The Edisonet Blog

This week's E2MQ: MATCH THE HATCH

2011-04-18T11:29:00.000-04:00

We just had a big weekend around the Northeast.
It was the opening of the (trout) fishing season, an event of near-religious proportions long-awaited over the long winter months, something akin to a piscatorial resurrection.

Reminded as we are of the opening lines of Norman Maclean's A River Runs Through It, this week's E2MQ addresses fly fishing and comes in FOUR PARTS, Name the Trout; Name the Insect; Name the Dry Fly; and Connect Flies to Bugs. Intermediate prizes will be awarded for each Part and a Grand Prize will be awarded to the overall winner.

Part 1: NAME THE TROUT

Wasn't that easy?

Okay, Part 2: NAME THE INSECT (BUG)

Now, Part 3: NAME THE DRY FLY

Part 4: Each dry fly is named for and relates to one of the insects.

CONNECT FLIES TO BUGS, for example...

F5 goes with B???

Good luck and TIGHT LINES!

As a reminder, you can answer in the Comment box below,

or shoot an email to E2MQ@edisonet.org

Pleeeeeeze! ONE MORE CHANCE

2011-04-17T16:56:00.000-04:00

Not a single try? Was the 26,000 Plus Words quiz overwhelming?

Okay, last week's E2MQ will be carried over so you all have another chance.
The first person to identify 50% of the notables with their typewriters wins the prize.
Talk about grading on the curve!

There will also be a NEW E2MQ coming out tomorrow.

Here's a sneak preview:

In honor of the opening of Trout Season in the Northeast, it's entitled, "MATCH THE HATCH."

26,000 Plus Words

2011-04-11T11:06:00.002-04:00

As the old adage goes, “A picture’s worth a thousand words.” On the other hand, the word PHOTOS offers a mere 11 Scrabble tile points.

How about photos of famous people with their typewriters? How many words would they be worth?

Earlier this month LIFE magazine published a photo essay entitled, “In Praise of the Typewriter.” Two-time E2MQ winner, Dorian Adams of Sonoma, directed us to this collection of 38 extraordinary pictures of writers and actors addressing their typewriters. We were inspired.

Today’s E2MQ offers 26 similar photos, marked A to Z, and asks you to identify as many of these people as you can. Some are easy and others, well, not so easy. Give it a try!

Daily hints will be posted here and on Twitter to give you some help.

Another Bartlett's Quotation Maven

2011-04-09T11:15:00.000-04:00

I have gathered a posie of other men’s flowers, and nothing but the thread that binds them is mine own. - John Bartlett (not of Nantucket)

The winner of this week's E2MQ is able to handily grab long phrases with a Ctrl+C, she's proficient with Page Rank algorithms and is faster than a speeding Ctrl+V. We'd like to introduce Super Quizzer, Hilary Newell of Nantucket!

While the rest of you wolfed down Cosi salads and veggie wraps last Monday lunchtime, Hilary tackled our list and correctly associated each with their author WITHIN 30 MINUTES OF THE E2MQ'S POSTING!

Hilary Newell is the advertising coordinator and Greenhouse Production Manager for Bartlett’s Farm on Nantucket island.

She is also a garden writer and amateur photographer. Her husband, Pete Smith, is Bartlett's Senior Horticulturist, and they have two children, 22 and 18. Hilary edited Bartlett’s new food book, Harvesting Nantucket: The Taste of Bartlett’s Ocean View Farm expected to be on bookstore shelves this Memorial Day. By her own admission and as she puts it, "I am also adept at using google ; )." (To say nothing of her emoticon skills.)

In recognition Hilary has been presented with an inscribed copy of Hugh Rawson's UNWRITTEN LAWS: The Unofficial Rules of Life As Handed Down by Murphy and Other Sages.

Congratulations to one of our newest Friends of Edisonet, Hilary Newell!

Now, about the answers...

1. War is nothing more than the continuation of politics by other means. Carl von Clausewitz
2. Those who are most moral are furthest from the problem. Saul Alinsky
3. Power corrupts, but lack of power corrupts absolutely. Adlai Stevenson
4. Nine times out of ten, in the arts as in life, there is actually no truth to be discovered; this is only error to be exposed. H.L. Mencken
5. Trust yourself. You know more than you think you do. Benjamin Spock
6. The quality of food in restaurants is in inverse proportion to the number of signed celebrity photographs on the walls. Bryan Miller
7. People become progressively less competent for jobs they once were well equipped to handle. Paul Armer
8. History teaches us that men and nations behave wisely one they have exhausted all other alternatives. Abba Eban
9. Nine-tenths of wisdom consists in being wise in time. Theodore Roosevelt
10. If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs, it’s just possible that you haven’t understood the situation. Jean Kerr
11. In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence. Dr Laurence Peter
12. Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. Aldous Huxley
13. Accidents will occur in the best-regulated families. Mr Wilkins Micawber from Charles Dickens' David Copperfield
14. If you give Congress a chance to vote on both sides of an issue, it will always do it. Les Aspin
15. If you can explain what you’re doing in simple English, you are probably doing something wrong. Alfred E. Kahn

Keep on Quizzin'. You've got to play to win!

This week's E2MQ is about Razors and Laws

2011-04-04T12:07:00.004-04:00

A well-known adage comes to us from William of Ockham, an early XIVth century English Franciscan friar and scholar. Ockham's Razor* states, Numquam ponenda est pluralitas sine necessitate, “Plurality must never be posited without necessity." Basically, you'll do well by sticking with simplicity.

Another popular adage is Murphy's Law, sometimes referred to as, "The fourth law of thermodynamics," which states: "If anything can go wrong, it will."

We've pulled together a collection of 15 other adages, and you are challenged with connecting each with its author. To make things more exciting, we're offering a couple of extra potential authors for these razors or laws. But we've also put in a couple of easy ones so you won't get discouraged. Also, hints will be provided on Twitter every day starting tomorrow.

