Unused questions are shown with gray text.
| Number | 1 |
| Realm | Trivia |
| Subrealm | Here we go again. |
| Question | Though er'body in the club may be getting tipsy, Lord knows that with everyone on this team doing a thesis there is certainly this? |
| Answer | Silence in the Hub |
| Song | Er'body in the Club |
| Artist | Chingy |
| Number | 2 |
| Realm | Ask not what can your country can do for you. |
| Subrealm | Tell it something different. |
| Question | Language specialists verify that JFK's widely popularized verbal faux pas is just an urban legend. According to the legend, what did Kennedy say, and what did it mean? |
| Answer | "Ich bin ein Berliner", "I am a jelly donut" |
| Song | The theme song of The Simpsons |
| Artist | (None required) |
| Note | He really did say "Ich bin ein Berliner"; the only question is whether it was grammatically correct. |
| Number | 3 |
| Realm | Like stealing candy from a baby |
| Subrealm | A very fat and old baby |
| Question | Contrary to popular belief, the Baby Ruth candy bar was not named after the famous Yankees star. In fact it was named after this man's daughter. |
| Answer | Grover Cleveland |
| Song | The Monster in the Mirror |
| Artist | Grover (Sesame Street) |
| Number | 4 |
| Realm | Cold Blooded Lovers |
| Subrealm | Tokyo Ready for a change |
| Question | A 1991 journal put out by the American Association of Reptile Veteranarians exposed 18 cases of what? |
| Answer | Sexual assault by Iguanas |
| Song | Jailbreak |
| Artist | Thin Lizzy |
| Number | 5 |
| Realm | Cars |
| Subrealm | South of the Border |
| Question | The Ford Pinto was destined to fail in Brazil. Why? |
| Answer | Pinto is Brazilian slang for "small penis". |
| Song | Size Too Small |
| Artist | Sufjan Stevens |
| Number | 6 |
| Realm | Yikes |
| Subrealm | The B |
| Question | William Kelmer has the distinct honor of being the first person to do this. |
| Answer | Die via the electric chair. |
| Song | Danger! High Voltage |
| Artist | Electric Six |
| Number | 7 |
| Realm | Weird Science |
| Subrealm | Remember that scene in that movie where they made that woman, yeah! |
| Question | There are two English words coined after this individual -- one is an element you wouldn't want to get anywhere near. Who is the person, and what is the second word? |
| Answer | Marie Curie. Curie is a unit of radioactivity. |
| Song | Famous Last Words |
| Artist | My Chemical Romance |
| Number | 8 |
| Realm | Amish Country |
| Subrealm | The only kind of country |
| Question | Food historians believe that this treat comes from Amish country, Pennsylvania, where farmers would emit loud exclamations of joy upon finding that their wives had snuck this goody into their lunch bags. |
| Answer | Whoopie Pies |
| Song | Whoo! Alright - Yeah... Uh Huh |
| Artist | The Rapture |
| Number | 9 |
| Realm | Royalty |
| Subrealm | Family Time |
| Question | Although Prince William and Prince Harry are brothers, what have they never done together? |
| Answer | They've never flown on a plane together |
| Song | A Whole New World |
| Artist | from Disney's Aladdin |
| Note | The two princes require permission from the Queen to fly together. |
| Number | 10 |
| Realm | Football |
| Subrealm | Make 'em run. |
| Question | At the University of Iowa, football and psychology merge in one of the Hawkeyes' tactics to psych out the opposition. What is this quirk? |
| Answer | They've painted the visiting team's locker room pink. |
| Song | Any Colour You Like |
| Artist | Pink Floyd |
| Number | 11 |
| Realm | We all want to be William Tell. |
| Subrealm | But no one wants to be his son. |
| Question | Which author accidentally killed his wife while attempting to shoot a glass of water that was balanced on her head? |
| Answer | William S. Burroughs |
| Song | Japanese Mathematics |
| Artist | Sharpshooters |
| Number | 12 |
| Realm | Famous Babys' Daddys |
| Subrealm | Getting it on in the Great White North |
| Question | For what crime was Sarah Palin's daughter's baby's father's mother arrested in December 2008? |
| Answer | Dealing Oxycontin |
| Song | Take Pills |
| Artist | Panda Bear |
| Number | 13 |
| Realm | Bottle up |
| Subrealm | Shaken, not stirred |
| Question | Famous alcoholic Ernest Hemingway called his preferred Martini recipe the "Montgomery." Why? |
| Answer | It was composed of 15 parts gin to 1 part vermouth. The legendary British general Bernard Law Montgomery was jokingly said to require 15:1 odds of victory before going into battle. |
| Song | 15 Step |
| Artist | Radiohead |
| Number | 14 |
| Realm | Prizes |
| Subrealm | And idiots who can't accept them |
| Question | Name the only two writers ever to have declined the Nobel Prize in literature. |
| Answer | Jean-Paul Sartre and Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (Solzhenitsyn subsequently accepted the prize and the money when he was deported from the USSR). |
| Song | Race for the Prize |
| Artist | Flaming Lips |
| Note | Boris Pasternak was forced to give up the Nobel Prize by authorities in the Soviet Union. His name was accepted as an answer. |
| Number | 15 |
| Realm | Wordplay |
| Subrealm | Going up |
