c4countdown

Martin Gardner

I've managed to find a pretty brief summary of the rules I was sent when I was a contestant - however I've scanned them and they're at my mum's house, so I won't have access to them until Friday. They're actually quite well written, using phrases like "often, usually, normally" to avoid th...

Martin Gardner

My max for the 8 games is actually wrong, after Julian managed to find DOORCASES in the dictionary under DOOR FRAME.

Martin Gardner

Jon Corby wrote: there'll be hell to pay.

Was this just an excuse to get the word 'Pay' into the topic?

Martin Gardner

I think Apterous is down again. I didn't get to play yesterday's duel for this reason, any chance it will roll over to today? If not, ah well. Tis just a game.

Martin Gardner

Yeah so what, I have a picture of Soo in a red skirt.

Martin Gardner

Win!!!!

Martin Gardner

Amazing stuff Kirk, especially that last numbers game. I have to say though, this just makes Julian Fell go way up in my estimation. Imagine what he would have been capable of with apterous as a training tool? I think Damian should sanction a Bevins vs Fell face-off! I don't think Julian would acce...

Martin Gardner

Hmm yeah, some of these don't have any "trick" element at all, but most of them do.

Martin Gardner

I'm having trouble with unicode characters. I'm trying to learn some Ancient Greek (fun!) but when I try and write the letters, well, for example it gives alpha as U + 03B1 but when I try Alt + 0, 3, B, 1 the alt B makes my bookmarks open, so that doesn't work. That code is in hex, you need to conv...

Martin Gardner

Neil Zussman wrote:
Martin Gardner wrote:Kids need as much contact with other kids as they can reasonably get.
I guess that explains why Martin *had* his first girlfriend when he was about seven...

Oh fuck off lol.

Martin Gardner

Congratulations Kirk. Thanks a lot for some of the best Countdown I've ever watched. Nobody deserves it more. Magnificent :D Pleasure mate. I'm glad people enjoyed the shows. Sadly bloody channel 4 catch up and 4od only show the first 5 rounds and then it cuts off :x Yeah I'm pretty furious about t...

Martin Gardner

Hi my name's Marilyn Monroe and I'm appearing on the show today and tomorrow.

Martin Gardner

I'm having trouble with unicode characters. I'm trying to learn some Ancient Greek (fun!) but when I try and write the letters, well, for example it gives alpha as U + 03B1 but when I try Alt + 0, 3, B, 1 the alt B makes my bookmarks open, so that doesn't work. When I'm doing word processed documen...

Martin Gardner

I'm having trouble with unicode characters. I'm trying to learn some Ancient Greek (fun!) but when I try and write the letters, well, for example it gives alpha as U + 03B1 but when I try Alt + 0, 3, B, 1 the alt B makes my bookmarks open, so that doesn't work.

Martin Gardner

No doubt there are circumstances where it's beneficial, but I can't imagine how greatly impoverished my life would have been if I'd been home educated. Anyone see that documentary out Britain's smartest kids about 6 months ago? I'm not referring to the most recent one in February this year which wa...

Martin Gardner

Kevin Davis wrote:
D Eadie wrote:Personally, i think this whole argument is past its cellar by date.............
That was a terrible pun, and I incest that you apologise for it immediately.

LOL!

Martin Gardner

Remind me not to do the duels at 7am before having any coffee or anything to eat, geez.

Martin Gardner

You lot really are thoughtless selfish arseholes who think that the world and everyone in it have been put there for your amusement, and sod anyone who gets hurt by your words and actions. I wish those who had voted against the character were as vocal. And, Charlie, you haven't put a filter for DC ...

Martin Gardner

Yes, I was thinking of the JFK memorial at Runnymede. About 20 miles west of the centre of London. Again, maybe a slight stretch to describe it as US territory, but Wikipedia does so it must be etc. etc. For the town names, the answer is that they have the stress on the final syllable, which is ver...

Martin Gardner

Feel free to bring in sexism as well! And ageism..... The trouble with comparisons is that they don't work 100 % of the time. "Afro-Caribbeans" tend to run faster than "Europeans", "Europeans" tend to swim faster than "Afro-Caribbeans", and men generally play...

