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AVMA Take 2
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Yes, it's another round of that classic guessing game - Animal, Vegetable, Mineral, Abstract [or any combination thereof]. This effort - '03/'04 should address any queries, but then again, may just serve to confuse and baffle which some might say is the point of the game. Patience, integrity and a decent search engine may be useful ....
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Wow! Ok, the next is ANIMAL.
Human?
I chose it largely so that I could giggle inanely if Tuj asked if it began with the letter 'P'.
Is it unique?
[Q] Human.
[GL] In a sense, it is unique. But one could quibble interminably about it.
Male?
[Q] Apologies for letting you down! I do worry my poor history of questioning has skewed the game somewhat...
Currently alive?
[Quendalon] For your giggling motive alone, you're my hero!
[Q] OOPS! I meant to say "Not human".
[Tuj] Male.
[Phil] Quite likely to be currently alive.
Quadruped?
Is it unique by virtue of something it has done?
[S] Not a quadruped. [NJ] *applause* It is indeed unique by virtue of something it has done.
Is the thing that he has done a physical (versus an abstract) act?
Is this bloke animal larger than the average domestic toaster?
[cfm] A physical act.
[Chalky] Smaller than a toaster.
Is it a bird?
[Phil] Is it a plane? Is it Superman? No, it's a bird!
Cock Robin?
.. avoiding the lurker label
Nah - that was a daft question. It's still alive, you say? And 'sort of' unique?
[Chalky] Not Cock Robin. To clarify the uniqueness thing a little: the answer is a singular noun phrase beginning with "The".
The Early Bird?
[Chalky] Not the early bird, but you're thinking along the right lines.
The First Cuckoo of Spring?
[Phil] The very thing!
Woohoo! (or something that sounds remarkably like that). And not a lurk in sight.
Pressing on rapidly with

Animal (or Abstract, depending on your point of view)

Unique?
Fictional?
Is it an archosyndicalistic sandwich?

... and a 'woohoo' and 'wahay' [sounding exactly like they're spelled] for Phil's victoreee.
Human?
The bee's knees?
Is it edible?
[Quendalon] Unique? YES
[Software] Fictional? YES
[Chalky] A wossname sarnie? NO
[Tuj] Human? YES
[Rosie] Apiarian patellae? NO
[GL] Edible? NO. Technically yes, but I really don't think you should eat it.
Abstract solely because it's fictional?
An eponymous character?
[Quendalon] Solely fictionally abstract? YES
[NJ] Eponymous character? NO
A male character?
[cfm] Male? YES
I don't have a question; this is just a place-marker to avoid accusations of lurker victory later.
[CdM] This is not an answer, merely an acknowledgement of your statement.
A detective?
This is a question and also an acknowledgement of CdM's non-lurker status.
[GL] Detective? NO
C20 Literature?
This is a question but also a quibble as to whether a non-interrogatory interjection is sufficient to remove lurker status.
[NJ] 20th Century Literature? YES
Is the animal one of the big cats?
[Rosie] A big cat? NO, he's human (see Tuj's question)
Originally written in English?
[NJ] English lit? YES
Fantasy genre?
Harry Potter?
Does an interrogatory interjection remove lurker status if the question is unrelated to the AVMA AOTC?
[Quendalon] Fantasy? NO
[Software] Harry Potter? NO, not eponymous
[CdM] Questionable lurker? NO, you're not getting out of it that easily.
Appears in a series of books?
Why is CdM so convinced he is going to score a lurker's victory? Is he in league with Phil? </ratsmelling>
[NJ] In a series of books? YES *some applause*
[NJ] Am I in cahoots with CdM? One question at a time, please.
James Herriot?
[Software] Herriot? NO
I should add that when I said yes to '20th century Literature' I simply meant that there were books, not necessarily great works of literature.
Also, although I have described the character as not eponymous, I have found that he is mentioned in the title of at least one book.
A detective series?
Is CdM in league with Phil?
Is this person a restorer of antique sewing-machines who keeps an Afghan hound and lives within earshot of St. Paul's in an apartment that appears to be beyond his modest means?
Does asking an apparently relevant question remove lurker status if the question was asked solely for the purpose of removing lurker status?
[cfm] Detectives? NO
[GL] Conspirateur de Moi? NO
[Raak] Your main question? Oh so close! Actually, I lied. NO, not any part of it is correct, and a meaningless note has been made of your completely legal, yet immoral, lurk avoidance (as opposed to lurk evasion, which is strictly illegal).
Is there a connection to espionage?
Any day now we'll be getting phone calls asking 'Do you believe you have ever suffered unfairly at the hands of a lurker?' and offering their services on a 'No Win No Fee' basis (once you've paid the £300 administration charge)
[NJ] Espionage? NO *a couple of giggles from the audience*
Are they books for adults?
Which is worse - lurking or taking successive turns?
[NJ] Books for adults? NO *applause*
Are they comic books?
Did the character first appear before 1960?
[GL] COmic books? NO
[Quendalon] Pre-1960? YES
Tin-Tin?
[Tin-Tin] NO, not eponymous.
Do they share the books with an eponymous character?
[GL] Is there an eponym? Well, only about a fifth of the book titles feature one character's name, but most people would automatically answer YES. It's a definite YES for other media. *applause for a very good question*
Does this character have a "sidekick"?
Violet Elizabeth Bott?
If that isn't right I'll thcweam and thcweam until I'm thick.
[GL] Has a sidekick? NO
[NJ] Violet? NO, thcweam away.
Christopher Robin?
[cfm] Christopher Robin? NO
The Fat Controller?
[Gusset Login] YES, dagnammit, YES !! It was indeed Sir Topham Hatt 1st Bt, of "The Railway Series", often referred to as the "Thomas the Tank Engine" books, although Thomas' name is only in the title of 9 of the 42 books. The Fat Controller is named in only one title, "Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines".
Nice to get that one finished off for the weekend. And not a hint of a lurk in sight. Please take this green flag in lieu of a baton.
Cool. I never expected having a three year old nephew would help me win anything.

