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Rotating Quiz #256

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Mark Brader

unread,
May 16, 2017, 4:18:52 AM5/16/17
to
This is Rotating Quiz #256. I'd like to thank Calvin for running
RQ 255 and for choosing a theme that helped enable me to win.
The winner of this contest, in turn, will be the first choice to
set RQ 257.

As usual, please answer only from your own knowledge and post all
your answers to the newsgroup in a single posting, quoting the
questions you are answering and placing your answers below each one.

You have 5 days to enter from the moment of posting, which
gives you until just about 4:15 AM Toronto time (zone -4) on
Sunday, April 21, 2017.

Nothing fancy here, just 10 questions, 2 each in 5 categories.
1 point each. In case of a tie, the first tiebreaker will be who
scored in the most categories, the second tiebreaker will be who
scored on the hardest questions, and the third tiebreaker will be
who posted first.


* Science

1. This is Rotating Quiz 256. List *all* the ways to express the
number 256 as an integer raised to an integer power. (Please use
the ^ notation, e.g. 81 is 3^4, meaning 3 to the 4th power.)

2. Give the metric equivalent value of the "horsepower" unit
traditionally used in English-speaking countries. Answers must
be accurate to 3 significant digits.


* Literature

3. According to a verse in "The Lord of the Rings", a part of
which is concealed on the One Ring that the story focuses on,
how many rings of power did Sauron create altogether?

4. "The Power Broker" is a biography by Robert Caro, about which
highly influential New Yorker?


* Government

5. The same sentence appears almost identically, varying only in
the use of the word "the", in 6 places in the US Constitution
-- as the last sentence of each of the 13th, 15th, 19th, 23rd,
24th, and 26th Amendments. What does it say? (Answers must
be close, but not necessarily exact.)

6. In British politics, what term is used for the transfer of
powers from the UK government to lower level of government?


* Sports

7. Which Australian city (or other place) has a football team
known as the Power?

8. During this man's NHL career from 1982 to 2006, he scored 274
goals on power plays -- a record that still stands. He played
with Buffalo for 10 seasons, then Toronto, then New Jersey and
other teams. Name him.


* Movies

9. In "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery", Dr. Evil
announces to his henchmen his plan to hijack a nuclear weapon
and hold the world hostage for how much money? And then, when
advised that a larger amount might be better, how much does he
decide to change his demand to? Give both numbers.

10. In which movie, based on a David Baldacci novel, does Clint
Eastwood play Luther Whitney, a thief who witnesses the US
president committing a crime?

--
Mark Brader | "We didn't just track down that bug,
Toronto | we left evidence of its extermination
m...@vex.net | as a warning to other bugs" --Dan Lyke

My text in this article is in the public domain.

Dan Blum

unread,
May 16, 2017, 8:24:04 AM5/16/17
to
Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:

> * Science

> 1. This is Rotating Quiz 256. List *all* the ways to express the
> number 256 as an integer raised to an integer power. (Please use
> the ^ notation, e.g. 81 is 3^4, meaning 3 to the 4th power.)

2^8
-2^8
4^4
-4^4
16^2
-16^2
256^1

> * Literature

> 3. According to a verse in "The Lord of the Rings", a part of
> which is concealed on the One Ring that the story focuses on,
> how many rings of power did Sauron create altogether?

20

> 4. "The Power Broker" is a biography by Robert Caro, about which
> highly influential New Yorker?

Robert Moses

> * Government

> 6. In British politics, what term is used for the transfer of
> powers from the UK government to lower level of government?

devolution

> * Sports

> 7. Which Australian city (or other place) has a football team
> known as the Power?