See how many sources (list follows) you can correctly associate with each of these sayings:

1. War is nothing more than the continuation of politics by other means.
2. Those who are most moral are furthest from the problem.
3. Power corrupts, but lack of power corrupts absolutely.
4. Nine times out of ten, in the arts as in life, there is actually no truth to be discovered; there is only error to be exposed.
5. Trust yourself. You know more than you think you do.
6. The quality of food in restaurants is in inverse proportion to the number of signed celebrity photographs on the walls.
7. People become progressively less competent for jobs they once were well equipped to handle.
8. History teaches us that men and nations behave wisely one they have exhausted all other alternatives.
9. Nine-tenths of wisdom consists in being wise in time.
10. If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs, it’s just possible that you haven’t understood the situation.
11. In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence.
12. Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.
13. Accidents will occur in the best-regulated families.
14. If you give Congress a chance to vote on both sides of an issue, it will always do it.
15. If you can explain what you’re doing in simple English, you are probably doing something wrong.

You will find the sources in this list:

A. Saul Alinsky

B. Paul Armer

C. Les Aspin

D. Robert Benchley

E. Fred Bucy

F. Carl von Clausewitz

G. Charles Dickens

H. Abba Eban

I. Ralph Waldo Emerson

J. Aldous Huxley

K. Alfred Kahn

L. Jean Kerr

M. H.L. Mencken

N. Bryan Miller

O. Laurence Peter

P. Theodore Roosevelt

Q. Benjamin Spock
R. Adlai Stevenson

See how many you can get. First with most wins this week's prize!

________________________________

* Footnotes on Razors

The archaic term "razor" comes to us from the translation from German of "Ockhams Messer" -- Ockham's Knife, because William of O encourages shaving away unnecessary assumptions to get at the heart of the matter.

The first electric razor was patented in 1929 by Col. Jacob Schick, a US Army officer who conceived of the product while bedridden, recovering from dysentery, and unable to move to a sink for his daily shave. Schick introduced to the market just over 80 years ago, on March 18th 1931.

Speaking of close shaves, to avoid an investigation by a Joint Congressional Committee on Tax Evasion & Avoidance, Schick skipped out of the U.S. in 1935 and became a Canadian citizen. Before he died in 1937 Schick had transferred most of his wealth to a series of holding companies in the Bahamas.

Last Week's Snipe Hunt

2011-04-04T07:54:00.000-04:00

The winner's patch for last week's E2MQ goes, once again, to San Francisco's bright star, Dorian Adams. You might recall that Dorian also won the pre-blog Panchatantra quiz.

The first two photos in last week's E2MQ featured sex-therapist author and media star, Dr. Ruth Westheimer (aka Doctor Ruth), and USMC Gunnery Sergeant Carlos Hathcock, dubbed "White Feather" by his North Vietnamese enemies.

The skill linking these two was that they both received sniper training.

As a young girl Doctor Ruth joined the Haganah, a Jewish paramilitary organization, and received her training while serving with the precursor to Israel's IDF.

Unlike Westheimer who was singularly unsuccessful in her former job, Hathcock is a Marine Corps legend, remembered for 93 confirmed kills during the Vietnam War.

Last week's final two photos were of Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and former White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs. Current news suggests that Zuck wants to add Gibbs as a Facebook friend.

To date there has been no announcement that Facebook will add the former politico to its ranks. The only "For Sure" for Gibbs is that he will be part of President Obama's reelection team.

What's My Line? This week's E2MQ

2011-03-28T10:27:00.001-04:00

We are forced to lower the bar for this week's E2MQ.
There has been a deluge of complaints that our questions are just too difficult.
In reply we quote last week's winner who suggests, "Early to bed. Early to rise. And you can out Google the other guys."

This week's E2MQ is offered in two parts with a total of six easy questions.

PART A

This woman...

...and this man...

...have a skill in common.
One could say they share a piece of working wisdom.

He was born in Arkansas in 1942 and died in 1999.

She was born in Germany in 1928 and is still alive.

Both are American citizens despite both being born outside the U.S.

(Okay, Arkansas's part of the Union again...)

To my knowledge, the two have never met.

Part A questions are...

Who are these two people?
What are their respective nicknames?
What discipline do they both share?

PART B

These two gentlemen may have something in common.

Questions of Part B are...

Who are they?
What do each of them do?
What connects them?

The winner will be the first person to correctly answer all six questions.

As always one can respond by commenting below, click the button above, or send an email to e2mq@edisonet.org.

Good luck!

Recognition and Announcement

2011-03-28T10:24:00.001-04:00

Now that we've gotten his permission, Edisonet is delighted to formally announce that William Owens of New York City was winner of the tough question in the Chick Flick E2MQ of March 13th .

Obviously, way too much time had been spent gazing at the Empire State Building and recording the color displays over the course of the year.

As recognition of his achievement, Will will be receiving a hard cover copy of Schott's Original Miscellany.

After ingesting this eclectic collection of working wisdom, Mr. Owens will know how to correctly tie a sari and also impress others with his knowledge regarding the makers of the Queen of England's pork sausages and which Burmese kings died "curious deaths".

Well done and congratulations, Mr William Owens.

Paraprosdokians* and Contrafibularity**

2011-03-27T14:07:00.002-04:00

* Despite popular belief, the Lincoln Tunnel is not named after Abraham Tunnel.

Material for last week’s E2MQ is thanks to a highly amusing book that comes to us from across the pond. John Lloyd, producer of the British comedy shows Not the Nine O’Clock News, Blackadder, and Spitting Image, collaborated with John Mitchinson, who writes for the brilliantly-funny comedy panel show, QI (Quite Interesting).

Their UK bestseller, The Book of General Ignorance – Everything You Think You Know is Wrong, published in 2006, has been one of our favourite [sic] finds in recent years and has been the source of much amusing and heated discussion.

But on to the proper answers:

What shape did medieval scholars believe the Earth to be? Nope, the answer isn’t FLAT. The idea of a flat earth first appeared in the 19^th Century and may have been influenced by Washington Irving’s Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus (1828). Probably as a result of Irving’s fabrication, school children have been taught that Columbus’s mission was to prove the world is round. The flat-earth gauntlet was picked up by Englishmen S.B. Rowbotham (Zetetic Astronomy) and Samuel Shenton (Flat Earth Society). The latter died in 1971 but not before he claimed that the Apollo landings were a Hollywood hoax and photos of the round earth were fabricated. For those who thought or answered, "Flat," please click here.