| Question | What is a 5 word phrase that means "tongue tied" which contains a 1-letter, 2-letter, 3-letter, 4-letter, and 5-letter word, not necessarily in that order? |
| Answer | "at a loss for words" |
| Song | Loss for Words |
| Artist | Peter J Slack |
| Number | 16 |
| Realm | The good ole days |
| Subrealm | A delicate balance |
| Question | What 1860's trend emerged at court and in high society as a result of Queen Alexandra's struggle with rheumatic fever? |
| Answer | They imitated her limp (Queen Alexandra) |
| Song | Faith |
| Artist | Limp Bizkit |
| Number | 17 |
| Realm | Typing |
| Subrealm | What to do if you lose your right arm |
| Question | What is the longest non-compound word that can be typed using only the left-hand keys on a keyboard? |
| Answer | stewardesses |
| Song | The Flying Club Cup |
| Artist | Beirut |
| Number | 18 |
| Question | T.S. Eliot used an obscure Dickens reference as a working title for one of his most famous poems. What is the poem, and what was its original title? |
| Answer | The Waste Land, "He Do the Police in Different Voices" |
| Song | Be Good |
| Artist | Tokyo Police Club |
| Number | 19 |
| Realm | Did they really do that? |
| Subrealm | Respect has gone down the drain. |
| Question | Hitchcock's 1960 classic Psycho was the first Hollywood film permitted by censors to show what ground-breaking image? |
| Answer | A toilet flushing |
| Song | See No Evil |
| Artist | Television |
| Number | 20 |
| Realm | Dictators, tyrants, and megalomaniacs |
| Subrealm | Napoleon |
| Question | The term Napoleon Complex comes from this great man. How tall was he? |
| Answer | 5 ft 6, which was about average height for men back then. |
| Song | I Ain't Trippin |
| Artist | Too Short |
| Number | 21 |
| Realm | Food |
| Subrealm | Misnomers |
| Question | What is the country of origin of French Toast? |
| Answer | Russia |
| Song | Let's Get Ready to Crumble |
| Artist | The Russian Futurists |
| Note | French Toast appears to have been invented many times in many countries. See the Wikipedia page. (Belgium was also an acceptable answer.) |
| Number | 22 |
| Realm | Amazing Authors |
| Subrealm | All's well that ends well. |
| Question | What remarkable event happened in the year Mark Twain was born and AGAIN in the year of his death? |
| Answer | Comet Halley-Bop made an appearance in both 1835 and 1910. |
| Song | Chantilly Lace |
| Artist | The Big Bopper |
| Note | The comet in question is Halley's Comet, not Comet Hale-Bopp, which was last seen on Earth in 1997 and won't be seen again until the year 4530. Halley's Comet was accepted as an answer. |
| Number | 23 |
| Realm | I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas. |
| Subrealm | Batman smells |
| Question | What is the name of the horse pulling the sleigh in the Christmas carol "Jingle Bells?" |
| Answer | Bobtail. The lyric "bells on Bobtail ring/making spirits bright..." |
| Song | Jingle Bells |
| Note | The original score contains the phrase "bob tail", uncapitalized. This suggests that the horse's tail has been "bobbed", or cut short so that it will not interfere with the reins. (Wikipedia) |
| Number | 24 |
| Realm | Games |
| Subrealm | Double word score |
| Question | What is the highest-scoring word ever achieved in competition Scrabble? |
| Answer | CAZIQUES: chiefs in some Indian tribes. Karl Khoshnaw scored 392 points with this gem. |
| Song | Weight of My Words |
| Artist | Kings of Convenience |
| Number | 25 |
| Realm | Love |
| Subrealm | What a waste! |
| Question | Talk about unrequited love! This poet spent over 50 years writing more than 350 poems for the same, unresponsive lady. Who was he, and what can contemporary poets thank him for? |
| Answer | Petrarch, the Petrarchan sonnet |
| Song | Tell Laura I Love Her |
| Artist | Ray Peterson |
| Number | 26 |
| Realm | American icons |
| Subrealm | What's in a name? |
| Question | His first name is "Veritably", but the American public knows him by a different moniker. |
| Answer | Mr. Clean |
| Song | So Fresh and So Clean |
| Artist | Outkast |
| Number | 27 |
| Realm | Back in old Vienna |
| Subrealm | Play me a song, you're the piano man |
| Question | How did Nannerl's musically talented brother shock the Viennese court? |
| Answer | By kissing the empress. (Nannerl's brother was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.) |
| Song | Hard Luck Woman |
| Artist | Kiss |
| Number | 28 |
| Realm | 007 |
| Subrealm | On flim |
| Question | Prior to the two most recent Bond movies, which film did not include Major Boothroyd? |
| Answer | Live and Let Die |
| Song | African Alphabet Song |
| Artist | Kermit the Frog with Ladysmith Black Mambazo |
| Number | 29 |
| Realm | Math |
| Subrealm | On film? |
| Question | The 1979 recipient of the Emanuel R. Priore award was mostly unknown in his field of focus, mathematics. However, his fame in computer science grew quickly after his many advances and his appearance in which 1965 movie about computers? |
| Answer | Logic By Machine (An educational film made in 1965. Richard Hamming, who created Hamming Codes at Bell Labs, was the mathematician.) |
