How many monkeys does it take to conquer the world?

Q:
In a January experiment, a monkey in North Carolina made a robot in Japan do what using only its thoughts?

A:
Steer a car
Walk <<<<
Throw a ball
Take over the world

Imagine you're a monkey. With years and years of resentment at being the punchline in a thousand really bad comedies. Forced to dress as people, do slapstick routines, and have your private butt-smelling moments uploaded to YouTube. You're angry. But you're waiting until the time is right.

You learn the UK has a family of military communications in the air called Skynet. And according to the Ministry of Defence fact sheet: “The Skynet 5 satellites are capable of beaming communications signals between headquarters in the UK and British forces deployed around the world.” In other words, the humans built the Machines their very own cell phone system.

Celebrate while you can, folks. The time of humans is closing. The time of monkey-robots is at hand.

Also, Happy New Year 2009!

Our interview with Sloney, Chicago's best Ringoranger

Lauren Slone is another one of our Ringorang veterans. Known as "Sloney" on Twitter, she has been a contender for several weeks. You can also check out her videos on 12seconds.

She spend some time earlier in the week to answer questions for us. Here are the responses.

GLENN: How did you find out about Ringorang?

LAUREN: The good ol' chain of social media! The IT manager at my former ad internship introduced me to twitter and 12seconds.tv, got an account on 12, posted a few videos, made 12friends with Justin (the illustrious jivebotic), who then followed me on twitter who posted about the swag he won from the Ringorang election challenge! I was a pub trivia nut back in college, so I was all about hard questions and fabulous prizes! I played for the week and won 2nd place and a $50 gift certificate on my first time out! Hooked ever since!

GC2: What makes Ringorang so intriguing?

LS: It's a number of things. Knowing the question can come at any moment! The constant flip-flopping on the leader board! Finding out the different strategies players use (the "Insomniac method" seems to be the most prevalent). Not knowing if the question is going to be one you know right off the top of your head or if you'll have to take a WAG. That's another thing: the Ringorang lingo that's developed is interesting. "WAG" (thanks, Pashaphares!), "Bonus City", "Ring-o-ding"... I'm sure there's going to be a few more words added to the Ringolingo. But I love how close quite a few of us have become thanks to the game. Ringorang: it brings people together... mainly for learning others' strengths, weaknesses and daily schedules so you can pull ahead while they're gone/sleeping. Which is great.

GC2: Weirdest situation where you've been dinged to answer a Ringorang question. Did you answer it, and what was the outcome?

LS: The President of the ad agency I was interning for had a habit of rambling and getting lost before he made his points. So I'm in my office, I hear the Ringoding (we'd been embroiled in one of those TIGHT races that week, and it was Friday morning when EVERY question counts) and I'm getting myself psyched for answering the Q. I overheard him ask one of my coworkers if I was in my office. I knew he was coming for me. But he would ramble! It was less than a 10 second trip to my office. WHAT WOULD I DO! So in a state of panic, I turned to the phone next to me and picked it up, put it to my ear and listened to the dial tone as I watched the clock count down, mimicking a phone call. The second he stepped in the doorway of my office, I had ten seconds left, so I nodded and rambled something about "the copy on this page being consistent with the overall brand message" and yadda yadda. When the question came up, I read it, clicked it, and got it right. Then I hung up the phone, relieved and still in the top three. Funny thing is, I was a copywriting intern. No one calls the person writing the ads. EVER. But the President bought it. And lucky for me the question came early in the hour. He rambled on for about 30 minutes until he left.

GC2: Ever ask for help for a Ringorang question?

LS: Not so much help answering a question, but I have pulled the "Hey, I'm going to the kitchen for a cup of coffee/toast my bagel/send a fax/run to the bathroom. Can you come get me if you hear the Ringoding?" My coworkers all knew I was hooked to the game, and had no problem aiding my further slide into addiction. Friends to the end.

GC2: What types of questions do you get most excited for and why?

LS: Sports, film, television, art, music (especially music with so many friends in the industry) and anything Chicago related. Big plus in my book. And, oddly, Biblically-related stuff. I spent most of my Sundays sleeping through church (like any good Catholic kid, really) but for some reason, the info sort of sticks. But mostly, the cultural stuff.

GC2: And on the other side, what types of questions are your Achilles' heel?

LS: Like any English Major's Achilles' heel: Math and science. But I do okay on the science. I just hate it. Always have.

GC2: If you could change only one thing about Ringorang, what would it be and why?

LS: There isn't all that much to change! I think it's great. There might be some feature additions, but I wouldn't call that changing it (letting you see the previous question, or maybe what time the last Q popped up, etc). Just waiting for that mobile phase, guys! In this ever present iPhone World, don't forget the Blackberry users... Please?

Coming up on Friday

The last couple of weeks have been nailbiters. The winners, let alone the top five, have not been decided until the final moments.

And because it looks like things will once again be that way this week, we're going to do something special on Friday.

At 2 p.m. PST Friday afternoon, we're going to have a live video feed right here on the blog. So, you'll get to see us in action as we watch the final three questions of the week come up at random times. We'll be live until 10 minutes after the last question is answered.

What are we going to do? We have a few things lined up. You'll be able to chat with us and help us play some other games.

And, perhaps the biggie, we'll be giving out some trinkets. Exactly what kind of trinkets? Well, if you've seen my 12seconds channel, you've noticed that I wear perler bead necklaces. Here's some of them.


Choose 2 necklaces on 12seconds.tv

I won't say exactly what characters I'll be giving out (take a look at the hint) but I think you'll like them.

Alrighty, have you seen the hint? OK, it's time to vote:

"I just don't think they can do it."

Q:
Michael Phelps is remembered for winning 8 gold medals, but which of his teammates came from behind to win the 400m freestyle relay?

A:
Cullen Jones
Jason Lezak <<<<
Garrett Weber-Gale
Kobe Bryant

One of my favorite moments from the Olympics. Apologies to overseas players who might think this is too US-centric, but seriously, doesn't everybody like it when the French lose? I'm pretty sure even the French enjoy losing more, they do it so much. (Burn!)

On another note, I absolutely LOVE that the NBC announcers completely lost it during this event. Shouting, voice-cracking hysterics. I agree 100% with Bill Simmons that Gus Johnson should announce all events, sports or otherwise, for the rest of eternity.

*Apologies to players who are French or of French decent. It's all in good fun. And at least America named a breakfast dish after you!

The power of (insert god here) compels you!

Q:
According to a 2008 poll by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, 28% of Americans have done what?

A:
Changed religious denomination
Claimed to be atheist
Switched religions or left altogether <<<<
Switched to Mac from PC

Religion is always a fun topic. And by fun, I mean loaded, divisive, and polarizing. Case in point: count how many different denominations of a particular religion there are. In this poll alone, Protestant gets divvied up into three sub-categories. Both Judaism and Buddhism each have four sub-categories, including “other.” I don't know much about the ongoing conflicts in Gaza City except for the fact that, on a very basic level, it boils down to religion. So, I will tread lightly...