In what year did World War II officially end? The answer is 1990. Hostilities ended when Japan surrendered on September 2, 1945, but the Cold War created something of a mess. A number of interim peace treaties were signed in 1950 and again in 1955. However, no peace treaty was ever signed with the GDR (East Germany). So it was Germany’s reunification, October 2, 1990, that marked the official end of WW II. As long as I’ve got your attention, what was the longest war fought by the United States?

Why are flamingos pink? Not because they eat shrimp! It’s because they eat a lot of blue-green algae, which, despite its name, can be red, yellow, orange, or violet. By the way, did you know that flamingos are 10 million years old, they are monogamous, and they lay only one egg per year? They also feed their young with a bright red “milk” produced from their throats. Flamingos are only one of two birds that produce milk. The other is... Give a guess!

What is the world's strongest wood? Most everyone got this right. Balsa is the strongest wood when measured by stiffness, bendability, and compressibility. Balsa wood is also mothproof.

What is the normal state of glass? Pretty much everyone correctly said that glass is a solid. Somehow in the past there developed an assertion that glass was a cooled, but not yet crystallized, liquid. Ain’t true! Scientists categorize solids as either crystalline or amorphous. Glass is the latter.

What metal is the best conductor? Most everyone also correctly said that silver is the best conductor. You know what else is really cool about silver? Since the 5^th Century BC it has been successfully used to sterilize water! When travelling, King Cyrus the Great always kept his personal water supply in silver containers and the Greeks and Romans found that food stored in silver spoiled less quickly.

The air we breathe is mostly nitrogen (78%). Can you explain why? This was a tough question. Scientists claim that the reason nitrogen is so much a part of our air comes as the result of volcanic eruptions during the earth’s formation. Since nitrogen’s heavier that hydrogen and helium it stayed closer to the earth’s surface. By the way, oxygen represents another 21% of our air, and there are other gases, but only one represents as much as 1%. Do you know what it is?

What African animal kills the most number of people each year? Well, we should have clarified by saying, “Mammal,” but most everyone got it. And those who didn’t give the orthodox answer, hippopotamus, answered equally correctly with mosquito. Did you know that hippos were once thought to be related to pigs, but now are considered close relatives of whales? Hippos are very irritable creatures who've been known to bite crocs in half and hold full-sized lions under water to drown them. Humans mostly are victims when their boat is overturned or they are trampled by a startled hippo. Nothing like these three beauties...

What was Napoleon's most humiliating defeat? This is our favorite, and some of you got it correctly. Waterloo may have been, in the words of the Duke of Wellington, “The nearest run thing you ever saw in your life,” and a crushing defeat for the French, but Boney’s most humiliating defeat came in July 1807. As part of a treaty to be signed in the Prussian village of Tilsit (now part of Russia and known as Sovetsk), they decided to have a rabbit shoot to entertain the dignitaries. Someone screwed up and released, instead of wild rabbits for the hunt, domesticated ones. These furry creatures collectively saw a little man, and mistaking him for the gamekeeper who fed them, charged Napoleon en masse at 35 mph. Despite the dissuading efforts of the other attendees, the bunny horde drove the emperor off the field and back to his carriage which sped off.

What was King Tut's curse? This was NOT a trick question, but the answer is, “There was no such thing.” The whole curse story was made up by the newspapers just after Howard Carter discovered Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922. Seems the Cairo correspondent for the Daily Express started a story of an inscription, a pharaoh’s curse, which read, “They who enter this sacred tomb shall swiftly be visited by wings of death.” There is no such inscription, and, in fact, no curse has been found in any Egyptian tomb to date. One interesting discovery was made in 2005 when the mummy-in-question was run through a CAT scan. He was 5 feet 6 inches tall, skinny with a severe overbite. And it looks like he died from an infected knee.

This concludes our official posting of last week's E2MQ answers. But, what about the WINNER? From the dark recesses of my past emerged a dark horse contestant. He was my prep school roommate 45 years ago and remains a true friend today. This week's winner, Mr. Frank E. Masland, IV, will be receiving a copy of Lloyd and Mitchinson's General Ignorance because, despite his winning the contest, he scored only 80% on the quiz and needs further study.

________________________

** For those diligent few who have waded this far, we offer, as a recessional, a bit on wisdom from one of the shows written and produced by the above-referenced authors.

Games People Play

2011-03-23T11:39:00.000-04:00

Researcher Dr. Jane McGonigal believes that in the future games will become a immensely important tool used to solve real-world problems and boost global happiness.

McGonigal's first book related to this subject, Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make us Better and How they Can Change the World, was published this January and received mixed reviews. LA Times and Wired magazine both like it, but others, like the NY Times Book Review asked, "Where's the reliable evidence that this data translates to people's doing more real work?" There were also some downright unfavorable reviews, notably from a reviewer for UK's The Independent newspaper who said, "Reality is Broken could be an hour-long comedy show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival."

We've got a copy of the book, and you can get your own here. Alternatively, a glimpse of what Dr. Jane has to say can be learned from her TED talk given last year.

How important are games? If you listen to McGonigal or Tom Chatfield, author of Fun, Inc., a book assessing the growth and future of games, we are witnessing a paradigm shift. Playing games on line, in the opinion of these two authors, will be one of the 21st century's dominant social activities.

Right now Edisonet continues to investigate and learn more on this subject, but we are not entirely convinced that the hype supports games being more important in the future than they've been in the past. Haven't we always used games to learn and develop our skills?

At any rate, we recently discovered something fun we'd like to offer. Instead of a quiz, how about a challenging game for you to all to try?

This is NOT the kind of game referenced by McGonigal and Chatfield. This is just an ordinary amusing annoyance and time waster for a snowy Wednesday morning.

Click here to play.

Welcome Vernal Equinox, whatever that means. The E2MQ

2011-03-21T06:58:00.000-04:00

We've always called it, "The First Day of Spring," but did you know that's not a universal concept? According to Wikipedia some places refer to the vernal equinox as, "Mid Spring."

Some East Asian cultures claim that spring begins on February 4th and ends on May 5th. Similarly, according to certain Celtic traditions, based solely on daylight and the strength of the noon sun, spring begins in early February (Ground Hog Day?) and continues until early May.

