The Behemoth is Waiting for You
Here's The New Quiz: You Know You Want To
6/8/08 Another update: Q428 should have "but resigned on April 2 citing "hostility" from staff members"
29/7/07 Update on question errors so far: couple of things for those already doing it. Q114 the alliterative species name is meant to begin with the letter "G" and NOT "M". Q244 The Games should be in 1960 not 1950. Q318 The year is 1958 NOT 1975
So, finally, here we are again. Last year, a few of you may remember I put together two c.500-question quizzes with suitably overblown names which I e-mailed out to interested parties in the name of a marathon-like competition which just about anyone in the trivia world, and not only the UK, could take part in. Naturally, the number and difficulty of the questions led to a seemingly natural order of finishers ....
1 Kevin Ashman* (UK) 382
2 Pat Gibson* (Ireland) 346.5
3 Mark Bytheway* (UK) 336
4 John Martin* (UK) 335
5 Dave Perry (US) 308
6 Paul Freund (US) 299.5
7 Ian Bayley* (UK) 295.5
8 Nico Pattyn (Bel) 294
9 Mark Grant (Australia/UK)* 288
10 Dorjana Sirola* (Croatia) 287
(* already entered into The Behemoth)
.... but the aim was always to provide an unique test. Loads of original questions, with very few chestnuts, to be answered in three hours. Both were designed to be an expansive test of general knowledge, which would try to cover every single subject you could think of, as well as a test of endurance, and 108 people managed to return completed answer sheets for the last one, named The Colossus.
I have now set a new one named The Behemoth, which has taken into account many of the comments made by previous participants and amended accordingly, and it is now ready to be unleashed on the public. I know a few of you have been looking forward to it and, hopefully, it will become a far more regular series.
The Price
Alas, the time has come to charge for it, but you do get your money's worth. For a UK sum of £7.50/11 Euros you will receive 505 questions (non-UK residents pay the equivalent in their respective country's currency), whose combined word count comes to approximately 15,117 words. That, I assure you, is a lot. Especially when you have to write and obsessively proof that number of words yourself.
Buying The Monster and The Colossus as well
I am also aware that not everyone will have heard of, or done both or either The Monster or The Colossus. Therefore, you can buy The Behemoth with one of these quizzes (and their answers and errors) for £10/15 Euros and £11/16.50 Euros for all three, so if you fancy getting the lot you will receive 1503 That Quiz Guy-set questions for £11/16.50 Euros (sorry about talking about myself in the third person, but it is better than saying "originally-set" again and again). Bargain.
What is it like?
Read the following testimonials from some luminaries of the quiz world who acted as test subjects:
Ken Jennings of record breaking Jeopardy fame: "A great quiz"
Steven De Ceuster, Founder and President of the Flemish Quiz Ranking, IQA Director Western Europe: "I thought it was a very interesting but testing set of questions, with an excellent geographical spread. I thought especially the sciences and the modern literature questions were hard, but I enjoyed the set very much. I already look forward to the next quiz."
Chris Jones, aka Wiseoldowls: "A very enjoyable quiz and a liberal sprinkling of straightforward questions is both welcome and appropriate. I felt this quiz was easier than the last one (whether my score bears that out is another matter), and I certainly wasn't made to feel stupid by long segments of being unable to hazard a guess."
Pat Gibson, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Jackpot winner, World Quizzing Champion 2007: "It's a pleasure to be your test-pilot. It is definitely a varied, interesting and very testing set which I enjoyed thoroughly. I can only wish that all those people who kindly e-mail me unsolicited investment and pharmacological offerings would switch to sending me quizzes of this quality. Great stuff."
How to enter
You enter by e-mailing thebehemothquiz@gmail.com. I will then give you details on how to pay along with a snail mail address for cheques (and eventually, postal entries) - Paypal, cheque, even cash if you dare - and put you down on the participant list. Once your payment or blood oath (though I will go on trust for everyone I personally know and e-mail them the quiz ASAP) has been received, the quiz will then be e-mailed to you and you can return your answers any time before the deadline - Tuesday, August 21 (11.59pm to be precise) by snail mail or e-mail.