Perth

> * Movies

> 9. In "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery", Dr. Evil
> announces to his henchmen his plan to hijack a nuclear weapon
> and hold the world hostage for how much money? And then, when
> advised that a larger amount might be better, how much does he
> decide to change his demand to? Give both numbers.

one million dollars & one billion dollars

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

Marc Dashevsky

unread,
May 16, 2017, 12:44:17 PM5/16/17
to
In article <75qdnb14r9J6KIfE...@giganews.com>, m...@vex.net says...
> * Science
>
> 1. This is Rotating Quiz 256. List *all* the ways to express the
> number 256 as an integer raised to an integer power. (Please use
> the ^ notation, e.g. 81 is 3^4, meaning 3 to the 4th power.)
2^8
4^4
16^2
256^1

>
> 2. Give the metric equivalent value of the "horsepower" unit
> traditionally used in English-speaking countries. Answers must
> be accurate to 3 significant digits.
>
>
> * Literature
>
> 3. According to a verse in "The Lord of the Rings", a part of
> which is concealed on the One Ring that the story focuses on,
> how many rings of power did Sauron create altogether?
1 + 3 + 7 + 9 = 20
Replace "usenet" with "marc" in the e-mail address.

Peter Smyth

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May 16, 2017, 3:10:16 PM5/16/17
to
Mark Brader wrote:

> This is Rotating Quiz #256. I'd like to thank Calvin for running
> RQ 255 and for choosing a theme that helped enable me to win.
> The winner of this contest, in turn, will be the first choice to
> set RQ 257.
>
> As usual, please answer only from your own knowledge and post all
> your answers to the newsgroup in a single posting, quoting the
> questions you are answering and placing your answers below each one.
>
> You have 5 days to enter from the moment of posting, which
> gives you until just about 4:15 AM Toronto time (zone -4) on
> Sunday, April 21, 2017.
>
> Nothing fancy here, just 10 questions, 2 each in 5 categories.
> 1 point each. In case of a tie, the first tiebreaker will be who
> scored in the most categories, the second tiebreaker will be who
> scored on the hardest questions, and the third tiebreaker will be
> who posted first.
>
>
> * Science
>
> 1. This is Rotating Quiz 256. List all the ways to express the
> number 256 as an integer raised to an integer power. (Please use
> the ^ notation, e.g. 81 is 3^4, meaning 3 to the 4th power.)
2^8, 4^4, 16^2, 256^1

> 2. Give the metric equivalent value of the "horsepower" unit
> traditionally used in English-speaking countries. Answers must
> be accurate to 3 significant digits.
>
>
> * Literature
>
> 3. According to a verse in "The Lord of the Rings", a part of
> which is concealed on the One Ring that the story focuses on,
> how many rings of power did Sauron create altogether?
20
> 4. "The Power Broker" is a biography by Robert Caro, about which
> highly influential New Yorker?
>
>
> * Government
>
> 5. The same sentence appears almost identically, varying only in
> the use of the word "the", in 6 places in the US Constitution
> -- as the last sentence of each of the 13th, 15th, 19th, 23rd,
> 24th, and 26th Amendments. What does it say? (Answers must
> be close, but not necessarily exact.)
This amendment will lapse unless ratified within seven years
> 6. In British politics, what term is used for the transfer of
> powers from the UK government to lower level of government?
Devolution
>
> * Sports
>
> 7. Which Australian city (or other place) has a football team
> known as the Power?
Melbourne
> 8. During this man's NHL career from 1982 to 2006, he scored 274
> goals on power plays -- a record that still stands. He played
> with Buffalo for 10 seasons, then Toronto, then New Jersey and
> other teams. Name him.
>
>
> * Movies
>
> 9. In "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery", Dr. Evil
> announces to his henchmen his plan to hijack a nuclear weapon
> and hold the world hostage for how much money? And then, when
> advised that a larger amount might be better, how much does he
> decide to change his demand to? Give both numbers.
>
> 10. In which movie, based on a David Baldacci novel, does Clint
> Eastwood play Luther Whitney, a thief who witnesses the US
> president committing a crime?


Peter Smyth

Calvin

unread,
May 16, 2017, 6:55:42 PM5/16/17
to
On Tuesday, May 16, 2017 at 6:18:52 PM UTC+10, Mark Brader wrote:

> * Science
>
> 1. This is Rotating Quiz 256. List *all* the ways to express the
> number 256 as an integer raised to an integer power. (Please use
> the ^ notation, e.g. 81 is 3^4, meaning 3 to the 4th power.)

