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AVMA Take 2
help
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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[CdM] either 'men' or 'women'? - NO
Trekkies?
To do with science fiction?
Is this represented by an acronym?
[Iroul] Trekkies - NO
[Raak] SciFi - NO
[Tuj] Acronym - NO
Time for a little help here. The human connection is with a specific subset of humankind which is neither men nor women.
Hallowe'en?
[Rosie] Hallowe'en? - NO
Children?
(i.e., is that the human connection?)
[CdM] Children? - YES; the human connection is with children (substantial applause from the audience)
Is it a game of some kind?
(I presume not, since you said it wasn't an activity, but just in case...)
[CdM] a game? NO (you presumed correctly)
Spelling bees?
Connected with a work of fiction?
[Raak] Spelling bees? - NO
[CdM Connected with a work of fiction? - This has appeared in a number of works of fiction, but that is not the normal context for it; so NO is probably the most useful answer
It's that point in the day where I go to my hotel and my laptop gets locked in a drawer at work. I have every confidence that it won't take long now - you just need to pin down what sort of thing this is.
The tooth fairy?
Child labour laws?
[Inkspot] I hope not. I did that one not so long ago...
Is it related to childcare?
Compulsory schooling?
OK - an apology. I've done a bit of looking up and I now think that I should have answered YES to the Connected with a work of fiction? question, in that the majority of the references were in the context of a single work. Anyway, we're nearly there.
[Inkspot] The tooth fairy? - NO (but substantial and prolonged applause)
[CdM] Child labour laws? - NO
[Raak] Compulsory schooling? - NO
Is this a make-believe character?
The sandman?
[Chalky] make-believe character? - YES
[Iroul] The sandman? - NO
The audience is surreptitiously putting on coats etc. ready for an early exit
Jack Frost?
Fairy Godmother?
We have a winner!!
THE FAIRY GODMOTHER it is. Back to CdM
Although the character appears in many stories and predates Perrault, Cinderella now appears to have a working majority.
Credit where credit is due...
...it was actually Ms CdM who figured this one out.

Anyway, back to the Wikipedia Random AVMA Subject Generator one more time...

