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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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Lottery winners? Does religion come into it?
People who don’t pay their library fines?
[Lottery] no
[Religion] no
[Non-payment] No, as if they'd ever read a book
Is this to do with them being unedicated?
Or uneducated?
[Non-edicated] Yes. A bit stereotypical, but yes.
Another summary. They are: human, linked to crime in a general way, some (more than five) alive today and some not, disreputable, generally male, uneducated, usually of fixed abode, unlikely to read a book, eligible to vote, oiks, a one-word answer in the singular, linked by a psychological characteristic, more numerous after 1900.

They are not (as a defining characteristic): flat-earthers, musical, honest politicians, a sports team, all having the same name, competition winners, Prime Ministers, US Presidents, members of a profession, connected to TV or radio, to do with hats, inhabitants of a small remote place, members of a group one must apply to, linked to a country, linked by a physical characteristic, age-related, sport-related, fans of something, royalty, the Illuminati, Centenarians, astronauts, related to hair, stunt-men, on death row, on parole, the Krays, organised crime, transport-related, kleptomaniacs, cannibals, related to fraud, related to treason, victims of crime, trespassers, to do with war, anti-vaxxers, beginning with P, beginning with G, hackers, Julian Assange, clones, wearers of a uniform, identity thieves, toffs, chavs (applause), welfare scroungers (applause), spivs, barflies, black marketeers, oiks, the underclass, beggars, zombies, dwarves, eunuchs, kings, ghosts, queue jumpers, creators of anything, recognisable at sight, lottery winners, related to religion, derelict about library fines.

Bouncers?
Excellent summary, worth a clap
Yes! However I see 'oiks' in both the am and the isn't sections. They're oikish individuals. But 'oik' is not the AOTC.
[Bouncers] No. But that's also worth a clap. And I suppose some of them might be bouncers.
The unemployed?
A pejorative term?
[Unemployed] Generally yes. Not always officially employed, that's for sure.
[Prejorative] Yes, I suppose. Milder even than oik though.
If there is a term for the Trotters out of Only Fools and Horses, would that be close?
'Cos I'm sure there is one but I can't put my finger on it.
['Entrepreneurs', of course] And no. [Audience titters].
Class-based?
Wide boys?
(Although "according to the Oxford English Dictionary it is synonymous with spiv".)
Charlatans?
Troll?
[Classy] Yes. But not classy.
[Wide] No.
[Charlatanny] No.
[Trolley] No. [A small ripple]
Yob?
[Yob] No. But getting warm at last
Hooligans (a.k.a. hoolies, hooks, or hoods)?
[Hooligans] No. Maybe a smidge warmer?
Oafs?
The only other words I can think of are all rather sweary - so it's probably best I withdraw from the chase ;^)
Would members of this class deny their membership of it?
[Oafs] No. A bit colder with oafs.
[Sweary] No, it's not sweary. After all, this is a family show. :-)
[Denial] Yes, I think most would. Some probably revel in it, but even then self-awareness is not high on the list for these types.
Is some sort of bigotry involved?
Conected wth the military?
Working class?
Do they go around in gangs?
Any connection to public schools?
[Bigots] No, not particularly
[Military] No, not especially
[Working class] Yes, for a very broad definition of 'working'
[Gangs] No, not 'gangs'
[Public schools] No. Well, almost never.
Often under the influence of some drug or other?
The riff-raff?
The Hoi-Poloi?
[druggies] No.
[riff-raff] No. That's one of the closest guesses yet though. [Audience sniggers]
[hoi-poloi] No.
Pikies?
Migrant workers?
Muggers?
[pikies] No
[migrants] no
[muggers] no, but a stronger ripple for that one
Does it begin with R,S or T?
[R,S,T] Yes. :-)
Reprobates?
Travelling folk?
[Reprobates] Yes.
[Travellers] No.
Recidivists?
Teenage herberts?
Drop-outs? Hippies?
[Recidiv] No. Well, a few might be
[Herberts] No.
[Dropouts] No. Again, a few might be.
[Hippies] Pah! No.
Blackmailers?
Forget blackmailers, that doesn't pass the no-apparent crime test.
Ruffian?
Urchins?
[Rrrrruff!] Yes! Boolbar wins. Audience sensation - oh wait, most of them have died of old age. I did say plural, but honestly, I'll assume that was just a typo.
Wait - checking back, no I didn't, I chose a singular generic specimen. Boolbar wins double points for being righter than the wally who set this one.
Oh blimey! I'd better quickly think of something. How about ANIMAL (with a vague link to vegetable and mineral for some parts of the world and for that matter vegetable and abstract as well, but let's ignore all that and stick with the basic ANIMAL or we'll be here all day year.)
Is it found on a coat of arms anywhere?
[Arms] Yes, I've swiftly found one on Google.
Popularly thought to represent a country?
Living in the sea?
Four-legged?
This should be quick...
[Country] I would suspect a lot people would think of this animal if one country was mentioned.
[Sea] Mainly.
[Four] No.
dolphin?
Does it have a shell?
The Galápagos tortoise?
A capillary-challenged eagle?
A whale?
Just Say No.
[Dolphin] No
[Shell] No
[That Tortoise] No
[That Eagle] No
[Whale] No
Is it a bird?
Could you lift one of these?
[Birdy] Yes!
[Lifty] Personally I could lift most of them, but I'd draw the line at the larger ones.
A grouse?
A penguin?
[Grouse] The bird rather than a grumbly person? No.
[Penguin] Yes! That's the one. I said it would be quick.

