve Miller Band travels from Phoenix, AZ to Tacoma, WA - what three other cities do they hit on the way?
9. In the Bruno Mars song "Grenade", what will the singer do for you besides catch a grenade and throw his hand on a blade?
10. What two tragic figures does Taylor Swift invoke in her song "Love Story"?

Answers to Round 4

1. The Climb
2. down at the end of Lonely Street
3. they will come and they will go
4. 13 months old
5. rainy weather
6. T-bird
7. in the fountain
8. Philadelphia, Atlanta and Los Angeles
9. jump in front of a train
10. Romeo & Juliet

Round 5: TV
1. What MTV and VH-1 shows were renewed this year with new programs?
2. What was the name of the diner in the original Beverly Hills 90210 TV series?
3. What TV show opening featured the phrase "We can rebuild him. We have the technology"?
4. Which two former Daily Show regulars appeared as regional managers on The Office?
5. How many castaways were stranded on Gillegan's Island?
6. Crockett & Tubbs were undercover cops in what city?
7. What do the letters GTL refer to on Jersey Shore?
8. What was Mr. Spock's home planet?
9. What was the name of the Addams Family "helping hand"?
10. What TV show features Sheldon Cooper, Leonard Hofsteader and Penny?

Answers to Round 5

1. Beavis and Butthead and Pop-Up Videos
2. The Peach Pit
3. The Six Million Dollar Man
4. Steve Carrel and Ed Helms
5. 7
6. Miami
7. gym, tanning, laundry
8. Vulcan
9. Thing
10. The Big Bang Theory

Round 6: History (two questions from each decade from the 1960s to the present)
1. Who did Ringo Starr replace as the Beatles' drummer?
2. According to a prominent feminist, "a woman needs a man like a fish needs a" what?
3. Who won 7 gold medals and set 7 new world records at the 1972 Olympics?
4. What TV show featured recurring features such as "Pigs in Space" and "Veternarian's Hospital"?
5. What volcano erupted in 1980?
6. In the movie "Can't Buy Me Love" what means of transportation did Patric Dempsey's character use to carry Amanda Peterson's character away?
7. Who were the two highest-paid NBA players in 1994?
8. What two SNL characters broadcast their show from a basement in Aurora, IL?
9. Who won $2.5 million on Jeopardy!?
10. What 2004 event caused the Polaroid company to caution users that "it might cause the image to blur"?

Answers to Round 6

1. Pete Best
2. bicycle
3. Mark Spitz
4. The Muppet Show
5. Mt. St. Helens
6. riding lawnmower
7. Michael Jackson and Shaquille O'Neal
8. Wayne and Garth
9. Ken Jennings
10. OutKast's song "Hey Ya"

Round 7: Movies
1. What was the name of the horse in Toy Story 2 and 3?
2. Movie title mashup: This movie features a young man who learns his father's true identity as a wild-eyed scientist who built a time machine?
3. Who played Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter movies?
4. What two actors share the same first name and shared screen time in Barton Fink, The Big Lebowski and O Brother, Where Art Thou?
5. What Spike Lee movie was promoted by selling baseball caps with a single letter on them?
6. What do the names Dalton, Craig and Moore have in common?
7. Who played the mother in the 2003 remake of Freaky Friday?
8. What is the name of the singing bear in The Jungle Book?
9. What movie title is also a song sung by Angela Lansbury?
10. What Leonardo DiCaprio movies led the list of the most rented from Netflix and the most pirated?

Answers to Round 7

1. Bullseye
2. The Empire Strikes Back to the Future
3. Helena Bonham Carter
4. John Goodman and John Tuturro
5. Malcolm X
6. they were Bonds
7. Jamie Lee Curtis
8. Balloo
9. Beauty and the Beast
10. The Departed and Inception

Round 8: "G"eography (all answers will start with the letter "G")
1. What location is 277 miles long, 18 miles wide in parts and where temperatures can vary as much as 25 degrees?
2. What is the largest island in Europe?
3. What is the name of a city in Wisconsin that is also a body of water on Lake Michigan?
4. What county seat of Adams County, PA, became famous July 1-4, 1863?
5. What Mississippi city has an airport with the code GPT?
6. What town do the Hoyas call home?
7. What unincorporated territory is the furthest from the mainland U.S.?
8. What is the name of the 3rd largest city in Great Britain, sharing its name with a city in Eastern Kentucky?
9. What national park covers millions of acres in Montana and parts of two Canadian provinces?
10. What is the British territory in southern Europe known as "Jabal Tarik" in Arabic?

Answers to Round 8

1. Grand Canyon
2. Great Britain
3. Green Bay
4. Gettysburg
5. Gulfport
6. Georgetown
7. Guam
8. Glasgow
9. Glacier
10. Gibraltar

Round 9: Sports
1. How long is the distance from 1st base to home plate?
2. How many times must a bowler roll the ball in order to achieve a perfect game?
3. A "Desperate Housewives" star and a Tampa Bay Rays baseball player have a name that differs by only one letter. Who are they?
4. What team has not worn the same home football uniform two games in a row since 2004?
5. What baseball star, football star and tennis star share the nickname "A-Rod"?
6. What are the four NBA teams that have four-letter team names?
7. How many 20 minute periods are in a regulation hockey game?
8. Which tennis tournament is the last of the four Grand Slam events?
9. Who was the last Triple Crown winner?
10. What is the only non-profit, community owned professional sports team?

Answers to Round 9

1. 90'
2. 12
3. Eva and Evan Longoria
4. Oregon
5. Alex Rodriguez, Aaron Rodgers and Andy Roddick
6. Heat, Jazz, Nets, and Suns
7. 3
8. U.S. Open
9. Affirmed
10. Green Bay Packers

Round 10:Potpourri
1. What U.S. company that went out of business in 1991 gave its name to an ABC TV series that debuted in 2011?
2. What color is the top button on the Guitar Hero game?
3. What Sylvester Stallone character was featured in 1985 on the last all metal lunchboxes to be manufactured?
4. How many double word score spaces are there on a Scrabble board?
5. What is the chemical symbol for potassium?
6. What presidential last name was on the top 10 list of girls' names for 2010?
7. What NATO alphabetic character is also a mixed drink?
8. What body part lends its name to a bunch of bananas?
9. What poker holding is referred to as "2 fishhooks"?
10. What is the only state that can be typed on a QWERTY keyboard using only one row of letters?

Answers to Round 10

1. Pan Am
2. green
3. Rambo
4. 16 (or 17 - the center space is also a double word score)
5. K
6. Madison
7. whiskey
8. hand
9. a pair of jacks
10. Alaska