Snarf Ox,

Concerning #1, The shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes.

False.

Sharks don't blink. They have upper and lower eyelids, but these lids don't move and don't close over the eye. When biting prey, some sharks protect their eyes with a third eyelid called the nictitating membrane. The nictitating membrane A thin, tough membrane, or inner eyelid present in the eyes of many sharks. It can be drawn across the eye to protect if it from damage.
– Source 1998 San Diego Natural History Museum website: http://www.sdnhm.org/kids/sharks/faq.html#blink

Basically, this "fact" is in error, but an understandable one.

Cordially,

Russ

Snarf Ox,

Let's look at your #2 question. "The longest one-syllable word in the English language is " ."

"Squirreled" was suggested, then stated that in some dictionaries, it is pronounced with two syllables.

I went to my Webster's Third New International Dictionary, where "squirrel" has two syllables, and there is no pronounciation given for "squirreled." So I agree that this is not an answer.

But consider SCRAUNCHED (10 letters) and SCROONCHED in Webster's Third New International Dictionary.

Scraunched: from "Scraunch" chiefly dialect, meaning crunch.

Scroonched: variation of scrunched, which means crunched.

Also, SCROOTCHED as an alternative spelling for scrooched in American Heritage Dictionary. Scrooch means to hunch down.

So I contend that there are three 10-letter words that qualify.

Now it's time for me to squirrel away until tomorrow, when I'll be back with another post on another answer.

Cordially,

Russ

Snarf_Ox,

Let's take a look at number three:

No word in the English language rhymes with ____;____;____;or_____.

Tabby Tom has the answer that is expected: MONTH, ORANGE, SILVER and PURPLE.

However, just for fun, consider:

In Sparkhill buried lies that man of mark
Who brought the Obelisk to Central Park
Redoubtable Commander H.H. Gorringe
Whose name supplies the long-sought rhyme for "orange."
- Arthur Guiterman ("The Game of Words," William Espy, p. 143)

A pronouncing gazetteer In Webster's seems clear
"stonehenge:" (Ston henj)
"orange:" (or enj)
Truely rhymesters must persevere.
- Don Alborell of Birmingham, AL, as published in the Mensa Bulletin, Jan/Feb 1984, p 10.

For the others, you can rhyme by hyphenating a word:

To find a rhyme for silver
Or any "rhymeless" rhyme
Requires only will, ver-
bosity and time.
- Stephen Sondheim

. . . or by syncope:
How many weeks in a month?
Four, as the swift moon runn'th.
- Christina Rossetti

See you tomorrow for the review of another answer.

Cordially,

Russ

I rather like the following:

I tried and tried for years and years
To find a rhyme for month.
I tried and failed a hundred times,
But succeeded tha hundred-and-oneth.

And for "purple", there's the northern dialect word hirple, which means to limp or hobble. But it may have gone out of use; the last quotation in the Oxford English Dictionary is from the 19th century.

Snarf Ox,

#4.-"dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt."

There are also:

1. Undreamt (not apprehended even in a dream, not imagined nor thought of), and
2. Adreamt (past participle of "adream" - in a dream).

All are listed in the Oxford English Dictionary, which also supplied the definitions.

I've read that "redreamt" and "daydreamt" are also words that qualify. However, I could not find either listed in a dictionary, so list them here, just in case someone else wants to try to find them..


Tabby Tom,

I like your "month" rhyme. Call you tell me who wrote it?

And thanks for the note on "hirple" (to move with a gait between walking and crawling. In early use, said of a hare. -- Additional definitions from Oxford English Dictionary). Seems as if that would make a great trivia question: What is the gait of a hare?


More tomorrow.

Cordially,

Russ

Snarf Ox,

Today we look at #5:

5.-almonds are a member of the ____ family. (peach).

False, but there is a relationship.

First, there is no "peach" family. In taxonomic classification, the peach is a species, which rates below the genus classification, which in turn is below the family classification. Almonds are also a species in the same genus, which is Prunus. The Prunus genus is a member of the Rose family, Rosaceae.

For another view, look at the classifications as an inverted tree structure:

Family . . . . Rose (Rosaceae)

Genus . . . . . Prunus

Species . . Peach . . Almond

Thus, the answer is the Rose Family.

