Useless Trivia Thread

[madmat]

OK, so here's the idea...I'll start the ball rolling and check back periodically until the proper answer comes and the guy with the proper answer comes up with the next question and so forth.
Here's question number 1...what is the one food that never spoils?
*hint* It's been found in tombs in Egypt and is a "natural" food.
Good luck and let the fun begin.:thumbsup:

[keto]

Honey

[madmat]

Very astute...ok you're in the hot seat.

[Mr_Bojingles]

keto said
Honey

hey...i was going to say that :p

[keto]

What year did the first World Series Baseball NIGHT GAME take place?

Broad hint: I bet it's later than you think.

[AuthorityAction]

game four in 1971 between the pirates and orioles

[keto]

Check. Ur up to bat.

[AuthorityAction]

What is the official language of Bhutan?

[Black Hawk]

Dzongkha (;D)

Easy one. How many countries in the world?

[csimon]

192
Is Taiwan considered a country?

[Black Hawk]

AFAIK no. Your trivia question is?

[csimon]

lol ...you answered my trivia question!
your move!

[Black Hawk]

What are the 7 wonders of the world?

[bothered]

The Great Pyramid of Giza
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia
The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
The Colossus of Rhodes
The Lighthouse of Alexandria

My go, Vertical parallel lines do not exist, True or false?

bothered.

[Black Hawk]

True

What's the speed of light?

[Geeky1]

Approximately 186,000 Miles/Second.

[bothered]

Question geeky1?

[Geeky1]

Huh? Sorry... was waiting for BlackHawk to confirm it...

Anyhow...

Who invented the first steam engine, when (what century), and where?

[keto]

this is a guess. (James?) Watt, 18th century (1700's) England

[Armo]

no its was a guy in greece or rome some place like that

Thomas Savery in 1698

ok lemme see,

whats the diff between a megabit and a megabyte, ok ok its early and i cant think of a better 1

[Thrax]

Megabyte = 8192 bits or 1024 bytes.
Megabit = 1024 bits or 1 byte

Useless Trivia

What pioneering standard in networking serves as the primary basis for Ethernet? Where was this developed?

[Geeky1]

Armogeddon00 came close enough...

Heronas of Alexandria was a Greek mathematician, engineer and inventor of the first century BC. He initially worked as shoemaker but he eventually decided to explore his ideas. He is better known as an engineer for his hydraulic mechanisms, simple machines and automations, but he was also an important mathematician of his time. He served as a director of the famous Technical School of Alexandria (maybe the world’s first polytechnic university).
He presented and operated the world’s first steam engine, consisted of a closed, spherical container, filled with water. When the water was heated and began to boil, the stream was relieved by two nozzles, configured in a polar alignment. The container was fixed in such a way that was allowed to rotate. The steam release caused a rotating motion of the container that could be used as a steam motor for various applications. The principle of this simple configuration is the same used today for jet propulsion.

[Armo]

look like this .... kinda

[Geeky1]

Yup. Thrax, I'm gonna guess IBM & Token Ring, but that's probably not what you had in mind...

[a2jfreak]

You HAVE to be kidding me.

He said Megabyte and Megabit, not Kilobyte and Kilobit.

Also, are we going w/ the "Megabyte" is what "Mibibyte" is now considered to be and "Megabit" is what "Mibibit" is now considered to be?

If so, Megabyte = 1,048,576 bytes, or 1024 kilobytes.
Megabit is 1/8th a Megabyte.

If we're using "mega" like most sciences (aside from computer) use it, then a Megabyte would be 8,000 bits, or 1,000 bytes. Likewise, a Megabit would be 1,000 bits.

Thrax had this to say
Megabyte = 8192 bits or 1024 bytes.
Megabit = 1024 bits or 1 byte

[Jello Biafra]

a2jfreak had this to say
You HAVE to be kidding me.

He said Megabyte and Megabit, not Kilobyte and Kilobit.

Also, are we going w/ the "Megabyte" is what "Mibibyte" is now considered to be and "Megabit" is what "Mibibit" is now considered to be?

If so, Megabyte = 1,048,576 bytes, or 1024 kilobytes.
Megabit is 1/8th a Megabyte.

If we're using "mega" like most sciences (aside from computer) use it, then a Megabyte would be 8,000 bits, or 1,000 bytes. Likewise, a Megabit would be 1,000 bits.