What a marvelous segue into this week's E2MQ, which is all about commonly-held misconceptions.

But before going to our quiz, we'd like to mention Snopes.com, an urban legends reference website launched in 1995. These folks have collected a large store of rumors, popular myths, and stories of questionable integrity and investigate the validity of each. For those unfamiliar with this treasure trove of debunking and authenticating, we heartily recommend it. Obviously, a very healthy group of skeptics regularly use this resource because Snopes.com gets some 300,000 visitors every day!

Here are 5 of the more-intriguing items found on Snopes.com that have circulated in recent years:

President Obama canceled May's National Day of Prayer in order to not offend anyone.
Bacteria found in cut onions and potatoes are responsible for more food poisoning than from spoiled mayonnaise.
There is to be a Congressional vote to grant Social Security benefits to illegal aliens, and a petition is being circulated to thwart this action.
Asparagus has miraculous cancer-fighting properties.
There is a risk that failing to press the "clear" button on self-service pumps can lead to additional charges on customers' credit or debit cards.

Four of these five are absolutely false. One is somewhat true with reservations.

You can guess or simply go to Snopes.com to discover which is which.

Over the years every one of us gathers a host of common knowledge "facts" supposedly supported by academic studies, scientific experiments, or sophisticated observation. As we age, some of these become indelibly fused in our minds. Do you harbor some totally fallacious knowledge?

Here's this week's E2MQ, a collection of 10 pieces of UFI* to amuse and annoy you on Monday morning:

What shape did medieval scholars believe the Earth to be?
In what year did World War II officially end?
Why are flamingos pink?
What is the world's strongest wood?
What is the normal state of glass?
What metal is the best conductor?
The air we breathe is mostly nitrogen (78%). Can you explain why?
What African animal kills the most number of people each year?
What was Napoleon's most humiliating defeat?
What was King Tut's curse?

First person with 10 correct answers automatically wins.
If there is no clear winner by week's end, the individual offering the most correct answers is the winner.

As always you can respond in the blog's comment block below or send an email to E2MQ@edisonet.org.

Good luck!

* Useless Frigging Information

The Empire Building Strikes Back! Answers to this week's E2MQ

2011-03-19T15:10:00.007-04:00

Well, the contest results are in, and there was one clear winner. However, to date we have not received incidentals, so we are not yet at liberty to share his name.

Nonetheless, he provided the following very comprehensive list of Empire State Building lighting schemes:

	Red / White / Blue	President's Day
February 16 - 17	White / White / White
February 15	Purple / Purple / Yellow	Westminster Kennel Club, 135th Annual Westminster Kennel Club All-Breed Dog Show
February 14	Red / Pink / White	Valentine's Day
February 8 - 13	White / White / White
February 7	Green / Yellow / Green	Green Bay Packers Super Bowl Win
February 5 - 6	Split Lights North & South Sides: Green/Yellow/Green West & East Sides: Yellow/Black/Yellow	Super Bowl Lighting Green Bay Packers Pittsburgh Steelers
February 4	Blue / Orange / Blue	American Cancer Society, World Cancer Day 2011
February 2 - 3	Red / Yellow / Red	Lunar New Year
February 1	Orange / Orange / White	34th Annual Empire State Building Run-Up Powered by the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation
January 24 - 31	White / White / White
January 21 - 23	Green / White / Green	New York Jets, AFC Championship Against the Pittsburgh Steelers
January 18 - 20	White / White / White
January 17	Red / Black / Green	Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
January 14 - 16	Green / White / Green	New York Jets, Divisional Playoff Game Against the New England Patriots
January 13	Red / Red / Red	Cunard Royal Rendezvous and Maiden Voyage of "Queen Elizabeth"
January 7 - 12	White / White / White
January 6	Green / Green / Green	Empire State Building Becomes Largest New York City Commercial User of 100% Clean Energy
2010
December 30 - January 5	Red / Green / Green	Christmas
December 29	Split Lights North & South Sides: Orange/Orange/White West & East Sides: Purple/Purple/White	Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium Syracuse University Kansas State
December 23 - 28	Red / Green / Green	Christmas
December 18 - 22	White / White / White
December 16 - 17	Red / Green / Green	Filming
December 10 - 15	White / White / White
December 8 - 9	Blue / White / Blue	Chanukah
December 7	Orange / Orange / White	Food Bank for New York City
December 2 - 6	Blue / White / Blue	Chanukah
December 1	Red / Red / Red	(RED), World AIDS Day
November 29 - 30	White / White / White
November 24 - 28	Red / Orange / Yellow	Thanksgiving
November 23	White / White / White
November 22	Orange / Orange / White	S.L.E. Lupus Foundation, Life Without Lupus Gala
November 18 - 21	Private Lighting
November 17	Purple / Purple / White	March of Dimes, Prematurity Awareness Day
November 15 - 16	White / White / White
November 12 - 14	Blue / Blue / White	Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, World Diabetes Day
November 11	Red / White / Blue	Veteran's Day
November 10	White / White / White
November 9	Blue / Pink / Yellow	The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, Urban Visionaries Benefit
November 8	Green / White / Red	Madison Square Garden Entertainment, Opening Night of the Radio City Christmas Spectacular
November 7	Orange / White / Blue	New York Road Runners, 2010 ING NYC Marathon
November 5 - 6	White / Red / Yellow	Jersey Boys, 5th Anniversary
November 4	Green / Green / Green	New York City Department of Youth and Community Development, National Runaway Prevention Month
November 3	White / White / White
November 2	Red / White / Blue	Election Day
November 1	Purple / Blue / Yellow	Only Make Believe, 11th Annual Gala
October 30 - 31	White / White / White
October 29	Green / Green / Green	Palisades Interstate Park Commission, 100th Anniversary of The Harriman Gift
October 28	Blue / Blue / Blue	The Doe Fund, The Doe Fund Annual Gala
October 25 - 27	White / White / White
October 24	Purple / Purple / White	Alzheimer's Association, 2010 Memory Walk
October 22 - 23	Red / Red / Red	Scholastic, 90th Anniversary Celebration and "Read Every Day. Lead a Better Life." Campaign
October 21	Yellow / Yellow / Yellow	The Afterschool Alliance, Lights on Afterschool
October 12 - 20	White / White / White
October 11	Red / White / Green	Columbus Day
October 8 - 10	Orange / Yellow / Red	Publicolor, 15th Anniversary of Publicolor Day
October 7	Orange / Orange / White	Jumpstart, Read for the Record
September 28 - October 6	White / White / White
September 27	Blue / Red / Blue	The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, 10th Anniversary of Family Day – A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children
September 25 - 26	Yellow / Red / Black	German Consulate in New York, 53rd Annual Steuben Day Parade
September 24	Blue / Blue / Green	Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC, RBC Race for the Kids
September 16 - 23	White / White / White
September 15	Red / White / Green	Mexican Consulate in New York and the Mexican Cultural Institute of New York, Mexico's Independence Bicentennial
September 14	White / White / White
September 12 - 13	Yellow / Yellow / Yellow	United States Tennis Association, US Open Finals Weekend
September 11	Red / White / Blue	In Memory of September 11
September 10	Green / Green / Green	Eid-al-Fitr
September 7 - 9	White / White / White
September 3 - 6	Blue / White / Blue	Muscular Dystrophy Association, The Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon
September 2	Yellow / Yellow / Yellow	New York City Office of Emergency Management, National Preparedness Month
August 31 - September 1	White / White / White
August 30	Yellow / Yellow / Yellow	United States Tennis Association, U.S. Open Opening Day
August 27 - 29	White / White / White
August 26	Red / White / Blue	Women's Equality Day, 90th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment
August 16 - 25	White / White / White
August 13 - 15	Green / White / Orange	Federation of Indian Associations, 30th Annual India Day Parade
August 9 - 12	White / White / White
August 6 - 8	Green / Red / Red	Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival, 20th Annual Festival Kick-Off and Celebration
August 2 - 5	White / White / White
July 30 - August 1	Red / White / Blue	Boys Scouts of America , 100th Anniversary Celebrations and the National Scout Jamboree
July 21 - 29	White / White / White
July 20	Red / Blue / Yellow	Consulate General of Colombia in New York, Independence Bicentennial
July 13 - 19	White / White / White
July 11 - 12	Red / Yellow / Red	Spain's World Cup Victory
July 9 - 10	Purple / Pink / Yellow	Broadway Barks Cat and Dog Adopt-a-Thon
July 7 - 8	White / White / White
July 6	Red / White / Blue	British Consulate General in New York , New York Visit of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh
July 2 - 5	Red / White / Blue	Independence Day
July 1	Red / White / Red	Consulate General of Canada in New York, Canada Day
June 29 - 30	White / White / White
June 28	Blue / White / Blue	Crain's New York Business, 25th Anniversary
June 25 - 27	Lavendar / Lavendar / White	Heritage of Pride, 2010 NYC Pride Week
June 22 - 24	White / White / White
June 21	Blue / White / Blue	Mets and Yankees "Subway Series", Team colors of Subway Series winner (Yankees)
June 20	Blue / Blue / Blue	United Nations Refugee Agency, World Refugee Day
June 18 - 19	North/South sides Yankees colors Blue/White/Blue; East/West sides Mets colors Blue/Orange/Blue	Mets and Yankees "Subway Series" lighting
June 17	White / White / White
June 16	White / Red / White	Consulate General of Japan in New York , Japan -NYC 1860-2010 and the 150th Anniversary of Japan - New York City Ties
June 15	White / White / White
June 14	Red / White / Blue	Flag Day
June 11 - 13	Blue / Green / Yellow	Caribbean Tourism Organization, Caribbean Week
June 10	White / White / White
June 9	Yellow / Yellow / Yellow	Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
June 8	Purple / Blue / White	National Marine Sanctuary Foundation and the United Nations, United Nations World Oceans Day
June 7	White / White / White
June 4 - 6	Green / White / Green	New York Racing Association, Belmont Stakes
June 3	Orange / Orange / White	iMentor, 10th Anniversary Dinner
June 1 - 2	White / White / White
May 27 - 31	Red / White / Blue	Memorial Day/New York City Fleet Week
May 26	White / White / White
May 25	Blue / White / Blue	Consulate General of Argentina, 200th Anniversary of Argentina
May 24	Blue / Orange / Blue	Mets and Yankees "Subway Series", Team colors of Subway Series winner (Mets)
May 23	Blue / White / Blue	Jewish Community Relations Council of NYC, 2010 Salute to Israel Parade
May 21 - 22	North/South sides Yankees colors Blue/White/Blue; East/West sides Mets colors Blue/Orange/Blue	Mets and Yankees "Subway Series" lighting
May 20	Orange / Purple / White	Neuropathy Association, 15th Anniversary and Neuropathy Awareness Week
May 19	White / White / White
May 18	Blue / White / Blue	Columbia University, 2010 Commencement
May 17	Blue / Yellow / White	F.E.G.S. Health and Human Service System, 75th Anniversary and Benefit Dinner
May 14 - 16	Yellow / White / Blue	Fire Department of New York, National EMS Week
May 13	Green / Green / Green	Rainforest Foundation, Rainforest Foundation Benefit Concert and Rainforest Awareness Week
May 12	Green / White / Green	City Harvest; Skip Lunch, Fight Hunger
May 11	Purple / Purple / White	New York University, 2010 Commencement
May 10	White / White / White
May 8 - 9	Blue / Yellow / Blue	European Union, E.U. Day
May 7	Blue / Blue / Blue	Police Memorial Week Kick-Off
May 6	White / White / White
May 5	Yellow / Yellow / Yellow	Project Sunshine, Project Sunshine Week
April 30 - May 4	White / White / White
April 29	Red / Red / White	Coty Inc., 4th Annual DKMS Linked Against Leukemia Gala
April 23 - 28	White / White / White
April 22	Green / Green / Green	Earth Day
April 20 - 21	White / White / White
April 19	Purple / White / Yellow	New York Women in Communications, 2010 Matrix Awards
April 16 - 18	Orange / Orange / White	American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month
April 15	Green / Green / Green	Natural Resources Defense Council, Forces for Nature Honorary Dinner
April 8 - 14	White / White / White
April 7	Blue / Yellow / Red	The White House Project, Annual EPIC Awards
April 5 - 6	White / White / White
April 2 - 4	Green / Pink / Yellow	Easter
April 1	Blue / Blue / Blue	Autism Speaks, Autism Awareness Month
March 28 - 31	White / White / White
March 27	Lights off	Lights off from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. – World Wildlife Fund, Earth Hour 2010
March 22 - 26	White / White / White
March 19 - 21	White / Red / White	New York Red Bulls, Grand Opening of Red Bull Arena
March 18	White / White / White
March 17	Green / Green / Green	St. Patrick's Day, Annual New York City St. Patrick's Day Parade on Fifth Avenue
March 5 - 16	White / White / White

Note: Colors are listed from bottom to top as they appear from the street.
The Empire State Building celebrates many cultures and causes in the world community

We were impressed that our winner even presented White-White-White, the non-committal in-between colors!