There are correct answers provided to many of the 40 questions, but the percentage that are correct is remarkably small for questions that have been reviewed by so many.

Cordially,

Russ

Ooh ooh Russ, my turn! #13
This is a popular factoid being passed around the internet on loads of "Did you know" sites but did you know that according to Muppets spokespuppets I mean Spokespersons that the names are merely a coincidence and have nothing to do with It's a Wonderful Life

http://www.who2.com/bertandernie.html

I do however chuckle at the part where Bert appeared along side Bin Laden on a poster by accident.

There are plenty more questionable questions and answers to go!

Snarf Ox,

I'm satisfied that the answers posed to #6 and #7 are correct (and agree with Tabby Tom that there are many more words ending in -dous).

#8 Los Angeles full name is " El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Angeles de_______"

Tabby Tom provides "La Porciuncula."

The last word that Snarf Ox seeks is just "Porciuncula," which is Spanish for "little portion," which was the name given to the area near a river on which the settlement's first buildings were erected. The river's name was Nuestra Señora de los Angeles de la Porciúncula, translated to "Our Lady of the Angles of the Little Portion." (Perhaps that's where Tabby Tom got the "La", but that was not included in the settlement's informal name.)

However, that long name was never the official name, more the informal name. The book "Mexican Los Angeles" by Antonio Rios Bustamante, Floricanto Press, 1992, reports that documents of Governor Felipe de Neve, Commandant General de la Croix and Viceroy Bucareli list the settlement as "El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Angeles."

For additional documentation, visit http://www.losangelesalmanac.com/topics/history/hi03a.htm

So it appears that the question valid if you are considering informal names, but incorrect if the official name is meant.

Tabby Tom,

On your last message. You beat me to #13 on Bert and Ernie -- It was on my list. Well done.

You're welcome to assist in continuing the corrections. There are a few more to go.

Cordially,

Russ

Snarf Ox,

I missed getting any comments from you on this feedback, but I think I know why. The list of questions and their answers are quite common on Internet trivia sites, so you probably just copied them and their answers, to create the set that you posted.

One of my rules is to never believe anything I read on the Internet unless it comes from a reputable source and, even then, I'll check to see if other sources agree with it. This next question is a good example of this.

#9. A_____ has 32 muscles in each ear.(cat)

False.

I can see how one might think this as there is a website, "Cat Facts" that lists nearly 60 "facts" about cats. The 14th "fact" states that cats have 32 muscles in their ears. Seems reasonable.

. http://maxellah.tripod.com/catfacts.htm

However, there's a "Cat Trivia" site that states that cats have 30 muscles in each ear.

http://www.writefunny.com/cat_trivia.html

So that makes one web site for 30 muscles and one for 32 muscles.

So, let's look for more reputable sources:

The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles in fact #6, states that cats have 30 muscles that control the movement of their ears. http://www.lam.mus.ca.us/cats/teacher/pdf/07catmat.pdf

Then to my copy of the Encyclopedia Britannica, 2003 edition (Just received it today.). Under "Cats, Domestic," it states "Cats also have an acute sense of hearing. Their ears contain almost 30 muscles (compared with 6 in humans) . . . ."

Of course this answer muddies the water a bit with the "almost 30 muscles."

But the point about checking multiple sources is demonstrated in that you can get three answers to the question as to how many muscles a cat has in its ears.

The consensus of the reputable sources is that cats do not have 32 muscles, so it appears that the answer is wrong. But probably it is more accurate to say that the person who wrote the question (not you, Snarf Ox, not your fault) used a bad source for the information, and wrote the question incorrectly.

Of course, there is the possibility that there is another animal with 32 muscles in its ears, but I didn't find it. Can anyone?

Cordially,

Russ

All,

I've found references that support #10 and #11 having correct answers and counted 64 clock and watch advertisements to determine that the third (#12) is also correct. In my review of 64 clock and watch faces, 37 were set at 10:10; while another 22 were set between 10:05 and 10:15, but not at 10:10; and five were set at other times, such as 9:53.

#10. An ______ eye is bigger than its brain. (ostrich)

#11. _____have striped skin, not just striped fur.(tiger)

#12. In most advertisements, the time displayed on a watch is____(10:10)

#13 has been excellently covered by Makebeleaffan.