2^8, 4^4, 16^2, 256^1

> 2. Give the metric equivalent value of the "horsepower" unit
> traditionally used in English-speaking countries. Answers must
> be accurate to 3 significant digits.

Watts?
How can a unit have a value?

> * Literature
>
> 3. According to a verse in "The Lord of the Rings", a part of
> which is concealed on the One Ring that the story focuses on,
> how many rings of power did Sauron create altogether?

3

> 4. "The Power Broker" is a biography by Robert Caro, about which
> highly influential New Yorker?

Bloomberg?

> * Government
>
> 5. The same sentence appears almost identically, varying only in
> the use of the word "the", in 6 places in the US Constitution
> -- as the last sentence of each of the 13th, 15th, 19th, 23rd,
> 24th, and 26th Amendments. What does it say? (Answers must
> be close, but not necessarily exact.)

Congress has no authority to ...

> 6. In British politics, what term is used for the transfer of
> powers from the UK government to lower level of government?

Devolution

> * Sports
>
> 7. Which Australian city (or other place) has a football team
> known as the Power?

Adelaide

> 8. During this man's NHL career from 1982 to 2006, he scored 274
> goals on power plays -- a record that still stands. He played
> with Buffalo for 10 seasons, then Toronto, then New Jersey and
> other teams. Name him.
>
>
> * Movies
>
> 9. In "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery", Dr. Evil
> announces to his henchmen his plan to hijack a nuclear weapon
> and hold the world hostage for how much money? And then, when
> advised that a larger amount might be better, how much does he
> decide to change his demand to? Give both numbers.
>
> 10. In which movie, based on a David Baldacci novel, does Clint
> Eastwood play Luther Whitney, a thief who witnesses the US
> president committing a crime?


cheers,
calvin


Dan Tilque

unread,
May 17, 2017, 4:03:05 AM5/17/17
to
Mark Brader wrote:
>
>
> * Science
>
> 1. This is Rotating Quiz 256. List *all* the ways to express the
> number 256 as an integer raised to an integer power. (Please use
> the ^ notation, e.g. 81 is 3^4, meaning 3 to the 4th power.)

2^8 4^4 16^2 256^1

>
> 2. Give the metric equivalent value of the "horsepower" unit
> traditionally used in English-speaking countries. Answers must
> be accurate to 3 significant digits.

745 watts

>
>
> * Literature
>
> 3. According to a verse in "The Lord of the Rings", a part of
> which is concealed on the One Ring that the story focuses on,
> how many rings of power did Sauron create altogether?

one.

(The other 19 were created by elves in Eregion, albeit with his
assistance. And the verse doesn't say who created them, just who got how
many.)

>
> 4. "The Power Broker" is a biography by Robert Caro, about which
> highly influential New Yorker?
>
>
> * Government
>
> 5. The same sentence appears almost identically, varying only in
> the use of the word "the", in 6 places in the US Constitution
> -- as the last sentence of each of the 13th, 15th, 19th, 23rd,
> 24th, and 26th Amendments. What does it say? (Answers must
> be close, but not necessarily exact.)
>
> 6. In British politics, what term is used for the transfer of
> powers from the UK government to lower level of government?

devolution

>
>
> * Sports
>
> 7. Which Australian city (or other place) has a football team
> known as the Power?
>
> 8. During this man's NHL career from 1982 to 2006, he scored 274
> goals on power plays -- a record that still stands. He played
> with Buffalo for 10 seasons, then Toronto, then New Jersey and
> other teams. Name him.
>
>
> * Movies
>
> 9. In "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery", Dr. Evil
> announces to his henchmen his plan to hijack a nuclear weapon
> and hold the world hostage for how much money? And then, when
> advised that a larger amount might be better, how much does he
> decide to change his demand to? Give both numbers.
>
> 10. In which movie, based on a David Baldacci novel, does Clint
> Eastwood play Luther Whitney, a thief who witnesses the US
> president committing a crime?
>


--
Dan Tilque

Gareth Owen

unread,
May 17, 2017, 2:40:32 PM5/17/17
to
m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:

> 1. This is Rotating Quiz 256. List *all* the ways to express the
> number 256 as an integer raised to an integer power. (Please use
> the ^ notation, e.g. 81 is 3^4, meaning 3 to the 4th power.)