28% of Americans switching teams or leaving altogether can be interpreted in a number of different ways. If you’re a Glass Half-Full type, it could mean people are thinking for themselves and making up their minds as they grow and mature. Or that people do, in fact, actively pursue spirituality.

If you’re a Glass Half-Empty person, maybe it means religion is what you make of it, and when people don’t get what they want, they just up and start their own. Or that the family nucleus and morality have gone downhill in this country.

If you’re a The Liquid Level Is 50%, Don’t Project Emotions On A Number type of person, then maybe it simply means the grass is always greener on the other side.

Or maybe, as the saying goes: "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.” (I will add a fourth: Wikipedia [citation needed].)

Take a look at the Pew Forum poll and see for yourself.

Going video crazy

Viral videos are something I'm still trying to figure out. And I bring this up because of the last question you all received:

Kobe Bryant jumped over an Aston Martin in a viral video promoting what shoe?

Nike Airzoom Flight Five
Nike Hyperdunk
Nike Jumpman
Air Birkenstocks

This is the video in regard to that question:



Now, when I first saw it back in the Spring, I went WTF CRAZY before about 5 million people debunked it without proving it was fake. Then I read about how it was fake.

Then I asked myself, "Why fake it? Why not just promote it straight up?" As weeks passed, I've read about how more companies want to promote certain products indirectly. This video is another example:



I created a video promoting video highlights from a tournament I went to during the summer in San Diego. When I thought of viral videos, I thought of this idea because it was a teaser.



I should note that in my "commercials," I block comments. After I posted that video, I had a few people ask me "What happened?" not realizing that the point of the video was to stay tuned for the main course, coming up in a few days.

Don't be surprised if you see some viral stuff from us soon. *wink wink*

The 100 percent challenge

There's been talk about it here in the locker room, and many of our players have discussed it as well. Since we haven't seen anyone in a while finish a week with a perfect percentage, why not reward the person that does it?

Here's something to keep in mind: In baseball, there's a qualifying mark in order to be eligible for most awards. The most notable is the batting title. Players have to have a certain amount of at-bats. Therefore, with Ringorang, anyone eligible would have to answer a certain amount of questions. In glancing through last week's statistics, the median is 15 questions. But that's only 14 percent of the total questions. If it were me, I'd probably say 26 questions, because that's one-quarter of the week's questions.

With that in mind, here's something else. In the event that there is more than one person with a perfect win percentage, what happens? I'm of the sports belief that you can't have a tie. So, if there were two or three players with perfect win percentages, the tie would be broken by dallions, then questions answered.

While I want to get your thoughts on that, here's something else I'm curious about: Is finishing the week with a perfect win percentage tougher than winning the competition?

What's in store for next week

I've talked about a few things that are upcoming in terms of Ringorang. Here's one of them.

Next week, we'll be unleashing the "2008 Year In Review." If it happened in 2008, it's likely to be a Ringorang question.

Who won the U.S. presidency? Which team won the Super Bowl? Who supposedly jumped over an Aston Martin? Who sang "Love Lockdown?" It's these types of questions you'll encounter next week.

If I was an eligible contestant, I think my chances of doing well are really good.

Could we see someone in the top 20 finish with a perfect win percentage? I think so. At least you have an idea of what is coming.

So, study up on your 2008 knowledge and get ready to win next week's Ringorang challenge!

May the Force be with you this Christmas... er, Life Day

Q:
Which sci-fi/fantasy franchise infamously aired a 1978 holiday special that featured songs by Diahann Carroll and Jefferson Starship?

A:
Star Trek
Battlestar Galactica
Star Wars <<<<
Aliens

Carol Burnett once said, “comedy is tragedy plus time.”

The Star Wars Holiday Special was aired once and once only. In an interview, George Lucas said, "The Holiday Special does not represent my vision. It will remain in the Lucasfilm archives."

The special recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. Sufficient time, I think, to transform it from crass atrocity into comedy gold. But don’t take my word for it. Take it from Bea Arthur, barmaid of the Mos Eisley Cantina…

Also, Princess Leia sings about Life Day on the Wookies' homeworld of Kashyyyk.

Happy Life Day!

Closer but wider ... something like that

Once again, our Ringorang players are proving that a weekly challenge isn't over until 4:59 p.m. on Friday.

Sometime late Thursday night, I went to sleep, having seen Urthstripe gain nearly a 3,000 dallion advantage. And now, it's down to nearly 1,000.

That is a big difference. At 1,000, the lead could change in two questions. That margin is a little bit bigger when it's 3,000 dallions.

So with that in mind, we could be in for another wild finish. However, it won't be like last week, where the top five players were so close to each other. This time, first through fifth are separated by a considerable margin.

Let's see what happens this afternoon as the questions become fewer and fewer. Should be another fun run to the finish.

Villa de la Navidad

Q:
Which of Christopher Columbus’ ships, the largest of the three, ran aground in what is now Haiti on Christmas Day, 1492?

A:
Nina
Pinta
Santa Maria <<<<
Titanic

Feliz Navidad, indeed. Sure, he discovered America, but the Christmas that Columbus and his men celebrated in 1492 did not portend good things. At least for the sailors Columbus left behind in what is now Haiti after the Santa Maria ran aground. As told by Smithsonian Magazine:

[Columbus] ordered his men to dismantle the ship and build a fort with its timbers onshore. Three weeks later, Columbus finally set sail aboard the Niña, leaving behind a fortified village, christened Villa de la Navidad, and 39 sailors charged with exploring the coast and amassing gold.

A year later, Columbus returned with 17 ships and 1,200 men to enlarge the settlement. But he found La Navidad in ashes. There were no inhabitants and no gold.

Wikipedia posits that they met a rather rather ominous demise. But in the spirit of Christmas, let's just say they went with Santa back to the North Pole to help make toys a la Elf.

White Christmas Goes to War

Q:
In 1975, what Irving Berlin Christmas tune was used by US Armed Forces Radio as a secret signal for troops to begin evacuation from Vietnam?

A:
The Christmas Song
White Christmas <<<<
The First Noel
Christmas in Hollis

Broadcast radio is a sneaky way to communicate during times of war. In the days prior to the World War II Invasion of Normandy, British special forces broadcast verses of Paul Verlaine’s poem “Chanson d’Automme” over the BBC as a signal to the French resistance. World War II was also when “White Christmas” came to fame.

There are conflicting stories as to where and why Irving Berlin composed “White Christmas.” One of the most prevalent theories is that Berlin was stuck working in either Arizona or Beverly Hills for one Christmas, and longing for the snowy winter of New York. Berlin wrote it as part of a Broadway musical revue that was never produced. Paramount Pictures picked up the idea and turned it into the 1942 film Holiday Inn, starring Bing Crosby.

The song went on to win the 1942 Academy Award for Best Original Song, but more notably went on to become a huge hit among members of the Armed Forces. The US had joined World War II less than a year previous, and the nostalgic song struck a cord with the young men who suddenly found themselves overseas for the holiday season.

