Nik Nak’s Daily Teaser — 12-3-2017

You know … 

It’s a yawning Sunday … 

In other words?

It’s going to be one of those days where I’ll be yawning … 

Quite a bit.

Remember, yesterday, I told you I’d got my ageing carcass out of bed at six?   To get to work at eleven?

Well, my usual Sunday hours … ?

Mean getting up at six, again: to start at eleven.

I’m not complaining too much: I like money, after all.

But, boy … 

It’ means Chelmsford is going to be yawn city … 

~≈Ê≈~

Let’s move on, shall we?

Yesterday’s Teaser saw Olga* and Debbi† putting in answers: with Olga scoring ten out of ten, and Debbi scoring nine.

Let’s see how everyone does with today’s questions, shall we?

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

Q1) 12th March saw the birth of noted science fiction writer, Harry Harrison.   In which year?

Q2) More to the point, one of his best known characters, Slippery Jim DiGriz, was better known as the Stainless Steel … what?

Q3) 12th March, 1999, saw the death of Yehudi Menuhin.   Which instrument was he famous for playing?

Q4) 12th March is the feast day of Saint Fina of San Gimignano.   Saint Fina is the patron saint of whom: carpenters, spinners or cheesewrights?

Q5) Finally … 12th March, 2015, saw the death of author, Sir Terry Pratchett.   Which character appeared the most often, in Sir Terry’s Discworld novels?

Here’s yesterday’s questions and answers … 

Q1) The first confirmed case of Spanish ’Flu took place, on 11th March.   Of which year of the First World War?

A1) 1918.

Q2) The patient was Private Albert Gitchell.   A what: bombardier, mess cook or driver?

A2) Mess cook.

Q3) The patient was a private in the US Army: based in Fort Riley.   The Fort was in which US State?

A3) Kansas.

Q4) It’s called Spanish ’Flu: as the spread of the disease to Spain was very well reported.   What was it called … in Spain?

A4) The Naples Soldier, or Soldado de Nápoles.   (It’s taken from a operetta called La canción del olvido.   One of the musical’s writers said one of its songs — The Naples Soldier — was as catchy as the ’Flu.   Quite what he’d have said about Typhoid, or Justin Bieber, I don’t know …)

Q5) Spanish ’Flu is said to have killed more people than what: the Black Death, Bubonic Plague, or vCJD?

A5) The Black Death.

Q6) Technically?   Spanish ’Flu is ALSO known as what: H₁N₁, H₂SO₄ or H₂O?

A6) H₁N₁.   (H₂SO₄ is the chemical formula for sulphuric acid.   H₂O is water)

Q7) Ethiopian prince, Tafari Markonnen, survived the disease.   How is he better known?

A7) Emperor Haile Selassie.

Q8) An H₅N₁ variant of ’flu is more notoriously known as what: swine ’flu, canine ’flu or bird ’flu?

A8) Bird ’flu.

Q9) According to some reports, some of the damage from Spanish ’Flu were caused by poisoning from what: tap water, aspirin or gout?

A9) Aspirin.

Q10) Finally … what was this version of the ’flu: pandemic, pancreatic or panfried?

A10) Pandemic.

I’ll leave you with a thought …

“Just because you know a thing is true in theory, doesn’t make it true in fact.”

Deathworld, Harry Harrison, March 12, 19** – August 15, 2012.

And a song … 

Have a sleepy Sunday … !

*        You mean Buffy, Olga?   It’s worth a watch, I know that … !   (I’ve got the series on an extra internal hard drive: ye gods, that’s seventy-eight gigabytes!   Angel adds another forty-five!)

†        Nine out of ten’s not bad, Debbi: that’s ninety per cent, compared to yesterday’s eighty per cent.   We’ll starting talking batting averages, next … !   (How ARE you at the Baltimore Chop … ?)