Do p-p-pick up this baton made out of chocolate covered biscuit and I can go and have a nice nap.

We apologise for the temporary interruption to transmission. Normal service has now been resumed.

I need to pay more attention!

This is ABSTRACT, although under another interpretation it is MINERAL
Hidden textconceivably with some non-mineral elements, but these would be negligible
A mountain (mythical or real)?
Mountain? No. *a tiny smattering of applause from the most generous members of the audience*
A geological concept?
A precious metal?
Geological? No.
Precious metal? No.
Is it an effect of animal work?
A figurative phrase or saying?
Effect of animal work? Yes.
Figurative phrase? No.
Made by mammal(s)?
A route or path of some kind?
Made by mammals? Yes.
Route or path? No.
I should perhaps clarify that my answer to Superman's question took "animal" in the AVMA sense of the term.
Made by people?
Reading between the line of CdM's clarification.
A butter mountain?
Made by people? Yes
Butter mountain? No.
An object of veneration?
A sculpture?
Object of veneration? No (except maybe in a narrow and almost certainly misleading sense... so forget I said anything).
Sculpture? No.
An award?
An artefact of modern civilisation?
Does it begin with P?
The Anthropocene?
Now it starts to get interesting…
Award? No.
Artefact of modern civilisation. *applause* In the abstract sense, the best answer is No (though a case can be made for Yes; it’s a question of perspective). In the mineral sense, most definitely Yes.
Begin with P? No—at least not any more.
Anthropocene? No.
The scrap-heap of history?
The Statue of Liberty?
Is it rubbish?
A painting of Mount Fuji?
Scrap-heap of history? No.
Statue of Liberty? No.
Rubbish? No.
A painting of Mount Fuji? No.
Did it have a western name which is no longer used?
Ayers Rock/Uluru, for example.
The Piltdown Man?
Obsolete western nomenclature? No.
Piltdown Man? No.
Forget about the mountain. The audience were too enthusiastic.
Is there just one of it?
Another interesting question.
Unique? Yes is clearly the best answer. In the mineral sense, definitely. In the abstract sense, also Yes—except, from a certain perspective, No.
Is it associated with a particular nation?
Is it an unintentional creation of some kind?
Does it have a flag?
Associated with a particular nation? In the mineral sense, Yes. In the abstract sense, No.
Unintentional creation? (*audience laughter*) No.
Does it have a flag? No.
Is the mineral gold?
A newly-formed island?
Gold? No. (It’s conceivable there’s some small amount involved, I suppose, but even if so, it wouldn’t be a helpful line of enquiry.)
New island? No.
Did the abstract sense exist before the mineral sense?
Metal?
Transuranic?
Abstract sense prior to Mineral? Yes.
Metal? In part, Yes.
Transuranic? No.
Is it wearable?
Does the abstract sense have to do with a work of fiction?
Wearable? *much mirth in the audience* No.
Connected to work of fiction? No.
Anything to do with the hydrocarbon industry?
To do with hydrocarbon industry? No. (There are surely some connections of some sort in the mineral sense (“anything to do with” is a vague phrase), but there’s no connection I am aware of that would be helpful or useful.)
Is there just one of the mineral thing?
Just one of mineral thing? You already asked that! Yes.
Is the physical thing some kind of token that represents the abstract thing?
Some kind of tokeny representation? No. Because I'm feeling really generous, I will tell you that the physical thing is the current instantiation of the abstract thing.
Is it, by definition, the X-est Y in the world, for some X and Y?
X-est Y? Yes *sustained applause*
The biggest pile of crap the world has ever seen?
The US Republican Party? No.
Is it the tallest Y?
Tallest Y? Y! *applause*
The tallest building?
Yes! The AOTC is “The tallest building in the world” which of course has had, and will have many specific instantiations.