Unfortunately, the Vietnam War would bring a different perspective to the song. As Jody Rosen, author of White Christmas: The Story of an American Song, told NPR:

"The Army used 'White Christmas' as the secret signal instructing American soldiers to evacuate Saigon.," Rosen says. "It was played several times in a row over Armed Forces Radio. So what's interesting is this song, which during WWII was really the song of American soldiers' homesickness, became somewhat ironically in 1975 the 'Let's go home and get the hell out of here' song for the American Army in Vietnam."

Christmas story

Every year, somewhere, whether its my local newspaper, online journal or Web site, I try to tell people to celebrate Christmas by being with the ones that you love. Because it is those people that are close to your heart.

The team here will be doing the same this Christmas. Personally, I'll be heading with my cousin to San Diego to see my younger brother as we chill out, play some games on his Xbox 360, watch the Celtics play (and destroy) the Lakers and enjoy some Surf N Turf that I'm going to be cooking.

One of my more memorable Christmases came in 1990. The year was dominated by one video game, "Super Mario Bros. 3," which came out in late February. Actually, at the time, video game distributors based release dates off of metropolitan cities. Therefore, if you were in a major metro city (N.Y., S.F., Chicago), you were getting it on the advertised release day. If you were in a smaller city, you had to wait a little longer and get lucky because there weren't going to be many copies.

So in our great city known as Salinas (at the time, population 110,000), nobody sniffed "Super Mario Bros. 3" until about late March, unless you wanted to drive north to buy it, which some people did (and bragged about it). And my brothers and I were ready to take the family Ford Tempo GL north to San Jose, but there was just a slight problem; I don't think our foot would have completely reached the gas pedal and we wouldn't have passed the "You look 16" test.

One of our cousins got it on Salinas Release Day, and we went to his place a few times to play it like crazy. We loved it, but not fully because we didn't have our own copy.

Come Christmastime, and EVERY STORE is hyping up Super Mario Bros. 3. There was nothing else to get during that time. It was THE Christmas item (Tickle Me Elmo was still six years away). Everytime I saw the game on newspaper advertisements, I'd wow.

The parents took notice because on Christmas day, my mom handed my brothers and I a small box. We were hoping, and hoping, and it really was "Super Mario Bros. 3." We could love the game as our own, because we finally had our own copy of it.

I can't remember any other Christmas days since then where I was hyped up for so long for a certain item.

Let me give you some hints for today before you head off to celebrate.

* -- Remember what the three wise men gave baby Jesus.
* -- I know this singing cowboy from his days when he owned the Anaheim Angels. To tie it into Christmas, he sang Frosty the Snowman in 1950.
* -- There's that famous painting of George Washington leading a group of soldiers down a certain river to prepare for their Christmas Day surprise attack on the Hessians. The river? Well, it's named after a state on the East Coast.

Chi-Rho

Q:

Using the Greek alphabet, Christ’s name begins with a character that very closely resembles what English letter?

A:
X <<<<

Y
Z
?

No, “Xmas” isn’t a secular conspiracy to remove Christ from the holiday season, or a slight on Christians, or laziness. Well, okay, it could very well be laziness (or small gift tags), but the origins of the abbreviation aren’t disrespectful in nature. It’s a simple matter of being lost in translation.

Christ’s name in the Greek alphabet begins with the ‘chi’ character, which looks awfully like the Roman (aka English) character ‘X.’ References to Jesus Christ combined 'chi' with the 'rho' character, creating the chi-rho symbol.

In a big stretch of the imagination, ‘-mas’ comes from ‘mass.’ You can look that one up yourself.

A couple of power boosts

The team and I here in the dugout are thinking ahead, because with a game like Ringorang, you have to sort of do that.

We have a couple things in mind.

Week 8, which is next week, will be a Year-In-Review competition. All 105 questions will be about events which took place within the calendar year. That should be fun.

Also, for Week 10, we're planning to raise the stakes by offering a different prize. It's our way of saying thanks for being around for the past 10 weeks (and the Ringolympics, Gridiron Challenge and Decision 08) While I won't say yet what that will entail, let's just say that you'll want to be around for Week 10.

Actually, let me change my stance on that. Below is a poll question. Vote and then comment below.

Pasha prepares for another run in Ringorang

Pasha Phares has been one of the veterans of Ringorang, and he's been in contention a lot. If you were to point out someone that can go from 20th to first in a heartbeat, it is likely Pasha, who has done that a few times.

Last week, Pasha, who hails from Port Orchard, Wash., barely missed out on a top-three finish, staying in the hunt until the very end. Will he do the same this week? Stay tuned.

GLENN: How did you find out about Ringorang?

PASHA: Via Jivebotic's tweets about it; I followed him via 12seconds.tv and he started talking about it during the Election Challenge. I went to sign up and saw that the challenge was about to end, with him winning the iPod Touch. I figured, well, damn, if that's the stuff they're giving away, I'm there.

GC2: You've been a contender almost every week. What's your secret?

PP: Well, time, mainly. I have cancer and am in chemotherapy for it, and so am unable to work outside the home; that means lots of time sitting wandering the internets and waiting for the Ring-o-ding. But, also, I read a lot, pay attention to the news, and have a wife who loves to play Trivial Pursuit, so I have a lot of trivia stored up in my head.

GC2: What would you tell a newcomer in regard to playing Ringorang?

PP: I'd say, "Relax, have fun, and don't try to answer too quickly - better to get 100 dallions and keep your streak alive than to try to get 275 dallions and miss the question." The game can be so addicting, and even become a source of stress if players put too much importance on being around for the Ding, staying up all night and things like that. So, yeah, just relax! Play them as they come and don't worry too much about it! Let me win every week! You know you want to!

GC2: You're a member of 12seconds.tv. What makes that site great?

PP: I love 12seconds because it's so similar to having a regular conversation with someone. With "traditional" video or vlogging sites, people have no time limitation so they tend to ramble, recording long monologues with very little in the way of interaction. You can't reply to them without recording twenty boring minutes of junk yourself. With 12seconds, however, you're forced to be direct and to the point, and it's much more conversational. When you're talking to someone, you don't blather away for ten minutes; there's a give-and-take, with short statements from each person. I bet if one averaged it out, each person's "turn" would be about 12 seconds long. So... I don't know how they did it - Beach and Sol must've had input from the gods or something - but 12 seconds just seems like the perfect length to me.

GC2: Funniest video you've done on 12seconds.

PP: Ummm. Probably the 12 Second Recruiting Song I did. I stole the tune from the South Park guys but had some nice inspiration in the lyrics.

GC2: Weirdest situation where you've been prompted to answer a Ringorang question. Did you answer it, and what was the result?

PP: I'm ashamed to say that I have taken my laptop into the bathroom on a couple of occasions late in the week so I didn't miss a question. So, yes, I've answered Qs from the comfort of the throne. I've answered Qs at friend's houses, Starbucks, Tully's, and the Corner Deli. But, the weirdest place was in the Children's Clinic examination room while my daughter was getting a checkup; I was talking to the doctor about height/weight averages when, embarrasingly, Ring-o-ding! I excused myself, answered the Q, got it right, then told the doctor that it was a page from work. My daughter knew the truth, but, knowing what's good for her, neglected to pipe up with it. Good girl! Extra lollipop!