| Song | Piggies |
| Artist | The Beatles |
| Number | 30 |
| Realm | Poetry |
| Subrealm | Missing the point |
| Question | Lesbia's famous lover wrote a two line poem notable for its lack of what? |
| Answer | Nouns and adjectives |
| Song | I Kissed a Girl |
| Artist | Kate Perry |
| Note | The poem is Catullus 85. |
| Number | 31 |
| Realm | Alcohol |
| Subrealm | Losing ground |
| Question | Why have wine sales for the vineyard in the Campania region plummeted? |
| Answer | Trash everywhere! |
| Song | Special |
| Artist | Garbage |
| Note | There is a great deal of trouble with garbage collection in Naples and surrounding areas, due to Mafia control of waste management and other factors. |
| Number | 32 |
| Realm | Art |
| Subrealm | It takes a lot of time |
| Question | Influenced by the theories of Sigmund Freud, this artist made what he called hand-painted dream photographs -- who was it? |
| Answer | Salvador Dali |
| Song | Salvador |
| Artist | Jamie T |
| Number | 33 |
| Realm | Dates |
| Subrealm | The Depression |
| Question | Out of FDR's many decisions, this unpopular one may have outraged calendar makers more than anyone else. What did he declare and what was his reasoning? |
| Answer | He decided to move Thanksgiving up a week to increase the shopping season before Christmas (to help the economy). All the calendar makers had to reprint their calendars! |
| Song | Bye, Bye, Bye |
| Artist | 'N Sync |
| Number | 34 |
| Realm | Computers |
| Question | In computer science speak, what is the cadar of "(I have climbed)(the highest mountains)"? |
| Answer | have |
| Song | I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For |
| Artist | U2 |
| Note | This was a question about the computer language Lisp. In Lisp "car" is the first element of a list, and "cdr" is the rest of the list. So if the list is (a b c d) then the car is "a" and the cdr is (b c d). Using shorthand you can combine the two operations, so for instance caar of ((a b) c) is the car of the car of ((a b) c), which is the car of (a b), which is "a". So the cadar of a list is the car of the cdr of the car of the list. If the list is ((I have climbed) (the highest mountains)), that's the word "have". |
| Number | 35 |
| Realm | Rivals |
| Subrealm | Sometimes they get lucky. |
| Question | This Amherst alum developed a process that revolutionized the food industry in the 1920s and 30s. Who was it, and what was the process? |
| Answer | Clarence Birdseye, flash-frozen foods |
| Song | I'm Like a Bird |
| Artist | Nelly Furtado |
| Number | 36 |
| Realm | Food |
| Subrealm | The gift of god |
| Question | The réligieuse pastry, a sort of cream puff, is said to resemble what? |
| Answer | A nun in habit. |
| Song | Sister Jack |
| Artist | Spoon |
| Number | 37 |
| Realm | American Heroes |
| Subrealm | You just got Dyptheria. |
| Question | This man was a famed explorer nicknamed "The Pathfinder," was the first Republican presidential ticket runner, and possibly the worst general of the Civil War. He led settlers along the Oregon Trail, and a peak in California is named after him. Who was he? |
| Answer | John Fremont |
| Song | Johnny B. Goode |
| Artist | Peter Tosh |
| Number | 38 |
| Realm | Famous Mathmeticians |
| Subrealm | The ray of signs or something like that |
| Question | In addition to such intellectual achievements as "Cogito ergo sum" and the Cartesian coordinate system, we can thank French philosopher René Descartes for a rather less-influential treatment for birthmarks in infants. What was Descartes' proposed remedy? |
| Answer | The infant must eat the food that the mother was craving, during pregnancy, when she scratched the place on her body corresponding to the infant's birthmark. |
| Song | Take Your Mama Out |
| Artist | Scissor Sisters |
| Number | 39 |
| Realm | Blind dates |
| Subrealm | Off with her head!! |
| Question | Anticipating the era of match.com, Henry VIII never consummated his marriage to his fourth wife because she looked so much better in her picture than she did in real life. Who was responsible for the misleading image? |
| Answer | Holbein the Younger |
| Song | I'm Henry the VIII |
| Artist | Herman's Hermits |
| Note | Henry had dispatched Holbein to make the portrait of Anne of Cleves, with instructions not to flatter the subject. No one other than Henry ever complained about her looks. |
| Number | 40 |
| Realm | Famous names |
| Subrealm | Famous places |
| Question | Harry Truman, Audrey Hepburn, Simone de Beauvoir, and Emily Dickenson are some of the famed residents of this house. Name the building and location. |
| Answer | Ernest Hemingway's House, Key West, FL. (These are some of the six-toed cats that live there.) |
| Song | Margaritaville |
| Artist | Jimmy Buffett |
| Hint | Ragamuffin is another |
| Number | 41 |
| Realm | I'm on a boat |
| Subrealm | A view from above |
| Question | The view of the mountain peaks from Herman Melville's former study at Arrowhead in Lenox, MA, is said to resemble what? |
| Answer | A sperm whale |
| Song | Sea Lion Woman |
| Artist | Feist |
| Note | The view is of Mt. Greylock. |
| Number | 42 |
| Realm | Fish and chips |
