VETO 2003 Pack: “All Your Base Are Belong To Us”
Team Kurt Busiek’s Atro City
TOSSUPS
1. This theory was advanced by J. J. Becher in the late 17th century and popularized by G. E. Stahl. It postulates that in all flammable materials, there exists a substance that is without colour, odour, taste or weight. FTP, name this theory that received strong support until it was refuted by Antoine Lavoisier, who revealed the true nature of combustion.
Answer: Phlogiston (Theory)
2. Interested in the weather, he kept daily records from 1787 and wrote Meteorlogical Observations and Essays in 1793. Colourblind, he investigated the condition in 1794. This inherited defect in perception of red and green colours was named after him. FTP, name this English scientist who published A New System of Chemical Philosophy, helping to revive the atomic theory.
Answer: John DALTON
3. The French mathematician Hermite proved in 1873 that it is transcendental. It is the base of Naperian logarithms. Never as famous as PI, this irrational number is approximately equal
to 2.71828. FTP, name this number, also known as Euler's (OIL-erz) number.
Answer: e
4. It won the 1988 Eisner Awards for Best Finite Series, and Best Graphic Album. Characters in this work include Ozymandias, Rorshach and The Night Owl. It also shares the name of a Canadian band whose members include Danny Greaves, Joey Serlin, and Sammy Kohn. FTP, Along with Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns, this graphic novel by Alan Moore defined the gritty postmodern comic book movement of the 1980s.
Answer: WATCHMEN
5. Originally conceived as a graphic novel, it was nevertheless first
published as a book in 1992. This book suggested that the four things Americans did better than anyone else were: "music, movies, microcode and pizza delivery." Characters in this novel include Vitaly Chernobyl, Uncle Enzo, and Hiro Protagonist. FTP, name this cyberpunk novel written by Neal Stephenson.
Answer: SNOW CRASH
6. He has directed nearly 50 music videos, including Sugar Ray’s “Every Morning”, Smash Mouth’s “All Star”, and The Offspring’s “Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)”. Along with John Mcnamara, he created and executive-produced the television series “Fastlane”. Following the cancellation of “Fastlane”, he created a new series called “The O.C.” FTP, name this director of “Charlie’s Angels 2: Full Throttle”.
Answer: McG
7. In 1900, an earlier incarnation of this company produced Canada's first phonograph. Since its founding in 1895, it has grown to serve customers in 150 countries, but remains headquartered in Brampton, Ontario. FTP, give the current name of the company that started out as Northern Electric and Manufacturing Company Limited.
Answer: Nortel Networks
8. Founded in 1795 as a Hudson's Bay Company Trading Post, this city's population was surpassed in the 2001 census by that of another city in the same province, leaving it as Canada's 6th largest. Despite this, it remains the provincial capital. FTP, name this home of Canada's largest shopping mall.
Answer: Edmonton
9. This ancient Chinese school of thought became the official state
philosophy under the Qin [“chin”] dynasty. During later dynasties, it was largely replaced by Confucianism, but the influence of its emphasis on a clear code of laws backed up by severe punishments never entirely
disappeared. FTP, name this school of political philosophy that stressed the rule of law over the rule of man.
Answer: Legalism
10. A hotel bartender by the name of Ngiam Tong Boon is credited with the invention of this cocktail around 1915. Based on gin, its other ingredients include cherry brandy, Benedictine, grenadine and club soda. FTP, name this drink that originated at the Raffles Hotel in Singapore.
Answer: Singapore Sling
11. It shares its name with the alter ego of the Marvel Comics character Cain Marko. Its name is a corruption of Jaganatha, an incarnation of Vishnu. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines it as a "massive inexorable force, campaign, movement, or object that crushes whatever is in its path". FTP, name this statue that is dragged annually around the city of Puri in eastern Central India.
Answer: JUGGERNAUT
12. This season-related phrase, depending on how it's spelled, could be the title of a 1994 novel by Lev Raphael, the title of a song cycle by Franz Schubert or something that you might do to your cottage.
Answer: Winter Eyes or Wintereise or Winterize
13. This ailment was called “the Neapolitan disease” by the French, “the Spanish disease” by the Italians, and “the Christian disease” by the Arabs. It progresses through primary, secondary, latent and tertiary phases. Though it is no longer infectious in the final phase, it can be deadly as lesions develop on the skin, bones and vital organs. FTP, name this sexually transmitted disease that infected both Al Capone and Paul Gaugin.
