Play "The Wikipedia Game" - From Elvis to Queen Elizabeth II!

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around a game played using Wikipedia articles, where participants attempt to connect two seemingly unrelated topics through internal links on Wikipedia. The game encourages creativity and exploration of connections between various subjects, with participants sharing their paths and challenges.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants share their experiences and strategies for connecting articles, such as starting from "Elvis Presley" to "Queen Elizabeth II" and discussing various paths taken.
  • Questions arise about the definition of internal Wikipedia links, specifically whether they include links in the body of the article or only those in the "See Also" section.
  • There is a suggestion that using lists might simplify the game, leading to a debate on whether they should be allowed.
  • Participants propose various starting and ending articles for new challenges, including "Britney Spears" to "E = mc^2" and "Global Warming" to "Ping Pong / Table Tennis."
  • Some participants express humor and frustration over the complexity of finding connections, noting the number of embedded links in articles.
  • Paths taken by participants vary widely, with some achieving connections in fewer steps than others, leading to discussions about efficiency and creativity in finding routes.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the fun and challenge of the game, but there are multiple competing views regarding the rules, such as the use of lists and the definition of internal links. The discussion remains unresolved on these points.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include varying interpretations of what constitutes an internal link and the potential impact of using lists on the game's difficulty.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals interested in creative problem-solving, trivia, or those looking for a humorous way to explore connections between diverse topics may find this discussion engaging.

  • #31
How about:

Start: TV guide
End: Energy

Done in 5 or less. Probably too easy.
 
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  • #32
scott_alexsk said:
How about Queen Elizabeth II to dislocations (materials science)?

I found a very short path.

Queen Elizabeth II -> United States -> Material Science -> Dislocation
 
  • #33
this reminds me of networking & that "6-degress-of-separation" saying. if someone wants to get a message to another person it would have to go through no more than 6 people, no matter how far apart they are. that's the saying anyway; in practice it's probably a bit different, especially today with the internet, etc (the world is a lot smaller than it used to be). i wonder what the maximum number of wikipedia pages someone would need to go through get to any other wikipedia page? someone would have to be pretty bored to try to figure that out imho lol.
 
  • #34
mattmns said:
How about:

Start: TV guide
End: Energy

Done in 5 or less. Probably too easy.

TV guide -> Television -> Electrical energy -> Energy

Start: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kool_aid
End: Treaty of Paris (1783)
If you get this, good job!EDIT: I found a good way to get Neuron from Differentiable manifold
Differentiable manifold -> Physics -> Electricity -> Neuron

EDIT2: I also found a way to cheat...
http://tools.wikimedia.de/sixdeg/

EDIT3: Lol, that website has the same method of getting to Neuron as I had, MUAHAHA!
 
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  • #35
moose said:
Start: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kool_aid
End: Treaty of Paris (1783)
Kool Aid -> America (The Book) -> Politics of the United States -> American Revolution -> American Revolutionary War -> Treaty of Paris (1783)

Now:

Start: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basket-weaving"
End: Felix Hausdorff
 
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  • #36
Kool-aid -> Chicago -> United Sates -> American Revolutionary War -> Treaty of Paris(1783)

Good job, eh?
 
  • #37
morphism said:
Start: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basket-weaving"
End: Felix Hausdorff
basket weaving --> middle east --> africa-eurasia --> central europe --> germany --> mathematics --> topology --> felix hausdorff

that wikipedia helper thing isn't very helpful so far. i got there in 8 steps & then i tried the thing to see if there was a faster way & it said "no route found after 10 degrees." but for the return route (hausdorff->weaving) it found 5 steps:
Felix hausdorff --> Felix Hausdorff --> 1868 --> Oakland, California --> Ohlone --> basket weaving
 
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  • #38
fourier jr said:
basket weaving --> middle east --> africa-eurasia --> central europe --> germany --> mathematics --> topology --> felix hausdorff

that wikipedia helper thing isn't very helpful so far. i got there in 7 steps & then i tried the thing to see if there was a faster way & it said "no route found after 10 degrees." but for the return route (hausdorff->weaving) it found 5 steps:
Felix hausdorff --> Felix Hausdorff --> 1868 --> Oakland, California --> Ohlone --> basket weaving

When I tried it, it said
Basket weaving
2005
1942
Felix Hausdorff
 
  • #40
World Golf Hall of Fame-Presidential Medal of Freedom
Done in 5.
 
