MSBKO2 Round 1

[Mark Brader]

In 2012, "Calvin" posted a series of three knockout contests,
one each on the theme of sports, history, and science; and last
year I did one on the theme of geography.

Now I'm doing another one, but I haven't been able to think of
another subject area that lends itself to the format, so I'm going
with history again. All questions will ask for dates or other
numerical answers. I'll try to feature different parts of the
world in somewhat balanced fashion as the contest proceeds.

For Round 1, I'll accept entries for 6 days from the moment of
posting (that is, until about 1:40 pm EDT on Monday, January
20) OR until there is a period of 24 hours without a new entry.
WHICHEVER COMES FIRST!

The deadline for later rounds will probably be shorter.

After the first round, this becomes a closed contest -- only
those who have survived the earlier rounds may continue to enter.
If everyone gives the exact correct answer on any question,
they all survive, but I don't expect that to happen very much.
Otherwise, the person whose answer is farthest from the correct
answer is eliminated. In case of a tie for farthest, among those
entrants the last to enter is eliminated. "Farthest" will be
measured by difference, not ratio, unless I explicitly indicate
otherwise on a specific question.

* We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
the term "United States of America" into official usage?

Please give the exact date in YYYY-MM-DD format, e.g. 2000-01-01.

Have fun and let's have lots of entries so that there are lots of rounds.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "Domine, defende nos
m...@vex.net | Contra hos stupidos DOS!" -- after A. D. Godley

My text in this article is in the public domain.

[Marc Dashevsky]

In article <Noednf9wWb_8G0jP...@vex.net>, m...@vex.net says...

> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
> Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
> Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
> New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
> Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
> the term "United States of America" into official usage?
>
> Please give the exact date in YYYY-MM-DD format, e.g. 2000-01-01.

1776-11-11

[Dan Blum]

Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:


> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
> Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
> Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
> New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
> Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
> the term "United States of America" into official usage?

1787-06-30

--
_______________________________________________________________________
Dan Blum to...@panix.com
"I wouldn't have believed it myself if I hadn't just made it up."

[Bruce Bowler]

On Tue, 14 Jan 2014 12:48:01 -0600, Mark Brader wrote:

> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union
> between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island,
> and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey,
> Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South
> Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced the term "United States
> of America" into official usage?
>
> Please give the exact date in YYYY-MM-DD format, e.g. 2000-01-01.

1777-06-30

[Peter Smyth]

Mark Brader wrote:

> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
> Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
> Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
> New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
> Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
> the term "United States of America" into official usage?
>
> Please give the exact date in YYYY-MM-DD format, e.g. 2000-01-01.

1787-07-04

Peter Smyth

[Erland Sommarskog]

Mark Brader (m...@vex.net) writes:
> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
> Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
> Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
> New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
> Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
> the term "United States of America" into official usage?
>
> Please give the exact date in YYYY-MM-DD format, e.g. 2000-01-01.
>

1776-07-04

--
Erland Sommarskog, Stockholm, esq...@sommarskog.se

[Joshua Kreitzer]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) wrote in news:Noednf9wWb_
8G0jPnZ2dn...@vex.net:

> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
> Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
> Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
> New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
> Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
> the term "United States of America" into official usage?
>
> Please give the exact date in YYYY-MM-DD format, e.g. 2000-01-01.

1777-09-04

--
Joshua Kreitzer
grom...@hotmail.com

[Jeffrey Turner]

1783-10-20

[swp]

On Tuesday, January 14, 2014 1:48:01 PM UTC-5, Mark Brader wrote:
> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
> Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
> Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
> New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
> Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
> the term "United States of America" into official usage?
>
> Please give the exact date in YYYY-MM-DD format, e.g. 2000-01-01.

1777-11-15

swp

[Gareth Owen]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:

> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
> Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
> Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
> New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
> Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
> the term "United States of America" into official usage?
>
> Please give the exact date in YYYY-MM-DD format, e.g. 2000-01-01.

1779-10-23

[Dan Tilque]

Mark Brader wrote:
>
> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
> Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
> Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
> New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
> Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
> the term "United States of America" into official usage?
>
> Please give the exact date in YYYY-MM-DD format, e.g. 2000-01-01.

1779-06-24

--
Dan Tilque

Helix, if everything goes according to plan, the plan has been
compromised. -- Sam Starfall in "Freefall"

[Rob Parker]

> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
> Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
> Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
> New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
> Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
> the term "United States of America" into official usage?
>
> Please give the exact date in YYYY-MM-DD format, e.g. 2000-01-01.

1776-07-04


Rob

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> For Round 1, I'll accept entries for 6 days from the moment of
> posting (that is, until about 1:40 pm EDT on Monday, January
> 20) OR until there is a period of 24 hours without a new entry.
> WHICHEVER COMES FIRST!

Well, that was fast! There were 5 entries within the first 90
minutes after the contest opened, then a 6-hour gap and 3 more
entries within an hour each other, then 3 more at intervals of
roughly 3-4 hours, for a total of 11 entries posted within 18 hours
of the contest opening.

And then no more, and it's been 24 hours since the 11th one. So
this contest is now closed to new entrants.

From now on you have a maximum of 4 days to enter, but in practice
I expect it to go faster, because I can proceed to the next round
as soon as I've seen responses from all the surviving entrants.