Answer: Syphilis
14. Mentioned throughout the Boney M song “Rivers of Babylon”, this name is sometimes used to refer to an idealized community, or utopia. Alternatively, it can refer to the Jewish people, to a place regarded as sacredly devoted to God, or to Israel. FTP, what name is shared by a citadel in Palestine and the birthplace of Tank in the movie “The Matrix”?
Answer: ZION
15. Used in the plural, it refers informally to a pair of dice. It describes material that is dense and semirigid, yet porous. It shares its name with the title character of an Eisner-award-winning comic book created by Jeff Smith. FTP, name this calcified connective tissue forming the major portion of the skeleton of most vertebrates.
Answer: BONE
16. Born in Britain in the 1790s, he entered the British army in 1813, eventually being promoted to Inspector-General of Hospitals. When he died in 1865, after forty years of distinguished service--including, ostensibly, the first Caesarian section in the English-speaking world--it was discovered that he was, in fact, a woman. This probably explained the allegations of homosexuality. FTP, name this first female physician in Canada.
Answer: James Miranda Stuart BARRY
17. This symphony, written in 1803 and first performed in Vienna in 1805, was, at the time, the longest ever written. Its second movement, a funeral march, appears in the soundtrack of the original Civilization computer game. FTP, name this symphony dedicated to Napoleon Bonaparte, whose original title means “heroic”.
Answer: Eroica or Beethoven's 3rd symphony
18. These animals are sometimes mistakenly diagnosed with constipation because their normal bowel movements are a main cylindrical formation made up of multiple, smaller fecal balls. Most of these exotic pets are black, but some are completely white. As omnivores, they are prone to eating many types of objects, including plastic milk containers, socks, and rugs. FTP, what animals were named Vogue magazine’s “Pet of the Month” in 1990?
Answer: POTBELLIED PIGS (prompt on “pigs”)
19. Conclusively linked to seven murders, this serial killer claimed to have killed 37. He operated in the San Francisco Bay Area in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, and has never been identified. He mailed more than 20 letters and cryptograms to police and newspapers, signing some of them with a crossed circle. FTP, name this killer whose name also refers to the set of 12 astrological signs.
Answer: The ZODIAC
20. An election was held last Wednesday in Edmonton. The incumbent was Matthew Coon Come, and the other candidates were Phil Fontaine and Roberta Jamieson. None of the three candidates earned the 60% voting share required to win the election, so a second vote was held between the top two candidates to determine the winner. FTP, name the position won by Fontaine at the 24th annual general assembly of the Assembly of First Nations.
Answer: NATIONAL CHIEF or GRAND CHIEF
21. This 19th century leader was born on May 13, 1792 in Sinigaglia, Italy. He was elected head of state on June 16, 1846 and continued to hold office until his death in 1878 despite the fact that his country ceased to exist in 1870. Although he never set foot in Canada, there is a major street in Montreal that bears his name. FTP, name this pope responsible for the First Vatican Council and the Declaration of Papal Infallibility.
Answer: Pius IX or Pio Nonno or Pie Neuf or Giovanni Maria Mastai-Farretti
22. This homophone, depending on how it is spelled, can signify any of the following things: the only piece in Chinese chess that can leap over other pieces; a make of office equipment; or the sort of law that governs the Catholic Church. FTP, give this title of an overplayed piece of music by Johann Pachelbel.
Answer: Can(n)on
23. This celebrated Latin writer was born in the town of Sulmona on the 20th of March, 43 B.C. Having offended Emperor Augustus with his scurrilous verses, he was exiled in A.D. 8 to what is now Rumania, and died there nine or ten years later. FTP, name this author of The Art of Love and the Metamorphoses.
Answer: Ovid or Publius Ovidius Naso
24. One of five sons, this man was born to a humble Yorkshire family in 1837—appropriately enough, the year Queen Victoria came to the throne. At the age of 11, he walked 165 miles to London and went to work as a plumber. Although his claim to fame is generally attributed to Alexander Cumming instead, many people like to believe the urban legend. FTP, name this man, who will forever be joked about as the inventor of the flush toilet.
Answer: Thomas CRAPPER
25. FAQTP, how many countries would I pass through if I were to walk in a straight line from Georgetown Guiana to Montevideo, crossing the Guiana highlands, the Amazon basin, and the Mato Grosso Plateau, walking along the Paraguay river, through the Entre Rios plain, and, finally, across the Uruguay river?