  • #41
I got from "kevin bacon" to "rectum" in EXACTLY 6 degrees. :biggrin:

kevin bacon->1->2->3->4->5->6->rectum



Answer: kevin bacon>NY>cattle>milk>mammary gland>organ>rectum
 
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  • #42
World Golf Hall of Fame -> United States -> President of United States -> John F. Kennedy -> Presidential Medal of Freedom.
 
  • #43
moe darklight said:
I got from "kevin bacon" to "rectum" in EXACTLY 6 degrees. :biggrin:

kevin bacon->1->2->3->4->5->6->rectum

:smile:

max
 
  • #44
Here is an interesting one:

Start: Xena
End: Paula Abdul

3 clicks and none can include a year.
 
  • #45
Got it in four, but not three:

Xena-->The Simpsons-->Fox-->American Idol--->Paula Abdul
 
  • #46
moose said:
When I tried it, it said
Basket weaving
2005
1942
Felix Hausdorff

aha that thing is case-sensitive, that's why it didn't work for me
 
  • #47
G01 said:
Shoe(redirected from Shoe shop)-->Athletic Shoe--->Tennis--->Tennis(disambiguation)--->Table Tennis

Would this be 4 or 5 steps?
Shoe Shop --> canvas --> gesso --> masonite --> Table tennis
 
  • #48
moose said:
EDIT2: I also found a way to cheat...
http://tools.wikimedia.de/sixdeg/

that thing is pretty handy. i can't seem to find two pages more than 5 pages apart, even
Martha_Stewart --> Edwin_Hewitt
for example is only 5 degrees of separation. That's the max from what I've tried.
& Martha_Stewart --> Doggy_style is only 3 degrees of separation! I would have thought that would be more than 5 for sure lol
C*-algebra --> Slurpee is 5 degrees
Giovanni_Pierluigi_da_Palestrina --> black_metal is 3 degrees
UFC --> Iron_Chef is 4 degrees
Sonny_Barger --> Mother_Teresa is 4 degrees
Sonny_Barger --> Noam_Chomsky is 4 also
Artin-Wedderburn_theorem --> Britney_Spears is 5 degrees
Joel_Robuchon --> McDonald's is 4 degrees
:smile:
 
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  • #49
Hmm, I think that thing may be out of date.

Look at: http://tools.wikimedia.de/sixdeg/index.jsp?from=Kalle&to=Rawhide

Kalle to Rawhide.

The connections don't actually work (in at least two of the articles)
 
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  • #50
moose said:
EDIT2: I also found a way to cheat...
http://tools.wikimedia.de/sixdeg/

HEH! At least we're not the only people that have wasted time on this!
 
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  • #51
hey guys this is a sweet website

http://thewikipediagame.com

they've got a forum over there too but it doesn't have any members yet. My friend just wanted me to ask you guys to maybe start it up? post some "wikipaths" there.

Thanks:approve:
 
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  • #52
There's an even better version of the game http://www.wikipediamaze.com"
 
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  • #53
britney spears -> e = mc^2

"britney spears" to "pop icon"
"pop icon" to "Albert einstein"
"Albert einstein" to "mass-energy equivalence"

then you can go to the disambiguation from there if necessary.
 
  • #54
No matter where I go, I always end up at Kevin Bacon.
 
  • #55
I played a variation of this with Kevin Bacon. Ultimately, it became a game of getting to the Apollo space program since you could get from Apollo to Kevin Bacon in two clicks and EVERYTHING connects to the Apollo space program.

Black Widow Spider -> Mud dauber -> altimeter -> spacecraft -> Apollo spacecraft -> Apollo 13 -> Kevin Bacon

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_black_widow
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mud_dauber
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altimeter
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spacecraft
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_ spacecraft
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_13
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Bacon Protostar -> Solar Wind -> de Laval nozzle -> Robert Goddard -> Apollo 11 -> Jack Swigert -> Kevin Bacon

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protostar
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_wind
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Laval_nozzle
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Goddard_(scientist )
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_11
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Swigert
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Bacon
 
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