The day after the deadline, Wednesday August 22, the answers and any errors in the questions or helpful additional information competitors have pointed out and would like to share with the world, will then be sent to you by the old fashioned method of snail mail (the cost will be taken out of £7.50 fee, though foreign competitors will receive such sheets grouped together where possible since they will pay less to take part). They will NOT be e-mailed out.
You will get the answers this time regardless
Unlike in previous super-quizzes, everyone will receive the answers even if they do not submit a completed sheet - you have paid an entrance fee, after all. As a bonus for taking part and doing all of the above in the recommended fashion, participants will also receive one of three originally-set (by myself) 100-question quizzes, known by the frightfully imaginative names A, B and C in the post with the answer set.
Participants, whose completed entries arrive after the deadline, will get the answers and bonus quiz too, but will not be entered into the final scorers table.
"Prizes"
Ah, but what about the possible rewards? Apart from the chance of competing against the likes of Kevin Ashman from the comfort of your own home and winning the wondrous respect of your peers (which is surely the best prize you can possibly win), there are tangible prizes of sorts.
Cash prizes cannot really work, I am prone to believe, when a quiz relies on the honesty of its competitors since it is done at home where people can access the internet, reference books and their loved ones for the stuff that is teetering on the top of their tongue. Therefore, the overall winner will receive a refund of their entrance fee and free entry into the next huge quiz.
There will also be a refund and free entry again for those who finish number one in each country where there is more than three "Behemoth" competitors.
And to encourage those wary of possible humiliation (though you can enter under a pseudonym if you prefer) and just want to give it a shot, the overall bottom five finishers will also get their money back and free entry, as long as their answer sheet has been returned and convincingly attempted, i.e. filled with top-to-the-bottom with proof they have done their best to tackle it (those with barely any answers and blank sheets will be ignored).
Time limits
You can enter at any time over the next four weeks. You do not have to do so immediately or even next week. Do so on the day before the deadline of August 21, if you prefer living on the edge, as long as you return it in time. Take, for instance, one day to get it over and done with straight away (i.e. received, completed and returned), or carry the test paper around for the weeks in the run-up to the deadline finding a half hour to spare here or there if you are too busy to do the three hour block.
However, you are still limited to three hours to do the 505 questions, which you can divide into whatever time period you see fit (though more than three, single hour periods may be the maximum of what I prefer personally). Ideally, you should do it in one go or over one day, but then it is your choice.
Please do not go over the time limit. Which is THREE HOURS. And PLEASE DO NOT CHEAT BY LOOKING ANYTHING UP.
Remember the E-mail Entry Address & the Deadline!
E-mail: thebehemothquiz@gmail.com and get your answers in by 11.59pm Tuesday, August 21
Finally, apart from my promising that The Behemoth will be a whole load of fun, here are 20 questions from the previous quizzes to help give you a taster of what is in store:
The Monster
24. Hailing from the island of Samos, which Greek astronomer (310-264BC) was the first to propose the heliocentric model of the solar system?
30. Also known as the Saltpeter (or Saltpetre) War, which war lasted from 1879 to 1884 and saw Chile fight Bolivia and Peru?
72. Which town was called "America's crud-bucket" by Newsweek magazine?
140. The city of Nijni-Novgorod was renamed in honour of which author in 1932, the man in question dying four years later?
202. What did Captain Henrik Goosen catch to his and the scientific world's great surprise in 1938?
234. Which Oscar-winner provided the voice of writer Robin Masters on the TV show Magnum PI?
317. What town and port in Sicily's Trapani province was known in ancient times as Lilybaeum and gives its name to a sweet wine?
365. Also the name of a school he founded in 1968, what training programme in self development was devised by the Bolivian-born mystic Oscar Ichazo?
380. Which musical piece, featured prominently in the Billy Wilder film The Seven Year Itch, is Euphonia Allen said to have written when aged just 16?