Answer: FIVE (Guiana, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina and Uruguay)
26. This American writer was born on Long Island in 1819, and died in Camden, New Jersey in 1892. Bill Clinton presented a copy of his most famous collection to Monica Lewinsky as a gift. His poetry had earlier been popularized in the Robin Williams movie Dead Poets' Society. FTP, name this author of such archetypal American poems as “O Captain! My Captain!”
Answer: Walt Whitman
BONUSES
Note: Bonus question #7 is a MULTIMEDIA question: pictures are on the last page.
1. 30-20-10, name the name.
For 30 points: In the comic book series The Authority, this name is given to an organic pyramidal structure about the size of the moon.
For 20 points: In the television series Fastlane, this name is given to the part-Comanche cop-killer who fights Deaq [“DEEK”] in the episodes “Defense” and “Offense”.
For 10 points: In Christianity, this name is given to the creator of the universe, and the father of Jesus Christ.
Answer: GOD
2. Given the description, name the book. 10 points each, 5 if you need the author.
a) For 10 points: This 1930 children’s book tells the adventure of John, Susan, Titty, and Roger, who sail to an island to go camping by themselves.
For 5 points: by Arthur Ransome
Answer: SWALLOWS AND AMAZONS
b) For 10 points: This 1975 book details the author’s investigations into Transcendental Meditation, Rolfing, experimental drugs, alpha states, and mental practices around the world.
For 5 points: by Adam Smith
Answer: POWERS OF MIND
c) For 10 points: this 1971 counterculture urban handbook contains the chapters “Free Dope”, “Steal Now, Pay Never”, and “Fuck New York”, and is available free on the Web.
For 5 points: by Abbie Hoffman
Answer: STEAL THIS BOOK
3. In 1990, the editors of Prevention Magazine Health Books published The Doctors Book of Home Remedies. Given the home remedy suggested by the book, name the health problem for which the remedy is recommended, for 10 points each.
e.g. Remedy: Run the vacuum cleaner
Problem it solves: Infantile COLIC or CRYING BABY
a) Remedy: Blowing your nose
Problem it solves: NOSEBLEED
b) Remedy: Sexual intercourse
Problem it solves: HOT FLASHES
c) Remedy: Laughing
Problem it solves: CONSTIPATION
4. Given the description, name the figure from Celtic mythology for 10 points each.
a) The fairest woman in the world, she was conjured out of blossoms by Math and Gwydion. She betrayed her husband for another man, and was turned into an owl.
Answer: BLODEUEDD
b) Also known as Templeisen and the Perfect Fool, this pure and innocent knight became Grail King, heading the Order of Grail Knights.
Answer: PERCIVAL or PERCEVAL or PARSIFAL
c) Originally a biblical figure, this “bishop already dead for more than three hundred years” offered the Holy Grail to Sir Galahad.
Answer: JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA
5. FTP each, name the computer data structures from the following descriptions:
a) A list wherein the last item in will be the first item out
Answer: Stack
b) A kind of balanced search tree wherein a node with n keys will have n+1 children
Answer: B-Tree
c) A binary search tree wherein every node is designated as red or black, every leaf is lack, every red node has 2 black children and every direct path from a given node to a leaf below contains the same number of black nodes.
Answer: Red-Black Tree
6. FTPE, name the following wine varietals:
a) This red wine grape is grown mainly in the Rhone valley of France as well as in Australia and California. Its name is derived from that of a city in the
Zagros mountains of Iran.
Answer: Shiraz or Syrah
b) This grape, grown only in California, produces noticeably sweet wines especially in its white form.
Answer: Zinfandel
c) This classic red wine grape first gained popularity in the Bordeaux region in the 1700s. It is best paired with lamb, beef and other red meat dishes.
Answer: Cabernet Sauvignon
7. [NOTE: SEE LAST PAGE FOR PICTURES]
Charles Bliss invented Blissymbolics, a system of symbols designed as a means of communication for those unable to speak, write, or use sign language. For ten points each, identify the meanings of the following Blissymbols.
a) < http://www3.sympatico.ca/r.laskaris/excited.gif >
Answer: EXCITED
b) < http://www3.sympatico.ca/r.laskaris/genitals.gif >
Answer: GENITALS
c) < http://www3.sympatico.ca/r.laskaris/orgasm.gif >
Answer: ORGASM
8. Given their opening lines, identify these shorter works by Henry James, for ten points each.
a) “I saw her only four times, but I remember them vividly; she made an impression upon me.”
Answer: FOUR MEETINGS
b) “Once upon a time (as if he had lived in a fairy tale) there was a very interesting young man.”