h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Sam sighed as he reviewed the plan. He was sure he had all the bases covered but in his line anything could go wrong.

His associate, Pinky, had been sent undercover to the Opera House. Pinky was only four foot eight in elevators although he could rise to nearly five foot on an escalator.

At this moment he was with the orchestra at rehearsal playing the tuba. Why a man that small would be playing a tuba was one of life's cruel tricks.

When he was young his mother had sent him to the store to buy toothpaste. When Pinky got there, his memory being even shorter than he was, he stood for a while trying to recall a tube of...a tube of... and came home with a tuba.

There's not much call for the tuba in Mozart's operatic aria "Popolli de Tessaglia", but Pinky wasn't there for fun. He was looking for the G above high C but a note that high Pinky wasn't going to see without standing on a ladder.

I could tell everything in the plan was going pigeon shaped. My only hope was my back up, the rookie cop. Then the phone rang. As I leaned forward to pick it up 'she' walked into the room. She was wearing a tight business suit, the sort that suggests the business I like. Underneath the open jacket, she was wearing a crisp white blouse. From where I was sitting it reminded me of a postcard from the Swiss Alps.

What the hell, I ignored the phone. I could just tell the client that I had been beaten up again.

- but no nearer the right answer!

I'm heading out for my lunch but feel free to keep guessing!

getting back to the recap in post 67
Okay , so having acquired some batteries at the hardware store (Q1: for what?) maybe for his walkie talkie- since he has not been assigned a cop car he cannot communicate that way.

our young cop arrives at the opera (Q2: why the opera)

he runs inside hoping to find something (Q3: what?)
The note G above high C
luckily the BPO are rehearsing Mozart's 'Popilli de Tessaglia' (Q4: 'why on Earth is that lucky?)
It has the note he note he wants
He asks them a question, they reply that yes their steinway is acting up. Perhaps he asks them why the soprano doesn't quite match the note on the piano?

He asks them another question (Q5: what did he ask them?)
Is the soprano on the right key?
they have what he needs. (Q6: What is it?)
G6

, he then asks about the phone - it's in the foyer. (Q7: who is he ringing and why?)
Perhaps he calls his Sergeant? to tell him he found the note?

Perhaps the Sergeant wants the note to use as part of an investigation.

So why should the soprano have a whistle?

to scare off muggers?

//getting back to the recap in post 67
Okay , so having acquired some batteries at the hardware store (Q1: for what?) maybe for his walkie talkie- since he has not been assigned a cop car he cannot communicate that way.//

The batteries are NOT for his walkie talkie.



//our young cop arrives at the opera (Q2: why the opera)

he runs inside hoping to find something (Q3: what?)
The note G above high C//

Yes but there's more to it than just that.
Keep guessing.



//luckily the BPO are rehearsing Mozart's 'Popilli de Tessaglia' (Q4: 'why on Earth is that lucky?)
It has the note he note he wants.//

Yup, keep going....



//He asks them a question, they reply that yes their steinway is acting up. Perhaps he asks them why the soprano doesn't quite match the note on the piano?//

Correct +3


//He asks them another question (Q5: what did he ask them?)
Is the soprano on the right key?//

The Soprano is off becuase the piano is 'acting up'.... so.....

//they have what he needs. (Q6: What is it?)
G6//

Yes-ish.



//he then asks about the phone - it's in the foyer. (Q7: who is he ringing and why?)
Perhaps he calls his Sergeant? to tell him he found the note?//

Oh-no! "He called the station where he was based." -5

And you were doing so well.

he calls a piano repairer...?

The phone call is not to a piano tuner. That's a bit...well..obivous. Though I didn;t klaxon it. It's something a little odder (not much odder, but the mystery will deepen further, I promise you.)

Does he have a hearing impairment?

The battery is for his hearing aid and he can only hear high-pitched noises?

And I was reminded that the 'mobile' Orchestra was actually an advert. Probably for a mobile company.



MMF

He calls a local ballon factory to see if they have helium on hand?

Does the altitude in boulder Colorado have any bearing on the senerio?

...if no helium (a little sharp anyway), perhaps neon?

Okay, so he's not calling a piano tuner, but is it a call to someone or something that he thinks will help the Soprano hit the note?

A computer room, maybe? I'm just thinking of all those high pitched squeals that used to come out of my Commodore 64 when it was reading a program off a tape.


Geggs

His hearing is impecible - which is how come he was able to detect the Soprano's imperfect pitch.

So no impairment and no hearing aid.

No noble gases factory or baloon makers, but that is an inspired guess, but wildy adrift on the correct answer!

No, the altidue does not affect the answer.

//Okay, so he's not calling a piano tuner//

Correct

// is it a call to someone or something that he thinks will help the Soprano hit the note?//

Having got what he needed from the orchestra, they are concerned with the QI no longer.

//A computer room, maybe?// Well there would be computers at the place where he is calling, but it's not 'a computer room' per se.

Does he even actually *call* someone, or does he just want the note that sounds when you pick up the phone (440Hz, IIRC)?
... Which would then enable him to either tune the piano, or get the soprano to hit the right note?

Does he even actually *call* someone?

An actual person? Not exactly.....