GC2: If you could make only one change/addition/subtraction to Ringorang, what would it be and why?

PP: I think the game is pretty great just as it is. I think a lot of players are looking for a way to play via mobile phones and/or Twitter. The Twitter thing would be really good; there's a huge pool of players there to tap. Mobile phones are more problematic, certainly; I think it's important to support as wide a variety of phones as possible (not just the iPhone and the Blackberry) and that means a ton of work, and also probably a different scoring method for mobile players versus web players. (Whoops, Ring-o-ding! 4:52pm, and 262 dallions!) Anyway, I'm sort of a Ringorang purist, if such a thing can exist at this early juncture, and I don't think anything needs to be changed about it.

PP: Thanks for the opportunity to blather away to an audience. Keep up the great work!

What yule talkin' 'bout?

Q:

The root of the word “Yule” is the same root of what pleasant adjective often used to describe the holiday season?

A:
Happy
Jolly <<<< 

Bright
W00t

If you’re a word nerd like myself, I highly recommend bookmarking the Online Etymology Dictionary.  The history of a word will, at the very least, make you think twice about it, and at best will give you a truly unique angle of world history.  I’m fascinated by how words jump across languages and cultures and how the meanings change.  Here’s the entry for Yule:

O.E. geol, geola "Christmas Day, Christmastide," from O.N. jol (pl.), a heathen feast, later taken over by Christianity, of unknown origin. The O.E. (Anglian) cognate giuli was the Anglo-Saxons' name for a two-month midwinter season corresponding to Roman December and January, a time of important feasts but not itself a festival. After conversion to Christianity it narrowed to mean "the 12-day feast of the Nativity" (which began Dec. 25), but was replaced by Christmas by 11c., except in the northeast (areas of Danish settlement), where it remained the usual word. Revived 19c. by writers to mean "the Christmas of 'Merrie England.' " First direct reference to the Yule log is 17c. O.N. jol seems to have been borrowed in O.Fr. as jolif, hence Mod.Fr. joli "pretty, nice," originally "festive" (see jolly).

I used to think simply of the Yule Log channel, which comes on every Christmas and turns your television (and now, iPod or Zune!) into moving wallpaper.  But a quick glance at the etymology and you’ll see “Norse,” “Roman,” and “conversion to Christianity.”  Vikings and Romans and Christians?  Oh my!

Unlike some Christmas traditions created in modern times to sell toys, Yule has been around.  Specifics vary by region, but basically Yule is a season of feasts, and in most cases refers to a winter celebration centered around the Winter Solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year.  Since every day following would be slightly longer and longer, it makes sense to celebrate it as the (re)birth of the year, and if you fancy, of your god of choice.

Some say the Scandinavians celebrated not for one day, but for twelve, a tradition co-opted by Christians.  The Twelve Days of Christmas made famous in song start on Christmas Day and end on the Feast of the Epiphany, or Twelfth Night.  So you see, without pagan Yule logs, Shakespeare would have had to title his play something else.

Rose Bowl, or What You Will perhaps?

Know your enemy

This was brought up by a few people during Friday's frantic finish. Honestly, the subject doesn't matter much to me because the game is styled to be a you-vs.-you affair, but for some players, it can give them an advantage.

One of our taglines is "Question Everything." And the premise is that we question you on everything in the world. From quirky news to rare sports history to current events, we cover the table.

It's pretty clear that you know I follow sports a lot. But what if my sports knowledge was made public in Ringorang?

This is something the team has been talking about in the locker room. Based on your success in certain questions, you would be given a title that aligns with those statistics.

If 10 of the 104 questions were about sports and I got those 10 questions correct, then I'd be titled something along the lines of a Sports Junkie. Now, if you and I were tied on the final hour and the question is about sports, there's no way you pass because you know I'm definitely going to make an attempt to answer it.

Right now, you have no knowledge of that. You can try by asking some of them. I'm not certain anyone would be willing to reveal their strength or weakness.

That's why I like the game as it is presented currently; you have to make an attempt to answer almost everytime, especially when it's Friday afternoon and the prizes are on the line.

This is what I tried to bring up on Friday afternoon. Second through fifth place were separated by about 400 dallions with one question to go. Could you pass the final question and place? You could, but what happens if the other three get it right? Not the smartest of plays.

If you played the question and got it wrong, at least you can say, "I lost it," instead of "Why did I skip it?"

You hear sports analysts talk about "Control your own destiny" a lot. It refers to the fact that if you win the remaining games in front of you, you'll be put in the best position possible. The Miami Dolphins are one example.

Now, let's say you were in second place on Friday afternoon and you knew what everyone's strengths were (and they knew yours). If the other three players were strong in the Quirky News field, there's no way you, a Politico Supremo (I just made that up right now, LOL all you want) would pass seeing that it was about a woman giving birth to her 18th child.

So let's hear from you on the comments section. We're planning to have a feature where you'll see the strengths of yourself and other players. But how many strengths do you want to see? One? Two? Three? Would you like to see a pie chart showing how you fare in our eight categories? Let us know.

The Bowl Championship Series and Ringorang. Similarities?

This afternoon, when I saw that the contest was getting insanely close, I jotted down the projections with the top four players, just to find out if anyone would change positions.

Turns out, no. Here were the projections
1. Fenwicked - to win by about 900 dallions
2. Urthstripe
3. The Bruce
4. Pashaphares
5. Playhouse76

Here's the standings after each hour.

After 11 a.m.
1. Fenwicked
2. Urthstripe
3. The Bruce
4. Pashaphares

After noon
1. Fenwicked
2. The Bruce
3. Urthstripe - got the question wrong
4. Pashaphares
5. Playhouse76

After 1 p.m.
1. Fenwicked - he secured a spot in the top three by getting this question correct
2. The Bruce
3. Urthstripe
4. Pashaphares
5. Playhouse76

After 2 p.m.
1. Fenwicked - he secured a spot in the top two by getting this question correct
2. The Bruce
3. Urthstripe
4. Pashaphares - got bonus dallions
5. Playhouse76

Here's where things got interesting. Fenwicked had not done enough to win. He believed he could just not answer the next two questions and win. However, The Bruce still had about a 3-second gap in which he could get the two questions right and still win it all (with the max dallions, The Bruce would have won by 45)

After 3 p.m.
1. Fenwicked - he played the question and got it right to secure victory
2. Urthstripe - got the question right AND got bonus dallions
3. The Bruce - got the question wrong
4. Pashaphares
5. Playhouse76 - got the question right AND got bonus dallions

After 4 p.m. - The final tally
1. Fenwicked
2. Urthstripe
3. Playhouse76
4. The Bruce
5. Pashaphares

The final few hours reminded me, scarily, of the Bowl Championship Series.

Yes, that college football thing.