#14. A ________ has a life span of 24 hours. (dragonfly)

False.

The adult dragonfly lives for 4-7 weeks. Source: http://www.hinesdragonfly.org/index.htm

The author of that question may have been thinking about mayflies as some poems have it living just a day.

The adult mayflies may live only a day or so, for once they become adults, they are dedicated to reproduction and do not have a mouth, so they quickly starve to death. However, they may live longer than a day. According to the British Dragonfly Society, there is no insect that has a lifespan of one day.
http://www.dragonflysoc.org.uk/faq.htm#lifespan

The poet uses the mayfly as a symbol of life's ephemeral nature, but don't take it literally.

Conclusion: Another bad question.

Cordially,

Russ

All,

The next two (15 and 16) are correct, but 17 and 18 appear to be wrong.

#15. A dime has ___ ridges around the edge. (118 or 119)

The ridges on the sides of coins are called reeding or milling. The number 118 is correct.
Source: http://www.pbs.org/moneymoves/money_facts/

#16. The ______ has the largest eyes in the world. (giant squid)

The giant squid eye is amazingly well developed, with fairly good vision. Since the giant squid is about 180 feet long, it has the largest biological eyes in the world which are about 100 times larger than human eyes. Source: http://www.eyedesignbook.com/ch3/eyech3-b.html

#17. The ____ was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket. (microwave)

False. It was the "microwave oven," not microwaves that was invented based on that event. The researcher was Dr. Percy Spencer, an engineer with Raytheon Company. The event occurred in 1945. The first microwave oven on the market was Raytheon's Radar Range, first sold to restaurants in 1947.

#18. Most people fall asleep in ____ minutes (7)

False. The term for how long it takes a person to fall asleep is "sleep latency."

sleep latency - the period of time measured from "lights out," or bedtime, to the commencement of sleep. Source: Sleep eDictionary at http://www.talkaboutsleep.com/resources/dictionaries/sleep.htm

Using electroencephalogram (EEG) electrodes to monitor changes in the electrical activity in the brain, sometimes called brain waves, the researchers were able to measure sleep latency, or how long it takes for a person to fall asleep. Normally, a healthy non-sedated adult takes about ten minutes or more in a quiet dark room to drop off. Source:
University of Iowa Health Care, "Study looks at residual effect of anesthetics used for sedation," released May 20, 2002. Found at:
http://www.uiowa.edu/~ournews/2002/may/0520anesthetics.html

The 16th Congress of the European Sleep Research Society at its meeting in Reykjavik, June 3- 7, 2002, had the report, "Comparison between retrospective and daily evaluated subjective sleep quality results from the multi-center study 'Siesta'" reported that the 195 persons in the study reported sleep latencies that averaged 14.29 minutes. Website: http://julkb.vortex.is/esrs/245.pdf

Thus the answer appears to be between 14 and 15 minutes.

Cordially,

Russ

In reply to:

---

In my review of 64 clock and watch faces, 37 were set at 10:10; while another 22 were set between 10:05 and 10:15, but not at 10:10; and five were set at other times, such as 9:53.

---

If I said you had too much time on your hands, Russ, would you groan?

No. 20 QWERTY

we are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars

I kind of know (I think) what you're going on about, but personally this is just trivia. No-one is going to pass some major exam with these questions, and I agree they should be on some other spreadsheet.

20 QWERTY

engraving is the art of scratch

#20. The words TESSERADECADES and SWEATERDRESSES cannot be found in the Oxford English Dictionary. There are 14 words in the OED that each contain 12 letters and are the longest English words that can be typed using only the left hand.

#9. I found one source that states 27 muscles in a cat's ear and another that states 30 muscles. Most sources that state 32 muscles are worthless personal Web sites that do NO research whatsoever and then post a copyright notice stating that you can't copy their information even though they violated copyrights themselves by copying the information verbatim from other sources.

All,

Been traveling and busy with work, so nice to be back and have some spare time.

First to Ozzz2002, who thinks I may have too much time on my hands: No, I was just working on a timely subject and like to stay current.

#19. There are____dimples on a regulation golf ball.(336)

False.