Thrax had this to say
Megabyte = 8192 bits or 1024 bytes.
Megabit = 1024 bits or 1 byte


I like your pedantry.

did you know you have four miles of tubing in your stomach?

what was the question again?

[Thrax]

Oh my god. I forgot kilo a couple times! Can you ever find it in your heart to forgive me, a2jfreak? :rolleyes2


A kilobyte is still 1024 bits, and a megabyte is still 1024 kilobytes. Only the stupid hard drive industry is calling it 1000 kilobytes to state size. Memory, file systems, file sizes, all are still constructed and calculated in base 2 numbering systems.


//EDIT: No, it's neither DIX nor Token Ring.

[Jello Biafra]

Thrax had this to say


//EDIT: No, it's neither DIX nor Token Ring.


So ask a silly question now :D

[a2jfreak]

Just label me pedantic, Thrax, and I'll forgive you.:cool:

[Thrax]

Pedantic; the arrogant showing of one's dedication to strict learning.

Sure.

Arrogant twit. :)

Now forgive me.

[a2jfreak]

1. One who pays undue attention to book learning and formal rules.
2. One who exhibits one's learning or scholarship ostentatiously.

If it weren't for us pedants, the revisionists would run wild with our history books.

I forgive you anyway, little snot. ;D

[Thrax]

Ostentatious = showy, arrogant! MWAH. ;D

[Black Hawk]

Back to the topic please. Somebody answer the question.

/me doesn't know the answer :bawling:

[Jello Biafra]

Black Hawk had this to say
Back to the topic please. Somebody answer the question.

* Black Hawk doesn't know the answer :bawling:

What was the question?

[Armo]

thicknet cable

[Thrax]

Nope.

[Armo]

hmm twisted pair

oh wait its a standarf

ANSI/EIA/TIA-586-1991

[Thrax]

No and no.

[Armo]

10base-t

[a2jfreak]

Telephone party line?

[Armo]

Alohanet from the university of |-|awaii

[a2jfreak]

Ethernet is based on a standard referred to as carrier sense multiple access with collision detection (CSMA/CD)

(Similar to a telephone party line)

[Armo]

CSMA/CD is based off alohanet

[Thrax]

The preliminary standard for Ethernet was in fact created at the University of Hawaii, and was called ALOHAnet. CSMA/CD was part of this standard and was later adopted into Ethernet.

CSMA/CD is not the defining quality of Ethernet either, it's just a portion of the communcation method to avoid packet collisions.

[Dexter]

Does it occur to anyone else that posting trivia questions on the internet is just a little pointless? Unless it's realtime, or unless you can block everyone's access to any search engine...

No offense, I'm just saying it so it has been said, you know?

[a2jfreak]

As long as the question isn't a push-over doing a simple search may not be as easy as you think, especially w/ something like "ethernet." You'll need to be a bit more creative than just typing in "ethernet" to find the answer.

[Armo]

how far (radious) can you be from a cat scan machine before it wont delete the magnetic tape from you credit cards

[CyrixInstead]

Why did nobody pick up on the fact that Thrax was out with his 1024bits = 1 byte???

Theres only 8 bits in a byte. Ok, so 1 megabit is 1024 bits, but its certainly not 1 byte.

Thrax had this to say
[B]Megabyte = 8192 bits or 1024 bytes.
Megabit = 1024 bits or 1 byte



My question:

If 8 bits make a byte, what do 4 bits constitute?

~Cyrix

//edit: oops, Amrogeddon has posted his question. Ah well, mines easy anyway

[leishi85]

If 8 bits make a byte, what do 4 bits constitute?


4 bits makes half of a byte!!!!!

[csimon]

1 nibble

what is a unit of measure equal to 1 hundred-millionth of a centimeter?

[a2jfreak]

Actuallly, I did address this. Besides, you're wrong anyway.

1 Megabit (going by the definition used for years, not the Mibibit crap) is 1024 kilobits, not 1024 bits. a kilobit is 1024 bits. So we have 1024 * 1024 bits in a megabit.

Of course, I'm going to be called pedantic again, but screw those that love ignorance and are too pompous to admit a boo-boo.


CyrixInstead had this to say
Why did nobody pick up on the fact that Thrax was out with his 1024bits = 1 byte???

Theres only 8 bits in a byte. Ok, so 1 megabit is 1024 bits, but its certainly not 1 byte.