Numbers-wise, they both have similarities. Yes I know that one is mostly opinion-based and the other is all about performance. But think about this.

A lot can happen in the first few weeks of the college football season. Teams move up and down like crazy.

All of the teams in college football know that it's not about how you start, but how you finish. You might win your first 11 games, but then your hopes are gone with a loss in that last match, even if it's 33-30 in three overtimes to a rival.

When Urthstripe lost that question, it opened up the possibility for Playhouse76 to win one of the gift certificates. And then when The Bruce lost that question, Playhouse76 crept within striking distance.

Meanwhile, Pashaphares was one of those horses on the outside of the rail just creeping on in.

So here's a reminder: you have to keep playing until the very end, because you never know who's going to creep up from behind.

And when you win or finish in the top three or 10 on Friday, then you can sing this song.

Now, the numbers are getting silly

As you've probably figured out, I can deal with numbers and not get intimidated.

But the question we just received startled me a little bit.

Q: The first few numbers of a credit card number correlate to who issued the card. If your card number begins with 5, what kind of card is it?

Visa
American Express
Mastercard <<<<<<<
Jiffy Lube

At first, I said, "No way. They can't all be like that, right?" And then I pulled out my debit card, which is affiliated with Mastercard.

528 ...... woah

Is that for consistency on their ends, or to make us all feel like drones? I think it's the latter. One day, maybe tomorrow, a baby is will be born and he or she will not be named John or Mary or Kobe Bean or Maximus. That baby will be called 3.1415926535.

Anyway, I checked out other companies to find out about their initial numbers:

American Express: 3
Discover: 6
Visa: 4
Diners Club: 5 in the U.S., 3 everywhere else

Have it your stanky way

Q:

Recently, which fast food chain unveiled a men’s cologne billed as “the scent of seduction with a hint of flame-broiled meat”?

A:
Carl’s Jr.
McDonald’s
Burger King <<<<
Chanel Express

Well, in these troubled economic times, what better gift for the man in your life than cologne? That smells like burgers? For $3.99? It’s cheap, satisfies his hunger, and helps him achieve every man’s secret daily goal: to not shower.

On the other hand, I think the target demographic for this probably: A) Doesn’t have enough shame to care how they smell, B) Already smells vaguely of fast food grease from the pile of Burger King trash in their backseat, and C) Works at Burger King.

I like the smell of food, too, but really, if this perfume has an effect similar to those Axe Body Spray commercials, then I’d be hastening my own demise by wearing it. Wouldn’t a bunch of people simply go cannibal on me if I smelt of burgers?

And an informal survey by the Boston Herald found that there are men out there who’d wear it - even one who seemed to be named after a meat.

“It’s very nice,” said Salami Caushi, 55 and a South Boston resident, who was sipping hot coffee at the Burger King on Broadway yesterday.

So, a dude named Salami likes a cologne named Flame that smells like meat. Put that in your ad campaign.

T-shirts for sale?

As of now, you can only get a Ringorang T-shirt by winning one. But with Christmas a few days away, I'm sure you'd want an extra one to get for your family or significant other.

We here in the locker room are thinking about selling some T-shirts. And your stance is ...

Here comes ... Jivebotic!

A guy you've probably seen on the leaderboard here and now has been Justin Barr. We know him as Jivebotic, the guy with his own 12seconds portal and good-looking Web site.

He won the Decision 08 challenge last month, dominating the field in a runaway. And Ringorang is one of the games he enjoys.

Jivebotic might be in the middle of the pack now, but he's shown in the past that it doesn't take much for him to storm to the top.

He spent a few minutes talking to us in this interview.

GLENN: How did you find out about Ringorang?

JUSTIN: I saw the awesome posts from Ringorang on 12seconds.tv and was intrigued ...

GC2: You won the Decision 08 challenge. Are you a political junkie or were you just "on fire" for those 2 1/2 weeks?

JB: A little from Column A, a little from Column B...I developed a good strategy, focused on hitting "Bonus City" and spent a ton of time playing. In an effort to solidify my lead, on the eve of the last day I slept with the computer on and volume turned all the way up. I woke up every hour an answered the question. I eventually turned it off and missed the 5am - 7am questions.

GC2: Fill out this sentence, then explain: I waited to ___________ because I was waiting for a question from Ringorang.

JB: I waited to eat lunch, go to sleep, pick up family and friends from work, shower ... Ringorang has played me hard.

GC2: We've talked about a lot of possible additions and changes to Ringorang. If you were in control and could make only one change, what would it be?

JB: I'd like to see some sort of incentive for users to start playing mid-week or rather, for users who are not in the top 20 and have little chance to make it to continue to play throughout the week. An awards or badges system perhaps (something that doesn't cost ringorang money). For exmaple: Get 10 Q's correct get a badge/icon. That would require user profiles and at that point I'd throw in the idea of building the first social networking community for trivia buffs. Also more specific games would be sweet (music, tv, movies)

GC2: I know you from 12seconds.tv. What makes 12seconds so cool?

JB: 12seconds is an amazingly easy way to share what you're doing with family and friends. Typing is sooo old school. Video's the only way to go. There's an incredible community of users there that makes the site so much fun to use.

GC2: What other athletic or electronic games do you play?

JB: 2 years ago I had a Softball team, we came in 2nd place in our division and most of my team had never played baseball/softball before in their lives. Nowadays I play a lot of Call of Duty and Rock Band on the Xbox, Wii Sports and Mario Kart on my Wii and lately way too much World of Warcraft (I'm not a geek, I promise!)

GC2: What weekly challenge should we do in a future Ringorang contest? Politics again? Football? Music? Other?

JB: TV. TV. TV. Music would be cool too. TV would be nice because I'd have a great shot at placing in the Top 3 again...but I'd love to learn something as well. Perhaps a week on car maintenance or investment techniques would be more beneficial to me ...

Your food is either with us, or against us!

Q:

Prior to World War I, what dish was listed in many American cookbooks by its German name, arme ritter?

A:
French toast <<<< 

Chicken Kiev
Swedish meatballs
Coca-Cola
The cafeterias in the House of Representatives briefly changed their menus to include “Freedom fries” and “Freedom toast” in 2003, in retaliation for France’s opposition to the American-led invasion of Iraq. It wasn’t the first time, and probably won’t be the last time, America’s chosen form of diplomacy was a culinary rebuke.

Arme ritter is German for “poor knight.” The French call the dish pain perdu or “lost bread.” Both names represent the inspiration for the dish: leftover bread. According to foodtimeline.org, Medieval European cooks, needing to scrap for every bit of food for their families, hit upon the idea of reviving stale bread by dipping it into mixtures of egg and milk. There isn’t hard evidence that the dish was invented in what is now France, as indicated by one old French name for it: pain a la Romaine, or “Roman bread.”

It’s probably safe to assume that many 19th and early 20th Century American cookbooks were written by those of German ancestry if “arme ritter” was the chosen term. And then, of course, the War to End All Wars commenced in 1914. US President Woodrow Wilson tried to keep America out of it, but then a German U-boat sunk the passenger liner Lusitania in 1915, killing 128 Americans. And then the British intercepted a telegram from Berlin to Mexico, asking Mexico to ally with them against the Americans if the US entered the war. The British showed the telegram to the Americans, US Congress declared war in April 1917, and boom… French toast.