I don’t seem to have a baton, but here’s a lightning conductor instead.
The next is a straightforward MINERAL.
Is the material modified by man?
Yes, it is modified by man.
Is it unique?
But is it art?
[CdM] It is unique.
[Tuj] Not a work of art.(A few grumbles in the audience)
Is it a feat of engineering?
[SM] (applause) It is a feat of engineering.
In North America?
(some chuckling in the audience) It is not in North America.
A bridge?
[Rosie] Not a bridge.
Is it fixed in one location?
(The audience are alert to hear how the chair handles this tricky question.)
[B] On balance, the least misleading answer is that yes, it is fixed in one location.
Is it terrestrial?
[SM] (applause) It is not terrestrial.
It's not JWST again is it :-)
It is indeed. I hadn't realised I did that 2 years ago. But some of the answers have changed since then! I'm afraid this baton has been punctured by several micrometeoroids, but it's still almost as good as new.
Well I feel like doing a MINERAL as well.
It’s not JWST again, is it?
Is it terrestrial?
I'm not trying to do the last game's questions in reverse. :)
JWST loop averted
[JWST] I would hope that only a bunch of the uttermost lunatics could manage to get caught in a loop in a game of AVMA.

... So, um, I suppose I should double-check then. (Double-checks AOTC) Nope. Definitely not the JWST. (Phew)

[terrestrial] Yes.

Is it fixed in one location?
oblig?
WTF is the JWST?
[fixed] No.

