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Question time

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MrCutts
Member
#71 · Posted: 28 Jun 2009 22:42
I think the odd one out is 'bread' because I think all the others are things that have either been on Haddocks head or he has bumped his head on. I'm probably totally wrong
tuhatkauno
Member
#72 · Posted: 29 Jun 2009 05:23
Mr. Cutts, you are right, the point is "things which have hit Captain's head".

A fish (Red sea), a crocodile (Prisoners), a parrot (Emerald), a cow (7 balls), a pair of shoes (Tibet)...have hit Archie's head. And there are a lot of unnamed items left: an antenna, a fist, a cork, different kind of sticks, doors, stones, floors, pavements and a lot of things the name of which I don't even know in English. A bread hasn't hit Archie's head according to my memory.

Your turn to make a question Mr. Cutts

Moderator Note: Hmmm… and it has all been going so well too! In choosing an “odd-one-out” without being able to say absolutely that it was actually odd, the whole process of moderation, dispute resolution and gamesmanship of the original quiz rears its head…
This question would have been fine if it had been restricted to “What connects the following…”, or “What do the following have in common…”?
Fortunately there hasn’t been a problem this time, but just so that it is clear, and to make sure that this isn’t just restarting the whole Trivia Quiz again by stealth, can all questions be strictly one part, one definitive answer please? If it can relate to a single incidence too, so that folks don’t have scour the entire series to collect multiple bits of data - even better!
Many thanks!
The Happy Tintinologist Team
tuhatkauno
Member
#73 · Posted: 29 Jun 2009 15:43
Hello HTT

I surely thought the question a lot. First I formulated it "What connects the ..." But then very general answers would fit: Tintin has come across them, Milou has seen them, they all appear outdoors. If one has to argue why he dropped this out, the very general answers won't fit any more. That's why I turned the question around. I was ready to accept every fitting answer. That pucket-thing was a typing mistake (that's why I didn't accept it) but if someone would have reasonably argued that a bucket is odd because of this and that, I would have accepted it of course.

Your suggestions how to formulate a question sound reasonable, but every now and then there is a temptation to try something different. But HTT, don't be afraid, the Trivia Quiz inferno won't start again, we are just having fun.

Happy Finn :-)
MrCutts
Member
#74 · Posted: 1 Jul 2009 03:32
I have to say for me to get the answer right on the first go it must have been a reasonable question. Personally I thought it was a fun question. I spent my childhood and some of my adulthood reading and re-reading the series of books which may have given me some advantage with this question. I didn't have to look at the books. The only panel I could think of where there is bread involved is when Tintin takes the bread from the soldiers table in King Ottokars Sceptre.

I don't see why a question can't relate to more than one book and incident ie: how many books feature a parrot?
That isn't a set question by the way, it's just an example. To be honest from the top of my head I can only think of two (maybe three) books that a parrot appears in.

I would rather someone else sets a question. Unfortunately I don't have time to come here that often to check all the answers.
tuhatkauno
Member
#75 · Posted: 1 Jul 2009 08:16
MrCutts:
Personally I thought it was a fun question.

Thanks MrCutts, so did I. :-)

The forum is open. Anyone can set a question.
jock123
Moderator
#76 · Posted: 1 Jul 2009 08:22
MrCutts:
I don't see why a question can't relate to more than one book and incident ie: how many books feature a parrot?

Because it proved to be impossible to moderate when such questions were posed in the old trivia quiz, that’s why, leading to all sorts of problems, arguments and contentiousness.

MrCutts:
To be honest from the top of my head I can only think of two (maybe three) books that a parrot appears in.

There’s the problem right there - “off the top of your head” isn’t good enough: and looking at the two (or three) books in which you remember seeing parrots doesn’t provide confirmation or an answer - it merely bolsters your prejudice in this matter. The only way to answer it is to go through every book, one by one, frame by frame, and look - you ask the question, you need to know the answer. Is it two, or is it three, or four, or seven?