This list was so comprehensive that our own list of 18 schemes paled by comparison.

How could any one person ever find such a list?

Click here to learn our winner's secret information cache.

So, it’s not how smart you are. It’s knowing where to look.

Now, for all you guys who couldn’t figure out the Chick Flick quiz, ask any woman.

She’ll tell you the answers are:

The Empire State Building (duh!) built in 1931.

The first movie is King Kong.

The 3 chick flicks where the ESB was a backdrop are

1. Love Affair

2. An Affair to Remember

3. Sleepless in Seattle

The 2 additional referenced films are:

1. Love Affair (2)

2. Mann

Congratulations to our winners and better luck next time to the rest of you!

See you next Monday!

The E2MQ: Chick Flick Quiz

2011-03-13T13:10:00.032-04:00

It saw the undoing of a giant apeman in a 1933 movie, but this building features prominently in three serious chick flicks.

Reference #1 comes in a 1939 romantic film starring Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer.

Again it takes center stage in a 1959 remake starring Deborah Kerr and Cary Grant which is considered the most romantic film of all time.

In 1993, Nora Ephron cast Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks in the leading roles in the more-recent and very successful remake.

Then just a year later, husband and wife team, Annette Bening and Warren Beatty, starred in a flop remake that reverted to the original movie title.

And in 1999 even Bollywood gave this plot a try with their own version starring Manisha Koirala and Aamir Khan. This movie also flopped.

Easy questions: What’s the building, when was it built, and what are the six referenced movies?

Tougher question: This building’s exterior lighting system can produce color schemes marking various celebrations and recognitions. By our count, we’ve found over 15 lighting combinations and more than 30 different commemorations. We’ll give you one example: RED and GREEN for the Christmas holiday season. How many others can you describe?

(BTW, the color sequence should be upwards from street level.)

Two prizes this week:

1. The first person giving correct answers to all the EASY questions gets a prize, and

2. The first person giving at least 20 correct responses to the TOUGHER question also wins a prize.

Respond either by commenting below or email E2MQ@edisonet.org.

You Can't win without playing - E2MQ Answers

2011-03-12T09:22:00.020-05:00

The intrepid Monday Morning Quiz-master, Dorian Adams of San Francisco, has done it again. He offered no fewer than 26 You Can't aphorisms, 25 excluding Col. Jessep's, "You Can't handle the truth."

Dorian also offered, You Can't...

...hurry love
...judge a book by its cover
...take it with you
...make a silk purse out of a sow's ear
...please everyone
...prove a negative
...break a broken heart
...fight city hall
...take the sky away from me
...go home again
...improve on god
...be neutral on a moving train
...do that on television
...keep a good man down
...lose what you never had
...manage what you don't measure
...outsmart crazy
...fix stupid
...outrun grace
...polish a turd
...polish a turd, but you can roll it in glitter :-)
...rollerskate in a buffalo herd
...take a shower in a parakeet cage
...eat your cake and have it too
...win them all

Not included in his list are:

And definitely, You Can't be in...

And to these we offer a few old favorites...

You Can't...

...have it both ways

...get blood out of a stone

...make an omelette without breaking eggs

...make a silk purse out of a sow's ear

...run with the hare and hunt with the hounds

...shake hands with clenched fist

...tell which way the train went by looking at the track

...win arguments by interrupting speakers

...have a rainbow without rain

...pick up two melons with one hand

...fool all the people all of the time

...sip soup with a knife

...see the sky through a bamboo tube

...measure the sea with a shell

...cheat an honest man

...catch a cub without going into the tiger's den

There is one You Can't that you can't say, and that is...

"You can't teach an old dog new tricks."

To that we say, "Humbug," and direct your attention to

http://newfleas.blogspot.com/

Answer Sheet for the Quick Quiz

2011-03-12T09:08:00.002-05:00

Well, the results were distinctly poor regarding last Saturday's E2Q.

Even after getting a hint, no one ventured a 50/50 guess.

The answer to "Which doesn't belong," is the huge BUG:

It was the only non-hoax and showed a Rhino Beetle (also shown above), a popular pet in parts of Asia. For more information see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhinoceros_beetle.

Sorry, piscatorial pals! The fish is a hoax, but what about that flying saucer?

In 1967 at the height of the cold war a massive UFO hoax was played out in the UK. A small armada of 6 flying saucers "landed" in Britain on the 4th of September 1967. It seems utterly extraordinary that anyone took this invasion seriously, but Ministry of Defence files recently released by National Archives confirm the extent of the UK government's concerns about a threat from outer space. This event and the stir that it caused is the subject of a book, How Big are Little Green Men? written by historian John Keeling from Essex England. Mr Keeling recounts, “At the time, we were in the middle of the Cold War, and there was real concern that the objects could be of Russian origin.”

The Chippenham saucer (shown above) was actually blown up by the British Army!

Now that's a hoax!

Thimblerig: Hint for the E2Q

2011-03-07T00:56:00.022-05:00

Last Saturday you were offered a chance to answer, "Which doesn't belong and why?" It was a simple shell game opportunity with an outstanding chance to win. Nobody even tried!

Now we're giving you a chance at redemption. The following picture is one of the two that belongs. So, now you have an even chance to answer which of the other two pictures does not belong and why.

Please take a stab at it!

This week's E2MQ: "You can't"

2011-03-06T23:02:00.037-05:00

Proverbs, those short pithy sayings, express some traditionally held truth. The tag cloud below shows many of the words used in English-language proverbs, with the size of each word indicating how often it occurs.