If everyone gives the exact correct answer on any question, they all
survive, but I don't expect that to happen very much. Otherwise,

the person whose answer is farthest from the correct answer (by
difference, not ratio) is eliminated. In case of a tie for farthest,

among those entrants the last to enter is eliminated.

The contest will therefore run for 9 more rounds unless there are any
questions where everyone gives the exact correct answer. Round 2 will
follow immediately.
--
Mark Brader | "A man's vehicle is a symbol of his manhood. That's why
Toronto | my vehicle's the Piccadilly Line - It's the size of a county
m...@vex.net | and it comes every two and a half minutes" -- John Rowland

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> * We will start with a US history question for Round 1. When did
> the Congress pass the "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
> Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
> Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York,
> New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North
> Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia", which also introduced
> the term "United States of America" into official usage?

Rob Parker 1776-07-04 -499 days
Erland Sommarskog 1776-07-04 -499
Marc Dashevsky 1776-11-11 -369
Bruce Bowler 1777-06-30 -138
Joshua Kreitzer 1777-09-04 -72

** CORRECT ** 1777-11-15
Stephen Perry 1777-11-15

Dan Tilque 1779-06-24 +586
Gareth Owen 1779-10-23 +707
Jeff Turner 1783-10-20 +2,165
Dan Blum 1787-06-30 +3,514
Peter Smyth 1787-07-04 +3,518

Peter Smyth is eliminated. Well done to Stephen for the exact answer.

The earliest answer given was 1776-07-04. What happened then was that
the Congress, having voted 2 days earlier to declare independence,
voted to accept the wording of the Declaration of Independence.
This declaration did not form any entity called the USA, but declared
that *each* of 13 colonies was now an independent state. Because they
acted in unison, the phrase "united States of America" was used (in
two places), but in the original handwritten version it was spelled
without a capital U, and "United Colonies" was used as well with the
same meaning.

The Articles of Confederation was the first agreement by these nascent
countries to enter into a perpetual union, and specified that "The
Stile of this Confederacy shall be 'The United States of America'."
After being passed by the Congress it had to be ratified by the 13
states, which was completed on 1781-03-01.

The Articles of Confederation were then replaced by the Constitution,
which converted the USA from a confederation of 13 countries into a
federal union. This was adopted by a constitutional convention on
1787-09-17, close to the date that Dan and Peter gave. Again, it had
to be ratified by the 13 states, which was completed on 1790-05-29;
but it asserted that it only had to be ratified by 9 states to be in
effect among the ratifying states, and was proclaimed to be in effect
on 1789-03-04 when 11 states had ratified.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto "I seem to have become a signature quote."
m...@vex.net -- David Keldsen

[Mark Brader]

This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc
Dashevsky, Joshua Kreitzer, Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry,
Erland Sommarskog, Dan Tilque, and Jeff Turner. You have 4 days
to enter if you need it, but if everyone answers sooner, then we
can move on to the next round. I will accept answers by email if
anyone has trouble posting.

After randomizing the draft questions, I find that we are staying in
North America for the second round.

* When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
date when it was agreed on.

Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "Computers may be very, very fast,
m...@vex.net | but they aren't very, very smart."
-- after Steve Summit

[Marc Dashevsky]

In article <Bu6dnZpC0ui5Q0rP...@vex.net>, m...@vex.net says...

>
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc
> Dashevsky, Joshua Kreitzer, Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry,
> Erland Sommarskog, Dan Tilque, and Jeff Turner. You have 4 days
> to enter if you need it, but if everyone answers sooner, then we
> can move on to the next round. I will accept answers by email if
> anyone has trouble posting.
>
> After randomizing the draft questions, I find that we are staying in
> North America for the second round.
>
> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
> date when it was agreed on.
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1920-04-01

[swp]

On Thursday, January 16, 2014 8:27:00 AM UTC-5, Mark Brader wrote:
> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
> date when it was agreed on.
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.
>
> --
> Mark Brader, Toronto | "Computers may be very, very fast,
> m...@vex.net | but they aren't very, very smart."
> -- after Steve Summit
> My text in this article is in the public domain.

oh boy. it's one of 2 dates, and I'm probably out if I guess the wrong one.

so ... I'll guess 1949-03-31 (newfoundland and labrador), which was 52 years before my wedding.

swp

[Bruce Bowler]

On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 07:27:00 -0600, Mark Brader wrote:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc Dashevsky,
> Joshua Kreitzer, Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland
> Sommarskog, Dan Tilque, and Jeff Turner. You have 4 days to enter if
> you need it, but if everyone answers sooner, then we can move on to the
> next round. I will accept answers by email if anyone has trouble
> posting.
>
> After randomizing the draft questions, I find that we are staying in
> North America for the second round.
>
> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the date when
> it was agreed on.
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1920-01-01

[Dan Blum]

Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc
> Dashevsky, Joshua Kreitzer, Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry,
> Erland Sommarskog, Dan Tilque, and Jeff Turner. You have 4 days
> to enter if you need it, but if everyone answers sooner, then we
> can move on to the next round. I will accept answers by email if
> anyone has trouble posting.

> After randomizing the draft questions, I find that we are staying in
> North America for the second round.

> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
> date when it was agreed on.

> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

[Marc Dashevsky]

In article <bjqel6...@mid.individual.net>, bbo...@bigelow.org says...