[Rosie] James Webb Space Telescope

A means of transport?
Jwst checking
[Transportation] No.
Is the material modified by man?
[man-modified] Yes.
Is there only one of it?
[Can there be only one?] No, there's loads
A drone?
Do you have at least one of these in your house or garden?
[drone] no
[in my house] yes, come to think of it.
A mobile phone?
[mobile] No. The oldest member of the audience peers farsightedly at their device and then claps, causing nonplusment among younger audience members
A remote control?
A pot? As in plants and cooking?
[Remote] No. Colder again
[Pot] No.
A ham radio device?
[Ham radio] No.
Did these exist in the year 1900?
[1900?] No, but in checking I was fascinated to discover that the fundamental discovery in use for the AOTC goes back to the late 1800s.
A metal detector?
Something powered by electricity?
[Metal detector] No.
[Electrickle] Yes.
A walkie-talkie?
[Walkie and/or talkie] No. The audience member, by the way, was just looking at an older-model mobile phone.
A hand tool?
[Hand tool] No, tenuously hand-related at best
An immobile phone?
[immobile] No. In fairness, the AOTC is not unheard-of on some older immobile phones.
An electrical component?
A loudspeaker?
An antenna?
First built 1888 by Hertz.
[Electrical component] Yes. (Claps from audience)
[loudspeaker, antenna] No and no. It took a long time before anyone found any application for the original discovery.
A battery charger?
[battery charger] No, not a battery charger. And can I just say I think it's disgraceful that we still keep chargers in such cruel and cramped conditions in this day and age?
Does it emit light?
A laser?
[emit?] No.
[laser] No.
A microphone?
A calculator?
[microphone] No
[calculator] No, (but a few more claps.)
A Leyden jar?
[jar] No. Too early.
A keyboard? With physical buttons?
A capacitor?
Quick consultation of the RS catalogue...
[keyboard] No.
[capacitor] No. I think it should be in there though.
A crystal radio?
Does it have any mechanically moving parts?
[crystal] No, but a clap or two.
[mechanically moving] No.
A movie prop?
An aerial?
[Props, aerials] No for both, and audience boos for getting colder.
Does it have a visual function?
Solid state semiconductoion (aka rectification)?
[Visual] Yes. [Back from boos to strong claps]
[rectification] No.
A liquid crystal display?
Raak wins!
[LCD] YES, that's the bunny.
I shall now ceremoniously hand over this thin grey-green rectangle with circuitry hanging from it, bearing an ancient congratulatory message: 'PC LOAD LETTER'.
Raak is going to choose the James Webb Space Telescope
I can tell...
I think Raak has been swallowed up by one of the Black Holes discovered by the JWST.
Let’s have another MINERAL. I can’t be sure that someone, perhaps even me, has not done this one before, but it’s not the JWST.
Doeas
Does it have a scientific application?
Dunno what went wrong there.
Is it a manufactured object?
[R] There is no known scientific application.
[SM] Not manufactured.
Stone?
Terrestrial?
[S] Not stone.
[SM] Non-terrestrial. At least, not specifically terrestrial.
Can you lift it?
[R] You cannot lift it.
Is there more than one of these things?
[S] It is not a countable sort of thing.
Is it the universe?
[SM] Not the universe. (There's exactly one of those, by definition.)
Is it an abstract concept?
[R] That could be argued either way, but for the sake of definiteness I'll say it is not an abstract concept.
The atmosphere?
[R] Not the atmosphere.
The ocean?
[R] Not the ocean. Non-(specifically)-terrestrial.
Related to planetary bodies?
Is it matter in one if the four basic forms?
[SM] Not related to planetary bodies.
[B] I’m not sure what the fourth basic form would be (plasma? neutronium? a black hole?), but this is not any form of matter.
Is it a form of energy?
[C] applause! It is a form of energy.
Sunshine?
[R] Not sunshine.
Dark energy?
Is motion involved?
Motion, I said, not motions.
[Rosie] Nobody knows, because...
[Radox] It is Dark Energy. Have this invisible baton that no-one is sure exists.
Energized
That was rather enjoyable, I'm not sure anyone foresaw that as being a property of Dark Energy. I am hesitating between something easy and something ridiculously specific. Therefore MINERAL is indicated, and if you hear a mysterious voice you should consult a doctor.
Is it ridiculously specific?
Terrestrial?
Is it made of glass?
Is it definitely known to exist (or have existed)?
[CdM] Yes. Not the James Webb Space Telescope, more like the receiver of the high gain antenna on the James Webb Space Telescope. Once you are getting close to this object, it will be fairly straightforward to get to the details (famous last words). And it's nothing to do with the James Webb Space Telescope.
[Boolbar] Yes.
[Tuj] No.
[Raak] It exists, has existed, and all bets are that it will exist for a bit longer.
The diagonal line forming the central part of the "N" on the Willie Rushton plaque at Mornington Crescent station?
ex-Great Western suburban 2-6-2 tank locomotive no. 6106?
It is a component of a man-made device?
Is it a doohickey?
[Tuj] No. Sadly.
[Rosie] No. Nothing to do with trains.
[Raak] It is part of something that was made by man, but hardly qualifies as a 'device'.
[Simons Mith] No. Nothing to doo with hickeys.
Is the capstone of a pyramid?
Are there more than one of this?
Is it a single colour?
Trying to be an increment more useful :)
One of the nine detectors that have been constructed at the Large Hadron Collider?
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