| Question | Westminster Abbey is now an unofficial mausoleum of the United Kingdom, with hundreds of tombs and monuments. The oldest two cast bronze effigies in the church are for which two members of royalty? |
| Answer | Henry III and Eleanor of Castile |
| Song | Eleanor Rigby |
| Artist | The Beatles |
| Number | 43 |
| Realm | Philosophy |
| Subrealm | What about Hobbes? |
| Question | According to Calvin, what should your knees be by the end of the day? |
| Answer | Green |
| Song | Eye of the Tiger |
| Artist | Survivor |
| Number | 44 |
| Realm | Famous Lit |
| Subrealm | Magicians |
| Question | In Charles Dickens' David Copperfield, the title character's childhood home goes by what name? |
| Answer | The Rookery |
| Song | Round Here |
| Artist | Counting Crows |
| Number | 45 |
| Realm | Food and Drink |
| Subrealm | The easiest way to a man's heart |
| Question | According to a medieval chronicle, an early prince adopted Christianity because practicing Judaism or Islam would prevent him and his subjects from eating pork and/or drinking alcohol. Who was the prince, and what modern-day state did his kingdom become? |
| Answer | Prince Vladimir, Russia |
| Song | "Russian Dance" from The Nutcracker Suite |
| Artist | Tchaikovsky |
| Number | 46 |
| Realm | Monkeys |
| Subrealm | Charlton Heston has a gun in heaven. |
| Question | What did most cast members of Planet of the Apes need to do when they were hungry, and why? |
| Answer | Liquefy their meals and drink them through a straw; their masks were so elaborate and time-consuming to prepare/remove. |
| Song | Liquid Liquid |
| Artist | Cavern |
| Number | 47 |
| Realm | Reptiles |
| Subrealm | Spain |
| Question | Which reptile was named after the spanish word for lizard? |
| Answer | The alligator (the lizard = el lagarto en español) |
| Song | Alligator |
| Artist | Grizzly Bear |
| Number | 48 |
| Realm | The Human Body |
| Subrealm | Density |
| Question | What is the human body's HARDEST substance? |
| Answer | Tooth enamel |
| Song | The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth |
| Artist | Clap your hands and say YEAH |
| Number | 49 |
| Realm | Music |
| Subrealm | Name that tune |
| Question | Why was the song "Louie Louie" banned in 1963? |
| Answer | Because people couldn't understand the lyrics. |
| Song | AM Radio |
| Artist | Everclear |
| Number | 50 |
| Realm | Music Again |
| Subrealm | Ringo, John, Paul, and George |
| Question | The first line from the last track of The Beatles' 1966 album is taken from what source? |
| Answer | The Tibetan Book of the Dead |
| Song | How to Be Dead |
| Artist | Snow Patrol |
| Note | Answer is NOT LSD! |
| Note | The song in question is "Tomorrow Never Knows", from Revolver. |
| Number | 51 |
| Realm | Rules, Rules, Rules. |
| Question | An oil shortage caused the implementation of what law in 1974? |
| Answer | The speed limit at 55 miles per hour. (For more efficient use of gas.) |
| Song | My Friend Dario |
| Artist | Vitalic |
| Number | 52 |
| Realm | Games |
| Subrealm | Don't tell PETA. |
| Question | What is the name for the only game (at least that I know about) traditionally played with a decapitated baby cow skin? |
| Answer | Buzkashi |
| Song | We Are Not a Football Team |
| Artist | Minus The Bear |
| Number | 53 |
| Realm | You say tomato, I say...tomato! |
| Subrealm | Government spending. |
| Question | *This* pronounciation, derived from a word which translates to "people of the wind" was made official after a dispute between two US Senators. |
| Answer | Arkansas |
| Song | Let's Call It Off (Girl Talk Remix) |
| Artist | Peter Bjorn and John |
| Number | 54 |
| Realm | Fears |
| Subrealm | The South |
| Question | Some people in some rural areas of the South United States use what to ward off evil spirits? |
| Answer | Spirit Trees |
| Song | Fake Plastic Trees |
| Artist | Radiohead |
| Number | 55 |
| Realm | Nature |
| Subrealm | Sticking to it |
| Question | What is the name of the strongest known natural adhesive, able to withstand a pulling force equivalent to five tons per square inch? |
| Answer | "holdfast" |
| Song | Stuck In A Moment |
| Artist | Williams Octet a capella version |
| Note | Holdfast is made by a water-dwelling bacterium. |
| Number | 56 |
| Question | "Thor" is the name of the first one of these ever patented. |
| Answer | Electric washing machine |
| Song | Dirty Laundry |
| Artist | Bitter:Sweet |
| Number | 57 |
| Realm | Drugs |
| Subrealm | Everybody does them. |
| Question | How does tripping wildly on mushrooms relate to another legendary Christmas eve occurence? |
| Answer | Reindeer seek out Amanita mushrooms, and can be observed wildly prancing about while under their influence, which many think to have given rise to the legend of Santa's flying reindeer. |
| Song | Perfect Me |
| Artist | Deerhoof |
| Number | 58 |
| Realm | Women |
| Subrealm | Get learning |
| Question | The Kama Sutra suggests that women study this game. |
| Answer | Chess |
| Song | Obscene Strategies |
| Artist | Trans Am |
| Number | 59 |
| Realm | History |
| Subrealm | Not longer than the Oliver Stone Film |
| Question | Alexander the Great died at what age? |