Thanks Bruce! You saved my ass.

[Gareth Owen]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:

> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
> date when it was agreed on.

1999-12-31

(Nunavut was quite recent, yes? Is that a province?)

[Dan Blum]

Yes and no.

[Gareth Owen]

to...@panix.com (Dan Blum) writes:

> Gareth Owen <gwo...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:
>
>> > * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
>> > This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
>> > date when it was agreed on.
>
>> 1999-12-31
>
>> (Nunavut was quite recent, yes? Is that a province?)
>
> Yes and no.

Bugger :|

[Erland Sommarskog]

Mark Brader (m...@vex.net) writes:
> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
> date when it was agreed on.
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.
>

1949-01-01

[Rob Parker]

> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
> date when it was agreed on.

1947-06-30


Rob

[Joshua Kreitzer]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) wrote in

news:Bu6dnZpC0ui5Q0rP...@vex.net:

>
> After randomizing the draft questions, I find that we are staying in
> North America for the second round.
>
> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
> date when it was agreed on.
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1949-06-30

--
Joshua Kreitzer
grom...@hotmail.com

[Dan Tilque]

Mark Brader wrote:
>
> After randomizing the draft questions, I find that we are staying in
> North America for the second round.
>
> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
> date when it was agreed on.
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.
>

1949-07-01

[Bruce Bowler]

Actually, I think Gareth saved both of our asses :-)

[Jeffrey Turner]

On 1/16/2014 8:27 AM, Mark Brader wrote:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc
> Dashevsky, Joshua Kreitzer, Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry,
> Erland Sommarskog, Dan Tilque, and Jeff Turner. You have 4 days
> to enter if you need it, but if everyone answers sooner, then we
> can move on to the next round. I will accept answers by email if
> anyone has trouble posting.
>
> After randomizing the draft questions, I find that we are staying in
> North America for the second round.
>
> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
> date when it was agreed on.
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

2000-01-01

--Jeff

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> * When was a new province most recently admitted to Canada?
> This means the date when the admission took effect, not the
> date when it was agreed on.
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

Bruce Bowler 1920-01-01 -10,682 days
Marc Dashevsky 1920-04-01 -10,591
Rob Parker 1947-06-30 -640
Erland Sommarskog 1949-01-01 -89

** CORRECT ** 1949-03-31
Stephen Perry 1949-03-31

Dan Blum 1949-06-30 +91
Joshua Kreitzer 1949-06-30 +91
Dan Tilque 1949-07-01 +92
Gareth Owen 1999-12-31 +18,537
Jeff Turner 2000-01-01 +18,538

By a margin of one day, Jeff Turner is eliminated.


The province was Newfoundland, of course, later called Newfoundland and
Labrador. http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/10/oh-no-canada/
may be of some interest.

The last two provinces added before that were Alberta and Saskatchewan,
both in 1905, so I was surprised to see two entrants both guessing 1920,
a year of no major significance to Canada as far as I can see.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "Gwyneth Paltrow always says I'm a
m...@vex.net | shameless name dropper" -- Roger Ford

[Mark Brader]

This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc
Dashevsky, Joshua Kreitzer, Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry,

Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque. The 4-day maximum time for
entering will continue to apply on subsequent rounds.

Here is another rule that will apply to future rounds -- it doesn't
affect this question and I won't mention it when it matters. The
rule is, when giving dates, use either the Gregorian or the Julian
calendar, whichever one was in use for the time and place referred to
in the question, but always treat the year as beginning on January 1.

Now to Round 3:

* One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded
to the throne?

--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "Anyone who can handle a needle convincingly can make
m...@vex.net | us see a thread which is not there." --E.H. Gombrich

[Marc Dashevsky]

In article <e9GdnXQjL8ZBv0fP...@vex.net>, m...@vex.net says...

>
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc
> Dashevsky, Joshua Kreitzer, Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry,
> Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque. The 4-day maximum time for
> entering will continue to apply on subsequent rounds.
>
> Here is another rule that will apply to future rounds -- it doesn't
> affect this question and I won't mention it when it matters. The
> rule is, when giving dates, use either the Gregorian or the Julian
> calendar, whichever one was in use for the time and place referred to
> in the question, but always treat the year as beginning on January 1.
>
> Now to Round 3:
>
> * One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
> was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
> who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
> terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded
> to the throne?

777 BCE

[Gareth Owen]

Jeffrey Turner <jtu...@alum.rpi.edu> writes:

> 2000-01-01


Skin of my teeth!

[Gareth Owen]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:

> * One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
> was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
> who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
> terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded
> to the throne?

950 BCE

[Erland Sommarskog]

Mark Brader (m...@vex.net) writes:
> * One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
> was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
> who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
> terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded
> to the throne?

1200 BC

[Erland Sommarskog]

Mark Brader (m...@vex.net) writes:
> The province was Newfoundland, of course, later called Newfoundland and
> Labrador. http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/10/oh-no-canada/
> may be of some interest.

Yeah, if you leak the password. :-)

[Rob Parker]

> * One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
> was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
> who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
> terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded
> to the throne?

1000 BC


Rob

[Dan Blum]

Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:

> Now to Round 3:

> * One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
> was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
> who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
> terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded
> to the throne?

