Final Jeopardy: The 21st Century (9-16-21)
Today’s Final Jeopardy question (9/16/2021) in the category “The 21st Century” was:
In 2009 this 11-year-old started posting on BBC’s Urdu language website under the screen name Gul Makai
21x champ Matt Amodio, a PhD student from New Haven, CT won $740,001 so far. In Game 22, he takes on these two players: Emily Sharp-Kellar, a medical school director of admissions from Chicago, IL; and Keisha Virtue, a senior retail research analyst from Boca Raton, FL.
Round 1 Categories: During the William Henry Harrison Administration – Right Here in River City – Motorcycles – “C” Flat – More than One Meaning – Muhammad Ali
Matt found the Jeopardy! round Daily Double in “Motorcycles” under the $800 clue, with 10 clues to go after it. He was in the lead with $5,400, $2,800 more than Emily in second place. He bet $5,400 and guessed handles after the buzzer went off. That was WRONG anyway.
On a motorcycle, it’s a flip-out lever on the side used to spin the engine & not an online money raiser. show
Emily finished in the lead with $4,600. Keisha was second with $2,200 and Matt was last at negative $600. No clues went uncovered.
Round 2 Categories: Let’s Visit Central Europe – A Look at Books – Science & Medicine – The First Name Their Mom Chose – Prime Numbers – Slow Talk
Matt found the first Daily Double in “Let’s Visit Central Europe” under the $800 clue on the 12th pick. He was in first place with $10,600 now, $3,600 more than Emily in second place. He went all in and he was RIGHT.
The German town of Baden-Baden is in the northwest corner of this wooded region. show
Matt got the last Daily Double in “The First Name Their Mom Chose” under the $1,600 clue, with 9 clues left after it. In first place with $27,200, he had $17,000 more than Emily in second place. He bet $2,000 and he was RIGHT.
Frontiersman Kit Carson & actor Kit Harington. show
Matt finished in the lead with a runaway $30,400, a helluva comeback after starting the round in the red!! Emily was next with $11,800 and Keisha was in third place with $5,800. No clues went uncovered.
ALL of the contestants got Final Jeopardy! right.
In 2007, Malala Yousafzai was just 10 years old when the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley region of Pakistan where she lived. The Taliban banned girls from attending school and destroyed hundreds of schools. Malala’s father was a fervent advocate of education who instilled a love of knowledge in his children. He and Malala took steps to inform the world of the Taliban’s atrocities. Malala started to blog anonymously on the BBC in early 2009 under the name “Gul Makai,” describing life under Taliban rule, but speaking out publicly by 2012 made Malala a target. She was shot in the head at age 15 by a Taliban gunman on 10/2/2012. Making a full and miraculous recovery, the courageous teenager chose to continue her fight “until every girl could go to school. With my father, who has always been my ally and inspiration, I established Malala Fund, a charity dedicated to giving every girl an opportunity to achieve a future she chooses. In recognition of our work, I received the Nobel Peace Prize in December 2014 and became the youngest-ever Nobel laureate.” (Malala tells her own story on the Malala Fund website).
Final Jeopardy from the third quarter-final of the 2016 Teen Tournament – Famous First Names: This first name of a 21st c. activist was inspired by that of a Pashtun heroine known as the Afghan Joan of Arc.
Keisha bet $5,700 and finished with $11,500.
Emily didn’t bet anything. She stayed at $11,800.
Matt bet $5,000, winning the game with $35,400. His 22-day total is $775,401.
2 triple stumpers from the MUHAMMAD ALI category, read by his daughter Hana Ali:
MUHAMMAD ALI ($400) “In my father’s greatest boxing rivalry, he won two out of three classic bouts with this other legendary champion whose relentless slugging style made an unforgettable contrast with my Dad’s speed and showmanship”
($800) “In 1978, my then 36-year-old Dad won the heavyweight title for an unprecedented third time with a triumphant decision over this young Olympic champion who had taken his crown just seven months earlier” (This was the clue that put Matt $600 in the red)
2 years ago: TWO of the players got this FJ in “American Museums”
President Johnson signed a law that added 2 words to the name of this museum established in 1946, D.C.’s most popular show
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Competent challengers tonight, but their lack of DDs in DJ made a big difference.
The only way to beat someone of his caliber is to hope he misses a big DD or two, or have the challengers find and hit them for big bucks. Otherwise, he’s unlikely to get outbuzzed or miss a FJ that others know.
Still a bit shocked Matt didn’t know Kickstarter, not to mention Joe Frazier or Leon Spinks. He seems to know a lot about people and things from all past eras.
His daily average remains roughly on par with Ken Jennings’.
I wish they would do a category on Boxing Nicknames. J-Archive only has one instance from a game on 9/20/2000. with these nicknames
($100) “The Greatest”
($200) “The Brown Bomber”
($300) “The Manassa Mauler”
($400) “Macho”
($500) “The Real Deal”
One of Ali’s nicknames is in there. Frazier’s was “Smokin’ Joe” and Spinks was “Neon Leon” 🤣🤣
Last time this was a Final Jeopardy! clue, Teen Tournament contestant Michael Kwan wrote an extra “la” at the end of her first name.
Great job, Matt!
Wow a rough start for Matt in the first round, but he finally made a comeback in the second round after that daily double didn’t pay off for him. I thought he was a goner for sure, but still another win under his belt for now. Malala has been in the news all over after her near death experience at the hands of the taliban. Just hope that the next game will not have Matt falter on another daily double though. I really hope he makes it to 30 or 33 wins and that million dollar mark.