It's interesting to note that the two most common words, as presented above, are GOOD and NEVER. Some of the better know examples would be:

A change is as good as a rest.
A good beginning makes a good ending.
Good fences make good neighbors.
Good things come to those who wait.
No news is good news.

and

A watched pot never boils.
Better to have loved and lost that to never have loved at all.
Better late than never.
Hard work never did anyone any harm.
Lightning never strikes twice in the same place.

But this week we address those proverbs beginning with or containing the words, "You can't...," as in, "You can't have it both ways," and, "You can't tell a book by its cover." Or how about the frightfully-famous "You Can't" from Nathan R. Jessep:

This week's challenge is to identify as many proverbs with "You can't" at the beginning or as an integral part of the saying. We've come up with over 15 examples. Can you do better?

The individual entrant providing the most comprehensive list by this week's contest close (see rules) will win!

What is Edisonet?

2011-03-06T22:14:00.029-05:00

EDISONET'S MISSION and DISTINCTIVE APPROACH

Encouraged by a group of friends in the fall of 2010, I began an effort that, ideally, will someday help improve the lives of countless individuals. The concept is Edisonet, a learning-focused endeavor whose mission is to gather Working Wisdom, efficiently organize it, and distribute it to a broad range of users.

Working Wisdom is the collection of insights gained from lifetimes of success and failure. It is what individuals understand now that, had they known it, could have made a difference earlier in their lives. Certainly, one can live without Working Wisdom, but our lives are greatly enriched by having it.

To implement this mission Edisonet plans to offer a variety of interactive multimedia venues. This valuable wisdom is captured not only in print, but through concise, 2 to 3 minute, videos that can be freely viewed, downloaded, and shared.

Distinguishing Edisonet is the opportunity for users to benefit from direct connection with those experienced individuals featured in the Working Wisdom video modules.

Users gain targeted guidance from an array of experienced Edisonet Navigators who have agreed to share their lifetime of success and failure and thereby, improve users' chances for success.

E2MQ Rules of Engagement

2011-03-06T21:14:00.030-05:00

The Edisonet Monday Morning Quiz (“E2MQ”) provides challenging fun at the start of every week. Each Monday a new contest will tax your weekend-addled brains, offer some small entertainment, and reward those on whom the fates look favorably with a prize of some not-insignificant value.

But more importantly, each week we shall enlighten the minds of our readers with some obscure fact, or encourage them to consider a profoundly-new perspective or share some enigmatic tidbit of working wisdom.

As with all contests, a set of rules must be followed to ensure fair play:

Edisonet Monday Morning Quiz ("E2MQ") Rules

1. Contests will be posted every Monday BEFORE 1200 EST (1700 GMT).
2. Contests close at 0001 EST (0501) the following Friday
3. To qualify answers must be received AFTER 1200 EST (1700 GMT) each Monday and BEFORE 0001 EST (0501 GMT) the following Friday.
4. Thus, a level playing field is created for respondents from various European, UK and US time zones.
5. Each week's winner (and maybe runners-up) will receive:
A. Extrinsic rewards - Book/DVD/CD/T-shirt/etc.
B. Intrinsic rewards - Recognition of their superior knowledge/skill/wisdom/intellect/etc.
6. Check your answers before submitting because contestants get only one chance per quiz!
7. Determinations by the Edisonet judge is firm and final.

7. Responses can be via comment on the Edisonet blog (www.wisdomsparks.blogspot.com) or email to E2MQ@edisonet.org
8. Answers will be given and winners announced as a blog post every Friday before 1200 EST.
9. Winners will need to provide mailing addresses if they expect to get a prize.
Alternatively, they can send their chauffeur to collect it, as desired.
Overconfident respondents may provide shipping address together with their responses, but nothing's guaranteed.
10. Should the question prove too challenging, HINTS may be provided every Wednesday.
11. E2MQs should offer challenging fun and interesting information to everyone who participates. Readers may actually learn how a carburetor works!

All one has to do is add a comment to the blog post or send an email to us at E2MQ@edisonet.org (not case sensitive).

Which doesn't belong and why? An E2Q

2011-03-05T12:07:00.015-05:00

Cardinal Egan (aka Bernard McGuirk) frequently asks

radio host Don Imus to answer the question...

"Which doesn't belong and why?"

Here is our own E2Q, Edisonet Quick Quiz, for this dreary Saturday...

Which of these photos (excluding McGuirk) doesn't belong and why?

Extra credit given for knowing why one relates to a current news story.

Answers can be posted here as comments or emailed to e2mq@edisonet.org.

Contest closes at midnight (EDT) tonight with results shown tomorrow.

Proud Horses - Answers to this week's E2MQ

2011-03-05T09:07:00.048-05:00

From the first English translation of Aesop’s Fables.

The first English language edition of Aesop’s Fables is generally believed to have been by William Caxton, a 15th century merchant and printer in London, who also is credited with having introduced the printing press to England. It is believed that Caxton was also Britain’s first retailer of printed books. Imagine if he'd been able to collaborate with Jeffrey Preston Bezos!

William Caxton Showing the First Specimen of His Printing to King Edward IV by Daniel Maclise 1851

During the 1400s the English language was highly regionalized and frequently changing. As a printer, Caxton frequently faced challenges of regional dialects, syntax, and spelling. William Caxton deserves recognition for having made significant strides toward standardizing the English language through his printing, and, thereby, facilitating the expansion of our vocabulary. But I digress.

This week’s E2MQ saw many worthy tries, but no one accurately associated the natural attributes of the seven animals. To get the proper answers we progress 400 years to a translation of Aesop’s Fables by the Reverend George Fyler Townsend (1814-1900). Although there are many other collections and translations, Townsend's volume of 350 fables introduced the practice of stating a succinct moral at the conclusion of each story, and, therefore, continues to have influential significance.

The Reverend Townsend’s works are in the public domain on line via Project Gutenberg (www.gutenberg.org). It was the good parson, not this editor, who defines the characteristics in his preface to his translation of Aesop’s Fables.