1263 BC

[swp]

On Saturday, January 18, 2014 1:44:44 AM UTC-5, Mark Brader wrote:
> Now to Round 3:
>
> * One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
> was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
> who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
> terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded
> to the throne?

ah yes. ramses ii. son of seti i. spouse of nefertiti. the greeks called him ozymandias.

1275 bc

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> > http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/10/oh-no-canada/
> > may be of some interest.

Erland Sommarskog:

> Yeah, if you leak the password. :-)

Sorry. I've never encountered restrictions on viewing items at
blogs.nytimes.com.
--
Mark Brader "He added a 3-point lead" is pronounced
Toronto differently in Snooker than in Typography...
m...@vex.net -- Liam Quin

[Dan Tilque]

Mark Brader wrote:
>
> Now to Round 3:
>
> * One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
> was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
> who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
> terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded
> to the throne?

1272 BC

[Joshua Kreitzer]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) wrote in

news:e9GdnXQjL8ZBv0fP...@vex.net:

> Now to Round 3:
>
> * One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
> was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
> who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
> terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded
> to the throne?

2000 B.C.E.

--
Joshua Kreitzer
grom...@hotmail.com

[Bruce Bowler]

On Sat, 18 Jan 2014 00:44:44 -0600, Mark Brader wrote:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc Dashevsky,
> Joshua Kreitzer, Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland
> Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque. The 4-day maximum time for entering will
> continue to apply on subsequent rounds.
>
> Here is another rule that will apply to future rounds -- it doesn't
> affect this question and I won't mention it when it matters. The rule
> is, when giving dates, use either the Gregorian or the Julian calendar,
> whichever one was in use for the time and place referred to in the
> question, but always treat the year as beginning on January 1.
>
> Now to Round 3:
>
> * One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
> was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
> who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
> terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded to the
> throne?

Sorry for the delay... Off line for the weekend and the holiday...

1200 BC

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> * One of the longest-reigning and most successful pharaohs of Egypt
> was Ramses II (various other spellings of his name are also used),
> who is still commemorated today by many ancient statues. In our
> terminology, what was the year, most likely, when he succeeded
> to the throne?

Joshua Kreitzer 2000 B.C.E. -721

** CORRECT ** 1279 BC

Stephen Perry 1275 bc +4
Dan Tilque 1272 BC +7
Dan Blum 1263 BC +16
Erland Sommarskog 1200 BC +79
Bruce Bowler 1200 BC +79
Rob Parker 1000 BC +279
Gareth Owen 950 BCE +329
Marc Dashevsky 777 BCE +502

Joshua Kreitzer is eliminated.

--
Mark Brader "The world little knows or cares the storm through
Toronto which you have had to pass. It asks only if you
m...@vex.net brought the ship safely to port." -- Joseph Conrad

[Mark Brader]

This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc Dashevsky,

Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.

Here is Round 4:

* When was it that Moorish forces under Tarik ibn Ziyad first landed
in the peninsula now containing Spain and Portugal, eventually
leading to his landing site being named GibralTAR after him,
as well as to the conquest of almost the whole peninsula?

Various sources give conflicting information as to the exact
date, so just give the year and month that they landed, in the
format YYYY-MM.
--
Mark Brader | "[These] articles should be self-explanatory.
Toronto | If they *don't* explain themselves,
m...@vex.net | you'll have to read them." -- Michael Wares

[Dan Blum]

Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc Dashevsky,
> Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.
> Here is Round 4:

> * When was it that Moorish forces under Tarik ibn Ziyad first landed
> in the peninsula now containing Spain and Portugal, eventually
> leading to his landing site being named GibralTAR after him,
> as well as to the conquest of almost the whole peninsula?

> Various sources give conflicting information as to the exact
> date, so just give the year and month that they landed, in the
> format YYYY-MM.

0723-05

[Marc Dashevsky]

In article <Ba-dnf1Xmvzr5kDP...@vex.net>, m...@vex.net says...

>
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc Dashevsky,
> Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.
> Here is Round 4:
>
> * When was it that Moorish forces under Tarik ibn Ziyad first landed
> in the peninsula now containing Spain and Portugal, eventually
> leading to his landing site being named GibralTAR after him,
> as well as to the conquest of almost the whole peninsula?
>
> Various sources give conflicting information as to the exact
> date, so just give the year and month that they landed, in the
> format YYYY-MM.

1333-03

[Erland Sommarskog]

Mark Brader (m...@vex.net) writes:
> * When was it that Moorish forces under Tarik ibn Ziyad first landed
> in the peninsula now containing Spain and Portugal, eventually
> leading to his landing site being named GibralTAR after him,
> as well as to the conquest of almost the whole peninsula?
>
> Various sources give conflicting information as to the exact
> date, so just give the year and month that they landed, in the
> format YYYY-MM.

0694-05

[Dan Tilque]

Mark Brader wrote:
>
> * When was it that Moorish forces under Tarik ibn Ziyad first landed
> in the peninsula now containing Spain and Portugal, eventually
> leading to his landing site being named GibralTAR after him,
> as well as to the conquest of almost the whole peninsula?
>
> Various sources give conflicting information as to the exact
> date, so just give the year and month that they landed, in the
> format YYYY-MM.