Wildheart's posting on 15Nov02 provides the correct answer. The US Golf Association's regulations require that the ball be at least 1.68 inches in diameter, weigh no more than 1.62 ounces and be a sphere. There is no regulation governing the quantity of dimples on a golf ball and the range of dimple is considerable.

#20. "______" is the longest word that is typed with only the left hand.

HUNDREDAIRE says that "the words TESSERADECADES and SWEATERDRESSES cannot be found in the Oxford English Dictionary and that there are 14 words of twelve letters long that qualify."

I concur with the fact that the words are not in my copy of the Oxford English Dictionary. However, I found reference to tesseradecades being in the Webster's New International Dictionary, Second Edition. Also, I have run across tesseradecades before and know the definition: It means a group of 14, such as a period of 14 years. So I looked to find an example of it being used. Found one:

The Great Commentary of Cornelius A Lapide, translated by Thomas W. Mossman, B.A., uses tesseradecades to describe periods of generations in his discussion of genealogy in the Bible.

There is also "Tetrastearates" - One of the chemicals called "Pentaerythritol stearates" that are currently used in substances approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use as components of adhesives, paper and paperboard used in packaging, transporting or holding food.

Example of use in the "DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, 40 CFR Part 180"

Both of the references can be found on the web.

Of course, Tabby Tom stated that "Wordplay: A Curious Dictionary of Language Oddities" gives TESSERADECADES and SWEATERDRESSES (both 14 letters).

There is also a web site that provides some biographical information on a Naomi (no last name), who is shown wearing a sweaterdress (without a hyphen) and I also found sweaterdresses for sale at the website www.scottssweaters.com.

Hope that's good enough to document three words of 14 letters.


#21. It is impossible for most of the people to lick their own ______(elbow)

Agree that that is a true statement, if only because it says "most of the people" - you never can tell if there's some guy out there with a really long tongue.

However, that falls into the category of useless questions because there are so many other parts of the anatomy that could also be a correct answer - such as one's ear!

#22. A _____ cannot stick its tongue out.(crocodile)

True.

But I believe that it is also true of alligators. My opinion has several bases. I did some close examination of alligators in Florida (but not within their grabbing range!). I have a good photo of an alligator with its mouth wide open and the tongue is not apparent. My premise is that if the tongue were big enough to stick out, you would at least see it with his mouth open so wide. Supportive evidence is that after looking at perhaps more than a 100 alligators in various states (sleeping through eating), I never saw one with a tongue that was distinct from the mouth.

My book "Crocodiles and Alligators" Facts on File, page 54, shows Crocodilian anatomy (to also include the alligator). In that illustration, the tongue is clearly shown at the base of the mouth and appears to be connected to the base until just a few inches from the tip of the tongue, supporting the contention that it cannot be stuck out of the mouth.

Finally, this illustration clears up the contradicting statements in Snarf Ox's posting where one says the tongue is rooted to the base of the mouth and the other says it is attached to the roof of the mouth. It is clearly attached to the base of the mouth.

Cordially,

Russ

There you go Russ, crocodilian jaws, close up and all in glorious technicolour!!

Izzi,

Great web page! Thanks.

Luckily, when I was looking down the mouth of the alligator, his palatal valve was closed. Thus, the back of his mouth was smooth, the same color as the sides of his mouth.

That was the primary reason I took the photo as I thought to myself, "How does he swallow -- there's no throat opening!" Then I realized that there had to be some sort of flap covering his throat.

Interesting that the illustration of crocodilian anatomy in my book does not name that flap. So, Izzi, you have my appreciation in finding the name.

I also note that Snarf Ox has deleted his entry of questions. I can only assume that perhaps my extensive correction of the wrong answers may have embarassed him. I apologize if that is the result.

The questions that Snarf Ox posed are questions that are on numerous "Trivia Facts" web sites. I've seen them so often and always been amazed that reader after reader takes them to be true. Thus, I actually appreciated Snarf Ox's posting them on FunTrivia as it gave me (and other members) a good opportunity to try to set the record straight.

To state it another way: The questions were not written by Snarf Ox; they have been posted on numerous web sites. Therefore, most people would assume they are correct, so there's no fault to Snarf Ox for assuming the same. In fact, his posting them has become part of the solution, not part of the problem.