This next one is:

Mineral.

Unique?
[Phil, GL] Excellent =)
Begins with 'P'?
[Tuj] I see you have well and truly nicked my signature question! So I must claim yours in turn.
[Tuj] A one off? Yes
[Quenda] P...? No.
Made of iron?
[cfm] iron? Depending on how loosely you define the terms 'made of' and 'iron' the answer could be either Yes or No.
It is more than 5% steel (which is an alloy of iron).
A building?
*lurks*
[Quenda] Building? No
[CdM] Good to see you, feel free to stop lurking and join in.
Is it larger than a standard kitchen-size refrigerator?
[cfm] > average fridge? No.
A work of art?
Made before 1900?
I'm assuming man-made because it incorporates steel rather than iron.
[Phil] Work of art? No. Although, as always with that question, some people might call it such.
[Quenda] Made before 1900? Yes.
Unique?
A scientific instrument?
Is it in a fixed location?
[Quenders] Apologies, but a change is a good as a rest!
[Rosie] Unique? Yes, still unique.
[Raak] Scientific instrument? No.
[Tuj] Unmoving? Yes.
Military in nature?
[Tuj] A fair cop. Perhaps I will advance to asking whether a thing starts with 'Q'...
Outdoors?
Shaped like a human?
*unlurks*
In the USA?
Located in a museum?
[Quenda] Military in nature? Yes, although perhaps not in nurture. :)
[Rosie] Outside? No
[Chalky] Humanoid? No
[Tuj] 'Merk'n? No
[cfm] In a museum? That's a tough question. Personally, I wouldn't count it as a museum, as such but others might see it differently.
I seem to be very much in the minority. Yes, it's in a museum.
Does it have moving parts?
Even though I have now asked a question, I would like to declare that I am immediately going to revert to lurker status.
[CdM] Moving Prats? (If you're lurking again, I don't have to answer.) No.
Does it have royal associations?
[Tuj] Royal inclinations? *Drowned out by audience aplause and has to repeat* Yes
A sword?
A suit of armour?
Moving Prats? Sounds fun.
A crown?
[cfm] Sword? *More applause* Yes
[Rosie] Suit a'more? No
[Chalurkery] Crown? No
Sword of Mercy?
Military in nature, although not in nurture.
Is this a sword used only for ceremonial purposes?
Pops out of the shrubbery hoping that no one will notice.
The Great Sword of State
Lurker? Me? No! Just a slow starter.
"The Wallace Sword" (William Wallace's Claymore) ?
[Phil] The Gromit Sword? No
[NJ] Greatsword of State? Nope
[Dujon] Ceremonial? Yes
[Quendo] Sword of Mercy? Is the AOTC.

