Can You Master This Unique Sci-Fi Trivia Challenge?

AI Thread Summary
The forum thread features a creative trivia game centered around sci-fi and fantasy themes, where participants pose questions and provide clues that are not easily searchable. The game encourages players to guess answers based on obscure hints related to various media, including movies, books, and television series. Discussions include references to iconic works such as "Doctor Who," "Star Trek," and "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy." Participants share insights about the connections between characters and plot points, often leading to deeper conversations about the themes and implications of the works mentioned. The game also allows for additional clues if initial guesses are unsuccessful, fostering an engaging and collaborative atmosphere. Notably, the thread highlights the importance of creativity in crafting clues that challenge participants while maintaining a focus on well-known sci-fi and fantasy narratives.
  • #51
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
 
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  • #52
Ivan Seeking said:
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress

Heinlein
 
  • #53
maverick_starstrider said:
Heinlein

Whoops, mine was a guess at the quote "Let's moon them", by Argentum Vulpes.
 
  • #54
Janus said:
Firefly.

Yup Janus nailed what I was thinking about. Ivan would also be correct but I forgot about that until I just read it.
 
  • #55
@Ivan: Heh, it was still a good one. *waits for Janus*

I'm loving this game.
 
  • #56
Argentum Vulpes said:
Yup Janus nailed what I was thinking about. Ivan would also be correct but I forgot about that until I just read it.

What was the context for Firefly?
 
  • #57
Pilot episode, The crew has just been discovered pulling illegal salvage off of an alliance transport. It is Jane's line right before they start running.
 
  • #58
Argentum Vulpes said:
Pilot episode, The crew has just been discovered pulling illegal salvage off of an alliance transport. It is Jane's line right before they start running.

Huh, I saw that but it's not ringing a bell. What was the meaning? Is it just an expression for leaving someone behind?

For some reason, Firefly didn't capture my interest.
 
  • #59
I think it might have to do with the fact the main engine of the Firefly class ships is kinda like a project Orion engine. Also the big reason I liked Firefly was it was a western in space, so incredibly different then any of the Sci fi shows up to that point.
 
  • #60
Argentum Vulpes said:
I think it might have to do with the fact the main engine of the Firefly class ships is kinda like a project Orion engine. Also the big reason I liked Firefly was it was a western in space, so incredibly different then any of the Sci fi shows up to that point.

It has been so popular with other members that I intend to give the next disk [Netflix] a try. Some shows just take a little time to sink in.

While we're waiting for Janus, I want to give another plug for Primer. It is a MUST SEE for hard sci-fi lovers. It is far too dry for most viewers, and even for the sci-fi hearty, the first half hour is pretty tough, but the plot makes it worth the ride.
 
  • #61
Darwin did not make this trip.
 
  • #62
Janus said:
Darwin did not make this trip.

The Voyage of the Space Beagle
 
  • #63
Ivan Seeking said:
The Voyage of the Space Beagle

Oh I loved that book... I actually read it IN a library (in a corner of the stacks) when I was a kid. *wistful*
 
  • #64
Ivan Seeking said:
The Voyage of the Space Beagle

Yes. and I didn't even get to use my second clue:

"It's not about Snoopy traveling to the Moon"
 
  • #65
On this planet [name required], if you use the toilet, you get a receipt. Why?
 
  • #66
Ivan Seeking said:
On this planet [name required], if you use the toilet, you get a receipt. Why?

Because if you don't the balance will be taken OUT OF YOU, surgically. Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy. Douglas Adams, Baruch Dayan Emet.

Oh the name... I haven't read the book in a while, so I remember the sound from the radio show... Bethsilameen? Betsilamine?
 
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  • #67
Frame Dragger said:
Because if you don't the balance will be taken OUT OF YOU, surgically. Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy. Douglas Adams, Baruch Dayan Emet.

Oh the name... I haven't read the book in a while, so I remember the sound from he radio show... Bethsilameen? Betsilamine?

Yes! [is the name right? I'm not even sure] The planet was suffering from erosion resulting from space tourism, so the mass intake and return for each visitor were closely monitored. You hope to excrete as much as you eat or you go under the knife.
 
  • #68
Ivan Seeking said:
Yes! [is the name right? I'm not even sure] The planet was suffering from erosion resulting from space tourism, so the mass intake and return for each visitor were closely monitored. You hope to excrete as much as you eat or you go under the knife.

Ahhh, that was a GOOD one.

Ok...

Here's the hint, in reference to a "character" in a book.

Silence in the coldest season.
 
  • #69
Ivan Seeking said:
Yes! [is the name right? I'm not even sure] The planet was suffering from erosion resulting from space tourism, so the mass intake and return for each visitor were closely monitored. You hope to excrete as much as you eat or you go under the knife.

It's "Bethselamin" to be exact.
 
  • #70
Frame Dragger said:
Here's the hint, in reference to a "character" in a book.

Silence in the coldest season.

Another clue?
 
  • #71
Ivan Seeking said:
Another clue?

Sure...

Silence in the coldest season

Namesake of Ogden
 
  • #72
Taking a longshot that I can't decipher your second clue: Rand al'Thor; Winter's Heart?

Otherwise, I'm stumped.
 
  • #73
Ivan Seeking said:
Taking a longshot that I can't decipher your second clue: Rand al'Thor; Winter's Heart?

Otherwise, I'm stumped.

A WoT reference! I love you for thinking of it, but no.

The answer: Wintermute... the AI from Neuromancer by William Gibson, created by the man Ogden Wintermute.