Thrax had this to say
[B]Megabyte = 8192 bits or 1024 bytes.
Megabit = 1024 bits or 1 byte



My question:

If 8 bits make a byte, what do 4 bits constitute?

~Cyrix

//edit: oops, Amrogeddon has posted his question. Ah well, mines easy anyway

[Brilt]

csimon had this to say
1 nibble

what is a unit of measure equal to 1 hundred-millionth of a centimeter?

phemptometer??

[Kwitko]

picometer

[csimon]

Hint:\ think in terms of measuring a part of a molecule ...also has no 'meter in it.

[Kwitko]

Angstrom?

[madmat]

Micron?

[Thrax]

I'm pretty sure it's an angstrom.

[a2jfreak]

Angstrom is for wavelengths.

The weight of the hydrogen molecule is the standard to which the other molecules are weighted. Though I'm not sure if that is what you were thinking, csimon. Perhaps angstrom is what you're looking for.

[CyrixInstead]

a2jfreak had this to say
Actuallly, I did address this. Besides, you're wrong anyway.

Well, if you want to be pedantic, so can I :rolleyes:! I am right in that my main point was that it was said 1024bits = 1 byte. Untrue. 8 bits = 1 byte.

Yes I was wrong in my side note of agreeing that 1024bits = 1 Mbit. How could I have been so stupid.

But you were wrong in saying that you addressed what my post addressed. Nowhere can I see any post in which you point out thet 8 bits = 1 byte.

So please lets stop the you're wrong, I'm right and get on with the trivia.

It is an angstrom, and so the next trivia question is

The name of which commonly used house-hold object comes from the Latin word meaning "admire" or "to wonder at"?

~Cyrix

[Geeky1]

The only thing I can come up with is 10 nanometers (1 nanometer is 1 billionth of a meter)...

//edit
Didn't see Cyrix's post until after I submitted this

[AuthorityAction]

CyrixInstead had this to say
The name of which commonly used house-hold object comes from the Latin word meaning "admire" or "to wonder at"?

Seems too easy to be right, but...

Mirror?

[Kwitko]

I think Angstrom was what csimon was looking for:
http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=angstrom

[CyrixInstead]

Yep, MyNewName, you're right.

What's your question?

~Cyrix

[AuthorityAction]

The 'Bundle of His' is located in which human organ?

[madmat]

Ummm...the heart?

[CyrixInstead]

Cyrix consults A-Level Physical Education & Anatomy book... Of the myocardium. Indeed madmat your are right, I think.


~Cyrix

[madmat]

OK, given the tentative confirmation, here's my new question.
What Automaker used the same block style for their V-8's from the late '50's all the way into '81 when they produced their last engine for their respective badge.
The Block has been used in every incarnation of their engine from the 301cid all the way up to the 455cid the only difference being bore and stroke.

[AuthorityAction]

Yes madmat, you're right.

[keto]

Pontiac, but just a guess. I know they had 301's (Trans Ams) and 455's (GTO, among many others)

[MediaMan]

MM useless trivia question:

Who can explain where these three terms came from

1) Room and board
2) 3 square meals a day.
3) (Parents use this one) If you don't clean your plate you won't get dessert.

[csimon]

angstrom was the correct answer to my Q ...sorry was out visiting family!

[csimon]

TD_Isles had this to say
Angstrom?
horray!

[Armo]

no 1 wants to answer my question =(

3 square meals a day comes from prision what the trays are square

[Geeky1]

Keto, it is most definately Pontiac. If you ever hear someone say that they have a "big block" or "small block" pontiac engine, smack them upside the head... hard. There is no such thing. Although as I recall, the turbo V8 was a buick design, and the 400s they used starting in like '77 were chevy engines...

[csimon]

400 chevy = small block
396 chevy = big block
go figure.

[Geeky1]

csimon, it seems illogical, but the reason is that the 400 is a bored/stroked 350 (which is a small block) while the 396 is the smallest engine that uses the big block block...

[csimon]

3 square meals a day is derived from the days of English wooden sailing ships ...plates were made from wooden planks and were square.

[MediaMan]

Armogeddon00 had this to say
no 1 wants to answer my question =(

3 square meals a day comes from prision what the trays are square


Good guess...but...no.

csimon had this to say
3 square meals a day is derived from the days of English wooden sailing ships ...plates were made from wooden planks and were square.

