The all new, revised and easier quiz! (mod note posts 1 and 2042)

looksee

Ok, I reckon I got 25.

Rubecula

Samaris wrote: »

Slightly different question this time: Who can get the most words out of "advantage"? Given there's no hard and fast answer, I'll take the top score by this time tomorrow

If two people get the same greatest amount of words, the first one gets it.

Edit: Words must be of three or more letters!

I love these games xx

Samaris

A'ight, that's all takers for the question? Guess Looksee has it, unless anyone nips in!

Now she gets to list them :P

Samaris

We seem to have lost Looksee! Anyone want to do a question?

Rubecula

you do it Samaris

Samaris

Why is the QWERTY layout keyboard?

Jellybaby1

I guess the reason the QWERTY keyboard is designed the way it is, is for speed of typing. They must have tried different variations before they pinned it down. In my day (yawn!), speed and accuracy were vitally important, which is the reason I am so nippy on the 'ould keys to this day. But maybe that's not what you meant?

looksee

The story I heard JB was that in order to increase speak the keys that were more used and less used were put beside each other so they did not lock or tangle together - or should i say, were less likely to lock and tangle! Like you I was trained as a touch typist and while I am still pretty nippy, I used be able to really get up some speed - we were expected to be able to type accurately at pretty well dictation speed - and that was on the old manuals that you really had to hit the keys.

Rubecula

I was told that it avoided key jams on old typewriters

ps I used to type at 50 wpm now it is about a 10th of that or less)

Jellybaby1

At my fastest (God be with the days!) I hit an impressive 90wpm!! There was smoke coming out of the Remington. I'm probably around 65-70 these days. My Pitman shorthand was 110wpm but now non existent. Now, where's my Mavis Beacon so I can test myself. I'll confirm at a later date. Back to the quiz.......so my answer was wrong, eh? I assume that if the keys were getting jammed it s-l-o-w-e-d things down. Eh? Eh? Where's the ref?

Rubecula

no idea if you are right or wrong JB I was just repeating what I was once told.

looksee

Agree with Rube, I have no definite knowledge - there was also the notion that they were arranged for the stronger fingers having the commonest letters, but then why give the left hand little finger the 'a'?

OldGoat

I did my typing training in the Irish Times school on Abbey Street way back when. I reached the astounding speed of 60 wpm. I can still hear the drone of the tutor and the click of the metronome in my head "A now, B now, C now, wrists up! QAZ,WSX,EDC, eyes front!"

I believe that the QUERTY layout was to actually slow typists down. Fast typists would inevitably bind the keys so the querty was used in an attempt to slow down the speed of the operators...at least that's what I heard.

looksee

D'you know OG, I think now you have said that, you are right!

(I used hate that metronome, if anything was guaranteed to put me off, that would, though in the long run it did work!)

garancafan

During my piano-playing days I, too, came to loathe the metronome and usually lost the tempo. But sit me down with a bass-player and a drummer and my tempo was perfect. Maybe that's the solution for trainee typists!

Jellybaby1

I think trainee typists today just sit in front of a screen and self teach. At least that's what happened to my offspring when they did typing courses. They don't know what they missed!

Back to the Quiz. Samaris.......put us out of our misery......is Rube the winner?

Rubecula

If I was right JB the honour would go to Looksee I believe.

looksee

I can't keep up. And I have totally lost track of who else is supposed to be asking questions.


Oh, and I think OG got the typewriter one.

OldGoat

OK so, on the assumption that I got it right I'll offer up this question.
Why, here and in the UK, are surgeons and consultants referred to as Mr/Miss/Ms rather that Doctor?

Jellybaby1

Good question. Always thought it was 'cos they are just plain snooty.

garancafan

Doesn't it stem from the days when surgeons were not medically qualified. Surgery was frequently carried out by barbers - hence the red and white striped pole. The red represented blood!

OldGoat

Yep, thats right. Doctors went to study their profession whereas surgeons were apprenticed to theirs. These days of course surgeons are all studied up and have doctorates but the tradition of referring to them as Mr's or Mrs's still exists.

garancafan

Who were Vera, Chuck and Dave?

Jellybaby1

Lyrics in "When I'm Sixty-Four". Appropriate for O & O's.

garancafan

Jellybaby1 wrote: »

Lyrics in "When I'm Sixty-Four". Appropriate for O & O's.

Spot on JB. Vera, Chuck and Dave are the imagined grandchildren.
You're up again.

Jellybaby1

Oooh I was too quick, and no question at the ready. I'll be back.

Jellybaby1

Steptoe and Son had two horses, their names are very well known, Delilah and Hercules. However, what was the name of their goldfish?

Samaris

Yikes, haven't a clue. Bubbles?

OldGoat

Last time I guessed with Winston Churchill I was right so I'll go with that guess again. Is it Winston Churchill?

Jellybaby1

To be perfectly honest, I only found one reference to their goldfish, and it wasn't Bubbles, and it wasn't Winston Churchill.

garancafan

They wouldn't have plagiarised either of the names of our two goldfish, Finian and Gilbert (Fin and Gill to their friends) would they?

beer enigma

If memory serves it was Charlie Steptoe

Jellybaby1

And Andip's memory serves him/her very well. Charlie it was. Your turn to post a question now.

beer enigma

A he last time I looked ok, had this in a pub quiz last week:

What traditionally does a barbers pole signify & what's the link with one Irish counties gaa team

garancafan

Andip wrote: »

A he last time I looked ok, had this in a pub quiz last week:

What traditionally does a barbers pole signify & what's the link with one Irish counties gaa team

See post #1370 et seq. I presume the county is Cork.

beer enigma

county is cork yes

Sudance

Vague memories of reading about this....