0832-05

[swp]

0711-06 AD

swp

[Rob Parker]

> * When was it that Moorish forces under Tarik ibn Ziyad first landed
> in the peninsula now containing Spain and Portugal, eventually
> leading to his landing site being named GibralTAR after him,
> as well as to the conquest of almost the whole peninsula?
>
> Various sources give conflicting information as to the exact
> date, so just give the year and month that they landed, in the
> format YYYY-MM.

0375-09


Rob

[Gareth Owen]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc Dashevsky,
> Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.
> Here is Round 4:
>
> * When was it that Moorish forces under Tarik ibn Ziyad first landed
> in the peninsula now containing Spain and Portugal, eventually
> leading to his landing site being named GibralTAR after him,
> as well as to the conquest of almost the whole peninsula?
>
> Various sources give conflicting information as to the exact
> date, so just give the year and month that they landed, in the
> format YYYY-MM.

980-09 (AD, obv)

[Bruce Bowler]

On Mon, 20 Jan 2014 13:39:34 -0600, Mark Brader wrote:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc Dashevsky,
> Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan
> Tilque.
> Here is Round 4:
>
> * When was it that Moorish forces under Tarik ibn Ziyad first landed
> in the peninsula now containing Spain and Portugal, eventually leading
> to his landing site being named GibralTAR after him, as well as to the
> conquest of almost the whole peninsula?
>
> Various sources give conflicting information as to the exact date, so
> just give the year and month that they landed, in the format YYYY-MM.

750-01

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Marc Dashevsky,
> Gareth Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.
> Here is Round 4:
>
> * When was it that Moorish forces under Tarik ibn Ziyad first landed
> in the peninsula now containing Spain and Portugal, eventually
> leading to his landing site being named GibralTAR after him,
> as well as to the conquest of almost the whole peninsula?
>
> Various sources give conflicting information as to the exact
> date, so just give the year and month that they landed, in the
> format YYYY-MM.

6 out of 8 entrants used the requested date format, but I'll forgive the
one who didn't. Here are the results:

Rob Parker 0375-09 -335 y 7 m
Erland Sommarskog 0694-05 -16 y 11 m

** CORRECT ** 0711-04 (Julian)

Stephen Perry 0711-06 +0 y 2 m
Dan Blum 0723-05 +12 y 1 m
Bruce Bowler 750-01 +38 y 9 m
Dan Tilque 0832-05 +121 y 1 m
Gareth Owen 980-09 +269 y 5 m
Marc Dashevsky 1333-03 +621 y 11 m

Marc Dashevsky is eliminated.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "The only proven use of antimatter is the production
m...@vex.net | of Nobel Prizes in physics." -- Henry Spencer

[Mark Brader]

This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth

Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.

Here is Round 5:

* Although the final treaty came later, for practical purposes the
Franco-Prussian War was decided when Paris was surrendered to
the besieging German forces. When was that?

Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

--
Mark Brader | "I don't care HOW you format char c; while ((c =
Toronto | getchar()) != EOF) putchar(c); ... this code is
m...@vex.net | a bug waiting to happen from the outset." -- Doug Gwyn

[Bruce Bowler]

On Tue, 21 Jan 2014 10:58:24 -0600, Mark Brader wrote:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,
> Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.
> Here is Round 5:
>
> * Although the final treaty came later, for practical purposes the
> Franco-Prussian War was decided when Paris was surrendered to the
> besieging German forces. When was that?
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1876-07-04

[Dan Blum]

Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth
> Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.
> Here is Round 5:

> * Although the final treaty came later, for practical purposes the
> Franco-Prussian War was decided when Paris was surrendered to
> the besieging German forces. When was that?

> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1871-05-15

[Erland Sommarskog]

Mark Brader (m...@vex.net) writes:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth
> Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.
> Here is Round 5:
>
> * Although the final treaty came later, for practical purposes the
> Franco-Prussian War was decided when Paris was surrendered to
> the besieging German forces. When was that?
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1871-05-24

[swp]

On Tuesday, January 21, 2014 11:58:24 AM UTC-5, Mark Brader wrote:
> Here is Round 5:
>
> * Although the final treaty came later, for practical purposes the
> Franco-Prussian War was decided when Paris was surrendered to
> the besieging German forces. When was that?
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.
> --
> Mark Brader | "I don't care HOW you format char c; while ((c =
> Toronto | getchar()) != EOF) putchar(c); ... this code is
> m...@vex.net | a bug waiting to happen from the outset." -- Doug Gwyn
>
> My text in this article is in the public domain.

um ... early 1871 ... um ... let's wag it ... 1871-01-31, because I like months that have 31 days and I already used my anniversary.

swp

[Dan Tilque]

Mark Brader wrote:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth
> Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.
> Here is Round 5:
>
> * Although the final treaty came later, for practical purposes the
> Franco-Prussian War was decided when Paris was surrendered to
> the besieging German forces. When was that?
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1873-09-15

[Gareth Owen]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth
> Owen, Rob Parker, Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque.
> Here is Round 5:
>
> * Although the final treaty came later, for practical purposes the
> Franco-Prussian War was decided when Paris was surrendered to
> the besieging German forces. When was that?
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1875-03-01

[Rob Parker]

> * Although the final treaty came later, for practical purposes the
> Franco-Prussian War was decided when Paris was surrendered to
> the besieging German forces. When was that?
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1860-06-30


Rob

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> * Although the final treaty came later, for practical purposes the
> Franco-Prussian War was decided when Paris was surrendered to
> the besieging German forces. When was that?