... and this one will be easy, I think. It is ABSTRACT (possibly with VEGETABLE and and/or MINERAL connections, but I don't think those are very helpful).
Atlantis?
Is this another place?
A human construct?
(trad)
It an event in the natural world?
Sorry for the delay
Atlantis? No.
A place? No (thankfully).
Human Construct? Very definitely.
Event in natural world? Not quite sure what you mean, but I think the answer is no.
Is this a building perhaps?
An organisation?
The Daytona 500?
(that's what I got when I followed the link...)
Building? No.
Organisation? No.
Daytona 500? No.
An idea?
A work of fiction?
A work of non-fiction? [thanks Kim]
A proverb or saying?
A belief-system or philosophy?
Connected with a belief-system or philosophy?
Is it connected with anything connectable-with?
sorry - ignore that - I was being unecessarily facetious
An idea? Only in a very vague sense.
work of fiction or nonfiction? No.
proverb or saying? No.
Belief system or philosophy, or connected thereto? No.
Connected to anything? Yes. :-)
A state of mind?
Is it of recent origin?
state of mind? No.
Recent origin? No. (Googling suggests that the first instance of the answer was in the early 16th century, but it is probably less misleading to suggest that it has been around since the mid 19th century.)
An artistic endeavour, or connected thereto?
Artistic endeavor? No. (Nevertheless, a smattering of applause.)
Anything to do with Music?
A style of doing something?
Music? No.
Style of doing something? No, except in a very very general sense. However, it is a specific abstract thing that exists in the context or a more general abstract thing.
Is it an academic study of any kind?
A form of dance?
Academic study? No. (But again, a slight smattering of applause.)
Dance? No.
Science fiction?
A particular style of architecture?
Science fiction? No.
Style of architecture? No.
Something "alternative" such as homeopathy, dowsing, etc?
A scientific theory?
Something alternative? No.
Scientific theory? No.
Hmmm... so much for my belief that this would be easy. It seems to me that you have still missed a key broad class of abstract things.
Mathematical?
Mathematical? No. (*significant applause greets the question and some "oooohs" greet the answer*)
Linguistic?
Linguistic? No. (also, perhaps the applause for "mathematical?" should not have been quite so significant)
Geometrical?
Geometrical? No. (the applause was less significant than that)
To clarify
It is not mathematical. It could however be said that there is a mathematical connection. I am not sure that is a fruitful line of enquiry, however. I would still look for the 'key broad class of abstract things' that has not yet been mentioned.
Numerology?
Numerology? No.
Is this a type of game?
Something imaginary?
Something to do with computers/worldwideweb?
topological - in ythe sense of connected with shapes etc?
Something to do with time?
Type of game? Yes! *sustained relieved applause from the audience*
Imaginary? No.
Computers, WWW? Well, I know you can find examples of the answer on the WWW, but I refer you to my previous answer concerning the 16th and 19th century.
Topological? No.
To do with time? No.
Chess?
A specific board game?
Is this a game that's often bet on?
Chess? *massive applause*. Chess is one of the two words on the card. I now refer you to my earlier answer to Tuj.
Specific board game? The answer is not a specific board game.
Often bet on? Very rarely, I would imagine.
Speed Chess?
is that what it's called??
or "Blitz" Chess
just looked it up :-)
Fairy chess?
Speed/Blitz chess? No.
Fairy chess? No, although there is some connection.
Blindfold Chess?
Blindfold chess? No.
Four-handed chess?
4H chess? Never even heard of it. So, no.
Haw about "Wizard's Chess"?
Haw/How
Wizard's chess? No.
Chess Championship?
I assume from the 'not a specific board game' answer that we are not looking for a type of chess.
Chess, the musical?
Chess Problem?
So this is 'a type of game', but 'not a specific board game' and one of the 2 words is 'chess'. Hmmm.
[Raak] Lloyd Webber hasn't been around since the 16th century, it just seems that way.
And INJ and I keep swapping back and forth: Chess Problem (actually, the word on the card was Puzzle, but I decided earlier I would also accept Problem) is the answer. INJ's careful parsing of 'not a specific board game' was correct; that was why I answered that question even after Chess had been guessed. Finally, I hope "yes" to "type of game" wasn't misleading; I was just so relieved that someone was finally on the right track!
*thinks CdM and INJ are each other's nephews*
(no, not really :-) )
[Néa] No, CdM and I are each other's uncles
I do have a tendency to get involved more towards the end of these games - the Michael Owen approach
Anyway, have a go at: Mineral
Manufactured?
[Chalky} Manufactured? - YES
Specific ("the Eiffel Tower") rather than general ("stainless steel")?
[Néa ] Specific? - YES (Eiffel Tower? - NO)
Primarily or exlusively metal?
Bigger than a telephone box?
[CdM] Metal? - NO
[Raak] Bigger than a telephone box? - YES
Is it a monument?
[Raak] a monument? - NO (but some applause)
Is it in Europe?
In Europe?
Hmph. No mere simulpost is going to stand in the way of my question.
Promarily or exclusively stone?
[Iroul] In Europe - YES
[CdM] I will let it stand in the way of a separate answer
[Tuj] stone? - YES
The Notre Dame Cathedral?
Was it built in the last 100 years?
Sacré Coeur?
In Britain?
Big Ben?
Chartres Cathedral?
[irach] Notre Dame? - NO
[Iroul]built in the last 100 years? - NO
[Rosie] In Britain? - NO
[irach] Big Ben? - NO
[CdM] Chartres - NO
A place of worship?
[CdM] place of worship? - NO. There's an untested assumption here.
Is it a building?
[Inks] a building? - NO (that's the one)
Is it a free-standing structure?
A place of worship doesn't have to be a building, you know...
Is it a statue?
[CdM] free-standing? - YES
[Raak] a atatue? - YES (loud and enthusiastic applause)
(it's also a Statue)
Is it made of marble?
Is it in Italy?
David's statue of Michelangelo?
(which is much less well-known than the other one)
[Inks] marble? - YES
[Chalky] in Italy - NO
[CdM] David's statue of Michelangelo? - NO (nor vice versa)
The Little Mermaid Statue in Copenhagen?
[Chalky] Little Mermaid? - NO (can't be long now)
In France?
suppose it would help to find out which country - NOT Britain, NOT Italy ...
In Spain?
Scandinavia?
[Chalky] France? - YES
[CdM] Spain - NO (now there's a surprise)[Néa] - NO
it's a race now
The statue of Joan of Arc?
[Chalky] Joan of Arc? - NO
Venus de Milo?
Is it in a public square/place (as opposed to in a museum, say)?
[Néa] Venus? - NO (Oooohs from the audience)
[CdM]public square/place? - NO (next one gets it I reckon)
Rodin's Thinker?
[CdM] Rodin - NO (OK, so I was wrong)
Rodin's Aphrodite of Melos?
[Raak] Rodin's Aphrodite of Melos? - NO
Nike of Samothrace?
[Néa] YES! - It was the Winged Victory or Nike of Samothrace
Over to you then
I broke the chain of uncles!
Oooh... well then. VEGETABLE AND MINERAL (with certain ANIMAL connotations)
Is the vegetable part largely or entirely wood?
[CDM] YES
The Cross?
[Raak] NO.
Are there many of these?
(Raak) Brilliant long shot. Glad it failed. :-)
Is the mineral part largely or entirely metal?
[Rosie] YES
[CdM] YES