| Answer | 32 ("and then some" as the lyrics say? because most sources say age 33?...weak) |
| Song | 32 Flavors |
| Artist | Ani DiFranco |
| Number | 60 |
| Realm | Weather |
| Subrealm | Get counting |
| Question | What's the difference between someone counting seconds in Alaska in winter vs. Hawaii in summer? |
| Answer | People count faster in cold temperatures than they do when they're warm. |
| Song | Harder, Faster, Better, Stronger |
| Artist | Daft Punk |
| Number | 61 |
| Realm | Literature |
| Subrealm | Give me a break. |
| Question | The longest sentence in Les Miserables has 823 words. How many semicolons does it have? |
| Answer | 51 Semicolons. |
| Song | Long Time Coming |
| Artist | Delays |
| Note | English translations vary in how many words and semicolons the passage contains. |
| Number | 62 |
| Realm | Words |
| Subrealm | Sending up the red flag |
| Question | Why is mayday an international distress call? |
| Answer | It's a mispronunciation of the French phrase, venez m'aider, meaning come help me. |
| Song | Loose Translation |
| Artist | The New Pornographers |
| Number | 63 |
| Realm | Toys |
| Subrealm | What were they thinking? |
| Question | The Vermont Teddy Bear Company removed what product from the market after protests from mental health advocates? |
| Answer | The straitjacketed 'Crazy for You' Bear, which came with commitment papers. |
| Song | Crazy |
| Artist | Gnarls Barkley |
| Number | 64 |
| Realm | Williamsiana |
| Subrealm | More boats |
| Question | Williams is known for fighting hard, but perhaps the hardest fight was fought by this ship christened in 1945 by the wife of Williams President James Phinney Baxter. |
| Answer | The SS Williams Victory. |
| Song | Stuck on a Boat |
| Artist | Port O'Brien |
| Number | 65 |
| Realm | America |
| Subrealm | Fuck yeah |
| Question | This is the only state that is officially spelled with a diacritical mark in its name. |
| Answer | Hawaii (Hawai'i) |
| Song | The 50 US States and Their Capitals |
| Artist | The Animaniacs |
| Number | 66 |
| Realm | Heroes |
| Subrealm | That makes no sense. |
| Question | In the 1800's, why was it important for American volunteer firefighters to be good at hand combat? |
| Answer | The volunteer brigades would get a prize of $50 for putting out a blaze, so competing brigades would often have to fistfight each other to be the first to get to the fire. |
| Song | Light My Fire |
| Artist | The Doors |
| Number | 67 |
| Realm | Records |
| Subrealm | Duh |
| Question | According to the Guinness Book of World Records, what book is most frequently stolen from public libraries? |
| Answer | The Guinness Book of World Records |
| Song | Irish Drinking Song |
| Artist | Dropkick Murphys |
| Number | 68 |
| Realm | Movies |
| Subrealm | Know your school. |
| Question | "Titanic" is the highest-grossing film of all time. In a previous movie about the Titanic, "A Night to Remember", what song was playing when the Titanic struck the iceberg? |
| Answer | Yard by Yard |
| Song | Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard |
| Artist | Me First and the Gimme Gimmes |
| Number | 69 |
| Realm | Food |
| Subrealm | Pittsfield |
| Question | Top Chef winner Hung Hyung grew up in Pittsfield where his family runs a local restaurant. What is the name of the restaurant his family runs and why was it closed for almost a year a few years back? |
| Answer | Kim's Dragon. A dump truck and an oil truck collided in front of the restaurant, spilling many gallons of oil in the parking lot. |
| Song | Baby Dragon |
| Artist | Bonz Xylophone |
| Number | 70 |
| Realm | Theater |
| Subrealm | Averting disaster |
| Question | According to Philip Henslowe, no matter how chaotic a dramatic production appears to be leading up to a performance, somehow it will always work out. How it this so, according to Phillip Henslow? |
| Answer | "It's a mystery." (from Shakespeare in Love) |
| Song | Magical Mystery Tour |
| Artist | The Beatles |
| Number | 71 |
| Question | What is the keyboard shortcut for the copyright symbol on a Mac? |
| Answer | Option-G |
| Song | Poppin' Them Thangs |
| Artist | G Unit |
| Number | 72 |
| Realm | Medeival Times |
| Subrealm | Up up and away |
| Question | On the TV show Junkyard Wars, what implement was able to defeat the catapult in competition by scoring a direct hit on the "prince" defending his castle? |
| Answer | A trebuchet - just another kind of catapult. |
| Song | Waiting for the Kill |
| Artist | Elizabeth and the Catapult |
| Number | 73 |
| Realm | History |
| Subrealm | The British are coming! |
| Question | In 1775, Paul Revere rode approximately 19 miles to warn the colonies of the coming of the British and was immortalized by Longfellow for his efforts. Another patriot rode over 300 miles to perform the same task during the same time period, and thanks to the inherent un-rhymability of his last name, inspired a much more forgettable poem, leading to his fading into obscurity. Who was this other, more energetic rider? |
| Answer | Israel Bissell, subject of the immortally obscure poem, "Ride, Israel, Ride" by Marie Rockwood. |
