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#33512 06/25/01 02:03 PM
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tsuwm Offline OP
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"a) pertaining to or connected with fermentation" was the correct answer and tied for most votes with five(5); rodward, alex, mav, rapunzel and bingley all score two points. squid submitted the following definition: relating to the enzymotic process of fermentation, and then had the unmitigated gall to vote for a) as well.. my, my, how will the scoring tsar treat that?! WO'N garnered five(5) votes for his chewing gum entry (but one was his own) -- what's up with that?? hyla got two(2) votes for his geological transition zone (well written, indeed) and bingley got two(2) votes for bee-stings (eeew). oh, and jazzo gets one(1) for caramelized sugar (hi spart-ann).

william o'neill              4
bingley 4
hyla 2
rodward 1
alex williams 1
maverick 2
rapunzel 1
jazzo 1
squid 3... no... 2... no... -5 -- oh, Kinara's a newbie, make it 3

scores to date:
Bingley.................... 12+4=16
tsuwm......................14
Geoff........................13
Sparteye...................11
paulb........................10
rodward.................... 9+1=10
wordcrazy.................8
Flatlander..................6
maverick....................5+2=7
WhitmanO’Neill...........2+4=6
jimthedog...................4
Rapunzel...................4+1=5
Bridget96...................4
Jazzoctopus..............4+1=5
Hyla...........................1+2=3
squid..........................1+3=4
wwh..........................3
fiberbabe....................3
RhubarbCommando.....3
Jackie........................2
Faldage......................2
freckled_snout............1
Alex Williams..............+1=1


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tsuwm Offline OP
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so, Bingley... as the new leader, I'm passing the baton to you -- unless you want to quit while we're ahead.


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Pertaining to your truly excellent stint, thank you batonmeister!


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I hate to confuse the issue, but...shouldn't I have gotten only one point since I didn't submit a definition?


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tsuwm Offline OP
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>only one point

too right. also true for Alex and rodward. oops.


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Pardon the whining sound that must accompany this post, but I had scored one entire point in a previous round, for a correct guess on maffle, so my total should be 3.

While I'm whining - could a little more time be given to each round? I missed the vote by virtue of being out of the office on Friday, and could have failed to guess correctly if given more time (but at least I would have given someone else a point).

On a non-whining note: zymurgy, typically the last entry in the dictionary, is "a branch of applied chemistry that deals with fermentation processes." I used to work in a microbrewery, and the brewer had a master's degree in zymurgy, and a masterful touch as well. But what's up with zumic and zymurgy? They look pretty similar and have very similar meanings, but why the u/y switch, and the i/u switch? Any info on etymological relationships on these two wonders of the world?


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tsuwm Offline OP
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>my total should be 3.
yes. I think i copied the wrong scoresheet for basing my update. oops.

>could a little more time be given to each round?
the polls were open from Th evening until M morning at 10, but the only rush was me wanting to get the thing off my plate.

as to the etymology, you're definitely on to something. I'll post the OED entry when I can copy it, but essentially it relates to some folks back in the mists of recorded usage getting it wrong.

zymic - In actual use zumic ("zju;mIk). [f. Gr. ? leaven + -ic.]
Pertaining to or connected with fermentation; formerly applied to a supposed acid (afterwards shown to be impure lactic acid) obtained by fermentation of starchy substances.
1817 T. Thomson Syst. Chem. (ed. 5) II. 189 Of Zumic Acid. I give this name to an acid recently discovered by M. Braconnot. 1826 Henry Elem. Chem. II. 241.


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one vote for himself...what's up with that?

Well, tsuwm, when I looked over the entries I found myself in the ironic position of actually liking mine, bluff that it was, the best! So rather than throw a vote away to the wind, and since I already had the venerable Max on board and it was early in the vote, I thought I'd add a plug for my definition in hopes of, perhaps, instigating a trend.
And since I captured the 3 points I might have won with a wild guess, maybe it worked!

not believing (my definition)

And, mav, actually the second part of my bluff def is absolutely true...children in the 19th Century would pluck nodules of sap from spruce and balsam trees, pop them into their mouth until they softened up, and chew them as the first 'chewing gum.' Today's gums, of course, are just artificial concoctions based on that practice!
As William Blake once said,
A truth that's told with bad intent
Beats all the lies you can invent!


But why am I giving all my "trade" secrets away?




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tsuwm Offline OP
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one vote for himself...what's up with that?

let me explain myself through more proper use of ellipsis...
garnered five(5) votes for his chewing gum entry (...) -- what's up with that??

but you mostly answered the question when you addressed mav, I guess. <shrug>

the second part of my bluff def is absolutely true

as an interesting aside, while we're talking gamesmanship, I almost left this second part out, as it didn't seem to add anything definition-wise, and looked out-of-place to me. but I figured, "nah, he put it in -- who am I to try to make his bluff read better."

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I think I should get some points for some reason.
(How about consistent non scoring?)


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