Rob Parker 1860-06-30 -3,864 days

** CORRECT ** 1871-01-28

Stephen Perry 1871-01-31 +3
Dan Blum 1871-05-15 +107
Erland Sommarskog 1871-05-24 +116
Dan Tilque 1873-09-15 +961
Gareth Owen 1875-03-01 +1,493
Bruce Bowler 1876-07-04 +1,984

Rob Parker is eliminated. The war, which was the basis of much of the
enmity between the French and Germans in the two World Wars, took place
in 1870 and 1871.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | ... "reasonable system" is of course defined as
m...@vex.net | "any one *I've* ever used..." -- Steve Summit

[Mark Brader]

This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,

Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 6:

* When did the Parliament of England abolish the monarchy?

Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.
--

Mark Brader | "If you have to go in, you go in.
Toronto | The choice was made the day you took your oath."
m...@vex.net | --Dan Duddy, New York Fire Department

[Dan Blum]

Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,
> Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 6:

> * When did the Parliament of England abolish the monarchy?
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1652-04-30

[swp]

1649-05-31 (cromwell, right?)

swp

[Erland Sommarskog]

Mark Brader (m...@vex.net) writes:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,
> Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 6:
>
> * When did the Parliament of England abolish the monarchy?
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1605-10-05

[Bruce Bowler]

On Wed, 22 Jan 2014 11:51:11 -0600, Mark Brader wrote:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,
> Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 6:
>
> * When did the Parliament of England abolish the monarchy?
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

I thought they still had one :-) I suspect it's around Cromwell's time
(which I don't remember well, 'tis a wee bit before my time :-)

So I'll offer a SWAG 1650-07-04

[Gareth Owen]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,
> Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 6:
>
> * When did the Parliament of England abolish the monarchy?
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1642-07-01

[Dan Tilque]

Mark Brader wrote:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,
> Stephen Perry, Erland Sommarskog, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 6:
>
> * When did the Parliament of England abolish the monarchy?
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1628-10-01

[Mark Brader]

> * When did the Parliament of England abolish the monarchy?

Erland Sommarskog 1605-10-05 -15,869 days
Dan Tilque 1628-10-01 -7,472
Gareth Owen 1642-07-01 -2,451

** CORRECT ** 1649-03-17 (Julian)

Stephen Perry 1649-05-31 +75
Bruce Bowler 1650-07-04 +474
Dan Blum 1652-04-30 +1,140

Erland Sommarskog is eliminated.

It was called "An Act for the abolishing the Kingly Office in England
and Ireland, and the Dominions thereunto belonging." The throne was
vacant at the time: King Charles I had been condemned on 1649-01-27 and
executed on 1649-01-30, and in between those events, Parliament had
passed a law prohibiting anyone from claiming the succession without
their consent. On 1660-05-08, however, they issued, not a proclamation
*consenting* to Charles II becoming king, but one declaring that beyond
doubt he had *already been* king since the death of his father, and
another one inviting him to "make his speedy Return to his Parliament,
and to the Exercise of his Kingly Office". Take that, Parliament of 1649!

See:
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=56306 (1649-01-30)
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=56319 (1649-03-17)
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=26183#s2 (1660-05-08)

--
Mark Brader, Toronto Rocket, 1829: The first 30 mph train.
m...@vex.net TGV-A, 1989: The first 300 mph train.

[Mark Brader]

This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,

Stephen Perry, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 7:

* The biggest and deadliest volcanic eruption of the last thousand
years was not that of Krakatoa, but of another volcano in what is
now Indonesia, namely Tambora. It ejected tens of cubic miles
of dust into the upper atmoshere, where it spread around the
world and produced what was called "the year without a summer".
When did the principal explosive phase of the eruption begin?

Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.
--

Mark Brader, Toronto | "The only proven use of antimatter is the production
m...@vex.net | of Nobel Prizes in physics." -- Henry Spencer

[Erland Sommarskog]

Mark Brader (m...@vex.net) writes:
> Erland Sommarskog is eliminated.
>

English history is not my top subject. Which is needed in this crowd. (I
think was confused by an earlier question on Cromwell, where the answer
was close to what I give - but that was probably his birth!)

Permit me an observation: on this question all the anglophones were
fairly close. But the question about the Moors coming to Gibraltar had a
very wide distribution. Still, there is a fairly small period where it
could have happened. It must have been after Muhammed's death, and everyone
knows when that was - or? And reasonably, it must have taken a couple of
years for the Arabic conquest to reach that far.

On the other end, it must have been a couple of years before the battle of
Poitiers where the Moors were stopped from expanding from the Iberian
Peninsula. That year may not be equally well known, but I would expect
people to have some sense.

Oh well, off to the bookstore to get some books on English history!