Oh, and I said "connotations" where I meant "connections". I should only do one thing at a time - that results in fewer mixups!
Is the animal connection human?
(A deserved win if only for being the person who took notice of the marble and telephone box answers)
*blush*
[INJ] NO
A piece of furniture?
Is the metal part the fixings that hold the wooden parts together?
Am getting a feeling that this one will be quick
[furniture] YES
[fixins] NO
Bigger than an armchair?
[Tuj] NO
A rabbit hutch?
A stool?
You at the back stop giggling.
[Raak] NO
[Rosie] NO

The audience is silent (except for that one suppressed snicker at the back).
Smaller than an armchair?
[CdM] YES.
Is it made for sitting on?
[Inkspot] Oh deary me, NO.
Is it for storage? (Cupboard, bookshelf, etc.)
[Raak] NO.
Is it a piece of furniture by a particular designer?
[Inkspot] NO. (It is not entirely straightforward, but "yes" would both be untrue and misleading, I think.)
Does it have wheels?
[Raak] There are wheels, YES, but not in the way you probably think, NO.
A lava lamp?
[INJ] NO.
A clock?
[Raak] YES! *audience cheers and claps mightily*
That is not the full answer, though.
A cuckoo clock?
We have a winner!
[Chalky] YES - it is indeed a cuckoo clock! *audience starts singeing cuccu*
Over to yourself.
oh Lordy - I've finally achieved a lurker's victory . Makes a change :-)
Nice easy one:

A N I M A L

Mammal?
alive?
Mammal? YES
Alive? NO
Human?
Edible?
[N] Human? YES
[R] Edible? To cannibals perhaps :-)
Bigger than a telephone box? A specific individual?
European?
(I like this minimalist approach, as opposed to CdM's verbosity)
[C] Specific? YES
[I] European? YES
Alive in the 20th century?
Any connection with Mornington Crescent?
♀?
A scientist of some sort?
A monarch/ royal?
Nicholas Sarkozy?
Politician?
[N] Alive 20th century? YES
[R] MC? Possibly - I haven't read ALL of the archives
[C] Male? YES
[Tuj] *cheers from audience* YES!
[i} Monarchy? NO
[I] Sarkozy? No
[R] Politician? NO
Einstein?
(Getting the obvious out of the way first. I would have asked if it was Heisenberg, but I figured you would just say that you weren't sure.)
Pierre Curie
(He might have a connection with MC - wasn't he active on the radio or something?)
Wasn't he married to MC?
Physicist?
[CdM] Einstein? NO
[I] Pierre Curie? NO
[INJ] Physicist? YES *ooohs from audience*
Feynman?
British?
[R] Feynman? NO
[INJ] British? NO
Steven Hawking
Danish?
[K] Steven Hawking? NO
[I] Danish? NO - though you're right to try and get the nationality of this person.
Germanic/Scandiwegian?
[CdM - Heisenberg - ah yes. See what you mean now. I think :-)]