| Song | Israel |
| Artist | Built to Spill |
| Number | 74 |
| Question | Besides the people and the house, what comes with the Fisher-Price Little People's House play set? |
| Answer | One double bed, two twin beds, one circular table, four chairs, and one car. |
| Song | Let's Go to Bed |
| Artist | The Cure |
| Note | The answer refers to the current Fisher-Price Little People's house. There used to be other models with different accessories. |
| Number | 75 |
| Realm | Game Shows |
| Subrealm | Count it up |
| Question | In the very first season of the game show Jeopardy!, what would have been the absolute maximum amount of money a contestant could have won in a single game? |
| Answer | $28,320. Single Jeopardy, 6 categories, $10-50 = $900 minus one question of $10 which has the Daily Double = $890 times 2 for Daily Double = 1780. Double Jeopardy, 6 categories, $20-100 = 1800 minus two questions of $20 for the two Daily Doubles = $1760, added to the $1780 = $3540 times two for the first Daily Double = 7080 times two for the second Daily Double = $14,160 times two for the Final Jeopardy = $28,320. |
| Song | Money |
| Artist | Pink Floyd |
| Number | 76 |
| Realm | Computers |
| Subrealm | Mac Attack |
| Question | Prior to the introduction of the Macintosh, there were several other projects being considered, using apple names. What two other apple types in addition to Macintosh were used as names for early Apple projects? |
| Answer | Pippin and Golden Delicious |
| Song | Apple Blossom |
| Artist | The White Stripes |
| Number | 77 |
| Realm | Movies |
| Subrealm | Something's not right. |
| Question | In the movie "Field of Dreams", Ray Liotta played a very convincing Shoeless Joe Jackson, except for one important aspect of his baseball play. What did Ray get wrong about how he portrayed Shoeless Joe's baseball skills? |
| Answer | Ray Liotta hit right handed and fielded left handed, the opposite of Shoeless Joe, who fielded right and hit left. |
| Song | Opposite Day |
| Artist | Andrew Bird |
| Number | 78 |
| Realm | Movies |
| Subrealm | Counting the deck |
| Question | In the movie "Casino Royale", what was James Bond's exact winning poker hand in the $100 million game? |
| Answer | A straight flush: 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 of spades. |
| Song | Poker Face |
| Artist | Lady Gaga |
| Number | 79 |
| Realm | Hollywood |
| Subrealm | Bad car crash |
| Question | This starlet was the first red-headed child to be signed by the Ford modeling agency. |
| Answer | Lindsay Lohan |
| Song | Rehab |
| Artist | Amy Winehouse |
| Number | 80 |
| Realm | Williamsiana! |
| Subrealm | Long dead but still here |
| Question | There is a grave in the graveyard behind Dodd quad that has the inscription: "If you can read this, you're standing on me." Whose is it and what was his role at Williams? |
| Answer | Michael Davitt Bell, English prof. |
| Song | Speakers Push the Air |
| Artist | Pretty Girls Make Graves |
| Number | 81 |
| Realm | Baseball |
| Subrealm | Home runs |
| Question | What currently active major league baseball player has the most home runs? Currently active! |
| Answer | Ken Griffey Jr. |
| Song | Barbie Girl |
| Artist | Aqua |
| Number | 82 |
| Realm | NESCAC |
| Subrealm | Inferior schools |
| Question | Williams is of course the oldest NESCAC school, but what is the youngest? |
| Answer | Connecticut College |
| Song | Egypt |
| Artist | Sufjan Stevens |
| Number | 83 |
| Realm | Wayne's world |
| Subrealm | Party on Wayne! |
| Question | What do Fountains of Wayne and The Sopranos have in common? |
| Answer | The Sopranos featured the Wayne, NJ patio furniture/lawn ornament store Fountains of Wayne, from which the band got its name. |
| Song | Danke Schoen |
| Artist | Wayne Newton |
| Number | 84 |
| Realm | Games |
| Subrealm | I'm gonna be a doctor, Mommy! |
| Question | What is the name of patient in game Operation? |
| Answer | Cavity Sam |
| Song | Celebrity Skin |
| Artist | Hole |
| Number | 85 |
| Realm | Williamsiana |
| Subrealm | Pranks |
| Question | In one of the great pranks of Williams-Amherst history, Amherst students carved, not surprisingly, an 'A' onto the Williams football field. What did Williams students carve in retribution? |
| Answer | B+ |
| Song | Never Ending Math Equation |
| Artist | Modest Mouse |
| Note | This prank was carried out by Williams Trivia player Brian Hirshman '06. |
| Number | 86 |
| Realm | NESCAC |
| Subrealm | Gotta get 'em all. |
| Question | There is an Amherst alumnus who has twice won the Pulitzer Prize, has taught at both Amherst and Wesleyan, and received an honorary degree from Williams, completing the rare Little Three triple crown. For one point, who is this famous writer? For an additional point, what is the title of his most famous oeuvre? |
| Answer | Richard Wilbur, "Love Calls Us to the Things of This World". |
| Song | Piggy |
| Artist | Nine Inch Nails |
| Number | 87 |
| Realm | 100 |
| Subrealm | Dirty talk |
| Question | In the movie "The Aristocrats", which comedian is considered to be the filthiest according to a near universal consensus of their peers? |