2^8 4^4 16^2 256^1

> * Literature
>
> 3. According to a verse in "The Lord of the Rings", a part of
> which is concealed on the One Ring that the story focuses on,
> how many rings of power did Sauron create altogether?

Three rings for Elven lords, under the sky
Seven for dwarf lords in their
Nine rings for mortal men doomed to die
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the land of Mordor, where the shadows lie

Which would be twenty, except Sauron didn't help make the Elven rings,
those were made by Celebrimbor alone, which is why they were hidden from
Sauron and he had no power over them.

So seventeen.

> 4. "The Power Broker" is a biography by Robert Caro, about which
> highly influential New Yorker?

Donald Trump

> * Government
>
> 5. The same sentence appears almost identically, varying only in
> the use of the word "the", in 6 places in the US Constitution
> -- as the last sentence of each of the 13th, 15th, 19th, 23rd,
> 24th, and 26th Amendments. What does it say? (Answers must
> be close, but not necessarily exact.)

Something about Congress being empowered to enforce the amendment

> 6. In British politics, what term is used for the transfer of
> powers from the UK government to lower level of government?

Subsidiarity (not a word that crops up anymore, but in the 90s it was
all the rage, along with Quango)

> * Sports
>
> 7. Which Australian city (or other place) has a football team
> known as the Power?

Perth

> 8. During this man's NHL career from 1982 to 2006, he scored 274
> goals on power plays -- a record that still stands. He played
> with Buffalo for 10 seasons, then Toronto, then New Jersey and
> other teams. Name him.

Darrien Hatcher (thats wrong, 'cause he was a Penguin for a while)

> * Movies
>
> 9. In "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery", Dr. Evil
> announces to his henchmen his plan to hijack a nuclear weapon
> and hold the world hostage for how much money? And then, when
> advised that a larger amount might be better, how much does he
> decide to change his demand to? Give both numbers.

One Million Dollars! One Billion Dollars!

> 10. In which movie, based on a David Baldacci novel, does Clint
> Eastwood play Luther Whitney, a thief who witnesses the US
> president committing a crime?

Nope

Dan Tilque

unread,
May 18, 2017, 1:26:13 AM5/18/17
to
Gareth Owen wrote:
> m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) writes:

>> 3. According to a verse in "The Lord of the Rings", a part of
>> which is concealed on the One Ring that the story focuses on,
>> how many rings of power did Sauron create altogether?
>
> Three rings for Elven lords, under the sky
> Seven for dwarf lords in their

halls of stone

> Nine rings for mortal men doomed to die
> One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
> In the land of Mordor, where the shadows lie
>
> Which would be twenty, except Sauron didn't help make the Elven rings,
> those were made by Celebrimbor alone, which is why they were hidden from
> Sauron and he had no power over them.
>
> So seventeen.

Just checked the section of the Simarillion on the Rings and it says:

"In those days, the smiths of Ost-in-Edhil surpassed all they had
contrived before; and they took thought, and they made Rings of Power.
But Sauron guided their labours, and he was aware of all they did; for
his desire was to set a bond upon the Elves and bring them under his
vigilance.
"Now the Elves made many rings; but secretly Sauron made the One Ring to
rule all the others, ..."

As for the Three:

"Therefore the Three remain unsullied, for they were made by Celebrimbor
alone, and the hand of Sauron had never touched them; yet they also were
subject to the One."

I could see either one or seventeen as legitimate answers here. Or even
twenty, since that's the count from the verse. Tough call.

--
Dan Tilque

Mark Brader

unread,
May 20, 2017, 4:00:10 PM5/20/17
to
If you have not entered RQ 256, as I post this you have about 12 hours
left to do it in.
--
Mark Brader | "Don't get me wrong, perl is an OK operating system,
Toronto | but it lacks a lightweight scripting language."
m...@vex.net | -- Walter Dnes

Mark Brader

unread,
May 21, 2017, 7:47:10 PM5/21/17
to
Sorry, I'm a bit slow posting this.