Being a trailblazer, a ninja or a jivebotic

You all that play the Ringorang weekly challenge are awesome. The scores are high, which is awesome and worrysome (we might start upping the difficulty, *evil chuckle*)

And with 47 questions remaining, we're going to put up our first projections chart. This includes only the top 15 players. If you want to get on the list, just break into the top 15.

You might notice that some of the numbers are highlighted. That's because we're going to give out some mid-week honors. And we'll give out these honors everytime we have a post about projections.

Wednesday's Trailblazer Honor (longest streak): Tygr20. His win streak is at 18. TheBruce is second with 13. Can he get to 30? And yes, I said 30, because 20 is too close to happening.

Wednesday's Jivebotic Honor (most correct answers): TheBruce. He's answered 35 questions correctly. The next highest is PashaPhares, who is at 29.

We'll give out these honors tomorrow afternoon and Friday morning. In addition, we'll be giving out the Ninja Honor, which will go to the biggest riser in a 24-hour span. So stay tuned to see who takes home the mid-week honors!

Here's the chart guide:

1. Current rank

2. Current amount of dallions

3. Questions attempted

4. Questions answered correctly

5. Questions answered incorrectly

6. Current win percentage

7. Amount of questions passed (I didn't factor this in)

8. Longest current streak

9. Average amount of dallions won per question correct

10. Percentage of questions answered so far as of 5:30 p.m. PST Wednesday

11. Estimated amount of questions you will play after 5:30 p.m. PST Wednesday

12. Estimated amount of questions you will get wrong after 5:30 PST Wednesday

13. Estimated amount of bonus dallions you will win after 5:30 PST Wednesday

14. Estimated amount of dallions you will lose after 5:30 PST Wednesday

15. Estimated amount of dallions you will win after 5:30 PST Wednesday

16. Projected final score

And before anyone gives me a WTF stare, the red numbers on the final column are just the current placing. This is for the people whose eyes have a hard time staying on the same line.




Click to enlarge pictures

Particle Physics FTW

Q:

Informally called the God Particle, what as-yet-unobserved particle is the key component in theories explaining the Big Bang?

A:
Quark
Muon
Higgs Boson <<<<

Midichlorians

“Explaining the Big Bang” is an oversimplified way of putting it. It seems the Higgs is at the core of the Standard Model of physics, a unifying theory that explains the basic fabric -- and in turn, the very existence -- of the Universe. As such, I’m not even going to try to expand on this one and instead will defer to the experts at The National Geographic:

Most physicists believe that there must be a Higgs field that pervades all space; the Higgs particle would be the carrier of the field and would interact with other particles, sort of the way a Jedi knight in Star Wars is the carrier of the "force." The Higgs is a crucial part of the standard model of particle physics—but no one's ever found it.

…Uh-huh. Okay, sure, I could have said that. I think the Higgs Boson is best explained as the reason the Large Hadron Collider exists. You hear about the LHC intermittently, especially over the last year as it went live and some folks predicted that it would, among other things, hasten the end of days.

It’s probably more accurate (though more generalized and boring) to say that the search for the Higgs Boson is important scientific research, and leave it at that. Funding for science isn’t the stuff of catchy political campaign slogans (Yes We Can Support Particle Physics!), but it should never be overlooked. Science and technology are engines of industry. After all, if Al Gore didn't push for certain legislation in the late 1980s and 90s, the early Internet may not have grown into the important social and economic tool it is today. No Internet, no YouTube. And no YouTube, no Large Hadron Rap...

...Okay, we’re probably better off without Large Hadron Raps, but you see my point.

Rocking the T-shirts

My hope is that this is the feeling you get when you receive a Ringorang T-shirt.


My ringorang prize arrived today on 12seconds.tv

The gift certificate debate (if there is one)

When we started the weekly challenges, I brought up to the team that we should mix up the awards, to keep things fresh. We'll give out gift certificates to restaurants, book stores, grocery stores, and possibly have an all-purpose gift certificate.

A few on the team believed it was best if we keep consistent. We don't want the gift certificates to be something we're talking about every week. If we always know that the top three and a bonus person winning an Amazon.com gift card, we don't have to worry about that, and we can address game issues (and talk to you through Twitter, here on the blog or on the Ringoverse).

Plus, it helps you the player because you'll ALWAYS know what you're playing for.

But with us being six weeks into our weekly Question Everything challenge, maybe it's time for a change. OK, not now, but perhaps in Week 9, 10 or 11. Or, maybe we don't change at all.

I want to know. So vote, and leave your thoughts in the comments section of this entry.

Come join us in the Ringoverse

You're probably wondering what the Ringoverse is.

It's a place where great things happen. People who play Ringorang come here to join groups, chat, befriend each other, blog about their experiences, and talk about the game ... that is, until the game calls you to play!

We hope you have fun joining our Ringoverse, because it's the place to be.

So, how do you get to this place called the Ringoverse? Simple.

Go here and let your mind be free, until the next question arrives.

If you like pina coladas...

Q:

Pineapples, which have no relation whatsoever to pine trees or apples, grow where?

A:

In certain palm trees
On the ground <<<< 

On vines
In cans

The adan tree bears pineapple-looking fruit, but they aren’t pineapples. The first time I went to Hawaii was with my brother and his then-girlfriend – an Oahu local -- and she pointed out the pineapple plants as we were driving through the fields. My brother and I looked out, saw no trees, looked at each other, and just shrugged. We had no idea pineapples grew in bushes on the ground and were too ashamed to say anything to that effect. Pineapples do actually grow on the end of stems, so perhaps one could argue that it’s some kind of tree, but if you clicked “In certain palm trees” you are still wrong.

Pineapples were once native to South America. Christopher Columbus and his men came across them on one of their exploratory jaunts. According to this site, the exotic tropical fruit immediately became a symbol of wealth, especially the possession of a rare fresh pineapple, the cargo hold of a sailing ship making way from the Caribbean not being terribly conducive to preservation of fruit.

Pineapples also came to become a symbol of welcome, a pineapple at the door signaling the return of a sailor to his home and a time for friends and family to come visit.

In other news, they are delicious grilled.

Music makes you lose control

One of our players has a handle of "Skilletfan" and I immediately thought of this song, which is one of my favorites by the group.

If I had to pick an favorite in the Christian Alternative genre, it's Falling Up. I guess it's because I got attached to their music almost immediately.

If you think of Falling Up, you probably know them because of this song in the video:



The only thing I can't understand about Falling Up is that very few of the titles of their songs are actually mentioned. The song above is called "Escalates," but I've probably listened to it about 300 times (underestimating, LOL) and not heard the word at all in the song.

The same goes with "Murexa," which is my favorite song on their "Capitva" album. WHAT IS A MUREXA? Here's your Google search, and the trusty Wikipedia search.