455. Praised by such Georgic poets as Columella and Virgil, Italy's Chianina is recognised by many as being the oldest breed of which animal?
The Colossus
2. Issey Miyake, Yohji Yamamoto and Kenzo are famous names in which field?
23. Also a nickname given to older or grey-haired internet users, which Marvel Comics superhero was originally a young astronomer named Norrin Radd who came from the planet Zenn-La?
116. Also the name of a James Frazer work published in 1890, what gift did Aeneas have to take to Proserpina before he could enter the underworld?
177. Named after the Japanese gymnast who introduced it into competition, what style of vaulting and speciality of Nadia Comaneci consists of a quarter or half turn into the horse followed by one-and-a-half back somersault?
234. In which fictional suburb of Melbourne is the Australian soap opera Neighbours set?
296. What is the S.I. unit of time?
305. The hit single Hate It or Love It was released in 2005 by which rapper who shares his stage name with a David Fincher film and whose real name is Jayceon Terell Taylor?
317. What wood, from a tree of the genus Carya of the walnut family, is used to make lacrosse sticks due to its ability to withstand blows and hard play?
344. The Swede Jan Ove Waldner is a former world champion at which sport?
385. Influenced by African art, van Gogh and Fauvism, what German Expressionist art movement was formed in Dresden in 1905 by Ernest Ludwig Kirchner, Schmidt-Rottluff and others, and was joined in 1906 by Emil Nolde?
The Monster sample answers
24. Aristarchos 30. The War of the Pacific 72. Springfield in The Simpsons 140. Maxim Gorky 202. Coelocanth 234. Orson Welles 317. Marsala 365. Arica 380. Chopsticks 455. Cattle
The Colossus sample answers
2. Fashion/clothes design 23. Silver surfer 116. The Golden Bough 177. Tsukhara 234. Erinsborough 296. Second 305. The Game 317. Hickory 344. Table tennis 385. Die Brucke/The Bridge
6/8/08 Another update: Q428 should have "but resigned on April 2 citing "hostility" from staff members"
29/7/07 Update on question errors so far: couple of things for those already doing it. Q114 the alliterative species name is meant to begin with the letter "G" and NOT "M". Q244 The Games should be in 1960 not 1950. Q318 The year is 1958 NOT 1975
So, finally, here we are again. Last year, a few of you may remember I put together two c.500-question quizzes with suitably overblown names which I e-mailed out to interested parties in the name of a marathon-like competition which just about anyone in the trivia world, and not only the UK, could take part in. Naturally, the number and difficulty of the questions led to a seemingly natural order of finishers ....
1 Kevin Ashman* (UK) 382
2 Pat Gibson* (Ireland) 346.5
3 Mark Bytheway* (UK) 336
4 John Martin* (UK) 335
5 Dave Perry (US) 308
6 Paul Freund (US) 299.5
7 Ian Bayley* (UK) 295.5
8 Nico Pattyn (Bel) 294
9 Mark Grant (Australia/UK)* 288
10 Dorjana Sirola* (Croatia) 287
(* already entered into The Behemoth)
.... but the aim was always to provide an unique test. Loads of original questions, with very few chestnuts, to be answered in three hours. Both were designed to be an expansive test of general knowledge, which would try to cover every single subject you could think of, as well as a test of endurance, and 108 people managed to return completed answer sheets for the last one, named The Colossus.
I have now set a new one named The Behemoth, which has taken into account many of the comments made by previous participants and amended accordingly, and it is now ready to be unleashed on the public. I know a few of you have been looking forward to it and, hopefully, it will become a far more regular series.
The Price
Alas, the time has come to charge for it, but you do get your money's worth. For a UK sum of £7.50/11 Euros you will receive 505 questions (non-UK residents pay the equivalent in their respective country's currency), whose combined word count comes to approximately 15,117 words. That, I assure you, is a lot. Especially when you have to write and obsessively proof that number of words yourself.
