The Daily Teaser — 5-4-2013: The Empire of Where … ?

Phew … !

It’s actually NOT snowing!

Which sounds — possibly — like a strange thing to say: until you find out it snowing in Brentwood, yesterday.

It’s still a bit nippy, today: but not quite as cold.

Which logically implies no snow: but this is the British climate we’re talking about, here.

Frankly … ?

I’m expecting blizzards … !

Let’s get moving, shall we … ?

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Yesterday’s Teaser saw Debbi putting in her answers: along with saying goodbye to the now late Roger Ebert*, she also managed to bag five out of six.

Let’s see how she — and you — do with today’s questions, shall we … ?

Here they are, along with the ‘How To’, License and video … 

Q1) 5th April, 1081, saw Alexios Komnenos crowned as the monarch of which Empire … ?

Q2) More to the point, in which city was this … ?

Q3) What’s that city now called … ?

Q4) That Empire had begun as the Eastern … what … ?

Q5) And finally … what were the gold coins issued in the Empire called … ?

Here’s yesterday’s questions and answers …

Q1) 4th April, 1973, saw the dedication of which New York landmark … ?

A1) The World Trade Centre.

Q2) More to the point, how many stories high was that landmark: 100, 110 or 120 stories … ?

A2) 110.

Q3) 4th April, 1721, saw Sir Robert Walpole named as the UK’s first Prime Minister.   Under which king … ?

A3) George 1st.

Q4) 4th April, 2002, saw the signing of the peace treaty that ended which African country’s civil war … ?

A4) Angola’s.

Q5) 4th April, 1975, saw Bill Gates and Paul Allen formally found Microsoft: the pair’s first computer product, sold a few weeks earlier, was a version of which computer language … ?

A5) BASIC.

Q6) And finally … 4th April, 2000, saw surprise blizzards block which British airport … ?

A6) Luton.   (We even know a song about it … )

I’ll leave you with this quote from al-Mas’udi, noted 10th Century writer and geographer, speaking about the Empire that’s provides today’s theme …

“The sciences were financially supported, honoured everywhere, universally pursued; they were like tall edifices supported by strong foundations. Then the Christian religion appeared and the centres of learning were eliminated, their vestiges effaced and the edifice of Greek learning was obliterated. Everything the ancient Greeks had brought to light vanished, and the discoveries of the ancients were altered out of recognition.”

al-Mas’udi.

And with what’s known as the Nightingale Kratima: which has its roots in the same place.

Oh … and finally, as I’ve MENTIONED the place … 

Have a good day … !

*        I have to admit, Debbiº, I’ve never actually read any of his reviews: Barry Norman was always Britain’s default film reviewer, at about the same sort of era.   I do know that Wikipedia’s film entries will include a flattering — or otherwise — mention from him.

º        Oh, I learnt BASIC … !   Well … picked up a few basic commands, anyway … !

10   FOR m=0 TO 7

20   PRINT INK m; "Hello Debbi"

30   NEXT m

40   END