Is it because barbers used to do surgery as well and the red represented blood or something...

Naw i'ts not coming back to me.

beer enigma

Sudance wrote: »

Vague memories of reading about this....

Is it because barbers used to do surgery as well and the red represented blood or something...

Naw i'ts not coming back to me.

Sudance, its you're lucky day as I'm away for a few days, so in fairness I'll pass the baton - you're very close anyway.

Some barbers did indeed used to do surgery along with hair & shaving. This was particularly popular around the ports where sailors would land with gangrene and head to the barbers for a haircut, shave and amputation. The barbers who practiced this had a red and white pole outside signifying 'Blood and Bandages'.

Blood and bandages being the name by which the Cork gaa lads are still known.

Sudance

Andip wrote: »

Sudance, its you're lucky day as I'm away for a few days, so in fairness I'll pass the baton - you're very close anyway.

Some barbers did indeed used to do surgery along with hair & shaving. This was particularly popular around the ports where sailors would land with gangrene and head to the barbers for a haircut, shave and amputation. The barbers who practiced this had a red and white pole outside signifying 'Blood and Bandages'.

Blood and bandages being the name by which the Cork gaa lads are still known.

Wow, can't believe it,I finally won something...ooh I'll live on this fer a week lol

Just remembered I used to go to Sweeney Todds for their pies. God I'd give anything for one of their pies now. Sweeney Todd was a barber. He set up an underthetable business arrangement with the lady restaurant owner next door.

Customers in for a hair cut would end up being the filler for the restaurant pies. Infamous in the UK, but damn....the pies...the pies....


Ok, now that everyone;s face has fallen into their keyboard


In what country is it a part of their custom to draw/paint phallic symbols on the front of ones home????

garancafan

We were trying to run three questions simultaneously but seem to have reverted to one. Let me try to resurrect one stemming from post #1279 which seems to have fizzled out:-

The phrase "taken aback" is used and understood to mean "surprised, lost for words, nonplussed etc". From what does the phrase derive?

looksee

Good detective work Garacafan! I was trying to keep track of them but then was away for a few days and lost touch!

Both of the questions have me baffled, though I imagine the 'taken aback' one might refer to being captured by being crept up on from behind?

garancafan

looksee wrote: »

Good detective work Garacafan! I was trying to keep track of them but then was away for a few days and lost touch!

Both of the questions have me baffled, though I imagine the 'taken aback' one might refer to being captured by being crept up on from behind?

Like all the best detective work the secret is in footslogging.
'Fraid "taken aback" does not come from being crept up on.

Sudance

garancafan wrote: »

We were trying to run three questions simultaneously but seem to have reverted to one. Let me try to resurrect one stemming from post #1279 which seems to have fizzled out:-

The phrase "taken aback" is used and understood to mean "surprised, lost for words, nonplussed etc". From what does the phrase derive?

There's nothing like someone being rude to take the wind out of your sail.

BrensBenz

garancafan wrote: »

The phrase "taken aback" is used and understood to mean "surprised, lost for words, nonplussed etc". From what does the phrase derive?

"Taken aback" is an old nautical term. Imagine a square rigger - a tall ship with loads of "square" or squarish sails. Its sails only work when the wind is coming from behind(ish). If the ship turns 180 degrees or if the wind changes direction by 180 degrees, the sails hit the mast and the ship's forward motion stops and may even be pushed "aback" or backwards. "Arrr, me 'earties, me oul ship was taken aback by that there wind change, arrr."

garancafan

BrensBenz wrote: »

"Taken aback" is an old nautical term. Imagine a square rigger - a tall ship with loads of "square" or squarish sails. Its sails only work when the wind is coming from behind(ish). If the ship turns 180 degrees or if the wind changes direction by 180 degrees, the sails hit the mast and the ship's forward motion stops and may even be pushed "aback" or backwards. "Arrr, me 'earties, me oul ship was taken aback by that there wind change, arrr."

Nailed it BrensBenz. Splice the mainbrace.
Over to you.

garancafan

Sudance wrote: »

There's nothing like someone being rude to take the wind out of your sail.

A most excellent answer

BrensBenz

garancafan wrote: »

Nailed it BrensBenz. Splice the mainbrace.
Over to you.

Oooops, I forgot that answering a question required a new question!

OK, an easily Googleable question but I bet you won't remember what Eileen Collins achieved in 1995!

BrensBenz

BrensBenz wrote: »

OK, an easily Googleable question but I bet you won't remember what Eileen Collins achieved in 1995!

Oh how quickly we forget! Eileen Collins, whose parents originally hailed from County Cork, was the first female commander of the Space Shuttle Discovery.
During her flight in 1995, she piloted the shuttle through a full rotation so that the crew of the International Space Station could photograph the Shuttle's underside to check for possible damage. This was the first time that the Shuttle was put through this maneouvre. Good girl yourself!

garancafan

BrensBenz wrote: »

Oh how quickly we forget! Eileen Collins, whose parents originally hailed from County Cork, was the first female commander of the Space Shuttle Discovery.
During her flight in 1995, she piloted the shuttle through a full rotation so that the crew of the International Space Station could photograph the Shuttle's underside to check for possible damage. This was the first time that the Shuttle was put through this maneouvre. Good girl yourself!

Thanks BB - good question. Mrs gf and I had some fun with it. Interestingly we were both focused on matters related to military and aviation. Clearly there were some vestigial memory cells still gasping. Looking forward to your next one.

BrensBenz

garancafan wrote: »

... some vestigial memory cells still gasping. Looking forward to your next one.

Vestigial memory cells??? I may have pills for that!
And whoooops, I forgot about the next question.

Well, can you remember the names of the three banks which, in 1966, went to form Allied Irish Bank?