Buying The Monster and The Colossus as well
I am also aware that not everyone will have heard of, or done both or either The Monster or The Colossus. Therefore, you can buy The Behemoth with one of these quizzes (and their answers and errors) for £10/15 Euros and £11/16.50 Euros for all three, so if you fancy getting the lot you will receive 1503 That Quiz Guy-set questions for £11/16.50 Euros (sorry about talking about myself in the third person, but it is better than saying "originally-set" again and again). Bargain.
What is it like?
Read the following testimonials from some luminaries of the quiz world who acted as test subjects:
Ken Jennings of record breaking Jeopardy fame: "A great quiz"
Steven De Ceuster, Founder and President of the Flemish Quiz Ranking, IQA Director Western Europe: "I thought it was a very interesting but testing set of questions, with an excellent geographical spread. I thought especially the sciences and the modern literature questions were hard, but I enjoyed the set very much. I already look forward to the next quiz."
Chris Jones, aka Wiseoldowls: "A very enjoyable quiz and a liberal sprinkling of straightforward questions is both welcome and appropriate. I felt this quiz was easier than the last one (whether my score bears that out is another matter), and I certainly wasn't made to feel stupid by long segments of being unable to hazard a guess."
Pat Gibson, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Jackpot winner, World Quizzing Champion 2007: "It's a pleasure to be your test-pilot. It is definitely a varied, interesting and very testing set which I enjoyed thoroughly. I can only wish that all those people who kindly e-mail me unsolicited investment and pharmacological offerings would switch to sending me quizzes of this quality. Great stuff."
How to enter
You enter by e-mailing thebehemothquiz@gmail.com. I will then give you details on how to pay along with a snail mail address for cheques (and eventually, postal entries) - Paypal, cheque, even cash if you dare - and put you down on the participant list. Once your payment or blood oath (though I will go on trust for everyone I personally know and e-mail them the quiz ASAP) has been received, the quiz will then be e-mailed to you and you can return your answers any time before the deadline - Tuesday, August 21 (11.59pm to be precise) by snail mail or e-mail.
The day after the deadline, Wednesday August 22, the answers and any errors in the questions or helpful additional information competitors have pointed out and would like to share with the world, will then be sent to you by the old fashioned method of snail mail (the cost will be taken out of £7.50 fee, though foreign competitors will receive such sheets grouped together where possible since they will pay less to take part). They will NOT be e-mailed out.
You will get the answers this time regardless
Unlike in previous super-quizzes, everyone will receive the answers even if they do not submit a completed sheet - you have paid an entrance fee, after all. As a bonus for taking part and doing all of the above in the recommended fashion, participants will also receive one of three originally-set (by myself) 100-question quizzes, known by the frightfully imaginative names A, B and C in the post with the answer set.
Participants, whose completed entries arrive after the deadline, will get the answers and bonus quiz too, but will not be entered into the final scorers table.
"Prizes"
Ah, but what about the possible rewards? Apart from the chance of competing against the likes of Kevin Ashman from the comfort of your own home and winning the wondrous respect of your peers (which is surely the best prize you can possibly win), there are tangible prizes of sorts.
Cash prizes cannot really work, I am prone to believe, when a quiz relies on the honesty of its competitors since it is done at home where people can access the internet, reference books and their loved ones for the stuff that is teetering on the top of their tongue. Therefore, the overall winner will receive a refund of their entrance fee and free entry into the next huge quiz.
There will also be a refund and free entry again for those who finish number one in each country where there is more than three "Behemoth" competitors.
And to encourage those wary of possible humiliation (though you can enter under a pseudonym if you prefer) and just want to give it a shot, the overall bottom five finishers will also get their money back and free entry, as long as their answer sheet has been returned and convincingly attempted, i.e. filled with top-to-the-bottom with proof they have done their best to tackle it (those with barely any answers and blank sheets will be ignored).