I bring this up because, well, one of the players on the team was trying to figure out where Skillet came from. Also, it got me thinking about us at Ringorang doing a one-week music challenge.

Would that be too broad? There's a lot of different types of music, and we would have to cover all of the bases (yes, I'd have to include Country, and no, we can't exclude Hip Hop). We'd have to also not only talk about music history, but the contemporary hits.

First Example: Billboard's No. 1 song in the U.S. on the day I graduated was "The Boy Is Mine." Who sang it, and what year was it No. 1? That might be a medium-hard question.

We'd also might have to mix in some other topics to talk about music.

Second Example: This wasn't really about music, but a music artist. What deceased Rhythm and Blues performer, known for singing "Super Freak," was famously parodied by comedian Dave Chappelle? That one is a little bit easier.

So let's hear it. What are your thoughts on a one-week all-music challenge?

By the way, the answers to the questions:

First Example: Brandy and Monica, 1998
Second example: Rick James

The "Get Out of Jail Free" Card

In light of the "Passing" debate, the team here came up with something that I absolutely fell in love with. Only problem was, we're not 100 percent certain how to present it. Based on our giddyness with the idea, I'm going to say it's a lock you're going to see this in the future (not certain when, probably way down the line).

Here's one of the bottom lines: In our situation, if you pass, you will not be punished in any way. Your streak stays intact and you don't lose dallions. Please keep that in mind as we continue.

Whenever the alert application (the ring-a-dinger) tells you it's time to play, you'll have the option of playing the game or skipping out with no penalty. That's stagnant and won't change.

Now, if you play the question, here's where things get interesting.

On Monday, you'll be given One Pass Opportunity to start. At anytime, if you play a question and decide to opt out, you can click Pass with no penalty. But once you use that Pass, it's gone.

When it's gone, that means you can't pass on any future questions once you're committed. You can still pass when the alert application tells you its time to play. But if you see the question, it's gametime. If you get it wrong, you lose dallions. If you time out, you lose your streak and 100 dallions.

The team agrees that you should have the opportunity to earn more Passes, and it will be based on achievement (probably by win streak). But there will be a limit to as many extra passes you could get (three to five). We're a little sketchy on how to get those bonus passes.

My thoughts are 3 in a row gets you a bonus Pass, with 3 extra (4 total, because you had 1 to start) being the limit. And if you use one, you can get three in a row right and get another Pass.

If that was the case, almost everyone playing last week would have gotten at least one extra pass.

This helps in two ways. First off, you're not penalized for passing if you don't know the question. On the other hand, if you want to skip a question, you have to ask yourself, "Is it worth it to do it now?" And finally, if you want to skip more questions, you have to earn those passes.

= = =

Initially, I brought up the idea of eliminating the "Pass" option when you see the question, meaning you could only pass when the alert application tells you it's time to play.

But the rest of the group said that they wanted to give players some leeway. The 1-Pass option is a great middle ground.

In defense of the Twinkie defense

Today's Q du jour...

Q:

The 1978 assassination of San Francisco mayor George Moscone and subsequent trial gave rise to what snack cake-inspired phrase?

A:
Caveat emptor
Sugar caned
Twinkie defense <<<< 

Ho Ho defendant

Dan White was a former policeman and a new member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1978.  He grew disenchanted with politics after his dealings with fellow Board of Supervisors member Harvey Milk, the first openly-gay man elected to public office in California, and Mayor Moscone. For this (and other reasons), he resigned, but after being urged by his supporters, White lobbied Moscone to reinstate him. Moscone refused. White shot him and Milk.

During the murder trial, White’s lawyers argued that he was depressed – “diminished capacity” was the term used.  A few minutes of one psychiatrist's testimony explained that one symptom of the normally clean cut, physically fit, and health-conscious White's depression was his sudden diet of junk food. The diminished capacity argument worked, as White was convicted of voluntary manslaughter instead of murder, earning him a lesser sentence.

San Francisco Bay Guardian satirist Paul Krassner is generally credited with coining the phrase “Twinkie defense” in his coverage of the trial. San Francisco Chronicle columnist Herb Caen used the phrase “the Twinkie insanity defense” in reference to what one attorney was calling it. From there, the meme spread to the national press and politicians, especially as “diminished capacity” became a larger debate. Twinkies are never actually mentioned in anyone’s testimony, but Krassner and Caen's labels soon were misconstrued and the “Twinkie defense” phrase was born.  

In related news, we here at Ringorang would like to officially dub the perpetuation of half-truth as "The Wikipedia [citation needed] Effect." 

Read more about Dan White's trial and the birth of the Twinkie Defense myth at the San Francisco Chronicle.  Also, Sean Penn was recently nominated for a Golden Globe for his titular performance in the film Milk.  Sorry, you kinda know how it ends, now.

Because I am super curious ...

Which of these categories do you excel in during the Ringorang challenge?

Double-click to accept? Are you sure?

This was an idea that other people brought up during discussions last week. While I'm not a total fan of either option, I'm going to pick the lesser of two evils if we go down this road.

Let's say you get a question that is kind of tough. You see an answer that might be right, and you click on it. But the moment you click it, you say to yourself, "OMG I know it was a different answer! I'm going to get it wrong." And you sulk because you lost dallions when you knew you should have gotten the question correctly.

Or ... let's say you get a question that is SUPER EASY. And you see the answer and click. But you accidentally clicked on another response. Oops. You just lost dallions.

Now, if you were to ask me, "tough luck." Especially in the first situation, that's the breaks. You don't get a second chance to make the correct answer. And in the second situation, I would suggest checking your mouse or drinking decaffinated.

I kinda chuckle at the second scenario because ... imagine if that happened in a "Counter-Strike" tournament where precision is all the world. Someone misses an AWP shot and gets fragged. When the round is over, the person that missed asks the other team for a do-over.

Anyway, to aleviate these two issues, two ideas have been brought up.

OPTION 1: When you answer a question, a screen comes up that says "ARE YOU SURE?" You then click Yes or No to confirm your answer. If you click No, then you're allowed to go back to see the answers again.

In terms of dallions ... if you clicked your answer at 240 dallions and then confirm it, you'll have 240 dallions wagered. If you clicked your answer at 240 dallions, wait 5 seconds and say No, then the timer goes down and now you'll have 210 dallions, and counting, to choose your answer again.

OPTION 2: Right now, you have to click once to choose the answer. We would change that to a double-click.

= = =

Now, either option I do not like. I don't think there is a problem with the current format. But there's been enough discussion to where I'm more than likely going to lose this debate.

If I were to choose one of the two options, then I'd have to go with Option 2.

Option 1, to me, seems to be an un-necessary task, especially for super easy questions. If the question is "Who beat the Saints in Week 15?" then yes I know the answer is the Bears. I don't need to confirm it.

Among the top 20 players, the win percentage hovered around 90. So if players are getting the answer 9 times out of 10, will the "ARE YOU SURE" page make it go up? I doubt it.