Does “a parrot” mean a single parrot, ruling out books with more than one parrot? What is the biological definition of a parrot? Is a stuffed parrot still “a parrot”, or is it an ex-parrot? Would a book containing a drawing of a picture of a parrot on a poster or sign, rather than a drawing of a parrot count? If there is a street called “Parrot Street” but no bird, does that book count? Does a parakeet count? What is a parakeet? Is what Hergé drew a parrot or not? Is that blob on the branch in the background of frame x on page y a parrot or not?
What happens when you say “five” someone else says “13”, and the answer actually is six? Chances are you’ve said “you’re a winner!” to the first person who says five too, the person who said “13” is now trying to justify their answer to say that they thought you meant how many parrots are there in the books, not how many books (chances are it says one thing in one place, and something different the next), and the bod who said six, who was right has lost their turn and wasted their time…

All these things preclude easy resolution and agreement on answers. It takes no time at all to ask which books contain a parrot, and so much time and aggro to get the right answer…

So let’s keep it simple, and straight forward, and non-controversial, and have questions and answers which are simple and definitive please.

Oh, and a) I don’t actually know how many parrots there are, or b) how many books they appear in, and c) “parrot” becomes a very odd word after typing it a few times in quick succession!
tuhatkauno
Member
#77 · Posted: 1 Jul 2009 09:24
Dear friend Jock

I'd like to reassure you: this thread is no Trivia quiz, the only purpose of this thread is to have fun (not to fight).

It would be pity, if the questions are controlled by many rules (rules cause troubles as well). A good question can be "where can you see" question or an riddle or a number question or odds out or whatever type of a question. If someone, probably I, makes a lousy question, so what? Everybody would think that tuhatkauno has got bats in the attic, that's the seriest consequence.

My friendly suggestion is that the only rule of this game would be "do not fight". The HTT's suggestions who to formulate a question are suggestions which are better to keep in mind as well. It is good to think the question and its weak points carefully to avoid misinterpretations. But if someone have a good question referring to many albums, why not to ask it?
MrCutts
Member
#78 · Posted: 1 Jul 2009 16:29
Hi Jock. I can see your point and how a question like that may turn into some form of online argument but I didn't set the parrot question as a question. I didn't need to trawl through the books hence why I could only think of one or two books off the top of my head. Of course A question like that would need some fine tuning such as (perhaps) how many times does a green parrot with a yellow beak appear on page whatever of whatever book. But how easy would that be?!? In the end it doesn't really matter because it was just an example of how a question could relate to more than one book. I didn't want to fuel a whole debate on how many parrots there are in Tintin books. I think a better question would be how many times does Jock type the words parrot and parrots (not including the word parrot in my quotes). I counted 16! :o)
jock123
Moderator
#79 · Posted: 1 Jul 2009 17:15
MrCutts:
I didn't want to fuel a whole debate on how many parrots there are in Tintin books.

I never thought you did - I was just using your own hypothetical example to show the whole problem of such questions…

tuhatkauno:
I'd like to reassure you: this thread is no Trivia quiz, the only purpose of this thread is to have fun (not to fight).

Well, that’s easy to say, but don’t forget, the trivia quiz was meant to be fun, wasn’t it? And it still descended into chaos… It certainly never was fun to moderate.

tuhatkauno:
It would be pity, if the questions are controlled by many rules (rules cause troubles as well).

Exactly. So setting easy limits on what questions are asked - i.e. keep them simple, and don’t require too much interpretation - and everyone should be happy. What is so terrible about that…?

As you’ve already said, you’re not restarting the trivia quiz - this is different… Let’s keep it that way.
tuhatkauno
Member
#80 · Posted: 1 Jul 2009 22:04
I don't still get it, everything has gone well, there has been nothing to moderate, and all of a sudden we have a problem? I don't see any problems or a sing of a chaos, unless I am the problem. It is easy to solve then, adjöö, and there is no moderating problems any more.

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