Time limits
You can enter at any time over the next four weeks. You do not have to do so immediately or even next week. Do so on the day before the deadline of August 21, if you prefer living on the edge, as long as you return it in time. Take, for instance, one day to get it over and done with straight away (i.e. received, completed and returned), or carry the test paper around for the weeks in the run-up to the deadline finding a half hour to spare here or there if you are too busy to do the three hour block.
However, you are still limited to three hours to do the 505 questions, which you can divide into whatever time period you see fit (though more than three, single hour periods may be the maximum of what I prefer personally). Ideally, you should do it in one go or over one day, but then it is your choice.
Please do not go over the time limit. Which is THREE HOURS. And PLEASE DO NOT CHEAT BY LOOKING ANYTHING UP.
Remember the E-mail Entry Address & the Deadline!
E-mail: thebehemothquiz@gmail.com and get your answers in by 11.59pm Tuesday, August 21
Finally, apart from my promising that The Behemoth will be a whole load of fun, here are 20 questions from the previous quizzes to help give you a taster of what is in store:
The Monster
24. Hailing from the island of Samos, which Greek astronomer (310-264BC) was the first to propose the heliocentric model of the solar system?
30. Also known as the Saltpeter (or Saltpetre) War, which war lasted from 1879 to 1884 and saw Chile fight Bolivia and Peru?
72. Which town was called "America's crud-bucket" by Newsweek magazine?
140. The city of Nijni-Novgorod was renamed in honour of which author in 1932, the man in question dying four years later?
202. What did Captain Henrik Goosen catch to his and the scientific world's great surprise in 1938?
234. Which Oscar-winner provided the voice of writer Robin Masters on the TV show Magnum PI?
317. What town and port in Sicily's Trapani province was known in ancient times as Lilybaeum and gives its name to a sweet wine?
365. Also the name of a school he founded in 1968, what training programme in self development was devised by the Bolivian-born mystic Oscar Ichazo?
380. Which musical piece, featured prominently in the Billy Wilder film The Seven Year Itch, is Euphonia Allen said to have written when aged just 16?
455. Praised by such Georgic poets as Columella and Virgil, Italy's Chianina is recognised by many as being the oldest breed of which animal?
The Colossus
2. Issey Miyake, Yohji Yamamoto and Kenzo are famous names in which field?
23. Also a nickname given to older or grey-haired internet users, which Marvel Comics superhero was originally a young astronomer named Norrin Radd who came from the planet Zenn-La?
116. Also the name of a James Frazer work published in 1890, what gift did Aeneas have to take to Proserpina before he could enter the underworld?
177. Named after the Japanese gymnast who introduced it into competition, what style of vaulting and speciality of Nadia Comaneci consists of a quarter or half turn into the horse followed by one-and-a-half back somersault?
234. In which fictional suburb of Melbourne is the Australian soap opera Neighbours set?
296. What is the S.I. unit of time?
305. The hit single Hate It or Love It was released in 2005 by which rapper who shares his stage name with a David Fincher film and whose real name is Jayceon Terell Taylor?
317. What wood, from a tree of the genus Carya of the walnut family, is used to make lacrosse sticks due to its ability to withstand blows and hard play?
344. The Swede Jan Ove Waldner is a former world champion at which sport?
385. Influenced by African art, van Gogh and Fauvism, what German Expressionist art movement was formed in Dresden in 1905 by Ernest Ludwig Kirchner, Schmidt-Rottluff and others, and was joined in 1906 by Emil Nolde?
The Monster sample answers
24. Aristarchos 30. The War of the Pacific 72. Springfield in The Simpsons 140. Maxim Gorky 202. Coelocanth 234. Orson Welles 317. Marsala 365. Arica 380. Chopsticks 455. Cattle
The Colossus sample answers
2. Fashion/clothes design 23. Silver surfer 116. The Golden Bough 177. Tsukhara 234. Erinsborough 296. Second 305. The Game 317. Hickory 344. Table tennis 385. Die Brucke/The Bridge
posted by That Quiz Guy at 1:25 PM
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