Have a baton with an inch broken off of one end.
[GL] I accept! And with this baton, I dub thee Sir Gusset of Login.

*ahem* This next one is MINERAL.
Is it unique?
[Phil] One of a kind? NO.
Man-made?
[Raak] Man-made? YES.
Begins with Q?
[Tuj] Q-ish? NO.
Made of metal?
Bigger than an average household microwave oven?
Electronic?
[NJ] Metallic? NO.
[Phil] Bigger than a microwave oven? NO.
[Raak] Electronical? NO.
Made of stone?
[cfm] Rocky? NO.
Found indoors?
Ornamental?
Solid?
[Rosie] Can be found indoors? YES.
[Softers] An ornament? Tricky, but I'll go with NO.
[Phil] Solid? PARTLY. *polite applause*
A thermometer?
[cfm] Temperature measurer? NO.
A barometer?
Is water part of this?
Is the AOTC related to light?
[Raak] Atmospheric pressure measurer? NO.
[Chalky] Partly water? My research suggests NO. *audience murmurs*
[Dujon] Light source? NO.
Contains a liquid?
Can I eat it?
Is it used for cleaning?
Contains alcohol?
A Cartesian diver?
Lava Lamp?
[NJ] Contains liquid? YES. *applause*
[Bools] Edible? NO.
[Chalks] Cleaning device? NO.
[Raak] Contains alcohol? My research suggests YES, but that may mislead you.
[Rosie] Cartesian devil? NO.
[GL] Lava lamp? NO. *audience murmurs*
Is the solid part glass?
[Rosie] Glass? According to my research, NO, although glass may have been involved at one point.
Is the solid part plastic?
An insatiable birdie?
(Drinking bird, dipping bird, nodding duck...)
[CdM] Plastic? YES.
[Raak] Unappeasable avian? NO.
A de-icing squirt bottle?
[Rosie] Anti-icy squirty bottly thingy? NO. *audience yawns*
Does it measure anything?
Is it a common household object?
[NJ] Measuring device? NO. *scattered laughter from the audience*
[cfm] Common household object? NO, although a household is one of the most likely places to find it.
Medicinal use in any way?
[Rosie] Curative? NO.
Is this usually dome shaped?
[Dujon] Hemispherical? NO. *laughter from the audience*
Does it have medicinal purposes?
Is it a saftey device?
[NJ] Medicinal use? Still NO.
[GL] Makes you safer? NO.
Does it contain ONLY liquid?
[Phil] Contains only liquid? NO. *applause*
Does it have moving parts?
[Raak] Parts that move? YES, though my answer may mislead you.
A glow stick?
[Phil] Radiant rod? NO.
Was it invented in the last 50 years?
[Tuj] Invented after 1963? NO.
Is the plastic Bakelite?
[Phil] Bakelite? Embarrassingly, I DON'T KNOW; my research doesn't say what kind of plastic(s) are involved.
Is its purpose amusement?
[Rosie] For amusement? YES. *applause, laughter*
Shurely it's not a replica mannequin pis?
[Rosie] Little peeing statue? NO.
A tip-up, clothed/naked lady pen?
[Phil] Pen with lady floating inside? NO. *solitary golf clap from audience*
One of those snow storm globe thingys?
[Softy] Snow globe? NO. *audience murmurs*
Is the mysterious plastic transparent?
[Rosie] Transparent plastic? PARTLY. *applause*
A Sand Sculpture?
Does it have a screen?
[Chalks] Sand sculpture? NO, not sand, nor exactly a sculpture.
[NJ] Has a screen? YES, of a sort, though this answer may mislead you. *nodding and murmuring from audience*
A magic 8 ball?
[CdM] Magic 8-Ball? SIGNS POINT TO YES.
*much applause, throwing of batons, etc*
Hmmm. Maybe I'll use the eight-ball to answer all the questions for this round. That might make it more interesting.
This one is ANIMAL with ABSTRACT connections.
Animal = Human?
Human? It is decidedly so.
Fictional?
Fictional? My reply is no.
Is this person in the arts and entertainment professions?
Arts and Entertainment? My reply is no.
Is the human a politician?
Politician? Yes definitely.
American?
Female?
[Quenders, CdM] Well persevered! I think most, like me, wanted to know the answer but didn't have a clue how to attack it.
American? Don't count on it.
Female? Outlook not so good.