[Bruce Bowler]

On Thu, 23 Jan 2014 03:40:30 -0600, Mark Brader wrote:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,
> Stephen Perry, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 7:
>
> * The biggest and deadliest volcanic eruption of the last thousand
> years was not that of Krakatoa, but of another volcano in what is now
> Indonesia, namely Tambora. It ejected tens of cubic miles of dust
> into the upper atmoshere, where it spread around the world and
> produced what was called "the year without a summer". When did the
> principal explosive phase of the eruption begin?
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1825-02-21

[swp]

1815-07-31

swp

[Gareth Owen]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:

> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,
> Stephen Perry, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 7:
>
> * The biggest and deadliest volcanic eruption of the last thousand
> years was not that of Krakatoa, but of another volcano in what is
> now Indonesia, namely Tambora. It ejected tens of cubic miles
> of dust into the upper atmoshere, where it spread around the
> world and produced what was called "the year without a summer".
> When did the principal explosive phase of the eruption begin?
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1889-4-17 <--- wild, wild guess

[Dan Blum]

Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,
> Stephen Perry, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 7:

> * The biggest and deadliest volcanic eruption of the last thousand
> years was not that of Krakatoa, but of another volcano in what is
> now Indonesia, namely Tambora. It ejected tens of cubic miles
> of dust into the upper atmoshere, where it spread around the
> world and produced what was called "the year without a summer".
> When did the principal explosive phase of the eruption begin?

> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1831-04-01

[Dan Tilque]

Mark Brader wrote:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Gareth Owen,
> Stephen Perry, and Dan Tilque. Here's Round 7:
>
> * The biggest and deadliest volcanic eruption of the last thousand
> years was not that of Krakatoa, but of another volcano in what is
> now Indonesia, namely Tambora. It ejected tens of cubic miles
> of dust into the upper atmoshere, where it spread around the
> world and produced what was called "the year without a summer".
> When did the principal explosive phase of the eruption begin?
>
> Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1815-03-27

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> * The biggest and deadliest volcanic eruption of the last thousand
> years was not that of Krakatoa, but of another volcano in what is
> now Indonesia, namely Tambora. It ejected tens of cubic miles
> of dust into the upper atmoshere, where it spread around the
> world and produced what was called "the year without a summer".
> When did the principal explosive phase of the eruption begin?

Dan Tilque 1815-03-27 -14 days

** CORRECT ** 1815-04-10

Stephen Perry 1815-07-31 +112
Bruce Bowler 1825-02-21 +3,605
Dan Blum 1831-04-01 +5,835
Gareth Owen 1889-04-17 +27,036

Gareth Owen is eliminated.

The "year without a summer" was 1816, at least in the Northern
Hemisphere. I haven't seen anything specific about the volcano's
climatic effects in the Southern Hemisphere.
--
Mark Brader | "I realised... at the traditional time --
Toronto | just after clicking on Send."
m...@vex.net | --Peter Duncanson

[Mark Brader]

This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Stephen Perry,
and Dan Tilque. Round 8 is another ending of a monarchy:

* When was the Russian monarchy ended by the abdication of Czar
Nicholas II? Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.
--
Mark Brader | Those who mourn for "USENET like it was" should
Toronto | remember the original design estimates of maximum
m...@vex.net | traffic volume: 2 articles/day. --Steven Bellovin

[Mark Brader]

Sorry, forgot to change the subject line. I'll repeat...

[Bruce Bowler]

On Fri, 24 Jan 2014 08:38:19 -0600, Mark Brader wrote:

> Sorry, forgot to change the subject line. I'll repeat...
>
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Stephen Perry,
> and Dan Tilque. Round 8 is another ending of a monarchy:
>
> * When was the Russian monarchy ended by the abdication of Czar
> Nicholas II? Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1920-09-15

[Dan Blum]

Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Stephen Perry,
> and Dan Tilque. Round 8 is another ending of a monarchy:

> * When was the Russian monarchy ended by the abdication of Czar
> Nicholas II? Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1917-11-30

[Gareth Owen]

m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:

> Stephen Perry 1815-07-31 +112
> Bruce Bowler 1825-02-21 +3,605
> Dan Blum 1831-04-01 +5,835
> Gareth Owen 1889-04-17 +27,036
>
> Gareth Owen is eliminated.

My ability to give a spectacularly-wrong-but-not-quite-the-worst answer
was always going to run out in the end...

[Dan Blum]

Don't think I don't appreciate it.

[swp]

1917-03-02 (anastasia screamed in vain)

swp

[Dan Tilque]

Mark Brader wrote:
> Sorry, forgot to change the subject line. I'll repeat...
>
> This contest is now open only to Dan Blum, Bruce Bowler, Stephen Perry,
> and Dan Tilque. Round 8 is another ending of a monarchy:
>
> * When was the Russian monarchy ended by the abdication of Czar
> Nicholas II? Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

1917-07-15

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> * When was the Russian monarchy ended by the abdication of Czar
> Nicholas II? Please give the date in the form YYYY-MM-DD.

** CORRECT ** 1917-03-02 (Julian)
Stephen Perry 1917-03-02

Dan Tilque 1917-07-15 +135 days
Dan Blum 1917-11-30 +273
Bruce Bowler 1920-09-15 +1,293

Bruce Bowler is eliminated. I thought someone might confuse the
events of February-March and October-November 1917 and go wrong by
a few months, but I was surprised to see the wrong year.