But by double-clicking on the answers, there are no excuses for making a clicking mistake. You can accidentally left-click on something, but a double-click mistake? You must be wired with caffeine.

The structure of the game is fine by me. There are times when I've done a D'oh for clicking on the wrong answer when I knew it was something else. But I tell myself, "You're wrong and nothing will change it, so make up the difference in the next question."

Paul McCartney's "Scrambled Eggs"

[Note: The 1st official post in a series in which we expand on a random question.]

Q:  What song, the most covered song ever according to Guinness, was given the working title "Scrambled Eggs" while proper lyrics were composed?

A:  

Summertime by George Gershwin

White Christmas by Irving Berlin

Yesterday by The Beatles <<<

November Rain by Guns 'N' Roses

On its disambiguation page, Wikipedia [citation needed] defines Yesterday as “the day before today.”  It is the official stance of Ringorang that Wikipedia [citation needed] is not a completely dependable source of information, but we’ll trust them on this one.

Apparently, Paul McCartney composed the melody of “Yesterday” in a dream and originally thought he’d simply heard the tune elsewhere.  McCartney used the temporary lyrics "Scrambled eggs/Oh my baby how I love your legs” early on.

“Scrambled Eggs” obviously evolved into one of the Beatles’ most enduring tunes -- with more than 3,000 cover versions according Guinness, including Frank Sinatra and Boyz II Men.  Personally, it’s one of the songs that my parents loved that didn’t drive me crazy as a small child.  Few are the songs that can leap across generations.

“Yesterday” also seems to have marked a subtle shift in the Beatles’ style, as well as their relationship with producer George “The 5th Beatle” Martin.  It was the first Beatles song to utilize orchestration.  So says Martin in his book All You Need Is Ears (via this comprehensive site):

"The curious thing is that our relationship moved in two different directions at once. On the one hand, the increasing sophistication of the records meant that I was having a greater and greater influence on the music. But the personal relationship moved in the other direction. At the start, I was the master with his pupils, and they did what I said. They knew nothing about recording, but heaven knows they learned quickly: and by the end, of course, I was to be the servant while they were the masters.”

In other words, The Beatles were Anakin Skywalker, George Martin was Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Yesterday was the moment when Mace Windu goes to arrest Palpatine, but Anakin lops off Windu’s saber hand and Sidious sends him flying through the Coruscant night on a burst of Force Lightning.  Or something. 

Who's going to win?

Get your friends and family to vote in this poll. Let's see who has more backing.

OK, I'm kidding.

Tygr20 and Urthstripe are 1-2 in this week's challenge, with four questions to go. Fenwicked is in third, mathematically still in it.

So, let's go. Who do you think will win? Vote in our poll and see if you're right.

I'll get to those responses in the previous blog entry in just a moment.

Two passing scenarios

Thanks to everyone that shared their thoughts in our poll question. By the way, if you haven't voted yet, it's not too late to let us know your thoughts.

The scenario involving passing a question has come up several times in the dugout, and we all seem to have different thoughts as to what should happen.

Let's get one scenario out of the way that we all agree upon here. When you are prompted by the alert application (the ring-a-dinger, as some have said). It asks you whether you want to play or pass. We all agree that if you pass in that situation, you should not be punished AT ALL.

OK, now let's get to the different scenarios. Please keep in mind that whatever we decide won't go into effect for the start of Week 6. It might not go into effect at all (doubt it, because we love you all and we discuss tweaks all the time).

Right now, here's what happens ...

SCENARIO 1: When the question comes up, you don't answer. Instead, you pass by clicking the PASS button. Your streak is broken, and you don't lose any dallions.

SCENARIO 2: When the question comes up, you don't do anything. The time runs out. Your streak is broken, and you don't lose any dallions.

Here's how I would settle the passing situations.

If you clicked on PASS, your streak isn't broken and you don't lose dallions.

If you let the timer run out, your streak is broken AND you lose 100 dallions.

When you accept to play the question, you have to do something, which is why I am a fan of punishing those that let the timer run out. If you get the question wrong at the last possible moment, you lose 100 dallions. So, letting the timer run out is equivalent to getting a question wrong at the last possible moment. And how many times have you tried to answer a question at the final seconds?

There are times when I've seen the question and just walked away, knowing that I wouldn't lose any dallions. By punishing the streak and taking away dallions, there will be no more walking away.

Should passing break your win streak?

If you have a minute, make sure to vote in this poll. It will help us out as we possibly add or change features to the game.

Thanks.

Updated projected statistics

Here are your projected updated statistics for this week.

Good thing to note about projections; as always, when the finish line gets closer, the statistics become more relevant. It's like in baseball, you wouldn't base a projection off of Opening Day. Think of Kevin Elster, who had three home runs in the Dodgers' win over the Giants in 2000. So at that pace, he would finish the season with a .750 batting average and 486 home runs, which blows out anything Sadaharu Oh has ever done. Elster's final tally: a run-of-the-mill .227 average and 14 home runs.

So here you go, these are the projections, with scores that came following the 11 a.m. question.

Here's the chart guide:

1. Current rank

2. Current amount of dallions

3. Questions attempted

4. Questions answered correctly

5. Questions answered incorrectly

6. Current win percentage

7. Amount of questions passed (I didn't factor this in)

8. Longest current streak

9. Average amount of dallions won per question correct

10. Percentage of questions answered so far (as of 2:30 p.m. PST Wednesday)

11. Estimated amount of questions you will play after 2:30 p.m. PST Wednesday

12. Estimated amount of questions you will get wrong after noon PST Thursday

13. Estimated amount of bonus dallions you will win after noon PST Thursday

14. Estimated amount of dallions you will lose after noon PST Thursday

15. Estimated amount of dallions you will win after 2:30 p.m. PST Wednesday

16. Projected final score

You may think I want pi, but I want pie

Sometime after either the noon or 1 p.m. question, I'll have an updated projections table. That means ... MORE NUMBERS. Sometimes when I do math, it all becomes one big number, something like this Web page, which details the world's most intriguing number.

Here are your tips for today:

* -- This group claims that one of their music videos couldn't be seen on television because of the possibility of creating epileptic seizures.

* -- This guy goes from Senate Majority Leader to the Health and Human Services Department. On the surface, he kind of looks like Tim McCarver.

* -- Did you lose your left arm, because I lost my right arm. General Lee said something along these lines about someone he knew.

Why the projections were laid out like this

So why were the projections laid out like that?

I wanted to see a formula that took into account different types of success as well as failure.

It was kind of convenient that I put out these statistics halfway through the competition, because I could have just done "You have 5,000 dallions. At this rate, you'll have 10,000 at the end."

There are different types of success: getting a single question correct and getting at least 3 in a row correct. BIG difference. There are two questions that can give you at least 300 dallions, and then there's a third question that can give you at least 450 dallions if the cards fall your way.

It also takes into account the win streak, which is why someone in 10th might have a higher projected finish than someone who is ninth.

Now that I have a formula, I'll try my best to come up with projections at least everyday, Wednesday and Thursday at the very least. Check out the blog later today for the updated projections.