Martin Gardner

Debbi Flack wrote:
Dinos Sfyris wrote: I HEART KIRK BEVINS
Seconded - the man is a god!

(of course, he thinks I don't look a day over 21, so can do no wrong in my eyes )

SECONDED + N anyone?

Martin Gardner

Craig Beevers wrote:Yes OUTFIRED is Scrabble only.

Not sure what dictionary ENSCONDED is in tho...

Someone sounds a little jealous to me.

Martin Gardner

Haha I shouted out ensconced when it turned over, I think Kirk might have done a similar thing.

Martin Gardner

OUTFIRED? Is that Scrabble only?

Martin Gardner

That's one ugly woman.

Martin Gardner

So glad Countdown is back today after the racing. Look forward to seeing you pit your wits against Kirk in his seventh game. Only hope C4catchup is loaded quickly after the game so I'm not left in suspense for too long. It's a WIND UP! I bet she really is called Andrea Jones though, and it was some...

Martin Gardner

Anyway, Herr Fritzl is going on trial start from today, you might wanna follow it on the news.

Martin Gardner

Innis Carson wrote:http://www.apterous.org/viewgame.php?game=36055

What a nightmare.

You lost to Richard Brittain, that really is scrag.

Martin Gardner

Kevin Davis wrote:My only objection to Fritzl is that he's a bit naff, and possibly will become quite dated (with apologies to whoever spent time creating the dialogue, just my 2p).

IAWTP

Martin Gardner

JimBentley wrote:
Lesley Jeavons wrote:Fred lies naked in the corner, surrounded by broken glass in a pool of liquid, while Tom cowers shivering in the corner.
What happened prior to this?
I don't know. Were Fred and Tom attending a party at Michael Barrymore's house?

LMAO

Martin Gardner

10. What is unusual about the names of English towns such as Penzance, Penrith, Skegness, Torquay, Torbay, Birkenhead, Sheerness, Gravesend, and Southend? My only stab, which I don't think is right, is that you can divide them into two common words (i.e. no capital letter). This definitely words fo...

Martin Gardner

Well I suppose that generalisations and old wives' tales have some truth in them, which is why they persist. But at the same time you don't want to tar everyone with the same brush - [heavy irony]I'm white, male and British but it doesn't mean I'm racist, sexist and xenophobic.[/heavy irony]

Martin Gardner

10. What is unusual about the names of English towns such as Penzance, Penrith, Skegness, Torquay, Torbay, Birkenhead, Sheerness, Gravesend, and Southend? My only stab, which I don't think is right, is that you can divide them into two common words (i.e. no capital letter). This definitely words fo...

Martin Gardner

I just Wikipediaed (oooh ugly word) Blame it on the Boogie and it turns out that the authors were David and Mick Jackson , not Michael Jackson. So it was written by two Jacksons, but nothing to do with the Jackson Five!

Martin Gardner

9. Complete this list: Torres, da Silva, Ruas, Piazza, Santana, Nunes, Filho, Andrade, Venerando, ... 10. What is unusual about the names of English towns such as Penzance, Penrith, Skegness, Torquay, Torbay, Birkenhead, Sheerness, Gravesend, and Southend? I think these are the only two unsolved on...

Martin Gardner

2. True or false - the Jacksons' song "Blame it on the Boogie" was co-written by Michael Jackson?

Educated guess - it was already a cover version when they did it? So no he didn't.

Martin Gardner

Paul Hammond wrote:Yeah, let's drop the spoilers.

For no. 4, Wells is the sensible answer. It being a trick question, though, I'm after the other, still quite defensible, answer. Not Westminster.

The city of London? Dunno it's pretty much a subjective question anyway.

Martin Gardner

Obviously I don't know everything after all, "what's induction"? If it is exiting, I'm going to join. Hmm that's pretty amibiguous or just plain wrong lol. But no, ghost or God or some Gods might well exist, it's very difficult to prove that something doesn't exist. Sort of reminds me on ...

Martin Gardner

When setting up your own custom game, a "coefficient" button would be nice. By that, I mean if you want 100 conundrums, instead of clicking conundrum 100 times (boring, and tough to count) you could just enter conundrum x 100. So a normal 15 rounder would become Letters x 4 Numbers Letters...