Just a little bit outside. Not quite.

[keto]

OK automotive seems to be popular. What was the transmission in a Model T? How did it work?

[Armo]

i think we should just change to uslyess facts, as for my question that NO 1 wanted to answer, a cat scan machine will erase a credit card from 25ft away, thats how strong the magnetic field is

[csimon]

hmmm ...from cattle eating 3 square hay bales?

[madmat]

Actually it (the turbo V-8) was a reduced deck height Pontiac block that was a bastardized version of the block in question, the heads were kinda like the olds V-8 head in that the wall between the exhaust ports was gone and it used a common port for the center cylinders. and it was in fact a 301...the 303 was a ram air V engine that was never released and most people have never heard of it, it was developed for Trans Am racing but it made so much torque it would tear the main webs out of the block.
Good answers...I knew the 455 would be a giveaway.

[bothered]

Moving on,
How fast does the Earth orbit the Sun?

bothered.

[a2jfreak]

1 year?

[Necropolis]

bothered had this to say
Moving on,
How fast does the Earth orbit the Sun?

bothered.

107,000 kilometers per hour? Thinking back to senior school science.

[Armo]

a2jfreak had this to say
1 year?



LOL that is the bestest answer ever

[a2jfreak]

Hey, it had been HOURS since bothered had posted so I figured it was at least as good as any of the other answers (none) :D Besides, it's technically correct. ;D ;D ;D

[Armo]

we were 11 days from being nuked by japan, they had special submarines with airplane deks on them, but we sank the subs before they could attack, the bombs were not the nuke we commonly know today, they were designed to not destroy everything but to spread radioactive matierials over sanfransico killing every 1

[bothered]

Sorry guys, been at work. No, 1 year cannot be the answer to 'how fast'
Neo may well be right but in miles it's 18.9 miles per second.
over to you Neo.

bothered.

[Necropolis]

ok,

How many times can six, eight stud Lego pieces can be combined?

[Armo]

probly about 6000

[Necropolis]

Armogeddon00 had this to say
probly about 6000

No where near

[Armo]

ok 25k

[Necropolis]

Keep on going

[Armo]

really? 50k im going home so i wont post for a while

[Necropolis]

Still MILES AWAY

[Geeky1]

Because I can't remember algebra that well, I'm going to guess:

Either 262,144 (8^6) or 1,679,616 (6^8)

but I may have the formula wrong...

[Necropolis]

Can we have that in english please :rolleyes:

[Geeky1]

Huh? Uh... ok...

Either two hundred sixty two thousand, one hundred forty four combinations, or one million, six hundred seventy nine thousand, six hundred sixteen combinations.

And in numbers again:
Either 262,144 (which is 8 raised to the 6th power) or 1,679,616 (which is 6 raised to the 8th power)

[Templar]

I'm going to say around 8.28x10^522. And no, I didn't just pull that out of my ass :p

[Geeky1]

Well, since I've got to go take my archery class...

IF I'm right, the question is:

What fin is present on some fish, and not on others? (Hint: Tetras [Characoids] are one group of fish that have this fin, while Barbs [Cyprinids] are one group of fish that do not)

[CyrixInstead]

The fin that's on their back.

~Cyrix

[Armo]

pectoral

[bothered]

Don't know how you spell it but is it adipose? I think that's the extra dorsal fin like salmon and a few other fish have.

bothered.

[Geeky1]

Bothered got it. It's the adipose fin.

The arrow in the pic of this nurse shark is pointing to it's adipose fin. The only fish I can think of off the top of my head that have it are Tetras, Salmon, and Sharks, altho there are probably a few others...

[bothered]

Hoorar!
What is the bit under your nose called, the bit that's like two lines between your nose and top lip?

bothered.

[Geeky1]

Uh, is it called the bit that's like two lines between your nose and top lip?

:D

[bothered]

Erm, no, Geeky1, it isn't. All your bits from the smallest to the biggest have a name, I never read in a biology book 'that bit under the nose'
Really, some people.

bothered.

[shwaip]

philtrum (Saw it once on hollywood squares :D)

How many cows does it take to supply the NFL with enough leather for a year's supply of balls?

[bothered]

Well done shwaip, give the man a coconut.
No idea how many balls in the NFL but I bet it's a lot of balls.

bothered.

