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

Have you seen the quiz questions set on telly shows were you ring in and give the answer to a question from three possibilities, well the government are thinking about making them more difficult:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/3735221.stm

What do they mean more difficult!! My favourite was on Richard and Judy:

Who was the leader of the Mongol Hordes?

A Genghis Khan
B Imran Khan
C Chaka Khan

Anyone got any particular favourites?

Richard & Judy's are always enjoyably silly. I'm trying to think of some more now...

B

I had assumed up until now that there was some sort of rule that said any question for a phone in competition had to be so stupid that the presenter would struggle to keep a straight face whilst reading it...

I don't recall any specific examples, but I have sat there in disbelief many times.

David

I've been amused by really stupidly easy questions many times, and I've always said I look forward to the day that the question is:

"What is the first letter of the alphabet? Is it:

A: A.
B: B. or
C: C?

Call 0900 900 9001 to win a smack with a wet kipper."

Surely the first letter of the alphabet is T...

B

/me phones number
/me wonders why it doesn't exist...


I'm actually a little merry after finishing an exam - the last one of this year (woo indeed )

I always like the ones on GMTV and This Morning

A GMTV question:

Which boy band was Robbie Williams once a member:

A Take That
B Stuff That
or
C What's That

Please remember to ask permission of the person who pays the phone bill.

There was a cracking one on Five last night:

Which effect causes the Earth to heat up?

A) The greenhouse effect
B) The garage effect

On Hells Kitchen last night. Complete the popular recipe:
Coq Au _ _ _

A. Vin
B. The clown

Heres on from UTV (a TV channel in N. Ireland) to win £1000

Money couldn’t buy The Beatles which of these? Was it:

A. love
B. car
C. house

The one from today's Good Morning was good.

Who is the chef in charge of Hell's Kitchen?

A. Gordon Ramsay

B Gordon the Gopher

C. Gordon Brown.

I wonder !!!!!!

My favourite was in conjunction tih the release of the original jurrassic park at the cinema.

"Which of these animals is extinct?"

A) A Dog

B) A Tyrannosaurus Rex

C) A Cow.

Didn't someone on hootoo write an article on the Richard and Judy questions?
I recall the most ridiculous question involved was...

What number comes next in this sequence?

1,2,3,4...

Does that count the same as the alphabet one?

The trouble with this of course is how does one define a 'hard question'?
Not as easy as one might think...

The rules state you need a special licence to run a lottery and part of the proceeds then have to go to charity. By bringing in the 'skill element' of the questions they avoid both, as well as getting huge amounts from premium rate phone calls.

Of course, but how does one define "skill element"?
Questions are only easy if you know the answer and defining a level of difficulty is quite hard to do in general knowledge type questions.
They can't set it at the level of Mastemind or Univesity challenge as your average punter would never get it and they want something a bit more general.
I suspect they will have great difficulty defining boundaries of easiness when it comes to this legislation...

But isn't that the point of the 'skill element' the fact that some people will not know it or will get it wrong. If the answer is so blatantly easy and everyone gets it correct then it becomes a lottery as you are guarenteed an entry.

Yes, but *where* do you draw the line as to a question being too easy?

"Who starred as Harry Potter?" is easy for someone who is 14, whereas "Who starred as Rhet Butler?" is easy for someone who is 80? Which is 'easier'?

Drafting legislation where companies can potentially be prosecuted in a court of law is going to require a fairly hard definition and I cannot imagine how it will be done.