Mark Brader:
> Nothing fancy here, just 10 questions, 2 each in 5 categories.
> 1 point each. In case of a tie...

No tiebreakers needed: DAN BLUM has won this contest outright.
Hearty congratulations!


> * Science

> 1. This is Rotating Quiz 256. List *all* the ways to express the
> number 256 as an integer raised to an integer power. (Please use
> the ^ notation, e.g. 81 is 3^4, meaning 3 to the 4th power.)

There are seven: (ą2)^8, (ą4)^4, (ą16)^2, 256^1. 1 for Dan Blum.

Confession: when I asked the question, I'd forgotten that answers
where the base of exponentiation is negative were possible. But you
all should have known it, too. Dan Blum was the only one to show
that he did.

> 2. Give the metric equivalent value of the "horsepower" unit
> traditionally used in English-speaking countries. Answers must
> be accurate to 3 significant digits.

745.6999 W. 1 for Dan Tilque.


> * Literature

> 3. According to a verse in "The Lord of the Rings", a part of
> which is concealed on the One Ring that the story focuses on,
> how many rings of power did Sauron create altogether?

See below. 1 for Dan Blum, Marc, Peter, Dan Tilque, and Gareth.

Worse confession: Posting in a hurry after my unexpected win on the
previous RQ, I wrote this question without bothering to go downstairs
and look at the verse in its original context in the book. The verse
*mentions* 20 rings (9 for "mortal men", 7 for "dwarf-lords", 3 for
"elven-kings", and one for himself). But as Dan Tilque was the first
to point out, it *does not say* who created them. And while Sauron
was *responsible* for their creation, the only one he created
personally was the one for himself. I have decided to accept either
the answer 20, or 1, or any answer indicating some knowledge of the
above facts of the story.

> 4. "The Power Broker" is a biography by Robert Caro, about which
> highly influential New Yorker?

Robert Moses. 1 for Dan Blum.


> * Government

> 5. The same sentence appears almost identically, varying only in
> the use of the word "the", in 6 places in the US Constitution
> -- as the last sentence of each of the 13th, 15th, 19th, 23rd,
> 24th, and 26th Amendments. What does it say? (Answers must
> be close, but not necessarily exact.)

(The) Congress shall have (the) power to enforce this article by
appropriate legislation. 1 for Gareth (barely).

> 6. In British politics, what term is used for the transfer of
> powers from the UK government to lower level of government?

Devolution. 1 for Dan Blum, Peter, Calvin, and Dan Tilque.


> * Sports

> 7. Which Australian city (or other place) has a football team
> known as the Power?

Port Adelaide.

Yes, that's part of greater Adelaide, but that's why I said "or other
place". The team specifically identifies itself with Port Adelaide.
So no point for Adelaide.

> 8. During this man's NHL career from 1982 to 2006, he scored 274
> goals on power plays -- a record that still stands. He played
> with Buffalo for 10 seasons, then Toronto, then New Jersey and
> other teams. Name him.

Dave Andreychuk.


> * Movies

> 9. In "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery", Dr. Evil
> announces to his henchmen his plan to hijack a nuclear weapon
> and hold the world hostage for how much money? And then, when
> advised that a larger amount might be better, how much does he
> decide to change his demand to? Give both numbers.

$1,000,000; $100,000,000,000.

> 10. In which movie, based on a David Baldacci novel, does Clint
> Eastwood play Luther Whitney, a thief who witnesses the US
> president committing a crime?

"Absolute Power".

And of course the not-very-hidden theme, inspired by the contest
number, was "power".