Well done to Stephen for giving the exact date for the third time
in this contest.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto "Remember the Golgafrinchans"
m...@vex.net -- Pete Granger

[Mark Brader]

We're winding down. This contest is now open only to Dan Blum,
Stephen Perry, and Dan Tilque. For Round 9, the Australia question:

* What is the first year when Europeans are known for certain to have
encountered the mainland of Australia?
--
Mark Brader | "How, you may ask, did the mind of man ever excogitate
Toronto | anything so false and foolish? The answer is that the
m...@vex.net | mind of man had nothing to do with it..." --A.E. Housman

[Dan Tilque]

Mark Brader wrote:
> We're winding down. This contest is now open only to Dan Blum,
> Stephen Perry, and Dan Tilque. For Round 9, the Australia question:
>
> * What is the first year when Europeans are known for certain to have
> encountered the mainland of Australia?

1662

[calvin]

On Sat, 25 Jan 2014 16:51:28 +1000, Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:

> We're winding down. This contest is now open only to Dan Blum,
> Stephen Perry, and Dan Tilque. For Round 9, the Australia question:
>
> * What is the first year when Europeans are known for certain to have
> encountered the mainland of Australia?

Yes, I know I can't play.

We were taught at school that it was 1606 (Willem Jansz) but so many
"facts" like this turn out to be wrong that I will be interested to see
your definitive answer.

--
cheers,
calvin

[Mark Brader]

"Calvin":

> We were taught at school that it was 1606 (Willem Jansz) but so many

> "facts" like this turn out to be wrong...

That's why I said "for certain". Earlier claims are disputed or
otherwise uncertain.
--
Mark Brader I "need to know" *everything*! How else
Toronto can I judge whether I need to know it?
m...@vex.net -- Lynn & Jay: YES, PRIME MINISTER

[swp]

1606 (de torres?)

swp

[Dan Blum]

Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:
> We're winding down. This contest is now open only to Dan Blum,
> Stephen Perry, and Dan Tilque. For Round 9, the Australia question:

> * What is the first year when Europeans are known for certain to have
> encountered the mainland of Australia?

1740-06-30

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> * What is the first year when Europeans are known for certain to have
> encountered the mainland of Australia?

** CORRECT ** 1606
Stephen Perry 1606

Dan Tilque 1662 +56
Dan Blum 1740-06-30 +134

Dan Blum, who has an interesting idea of naming a year, is eliminated.

The ship was the Duyfken, of the Dutch East India Co., under Captain
Willem Janszoon. A shore party landed on the Cape York Peninsula,
but were fought off by natives.
--
Mark Brader | In the face of such devastating logic as "despite
Toronto | what you say you mean, you must mean this and you
m...@vex.net | are wrong", I cede the territory. --Truly Donovan

[Mark Brader]

This round is between Stephen Perry and Dan Tilque.

* Calvin's KO #1 started with the sinking of the Titanic, and now
this contest will end with the same event. But this time your
question is: according to the official rated capacity of the
boats, how many people in total out of the over 2,200 on board
*could* have escaped the sinking?
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "I'm not going to post a revision: even USENET
m...@vex.net | readers can divide by 100." -- Brian Reid

[Dan Tilque]

Mark Brader wrote:
> This round is between Stephen Perry and Dan Tilque.
>
> * Calvin's KO #1 started with the sinking of the Titanic, and now
> this contest will end with the same event. But this time your
> question is: according to the official rated capacity of the
> boats, how many people in total out of the over 2,200 on board
> *could* have escaped the sinking?

696

[swp]

1122 (I've never won one of these, much less made it to the final round. I have been extremely fortunate in the question selection this time around.)

swp

[Mark Brader]

Mark Brader:

> This round is between Stephen Perry and Dan Tilque.

And if you've been following the previous rounds closely, you know
which one of them had to be the favorite to win. He modestly says
he's "been extremely fortunate in the question selection this time
around". What I say is hearty congratulations to STEPHEN PERRY!

> * Calvin's KO #1 started with the sinking of the Titanic, and now
> this contest will end with the same event. But this time your
> question is: according to the official rated capacity of the
> boats, how many people in total out of the over 2,200 on board
> *could* have escaped the sinking?

(Yes, I did ask a QFTCI question based on this fact in 2009.)

Dan Tilque 696 -482
Stephen Perry 1,122 -56

** CORRECT ** 1,178

14 of the lifeboats were rated for 65 people each and 2 for 40 each,
and the 4 collapsible boats were rated for 47 each.

The actual total number of survivors was about 705. As well as having
trouble persuading passengers to go into the lifeboats when the first
ones were being launched, many of the crew believed it was unsafe to
launch them fully loaded, and expected the boat crews to come back
to pick people up from the water. But most of the people in the
boats were afraid that if they did, they would become overloaded;
and, as shown in the 1997 movie, only one boat came back, and by
then it was too late anyway for most of the people in the water.

As for the collapsible boats, they were left until last and there
was only time to for two of them to be properly set up and launched;
the other two floated into the sea as they were, but at least some
people were able to survive using them.
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "Now that is good enough to save and
m...@vex.net | plagiarise elsewhere." --Paul Wolff

[Erland Sommarskog]

swp (Stephen...@gmail.com) writes:
> 1122 (I've never won one of these, much less made it to the final round.
> I have been extremely fortunate in the question selection this time
> around.)
>

Bah! Last time the subject was history, I lost the final against you.

Thanks Mark for running a fun competition! But next time, change English
history to Swedish history. :-)


--
Erland Sommarskog, Stockholm, esq...@sommarskog.se