[INJ] Germanic/Scandiwegian? YES ;-)

Schroedinger?
German?
[CdM - It's only Schroedinger if you don't guess him.]
A superposition of Schroedinger and Hahn, in that case?
We have a winner !
Well deduced CdM - it's that cat man Erwin Schrödinger. Was that a stab in the dark?
Me again?
OK, I'll go to the WRAVMASG one more time...
... and I will reject "a municipality in the Honduran department of Comayagua" on the basis of the Estonia experience...
... and I will also reject two succcessive entries concerning RPGs on the grounds that I would be completely unable to answer questions about them...
and so today's subject is ABSTRACT with ANIMAL connections.
A macrobiotic diet?
An anarcho-syndicalist dude ranch?
Going back to my roots
Macrobioticism? No.
a-s dude ranch? No. *more than a smattering of applause from the audience, though*
A group of people?
I mean the *name* of a group of people
Is it a symbol?
Connected with animal husbandry?
Group of people? Yes. *applause*
Name of group of people? Yes.
Symbol? No.
Animal Husbandry? No.
Anything to do with trade unions?
To do with trade unions? *some uncertain applause from the audience* Hmmmm... it depends on what you mean by "anything to do with". The answer is not a trade union.
Is this group found in one specific country?
One specific country? Yes. *applause*
In Europe?
In Europe? Yes. (OK, so maybe this isn't completely free of the Estonia problem)
Is it a political organisation?
Political organization? Yes. *applause*
Is it a political party?
The EU?
Is it in one of the former Eastern bloc countries?
Is it a left of centre?
Political party? Yes.
In EU? Not when I last checked.
Former Eastern bloc? Yes
Left of Centre? Yes.
That might be enough information to get it...
The Soviet Communist Party?
Going to feel a right plonker if it isn't . . .
Soviet Communist Party? No. [Rosie] There was a very specific clue in my previous responses.
Latvian Social Democratic Labour Party?
LSDLP? No. *The audience is silent for a moment, then applauds, then continues to applaud, then stops applauding, then applauds again.*
The Social Democratic Party of Romania?
SDPoR? *The audience starts applauding excitedly, and then stops dead, save for a tiny smattering of applause at the very end* No.
SDP of Slovakia?
SDPoS? *The audience, once burned twice shy, stays silent throughout* No.
Is it from the former Yugoslavia?
former Yugoslavia? Yes. *applause*
Croatia?
SDPoC? Yes! *passes baton*
Oh!
Goodness! I wasn't expecting that. I thought a more exact answer (including the policital party) would be expected, once the relevant country had been identified. Not that I'm complaining, mind. I've been wanting to set this one for some time. It should be quite easy and I won't be surprised if one of you bright sparks gets it in one.
It's ABSTRACT with both ANIMAL and VEGETABLE connotations.
Marvin Gaye's 'I heard it through the grapevine'?
Are there a lot of these?
Is the animal connection human?
Is it an idiom?
Is it a human construct?
[Kim] Well, I figured that the "Social Democratic Party of" bit had already been established, and all that was missing was the country.
(Oh, and my "not when I last checked" comment re EU membership was meant to be a clue to the fact that Croatia (like Turkey) is in the middle of negotiations.)
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