Scores, if there are no errors:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 TOTALS

Dan Blum 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 4
Dan Tilque 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 3
Gareth Owen 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2
Peter Smyth 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2
"Calvin" 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
Marc Dashevsky 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

1 1 5 1 1 4 0 0 0 0

Dan Blum, please start Rotating Quiz #257 at your earleist convenience.
--
Mark Brader | "Nothing is more sacrosanct than our professional ethics.
Toronto | Fortunately, I know a trick to get around them."
m...@vex.net | --Niles Crane, "Frasier" (Ranberg & Flett-Giordano)

Calvin

unread,
May 21, 2017, 8:01:43 PM5/21/17
to
On Monday, May 22, 2017 at 9:47:10 AM UTC+10, Mark Brader wrote:

> > 7. Which Australian city (or other place) has a football team
> > known as the Power?
>
> Port Adelaide.
>
> Yes, that's part of greater Adelaide, but that's why I said "or other
> place". The team specifically identifies itself with Port Adelaide.
> So no point for Adelaide.

Doesn't the "or" imply there are (at least) two acceptable answers?

cheers,
calvin

Mark Brader

unread,
May 21, 2017, 9:35:59 PM5/21/17
to
Mark Brader:
>>> 7. Which Australian city (or other place) has a football team
>>> known as the Power?

"Calvin":
> Doesn't the "or" imply there are (at least) two acceptable answers?

No, it allows for there being teams not named after cities. For
example, the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
--
Mark Brader | "Europe contains a great many cathedrals, which were
Toronto | caused by the Middle Ages, which means they are very old,
m...@vex.net | so you have to take color slide photographs of them."
| -- Dave Barry

gwo...@gmail.com

unread,
May 22, 2017, 4:36:20 AM5/22/17
to
On Monday, May 22, 2017 at 12:47:10 AM UTC+1, Mark Brader wrote:

> > 6. In British politics, what term is used for the transfer of
> > powers from the UK government to lower level of government?
>
> Devolution. 1 for Dan Blum, Peter, Calvin, and Dan Tilque.

Appeal! Devolution tends to be used for specifics to the Scottish, Welsh, Irish and London Assemblies - though its sometimes used more generally. (I'm not saying its wrong in this context).

Derogation of powers from central government to lower levels was known as subsidiarity before those assemblies existed. (It was such a big issue in the late-80s and early-90s that John Major got it codified in the EU's Maastricht Treaty - it was a UK thing before it became an EU thing).

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-29924803
http://www.dictionary.com/browse/subsidiarity
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subsidiarity

Mark Brader

unread,
May 22, 2017, 5:19:32 AM5/22/17
to
Mark Brader:
> > > 6. In British politics, what term is used for the transfer of
> > > powers from the UK government to lower level of government?
> >
> > Devolution. 1 for Dan Blum, Peter, Calvin, and Dan Tilque.

Gareth Owen:
> Appeal! Devolution tends to be used for specifics to the Scottish,
> Welsh, Irish and London Assemblies - though its sometimes used more
> generally. (I'm not saying its wrong in this context).

I've certainly seen it used more generally.

> Derogation of powers from central government to lower levels was known
> as subsidiarity before those assemblies existed..

Never heard of it before. However, a dictionary check -- and also the
pages linked -- show that it refers, not to the actual transfer of powers
that I described, but to the principle that they *should* be transferred
whenever possible. Close, but not the same thing.
--
Mark Brader | "Red lights are not my concern.
Toronto | I am a driver, not a policeman."
m...@vex.net | --statement made after collision, 1853

gwo...@gmail.com

unread,
May 22, 2017, 7:04:40 AM5/22/17
to
On Monday, May 22, 2017 at 10:19:32 AM UTC+1, Mark Brader wrote:
> > Derogation of powers from central government to lower levels was known
> > as subsidiarity before those assemblies existed..
>
> Never heard of it before. However, a dictionary check -- and also the
> pages linked -- show that it refers, not to the actual transfer of powers
> that I described, but to the principle that they *should* be transferred
> whenever possible. Close, but not the same thing.
> --

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Dan Blum

unread,
May 22, 2017, 11:18:03 PM5/22/17
to
Mark Brader <m...@vex.net> wrote:
> Sorry, I'm a bit slow posting this.

> Mark Brader:
> > Nothing fancy here, just 10 questions, 2 each in 5 categories.
> > 1 point each. In case of a tie...

> No tiebreakers needed: DAN BLUM has won this contest outright.
> Hearty congratulations!

Thanks. I'll have #257 up tomorrow.
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