[Geeky1]

Bothered, in the NFL?

The reason they play that stupid game is because they HAVE NO BALLS and are trying to compensate...

[GHoosdum]

3,000 cows.

You should have asked "how many pigs" since people call it the "pigskin."

Here's one:

Why is the ball in football often called the pigskin?

[madmat]

They used to use a pig's bladder to line the ball.

[GHoosdum]

Close enough; it was a cow's bladder lined with a pig's skin to prevent it from bursting during the game. Your turn.

[madmat]

Here's an easy one, what was Black Sabbath's first name?

[Thrax]

Earth

[madmat]

Yep...you're up.

[Thrax]

Who said:

"There is no light without shadow and no psychic wholeness without imperfection."

[a2jfreak]

Aside from Robert Hallock, I'm going to say Joseph Campbell or Carl Jung.

[Geeky1]

A2J, it was Carl Jung. I would've answered, but I cheated (I googled it...) so... You're up.

[a2jfreak]

You can't google? LOL.
If that's cheating, then I cheated too, HAHAHAHA. Who would know that crap off the top of his head?

Oh well, if Thrax says it counts then my question is . . . not a question. Prove (don't just state): .9999 . . . = 1
(I figured I'd make it easy, but not 3rd grade)

If Thrax says it doesn't count, well then I better start blocking google. :D

[Thrax]

Doesn't count within the rules, but since there's no particular way to determine if people are cheating or not...Whatever. You're up A2.

(I know it off the top of my head because I actively study major philosophic movments).

[shwaip]

1/9 = .11111...
8/9 = .88888...

.1111... + .8888... = .9999...

1/9 + 8/9 = 9/9 = 1

meh...don't know/care too much if it is right, syntactically, or actually ;)

[Armo]

if you were color blind, blue and yellow look exactly the same

[a2jfreak]

That's pretty much it, shwaip. I was looking for 1 of a few different things, and you gave me 1. You're up.

BTW, Armo: I am color blind and blue and yellow don't look the same to me.

I often confuse green/red/brown and often certain shades of green with gray. Blues and purples I have a tough time with. Red/orange (certain shades) can give me problems.

[shwaip]

In what country did LEGO's originate?

[Armo]

LEGO LOGO!

[a2jfreak]

Now that he knows he can't google, a2jfreak thanks God for Yahoo! and Lycos and teoma ;D (Just Kidding)

[Necropolis]

Thats an easy one,

Denmark

[shwaip]

yup ^^

[Necropolis]

Which film had the most extras in and how many of them where there?

[Thrax]

1982 - Gandhi. But I don't know the number.

[Kwitko]

300,000 extras in Gandhi.

[Thrax]

Are we both up? :scratch:

[a2jfreak]

300K? Sheesh!! That had to take some coordination.

[Necropolis]

TD got the number as well as the name so he's up (sorry Thrax)

[Kwitko]

I ain't got none no good trivia what I kin tells ya none. So I guess I'll go with what I know best.

What is the deepest station below street level in the NYC Subway system? How many feet below? Bonus question: What is the deepest station below sea level in the subway system?

[Thrax]

Is it 191st St station? I know that one is like ~175 feet below street level.

[Kwitko]

191st Station is 160' below street level. Roosevelt Island, at 100' below the street, is the deepest station below sea level.

[profdlp]

If 8 bits make a byte, what do 4 bits constitute?...
50 cents

(I'm late to the game, as usual...)

[Armo]

Nibble!

[Geeky1]

Time to revive this thread too...

Question: What is the oldest Swiss watch company?

[CyrixInstead]

Erm, Swatch?

~Cyrix

[EMT]

My go, Vertical parallel lines do not exist, True or false?TrueHeh, I never read this thread before. Pretty old question, but could someone explain this one I quoted if it's right?


Geeky, you thread-reviver you, does it count if I read it the other night and check the page in my history to answer your question? It wasn't anything I'd heard of: Vacheron Constantin (1755). Actually, it looks like they're the first watch-maker anywhere.

How far is Earth from the sun (on average)? Your answer must be in the simplest unit to represent this distance.

[TheGr81]

How far is Earth from the sun (on average)? Your answer must be in the simplest unit to represent this distance.
One astronomical unit, approximately 93,000,000 miles. ;)

[EMT]

Right on. Go ahead :thumbsup: