Announcement: IIS1K Competition

[iceman]

Hi all.

I'm pleased to announce the IIS1K Competition, which will be launched on the 14th June.

This thread serves as both the announcement, and the place to ask questions and make comments about the competition.

So please, feel free to reply here with your thoughts/comments/questions.

IceInSpace Thousand Member Competition (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/index.php?id=73,302,0,0,1,0)

http://www.iceinspace.com.au/picture/comp1k_thumb.jpg (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/index.php?id=73,302,0,0,1,0)

Thanks to the sponsors for donating prizes to allow this competition to take place!

[iceman]

This might be stretching things a bit, but if anyone would like to help me come up with the list of questions, please contact me.

Just remember, that by doing so, you will be inelligble to enter the competition.

[iceman]

Thanks to Steve (janoskiss) who has sacrificed his chance of winning in the competition, by volunteering to help me come up with a list of questions :)

Thanks Steve.

[iceman]

Dennis has also offered to help. So between the 3 of us, we'll come up with 30 questions no worries :P

Thanks to Dennis and Steve, I won't need any other volunteers for questions this time around.

[iceman]

There's less than a week now until the launch of the IIS1K competition!

So make sure you guests register to be eligible to enter the competition!

[iceman]

The IIS1K Competition has been launched!

See the competition details, read the rules, see the prizes and click on the link to the quiz entry form.

IIS1K Competition (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/index.php?id=73,302,0,0,1,0)

Thanks to the sponsors for donating prizes!

Good luck everyone.

PS: This thread is now unlocked, please feel free to reply/ask questions/comment on the competition.

[davidpretorius]

Pick the Janoskiss questions!!! (square root of the bessel type inversion layer theorem indeed!!!)
Wow that was hard, don't mind admitting I guessed more than 1/2!
Thanks you three, for organising the questions and also the sponsors!
Special thanks to dennis for taking it easy on couple of the questions so i can have a chance on the comp!
Thanks to mike for making it a single entry so i can't spam the entry section with multiple meaningless junk!

Well done all!

[ving]

ditto dave, i guessed at quite a few too. hard questions there!!! :)
thanks to the three of you for putting it all together :)

[Vermin]

There are at least three questions without correct answer options.

[cjmarsh81]

I know I got at least one correct :rolleyes:

[janoskiss]

I think you might be surprised to learn which ones are really mine. Which ones are you referring to?

[[1ponders]]

Quick Dave, hints man, hints ;)

[shelly]

Wow - that was fun!!

I've answered with a couple of guesses definately....

Thanks for putting it all together.

[Striker]

Well that was fun.

I feal like a round of Sale of the Century now.

I had to guess some aswell....I'm not ashamed...some were tuff.

As long as I achieved more then 10 out of 30 which I got last comp I will be happy....lol

Mike....quick ban Mick and anyone else who lives in Mackay before they enter....hehehe

Oh BTW the answer for Question 7 is (E)....

[mickal555]

The Milky Way is to the solar system as a football field to what in size?
What limit of the solar system is this?
(Pluto, Helioseph, oort cloud?)

[janoskiss]

That's for you to find out. :whistle:
Helioseph?? :shrug:

[davidpretorius]

the hard ones!! :D

You are the prime suspect, cos you are the only one on this forum that knows what deconvolution actually is! You are one smart dude! The only time I use any big astro terms is with my 2.5 year old. Otherwise I look like that telstra ad of the Dad explaining the great wall of china keeping out the rabbits to his inquisitive son!

IIS dictionary:

deconvolution: (de-con-vo-loo-shone) button you press in astra image to make ya joops look good!

thesaurus entry:
like that wavelet button or unsharp button.

[Vermin]

Heliosphere - the extent of the Sun's solar wind influence.

[mickal555]

I think I got most of them, I took 74AU for the size of the solar system...

[mickal555]

Thanks, couldn't remember the spelling :doh:

[janoskiss]

Most of the hardest ones weren't mine. :whistle: And quite a few of the easiest ones were. ;)

[Vermin]

After reading the questions I sent Mike a PM indicating that IMO there are six questions without the correct multiple choice answer option available.

[iceman]

In response to Tom, Dennis and Steve are verifying their sources and i'll respond "officially".

If there are any questions where a discrepancy is found, all entries will be marked "correct" for those questions.

[Striker]

Wahoo...that means I may get 6 right by default....nice.

[janoskiss]

There is one international character that got lost in translation: the ö in Röntgen. Question 19.

[Mick]

Thanks Tony :lol: good luck everyone.

[[1ponders]]

Man that was harder than my last uni exam. :lol:

[Calin]

I haven't submitted my answers yet, and have only done the first 12 so far. Of course I am doing some research, great incentive to enlighten the grey-matter. I have noticed there is at least one question in the first 12 that doesn't give a correct choice, first thought this might be a trick question with different spelling or something, but my sources confirm a glitch. Had me going round in cycles there - if there are 5 others then it's going to be a challenge just to work out which ones, some hard nuts in there, but fun all the same.
Will finish the rest and submit after I get some real work done that pays the bills, great excuse to procrastinate and avoid somehting I don't want to do .. if only for a few hours. I have found some goodly sites on the Net as a result - learn something new everyday.:thumbsup:

[iceman]

Thanks Calin, it's great to hear that the quiz is encouraging research and learning - exactly its intention.

Please PM me the question you feel is incorrect and i'll confirm if it matches Tom's list.

[[1ponders]]

Strange, there were a couple of really hard ones in there but I don't think I came across any without an answer

[ving]

look again paul... look again!

i got 6 right!!!! :D

[iceman]

Ok, official response regarding the validity/correctness of some of the questions:

Questions 1-5 were done by me.
Questions 6-17 were done by Dennis.
Questions 18-30 were done by Janoskiss.

Where a query was raised, it was sent to the author of the question for clarification.

I've received their responses, and can confirm that the questions and answers as they are presented are valid.

Specifically (without revealing answers):

Q6: Several sources point to the correct answer.

Q7: Several sources point to the correct answer listed in the options. Other sources may quote another name which is not listed as an option however out of the 4 answers listed, the correct one can be found.

Q8: An example of Legrange Points is given as one of the answer options. The answer as stated is correct and is the only correct interpretation of the listed four possible choices.

Q13: This is not a trick question, and does not include our Sun as a star.

Q14: Several sources point to the correct answer listed in the options. Other sources may quote another name which is not listed as an option however out of the 4 answers listed, the correct one can be found.

Q15: A great number of sources (including NASA's own website) point to the correct answer which is listed in the answer options.

Q24: A "typical" dobsonian telescope with a focal length between 800mm and 2000mm would give a figure that is closest to the correct answer.


Remember:

- The internet is a big place, and there are many sources of information that are often conflicting. If you find an answer that isn't listed, keep searching. You'll most likely find an answer that IS listed as one of the options.

- Maybe the source you found isn't correct? Maybe the source we used isn't correct. The quiz attempts to be factually correct, however due to the point above it's possible that some answers are ambiguous. In all cases, the correct answer out of the listed options can be found.

- The quiz is meant to be both fun and informational. It's great that people can use it as a research and learning exercise, however let's remember to not lose focus of the fun part. You only need to get 1 right to get an entry into the draw.

If you still believe there are errors in the quiz, please PM or email me with the question, your sources, and what you believe is wrong.

Thanks

[iceman]

As an aside, 39 people have entered the quiz so far!

[janoskiss]

Oh no! My cover is blown! I hope there's no hard feelings, Davo. :P

[ving]

oh so you did the easy ones steve :P

[Vermin]

That still does not make it the correct one, you can find all kinds of gibberish on the net (oh wow! the Moon hoax must be real).

e.g. Q15. NASA's web site may say that, but they were still beaten into orbit around Mars (what the question asked) by the USSR.

FACT.

[ving]

ya should be PMing ice, tom :)

[iceman]

Sorry Tom, it's not fact.

I've PM'd you 7 sources which state the (correct answer) beat Mars 2 into orbit by 2 weeks.

[Vermin]

My apologies, I was incorrect.

[Dennis]

Competitions can be fun and add another dimension of interest to Ice In Space, already a great place to be. We are a diverse and varied bunch of people and often do have strong views, ideas, opinions, beliefs, etc which will inevitably bring us into (hopefully) healthy and oft times vigorous debate on the Forum.

IIS seems to have a structure that appears to have served it, and other similar forums, very well. The structure appears to be that of “owner(s)” and “moderators”. These folks probably spend a lot of their waking and thinking time looking after this forum, nursing it, and trying to protect it from itself, and in my view do a terrific job. Therefore, I believe they are deserving of our respect and courtesy, perhaps even a little more so that the rest of us members who come here to play, rather than work.

It is highly likely that they, like we, like I, make mistakes. They probably have limited time to make decisions, produce entertaining stuff for us, are unpaid, and do not have the resources and safety net of a formal peer review process. Hence there will inevitably always be an amount of uncertainty in anything written here.

I think IIS is a friendly and mature enough place, where we can accept and tolerate these minor hiccoughs, much as we accept and tolerate our own short comings, whatever they may be.

Can I suggest that we all use the formal structure to put forward our views, corrections, more qualified knowledge, better informed resources, etc before making it public? It would seem respectful to contact Mike first, in private, before publicly stating that this or that is wrong, which may be the case, or not.

When going public, we also ought to ask ourselves….am I doing this for my passion for astronomy, to help my IIS colleagues, to make IIS a better place to hang out, or, do I simply need to be right, to soothe my ego, to look good, etc. which can be sweet at the time, but is also very temporary and an unsatisfactory way to be – I know as I have been there, and sometime still cross over in spite of my best intentions. I hope I have not just crossed over in this response.

Cheers

Dennis

[MakMan]

I'm in.
Hopefully I'll get at least one chance to go into the draw for some really good prizes.:prey:
Thanks go to the sponsers and organisers.
Good luck everyone. A chance to win something for a small amount of effort - you've got to be happy with that!;)

[Calin]

PM'ed as requested. Still enjoying the ride and the quiz...

[iceman]

73 entries so far, with 2 weeks to go.

Get your entries in folks!

[wavelandscott]

NO NO NO!...Mike is wrong here folks do not enter 73 is sufficient...

in fact it might be too many...:whistle:

What chance do I have of ever winning anything with som many entrants?

[iceman]

Less than a week to go, get your entries in folks!

[xelasnave]

Well had a go and say that it was very enjoyable. Everyone can move yourselves one step up the ladder thanks to me
alex

[Robert_T]

it 'urt my 'ead:rofl:

[Striker]

Too the best man/women who wins because it wont be me.....it's probably that Mick again from Mackay but thats cool cause he's a Queenslander.

Mike do we get to check out the results again this time....I want to see if I got more then 10 right this time...lol

I did my homework like a good little student this time.

[danielsun]

That was much harder than the last quiz. Anyone who gets 25 or more should be presented with an astronomical history degree.
I didnt give myself enough time to research some of the questions so i'm expecting some wrong answers. Though it was still fun and very educational. :thumbsup:

[Calin]

I like competition rule No. 17 ..... :rofl:

[iceman]

lol me too Calin, the escape clause :P

[iceman]

The competition ends at 5pm today (AEST). After that time, you won't be able to submit any new entries (the submit button on the entry form will be removed).

The actual IIS1K page on the site (http://localhost/index.php?id=73,302,0,0,1,0) will be updated tomorrow morning (along with a bunch of other updates) and will show the "correct" answers as I have them, so you'll be able to compare with what you answered.

If I find some questions/answers were too ambiguous and/or had multiple sources showing varying answers, then everyone will be marked correct for those questions. So please don't stress, and remember the spirit of the competition.

The actual draw will take place sometime next week. More details as they come to hand.

Thanks and good luck!

[ving]

thanks mike, you are a leg end :)
wd with the comp. :thumbsup:

[iceman]

As you would've guessed, the IIS1K competition has now closed for entries.

You can see the answers by going to the IIS1K Competition page (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/index.php?id=73,302,0,0,1,0).

2 questions were ambiguous enough to me that I will be marking everyone right for them.

We had 162 entries in total. I'll post more stats next week, and will announce where and when the draw will take place.

Thanks to everyone for taking part in the competition, and good luck in the draw!

[janoskiss]

Mike, will you post the statistics for the answers given?

[Dujon]

I'd like to say thanks to the sponsor of the wooden spoon. I reckon I'm odds on to win it.

[iceman]

Yes Steve, but won't have time today.

[[1ponders]]

Mike, I'm unable to access my answers to check. Is that option still available. All I get is a blank page with the sidebar and banner:shrug:

[iceman]

hmm me too, i'm sure it wasn't like that before. Mojo broke it I bet. Will take a look at it in the morning. I'm imaging now! :P

[mojo]

pffft :rolleyes: I'll take that bet.
Let me think... It was working on Thursday. It stopped working on Friday morning. Hmmmmm.... Now, who was it that uploaded new articles Friday morning. :confuse3:

Less imaging, more sync'ing.

[iceman]

Ok, my bad :P

All fixed, you can check your entries now :)

[RB]

LOL @ Terry.

:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup::lol:

[[1ponders]]

:rofl:

[mickal555]

How do we do that?

I feel I looked everywhere...

[iceman]

Go to the IIS1K Competition page, the answers are listed there. If you go to the entry page again, it'll show what you submitted as your answers.

So you can compare.

[mickal555]

Ah ok cool thanks :D

damn 7 (7,18,20,21,24,25,30) wrong...

[Sonia]

I got about half right - half wrong...Thats pretty crap *cries*

[Astroman]

24/30, my end, not a bad effort.

[Striker]

I think I got 25 / 30 either 4 or 5 wrong

Pretty happy with that....it beats my 10/30 last comp...lol

Just post my prizes as soon as they arrive Mike....hahaha

[33South]

I think I didnt do too bad but lost my copy of the answers.
One question (Q3) I was disappointed with the correct answer. I answered 1 - as being the minimum required:whistle:
[Explain]
The Herschelian reflector has only one mirror.
Reflectors are built for imaging where the imageing device replaces the secondary.

Ah well cant complain there was two others where I got the right answer that I was sure was wrong.:P

[ving]

crikey i went bad :P

[rogerg]

20/30 for me, 3 entries, hopefully that's all I need to win second place and get that observing chair :)

Roger.

[RB]

3 entries?

[rogerg]

From the competition info page: "Between 20 and 29 correct answers: 3 entries into the draw"

Roger.

[RB]

Cool.
I'm your typical male Roger - don't read instructions :lol:

[rogerg]

I know what you mean - I'd normally be the same, it must be the possibiliy of winning something that made me more dedicated to the task :)

Roger.

[RB]

I don't blame you, all the prizes are great but those chairs are essential IMO esspecially if you have a crook back like I do.

Good luck in the comp.
:thumbsup:

[mickal555]

Yeah- I really want that one too, I would've already bought one, but they are quite expensive...

[iceman]

II1K Draw Info (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=11562)

Be there or be square! :)

[ving]

L7 = me...

[iceman]

Ok some stats..

- 162 entries
- Highest score: 28/30, shared by 2 people (33South and Robert_T).
- Lowest score: 6/30, by 1 person.
- Total number of entries in the draw: 402. (Work out your chances of winning by diving your number of entries by 402 and times by 100 :) )
- Question 28 was the "easiest", with 91% of people getting it right (and that doesn't count q6 and q14 which everyone was marked correct on).
- Questions 7 and 24 were the "hardest", with only 14% of people getting it right (and that doesn't count q6 and q14 which everyone was marked correct on).

Here are a couple of graphs, showing the distribution of the score's people got (fairly linear), and also a graph showing the percentage% of people that got each question right.

Thanks!

[davidpretorius]

why was i not named as 6/30????

my only chance at fame on this site and it is gone forever!!!

[Robert_T]

now davo, how many mirrors does a reflector really have:D

[ving]

how middle-of-the-road am I! :)

just call me Mr Average

[mickal555]

I've got about ~2.7% chance :D

[davidpretorius]

1!

[33South]

That was my answer :thumbsup:

[spacezebra]

20/30 for me - thanks to those questions that had answers that were questionable.

3 entries Whoaaaaaa!:D

Cheers Petra

[iceman]

And the winners are... (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=11648)

[astronut]

Congratulations to all the winners:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Now......I think I'll have to increase the amount of bribery for next time...................:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[iluvsaturn]

Congratulations to all the winners, cannot wait for the next quiz.