Martin Gardner

I'm of the opinion that it is very difficult to offend someone, it is only possible for them to make the choice to become offended. Much of how people respond to things is simply a learned response, copied off other people or acting the same as they did last time. They want to be offended it's up t...

Martin Gardner

http://www.apterous.org/viewgame.php?game=35483

Hmmmmm.

Martin Gardner

Without giving anything away, today's 5 second rounds felt long. More like 10 seconds.

Martin Gardner

But in a maximums only game, what if the numbers are 1,1,2,2,3,3 for a target of 999. How do you score a max?

Martin Gardner

Kai Laddiman wrote:
Martin Gardner wrote:http://www.apterous.org/viewgame.php?game=35368

If this isn't strange I don't know what is...
This?

Yeah it gives you ten seconds if you want them or not, oh by the way:

Kai Laddiman wrote:These days, can a chicken not cross a road without a joke being made out of it? Seriously. Some people.

Excellent!

Martin Gardner

http://www.apterous.org/viewgame.php?game=35368

If this isn't strange I don't know what is...

Martin Gardner

Deliberate server breakage attempt? Certainly I can pick out at least one round there I could do within the time limit but the computer couldn't. Interesting round 9. I'm pretty sure it is possible, although the computer says you can't get within 10. Either they should both get a point for maxing (...

Martin Gardner

All generalisations are false.

Martin Gardner

Admittedly talking about race on a forum like this is always highly dangerous, so if this gets locked or deleted I won't complain. There was that American lecturer that said that black people had a lower average IQ over a large sample than white people do. I don't think that is that ridiculous. On ...

Martin Gardner

I'd sort of like to reply just to show that I have read it but.... hmm.

Martin Gardner

Hm, subordinate clause...I see! As for Latin, my class has finally figured out what the subjunctive is- if we'd been taught grammar with the proper terminology (such as subjunctive, imperfect etc.) right from the start of secondary school, I'd be up to scratch by now! In Russian, our teacher told u...

Martin Gardner

Admittedly talking about race on a forum like this is always highly dangerous, so if this gets locked or deleted I won't complain. There was that American lecturer that said that black people had a lower average IQ over a large sample than white people do. I don't think that is that ridiculous. On t...

Martin Gardner

Yes total bollocks, sorry. It's a bit like saying I'm university educated and middle class so I am partly to blame for the bankers the recklessly brought about the credit crunch. We're all individuals, and Charlie's point is good too, people genes come from loads of different places and the UK in pa...

Martin Gardner

Jack Morgan wrote:http://www.apterous.org/viewgame.php?game=34001

#7

In fairness this is more funny because the game ended 20 - 0.

Martin Gardner

HOARSER and HOARSEST. Err HOARSER/HOARSEST is in my version and that's why on Friday's show one of the OT words (check review) was HOARSEST. Sometimes the recap writer misses stuff out, like on COOT game against Kirk there were the nines ALTITUDES and LATITUDES but the recapper only put one of them...

Martin Gardner

HOARSER and HOARSEST.

Martin Gardner

I'm tried out the French option. The conundrums are fine, if really hard, but the letters and the conundrums don't actually use the same dictionary! The letters games allow conjugated verbs, and the conundrums don't!

Martin Gardner

http://www.apterous.org/viewgame.php?game=34939

Holding Prime to a crucial conundrum in three seconds. I can't count it as brag as I lost!

Martin Gardner

Thanks, Martin and Charlie- that also teaches me to look before I post! In some French sentences, phrases like "bien que" (although) use the subjunctive despite not looking like an obvious sign for it- is this because of impending doubt or uncertainty at the end of the sentence? Hmm. You'...

Martin Gardner

A couple of examples, when asking my mum what the past tense of text was she said 'texted' but a couple of days later said 'I text your brother last night'. Dan, a uni friend thought about it for about thirty seconds before saying "the incredibly awkward texted".

Martin Gardner

Ben Wilson wrote:Saw this on Look North tonight. Let's hope it gets a bit more national coverage as well.

(Shouldn't have to say 'done' really, should I? )

Is Lincoln far enough north to get Look North? Hmm.

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