I'll cede the next round to you, for the WoT reference (RIP Mr. Rigley/Jordan).
 
  • #74
Frame Dragger said:
A WoT reference! I love you for thinking of it, but no.

The answer: Wintermute... the AI from Neuromancer by William Gibson, created by the man Ogden Wintermute.

I'll cede the next round to you, for the WoT reference (RIP Mr. Rigley/Jordan).

Heh, I was truly grasping at straws.

What sci-fi movie has a basis that was arguably first suggested by a famous 16th/17th century Philosopher?
 
  • #75
Ivan Seeking said:
Heh, I was truly grasping at straws.

What sci-fi movie has a basis that was arguably first suggested by a famous 16th/17th century Philosopher?

Would the movie be Cube? The prisoners were able to excape using a Cartesian coordinate system, invented by René Descartes.
 
  • #76
You are sooooooo close.
 
  • #77
I'll go with the "Matrix", based on Descartes' argument that you cannot trust your perceptions, as an evil demon might be controlling your every experience. This evolved into the whole "How can I know that I'm not just a brain hooked up in a lab being fed sensations by some scientist." idea.
 
  • #78
Janus said:
I'll go with the "Matrix", based on Descartes' argument that you cannot trust your perceptions, as an evil demon might be controlling your every experience. This evolved into the whole "How can I know that I'm not just a brain hooked up in a lab being fed sensations by some scientist." idea.

That's the one. :biggrin:
 
  • #79
If you need it, you can find it in Suffolk county.
 
  • #80
Janus said:
If you need it, you can find it in Suffolk county.

Hmmmm... swinging blindly now... "The Forgotten" (the movie, not the tv series)? That, or Needful Things... but that's in Maine. I'm stumped!
 
  • #81
Ivan Seeking said:
You are sooooooo close.

If I was using an ICBM to make my guess I would of hit it. :-p
 
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  • #82
Argentum Vulpes said:
If I was using an ICBM to make my guess I would of hit it. :-p

You were very close! Just Google [descartes sci-fi movie]. Matrix is mentioned on the first page.

Janus said:
If you need it, you can find it in Suffolk county.

Frame Dragger said:
Hmmmm... swinging blindly now... "The Forgotten" (the movie, not the tv series)? That, or Needful Things... but that's in Maine. I'm stumped!
 
  • #83
True Ivan, it's just the math link made a bit more sense to me so that was the tree I was barking up.

Janus said:
If you need it, you can find it in Suffolk county.

Would it be http://www.iconsf.org/" held at Stony Brook University, in Stony Brook, New York. Which is in Suffolk County, New York.
 
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  • #84
New clue:

Be sure to bring plenty of singles.
 
  • #85
Hmm, no new guesses. so here's two more:

When you get there, you might find out that it is Punday night.

The author can spin a fine tale.
 
  • #86
Janus said:
Hmm, no new guesses. so here's two more:

When you get there, you might find out that it is Punday night.

The author can spin a fine tale.

Callahan's Crosstime Saloon?
 
  • #87
Correct! Callahan's place, a creation of Spider Robinson and along the tradition of A. C. Clarke's "White Hart".

Drinks are a dollar. (50 cents actually, but you only get your change if, upon finishing your drink, you don't exercise your option of making a toast and throwing the glass into the fireplace.)

It is a place where the odd and wonderful can, and often does, happen. Like the time the fellow betted everyone in the bar that his dog could talk. Ventriloquism turned out to be the trick, only it was the guy that was mute and the dog that threw his voice. (Mutation had given him the intelligence, and surgery the ability to talk.)
 
  • #88
It is the city of eternal darkness.
 
  • #89
Janus said:
I'll go with the "Matrix", based on Descartes' argument that you cannot trust your perceptions, as an evil demon might be controlling your every experience. This evolved into the whole "How can I know that I'm not just a brain hooked up in a lab being fed sensations by some scientist." idea.

Ooooo, nice!

Of course it wasn't the much later philosopher, Baudrillard. He said that if it were based on his own writings, then it was based on a misreading of them. Also, worth repeating, that if the matrix was to make a film, “The Matrix” would be the sort of film it would make.
 
  • #90
MotoH said:
It is the city of eternal darkness.

Would it be The city of Ember? A book series by Jeanne DuPrau. It was also made into a movie I believe.
 
  • #91
Dark City
 
  • #92
Ehhh not really. You are somewhat on track Arg.

Another hint.

Mother left them, and it is no longer true darkness.
 
  • #93
MotoH said:
Ehhh not really. You are somewhat on track Arg.

Another hint.

Mother left them, and it is no longer true darkness.

MotoH said:
It is the city of eternal darkness.

This new question will be from the same genre, and when one of the questions is answered, the other will be easy to answer also.
______________________________________
Could the strong kill the emperor?
 
  • #94
Only two champions could kill the emperor.
 
  • #95
Who the hell banned MotoH before he could tell us the answer? ARRRRRRGGGGGHHHH!
 
  • #96
Uh oh, it looks like have lost motoh for a time.

The thread is open to a new question. Feel free to post.
 
  • #97
Practice makes perfect, literally.

P.S. Additional clue: entropy takes it in the chops in this book.
 
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  • #98
Shalashaska said:
Practice makes perfect, literally.

P.S. Additional clue: entropy takes it in the chops in this book.

Would this be The practice effect by David Brin?
 
  • #99
I couldn't remember the title, but that was my first idea.
 
  • #100
Argentum Vulpes said:
Would this be The practice effect by David Brin?

A Winner! We have a winner!
 

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