Turns out magic 8-balls don't have many good ways of saying No.
British?
British? My reply is no.
European?
Currently alive?
Never heard of the Magic 8-ball - even after looking it up to check.
European? You may rely on it.
Currently alive? My sources say no.
Begins with a P?
Begins with a P? Very doubtful.
Known for military achievements?
Well known in UK?
Is the AOTC a dead male European politician whose name doesn't begin with a P?
Known for military leadership? Very doubtful
Well known in UK? Reply hazy try again
Dead male non-P European politician? Signs point to yes.
Did this person die after 1900?
Died after 1900? Without a doubt.
Did this person die after 2000?
Was he a francophone?
Well known in UK?
All right. Reluctantly I think I need to abandon the 8-ball, or I risk confusing and infuriating you all.
Die after 2000? No.
Francophone? I can't tell from the sources I have checked. French was not his mother tongue, but there are some reasons to believe he may at least have had a working knowledge of the language.
Well-known in the UK? Concentrate and ask again. Oh, sorry. I do not think that, at the present time, you would say that. But the abstract connection is at least somewhat well-known.
Quisling?
Quisling? It is decidedly so! An impressive leap there. The answer is indeed Vidkun Quisling, leader of the Norwegian collaborationist government from 1942-45. Tuj asked the wrong question. One baton inscribed "with best wishes, Adolf" handed over.
Yes, well, sometimes an answer just jumps into your head and you have to take a guess.
This next one is ABSTRACT with ANIMAL connections
Animal = Human?
[Software] human animal? - YES is probably the most helpful answer
Fictional?
(The next question is: "Is this person in the arts and entertainment professions?")
[CdM] Fictional - YES
The next answer is NO
Actually, the best answer to Software would have been YESish and NO
Gollum?
[Chalky] 'well, sometimes an answer just jumps into your head and you have to take a guess' - this one happens to be wrong
is the animal a deity?
assumption alert
[Phil] Godlike animal? - NO *a couple of audience members exchange significant glances*
Begins with... um... R?
Proverbial?
Is the animal unique?
Is the animal mythical?
Aslan?
[Tuj] R-start? - NO
[Quen] Proverb? - Not as such but *some applause*
[CdM] Just the one? YES and NO
[Phil] Mythical? - YES and NO
[Raak] Aslan? - NO
Guardian Angel?
Mass assumption alert
[Software] Grauniad Angle? - NO
A character from a book (or books)?
[Phil] Character in book? - The human animal appears in at least one literary work.
A well known phrase or saying?
Is the AOTC more than one creature?
[Chalky] I say, I say, I say? - NO
[Tuj] >1 creature? - YES! *relieved applause*
All the creatures on Noah's Ark?
[Raak] The animals went in seven by seven? - NO
Devilish connection?
Does this human animal have any connection to nonhuman animals?
Is the abstract part the occupation of a human?
Yes, don't forget the abstract
[Software] Devilish? - NO
[Quen] human/nonhuman connection (until they caught him at it)? NO, not particularly, except in the context of the AOTC
[Dujon] Abstract = Occupation? - NO
Is the AOTC the title of a book?
[Tuj] Book title? - NO (at least not one I've heard of)
Bigfoot?
[Software] Size 17? - NO
Are these creatures different species - apart from the human?
First literary appearance before 1900?
[Chalky] multi-species? NO - (There's a misapprehension behind your question - I assume based on my answer to Tuj. I counted the human as a creature) So to be clear, the AOTC includes a human and another creature.
[Quen] First written about pre 1900? - YES *some chuckles in the audience*
Alice in Wonderland?
Is Software's question a 'book title' which Tuj asked and to which you have replied NO?
Thanks for clarification on the creature issue :)
Is the human named ie. Jonah and The Whale?
[Software] Miss Liddell and the Magic Mushrooms? - NO (I would consider that a 'Book Title'
[Chalky] Named Human? - YES *appreciative murmurs*
BTW - I've done some research and can't find a book title that matches the AOTC - though there are several which incorporate most of it, at least one of which is by a well-known writer. I don't think it's a useful approach for you.
Is the non-human a mythical creature?
Beginning to get somewhere
[Tuj] Non-human mythical? - NO
Is the human from the Mediterranean?
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