| Answer | Bob Saget, host of America's Funniest Home Videos and wholesome star of Full House. |
| Song | Our House |
| Artist | Madness |
| Number | 88 |
| Realm | Movies |
| Subrealm | Computers |
| Question | What movie character makes an Apple boot-up sound? |
| Answer | Wall-E when fully charged by the sun. |
| Song | Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots |
| Artist | Flaming Lips |
| Number | 89 |
| Realm | Hockey |
| Subrealm | Coming at you fast |
| Question | In Paul Newman's classic hockey movie "Slap Shot", what was the hobby enjoyed by the infamous Hanson brothers in their hotel room? |
| Answer | Slot car racing |
| Song | No Cars Go |
| Artist | Arcade Fire |
| Number | 90 |
| Realm | Celebrities |
| Subrealm | Self-injury |
| Question | What Williams student was photographed by a North Adams Transcript reporter while wheeling on his Roll-A-Bout? |
| Answer | Chris Carrier |
| Song | Rolling with My Homies |
| Artist | Coolio |
| Number | 91 |
| Realm | Movies |
| Subrealm | Very Bad Movies |
| Question | In the Star Trek parody "Galaxy Quest", what is it that fuels the Thermian space ship? |
| Answer | Beryllium spheres |
| Song | Subterranean Alien Homesick |
| Artist | Radiohead |
| Number | 92 |
| Realm | Presidents |
| Subrealm | Silence |
| Question | Supposedly a dinner guest at the White House once informed Calvin Coolidge that a bet had been placed that this guest could get Silent Cal to say more than two words over dinner. For one point, what was reportedly Coolidge's response to this guest? |
| Answer | "You Lose." |
| Song | Loser |
| Artist | Beck |
| Number | 93 |
| Realm | Movies |
| Subrealm | Car Parts |
| Question | Marissa Tomei scored an Oscar for her performance as Mona Lisa Viti in "My Cousin Vinny", giving her, at that time, one more Oscar than Martin Scorcese. What two auto features were at the center of the key testimony that led to all charges being dropped against the two "yewts" on trial? |
| Answer | Independent rear suspension and Positraction |
| Song | Drive My Car |
| Artist | The Beatles |
| Number | 94 |
| Realm | The media |
| Subrealm | Republicans |
| Question | Billo the Clown is one of Keith Olbermann's favorite targets of derision on Countdown with Keith Olbermann. When Keith mentions the news network for which Bill O'Reilly works, he seldom calls it by its real name, but instead uses a play on words to call it either one of two alternate names. What are these two alternate names Keith uses? |
| Answer | Fixed News and Fox Noise |
| Song | Come on Feel the Illinoise |
| Artist | Sufjan Stevens |
| Number | 95 |
| Realm | Restoration and recovery |
| Subrealm | Priorities |
| Question | What did J. Schlitz contribute to the recovery effort following the Great Chicago Fire of 1871? |
| Answer | Hundreds of barrel of beer |
| Song | Incredibly Drunk on Whiskey |
| Artist | Memphis |
| Number | 96 |
| Realm | Pop culture |
| Subrealm | Magic |
| Question | In the movie version of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone", Harry's first act of magic is to communicate with and set loose a python. What is his second act of magic that is shown in the movie? |
| Answer | While looking for the right wand, Harry roils the wand shop with the first wand he tries. |
| Song | So Magical |
| Artist | ATC |
| Number | 97 |
| Realm | The Greeks |
| Subrealm | Poetry |
| Question | Here is a prose translation of a fragment of a poem by Alcaeus, an ancient Greek poet and reputed lover of Sappho: "...Not such was the delicate maiden whom the noble son of Aeacus, inviting all the blessed gods to the wedding, married, taking her from the halls of Nereus to the home of Chiron..." Who are the father, the mother, and the son of the maiden in question? |
| Answer | Peleus, Thetis, Achilles |
| Song | Temporary Like Achilles |
| Artist | Bob Dylan |
| Number | 98 |
| Realm | Hot Wheels |
| Subrealm | Minus the cool? |
| Question | "The problem with [it] isn't just its price or its bulk or its battery life - it's the irrefutable argument that when one rides [it], one looks like a major dork." That was Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun Times, giving what may be a eulogy for what two-wheeled technological wonder that suddenly isn't so wonderful. What? |
| Answer | The Segway |
| Song | Bicycle |
| Artist | Queen |
| Number | 99 |
| Realm | Tradition and history |
| Subrealm | Dammit, I gotta live up to it. |
| Question | Tonga released a number of weirdly shaped stamps, but in 1964 they released a stamp shaped like this on silver foil. |
| Answer | A stamp in the shape of Tonga. |
| Song | This Land Is Your Land |
| Artist | Bruce Springsteen |
| Number | 100 |
| Realm | Cartoons are like real life, right? |
| Subrealm | Snicker |
| Question | Jay Ward named this cartoon character after a car dealer with a funny name. |
| Answer | Bullwinkle the Moose |
| Song | Yeti |
| Artist | Caribou |
| Number | 101 |
| Realm | Military Coups |
| Subrealm | Oops |
| Question | When the town of Roswell was ransacked by General Sherman, the pastor of the Presbyterian Church told the Union Army he hid the town's valuables in Macon. Where was Macon? |
| Answer | His attic. (He renamed his attic Macon.) |
| Song | The Owls Go |
| Artist | Architecture in Helsinki |
| Number | 102 |
| Realm | Is pain |
| Subrealm | At least you smell good. |
| Question | The first modern brand of antiperspirant was so acidic it routinely did what? |
| Answer | Ate through clothing |
| Song | Do What You Wanna Do |
| Artist | Acid House Kings |
| Number | 103 |
| Realm | TV Land |
| Subrealm | Bildungsroman |
| Question | What was Jeremiah, title character of a poorly received Showtime series, searching for and where was it found? |
| Answer | His father, Valhalla Sector |
| Song | Drop Out |
| Artist | Times New Vikings |
| Number | 104 |
| Realm | The Scottish |
| Subrealm | THE SCOT |
| Question | Sean Connery turned down a lucrative role in this award-winning trilogy because "he didn't understand the script." |
| Answer | Lord of the Rings |
| Song | Precious Metals |
| Artist | The Russian Futurists |
| Number | 105 |
| Realm | Phoney crimes |
| Subrealm | Location, Location, Location |
| Question | In the movie SWAT, Gael Garcia Bernal is arrested atop whose Hollywood star? |
| Answer | Alex Trebek's |
| Song | Talkshow Host |
| Artist | Radiohead |
| Number | 106 |
| Realm | Williamsiana |
| Subrealm | Child geniuses |
| Question | A child portrait of what math prodigy hangs in the Hopkins Observatory? |
| Answer | Truman Henry Safford |
| Song | My Mathematical Mind |
| Artist | Spoon |
| Number | 107 |
| Realm | Natural disasters |
| Subrealm | What a way to go! |
| Question | What tragedy swept the North End neighborhood of Boston in 1919, killing 21 and injuring 150? |
| Answer | The Great Molasses Flood |
| Song | Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch |
| Artist | The Four Tops |
| Number | 108 |
| Realm | Hollywood gods |
| Subrealm | Child stars |
| Question | Who portrayed the infant Moses in "The Ten Commandments," starring Charlton Heston? |
| Answer | Heston's real life son |
| Song | Oh Father |
| Artist | Giant Drag |
| Number | 109 |
| Realm | Sports |
| Subrealm | Baseball |
| Question | A photo of two Atlanta Braves infielders standing in front of a fire hangs in the Hall of Fame. Who were the players and what was on fire? |
| Answer | Mark Lemke and Jeff Blauser, Atlanta Fulton County Public Stadium. |
| Song | Burning the Cow |
| Artist | Earlimart |
| Number | 110 |
| Realm | Even more movies |
| Subrealm | Weird science |
| Question | In the Movie "Young Frankenstein", the creature is given a new brain, freshly stolen by Igor (Eye-gor, not EE-gor). According to Igor, what was the name of the deceased person from whom the brain came? |
| Answer | (Abby Normal - as in abnormal) |
| Song | Weird |
| Artist | Menomena |
| Number | 111 |
| Realm | Music |
| Subrealm | Comic gold |
| Question | What musical instrument does the 40 Year-old Virgin play? |
| Answer | The baritone horn |
| Song | Stars and Stripes Forever |
| Artist | John Philip Sousa |
| Number | 112 |
| Realm | Sports |
| Subrealm | Fashion |
| Question | Don't let their color fool you: where did the name of the traditionally colored jackets worn in grand prix showjumping competitions originate? |
| Answer | The (red) jackets are called pinks and are adopted from traditional foxhunting attire; they are rumored to have been designed by a London tailor named Pink who had a lot of fabric left over from the American Revolution. |
| Song | The Pink Panther Theme |
| Artist | Henry Mancini |
| Number | 113 |
| Realm | So much corn |
| Subrealm | Almost there |
| Question | Corn husks were an essential element of a winning effort for a contestant on the very first episode of a popular reality show. How were the corn husks prepared, who was the winner who prepared them, and what was the show? |
| Answer | They were made into a dress by Austin Scarlett on Project Runway's premiere. |
| Song | Bipolar |
| Artist | Blonde Redhead |
| Number | 114 |
| Realm | Weird Science |
| Subrealm | Get me out of here! |
| Question | According to the MythBusters, what food can be plausibly used to corrode metal prison bars and allow a prisoner to escape from jail? |
| Answer | Salsa, combined with direct current. (It causes an intensified oxidation reaction, causing the metal bars to rust in an accelerated way.) |
| Song | So the Circus Is Back in Town |
| Artist | Cata Salsa Experience |
| Number | 115 |
| Realm | Monsters |
| Subrealm | Getting closer |
| Question | In Frances Ford Coppola's movie version of the story of Dracula, the Count can not only turn himself in other animals, but he can also turn himself into something neither human nor animal. What is it he can turn himself into? |
| Answer | Mist/fog/smoke, coming under the space between the door and the floor |
| Song | Girl From the Gum Commercial |
| Artist | Fog |
| Number | 116 |
| Realm | Presidents and their pets |
| Subrealm | America is tough |
| Question | What Presidential pet was banned from the White House after a nasty confrontation with the French ambassador? |
| Answer | Teddy Roosevelt's bull terrier Pete -- He tore off the French ambassador's britches. |
| Song | Bojangles |
| Artist | Pitbull |