“The introduction of the animals or fictitious characters should be
marked with an unexceptionable care and attention to their natural
attributes, and to the qualities attributed to them by universal popular
consent. The Fox should be always cunning, the Hare timid, the Lion
bold, the Wolf cruel, the Bull strong, the Horse proud, and the Ass
patient. Many of these fables are characterized by the strictest
observance of these rules.” (emphasis ours)

As a somewhat-patient man, I can now better appreciate why some have described me as half-fast. And anyone who read the books or saw the movies, Secretariat and Seabiscuit must appreciate that horses have every right to be proud.

Quoting from Laura Hillenbrand’s book, “He [Seabiscuit] didn't look like much. With his smallish stature, knobby knees, and slightly crooked forelegs, he looked more like a cow pony than a thoroughbred. But looks aren't everything; his quality, an admirer once wrote, ‘was mostly in his heart.’.”

The bold lion opens this, but the proudest horse of all has the last word...

And while most of us remember Mr. ED, there's a new horse in town, Mr. ED...ISONET.

Absolutely Fabulous: Today's E2MQ

2011-02-28T12:40:00.001-05:00

We are NOT referring to the long-running British sitcom (aka, Ab Fab), but a little Monday wisdom from Patsy and Edina never hurt anyone.

The "fabulist" of whom we speak today is none other than the world's most-famous, Aesop, a contemporary of Solon and Croesus in mid-6th century BC Greece.

Like the formerly-referenced Roman in last week's blog, tradition suggests that Aesop was a slave, but from the island of Samos, who also won his freedom due to his wit. However, Aesop's wit, unlike that of Publilius Syrus, may have cost him his life.

A legend developed in the 1st century AD that Aesop, recognized for his speaking and storytelling skills, was tasked by his master, Xanthus, to act as an emissary between the residents of Samos (a Greek island in the eastern Aegean) and Croesus (as in "Rich as..."), king of the Lydian Empire (much of today's western Turkey). Having successfully fulfilled his diplomatic mission, Aesop was said to have travelled to various courts in Babylon and Egypt and ended up in Apollo's sacred city of Delphi, site of the most important oracle in ancient Greece.

It seems that Aesop made himself distinctly unpopular with the citizens of Delphi. The technique that boosted the stature of Aesop's fables came from his artistic skill of endowing animals with human traits and skills. His stories, thereby, could simultaneously instruct and critique without giving personal offense to the listener.

Well, that's what Wikipedia says! But the Delphians weren't amused by the hare, tortoise, fox, grasshopper and others. They found Aesop's fables insulting, and so they trumped up a charge of theft, and sentenced Aesop to death. Just before they chucked the fabulist off a cliff, he cursed them by saying, "You may kill me, but my unjust death will bring you great misfortune."

Guess what happened to Delphi? They faced a protracted period, confirmed by none other than the Oracle of Apollo, of pestilence, famine, and warfare. And all because they "dissed" Aesop!

Now, about that quiz...

Scholars suggest that the animals found is Aesop's Fables are, by universal consent, representative of certain specific attributes. Some of these characteristics are: Cunning, Timidity, Boldness, Cruelty, Strength, Pride, and Patience. Can you name each animal used by Aesop to represent each specific trait?

Finally, in response to one reader's request that every blog should have a bit of shared wisdom, I offer the following video. You have a choice: To watch the pertinent section, push the slide to the first dot. about 5 minutes 28 seconds. Or, if you want a full dose of Moose & Squirrel wisdom, watch the whole shebang!

AND WE APOLOGIZE FOR THE COMMERCIALS!

E2MQ: May I present Leslie King...

2011-02-24T11:58:00.001-05:00

We all knew him as Gerald R. Ford, Jr., the 38th President of the United States.

Some of you also knew that he was named Leslie L. King, Jr. at birth.

Therefore, he was a King before becoming a President!

But that's a story for later.

As to the other name changes,

BackRub is now known as Google.

Computing Tabulating et al is IBM Corporation.

Brad's Drink is Pepsi.

(Which reminds me of one of this year's best Super Bowl ads.)

Xe, pronounced ZEE, is Blackwater.

Jerry's Guide is now Yahoo.

Consignia is the UK's absurd new name for Royal Mail.

And speaking of absurd, Chicago's tallest building, the Sears Tower, is now the Willis Tower. Go figure.

Until next time...

Breaking with Syrus

2011-02-24T08:39:00.000-05:00

Years ago in my intemperate youth, I offered an injudicious comment to a WSJ reporter regarding my employer, a large money center bank. The term, "Stink Eye," hadn't yet been invented, but, following publication of said quote, a precursor of that look was leveled at me by most of the bank's senior management. Shortly thereafter, I received a one-line letter from a consultant pal of mine. It read, "I often regret my speech -- rarely my silence."

The consultant was quoting Publilius (sometimes Publius) Syrus (85 BC - 43 BC) who Wikipedia describes as a Syrian slave who gained both fame and his freedom through his wit. Not a bad deal! Possibly someone to emulate.

Over the succeeding years, despite my efforts to adhere to similar counsel suggesting, "A closed mouth gathers no feet," my success has been, at best, marginal. Sadly, this effort has been both physically and emotionally taxing and, I am sure, cause for some not-insignificant premature aging.

However, today I cast off the governor of silence by formally opening the Edisonet blog. I invite all Friends of Edisonet to continue graciously offering suggestions and advice and following our progress through this blog. By gathering and organizing your thoughts and suggestions, we will be better prepared to implement Edisonet's mission.

Sparks of wisdom come from a broad range of experience and reside in a distributed population. Our mission is extracting wisdom from those who don't realize they have it and exchanging it with those who could use it but don't know where to find it. This blog is our first step in that effort of gathering, organizing and distributing working wisdom.

For many Friends of Edisonet who are unfamiliar with blogs, our goal is to make you comfortable. Following the tenets of Edisonet, we want to gather and distribute your suggestions and wisdom regarding development of our vision. Not only can you follow our development, you can put in your two-cents and comment on other suggestions.

Won't you please join us in breaking with Syrus by actively sharing your wisdom and commenting on our posts?

And don't forget the E2MQ's! From now on the Edisonet Monday Morning Quiz will be posted on this blog site. This venue will provide opportunity for you to respond and make witty comments for which, like Publilius, you might gain both fame and freedom!

Welcome to the Edisonet blog!