I extend the hand of friendship and ask Snarf Ox to join in the tracking down of the corrct answers and continue to participate in FunTrivia. You're wanted!

I'd like to continue that effort to maintain FunTrivia's reputation as one of the places on the web where the trivia has a very high probability of being true. So I hope that there is no problem in continuing -- I'm as curious as any of you may be in finding out the validity of the remaining questions and answers.

Cordially,

Russ

Cheers Russ, it is an informative website. I'm afraid I wasn't around when the original post was entered so I don't know if there are any unanswered questions still outstanding.

I'd be interested to find out which ones you're still working on, perhaps you could re-post them here or send me a pm.

Snarf ox only made the two posts, both in this thread and both since deleted by him. Presumably he didn't realise that we do not like people to delete their posts, and certainly not once there have been replies. Seeing the original questions then the replies could assist other people in future. Thankfully most of our members do not remove their questions once they are answered.

Izzi, Sue943, and all:

I'm pleased that you both suggest going forward to finish the review of the questions.

As I answered most of questions #1 through #22, I restated the question, so these questions can be found in my postings above. The exceptions were a couple of those that had been answered correctly (from my understanding) and thus, I felt, did not need to be restated. They are:

#6. ______ is the only state that has a one-syllable name. (Maine)

#7. There are only four words in the English language which end in "dous":______ous,______ous,______ous, and____ous. (See Tabby Tom's posting of 11 Nov 02.)

The following are the remainder of the list of 39 questions posted (There was no 40th question posted.).

I have cleaned up the typos and added the answers that members had submitted.

#23. A______ heart is in its head (shrimp)

#24. In study of 200,000_____over a period of 80 years, no one reported a single case where an _____ buried its head in the sand, or attempted to do so. (Ostrich)

#25. It is physically impossible for ___ to look into the sky (pig)

#26. _____ have a memory span of only approximately three seconds, and a pregnant____ is called a "twit." (goldfish)

#27. The "_____________" is believed to be the toughest tongue twister in the English language. (The sixth sick sheik's sixth sheep's sick.)"

#28. If you sneeze too hard, you could fracture a ___. (rib).

#29. _________ multiply so quickly than in 18 months, two ______could have over a million descendants. (rats)

#30. Wearing headphones for just an hour could increase the ______ in your ear by 700 times. (bacteria)

#31. Title 14, Section 1211 of the Code of Federal Regulations, implemented on July 16, 1969, made it illegal for U.S. citizens to have any contact with _________ or their vehicles. (extraterrestrials)

#32. In every episode of Seinfeld there was a __________somewhere in the picture. (Superman)

#33. In the course of an average lifetime, while sleeping you might eat around 70 assorted_______ and 10______ or more (insects, spiders)

#34. Some lipsticks contain_____(fish scales)

#35. Cat_____ glows under a black light (urine)

#36. Like fingerprints, everyone´s _____ print is different. (tongue)

#37. Rubber bands last longer when_______. (refrigerated)

#38. There are_____ ways to make change for a dollar. (293)

#39. The average person's left hand does ___ of the typing (when using the proper position of the hands on the keyboard; hunting and pecking doesn't count) (56%)

Cordially,

Russ

Russ, what would we do without you? I don't know about other members but I look forward to reading submissions by the person I have come to think of as 'Cordially Russ', your name just wouldn't be the same without your 'tag'.

Have a wonderful holiday season and good new year.... and keep the answers coming in 2003.

My mind automatically registers Russ as Cordially Russ, too, Sue. I hope the posts keep coming, too.

Sue943 and Babymoo,

Thank you for your kind words. I certainly enjoy FunTrivia and expect to contribute for many more years.

I've not been as busy on this site as I anticipated this week as yesterday (Dec 24) my wife and I spent the day in the kitchen baking and making a few hundred cookies and candies, then packaged them up and delivered them to our neightbors in the evening.

Today is Christmas: Time for spending with family and friends, opening presents and telephoning loved ones.

Tomorrow we have to take advantage of the day-after-Christmas sales. But I'll be back with more on this posting.

Babymoo, you bring to mind a favorite Ogden Nash poem, called "The Cow"

The cow is of bovine ilk,
One end is moo, the other milk!

Merry Christmas!

Cordially,

Russ